Opal Tapes reaches for Personable and Kaumwald

Two fresh new releases are in the pipe from Stephen Bishop’s prolific label.

A casual glance at the Opal Tapes release list for 2016 so far would make a completist break out into a fever and give up on three square meals a day. Between a spread of cassettes and LPs, the ever-productive label has tackled some marvellous output including Lumisokea’s incisive Transmissions From Revarsavr, WANDA GROUP’s Central Heating, Helm & Decimus’ staggering We Will Meet At Other Human Parties and plenty more besides. As ever, the Opal Tapes machine rolls on with the news Personable and Kaumwald records are forthcoming later this month.

Personable is an alias from M. Geddes Gengras that first appeared on Opal Tapes as the second ever release back in 2012, by way of the Alternate/Other tape. He went on to share the Mirror & Gate Vol. III tape with Dwellings and Druss the following year, while also delivering some material to Peak Oil under this more spacious, dubby side-project. Kaumwald meanwhile are a duo from Lyon in France made up of Ernest Bergez and Clément Vercelletto who previously delivered Opal the Hantasive 12” in 2014 before more recently working with In Paradisum.

Now preview tracks have made their way online for the next two instalments from the ever-busy label, and unsurprisingly they’re not releases that pander to the summer months of the Northern hemisphere. Amusingly, the description accompanying the Personable release Oyster states, “Opal are so proud to release this set of four beautiful, sun filled pieces of pure electronic music.” The excellent preview track “Cormorant”, available to stream below, sounds to these ears more like a nocturnal excursion, but no less impressive whatever time of day you call it.

Kaumwald meanwhile have put together a short album of seven tracks that deal in abrasive textures peppered with dub effects and punk attitude. Rapa Nui Clan, pitched as “unifying the tabletop thrift attack of AMM or early Wolf Eyes against bold modular driven beats rich with crust,” will be coming out on the Opal Tapes label proper, while Personable’s Oyster will appear on the Black Opal sublabel.

Opal Tapes will release Oyster by Personable and Rapa Bui Clan by Kaumwald on June 24.

Personable – Oyster Tracklisting:

A1. Gambetti
A2. Window
B1. Oyster
B2. Cormorant

Kaumwald – Rapa Nui Clan Tracklisting:

A1. Ortolan
A2. Leil
A3. Rapa Nui Clan
B1. Minorque
B2. Petit Ourse
B3. Hippolyte
B4. Albert Le Thouet

Opal Tapes on Juno