Red Sparowes ‎– Every Red Heart Shines Toward The Red Sun [12", 2LP]

EVERY RED HEART SHINES TOWARD THE RED SUN is the second album by RED SPAROWES, a post-metal band with members of (a.o.) Isis. I only have a few albums of them, but this is definitely my favourite. It's not as heavy as Isis or Neurosis, but just as epic. And completely instrumental. Judging from the (extremely lengthy) song titles, the album is themed around the Great Leap Forward during Mao's reign over China, during which there was a campaign to kill all sparowes in the country because they were considered a pest. But this disturbance of the ecological balance was resulting in locust eating the harvest, and causing a major famine in which at least 20 million people died. Impressive story. The album was released in 2006 and pressed in various colours. My copy is from the second pressing in 2007, when there were 500 made in "clear with gold smoke". It looks great. And sounds great too!

Label: Robotic Empire
Cat.nr.: RBE-065
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. The Great Leap Forward Poured Down Upon Us One Day Like A Mighty Storm, Suddenly And Furiously Blinding Our Senses
02. We Stood Transfixed In Blank Devotion As Our Leader Spoke To Us, Looking Down On Our Mute Faces With A Great, Raging, And Unseeing Eye

SIDE B:
01. Like The Howling Glory Of The Darkest Winds, This Voice Was Thunderous And The Words Holy, Tangling Their Way Around Our Hearts And Clutching Our Innocent Awe
02. A Message Of Avarice Rained Down And Carried Us Away Into False Dreams Of Endless Riches

SIDE C:
01. "Annihilate The Sparrow, That Stealer Of Seed, And Our Harvests Will Abound; We Will Watch Our Wealth Flood In."
02. And By Our Own Hand Did Every Last Bird Lie Silent In Their Puddles, The Air Barren Of Song As The Clouds Drifted Away. For Killing Their Greatest Enemy, The Locusts Noisily Thanked Us And Turned Their Jaws Toward Our Crops, Swallowing Our Greed Whole

SIDE D:
01. Millions Starved And We Became Skinnier And Skinnier, While Our Leaders Became Fatter And Fatter
02. Finally, As That Blazing Sun Shone Down Upon Us, Did We Know That True Enemy Was The Voice Of Blind Idolatry; And Only Then Did We Begin To Think For Ourselves   

Mark Gardener - The Story Of The Eye [7"]

I never saw Ride play live back in the days to my deepest regret, and the joy about MARK GARDENER being one of the special guests at the 10th anniversary party of the Sonic Cathedral label in May, was a bit pushed aside by the fact that i'd see Slowdive that evening for the first time in my life. But Mark's show was really good, and i was so happy to hear him play a few Ride songs that evening. I'd so much like to see them reunite! If it would happen, i already made up my mind that this would be another band that i'd go to the UK for, just to see them.  
THE STORY OF THE EYE is a song that was released as a 7" in late 2006, and it was one of the things i bought at the party. Ulrich Schnauss, who also played there, remixed the B-side. A nice little gem, this 7".

Label: Sonic Cathedral
Cat.nr.: SCR002
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. The Story Of The Eye (Ulrich Schnauss Mix)

SIDE AA:
01. The Story Of The Eye

The Knife - We Share Our Mothers' Health [12"]

WE SHARE OUR MOTHERS' HEALTH is one of the best tracks on the Silent Shout album by THE KNIFE. That fact alone is no guarantee for a good remix 12" maxi (see what i wrote about Fever Ray's Seven earlier today), but Trentemøller and Radio Slave did a mighty fine job here. The Trentemøller remix is a lengthy floor-filler and my favourite of the two, but the Radio Slave mix (taking more the acid approach) is pretty cool as well.


Label: Brille Records
Cat.nr.: BRILS09T
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. We Share Our Mothers' Health (Trentemøller Remix)
02. We Share Our Mothers' Health (album version)

SIDE B:
01. We Share Our Mothers' Health (Radio Slave's Secret Base Remix)

The Knife - Silent Shout [12"]

THE KNIFE will be touring again this spring/summer and in April their new album Shaking The Habitual will be out. Can't wait for that. The Knife is one of the most innovative electronic acts these days. SILENT SHOUT is of course the title track of their previous album, if i don't count the Tomorrow, In A Year release that they did with Mt.Sims and Planningtorock and which disappointed me quite a bit to be honest. There are 3 remixes plus the original version on this 12". The first remix is the best one, to my personal taste.

Label: Rabid Records
Cat.nr.: VVR5038146
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. Silent Shout (Williams Acidic Circuits Remix)
02. Silent Shout (Original Version)

SIDE B:
01. Silent Shout (Troy Pierce Barado En Locombia Mix)
02. Silent Shout (Shinedoe Remix)

Charlotte Gainsbourg - 5:55 [12", 2LP]

 

This album 5:55 by CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG isn't her debut, as many people think, because she released an album in 1986 called Charlotte For Ever when she was 15. While that album was completely written by her dad Serge, this first album as an adult was a cooperation with Jarvis Cocker from Pulp who wrote most of the lyrics, and Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel from AIR who wrote and performed the music. And that's worked out very well. I really like this album a lot.

 

Label: Because Music

Cat.nr.: BEC5772052

Year of release: 2006

 

SIDE A:

01. 5:55

02. AF607105

 

SIDE B:

01. The Operation

02. Tel Que Tu Es

03. The Songs That We Sing

 

SIDE C:

01. Beauty Mark

02. Little Monsters

03. Jamais

 

SIDE D:

01. Night-Time Intermission

02. Everytime I Cannot See

03. Morning Song  

Boris - Pink [12", 2LP]

I own a couple of BORIS vinyl releases and i'm sure they all will be featured on this blog sooner or later, but their album PINK is still my favourite. Going from plain rock 'n roll to drone to shoegaze to sludge to noise to post-metal to spacerock, Boris is never boring to say the least. My favourite track on this album's gotta be Farewell, a song that sounds like a mixture of Isis, Jesu and Sigur Rós. Later this year they'll be playing the State-X New Forms Festival in Den Haag and i think i'll take the opportunity to finally check them out live. Must be a blast.
The copy i own of this record is on deep red vinyl from the third pressing, of which 1000 were made.


Label: Southern Lord
Cat.nr.: sunn55
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. Pink
02. Woman On The Screen
03. Nothing Special
04. Blackout

SIDE B:
01. Electric
02. Six Three Times
03. Afterburner
04. Pseudo-Bread

SIDE C:
01. My Machine
02. Farewell

SIDE D:
01. Just Abandoned My-Self

Isis - In The Absence Of Truth [12", 2LP]

IN THE ABSENCE OF TRUTH was the follow-up to Panopticon, which i still think is the best album ISIS ever made. But this is a great album as well - don't get me wrong. Especially the drumming really stands out. Like Panopticon, it's again less metal than the previous albums and also the vocals are more clean. My copy's one of the first pressing on Conspiracy Records, the European edition. In the USA it came out on Robotic Empire. Conspiracy pressed 2000 copies and 500 of them were clear/red splattered. Nice and thick quality stuff like all of Conspiracy's releases.


Label: Conspiracy Records
Cat.nr.: CORE 045
Year of release: 2006

SIDE A:
01. Wrists Of Kings
02. Not In Rivers, But In Drops

SIDE B:
01. Dulcinea
02. Over Root And Thorn

SIDE C:
01. 1000 Shards
02. All Out Of Time, All Into Space
03. Holy Tears

SIDE D:
01. Firdous E Bareen
02. Garden Of Light

Serena-Maneesh - Serena-Maneesh [12", 2LP]

  

The awesome self-titled debut full length by SERENA-MANEESH. Main man Emil Nikolaisen, who played in metal band Extol and garage/glam band Silver before, and his bass playing sister Hilma come from a musical family. Brother Ivar is the singer for Silver and their sister Elvira has a successful solo career.

Serena-Maneesh is a Norwegian band that plays their own pretty unique blend of krautrock, shoegaze, noise, psychedelic and garage rock.Think of a mix between Velvet Underground, My Bloody Valentine, Spacemen3, The Stooges and Amon Düül.

Label: Play Louder

Cat.nr.: PLAYR 4LP

Year of release: 2006

SIDE A

01. Drain Cosmetics

02. Selina's Melodie Fountain

03. Un-Deux

SIDE B:

01. Candlelighted

02. Beehiver II 

03. Her Name Is Suicide

SIDE C:

01. Sapphire Eyes

02. Don't Come Down Here 

03. Chorale Lick

04. Simplicity

SIDE D:

01. Your Blood In Mine 

The Black Angels - Passover [12", 2LP]

PASSOVER by THE BLACK ANGELS; their debut full length that came out in 2006. Originally with an embossed sleeve, but this is the reissue from 2009 with a (thicker but) normal gatefold sleeve. Great album!

Label: Ligt In The Attic
Cat.nr.: LITA 0018
Year of release: 2006 (originally; this one's from 2009)


SIDE A:
01. Young Men Dead
02. The First Vietnamese War
03. The Sniper At The Gates Of Heaven

SIDE B:
01. The Prodigal Sun
02. Black Grease
03. Manipulation

SIDE C:
01. Empire
02. Better Off Alone
03. Bloodhounds On My Trail

SIDE D:
01. Call To Arms