Noise Four

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My Top Five Albums of 2013 (Part 5 of 5)

Jon Hopkins - Immunity

01. We Disappear 02. Open Eye Signal 03. Breathe This Air 04. Collider 05. Abandon Window 06. Form By Firelight 07. Sun Harmonics 08. Immunity

Immunity is an outstanding journey of warm, ambient and unique textures. Classed as electronic, ambient techno and ambient house it's a collision of worlds not unheard of but certainly achieved in a wonderful fashion. This album strays from the path of his older material a little yet he still retains his own character and style. I am a fan of minimalism and its associated sub-genres so this album really catches my attention, the developing and progressive nature of the style intrigues me and often helps me to relax. My two favourite Jon Hopkins songs are "Immunity" and "Light Through the Veins", which is from his 2009 album "Insides".

The extremely ambient, slow-paced sections of this album really just signify what Jon Hopkins is about (and in my opinion, what he does best). The amazing soundscapes just let your mind roam free with peaceful thoughts.

Again, this album is in my top five due to its adventurousness and ability to trigger emotions while developing from one idea to the next. It is an album that you just have to sit down, close your eyes and listen to!

Buy the album here

Robert Booth

[noisefour]

My Top Five Albums of 2013 (Part 4 of 5)

Alter Bridge - Fortress

01. Cry of Achilles 02. Addicted to Pain 03. Bleed It Dry 04. Lover 05. The Uninvited 06. Peace is Broken 07. Calm the Fire 08. Waters Rising 09. Farther than the Sun 10. Cry a River 11. All Ends Well 12. Fortress

I first heard of Alter Bridge after I went to see Slash on tour for his first album - Myles Kennedy was the vocalist. They played Rise Today as part of the set and I loved it, so the next day I just had to check them out. I listened to them from their first album "One Day Remains" and I particularly picked up on Myles's vocals. I obviously then went on to listen to Blackbird, Their latest album out at the time, and just loved what I heard. Some of the songs on that album became my favourites. As soon as AB III came out I was listening to it non-stop and loving it more and more, a heavier album than the last two, more aggression and power. Fortress is a few notches better I feel.

The opening two tracks of Fortress are still my favourite on the entire album and what an introduction! I particularly picked up on the production of this album so hard-hitting and completely smashed by the master Ted Jensen, mixed and produced by Michael "Elvis" Baskette.

With catchy riffs, vocal lines and a sense of unpredictability in areas it really is one of my favourite albums of 2013. I think Mark Tremonti's heavier approach from the influence of his solo album really shows here and, with the combination of what Myles may have picked up after an album with Slash, I think it works and it's another step in the right direction for Alter Bridge.

Fortress is in my top five albums of 2013 due to the combination of heavier riffs with less predictability despite that not necessarily being the case with the vocals, Myles's talent still shines through.

Buy the album here

Robert Booth

[noisefour]

My Top Five Albums of 2013 (Part 3 of 5)

David Maxim Micic - Bilo 3.0

01. Everything's Fine 02. Where is Now? 03. Smile 04. Nostalgia 05. Wrinkle Maze 06. Daydreamers

David Maxim Micic along with Bilo were names I was introduced to as part of me discovering music while I was part of the band Orion. Back then he had released the original Bilo 1.0 EP and I was amazed at what I heard, so many layers and so much variation in terms of styles and patterns, then came Bilo 2.0 which was next-level. Since the release of the second record I tried to keep up to date with his progress, with his incredibly-named side project "Destiny Potato". The third part of the Bilo series was highly anticipated genre-wide with interest from some of the major players and high-profile artists being suggested as guest artists.

When it hit Bandcamp I wasn't around to download it - I had to wait about two days after the release to get my mits on it and what I heard about it in that time was more than enough to make me know it was what everyone was hoping for. This album is just sublime. It blows the other two releases out of the water which is by no means any disrepect to him, it's just that much better.

David's musical background is firmly classical. His piano ability backed by his knowledge of theory and the influence of today's metal community allows him to create remarkable landscapes of sounds. The combinations of violins, drums, heavy vocals, synths, pianos and much more provide a unique experience. I've never heard anything like it.

Bilo 3.0 contains some themes from previous albums which in turn are twisted into a completely new idea with consumate ease. Every groove hits incredibly hard, every soft section is so delicate it almost breaks. The expression of every instrument contributes to a wonderfully dynamic album.

With regards to the mix, yes there is a always a lot going on and sometimes it can get a bit crowded but I think there is a certain depth to the whole album that kind of glues everything together, uniting all of the layers into a wonderfully powerful soundscape.

This album is in my top five due to its adventurousness, power, ability to express emotion at ease and the audacity to combine so many genres and turn it into something that blatantly works (and blows the mind).

I cannot recommend this album enough!

Buy the album here

Robert Booth

[noisefour]

My Top Five Albums of 2013 (Part 2 of 5)

White Moth Black Butterfly - One Thousand Wings

01. Reluctance 02. Equinox 03. Ties Of Grace 04. The World Won't Sleep 05. Rose 06. Midnight Rivers 07. Tired Eyes 08. Certainty 09. Omen 10. Faith 11. Paradise

As mentioned previously, Daniel Tompkins was the lead vocalist of TesseracT, a highly-acclaimed and widely-appreciated frontman. After his departure he embarked on a few side projects, Skyharbor and In Colour. A project he created while a member of TesseracT was White Moth Black Butterfly, the aim to showcase his talents in a new light and genre. He worked in conjunction with Skyharbour guitarist Keshav Dhar to produce the album which was mastered and partially recorded at Keshav's studio in India.

I have admired Daniel Tompkins and his style since I first saw TesseracT; his range, technique and creativity shine through on every record.

The album itself is what I would call a collection of art. Eleven demonstrations of why he is a renowned singer/songwriter, not just in progressive rock/metal. Everything from the lead vocals and harmonies to the cello and piano as well as every other instrument just create a unique texture and adventure for your mind to follow. He describes the album as ambient, electronic, cinematic and experimental and I would certainly agree. A showcase of a hugely creative mind in conjunction with some fantastic talents such as Keshav Dhar, Jordan Bethany and Christopher Haywood; Jordan Bethany in particular providing a beautiful change of tone with her vocal performances on 'Tired Eyes' and 'Faith'.

From a mix perspective the album is generally quite sparse in terms of instruments but with every texture comes a new dimension and a space filled; each instrument takes its own space in the mix and consumes it with delicate delays and reverbs.

This album is in my top five due to its experimental nature, the beauty of every texture and the fresh sounds to my ears.

Buy the album here

Robert Booth

[noisefour]

My Top Five Albums of 2013 (Part 1 of 5)

So just before the turn of the year I announced my top five albums of 2013 on Facebook. I was subsequently asked by a fellow member of Noise Four to write a blog post about what made me choose these particular albums, so here it is...

I reiterate that this list is in no particular order.

TesseracT - Altered State

01. Of Matter - Proxy

02. Of Matter - Retrospect

03. Of Matter - Resist

04. Of Mind - Nocturne

05. Of Mind - Exile

06. Of Reality - Eclipse

07. Of Reality - Palingenisis

08. Of Reality - Calabi-Yau

09. Of Energy - Singularity

10. Of Energy - Embers

TesseracT are a band I have been following with enthusiasm since 2011 when I saw them on tour with Periphery and Monuments; I was immediately blown away by their style and accuracy, particularly by their vocalist Daniel Tompkins. Time went by, vocalists changed (twice) and in mid-2013 they announced the arrival of Ashe O'Hara, fans around the globe hoping that this man was the one to silence the critics that doubted they would find a suitable long-term replacement for Dan.

Altered State is a masterpiece of progressive metal, a 51-minute flowing collection of amazing rhythms, riffs and textures. The album consists of four movements - Of Matter, Of Mind, Of Reality and Of Energy - each section containing different themes and concepts.

What struck me immediately was the separation of the mix on the entire album; everything is so clear, crisp and precise despite how busy it can be in places. The great amount of depth provided mainly by vocal harmonies and guitar effects create a world that gives everything its place. I also noticed the retainment of a large dynamic range. I know that Acle (lead guitarist) runs his own studio, 4D Sounds and that he and Amos (bassist) mixed and mastered this album at his studio so kudos to them both for refraining from taking part in what is known as "the loudness war" and letting the album flow in a more expressive manner.

The entire album can transform from a peaceful space of soft textures to powerful, sharp grooves in a short space of time, consciously emphasising the range of dynamics and their associated sensations. The sonic adventures of the album please the ears particularly with the addition of saxophone parts in tracks 8 and 9.

This album is in my top five because of the precision, dynamism and groove it offers with every idea.

Buy the album here

Robert Booth

[noisefour]

Introducing Martyn Ellis!

Ok, so given that this is my first posting here I feel that a small introduction is necessary; I’m the newest member of the Noise Four family, an Audio Engineering student at Futureworks and a musician as well.

Having been studying location audio and post-production techniques, I first came into contact with Noise Four through the Retribution feature shoot early this summer,and was instantly impressed with the attitudes displayed by these guys and the quality of work they produced, even in tough circumstances. After several successful collaborations with James, Rob and Nathan, they invited me to be a fully-fledged member of the team, which is allowing us all to expand our horizons and take on greater and more challenging roles; there are some very exciting things for us all in the pipeline, which we’ll frequently update you on through our blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc…

With that out the way, I wanted to give a short insight into an incredibly fun project myself and Nathan undertook recently; “The Kids That Saved Christmas”. With James and Rob locked up in the studio tracking songs for Blood Diamond Harvest’s debut EP, we braved a cold November morning out in Cheshire to work alongside the fantastic Darren Langlands of Alt Angle Films and the Little All-Stars theatre group to shoot their Christmas-themed short. Written and directed by Darren, we had a fun day shooting the first two out of three groups of kids from the theatre group. They had the chance to see how film and TV production works and create a small Christmas gift for their parents in the form of a DVD.

Both Nathan and myself came away from the shoot impressed by how professional some of these young actors had been along with the quality of a lot of their performances under such a hectic schedule. They also had respect for our work as a sound team. While the scale may not match that of some of our other filming work thus far, we had an absolute blast doing something both entertaining and educational whilst also facing some new challenges in the style of shoot.

A big thank you goes out to Darren and his team for giving us the opportunity and we hope that this can be the first of many collaborations with Darren as an up-and-coming director. Part three will commence this coming Sunday, so we can have the three short films ready for the kid’s parents to see how they saved Christmas by the time it comes around!

Martyn

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