shameless 0902 Das Fax Mattinger usually consists of Alex Wallner on processed electric guitar and Wolfgang Fuchs on turntables (presumably not the same musician as the free improv clarinetist). 'Usually' because this release comes with no credits (or track titles for that matter). Part of Shameless' series of private CDRs/public downloads, 'Crash' gives an early taste of this duo's stew and it's promising. They weave soft, disquieting shrouds of sounds, blending vinyl surface noise with ethereal guitar soundscapes. More microsonic than ambient, the music doesn't invite relaxation, on the contrary it attempts to draw the listener closer for a minute inspection of the details. The third track, where the mechanism of the turntable provides the loudest source, shows enormous control over the sonic material. Keep an eye on this duo. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0802 Released on Boris Hauf's micro-label 'Shameless' as part of its series of private CDR/public downloads, 'Shameless 0802' consists of a single 20-minute track featuring the Chicago trio 'TV Pow' doing what they do best: producing an intricate shroud of microscopic electronics, field recordings and sounds from unimaginable home-made devices. The level of decibels rises on two occasions, only to make the quiet passages sound even quieter. Electricity crackles and pops, faint voices are heard in the distance (children, conversation), you often turn your head wondering if what you just heard was ÒrealÓ or part of this understated "slice of life". Less fascinating and immersive than the 3" CD 'Despite Ourselves' (2001), this remains a nice addition to the group's discography. If Pink Floyd had continued to experiment -- really experiment -- after "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast," they might have ended up where TV Pow is today. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0702 The contribution of Gunshop's J. Soliday to Shameless' first series of private releases/public download EPs is a 20 minute slab of minimal electronics. A low tone, the fil of a few switches and digital glitches account for the first half of the piece. In these first ten minutes the artist builds up tension slowly and literally: we get the impression that electrical power rises, the ensuing magnetic field applying pressure on our skull. There is a breaking point around the 12-minute mark; after the accumulated energy scatters about in the form of processed electronics, high-pitched sine waves appear, twitching from one stereo channel to the other. Things begin to change again two minutes before the end, leading to another crescendo whose promises of "action" die abruptly. Interesting in terms of dynamics, the piece lacks the depth that would reward repeated listens. It still makes a nice contribution, very different from the aural assaults of Gunshop. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0602 This solo EP was released as part of Shameless' series of private CDRs/public downloads. It presents two complementary sides of Burkhard Stangl, mostly known for his guitar playing (and occasionally non-playing) in the avant-garde ensemble Polwechsel. First off are two slow, minimal pieces perfomed by Stangl on vibraphone. Highly Feldman-esque, they see the composer linger on note clusters that produce intersecting sound waves. Delicate in their shifts between tonality and clusters, they take us back in a way to the 1997 solo album 'Re´cital'. "BS at Amanns" is closer to what one would probably expect from this album: a texture-focused, minimal yet jagged piece with Stangl on guitar, Radu Malfatti on trombone and Gunter Schneider on banjo. The set closes with a return to minimalist composition with the piano trio "BS Juana". This is a good EP that adds even more mystery to Stangl's already highly strange aura. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0502 This private enhanced CDR/public download release from Boris Hauf's micro-label 'Shameless' consists of a 9-minute video titled "Trans". Martin Siewert, guitarist in Hauf's group Efzeg and numerous other projects, delivers here a potent laptop performance. His piece weaves together strands of data transmission, shards of electronic tones and even a slow bass guitar motif in the end. Soft and introspective, the piece matches well Michaela GrillÕs abstract images, a sequence of stills where all that is left of the objects she shot is their overexposed aura. Elegantly understated and nicely done. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0302 Released as part of Shameless' series of private releases/public downloads, this EP takes the form of a CD-ROM. On it is an untitled 20-minute video by Billy Roisz, aka Gnu. Known as the video artist working with the Viennese electroacoustic improv group Efzeg, Roisz also plays electronics. This piece makes you wonder why she doesn't have a musical voice in the group. The music follows the laptop improv vein of the Mego crew with the kind of subtle humor TV Pow is so good at. Her video work consists of filtering images so extensively that only a VHF residue remains: discorporeal pixels that could have been anything, contours that give you no hint as to their origins, monochrome greys, reds and yellows. The three colors separate the work in three movements. The relationship between sound and image runs deep, despite the latter's minimalist outlooks. A finale on acoustic guitar adds to the mystery and charm of the piece. More please. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0202 In an large envellope, a Video tape and a Mini CDR. It probably was sent with adresse or at least to someone who knows everything about it when i dont. No clues, just music. Well that«s what it actually is. Hauf is credited for Computer while Sonderberg is for guitar and junk. Electronic wisthles high from the very beginning, very active, "worriedÓ you could say. Stereo pans are open and meanwhile somenone lashes something. The qualities of interractive playing are deffenetely there, it s far from being simply quiet though it s not extremely loud. It«s packed, urgent, full, dense, not loose or behind. Like a very good improv where tones and sounds would raise out of phrasing and speech. If anything like a an agreed repertoire here it«s always more brought by the machine itself than the actual playing. The 19 minutes and 18 seconds length hardly feels like 8 or 9 minutes. Brilliant ! I deffinitely could do with more. (And there«s much more as "Shameless " is whole MP3 and Video serie presented by Boris Hauf . I now know.) noel akchote shameless 0202 Number four in Austrian saxophonist Boris Hauf's series of private releases also offered as digital downloads, Shameless 0202 was recorded on February 7, 2002 and released at the end of the same month. At the time the artist was staying in the US, hanging around Chicago with Adam Sonderberg, a young sound artist with whom he already recorded --- - in 1999 (the pair also appears on Sonderberg's 2001 EP Say No). This 3" CD contains one 19-minute studio track with Hauf solely on computer and Sonderberg on guitar and junk. While the material on --- - consisted mostly of very short, abstract improvisational gestures, here we have a long static piece that feels more like sound art than free improv. The mention "recorded and assembled" (typical Sonderberg vocabulary) preceding the date on the cover adds to the mystery. No matter how it was produced, the piece is brilliant: it pushes Hauf's art into more minimalist territory. Hums, sine waves, sparse clicks form the basis of the sonic shroud over which Sonderberg pins indistinct sounds, rummaging through junk or using objects on the guitar without ever sounding a string. One thinks of Otomo Yoshihide's most extremely anti-climactic projects (I.S.O., Filament) or the group Polwechsel. Recommended but very demanding. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 0102 Number three in Boris Hauf´s series of digital downloads/private CD-R releases, Shameless 0102 presents a superb set of duets with Martin Siewert. Both musicians took part in the development of an Austrian music scene revolving around electro-acoustic improvisation (Polwechsel, Efzeg, Comforts of Madness, etc.), but here they revert to acoustic playing, Hauf on tenor and baritone saxophone, Siewert on acoustic guitar. The six short pieces comprised on this 27-minute EP have the clarity and naivete of Taku SugimotoÍs music, but the pastoral feel of Roger SmithÍs domestic pieces (see the beautiful Extended Plays). Hauf uses delicate breath/mouth sounds and restrained notes in a fashion similar to Axel Dsÿrner and John Butcher. Ghosts of songs flicker by, chord sequences stand at an elusive distance, the gap between relaxing instrumental music and sound art is temporarily bridged. As limited this release is (but free to download at hauf.klingt.org/shameless/0102), it is well worth hearing and could stand as both musicians' most seductive work. Highly recommended. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless 1201 This is the second installment in avant-garde saxophonist Boris Hauf's Shameless series. Shameless 1201 is a 19-minute free improv duet with Dieb13, mostly known for his experimental turntable work but here performing on computer and a bit of trumpet. Hauf also spends more time on computer than on his sax, which weights this piece much more on the side of microsound electro-acoustic improv. People acquainted with Efzeg's music and Dieb13's collaboration with Günter Müller and Jason Kahn released almost simultaneously by For 4 Ears) will find this a nice companion. And yet this is not a stellar performance, by far. The tension created by silence (actually computer hum) does not find satisfying resolution. An interesting informal session, it lacks a level of engagement in comparison, Shameless 0102 sounds a lot more vital and accomplished. Shameless 1201 is available as a free download a hauf.klingt.org/shameless/1201 and was released on CD-R by the artist as a private and very limited edition. Francois Couture, All-Music Guide shameless home