Textura Returns

After a short period on the sidelines, the wonderful Textura monthly webzine has returned with a fanatastic issue featuring in-depth label profiles of the wonderful Dynamophone and the equally superb, Hidden Shoal. Furthermore, there are a number of reveiws that have featured here. As well as an extensive look at the latest Dynamophone releases, reviews of Explosions In The Sky, Tobias Lilja, Arc Lab, SubtractiveLAD and Ölvis can be found there.

But of particualr interest here, is the colourful descriptions and mp3's of Wes Willenbring, Slow Dancing Society and Sankt Otten from the Hidden Shoal catalogue. All three albums are strong contenders for my end of year list and are most definitely worth checking out. The following paragraphs and mp3's can be found at the excellent Textura, along with some samples from the likes of A Lily, Pornopop, Stars of the Lid and Pole:

Sankt Otten (Textura Review)

Sankt Otten's "Wir koennen ja Freunde bleiben" emerges from its dark opening moments, casts its gaze upon the open plains and ponders the surrounding expanse as guitars both sing a soft lullaby and build into slow-burning swells.

Sankt Otten: "Wir koennen ja Freunde bleiben"


Slow Dancing Society (Textura Review)

In "The Delicate Sound of Silence," Drew Sullivan coaxes a fragile and stately beauty from a modest collection of whistling tones, voice samples, and guitar flutter. Sullivan masterfully shapes the material into a captivating ambient setting that comes as close as possible to translating a most peaceful sleep state into aural form.

Slow Dancing Society: "The Delicate Sound of Silence"


Wes Willenbring (Textura Reveiw)

The San Francisco-based Willenbring generates alluring vignettes from a base palette of piano and guitars, blurring the lines between them until the reverberant product of their union drifts like a slow-motion plume of smoke through the quietude of an empty cathedral

Wes Willenbring: "Sometimes"

Wes Willenbring : "Somewhere Someone Else" (Hidden Shoal Recordings)

Walking to the train station one chilly Saturday afternoon, the previous night's excess ensured that my head felt as if it had been trampled on by an elephant. Such was my hangover, music was the last thing that I needed. However, the walk to the station is quite boring, so I decided to load Wes Willenbring's "Somewhere Someone Else" onto my Ipod and with seconds of album opener "Aperture" the pain in my head seemed to subside. It didn't matter that ferocious looking rain clouds were forming overhead, everything at that moment made perfect sense.

Wes Willenbring recently moved to San Francisco where he has created this gentle and multi-textured album of atmospheric piano and guitar based pieces. Percussive elements are completely eschewed in favour of soft piano tones, warm drones and beautiful guitar work. Bringing to mind artists such as The Dead Texan, Labradford and Eluvium, Willenbring has managed to add something new to this genre.

The music here slowly unfurls, while layers of differing melodies are carefully added. The shimmering beauty of "As You Fade Away" is a prime example of this, two or three drone-melodies float together while softly plucked guitar notes intertwine. It's an intriguing combination that seems to take its cues from the wall-of-sound approach of bands like My Bloody Valentine. "Small Reminders" helps to fill the gaping hole left by the absent Labradford. Dripping with melancholic guitar work, each note and tone is deliberately placed. You don't notice the lack of precussion, the hypnotic instrumentation ensures that.

It is hard to pinpoint exactly what places one ambient album over the next, but with "Somewhere Someone Else" you can make no mistake. The vast, luxuriant soundscapes transport you to another world. "Reverie", for example, starts with reverbed guitar work that soon meshes with unearthly drones. Within seconds you become immersed in its thick, liquid sounds. It becomes apparent that the only way to experience this album properly, is through your headphones and at full volume.

It's hard to pick a favourite track here, such is the quality of each composition. Every single track provides an alluring listen and Willenbring's meticulous attention to detail catapults this album ahead of its peers. At a push, I would pick penultimate track "Lost Illusions" as my favourite. It is four minutes of pure ambient joy. This cerebral effort features some of the nicest guitar plucking I have heard so far this year, it's brooding and nocturnal again recalling Labradford. It moves at almost glacial pace.

Hidden Shoal are fast carving out a niche for themselves in the ambient/electronica market. Following on from Slow Dancing Society's "The Sound of Lights When Dim", Willenbring's "Somewhere Someone Else" is a tremendous affair of restrained, multi-layered and hypnotic soundscapes.

Rating - 87%

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Points of Interest

1. Mogwai, despite a prolific output in 2006 (Mr.Beast, Zidane, The Fountain), appear to be back in the studio according to their website.

2. Planet Mu have details on their 2007 release schedule.

3. 65 Days of Static have a few live dates up here, including a few at Scotland's wonderful Triptych Festival.

4. You can watch Arcade Fire perform "Intervention" on Saturday Night Live here.

5. Portishead previewed an unmaed song in a low-key performance in Bristol, according to Pitchfork

6. Hidden Shoal Recordings have pre-released Wes Willenbring's "Somewhere Someone Else", which should be of interest to fans of Eluvium, Stars of the Lid, The Dead Texan and Labradford.

7. The Strange Death of Liberal England recorded a session for the Steve Lamacq show on BBC Radio 1. Stream it here. Pre-order their forthcoming single here.

8. Kingbastard has remastered and uploaded another record, this time it is his "5" ep, download it for free here.

9. Pre-order Vessels forthcoming single "Yuki/Forever The Optimist" here.

10. SITE NEWS: in the coming week I will be posting exclusive mp3's from 4 up and coming artists in and round in electronica genre. I am hoping to now make this article a monthly event.