JABBER GARLAND
"primitive future" C50
REVIEWS
MUSIQUE MACHINE
by Hal Harmon
Sincope presents Primitive Future, a full-length cassette by Jabber Garland. Sincope, based out of Italy, has produced quite a number of top notch releases over the last few years. I always get a little giddy to see one of their releases in my review pile. Admittedly, Jabber Garland was not a project familiar to me. After some quick investigation, I see that this is one of Andreas Brandal’s many, many, many side projects. One this collaborative venture, he teams up with Norway’s Sindre Bjerga.
Primitive Future features 5 tracks of industrial noise crawl with multiple guitar stylings. Much of this album kind of reminds me of a collision between Flesh Coffin and Uvesen, two of Brandal’s other projects. That’s not to give Bjerga short shrift, but I’m more familiar with Brandal’s work for sake of comparison. “Orders from Lucifer,” kicks things off. Voice samples, shifting static, tape manipulation, haunting loops, and low end pulses populate the track. However, it’s the beautiful classical guitar playing contrasted with noisier fare that really stands out. As the album unfolds, each track follows in similar fashion. It’s the varied guitar stylings on each track that really distinguishes them for me. The title track “Primitive Future,” offers free form guitar improvisation, mixed with cassette tape dragging, looping pings, some field recordings (I couldn’t quite make out), bass rumblings, and samples. Side A ends with “A House Where Death Has Occurred,” which starts out sounding like it might go in a sludge metal direction. Heavy guitar buzzing, churning industrial machinery sounds, thunderous percussion (sounding like well placed thuds on a steel drum), weird chirps, and a slew of other junk metal abuse sounds compose the piece. It’s probably my favorite track on the tape.
Side B starts with Bjerga and Brandal raiding their junk drawers. “The Woods” begins with the sounds of scraping and scratching, metal on metal, scissors cutting, implements clanging and banging and other sonic oddities. Light feedback and vocal samples present themselves. Heavier feedback displaces these sounds and some thicker bass guitar noodling commences. Eventually some creaking and crunching loops join the fray, sounding like the innards of a ship, crashing into some turbulent waters. The pair finishes things off with “Catalogue of Diseases.” Again the guitar really stands out in this piece. This time they go off in a more psychedelic direction, with some guitar parts that actually kind of remind me of Santana at times.
Primitive Future is another homerun for Sincope and company. I’ve come to the point where I realize that it’s impossible for Brandal to make a bad album. Primitive Future further cements that notion.
VITAL WEEKLY #952
by JKH
Jabber Garland consists of Sindre Bjerga and Andreas Brandal from Norway. Sindre Bjerga creates his music by tape recorders, contact microphones and rewired or homemade electronics. Andreas Brandal is active in several projects and active since the late eighties. He released a lot of albums and tapes worldwide. The cassette Primitive Future is their second release. The first song "Orders From Lucifer" is a beautiful mix electronics, acoustic guitars and some deformed voices at the background. Slowly a crying guitar changes the quiet atmosphere and the composition becomes more and more evil. And side A of the tapes keeps on going in this atmosphere. Drones are flowing away and are disturbed by noises and some receptive guitar notes are joining and give the abstract music some melody. Side B starts with the track "The Woods" some minimal musique concrete sounds. This fragile moment keeps on going and a soft drone is coming up surrounded with some feedback tones and disturbed voices at the background. The abstract music develops more into post-rock music. Same atmosphere in the second track called Catalogue of Diseases, but I like more the compositions at side A in which several styles are melted together.
SANDS-ZINE
by Etero Genio
Jabber Garland è un duo tutto norvegese, dal cui dna emergono i nomi di Sindre Bjerga (del quale dovremmo aver già parlato nella no-zine) e Andreas Brandal, attori storici della scena sperimentale norvegese e con all’attivo discografie di una certa consistenza. Jabber Garland è un’intelligenza sonora nella quale si riversa tutto un mondo: registrazioni d’ambiente, oggettistica sonante e risonante, onde corte, suoni concreti, suoni sintetici, feedback, strumenti acustici, elettrici, elettronici … e una chitarra arpeggiata dagli antichi sapori folk. Come dire: il boato dei ghiacci che precipitano nei fiordi unito alle leggende silvestri. Il tutto sotto l’egida di re Olav. Il titolo della cassetta è molto rappresentativo del suo contenuto.
SODAPOP
by Emiliano Zanotti
Jabber Garland è il nome che i norvegesi Andreas Brandal e Sindre Bjerga hanno dato alla loro collaborazione, e questa cassetta su Sincope è la seconda uscita dopo l'album Catalogue Of Disasters su Inner Empire; i due sono nomi già noti da tempo negli ambienti sotterranei dediti al rumore ma anche all'ambient meno codificata. Non stupisce quindi di ascoltare i nordici alle prese con una serie di rumori, tra sfrigolii vari e campioni, che fanno perdere l'ascoltatore in un'ambient inquietante e solo apparentemente dimessa: l'uso del suono di una chitarra amplificata infatti rialza la tensione, costruendo delle tracce melodiche sparse e intriganti che completano le composizioni sonore dando loro un gusto da colonna sonora industrial. The Woods è il pezzo più riuscito, ma in generale tutti e cinque i brani sfruttano a pieno questa tecnica e compongono un album rumoroso e dal retrogusto psichedelico/horror molto interessante; Primitive Future ha molta personalità e anche se non si può definire originale, ha delle gran belle carte da giocarsi: solo cinquanta copie, accorrete!
THE NEW NOISE
by Maurizio Inchingoli
Dopo il cd-r Catalogue Of Disasters (Inner Empire), il progetto Jabber Garland torna in Italia con Primitive Future, audiocassetta in edizione limitata a sole cinquanta copie. Il duo norvegese è composto da veterani della scena noise, drone e field-recordings: Sindre Bjerga e Andreas Brandal. Delle ultime quattro uscite targate Sincope ‒ assieme a Elementer dei Sutt ‒ è quella che più ho apprezzato, ma solo per una mera questione di gusti personali. Primitive Future è un miscuglio d’ipnotici field-recordings, rituali cosmici, occultismo, pratiche voodoo e caotici rumorini metallici che accompagnano e squarciano drone lunghi e organizzati. Da avvertimenti demoniaci si passa, in un microsecondo, a tristi ricordi del passato, schivando morsi di serpenti e sfuggendo a rapimenti alieni. “Catalogue Of Diseases” – power-noise da catena di montaggio e rumori da fonderia per acciai speciali – provoca isteria di massa compulsiva, ma è anche la cornice ideale per il quadro putrescente di “A House Where Death Has Occurred”, death-industrial con qualche reminiscenza nordica dell’ormai defunta scuola Cold Meat Industry (si parte dalla blasfemia MZ.412 per arrivare fino alle sonorità Atrium Carceri, opprimenti e gelide). Artwork minimale curato come sempre dal truculentboy e ascolto obbligatorio attraverso ottime cuffie, altrimenti vi perdete tutti i meravigliosi effetti sonori.
by Hal Harmon
Sincope presents Primitive Future, a full-length cassette by Jabber Garland. Sincope, based out of Italy, has produced quite a number of top notch releases over the last few years. I always get a little giddy to see one of their releases in my review pile. Admittedly, Jabber Garland was not a project familiar to me. After some quick investigation, I see that this is one of Andreas Brandal’s many, many, many side projects. One this collaborative venture, he teams up with Norway’s Sindre Bjerga.
Primitive Future features 5 tracks of industrial noise crawl with multiple guitar stylings. Much of this album kind of reminds me of a collision between Flesh Coffin and Uvesen, two of Brandal’s other projects. That’s not to give Bjerga short shrift, but I’m more familiar with Brandal’s work for sake of comparison. “Orders from Lucifer,” kicks things off. Voice samples, shifting static, tape manipulation, haunting loops, and low end pulses populate the track. However, it’s the beautiful classical guitar playing contrasted with noisier fare that really stands out. As the album unfolds, each track follows in similar fashion. It’s the varied guitar stylings on each track that really distinguishes them for me. The title track “Primitive Future,” offers free form guitar improvisation, mixed with cassette tape dragging, looping pings, some field recordings (I couldn’t quite make out), bass rumblings, and samples. Side A ends with “A House Where Death Has Occurred,” which starts out sounding like it might go in a sludge metal direction. Heavy guitar buzzing, churning industrial machinery sounds, thunderous percussion (sounding like well placed thuds on a steel drum), weird chirps, and a slew of other junk metal abuse sounds compose the piece. It’s probably my favorite track on the tape.
Side B starts with Bjerga and Brandal raiding their junk drawers. “The Woods” begins with the sounds of scraping and scratching, metal on metal, scissors cutting, implements clanging and banging and other sonic oddities. Light feedback and vocal samples present themselves. Heavier feedback displaces these sounds and some thicker bass guitar noodling commences. Eventually some creaking and crunching loops join the fray, sounding like the innards of a ship, crashing into some turbulent waters. The pair finishes things off with “Catalogue of Diseases.” Again the guitar really stands out in this piece. This time they go off in a more psychedelic direction, with some guitar parts that actually kind of remind me of Santana at times.
Primitive Future is another homerun for Sincope and company. I’ve come to the point where I realize that it’s impossible for Brandal to make a bad album. Primitive Future further cements that notion.
VITAL WEEKLY #952
by JKH
Jabber Garland consists of Sindre Bjerga and Andreas Brandal from Norway. Sindre Bjerga creates his music by tape recorders, contact microphones and rewired or homemade electronics. Andreas Brandal is active in several projects and active since the late eighties. He released a lot of albums and tapes worldwide. The cassette Primitive Future is their second release. The first song "Orders From Lucifer" is a beautiful mix electronics, acoustic guitars and some deformed voices at the background. Slowly a crying guitar changes the quiet atmosphere and the composition becomes more and more evil. And side A of the tapes keeps on going in this atmosphere. Drones are flowing away and are disturbed by noises and some receptive guitar notes are joining and give the abstract music some melody. Side B starts with the track "The Woods" some minimal musique concrete sounds. This fragile moment keeps on going and a soft drone is coming up surrounded with some feedback tones and disturbed voices at the background. The abstract music develops more into post-rock music. Same atmosphere in the second track called Catalogue of Diseases, but I like more the compositions at side A in which several styles are melted together.
SANDS-ZINE
by Etero Genio
Jabber Garland è un duo tutto norvegese, dal cui dna emergono i nomi di Sindre Bjerga (del quale dovremmo aver già parlato nella no-zine) e Andreas Brandal, attori storici della scena sperimentale norvegese e con all’attivo discografie di una certa consistenza. Jabber Garland è un’intelligenza sonora nella quale si riversa tutto un mondo: registrazioni d’ambiente, oggettistica sonante e risonante, onde corte, suoni concreti, suoni sintetici, feedback, strumenti acustici, elettrici, elettronici … e una chitarra arpeggiata dagli antichi sapori folk. Come dire: il boato dei ghiacci che precipitano nei fiordi unito alle leggende silvestri. Il tutto sotto l’egida di re Olav. Il titolo della cassetta è molto rappresentativo del suo contenuto.
SODAPOP
by Emiliano Zanotti
Jabber Garland è il nome che i norvegesi Andreas Brandal e Sindre Bjerga hanno dato alla loro collaborazione, e questa cassetta su Sincope è la seconda uscita dopo l'album Catalogue Of Disasters su Inner Empire; i due sono nomi già noti da tempo negli ambienti sotterranei dediti al rumore ma anche all'ambient meno codificata. Non stupisce quindi di ascoltare i nordici alle prese con una serie di rumori, tra sfrigolii vari e campioni, che fanno perdere l'ascoltatore in un'ambient inquietante e solo apparentemente dimessa: l'uso del suono di una chitarra amplificata infatti rialza la tensione, costruendo delle tracce melodiche sparse e intriganti che completano le composizioni sonore dando loro un gusto da colonna sonora industrial. The Woods è il pezzo più riuscito, ma in generale tutti e cinque i brani sfruttano a pieno questa tecnica e compongono un album rumoroso e dal retrogusto psichedelico/horror molto interessante; Primitive Future ha molta personalità e anche se non si può definire originale, ha delle gran belle carte da giocarsi: solo cinquanta copie, accorrete!
THE NEW NOISE
by Maurizio Inchingoli
Dopo il cd-r Catalogue Of Disasters (Inner Empire), il progetto Jabber Garland torna in Italia con Primitive Future, audiocassetta in edizione limitata a sole cinquanta copie. Il duo norvegese è composto da veterani della scena noise, drone e field-recordings: Sindre Bjerga e Andreas Brandal. Delle ultime quattro uscite targate Sincope ‒ assieme a Elementer dei Sutt ‒ è quella che più ho apprezzato, ma solo per una mera questione di gusti personali. Primitive Future è un miscuglio d’ipnotici field-recordings, rituali cosmici, occultismo, pratiche voodoo e caotici rumorini metallici che accompagnano e squarciano drone lunghi e organizzati. Da avvertimenti demoniaci si passa, in un microsecondo, a tristi ricordi del passato, schivando morsi di serpenti e sfuggendo a rapimenti alieni. “Catalogue Of Diseases” – power-noise da catena di montaggio e rumori da fonderia per acciai speciali – provoca isteria di massa compulsiva, ma è anche la cornice ideale per il quadro putrescente di “A House Where Death Has Occurred”, death-industrial con qualche reminiscenza nordica dell’ormai defunta scuola Cold Meat Industry (si parte dalla blasfemia MZ.412 per arrivare fino alle sonorità Atrium Carceri, opprimenti e gelide). Artwork minimale curato come sempre dal truculentboy e ascolto obbligatorio attraverso ottime cuffie, altrimenti vi perdete tutti i meravigliosi effetti sonori.