Benbecula Records
Scotland, est. 1999
Electronica, ambient, electro, folk, post-rock ... blah
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MINERALS SERIES
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"Minerals Series" Original Box Set (BEN501 to BEN513) Release date: 12 December 2005 Benbecula Records are proud to announce the launch of the "Minerals Series". A mixture of brand new works, sessions, out-takes, outstanding demos, local artists, new artists, label stalwarts and above all, the spirit of independent music making. The box set contains the albums below plus an exclusive bonus CD. BEN501 Various "Music Volume Three" BEN502 Wounded Knee "Wee Reveries" BEN503 e.stoni "unknown title" BEN504 Reverbaphon "Reverbaphon" BEN505 Birdengine "Early 4 track ..." BEN506 Colditz "People like Diagrams" BEN507 Slug Pocket "Slug Pocket" BEN508 Gareth Dickson "Solina Sea" BEN509 Prhizzm "Prhizzm" BEN510 The Fence Collective BEN511 Nimrod 33 "The Kirk Sessions" BEN512 Genaro "In Whole and in Part" BEN513 ??? Music Volume Three artists: Syntaks, Found, Kasule, Locum76, Christ., Greenbank, Eakui vs Afan Ludo, Screech, Ziggy Campbell, Arkady, Modern Institute, Frog Pocket and Skytree. Artist summaries in alphabetical order (web links are specified where you may be able to purchase individual albums): |
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Birdengine Birdengine follows up his debut EP in 2005 with a selection of even more obscure recordings from his 4 track archive. Expect, unaltered, unmastered and unadulterated songs from the soul, complete with bone fide tape hiss - intact. Birdengine's song "Thoughts of a Falling Glass Man" was realised on video by Sherbet for the promotional short commissioned by Benbecula, and has received outstanding reviews from the major film press and peers alike. Resources Birdengine page at Benbecula |
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Christ. Christ. takes time out from the recording of his second full length album for Benbecula and submits an exclusive track to the Music Volume Three compilation. Christ. is Benbecula's best selling artist and won the hearts of the electronica world with his debut EP "Pylonesque" in 2002. After a Japanese tour that summer he worked on his first album "Metamorphic Reproduction Miracle" and showcased the album at Sonar 2003 in Barcelona. Later that year he toured with Schneider TM and then both artists recorded a live session for John Peel at Madia Vale. 2004 saw a busy live schedule and this year he released the intermediate EP "Seeing and Doing". Christ.'s next LP "Blue Shift Emissions" is released in 2006. Resources Christ. page at Benbecula |
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Colditz Colditz have been active in recording and live gigs across central Scotland for a number of years, and have a small but perfectly formed recording history including a guest production / performing spot on the "Salute your Soul" album by Future Pilot AKA on Geographic. Their debut album on Creeping Bent / Psychiatric Records, "We are Animals" is a hidden gem from the Scottish underground. With other remix work and guest appearances on releases for Friendly Sounds, Beggars Banquet and Homesleep, Benbecula welcomes this album for Minerals, which is long overdue! Resources The Creeping Bent Organisation Colditz Music |
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e.stonji e.stonji is one of the many monickers of Jens Doring, from Dresden, Germany. First recording under the name "Shift", and then later "e.stonji", he has had releases on Skam, Spezialmaterial, Phantomnoise and Heimelektro. Later he became part of the duo "hp.stonji" with fellow musican Hans Platzgumer and have enjoyed success on Rough Trade and Klein. His production and compilation are an impessive discography, and he has also produced soundtrack material for various German projects. This album is a collection of previously unreleased recordings together with a batch of tracks written especially for the Minerals project. A long term favourite of the Benbecula HQ in both commercial release and demo format, we are honoured to finally have e.stonji part of the catalogue. Resources e.stonji hp.stonji |
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Fence Collective - Kwaing Creasite Reporter MC Quake The Pictish Trail Pencils Fence has risen over the last three of years from a cute CDR based label in Fife to one of the coolest and most respected labels in the country. Lead by the mighty King Creosote and an entourage of literally dozens of other artists from home and abroad, their Picket Fence sub label of CDR releases was the inspiration for Minerals in the first place! The album is dominated by King Creosote under his Kwaing Creasite alias which serves as his more experimental and chilled alter ago. This collection of songs from the Fence stable was specially commissioned and we are honoured, nay, humbled, to have them part of the Minerals set. Resources Fence Records |
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Found Ziggy Campbell FOUND are Ziggy Campbell, Tommy Perman, Kev Sim and Gav Sutherland. Their frenetic live sets fuse acoustic instruments with live sampling and electronic manipulation. Beats, breaks, live sounds from vocals, guitar, bass, banjo, blow piano and more, FOUND make music that moves from mellow jazz to acid electro welcoming the influence of the blues, hiphop and techno in equal measure. Formed in early 2005 it’s already been a very successful year for FOUND. They have supported electronica luminary Luke Vibert at the Sub Club at Triptych05, played on the British Council’s Selector radio show in London, appeared on BBC Scotland’s ‘Radio Café’ arts show, played an exclusive live session for Radio Magnetic and had a video specially produced for a new music series ‘The Music Show’ which premiered on BBC 2 Scotland in November. In fact, their impact has been so great that the PRSFoundation decided to award FOUND the prestigious ‘Live Connections Award’ to stage a one off multi-media event at the Lemon Tree, Aberdeen. The event was a sell-out success and people had to be turned away at the door as the venue quickly reached capacity. Resources Surface Pressure |
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Gareth Dickson Gareth Dickson is from East Kilbride in the West of Scotland and this album is a follow up to his self-released CD "Spruce Goose" in 2004. Largely self taught, his natural ability is clear in his self-penned works. Citing Aphex Twin and Solvent as contemporary influences alongside classic heroes such as Nick Drake, Robert Johnson and Bert Jansch, the mix of modern and folk styles produces an individual haunting soundscape. His method of writing a track and recording it shortly after, ensures a fluid and honest delivery. Gareth occasionally plays live in Glasgow. Photo courtesy Nadja Bournonville. Resources Gareth's web page |
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Genaro Genaro are no stranger to followers of the label for their classic songs and formidable live performance. With Genaro about to go into the studio to record their first album proper, it seemed fitting to revisit some of their older recordings, both as a band and as solo projects / experiments. It is customary for a band to release a "long lost basement recordings" album two to three studio albums down the line. We thought it would be fun to get this body of work out first, thus avoiding any future bootleg nonsense! The recordings, although raw in quality, still capture young and creative minds at work, culled from demos and computer recordings completed from 2001 to 2004 . The album presented is a remaster that hopefully symbolises the path which has been followed and will ultimately lead to the full studio album released next year. Resources Genaro at Benbecula Genaro Music Doomsday Device talkingmakesnosense Evil Hand |
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Greenbank Things have been quiet for Greenbank since his solo EP for Benbecula and so we are pleased to include what we hope is one of many tracks to come in the new year. Greenbank's style remains high energy electro but always with a tongue in cheek element. Greenbank's debut EP "Rotating the Square" was released in 2003 and received favourable reviews. Resources Greenbank at Benbecula |
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Kasule Are from Albion Rovers country. Their sound is diverse, melodic & challenging & fits the mood. To generalise their sound can be best related to Joy Division big chords; Ulrich Schnauss, Slowdive, e-bow guitars; slow - faster - harder - louder type Spaceman 3, Mogwai; however this is only reference points to their unique sound. Their 1st LP Demonstaration, contains many moments of utter sublimeness. Kasule also wrote the soundtrack for an award winning film Black Coffee, which was voted most popular feature film @ The Australian AUSFEST 2002. Resources Kasule website |
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Locum76 With rough beginnings in the Edinburgh Electro scene in the late 1990’s, Locum76 established himself as a producer with his sidekick Lazum. Their partnership was qualified by a release on the Seminal Emissions label in the summer of 2004 under the name of Humdrum. Influenced initially by 70’s funk as well as early hip hop Locum’s sound has been twisted through contemporary home-grown electronica to its current shape. Now going solo, Locum’s first track on Benebecula is presented in the minerals series on Music Volume Three. |
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Modern Institute Modern Insitute is the brainchild of Italian artist and producer, Teho Teardo. Along with cellist Martina Bertoni, they expertly combine orchestral strings and modern electronica. Having previously released a 12" on the Nail Records' Domestic Landscapes project, they released their debut album on Expanding Records in January 2006, entitled "Excellent Swimmer". Teardo has had an eclectic and impressive career. In 1996 he formed "Matera" with ex Napalm Death member Mick Harris and released the album "Same Here". In the late 90s he moved to New York and worked with Lydia Lunch and penned remixes for Placebo, Rothko, Cop Shoot Cop and Fetish 69. His work as a composer, particularly for film scores is equally impressive, including a soundtrack for the film "Denti", the movie by Oscar prize winner Gabrielle Salvatores, which won him a Quality Prize from the Italian Minister of Culture. With a multitude of sound installations, further soundtracks and collaborations, this Italian certainly keeps himself busy. We are thoroughly grateful to Modern Institute taking time out to write and record exclusively for the Minerals Series. Resources Teho Teardo Expanding Records |
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Nimrod 33 Nimrod 33,hails from the Hebrides of Scotland. He has been active in the Scottish leftfield scene, with heavy involvement in the Edinburgh MRW44 live and recorded project, as well many live performances alongside Edinburgh's Giant Tank. He has also submitted tracks to many compilations including the Pjorn imprint. His work as a DJ has seen a residency at the UTI club in Edinburgh plus various voluntary projects and commissions via the Dundee College of Art. His apocalyptic mix of "discorporate folk music" and "postCalvinist bardic dadaism" first came to the attention of Benbecula in 1991 via the legendary "the level thats gaining ground" compilation. Around the same time, he produced a self titled CDR album from which the classic "Barbed Bed" was culled for the Alba Absurdia project. Since that time an album for Benbecula has always been talked about, and finally 4 years on, we are very pleased to say he finally pulled through for us! Needless to say it is well worth the wait. The mood of the album is a dark, creeping assault of the senses, angular poetry set against a backdrop of digitised lochs, monsters, Gods, snow melt and pine. The music drips with Celtic myth and discord, helped in no small way by 33's suffocating West Highland brogue. There is possibly no other album like this in existence, that in audio form, shits on the romanticised Walter Scott - esque Scotland. Nimrod 33 takes you back to the source, the indigenous lifeforms, the spirits and stones. Resources Alba Absurdia mrw44 Pjorn DavidAC |
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Prhizzm Prhizzm is back after his highly acclaimed debut EP with a full length album of oddities and new tracks, giving our eagre listeners something to feed on while looking forward to his full length commerical release for Benbecula in 2006. This album is by no means a B-Sides effort and owners of his classic "Prhizzm EP" will soon learn that this kicks the arse out of the many of his "rival" peers' full commercial releases. Go on!! Resources Prhizzm Website |
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Reverbaphon This album is a mixture of session material and album out-takes collected from over 4 years of recording. The selection process was in no way difficult, as the quality of tracks presented for the "Our Heart Beats with Joy" album was so high, a large majority of the tracks that never made it onto the CD are presented here. Many of these tracks are long term favourites of the label and we are very chuffed that they are now seeing the light of day. Resources Reverbaphon at Benbecula DavidAC |
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Screech Screech aka Damien Shingleton has been a favourite of the Benbecula crew for some time via demos over the last couple of years and we are pleased he has now made it to physical product. Screech has had several releases on the ultra-cool Hippocamp net label with compilation appearances on Minus Habens and Comatonse. Hippcamp Screech at Discogs |
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Slug Pocket Album of wild stories and voices against some of the most sinister sound tapestries ever heard! This album is humerous, morbid, mental, silly and downright scary!! What more can we say?! A must. |
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Syntaks Jakob Skøtt also records under the name "Limp" along with Manual, and have released an album on Morr Music in 2003 entitled "Orion". As a solo artist he released a successul album last year on Darla, "Golden Sun". He is also part of the 4 piece Causa Sui with a release on Germany's Nasoni. "Jakob Skøtt from Denmark has been involved with several projects with his lifelong collaborator Jonas Munk (Manual) – from electronic dream pop to 60s psych/stoner rock. Using a wide selections instruments as a solo performer – most notably drums and percussions, but also electronics from various timeperiods, mideastern instruments, vocals and guitars – the sound of Syntaks is balanced between the turbulence on the surface and the pressure from the bottom – reaching out for both peaks." Resources Syntaks at Discogs |
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Wounded Knee Wounded Knee is Drew Wright who lives in Edinburgh and has been recording and releasing music for nearly two years. He set up the lapsed electronics label as a vehicle for his own music and has plans to expand the roster over the coming months. The label celebrates its tenth release this year. Wounded Knee made his live debut in 2004 on his birthday at the now defunct Silencio cabaret in Edinburgh. Since then he has played regularly in Edinburgh and on occasion in Glasgow. He has supported The Gussets, Matt Elliot, Zu, A Hawk & A Hacksaw and My Cat Is An Alien. In June of this year he curated “Pollen”, a live showcase of Edinburgh’s experimental talents for the Leith Festival. In October in collaboration with Ali Robertson of Giant Tank/Usurper infamy he co-curated another Scottish experimental showcase for two nights in Glasgow. This “Stalled” mini festival was a fringe event for Instal at the Arches. Resources Lapsed Electronics |
    
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