A New Record Label Promises the World
ARTIFACTS: Sampler 01
U•LOT RecordsRelease date 09/03/2020
★ ★ ★ ★
The COVID-19 epidemic has hit everyone differently. For some it’s been a time to withdraw and hibernate, while others have tackled long-overdue projects and fed whatever creative spirit they have. In this case, restless musicians from seemingly all over the world have contributed new music to ARTIFACTS: Sampler 01 on U•LOT Records — a boutique label that promises to showcase the “Electric & Eclectic”. The Florida Panhandle seems an unlikely hub for headquarters, but label mates Edward Fentilli & Earl Danvers deliver an auditory hat-trick, presenting listeners with music from France, the UK, Japan and a half-dozen cities in the US as well.
Mostly instrumental, the number of styles and genres spilling out of this clown-car are noteworthy, ranging from the hyper-kinetic techno-collage of SlayStax to the laid-back vibraphone soul of The Ray Koenig Group. ‘Sarah’s Cornfield’ by percussion group Filament Quartet is one of many surprises; crisp, beautiful and energizing. Street Tooth’s synth buffet ‘Morphologie’ also spirals upwards with dance floor energy, only to be followed by the post-rock meditation ‘fin’ by Peachboy for a well-deserved exhale.
Elsewhere, quirky rock band The Phantom Trucks join the mix with the upbeat breakup song ‘Loss for Words’, but moments later we’re pulled into an avant-garde soundscape from Polish visual artist Einar Vacek - the most haunting piece of drone music ever to include both a harmonica and sheet metal. Having these 2 tracks share the same project is almost enough to divide listeners, but there is still plenty of connective tissue to hold ARTIFACTS together.
If there’s any theme to this sampler, it’s diversity. There’s more cultures represented than any cast of Star Trek. Some pieces rely on mood more than complexity, but it’s another effective through-line. The real centerpiece of this project is the label itself, delivering depth and electricity, stillness and levity.
By means of introduction, U•LOT wants to deliver something for everyone, and offering its 12-song sampler for a single dollar through the remainder of 2020 makes it the best collection of new music for the price.
ARTIFACTS: Sampler 01 is being hosted on Burlap Productions’ Bandcamp page — likely due to the shared Tallahassee connection. As a sidetone, anyone who opts to pay more for the album will have the surplus donated to Doctors Without Borders in their efforts to combat COVID-19 and provide humanitarian aid in Beruit.
Links:
Burlap Productions on Bandcamp (hosting album release)
Listen to 'Sarah's Cornfield' by Filament Quartet
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