TLÖN UQBAR
LA BOLA PERDIDA
ALBUM STAALPLAAT RELEASE: SEPTEMBER, 1999 REVIEW: AUGUST 27, 1999
The Dutch label Staalplaat probably release some of the most obscure music
in Europe. With some exceptions, like the electronic drone rock of Tin Foil
Star and Piano Magic's swings between beautiful harmonies and uneasy low
frequency noise, they stand for extremely hard listening, or "irritainment"
as they sometimes call it themselves.
Tlön Uqbar end up somewhere between the, relatively, easily digestible and
the more disturbing sides of Staalplaat. It's actually a collaboration
between the French bands Internal Fusion and Désaccord Majeur, who have both
released records on the label in the past.
Their new album, "La Bola Perdida", often has a dark industrial feel towards
it - deep bass drones meet distant, looped voice samples and create a dense,
uncomfortable atmosphere. But unlike many other bands in that area, most
notably those on the Swedish Cold Meat Industry label, Tlön Uqbar don't fail
to vary themselves. Intricate rhythms, soft melodies and song structures
that are constantly evolving, a bit in the Autechre manner, lighten up the
mood and make for fascinating listening.
KRISTOFFER NOHEDEN