best of pl 02_2023

working 🆙

gotta blast edit

railroad

PRE-ORDER "Minus 30°C" LP & CD on Bandcamp:
https://zimastulecia.bandcamp.com/

Latarnik - synths, piano
Cancer G - drums, synths

Follow Zima Stulecia
❄️ FB: https://www.facebook.com/ZimaStulecia87
❄️ IG: https://www.instagram.com/zima__stule...
❄️ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3RyAphc

Follow Astigmatic Records:
❄️ FB: https://facebook.com/astigmaticrecords​
❄️ IG: https://instagram.com/astigmaticrecords​
❄️ BC: https://astigmaticrec.bandcamp.com​
❄️ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3HsliBf
❄️ SC: https://soundcloud.com/astigmaticrecords
❄️ TT: https://twitter.com/astigmaticrec


What would have happened if Michael Dudikoff had gone missing in action, say – in Poland in 1987 – during the harshest freezing spell of the century? Would he have coped under these conditions like John Rambo has in the town of Hope? We shall never find out, but the soundtrack is already there. Latarnik and Cancer G (members of EABS and Błoto) would call this film Zima Stulecia: Minus 30°C.

When Twin Peaks debuted on Polish National Television with its oneiric music by Angelo Badalamenti, Poland could feel as eerie as the series. Seemingly nothing quite matched, but on the other hand, no one was surprised. Growing up in the 1990s inevitably brings back memories of stalls selling a variety of products. You could buy there cleaning products from Germany, some underwear, Haribo jellies and Jacobs coffee, and have access to the "latest" cultural releases, which would be arriving late in Poland. This is where one could obtain pirated copies of cassette tapes and VHS, the labels of which had typewritten film titles that transported kids' fantasies to another world. With such content distribution, many of these kids got their first glimpse of Predator, Terminator, Robocop, as well as Van Damme's stunts in Bloodsport and a plethora of other B action movies, which to this day - like American Ninja - are rerun on TV over and over again. The afterimages of these soundtracks nestled in the heads of Marcin Rak and Marek Pędziwiatr for years and found expression on their debut album. 

The music of Zima Stulecia is difficult to label in terms of genre. It oscillates towards melancholic electronic music. For some it will be techno, others will hear elements of house, all accompanied by improvised synth and percussion music. 

Zima Stulecia is a duo that was not supposed to have any chance of success. Many years ago, back in 2006, when they were still budding musicians they met for the first time at a jazz workshop. When they found out where they both came from and that they were separated by almost 800 kilometers, despite having great chemistry in playing, they jokingly said goodbye with the sentence: "it was fun playing together!". They figured they would never meet again. At the time, none of them imagined that in a few years' time in Wrocław they will form one of the most interesting contemporary jazz bands in Poland: EABS and Błoto. On top of that, they were both born in January 1987. The last of the historic "winters of the century" (eng. for "zima stulecia") occurred at that time in Poland, which ultimately determined their name as a band. Minus 30°C album is a recording of the non-verbal workings of these soulmates, and a fruit of a musical collaboration that has lasted for 16 years. 

Minus 30°C will be released by Astigmatic Records in digital, CD and LP versions and, for the first time, in two limited edition versions: Snow and Ice, along with a B2-sized poster. The album is scheduled for release on 28th of February 2023.

Minus 30°C

PREORDER

Zima Stulecia - Ostatnia taka zima

written by Jawnino
prod &mix/master. Klein
vocals. Jawnino
backing vocals. Klein

23 (prod. Klein)

Taken from paszka's new album 'lapton' (G&P023), out February 26, 2023

It's been no secret that Poland marks as one of Europe's most significant melting pots of electronic computer music. Hand in hand with prominent festivals, adventurous labels, and the overall vivid culture of the niche genre, the country's breeding ground has raised countless talented and innovative up-and-coming producers. Having released music under his former moniker 'rużaw' as well as various projects including his widely acclaimed album 'Gluon' already as 'paszka' via Noumenal Loom, performing at Unsound and often collaborating with his partner or peers, the Krakow's very own Szymon Sapalski already is an established name among the ever-flourishing local matrix. Named after the word 'laptop' repeatedly misspelled by his friend's grandma, paszka now presents his follow-up longplay 'lapton' via Gin&Platonic.

On lapton, paszka has achieved to graft fierce rhythms and defragmented particles of contemporary pop music onto his signature hyper manic and rigorous sound design. But where the quirky record kinda innocently starts as lanparty-gone-goofy-by-personal-computers-taking-over-their-masters-playlistst and beyond a CPU-overload-from-granny's-healthresort-vacation-powerpoint-photocollection, it suddenly slows down onto jovial sketch of Goofy the Dog's presentation of approximate 5-year prediction of development of global prices of uranium, then 'lapton' quickly speeds up and darkens onto a mighty-microtonalism-motherboard-epilepsy, a melodramatic-bluescreen-glitchcore-blues. Shattered to many directions yet strangely coherent, paszka's fastidious music remains both geeky and candidly ludicrous. 

Written, produced & mastered by Szymon Sapalski

Artwork by Jiri Macku
jirimacku.tumblr.com

Digital & Cassette

paszka - żabol

From album OPLA - "GTI"
Releases > February 1, 2023
Listen & buy > https://pointless-geometry.bandcamp.com
Limited edition of 60 copies / C-55 cassette
POINTLESS GEOMETRY 2023 / POINT#51

Music by Hubert Zemler & Piotr Bukowski www.facebook.com/oplaband
Recorded in Wołowiec 2022
Mixed by Hubert Zemler & Piotr Bukowski
Mastered by Fausto Mercier / @fausto_mercier
Artwork by Adrian Jaszczak

OPLA is the duo of Hubert Zemler and Piotr Bukowski. In their music they reinterpret traditional Polish dances, such as the "oberek". On GTI, their album for Pointless Geometry, you can hear oberek phrases and tripartite metros embellished with electronic sounds. They create a plastic, surreal world rooted in deep traditions of folk music.

OPLA - YPN / POINT#51

Utwór pochodzi z albumu Grażyna Biedroń - "Brokat i Oranżada"

Preorder kasety i wersja digital dostępne od 3.02.2023 na superkasety.bandcamp.com
Nakład limitowany (100 sztuk)

---
Info:
(english see below)

Grażyna Biedroń i jej "Brokat i Oranżada", czyli kaseta o numerze katalogowym SPRK007 to pierwsze wydawnictwo Superkaset po dłuższej przerwie. Tym razem słuchacze otrzymują blisko 50 minut muzyki balansującej pomiędzy tematami opartymi o sample z polskiej muzyki i filmów a basowo-breakbeatowymi brzmieniami z IDM-owym zacięciem.
W bibliotece dźwiękowych próbek użytych na kasecie pojawiają się między innymi Piotr Fronczewski, ale też Fokus. Grażyna nie ogranicza się jednak tylko do pobierania fragmentów z gotowych nagrań, ale przede wszystkim tworzy swój wyjątkowy krajobraz dźwiękowy. Spokojnie można powiedzieć, że wyciąga z abletonowych wtyczek (najcześciej dostępnych w tym programie bazowo) maxa, tak że ciężko w ogóle rozpoznać skąd te dźwięki pochodzą - na pewno brak tu brzmień klasycznego zestawu syntezatorów spod znaku Rolanda czy Korga, a jednak całość (być może dzięki ocieplającym sound breakom) brzmi znajomo i zdecydowanie nostalgicznie. To jednak nie wszystko - na albumie usłyszmy też dwa utwory, w których artystka wykorzystuje własne wokalizy. Co ciekawe cały ten mix sampli, nietypowych elektronicznych dźwięków i własnych wokali brzmi bardzo spójnie. Niezależnie od tempa utworów i ich stylistyki (a słychać tu zarówno 4x4 tech house'owe utwory, elektroniczny rap czy jungle i breakbeat wyjęte żywcem z PSXowych gier lat 90.) wszystkie kawałki składają się z podobnej, oryginalnej palety brzmień. Grażyna Biedroń - co udowodniła nie raz doskonałymi setami djskimi i singlem dla brytyjskiej oficyny Rhythm Labs - ma swój styl i rozumienie muzyki elektronicznej, które są absolutnie wyjątkowe.
Wydawnictwo uzupełnia wspaniała szata graficzna przygotowana przez ilustratorkę Ninę Budzyńską, która na warsztat wzięła brokatową kasetę z niebieskimi rolkami. Sam shell kasety jest zadrukowany w całości ilustracjami artystki, rysunkowe dzieło Niny zdobi też okładkę. Cały projekt doskonale oddaje muzykę na taśmie - vintage'owe artefakty gną się abstrakcyjnie zawieszone w przestrzeni gdzieś wokół głównej bohaterki całego zamieszania. Wszystko wygląda jakby znajomo, ale z twistem.
Podsumowując - idzie (nawet jak czerpie ze starego) nowe! Podkręćcie basy w soundsystemie i dajcie się zanurzyć w brokatowej oranżadzie od Grażyny Biedroń!

[ENG]

Grazyna Biedron and her "Brokat i Oranzada," a cassette with catalog number SPRK007, is the first Superkasety release after a long break. This time listeners get nearly 50 minutes of music balancing between themes based on samples from Polish music and movies and bass-breakbeat sounds with an IDM twist.
The library of sound samples used on the cassette features, among others, Piotr Fronczewski, but also Fokus. However, Grazyna doesn't limit herself to taking snippets from ready-made recordings, but primarily creates her own unique soundscape. On the album we can also hear two tracks in which the artist uses her own vocals. Interestingly, this whole mix of samples, unusual electronic sounds and her own vocals sounds very coherent. Regardless of the tempo of the tracks and their style (and we can hear here both 4x4 tech house tracks, electronic rap or jungle and breakbeat taken alive from PSX games of the 90s), all tracks consist of a similar, original palette of sounds. Grazyna Biedroń - as she has proven more than once with excellent DJ sets and a single for the British label Rhythm Labs - has her own style and understanding of electronic music, which are absolutely unique.
Turn up the bass in the soundsystem and let yourself be immersed in the glittery orangeade from Grazyna Biedroń!

---
Credits:

Muzyka: @karolina-bachorowicz
Grafika: Nina Budzyńska
Mastering: @stachy
Nr. kat.: SPRK007

Brokat i Oranżada

Grażyna Biedroń - EXG (Grażyna´s Vocal)

From the album R. IWANSKI - "Transformations I", 2023 (CD, Gusstaff Records & Eter Records)

Composed, recorded and mixed by Rafał Iwański at Studio Eter, Toruń, Poland, July - November 2022
Mastering: Szymon Szwarc | szszwarc.pl

Artwork and photo: Ewa Bińczyk | ewabinczyk.pl
Layout: Wojciech Zięba | info@beastofprey.com

Contact Rafał Iwański a.k.a. X-NAVI:ET: itah@o2.pl

https://xnaviet.bandcamp.com/album/r-iwanski-transformations-i
www.youtube.com/user/xnaviet
www.facebook.com/xnaviet

The project is co-financed by the Scholarship of the Marshal of Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship and Creativity Support Fund – ZAiKS

Transformations I

R. IWANSKI - KalimbAfrica (Transformations I, 2023, CD & 12" vinyl)

phyuck❤️

draft_3

https://www.thewire.co.uk/audio/tracks/unlimited-editions-pointless-geometry

https://www.dwutygodnik.com/artykul/11779-rozszczelnianie-kultury.html