Emeralds-Classic or Dud?

completely forgot that i have a copy of the pain jerk/emeralds tour cd. i should play it. don't think i ever did. anyway, like i said on the other thread, the new one has really grown on me. the mego thing. also on my mego hit parade and simliar in some ways to the emeralds stuff is the new album by ONEOHTRIX POINT NEVER. one guy. never heard him before. starts out as straight up noise and then goes into ambient/mellow territory. i like it a lot. Daniel Lopatin. that's the guy with the unwieldy name.

please tell me about more contemporary bands that use analog synths like these dudes

Zombi

who totally rule btw

Kinda confused that they broke out of the tons of bands that sound exactly like them to become the most popular.

I get where you're coming from but... their music really is v. approachable. esp that new mego disc. a handful of well-recorded, melodic, short, new age-y pop ambient songs. not that surprising that people are digging them more than most acts working a harder "drone" or "noise" angle. (admittedly zombie are neither of those things.)

It's not just approachable -- I think Emeralds' music really has its very own sound. They may share techniques and inspirations with artists like Oneohtrix Point Never, Jonas Reinhardt, et al, but their music has a very specific quality that I don't get from anyone else. I wish I could put my finger on it; it has to do with the loops upon loops upon loops, the sense of many different parts, all spinning at different velocities.

Oh yes please this is total KateBait.

And hey, I love me some Zombi but this is a different kind of headspace, less proggy more ambient drifty.

I ordered the new one. Dont suppose anyone has the s/t vinyl they could sell to me?

There's a wibbly wubbly warped tapeloopness to this that reminds me of Cluster. The sounds are slippy slidey as well as shimmery.

I've always felt they remind me of Force Majuere era TD

Which is my fave TD

A bit, yes. I can see that. But I'm not sure that they have that kind of streamlined smoothness that TD have.

OK, I've just reached Genetic which is straight up TD territory with those big Minimalist Composer arpeggiators in the background and I'm in heaven.

Genetic is awesome but just wait til the title track hits you in 2 tracks time

I'm going to be a slathering mess by that point if this album keeps up delivering the goodness like this...

This album just came out on emusic this week, fyi, for anyone who uses that site. I'm anxiously waiting for my June dls to come in.

you all should check out Skyramps as well, if you haven't already. iirc it's McGuire and the Oneohtrix Point Never guy.

yeah that Skyramps record is awesome. I picked that up because I liked Oneohtrix "Rifts" and now I feel like I need to dig into the Emeralds stuff too ...

FWIW, I totally recommend buying the vinyl version of the Mego release. I listened to 320s of the album for a week or more, and felt like I really had a handle on the record. But when my mail-ordered wax finally came, it sounded almost like a different record. Ok, I'm exaggerating. But the space of it blew wide open.

yeah this is a band that is best heard in full fidelity.

I had the exact same experience with Solar Bridge, loved my mp3's but once I got the CD reissue it was like DAMN

Agreed about Skyramps being really awesome.

Btw, there is an emeralds thread that this discussion should be in and not this horseshit thread.

― Bilderbooger (van smack), Wednesday, June 9, 2010 10:12 AM (32 seconds ago)

Thumbs up

this is some of the most gorgeous music that i have heard in a long time. really loving the new album

yeah, it's top notch.

I love how they condensed their sound into mini epics. first track is like a statement of purpose.

I'm still down for the side-length stuff as well, obv.

this new one is Harald Grosskopf's album Synthesist minus the drums.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ggdnTzSVD3E/RxO-gBnNOHI/AAAAAAAAACY/JBrYw8NSVDE/s320/synthesist.jpg

too much harmonic consonance in this record. needs more dissonance

Great band

Great post

Thanks, ilxor

I thought these guys would break out last year on the strength of What Happened? and the opening slots for TG, but I guess the big ol' Mego 2xLP has them really hitting the big time. More power to them. FWIW, every side project/solo project involving these guys I've heard has been of merit (to varying degrees). John Elliot seems to be the most prolific (check out Mist, Outer Space, and the epic Infinity Window material) but Mark Mcguire's stuff is mind-boggling good (2xLP re-ish of the pieces "Tidings" and "Amethyst Waves" on Weird Forest is epic and the "Off In The Distance" cassette was just re-released on a tasty LP). The full Emeralds complement is heading out on a fairly extensive North American tour opening for Caribou in late Sept/early Oct.

yeah I saw that. Would be interested to see them live but am not a fan of Caribou =/

i cant stop listening to Now You See Me from the new one

such a great album

It is a great album, isn't it?

am not a fan of Caribou =/

This is unfortunate, you are missing out on awesomeness.

check out Mist, Outer Space, and the epic Infinity Window material)

Total nu-synth brain fart here. Infinity Window is Daniel Lopatin's (now defunct?) synth duo group (their sole extant LP on Arbor is great BTW...), the epic John Elliot solo project is called Imaginary Softwoods.

yeah I saw that. Would be interested to see them live but am not a fan of Caribou =/

id say its worth getting a ticket just to see them and ducking out for caribou. saw them in june and it was a rad show - short set but p transcendent

Maybe!

I have a real soft spot for bands from Ohio. It truly is one of the USA's greatest music states.

amen! (i am from ohio)

Every time I see an album by these guys I can't help but think of these other guys: http://www.theemeralds.net/

http://pitchfork.com/forkcast/14796-clouds-rolling-in/

last album was dope, but really doesn't hold any re-listening value for me

This new Outer Space LP from John Elliott of Emeralds is a good one, especially "Scanlon": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmEFlQYlSs8

Ossining's I Will Be Missed record is tops too.

I'm in the process of ripping three Outer Space cassettes.

Also, I've heard the new McGuire lp, and it's not a big departure blah blah blah... but still a good listen nonetheless.

New Mark McGuire LP is great, sounds much less synth-y than the Emeralds LP. Gonna be listening to this a lot I think.

Most of the records I buy these days are related to Emeralds it seems...this year alone two McGuire reissues (Tidings/Amethyst Waves and Off In The Distance), the Outer Space LP, the Outer Space/Raglani split, the two Emeralds 7"s, and the new full-length. Will be picking up the new McGuire as well...damn.

liking that mcguire clip a bunch. hadn't heard about this one yet but I'm definitely looking forward to it now. thanks!

and I believe that I mentioned it on the rolling psych thread as well but if you haven't heard mcguire's the invisible world tape, check it out. hands down my favorite release from the guy.

take that with a grain of salt cuz I'd venture I've only heard about 10% of his solo output. but still, this is a great little wash of ashra/a.r. & machines guitar-looping psych.

this thread is like a suckerpunch to my bank account; so far I've gotten the new LP and ordered the Outer Space LP & split, and I'm not going to be able to pass up the Editions Mego 2xLP reissue of What Happened next month either.

the Editions Mego 2xLP reissue of What Happened next month either.

I hadn't heard of that until now. THANKS A LOT!
(mentally deducts $30 from next paycheck)

as an aside, thanks to this thread I can't read that album's title without hearing Fred Willard's voice in my head

interviewing them sometimes this week. any pressing questions?

Read somewhere that they are prepping a reunion, which !!!

ooh!!

excellent

with Yellow Swans and Emeralds reuniting, next thing you know NNCK and Tan As Fuck will be touring by end of next year.

(an aging noiser can hope)

If those four toured as a unit, OMFG

Okay wtf just found out Solar Bridge is improvised with no dubs or edits??????

Really good -
https://stevehauschildt.bandcamp.com/track/your-call-is-important

Saw Steve Hauschildt last night. Hearing "Statue of Verdigris" loud on a good system was unreal (at least that's what he said the opener was, sounds different on record.) Have been underrating this guy.

wait actually I think it was "Forgetting in the Static" that was the face melter

w/e just listen to Aeropsia

just reliably great music from this dude for years and years

also apparently he's recorded some new material with Mark and John, dunno if it'll get released

Was also at that show last night! Gorgeous visuals in a lovely venue I'd never seen a show in before: St Mark's in SF

Steve was amazing as was the opener

He played something off Dissolvi too I think it was Phantox?

i'm still listening to aeropsia a lot. are there other things he's done or been involved with that has this free-gliding fractal emptiness going on?

i've never listened to any emeralds because i'm a dork.

i was glad to see lukas posting quality stuff 17 fuckin years ago though

finally heard "alive in the sea of information". see people hear "drone" and think "boring" when they should be thinking "heavenly buzzsaw that opens the thousand gates of perception."

― This part of the sentence is even dumber. (lukas), Sunday, November 29, 2009 9:47 PM (sixteen years ago) bookmarkflaglink

ha ty, just came here to ask if you'd heard Tragedy & Geometry

i will check that out, thank you!