JARBOE | TELECOGNAC ‎/ Over (2000)

Telecognac (Chris Rosenau and Jon Mueller) took a single Jarboe track and made a lazy release from it. It's classed as an album, but has just three tracks totalling 35 mins. They chopped most of Jarboe's vocals into small, unintelligible chunks and then dropped them into a toolbox of experimental awkwardness that relies heavily on juxtaposition and percussion to fill out the running time.
It only gels into something engaging about fifty percent of the time. The other fifty percent is mostly cold, listless and irritating.

Songs of Note: Over 1; Over 2

2 gold idols out of 5

SWANS / Children of God (1987)

The gristle in the meat you had for lunch is Swans. The pain of a fractured wrist is Swans. The elation of a morphine injection is also Swans. Held together by the grit of Gira and the quietude of Jarboe, Children of God is intense. With dissonant droning guitars and pounding drums, it exudes tension in every turn. It almost feels like it wants you to suffer as you listen. If the apocalypse were to come tomorrow, it would be the soundtrack to the end of days. And yet, it has moments of beauty that I find intoxicating. If you hadn't guessed already, it leaves me confused and conflicted. Not for the faint of heart.

Songs of Note: Beautiful Child; Blackmail

5 funeral litanies to love and life out of 5

JARBOE / Mahakali (2008)

Jarboe's voice is an instrument that's both terrifying and comforting, instilling both fear and primal reassurance in the listener. Here she plays the role of Mother and Destroyer: Mahakali the Indian goddess associated with Time and Death. Piano and orchestral moments sit alongside guitars, heavy percussion, and deeply symbolic ambience. Throw in some powerful, often aggressive sonic assaults from Jarboe herself and you have a great album. It could give nightmares to horses and scare the demons from beneath your bed.

Songs of Note: Mahakali, of Terrifying Countenance; The Soul Continues

4½ seas of blood out of 5

JARBOE and JUSTIN K BROADRICK / J² (2008)

Two of my favourite experimental musicians together on one album, Jarboe (of Swans fame) and Justin K Broadrick (Godflesh, Jesu, etc). At its most basic level it's the angelic/demonic voice of Jarboe layered over the top of Broadrick's Jesu-style soundscapes. But delve deeper and you'll find a marriage of two distinct identities that together produce a crushingly complex and chaotic third perspective. It oozes atmosphere and primal terror through ambient repetition.
It's not as initially amazing as I thought it'd be, but it gets under the skin after repeated listens - or more precisely after prolonged exposure. There have been no rumours suggesting they'll do a second album, but I really hope they do.

Songs of Note: Romp; Magick Girl

4 worthwhile experiments for the strange out of 5

JARBOE and CEDRIC VICTOR / The End (2006)

Jarboe's first dipping of toes into the spoken-word medium that she does so well (most of the time). It has some ambient music and trippy sound collages that support the narratives and give them a more esoteric nature. The 'music' of the album is created by Cedric Victor-DeSouza, a visual and audio artist from NY. It's a weird collaborative piece of spoken word/music experimentation/audible art that will have very limited appeal. but isn't that what blogs are for? To introduce you to new things? For fans of Jarboe and those that aren't afraid...

Songs of Note: Dog; Dead End

4 Gnostic narratives out of 5

JARBOE / Disburden Disciple (2000)

Jarboe embraces experimental. Her music is full of textures, loops, projected beauty and synchronized disharmony. Her voice is strong, passionate and unique; it still gives way to the percussion a lot but she's ceased hiding it behind the music. Piano, guitar, bass and drums seem to be fighting each other for dominance on the album, creating a power play that becomes a great strength. It's harsh at times, avant-garde always, but I find her enthralling. I can't see it appealing to anyone that didn't like her work in Swans, though. If you're one of the ones that did enjoy those days, then Disburden Disciple is worth the effort.

Songs of Note: Consume Me; Dear 666

3½ portraits of the artist out of 5