IF YOU HAVE REVIEWED A BLACK NOISE RELEASE
PLEASE CONTACT ME @

sailorwinters84@hotmail.com

Flagpole:

Week of May 6th issue

 

 Ship To Shore: Sailor Winters (AKA Ryan Cox) has announced a new Sailor Winters EP is to be released June 1 on his Black Noise label. Apparently branching out from his previously released work which focused exclusively on noise-based compositions, Cox describes the new material as being “experimental pop” in the vein of Steve Reich, Paul Altor and Philip Glass. Yes, Cox’s definition of pop includes Steve Reich! In other news, Black Noise recently released a full-length recording by Pennsylvania-based black metal outfit Thorazine Gaze and a split release between Montana-based noise project Zebulon Kosted and neo-classical group Terre & Neige from Morocco.  I swear Cox is a patron saint to all that is nearly unlistenable for 99 percent of the world. It's ood to have him around. For more info. please see www.sailorwinters.com.

Atmospheric Mag paper version #15


PANZRAM DIVISION ,,Panzram Division" CD-R `08 (Black Noise Rec.)
Ocena: 1

Black to taki niewdziêczny dla artystów i pseudoartystów rodzaj metalu, ¿e w³aœnie w obrêbie tej muzyczki pojawia siê najwiêcej gniotów. Dyletanctwo kwitnie... I takie nieszczêœcie spotka³o kole¿kê, który preparuje sobie ró¿ne dŸwiêki pod nazw¹ PANZRAM DIVISION. Ró¿ne dŸwiêki... Dobre sobie! Wydawc¹ demówki zatytu³owanej po prostu ,,Panzram Division" jest bardzo podziemna, eksperymentalna, amerykañska wytwórnia Black Noise. No i te dwa wyrazy, które zawieraj¹ siê w tym szyldzie, idealnie oddaj¹ treœæ i formê twórczoœci PANZRAM DIVISION. Bowiem ten twór balansuje na granicy ch³odnego blacka, przetaczaj¹cego siê w spowolnionym tempie, ociê¿ale jak lokomotywa z piêædziesiêcioma wagonami oraz noise`owej kakofonii. Wszystko ¿êzi niemi³osiernie i jest bardzo przyt³umione. Jest minimalistyczne i zniekszta³cone w stylu drone. Rozstrojone gitary, perkusja ³upi¹ca bez mocy, scream rozdarty g³êboko, g³êboko w tle, sporadycznie mroczne frazy klawiszy... Na pewno samobójczy klimat przygniata... PANZRAM DIVISION pochodzi ze Szwecji, wiêc pewnie SHINING by³ tu jedn¹ z pierwszych inspiracji. Trudno jednak coœ wiêcej powiedzieæ o tym tajemniczym projekcie... [Kasia]

Panzram Division, www.myspace.com/panzramdivision
Black Noise Rec., 3211 Hampton Ridge Way, Snellville Ga. 30078, USA; sailorwinters84@hotmail.com; www.sailorwinters.com / www.myspace.com/thisisblacknoise
 

 

feastofhateandfear.com

 

SAILOR WINTERS - Parker Volume 1 &2 DOUBLE CD-R (Witch House) Sailor Winters is the sometimes sinister / sometimes darling work of Ryan Cox from the state of Georgia. He's released a 7" (Monolith on Tsunami Records), an LP (Red At Morn on Stickfigure Records), as well as many CD-Rs on his own label, Black Noise (including his sophomore effort, Owe). His music varies in style, but is always cohesive. There are times when his playful numbers bring to mind Aphex Twin, Necropolis-era DJ Spooky or very early Xiu Xiu. There are other times when his raging sounds will remind me of The Grey Wolves, Merzbow or Bastard Noise. I'm going to have to say that while I've really enjoyed previous SW works (especially the Red At Morn: The Movie DVD), this is by far his best work. The first disc is forty-five minutes (nine tracks), the second forty minutes (also nine tracks), and both are excellent experimental ditties, ranging from menacingly quiet ambient to pleasantly punishing drone, tribal-like tunes to bass heavy hypnotics, some peppered with vicious vocals here and there. Witch House Records presents 'em in a DVD case with minimalist artwork and liner notes, which leaves way more for the ears, but you won't be sorry... unless you miss out. (Aug 13, 2008)

feastofhateandfear.com

Sailor Winters- OWE CD-R

This is the second release for Georgia's (that's U.S., not Ukraine) Sailor Winters and it's a decent blend of Aphex Twin-like early ambient (as in the opening track "War Blanket", "My Sword Has Nine Blades"), Xiu Xiu-ish playful weirdness ( "Bitch is my Illness" , "Fourteen"), creepy Merzbow-y noise ("In my Hands", "Sodom Burns"), DJ Spooky-esque illbient (Yellow Dots), and swirling loops and locked grooves ala NON ("Aghata"). An exciting mishmash in the subgenera many simply label as 'noise'. I wish I knew more of Mr. Winters, but not much info came my way though I did dig the tunes that dropped by. (Jan.6. 2006)

PUNK PLANET

Sailor Winters-Static as Harmony

Static and harmony are just what you'll find on this exceptional, shoegaze-inspired disc of drone. Imagine Sailor Winters as a bloodied up Kevin Shields. Beautiful

FLAGPOLE MAGAZINE

Sailor Winters-Static as Harmony

The title of this album is somewhat misleading. The ever-present static contained herein serves not as harmony, per se, but rhythm. However, it's not any rhythm recognizable to the average rock music fan. Literally, it's static that sounds to my ears like it was produced by the low rumble of guitar and bass, rather than being computer generated, and this gives it a much warmer feeling than one might expect. Accompanying this is 33 minutes of non-stop, sometimes physically upsetting music that grinds, whirs, seeps and breaks into one's ears.

Static as Harmony is the latest release from a musical lineage that includes Athens bands Divorce and Nocturne for a Dying Planet. The former took thrash and hardcore punk to logical and punishing extremes and the latter constructed noise landscapes that were as dense and difficult as anything ever produced by the deep underground. Sailor Winters- the alter-ego solo project of Ryan Cox- continues in this vein, but the main difference here is that Static as Harmony seems slightly more comfortable allowing pieces of found vocal footage, piano and other instruments slip through to the forefront. Don't be fooled, however, into thinking this record is in any way more suited to mainstream tastes than NFADP. From the start, the record grinds the listener, but after the first listen, you'll welcome the second. This is music that resides, if not underneath the underground, certainly outside the parameters of anything you're likely to consider the outside limits of music.

Although referred to by some as "ambient noise", this is pretty far from the truth. Psychic noise is more like it. This noise is musical, but not in any linear sense. Sailor Winters is making music for deep mental absorption. This music isn't violent, but it's confrontational in a very intimate way. Careful, close listening stirs up multiple emotions from anger to depression to bliss. If you can imagine a cerebral windstorm, on in which all the hidden debris of the mind is blown in and out of focus, then you can imagine the effect of listening to Static as Harmony. (Gordon Lamb)

MAXIMUMROCKNROLL #273

Sailor Winters has a CD with nine tracks of electronic noise and distortion. It sounds like some of it is done on organ while there is also some distant sounding vocals and maybe some heavily distorted and screwed around with bass (not totally sure though). Maybe I just don't get it but it sounds like random noise to me. I could see it working as a soundtrack to a spooky movie.   (Pete)

 

PUNK PLANET #73

Sailor Winters- OWE

Less dense and suffocating than his last release, but the music benifits-there's even more going on this time. Subtle melodies, gorgeous noise, a glorious mess........fight the good fight and write Sailor Winters today.(JJC)

Short Fast and Loud #15

Sailor Winters OWE CD:

Electronic noise here with a tendency to take the rhythmic route more often than not. Ranges from hypnotic looping with various waves of noise weaving themselves in and out to more composed outings complete with sung vocals to full emersion in multiple layers of feedback to Justin Broadrick styled keyboard romps and back again. 9 tracks in all. The cover reminds me of a 90's emo record.

He Works Alone

Ryan Cox Explains The Black Noise Of Sailor Winters. Sort Of.

Atlanta/ Athens musician Ryan Cox makes difficult music. A former member of now defunct outfits Divorce and Nocturne For A Dying Planet, Cox now records under the moniker Sailor Winters and makes deeply grinding symphonies of pure apocalyptic noise - if white noise is background static, then what Cox calls "black noise" is up front and unavoidable. So far, Cox has experienced an incredible burst of creativity, which has allowed him to release three albums of his compositions in the past 12 months. His latest, Red At Morn, released courtesy of Atlanta label Stickfigure, is the most musically articulate and the most, in the loosest sense of the term, accessible.

Cox will make his first public “performance” on Friday, Apr. 21 at Little Kings with a multi-media presentation of his music. The show won’t feature Cox playing live music, but will have his latest album mixed with a video production that has taken more than four months to assemble. Folks should just expect an all-out sensory assault. Asked why he wasn’t playing live himself, Cox explains, “Well, I don’t have $20,000 worth of tape machines to recreate on-stage what I’ve done in the studio. So that’s gonna take a while.”

Flagpole spoke with Cox recently to get some idea of what his goals are, what folks should expect at his upcoming record release show and, pretty much, to let readers have a chance to hear from him directly concerning what he’s doing. While his answers were brief, and occasionally cryptic, they should shed at least a little light on both his process and further purpose.

Flagpole

Can you talk a little bit about the break up of Divorce, the subsequent breakup of Nocturne For A Dying Planet and the advent of Sailor Winters?

Ryan Cox

Divorce was too hard to keep together mainly because a couple of members were in school. Nocturne ended when I moved away. I've been making music on my own for many years. I just gave it a name.

Flagpole

How exactly are the records constructed? What type of instrumentation are you using and what sort of tape machines, recorders, etc? You spoke earlier about everything being done at home until you digitize it in the studio, so please explain this process.

Ryan Cox

I use keyboards, grand piano, guitar, effects petals, and I make my own instruments. I record with mini tape, eight-track tape, stretch tape, VHS and some digital sources. It doesn't hit a computer until I'm ready to mix and master.

Flagpole

How much of the work is "composed" per se, and how much is improvised? A lot of times people think of noise as just jerking around, but your records sound very carefully constructed to me.

Ryan Cox

It's all composed. I'm very particular. Every sound has its place. My place is to make a place. I'm a warrior.

Flagpole

What has led you to make records with this type of sound? Basically, what is the attraction to noise?

Ryan Cox

I love dark music and I love making stories out of sound. Classical music and soundtracks have been a big influence. Viva D'Amato.

Flagpole

What exactly will the "live show," where the record will play over the top of a film, encompass? Can you talk a little about the video you've constructed?

Ryan Cox

The video is about half digital and half 8mm. My friends Nate Lang and Jarad Smith put it together for me. I think it's amazing. They really played off the emotions of the music.

Flagpole

Sailor Winters has been an amazingly prolific project with three albums - Static As Harmony, OWE and Red At Morn - in a single year. Is this a new result of working alone, or have you just had a storehouse of ideas that you can finally get out without a band holding you back?

Ryan Cox

Working alone has done wonders for me. I need to be in complete control in order for my mind to open up. I read minds when I get too close to people. It creates static.

Flagpole

You spoke about moving back to Athens sometime now that you’ve been living in Snellville for a while, but what caused you to move away? And what's the attraction to returning?

Ryan Cox

"Tell my wife I am trolling Atlantis." My sails needed wind and I went crazy. I'll be back with swords of fire and plunder on my mind.

Gordon Lamb

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feastofhateandfear.com

SAILOR WINTERS - Red at Morn CD (Stickfigure) I became familiar with the state of Georgia's new noise-tinker Sailor Winter's work via his second release, Owe. While I do enjoy this release, I find it less accessible than his previous work, but accessible is a word most noisicians don't care for anyhow. Still experimenting with constructive-deconstructivist elements the likes of Paul D Miller, or even Xiu Xiu (minus the vocals), this release sees (hears) more in the harsh noise or power electronic fields, though there really are many ambient moments throughout. There's still a lot of playfulness to his compositions, but they seem more vicious now. He's smiling, but showing more teeth than a friendly animal would show. There's something wrong here, something scary... and that's good. If music is making you feel uneasy - at least it's making you feel. (June 16, 2006)

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PITCHFORK ON-LINE REVIEWS

Sailor Winters
“What Child is This?”
[Silber ; 2006]

feastofhateandfear.com

SAILOR WINTERS - Monolith 7" SINGLE (Tsunami) Sailor Winters is a ambient noise-tinker from where the peaches grow: Georgia. This single is one song, continued from side A to B, and it displays what I think SW would sound like as a live show. Though I wouldn't know without actually seeing it... except in my own crazy mind, of course. Still, the track has an 'Aphex Twin plays live instruments' feel, with an older, retarded Frenchman rapping at intervals. Humorous, yet dark, and almost danceable. The layout is a simple neo-Primitivist hand-screen of artwork by Nate Lang, and the disc itself is blue vinyl, and - I'm sure - limited. (Dec 15, 2006).com

 

 

KZSU Zookeeper Online Review

Sailor Winters: Red At Morn

 

The most beautiful noise drones you’ll hear this side of NON, Earth, Kevin Drumm. Pieces have personality, range around, but the body cavity massaging tones and distortion remain. Wow, guaranteed to do the trick, if what you need is a way to kick narcotics without drugs and counseling. All tracks FANTASTIC.

1) starts with drumming/hypnotic pounding loops, quickly turns to a droning plodding looping distorto symphony, buried voices, very old school industrial noise feel, splendid
2) chill piano intro, deceptive because it quickly launches into a lovely looped noise drone, about midway it turns more quiet, creepy, and a new distorto drone takes over
3) quiet percussion, distant piano, low end drones break through, really cool, chill
4) a beautiful noise wash with low end melodies underlying, wow
5) great noise wash over interesting melodies, tones and sounds, even a percussion beat in there, super cool
6) low end drone builds slowly with musicbox’like tinkling, then an epic drone with synth melody
7) some of the noisiest moments, its not like Merzbow or Massimo, more like Boyd Rice and NON, power distortion gives out to strange treated electronics
8) quieter, melodic piano, dense and pretty: but SURPRISE, about midway turns into a screamo noise-fest sure to peel the paint, very schitzo
9) briefer, pulsing rhythmic, with noisey aspects
10) very nice drone, pulses and builds
11) drone like previous continuous, but bursts of intense screamo vocals and distortion join the fray, ends with a weird almost cricket-like tone

HELLY CHERRY WEB ZINE
SERBIA

Sailor Winters - OWE i Red at Morn
Posto ste procitali intervju vec od prilike imate neku sliku sta to ovaj momak radi. Najpre drugi album koji je uradio. Prvi (Static as Harmony) nismo imali prilke da preslusamo i nasa potpuna slika se formira od ovog izdanja. Predstavlja nam se sa devet numera koje se jednostavno mogu podvesti pod noise bez ikakvih prefiksa i sufiksa. Sve stvari su odsvirane uzivo a racunar je koriscen samo za neka finalna doterivanja /ili unistavanja kako hocete/ efekte isl. Broj instrumenata i ostalih sprava za prozivodnju zvuka je zaista velik, od gitara preko klavira do pistaljki i ko zna cega sve ne. Red at Morn je poslednje izdanje i pojavilo se za Stickfigure etiketu iz Atlante. Ovde je zvuk nesto mracniji, vise psiho, ambijentalniji da bi odjednom presao i harsh vriskove pa se opet vratio u neke mirnije vode, mracniji /da ide i u dark ambient/. Gore-dole, cimanje levo-desno, slusljiviji je i uvrnutiji od prethodnog diska. Bolji od prethodnog a oni koji su slusali i prvo izdanje kazu da je ovo kulminacija. Oba su dostupna na sailorwinters84@hotmail.com. Predrag

www.theplasticashtray.com.uk     ONLINE REVIEWS

 

Sailor Winters

Red At Morn

http://www.sailorwinters.com/

Sailor Winters is a solo effort from Ryan Cox who was the singer of Athens, Georgia band Divorce. That is as much as I really know about Sailor Winters. The artwork is as stark and mysterious as the artist himself and reflects the origins of the music perfectly. Thick with static, the cd opens with ‘Ashe’ which is nearly 5 minutes of distorted drum machines, weird looped sounds and clipped bass sound. Very strange stuff indeed. There are flashes of melody underneath the gothic sounds and spoken word passages. ‘Olodumare’ opens like a lofi NIN song. Imagine Reznor wired on drugs sitting at his piano with a 4-track recorder taping away his decline until a huge wave of distorted guitar crashes in, knocking him to the floor. This is an acquired taste. The casual listener will not be able to dip in and out of this cd.

Tracks like ‘Egun’ take Cox’s experiments to the limit, showing nothing else but noise. It’s a sure way to piss off the neighbours. After all that’s been said there are flashes of greatness hidden under layers of filth as with ‘Egun’. There’s what seems to be a church choir sinking into quicksand slowly pulling themselves out until someone turns up with a flame thrower and burns them all alive. Horrifying!

‘Bakonga’ brings up imagery in my mind of Tibetan mountaintops, snow storms and 300mph wind speeds. Things build from the sound of wind rushing around your head as chimes rattle around in sinister circles. This goes on for about 3 minutes until retro keyboards crash in, a la Boards Of Canada kind of groove. The trademark ‘static’ fizzles out your brain as things just weird out. This is a very strange album indeed.

Sailor Winters is essentially an experimental album. It could be the perfect soundtrack to a 70’s Horror film or be the cd that essentially sends you mad. Either way there’s a lot going on and some good ideas even if you find the sound of noise mind-boggling. This album could divide friendships, ruin relationships or send you mad. Play it with care. It will damage you in one way or another.

Pete Stanley

RAZORCAKE

NOCTURNE FOR A DYING PLANET:
Self-titled: CD
Pretty solid ambient noise from former members of Goat Shanty and Divorce (no, I never heard of ‘em either, but I like the names). I could live without the depressive piano number (and the somber mantle—why not call it Goat Divorce?), but overall they got the shit lined up just about right. –Cuss Baxter (Nocturne for a Dying Planet)

 

FLAGPOLE MAGAZINE

NOCTURNE FOR A DYING PLANET
Nocturne For A Dying Planet
Independent Release

Brutality in music doesn't always take a standard form. The debut album from local band Nocturne For A Dying Planet shares no musical lineage or obvious characteristic with any band you might consider extreme. You'll be hard pressed to even identify a single instrument used on this record beyond the meager use of piano and, occasionally, a music box and some bell-like percussion. Like a painting viewed from too many yards back, it's unclear what materials were used. The effect of the record on the listener, however, renders such knowledge as unnecessary. To try to deconstruct the sounds contained here would lead not to a better understanding of them, but would serve to undermine the mental and emotional effect the record has. The sum is more than the parts.

The track titles are meaningless because this record must be taken as a whole. In the simplest terms, this is an album of constructed noise. It's full of grinding, non-rhythmic soundscapes that have as much effect on your gut as they do on your ears. Interspersed are tracks of low-level static and feedback accented with simple piano riffs or slow-throb keyboard washes. It is difficult, frustrating and infuriating. But it is rewarding.

This record cannot be cut up. Context is everything. The resignation of the listener to the sounds herein comes on gradually, such that by the last track, there is a calm mental acceptance as opposed to the initial aural rejection experienced at the album's onset. It is a brutal listen. And it is righteous.

Gordon Lamb

 

 

Heartattack #48  December 2005

Nocturne For A Dying Planet 7":   Think Beherit through a phase shifter.   Noise for sure.  Very experimental, very cool, very satanic sounding.  Yellow wax.  (NW)

 

Short Fast And Loud  #15

Nocturne For A Dying Planet  SAC101RAS 7":  Another one of those records you can't figure out if it's 33 or 45.  I'm guessing it's 33 but it sounds fine at both so i'll just go with it.  2 tracks of noise on here with actual instruments creating the sounds instead of just electronics. Reminds me of a more structured Sunn or a more metal Factrix.  Lot's of feedback, harsh guitar noise, ear peircing keyboards, some piano and guttural vocals (there's actually lyrics included).  Side 2 was my favorite, it starts off with an almost song like structure of vocals and feeback into a nice piano breakdown eventually degenerating to a squealing loop.  More noise on wax!    www.tsuthrash.com

FLAGPOLE #35

Jesus Spoke To The Devil Almost Every Day: Just when you thought you could pigeonhold the BLACK NOISE label as being irredeemably experimental, head honcho Ryan Cox (AKA Sailor Winters) releases a gorgeous collection of acoustic tunes by former Athens resident and musician Owen Keegan. Featuring songs written between 1996 and 2006, the album is appropriately titled 1996-2006. This is really up-close, intimate stuff. Listening to it makes one feel more like a spy or a fly on the wall than an audience member. Keegan, who now makes his home in Los Angeles, doesn't play much anymore. If people start hearing his stuff, though, they'll surely ask him to, right? Please see www.sailorwinters.com or www.myspace.com/owenkeegan.             

Gordon Lamb

feastofhateandfear.com

 

SAILOR WINTERS - Red At Morn: The Movie DVD (Sailor Winters) If you're unfamiliar with Sailor Winters, he is actually one man, Ryan Cox of the state of Georgia. He plays noise / ambient music, and plays it well. His music is sometimes harsh and powerful in the vein of Merzbow, The Grey Wolves or NON, while other times playful and rather upbeat in the vein of Aphex Twin, DJ Spooky or Xiu Xiu. It's basically his entire third release, Red at Morn, with accompanying music video and experimental film - we have the marching beat of "Ashe", the fuzzy "Olodumare" (whose video at times reminded me of Boyd Rice's short film Black Sun), the tribal, yet droning "Orisha", the quiet and ethereal "Egun", the menacing "Dahomean", followed by the impish "baKONGa", the distressing, though often lush "Yoruban", next is "Maxim Xul" a track that starts loopy and restrained, which almost turns into black metal halfway through, then the rumbling and rumoring "Murmur", the subdued and tasteful "Orre" and ending things off on the punishing and abrasive "Black Noise". All of it extremely well dome for what was probably put together on a home computer. Best of all, this is completely self-produced (from the music videos to the disc packaging), and you can get this for five bucks! No, that's no typo. You can buy this directly from his website for $5. So order up, sit back, smoke a fat one and be prepared for an over fifty-minute, trance-inducing ride. Just make sure your DVD player can play burned discs. (Oct 14, 2007)

feastofhateandfear.com

 

TOTAL SYSTEM FAILURE - The Frozen Hour CD (Black Noise) Total System Failure is a duo from... well, who knows where (New Jersey, I think). What I do know is that TSF started in 2005 as the sonic tinkering of one Vinnie Paternostro. Vinnie began to manipulate his saxophone through guitar pedals. He soon self-released a six-song, self-titled CDr of his experiment and limited it to a simple 200 copies. A little while later Paternostro was joined by Jay Reeve to process and manipulate the sounds in a live setting. This new CDr is an aural document of their collaboration, featuring VP's sax, with real-time manipulations, as well as looped noise and electro-babble. I hear a blend of sonances from this seven song disc, and it ranges from an etho-ambient sound similar to Bryn Jones' Muslimgauze to more ritualistic power electronic ala Archon Satani, or even The Grey Wolves. I'm pretty sure this, as are most of the Black Noise camp's releases, limited edition, so if you are into sonic insanity and textured mayhem, you may want to get a move on and order a copy for yourself soon. (Oct 14, 2007)

FLAGPOLE #27

 

And Speaking Of The Good Sailor…: Ryan Cox (AKA Sailor Winters) continues to quietly spread the holiday joy via his Black Noise label. One thing I really like about Black Noise is its commitment to the absolute fringe. Think you're tough? Throw on a copy of the newly released album Pigpusher by Sweden's Demons That Drove, and see how tough you are after coming out the other end. Cox also recently released The Frozen Hour by Total System Failure (whose stated goal is a "commitment to imperfect improvised recordings, the abuse of delays, the misuse of instrumentation and utter abandonment of the 'right' way to make music"). Get some for Mom over at www.sailorwinters.com.

 

Sailor Winters "What child is this"   Silber Christmas comp

This followed by Sailor Winter's white noise polluted 'What Child is this?' and the unkind atmosphere is well and truly accomplished.

 

Micheal Byne, Left Hip

FLAGPOLE   Vol. 22   #1

 

Witch Way Did He Go?: Sailor Winters (AKA Ryan Cox) has signed to Janesville, WI, label Witchhouse Records. This signing marks Cox's first move away from his own Black Noise label as an outlet for his work. Witchhouse will also release new work by former Athenian and Cox's Black Noise labelmate Owen Keegan. In other news, Witchhouse will rerelease the out-of-print Sailor Winters album Static As Harmony early this year. For more information on all this, please see www.myspace.com/sailorwinters or www.myspace.com/witchhouserecords.

 

Gordon Lamb

Following a change of name from Einsamkeit to Vessel, the prospect of interviewing L, the sole member of this experimental black metal project was too good to miss... 

Greetings L, how are you?

I am doing alright. I hope all is well on your side of the world.

What prompted the change of name from Einsamkeit to Vessel?

It was mostly prompted by a change of sound. Einsamkeit was active during a period of time were I was distraught over current events in my immediate world as well as the outside one. Eventually, as with many people, that sadness turned to anger, and I felt that the new sound would not fit in with the depressive band name. Vessel was thought up during the lyric writing for one of my songs, Drifting the Sounds of Time’s Lost Embrace. I felt like I was channeling my anger into my music, which was turning out more ferocious than Einsamkeit. That is when Vessel was officially spawned.

How did Vessel start?

Vessel is actually a project years in the making. It started back in 2005/2006 when I first started with my project titled Nathorst. I had recorded the first Nathorst demo within 1 week of starting to play guitar. As you can imagine it sounded like shit, but eventually the music started to get better. Around late 2006/early 2007, Nathorst took a different sound and became more Funeral Doom than Black Metal. The first release was the Chapters CD-R, which only went to a few people. It featured a 20 minute doom song, with a 10 minutes interlude after-word. During this time I changed locations from San Jose, CA, to Santa Rosa, CA. It was not a long move but made a huge difference. I was more inspired by the wonderful nature of Santa Rosa, and started a project with a local musician who goes by Muse. The name of the project was Autumnal(now Autumnal Blaze) and we recorded a demo. By the time the demo was done I felt creatively trapped and decided to start Einsamkeit. The rest goes from there.

Did you have any doubts when you first started?

As with all new things, a person will have their doubts. When I first started writing music I was a mere 14 years old. It was a very juvenile attempt, and it showed through my music. I had not seen the real world yet and was naive to how life worked. There are also difficulties in USBM. There is not so much a brotherhood in USBM as there was in other countries. The U.S does not have a group, like the LLN or the Norwegian greats, therefore it is more of an "every man for himself" organization. There are small outfits, especially in San Francisco and Chicago, but nothing major. This caused some worries for me in the beginning.

What influences your music?

Anger mostly. I am very angry with the way that humans are acting. We have taken over the planet and treated it as if it were created for us. I take a lot of influence from the writings of Daniel Quinn as well as Plato and Ovid. I spend a lot of time reading, and that helps with my writing. I also write for those who can not express themselves. For the lost and lonely, those with no voice. I speak out against religion, and I speak out against NSBM. I feel that NSBM only helps perpetuate the arrogance of the animal nation, one that humans have forgotten they are apart of.

How would you describe your music?

I would describe it as Experimental Black Metal, taking influences from Doom, Noise, New Wave, and Alternative. Anti-NSBM, Anti-Religion, and Anti-Trends are tie in with this.

Are you happy with how everythings turned out?

I am extremely pleased with how everything has turned out. I feel like I am writing what I was meant to write. I have also met great warriors through my music. P.V from Banshee and Stone Mountain, who has supplied me with ongoing support as well as the logo, and also N. from Depraved Designs who has bent over backwards to give me artwork I was pleased with. And all the bands that have taken the time to express how much they enjoy my sounds. Gallowbraid and Vintervandring, Crawl of Time, and so on.

Would you consider further experimentation with Vessel?

Experimentation is what Vessel is about. Expect many different things, noise influence Black Metal, maybe even Doom and so on. I want to break the elitist mentality. I am not trying to be grim or kvlt, I am just writing music. Expect covers of G.G Allin’s Bite It You Scum, as well as Mazzy Star’s Fade Into You.

Which other bands from the USA do you like?

So many. I’ll just start naming names. Banshee, Gallowbraid, Vintervandring, godemiché, Zebulon Kosted, Defiler. Also bigger bands, I have taken a lot of influence from Nachtmystium, Sunn O))), Asunder, Agalloch, Leviathan, Wolves in the Throne Room and Weakling.

Would do you another split with another band, if so, who with?

Splits are one of my favorite types of releases. I am working on a split with Zebulon Kosted from Minnesota. Zebulon Kosted is some sick and twisted experimental metal. I also am interested in doing splits with a few other bands, but nothing solid as of yet. The band I would most like to do a split with would be Gorlock. We have never had any communication, but that project is inspiring.

Have you had any plans regarding the next release?

Nothing extremely solid as of yet. I am working with Black Noise on a possible full length release. I may be releasing the Einsamkeit demo on Time End Records but that is not set in stone yet. I am just writing and recording and seeing were it goes.

What do you have planned for the future?

I have a release with noise project Better People which should be out very soon on Black Noise. It is a cassette release but it will not disappoint. I am also going to writing under another project titled Totenwinter, which may or may not see the light of day.

Thanks for your time, is there anything you’d like to add?

I was just like to thank all that have supported me. AXBM for the great promotional work as well as you, Archon, for taking the time assemble this interview. Cheers...

Flagpole vol. 22 #19 

 

The Good Sailor Provides: Atlanta/Athens musician and label owner Ryan Cox, who performs his music under the name Sailor Winters, is always methodically and quietly going about his business of making very big noise. Case in point, is the new double album by Sailor Winters titled Parker 1 & 2 which will see release this month via WitchHouse Records. Cox’s own label, Black Noise, has had a veritable slew of releases in the past couple of months, and there’ll be more on those in this space soon. But for now, check out some new Sailor Winters tracks over at www.myspace.com/sailorwinters, and find out more about the new album over at www.witchhouserecords.com.

 

Gordon Lamb

 

feastofhateandfear.com

"KRISTER BERGMAN - s/t CD-R (Black Noise) This is a far cry from what I expected out of the Black Noise camp, though it's still a great listen.
Pretty fresh, and a little different too from what usually comes across my desk. Krister Bergman is a solo artist who was once behind the Swedish project Demons That Drove.
His self-titled EP is four tracks that are a space-y mix of neo-folk and shoegazer - using almost nothing other than acoustic guitars and vocals. It's dreamy, it's evocative, it's depressing as hell, but I love every minute of it.
The work of Krister Bergman brings to mind Earth Covers Earth-era Current 93, or the gaining-in-popularity Factoria out of NYC.
The disc is limited to only fifty, but I'm sure these went awfully quick. Ask nicely and the folks at Black Noise may help you out, but don't expect the wonderful handmade covers that come with the original pressing.

 

feastofhateandfear.com

THE CROWNED HEADS OF EUROPE / SPORTS - split CD-R (Black Noise) Crowned Heads of Europe hail from Portland, Oregon and they force into your ear a quiet, yet menacing electro-babble somewhat in kin to Archon Satani, or early Coil. Think of sinister music that can be used in the darkest of rituals. Good enough to listen to on its own, yet can also be used as background music without being distracting. Sports only give us one track and they don't differ greatly from CHoE, so the tracks run into one another smoothly. This split CD-R is another from the folks at Black Noise out of Georgia, which, as usual, is limited to a small number of discs. Drop BN a line and check if any are still available before you have to hunt down originals amongst other bidders. (March 20, 2008)

feastofhateandfear.com

 

KONSTANTINOV - Beyond the Black Ocean CD (Black Noise) Konstantinov is a project by solo musician K. E. Lunsford (of Witchhouse Records), and is named after a Russian space vessel by the same name, which was itself named after philosopher Konstantin Konstantinov (1817 - 1871). It's one track clocking in at over an half hour, which brought to mind astronauts... make that cosmonauts, and the furthest reaches of deep space. It's dark and quiet ambient that utilizes actual room and open field ambiance to create soundscapes. This CD is presented by Ryan Cox (the mastermind behind Black Noise Records) in a DVD case, and though not numbered, I'm certain is pretty limited. (March 20, 2008)

Multiple and Massive: Someone who should get a lot more attention than he does is Ryan Cox. Alternately known as Sailor Winters and the man behind Black Noise Records, Cox never fails to impress me with his deliberate and understated way of going about his business. To wit, 2008 has been a relatively banner year for his Black Noise label which racked up releases by The Crowned Heads of Europe, Sports, Better People, Panzram Division, Kristen Bergman, Beyond the Black Ocean and more.

Most recently, Cox has released his own new double album under his Sailor Winters moniker. It’s titled Parker and comes courtesy of Witchhouse Records. It’s a fine addition to his catalog of releases, and like everything associated with Cox, his releases and his label, it’s dense and difficult. It’s also quite good and rewarding. None of this music is for the faint of heart or casual listener. Get a good dose over at www.sailorwinters.com and www.witchhouserecords.com.