Barnett and Coloccia are separated by two thousand miles; nevertheless this record was born primarily out of condensed in-person meetings rather than penpal file-trading. Following an initial exchange of ideas, the bulk of Retrieval was recorded over three intensive days at Otic Sound in Vancouver, with Coloccia contributing treated vocals, tape-manipulated acoustic recordings and AM radio sounds, and Barnett adding an array of synth instruments to create further loops, drum sounds and other rhythmic elements.They then reconvened at AVAST! studio in Seattle for a final session of mixing and editing with engineer/producer Randall Dunn. The resulting LP is about time and place, synthesis and environment. It's an invitation into the woods, to find that which reveals itself only to the lost. A grave, deeply introspective work, pastoral in essence but cosmic in scope. Opening with the stately, medievalist sequences of 'Harbor', Retrieval's narrative takes in subdued techno abstraction ('Hallway'), chrondritic psychedelia ('So, How Much Do You Know About Me?'), saw mill gear-grind ('Repeating Pit') and eldritch noise invocations ('Retrieval', 'Bird's Eye'). Throughout, it invigorates without consoling and today you can stream the entire LP at Pitchfork Advance. It's out next Monday - don't miss out this intense piece of music.
You can stream the album here.
About Barnett + Coloccia:
Artist and composer Faith Coloccia was a founding member of experimental group Everlovely Lightningheart, and is perhaps best known as one half of Mamiffer (alongside Aaron Turner, with whom she also runs the SIGE label and publishing imprint). She has contributed to recordings by House Of Low Culture, Boris and William Fowler Collins among others, and collaborations with Circle and Daniel Menche are forthcoming. Her work has appeared on such labels as Hydra Head, Daymare, Conspiracy Recordings and Profound Lore.
Alex Barnett played in Oakeater but since 2009 has been active primarily as a solo artist, with releases on Catholic Tapes, DRAFT, Nihilist and others. Most recently he contributed to the Mamiffer/Locrian record Bless Them That Curse
Arrow Video is thrilled to announce 16th December 2013 as the confirmed release date for Big Trouble in Little China, one of the most hotly anticipated Blu-ray titles of the year. John Carpenter’s iconic cult classic will be released as both a deluxe Blu-ray & also as a limited edition SteelBook featuring Drew Struzan’s iconic artwork.
Featuring a bumper crop of bonus features including newly filmed interviews with the director John Carpenter and star, Kurt Russell as well as Carpenter’s long-time producer Larry Franco and the film’s stunt coordinator Jeff Imada, cinematographer Dean Cundey and a further wealth of archive content. The Blu-ray producer’s Francesco Simeoni says of the release “Big Trouble was a dream come true, it’s such an iconic film and to be able to work on a new version of this was a real treat. Technically one of our most complicated discs with acres of content to fit in whilst making everything easy to navigate and user friendly our technical team made this all seamless on the final disc and we are really pleased with the final presentation. The film’s restoration from Twentieth Century Fox was a gift, it’s never looked so good and we can’t wait for our fans to enjoy this package for Christmas.”
A commercial failure upon release in cinemas the film was mishandled by the studio and interviewees Carpenter and Russell especially make no bones about what happened. Finding a secondary life on home video and becoming a bona fide cult classic the film has enjoyed a great reputation on VHS and DVD and now for the first time can be enjoyed in this definitive edition.
Synopsis
Following Escape from New York and The Thing, John Carpenter and Kurt Russell re-unite for this mystical, action, adventure, comedy, kung-fu, monster, ghost story!
Russell plays Jack Burton, a reasonable guy who is about to experience some unreasonable things in San Francisco’s Chinatown. As his friend’s fiancée is kidnapped Jack becomes embroiled in a centuries-old battle between good and evil. At the root of it all is Lo Pan, a 2000-year-old magician who rules an empire of evil spirits. Jack goes to the rescue dodging demons, goblins and the unstoppable Three Storms as he battles through Lo Pan’s dark domain.
One of Carpenters most enjoyable and best loved films, Big Trouble in Little China brilliantly juggles delirious set-pieces, comedy and kung-fu action with a razor sharp script of corking one-liners, as Jack would say “It’s all in the reflexes”.
The super-deluxe package, which is available both as a standard Blu-ray and as a limited edition Blu-ray SteelBook, is full of special features and bonus material. The special features for this edition include:
High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the film from a digital transfer prepared by Twentieth Century Fox
Optional 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and uncompressed Stereo 2.0
Isolated 5.1 DTS-HD Isolated Score Soundtrac
Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
Audio Commentary with director John Carpenter and star Kurt Russell
Return to Little China – A brand new interview with John Carpenter
Being Jack Burton – A brand new interview with Kurt Russell
Carpenter and I – A brand new interview with cinematographer Dean Cundey
Producing Big Trouble – A new interview with producer Larry Franco
Staging Little Trouble – A new interview with stuntman Jeff Imada
Interview with visual effects producer Richard Edlund
Vintage Making-of featurette featuring cast and crew
Extended Ending
Deleted Scenes
Music Video
Gallery of behind-the-scenes images
3 original trailers
TV Spots
Booklet featuring new writing on the film by John Kenneth Muir, author of The Films of John Carpenter, as well as a re-print of an interview with production designer John Lloyd and make-up effects artist Steve Johnson on the design and effects of the film, illustrated with archive stills and posters
The standard release is available with a reversible Sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jay Shaw and the Limited Edition SteelBook is presented with the original iconic Drew Struzan artwork
Seabound, the moniker under which the duo of Frank Spinath (vocals) and Martin Vorbrodt (electronics) collaborate, is one of the most highly regarded acts in the dark electronic scene. A unique ability to combine cutting edge, modern music and emotional vocals and lyrics to create an atmospheric, compelling work separate Seabound from its contemporaries. Speak In Storms is possibly Seabound’s strongest effort to date.
It is cohesive, with the ominous tension started in early tracks like “For Life” and “Contraband.” The tension keeps building through to the danceable “Everything,” which seems to be a deep exhalation of breath, a release. The relief is short lived, as “Lair” builds once again from the darker atmospherics, taking the listener once again into the moody world of Seabound. Speak in Storms is a compelling piece of work; it’s the sound of broken dreams, of loss and anger, and, of course, love.
Client return. As an addictive appetizer for their upcoming fifth album „Authority“, the pioneers of Female Electronica release their groovy anthem “You Can Dance” as a 12” clear vinyl, limited to 500 copies.
Electronic, club-compatible and enticing, Client pull the listener into an emotional interplay of cool distance and wicked heat, into a web of innocence and seduction fuelled by a cocktail of catchy melodies, minimal beats and driving sequencers. This massive track serves as the perfect introduction for charismatic new vocalist Client N, a protagonist of the legendary scene in her hometown of Bristol who has been making a name for herself through collaborations with names like Massive Attack, Roni Size and Portishead.
The 12” contains another outlook on the upcoming album in form of the cool rhythmic track “XXX-Action” and three remixes for some dance floor power: a minimal club-vision from DJ Lukas, a beat-laden melodic Synth-Pop approach from CHROM and a New-Wave-y interpretation from Dear Strange. This classy 12”, limited to 500 copies world wide on clear vinyl is a must-own for fans and heralds the beginning of a new era for what is probably the most seminal all-girl Electro-Pop-group of all time.
Having spent the previous four years living in North Carolina, primary songwriter Jamie Stewart relocated to Los Angeles, moving blindly into a neighborhood whose notoriously dangerous reputation was unknown to him. A park divided among four gangs, a lake routinely dragged for bodies, a building wherein two infant skeletons were recently uncovered - the aura of his new home bleeds into every pore of the album, each lyric and note bearing traces of its essence: the terrible beauty, the despair, the violence, the humanity.
"I know to a degree I must have romanticized it," Stewart admits, "But when it's not safe to go out at night, what else can one do?" Romanticized is hardly the word anyone other than Stewart would use. Like its namesake, a Japanese erotic noir film, 'Angel Guts: Red Classroom' is not easy to digest.
The subject matter - racialized sex, double suicide, double penetration, criminality, fear of physical harm - is unsuitable for the faint of heart. In the wrong hands, such topics could be rendered as far-fetched fantasies. But Stewart's evocative vocals lend his provocative lyrics the balance they need, grounding them in a stark realism that forces us to acknowledge their existence, even confront them (as discomforting as that is).
Unsettling, too, is the music. Recorded at Nurse (Stewart’s home studio) and producer John Congleton’s Elmwood studio in Dallas, Texas, and working with only analog synths, drum set and 1970's analog drum machines, Xiu Xiu has never before sounded so focused, so captivating, so intent on delivering a kick to the throat. Take 'Stupid in the Dark' - its tone ominous and pulsing, its harmonies simple and direct, its grip unrelenting. Or 'Botanica de Los Angeles', a sparse yet anthemic merging of bruising drums and bone-rattling bass synths. Undeniably dark, yet incredibly illuminating.
So the fearlessness continues. An album such as Angel Guts: Red Classroom demands an equal fearlessness from the listener; to surrender to this magnificent maelstrom. By facing the worst of mankind, at least we know we’re very much alive.
Angel Guts: Red Classroom will be released 3rd February on Bella Union
