Leven Signs' "Hemp is Here" really should be considered a classic of mid-80s UK avante garde, but it came and went in 1985, as both a cassette release (Unlikely Records) and vinyl release (Cordelia) in the blink of an eye. This duo of Peter Karkut and Maggie Turner managed to craft one of the strangest, most affecting albums of new wave experimentalism that I've ever heard. Due to the album's impossible-to-find status, it's been largely forgotten and continuously overlooked, but hopefully that will begin to change.

A chance encounter with the cassette version of "Hemp is Here" led me on an internet scavenger hunt before tracking Karkut down. Through the years he has continued developing his various artistic pursuits, recently having his short film Sunflower Supermodel in the London Short Film Festival. Turner 's path is a big foggier, though her collaboration with Karkut continues.

But what is it about "Hemp is Here" that makes it such a special record? At times it feels like a modern, electronic take on gamelan music with crashing rhythms and modal melodies corrupted via bewildering sonic manipulation. Karkut layers organ sequences over and over, constructing songs that have more in common tonally with music you'd hear in gothic cathedrals than any sort of school of electronic music. Think of a more diverse, Turkish-tinged "Flaming Tunes" and you might be getting close. "Hemp is Here" is a manic conglomeration of influences and ideas, ending up as a sensational playground of aural narcotics.

Leven Signs' music is full of tension and it's perhaps this element that makes it so memorable. On the surface, Karkut's complex compositions seem at odds with Turner's often-detached, stunning vocals, but it's the dichotomy of those two disparate elements that latch on and don't let go. This record is almost 30 years old and I'm still not sure what it should be classified as.

 

Stubnitz from Pete Karkut on Vimeo.

With 2011’s excellent 'Modern Ruin' still a fresh memory, Covenant is already back in the studio working on a follow-up, tentatively titled 'Leaving Babylon'. Featuring material that spans from Northern Light-era demos to brand-new creations, 'Leaving Babylon' promises to be "a bold new direction for the band", according to the announcement:

"Beat-heavy yet introspective; Leaving Babylon is Covenant’s sonic exploration into uncharted emotional waters. It’s the feeling of memory made sound—the melancholy of Sweden in the wintertime, the strange beat of electric hearts, and the longing for forgotten parties."

Meanwhile, the band also announces a first leg of its tour, in Germany, also in September 2013. 

Tickets here.

The Eden House has just premiered their new single "Bad Men (OnTheirWayToDoBadThings)" on Youtube with Monica Richards (ex-Faith And The Muse) on vocals and Phil Manzanera (Roxy Music) on guitar!

Enjoy the video below. To order, and to listen to the B-side, "Survival Instinct", featuring the lovely Amandine Ferrari, check the band's bandcamp page.

theedenhouse.bandcamp.com/album/bad-men-ontheirwaytodobadthings-single

Belga Films has released Taken 2 on dvd and Blu-ray. It's available in any shop.

In this succesful sequel we see Liam Neeson for the second time in a quite unusual role as the father who tries to find his kidnapped daughter.

Taken 2 is a real tip for fans of exciting actionmovies.

Synopsis

The retired CIA agent Bryan Mills invites his teenage daughter Kim and his ex-wife Lenore, who has separated from her second husband, to spend a couple of days in Istanbul where he is working. Meanwhile, the patriarch of the community of the Albanese gang of human trafficking, Murad Krasniqi, seeks revenge for the death of his son and organizes another gang to kidnap Bryan and his family. Bryan and Lenore are abducted by the Albanese, but Kim escapes and is the only hope that Bryan has to escape and save Lenore

Pieter Nooten, the man who wrote monumental tunes for Clan Of Xymox, is back with a new album Haven.

Peek-A-Boo can proudly announce you the fact that you'll soon can read an interview with the man about what was, but more perhaps important what will be....

In the meantime Pieter invites us for a sneak preview of his album Haven

Enjoy, but most of all...dream away.