Steve Jansen & Richard Barbieri ‎– Stone To Flesh cd

Four years after Stories Across Borders, this one is a more full fleshed version of the art pop/ambient version of that album, with a more expansive and psychedelic sound, perhaps aided in fact by the participation of Steven Wilson and Colin Edwin, his Porcupine Tree bandmates. Also, when I first heard the harmonica on the first track, I said "hey this one's off Talk Talk's Spirit Of Eden," and indeed Mark Beltham, the harmonica player on that album participates on a few tracks, giving also a Talk Talk vibe here, along with late Pink Floyd influences. Good stuff. 1995 cd on Medium Productions Limited.

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Steve Jansen & Richard Barbieri - Stories Across Borders

 

Nightly ambient/slightly new age/art pop by Jansen and Barbieri, and heavily accompanied by Mick Karn of Japan. Music that is totally 1990s and suitable for relaxed car traveling. 1991 cd on Virgin.

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Anna Von Hausswolff - Dead Magic cd

The new cd of Anna Von Hausswolff is her best yet, solidifying the "drone rock"/"funeral pop" style she expounded on Ceremony and The Miraculous. Fortunately she has toned down on the ethereal aspects of her work and adopted a rawer and heavier style, possibly the outcome of her association and touring with Swans. Her vocals have also become absolutely amazing, as shown in the t-e-r-r-i-f-i-c second track "The Mysterious Vanishing of Electra," which is an early contender for best song of the year. Congratulations. 2018 cd on City Slang.

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Anna Von Hausswolff - Ceremony & The Miraculous

Uh oh, doesn't Anna Von Hausswolff like what the music would have been in a medieval Pull & Bear clothes store? The base for her sound is gothic, church-organ heavy drony rock, but her high-tone vocals, the production and the pop sensibilities bring out a much more lush sound, like what Lana Del Rey would sound like if she listened to mid-1990s Swans, were Scandinavian, and didn't address her music to teen girls shopping at Forever 21, but to Vikings looking for a new shield at a Hanseatic city mall while on a break from attacking Christian monks. Lawl. OK, a more serious description could "Dead Can Dance covering Black Sabbath." Well, I hope that the references to Lana Del Rey and clothes big stores don't put off people from listening, she is fun, and the live videos I've seen on Youtube are more passionate and war-like.



Ceremony: 2012 cd on Kning Disk.

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The Miraculous: 2015 cd on City Slang/Pomperipossa.

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