Hello!

Pardon cross postings........

Thought it´d be time to send out some sign-of-life,
our annual communiqué so to speak...the last one
announced the Skaters LP, which has been a huge
success of course (even though the Wire and Aquarius
Records are hell bent on insisting Humbug is a
Finnish label!). Well, things have been chugging
along since then and somehow I discovered there´s
some 14 releases meanwhile which haven´t even been
announced until now (!!). This is mainly due to the
web page STILL being down, which is no excuse, but
trust me it´s 95% finished.....So, you´ll have to do
with this long winded update for the moment.
Plenty of exciting releases I´d say. I´m looking
forward to hear from you.....direct any inquiries to
my email: tchartan [at] yahoo [dot] com.

PS: I didn´t add detailed descriptions of the
packaging of each item this time, as its probably
a bit redundant.....

And, yes....about the Skaters "Dark Rye Bread" LP,
some last copies is still around, "first come first
served", etc (Fusetron and Eclipse will also get some
last copies for US distribution). Bill Wood/Fredrik
Ness Sevendal "Song of Degrees" LP and Crank
Sturgeon "E-Z Voiceover Box-Top Living Solutions" is
also down to the last copies......now, onto the news,
thanks for reading!




****Humbug017/018: VIÖN & MEM "12´00" & "TSCH"
2 x CD-R set -- EUR 13,00

Previously members of the Polish electroaccoustic/
improvising group EA, these albums continue to
push the envelope of the "processed field recordings"
phase of EA´s amazing "R" CD (Ignis Project). Urgent
human activity, animal life, weather, friction &
gravity - all the field recordings staples in evidence
but Viön & Mem consistently transcend the
mundane. Not by disguising their sorce sounds with
"fancy" processing but by expert mixing (obviously)
and an ability to muster a seamless amalgamation
between the "natural" (captured sound) and the
"artificial" (unnamable things that goes on inside
their laptops). Illusive detail and insectoid buzzes
is cast against the ebb and flow of oblique drones,
hollow rumbles, gentle percussion effects. The
characters of the sounds are all here......the effect
can be soothing or dramatic.

These albums are documents from ca ´00 - ´02, and
were originally slated for release some two-three
years ago, so we´re chuffed to FINALLY have them
available! Each CD in idividual printed fold-out
cover,housed in a stickered/numbered plastic sleeve.




****Humbug019: BJØRKÅS / ANDREASSEN "F_RAN
Soundtracks" CD-R EP -- EUR 6,00

At 20 mins, a short but strange release which
diverts and destroys....Bjorkaas previously appeared
on the Humbug 2CD comp as Fusel Music and the
style is quite similar here; digitally tweaked
song-like/melodic structures, more often then not
with a melancholic and/or sickly "film noir" vibe to
it....slow buildups which erupts into rhythmic
paranoia and frantic edits before subsiding again,
briefly....Bjørkås is/was a member of the industrial
cabaret folksinging band (does that make sense?)
Bogus Blimp. These soundtracks are part of an
ongoing collaborative work with Andreassen,
which also includes art films, installation, etc.




****Humbug039 - ANTI / UTON "Borrowed Antennas"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

"Borrowed Antennas" is their 2nd encounter and a
what a sweet & confused rendezvous it is. Garbled
folk-drone-collage soup from the decomposing Finland
undergrowth. Aromatic sweeps, chopsticks not
reqiured....

"anti/uton cdr is a totally stunning piece, moving
from bedroom like experimentations to industrialish
atmospheres makes it a really great work"
- Nicolas Malevitsis, Absurd

"...a mighty headfuck" - Brad Rose, Foxy Digitalis




****Humbug041 - TORE H. BØE "Freezer Burn"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

In which Tore is rallying against false dichotomies,
indifference and worldwide evil. This is the brother
album to last years 40-track slapstick noise
masterpiece, "Melting Snow".

"Freezer Burn" contains four gently majestic audio
rapes, complete with elements of hip-hop, speed-
string-psychedelia, stolen political statements,
church organ and rock´n´roll ecstacy. Truly a
banishing of the cold´n´cynical, and the last
Norway-related work from Tore Honoré Bøe."




****Humbug046 - TORE H. BØE "Confessions of a
Poolboy" CD -- EUR 10,00

From the man who recently "dissolved" himself as a
solo musician comes this timely summer album!
A blasting barrage of squeals, squelches,
groans, rumbles, hiss and high-end flux!
Witness the poolboy´s garbled confessions, the
ooze of damp delirium and furiously regurgitated
Gran Canaria kitschiness....CHILL OUT NOISE,
say no more señorita. CD with sweet 8 page booklet
(w/ pictures and linear notes from a luxurious life).
Produced by John Hegre A166 of NEW ORIGAMI
REPLIKA).

"...recorded to his new home at canary islands,
spain, turns to be a very strong and lively noise
mayhem, to help you spent your vacations in real
waves of joy… or should i credit it as `islas
canarias noise'? top!" - Nicholas Malevitsis,
Absurd  




****Humbug043 - CRAZY RIVER "Sounds Like a
Melon to Me" CD -- EUR 11,00

Crazy River is Per Gisle Galåen from Slowburn and
DEL and The Birds (duo with Cotton Casino -
they´ve got a new album on Important Records, with
a 3D cover to boot!) and any number of other bands/
projects he´s involved with. This is his first solo
album, and it´s ripe for release having sat on a dusty
shelf for some years. Peeling abstraction, fuzzy
heavy organ sounds, and even some whimsical and
strange almost-popsongs here....a beautiful musty
odour to this album, just as we like it! A co-release
with Apartment Records, edition of 500 with covers
printed on lovely quality cardstock...

"The lo-fi character of all the pieces make this
sounding very coherent album of outsider music
(...) I think we could call that 'total freedom'."
- Frans de Waard, Vital weekly




****Humbug048 - SÉAN ÓG "The GarbledMessage"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

Seán is one of the the reeds players in Dublin´s
Murmask (surely one of the few groups out there
doing something exciting and youthful along the
AMM / MEV improv paradigm), and a key member
of the revolving Deserted Village collective. With
"TheGarbledMessage", his third solo album
(previous releases on Deserted Village and
Foxglove) we´re treated to warm & intimately
recorded, yet often quite raw improvised/structured
pieces for woodwinds and prepared piano. Not
without its more rockin´ moments, the album also
features Bryan ´O Connell on percussion and some
heavy jamming with other Village members on the
live recording of "Clover". Beautiful stuff.

"Once again, Sean Óg proves to be borne of the
dirt and trees and has created another album that
is soaked in the fossil ruins of past civilizations.
Great music knows no bounds and "The Garbled
Message" destroys any pigeonholes one might try
and fit it in. This is a fantastic album" - Brad Rose,
Foxy Digitalis




****Humbug049 - THE WESLEY KERN GUN "Rocket
to the Room" CD-R -- EUR 7,00

A huge mental vortex. "Rocket to the Room" is pure
thrust; an atomic whirl burrowing its way ever deeper
into the subconscious, a choir of celestial breath...
The Wesley Kern Gun is Steve Aylett, also known as
prolific writer of weird books like Slaughtermatic,
Shamanspace and LINT.

"an unknown name to me but rocket to room is a cdr
that made me enjoy a powerful electroacoustic
atmosphere from the beginning to its bloody end.
trully captivating!" -Nicholas Malevitsis, Absurd




****Humbug051 - GASTRIC FEMALE REFLEX "Nairobi
Piece" CD-R -- EUR 7,00

Finally, a Beniffer Editions/Humbug co-release of the
latest work by junk-hoofed Canadians Andrew Zukerman
and Jacob Horwood, aka Gastric Female Reflex (yes,
they made it to the Wire´s "15 dodgy band names"
chart in record time). We´ve been in love since they
hit with double whammy on Gold Soundz, not to
mention the withering cranial expanses of their split
7" with Crank Sturgeon. "Noirobi Piece" is thus spat
out, probably their 10th or so release in a year, or
maybe it just feels like? Prepare your psychedelic
paintbox...Gastric Female Reflex LP forthcomming!!




****Humbug054 - EDWARD RUCHALSKI "Radio Journal"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

An album which predates "Moveable Sites" which we
released some years back, "Radio Journal" is hewn
from the same basic materials, namely Ruchalski´s
home-made instruments: the motor plate, the motor box
guitar, the Akimovna and Truro box. Astonishing work
as always from Ruchalski.

This album and "Moveable Sites" will be released as a
definitive 2xCD set sometime next year, but no reason
not to pick up this nicely packaged CD-R edition with
new artwork. Check out the latest Sound Projector for
a great feature on Ruchalski.

"....people who enjoy a lot the most mature &
impressive moments of people like mnortham, jgrzinich
& co will definitely fall in love w/ this one. is
ambience in its best form, and frankly if you were
looking for some haunting soundscapes then here
they are…" - Nicholas Malevitsis, Absurd




****Humbug056 - RUSTLE ST. "Sober Since Xmas"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

Rustle St. is Greg Larking from New Zealand, a man
apparently determined to die drinking & chain smoking.
"These cigarettes will kill me" (Pseudoarcana) was the
title of his last release (under the Russell St.
moniker), but I won´t speculate whether titles like
this and "good morning tremors" is wry humour or
genuinely angst-ridden visions....let´s just say Greg
is on a creative not alcoholic high; "Sober Since
Xmas" was infact recorded in the weeks after Xmas
´04 and it´s a languid, ambiguous swirling morass of
tones, drones and chimes, a mesmeric tunnel vision
to other planes of there....Greg: guitar, keyboards,
softsynths, percussion, environmental recordings,
saxophone. Jill: Piano.




****Humbug057 - MoHa! "Rock; Meg i Rauå!"
CD-R EP -- EUR 6,00

Explosive free-rock or electroacoustic snuff-jazz?
MoHa! is Anders Hana on guitar and Morten Olsen
on drums/elektrostikks, a duo of racing energy levels
and suave destruction. These dudes are also in bands
like Morthana, Ultralyd (new LP on Load), PHÔ (debut
CD on Humbug), Noxagt....so as you´d guess MoHa!
is definitely completely fucked up. Watch out for
their debut CD on Rune Gramofon in january next
year!!

"The release is quite short, only some twenty-six
minutes but the effect on the listener is one that
leaves him breathless behind. Certainly when played
loud, and I am sure that's the idea of this release.
This is the kind of noise that I dig very well. Not an
endless stream of feedback through some distortion
boxes,but a demanding listening experience, of
exactly the right length. Great stuff."
- Frans de Waard, Vital Weekly




****Humbug061 - Pål Asle Pettersen "Fragmenter
1996 - 2002" CD-R -- EUR 7,00

Pål Asle has worked/played/danced naked on the
fringes of the Norwegian noise/improvised music
scene for many years, utilizing self-made instruments
as well as laptop & electronics in live collaborations
with artists like Frode Gjerstad, ARM, HOH and
Anders Gjerde. This release is Pål Asle solo, a
tightly edited selection of pieces from the archives
.....12 tracks in 30 minutes, no boring filler stuff
here. Runs the gamut between quiet ruminations for
sine tones and hectic, playful electroacoustic
"improv" pieces.....of course with delightful glitches
and piquant noises in between! Seriously, good stuff.




****Humbug063: GEOGRAPHY OF NOWHERE verses
MATHS, BALANCE, VOLUMES "Mother to Silence"
CD-R -- EUR 7,00

Two mysterious sub underground units team up to form
a completely baffling orchestra;

geography of nowhere:
electronics, sound manipulation and out burnt hard
drive - JUSTIN WIGGAN; vision and ignorance -
BYRON LEWIS

verses;

Maths, balance, volumes:
slide tromboned cornets - ABRAHAM SILENCE; uked
yogger strings - E. SCRIMSHAW; norwiegan sax -
ZACHARY ALAN ZOET; sad sondertary - B. VON
GOODWIN; bloofess combuter - ADONA P.; freeflowing
condertoary - VINNY SKINNY; colapsing mongrose -
SONNY SKINNY

The results? A psychic meltdown....More then songs
GON vs. MBV preceed to create environments where
reverb-drenced acoustic/organic drool happily
co-exists with more "concrete" electronics/effects.
The disparate elements mesh into an eerie,
meandering ensemble sound, by turns noisy and
bloated or skeletal and fragile.....almost silent.
At its best a highly potent "otherness" occurs,
tantalizing....




Coming soon:

Monotract "Live in Japan" CD
(co-release, available very soon)
1/3 Octave Band "SubLumina" CD
V/A "Cottage Industrial vol. 4" CD-R
Id M Theft Able "Maintaining Personal Hygiene
in a Time of Distress" CD (co-release)
Origami Skandinavia "Furet Værbitt" CD-R
Lasse Passage Nøsted "T.B.A." CD-R
A Small Party of Pressure "Soft Zoo" 10" lathe cut
Claypipe / Skaters "split" 10" lathe cut
United Bible Studies "Annwn Observatory" LP lathe cut
OvO / CockESP "split" 7" (co-release)


Humbug c/o
Anders Gjerde
Thorvald Meyersgate 76 C
N-0550 Oslo, Norway

ORDERING: if you want to order anything just let me
know & I´ll send a confirmation and postage quotes and
such. Paypal accepted. Humbug also has a mailorder
catalogue available on request......(and soon online....)