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JESUS IS MY SON - SOLAH#2 (LP by Ini.itu)
FROGOROTH (LP compilation by Ini.itu)
So, Ini.itu kicks the bucket. You all love to buy LPs, so why didn't you buy any from this label, or
just the ones you knew already? I am sure economical reasons are the ones to close this venture,
and I think it is a pity. Nineteen releases, with some distinctive design; let's hope collecting a
complete set of Ini.itu will become a thing in the future and that they slowly will get rid of all of
these release. The outline of the label was "Asian electronics / experimental / drones / reshaping
traditional instruments / & field recordings", which is showed quite well in their catalogue, ranging
from pure field recordings (Lopez, Dauby, Artificial Memory Trace), to electronics (Courtis),
traditional instrument manipulation (Freiband) and remix of an 80s electronic gamelan project (by
Wieman). A diverse set of releases, but it works wonderfully as a whole label, I think.
Jesus Is My Son, being the musical project of Gregory Duby (in the past a member of K-
Branding, now active with Zoho, and having his own label, FF HHH), and he's a guitarist. The
previous occasion I heard his music, in Vital Weekly 733, I was not so impressed by it. I didn't see
the relation between him being influenced by Olivier Messiaen and his solo electric guitar, describing
the music as something of which 'not a single minute that could really interest me here'. But this
new one, without any guitar in overdrive modus, he plays some interesting folk inspired tunes.
Overall the mood is quiet and subdued. I couldn't say if any of this is really folk like, but it sure
sounds great. Most of this music sounds rather sorrowful I must say, like's already foreseeing the
closure of the label, but these six pieces are also melancholic and sometimes just plain sweet. Now,
I would think, such a release ticks of all the right boxes, a man with a guitar, no experiment, limited
edition, LP sized, hipsters of the world unite and get this. No download code. Ah, yes, that's what
is holding you back. Damn. This is an excellent album!
In the old days labels started with a compilation, Ini.itu decides to end with one. Four artists
act as 'four amphibian headed horsemen, channelling frogoroth through their sonic veins' and I
believe in some way these people work together, as I saw a concert listed by them. However here
they have their own musical piece. Dave Phillips kicks off proceedings with a particularly dense and
noisy piece of rainforest recordings from Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Ecuador, Switzerland, and
the latter is where he recorded the guitar and distortion, which he also managed to cramp into
this. Frogs, tree frogs and toads recorded in Taiwan, follow it and also some electronic instruments,
all as recorded by Yannick Dauby. On the other side we have an 'Anouran Protest Song' by Slavek
Kwi (also known as Artificial Memory Trace), which is about 'voicing concern in the face of the
threat of amphibiab chytrid fungus decimating the frog population worldwide, and those frogs,
assuming that's what I hear, sound quite rhythmical but perhaps pitched down (probably not)
and forming a deep rumble, perhaps not unlike a marching, protest song. Quite a powerful music
piece this one. The last words go out to Sylvain van Iniitu, who, as Blindhead, had the first release
on Ini.itu (see Vital Weekly 649) and now has a 'maceration at Cannibal Caniche', also a slightly
more dangerous piece of field recordings and I was thinking that indeed we had no take on the
harshness of field recordings on this label, so perhaps it is only fitting to end on a more furious
note. Sad to see this label wind down, but it has been a very good run and quite an achievement.
And let's hope they will all turn into collector’s items and some day, somehow there will be a
follow up to all of this. (FdW)
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