Just a quick reminder that I’ll be playing Hamilton for the first time in a few months tonight! Absinthe, doors are a 9pm and I’ll have my new Chat Blanc ep available for sale for the first time.
Some Reviews of the Measures LP
http://www.earshot-online.com/reviews/DisplayReview.cfm?DiscID=80206
If you’ve seen Electroluminescent live, you know what kind of fascination it can hold. Ryan Ferguson moves from instrument to instrument, looping layering guitars, drums, keys and noise, shaping them from ambient drones to sparkling soundscapes. Live, it’s amazing, but does it hold up on album? Certainly, especially if shiny, spacey things – akin to Elivium or even something like Tsurubami – are your thing. These are songs, not formless drones; there is structure, albeit often textural and only partially linear. “Ampere” sets the mellow tone, while the “Virgin-Suicides-via-Sianspheric” of “Rutherford’s Rock” brings the tone closer to rock’n’roll. Ferguson has a wide scope of influences, but he mines them in subtle ways; even the aforementioned comparisons only hint at what it sounds like. For a guy doing something so singular, it sure is diverse. Vinyl only. By James Hayashi-Tennant May 8, 2009
http://exclaim.ca/musicreviews/generalreview.aspx?csid1=133&csid2=848&fid1=37923
Hamilton, ON musician Ryan Ferguson has been recording under then name Electroluminescent for over a decade. This may be why his vinyl-only debut LP, Measures, transports high-concept electronic music that glides along with a focus and ease normally displayed by veteran artists. From the “Moon Safari” morning dew of opener “Ampere” to the end-of-days, poured concrete of closer “Candela,” Measures delivers looped synth and guitar in seven gliding and unhurried forward movements. “3AM Rutherford’s Rock” sounds astoundingly uncomplicated, considering the intricacy of the layers fastened to the song’s original loop. “Rattle Around the Corner” and “Farad” reinterpret the blip and stride rhythms of ’90s shoegaze, while “Stained Glass in a Salt Mine” builds incessantly, blending a miscellany of noise that echoes naturally and melodically. The joy the listener may receive from listening to Measures stems from Ferguson’s fullness of influence, combined with his music’s focus, maturity and relevance. (Black Mountain)
http://www.eyeweekly.com/music/concerts/streetspirit/totallywired/streetspirit/ondisc/article/55760
Hamilton’s Electroluminescent is the ethereal opposite of Toronto’s noise scene. Like many effects abusers, Ryan Ferguson’s project is a one-man operation, but one that spreads thick layers of gorgeous, atmospheric synthesizers across vast stretches of time. Using vintage synths and copious loops, the soundscapes on Electroluminescent’s Measures echo the work of Ulrich Schnauss and, to a lesser extent, avant-space cadet Fennesz. The disc doesn’t assert itself so much as it drifts into your consciousness and patiently absorbs your attention. Suddenly, you find yourself humming along to the fuzzy melodies of “Rattle Around the Corner” or positively entranced by highlight track “Stained Glass Salt Mine” where fizzling high notes set against a brooding low drone and minimal beats play like an alternate soundtrack to Blade Runner.
http://www.montrealmirror.com/2009/031909/disc.html
Hamilton, ON’s Ryan Ferguson displays a mastery of stew-thick synth psych, from the undulating to the overwhelming. 7.5 (RB)
http://www.beatroute.ca/view_archived_article.php?id=52§ionID=4&articleID=1957
Undoubtedly recorded in the dead of night, overlooking the snowy landscape from a bay window in Hamilton, Ontario, Measures never really speaks above a whisper. Ryan Ferguson weaves ambient and electronica beats like a subtle tapestry, the very one with which one can envision him later using to cover himself and a lover as fat flakes of snow delicately float to the ground.
Only one track dips below the four-minute mark, while three of them soar above seven minutes. These are not merely tracks to consume lightly in the course of one evening. Rather, these plodding, almost droning tracks work on a more subconscious level, with grooves and intricacies that spring forth upon repeated spins. Measures is a heady album, like a strong red wine, aged in thick caskets decades ago. It is a record for the warmth of the turntable needle, for the depth it can scratch into the soft vinyl. Measures is the opiate of the evening, no cooking required.
http://www.emorageimagazine.com/article.php3?id_article=1162
(4/5) Electroluminescent est le pseudonyme derrière lequel se cache Ryan Ferguson, un jeune multi-instrumentiste de Hamilton, en Ontario. Le groupe est formé d’un seul homme mais sonne comme s’il était une formation de 6 ou 7 musiciens !
Measures, une parution vinyle unique et limitée à 500 copies, est le fruit d’une première production « officielle » après la sortie de plusieurs CDR, compilations et mini albums. On y retrouve une musique space, post-rock, electro, kraut-rock, ambiante avec des tendances shoegaze et psychédélique. La plupart des compositions débute par une série de répétitions de sons, puis tranquillement, on y ajoute d’autres sons, des murs de guitares, de la basse, de la batterie et tout prend forme graduellement. Le monde imaginaire d’Electroluminescent est coloré, rêveur, hallucinant et parfois déroutant par sa répétition quasi hypnotisante. Certains croirons que ce n’est qu’un de ses projets de studio qui ne tient pas la route en concert, mais détrompez-vous, parce que Ferguson est deux fois plus épatant en concert, alternant d’instrument en instrument pour vous pondre une mini symphonie de son cru. On peut entendre dans son orchestration quelques électroniques, de la guitare avec de multiples effets, de la basse, de la batterie et de vieux synthés analogues.
Un album qui s’écoute merveilleusement bien de A à Z. Tranquillement, le jeune musicien se fera une niche dans la scène canadienne et bientôt vous entendrez de plus en plus parler de lui. Une belle découverte.
There are lots more out there, I’ll round them up when I get some time.
Measures LP Mailorder Info
Measures LP order here:
North America $15 usd
Europe $19 usd
Asia, Australia and South America $20 usd
Video From Christ’s Church Cathedral Show
You can watch the entirety of my set from Hamilton’s Christ’s Church Cathedral right here. The sound in Part 1 is a little muddy but the rest of it sounds pretty good considering it came off the camera’s built in mic..
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Live Set Available For D/L
First post, thought I’d put up a treat, my live set from an Ottawa show a couple of weeks back, guitar can be a bit hard to hear at times but what do you want for free!?
Thanks to Brad for recording the show!
Ryan
http://www.sendspace.com/file/udtbps
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