Saturday, 16 May 2020

Toru Takemitsu – Kwaidan (1965)


Composer: Toru Takemitsu

Tracklist
1. Ki 06:00
2. Yuki 06:53
3. Biwa-Uta 11:06
4. Bunraku 03:14

"Kwaidan" (怪談, Kaidan, literally "ghost stories") is a 1965 Japanese anthology horror film
and the first color film of Masaki Kobayashi, known for "The Human Condition", "Harakiri" and "Samurai Rebellion".
It is based on stories from Lafcadio Hearn's collections of Japanese folk tales,
mainly "Kwaidan: Stories And Studies Of Strange Things", for which it is named.
The film consists of four separate and unrelated stories.
It won the Special Jury Prize at the 1965 Cannes Film Festival
and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.
Tōru Takemitsu (武満 徹, Takemitsu Tōru, October 8, 1930 – February 20, 1996)
was a Japanese composer and writer on aesthetics and music theory.
Largely self-taught, Takemitsu possessed consummate skill in the subtle manipulation of instrumental and orchestral timbre.
He is famed for combining elements of oriental and occidental philosophy to create a sound uniquely his own
and for fusing opposites together such as sound with silence and tradition with innovation.
He composed several hundred independent works of music, scored more than ninety films and published twenty books.
He was also a founding member of the Jikken Kobo (experimental workshop) in Japan,
a group of avant-garde artists who distanced themselves from academia
and whose collaborative work is often regarded among the most influential of the 20th century.
His 1957 Requiem for string orchestra attracted international attention, led to several commissions from across the world and established his reputation as one of the leading 20th-century Japanese composers.
He was the recipient of numerous awards and honours and the Toru Takemitsu Composition Award is named after him.
In under 40 years Takemitsu composed music for over 100 films, some of which were written for purely financial reasons.
However, as the composer attained financial independence, he grew more selective,
often reading whole scripts before agreeing to compose the music, and later surveying the action on set,
"breathing the atmosphere" whilst conceiving his musical ideas.
One notable consideration in Takemitsu's composition for film was his careful use of silence
(also important in many of his concert works), which often immediately intensifies the events on screen
and prevents any monotony through a continuous musical accompaniment.
Some of the films that he score are "Harakiri" (1962), "Woman In The Dunes" (1964), "The Face Of Another" (1966),
"Samurai Rebellion" (1967), "Ran" (1985) and the documentary "Antonio Gaudí" (1984).

Thursday, 14 May 2020

Akhenaton – Divine Symphonies (1995)


Country: France

Tracklist
1. Raising (Intro) 00:33
2. Unutterable Verity 07:07
3. Remissions / The Sign Of Herou 08:05
4. In The Circle Of Wizards / Ritual 05:05
5. Chase With The Shadows 03:06
6. Cross The Styx (Dance With The Souls) 02:11
7. The Kingdom Of Wisdom 05:17
8. At The Gates Of Obscurity 03:10
9. Final Battle (Against Your Dark Side) 04:08
10. Pharao (The Karma Of The Hierophante) 03:41

Vincent Urbain aka Lord V. Akhenaton (ex-Amaymon, ex-Winds Of Sirius, ex-The Seven Gates)
released his first album in 1994 under the name Daemonium entitled "Dark Opera Of The Ancient War Spirit".
The album was released by Adipocere Records and was a mix of black metal, medieval and classical music.
In 1995, Vincent changed the name of the project to Akhenaton

and after the recording of the demo "Solar Forces", he released the album "Divine Symphonies".
The album received excellent reviews and remains one of the most sold French extreme metal albums of all time.
A video was also made for the track "The Kingdom Of Wisdom".
After a very long hiatus Vincent decided make his return in 2012 under the moniker Sandragon.
This time, he surrounded himself with musicians to deliver the third part of his trilogy.
In 2015 "Requiem For Apocalypse" was finally released by Wake Up Dead Records.
In July 2016 Adipocere Records released the "Daemonium-Akhenaton-Sandragon: Thy Mystic Trilogy"

vinyl compilation containing all the three albums.

Tuesday, 28 April 2020

Lustmørd ‎– Heresy (1990)


Country: Wales

Tracklist
1. Heresy Part I 07:32
2. Heresy Part II 10:20
3. Heresy Part III 16:04
4. Heresy Part IV 06:37
5. Heresy Part V 07:59
6. Heresy Part VI 14:42

Brian Williams is a Welsh industrial musician, sound designer and film score composer.
He is often credited for creating the dark ambient genre with albums recorded under the name Lustmord.
Williams was raised in rural Wales, before relocating to London in his late teens.
There he befriended Throbbing Gristle members Cosey Fanni Tutti and Chris Carter, who urged him to make his own music.
He started recording as Lustmord in 1980 before joining SPK in 1982.
Lustmord has extracted field recordings made in crypts, caves, and slaughterhouses,

and combined it with occasional ritualistic incantations and Tibetan horns.
His treatments of acoustic phenomena encased in digitally expanded bass rumbles have a dark ambient quality.
Some of Lustmord's most notable collaborations include Robert Rich, Jarboe, John Balance of Coil, 

Monte Cazazza, Clock DVA, Chris & Cosey, Paul Haslinger, Tool and The Melvins.
Williams collaborated with Graeme Revell and Paul Haslinger as musical sound designer

and occasionally as additional composer to 44 Hollywood film soundtracks, most notably on "The Crow" and "Underworld".
He also composed the soundtrack for the 2017 film "First Reformed" directed by Paul Schrader.
Around 1999, Lustmord was also involved with the video game "Planescape: Torment"

but his work eventually went unused when the project changed direction.
He provided music and sound design for a variety of other projects since, such as "Far Cry Instincts", 

"Master Of Orion", NVIDIA demos and in 2015 he composed the soundtrack for "Evolve" with Jason Graves.
In 1990 Williams released the album "Heresy" on the American label Soleilmoon Recordings.
"Heresy" is the culmination of work from 1987 to 1989 and utilizes subterranean location recordings originated within crypts, caverns, mines, deep shelters and catacombs together with material of a seismic and volcanic origin.
It also takes advantage of psycho-acoustic phenomena and the physical effects of low frequency information.

Wednesday, 22 April 2020

Akira Yamaoka – Silent Hill Original Soundtrack (1999)


Composer: Akira Yamaoka

Tracklist
1. Silent Hill 02:51
2. All 02:07
3. The Wait 00:09
4. Until Death 00:51
5. Over 02:04
6. Devil's Lyric 01:26
7. Rising Sun 00:57
8. For All 02:39
9. Follow The Leader 00:52
10. Claw Finger 01:32
11. Hear Nothing 01:33
12. Flesh Kill 00:19
13. Killed By Death 01:25
14. Don't Cry 01:29
15. The Bitter Season 01:26
16. Moonchild 02:48
17. Never Again 00:45
18. Fear Of The Dark 01:13
19. Half Day 00:39
20. Heaven Give Me Say 01:47
21. Far 01:14
22. I'll Kill You 02:52
23. My Justice For You 01:21
24. Devil's Lyric 2 00:25
25. Dead End 00:17
26. Ain't Gonna Run 01:12
27. Nothing Else 00:51
28. Alive 00:33
29. Never Again 01:01
30. Die 00:56
31. Never End_Never End_Never End 00:46
32. Down Time 01:38
33. Kill Angels 01:16
34. Only You 01:16
35. Not Tomorrow 1 00:48
36. Not Tomorrow 2 01:38
37. My Heaven 03:17
38. Tears Of... 03:16
39. Killing Time 02:54
40. She 02:36
41. Esperándote 06:26
42. Silent Hill (Otherside) 06:23


Silent Hill is a survival horror video game for the PlayStation published by Konami and developed by Team Silent.
It is the first installment in the Silent Hill series and was released

in North America and Europe in February 1999 and in Japan in March 1999.
The game follows Harry Mason as he searches for his missing adopted daughter in the town of Silent Hill.
Akira Yamaoka (born February 6, 1968) is a Japanese video game music composer, sound designer, guitarist, and producer.
Yamaoka attended Tokyo Art College, where he studied product design and interior design.
He joined Konami on September 21, 1993 and immediately began to work on the games

Contra: Hard Corps, Sparkster, and Sparkster: Rocket Knight Adventures 2.
He then shortly thereafter worked on the music for the PC Engine and Sega CD versions of Snatcher.
When Konami began searching for a musician to compose Silent Hill's score,

Yamaoka volunteered because he thought he was the only one capable of making the soundtrack.
Although initially hired as a composer, he soon became involved in overall sound design.
In addition to the music, he was in charge of tasks such as sound effect creation and audio mastering.
Yamaoka did not watch game scenes, but created the music independently from its visuals.

The style of his compositions was influenced by Twin Peaks composer Angelo Badalamenti.
To differentiate Silent Hill from other games and to give it a cold and rusty feel, Yamaoka opted for industrial music.
When he presented his music to the other staff members for the first time, they misinterpreted his sound as a game bug.

Yamaoka had to explain that this noise was intended for the music,
and the team only withdrew their initial objection after he elaborated on his reasons for choosing this style.
On March 5, 1999, the album Silent Hill Original Soundtracks was released in Japan.

The 41st track on the CD "Esperándote" was composed by Rika Muranaka.
After Yamaoka had approached her to create a piece of music for the game,
she suggested the use of bandoneóns, violins, and a Spanish-speaking singer.
It was decided to make the song a tango, and Muranaka composed the melody for the English lyrics she had conceived.
When she arrived in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to record the translated Spanish lyrics with Argentine singer Vanesa Quiroz,
Muranaka realized that the syllables did not match the melodic line any more, and she had to recompose it in five minutes.
Silent Hill received positive reviews from critics on its release and was commercially successful.

It is considered a defining title in the survival horror genre,
and is also considered by many to be one of the greatest video games ever made,
as it moved away from B movie horror elements toward a more psychological horror style, emphasizing atmosphere.

Sunday, 19 April 2020

Bazzah – Death Is All I See... (1999)


Country: Malaysia

Tracklist
1. Prince Of Darkness 03:55
2. The Apparition 03:10
3. Priestess 04:10
4. Breath Of Dragon 03:05
5. Incantation 05:28
6. Widow Lust 06:23
7. Witch Queen 02:54
8. Serpent King 04:13

Bazzah was formed around 1993 by Tok Penghulu (aka The Death) in Pahang, Malysia.
Their name was taken from Arabic word Barzakh, meaning a veil between the dead and their return to world of the living.
"Necromancy" was Bazzah's debut demo and was produced back in 1993
with the helping of other band members which came from The Death's circle of avid metal enthusiasts.
The songs were all written by The Death and the demo was recorded at Amerah Studio.
An appearance on the compilation "Intrusion Of Dark Journey" was followed
and after that Bazzah stayed below the radar for quite a long time.
The band made a strong comeback with the release of their debut album entitled "Kingdom Of The Death"
that was recorded in 1997 at Tri-Castle studio and released in 1998 through Ultra Hingax Production.
On the debut album all the vocal parts were taken over by Agathos Daemon a closed friend of The Death.
In fall of 1998 Bazzah entered King Studio and recorded their sophomore album entitled "Death Is All I See..."
that was released through Nebiula Production in 1999.
The album featured a better line up with three guitarists, two bassists, two vocalists and The Death himself on drums.
During that period Bazzah faced constant oppression by their local government due to the nature of their music.
After a very long hietus of almost 7 years without a studio album
Bazzah made their come back in 2006 with the release of a demo entitled "Possessed By Evil",
that was produced by Bazzah at Hell Realm studio and released on 06/06/06.

Monday, 30 March 2020

Conqueror – Cries Of The Wolf (Demo 1997)


Country: Malaysia

Tracklist
1. The Storm (Intro) 05:18
2. His Majesty The Horned One 06:17
3. The Cries Of The Wolf - The Howling 08:58

Conqueror was a Malaysian black metal band that was formed around 1994.
The band consisted of three member, Emperor Demysteriis (Vocals, Bass, Effects),
Lord Of Blackheart (Guitars, Synths, Backing Vocals) and Duke Vanguard (Drums, Backing Vocals).
In 1997 they released their only demo entitled "Cries Of The Wolf" that had been recorded in 1995.
The demo offers mostly mid tempo cold atmospheric black metal with buzzing guitars,
hellish vocals and some synth parts, influenced by the early 90s Norwegian scene.
Conqueror also belonged to the Watchtower Fraternity Circle (similar to the Norwegian Inner Circle), 

forming a strong Malaysian scene together with bands like Nebiras, Rator and Bazzah.

Tuesday, 24 March 2020

Bishop Of Hexen - Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy (1997)


Country: Israel

Tracklist
1. Crossing The Borders Between Light And Darkness 02:27
2. The Surreal Touch Between Steel And Flesh 04:34
3. Lure My Spelled Emotions 05:54
4. Wading Through Sensuous Journeys 10:00
5. When A Witch Becomes A Pale Bride 07:38
6. Diaries Of Primeval Tragedies 07:11
7. To Begin The Quest Towards The Noble Dark Cause 05:02
8. The Fascinating Installment Of Triumph 01:58

Bishop Of Hexen was formed in late 1994 in Ramat-Hasharon, Israel.
In 1995, the band entered the studios to record its debut demo tape "Ancient Hymns Of Legends & Lore",

that got extremely good responses and was completely sold out at 450 copies.
Many record labels were interested in signing the band for a record deal

and finally Bishop Of Hexen signed with the South Korean label HammerHeart Productions for one full length album.
In July 1996 they entered the studios once again, and released the first full length album in April 1997,

entitled "Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy", presenting 8 tracks of atmospheric/symphonic black metal.
In 2004, after seven years of silence, the band rejoined once again

and recorded a promo CD, entitled "Unveil The Curtain Of Sanity".
The promo contained 4 new tracks and was highly appraised by record labels & magazines around the scene.
In early 2005, Bishop Of Hexen signed with the Austrian label CCP Records and in June 2006

a second full length album entitled "The Nightmarish Compositions" was released.
In 2009, two tracks from the album, "The Somber Grounds Of Truth" and "A Serpentine Crave"

were picked to be featured on the highly praised "Brutal Legend" video game soundtrack
(Starring Jack Black as voice over), gaining to the band a vast exposure to new listeners.
In 2011 the band parted ways with CCP Records and in early 2012 The Bishop Of Hexen (now adding "The" on their logo) released a promo cd entitled "A Ceremony At the Edge Of A Burning Page".
Nowadays the band is still active and they are preparing the release of their new album entitled "The Death Masquerade".