END OF THE YEAR 2023
SUCRE SUCRE
Compilations
Skyrager — Traces Of Illusion — Spacetalk
Various Artists — Slow Cuts — Super Sound Global
Albums
F.B. Illwig — Hairy Situations — Moonwalk X
André 3000 — New Blue Sun — Epic Records
Tracks
XV — I Won’t Tell — Ginkgo Records
Fiesta en el vacío — Not Now — Simple Music Experience
Delta-Sleep-Inducing-Peptide — You Are My Paradise (Original Version) — Tribe Tapes
Mixes
item.cast 031: Super Venus
No Weapon Is Absolute /w Cosmo Vitelli
GNEVER
JAKOB BATTICK – Slow Motion Summer
FESSUS – pilgrims of morbidity
Die wichtigste Wiener Band dieses Jahres !
SORGE – die to be together, as one
Absolute Key &Brand- Advance Split Tape (nicht online)
SPIRIT POSSESSION – Of the Sign…
Und weil ein Release vom 30.12.22 eigentlich ein Release von 2023 ist:
KRINGA – All stillborn fires, lick my heart
Auch nicht 23, sondern 21, aber dieses Jahr zufällig live gesehen und vorher noch nie von ihnen gehört: Fridgebitch and the drain society
Weitere Erscheinung aus dem Jahr 23, aber keine Musik sondern ein Buch: Greta Lauer – Gedeih und Verderb
CHRA
“we have to invent new stories …”
LEVIT Mendelssohn – Lieder ohne Worte
SYLVIE COURVOISIER – CHIMAERA
feat: Wadada Leo Smith, Fennesz, N. Wooley, D. Gress, K. Wollesen
GIBELLINA
Alberto Burri created the Grande Cretto in the old Gibellina (destroyed by the 1968 earthquake), one of the largest works of land art in the world.
the stunning open air museum in the new town of Gibellina
Gibellina – Il Terremotto – movie by Joerg Burger, sixpackfilm
HEROINES OF SOUND FESTIVAL
Beatriz Ferreyras impressive set <3
meeting w lots of colleagues and making friends <3
GLORY TO THE QUEEN
Tatia Skhirtladze, Anna Khazaradze
“…. to describe the real role the four female chess players had in the history of chess…” TS Interview: City of Women 2021/22
Discovering TOVE DITLEVSEN
Visting MUSEO HERMANN NITSCH in Neapel
ALEXANDER HENGL
Game:
Rain World: Downpour
By Videocult, et al
Series:
Scavengers Reign
By Joseph Bennett, Charles Huettner, titmouse, et al
Movie:
The Human Surge 3
by Eduardo Williams, et al
Podcast:
Awakening OD: Don’t Be Corn
By Jessa Reed
Book:
The Creative Act
By Rick Rubin
Music:
Playlist of what i listened to
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0StM6b4tCGcj899iu8BOA4?si=KiHul_LGR9-nXNHON11CrA&pi=e-m5trOFkYSk6e
MENAL BATTI
Beka Wu – da dick swing – Shin Records
Levzon – Bang The drums (phil berg remix) – Frenzy Recordings
Blanka – la buena suerte – SK_eleven
Hurdslenk – runabout – Reclaim your city
Jeroen search – illustris – MORD
Dog on acid – SIM swap – The Sixth Sense / Akashic Records
VICH MIND
Albums/EPs
FAKETHIAS – Core Echo
Tristan Bründler – ProMarker
(AHHHHH)
nthng – There Is A Place For Me
DEV – Artifical Stupidity
Kangding Ray – Helios Rave Draft
one of my favourite releases oty, you will hear it a lot in my future performances! –
on that note also:
Kangding Ray – Kiss my wounds (Wann kommst du meine Wunden küssen – Original Score)
Clark – Cave Dog
EASYFUN – ELECTRIC
as well as their Band Project with A. G. Cook’s first Album release:
Thy Slaughter – Soft Rock
Trax
deadmau5 & Kaskade – i remember (Speed Service TM Remodel)
created some of my most beautiful memories of this year everytime I played it –
absolute crowd fucker
MANSTRETTA – Blood Moon
and
FLUCC – Der Froschkönig
from the amazing Seventh Interval VA on Interval Audio
Nathan Micay – To The God Named Dream (JASSS Remix)
H369 & DJ HENTAI – Shinichi Osawa Tribute
Mixes
Ute Mix Series #77 Mama Snake
Patterns of Perception 116 – Lychee
united in flames w/ marta de pascalis & malibu 060723 on NTS
Eunjun Kim – Sajik Baseball Stadium
MARAWS
Ziúr – Eyeroll (Hakuna Kulala)
King Vision Ultra – SHOOK WORLD (hosted by Algiers) (PTP)
Anti-God Hand – Blight Year (American Dreams Records)
Rainy Miller & Space Afrika – A Grisaille Wedding (Fixed Abode)
Elvin Brandhi & Lord Spikeheart – Drunken Love (Hakuna Kulala)
Florence Sinclair – departures, wonders & tears (self-released)
SAMO ZEICHEN
goat (JP) – Joy In Fear (NAKID)
Bear Bones, Lay Low – Ideas Flotantes (KRAAK)
C.P.I. – Ambient Blackout (Ediciones Capablanca)
Svitlana Nianio – Transilvania Smile, 1994 (Shukai)
Martyna Basta – Slowly Forgetting, Barely Remembering (Warm Winters Ltd.)
pmxper – pmxper (Smalltown Supersound)
Jonnine – Maritz (Idle Press)
Holy Tongue – Deliverance and Spiritual Warfare (Amidah Records)
Personal concert highlights:
Maquis Son Sistèm live at „Made Up Realities“
Karo Preuschl and Conny Frischauf at several performative moments
Valentina Magaletti’s drumming
All the concerts, events, releases that I’ve experienced throughout the year and the involved people who constantly try to create these moments and to bring people together through music. A special moment was certainly the collective effort at „Made Up Realities“ with the many involved helpers, artists and friends. Thank you all for being out there. After all. Peace.
SOLO ISA
Yara Asmar – synth waltzes and accordion laments (Hive Mind Records)
lisa laser’s Pipihenderl cover … soon to be released? (catch it live)
ANDREA IDA
Recapitulating this year musically through all the events of our time feels like wandering through a bizarre, burning field of darkness flooded by troubled waters, in which now and then shimmering, life-giving islands of resistance reach out and invite us to rest and wander. Such a pleasure to share a special selection of those with you again this year. Thanks to all the artists/labels for the energy they invest and pass on. <3
Here we go:
Yate Surge – Yate Surge [Aibell’s Harp]
Philipp Otterbach – The Dahlem Diaries [Music From Memory]
Golden Ivy – Kammarn [Malmö Inre]
Parasite Jazz – Parasite Jazz [Disques de la Spirale]
Habitat Ensemble – Habitat Ensemble [Music From Memory]
Miradasvacas – Of No Fixed Abode [12th Isle]
Mark – So You Betrayed The Creative Arts For Your Own Personal Ends [A Colourful Storm]
Scheich in China – Arschgesichter Des Todes [Hafenschlamm Records]
Troth – Forget the curse [Mammas Mysteriska Jukebox]
Headache – The Head Hurts But The Heart Knows The Truth [PLZ Make It Ruins]
TRANSKI
Trancesetters of Westphalia – Acid Dungeon – Mana Abundance
Driven By Attraction, Tadan – Dreems – Area127
Nebuchadnezzar- Cowgirl in the Sand – Nebuchadnezzar
Matriark – Fogtek – Magdalena’s Apathy
Pyramid of Knowledge- A New Hope – Hard Beach Entertainment
Alan Backdrop – T. T. Unknown – Alan Backdrop
A Strange Wedding – Temples of Quantum (Straigth Backward Mix) – Mama Told Ya
TOUPAZ
Anatomy of a Fall – Justine Triet
Azu Tiwaline – Fifth Dream – IOT Records
Bacurau – Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles
Sarah – Scott McClanahan
Sun People – Joyful Discontent – Outlines
TIBSLC – Delusive Tongue Shifts – Situation Based Compositions – Sferic
KOBERMANN
1 DJ Sundae – Reverse – Good Morning Tapes
2 Various – Searchlight Moonbeam – Efficient Spaces
3 Static Rotation of Moods – دوران مزاج جامد – Goldgelb Records
4 Various – Accidental Journey – Kashual Plastik
5 Holy Tongue – Deliverance And Spiritual Warfare
6 Voyage Futur – In Constant Change – VILL4IN
7 Jonny Nash – Point Of Entry – Melody As Truth Records
8 Valentina Magaletti – La Tempesta Colorata – A Colourful Storm
DINO SPILLUTINI
My 5 favourite tracks of 2023:
Betty Hammerschlag – 2 Focuseddd – Transatlantic
Romance – For All Eternity – Ecstatic
Evian Christ – On Embers – Warp
Kenji Araki feat. Anthea – Glitter – Affine
Tujiko Noriko – Cosmic Ray – Editions Mego
Honourable mention: Antonia XM + Dino Spiluttini – Lonely – Ashida Park
My 5 favourite Black Metal albums of 2023:
Fluisteraars – De Kronieken van het Verdwenen Kasteel I + II – Eisenwald
Trhä – av◊ëlajnt◊ë£ hinnem nihre – s/r
Ragana – Desolation’s Flower – The Flenser
Afsky – Om hundrede år – Vendetta
Imperceptum – Chaos Pilgrimage – s/r
KATANA
KENJI ARAKI – HOPE CHESS (FEAT. YBSOLE) – AFFINE RECORDS
ANTONIA XM – BOYS LIKE U – ASHIDA PARK
MAYBERIAN SANSKÜLOTTS – AKARAT (BETONKUST REMIX) – DALMATA DANIEL
ÜBERRASCHUNGSSTAAT – KLASSE 7B
GRETCHEN BAZOOKA – WHAT’S YOUR NAME
DJ WARZONE – CROWN OF MARHOTH – MISERICORDIA RECORDS
LADY MARU – DESTRUCTIVE – THE ACID MIND RECORDINGS
INFINITY DIVISION – THIRTEEN – NEVER SLEEP
SANDRO NICOLUSSI
2023 was not only an expensive hell of a year, but also filled with lots of encounters making this whole affair worthwhile. Between making first experiences in composing music for theater and being on tour with Morast, tons of great pieces met my ears. Too many for me to break them down in any sensible list. If you seek out (local) release lists during the year, you probably should – for example – subscribe to Grundrauschen newsletter by Christoph Benkeser – a lot of interesting stuff is featured there every month. Anyways, here’s some things in and around music and culture that are, strictly speaking, not music but stuck with me this past year – at least in the exact moment of reminiscing about it:
Most Active Pre-Release: kin dread – »fuck it up (in a minute)«
In the middle of August a new local supergroup called kin dread (Farce, Anthea, Sakura) posted a riddle to their Instagram story (can’t recall it, but “X” was the solution). Once solved, one could decide for another riddle or to go explore. Choosing the latter you were equipped with coordinates. After embarking on a bike ride to Lainzer Tiergarten on a moist mid-summer day, you were welcomed by Mosquitos. Then there was a stone you had to take a photo of to get the link to the pre-release of their single »fuck it up (in a minute)« to reward the painful bites. To be honest, the song was not quite my cup of tea, but still this was a better trip than the Swans one a few paragraphs down from here.
Most valuable book: Elena Biserna (Editor) – »Going Out: Walking, Listening, Soundmaking« [umland editions]
Since I took in a dog in summer, the act of walking had a bigger part in my life this year. This extensive 600 pages book intersected this with listening and soundmaking. The historical and contemporary contributions in the form of documentation, essays, manifestos, scores, interviews and many more is a huge source of knowledge and inspiration. And because of its size I’ll most probably lay it away not earlier than 2026. By the way, technically it came out in 2022 and the 2023 version is just a reprint, but what are you gonna do, call the cops?
Most impactful happening: #ClubMeToo / #TechnoMeToo
Well, it wasn’t all that revolutionary (yet) as it was claimed to be, but Vienna was damn ready for some proper callouts – and as always the struggle just starts now. Even if it’s possible to disagree with strategies and all that, the momentum of #TechnoMeToo brought some discourse back into night culture. Mad respect to the people taking their faces and names into the public debate, mad respect to the people carrying this fight further even with it being way less prestigious than keep on doing business.
Most Powerful Local Club Sound Systems: Hands down, Stadtwerkstatt Linz and p.m.k. Innsbruck.
Most disappointing live show: Swans @ Heart of Noise Festival, Innsbruck
One cannot enjoy a show if stuck with the thought that the singer of that band you have to see live looks kinda like Hannibal Lecter. It’s a myth that loud bands get louder over time because the members suffer from major hearing loss. Also, your reputation precedes you.
Most enjoyable community meeting: Tonbandinselfest @ Summer Station
Transformer, Vinylograph and Wilhelm show me the major label joined forces for their collection of 45 years of summed up existence in July. Dozens of artists, labels and publishers brought their spools and prints and releases and books and zines and flyers to Donauinsel to trade and sell and drink and dance. Was able to hunt down so many records that I was barely able to carry my backpack back home. Oh, and we struck a vinyl deal there. Coming in 2024.
Most thought-out physical release: MIZI – »Watch Paint Dry« silicone player [Abstand]
This thing is yet to arrive, but it’s still easy to claim it as one of the funkiest physical releases of the year. Do you like tapes because you can’t jump tracks there and you are forced to listen to that thing in one go. Well, here’s a player with a power and headphone jack only. Playing the full album (a system of 256 gliding sine waves) without you being able to do anything but watch paint dry.
Most relatable sound art: konkrit – WAITING_FOR_DJS_TO_ENTER_THE_VIDEO_CALL.mp3
Displaying the boring void of waiting for interview partners combined with the intimacy of unintended field recordings, this hour of liminal ASMR sound art is as stunning as it is simple (the author calls it dumb). Also holds the title for the biggest liner notes – you should read them while listening.
Most time spent listening to: Abandoned cassettes and some more of them.