John Hogman - Reduce Speed - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Stellan Sagvik - Fyra Filmer Forkester Orchestral Music [COMPACT DISCS] date 09/25/2001

Amanda Maier (1853-1894) and Julius Rontgen (1855-1932) were a couple in both music and love. This new album includes world premiere recordings of Amanda Maier's preludes, Julius Rontgen's piano suite InchJulklappInch (Christmas Gift), and the piano suite InchZwiegespracheInch (Dialogues), that the young couple composed together. In addition to this, you also get Rontgen's brilliant variation work InchNeckens Polska,Inch which he dedicated to his future bride. This is charming, beautiful, and highly romantic music at it's best, performed by one of Sweden's most outstanding musicians the award-winning pianist Bengt Forsberg.

Secret Weapon is Australian songwriter Jo Schornikow (and keyboardist in Phosphorescent)'s stunning tag debut. It's a devastatingly beautiful indie-pop album that eddies into dreamy nooks, while staying firmly rooted in strong melodies. It's a quiet record, adorned with subtle swells of synths and shimmering washes of guitars. Jo's calm, assured voice is that of a touring musician who's spent much of the past 10 years on the road in Phosphorescent and The Shivers and is now very much at home in this world. She's been the secret weapon to other songwriters, but now she's stepping out and sharing these gorgeous songs. While her partner Matthew Houck's band Phosphorescent carves a wide swath through cosmic country, Jo's songs thrive in a dusk-lit territory neighboring pop, shoegaze, and ambient experimental music. These are very much folk songs, but translated through the tools Jo Schornikow has at hand.