Reviewing S/T: (Sic!) Ahtoon Eskaloon (Get Happy Records BIG 05)
(Sic!) is a multi-national collaboration between two of the finest contemporary practitioners of intergalactic kraut/psychexploration. We see German S/T teaming up with Texas' spaceheads Crevice for a seamlessly shifting krautrock explosion of unequalledfrenzy andbrain-stimulating swelling textures. Both sides of this vinyl onlyrelease weave three long time-bending tracks. Der Gesang der Atome starts things brilliantly, beginning with an alien low-key drone with dogs barking in the distance, before amping up into the rumbling artrock jamming of Ahtoon Eskaloon (including C2H5OH). It's an absolutely wonderful looping piece of music, a mesh of supersonic guitars, trebly echoing keyboard, rumbling saxophone and monotonous percussion. The fact that it holds some strange sort of spiraling intensity with the staggeringly adept saxophone against the noisy squalls of echo and feedback only gives me more respect for their chosen track. In the last section it calms down and disappears with some odd dialogue snippets over soft layers of keyboard. Airbag in My Head ends the first side and offers a somewhat altered brain chemistry as sirens, horns and highly enjoyable washes of sweat-inducing guitar attacks create a jaw-droppingly bizarre mix of sound.The b-side kicks off with a dark folk chant that naturally leads to the full-on monster groove of Automo.tif. It's a constantlyevolving myriad of sounds that at times float parallel to one another and in the next unite in a full-throttle voyage through a wall of fuzz. The epic finale continues even further out into cosmic territories, occasionally incorporating German spoken word among the atmospheric yet intense textures, which certainly adds something tothe general oddness. (Sic!) is heavily influenced by the early krautrock movement but as with contemporary rock icons like Japanese Boredoms and Acid Mothers Temple, they shape their own unique mantrasof phased guitars, electronics and odd sounds. This highly recommendable LP can be yours from Get Happy!! Records.
Mats Gustafsson, The Broken Face #11, 2001-04-04
link: Get Happy! Records
link: The Broken Face