bugskull “communication” long playing record

• floppy drive
  
• high steppin' ii
  
• hazy window
  
• remarkably human
  
• exposed wires
  
  
• squeeky bagpipe
  
• communication
  
• pondlife
  
• pondlife
  
• subterranean life
  
• what's that light?

seht “hrry” long playing record and three inch compact disc recordable set

• argh
  
• ungh
  
• spft
  
  
• erkk
  
• mpfh (new brutalist edit)
  
• tdob (for olivier messiaen)
  
• jnkg
  
• jzza
  
  
• bonus 3”cdr - mpfh (two munters version)

digitalis vinyl press release...

digiv004: seht "hrry" lp+3" cdr since digitalis first planted its roots over six years ago, few artists have been as integral to and representative of the label as new zealand's drone king, seht. we've released three of his albums and he's appeared on multiple compilations and collaborations. seht has always been the work of one stephen clover. he comes from a long line of great kiwis like the dead c and birchville cat motel, but has always blazed along similar trails as giants such as tony conrad, eno, and olivier messiaen. that being said, none of it prepared us for the leap forward he took on his first ever vinyl release, "hrry." while some artists struggle to make music that is wholly avante-garde and still approachable and listenable, clover avoids those pitfulls masterfully. "hrry" is in exercise in the use of crackling electronics, minimal beats, computer manipulation and solid-state drones. each track slowly progresses as they build off each other and form a sprawling conglomeration of tones. it's as if you're stuck in a post-apocalyptic dreamworld where industrial giants are fighting back against the warm, relentless elegance of nature. even though the arsenal clover is using is as unnatural as it gets, the music on "hrry" displays such an innate organicness that it's almost confusing. from the computerized voice of "erkk" to the throbbing beat of "spft," it's as though he's gone so far into the mechanical, man-made world that he's come all the way to the other side. "hrry" is a dark album that is glazed with a sense of hope. echoes of the ghosts of basinski ride through these ambient rivers, trying to find new forms of electronic music. it's music for the second coming... of what? an era where all the rotting buildings and shades of grey breathe new life into the elemental ashes of fallen empires. lp comes in silver & black fold-out poster sleeve and is strictly limited to 150 copies.

morgan egg / mark lord “last chance in heaven b/w discontinue stardust” long playing record

• movement 1 (3:19)
  
• movement 2 (4:32)
  
• movement 3 (5:16)
  
• movement 4 (2:59)
  
  
• discontinue stardust (2:40)
  
• obscene supremacy (3:53)
  
• maze 29 (1:43)
  
• warpath (4:54)

no press release...

morgan egg last chance in heaven recorded in may 2009 “creating the aura of strangeness all by itself” mark lord discontinue stardust thanks : mirror memori modular hr16 cz101 tapes vl1 homemade sequencer recorded 4trk boys town ii may 2009 cf

daniel arcus incus ululat higgs “devotional songs of daniel higgs” c90 cassette

• devotional songs (1) (45:00)
  
  
• devotional songs (2) (45:00)

open mouth press release...

diagram a “human tissue press : vinyl removal” long playing record

• human tissue press
  
  
• vinyl removal

may 2009 release ; music from dan “diagram a” greenwood, using an unusual telephone-handset-coated instrument of his own devising / construction :: that ... thing pumps out a bizarre array of crackling squawks & chirrups ; presumably controlled (at least in part) by mr. greenwood via a succession of switches and toggles (there’s a computer keyboard in their somewhere as well i believe) ... sound-wise (listen to the sound-sample) it’s not far from the recent closed feedback-loop experiments of greg kelley & bryan eubanks, yet much grimier ... fascinating stuff, and, interestingly, the first vinyl release from bill nace’s open mouth ...

open mouth press release...

daniel a.i.u. higgs “plays the mirror of the apocalypse and other songs” compact disc

• (5:33)
  
• (10:59)
  
• (6:58)
  
• (3:41)
  
• (3:36)
  
• (15:03)
  
• (4:58)
  
• (9:29)
  
• (1:16)

justin meyers “the amplitude of neighbors” c20 cassette

• both sides
  
  
• a visitor

arbor press release...

arbor 123 justin meyers the amplitude of neighbors c20 minneapolis’ justin meyers has been producing extremely discreet musique concrete for the past few years. through field recordings meyers achieves a double sided voyeurism; his capturing of another’s space, and the listeners glimpse into his space. his care and precision demands attention with an unconscious magnetism; on both sides the recording of an outdoor summer’s evening is paired with subtle beating frequencies symbiotically shifting in and out of the other, producing a deeply compelling command over space. this same phenomena is explored on a visitor. composed solely of sine waves, infinite variations of listening interaction are possible, imposing the piece directly within the space of the listener. in an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.

cloaked light “plain curtain” c15 cassette

• a long green hall
  
  
• but i’m trying

arbor press release...

arbor 122 cloaked light plain curtain c15 these early four-track experiments from peter friel’s cloaked light project offer a look into focus. with the slowest subtlety changes grow, only perceptible through reflection. a new form of seeking to understand; a non-linear music, offering a space of contemplation to look forward and behind. on a long green hall friel shifts meaning and reorients the place of speech in a lucierian experiment with self-help tapes. on but i’m trying, subtle tonal expansions mirror the manipulation of speech on the previous track, though without the recognizable markers of language the result is more obscured. each track offers insight to the others processes. recorded in summer 2009, these tracks are some of the earliest from the project, a precursory inquiry to the tapes on ekhein and monorail. upcoming split 12” ep with pale blue sky further explores the nature of tonal interactions and non-linear explorations of sound. in an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.

rale “whispering gallery” long playing record

• folding bedroom (11:50)
  
  
• somehow (12:20)

trauma “calming effects of the ocean vol. 3” c30 cassette

• calming effects of the ocean vol. 3 (1)
  
  
• calming effects of the ocean vol. 3 (2 )

arbor press release...

arbor118 trauma - "calming effects of the ocean vol. 3" c30 the third chapter of trauma’s six part series (other volumes on fag tapes, excite bike, tapeworm tapes, holy cheever church, and american tapes) finds the detroit duo of percussionist ben hall and guitarist chris riggs adrift in texture. neither’s role can be distinguished; a seriously strange and pure approach. percussive guitar and melodic drums intertwine denying all points of departure. the piece constantly advances incessantly in a blur of energy; almost non-human: like a field recording of playerless instruments outside during a rainstorm. in an edition of 100 tapes with full color cardstock covers and printed labels.

james ferraro “citrac” double long playing record set

• red ant human
  
• computer chipped police
  
• virtual pain
  
• cyber marine
  
• surveillance
  
  
• rally at world watch arena
  
• chance altar
  
• gates surrounding control tower
  
• flesh circuit
  
• public execution of a no mark
  
• mark change on highway
  
  
• wired tribe
  
• digital gods
  
• subculture 2090
  
  
• liquid metal excerpt 1

arbor press release...

arbor106 james ferraro - "citrac" 2xlp the citrac collection presents one of james ferraro’s most cinematic visions; showing his recent mode of soundworld creation in top form. by shying away from pure musical creation and opting towards the organic birth of sonic universes james finds a new way to tell a story. evoking vastly imaginative imagery, this 80+ minute suite spanning two lps, contains the previously released “postremo techno mundus symposium”, excerpts and alternative edits from liquid metal’s alternative soundtrack to “digital overdrive”, and the all new “digital tribe”. presenting deep-nightmarish atmospheres of surveillance and captivity on through the rush of the open road; the hypnotic, lo-fi result is one that could only come from ferraro’s alien mind, eternally stuck in a 1980s vision of an impossibly archaic future. in an edition of 400 double lps with full color printed inner-sleeves in pro-printed black and white cardboard sleeves and printed labels by james.--

carlos giffoni “the absence of essence” double seven inch single record set

• the absence (4:11)
  
  
• lift (4:05)
  
  
• signs (5:30)
  
• angles & arcs (4:24)

arbor press release...

arbor99 carlos giffoni - "the absence of essence" 2x7" carlos giffoni’s heavy synthesizer work recalls the crushing, massiveness of early industrial music. completely consuming the air around it with heavy vibrations and total deprivation. these four tracks rip holes through the sonic barriers, loud and powerful but with entrancing subtleties and discreet builds. the nature of the 7” format does not harm giffoni’s work which normally exists in extended lengths; instead very succinct and unwavering compositions result: creating four vignettes of grey industrial zones. as the person responsible for no fun productions and the no fun fest, this brooklyn transplants presence in the current progression of the genre is undeniable. in an edition of 400 2x7”(one on white vinyl and one on black) sets in gatefold sleeves with art by maya miller of heavy tapes / religious knives.

dead machines “plays invasion of the body snatchers” one-sided long playing record

• plays invasion of the body snatchers (20:10)

maniacs dream “zanzibar” long playing record

• untitled (1)
  
  
• untitled (2)

arbor press release...

arbor82 maniacs dream - "zanzibar" lp finland is the epicenter of collective music making. under the name maniacs dream, members of finnish bands such as avarus, fricara pacchu, kemialliset ystävät, and more come together to create blown out free rock. their unique/bizarre approach to music making, constantly questioning the construction/deconstruction of sound creates songs at times recalling the electro acoustic clatter drone of avarus crossed with tribal rhythms and intergalactic kraut rock guitar zones. total sonic freedom with a punk ethos directly influenced by a trip to zanzibar prior to recording this record (which is a reissue of the long sold out tape originally released on lal lal lal in 2006). in an edition of 450 records on light blue vinyl with printed labels and full color proprinted foldover sleeves with art by benjamin bergman and an insert.

god willing / privvy seals “split” long playing record

• god willing - bob blobs
  
  
• privy seals - the sword and the stone

gregg kowalsky “tapes chants: early experiments” c30 cassette

• tapes chants: early experiments (1)
  
  
• tapes chants: early experiments (2)

arbor press release...

arbor 77 gregg kowalsky tapes chants: early experiments c30 bay area composer gregg kowalsky has spent the past few years experimenting with the cassette tape as an instrument; utilizing the placement of portable walkmen and the psychoacoustic effect of their natural interactions. this, gregg’s first cassette release, presents experiments from his most recent record on kranky, tape chants. on early experiments he uses cassettes as a way to transfer and manipulate environments. through mechanisms of the tape player he can adjust pitch and amplitude, while through mixing he combines various sources and field recordings creating new, recontexualized moments. this simple though calculated approach harkens back to the earliest days of tape music and recorded sound; creation with what already exists, reorganizing natural occurrences. in an edition of 125 copies with cardstock covers and labeled tapes.

secret abuse “the immeasurable gift” long playing record

• futility
  
• grin
  
• carefully opening the window
  
  
• the deepest roots
  
• must leave sometime
  
• light

noise nomads “tone deaf // dry blood” double c20 cassette boxed set

• tone deaf : tape 1 (1)
  
  
• tone deaf : tape 1 (2)
  
  
• tone deaf : tape 2 (1)
  
  
• tone deaf : tape 2 (2)

kites / earth crown “freedom from all the rotten motherfuckers b/w encryptor : talk quick 1-9” long playing record

• earth crown - freedom from all the rotten motherfuckers
  
• earth crown - future scum is now
  
  
• kites - talk quick beq
  
• kites - 256 cypress
  
• kites - demultiplexed xerox “sigma”
  
• kites - pepsi cola salad
  
• kites - autosevocom
  
• kites - pegasus crib sheet
  
• kites - samsung verizon hitachi
  
• kites - telephone “good girl”
  
• kites - mig owl 87

arbor press release...

arbor60 / np59 kites / earth crown - split lp this is a cold vision of a dark trash covered future full of sci fi nightmares and strange out of body experiences. this is the final kites recording and is perhaps the strangest and most chaotic piece in the prolific discography. annihilation synth and tape collage, cut up, sped up and dialed to oblivion. earth crown steps it back, slows down the pulse, lets the edges of the static curl around the drone to the breaking point, where the damage is let loose, purged out and built again. this lp is a reminder of how cold, desolate, and haunting life can be. in an edition of 400 lps with inserts, printed labels and silkscreened covers by shawn reed featuring art by kites and earth crown. co-released with night people.

lazy magnet / social junk “split” c60 cassette

• lazy magnet - yet from the highest crown no blossom fell
  
  
• social junk - fallout
  
• social junk - terminal
  
• social junk - lockdown
  
• social junk - days that follow

arbor press release...

arbor 59  lazy magnet / social junk split c60 jeremy harris’ lazy magnet project has been active for well over a decade though the work has remained relatively shrouded in mystery. a true nomad; shifting location and inspiration, following whatever path may prevent itself. under the lazy magnet guise, harris has explored an innumerable amount of musical styles, adapting each to his uses. on “yet from the highest crown no blossom fell” harris (along with sakiko mori of daily life) explores the sci-fi textures of digital synthesizers. a drifting score from the providence futuristic district where man and machine meet to look inside each other. philadelphia’s social junk present four tracks operating from a similarly paired industrial sci-fi stance. some of the groups strongest work, recorded in december 2008 while still living in oakland, ca. feedback is tamed into a smooth element, as pliable as the human voice. the union of these organic/inorganic elements create a unique sense of melody from within the warehouse; clearing away the trash, polishing the concrete. in an edition of 125 copies with full color cardstock covers and labeled tapes.

traum “built for nothing” one-sided long playing record

• built for nothing

c. spencer yeh / sick llama “split” seven inch single record

• c. spencer yeh - solo violin 11 (4:34)
  
  
• sick llama - untitled (5:47)

soft shoulder “untitled” compact disc recordable

• clap and cough
  
• slumber party in a grime hut

youth of the beast “lantern” seven inch single record

• lantern is destroyed
  
  
• will follow grackle

shearing pinx / silver daggers “split” seven inch single record

• shearing pinx - gold sleeper
  
• shearing pinx - baton
  
• shearing pinx - slaughterhaus
  
  
• silver daggers - the joys of being solitude w/dialog (at the smell)
  
• silver daggers - life freedom-style in all it’s pride + glory