Rene Hall
Vanilla Call Option
Reviewed by BravoMarco

Experimental art house / avant-garde sounds from Californian duo of Jeff Witscher & Daniel Lopatin. Chopped up & stripped down sounds. High-pitched wails combined with building site / industrial effects. This needs a few listens. Definitely good value though & will hopefully find a home at KZSU.
Similar to: Oneohtrix Point Never (Daniel Lopatin), Psywarfare, Throbbing Gristle (without the melodies) Liking them all – really like: 4,5,7 & 11
No FCC’s (No vocals only barley audible spoken word effects)

1) Smile Models (6:09) Like the proverbial sound of long nails sliding down a chalkboard. Harsh, yet pleasant screaming synths. At 3.21 it changes to static blips & blobs.
2) This Is Chess (2:34) Static creeping & a screaming mixed with wailing synths.
3) 8 (5:13) Shades of DiJ, atmospheric submarine echoes lead the way and then it’s minimalist distortion.
4) Unpack; Glue (2.59) Rain effects with barely audible voiced background. Droney hum to accompany. My personal highlight.
5) Merci Cheri (3.23) More musical than the previous – An orchestral delight, scaled down to leave just the basics. Finishes a few seconds early.
6) Var_len (3:00) Chopped vocals on loop with chainsaw / assault rifle style effect. Repetitive sounds to cure any hangover.
7) The Chess Sickness (0.28) Could be the beginning of a Cabaret Voltaire track from the early days.
8) Furniture Music (1:34) Field recordings of gadgets & old style radio dial being manipulated.
9) Le Kitchen Map (4.08) Nearly a beat here. One note under a cacophony of effects. Then the frogs take over burping their way to glory.
10) Buf. Catch (1.35) High-pitched bells jingle jangling.
11) Kalashnikov Uzi (4.23) Plane taking off intro leading to a film noir soundtrack of sorts. Atmospheric piece with urgency & metal balls being bounced. Piano solo, slow drone, space ships, what more can you ask for…