Category Archives: Mini-Review

Weasel Walter, Epos Nemo Latrocinium, Jake Mehew, John Zorn, Leftyfish, Aseroe, Tower of Silence, Sectioned, and Japanski Premijeri

by Dæv Tremblay

Weasel Walter – Skhiizm

Weasel Walter is widely known for his involvement with many influential bands, playing mostly jazz and metal. Skhiizm is his latest release, and it’s a wild ride of experimental metal, with a lot borrowed from noise metal. The compositions are lots of fun, but one thing that irks me is the poor choice of drum samples – whether they were carelessly programmed or simply used an outdated sound library. If you can get behind that, however, you’ve got a pretty killer album!

Epos Nemo Latrocinium – Iter itineris III

The third volume of Seattle experimental chamber … Read more

Cosmo Sheldrake – The Much Much How How and I

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

London multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer Cosmo Sheldrake released his debut full-length album earlier this month: The Much Much How How and I. The album shows the strong hand that Cosmo has on pop composition. Each of the fourteen songs on display are, in their own way, interesting, emotive, and full of ear hooks. I say “pop”, but the reality is deeper than that. Although many songs would definitely qualify as such, they are conveyed through a lush orchestration and a firm indie folk vibe; in the end, they are more than the sum of their … Read more

Haolin Munk – Planestasia Suite

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Jazz and hip hop are two proximate worlds, but it’s a rare treat to see them interconnect. Fortunately, Ontario, Canada’s Haolin Munk quartet is here to settle the score. In what sounds like a softer version of Montréal’s New Apple Taste, without the noise and the rock, their science-fiction concept album – who else gets hints of Clipping.? – is an astonishing jazz fusion release filled with tasty grooves, decadent solo sections, and an overall spotless arrangement work.

Since the Haolin Munk quartet is an instrumental entity, each vocal track exists thanks to the help of … Read more

Patrick Shiroishi Rob Magill Duo – Eyes in the Dirt

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Patrick’s a long-time respected player and friend of mine, and his musical explorations always resonate with me. Whether it be in the mathematical Upsilon Acrux, in the zeuhlish Corima, or in any of his other projects like Nakata or Sewing Circle, his playing is emotional, raw, and unique. Rob Magill, on the other hand, is a new name for me. He’s no rookie either, though, as he’s release many albums through Weird Cry Records, influenced by classical music, jazz, noise, and many more.

Eyes in the Dirt comes from an improvisation session carried out in a … Read more

Built-In Obsolescence – Instar

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

The post-metal of Italian band Built-In Obsolescence is one of those that we could qualify as “cinematic”. The compositions on their sophomore album Instar build slowly and leash out gloriously. Usually one or two themes are shyly introduced in the beginning of a song and built upon, brick by brick, until it reaches a climax, then things calm down a bit, and then pick up again into an higher climax, and then again for a final blaze. The way the group plays with different themes and structures makes Instar a very interesting experience. It would have … Read more