The forsaken mother has birthed a godhead. A triune declaration of intent rich in the beliefs of the Tabula Smaragdina and Solomonic Magic. Asmodai/Sammael reigns as the king of impurity spreading his blackened sovereignty like so much tar upon the heart of man. And as all things were by the contemplation of one; so all things arose from this one thing by adaptation.
"There is a single main definition of the object of all magical Ritual. It is the uniting of the Microcosm with the Macrocosm. The Supreme and Complete Ritual is therefore the Invocation of the Holy Guardian Angel; or, in the language of Mysticism, Union with God."---Aleister Crowley

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Runhild Gammelsæter (Thorr's Hammer, Sunn0))), Khlyst) releases her first solo recording. The purpose was to create something organic – sound with and about life. A lonely thing, like life, arisen from void. Stillness and a microphone, vocal chords. An idea, thoughts, a goal. Sounds of cycles of life and death, birth and cessation, described with terminology from physics, chemistry and biology. Creating by amplifying an infinitely small idea – creating an Amplimer, an Amplicon. Amplicons are pieces of DNA formed as the products of natural or artificial amplification events. Like evolution, giving rise to animal forms with ability to reproduce and die. Amplifying from a minute non-tangible idea something larger which may be experienced with the auditory sense. In physics, matter creation is the appearance of elementary particles in physical processes; the opposite of annihilation. Amplicon see Gammelsæter as a creation operator, increasing the number of particles in a given state, taking the operation necessary to amplify ideas to sound. Mixed by Tore Ylvisaker of Ulver.

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Desire for a Holy War is mayhem piled on top of mayhem piled on top of squalls of caustic feedback. Furies spitting oaths of shrouded vengeance from ancient tongues. Plague riders dealing death on mounts of venomous ether, hooves pounding the wild earth. Matthew Bower may have reached a watershed with last year's Abyssic Lowland Hiss (Heavy Blossom) but it is with Desire for a Holy War that he has come to conquer. Never has Skullflower sounded so severe or remorseless.

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Japanese singer/guitar player Suzuki Junzo (Astral Travelling Unity, 20 Guilders, Overhang Party, Miminokoto) weaves an improvised country blues/folk music with touches of acid and psych. While performing and recording mostly as a solo artist, he has collaborated with Hiroshi Hasegawa, Tabata Mitsuru and Kawabata Makoto. Pieces for Hidden Circles is a recording of the highest order evoking spirituality and devotion unrivaled. A campaign to a world of solitude, each footfall and gust of wind resonating to the heavens.

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Japanese sound artist Tabata Mitsuru (Boredoms, Zeni Geva, Acid Mothers Temple, 20 Guilders, Leningrad Blues Machine) is a musician who has claimed his solo voice and skillfully hones it with each release. Lumrapideco (speed of light) is a collection of spaced-out electronics, bleak feedback and sedate guitar passages. Sometimes oppressive sometimes heart stirring, it is never less than astonishing.

Marcia Bassett (Double Leopards, Hototogisu) rears Zaïmph's vile head once again on La Nuit Electrique. A raspy, delicate instrumental passage begins like a crippled music box. Elegant and soporose. Blackened guitar and amplification apprise the rest. Acrid feedback hangs in the air and vocal modulations clot inside dark rivers of current. The night electric.

Japanese vocalist and instrumentalist Sachiko (Overhang Party, Vava Kitora, Kosokuya) looses a second, white-hot solo release. Her brilliant debut You Never Atone For on There/Musik Atlack rode gilded wings straight to the heart of the psych sun. The journey continues with Kunado. A tincture of Taj Mahal Travellers, wispy oscillations and lysergic vocals bathes the recording in delicate atmosphere as Sachiko's sonic attack leaves vicious and harrowing results. A listen not soon forgotten.

James Plotkin unveils his second solo release in as many years. Indirmek presents two distinct facets of his musical work. The first track, Afyon (opium) lies closest to Plotkin's trademark drift. In essence, a guitar track stretched to limitless possibility. An elemental fury contained, dissected and entrusted to a NYC audience for their consideration in the spring of 2007. Amfetamin (amphetamine) is a second recording from NYC, performed in the fall of 2006. The track is considerably more immediate. It's allure can be credited to Plotkin's use of electronics to invoke raw sound and shape it as he sees necessary to fit a given context. The track speaks a multitude of languages in succession and simultaneously.

Vacant Integument is the debut release from NY resident Joshua Convey. Sharp, spiky overtones rattle four skillfully assembled tracks. Each gritty frame is lined with a delicate array of guitar, harmonica and electronics. Quiet drone hums along as melody slowly reveals itself amongst carefully placed shards of raw feedback and noise. Not since Kaoru Abe or Masayoshi Urabe has the harmonica been used to such magnificent effect. Vacant Integument is a singular and resonant work that deserves all manner of praise.