Hey Kidz,

I guess we've been out of touch for the past couple of weeks. I hope
everyone's holiday season went off without too many complications.
Quite a few things are going on.

Jamie Barnes is currently in the studio working on a new album.

Remora is prepping for a string of live shows throughout this spring
as well as recording a number of tracks for compilation appearances.

The re-mastering of Lycia's The Burning Circle And Then Dust has been
completed & it'll be shipped off for manufacturing soon. Many have
asked what's up with it being a single disc instead of a double disc
& I asked Mike VanPortfleet himself about the story of that, so
here's the story. Shortly after recording what would become disc one
of the album Mike VanPortfleet & David Galas were doing so well in
the studio that they went on to record another ten songs with the
intent of them possibly being used for compilation appearances.
Though Mike thought most of the songs were stylistically different
from the initial songs, when he was offered the possibility of
releasing a double disc including the more recently recorded material
he decided to go ahead & release the whole lot. Hindsight being 20-
20 VanPortfleet has opted to hone the disc back down to his original
vision.

We have a new member of the label roster, Goddakk (we haven't put up
their website yet, but they are at www.myspace.com/goddakk ). Some
of you may recall Goddakk appearing on Silber Xmas 2000 five years
ago. We'll have out the debut in just a couple months. Goddakk is
the more ambient & noisy side-project of Martin Newman of bliss-
poppers Plumerai. Speaking of Plumerai, they're doing another mini-
tour up & down the east coast in February. Remora will be joining
them on a few dates. We'll let you know the dates in a couple weeks.

After about two years with things up in the air, Vlor's new disc is
finally getting a little closer to completion with the initial mixing
& mastering of quite a few of the songs. Vlor is a bit of a super
group this time out with members Brian John Mitchell, Jon DeRosa,
Mike VanPortfleet, Jesse Edwards, Jessica Bailiff, Nathan Amundson, &
Paolo Messere. It's mellow guitar based music.

Below are some recent reviews.

Thanks for your interest & support, it means a lot to us.

hrt
Brian John Mitchell

IF THOUSANDS: I HAVE NOTHING

This Duluth, Minnesota duo's fourth full length combines the amniotic
fluid soundscapes of their `Lullabye' effort with more aggressive
experimental sonic booms for another excellent entry in the Drone
subgenre of minimalist post rock. Continuing their modus operandi of
playing instruments they've never been trained to play (including
accordian, banjo and cello!), the awkward, hesitant elements –
mistakes, if you will – add to the album's cautious, tense atmosphere
as evidenced by its bleak, existential title. An exploratory
intro, `Push' meanders around the room like a lazy smoke ring before
Christian McShane's forlorn piano takes over the proceedings
on `Wisconsin Bombs.' `Providence' is a slow, droning feedback
exercise for Aaron Molina's guitar that bleeds into the SETI
soundtrack `Marianas,' a humming, burping, bleeping wave of harmonic
distortion that suggests that maybe there IS something out there!
`Cymbol' is perfect for walking through the woods on a snowy evening,
its calm, floating electronics disturbed ever so delicately by
glistening bells and the flickering snowflakes of Molina's guitar
with throbbing, humming basslines bringing a hint of Windy & Carl to
the proceedings, while the numbing, speaker hum of `Walking Otis' is
clearly influenced by Eno and Stars of the Lid.
John Lennon once wrote "Life is what happens when you're busy making
other plans" and the same can be said about listening to "I Have
Nothing.' As you go about your daily chores listening to this in the
background, you'll hardly notice its subliminal influence until days
later when snippets of Paul Metzger's banjo on `Stella and Me' or
GST&2i's (fog)horn outbursts (on '2i.GST') drift into your
consciousness. As ambient electronic albums go, there is an amazingly
warm texture to these tracks
This is definitely an album for the more discerning musical palette –
there are no catchy hooks or memorable melodies…hell, there are
barely any melodies at all (save the carnival-like atmosphere of the
Metzger's playful lute on the 81-second, childlike `Crispin Glover').
No, `I Have Nothing' is just pure, unadulterated ambient drones, and
is highly recommended to fans of Raymond Scott's `Soothing Sounds for
Baby' series and the subliminal, speaker hum element of the snorecore
brigade, such as Stars of the Lid, Azusa Plane and Windy & Carl.
~ Jeff Penczak, Ptolemaic Terrascope

Two guys in Minnesota decided years ago to grab a ton of instruments
they'd never played and make music based on their inexperience. It
has obviously worked for them so far, as "I Have Nothing" is If
Thousands' 6th studio record, proving to be a slight but noticeable
departure from their earlier works. Dusty AM radios drenched in
reverb supply an austere atmosphere where banjo plucks fade in and
out. Toy keyboards and cellos provide a bed for quiet horns to fall
asleep in. Synthesizers slip in through the back door to slightly
offset the organic nature of the record at times, but never overstay
their welcome. What struck me is that even as loosely as these sounds
appear on this album, there is no doubt that they're carefully
applied and controlled. Nothing rushes out to grab your arm, this
music just gives you a place to be and leaves you there. These sounds
almost provide a blank canvas for you to fill in what is around you,
whatever that may be. Soundtrack music. Driving music. Sleeping
music. It will find a place to be appropriate. If you're into the
desolate and roaming recordings of Stars Of The Lid or the deep
warmth of William Basinski's "Disintegration Loops", or even more
taken with the found sounds of Matmos or The Books you owe it to
yourself to check out this release.
~ Sparkplugg