Optical*8

Hoppy Kamiyama - synth, samples & gram-pot
Marc Ribot - guitar
Sebastion Steinberg - bass
Douglas E. Bowne - drums
E.J. Rodriguez - percussion
Steve Eto - metals

   

Optical*8 - (54:18) - (1992) - God Mountain 1. Ambidextrousness 2. Undercover Man 3. Jungle Protects The Past 4. The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name

    This sounds like a collection of free-form jazz jams. Recorded in NYC, the musicianship's top-notch. 'Ambidextrousness' starts with sampled "goodnight"s and "once again"s, and travels through a number of quirky, sometimes frantic terrains. The shortest (at 9:59) and spaciest track is 'Undercover Man'. 'Jungle Protects The Past' starts in the jungle and eventually moves into a funk groove. 'The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name' runs through a series of disjointed musical dialogues. Each track is a unique world. You'll know if it's for you.

The Last Waltz From Distorted Honky-Tonk - (40:16) - (1992) 1. The Last Waltz From Distorted Honky-Tonk

    The improvisation doesn't start with much momentum, but it loses it five minutes in and flounders for the next ten. Then Dougie Bowne picks it up, but that only lasts a few minutes. Several other attempts are made by various members to start something, but the band inevitably returns to disfunctional noodling each time. Nearly thirty minutes into the jam, I believe it's Hoppy who starts off the most interesting section of the improv, and things pick up some with intriquing, and frequent, directional changes, till it again winds down and ends.

Optical*8 (two)

Hoppy Kamiyama - synth., samples, neuz-violin, gram-pot & vocal
Reck - bass, guitar & vocal
Yoshihide Otomo - guitar, turntables, bass & bg vocal
Masafumi Minato - drums & bg vocal

Bug -- (67:40) -- (1994) -- God Mountain 1. Deafening 2. Penetration 3. Summer Slave 4. Night Fade 5. Bug 6. Mio Corazon 7. Cripples & Kings 8. Mind-roasting Grooves 9. Bush Push 10. Cuff 11. God Speed

   I believe this is OPTICAL*8's third release. It's a different band and a different sound. Though there may be improvisation, most of the tracks sound fully-developed. This is a rocking band, playing agressive music with elements of noise in the attack. A few songs stick fairly close to a hard-rock formula, but many radically shift directions unpredictably. Synthesizers predominate, with horns, bagpipes and unclassifiable sounds fighting for position. This music is meant to be challenging. Hoppy's absurd humor appears only on the cover.

Gender - (49:25) - (1994) - God Mountain 1. Dare To Be "Uncool" 2. Blessed Bloomer 3. Otto Hypnosis 4. Dispossable Heroes Do "Lunch"

   It's the same band as Bug and was recorded and released at the same time. It's the darker, unstructured side of Bug. 'Dare To Be Uncool' is the cyclical feedback of various instruments intertwined. In 'Blessed Bloomer' a throbbing provides the foundation for a jam into distortion. 'Otto Hypnosis' (24:05) starts with an austere reverence, as if performed in an abandoned church. A distant rabble acts as its choir, then consumes the ceremony. 'Dispossable Heroes Do Lunch' is the spirited sound of machines joyfully breaking down together.

All Over - (110:01) - (1995) - God Mountain 1. Bug 2. Halle Halle 3. Penetration 4. Riots 5. Nightfade 6. Godspeed 1. Bush Push 2. Mio Corazon 3. Fate 4. God Mountain 5. Neurogenetic Circuit

   This double-CD collection is the most satisfying OPTICAL*8 release yet. Excepting studio dubs on 'Halle Halle', these live recordings are selected from three '93 & '94 shows. Some tracks are improvisational and atmospheric, others engage in bold attacks, and, of course, most mix those approaches in subtle and/or startling ways. These performances are powerful, and have a grittiness, and a fate to the winds spirit that the studio recordings haven't approached. It's a band; you're there; anything can happen; and two is definitely better than one!