Mike Cadoo is a man of many talents and many guises, and I'm sure plenty of you reading this are familiar with his legendary label, n5MD and his post-rock epic-ness as Bitcrush.
It was a crate-digging session with him and Brock last year at Substrata Festival that part inspired me to start this mini series; intrigued by the many musical influences that have shaped such well-respected people in the ambient community.
Here's five records Mike's on the hunt for, ranging from a classic ambient LP to modern classical, metal and industrial rock - a spectrum that no doubt influenced his interests and output for both n5MD and his own productions.
1. Autechre – Amber [Discogs]
While my want-list is not in any specific order I think of this one often when I think of record I truly am looking out for in decent quality at price that is not too over the top. I'm not 100% sure if stock of the repress was lost in the Sony DADC warehouse fire in 2011 as it is "plentiful" on discogs. But the prices for decent quality copies are running in the mid to upper 200s not including shipping. I have special place for this album as it was the only CD I had with me on a west coast tour back in '98. The track Slip being the highlight of the album for me even to this day.
2. Skinny Puppy – Last Rights [Discogs]
I often have heated discussions with Skinny Puppy fans about this album and its predecessor Too Dark Park. I find that Last Rights still holds up to this day where Too Dark Park doesn't (please save your complaints - it's just one person's opinion :P ). I feel Last Rights' more decoupage of sound layering that is barely held together by Oglevie's production gives it a more timeless feel than their other more “fleshed out” efforts. I have never actually seen an original pressing for sale. While even the 2XLP prepress is going for a decent price when they become available. There is also a Capitol Records version, from Germany I believe, where side A was erroneously pressed with music from a live Poison (yes that Poison) album. Not that I would want that one mind you...
3. Brambles – Charcoal [Discogs]
The LP of Brambles' Charcoal on the Serein imprint was crowd funded back in mid 2014. I completely missed out on it as I didn't even know that there was a crowd funding campaign for a vinyl version. Charcoal is very personal listening and there is no better format for heartfelt electro-acoustic ambient music than vinyl in my opinion. I find this release to be very similar in tone and mood to Last Days or Helios whom in addition to Brambles, I often immerse myself in. While the prices for these aren't as astronomical as some of the others on this list, it might not be as out of reach as I originally thought...
4. Swans – Cop [Discogs]
Showing my age? Well, so what... :) this is a record that I've wanted for quite a long time. There was a time when releases from Neubauten and Swans were played so much in my youth the neighbors I'm sure were wondering what the hell was wrong with me. Cop and the other Swans EP at the time, Young God, were so damn bleak and heavy. Cop was the clear winner in its dystopian weight. There is that heavy double drum stupor of Your Property that still gets my head nodding today. And Gira is so damn mad on this EP. He sounds genuinely fed up with something. Cop even out-weighed most of the metal of that era. While not on this list, I later found similar nihilism in Godflesh's Streetcleaner which I sorta think was the point.
5. God Machine – One Last Laugh In A Place Of Dying [Discogs]
The God Machine were a trio originally from San Diego Calif. They moved across the pond to the UK and then released two albums and a small string of eps on the Fiction label. They made a sort of atmospheric rock-quasi-metal that utilized a decent amount of melancholia and personal introspection. This album is their second and was released after the band had disbanded due to the untimely death, shortly after the album's recording, of their bass player Jimmy Fernandez. It came out in 94' when vinyl was less convenient and the vinyl was fairly limited in release. I did own the CD at one time and I remember that even being hard to come by back in 94.
