Cursory listens to Nine Inch Nails’ new album – the 36 track Ghosts I-IV – could reveal it to be a collection of half-finished ideas, or worse, deliberate off-cuts sold at $5 to prove that people will buy anything. Neither of these opinions would be correct. Ghosts I-IV is probably one of the most interesting and successful compositions released since Aphex Twin’s Select Ambient Works, Vol. 2 and easily Trent Reznor’s best work.

Because it lacks vocals and obvious melodies and rhythms it is firmly rooted as an ambient soundtrack, but unlike most such music, it cannot be experienced this way. Ghosts I-IV demands and rewards listening. The tracks have no titles except for their number (even SAW2 had photographic textures) so it’s up to the listener to attach meaning to each track and link them together.

14 Ghosts II begins with distorted electronic beats and buzzy guitar pads before sickeningly warped slide guitars pick up the tune, jamming around each other. That’s about as pretty as it gets – the introduction of skewed electric guitars knocks the track sideways.

Nine Inch Nails – Ghosts

around dusk
you walk the seven blocks to paradise

Sorry Kristin, for not listening to this when you gave it to the world just over one month ago.

and throw your arms around it

But, but.. it’s got a drum machine on the chorus, which leads to a wonderful play-off with the organic sounds of guitar, piano and voices: turning it from a typically reflective song into something more commanding, yet it still aches. The last seven seconds burn.

part of the cattle call to harmony

One of the (perhaps unintended) side effects of this periodic release of music is that each song now births its own universe. Unencumbered by what was released previously each can have its own style and reference. If you don’t believe me on this – check out Morning Birds.

at dawn it breaks
but much too late to wreck the night
we spun a silken effort
wrapping the day in softer company

Around Dusk (Download page)

More overtly electronic than Firefox AK’s debut, although that could be an illusion, If I Were A Melody throbs with a minimalism that demonstrates maturity and confidence. Andrea Kellerman’s voice is still duplicated or chorused as before, but this time the musical backing allows the vocals to distance themselves even further from the tunes, leading to some kind of musical capacitance, a tension that is rarely broken. The combination is almost perfect, but these missing connections and they way the melodies skirt around their obvious progressions and conclusions can sometimes prove frustrating, but on this second album we’re getting closer. Close enough to make it better than perfect. I think.

Once I Was Like You teases with two beginnings (breaks, actually) which when Andrea’s voice drops in, blend to form something more recognisable as the Firefox AK sound and is one of the many highlights of the album.

If I Were A Melody – Klicktrack
If I Were A Melody – iTunes UK

Forthcoming.

Oh my.. I’ll say it again. Forthcoming.

After years of waiting, Butterfly Boucher’s second album is now showing signs of being released. This should be the title track of the album which should turn up sometime this month. Hmm.. two conditionals. Not good.

Downbeat and acoustic, chorused vocals, with a splash of organ, percussion and some very brief, expensive sounding strings. There’s more going on than might first appear. I guess this time she’s not playing most of the instruments. Shame.

Hear it on her MySpace page.

One of the problems with owning an iPhone is that I now have an almost inexhaustible source of new music. When I’m bored and I have no RSS feeds to read, my attention turns to the iTunes WiFi Store… which is how I came across this.

Most of the track is melody-free percussion-based trance (care of John O’Callaghan – how spooky is that?), however halfway through comes a wavering slightly detuned riff which lightens the overall mood considerably, sits nicely in between the drums, and ends up driving the track further and faster than I originally expected.

The track is one of 50 (yes, 50) neatly packaged in the almost-laughably titled 50 Tech Trance Tracks, Vol. 2. Yours for £7.99. Given the calibre of many of the tracks on this compilation, it’s very good value.

50 Tech Trance Tracks, Vol. 2 – iTunes UK

Uh oh. One of the problems of discovering a new channel on di.fm is discovering new music. If that’s a problem. di.fm’s Electro House channel needs no explanation, except that it has an apparent criteria for a song’s entry. It must have a sawtooth synth lead. Perhaps I jest?

Featuring the vocals of Rayla Sunshine, this German DJ duo engineer a very housey (duh) track with aforementioned sawtooth leads. It’s especially lovely when the fifths come in – well at least I think it’s a fifth but it’s been ages since I wrote music.

I See You Watching – iTunes UK