Trapdoor Crucifix by Andreas Brandal

Visions from the wastelands.

Andreas Brandal is a longtime legend of the underground cassette kingdom, and he's been prolific, creating an expansive catalog of solo and collaborative music on the tape format since 1994, spread across a wealth of small independent labels and publishing houses. This label's first connection with Brandal dates back over 11 years ago with the album "Autumn Drama", released by Lighten Up Sounds in 2012.

"Trapdoor Crucifix" grinds rhythms into dry, powdery dust, a destructive force shifting through claustrophobic tempo and structure. The compositions travel between blistered drone and broken texture, with flashes of sharp gloom cutting across a bleak, cinematic field. The artist's refined but extreme sensibilities are showcased, organizing a frightening landscape of fractured emotions. Pulsing oscillations swell over clanking tool-shed rhythm and a mass of bubbling static - we each inevitably dissolve into oblivion.

It's fascinating how after following the career of an artist for many years, one can clearly hear a distinct voice in the smallest of details. One grows to recognize the textures and palette, and eventually the listener can hear a particular tone of rusty clank, twisted just so, and think "Ahh, there it is, that keen Brandal sound." The work follows the artist's clear trajectory, challenging the listener's expectations while connecting to the artist's impressive history, and forging exciting new paths forward into a frightening future.

A grim transmission of otherworldly knowledge.




Andreas Brandal | Tundra: https://shorturl.at/Kh2Zi
Andreas Brandal | Needles of ice: https://shorturl.at/l1V1Q



From The Best Experimental Music on Bandcamp: May 2023

"The discography of Andreas Brandal is extensive and deep, and to say his musical voice is recognizable would be an understatement. Every second of Trapdoor Crucifix is imbued with his forceful approach to pulsing, attacking noise. Tagging it solely as confrontational would be unfair, though: each of these eight tracks has moments of calm, distance, and even silence, as Brandal thoughtfully creates emotional arcs. In “Needles of Ice,” he sticks shards of blurting noise into reflective drones, while “Blacklight” begins as haunting echo, morphs to rattling static, then echoes into a liquid tunnel. Throughout, Brandal never rests, pushing each piece forward with new ideas." - Marc Masters

Small tape label from the upper Midwest.

https://lightenupsounds.org