To clarify some expectations at first, this is neither Industrial nor a Symphony in the common used sense of these words. From the first hi-hat sounds it's pretty clear where Julia Bondar aims at; the underground dancefloors. Deep Techno with heavy throbbing basslines guides you through the dark of the night. And there are plenty of dark overtones spread on this 7 track album.
"Strength In Softness" is an acidic opener but all doubts are pushed away with the intense bass line. Straight on follows the pre-released Single "Fire" featuring Nero Bellum (of Psyclon Nine and Not My God) with a Twin Peaks reminiscence in hushed Voice and Lyrics. A great track not to be missed.
The tempo given is now even more tightened with the first track Julia recorded for her third album; "Running With The Wolves", 7 Minutes plus and nearly the longest track which could be extended easily into an even longer tribal influenced anthem for my tastes.
A heavy machine beat, delayed echoes of handclaps, an swirling and demanding sequence above an ruthless sub bass. "Power Of Presence" is slightly more playful but again heading straight home, not without giving the listener a memory of euphoria to hold on.
Her sounds are generated nearly complete with a special manufactured analogue modular synth system by endorphin.es productions which is the other side of her interests and adds to the amazing recognisable difference in comparison with many current tracks. The clear production and the full sounds make listening to an audio panorama which reminds me positively of the joy of testing your stereo set-up with the latest Yello.
The broading atmospheres add even more to the movie like experience and I had to take this right away for listening with headphones while moving around the city. While not in Barcelona it was a pleasure as the desire and the urge behind these tracks is capturing and comforting at once.
The second half starts with "Overflowing" which has an unexpected bouncy beat and bumping bass paired with a sequence like a shiny silver-line on the horizon before it gets even more positive with "Best Intentions".
Mellow bouncing beats meet symphonic sounds (finally); all is nice but my attention is getting lost for the first time between synth pop and sci-fi score impressions. A little more vocals could have spiced this up favourable - as it is it's just too longish and then turning sour. The positive up-beat dancefloor is not really her strength and looking at her background from minimal, darkwave to electro and techno it's obvious she's continuously testing out her equipment and possibilities. Remarkably her way of working includes a lot live performing before anything is shaped into a release.
Back to the dark zone where Julia is obviously more comfortable - "Inner" is a mysterious outro, a coming down conclusion without giving any clues away. Like the picture on the cover - this could mean anything or nothing at all, open to interpretations. Anyway, Julia Bondar is an versatile artist shaping her way forwards.
Leaving the distracting title and image besides, Industrial Symphony is a strong Album with only few weak points and a pleasure to listen to.

(The LP is going to be released on September 16t, pre-orders are possible)

Lyndon Scarfe might still be best known as the original keyboarder of The Danse Society up to Heaven Is Waiting. More recently he appeared as guitarist with The Black Lamps, an alternative rock band from Barnsley with roots in the post punk scene and as a solo artist in the minimal darker ambient realm with a.o. the highly recommended albums Music For A Lost Film Vol.1 & Vol.2.
Contrary to those he wanted Shoreline to be a result of more spontaneous and improvised working. He created a looped recording device which feeds the signal back to itself and decays and distorts this. On top of these results he added more layers to create the tracks we find here now. As they all where recorded during a short period of time (during lockdown end of May to June 2020) and are results of this process the result is even more coherent than his other well constructed releases.
The seven tracks which clock in at 53 Minutes are full of very distant layers and enough space for personal reflection without ever digging to deep or too long.
An ebb and flow of soothing and comforting sounds, no voices, no rhythms needed for a pictorial impression of standing on the shoreline (watching the waves, feeling the winds and time passing by... ) an idea which he admits had accompanied him while being captured in the middle of the UK.

This release was also available in very ltd. quantities as CD but sold out before the official release day - 50 copies only is somewhat a shame as there had been at least 51 buyers (with me)!

Italy's Cristiano Deison is a musician active since the mid 90's in the noise / experimental / ambient realms. Many of his releases are collaborative works among them quite known names like John Duncan, K.K. Null or Maurizio Bianchi.
This EP is part 28 of the ongoing Substantia Innominata series by Drone Records.

Substrata features three new atmospheric compositions based on prepared tapes, metals, strings, wires and electronics recorded on different locations assembled and processed afterwards.
"Terra Firma (Pt. 1 & 2)" is a 16 Minute exploration of organic development, split in two parts. A soft, soothing ambience develops slowly until clear, crystalline sounds evolve and together with calm pulsating deeper sounds which shape together the picture of an acoustic stalagmite cave.
With "Prima Materia" he tries to describe "the primitive formless base of all matter similar to chaos, the quintessence or aether." A bold aspiration which leads to an more diverse soundscape but bearing the same smooth tranquillity. Starting with the same crystalline sounds embedded in a mysterious distant rhythm it shifts into soft ambient paired with distorted everyday noises. A collage which equally occupies the senses as "Terra Firma" and passes faster than the track length suggests.
Side B closes with an short afterthought, "In Vacuo Momentum", which plays with channels and sounds leaving the impressions of passing whales deep down in the Ocean.

Deison's compositions have an very organic feel to it, illustrated on the cover with what could be a spiderweb on a rusty fence hit by raindrops. The green, transparent Vinyl of this edition of 300 supports the artistic vision appropriately.

Substantia Innominata is a special 10" series by Drone Records dedicated to artists exploring the intangible and transforming their ideas into exclusive audio works. Most of these have LP length and are limited, high quality pressings on coloured vinyl with special artwork and well known names like Illusion Of Safety, Daniel Menche, Bass Communion, irr.app. (ext.) to name but a few sit besides nearly unknown artists. This release; Arkhaîos is volume 27, issued in black Vinyl in an edition of 300 copies.
Jérémie Mathes is an French sound artist from the Field Recordings, Experimental, Musique Concrète area with published works on ta'lem and Unfathomless and Hymen Records (in collaboration with Jérôme Chassagnard). Here he's working primary with processed field recordings, for this release made from sounds recorded in an abounded factory site generated with found objects, Tibetan bowl, small bells, percussions, cymbal, a bow, and a violin.
The tones of vacated, empty spaces and it's reflections used do not provide a comfort zone for the listener but while the soundscapes here are special the balance is well kept to distance them from bleak darkness.
Starting with an extended introduction of lonely resounds a slowly approaching intense drone makes up most of "Tómleiki". 19 Minutes filled with static movement, emptiness and an otherworldly view in an altered reality creep slowly forward into an unknown territory. On the other side the second piece "Yliaster" strengthens the impression of having arrived somewhere unknown. It settles down with a powerful 18 Minutes long flow capturing body and soul likewise; Time flies here - or just doesn't matter any longer. Mentally this leads into the underworld of the subconscious but luckily this is Vinyl only so the danger of getting completely lost after hitting the repeat button is banned right from the start.

This collection of sound-pieces is the work of an very experienced recording engineer - Doug Haire from Seattle, Pacific NW, USA who's spent a long time of his life supporting experimental musicians hosting a radio show and recording exclusives for it. He is also a member of the Seattle Phonographers Union - a collective working and performing only with unprocessed field-recordings since 2002. Campsites is his first solo release since 2012's Removed And Haunted.
I imagine him now retired from session work, sitting by the campfire he could not resist to capture the moods and it's really incredible how he transmits the atmospheres with his field recordings which later on where supplied by decent drones. This reflecting on the reflection is executed with true mastery.
The overall calm sounds aided by the underlying subliminal drones lead inescapable to a loss of the sense of time.
The seven tracks are all subtle individual but work as a coherent whole, none is too lengthy and all mixing, mastering and production was done solely by Doug Haire himself.
I've found myself sitting suddenly in the last fading light of the day, mentally completely caught up in the moment - just like a campfire meditation - with engaged senses fully aware of the never ending surroundings. Campsites is as pictorial as a sound-work can be and leaves a lasting impression of an artists vision, offering his experiences to any open-minded listeners.