mirror to mirror - just escaping - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Melodic synth progressions from Alex Twomey (Jugular Forest) that alternate and entangle with underwater-like tape loops; foreboding, though ultimately optimistic in the end. Recorded a year ago, and still fitting comfortably with his recent efforts (buy 'em). Late night music, like a shooting star over the Anaheim Disneyland sky.
brandon nickell - the world is arefuge from perfection - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Beginning with Aemae and now working under his own name, Brandon Nickell has spent the last decade taking cues from nearly all generations of analog and digital sound development and shaping them into a unique, fully realized vocabulary all his own. The compositions here are fluid, all captured with impeccable clarity; bell-tones and intricate layers of overlapping digital and analog synthesis intertwine within the stereo field. Remarkable material by an artist to watch this year.
skin graft - far worse - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Blocks of tense, disorienting and depraved sound sculpture from Wyatt Howland, who needs no introduction at this point. Crumbling noise, piercing tones and voyeuristic open air recordings conjure up only the bleakest thoughts. There is no way to get clean; truly unsettling work that reaches new conceptual heights for this project.
sky stadium - setting vision - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Pensive and deliberate, New Jersey's Jeffrey Roman mines a similar approach to that of Mirror To Mirror -- slowly unfolding melodies rife with symbolism. His pieces are the early morning sibling to Alex's night meditations, all upward keys and filter sweeps. One of the more optimistic efforts in the Monorail catalogue.
monsturo - CTS14 - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
David Rothbaum is perhaps the most remarkable composer working in the field of modular synthesis -- and also it's most minimalist. He certainly knows his equipment inside and out; opting to focus on specific sustained tones that gain intensity with a slow burn, rather than the pure showmanship of his contemporaries. Recent live sets have displayed a more chordal quality, and that is highlighted on these two brief tracks of spare, yet detailed tonal works.
droughter - death charm- monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Before 'wall noise' simplified creative development for a generation of noiseheads, there were the mid-90's -- arguably the most influential period for many. Without narrowing sub-genre tags, artists created work with substance, heart and soul -- work that was at once monotonous, yet dynamic; dirty and lo-fi, yet clear; primitive, yet detailed -- physical. The spirit of that era is the main influence for Droughter here; using only crude electronics and tape loops, Kevin McEleney looks back, yet doesn't get trapped in a time capsule.
wrong hole - virgins go to hell, fuck your way to heaven- monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
A new prodigy following in the tradition of Weak Sisters, 18-year old Nial Morgan has been ruling the game in Los Angeles for the past year; consistently one-upping himself and gaining momentum at an astonishing rate. The tracks here display his ability to craft both well-paced harsh noise and dark urban-noir sound collage. An instant, shining classic of noise composition -- and hope for the future at once.
without belonging- without belonging - monorail trespassing / callow god - 2xcass - 10$
2 c-10s from Jon Borges & Jeffrey D. Witscher
without belonging - solace - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
Jon Borges & Jeffrey D. Witscher
without belonging - forgiveness - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
jon borges - emptiness / worthless - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
pedestrian deposit - live lung motor - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
everyday loneliness - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
before, after - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
mike pollard(treetops, pale blue sky, arbor) & jon borges (emaciator, everyday loneliness, pedestrian deposit)
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marble sky - sway - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
winter seclusion from frozen fields. absolutely flawless and well-paced synth / guitar work -- bursting through thick clouds and shining bright, but always near the darkness. somewhere, something is wrong; somewhere else, Dreams are Coming True. edition of 125, full color covers and glossy labels.
-mt
pedestrian deposit - damsel - monorail trespassing - cass -7$
rale - golden, sans noun - monorail trespassing - cass -7$
emaciator - appease - monorail trespassing - cass -7$
aaron dilloway - mousetrap - monorail trespassing - cass -7$
seeing red; swirling tape loops and throbbing synth
tones, audible disposal and decay. classic dilloway in
his own zone. act fast. edition of 100, full color
covers and glossy labels.
-mt
phantom pains - obelisk- monorail trespassing - cass - 7$
"Eric Haney of SF has been releasing a steady string of tapes this past year on his Beach House label (as well as Accidie). Two sides of dark drift, overtaken and swarmed by distant-sounding noise roar, and even more distant chords. This is dark ambient, expanded, without the cringeworthy cultural baggage."
josh burke - vista - monorail trespassing - cass - 7$
"Past and future meet; underwater melodies drift off between crude and abupt tape edits. Burke has an uncanny ability to channel the subconscious in great detail -- much more so than others in his field who lack the sentimentality and / or melodicism. Inspired by the phenomenon of synchronicity."
kevin greenspon - unveiling - monorail trespassing - cass - 7$
"Los Angeles' hardest working man. What may appear to be all bright light soon gets covered by dark clouds. Greenspon combines elements of ambient music, drone, collage and harsh noise, all condensed into song form. Six tracks of delicate compositions for guitar, keyboard, and tapes."
cloaked light - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
jewish uprising - deseperate prince charming - monorail trespassing - cass - 5$
c-6
paranoid time - pass out or die trying - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
raw, harsh grits, beyond the trite wall followers; a
distinctive sound amongst blatant, heartless poseurs.
burrowing electronics, feedback, and junk metal abuse
for drinking binges into unconsciousness, plus the
morning after. edition of 100, full color covers and
glossy labels.
-mt
various - project housing - monorail trespassing - cass - 6$
assembled one dick-spitting summer -- completely in the red zone, 'no tomorrow' style. play this at your next stick-and-poke session, or while you're out ruining other parties. features trash dog, public bummer, cell block, snakebite, rawar, pukers, jewish uprising, total abuse, deep jew (final recording), chameleoness, and marine rape. essential l.a. scum / crew document -- more real and raw than any of the media darling / art world bands here. volume two to follow shortly. edition of 150, glossy covers and labels.
-mt