Jesse Osborne-Lanthier (Noir) - Athenaeum Of Unedited, Superannuated, Incomplete, Unreleased, Intimate Works 2011 - 2013 [Hobo Cult Records]

A tape! We love tapes. Sitting in our postbox only a few days ago was this limited to 100 copies tape edition of the "Athenaeum Of Unedited, Superannuated, Incomplete, Unreleased, Intimate Works 2011 - 2013" by Jesse Osborne-Lanthier (Noir) which - for some reason - wins the number one prize for the longest and most unmemorizable album title ever reviewed on these pages. The unmemorizable thing goes for titles like "Chtonic", "Tetrapyloctomy Haus" or "How To Get 'Important' People To Respond To Your Emails (Or, 'Affording PR.')" as well by the way. Apart from memory twisting titles there's music on this lovely limited edition as well - music that one wouldn't necessarily expect on tape as this medium seems to be closely bonded to the Drone / Noize / Experimental scene these days. But quelle surprise, Mr. Osborne-Lanthier's work released by the Montreal-based Hobo Cult Records is - at least in parts - dedicated to the dancefloor, the advanced, experienced dancefloor to be even more precise. With a love for the darker side of things and a clear fascination for all things echo and reverb the A-side starts out with explorations and variations in DubTechno that has moved away from the classic Basic Channel-way into more abstract realms but still would be able to move crowds in the right context of a dark, concrete wall club environment with a proper PA. Whilst the first side of the tape progresses, the dancefloor slowly moves out of focus and more Experimental tones take over, from flickering Ambient / Deep Listening Music with unsettled tones to buzzing Death Ambient drones accompanied by distorted, viscous Noize eruptions. The B-sides opener "A Standard Artist" turns out to be a short,  hyperelectronic, ultra-digital Clicks'n'Cuts piece with a rasping, tweaking contra-rhythmic loop antidote that might be loved by followers of labels like Stichting Mixer or Raster-Noton whilst the already mentioned "Tetrapyloctomy Haus" starts as an electroid piece, morphs into dry, clear cut 4/4 bassdrums and ends up providing a short'n'sharp, uptempo Future Tribe excess alongside unexpected, surprising and cold'ish, futuristic scifi-tone sequences - a live jam equipment test maybe? We don't now, but we like variety. And surprises. Furthermore we like to be taken into Dark Ambient orbits crowded with buzzing, alien, mailclad insects, listening to relinquished hydraulic systems moving back and forth and bleeping, lost machines on tilt in some faraway, extraterrestrial industrial estate. Also we have a thing for desolate Post-PostRock and forlorn, heavily twisted Post-DesertRock that's finally to be found in the threatening "The Ottawa Convention Center" which seemingly is a haunted, sinister place to be. As we're not afraid of places like this we do recommend to get your local record dealer or mailorder of trust to hunt this down for you for a reason. Nice.