Genre/Influences: Dark-ambient, industrial-jazz.
Background/Info: Phonothek is one of the latest signings on the Cryo Chamber roster. This is a male-female duo from Tbilisi (Georgia) unleashing their official debut work revealing 8 tracks.
Content: I never heard of this band before, but after the very notes I was simply sure to keep their name in mind. Phonothek’s sound intrigues because of the unusual merge between dark-ambient music and trumpet. The trumpet creates an icy feeling, which I can only, but link with isolation. The trumpet play is absolutely amazing and it reminds me to some 80s pioneers in electronic and industrial music who liked to use this instrument, which is often related to jazz.
Phonothek doesn’t sound jazzy at all, but it maybe is a kind of industrial-jazz sound mixed with a sonic mayhem. From low resonating tones to echoing drones to field recordings (like the noise of a ping pong play) all used sources of noise have been treated by effects and different kind of manipulations.
+ + + : I like the title of this work, which symbolizes the mysterious sound moods you’ll have to discover. You indeed feel like lost in a foggy universe, which rapidly becomes carried by the magic of the raw trumpet sounds. The dark-ambient creation accomplished with a truly arsenal of noises is brilliant and simply magic.
– – – : I was totally bewitched by the trumpet sounds that I regret there are no more passages on this album. A few tracks are more into experimental treatments featuring too many field recordings and not enough trumpets.
Conclusion: Phonothek stands for sonic elegance and artistic creativity! This is the ultimate music for abandoned souls.
Best songs: “Last Train”, “Something In Happened”, “She Was In A Dream”, “Old Swings”.
Rate: (8½).
Band: www.facebook.com/PhonothekprojectLabel: www.cryochamberlabel.com / www.facebook.com/CryoChamber
Advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations we have not put up a paywall, and we refuse to add annoying advertising, so we need to ask for your help. Side-Line’s independent journalism takes time, money and hard work to produce, and we do it to push the artists we like, who are equally fighting to survive.
I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
