Tag Archives: drone

Picking / Gnarled Fingers – Picking / Gnarled Fingers (Cruel Nature Records)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

“This is some heavy-duty drone shit, and it sure hits the spot.”
– Aural Aggravation
auralaggravation.com/2026/04/25/picking-gnarled-fingers-picking-gnarled-fingers/

Gnarled Fingers and Picking are two artists drawn together by a shared love of bleak, crushing, low-end oblivion.

Picking is a new raw doom / noise / drone project from Charlie Butler inspired by lifelong incessant excessive picking of nails.

Gnarled Fingers is an experimental, ambient drone project, relentless wall of fuzz and atmosphere, no escape, created after growing up in Somerset Levels with stories of witchcraft and pagan superstition.

Picking – Toenail
Written, recorded live with no overdubs, and mixed by Charlie Butler, December 2025
charliebutler1.bandcamp.com

Gnarled Fingers – Echoes From Futures Past
Written, recorded at 13 sound studio, and mixed by Carlos, November 2025
linktr.ee/GNARLEDFINGERS

Cover & layout by Carlos
Mastered by Jack Chuter

Haptic – Ambivalence (Ash International)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

Performed by Steven Hess, Joseph Clayton Mills, Adam Sonderberg
with
Mark Wastell (1)
and
Linda Jankowska, Sarah Hughes, Seth Cooke (2)

Late Work I
Recorded by Billy Steiger (London)
Mixed by Olivia Block and Adam Sonderberg

Late Work II
Recorded by Thomas Carroll (Leeds), Will Montgomery (Brighton), Kathy Hinde (Bristol), and Haptic
Mixed by Joseph Clayton Mills

Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi

Across two decades of restless exploration, the Chicago trio Haptic has earned a reputation for meticulously assembled recordings complemented by unpredictable, often riveting live performances that veer from rigorous minimalism to densely textured, immersive sonic environments. Consistently blurring the lines between different genres and disciplines, their experimental practice has expanded to include installations, soundtracks, and unique site-specific performances at venues such as Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, Lincoln Park Conservatory, and Hyde Park Art Center, as well as collaborations with dancers, filmmakers, and institutions such as the Chicago Film Archive and the Art Institute of Chicago. Their recorded output has been marked by a similar breadth and eclecticism, ranging from the intricacies of Scilens (2011) to the almost monochromatic hush of Abeyance (2014) and slow-motion dissolution of Sensitive Dependence on Initial Conditions (2024).

Research and development: Thanks to Mike Reed and Josh Berman (Chicago), Thomas Carroll (Leeds), Will Montgomery and Paul Khimasia Morgan (Brighton), Dan Linn-Pearl (Hay-on-Wye), Seth Cooke (Bristol), and Fielding Hope (London) for hosting; Sarah Hughes and Mark Wastell for logistical support; Linda Jankowska, Sarah Hughes, Seth Cooke, and Mark Wastell + Tim Daisy (Chicago) and Rose Linn-Pearl (Hay-on-Wye) for performing; Arts Council England and Arts Council Wales for financial support.

Ambivalence 2025: 28 September, Hungry Brain, Chicago; 2 October, Wharf Chambers, Leeds; 3 October, Coach House, Brighton; 4 October, The Old Electric Shop, Hay-on-Wye; 6 October, The Cube, Bristol; 7 October, Cafe OTO, London.



This is Haptic recording number seventeen.

You can read a review here: salt-peanuts.eu/record/haptic/ and also in Chain D.L.K.: www.chaindlk.com/reviews/13493

Dusted also – dustedmagazine.tumblr.com/post/814796017101914112/dust-volume-12-number-4-part-2

Lasse Marhaug / Bruce Russell – Re-Make Re-Model (Self-Released)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

“Re-Make Re-Model” is the result of a five-year dialogue between Norway and New Zealand sound artists Lasse Marhaug and Bruce Russell. What first started as a friendly challenge during the Covid19-lockdown to re-work selected works from each other’s catalogue – using different techniques and experimental approaches, challenging each other to go to extremes – extended to what is now a double-CD and a 100-page book package of writings and photos. Each CDs has eight tracks, a total of 100 minutes of music. The book has extensive notes to each track (often with comments by the corresponding artist). In addition there’s a lengthy essay by Bruce Russell on the project’s origins and the nature of collaboration and noise making; a photo series by Lasse Marhaug; a series of stills by Bruce Russell taken from a video piece; as well as cover artwork and biographical notes.

“It quickly became apparent to me that the distinguishing aspect of this collaboration was that it was a competitive exchange, an ongoing game of ‘one-upmanship’ in which we each sought to outdo the other in terms of the inventiveness; the baroque and pointless complexity; or the sheer bloody-mindedness of the studio processes which we were inventing to transform the other’s work into something ‘rich and strange’”
– Bruce Russell from his essay

Digital album comes with the book in PDF format.

Holodec – Tru Folk (Phantom Limb)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

PHTNM059

Holodec – TRU FOLK LP

footsteps, car horns, a drawer sliding shut.
wind chimes, family voices, street corners.
bus stops, parks, a dog barking, a fight on TV.
Los Angeles, San Francisco, Taipei, Oakland, Keelung, San Gabriel Valley, South City.

░H░o░l░o░d░e░c░’░s░ ░T░R░U░ ░F░O░L░K░ ░L░P░ ░i░s░ ░b░o░t░h░ ░a░ ░f░o░l░k░ ░r░e░c░o░r░d░ ░a░n░d░ ░a░n░ ░a░u░d░i░o░ ░d░o░c░u░m░e░n░t░.░

It draws from a 15-year archive of field recordings that capture the ordinary music of lived life. Rather than aspiring to aesthetic refinement or spiritual escape, TRU FOLK exists at street-level. It approaches sound as a vernacular practice that values what is common and humanmade. The album functions as a record of presence, tracing how people live, move, and endure through shared environments. In doing so, it extends the idea of folk music into the realm of daily listening, creating a document of survival and place.

 

p̷̨̛̺̩̣̻̟͇̹̖͛̊͊͒̒͂̿̽͘ͅa̶̧̦̞͕̮̠̐͗́̍š̵̲̙̲̗̳̯̼͐̇̿̆̓́̾͝ť̶̰̿̉̒̽͘ ̸̘̲̀̀͋̈l̸̩̽́̀̆̈͘͠ͅi̷͓̬̳̰͊v̶̫̩̦̱̳͎̟̲̤̽ͅẹ̸̛̾̽̑̋̔͝͠s̷̙̃̚ͅ ̸̛̛͚̭̻̒͐̔̏́͠b̶͚̱͍̟̗̜̤͍͐͛́̊̓̕ḝ̷̡̺̤͙̹̗̥̤̿͝c̶̲̮͇̱̰͒̄̀ͅỏ̷̰́̈̍̓̃͆͝͝m̸̨̤̯̯̯͙͓̱̘̻͑͋̄̿͊̃̍̊é̶̛̞̣̥̝͐̍̆̅̏͆͘͠ ̴̡̮͈̥̼͈̹̱̘̃͐̑̈͐̒̾̓͜͝ṱ̷̻̲̩̼̭̲͉̝̽̌̀̀͋h̶̡͚̹̓͐̋̂̋i̸̧̬̫͇͕̩͗͋͐͋̂͘ͅs̵̢̡͈͖͔̘͔͇̾̊͒̀̌͋̕͠ ̶̨̲͓͉͔̍l̴̤̻̱̜̬̒͆́̎́̐̄͠͝i̴̧̪͓̖̻̻͉͇̹̓f̴̛͍̥̤̣̙̅̓͊̀͆̉̈͝ę̴̰̫̖̖̀̚.̴̫̱̀̆̋̊͘͠ ̴̨̼̰͙̃̈́ẗ̶̗̼̲̗͈̤̹̭̲́̐̈̾͂̅̽͐͘͜͝h̵̛͍̤̜͇̉̔ī̸̞̙̲͇̻̕ş̶̩͕̩̲̈́͠ ̵̩͚́͆̓̐l̷̳͔̥͍̞̑̆ͅí̵̛̩͍́͑͗̈͝f̵͙̠̂̍ē̶̪ ̶̙͔̮̩̱̤̪́̑͘b̴̪̭̹̾ę̶̧̢̱͖̰̑̾c̶̨͚̺̗̬̳̎̀ǫ̵̢͓͖̠̝͎̺̌̔̿̍͘͘͜ͅm̴̼̬̩͒̑͆̋̕̚̚͝e̷̡̛̳͚̰̞̱͊͒͝s̶̢̨̅̀̿̈́̒͑ ̵̡̙̭̤̟͕̘̖͑́̋̄̾̚͜͜͝ṭ̶̢͔̪͎̘̋̾̚ͅh̸̥̪̦̮̆̑͠ȩ̷̝̳͚͕̦̃̆́̆͝͠ͅ ̸̡̰̪̲̣͈̤̆̿̃̈̏́n̶͖̓ê̴̢̧̹̥̙̭̞̂̃̓́̒͊̅̿͋x̵̥͙͉̝̙͍͖̱̭͇̆̾̀́̇̋̓̽̚͝t̸̨̧͙̘̻̞̰̍̆̇̈́̀̎̈́̀̚ ̴̧̖̠̪̙̊̿̍̏͊̏l̵̜̖̺̐̓̿i̴̞̘̲̪͚̪͛̆̓̃͊̓̅̓͒̈́f̷̟̜̻͗͗͒̌̐̎͗̍͜é̸͚̼̬͖̫̯̌̀̍ͅ.̵̧̦̮̼̙͚͍͗͊͗̅͒̚͜
credits

Mastered by Nick Foglia
Artist & Repertoire Direction by Jonathan Jayasinghe
Design by Allek Bien
Photography by Donovan Novotny

Reverse Image / Thomas Bey William Bailey – 常若 / Tokokawa (Fourth Dimension Records)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

This collaborative release presents three immersive movements of avant-electronics full of unexpected tonal contrasts and shifts in intensity. Powered by modular synthesis, “concrete” assemblage technique and a pervasive desire to work with the full spectrum of sound, Tokokawa is the product of its two producers’ commitment to a dynamic, ever-renewing sense of aesthetics.

From late 2023 to the present, we started from a simple, agreed interest in collaboration to something that became much more carefully calibrated and conceptually guided.The results are, to my ears, a seamless and strangely organic suite of electro-acoustic pieces that hone in on the “essences” of various avant-electronic genres (“noise,” “drone,” “dark ambient,” etc etc) without succumbing to their more cliched elements. We composed this material almost telepathically (i.e. with a bare minimum of instruction and revision needed) and I’m excited to share the results with my supporters here.

I think our music is a representation of us being conduits for energies that precede us and will survive us, and to that end we also named the three “phases” here with verbal cues indicating different states of matter: “Amanogawa” is either the “Milky Way” or, in direct translation, the “River of Heaven.” “Nurikabe” is a solid plaster wall that, I’m told, occasionally figures into bouts of sleep paralysis. “Jouhatsu suru Yuurei” are “vaporizing ghosts” (the confusion this may cause native Japanese speakers is intentional – I was trying to imagine something ephemeral becoming somehow even more ephemeral).

We aimed at creating pieces which would also have the “properties” of solid, liquid or gas, but not completely: the focus is, again, on cyclical renewal and therefore each of these phases has just enough of an open-ended quality to it.

The CD version of this album on Fourth Dimension is also enhanced by lovely full-color artwork from Paul Takahashi, and expert mastering by Ryoko Ono. 

Originally released on 5th July 2024

Y’ng-Yin Siew (Reverse Image), Thomas Bey William Bailey:
analog modular synthesis, real-time digital processing

Paul Takahashi: artwork

Thomas Bey William Bailey: CD layout / design

Ryoko Ono: mastering

Kathodos – Parasomnia: Pavor Nocturnus (Slithering Black Records)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

Order the CD here: thecirclemusic.gr/product/kathodos-parasomnia-pavor-nocturnus-new-album-cd/

All sounds, noises, rituals, and devilries written, recorded and performed by Kathodos
except: Soprano, spoken word and guitar by Lavinia

Cover art by Odilon Redon, The Eye Like a Strange Balloon, Goes to Infinity, 1882

Logo by Lavinia
Additional artwork and layout by Omen North

Produced, mixed and mastered in 2023 by Kathodos

rauðvik – blóðsjúkdómur (Self-Released)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

A ponderance on the cosmic horrors in the shadows, just beyond the veil of what you can see.

The sky and the cosmos are one.

Special thanks to everyone at FromSoftware for Bloodborne, which served as the inspiration for and subject matter of this album.

All sounds designed by rauðvik at Overlook Studios
Recorded, mixed, and mastered by rauðvik at Overlook Studios
Cover photo by Nephron – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9716436
Text added by rauðvik

Olhava – Memorial (Avantgarde Music)

Posted by John Lithium on

Label Description:

Stream the album on all platforms: band.link/olhava2026

Memorial continues the path opened by Sacrifice. After the burning, there is stillness. Time spent among what remains. Ashes settle, memory lingers, and the question is no longer how to begin again, but what can finally be released.

The record moves through remembrance toward letting go and acceptance — a quiet reconciliation with what cannot be carried further. It speaks from a single, unpersonified voice: a shared human state shaped by loss, exhaustion, love, and the fragile will to endure.

At its center stands a forest hut: not a physical place, but a retreat of the mind. A solitary structure in the woods, an escape from the collapsing outer world, where everything decays, familiar bonds loosen, and people drift apart and return changed. The hut becomes a memorial itself — an obelisk in the forest, a burial site for former lives, a place one returns to alone to contemplate what remains.

Inside, memory becomes both refuge and weight. What was meant to be forgotten stays. What was meant to last dissolves. Grief softens into stillness.

Unlike Sacrifice, Memorial offers a different kind of rebirth. Rebirth here is indistinct — a quieter transformation found in letting go rather than becoming. Only in its final moments does movement return: a fragile renewal, like thawed water finding its way to a river.

Memorial is dedicated to more than one loss. It holds space for the dead, for love that has outlived itself, for time that cannot be returned, for friends forced to flee, and for selves left behind. Its meaning remains open, shifting with each return — a structure in the forest, unchanged, waiting.

Information about vinyl and CD editions will be available very soon; as usual, they will be released via Avantgarde Music. 

Music – Andrey Novozhilov and Tim Yusupov
Screwdriver solo on track “When the Ashes Grow Cold” – Artem Selyugin of Show Me A Dinosaur, Somn, hopeyouwell
Sound – Mikhail Kurochkin
Artwork – Margot Makletsova