Hellbus

Genre Alternative: Alternative General

Summary Opinion

I have a feeling that most here know more about Kulamafi / Hellbus / Can?t Stop The Daggers, than I do. My sense from digging around is that Kulamafi is Jon Partelow, a member of the group ?Can?t Stop The Daggers' (live performing group) and Hellbus. Hellbus seems to be the a seed bed of ideas, recordings and live takes that might or might not get passed on to Daggers or some others. However, nothing on the Hellbus side is half baked; everything comes out of the musical oven well done and still cooking, so to speak.

I find it very hard to listen to all this music. Reasons: Firstly, there is a lot of it. Secondly, I usually listen to all and bypass the ones that don?t grab me very quickly, but everything I hear is drawing me in. So I will recommend one from each incarnation although I could easily recommend 5 or 10 songs:

Hellbus
Table Fate
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=5942814

Can?t Stop The Daggers
Go Driving Fast
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6276002

I had - ?We don?t know a thing (about outerspace)-quirkish? selected but the link is gone.

If you are like me and for some strange quirk in the musical universe have not heard this music, then do yourself a favor and take a day to listen. Get your strongest stimulant beverage, clear your hard drive for download, but do not read the Daggers bio page (that could take the whole day).

We are dealing with accomplished musicians who create and perform at the highest levels. They have recognition, but I am feeling not enough since no matter how I twist my dial on the radio or click my tv changer, they are not showing up on the media radar. I mean really what is wrong with the music industry (maybe this is why the large media companies are doomed to go the way of other dinosaur-like behemoths).

Anyway, Jon states in his offering that this song ?Slow Down? is a song ?most in need of outside feedback?. Well I can give critical feedback; not much in the way of anything negative, but some suggestions will follow.

Jon states that this is an example of a guitar number ?for my own stripped down shows around Phoenix.? This piece is defined particularly as ?maybe something in between led zepp, the black keys and a dash of jethro tull but definitely an early one off take of it.? Oh yeah, I can tell you? listening to this I am back at the Fillmore East in the late 60?s, a slightly smoke hazed youth sitting in the upper loge. Music was looser then ? it was perfectly ok to change lyrics, go off on a tangent, repeat verses forever. Not that ?Slow Down? has that kind of looseness, but it does have the live performance, play it ?as it moves you? feel that can catch you up in the intimate expression of feeling.

Production

I have something to say here in production, but maybe it is more a suggestion that has to do with performance. It seems pretty silly for me to say this for the reasons that I am not a singer and Jon is obviously a real singer (I mean spirit and voice are entwined in an impressive combination). But particularly in this song as recorded, I would have recommended a vocal warm-up before recording. I say this only because the opening verse feels strained. For the rest of the song, the voice has bloomed? so it did not take much to open up the pipes. Compare the first rendition of the ?make an effort to be better? verse to the next occurrence; there is a notable difference.

I am only saying this because the first time I heard this song ? I started by thinking ?OK this is good,? then 15 seconds later saying ?Wow, this is great.? I am thinking this way because Jon is obviously talking about live performance and I learned my lesson many years ago about live performance. Either you warm up properly before performance or you do a warm up piece.

Forgive my asides, but I remember one group I was member of in the early 70?s. We used to do acoustic music featuring a great deal of finger picking and picking styles. We usually opened a show playing an intense number, but for the instrumentation there was more rhythmic strumming than picking. No problems. But we had a pretty dynamic picking number and one time we decided to open with it. Not a disaster but as I looked around the stage I could see the band members struggling to hit their parts and in as much pain as I was. Hell, we never warmed up, but then we never opened up again with something like that.

I also recently saw a documentary on ?Meatloaf? and was struck by the vocal preparation he has to go through to perform his ?rock opera? numbers. It was called ?In Search of Paradise.? He is very impressive in the way he keeps going, but it seems a bit brutal in the ravages of that kind of performance.

Hmm sorry back to production. Here is Jon?s description of the production:

?Used an Avalon 737 and a n-tlm103 placed in my closet pushed to the edge of super hot. Then, I sat out in the main bedroom and played and sang from there. The goal: to add some character to a one take..also ran a line in on the guitar. Shooting for a retro, inside the speaker cabinet vibe.?

Well, this is impressive production really. I say this because he captured the sound of a live large stage performance in his bedroom. This really is in part is due to the excellent use of reverb with the perfect touch to give a sense of space without calling attention to itself. Not only the voice, but the acoustic guitar is so balanced as to add to this effect. Jon could be the sound man for his own performances, he is that good.

I usually don?t give grades but A+.

Music

No way to separate music from performance here. I am sure if you looked at the chord chart, you could not produce this performance.

You have the great production, the voice that is perfect for this power driven song and the open tuning sounding guitar sliding and hammered with authority. Yes, I am taken back to a time when we would all be jumping up and cheering at the end of this number ? after some silent intense listening.

I am beginning not to like the word ?retro? though. This is only because the use of this term implies that a style or sound quality of particular type of music is bounded by time. I say music is timeless. If you don?t accept that, then you are doomed to have the same relation to music as your parents ? you know what I mean. Never close yourself off from great music because you feel it is in the past or in the future, for that matter. This has nothing to do with Jon other than I noted the word ?retro? in his description ? so I took this chance to get on my platform and rant.

Content

Here we have a song that really contains an enigma. After all, the song is called ?Slow Down? and there is a theme that says since you only have a limited time here, ?slow down? from the frantic nature of you life to appreciate what is passing.

Then we have the last line ?don?t slow down? or at least in the lyric sheet. There is a slight problem because in the recording, this last line is a bit muddy and it is hard to say if the ending line is a mistype or intentional. I like to think the line is intentional because it is an excellent use of the song writing technique of reversal. It would then be saying, sure slow down to appreciate something but also increase the pace of meaningful things to get the most out of your time.

You might note that in true live performance mode, Jon does not always stick to the wording of his lyric sheet, but nothing of the meaning or lyricism is lost.

Many of the songs from Jon and his band members deal with the problems of the pace of life and the sheer meaninglessness of the things we do to pass the time. I know so many people will respond to such themes ? hmm but I wonder if anyone is really changing their lives. One can only hope that powerful exhortations to do what is meaningful can have an effect on some lives.

I usually address my reviews to the artist, but in this case I’m going to adopt a more formal tone, because Jon’s work always impresses me and summons my eloquent powers. Ahem…(clears throat and strikes a pose)…

Jon Kulimafi has a beautiful touch on the keys and a really fine talent for developing tunes that linger in the air like a bracing mist or floral perfume. His vocal work is emotional and authentic; with a jagged tone that engages the ear and complements his work very well. The voice is always slightly acidic; the music slightly sweet; the result is a baked Alaskan contradiction, an aural oxymoron, that really, really works well.

The tune in question, ‘No Brakes,’ triggered those remarks, but it is true of all of this artist’s non-instrumental work. (His instrumentals are exceptional, too, but that's another subject.) At the moment we have the privilege of hearing work that is rawer than it is Jon’s wont to display. These are rough sketches of songs, and like the line drawings of a good artist make interesting visual studies, these make for fascinating ear candy. What we hear is a strong bedrock of musical competence and inventive skill. I encourage people to listen to these tracks before Jon spiffs them up. This guy is good.

There are two ways to make a vocal hook, or refrain work. One, what I would call the dominant method, is to build to the hook, so that the hook is the unquestioned high point of the tune. In such instances, volume effects and voice all usually cooperate to make the hook shine – as it were. (Think ANY Elton John tune.) The second, what I would call recessive method, is to fall into the hook. In this method the hook is understated, almost incidental – tossed off as it were. That’s what Jon has done here. When this works, and it does here, the effect is to create a very reflective mood. It’s a great touch because the song is reflective in the extreme.

Ever since Jon’s marvelous track ‘Lift’ I’ve been alerted to an emerging lyricist with really, really strong skills. That song made me cry. (Okay, so if you think that’s sucky, then you are cut off at the neck and not alive.) When Jon’s lyrics work, they really work. This is poetic stuff. The tone is serious but not preachy. It’s a lament, but not a love lament: a life lament, I guess you might call it. It hasn’t the visceral power of ‘Lift’ but it is a mature reflection and – of course – it’s not a finished product yet, either.

It will be interesting to watch these songs develop into their full potential.

Posted: 25 Mar 2006 01:49 am    Post subject: Steve Gilmore Reviews: HELLbus - Lift **MUST HEAR**         Reply with quote
-----------------------------------------
Artist: HELLbus
Title: Lift
Link: here OR Download
-----------------------------------------

Charles Dickens wrote a book all about people like me. The words 'tight', 'fisted' and 'mean' are casually thrown around in my presence, along with some choice swear words indicating a fascination with fornicating with various objects. I prefer the term thrifty myself, prudent even. After all, I ALWAYS wait until the moths are dead before opening my wallet. Anyway, the reason I'm banging your aural bits about money is that my first experience of HELLbus revolved around money. Specifically the wodge of wonga required to own the delights of a track called Table Fate (January 2006). It had the dubious honour of being the first Soundclick track I had reviewed that people had to pay (99c) to own. I was itching to unload a diatribe of lengendary proportions on some unsuspecting rube who had tried to foist a musical abortion on us unsuspecting victims. As it happened, I never got the chance. Table Fate is a devastatingly good track, and worth every penny of those 99 Red Balloons.

No, hold on, that's not right is it?

No such shenanigans with this track as you can see by the download link and I strongly urge you to do that and clutch this little beauty to your bosom. The thing that most impressed me about Table Fate was the sheer production and arranging skills and that same quality permeates Lift. This is an artist who takes great pains to make everything just so, then allies that with great songwriting nous to come up with songs that are interesting, different and very, very refreshing. Lift is that rare thing, a wordy song and the music fits that stream of conciousness feel beautifully. Considering the lyrical overload, you'd imagine the track would go like the clappers to fit them all in. However, it's one of those lazy bastard tracks that sounds as if its just got out of bed, and only when the chorus kicks in does the whole thing take off. HELLbus have blown my ears off twice in a row now and with the same tools every time.

There are a few electronica artists around Soundclick who surprisingly enough have a highly developed pop sensibility (Adam Fielding is one who springs immediately to mind, melv is another) and HELLbus show all the hallmarks of that trait. There is an epic, large scale approach to this track so - outside of the chorus - don't expect to crack it straight away. It's a track that will take time to work its wonders on you, but I have no doubt it will do that. Skill is one thing, talent is another. Most musicians have one or the other but HELLbus has bags of both. Just take a listen to the opening few bars of this track, once you get pounded by that beginning, it's a sure bet that you'll make it to the chorus and believe me no-one is gonna survive that chorus. Absolutely as good as anything I've heard on SC or anywhere else; HELLbus has made a significant impact on me in the space of two tracks, all gained because of a mind boggling combination of talent and musical artistry.

Modern Pop in the finest tradition. I defy anyone to resist this chorus. MUST HAVE.

At a whopping 14 MB this download isn't for the faint-of-heart, but the results are well worth it. If you are on Dial-up, get hold of a download manager like "YSIGet" to handle the song for you.

This song is clearly in the commercial arena - and bears a heavily synthesized production reminds reminiscent of Trevor Horn's work with Seal on tracks such as "Kiss from a Rose".

This song relies heavily on the time honoured I-bIII-bVII-IV chord sequence, but makes use of the power therein.

The standout here are the vocals - reminiscent of some of the older U2 tracks produced by Daniel Lanois.

The synth noises are great - if somewhat familiar - and the care taken on tracking is well evident here - a well-crafted contemporary sound.

The ending is a little weak - after all the effort on the production it sounds like the plug was kicked somewhat indifferently. Fade out or big bang please.

But I guarantee that this track would arouse the interest of any record company worth their salt.

Excellent indeed.

A new name to me, HELLbus are 'a genre blending project' which as many of you know happens to be right up my street being a well known bender (of genres that is)... OK, the less said about the connotations there, the better I say. HELLbus appears to be a one man band, in this case one Jon Cockner from Phoenix, who does pretty much everything you hear on the track. I have to admit my heart sank a bit when I noticed that no matter how much genre bending was involved that Hellbus's genre classification was in electronica but hey, what's in a name when you are busy bending eh?

It's also worth stating that downloading this track will cost you 99 cents or it's counterpart in your local wonga. No, don't cower so, I'm not about to launch into a diatribe about Soundclick's new pish-posh selling policy or the need for people to charge for music. Life's too short for that one, innit? It just means, of course, a MUCH more rigorous review is demanded. After all, even a halfway decent track sounds like a good download when it only costs you the time to download. Easy peasy in this day and broadband age. However, when you have to shell out smackers for it, the track better by DAMN be good - and produced to the same exacting standard as any available so called commercial music. Good job then that HELLbus took that fact into account and delivered a (as we say in reviewland) corker, red-hot 80's flavoured electropop mixed to a serious perfection.

Shit, even I would pay for this track, although I might have to bicker about the price a bit being a well known cheap bastard. Over the years I have listened to and reviewed more music than God, and I am extremely picky about singling something out as being extra special, but Table Fate has that in every single way there is. Think of cross between OMD (Orchestral Manouvers in the Dark), Howard Jones and every other 80's wonders, mix in a modern style and musical knowledge, lay on some great vocals then subject it to one of the classiest mixes it has ever been my pleasure to hear. If this is home produced, I am totally gobsmacked - not a word I can utter and HELLbus are the real deal - a commercial bargain. If this is the calibre of tracks this artist is capable of, I'd be turning cartwheels until sunset whether it was a free download, a give it to charity download. I might bicker about pricing it a bit but this shows that is worth every penny...and...centime....peso... On the other hand, this is a free stream on lo and hifi and I couldn't urge you strongly enough to give this a listen. It's also the reason why I say this track is a Must Listen and you make up your own minds about the fee for downloading.

Must Listen, d'ya hear? Off with you then....

It seems every time a modern group tries to do electronic-pop with Male Vocals they end up sounding like Depeche Mode, Erasure or New Order... Although I like all those acts, I am pleased that HELLbus manages to sound rather like... themselves. The song sets a great mood and the vocals feel very much a part of the arrangement without taking a back seat..

This has got a sort of early 80s post-punk / electro pop feel to it, which kind of took me by surprise. It's a lot more sophisticated than the stuff of that era, cos obviously, a lot has changed since then in music technology. It's an odd one cos it reminds me of quite a few bands: Blondie, St Etienne and Sleeper, to name just three.

The synth work is quite subtle and very melodic - I love the sweeps and filters and the backing strings. I love the way it all just blends together... fantastic. The production is absolutely spot on. The drums give it a proper retro touch too. This is really growing on me in an alarming way...

Fucking class.

10/10

this is the 2nd track from Hellbus I've had a chance to listen to. Straight from the offset you can see this to be quite a bit different to "Stars". The beat is much more up beat and it has a whole playful vibe about the track. The beat is great, especially once it gets going, the synthlines are very good also, the bassline does it's job to. To me this track has a great feel to it, I like it alot tbh, I can just imagain flying around the final fantasy world on the back of some huge dragoin to this, the feilds and lakes and trees flying at top speed below me, an awesome feeling to be honest. Great melodies, great vibe, great track.

Score: 10
lowlights: can't pick any, I'm in love
highlights: the whole vibe this portrays

Wow this sounds to me like what the Smashing Pumpkins would sound like if they were electro. This is even better than your last one. Spot on production, nice fat drums. Plenty going on to hold interest. Brilliant, love it! I don't normally give out scores but if I did this would get a 10. One of the best tracks I've heard on here. Buzzed of it!

Ah, this is a beautiful track. Mix is a little dry, use a little more verb. Love that piano. Very creative, I like this allot. Just enough variation in the drums without overdoing it. Nice minimal feel. Developes nicely without getting borring. Some great effects in the background. Brian Eno would be proud. Great track, full marks.
Just one thing though [ducks], it does sound a bit like a bank commercial. Sorry, it's a great tune, i seldom get to hear anything melodic on here so this makes a great change. Quality. Cheers!
Looking forward to your next one. Take it easy.

the panning during the intro was pretty cool.....the guitar work thruout was amzing.....grear use of fxs on the guitar sounds.....the beats sound very live....r u playin the drums?

the melogy is indeed very beautiful....very U2 types....buzzed off it man....lovely track......it rocks!
the production is again pretty tight....dont really see any flaws...

really wanna hear it with vocals .....do let me kno when u get the vocals done....

score:......8.5/10.....HOT HOT!!!!

b1

Ok, this is a superb sounding track from the off. Sweeping, swelling, floating majestic chords fill the scene whilst a distorted guitar effect fills the musical space.

I love the stuttered guitar melody which then follows with the subsequent beat too, simply great. I like the way this continues to build atmosphere and then drops off to give way to distant chord structures, great use of loud/quiet then back to loud contrast here.

This whole piece has a very 'spaced out' feel to it. Listening to it on headphones I don't feel 'enclosed' or 'trapped' by the music, but it feels very 'wide' through clever use of stereo and musical structuring.

This track would make an excellent backing track though my only criticism would be for its length it feels a little underdeveloped. Maybe a little depth added later on in the track would enhance it.

This is well chilled, with a positive uplifting atmosphere, cool.

nice balance of sounds, production is spot on. plenty of variation, keeps the interest buzz going.

cool spot fx to add the icing on the cake, good stuff!

great work man.

keep it up!

Hellbus
Table Fate (Billy?)

Instrumentals have long been one of my pet hates on SoundClick. Many artists see them as an excuse to say a song is “experimental” or to basically do absolutely nothing with the song. The main purpose a song has is to give the listener enjoyment, inspiration or in rare instances, both. Hellbus, admittedly, wouldn’t usually go for an “alternative” review as he usually dabbles in the delights of electronica (a genre which is especially guilty of the ‘do absolutely nothing with the song’ part of the introduction above), but he made the right decision in doing so.

The first thing that struck me was the depth and quality of sound. There was real melodic richness right from the off, whilst also keeping with a good rhythm and a sense of ambience with the higher sounds. There is a perfect blend, musically and production-wise of high and low and this is always characterised when a song is very listenable without there neccesarily being a clear melody.

As I often say with great instrumentals such as this, it would be a killer track with a few lyrics, in fact it would sound like a track by the Killers with the right vocals – although this is often the hardest part hence why so many choose to leave them be.

That said, I cannot pick any faults with this track – it is a very enjoyable listen and is layered brilliantly in such a way that with each new listen, a brand new sound leaps out at you. Although there are a lot of effects such as flange, none of this is overdone. It would be great to hear what Hellbus uses to make his songs.

One Listen Wonder or Musical Genius?
You’ve probably guessed that this is not a one listen wonder! Although I feel it is impossible to give an instrumental song of this type “musical genius”, it is bloody good! It is the type of music which you can leave in the background or listen to attentively, you can listen soft or loud, and for me that is always a great sign.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Melodic Development (out of 20) 18
Instrumentation (out of 20) 19
Originality (out of 15) 10
Structure (out of 10) 9
Recording (out of 5) 5
Enjoyment (out of 5) 4
Unique Sound (out of 5) 3
------------------------------
Total (out of 80) 68
Total (out of 100) 85

Yeah, it's all fun and games until the review is about YOUR stuff.
Okay, honestly I see 6 + minutes on the track and I'm thinking, "Buddy, this better be good."

The synth/guitar line - arpeggio, kicking in at the 1:00 minute mark is reminiscent of “Baba O’Reilly” – that mini-classic by Townsend and company.

Okay, nice groove. Very nice. I’m bopping along for sure…not a pretty sight. Be glad there is no video of what I’m doing. 50 year olds bopping is just gross. There’s this lady in our church who gets up to dance. I always want to leave at that point. She looks like a drunk chicken, but since you don’t know who I’m talking about I don’t even need to feel penitent about saying this.

Back to your song…ooh, yeah, nice beat. I begin to see why you didn’t post the lyrics. They seem to be in scarce supply. I could write a vocal melody to this in my sleep; it would just flow. Mind you, it wouldn’t be about a hell-bound bus, so you might not care for it.

It’s 5:25. Time flies when you’re having fun. Good track. Every now and then I hear a rhythm based – as opposed to melody based – instrumental and actually like it. This is one of those times. It takes a really nice groove to make it work. This has that. Good stuff, guy. Best of luck.

Know what? I’m streaming a second time just because it’s so cool. That happens with maybe 1 out of 3 songs, but – with me – it happens with maybe 1 out 10 instrumentals. I’ve been free-styling lyrics for this…a lot of fun. If you hear a similar song from me in the near future just sue.

My first exposure to the somewhat ironically named Hellbus was with the pastoral electronica of '4 O'Clock Sun', a calm, multi-layered instrumental in the mold of Boards of Canada. Hellbus mixes in dub reggae informed themes to create some outstanding examples of the new direction of modern electronic music.