E*Rock - 'Triforce V.1: Geomagmetic Mind Feed'
[animalpsi.com] US

10 Sep 07 - CD-r, Review
An offshoot of the northwest's Collective Jyrk, Audio Dregs Editions is the work of E*Rock, multimedia visionary extraordinaire. I suppose the “Editions” aspect of the imprint is handmade packaging and discs, as opposed to legit releases out of straight Audio Dregs. Check out the WEBSITE – crazy! It’s like Sweden up there in Portland. The work of E*Rock the artist is crazy too. His latest contributions are the ‘Optic Force Trilogy’ of 12 minute, 3” DVDrs featuring loco video art and a tame by comparison soundtrack. Utilizing kaleidoscopic effects and arbitrary audio to enhance the sensation, the first brief segments of 'Triforce V.1: Geomagmetic Mind Feed', include color-saturated video loops of a bag-headed dancer and a vertiginous four-square of a breaking shoreline. The bulk of the disc, however, consists of accumulating layers of MS Paint-quality animations devouring each other over the backdrop of live video, characters occasionally materializing from the pixilation much like the work of Paper Rad (E*Rock relation?). As with this other renegade outfit, designs emerge with often delightful results for the dedicated viewer. Seizures, and lots of them, appears to be the sole motivation of the movie, as growing blocks of solid color fill the screen among digital Rorschach patterns - the sleeve is right to warn the susceptible viewer, as well as the dummy who tries to shove the little disc into a tray-less disc drive. This is a bumpy ride! In paper covers with color art paste-on and little comics of art, each limited to 100.

E*ROCK - Conscious
LULLATONE - Computer Recital
[xlr8r] (US)
Portland, OR, long one of North America's prime fiefdoms of indie, is slowly becoming known for a particular brand of electronic music, fusing pot-rock instrumetnation with delicate digital manipulations. E*Rock, founder of Audio Dregs and publisher of Thumb zine, offers lo-fi collages of guitar, drums and found sounds like Frippertronic pop on the verge of coming unglued. Labelmate Lullatone's Compuer Recital, taking cues from Christoe Charles, beads curtains of bell tones that ripple like blown glass. Perfect for waking up to-every alarm clock should come equipped with these vanila-sky sonic motifs.
-Philip Sherburne

E*ROCK - Conscious
[avant.folk] Spain
If we left to a side the irritating teletubismo of Dim Dim, the catalogue of Audio Dregs is of which it would recommend from first to the last reference. Structures moved away of the conventional thing, electronic caretaker, spirit lo-fi, folk, understood and almost always pop affluent minimalismo at heart. e*rock is one of two halves to the control of this seal of Portland (other half is its brother, person in charge of the best disc of the seal to date, Parking Lot Music, under the name of e*vax). Its disc of debut is Conscious and combines all the virtues that have made of his almost 50 references to date buys safe for the lovers of the contemporary pop electronics. A full world of noises, crujidos, polirritmias, low line of deep, impossible cuts, curls, notes of melodía between the innocent and the nostalgic thing, filters, guitars folk and, mainly, the imagination and the talent necessary to put all this in order. That is indeed the factor differential, and there it is where e*rock gives the stature: in giving to order to all this a priori matter nothing moldable and releasing it in form of round song.

E*Rock - Conscious (audio Dregs/ADR048)
[de:bug] (D)
(rough translation from German by google)
E*Rock, the old killer, that excavates these small generic term cures beads again and again for its own label audio Dregs and before the publication again with the steamer to Panama and back lets it drive (is not completely so far from haven country), so that they are also correctly beautifully marvelous then. E*Rock thus makes clear now finally its Debutalbum and, my God, somehow seems everything saved. Already with the first TRACK "Living, Breathing, etc.." one could spend well and gladly a few years, too prettily is those again and again on-praise-sent melodies with lemon taste. But "Conscious" continues much, is pleased, if Colleen at the guitar clean-comes, only for several minutes so before itself dudelt, in order to then open for this astronauts the window. There it makes for also nothing, if times a clay/tone a little does not go beside it, which remains unclear or other sounds, to main thing the disk with the Querfloetensamples goes the brook down and to that sometime times happen should, can we these CD here ausdwendig and then is it also all the same. Somehow tenderly and cautiously. In front of what does the play clock probably fear have?
-Thaddi ****

E*Rock - Conscious
[allmusic]
With Portland's Audio Dregs having become something of a standard bearer for easy on the ear electronica since its establishment in 1998, it comes as something of a surprise to find that Conscious is the debut solo album from label manager Eric Mast, who has evidently been otherwise occupied with A&R and an expansive illustration portfolio. That said, this time has evidently been well spent, earning his stripes writing soundtracks for animator Mumbleboy as well as collaborating with Eric Diaz, as Carpet Musics, and Staubgold's Harald Ziegler. Like label mates Inkblot, Supersprite and Dim Dim, the music is far from the madding crowd of traditional techno - E*Rock riding not on an inflexible rhythm or bass track, rather it grows organically from an organic swell of real instrumentation, where shoe-shuffling clicks and shakes of the rhythm section snag upon snippets of flute, guitar and the occasional vocal inflection of Colleen French. The resultant album is as sublime as can be, with the 40-minute running time over in what feels like a heartbeat.
-kingsley marshall

E*ROCK/conscious
[autres directions] (France)
E*Rock is an activist of which we appreciate the talent, and this whatever the sphere of activities. Highly skilled graphic designer, founder of the marvellous Audio label Dregs and realizer of the not less marvellous fanzine Thumb, his capacities musical already conquered us via two collaborations published by his care: with Harald Sack Ziegler first of all (Mind Have Master 3"cd), with Eric Diaz then (project Carpet Music, with fantastic the first Weekday album). E*Rock delivers today its first album solo, Conscious, where he likes to scatter in many musical universes, such as us suggested them already them (good) varied tastes of which he makes proof through Thumb. Here shouldered of Colleen French (collaboration crossed on v/a - Grounded Sound) to the guitar, the flute or the song, it offers a handle of radiant compositions where rhythmic cracking and software support mélodieuses loops in the tender heart. With Living, Breathing, etc, with the synthetic horns which evoke the Home of Teamforest, it is a sumptuous pastorale opening which E*Rock offers to us. Far from the pure frequencies of Carpets Musics, its art has fun old stories poppy light and bucolic, sometimes acidulated, or even bruitists (larsens introducing "Before Life And After Life"). The tablecloths rare, or are camouflaged there behind an orchestrated jungle of beats and gimmicks various. Many samples is answered (cries of gull and voice of Colleen on "Them What Do") on notes of Bontempi and other toys musical. Especially, Conscious charms by its diversity, its fluidity and its softness. Far from all electronica German poseuse and contemplative, the music of E*Rock is surprising and disturbed, it moves, chahute, trembles, is astonished itself. It saw.
-stéphane

E*Rock, "Conscious"
[loop] Chile
the 2003 E*Rock, Co-director of Audio Dregs next to E*Vax, remove to its album debut in whom they converge his taste by the melódica electronics, next to instruments like the guitar, sintetizadores, live percussion and registries of the atmosphere. In this disc Colleen French on flute, guitar and voice and Horseradish tree Barnett also in guitar participate. The simple presentation of the title page, in charge of the own, shows agreed to an almost infantile design, naive and with the music that sets out to us: Calm subjects, inoffensive atmospheres, a candy flauta, its character folk and spyings of galactic rock as in "Pink hoists, blue lens". "Conscious" austerity freckle, but hurgando by the vericuetos of?People live there [ now ] glimpses analogical experimentation and noises. Eric has much subtility at the time of choosing the tones and timbres, as well as the interference of the recordings of field [ rain sounds, voices ], to create an atmosphere in this disc with fine, imperceptible details, where rather she looks for the evident gentleness before and the predictable thing. Text Guillermo Escudero

E*ROCK "Conscious" (Audio Dregs) CD
[Other Music] NYC
E*rock, brother of E*vax, has been spending most of his time covering vanguard melodic IDM artists in his magazine "Thumbzine", and doing trademark child-like cover designs for his own Audio Dregs label. With "Conscious," we get to hear a little bit of his audio perspective. While some of the Audio Dregs stuff can be a bit raw (i.e. DimDim ), E*rock's tracks are more in the contemplative, playful and melodic side of things... The feel is similar to the playful/naive sound of Karaoke Kalk, with occasional cold beat excursions. Lots of toy piano sounds, synthesized flute (synthesized??-ed), chirps and syllable samples flow through faux-acoustic drum pads, and melodic feedback. There's a slight similarity to Marumari, except the toy instrument quality makes the music much more down-to-earth. There's also more of a loyalty to hip-hop in the tempo, and the way the beats creep and bounce contrast nicely with the sweet melodic bits... Music that's raw, childlike and playful: just like his drawings. [SM]

E*ROCK - CONSCIOUS
(Audio Dregs)
[vital weekly]
Portland's E*Rock has released a melodic piece of sound design. Small, unfiltered blips and careful beats with the inclusion of wind instruments by guest Colleen French. Opening with the unconsciousness of 'Living, Breathing, etc.' this is a welcome audio sideshow, crafted for slacker artists everywhere. It just moves like liquid, whispering of fine grooves and confident quietude. There are certainly moments here that may have been originally paved by Dr. Seuss, tiptoeing around the Meredith Monk infused 'Them What Do' with breathy voice and silly toy-like sounds. But unlike other recordings that are steeped in humor as the primary catchy concept, here there is a cerebral blend of other drifting passages which counter frivolous levity. 'Lightest Blue' is a bit too light, and veers in the dayglo spontaneity of 60s psychedelic folk rock, making it a bit of a square peg here. The flute draws too much attention to itself and masks the sounds in a way Mr. Rogers might wish you a happy day, neighbor. The bright 'Shrink Ray' plays with Microstoria-like impulse, with a hint of an awkward lost female voice. The backwards playing darker drone compliments the baby-crib mobile like sparkle instead of countering it. There is some modulated sound warping going on throughout 'I Was Thinking of Things To Draw' - in many ways paying homage to latter day Parker Bros. and Milton Bradley. This is the most fun you may have outside of a thematic thrill ride this Summer. E*Rock doesn't exactly 'rock' instead they make an attempt to caress your sense of play, making your eardrums luminous and wide open to the power of its suggestion. (TJN)

HARALD "SACK" ZIEGLER & E*ROCK: Mind As Master 3" [Grooves #6]
Strange little five-track collaberation between Ziegler, who has a long history in the underground "tape scene" of the 80's, and ADR regular E*Rock, complete with mini-comic book. Not unlike sampler pranksteres V/VM or Stock, Hausen & Walkman, the pair utilize a series of semi-annoying sampled loops that are all designed to stick in your head and bug you long after ther mini CD has run its course. A slightly detuned organ tone is particularly insinuating, but there's also such gems as a man getting whipped and a half gurgle/half scream from some unidentifiable animal. (Sean Portnoy)

HARALD 'SACK' ZIEGLER & E*ROCK "Mind as Master" (Audiodregs) 3" CD [OTHER MUSIC]
Nice, simple collaboration that takes the form of an upbeat, twittery and abstract Kung-Fu lesson. No, really! With similar aesthetics to Ziegler's Sack & Blumm project (only not so serious), or the E*Vax record (E*Vax is E*Rock's brother--and vice versa). Electronic keyboards and tweaked Kung-Fu movie samples ('hi-yas' and cartoonish arm and leg movement sounds, rather than dialogue) makes it sound like, to me, some of the first Stock Hausen and Walkman records, only, frankly, better and less chaotic. Comes packaged in tiny, very low-tech comic. 15 minutes and five tracks. Frolicsome and cute. [RE]

 

Harald "Sack" Zeigler & E*Rock-Mind as Master
[static beats]
My only other experience with the Audio Dregs label is with their fantastic E*Vax releases so before I even listened to this release I was expecting something in that sonic neighborhood but upon first listen I was confronted with a sound that would be more at home on the A-Musik, Gargarin, or Gefriem labels instead. 'Mind As Master' takes a page right out of the recipe book that Felix Kubin has been using for the past few years - mix playful melodies from vintage instruments, a smattering of light percussion, and add some odd looped vocal bits. Cut into 5 pieces and serve on a 3" CD/EP. An amusing release once I got past my misplaced expectations and one that fans of Felix Kubin, A-Musik, Gargarin, etc should enjoy.
-lance@inaudible.com