New Brvtalism No. 056

The Brvtalist is proud to present a new mix by Toronto's Death Kneel. A project helmed by Max Klebanoff, Death Kneel has been a Brvtalist favorite for the past couple of years. Its uncompromising blend of post-industrial and blackened soundscapes perfectly exemplifies what we love about experimental electronic music. In addition to Death Kneel, Klebanoff also has a hand in the standout label Summer Isle. Releasing tapes and digital EPs by stellar acts such as German Army and HHL, Summer Isle is definitely a label to keep an eye on. In addition to this, Death Kneel has also released material on Total Black and we look forward to the upcoming tape, entitled Champagne Everlast.

Coming up on May 25th at Ozzy's Place in Toronto, catch Death Kneel with Radiator Greys, Cloning and People Skills. From June 24th - 25th be sure to attend Summer Isle presents Forget The Lies, Live The Reality with Shredded Nerve, Negation. Nick Klein, V. Sinclair, Sunken Cheek, The Glass Path, Moss Harvest, Topiary, and E-Saggila at Faith/Void in Toronto. Those of us in the U.S. can look forward to a Death Kneel/E-Saggila tour this coming August/September. For more information visit Facebook and SummerIsle.net.

-JRS

Track list:
G. E. O. - Filename: E Co [Summer Isle]
C10 - Speak Up [Depravity Label]
M Ax Noi Mach - Devil City [White Denim]
Esplendor Geométrico - Belew [Discos Esplendor Geométrico]
Heinz Hopf - Ryssen [A Dear Girl Called Wendy]
Death Kneel - As By A Shell [Total Black]
Nuances - She Knows, That When He Goes, He Really Goes [Total Black]
Horoscope - Cortado [Wharf Cat Records]
E-Saggila - Restoration (Centennial Apt.]
Cienfuegos - Close My Tab [No-Tech]
IXVLF - Stregheria [Unknown Precept]
Eastern Grain - Echoes That Cleanse [Summer Isle]
Evenings - Colourless Hollow Cage [Imminent Frequencies]
Nick Klein - Peppermint Tea [Summer Isle]
Félicia Atkinson - The Book Is The Territory [Shelter Press]
Work/Death - Formax Angelus [Jugular Forest]
Cremation Lily & False Moniker - Paradise Capsules [Strange Rules]

CY001 - Decapitated One-Liners EP

Glasgow's Contort Yourself is one of the most underrated and versatile labels operating today. While they haven't put out a ton of material, each release is always well executed and contains the kind of genre defying characteristics we've become known for loving here at The Brvtalist. An early favorite is CY001 - Decapitated One-Liners EP. This is a 5 track release from a wide range of artists whose sound comes together very well. We are also happy to see this now available in cassette format.

<a href="http://contortyourself-cy.bandcamp.com/album/cy001-decapitated-one-liners-ep">CY001 - Decapitated One-Liners EP by Contort Yourself</a>

The Netherlands' Parrish Smith starts things off nicely with his signature blend of hypnotic, tense, acid washed stylings of body music. The next few tracks are from Italian EBM pioneers Pankow. Both "Das Vodkalied" and "Im Food For You" were both originally released on their stellar debut tape Throw Out Rite (1983), and have been resurrected for this EP by Contort Yourself. While maintaining that classic industrial/ebm feel, given today's landscape, the tracks feel just as fresh and play nicely alongside other European techno/ebm purveyors.

One of the biggest treats on the release is woman of the moment, Helena Hauff's remix of "Das Vodkalied". She does a great job of infusing her mutated techno sensibilities into this retro classic and brings it current enough for dance floors across the globe. Finally, the UK's Perseus Traxx closes things out with his stellar hardware and stripped down style on "Get Away". As always, his love of 80's Chicago House and Detroit Techno shines through and is the perfect way to close things out.

All in all, Decapitated One-Liners is a great example of Contort Yourself's commitment to blurring the lines between past and future sounds. I would say the label also has an ongoing theme of dark, nervous energy and a hypnotic tenseness that comes through with each release. This cassette is limited to only 70 and the label tells us they are going fast so pick yours up now. For more information and purchasing, please visit Bandcamp.

-JRS

Modern Forms + Q&A with Nicolas Grospierre

Our love for architecture goes well beyond its striking appearance, incredible design, mixture of materials and brilliant personalities behind it. We love architecture because it conveys so much more than just a structure. It is a time capsule, social commentary and political tool all at the same time. Enter the new book Modern Forms - A Subjective Atlas of 20th Century Architecture. Photographed and compiled by Nicolas Grospierre, this is a stunning achievement that is much more than just a book of architectural photographs. This is a compendium of some of the most well known and not so well known structures of the 20th century, handpicked by an individual who has traveled the world in search of interesting, innovative and important structures. From monuments to bus stops, we have not seen a collection quite like this before. We reached out to Grospierre to discuss the book, his philosophy and of course Brutalism. Please find our Q&A below.

*All photographs by Nicolas Grospierre

Modern Forms: A Subjective Atlas of 20th Century Architecture (Prestel Publishing, 2016)

The Brvtalist: For those who don't know, talk about little bit about what makes up Modern Forms. Are these new images or a curated selection of photographs from your vast archives?

Nicolas Grospierre: Modern Forms is, in a sense, the synthesis of 15 years of my photographing modernist architecture. I started documenting this kind of architecture around 2002, and although I have done other photographic works since then, I have kept on photographing late modernist buildings for all these years. Some of the pictures were done as a result of a deliberate travel, while others were done while I was travelling for other reasons. So that, eventually, I have gathered an archive of thousands of images, spanning 4 continents and documenting perhaps around 500 buildings. Thus, Modern Forms is a fairly large selection from this archive, as it features 183 buildings, strictly classified according to their shape – hence the name of the book.

TB: All different kinds of architectural movements are on display here. As you just stated, they are arranged by form rather than location and they range from bus stops to popular monuments. Talk a little bit about some of the criteria you used for selecting the images/structures for the book.

NG: When I started working on the book, I was confronted with buildings from different periods, different styles, different architects, different locations, even the formats of the pictures varied – sometimes square, sometimes landscape, sometimes portrait. The problem was that all these different classification methods gave very uneven results. I realized thus that an interesting criterion might be the shape of the buildings, since this was a tangible key to classify the buildings, being apparent in the pictures.

The book is therefore a visual journey though the shapes of modernism, starting from one simple shape (that of a round bus shelter), and moving on progressively to the next, and going in this way through squares, rectangles, triangles, grids, more complex shapes, and eventually ending on the first shape. As the subtitle of the book is that of a “subjective atlas of 20th century architecture”, I have chosen to loop the image sequence, as yet another metaphor of the atlas, which aims at giving the idea of the globe.

Institute of Scientific Research and Development, Kiev, Ukraine, 2012

TB: This being The Brvtalist, we have to talk about Brutalism. Much of your work is focused on Eastern Europe and former Soviet countries (in fact I think I read you reside there). What is your relationship with Brutalism and what about it captivates you?

NG: I do indeed live in Warsaw, as I am in fact half-Polish half-French. And most of the pictures were taken in former socialist countries because they were countries where I had the most opportunity to travel – hence the “subjective” in the subtitle of the book, as it does not aim at being exhaustive in its geographical reach. But I would argue that Brutalism had, in the mid 1970’s until the late 1980’s (at least socialist bloc) a sort of universal reach. And this style, that of late modernism, really interests me for at least two reasons. First, formally, its bold shapes and avant-garde architectural solutions appeal to me on the aesthetical level. It is an architecture of no compromise, which does not pretend to be anything else than what it is. It can be sometimes fantastical, agreed, but it never is simulating. Second, I believe that modernism in architecture, reflects in a very dramatic way sometimes the last moment in history when we still believed in progress, that tomorrow shall be better than today. The fact that most of these buildings were that of public use, and done with no commercial purpose in mind – housing estates, administrations, cultural buildings – is quite telling. And even if we look at the architecture in the former socialist countries, which sometimes is quite oppressive, all these buildings were implemented with high ideals in mind. Whether the implementation was up to the ideals, is of course another debate, but it seems to me that Brutalism was the last style which was truly utopian – in the good and bad sense of the word. And this is what makes it so fascinating.

Balneological Hospital Water Tower, Druskininkai, Lithuania, 2004

TB: The beauty of architecture is that is can convey so much more than just what appears on the outside of a building. So many of the structures in your book communicate the socio-economic circumstances of their regions and eras. Is it also your goal to focus on things like politics, sociology and other cultural touchstones within these photographs?

NG: I was not trained as a photographer, nor an architect, nor an artist, but I studied in fact political science, and I am happy that this is visible in my pictures. And I could not agree more with you by saying that architecture is beautiful because of the many layers of meaning it can convey. First, is of course the visual, physical aspect of a building – whether or not the shape of the building appeals to our taste. Second, a building is interesting because of the different forces at play that lead to its construction – economic, social, but also political and ideological. This in turn has an effect (again) on the way the building looks like, and eventually on the way it works on its inhabitants/visitors. In this way, a building is never simply an architectural plan put into action – it speaks with the material it is built with, and with the way the walls and roof and the proportions of its different parts work with each other. And finally, a building is also interesting because it registers time. As buildings are usually made to last at least a few decades (hopefully), one can read the history of is users inscribed within its structure. It is sometimes happiness, but it is sometimes pain. I always liked better old buildings to new ones, because I feel human effort and history on its walls. Therefore, while I did in the first place want in my pictures to focus on the exterior aspect of the building, I feel it is quite difficult to escape all these other connotations, and I think this is all for the better.

TB: You've captured so much architecture that spans both decades and continents. Modern Forms is truly a great feat and is a testament to your dedication to the craft. What would you like to do or capture next that you haven't already done?

NG: I think it is Gustave Flaubert who said that everything is interesting if you look at it sufficiently long. I think I want to look at architecture a little bit longer.

House of Soviets, Kaliningrad, Russia, 2011

We would like to thank Nicolas Grospierre for this excellent conversation and contributing these truly amazing images. Modern Forms breaks new ground in the realm of architectural photography and makes us look at these structures in a whole new way. The book is available now from Prestel Publishing. For more information please visit: http://www.grospierre.art.pl/.

-JRS

Clockwise from top left:

Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum, Austin, TX, USA 2013
Residential Tower, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 2007
A look inside Modern Forms (Prestel Publishing, 2016)
Dead Sea Museum and Visitor Center, Neve Zohar, Israel 2015

New Brvtalism No. 055

The Brvtalist is proud to present a new mix by Berlin-based artist Positive Centre. One of our favorite producers of the last few years, Positive Centre is a complex mix of experimental hybrid-techno that finds itself submerged in a dark, driving atmosphere of industrial and ambient influences. We love how difficult the music is to define, but it undoubtedly has a unique voice. 2014's In Silent Series (Our Circular Sound) continues to see heavy rotation at Brvtalist HQ and we are equally impressed by the vinyl release, Nonharmonic Beautifault, which came out this year.

New Brvtalism No. 055 is the perfect example of Positive Centre's genre bending, psychological prowess - which take us through deconstructed sonic experiments straight into haunting techno. Featuring tracks by Chimes, Sa Pa, Ryo Murakami, Paul Jebanasam, Ntogn, Ikola, Rraph, Psyk, Scalameriya & VSK, SNTS, Antigone, R/No, Steven Porter, Alessandro Cortini, TBD, NX1, Lewis Fautzi & Par Grindvik, Manta, Tau Sagittarii. Immerse yourself in this powerful contribution. Positive Centre's upcoming live dates are as follows:

May 21st // Live @ Arena Club, Berlin
June 11th // Live @ Nikasi, Lyon

For more information please visit Facebook and Soundcloud.

-JRS

Queen of Noise A/W '16-17 "Akai Ito"

We love a good conceptual narrative and love it even more when it's executed well. Enter the Autumn/Winter 2016-2017 collection by Italian-born, Los Angeles-based Queen of Noise. A relative newcomer to the fashion world, the brand was launched by Italian designer Ambra Zavatta in 2013 and has since made a strong impression with finely tuned collections and handmade, luxurious pieces. We initially discovered the brand through their Spring/Summer 2016 collection, which caught our eye with their dark, moody monochrome looks that are elegant as they are comfortable. We then reached out to the designer and were treated to the upcoming winter collection which we are excited to present to you now.

*click images to enlarge

The name of the collection is "Akai Ito", which translates in Chinese to the "Legend of The Red Thread of Fate". According to this myth, the gods tie an invisible red cord around the ankles of those that are destined to meet one another in a certain situation or help each other in a certain way. The collection is driven by this myth and it shines through the clothes, not only literally but figuratively as well. These are incredibly luxurious pieces that are not only sophisticated but are oozing with sensuality and seductiveness. We love the use of deep red and abstract splashes of color that run through the collection. The materials are all top quality and utilize fine Italian craftsmanship. Our favorites pieces are the black and red robe that feels equal parts evening wear and intimate. The all black jacket and dresses are also standout items.

Queen of Noise is currently sold in some of the best Los Angeles shops including Orphic, A Plus One and Church Boutique. We are excited about this brand and can't wait to see what's next from Mr. Zavatta. For more information please visit Queen of Noise and Facebook.

-JRS

*Photogrpahy by Sandra Bourhani

Manunkind - S/T

I've always thought that nations with rather conservative politics breeds interesting musical subcultures. In this case, Russia. Lots of interesting experimental bands are breeding there (Bardoseneticcube, Reutoff, etc.), and one of them is Manunkind. The duo has been hailed as a new interesting industrial act by the likes of Paul Lemos (Controlled Bleeding) and Gary Mundy (Ramleh). Their limited EP cassette release is on Materia Productions, and the digital can also be found on their Bandcamp.

<a href="http://manunkind.bandcamp.com/album/manunkind">Manunkind by Manunkind</a>

Fans of Haus Arafna, MZ.412, Mental Destruction and early Test Dept should definitely check them out. Metallic chamber atmosphere, devastating machine drums and old-school ritualistic industrial aesthetics. "Acéphale" starts things off and is the perfect example of the duo's punishing vocals and full fledged sonic assault. The remaining tracks continue the theme of heavy, blackened electronics that results in an incredible display of genre-bending destruction. 4 tracks is all there is for now, and only 1 cassette. I will be looking for forward to future releases by this act!

-Per Najbjerg Odderskov
Soundcloud
Brvtalist

Interview with B.J. Nilsen of Morthound

Morthond and Morthound

"In the winter of 1990 Morthond was created as a one-man project of Benny Nilsen. The idea was to make visual music without any moving pictures with coincidence as a main inspiration."

"The river Morthond, also known as the Blackroot, was one of the Rivers of Gondor and was located in the province of Lamedon near the Stone of Erech."

"In 1992 the name "Morthond" was changed to "Morthound"

This Crying Age (Cold Meat Industry, 1991)

Not much has been written about this early Scandinavian act, although it can be said that it dealt with a lot of hard to pin genres such as industrial ambient (This Crying Age from 1991), new age and neoclassical electronics (Spindrift from 1992) and droneish kraut-rock textures (The Godess Who Could Make... from 1994). There was never quite a clear moment when you knew what to expect from the world of B.J Nilsen. A notable act from the early Cold Meat Industry and Sound Source days, since then, B.J Nilsen has been working with other acts such as Hazard and Janitor (Together with Peter Andersson of Deutsch Nepal) and has more or less moved on. Still, there was a need for more material and a new album was released in 2015, which followed a complete boxset the previous year. I'm going to find out just what started this act and how it still manages to stay alive after all these years.

Per Najbjerg Odderskov: So Benny... back in 1990, how did Morthond/Morthound come into being, and what inspired you to do music back then?

B.J. Nilsen: I think the initial drive to make music came from being bored. I grew up in the countryside and there was not much to do. My friends and I used to go to Stockholm and visit record stores or record fairs and got into all kinds of experimental music, films, e.t.c. We educated ourselves more or less and we realized that with simple means one can also make music! I remembered the first time getting in contact with a Synthesizer and that changed everything,

I knew this was something I wanted to get engaged in, but for me it was, and still is important to be curious and open to everything. Get inspired from all kinds of art.

PNO: Why did you choose the record label Sound-Source/Cold Meat Industry to release your music?

BN: I saw it in an ad inside a Swedish fanzine, "New Life Magazine", I think it was called, and it was the only Swedish type of magazine for electronic and industrial music that I knew of. There was an ad with the first releases and I ordered Memorandum and BDN. I was already into that scene and all the old masters. I made some attempts of making music up until then and somehow things changed when I got a Sampler, then the first material for Morthond was made. I sent Roger a demo and he got back to me really happy and I got two tracks on the 2x4 Compilation, then the Death Time Tape, CD e.t.c. It was really inspiring to do this as early as 14-15 year old.

PNO: Still I find, your Age of Crying album as the grand masterpiece. Talk about the how this album was made.

BN: It was composed in my old room at my parents' place in Sweden. I recall spending quite some time on it. I brought the equipment + some additional samplers and effects that belonged to RWL (who also played the indian flute on the recordings), down to Linköping to a friend of Rogers' studio. There we mixed and finalized everything, added the flute and some electronic treatments. We recorded it on a Fostex 8 track reel to reel. We had a few days, perhaps 4 to do it.

PNO: How did the listeners/fans of CMI react to your albums?

BN: Overall really positive. Listeners seemed to appreciate the difference between the albums.

PNO: You stopped Morthound, and your evolvement with CMI and started Hazard. Were you seeking newer pastures within the scene back then?

BN: Yes the scene changed quite a lot into Neofolk, Black Metal direction and I was more into abstract soundscapes and electronic sounds. Later I focused on field recordings and this is were I am now. I think it was a natural step moving forward.

PNO: The boxset is a beautiful achievement after all these years, and you managed to create another new album, Off The Beaten Track The Light Don't Shine. Was it your decision to resurrect Morthound? And for what reason?

BN: I always thought it would been interesting to create a new Morthound album if the Boxset ever happened-and it did! I tried to create the same mindset as the previous ones and draw from where I stopped. It was not an easy task to make a new record but also go back to all the old material and remaster it was quite a trip! The new CD perhaps border more into Sound design and film soundtrack. It is quite a floating record where many of the tracks merge together.

Taken from the album "Spindrift" (Cold Meat Industry 1992)

PNO: Can we look forward to new Morthound releases in the future?

BN: If there's time. I work pretty slow with my solo stuff but not in the near future for sure.

PNO: Last question, was the name Morthound from the world of Tolkien?

BN: Morthond was one of the rivers of Mordor I think. I then put a u in there for Morthound.

Thank you to B.J. Nilsen for taking the time to speak with us.

-Per Najbjerg Odderskov
Soundcloud
Brvtalist

HIDE - Flesh For The Living (Watts Remix For American Primitive) Video Premiere

The Brvtalist is pleased to present the music video premiere of HIDE's Flesh For The Living (Watts Remix for American Primitive). This track comes off the Flesh For The Living 12", which is out now on Midwich Records , and the first vinyl release for HIDE. The original track is pure post-industrial mayhem, but we love the remix and choice to shoot a video around it. Photographed and edited by Chris Hefner, this is a slow burning, fever dream, that masterfully uses the pulsating energy of HIDE and brings the tempo down to create a dreamlike atmosphere where nothing is as it seems....

Available on vinyl at Midwich records and digitally on iTunes. Video concept by HIDE. Photographed and edited by Chris Hefner.

We spoke to multi-disciplinary artist Heather Gabel and 1/2 of HIDE (along with musician Seth Sher) about the video and she had this to say:

The video concept was inspired by a slow, plodding violence we heard in the remix from Joe Cardamone (Watts for American Primitive). There's something inescapable about it in the way it circles back with a relentlessness that's both attractive and foreboding. It mirrors the aggression of our live show. Our lyrics are often addressing and challenging power dynamics, especially concerning gender, and this remix created a sort of perfect storm for us to get more literal with the physicality of what we are trying to express though our music.

HIDE remains one of our favorite new acts to emerge over the past year and we have been lucky enough to host both a New Brvtalism contribution, as well as witness their magic live at the last Brvtalist event back in February. It's great to see their music released on vinyl and we look forward much more from this great band. For more information and music please visit Midwich Records and HIDE's official site.

-JRS

New Brvtalism No. 054

The Brvtalist is proud to present a new mix by London's DRIFT. The solo project of Nathalie Bruno (Leave the Planet, ex-Phosphor), Drift is a dark, ethereal blend of romantic synth, wave and gloomy hypnosis. Bruno's voice mesmerizes and transports the listener to a state of blissful euphoria. Her debut EP, Black Devotion (Avant! Records, 2015) immediately caught our attention and we have been big fans ever since.

New Brvtalism No. 054 is a very intimate mix. Filled with great commentary throughout, let Nathalie guide you through some of her favorite and most influential tracks. From Crash Course in Science to David Lynch, Nico to HTRK, this is the perfect way to let you inside the melodic world of the artist. Take her hand and drift away....

A new video will be out next month and you can catch DRIFT. at the following live dates:
May 18th @ The Waiting Room supporting Essaie Pas + C.A.R (London)
May 20th- @ The Old Blue Last - supporting Triptides and Mass datura (London)
August 19/20 - Kalablik festival, Sweden

We would like to thank Nathalie for her excellent contribution and we look forward to the new video and more material. For more information and music please visit Facebook and Bandcamp. All enquiries contact: driftinsound@gmail.com.

-JRS

Cover photo by Wanda Martin.

Track list:
Colin Newman - Alone
Blue Krishna - Can’t see the line
Crash Course In Science - no more hollow doors
David Lynch- the line it curves
Rosa Yemen - Herpes Simplex
Agent Side Grinder - Mag 7
Luminance (feat. Drift) - Obsession
Nico - These days
HTRK - Fascinator
Pj Harvey - white chalk
Suicide - Girl
Velvet Underground- Venus In Furs
Kas Product - never let go
DRIFT. - Hard to Accept

Damir Doma x Mykita 2016

There are few items in fashion that can make a statement as big as eyewear. It's literally the first thing people see when they meet you and what you put on your face obviously says a ton. That's why considered eyewear is necessary. Whether living in sunny Los Angeles or colder climates, either way they always become important at some point. We love companies that think outside the box and experiment with shapes, forms and textures. Mykita is a Berlin-based company that makes some of our favorite frames and has offered great collaborations with artist Bernhard Willhelm to Maison Martin Margiela. On the other end of the spectrum, Parisian fashion house Damir Doma creates amazing minimal and conceptual clothes, shoes and accessories for both men and women. The two forces have come together before with big success and now we are thrilled to bring you their latest eyewear collection.

The 2016 collection is an in-depth study of form, colour and surface. As designer Damir Doma puts it, "These shapes perfectly round out the Damir Doma look. From the very beginning, our aim was to translate the traditional round form into something modern and create an iconic object". In our view, they were successful in doing so as these frames are unlike anything we've seen and do a great job of evolving the eyewear medium. From different shapes, details and colors, these are beautiful as objects as well as functional fashion.

The "Madeline" (seen above) is perhaps the flagship frame. It's a totally new take on the round form and appears as though it's actually two separate pieces. However, upon closer inspection, you notice that it's one, amazingly handcrafted piece with two lenses literally hovering in the middle to create something modern and totally avant garde.

Another favorite is the "Dawn" (above left) which is named after the legendary jazz singer Dawn Hampton. The striking color ways and exaggerated proportions give a look of elegance, grandeur and purity. Returning to the lineup again is a previous favorite, the DD1.2 (below) which utilizes the classic pilot shape and infuses the incredibly meticulous craftsmanship to create something awe inspiring. We just can't get enough of the floating lenses.

In addition to these, you'll find around 10 other beautiful frames in a variety of colors that can suit just about any need or shape. We're normally not big fans of collaborations but Mykita seems to keep getting it right and Damir Doma continues to be one of our favorite fashion forward brands on the market today. For more information and full collection, please visit Mykita.

-JRS