Art Of Noise // Sonic Cathedral Recordings

As a companion piece to our recent review of the new compilation from Sonic Cathedral records Cathedral Classics Vol. 1 we asked label boss Nat Cramp to create a mix exclusively for TLOBF. Obviously, a man with as much love for music as Nat jumped at the chance and a week later he delivered a single mp3, all flawlessly mixed with some of the most serene, ambient shoegaze you are ever likely to hear.

Think of the 80 minute mix as an added bonus to the Cathedral Classics album currently available to buy here from our favourite record store Pure Groove for a bargain price of £8.

We’ll hand you over to Nat, as he takes you on a brief history of the label and guides you track by track through the mix.

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When I started Sonic Cathedral as a club night to celebrate shoegaze back in 2004, there were lots of records from the ‘classic’ era (roughly 1988-1992) that I was keen to play in public. I also realised that there wasn’t an endless supply of these, as many of the bands were not exactly prolific: My Bloody Valentine famously released just two proper albums and Ride a mere four (and two of them you can pretty much forget about). So, to get around a possible lack of material I added the premise that we would also be celebrating the “influences and inspirations” of the scene, which allowed a lot more flexibility on the decks and, over the four and a half years since, has led to quite an idiosyncratic selection of music being played, taking in everything from bluegrass to dub reggae. This approach has also influenced the releases on the label, which are not just pale retreads of what’s gone before, but more forward facing.

This non-stop mix (hey, I’m not Soulwax, but I’ve tried) is an attempt to reflect of the broad church that is Sonic Cathedral.

mp3:> Sonic Cathedral: ‘Art of Noise Mixtape’
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To start we have the instrumental version of Syd Barrett‘s ‘Golden Hair’ (as covered by Slowdive on their 1991 EP Holding Our Breath, more of which later). Obviously, Syd wasn’t a shoegazer, but his whimsical psychedelia and very English qualities were clearly a big influence on the scene (and judging by his liking of stripy T-shirts, not just for his music). Following his death in 2006 Sonic Cathedral hosted a memorable tribute night featuring rare films and bands covering Syd songs.

Seefeel‘s ‘Climactic Phase #3′ is the opening track from their 1993 debut album, Quique. It’s one of the most perfect blends of shoegaze atmospherics and dance dynamics you’ll ever hear. You really should own this record.

Mark Clifford from Seefeel’s remix of the Cocteau Twins‘ ‘Feet Like Fins’ comes next and, despite only taking snippets from the original, it retains all of its oddness and otherwordliness.

Next up is Ulrich Schnauss‘ ‘Gone Forever’, the opening track from the German electronica genius’ landmark album A Strangely Isolated Place. Ulrich is definitely in the ‘inspirations’ category I mentioned above and, as a result of Sonic Cathedral, we have become friends; he did wonderful mixes of the Mark Gardener and Daniel Land & The Modern Painters singles and has played and DJd at Sonic Cathedral more times than I care to remember.

Sandy Denny‘s beautiful ‘Listen, Listen’ clearly isn’t a shoegaze song (despite the added reverb), but like a lot of folk and country music it has a similar melancholic, minor key quality. I know that Ulrich is a big fan of this kind of thing and surely it’s no coincidence that Moose ended up roping in the pedal steel and Slowdive morphed into Mojave 3?

There’s an Ulrich connection to Faith Over Reason‘s beautiful ‘Lullaby (Mother Love)’ too – he bought me the album it’s taken from, Eyes Wide Smile, from a record shop in Norwich when we did the Sonic Cathedral tour together last year. It’s a collection of demos, but they’re very accomplished and there’s a lovely cover of Nick Drake’s ‘Northern Sky’ on there too. Interesting fact: singer Moira Lambert provided the vocals on Saint Etienne’s ‘Only Love Can Break Your Heart’.

Next up two Boards Of Canada tracks for the price of one: ‘A Moment Of Clarity’ and ‘Peacock Tail’, both taken from the duo’s last album The Campfire Headphase. Such is their influence and elusiveness they’re almost like an electronica version of My Bloody Valentine, not least because surely a new album’s due by now?

The ambient beauty of Stars Of The Lid‘s ‘The Daughters Of Quiet Minds’ is almost classical in its scope. Just one of many amazing records released by Kranky (Bowery Electric, Labradford, Deerhunter) over the years.

Japancakes‘ version of ‘Sometimes’ comes from their song-for-song cover of Loveless. A lot of people violently hated that record, but I don’t know why; if anything it brought the beauty and simplicity of the My Bloody Valentine original to the surface and made you appreciate it even more. I’m a sucker for pedal steel anyway, but I loved it so much I got two remixes (of ‘Soon’ and ‘Touched’) done and put them out as a single to coincide with the MBV dates last summer.

Along with Hope Sandoval, MBV’s Colm O’Ciosoig features on the Bert Jansch (yes, more folk) track ‘All This Remains’, which would sit nicely on the wonderful Warm Inventions record, Bavarian Fruit Bread, that the two released a few years ago.

The picture and fonts on the cover of Rafael Toral‘s ‘Wave Field’ pays homage to Loveless, but the music is much more minimal – just amp drones that ebb and flow.

‘Ponce De Leon Blues’ is from Beachwood Sparks‘ final EP, Make The Cowboy Robots Cry. They reformed for the Sub Pop anniversary last summer, so hopefully they’ll get around to making a new album soon. I’d say they’re my perfect band, like a shoegazey Flying Burrito Brothers…

…speaking of which, Acetone‘s cover of the Burritos’ ‘Juanita’ is so beautiful it doesn’t even need the words. If you can find a copy of I Guess I Would, the mini-LP this is taken from, do yourself a favour and buy it.

I fell for Miranda Lee Richards‘ original version of ‘Life Boat’ because of the pedal steel again. When I put it out as a single I thought that Neil Halstead would be the perfect person to remix it, but I didn’t anticipate him setting the song adrift on an ocean of feedback and distortion. I’m glad he did though.

Mark Van Hoen was a member of Locust in the early-’90s. He, Mark Clifford from Seefeel and Neil Halstead apparently used to live together – surely a key influence on the sparse, electronic sound of Slowdive’s final album Pygmalion. ‘You And Me Inside’ is from Hoen’s 1998 album Playing With Time.

Engineers were one of the new bands who inspired me to start Sonic Cathedral in the first place. Their second album is – finally! – coming out this July, but ‘Said And Done’ is from their debut, which is one of those albums that will still be talked about as a landmark in 20 years’ time.

More folk next in the form of Ramblin’ Jack Elliott covering Tim Hardin’s ‘If I Were A Carpenter’ (also tackled by Engineers on their Folly EP, another essential purchase). Is it just me who thinks that the keyboard drones and tablas on this aren’t a million miles away from the likes of Spacemen 3?

Eat your heart out Bobby Gillespie and Kate Moss – Slowdive did the best ever cover of Lee Hazlewood & Nancy Sinatra‘s ‘Some Velvet Morning’. The original’s pretty good too and inspired another Sonic Cathedral tribute night, featuring Dot Allison, The Tamborines and more, following Hazlewood’s death in 2007.

Finally, we end where we began. Syd Barrett‘s original ‘Golden Hair’ mixed into the coda from Slowdive‘s Peel Session cover version recorded in March 1991. The perfect ending…

Tracklisting in full:
Syd Barrett – Golden Hair (Instrumental)
Seefeel – Climactic Phase #3
Cocteau Twins – Feet Like Fins (Mark Clifford Remix)
Ulrich Schnauss – Gone Forever
Sandy Denny – Listen, Listen
Faith Over Reason – Lullaby (Mother Love)
Boards Of Canada – A Moment Of Clarity
Boards Of Canada – Peacock Tail
Stars Of The Lid – The Daughters Of Quiet Minds
Japancakes – Sometimes
Bert Jansch featuring Hope Sandoval – All This Remains
Rafael Torel – Wave Field (Radio Edit)
Beachwood Sparks – Ponce De Leon Blues
Acetone – Juanita
Miranda Lee Richards – Life Boat (Neil Halstead mix)
Mark Van Hoen – You and Me Inside
Engineers – Said and Done
Ramblin’ Jack Elliott – If I Were A Carpenter
Lee Hazlewood & Nancy Sinatra – Some Velvet Morning
Syd Barrett – Golden Hair
Slowdive – Golden Hair (peel session)

mp3:> Sonic Cathedral: ‘Art of Noise Mixtape’
PC: right click and choose “save as…”
MAC: CTRL + click and choose “save link as”