Sort Vokter – Folkloric Necro Metal (1996)

 

Country: Norway

 

Tracklist

 1. Kveldstimer 05:08
2. Langs Stier Uten Ende 02:19
3. Grålysning 04:04      
4. Fra Kilden Til Tjernet 03:43
5. Tårers Sang 01:59
6. Hatefulle Tanker Ut I Natten 03:24
7. Ni Gygrer / Nattjakt 02:46
8. Bak To Lysende Øyne 02:58
9. Sønn Av Skyggers Skygge 03:08
10. Fjellstev 08:04

Ildjarn project that featured a full line up and consisted of Ildjarn (Bass, Guitars, Vocals),

 Nidhogg (Vocals),  Heiinghund (Bass, Guitars) and Tvigygre (Bass, Guitars, Vocals).
Sort Vokter (Black Guardian in Norwegian) only released one album through Ildjarn's personal label  

Norse League Productions, had programmed drums and everyone involved played on different instruments on every track.
The lineup for the keyboard/ambient tracks is not credited.
"Folkloric Necro Metal" was distributed by Napalm Records and later by Transcendental Creations.

 
Memory

Girnų Giesmės – Aštuoni Nerimo Veidrodžiai (1997)

Country: Lithuania

 

Tracklist

1. Veidrodis I 14:42
2. Veidrodis II 06:00
3. Veidrodis III 03:38
4. Veidrodis IV 04:50
5. Veidrodis V 13:37
6. Veidrodis VI 05:25
7. Veidrodis VII 04:36
8. Veidrodis VIII. Žiemos Rūpesčiai (Mix) 06:24

 

Girnu Giesmes was born in 1996 by Laurynas Jukonis,

who had experimented with several underground bands in Vilnius before starting his own project.
Album "Kerai" (Spell), recorded the same year and issued by the label Dangus in cassette format.
In 1997 the cassette "Aštuoni Nerimo Veidrodžiai" (8 Mirrors Of Anxiety) was self-released

and was distributed only in a close circle of friends.
The next year the cassette "Juodi Vasaros Trimitai" (Black Trumpets Of Summer) was released, 

followed by the split release "Brėkšta" (Breaking Dawn) together with the band Šalikapalikau in 2000.
The first Girnu Giesmes work in CD format was published in 2001 under the title "S:S:S:S".
From 2003 to 2022 six more albums were recorded while the project also played live on several notable festivals.
"Aštuoni Nerimo Veidrodžiai" was re-released in CDr in 2001 under the title "8 Nerimo Veidrodžiai" with a different cover.

 
Memory

Thymikon – Nipsis (1996)

Country: United States

 

Tracklist

1. Nipsis 04:56
2. Remorse (The Watchers) 04:46
3. Without 613 04:10
4. Demise 05:04
5. Aeternus 04:18
6. Wi6th1ou3t 05:46
7. Shimshon 03:48
8. Demise 2 04:31
9. SOS #5 03:34
10. Night 03:46
11. Midnight Improvisation 03:28
12. Steel 03:43
13. The Mystic Mother (Bonus Track) 04:29

 

Beau Branson released his first and only album "Nipsis" as Thymikon, in late 1996.
Branson is a Professor of Philosophy at Brescia University in Kentucky,

specialized in Philosophical Theology, Metaphysics, and Ancient and Hellenistic Philosophy.
The album featured a blend of industrial/ambient, dark wave with electronica sounds

and was released by Logistikon Records (Edmond, OK).
Thymikon also had tracks released on various compilations on labels like Flaming Fish Music and Blacklight Records.
Branson's only subsequent recording as Thymikon was the song "The Mystic Mother",

that featured on the 1997 compilation "Awaiting The Dawn".

 
Memory

EnGrave – Polaris (1997)

Country: United States

 

Tracklist

1. Recoil 04:31
2. Into Your Iris (A Longing For Home) 03:30
3. Northeast (Loneliness) 06:56
4. Electron Plasma 04:55
5. Forged In Fire 05:32
6. Eiserner Vorhang 06:11
7. Lebensgefahr 03:17
8. Euro-Span 05:40
9. Soul Probe 05:52
10. Intercession 04:07

 

Solo project of Nathan Morris (also in Novä Sphere), co-founder of Velvet Empire label that operated from mid to late 90s.
Nathan spent most of his life in Cyprus, and in 1989 he moved to Germany before living in USA

where he began Velvet Empire and wrote in 1996 the first demo cassette of EnGrave entitled "Benediction".
His music is heavily influenced by Europe and his love for synthesized sounds.

"Polaris" is a collection of songs written between 1996-1997

(4 new ones, 2 taken from compilations and the 4 songs from the "Benediction" demo)

and capture the best of a hybrid mix between ambient and electro darkwave.
A second album was planed for release in the spring of 1999 but this never happened.

 
Memory

Alquimia – "Coatlicue" Goddess Of The Earth (1992)

 

Country: Mexico

 

Tracklist

Coatlicue Diosa De La Tierra:    
I. Coatepec (Hill Of Snakes) 02:38
II. Tlilán (The Temple Of Darkness) 01:48
III. Coatlicue (The Goddess Of The Earth) 03:11
IV. Festividades (Festivities) 02:56
V. Danza De Xilonem (Xilonem's Dance) 04:26
VI. La Dualidad De La Diosa (The Duality Of The Goddess) 03:10
VII. Procesión (Procession) 02:45
VIII. Ofrenda (Offertory) 03:49
IX. Sacrificio (Sacrifice) 05:53
10. Walkyrias 05:55
11. Alkaest 04:19
12. Avatar 04:08
13. Aura 03:34
14. Inquisición 03:28

 

 A project that started in the late 80s by Mexican female multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Margarita Saavedra.
Her work explore the experimental scene with risky blends of musical genres achieving a sonic amalgamation.
While her basic tracks feature vocals and piano, Alquima enhances her recordings with layers of looped vocals,

electronic processors, sound effects, samples, synthesizers, gongs and bells.

The result is a sound that combines the musical traditions of Latin America

with influences of avant-garde, classical and improvisational music.
Alquimia developed an early love of music and singing, partly from her mother, a classical opera singer.

She went on to study in France and Canada, before making her permanent home in England.

Although she has often been far from home, her interest in the ethnic musical styles of her home country

made her learn various pre-Columbian percussion instruments and flutes,

while her search for new sounds inspired her use of modern music technology.
Alquimia has recorded many albums, both as a solo artist and with writers and musicians such as Hans-Joachim Roedelius,

Rüdiger Gleisberg, Peter Mergener, Anton Zinkl, Mark Powell, Art Of Infinity, Carlos Robledo and others.

 
Memory

Michael Convertino – The Hidden - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1987)

Composer: Michael Convertino

 

Tracklist

1. Main Title 01:51
2. Political Rally 01:51
3. Back At Home 01:02
4. Transference 02:19
5. Miller In Apartment 01:55
6. Lloyd And The Little Girl 01:13
7. Lloyd Alone 01:14
8. Final Transference 03:16
9. The Dog 01:26
10. Rampage 07:33
11. Shoot-Out 05:57
12. Stripper 01:50
13. Road Block 01:55
14. Mannequin 05:01

 

"The Hidden" is a 1987 American sci fi-horror action film directed by Jack Sholder,

written by Jim Kouf (under the pseudonym Bob Hunt), and released by New Line Cinema.

It stars Kyle MacLachlan and Michael Nouri, along with Clu Gulager,

Chris Mulkey, Ed O'Ross, Clarence Felder, Claudia Christian and Larry Cedar.
Director Jack Sholder was drawn to the film because of the script.

Writer Jim Kouf had originally expressed interest in directing, but when the studios refused, he lost interest in the script. Sholder, who saw the potential to turn it into more than an action film,

did a rewrite to heighten the themes of what it means to be human.
The score was composed by American musician Michael Convertino (born 1952 in New York City) 

best known for his collaborations with director Randa Haines on films like "Children Of A Lesser God", "The Doctor",

"Wrestling Ernest Hemingway", and "Dance With Me", as well as "Bull Durham",

"Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead" and the Tim Allen comedies "The Santa Clause" and "Jungle 2 Jungle".

 
Memory

Gnome – Under The Black Moon (Demo 1996)

Country: Japan

Tracklist

1. La Forêt (I - II) 15:46
2. La Mer... 09:47
3. Oriental Flower (Bonus Track) 07:37

Japanese one-man Black Metal project from Osaka that was formed by Masanori "Wood" Haruta in 1995.
Gnome released two demos in mid 90s, the split "Story - Legendary Japanese Wolves" in 1999 with Nyarlathotep

 and the compilation "Silent Scream" in 2012.
The demo "Under The Black Moon" was originally released in 1996 and later in 1997 on the split with Hurusoma

 that was another Black Metal project of Masanori Haruta (along with the ambient project Human Soul).

The Memory link features as bonus the track "Oriental Flower"

that appeared on the compilation "In Search Of Weird Truth..." in 2000.

 
Memory

Agonije – Testament (1994)

Country: Italy

Tracklist

1. Testament 05:23
2. Adieu, Les Jours 04:33
3. Désir De L'Âme 03:33
4. Millenium 04:57
5. De Loin (Deuxième Movement) 04:05
6. À La Lune 02:32
7. Jeux De Massacre 06:10
8. La Fin 05:30
9. Testament II (The Prelude) 11:53

Agonije was another project by Italian artist Angel G. Villani (also in Black Raven).
The first work of Agonije was published in 1991 with the cassette "Orgasme Du Temp" on the Italian label Hax.
Later in 1992 some tracks from the cassette appeared on the Italian compilation "Tecnologie Del Movimento II".
"Testament" was released in 1994 on the Swiss label Allegoria 

and recorded at Acqualuce Studio and Radio Video Studio in Turin between 1993-94.

 
Memory

Pauline Oliveros – Accordion & Voice (1982)

Country: United States

Tracklist

1. Horse Sings From Cloud 22:14
2. Rattlesnake Mountain 22:03

Pauline Oliveros (May 30, 1932 – November 24, 2016) was an American composer, accordionist

and a central figure in the development of post-war experimental and electronic music.
She was a founding member of the San Francisco Tape Music Center in the 1960s, and served as its director.

She taught music at Mills College, the University of California, San Diego (UCSD),

Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Oliveros authored books, formulated new music theories, and investigated new ways to focus attention on music

including her concepts of "deep listening" and "sonic awareness", drawing on metaphors from cybernetics.
"Accordion & Voice" was the first of her recordings as a soloist.

The tracks rather than initiating musical impulses of motion,

melody and harmony represent the subtlety of a tone taking space and time to develop.

The tones linger and resonate in the body, mind, instrument and performance space.

For my beloved father

 

Memory

Donis – Deinainá (1998)

Country: Lithuania

Tracklist

1. Deinainá 06:45
2. Šokis 02:12
3. Ateičiai 04:55
4. Ryto Rasa 04:18
5. Vai Kur Tu Buvai Bernyti Mano 02:52
6. Ir Atlėkė Juodas Varnas 10:05
7. Sodai, Sodai 04:02
8. Medžių Kalba 07:00

Donis is a Lithuanian ambient, folk and experimental music project

created by multi-instrumentalist Donatas Bielkauskas.

He was also a member of music projects such as d.n.s., Wejdas, Notanga, Ha Lela and Eirimė.

Most of Donis’ works combines old Baltic folklore with contemporary sound interpretations.

His extensive knowledge of instruments, rhythms and music styles allow him to create unique sound projects, 

including both electronic and pure ambient soundscapes,

in which ethnic motifs intertwine with industrial sound structures and sounds of nature.
His well known release "Bitė Lingo" that contains archaic Lithuanian war songs featured folk vocalist Rasa Serra.
The album "Švilpiai" presents ancient ocarina (švilpynė) music,

while the record "Sotvaras" was made together with members from the Lithuanian pagan/folk group Kūlgrinda.
Donis has also made the Greek mythology themed album "Alexandreia".

Memory

The Thieves Of Impressions – Trifolium: The Autumn Catharsis (7'' EP 1994)

 

Country: Germany

Tracklist

1. Changes 06:13
2. Leszerazz Galliard 05:42
3. Autumn 02:05

Short lived project formed in 1993 and led by author Aleš Pickar

 who together with Stefan Alt (aka Salt) were the two founders of the cult label Ant-Zen.
The band gathered many members among their releases featuring Aleš Pickar (keys, bass, drums, guitar, vocals, flute),

Erich Kogler (vocals, bass, piano), Katha (vocals), Peter Megele (guitar), Sirod Allabmort (vocals),

Uli Jenne (drums), Wolfgang Hierl (guitars, vocals, flute, keys) and Pia Horn (violin).
The Thieves Of Impressions later reshaped into the band Concrescence 

while Aleš Pickar, together with Brandon Gonsalves, was also involved with the ambient project Tidal Flow.

Memory

Nogbold's Palace – Dark Agony (1998)

Country: Germany

Tracklist

1. Enter The Palace 02:32
2. Sorrow 07:40
3. The End Of Life 08:43
4. Aufmarsch 01:05
5. Thou Art Lord 05:06
6. See Ravens Fly 08:09
7. Dark Agony 02:32

Obscure German hypnotic black/dark metal/ambient project created around 1998.
They self released their first album in 1998 on cassette format under the title "Dark Agony".
Later Irrlichter Records re-released the album on CD featuring bonus tracks from their second album.
In 2003 they published their second album entitled "Nogbold's Palace".
One of their members was also involved with the experimental black metal project Ardulph Ardebahr Wald.

Memory

Stillpoint – Maps Without Edges (1996)

Country: England

Tracklist

1. Blade Water Stone 09:13
2. Tract 18:03
3. Blade Water Stone 2 13:44
4. Prophecy Mesa 09:15
5. Blade Water Stone 3 06:13

Hallucinogenic collaboration project featuring Eddy Sayer (Lights In A Fat City),

Nick Parkin (Tuu, Red Shift, TouchSound) and Martin Franklin (Codetrippa, Tuu).
Stillpoint develops arcane themes of deeply ambient dense using ancient percussions,

electronics, gongs, bells and woodwinds.
Recorded live in an underground studio opposite the British Museum in London.

Memory

Maggi Payne – Crystal (1986)

Country: United States

Tracklist

1. Ahh-Ahh (Ver 2.1) 09:10
2. Subterranean Network    11:24
3. Phase Transitions 10:32
4. White Night 10:04
5. Solar Wind 09:52
6. Scirocco 10:25
7. Crystal 09:57

Maggi Payne is an American composer, flutist video artist and co-director (since 1992) of the Center For Contemporary Music,

in Mills College, where she teaches recording engineering, composition, and electronic music.

She also freelances as a recording engineer and editor and a historical remastering engineer.
Her work involves electroacoustic, instrumental, and vocal works along with works involving visuals, 

including dancers outfitted with electroluminescent wire and videos using images ranging from nature to the abstract.
She has performed throughout the world, and her work has been published on various labels.
She received two Composer's Grants and an Interdisciplinary Arts Grant from the National Endowment For The Arts

and video grants from the Western States Regional Media Arts Fellowships Program and the Mellon Foundation.
Also four honorary mentions from Bourges, and one from Prix Ars Electronica,

and was an Artist In Residence at the Exploratorium in San Francisco and the Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, CA.
She began recording professionally in 1968 in Chicago.
Her first electronic compositions were made using the Moog Synthesizer.
While at the University, Gordon Mumma showed her how to built her first ring modulator from one of his circuit designs.
There she also formed an improvisation group that was dedicated primarily to the exploration of timbre.

After composing electronically generated music for several years,

she turned to the acoustic world for an even richer, more constantly variable sound palette.
Sound sources were varied from tiny stepper motors, to signals traveling through space and faulty faucets.

Her process involved layering sounds, convolution, granular synthesis,

time stretching, digital signal processing, and extreme equalization.
"Crystal" was originally released in 1986 on vinyl by the Lovely Music label

and in 1991 was reissued on CD format featuring three bonus tracks.

Memory

M87 – Noctilucent Threnody (1999)

Country: England

Tracklist

1. Mu Cephei I 06:50
2. M8 (Lagoon Nebula) 16:16
3. NGC 7538 09:05
4. Arcturus 09:15
5. OQ172 05:45
6. P Cygni 12:27
7. NGC 6726/27 19:41

M87 was created in 1995 by Huw O. Davies, inspirationally catalysed by a television documentary about Black Holes

and aiming to create music which expressed the strangeness and extremity of these elusive celestial objects.
Davies aided by his technical level as a guitar player

but also limited by his inexistent technical knowledge on any other instrument,

spent over a year developing and perfecting notation, playing, and recording techniques which would enable him

to produce an alien orchestral sound with nothing but his 13 guitars and a bit of recording equipment.
As the musical concept expanded, he recorded several hours of material (including a titanic 78-minute piece),

samples of which were sent to a wide variety of record labels.

Reactions were quite uniform in their incomprehension and disbelief,

which resulted in a mixture of triumph and frustration, since no one seemed to know quite what to make of the music

and therefore no one seemed to know quite whether to offer him a deal.

In the summer of 1997, however, Davies contacted Supernal Music following an advertisement in a mail order catalogue,

where the label expressed interest in bands inspired by Astronomical, Astrophysical, and Cosmological subjects.
Recorded at Singularity Studios, in winter of 1997 "Noctilucent Threnody" was released in 1999 as a limited edition CD

and was the first of a planned ten albums, most of the material for which had already been recorded.
Davies is currently working on a remastered and remixed version of the "Noctilucent Threnody",
complete with several bonus tracks, that were originally recorded at the time, for a possible inclusion on the album.
In addition the second M87 album is in the making under the title "Abyssal Symphonies".
Davies is also involved in his two other projects, Devoid and Cziltang Brone.

Memory

Alex Kot – Chasm: The Rift (1997)

Composer: Alex Kot

Tracklist

1. The Shadow Zone 04:57
2. Timestrikers 03:58
3. The Rift 04:13
4. Egypt 04:00
5. Military Base 04:09
6. Tomb 03:54
7. Dark 04:01
8. England 04:06
9. The Ship 05:54

Chasm: The Rift (also known as Chasm: The Shadow Zone) is a first-person shooter video game

created by Ukrainian video game developer Action Forms

 and published in 1997 by Megamedia as the first Eastern European shooter ever made.
The game was meant to compete with Quake a year earlier,

since GT Interactive lost publishing rights to Activision when id Software signed with the latter.
The player takes on the role of an unnamed commando whose mission is to stop the so-called "Timestrikers",

mutant beings invading different time epochs, from taking over Earth.

On this mission, he visits various locations ranging from military bases in the present to tombs in ancient Egypt.
All of the levels involve dark corridors, often like those of catacombs and crypts.

One of the most notable features of the game was the ability to remove limbs from enemies.

Chasm received mixed reviews from critics.

While they noted that Chasm had better animation and greater amounts of enemy detail when compared to Quake,

the lack of a true 3D environment left much to be desired.
The sound effects and the soundtrack of the game were composed by Alex Kot.

Memory

Northgate – Liturgie Pour La Fin De La Patrie (1999)

Country: Italy

Tracklist

1. Prelude 03:12
2. Year 04:53
3. Liturgy For A Black Sun 08:23
4. Ratatoskr 02:00
5. Archangel 08:42
6. Last Dawn On Earth (Part I & II) 14:12
7. O.A.R.S. 05:45
8. Arborea 05:16
9. Yard 03:48
10. Our Life In The Old Woods 04:42

Northgate (aka NG or NRTHGTE) is the personal project of Trevor (a.k.a. Evor Ameisie)

known for his involvement as Camerata Mediolanense's singer and percussionist.
The project exists since 1992 and was actually born before he joined Camerata in 1995

and therefore it is not to be seen as Camerata Mediolanense's side project,

although many CM's members collaborated and still collaborates with Northgate.
After some demo tapes, Northgate released in october 1995 the LP "Liturgie Pour La Fin De La Patrie",

printed in limited edition green vinyl (later some in black colour) of 108 copies on the Italian label L'Alternative Dramatique.
"Liturgie Pour La Fin De La Patrie" was recorded at home with a Tascam 4 Track Recorder in September 1995

and in 1999 was re-released on a CD version with some bonus tracks and with a different cover.
The project is still active and have released several albums since then

with their sound experimenting between apocalyptic ambient, industrial, electronics, dark-wave and psychedelia.

Memory

Kraken – Aquanaut (1999)

Country: Belgium

Tracklist

1. Liquid Enchantress / Lured Underneath 06:53
2. Demagogic Journey 08:21
3. Point Of Submersion / Maelstrom 07:36
4. Profound Aquatic Stasis 12:15
5. Descending Into The Abyss 09:00
6. Cerebral Core Of The Octopus / Hypnotic Preassure 02:58

Debut release for the project Kraken consisting of Ricardo Gomez and Joris Vermost.
The Belgian duo creates a perfect blend of lucid atmospheric ambient tunes with manipulated samples.
The result is a strange abyssal journey through the realm of neptunal underworlds.
Released on the Belgian Nautilus as a limited edition of 500 copies on heavy weight blue vinyl

of which 30 copies come in a large pizza-box that includes a t-shirt and postcards with seafood recipes.

Memory

Charles Bernstein – The Entity (1981)

Composer: Charles Bernstein

Tracklist

1. Intro And Main Title 01:49
2. Bath/Attack 01:31
3. Beach Scene 01:05
4. Iceberg 01:29
5. Carla & Jerry 01:30
6. Carla's Room Wrecked 01:55
7. It Appears/The Entity 02:45
8. Carla 02:40
9. The Power 02:34
10. Relentless Attack 01:27
11. The Entity Lurks 01:29
12. Helium Attack 01:25
13. Mozart Source 02:23
14. Glimmer Of Hope 02:36
15. Finale: Carla Leaves House 01:25
16. End Credits 02:28
17. Attack Music Deconstructed 01:09
18. Attack Music Reject 00:56
19. Main Title Synth Version 01:39

The Entity is a 1982 American supernatural horror film directed by Sidney J. Furie,

and written by Frank De Felitta, who adapted his 1978 novel of the same name.
The film stars Barbara Hershey as a single mother in Los Angeles who is tormented by an invisible assailant.
Like the novel, the film is based on the 1974 real paranormal phenomena case of Doris Bither,

a woman who claimed to have been repeatedly sexually assaulted by an invisible entity,

and who was observed by doctoral students at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Despite being filmed and planned for a release in 1981,

the movie was not released in worldwide theaters until September 1982 and February 1983 in the United States.
The film is interpreted as a parable for female sexual victimhood

and the lead character as a woman who "goes head-to-head with a gaggle of men (including the "entity" itself).
American composer of film and television scores Charles Harold Bernstein (born February 28, 1943)

composed the soundtrack of the movie.
Bernstein is a Daytime Emmy Award winner, and a two-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee.

During the 1980s, Bernstein scored the music for the horror films Cujo (1983),

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984), April Fool's Day (1986) and Deadly Friend (1986).
Quentin Tarantino has included Bernstein's music from White Lightning and The Entity

in the soundtracks of his films Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003) and Inglourious Basterds (2009).
The complete collected orchestral/synth soundtrack of the movie was released for the first time in 2009 by Intrada

as a limited Edition CD of 1200 copies while in 2019 Wyrd War released on 666 copies the limited edition vinyl.
Recorded at Village Recorders studios in West Los Angeles and Bernstein’s Santa Monica studio in 1981,

sourced from Bernstein’s archives and featuring three bonus outtakes that provide a glimpse into his compositional process.

Memory

CTI – Core (A Conspiracy International Project) (1988)

Country: England

Tracklist

1. Feeder (With Coil) 08:41
2. Trapezoid (With John Duncan, Joe Potts) 05:14
3. Future Shock (With Monte Cazazza) 07:23
4. Unmasked (With Robert Wyatt) 04:15
5. Over Abyss (With Lustmord) 06:40
6. Guest + Host = Ghost (With Boyd Rice) 04:38
7. Core 07:33

CTI (Creative Technology Institute) was an alias used by the duo Chris Carter and Cosey Fanni Tutti, 

more commonly known as Chris & Cosey and later as Carter Tutti.
"Core (A Conspiracy International Project)" was released in 1998 and each track on the album

was a joint project between Chris Carter, Cosey Fanni Tutti and the persons/groups credited.
Featuring participation from Coil, John Duncan, Joe Potts, Monte Cazazza, Robert Wyatt, Lustmord and Boyd Rice.
Sounds were mailed or brought to Studio 47 where they were manipulated, processed,

composed and mixed with the full collaboration of those involved.
Includes an insert with artwork, notes and photos on contributing artists

while some copies include a second, illustrated, insert with information on Play It Again Sam releases.

Memory