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Open Yellow Circle / O Yuki Conjugate

New Meridian

    In 1994, UK ambient pioneers O Yuki Conjugate recorded their landmark Equator album. To mark the 30th anniversary of this musical milestone, many of the same personnel – Roger Horberry (co-founder of O Yuki Conjugate), Dan Mudford (ex-Sons of Silence and co-creator of the Shaun of the Dead soundtrack), Joe Lamb (ex-Sons of Silence) and Malcolm McGeorge – came together to make New Meridian, reflecting the range of influences they’ve picked up over the intervening years.

    Generously described as “almost like normal music”, the eight tracks of New Meridian feature instrumentation ranging from classic analogue to actual wooden logs. The result takes you on a rain-drenched, open-top ride from Electronica Avenue to the drone caverns of Uranus, with various Fourth World ambi-dub diversions along the way. File under: duress.


    TRACK LISTING

    A1 Dark Blue Trees 00:03:07
    A2 Spiral Jetty 00:04:38
    A3 Cold Stars 00:05:04
    A4 Hiraeth 00:04:56
    A5 Left Home 00:04:57
    B1 Below Mono 00:05:43
    B2 Fogou 00:06:32
    B3 The Chasmic 00:09:40

    A Bad Diana

    The Lights Are On But No-One's Home - 2024 Reissue

      A Bad Diana is a project from Diana Rogerson, someone I first became aware of aged 12 when I read about Nurse With Wound and their United Dairies label in Smash Hits magazine.

      I was confused, mystified and intrigued in equal measure, and a couple of years later as a result I bought my first Nurse With Wound album. This led to an interest in all things NWW related. I guess Diana could be described as the matriarch of the Nurse With Wound world but she also had her own very distinguished pre-history with Fistfuck, an early-80s extreme noise outfit.

      She then made two mid 80s cult classic albums as Chrystal Belle Scrodd, both far out there rollercoaster rides of audio wildness, highly recommended to anyone with wide open ears. She then moved to rural Ireland and raised a family. There was the odd collaboration and then in 2007 A Bad Diana’s “The Lights Are On But No-One’s Home” was released on CD.

      I feel this is her meisterwerk and it has become something of a cult favourite over the years. Now for the first time, almost two decades later it is available on vinyl on Optimo Music Archiv.

      Produced in association with Steven Stapleton and Colin Potter from Nurse With Wound and irr. app. (ext.)’s Matt Waldron this is some seriously beautiful and strange listening. Next level sound design means this is an incredible headphone record but it is also a deeply warm and engaging home listening gem.

      Beautiful, magical, ultra hypno, soulful reverberations with the deep emotion of Diana’s voice tones and bio-vibrations.


      TRACK LISTING

      A1 Behind The Curtain Of The Sun 00:03:41
      A2 Cupboardie Re-nude 00:05:58
      A3 Asphalt Kiss 00:08:12
      A4 Mirage Man 00:04:33
      B1 Notes From The Underground To A Crazy Girl 00:06:09
      B2 Mother 00:03:39
      B3 Chant D´Amour/Da Mort 00:13:41

      Optimo Music see off what's been a busy year with a tasty slew of end-of-year releases. One of which is this amazing new album from Lia Mice - the Australian-born but UK-residing DJ, producer and instrument designer.

      'When I moved to London in 2015, many things changed at once - I started going to more techno and electro nights, I changed my live-set setup, and I had access to a fully-equipped recording studio through my music masters programme. At the same time I was reading a lot of books on time travel, not just science fiction but also psychology and neuroscience - like how the human brain perceives time from moment to moment, how we can experience overlapping time, and how we interact with our past and future through memory and imagination. “The Sampler As A Time Machine” is the result of all these new influences coming together. The tracks were developed out of ongoing studio experiments interpreting these different ideas of time travel by using samplers and tape to re-sample and manipulate original music performed by me on various instruments including my voice.'


      STAFF COMMENTS

      Matt says: I'm sure Optimo Music devotees don't need convincing here. But anyone wondering what the label's about could do much worse than bagging this LP and the forthcoming compilation from the camp. Essential stuff for lovers of leftfield, DIY electronics.

      TRACK LISTING

      Side 1
      1. Human Being (3:45)
      2. Overwrite The Past (3:39)
      3. It's All Connected (2:36)
      4. Time Can Break In (4:07)
      Side 2
      1. We Are The Beat (4:38)
      2. Marconi's Eternal Tone Cloud (3:09)
      3. Made Of Glass (1:46)
      4. Which Memories Will Make It (7:11)

      Optimo Music treat all fans of indie miserablism, bedroom gloom and post punk groan to the new album from Jacob Yates (Uncle John and Whitelock). Not only is he one of the label's all-time favourite artists from Glasgow, but he is one of their favourite artists from anywhere. Criminally unknown except to a few who have been long transfixed by his recordings and performances, we hope this release will open a few more ears to his wondrous musical world.

      “The Hare, The Moon, The Drone” is the gloom auteur's third LP. This recording finds the band exploring dark hawthorn hedged lanes, moors and suburban, new build estates. There's something more earthy about the songs but the menace and darkness remains. Musically there is a big shift on this album, a field recording of a folk band from a dark, pine filled glen. The opener, The Car sets the scene for the rural side of the album, dank and stone cold. The tracks then shift through the woods, people turn into animals, we pass a sunlit glade, do you hear a love song? Cassie Ezeji closes the side sweetly lamenting in Gaelic as the snow falls.

      Side two is a more urban affair opening with despair in a bedroom in Belgium, we visit a faith healer and drop in on your lonely mother. Lovatt recounts the story of a karaoke addicted murderer before we finally go home to our new build just outside of town where the pylons tower over Michael and his sister Rachel. It's a journey you can go on, looking out of the window of the bus, glimpses of lives glide by, cards on seats promise to help you. Ding! It's time to get off.


      TRACK LISTING

      The Car
      The Human
      The Hare
      The Moon
      The Drone (Part 1)
      The Drone (Part 2)
      Mr. Marouf
      A Scene From An Empty Living Room
      Outside The Needle Exchange
      Michael

      Another fierce and unique act from the depths of the Glasgow underground appear on Optimo Music with their debut Green Door studios recorded four track EP. Keyboard player Jim McKinven was previously in Altered Images, worked for many years in Martin Rushent's Genetic Studios, was in One Dove and previously appeared on Optimo Music as one half of Organs Of Love. He is however but one component of this transgenerational band. They describe their music far better than we could - "Seedy Electronica, consisting of 2 Basses, Electronic Drums, Synths and Dark Vocals. Inspired by the avant-garde that influenced the electronic music scene of the late '70's and early '80's.”


      TRACK LISTING

      Magick! 
      I Killed My Boy
      Soft Hell 
      The Red Eyed Raven

      Peter Zummo

      Dress Code - Don't Look At My Car

        Peter Zummo (born 1948) is an American composer and musician. He plays the trombone, valve trombone, euphonium, synthesizer, other electronic instruments, and also sings. He is associated with the postminimalist and Downtown aesthetics, and he describes his music as "minimalism plus a whole lot more." He’s well-known for his work with Arthur Russell.

        “In this project for Optimo, the listener can hear that my musical food pyramid has musicians at top, or maybe they are at the bottom. In any case, they are important. That is why, from track to track, I selected segments in which one player or another is featured in the take. Some may think that we musicians do multiple takes to get the perfect performance, but I like to find the special interactions lurking in each excursion. Different players came forward in each of the takes, which were recorded in the studios Seaside Lounge and Headroom, in Brooklyn, and live in performances at Cube Cinema, in Bristol, U.K., as well as in Long Island City and on Staten Island, New York.

        In order to escape the tyranny of the lyric, I am exploring in this release the possibilities of nonsensical and non-emotional lyrics. These kinds of lyrics bring the singing voices into the mix without an overweening message. The tracks include open-form compositions in which the duration was not specified.”


        STAFF COMMENTS

        Patrick says: Downtown legend and Arthur Russell collaborator Peter Zummo lands on Optimo Music with a sublime set of spiritual frequencies in strung out sleeping bag style. Indian percussion, loose bass and echo drenched trombone float freely on an LP perfect for horizontal journeys and sofa-based space excursions. Jazzy, Balearic and a little bit silly, this should please anyone looking to bathe in the light of the miracle...

        TRACK LISTING

        1. The Tape Is Chill
        2. How Does It Feel?
        3. Well Let Me Say Something
        4. Do You Know What To Wear Do You Know?
        5. What Do You Want To Do?
        6. Life Is Real
        7. Break Up The Pill
        8. Well Let Me Tell You Something


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