Siberian MP3 Album

The good news is, there’s a new album out that’s sure to appeal to fans of the unusual sounds that issue from the Thirsty Ear label, whose Blue Series of CDs often mixes free jazz and adventurous electronica. The better news is, the album in question, Gololed by Gultskra Artikler (born Alexey Devyanin, aka Stud), is available for free download from the Autoplate netlabel, which calls the music “Radical Siberian Avantgarde.” Artikler mixes familiar electronic elements, including rudimentary rhythmic ticks and hazy cut’n’paste techniques, with material that often seems to emanate from the outer reaches of improv, like the drowsy woodwinds and circular percussion that mark “Polojite” and the hard-bop drums and loungey synth action of “Starik Hotabitch.” There’s more here as well, notably “Babushka Days,” with its quick segues from field recordings to orchestral snippets and beyond; it has the mix of purpose and randomness that distinguishes composer Francis Dhomont’s work. While many of the tracks on Gololed are artful irritants, the record closes, with “Logoled,” the shortest of its nine tracks, on a sedate thread of elegant percussion and soothing tones. (Check out the Autoplate label at autoplate.org, and download the full album, complete with jewel-case-ready artwork, here.)