Ellen Allien & Apparat "Orchestra of Bubbles"

Geeta, I'm sorry that what was a _tiny_ technical correction and/or request for further info (I didn't think Apparat was involved in at least some of her material... maybe I just didn't read that interview!) became some sprawling, thread-hijacking exploration of gender inequalities & attitudes in music.

I wasn't attributing an "anti-female conspiracy" (as it was hysterically labelled upthread) to you especially, or anyone on ILM.

I can't think of any possible aspect of this whole subject now that wasn't completely examined & clarified by Nabisco OTM upthread anyway. I hardly wish to revive it... I'm just sad I can't hear the record yet :(

yeah i want to hear the record too!

That said, I think "Ellen Allien and Apparat" gives a different impression than having her name on the front and his on the liner notes under production. I'd think that rather than her driving the creative direction and themes it'd be an equal division. Or, as nabisco implied, I'm assuming a link between what's on the spine and how the record will sound.

i think a lot of this stemmed initially from the thrills pfm review which wondered how much of ellen's work pre-thrills had been "dictated" by her collaborators.

that's what i thought too

it's all over soulseek now... and the tracklisting:

1. Turbo Dreams 4:11
2. Way Out 3:43
3. Retina 4:47
4. Jet 6:34
5. Floating Points 5:14
6. Under 4:54
7. Edison 3:48
8. Leave Me Alone 3:17
9. Do Not Break 5:13
10.Metric 3:53
11.Bubbles 4:58

i'm really loving this on first listen - i think i should probably give thrills another go, as i've never been much into ellen allien before.

blimey... already? It's definitely not a fake is it??

Two tracks on the amazing http://pardonmyfreedom.blogspot.com/.

it leaked on oink, and it sounds very real to me, so prob not a fake...

YSI?

Oh man, yeah I did NOT expect to be able to hear this so soon (three tracks in, don't think it's a fake, but three is all I can get for now (slsk being a total arse)... but very little could make me happier really. Sounding good!

I would actually pay probably... five times the eventual retail price to own it right now! (j/k about the YSI. I'll get it in good time, peace).

you can download the promo version of the cd here:

http://www.uploadyourfiles.de/maau0wf05ud5x3cv42h00xf36uep2rj7/gl53e/Download.html

hey this is pretty great, sorta what i had wanted that dolls album to sound like

Insert two weeks of ilx0rs talking about how this is the greatest thing ever, a lapse of comments, the album release upon which a couple people stumble in, then a critical reappraisal where some people finally find it a month after release and some original posters mention they don't really listen to it that much anymore, really.

I would like to start this trend by saying this is pretty damn cool and will be convincing friends to get it.

Oh my.

Well then, another massive, undeniable, surprising WINNER!.

So fresh. Will attempt to babble coherently... shit, when I'm good & ready this time eh?

xpost - thank you!!!!

this is great! its nice and punchy and sproingy.

She really needs to stop mentioning her dad being a Tamil rebel, though. This can't be good for her career.

yes, good point, they are both women

It was because of "Insert two weeks of ilx0rs talking about how this is the greatest thing ever, a lapse of comments, the album release upon which a couple people stumble in, then a critical reappraisal where some people finally find it a month after release and some original posters mention they don't really listen to it that much anymore, really."

dude that's like every album ever.

This really isn't the dissapointment I was bracing myself for!!

This is fantastic! I think 'Way Out' might be Ellen's best vocal moment yet, and the double bass on 'Retina', wow!

I'm finding the vocals a bit odd, good, but odd. Just higher pitched than usual, different treatments & filters & stuff. I'm having trouble making out that first lyric though...

I'm gonna save other thoughts for a more er... considered post this time. Obviously I'm loving it to pieces, and it's a stellar achievment on both of their parts really.

So this is Ellen's pop album? The "clean" alternative to the "dirty" "Thrills"?

I wouldn't even attempt to put this on a chronology with Ellen's solo records really. It's certainly sunnier a lot of the time though.

Maybe it's not the greatest thing ever, but it's still very very good. First attempt at listening was all "yawn - boring! and the vocals don't work at all!" but it's grown a lot over the last couple of listens.

I guess this is my big blurb post :/

I think it lacks a consistent narrative, or theme of some kind (unless I haven't picked it up yet) compared with Allien, or Apparat's solo albums.

It's more like "Hey let's just jam & see what we can come up with yeah?" and as a load of songs messing about with, mixing up & confusing sounds, production & genres... it's really, really entertaining.

There is Indie/Electronic songwriting, Plaid-esque nostalgia, Breakdance-Electro-Trance, Dubstep influences(Philip OTM!), Border Community-esque cloudy prog-lushness, and TOTALLY shameles summer anthems next to quite dark IDM pieces... It's REALLY various indeed, definitely more than anything they've done before. In comparison to "Thrills" which I suspect some people found as much uptight, as 'cold' (neither of which I feel like I can totally get on board with as descriptions go) it's like a blowing off of creative steam & energies. And yes, it's inevitably quite unfocused, and unnattached to any one big, consistent set of ideas... but it's also very relaxed and sounds like a holiday for both of them. And there's PLENTY of really great music here. It's just presented in a really loose way. Which isn't nessacarily a bad thing. Higher concepts can get wearing too.

I'm not sure the vocals are perfect from either of them really, but I kind of like what that adds, a sort of home-brewed appeal that stops it (Ellen's songs) sliding out into complete commerciality. Although that could still happen one day (hope not!).

And I was faintly shocked at the first couple of tracks, how commercial, sunny & upfront some of this sounded, Ellen's melodies (I'm assuming it's more her input) are brazenly trancey at times here... but I like it. The whole thing smacks of a confidence & fearlessness which is exactly what I wanted from it, and have enjoyed about her previous work (Apparat's stuff falls more into well-excecuted twists on existing styles of IDM/Indie Electronica I think).

I like how she's hung on to plenty of the deep, smeary-edged, imprecise, yet strong, sound pallete she used on "Thrills" - electronic and acoustic. It sounds like she was really bored of 12 Megapixel digital precision and wanted to go paint in thick oils instead, and now she (and he too) are working out where they can meet on balancing the two extremes.

I was going to write some more about how she seems to have tremendous vision, in maybe a different way to the way geeky techno & electronic innovators work, it's very "big picture", very Björk frankly, but without particularly treading on her unique territory thankfully. But I keep thinking I'm just parroting or influenced by things Nabisco said in his PFM Berlinette review... And I'm hardly the first to comment as such.

I think "Jet" was where this totally, totally gelled as another reliably fab (if all-over-the-place!) Ellen Allien (and Apparat! I haven't discussed him enough maybe) record for me. I completely adore that track.

I also like how "Turbo Dreams" is exactly what everyone might have expected the whole collaboration to sound like... and then it completely switcheroos the whole idea. Funny :D

I still don't quite get the title though! Or perhaps there's nothing to get this time? Either way I like it, even if I have a gnawing feeling someone is going to explain this record far better than I can manage in about 3 months time :X

and it's still so texture-rich without ending up feeling small and obsessed over which is a massive failing of so many electronic records.

fin.

Count me in as one of the people who didn't really feel Thrills, but I'm hugely enjoying this one. Maybe it's the more melodic, softer edge or the greater intricacy of the beats that's doing it for me this time.

Way Out in particular is gorgeous. It's like electro-shoegaze!

Although my version doesn't have Retina and now I'm desperate to hear it.

Check your mail @ graffiti for a YSI of the track

I love the way the cello? double bass? (..such a musical illiterate) on "Retina" crashes straight in after the first two floatier tracks. It's heart-thumpingly dramatic.

There's going to be a bonus track on the final release too! Happy Happy.

'happy happy'?! as in...the tomas andersson track? wtf?

'leave me alone' - is that apparat singing?

i downloaded this and can't find it! hence, y'all are makin me sick!!

lol lex! ... no, I'm just happy :)

I still really need help on the lyrics of "Way Out". That bothers me quite a bit. I'd be bothered about the almost-bad (certainly different to what she's put down on tracks before, more of a stretch really) vocals on "Bubbles" too, except it seems to get lovlier every time I listen to it so far... (susan check yr email!)

ooooooo weeee! thx fandango!

Is it just me or does Metric really sound like a UK Dubstep track, a bit of a davinche / hyperdub influence maybe..

fandango - it didn't work. i tried to email you too, but... I'll just search my files more strenuously.

yes, that struck me about 'metric' as well - i certainly think that ellen's been listening to a lot of grime, or at least it's creeping into the bpitch sound quite subtly recently - and there's even a grime remix of modeselektor's 'silikon' on his new remix ep!

This is growing on me by the day, although I wish there was more lyrical content/narrative to it. And I can't get "Do Not Break" out of my head lately.

can't find it anywhere on the net, and everybody is away on soulseek, sad sad very sad day for me

Today, Retina is the greatest thing ever...

The whole thing smacks of a confidence & fearlessness which is exactly what I wanted from it, and have enjoyed about her previous work

Oh-TM!
Allien can really do no wrong these days

I'll be plunking down my 9.99 Euros at Kompakt the day this comes out. I love it almost as much as Berlinette.

Ellen is going to be in Houston in March, too! W00t!

if you want the record go here: http://opendir.blogspot.com/

scroll 3/4 of the page. enjoy. purchase on release. it's awesome.

thanks but the link is dead, i've got the albums,sounds so amazing to me, but i've got a problem with the end of "way out" who seems to be cut is it your problem too?