Monthly Archives: February 2025

Expedient Self – Speaker EP (Submarine Broadcasting Company)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

SubCastCo is super buzzed to welcome Expedient Self to our aquatic vessel.

I first heard this work on a weekend where for some universally signposted reason I encountered three albums by solo artists working the fertile field of guitar loops. Pleasingly, they were all very different.

‘Speaker’ is a wonderful, idiosyncratic and original take on the loop strategy.

Expedient Self is Brighton, UK based artist Simon Chandler. Active since 2019 releasing 2 previous EP’s and a single.

The EP ‘Chairs’ was reviewed in The Wire.

“Chairs

Expedient Self MC

Expedient Self is a solo electric guitar project created by Brighton’s Simon Chandler. He uses looped figures to create an array of different sounds, which he piles up in ways that resemble Frippertronics NOT ONE WHIT. Even the quieter pieces tend toward dissonance in a way that most such music does not, and the more active passages can be almost (fr)antic (sic).
Chandler has a great sense of how to assemble discordant elements into a weirdly coherent whole, creating a very heavy ambience that is not ambient at all.”

Spite Cathedral – The Rag Doll Transition (Aural Films)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

IN HIS NEW RELEASE, ‘’THE RAG DOLL TRANSITION’’, SPITE CATHEDRAL TAKES LISTENERS ON AN IMAGINATIVE JOURNEY THAT IS BOTH EMOTIONALLY EVOCATIVE AND SONICALLY ADVENTUROUS. SPANNING AN IMPRESSIVE 70 MINUTES, THE ALBUM SERVES AS AN AURAL SOUNDTRACK FOR A BLUE- HAIRED DOLL, WHO UNDERGOES THE TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE OF BECOMING HUMAN, GRAPPLING WITH THE WHIRLWIND OF NEW EMOTIONS THAT COME WITH IT. THE CONCEPT ALONE IS ENOUGH TO PIQUE CURIOSITY, BUT SPITE CATHEDRAL’S EXECUTION SOLIDIFIES HIS PLACE AS A MASTER OF GENRE-BENDING ARTISTRY.

THE ALBUM KICKS OFF WITH THE MELODIC MINIMALISTIC ‘’THE RAG DOLL TRANSITION THEME (INTRO)’’, SETTING A THEATRICAL TONE THAT PREPARES THE LISTENER FOR THE EMOTIONAL DEPTHS TO COME. FROM HERE, ‘’THE RAG DOLL TRANSITION’’ SEAMLESSLY BLENDS A VARIETY OF STYLES—INDUSTRIAL TEXTURES CLASH WITH ABSTRACT AMBIENT SOUNDSCAPES, EACH TRACK PUSHING THE EMOTIONAL ENVELOPE. IN “CHANCE MEETING,” HIS PAST IN ROCK BANDS AND SHOEGAZE INFLUENCES UNVEILS WITH LAYERED GUITARS THAT EVOKE NOSTALGIA, SKILLFULLY EXPRESSING THE WONDER AND TREPIDATION OF FIRST ENCOUNTERS IN THIS NEW HUMAN EXPERIENCE.

THE TRACK “I’M NOT YOUR DOLL” SHOWCASES SPITE CATHEDRAL’S INNOVATIVE USE OF THEMATIC 80’S SYNTHWAVE, PERFECTLY ENCAPSULATING THE STRUGGLE FOR IDENTITY AND AUTONOMY. IT’S A STANDOUT MOMENT, EMBODYING THE DOLL’S QUEST FOR EQUALITY AND SELF-DEFINITION AGAINST A BACKDROP OF PULSATING SYNTHS. CONVERSELY, “AT THE JAZZ CLUB” DELIVERS ANOTHER EERIE TWIST WITH IT’S MUSIQUE CONCRETE AND FREE JAZZ INFLUENCES, CREATING AN ATMOSPHERE OF SPONTANEITY THAT MIRRORS THE UNPREDICTABILITY OF EMOTION.

EACH TRACK FEELS LIKE A SNAPSHOT OF THE DOLL’S TRANSFORMATIVE JOURNEY— ‘’SOMBRE’’ BRINGS A SENSE OF WONDER WITH IT’S STRANGE EMOTIONAL SINGING THAT SOUNDS LIKE IT’S COMING FROM THE DOLL!!? , WHILE “PEEL IT JIM” LEANS INTO SADDER, MORE INTROSPECTIVE TERRITORIES. THE MORE ABSTRACT PIECES, SUCH AS “OUTWARDS! OUTWARDS!” AND “I HAD THE STRANGEST OF FEELINGS,” INVITE LISTENERS TO EXPLORE COMPLEX EMOTIONAL LANDSCAPES, ACCENTUATED BY INTRICATE SOUND DESIGN THAT SPINS A WEB OF TENSION AND RELIEF.

AS THE ALBUM PROGRESSES, TRACKS LIKE “A VAGUE MEMORY”, ‘‘EXASPERATION’’ AND “HONEY” ARE EVOCATIVE OF THE HIGHS AND LOWS THAT COME WITH THE TERRITORY OF NEWFOUND AWARENESS, EACH NOTE CAREFULLY CRAFTED TO ELICIT A VISCERAL RESPONSE. THE PENULTIMATE TRACK, INWARDS…,” CONFRONTS THE LISTENER WITH AN OTHERWORDLY ATMOSPHERE AND A FRAGMENTED MELODY LINE THAT EMBODIES THE DOLL’S DETERMINED STRIDE TOWARD SELF- DISCOVERY.

THE FINALE, “THE RAG DOLL TRANSITION THEME (OUTRO),” BRINGS THE JOURNEY FULL CIRCLE, ENCAPSULATING THE STORY WITH A NEW TAKE OF THE OPENING THEME.

IN SUMMARY, ‘’THE RAG DOLL TRANSITION’’ IS MORE THAN JUST AN ALBUM; IT’S AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE THAT SHOWCASES SPITE CATHEDRAL’S UNPARALLELED ABILITY TO WEAVE INTRICATE NARRATIVES WITHIN HIS SOUND. WITH HIS MIX OF STYLES HE HAS CRAFTED A COMPELLING SOUNDTRACK THAT RESONATES ON BOTH EMOTIONAL AND AUDITORY LEVELS. THIS IS AN ALBUM THAT DEMANDS YOUR ATTENTION AND WARRANTS REPEATED LISTENS—AN EXPLORATION OF IDENTITY THAT WILL LEAVE LISTENERS REFLECTING ON THEIR OWN TRANSITIONS LONG AFTER IT CONCLUDES.

credits

released February 14, 2025

COMPOSITIONS BY DAN STIELOW MORTAZAVI.
RECORDED AT MAN-MADE WALLS, SWEDEN JANUARY 2025.
MASTERED BY TYST FÖR FAN, JAG HÖR INTE.
ARTWORK BY ALIEN INK.
ARTIST BIO.

Spite Cathedral is Dan Stielow Mortazavi’s main project.
He has been producing music since his teenage years and his very first recordings that was released in the early eighties as a DIY cassette of 50 copies and was released on vinyl three decades later on the Dark Entries label.

DSM is a diverse artist working with visuals and wide range of music projects either alone or with other artists in projects such as Suspended In Gaffa, Our Mothers Meds, I Wish I Could Speak Your Language, Atish Pare, Ism and ATE23 to name a few. He also done remixes for labels like Ant-Zen and Insatiable Society. He has played numerous venues and clubs through the years and played at Denmarks Roskilde Festival both as a preforming artist and as a DJ.
spitecathedral.bandcamp.com

© 2025 DAN STIELOW MORTAZAVI. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Aural Films is an online record label (netlabel) that releases high-quality soundtrack albums for movies that do not exist. We cover a wide range of music styles ranging from ambient to experimental to popular to soundtrack musics. Often on the same albums. You can find our complete catalog of releases online at AuralFilms.com

Aural Films Catalog No. AF0447

Bim Prongs / {AN} EeL – Big Prongs (Pan Pan Pan Avian Distress Call)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

Super Chuffed to present this – The second full length Collab & First full length Studio Album by the Two Headed, Two Eyed Roaring Source of Underground Weirdo Pride, that’s right, You Called it ( Your Shot from the BalconY ) Stunned to present The Bim Prongs & {AN} EeL.

credits

released February 14, 2025

Bim Prongs –

www.recordism.com/TBP2.html

thebimprongs.bandcamp.com/album/walking-in-rhythm

Sounds & Noises = Bim Prongs / {AN} EeL
Text & Image = {AN} EeL

The Cube Of Unknowing – Bog Summoner (Library Of The Occult)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description: Renowned composer and sound artist Francis Heery, under his alias The Cube of Unknowing, announces the release of his latest sonic expedition, ‘Bog Summoner’, via Library of the Occult. This immersive electronic album blends kosmische, motorik rhythms, and spectral atmospheres, drawing listeners deep into the mysterious heart of the Irish Midlands.

A visionary in avant-garde music, Heery’s compositions have been performed by ensembles including the RTE Symphony Orchestra, Crash Ensemble, Quiet Music Ensemble, and Talujon Percussion Ensemble. With ‘Bog Summoner’, he channels his deep-rooted fascination with science fiction, occult mysticism, and bio-aesthetic philosophy into a record that pulsates with both history and otherworldly energy.

Evolving organically during the recording process, ‘Bog Summoner’ became a sprawling, shape-shifting entity. Influences range from the live recordings of Harmonia to the cosmic explorations of Tangerine Dream’s ‘Phaedra’ and ‘Rubycon’, all while steeped in what Heery describes as ‘Bog Gothic’—an eerie evocation of East County Galway’s mist-laden bogs and buried histories.

One key track, ‘Uí Máine’, takes its name from the medieval Irish clan that ruled the region. Heery was particularly intrigued by the 16th-century alchemist Edward Kelley’s claim to be a descendant of the Uí Máine, weaving an esoteric connection between occultism and the forgotten landscapes of rural Ireland. ‘Bog Summoner’ imagines Kelley’s spectral presence lingering in the bogs, appearing to seekers and outcasts, summoning spirits among ancient burial mounds.
Adding another layer of inspiration, the album draws from Ithell Colquhoun’s evocative writings on Ireland, particularly ‘The Crying of the Wind’, reinforcing Heery’s exploration of landscape as a portal to the arcane.

Neil Mason of Moonbuilding magazine describes ‘Bog Summoner’ as “a kosmische transmission from a distant realm, fed through a Berlin School conduit. Heery teases suspense with hypnotic, slow-burning tension, maintaining a delicate yet relentless momentum for the entire 45-minute duration.”
With ‘Bog Summoner’, The Cube of Unknowing crafts a soundscape that bridges past and future—an astral ritual invoking the echoes of lost worlds through dense synth textures, undulating rhythms, and cosmic reverberations.

The Whimsy Angels – Eleven Miscarriages Of Injustice (FRBH Recordings)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

ELEVEN MISCARRIAGES OF INJUSTICE was FLEA2B, released as a double cassette with DISCOURSE ON MISJUDGED UTOPIA and the second release on FRBH Recordings in 1990.

The Whimsy Angels were – PDM & Charlie Chalk: landlords; Danny B: axe; Chicken Leg: bitz on ‘Larry A’; Mark F: Fanx for Freddy Flanger; Spectral Spook Machine: endgame on ‘Goodbye Everyone’.

All tracks by PDM except ‘Animism’ by PDM/Danny B, ‘Larry A. At 101’ by PDM/Chicken Leg and ‘Is it time yet, Mr. Cookie?’/’Roots (S.B.J mix)’ by PDM/Chalk.

PRODUCED by PDM except track 1 by PDM/Danny B and tracks 3,6,10 & 11 by PDM/Chalk
ENGINEERED by Whimsical Consolidated
RECORDED, mixed & edited at Lime Street Studios-1987 to 1990.

Alas THE WHIMSY ANGELS are no more but they live on in our hearts and minds.

Dylan Houser and Hal McGee – Stipulations Without Frontiers (HalTapes)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description: Dylan Houser and Hal McGee recorded the sounds of Stipulations Without Frontiers from January 1-23, 2025 with Sony ICD PX-470 stereo digital dictaphones in Lakeland and Gainesville, Florida. On January 27th we created a dictaphone assemblage by playing our 274 recordings on four PX-470s in random/shuffle mode, and we recorded the mix directly into Audacity with no post production.

Dylan Houser: voice (demonic or otherwise), percussion, HiChord pocket synthesizer, door harp, wind chimes, oversized Christmas bell, blowing bubbles in a beverage with a straw, celebrity impersonations, automobiles passing by, foot steps, sprinklers, the air, fm radio, shortwave radio, not needing AI, button pressing, NOINPUTMIXER app, Koala app, TikTok samples, running water, unidentified clanging, pocket shuffling, and various assorted outdoor field recordings (and some indoor, too)

Hal McGee: sounds of my daily life, spoken words, my dog Stanley, neighbors and family, sending postal mail, conversations with Charles Rice Goff III and a former co-worker and Trevor Luke, crows and whippoorwills, Yamaha ReFace CS synth, airplanes and helicopters, Steinway baby grand piano, Yamaha Reface YC mini-organ, two string pink dumpster guitar, medical staff and hospital sounds, flowing water, circuit bent Casio SK-1, leaf blowers and garbage trucks, transparent plastic ukulele, Casio VA-10, Casio VL-Tone.

This album is dedicated to the immortal memories of Harold McGee (June 13, 1936-January 9, 2025) and Chef Jakether Black-Houser (ca. 2014-January 28, 2025).  

Christian Fiesel – Dusk At Dawn (Aural Films)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

This is a musical retelling of the themes of 2001: A Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrik based on the screenplay by Arthur C.Clarke. It’s a raw and wild ride through one of the greatest sci fi novels of all time. At least for me.
released January 24, 2025

Created/conceived by Christian Fiesel (p)+(c) 2024

All sounds done on Waldorf Blofeld + DeepMind12

Aural Films is an online record label that releases high-quality soundtrack albums for movies that do not exist. We cover a wide range of music styles ranging from ambient to experimental to popular to soundtrack musics. Often on the same albums. You can find our complete catalog of releases online at AuralFilms.com

Aural Films Catalog No. AF0437

øjeRum – A Juxtaposition Of Distant Realities (Cyclic Law)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description: The Poetic Abyss of Collage and Vision

Paw Grabowski, known artistically as øjeRum, is a Danish visionary whose work exists in the evocative realms between memory, dreams, and the passage of time. Renowned for his intricate and meditative collages and musical output, øjeRum transforms fragments of vintage materials into timeless compositions that resonate with haunting beauty. His art invites viewers to engage with a dialogue of silence—one that whispers of loss, transformation, and the fragility of existence.

Following the success of Stigma, a powerful synthesis of visual and auditory art that melded øjeRum’s distinct collages with his ambient musical compositions, this second book from Cyclic Press continues to explore his deeply introspective practice. Each piece is a window into a world of layered emotions, where the ephemeral becomes eternal and where simplicity reveals profound complexity.

øjeRum’s approach to art is deeply intuitive, driven by a fascination with decay and renewal. His work often reflects a process of deconstruction and reconstruction, echoing the cycles of nature and life itself. Themes of detachment, transience, and emotional depth permeate his pieces, encouraging viewers to pause and contemplate their own experiences of time and space.

This new collection not only builds upon the foundations laid by Stigma but also ventures into uncharted territories of øjeRum’s creative vision. It is an exploration of the void and the plenitude within; an invitation to lose oneself in the layers of meaning and texture he meticulously crafts. Through these works, øjeRum continues his quest to illuminate the unseen and to honor the stillness at the heart of existence.

Let this book be your guide into the quiet, powerful world of øjeRum—a space where art transcends form and becomes a mirror to the soul.

Hardcover book, thread-sewn binding. 170mmm x 240mm. 104 pages. Matte laminate cover. Includes CD in paper sleeve. 2 Tracks. Running time 60:22min. Limited Edition of 300 copies. ISBN: 9782957938230