Posts tagged arc.
If you have been busy listening to witch house (and if you haven’t, please do) you’re probably familiar with Ʌ (or “arc”). Xavier, the guy behind Ʌ, has now embarked on a new collaborative project called ABE SADA with Brady Gunnell. Their music is still in demo-state and in need of some fine tuning, but they have already released a couple of songs via myspace that you can listen to.
“Jazz-Noir, Cocteau Twins in the desert, saloon engulfed in flames, throwing tourmaline crystals down a white dune, ice skating on a glacier”
That’s how ABE SADA describe their own music, and I would say that it’s a pretty accurate description of what the tracks sound like. It’s definitely way less dark than the music Xavier makes as Ʌ, though there are still some witchy elements in there that remind me of that project, not in the least the distorted vocals on “03 (SCIENCE ON THE INSIDE)” and “05 (BLACK BAR TROMBONE)”.
Yet it’s especially the other tracks that I think are interesting because of their exploration of ambient landscapes and different emotions. Listening to “01 (SALT FLAT)”, the track I included here, you can easily imagine yourself marching across a barren wasteland, feeling very much alive yet being struck by a sudden melancholy. And both “06 (TOURMALINE FALLS)” and “07 (THE WOODEN HEEL)” are amazingly beautiful tracks that carry you away to another place and time, that place you only dream about in your most perfect (day)dreams.
You can listen to all of the tracks on ABE SADA’s myspace page.
Fun/creepy fact: the band was named after this woman.
Xavier Valentine, who releases his music as Ʌ (or “arc”) has to be one of the busiest or most productive witch house artists. His output is unbelievable and difficult to keep track of. In the last six months he has released numerous EP’s, split releases, collaborations and he frequently mails his subscribers new mp3’s. Just yesterday Valentine announced a new alter ego of his called MINARETTE, a dark disco project with danceable beats.
What I want to talk to you about in this post is his EP Patriot Hills, latest release of witch house label Tundra Dubs. The EP is best described as ambient drag, with its slow rhythms, drony background and pitched-down vocals. Yet there’s a lot of variation in sounds, ranging from piano and delayed guitar (“WURLITZER”) to pounding dance beats (“insults”) and sometimes a nice bit of distortion.
If you like ambient drone music with the occasional beat and a witch house twist, Patriot Hills will be something you’ll enjoy, though in my opinion it doesn’t reach the same level as █████‡█████ or Maacht ist der Verlust ist Gewinn Gefängnis. Listen to the Patriot Hills EP here:
Tundra is offering the EP for a couple of bucks up on their bandcamp, including a lyric sheet. Stay updated on future Tundra releases by following them on tumblr and twitter. And find Ʌ on bandcamp and tumblr.
