Joel Vandroogenbroeck – ‘Biomechanoid’ LP
Biomechanoid is the classic 1980 album by composer and flutist Joel Vandroogenbroeck. It’s 1980, in Munich, Germany, upstart production music label Coloursound Library releases their debut album. Capitalising on the success of Ridley Scott’s Alien film, the label dropped Biomechanoid, featuring cover art commissioned by HR Giger – whose horrific Necronom IV lithograph served as the basis for the design of Alien – and the music of the relatively unknown Joel Vandroogenbroeck. Comprised of bleak, cinematic synth soundscapes and percussion, the album served as an inaugural calling card for what would be a decade of dizzying solo releases by Vandroogenbroeck for Coloursound, running the gamut from Mesopotamian ethno-folk to synth sequencer funk to electro drum breaks to in-utero ambient delights. Though the Belgian-born Vandroogenbroeck, 74, may not be a household name; in an ideal world, he would be. As the founder, flautist, harpist, sitar player and keyboardist of the seminal acid-fried Swiss psych outfit Brainticket, he spearheaded the groups three main (and collectible) releases in the early 70s – Cottonwood Hill, Celestial Ocean and Psychonaut. Combining a love of exotic instruments coupled with mind-bending out-of-body excursions, the ever-changing collective developed something of a cult following throughout Europe and earned a reputation as one of the heavier psych outfits on the circuit – which was something of a double-edged sword. While their experimental sound resonated with hippies everywhere, it didn’t with the authorities, who associated the act with heavy drug consumption and subsequently began a ban of their music, especially the Psychonaut album, if for the title alone. After that bitter brush with censorship, the group quietly disbanded in 1972. After the dissolution of Brainticket, Vandroogenbroeck departed for the island of Bali with the intent of learning to build and play the gamelan – an ensemble of primarily percussion instruments from Indonesia. It would become yet another weapon in his ever growing arsenal of exotic instruments: he was already proficient in the sitar, harp, kalimba, assorted percussion oddities and all woodwinds by this point. Vandroogenbroeck became so enraptured with the frenetic sound of the gamelan that he subsequently left the tropics to start up a joged bumbung (a variation on a gamelan) band back in Switzerland. While playing small festivals and civic events with this group, Joel began to slowly gravitate towards the synth-heavy kraut sounds of artists like Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze at the same time. And once he began dabbling with oscillators, he never turned back. After inking a library deal around this time with the nascent Coloursound label, who gave him complete creative control, Vandroogenbroeck began turning out releases at a rapid rate, often three to five a year, and under a variety of aliases like V.D.B. Joel, J.V.D.B, and Eric Vann. Starting with the desolate synth drone of Biomechanoid, he continued to expand his sound palette on while on Coloursound, moving from early arpeggiators on Computer Blossoms to percussive sound collage on Birth Of Earth; and from Oberheim DMX drum breaks on Video Games & Data Movements to Apple II ambient programming on Digital Project. Biomechanoid stands after all these years as an album full of dark, strange, disturbing soundscapes, the obscure side of Brainticket, proving how Joel was still a creative artist. Release Details: * Artwork by HR Giger * Matt finishing * Double-sided insert * 180gr. vinyl * Edition of 500 copies.
Orphan Fairytale – ‘My Favorite Fairytale’ 2LP
Welcome to the wondrous world of Eva Van Deuren’s one-girl project Orphan Fairytale. She creates a fairylike, mystic and hypnotizing sound world using only self-made electronics, toy instruments , cassette loops and small keyboards. The music show a great deal of playfulness. Dreamlike patterns are enriched by carefully placed notes and tones. After almost 10 years of performing and recording, the time has come for a round-up and Aguirre is happy to present a wonderful set of four sidelong pieces. The 2xLP set consists of delicate twinkling tunes recorded during the period of 2008 – 2011 wherein Eva shows an admirable creativity, coalescing minimalism, new age, psychedelic and repetitive sounds. Not always too far away from contemporary fellow artists like Dolphins Into The Future, Innercity and Panabrite with whom she shares a certain ambience. Originating from Antwerp, Belgium Eva Van Deuren grew up in a flourishing Belgian music scene. Releasing cassettes on numerous independent cassette labels Audiobot, Beniffer Editions and Sloow Tapes just to name a few. In the summer of 2007 she was even asked to open for Sonic Youth (!). It was Thurston Moore who was very fond of her music. After that she has released full albums on Ultra Eczema and Blackest Rainbow and now we like to welcome her to Aguirre! Release details: * Artwork by Johan and Hannah * High Gloss finishing * Edition of 500 copies.
Gnod – ‘The Somnambulist’s Tale’ LP
An early and one of the most special Gnod recordings is out now on Aguirre. The Somnambulist’s Tale consists of two sidelong adventurous pieces which are carried by an incredible loop. The haunting ambience in combination with electronics, distant guitar layers, conversations between the band members, a typewriter, and other sounds from found objects makes this quite an atypical Gnod release, but definitely a great one. Influenced by early Krautrock bands like Can, Hawkwind and Ash Ra Temple, Gnod brings us back to those days, add twisted sounds and strange lyrics to the whole and deliver a truly mesmerizing psychedelic drone record. Gnod is a British krautrock band from Salford, England. Formed in 2006, the band is a collective from Manchester with an ever-rotating list of members. They run experimental electronic live nights in Salford called Gesamtkunstwerk (German for “whole arts work”) where they offer “outsider electronics, hardwarped machine rhythms and analogue debauchery all reflecting the postindustrial mill space”. They have a punky belief in the dissolution of the boundary between artist and audience to the extent that it is not unlikely to find gig-goers onstage, adding to the instrumental melee. Release Details: * Artwork by Fliss Horrocks * Matt finishing * Edition of 500 copies.