+ ephre imprint releases

+ please don't forget to add postage. + multiple item postage costs: sales [at] ephreimprint [dot] eu

+ sleeping in the dead pool / former_airline [eph14] cdr in slip case / £3

ephre presents a highly varied and ambitious album from masaki kubo (aka former_airline). from the cold opening minimalism of 'skysensor' via the strangely warped harmonies of 'the day of forever' and the dense rhythmic abstractions of 'music from the death lounge', this is an album that twists and turns down unexpected musical corridors. some may also recognise certain thematic nods to the master of unbound sci-fi psycho eroticism, jg ballard.

despite producing private music for over a decade, former_airline is a relative newcomer to the cdr scene. you can find his previous releases on ripples recordings and dotnum dunton.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 39 minutes, 8 tracks.

+ listen

former_airline homepage

 

 

 

+ until there's nothing left / pje [eph13] cdr in slip case / £3

with a number of releases across different labels, pje has covered a variety of ambient and electronica influenced musical terrain. for his release on ephre however, something quite different has been created. stripped down, naive sounding guitar-generated electronic drones which seem to somehow evoke the ghost of a hypnotic sitar raga in their incessant harmonics.


pje has previous releases on patpong, u-cover, october man, twisted tree line and more.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 26 minutes, 2 tracks.

+ listen

pje homepage

 

 

 

+ the gravity lens / pleq + lauki [eph12] strictly limited cdr in slip case / £3

ephre presents a collaboration ep from bartosz dziadosz (pleq) and mikel lauki. this ep consists of a single longform piece which moves through several mournful, atmospheric sections. the arching melodies and harmonics reveal themselves further over time, rising in and out of submerged bass notes and fizzing field recordings. together, these two artists both have links to drone music and electronica, something which one can hear in their collaboration.


pleq is a prolific recording musician and has previous releases on basses frequencies, progressive form, u-cover and so on. mikel lauki lives and works in barcelona as a freelance sound technician and composer, sometimes working under the pseudonyms of f.ex. and lupus.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 21 minutes, 1 track.

+ listen

pleq homepage

lauki homepage

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ stringstrang two / jan kees helms [eph11] cdr in slip case / £3

 StringStrang Two is a formidable exercise in minimal droneworks from Jan Kees Helms. Using using only guitars and field recordings - all the pieces were recorded in one movement without the use of overdubs. These are considered works which enigmatically stretch onward and outward, drawing the listener in deeper over time. This work is a continuation of the Stringstrang project, the first part of which was released earlier this year on the German 'The Verato Project' of Suggestion Records

Jan Kees Helms is an interdisciplinary artist - working with sound, photography and video. He also writes as a journalist on the subject of experimental music and art. He has previous releases on Mantricum, Lor Tapes, Q-Tone and so on.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 49 minutes, 5 tracks.

+ listen

jan kees helms homepage

stringstrang project homepage

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

 

+ III / RNCPS [eph10] cdr in slip case / £3

 RNCPS is a collaboration between nigel samways and daniel dickel. the project was mostly improvised and jammed using a variety of live instruments and devices, always incorporating a large amount of sampled material direct from low quality soundtracks and foley. the album is split into two sections - one of collage based, erratic sketches and scenes and the other reflecting more of an introverted retreat. the album deliberately juxtaposes the absurd and the serious in an often jarring fashion. influenced by 1970s and early 80s sci-fi films and comics - in particular the filthy imagined junk future of strontium dog from 2000ad.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 66 minutes, 4 tracks.

nigel samways has previous releases on taalem, hibernate, experimedia, etc but this is the first release of the new RNCPS collaboration. artwork by daniel dickel and k.imanaka

+ listen

nigel samways homepage

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ volans 2 ep / jonathan read [eph09] cdr in slip case / £3

 jonathan read's second ep for ephre comes as a very worthy follow up to his 2010 work. 'volans 2' covers a different, possibly more outwardly emotive musical terrain but has a certain sentiment and spacious, deep sound in common with it's predecessor. hints at selenographic matters link with the previous ep's notion of cocooned space travel.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 21 minutes, 4 tracks.

jonathan released the original 'volans' ep on ephre in 2010, plus has a debut album 'stooky bill' released on the enpeg label.

+ listen

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ nine barrow down ep / nigel samways [eph08] cdr in slip case / £3

 plundering sampled material from two eminent and quintessentially English composers of differing creed and re-working with his own performances, this ep relates to a teenage experience of potentially baffling and unexplained origins whilst alone at night in the dorset countryside. further illumination on this matter can be found in the inner sleeve of this release.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 21 minutes, 2 tracks.

nigel samways has previous releases on taalem, hibernate, experimedia, etc plus 'silver rain, green trees' and 'poor henrietta marie' on ephre.

+ listen

nigel samways homepage

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ tirasse ep / coeval + miguel a. garcia + miguel prado [eph07] cdr in slip case / £3

 ephre presents a challenging new work by a spanish improvising ensemble of miguel a.garcia, miguel prado and juan carlos blancos (coeval). fizzing drones merge with field recordings and live instrumentation to create a luminous sonic landscape that moves through some intruiging passages, still turning up some twists and surprises.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 22 minutes, 1 track.

together they have previous releases across labels such as con-v, mantricum (where miguel a.garcia has a split with carlos villena from eph03), alg-a, homophoni, zeromoon, etc.

+ listen

xedh.org homepage

miguel prado homepage

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ underwater noises / various artists [lc/eph01] strictly limited cdr in slip case / £4

+ this is a special joint release with the lost children netlabel

ephre imprint presents a strictly limited edition compilation of all italian sound artists currated by attilio novellino and enrico coniglio. each artist was prompted to submit a track inspired somehow by the notion of water, according to their individual angle. the upshot is a multilayered work, giving voice to the umpteen facets of a theme which has always inspired a particularly deep and serious attraction for musicians working in the drone/ambient scene. field recordings, glitched digressions, electroacoustic idylls, dreamy soundscapes, abysmal notes, dilated, diluted, purified, desecrated water...

comes as a 5inch cdr in a card slip case. running time: 68 minutes, 15 tracks.

full line up of artists: enrico coniglio, francesco giannico, gigi masin, obsil, elisa luu, attilio novellino (un vortice di bassa pressione), pierpaolo leo, christian di vito, ornithology, leastupperbound, alessio ballerini, cop killin' beat, llso4, ennio mazzon and paolo veneziani. together they have releases across labels such as touch, porter, laverna, sub rosa, ripples, cronica, zymogen and more.

+ listen

free download at the lost children netlabel

reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ dyshim ep / erik de cordier [eph06] cdr in slip case / £3

erik de cordier from palermo, italy works with audio samples stolen from abandoned night-time locations - a deserted hypermarket car-park, lonely seaports and unhabited buildings. with a particular focus on evp, he collages sound into intruiging and potentially disturbing musical episodes.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slip case. running time: 21 minutes, 6 tracks.

erik de cordier recently featured on two compilations - 'blurred tapes' (cathedral transmissions) and 'against it, vol 1' (against it records).

+ listen

erik de cordier homepage

frans de waard @ vital weekly #740 review:

"...it has a great ghostly, creepy atmosphere around it. one senses an amount of tension in these recordings, like a giant beast about to strike the listener when he lowers his guard. if that happens? find out for yourself."

more reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

 

+ volans ep / jonathan read [eph05] cdr in slip case / £3

for his ep on ephre, jonathan read crafts three enigmatic drone works alluding to space flight and a possible journey to and from 'cybele' (the grecian, divine fertile earth). in this light, despite the alien overtones to the music, there is a feeling of warmth hidden inside and one can imagine the heat and open skies of his home merriwa, australia when listening to his music.

comes as a 5inch cdr in a slipcase. running time: 22 minutes, 3 tracks.

jonathan's debut album 'stooky bill' was released on the enpeg label.

+ listen

ian holloway @ wonderful wooden reasons #36 review:

"...this release is (at least initially) a much more spacious and airy release of time stop drone music. by tracks two and three this optimistic lightness has morphed into weightier atmospheres and a more concrete sense of trepidation which is held through to the end of this intriguing little excursion."

more reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ friday night choir practice ep / david newlyn [eph04] cdr in slip case / £3

in contrast to the title - referring to a repetitive or even obilgatory event, this piece from david newlyn is an enigmatic, labyrinthine sonic journey. constructed from field recordings made in a nightime durham cathedral, we hear muffled choral swells rising and falling away into an uncertain hushed atmosphere amongst the pews and buttresses before the whole piece solidifies into a shimmering drone that forges on through the haunted ecclesiastical gloom.

comes as a 5inch with sleeve design by k.imanaka. running time: 32 minutes, 2 tracks.

david has previous releases on u-cover, symbolic interaction and mobeer, plus up and coming on tokyo droning. he also curates the cathedral transmissions label.

+ listen

david newlyn homepage

stephen fruitman @ sonomu.net review:

"...far from being a straight field recording, newlyn has both zoomed in on his subject by radically though delicately treating the sounds, and stepped quite far back. we are not sat in the front row but rather listen from a distance. imagine yourself a gargoyle jutting out from a corner of the roof, hearing the sounds emanating from within with stoney cold ears."

more reviews on the blog click here

 

 

+ oscil.lacions en la penombra de les taques solars ep / carlos villena [eph03] 3" cdr in slip case / £3

superb sound design and soundscaping from carlos villena, who hails from barcelona in spain. constructed from solar landscape field recordings, this single longform piece shifts between different atmospheres and textures, at once building into aggressive pillars of noise only to fall away into uncomfortably serene passages - an aural hallucination of sunblindness.

carlos' work borders the sonic worlds between environmental sound recording, noise, drone, black metal and improvisation. he also runs the mantricum records label and has releases/splits with francisco lópez, z’ev, cornucopia, freiband, and more.

comes as a 3inch mini cdr with sleeve design by conor gorman. running time: 22 minutes.

+ listen

carlos villena homepage

ian holloway @ wonderful wooden reasons #34 review:

"...noise music really doesn’t do it for me anymore but I can still appreciate when it’s being done well and this is. it’s restrained and mobile. villena explores his sound source thoroughly and isn’t averse to mixing things up a little which raises him above the usual distortion-mongers."

more reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

 

 

+ poor henrietta marie ep / nigel samways [hb/eph01] 3" cdr / £4.99 *NOW SOLD OUT*

+ special joint release by ephre imprint + hibernate records

poor henrietta marie is based on a single mobile phone recording of a young girl singing "wade in the water" unaccompanied on the street of a small english town. the recording was later treated and re-arranged on magnetic tape, then passed through dsp processors and set alongside live multi-tracked instrumentation. henrietta marie refers to the sunken slave ship of the same name that now resides in a sad watery grave. the ep comprises of one long work, moving through 3 sections.

ltd edition 3" cdr with full gatefold artwork by jonathan from hibernate. running time: 21 minutes.

listen and download free!

nigel samways homepage

hibernate records homepage

frans de waard @ vital weekly 718 review:

"...samways uses tape treatments, dsp processing, instruments and some more field recordings, and
crafted a great piece of music of a loop of singing, to which a whole brand of small electronic sounds, drones and glitches are added. think 'jesus blood never failed me yet' meeting 'salt marie celeste': a radioplay like piece of obscured field recordings which tell us a story, other than 'just' beautiful music. excellent release here."

more reviews on the blog click here

 

 

 

+ one ep / vecchi-teller [eph02] cdr in slip case / £3

vecchi-teller are an electro-acoustic improvisational duo. material gathered here from live sessions 2005-9, now hewed down and re-configured. live instrumentation of toolbox junk percussion, a purple vibrator, analogue synthesizer and rotten MW radio interference are processed and re-sampled through live dsp scenarios. the music can be abrasive and visceral, taking musical cues from noise, free jazz and industrial. tracks are presented non-chronologically, with material recorded at different times collaged and juxstaposed together within individual tracks. running time: 21 minutes, 5 tracks.

+ listen

+vecchi-teller homepage

frans de waard @ vital weekly 714 review:

"...five blocks of sound, heavily layered, with some strong noise based undercurrent. sounds crashing into each other, but there is always a deep drone end to the pieces. Its not noise as the textbooks describe, but rather a violent brother of musique concrete..."

 

+ silver rain, green trees ep / nigel samways [eph01] 10" lathe cut record + art prints / £6

+ special edition release

this is the first ephre imprint special edition release - a 10" lathe cut by peter king of king records in new zealand. sleeves hand printed from carved beach driftwood blocks and numbered by daniel from vecchi-teller. each release comes in a tough cardboard jacket with 2 bonus art prints and record in a clear sleeve. the lathe cut + cdr releases contain the same audio (see below for details).

 

+ silver rain, green trees ep / nigel samways [eph01] cdr in slip case / £3

a further entry in an ongoing series of works based around adhoc recordings made in the midst of different cityscapes. after 'mestre full stop' (venice) and 'veilleur de nuit' (paris), comes 'silver rain, green trees' constructed on a bed of recordings made in london 2007-8. focusing on the redundancy and decay of the old thames and a sodden overgrown suburbia, where the decompositional textures of the of the music mirror london's bruised and battered underbelly. the cdr version release contains the same audio + running time as the lathe cut. nigel samways has previous releases on labels experimedia, october man, camomille and authorised version. 7 tracks, 23 minutes.

+ listen

nigel samways homepage

frans de waard @ vital weekly 714 review:

"...melodic at times, abstract at others, but throughout there seems to be a melancholic thread through his music. his pieces are short and to the point: six in twenty some minutes. field recordings and instruments blend together nicely here in somewhat clouded and sombre colors. nice stuff actually which bypasses various musical genres, which I guess is always a good thing."

more reviews on the blog click here