Sergey Rachmaninov - Nocturne: Rachmaninov Vespers & Byzantine Hymns (La Tempête, Simon-Pierre Bestion)

For those who might have heard Byzantine and Orthodox hymns, they will notice the difference with the lowest vocal tones used by chanters in Orthodox churches, with a low-tone droning voice called "iso." Especially Russian chanters are quite well-known for their guttural voices. This awesome rendition of Rachmaninov's vespers and the All-Night Vigil rocks so much. Essential. 2022 cd on Alpha.

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Merula - Sleep

Possibly the best release of 2020 so far, and one that fits the deathly future we are all awaiting this coming winter with the unforgiving onslaught of covid. This is a rendition of Tarquino Merula's religious anthem "Hor ch’e tempo di dormire." The first version is a tape recording of a soprano singing it with birds in the background, and the second one is an unnerving cover in English with a death-folk/dark ambient vibe. It's very depressing and I can't really listen to it throughout, but it's extremely highly recommended. 2020 tape on Men Scryfa.

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Enahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou ‎– Éthiopiques, Vol. 21

An Ethiopian nun playing solo piano who released music to raise money for orphan children. This is one of the few records I've played to my partner that she likes, so I guess it must be good enough. She plays really passionate - yet mostly calming - gospel/blues/modal jazz tunes, which is shocking given that she's not African-American. Highly recommended stuff. 2006 cd on Buda Musique.

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Chœur des moines de l'abbaye de Bricquebec/De Cîteaux/Sept-Fons/de Timadeuc - Salve Regina (Deathspell Omega fans take notice)

For the obligatory festive album courtesy of your beloved half-Christian/half-Shia Lebanese jackass, a gift for the church-goers who love Deathspell Omega. Since I first heard Si Monumentum Requires, Circumspice, I've been haunted by the Gregorian choir chanting throughout but more prominently at the hair-raising outro of track 1, the unforgettable "First Prayer." I'd done some research over the years, without any success at all, and only very recently did I manage to find where that sample came from. Discussions in the Metal Archives forum talked about a Jewish chant, while others mentioned it was a Russian Orthodox hymn, but none was the case. It is a French monastic choir going by the name Chœur des Moines de l'abbaye De Cîteaux, which is run by Trappist monks in Saint-Nicolas-lès-Cîteaux near Dijon, and the hymn is "Magnificat Verbum caro factum est (Antiennes)." Now all of you children of Satan can rejoice at hearing this impeccable hymn in its full glory. As a fan of Catholic aesthetics, Gothic architecture, and all the blood, fire, and sin committed in the name of sweet little Jesus, I can't help but love the recordings in this cd (the hymn "Salve Regina" which has given the cd its name is not Arvo Pärt's composition), as they have a very devotional quality, given that they are sung by monk pros and not just choirs of good calliphone artists, and the recording has a quite lo-fi aspect that makes it even more mystical. Since these chants were recorded inside the churches, bells are occasionally heard to ring, thereby ascribing an even more cult feeling. Features recordings by four choirs of monks in France: Chœur des moines de l'abbaye de Bricquebec, Chœur des Moines de l'abbaye De Cîteaux, Chœur des moines de l'abbaye de Sept-Fons, and Chœur des moines de l'abbaye de Timadeuc. 2004 cd on Studio SM on the Eternel Gregorien series. Everyone have fun during these days; fuck consumerism, fuck shop owners, and fuck the festive opening of shops on Sundays that is done at the expense of the rest of workers.

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Shake That Booty For Jesus: Good God! Apocryphal Hymns

 

It's the start of the Holy Week in the place where I live so this post would be quite fitting, although Evangelicalism is not the brand of Christianity that dominates this place. This is a compilation of 1960s and 1970s African American psychedelic soul/gospel music singing in praise of their god. When I think of modern music singing for Jesus, I can either think of yuk emo hardcore/metalcore, some decent hardcore bands like Zao and Living Sacrifice, and Eric Cartman's timeless Christian rock band Faith + 1 in the South Park classic "Christian Rock Hard." In a sense, the music compiled here is a serious version of Cartman erotic verses for Jesus, as it contains intimate, sometimes sensual soul devoted to the dude (check out Spiritual Harmonizers' "God's Love" or Sensational Saints' - oh the name - "That's All I Need") filled with Fender Rhodes bliss, funky falsetto vocal stylings and fuzzy guitar wah. It's all like going for late night cocktail drinking and coke snorting after a good ol' evening ceremony. Yes, all this sounds corny, but, it could be an empirical statement that African Americans is the most talented ethnic group when it comes to the modern arts (most of my favorite novels have been written by black authors), and their presence has defined American art and culture in the 20th century, so even when they're doing Evangelical music, you can't go wrong. Highlights include the very psychedelic and lysergic "Walk With Jesus" by Otis Johnson, Shelton Kilby's "Poor Wayfaring Strangers," Jonah Thompson's "Get Involved," and "It'll All Be Over" by the Supreme Jubilees. 2013 cd on Numero Group.

As a further token of my love for everything related to African American culture and Black Power, I'll also share the rest of the compilations on the Numero Group Good God! series, which are even wilder as they're infested with coke-stained booty-shake-inducing Evangelical disco/funk, plus a totally unrelated compilation called Good God! Heavy Funk Covers Of James Brown From All Over The World 1968 - 1974, that bears no relation to the rest, apart from the title, and which was released by Guerrilla Reissues. Last but not least, the Numero Group bandcamp has a wide selection of cult compilations that are really worth checking out, especially the insane Seafaring Strangers: Private Yacht cd containing synthetic yacht rock awesomeness.

Download Apocryphal Hymns
Download Gospel Funk Hymnal (256k)
Download Born Again Funk
Download Eccentric Soul
Download James Brown (vbr)