KONTINGENT II | Review by Yeah I Know It Sucks

Artist: Various

Title: KONTINGENT II
Keywords: experimental, ambient, drone, noise, Sofia
Label: Kontingent Records

Review: Yeah I Know It Sucks

Black Umbra has the honorable honor to open this free downloadable (pay what you want-or don’t want) mega compilation of quality, diversion and interesting sound. It’s a worldwide compilation with artists and projects coming from so many countries that even the label owner is confused searching for them on the world map. But let’s forget the stupidity of countries as all identities and patriotic culture aside: fuck the borders and live one as humanity… Or well ha, that would have been nice.. Anyway, this track by Black Umbra is called ‘asylum’ and has a dark and yet positive vibe over it. It’s music that fits a certain atmosphere that I personally can’t really seem to wind my finger on. This is of course a good thing as nobody likes to have my finger wrapped in things, as it might obstruct your own listening session. In any case it is worth to report that it also had a kind if nostalgic feeling about it, especially the ending in which sounds of the old times sneaked in before dying out in a lovely warm way.

Then it’s time for another darkish goody done by a certain Citadel Swamp. This darkish delight has also a relaxing ambience, making me think about staring at a lonely coastline while clouds form mysterious shapes and thoughts slip in a mixture of positive and doom thinking ideas. It’s a nice balance that is created over here, something that contains sadness but also beauty. If we had some onions around I would definitely peel them to get some tears out while this music plays.

Embers Below Zero is up next and seems to be an excellent choice by the one who compiled and arranged this compilation. The music has a similar atmosphere, yet it feels a bit more dense and deeper; with lightness over it that is brighter than the previously heard productions. The music simply flows around for a while, slightly refreshing but not too much overdosing on sparkles; it’s all nicely in balance and that’s what this seemed to be all about. Nobody is falling over when hearing this track, and that’s certainly a good thing.

Red Abizinias is the one who breaks the beat-less atmospheric tracks by introducing a nice depth of rhythm. It certainly gives the music a nice push in forward direction; making the ambient music passes by in a kind but determent way.

Now that this part is out of the way we can hear a track done by Kontroljet. It’s still atmospheric (mind you!) but comes across as more experimental, as if it’s painted with a palette of recorded sounds and now comes to live through audio art. There are dirty squeeze sounds, thick warm fluff in the back, mystery sounds.. Perhaps a boiling kettle.. It can be anything really; but the all-round atmosphere is kind of shimmery. It suits a scene in which you can listen with the curtains closed for intimacy..

Mrs. Watanabe spices tis sound art theme up a great deal. Glass can be heard breaking; perhaps windows are being broken for the sake of your entertainment. There is also fuzz, and lots of warmth humming in the depth. The music is to me as if you are listening to the transformation of potential violence and aggression in ambient form. I know that sound quite bizarre but well.. That’s my point. There are wild roaming kinds of alarm signals flushing in more energy, and yet the craziness stays ‘bizarrely’ calm. It’s pretty interesting if you would ask me.

KTHRSS brings back a more concrete work that seemingly is based on a dark drone cloud of sound with additional sound artifacts that give a sense of depth and excitement to the session. Slowly these artifacts turn much noisier, as if it’s a controlled electronic water hose raining from your own ears into that dark cloud of drone.

SASKA RR is up next and brings something completely else to the fitting mix of music. Here we are getting served that part of culture that the label had promised while searching for the countries of origin of the artists on the map. The music mixes a part of something that feels authentic in some kind of on the spot mystical way. It’s the performance of the vocal that makes the track very hypnotic and strangely holistic; when this voice plays you shut up and listen!

Osaati Vare has something very epic for the listener; it’s comes across as orchestral noise. It’s abstract but has an appearance as if it’s been made by a classically trained orchestra that is been kindly mixed in a hyper modern multi sound piece in which strings have become vague ambient works and moving experimental sounds. It’s as if the orchestra is going through some kind of morphing process that sometimes resembles the sound of a speeding underground train and then moves back again to its own more humane form. You can hear the wheels and the rails their friction, but you can also hear the humanity surviving within all this madness.

Then there is Problem Anderer Leute a (to me) familiar artist that appears on this compilation, perfectly taking up the pace of the previous work but instead of a human orchestra, it feels much more as if a church choir of doom has been mutilated in order to bring a mysterious moving work that scraps together a noisy kind of holy, dark ambient piece.

Wrist Clutch Explorer brings the perfect follow up to spice up this compilation. It really has been gradually evolving to this point, and it was something that would be coming in sooner or later: HNW. HNW is a highly underrated audio art but seems to gain more and more recognition and admiration for its incredible groundbreaking features. This track is certainly a great presentation of this dominating genre, and the compilation wouldn’t have been the same without it.

Skolyozlar brings more fun and energy to this collection of track. It is still noisy, but it definitely captured the wild maddening punk is sound to it; which makes the noise ready for spastic wild head banging, absurd mosh pits and perhaps even a jolly noise dance to celebrate. It’s pretty fun stuff really!

Spacetimesecrets throws in a little sucking and slurping sounds. It might have something to do with holy angels and trumpets (if we read the title of the track) but (this must probably piss some religious people off) it sounds more like a blow-job by a couple of angels in heaven. There you go.. This is the end if this interesting compilation, something that speaks to the mind and can be heard over at the following link: https://kontingentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/kontingent-ii
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Source: https://yeahiknowitsucks.wordpress.com/2015/07/01/various-artists-kontingent-ii/