Death Grips - two albums
I’ve said many silly things in the past few years while running Free Albums Galore and saying Death Grip is the Rage Against the Machine version of hip-hop may be one of them. But that’s exactly what I hear. The San Francisco based Death Grips is a one man hip hop project that uses lots of props from alternative and metal yet comes across with sort of an industrial hip-hop sound of his own. Powerful and very angry, there is no denying the intensity of this music. Whatever happened to the City of Love?
His two albums are titled Death Grips and Ex-Military. You can find them as creative common licensed online albums at the Free Music Archive as linked below.
Download
Death Grips
Ex Military
Jani Hirvonen is one of the most active musicians in the Finnish underground scene. He records under a number of projects including the past featured
Alexei Borisov is a shining tar of 21st century industrial/electronic music. Olga Nosova is the drummer and vocalist for the Moscow noise-core band Motherfathers. Astma is their collaborative effort into improvisatory noise rock and industrial electronica. I am familiar with Borisov’s earlier efforts, but on There Will Be a McDonalds, he has plunged head first into Noise Rock. The two artists have created a hard but enthusiastic effort in the world of distortion and noise for art ’s sake. The album is a total immersion into heavy guitar, pounding drums and strange vocasl (by both participants) that actually entertains even if it is a bit challenging. I like this album and hope Astma release more music.
Litanies in Zero Kelvin is a 30 minute track by Gilrilal Baars that starts like a single vocal chant. It is slowly distorted with the use of vocal aerobatics, theremin, and electronics into a strange but mesmerizing litany of sounds. The artist likens it to folk songs and appears to be using many traditional songs, primarily Russian, in this work which he states is about death. Whatever his intention, the work is strangely fascinating to this listener and I recommend it to the anyone who likes the unusual.
Recently I’ve become fascinated with the music of Indonesian musician Wukir Suriyada. I have already featured albums of collaborative works with
Romanian musicians Felix Petrescu (Waka X) and Valentin Toma (Qewza) founded the experimental electronica project Makunouchi Bento (also a form of Japanese box lunch) in 2001 and it is still going strong. Swime is their newest album and it is available as a free and legal download. Their music uses both electronic and acoustic instruments. The sound is rather free-floating, using various and sundry sound elements while still having an apparent structure. That’s not to say their music is predictable. There is a feeling of exploration that is transmitted to the listener. Overall it is excellent electronic music, if a bit on the avant-garde side.
Yoko Absorbing is a Russian avant-garde duo consisting of Evgenij V. Kharitonov & Mikhail Lezin. Their music is forever evolving, alternating between soothing and abrasive . The most accurate description is probably
The experimental project named Nonima celebrates both the cerebral and the disturbing. For instance, the title track of Karmadebt start with an idyllic chorale which soon become disquieting breaking down with metallic pulses and industrial sounds. Nonima keeps the listener perplexed, which is a compliment. They have three albums, all legally free for listening and downloading, from the
The
Untitled Strings is a collection of nine live tracks of free improvisation. Ysuke Akai is a guitarist from Brisbane, Australia whose playing is close to the avant-garde styling of such innovators as
The Nine Strings Trio is an avant-garde jazz ensemble playing both structured and improvised music. For the most part, the 11 tracks on The Sounding Table sound more improvised than structured. This is challenging music yet one can hear a good sense of musical telepathy between these players. The musicians are Daniel Barbiero on double bass, Jimmy Ghaphery on alto saxophone and wood flutes, and Gary Rouzer playing electric bass and contributing amplified textures. This free and legal online album is from the
The 
Haunting, beautiful, and distinctly modern is Garth Knox’s solo viola effort titled Viola D’Amour. It is another excellent release from the unique SHSK’H net label which is always good for top quality post-classical music . Knox explores the outer boundary of his instrument and keeps the listener both in wonder of what he will do next. The album has both structured compositions and improvisations although it is a challenge to identify which is which. However the virtuosity of the artist is unquestioned and this is a good bet for those who enjoy classical, modern compositions or simply interesting music.
Bill Altice, former musician in the
Seattle’s improv ensemble 
When I think of regions that abound in musical creativity and cities that welcome musicians that push boundary and encourage artistry in sound I always think of…Sacramento?. The same city in which the guvernator dreams of changing the constitution and running for prez while The Kings dream of being a basketball team? Antennas Erupts! is described by the WFMU Free Music Archive as a “free jazz/art punk combo who died much too young”. Perhaps if they weren’t in Sacramento…
Sound manipulator Lezet appears to welcome the comparisons to Avant-garde music pioneer
The
Mexican electronic sound and performance artist
This live album recorded in Vilius, appropriately titled Live at Vilnius, is a good example of avant-garde improvisation. The four tracks are titled by the mode of instruments or ensemble that is featured. Therefore the first three tracks are improvisations by alto saxophone, piano and baritone saxophone respectively. Pianist Roman Stolyar and saxophonist Ilia Belorukov play together in “Duo”. Finally the two are joined by trombonist Skirmantas Sasnauskas and drummer Arkadij Gotesmanas for a 13 minute quartet improvisation. All in all, a fascinating excursion into the outer reaches of improvisation.
Group member Bill Altice described The Karen Cooper Complex as “a band that played loosely structured, improvisational rock that was more Bitches Brew than Grateful Dead”. The album Shinjuku Birdwalk was released in 1981 but has made its way unto the Free Music Archive as a legal creative commons licensed download. This is a rare look at a very creative band that I doubt any of my readers have ever heard of. At least I have never heard of them until now. Yet Shinjuku Birdwalk reveals a group of musicians that were ahead of their time. The tracks show traces of Zappa, The Residents and Furious Pig in a cross between 60s Beat generation poetry and 80s No-Wave. Karen Cooper practically chants over jazz and rock riffs.. The music is eerily magnetic and should appeal to those who like to stray off the safe path. This is a must-download.
