yu-chi - 2012 - monochrome clown

Experimental ambient/acoustic

[FOR FREE]

http://yu-chi.bandcamp.com/album/monochrome-clown

• 6 songs to download
• For free
• Direct Download
• Listening recommendations: The Lost Piece, Marks Of A Tear, The End Of The World

Impressions

“Just an ordinary Japanese farmer,” musician yu-chi describes himself on his personal page, but if his first release, which he wrote, performed, and produced on his own, is any indication, he’s anything but ordinary. monochrome clown is about as perfect a debut you get: it’s a nakedly emotional and even sentimental display, but its melodies are breathtaking, and yu-chi’s sense of production benefits from his roots, as the sparse production lends his equally sparse arrangements an amplified tone of wistfulness.
yu-chi’s strongest attribute is his deceptively playful songwriting. “the end of the world” plays two forces against each other, pitting a piano-and-strings combination against a line of telephone static. Then all of a sudden, it just stops and switches the focus onto a toy box for one breath—just long enough for the return of the pianos and strings to make a big impact. Furthermore, he utilizes a creative and effective set of instruments throughout: “marks of a tear” begins with the strums of an acoustic guitar before building into a more subdued take on a folk song, replete with chiming bells and a simple yet heartwarming drum beat. The track then takes an abrupt turn into darkness when it segues into a two-minute outro led by what resembles a clown baby’s voice. (Don’t let that last part scare you.)
Even with their twists and turns, the six tracks of monochrome clown flow remarkably well: perhaps it’s because yu-chi conceived the project as a musical short film (check the Bandcamp page for the outline). And in my opinion, it’s a wonderful story to get lost in.

Jack and the Whiskey Masters – 2012 – The Final Christmas | Part One

Experimental electronic

[FOR FREE]

http://whiskeymasters.bandcamp.com

• 5 songs to download
• You name the price (min 0,-)
• You get the link if you register your email address
• Listening recommendations: Jingle Bells, Joy To The World

Impressions

A little late for Christmas music, isn’t it? you’re probably thinking right now. In any case, though, there’s always room in my life for some good electronic music, and Jack (real name: Aaron Hyde) and his band of whiskey masters deliver on the hopes of the holiday season with a set of songs that is brief but surprisingly winning. Take, for example, the group’s take on “Jingle Bells”, which interprets the song’s key melody through the lens of a xylophone and crams hip-hop beats and hi-hats into the fray. The result is a track brimming with fun and creativity—and quite a bit darker than your usual Christmas fare. “Small Sir Drummer”, Hyde’s take on “The Little Drummer Boy”, is much more uplifting, but the way that fragile melody echoes through the track still leaves an undercurrent of melancholy. (The choir chants over the climax of the track deserve mention, too, if only because they’re so unexpected and perfect for the moment.) This EP isn’t perfect, however: sometimes the tendency towards brevity is a bit frustrating (most notably on mid-EP track “Deck The Halls”, which doesn’t sound like much of anything), and not every track ends as strongly as it begins. But all in all, it’s a remarkably fresh perspective to see tried-and-tired carols through: Hyde gives a little room to let the darker shades of Christmas in, and the lights shine more radiantly for it.

KARREO – 2012 – KARREO Soundtracks 2010-2012

Soundtrack/Electronica

[FOR FREE]

http://karreo.bandcamp.com/album/karreo-soundtracks-2010-2012

• 9 songs to download
• For free
• Direct Download
• Listening recommendations: 2011 A Space Adventure Stelian Derenne, Daybreak Mathieu Legros

Impressions

It’s not often that soundtrack music can stir me so much, but the folks that make up KARREO, a project that composes music for commercials, films, and other productions, just may have done it. Though the eight tracks on this release were all composed for separate ventures and at different times, you wouldn’t know it by how smoothly the whole thing flows. This is epic, big-scale music at its best, combining the grandeur of orchestral music and the force of electronic music for a sound that’s both sweeping and forceful. 
Among the standout tracks is “2011: A Space Adventure”, composed by Stelian Derenne. The six-minute work taps perfectly into the feelings of isolation and wonder expressed in its title, beginning with contemplative, haunting interplay between the piano and strings before shifting the melody to the synths and letting just enough dubstep in to liven up the proceedings a while. Derenne’s composition is intriguingly detailed: for example, he keeps the strings throughout, sometimes to swell majestically in the foreground, other times to stutter rhythmically in the background in tense counterpoint to the synth melodies. “Daybreak”, the work of Mathieu Legros, is another stunner, utilizing harsh, rough bursts of static and voices and layering a subdued piano melody on top—all before he bursts the track open with help from the electric guitar in a climax that’s equal parts hopeful and desolate. Whatever the team is going for, KARREO demonstrates a great understanding of emotion and mastery of atmosphere, and this grab-bag of good stuff should be a must-download for anybody who wants to hear music that’s moving in any context.

Tempest - 2010 - Passages

Hardcore Punk

[FOR FREE]

http://consume.forgediniron.ca/album/passages

• 6 songs to download
• For free
• Direct Download
• Listening recommendations: Lineage

Impressions

Rarely do I run across punk music through bandcamp that goes for harder edge than mall food court - and you know the kind I mean, without being nearly mind numbingly hard to sit through once, let alone enough times to soak in and review. There's the opposite end of course that's simply thrashing noise which is often equally unlistenable for a multitude of reasons. Along comes Tempest (albeit through a third party and not my usual wasfuersohr manner) and tears the head off of those two with sheer musical virtuosity and unwavering ferocity. I am not normally fond of hardcore, generally due to the vocals being screeches or attempts at grizzly, guttural bellows, failing to capture my attention and detract from the music itself. Somehow Passages is filled with growled vocals I not only didn't hate, but felt melded with the music quite well. Enjoyable even. Of course the vocals being somewhat lost in the ruckus of the instruments might turn some off, but not me. As for those instruments, technically sound guitars and skull crushing floor rattling low end. The rhythm and lead guitars do create one hell of a front-line assault together, with the drum and bass launching mortar fire to back them up. “Death Rattle” exemplifies this with its ridiculous tempo and short length (and “Hierarchy of Greed” is the follow up knock-out to “Rattles”'s gut shot). Rather straight forward in terms of composition, no noodling about with solos or dabbling in different sounds (“Interlude” is, I suppose, but it's the damn interlude, man, it doesn't count), nor are there fancy effects being used to pad the tracks out. Thankfully none of that is necessary here, as Tempest get to the point, and fire on all cylinders across these 7 hard-hitting songs. Those looking for something heavy and pummeling should give Tempest's Passages a look.

Sea Oleena - 2011 - Sleeplessness

Ambient Indie/Pop

[FOR FREE]

http://seaoleena.bandcamp.com/album/sleeplessness

• 7 songs to download
• You name the price (min 0,-)
• You get the link if you register your email address
• Listening recommendations: Insomnia Plague, Untitled, Milk

Impressions

Now if that isnt a great way to start 2013 with a (admittedly rather silent and calm) bang. The record released in 2011, but music doesnt get old over a few years and we are still going strong with our crusade to find the best free music out there. Chances are most of you havent heard of Sea Oleena yet, so that is enough of a reason to feature her in 2011 released album. Its her second record and while both are definitely worth listening to, the second one is rather outstanding. In a state between wake and dream, this record mumbles jumbled thoughts into the night sky. The lo-fi nature of the record is both beautifully ethereal and at times its weakest part when the background noise is a bit too jarring. Fortunately, it still fits with the dreamy mood of the record and adds another coherent layer of jumbledness onto the ambient sounds, thoughts and impressions this record expresses. These songs the need for sleep in a night long struggle with curiosity about the smallest things in life and the short and sudden moments of clarity they represent. A time where even the smallest things can seem extraordinarily important and precious while being forgotten just a moment later. In this record you'll find an understanding companion for these wondrous, amazing and sometimes even frightening moments. Step one, wake up. Now open your eyes and open the blinds.