MATER SUSPIRIA VISION Crack Witch (Living Tapes) lp 15.98
As we mentioned in the review of the MSV 7" a while back, for a genre that seems to be the NEXT BIG THING, actual physical recordings are surprisingly difficult to come by. Which is maybe the point, much of the musical output comes in the form of tracks on SoundCloud, videos on YouTube, as super limited cd-r's or downloads, and most of the bands have names that are essentially un-Googlable, all symbols and shapes, A's become little black triangles, or three stylized crosses becomes 'Ritualz', etc, hard not to become intrigued, or obsessed, and we most definitely seem to be both.
Salem was the first glimpse the mainstream world got of this strange new genre, a sound that somehow melded blown out lo-fi synths, minimal electro, twisted samples, old school goth, minimal techno, slowed down Southern style chopped and screwed hip hop, choral vox, big beats, into something distorted and murky yet weirdly epic, a sound that the creators described as Witch House, but has also been dubbed grave rave, zombie rave, cave rave and is sometimes lumped in with nu-gaze and chill wave and other outsider electronic micro genres. And Salem is the shit, hell, we made it our Record Of The Week, how could we not, it was and IS one of the coolest record of the last few years. But if Salem are the young witch house upstarts, ramshackle punks legendary for their chaotic live performances, yet who somehow managed to make what is possibly THEE defining record of the genre, and if groups like oOoOO and Balam Acab are crafters of a witch house that is more melodic and dancefloor friendly, then Mater Suspiria Vision are like some mysterious bearded witch house council, the masters of the scene, black cloaked figures that live in a cave somewhere, never glimpsed in the flesh, only via their transmissions, mostly amazing, twisted, fantastically fucked up YouTube videos, mini horror epics, always accompanied by MSV's dirgey, haunting soundtracks, often releasing 3 or 4 in a single day. No idea where these guys are from (Kabul?), if it's one person or a group, male or female, the mystery only adds to the appeal, the imagery, the videos, and the music, which even in a genre defined by it's 'witchiness' manages to be seriously dark, and grim, creepy and scary.
Originally released as a super limited cassette tape, Crack Witch has now been resurrected on vinyl, by the newly launched Living Tapes label (run by the guy from outsider black metal weirdos Yoga by the way), and is probably the best witch house document since Salem's King Night. But MSV's witch house is something else all together, something all together more EVIL sounding, not sure if it's that they're conceived to accompany videos, but they also tend to be super cinematic, just check out the opener "Call Of The Witches", thick buzzing ominous synths, strange snippets of foreign language dialogue, strange spaced out stuttery beats, a stumbling groove, terrified shrieks, sobbing and weeping, everything reverby and echoey, and then an awesome dizzying blast of strange processed melodies, backward synths, almost like Teenage Filmstars style witch house, totally tripped out and seriously sonically scary.
"Evil House Of Forbidden Fruit" offers up big echoey beats, strange heavily effected vocals, the sound super distorted and crumbly, stuttery and rhythmic, underneath mysterious melodies swell, subtle synths pulse, all building to a crunchy corrosive climax. "House Of 7 Witches" is all swirly and shimmery by comparison, until the shimmer is buried beneath an avalanche of heavily delayed beats, and buzzing synth squelch, the beats getting louder and more distorted, careening back and forth, eventually totally obscuring all the other sounds. Finally, side one finishes of with the much more subdued "Wtxchs (A Suite Of Decay), with a low slung groove, wreathed in skitter and hiss, crackle and buzz, and some ominous reverbed female vocals courtesy of someone called Shazzula, the result a sort of warped witchy Portishead, downtempo and lo-fi, a grim ghostly ballad, that quickly splinters into a noise drenched cacophony, all thick synth buzz and glitched out electronics, buried vox, swirling effects, all draped over a skeletal beat, buried in the mix, a lurching dubnoise creep.
All of side 2 is taken up by the 24 minute epic "Trip 2012", a darkly cinematic epic, cobbled together from what sounds like bits of film music, as well as snippets of dialogue, but super reverby and echoey, like a sonic fun house mirror, it's not until about 3 minutes in that the synth drops, a thick, buzzing, snarly bit of wheezing chordal crunch, the various shards of delay and echo coalescing into a sort of beat, again weirdly reminding us of the most far out Teenage Filmstars jams, a sprawling, dubbed out dronescape, every single note, every melody, every voice, transformed by malfunctioning effects into streaks of otherworldly sound, like a way more dubbed out Wolf Eyes in places, a sort of heaving, crumbling industrial crunch, but way more spaced out, and ominous, more creepy and cinematic, and WAY more witchy.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES! Super striking eye popping full color covers.
MPEG Stream: "Call Of The Witches"
MPEG Stream: "Evil House Of Forbidden Fruits"
MPEG Stream: "House Of 7 Witches"

BELONG Common Era (Kranky) cd 14.98
There are certain sounds we can just never get enough of. Belong have always trafficked in one of those sounds, a blurred, bleary washed out droney, druggy drift, everything hazy and gauzy and pixelated, crumbling melodies, slow shifting textures, like old pop songs broadcast through broken transistor radios, or alien transmissions distorted by millions of miles of space and millions of years, every song some sort of dizzyingly smeared blown out, hushed and haunting dronescape, all thrum and shimmer, rumble and whir. It's a sound practiced by others for sure, but there is most definitely a pantheon, a royalty of sorts, and alongside Tim Hecker, Philip Jeck and few others, so too do sit Belong.
It's been maybe 5 years since their last proper full length, the gloriously abstract and distorted loveliness that was October Language, and since then, they've released a single 4 song ep, a record of covers, but of course utterly transformed, the very poppiness of the originals buried underneath layer upon layer of murk and grim and buzz and crunch, and again all stretched and blurred and smeared into these fantastical miniature epics, these avant pop flecked drones, warm and whirling and completely mesmerizing.
Looking back now, listening to Common Era, Belong's brand new full length, it's easy to say, that those covers were already hinting at a sonic shift, a move toward something more traditionally pop, a gradual approach to something more structured, more overtly pop, but the 'pop' of those songs is WAY removed from the pop found here, for Common Era has taken all that fantastic shoegaziness and shimmery ambience, and wrapped it around real and proper pop songs. Simple propulsive percussion, minimal guitar jangle, swaths of swirling keyboards, hushed breathy vox, everything reverbed and echoey and washed out, a sort of eighties style new wave minimal pop, but of course in the hands of Belong, it becomes something more ethereal, ghostly, ephemeral, druggy and dreamy.
Imagine My Bloody Valentine crossed with Tim Hecker crossed with Felt, maybe stir in some of Ariel Pink's idiosyncratic faux FM radio pop, and that's these perfect abstract, minimal chunks of lilting jangle, often buried in billowing clouds of warm swirling FX and softly distorted shimmer, but just as often, with much of the noisiness peeled back, leaving just some pure pop, and even then, it's muted and muddied, like it's being broadcast from some rift in time, a sort of blurred transmission from the past, pretty fantastic. Some of the tracks get downright spacey too, a sort of kraut flecked hypnorock, the takes the minimal repetitive psych of groups like Moon Duo or Wooden Shjips, and slathers on tons more echo and reverb, wreaths everything in blurred synth swirls, and fuzzy low end pulses, and lets the songs just sort of ooze and drift and hover, gradually becoming less and less pop, and more loose and abstract and woozy and washed out and dreamy. But ALL the tracks on Common Era never fully give up the pop. For all the droniness, and the minimal FX drenched soundscapery, this is essentially a gorgeous, albeit, strange and mysterious, pop record.
The funny thing is, since these guys are on Kranky, and their last few records were more minimal and droney and avant, this record will essentially be considered art, a sort of high brow minimalist pop music, or some sort of dronepop, and so, of course, all the folks who love everything Kranky, will no doubt dig this like crazy, as they should. But had this been a super limited cd-r, or been released on Not Not Fun or maybe Olde English Spelling Bee, this would be hailed as THEE lysergic lo-fi minimal bedroom pop jam of the year. WHICH IT IS. Too. In fact, Belong have managed to somehow make a record that's both a strange druggy lo-fi pop record, and a super abstract avant bit of poppy droney prettiness. And we LOVE it.
MPEG Stream: "Come See"
MPEG Stream: "Never Came Close"
MPEG Stream: "A Walk"

BELONG Common Era (Kranky) lp 14.98
There are certain sounds we can just never get enough of. Belong have always trafficked in one of those sounds, a blurred, bleary washed out droney, druggy drift, everything hazy and gauzy and pixelated, crumbling melodies, slow shifting textures, like old pop songs broadcast through broken transistor radios, or alien transmissions distorted by millions of miles of space and millions of years, every song some sort of dizzyingly smeared blown out, hushed and haunting dronescape, all thrum and shimmer, rumble and whir. It's a sound practiced by others for sure, but there is most definitely a pantheon, a royalty of sorts, and alongside Tim Hecker, Philip Jeck and few others, so too do sit Belong.
It's been maybe 5 years since their last proper full length, the gloriously abstract and distorted loveliness that was October Language, and since then, they've released a single 4 song ep, a record of covers, but of course utterly transformed, the very poppiness of the originals buried underneath layer upon layer of murk and grim and buzz and crunch, and again all stretched and blurred and smeared into these fantastical miniature epics, these avant pop flecked drones, warm and whirling and completely mesmerizing.
Looking back now, listening to Common Era, Belong's brand new full length, it's easy to say, that those covers were already hinting at a sonic shift, a move toward something more traditionally pop, a gradual approach to something more structured, more overtly pop, but the 'pop' of those songs is WAY removed from the pop found here, for Common Era has taken all that fantastic shoegaziness and shimmery ambience, and wrapped it around real and proper pop songs. Simple propulsive percussion, minimal guitar jangle, swaths of swirling keyboards, hushed breathy vox, everything reverbed and echoey and washed out, a sort of eighties style new wave minimal pop, but of course in the hands of Belong, it becomes something more ethereal, ghostly, ephemeral, druggy and dreamy.
Imagine My Bloody Valentine crossed with Tim Hecker crossed with Felt, maybe stir in some of Ariel Pink's idiosyncratic faux FM radio pop, and that's these perfect abstract, minimal chunks of lilting jangle, often buried in billowing clouds of warm swirling FX and softly distorted shimmer, but just as often, with much of the noisiness peeled back, leaving just some pure pop, and even then, it's muted and muddied, like it's being broadcast from some rift in time, a sort of blurred transmission from the past, pretty fantastic. Some of the tracks get downright spacey too, a sort of kraut flecked hypnorock, the takes the minimal repetitive psych of groups like Moon Duo or Wooden Shjips, and slathers on tons more echo and reverb, wreaths everything in blurred synth swirls, and fuzzy low end pulses, and lets the songs just sort of ooze and drift and hover, gradually becoming less and less pop, and more loose and abstract and woozy and washed out and dreamy. But ALL the tracks on Common Era never fully give up the pop. For all the droniness, and the minimal FX drenched soundscapery, this is essentially a gorgeous, albeit, strange and mysterious, pop record.
The funny thing is, since these guys are on Kranky, and their last few records were more minimal and droney and avant, this record will essentially be considered art, a sort of high brow minimalist pop music, or some sort of dronepop, and so, of course, all the folks who love everything Kranky, will no doubt dig this like crazy, as they should. But had this been a super limited cd-r, or been released on Not Not Fun or maybe Olde English Spelling Bee, this would be hailed as THEE lysergic lo-fi minimal bedroom pop jam of the year. WHICH IT IS. Too. In fact, Belong have managed to somehow make a record that's both a strange druggy lo-fi pop record, and a super abstract avant bit of poppy droney prettiness. And we LOVE it.
MPEG Stream: "Come See"
MPEG Stream: "Never Came Close"
MPEG Stream: "A Walk"

MOON DUO Mazes (Sacred Bones) cd 13.98
Moon Duo return with their second proper full length, and if you needed any further proof of their masterful grasp of fuzzed out hypnotic grooves, well, look no further. It's almost as if Moon Duo set out to link every one of their records together as one gigantic pulsating trip into your mind, and Mazes takes you further in. Mazes. Hmm. Like the magic eye cover for their Catch As Catch Can single, the eyeball warping artwork seems to be a perfect visual accompaniment to the awesome brain-melting confusion of the music itself.
Kicking off with "Seer", the duo conjure the hazy underwater sound they've utilized before with a rhythm that walks the line between spaced out acid rock and minimal electro grooves with some of the clearest Moon Duo vocals to date. "Mazes" offers a slight departure from the usual murk, sounding poppy and jangly in the vein of other San Francisco popsmiths like the Fresh And Onlys or the Mantles. It rides out with a sort of pre-1965 surf rock feel that makes this a perfect jam for your next sun baked road trip. "Scars" shifts the mood into darker terrain like some fractured Suicide / Doors hybrid. The heavy vibrato keeps things percolating while the organ occasionally shifts into a spooky little interlude recalling Kraftwerk's "The Model". The song also strangely makes us think of Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild", an association which is taken to the next logical step with the aggressive "Fallout". The album concludes with "Goners", a midtempo jam that makes it feel like you are walking into the perfect fadeout to an album which will remain playing in your head nonstop for quite some time. Moon Duo have never let us down, and it doesn't seem that'll change anytime soon...
MPEG Stream: "Seer"
MPEG Stream: "Mazes"
MPEG Stream: "Scars"

MOON DUO Mazes (Sacred Bones) lp 14.98
Moon Duo return with their second proper full length, and if you needed any further proof of their masterful grasp of fuzzed out hypnotic grooves, well, look no further. It's almost as if Moon Duo set out to link every one of their records together as one gigantic pulsating trip into your mind, and Mazes takes you further in. Mazes. Hmm. Like the magic eye cover for their Catch As Catch Can single, the eyeball warping artwork seems to be a perfect visual accompaniment to the awesome brain-melting confusion of the music itself.
Kicking off with "Seer", the duo conjure the hazy underwater sound they've utilized before with a rhythm that walks the line between spaced out acid rock and minimal electro grooves with some of the clearest Moon Duo vocals to date. "Mazes" offers a slight departure from the usual murk, sounding poppy and jangly in the vein of other San Francisco popsmiths like the Fresh And Onlys or the Mantles. It rides out with a sort of pre-1965 surf rock feel that makes this a perfect jam for your next sun baked road trip. "Scars" shifts the mood into darker terrain like some fractured Suicide / Doors hybrid. The heavy vibrato keeps things percolating while the organ occasionally shifts into a spooky little interlude recalling Kraftwerk's "The Model". The song also strangely makes us think of Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild", an association which is taken to the next logical step with the aggressive "Fallout". The album concludes with "Goners", a midtempo jam that makes it feel like you are walking into the perfect fadeout to an album which will remain playing in your head nonstop for quite some time. Moon Duo have never let us down, and it doesn't seem that'll change anytime soon...
MPEG Stream: "Seer"
MPEG Stream: "Mazes"
MPEG Stream: "Scars"

DUG DUG'S Smog (Lion / Get On Down) cd 14.98
And as promised last list, when we made the reissue of seventies Mexican psych legends Los Dug Dug's 1971 self-titled debut a Record Of The Week, here's their equally Record Of The Week worthy second album, 1972's Smog, now also reissued on both cd and, for the first time, vinyl! And as we said then, we love this band! Why? 'Cause Los Dug Dug's kick out jams that are part garage rock grooviness, part Beatlesy bliss, part power pop, part proto-metal, and part prog (with flute!!). What's not to love? And we haven't even mentioned the heavy dosage of FUZZ they supply, either!
Unlike the debut, which was Mexico's first rock record sung all in English, Smog is sung in Spanish, and sees Los Dug Dug's stripped down to an amped up power trio format, led as always by guitarist/vocalist Armando Nava (he's on the right in the cover picture, with the dyed grey long hair and beard, looking like some pensive psychedelic wise man or wizard). Pretty sure he's also the one playing the flute here, pumping up the progginess in a hard rock context that could kinda be likened to Jethro Tull meets the MC5, yeah, and reminds us of Italian prog faves Osanna, too.
Smog is one smokin' album, it's hard to pick favorite tracks, as they're all so good, but we'd have to mention both the lovely ballad "Voy Hacia El Cielo (Voy Hacia El Sol)" and the motorcycle revving, ecological protest rocker "Smog". Yep, just like their self-titled debut, this one's got plenty of both the heavy rockers and the gentler, poppier stuff, but leans towards the former, and seems more '70s than their first album, which had more of a '60s feel to it.
Air pollution is certainly a '70s theme, also something that any band based in Mexico City would be concerned about, and the title Smog gives this a heavier vibe than if they'd called it something like Flowers & Incense, eh? In keeping with their new style and attitude, they do a Spanish-language remake / update of the debut's frantic garage beat number "Let's Make It Now", stretching it to almost 12 minutes, as a totally progged out, flute-fortified five part suite, now titled "Hagamasolo Ahora (2a. Parte)", while retaining all the energetic excitement of the original. The energy level of this entire album is exhilarating, there's a couple pleasant acoustic numbers but otherwise it's quite rough, rhythmic, and riffy.
As we said when we reviewed the reissue of the debut, we've listed this album (and several others by the band) before, but it was always tough to keep enough of 'em in stock, they were Mexican imports and never reliably available, seemingly going in and out of print in quite random fashion. Hopefully these new editions will be around longer, and remain easy to stock. Also, these reissues are the very first time we've seen any Dug Dug's reissued on VINYL, yay!!!
As with the self-titled debut, the new cd version of this comes packaged in a handsome plastic-protected miniature lp style sleeve, complete with obi strip. Other than the text on the obi, there's no liner notes for this reissue, which we're told is a result of the difficulties inherent in licensing a release like this from a major label (it's owned by Sony BMG). In any case, we're glad it got reissued again, at all, and it's nice enough! Sooo recommended, equally up there with the debut, maybe even better, especially for folks who dig the cowbell-knockin', fuzz rockin' action.
MPEG Stream: "Smog"
MPEG Stream: "Yo No Se"
MPEG Stream: "No Sosmos Malos"
MPEG Stream: "Voy Hacia El Cielo (Voy Hacia El Sol)"

DUG DUG'S Smog (Lion / Get On Down) lp 17.98
And as promised last list, when we made the reissue of seventies Mexican psych legends Los Dug Dug's 1971 self-titled debut a Record Of The Week, here's their equally Record Of The Week worthy second album, 1972's Smog, now also reissued on both cd and, for the first time, vinyl! And as we said then, we love this band! Why? 'Cause Los Dug Dug's kick out jams that are part garage rock grooviness, part Beatlesy bliss, part power pop, part proto-metal, and part prog (with flute!!). What's not to love? And we haven't even mentioned the heavy dosage of FUZZ they supply, either!
Unlike the debut, which was Mexico's first rock record sung all in English, Smog is sung in Spanish, and sees Los Dug Dug's stripped down to an amped up power trio format, led as always by guitarist/vocalist Armando Nava (he's on the right in the cover picture, with the dyed grey long hair and beard, looking like some pensive psychedelic wise man or wizard). Pretty sure he's also the one playing the flute here, pumping up the progginess in a hard rock context that could kinda be likened to Jethro Tull meets the MC5, yeah, and reminds us of Italian prog faves Osanna, too.
Smog is one smokin' album, it's hard to pick favorite tracks, as they're all so good, but we'd have to mention both the lovely ballad "Voy Hacia El Cielo (Voy Hacia El Sol)" and the motorcycle revving, ecological protest rocker "Smog". Yep, just like their self-titled debut, this one's got plenty of both the heavy rockers and the gentler, poppier stuff, but leans towards the former, and seems more '70s than their first album, which had more of a '60s feel to it.
Air pollution is certainly a '70s theme, also something that any band based in Mexico City would be concerned about, and the title Smog gives this a heavier vibe than if they'd called it something like Flowers & Incense, eh? In keeping with their new style and attitude, they do a Spanish-language remake / update of the debut's frantic garage beat number "Let's Make It Now", stretching it to almost 12 minutes, as a totally progged out, flute-fortified five part suite, now titled "Hagamasolo Ahora (2a. Parte)", while retaining all the energetic excitement of the original. The energy level of this entire album is exhilarating, there's a couple pleasant acoustic numbers but otherwise it's quite rough, rhythmic, and riffy.
As we said when we reviewed the reissue of the debut, we've listed this album (and several others by the band) before, but it was always tough to keep enough of 'em in stock, they were Mexican imports and never reliably available, seemingly going in and out of print in quite random fashion. Hopefully these new editions will be around longer, and remain easy to stock. Also, these reissues are the very first time we've seen any Dug Dug's reissued on VINYL, yay!!!
As with the self-titled debut, the new cd version of this comes packaged in a handsome plastic-protected miniature lp style sleeve, complete with obi strip. Other than the text on the obi, there's no liner notes for this reissue, which we're told is a result of the difficulties inherent in licensing a release like this from a major label (it's owned by Sony BMG). In any case, we're glad it got reissued again, at all, and it's nice enough! Sooo recommended, equally up there with the debut, maybe even better, especially for folks who dig the cowbell-knockin', fuzz rockin' action.
MPEG Stream: "Smog"
MPEG Stream: "Yo No Se"
MPEG Stream: "No Sosmos Malos"
MPEG Stream: "Voy Hacia El Cielo (Voy Hacia El Sol)"

V/A Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra Vol. 1 (Sublime Frequencies) lp 25.00
Awesome! A deluxe vinyl reissue of this out of print cd!! Originally released nearly 8 years ago, this incredible compilation was one of the very first things from a new 'world music' label, head honcho'd by Sun City Girl Alan Bishop. That label, Sublime Frequencies, as most loyal aQ list readers are well aware of by now, went on to quickly become what has to be one of the exciting and varied labelsout there, especially amongst world music reissue specialty labels, which often tend toward the very mainstream. This stuff was and is anything but mainstream,dedicated to, according to the label themselves, "acquiring and exposing obscure sights and sounds from modern and traditional urban and rural frontiers". Sublime Frequencies effortlessly slipping on the shoes apparently discarded by such pioneering labels as Smithsonian Folkways, Nonesuch Explorer, et al.
And unlike previous explorers in such unheard music, Sublime Frequencies was, and is, not restricted by academic tradition or commercial purposes. The collections and compilations seem more like mixtapes, lovingly compiled, and born of a true and genuine love of the music. Every one brimming with sounds like we'd never heard before, musics culled from the cracks in the pavement of the culture makers. Through field recordings (many made by Bishop and the rest of the SF crew themselves), collected tapes and records, radio and shortwave broadcasts, Sublime Frequencies consistently manages to utterly transport the listener, capturing all the energy and emotion, the politics and the passion, of other peoples and places, via the sounds and music that are the soundtracks to their lives. And as we mentioned before, none of the artists here would be allowed within 10 miles of a Putamayo AR executive, Sublime Frequencies is the punk rock of field recordings! Or at least was. If anything, they've become the new standard by which other world music upstarts are measured, and they've set the bar pretty damn high. And it all started here.
Here's what we had to say about Folk And Pop Sounds From Sumatra, Volume 1, when we first reviewed it nearly a decade ago, and listening to it again, even now, it still sounds as fresh and exciting as it did then
Folk And Pop Sounds was assembled from cassettes acquired by Alan Bishop through trade or purchase in 1989 while traveling through Sumatra, which is located on the furthest Western edge of the Indonesian archipelago, and is big (as big as California) and widely unexplored in the audio realm in comparison with its neighboring islands to the East, Java and Bali. The disc begins with the Haba Haba Group in which a male singer is accompanied by flute, two alternating gongs and percussion and secondly by an unknown Sumatran Dangdut (crazy overdriven pop with a heavy Indian film music influence). The most immediately noticeable difference in these recordings from Sumatra to Bali & Java is the overt Arabic influence on the music. The Dangdut track even sounds similar to the music on a Somalian cd, "Jamiila" which we used to sell here years ago before it went out of print. As if to admonish us against generalizations, another later Dangdut track, with runaway Farfisa organ, pleasant arpeggiating electric guitar and female vocals sounds not dissimilar to the "keroncong" music of The Steps cd-r from Java released on Warn Defever's Time Stereo label (another big seller here way back when). While the disc may begin innocently enough, the sequencing of the tracks seduces the listener into the strange world of Sumatran music. The very Arabic sounding "Indan g Pariaman" which features a female singer whose melody line interweaves beautifully with end blown wooden flute and some more incredibly nutty buzzing electric keyboard (one can only imagine that the sound is intended to imitate a double reed instrument of old) is moved along by jovial electric bass and Casio-rhythm. The combination of acoustic and archaic electric instruments is shamelessly wonderful. Later an orchestra of sorts, complete with violin, electric organ, bass, drums, female voice leads us down a fragrant path that's oddly reminiscent of a Sun City Girls track. Speaking of which, though this one technically isn't, there are a couple of tracks on here which indeed are songs covered by the Girls, can you figure out which ones? Along with the songs proper included here, there are some great excerpts from dramas. The first instance begins with sweet flute and what's supposed to be a rooster crowing, but emulated by what sounds like an old air raid siren played through a broken megaphone. A melodramatic dialogue ensues between a terribly afflicted female and a stoic male voice. Needless to say, this one comes highly recommended! And like all Sublime Frequencies vinyl (and cds for that matter), kinda limited...
MPEG Stream: HABA HABA GROUP "Sitogol #1"
MPEG Stream: UNKNOWN "Piso Somalim #1"
MPEG Stream: PIMP RUBIAH "Sri Mersing"

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ANDERSON, MARISA The Golden Hour (self-released) cd 8.98
The Golden Hour originally came out on Mississippi Records, a fantastic disc of improvised solo guitar from a Portland based guitarist named Marisa Anderson. We dug it so much, we had her perform like at aQ a couple days ago, and WOW. Not only was she super cool, but seeing her play live was even more impressive, and got us newly obsessed with the record. And while she was here, she also left us some cds of The Golden Hour, which she released herself. And if for some reason you've yet to hear it, do yourself a favor and pick one up! You won't be sorry. Here's what we had to say about The Golden Hour when we first reviewed the lp (which is why the intro is about Mississippi, even though the cd is self released, but it's relevant, really!):
We usually hate when reissue labels put out something contemporary, often it's some modern band that's making music in a similar vein, even more often it's a friend of the label, done out of obligation, and in both cases, most of the time, said release sticks out like a sore thumb. There are exceptions, and labels with great taste, can be trusted to make exceptions when they're called for. And Mississippi is definitely on of those labels we implicitly trust. In the past, they've peppered their mind blowing catalog of killer reissues with records by Spooky Dance Band (post Reeks And The Wrecks), PDX punk rockers Sad Horse, longtime aQ fave Mirah, and now a Portland based guitarist named Marisa Anderson.
Anderson plays guitar and lap steel, and offers up a dozen gorgeous tracks of her own particular brand of Appalachia, from the noisy, reverbed, chaotic and crunchy, almost psychedelic sounding "Drop Down", to the more traditionally folky "The Night Before Last", her playing is fluid and emotional, dexterous and original, channeling the spirits of the past (Fahey, Kottke, etc.) but infusing them with the spirit of today, and her own soul and feeling, and the results are indeed really quite nice. So lovely, sun dappled back porch guitar music, with the occasional foray into something a bit darker and stormier, WAY recommended. And you can now add Anderson to the elite roll call of Post-Fahey guitar gods (and now GODDESSES!) along side James Blackshaw, Jack Rose, Richard Bishop, Ilyas Ahmed, Matt Baldwin, and the rest.
RealAudio clip: "Drop Down"
MPEG Stream: "The Night Before Last"
MPEG Stream: "First Light"
MPEG Stream: "In The Valley Of The Sun"

ANIKA s/t (Stones Throw / Invada) cd 15.98
Here comes the sizzle! We have been totally seduced by this steamy, dubby delight of a record, which pairs the detached, sexy & haunting vocals of Anika with the production and musical mastermind of Geoff Barrow from Beak and Portishead. Together they make a perfect match in creating a hypnotic, sensual sound that invokes in the listener a dangerously dazed and drugged out state of mind. Anika's vocals are like Nico's, but paired with a stripped down post-punk sound. Or like Kim Gordon singing for The Slits. The music is so spot on in its classic minimalism transporting us right back to the early '80s, bands like ESG, Gang Of Four, and A Certain Ratio, but Anika and Barrow turn the sound into something much more detached, smoky and sensual. We also hear a hints of French cold-wave pioneers, like Ruth, and the way underrated dubbed out project of This Heat's Charles Bullen, Lifetones.
For all the records that have come out in the last couple years desperately trying to capture a cold wave, or now witch house sound, Anika stands well above that crowded scene as there is something so much more impactful and singular about her vision, that's just so entrancing and mesmerizing....
MPEG Stream: "Terry"
MPEG Stream: "I Go To Sleep"
MPEG Stream: "Sadness Hides The Sun"

BEACH FOSSILS What A Pleasure (Captured Tracks) cd 10.98
Beach Fossils are proving their great debut was no fluke. This eight song follow up actually ups the ante on their songwriting and introduces a more breezy, warm and '80s influenced sound. With spring officially here (even though it doesn't feel like it), we know that summer is just around the corner and we can't think of a record we're going to be more excited to be blasting all season long. These are the kind of songs for those drives to the beach with the windows down and the breeze and the sunshine. Reminding us a bit of some of our favorite mid '80s underground pop bands like Eleven Pond, and For Against with hints of the more languid moments of '90s indie rock, tapping into the same sort of sonic energy as the Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. We even start imagining Pavement doing covers of The Smiths. What A Pleasure is indeed such a pleasure to listen to, in the way that it's so instantly familiar sounding yet with a freshness and depth that make it so new and exciting, demonstrating once again that they really are one of the best pop bands around right now.
MPEG Stream: "What A Pleasure"
MPEG Stream: "Adversity"
MPEG Stream: "Distance"

BEACH FOSSILS What A Pleasure (Captured Tracks) lp 13.98
Beach Fossils are proving their great debut was no fluke. This eight song follow up actually ups the ante on their songwriting and introduces a more breezy, warm and '80s influenced sound. With spring officially here (even though it doesn't feel like it), we know that summer is just around the corner and we can't think of a record we're going to be more excited to be blasting all season long. These are the kind of songs for those drives to the beach with the windows down and the breeze and the sunshine. Reminding us a bit of some of our favorite mid '80s underground pop bands like Eleven Pond, and For Against with hints of the more languid moments of '90s indie rock, tapping into the same sort of sonic energy as the Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. We even start imagining Pavement doing covers of The Smiths. What A Pleasure is indeed such a pleasure to listen to, in the way that it's so instantly familiar sounding yet with a freshness and depth that make it so new and exciting, demonstrating once again that they really are one of the best pop bands around right now.
MPEG Stream: "What A Pleasure"
MPEG Stream: "Adversity"
MPEG Stream: "Distance"

BEE MASK Canzoni Dal Laboratorio Del Silenzio Cosmico (Spectrum Spools / Editions Mego) lp 21.00
Chris Madak is the man behind the Bee Mask, a project with several dozen cassette releases issued over the past couple of years. Madak should also be noted as the principle behind the exceptionally curated Deception Island tape label, which had the foresight to release Oneohtrix Point Never's Betrayed In The Octagon as well as a handful of killer Emeralds related side projects. That said, not much from Bee Mask's own discography has made it through here, with blister popping electrical noise and synth sequencing seeming to be par for the course. Yet through those circuit bent experiments, Bee Mask emerges fully evolved as a master synthesist of all things elekronische and kosmische circa 1975. Canzoni Dal Laboratorio Del Silenzio Cosmico is a wonderfully varied album whose hallucinatory narratives speak to a purposeful and thoroughly intelligent design in its creation. Throughout you'll hear distinct references to the likes of Roland Kayn, Tangerine Dream (e.g. Electronic Meditations), Jean-Claude Eloy, Francoise Bayle, anything from Sky Records you could think of in the mid to late '70s, and even the more bombastic electronic interludes offered by Pink Floyd for that matter. The album opens in a more studied fashion through a sequence of carillion bell tones backmasked with a series of soft vocal grunts and gradually building set of electronic percolations, but all of this is engulfed in a tidal wave of polydactyl synth sequencing and brainfried electronic percolations only to morph again into a cavernous expanse of elongated tone and drone. The album's numerous detours and labyrinthine structures twist and devolve constantly across both sides of the record, delving into melodic phrasing in the electronic sequences only to shift deftly into plunging electrical vibrations of pulsing synth noise and delirious crescendos popping throughout.
The fact that John Elliott of Emeralds has brought this to vinyl after a release on Gift Tapes a while back should not go unnoticed. Spectrum Spools is his new imprint, released through Editions Mego, and this should be a label not to be missed. Certainly not this release, that's for sure.

BLACKWOLFGOAT Dragonwizardsleeve (Small Stone) cd 14.98
They had us at Blackwolfgoat, pretty much! We had to check it out. And it lives up to the name, in fact, surpasses it, 'cause that moniker, while suggestive of darkness and evil, is just a bit silly too, ain't it? Silly isn't how we'd describe Blackwolfgoat's droned-out heavy psych guitar hypnosis, though. Somnambulant, spacey, sinister, solitary, but not silly. Still we like the name. Also, this comes to us via the reliable stoner rock label Small Stone, a good mark of quality heaviness. And this is stoner all right, but not quite rock, falling on the more abstract and experimental, drone-dirgery side of things than Small Stone's usual fare, the shadowy psychedelic nature of this music coming closest to the label's left-fielders like Tia Carrera and Los Natas, but with a vibe that's blacker, bleaker, yet still beautiful.
The half dozen tracks here, almost all built up of looping layers of blown out guitar grind, are what sound like minimalist one-man-and-amp instrumentals, playing riffs so slow and sludgey and slidey that they're often more like waves of distortion sometimes adorned with electronic feedbacky blips... it's not just swampy, it's SwampTHINGy. It's like this Blackwolfgoat guy (we're assuming it's a guy) is just jamming out, doing his thing that maybe you too, if you're a guitar player could do, but are you? No. And maybe you shoulda. 'Cause it's pretty cool. But do you share this psychedelic hermit's black void vision?
There's enough variety across these six tracks to keep it interesting, if you're in danger of utterly nodding off then wham, what about the primitive percussive "Aspirin Forever", with crinkly noise and clanky beats, a brief interlude of weirdly rhythmic, out of nowhere WTF?-ness that threw us for a loop (or loops). That's followed by the lovely album ender "Hotel Anhedonia", a super relaxed, druggy, jangly (if something this thick can jangle), kinda poppy, mantric meandering 10+ minute solo, the cleanest guitar on here so far, as the track slowly fades out and Blackwolfgoat rides off into the the glowing sunset.
Reminds us of / possibly influenced by, the likes of Earth, SUNNO))), Barn Owl, Boris, Sleep, Davis Redford Triad, Ulaan Khol.... but (we'll repeat) especially Earth, particularly circa Phase III: Thrones And Dominions, or the Hendrix-worship of parts of Pentastar: In The Style Of Demons.
Oh, and we just checked the credits, it IS just one guy, who furthermore recorded all "songs/sounds" on this album live in the studio, with no overdubs at all.
MPEG Stream: "Death Of A Lifer"
MPEG Stream: "The Goat"
MPEG Stream: "Hotel Anhedonia"

BLOODY WALLET s/t (self released) cd-r 8.98
The first thing you notice is the super stylized metal logo, hard to tell exactly what it says, the first word is definitely probably 'blood', but the second is a jumbled tangle, looks like wall, BLOOD WALL? Or maybe Valet? BLOOD VALET? Or BLOOD VALE? Had we not known we most definitely would never have guessed BLOODY WALLET. What an amazing / ridiculous name. But as we listen to these guys, their fierce metallic crunch and sledgehammer pummel, the name starts to seem way more ominous, we're imaging some gruesome crime scene, bloody hand prints on the wall, sheet covered corpses, and in the corner an open wallet, cash spilled out, stuck in the center of a dried pool of crimson. Suddenly starts to seem like a pretty bad ass name for a metal band huh? Okay, maybe, but while some could perhaps argue with the name Bloody Wallet, now metalhead worth their salt could argue with the kick ass racket these guys lay down, it's heavy, melodic, mathy, the vibe is mostly classic metal, a little Champs for sure, but with definitely black metal shadings, the raspy hellish vokills, the churning riffage, the occasional furious blast beats, but then there's the mathy arrangements, the harmonies, the swooshing flanger effects, it's like a blackened hybrid of Iron Maiden and the Fucking Champs maybe? However you describe it, if you're in the market for some serious mostly instrumental metallic heaviness, that manages to be both brutal and melodic, classic and black, mathy and murky, with riffs that will stick in your (metal) head like crazy, duck under the crime scene tape, throw on some rubber gloves and pluck that Bloody Wallet from the floor, wipe off the blood (or not) and dig in. AWESOME.
LIMITED TO 100 COPIES. Super sweet hand screened covers, designed by City Surgical (whose Gray Panic cd-r we also raved about on the list a while back).
MPEG Stream: "Isobel"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Horse"

BLUE SABBATH BLACK CHEER / IRR. APP. (EXT.) Skeletal Coupla Remains (Gnarled Forest) lp 16.98
One of two new lps from Northwestern blackdrone heavies Blue Sabbath Black Cheer, one a split, one a collaboration.
Unlike the split (with Wicked King Wicker), Skeletal Coupla Remains finds BSBC teaming up and collaborating, and what makes that idea even more interesting is that it's with none other than dadaist soundscaper and long time Nurse With Wound collaborator Matt Waldron, aka Irr. App. (Ext.). Seems like a strange pairing, but only until you actual hear what these guys can pull off together.
Unclear if they actually jammed together, or worked in the studio, or if BSBC just sent Waldron sounds to fuck with, but however they did it, the results are pretty fantastic.
Waldron has transformed BSBC's black noise into something way more tripped out and surreal, there's still plenty of buzz and rumble, grinding low end and roiling black ambience, but there are also swooping sound effects, warped production, tinkling melodies, sounds flipped backwards, layered and then pulled apart, huge chunks of heaviness, gradually transforming into weird bits of rhythmic churn, epic swaths of pulsating synths, all spaced out and almost krauty, looped voices, twisted samples, cinematic and creepy, it's almost like some black drone Nurse With Wound, and shit, if that doesn't sound good to you, then we have no idea what would.
The B side is a single sidelong dronedoomjam, that slips from hushed minimal drift to chugging SUNN-like riffage, all tangled up with spacey synth squiggles, bleating horns, warped FX, interrupted briefly by a stretch of near silence, laced with a series of field recordings, crunches and creaks, footsteps, and some monstrous gurgling growls underneath it all.
Super cool black and white jackets, with a massive fold out poster of the same artwork, as well as a printed insert with original artwork by Waldron.

BLUE SABBATH BLACK CHEER / WICKED KING WICKER split (Gnarled Forest) lp 14.98
One of two new lps from Northwestern blackdrone heavies Blue Sabbath Black Cheer, one a split, one a collaboration.
The split is almost too perfect, teaming up BSBC with what is essentially the East coast equivalent, Wicked King Wicker, a one man doom combo who definitely traffic in a similar sort of blackened industrial droned out doom, in fact, some folks could very well have trouble telling who was who. Not us!
Blue Sabbath Black Cheer start things off with a sidelong slab of caustic black drone, a heaving slab of brutalist industrial buzz, dense, and black hole heavy, the sounds blown out, the distortion crumbling and decaying before our very ears, it's classic BSBC, that is until the surprise of the second half, where all the heaviness is pulled back, revealing a sprawl of super abstract minimal drift, a muted stretch of creepy ambience, all processed voices, heavy chunks of buzz, the sound of foot steps, distant creaks, orchestral bursts, and lots and lots of space, almost like some strange tape experiment. But somehow it sounds logical coming after that initial black blast.
Wicked King Wicker counter with their own chunk of blackened buzz, super distorted, all rumbling low end, flecked with a weird metronomic pulse, strange heavily effected voices, buried melodies, effects everywhere, almost less like doooooom and more like some sort of metalized and Merzbowized modern minimalist drone music, the sounds layered and constantly shifting, creating overtones, and fragmented bits of melody. A little bit industrial, a little bit metal, a lot drone, HEAVY, and blackened, and finally near the end, the buzzed out drone seems to coalesce into churning sludgy riffage.
Super nice screen printed covers, with a printed insert.

CARTER, CHRISTINA Texas Blues Working (Blackest Rainbow) 2lp 34.00
Originally released as an ultra limited cassette, Texas Blues Working now gets a pretty substantial upgrade, a massive super deluxe double lp version, with a 21 minute bonus track!
Unlike many of Carter's solo records, that tend toward the super hushed and minimal, Texas Blues Working is surprisingly lush, a much more sonically expansive bit of dreamlike psychedelia, her vocals multitracked and layered, the harmonies ethereal and haunting, the guitars spidery and serpentine, the overall sound ghostly and wreathed in otherworldly echo, the songs super hypnotic, cyclical and mesmerizing, often thick with reverb and delay, but sometimes spare and whispery. But even the sparest tracks seem to gradually spiral into something more lush, especially the vocals, which slip from dreamy and intimate to soaring and powerful.
"The Other Planet" sounds like some strange mix of liturgical hymn, traditional folk, and lo-fi lysergic psychedelic, her voice slipping into Kate Bush like trills, the reverby atmosphere especially thick, the guitars buzzy and bluesy. "Bird's Nest" pushes the vocals way up in the mix and adds some truly strange almost alien sounding electric guitar, the result, haunting and druggy and beautifully weird. "Dinner Plate Of Dust" is another one where Carter's angelic vocals are paired with some warped guitar buzz, the two disparate elements somehow woven into something lovely and otherworldly.
The bonus track, a 21 minute epic called "Lady Friend", harkens back to some of her other solo records, just vocals and guitar, the guitar playing atonal and Jandekian, here vocals rich and emotional, a little bit raspy, the melodies underneath skeletal and angular, a haunting bit of abstract blues, so dark and lovely.
SUPER LIMITED, already sold out at the label. Pressed on ultra thick virgin vinyl, and housed in a gorgeous heavy gatefold sleeve.
MPEG Stream: "Bird's Nest"
MPEG Stream: "Preserve Our Face"

CHALK CIRCLE Reflection (Mississippi) lp 14.98
**MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT**
Another lost seminal punk rock classic, this one from DC's Chalk Circle, an all female punk rock band (supposedly the first to record and perform in DC), who existed for a couple years in the early eighties, and played alongside the usual DC suspects, but were definitely doing their own thing, challenging the prevailing sound and gender scene politics of the day. With a sound that would fit sonically alongside groups like the Slits, Delta 5, Lilliput, Raincoats, X-Ray Spex, Essential Logic and the like, Chalk Circle combined punk rock crunch with teenage energy, raw and urgent, frantic and frenetic, loose and ramshackle, but with some killer hooks, not so much 'punk rock' as indie pop / garage pop, this stuff would have been right at home on K Records or Kill Rock Stars in the early days.
The sound varies quite a bit (as does the recording quality), from bouncy almost danceable jangle punk, to reverby new wave, fuzzy pop-punk pound to primitive off kilter pop, bass heavy almost dubby post punk to spidery skeletal pop minimalism, laced with occasional bits of extra percussion, shouted back up vox, all held together by a super distinctive style and sound, which has us thinking there are a whole bunch of folks out there that would have loved these ladies back in the day, and anyone into the current crop of female punks: Brilliant Colors, Grass Widow, Pens, Yellow Fever, Sandwitches, etc. will probably dig this like crazy!
This lp collection gathers up various tracks from compilations, live shows, demos and unreleased tapes, and includes a big booklet with photos, press clippings and liner notes by Don Fleming (Velvet Monkeys, B.A.L.L.) whose Velvet Monkeys headlined Chalk Circle's first shows.
MPEG Stream: "Reflection"
MPEG Stream: "Uneasy Friend"
MPEG Stream: "Scrambled"
MPEG Stream: "Private Lie"

CHORD Progression (Important) cd 14.98
The return of high concept ambient dronescapers Chord, a sort-of side project of post metal heavies Pelican. Chord, as their name implies, only ever play a single chord, each track a different one, this time around it's EbMaj9, Gm11 and D6. Sounds boring, but it really isn't, in fact probably most drone outfits play one chord their whole career, but this, this is something more, with each member contributing a note, the notes forming a chord, and all of them playing different instruments, different tempos and timbres, the guitars shimmer warmly, the piano (?), swirls and drifts in a sea of hazy reverb, there seems to be some burbling bass too, it's all woven into something lush and dreamy, hypnotic and mesmerizing.
When we reviewed the first Chord album, we pointed out that we had come up with the idea of a 'chord' band on our April Fool's list way back when, with SUNNO))), Earth and Boris each tackling one of the notes, to make a mighty E chord. We still like to think that's where they got the idea. We also mentioned the late great Physics, a San Diego supergroup who always played a C, long spaced out jams, with multiple guitar players, always C. But as we mentioned before, Chord is a much more thoughtful project, definitely on the nerdy side of the spectrum, I mean, they made a song called "EbMaj9", and the group is as much about concept for the players as it is about the sound, but whatever the inspiration, the resulting soundscapes play out like our favorite guitardrone records. Smoldering slow burning expanses of deep layered thrum, hazy, washed out drifts of abstract choral blur. Whereas the other record occasionally built into Sunroof!-worthy squalls, Progression seems to be much more minimal, hushed and restrained, the only deviation is near the end of the epic 40 minute "Gm11", where things get full on heavy, a crushing avalanche of crumbling, superdistorted, blur and buzz, before slipping into the final track, a surprising bit of twang flecked folkiness, wreathed in a hazy buzz, and underpinned by some FX shimmer, but otherwise, sun dappled and dreamy, and for the record, all in the chord of D6.
And speaking of single chords, the most recent Austerity Program, besides being an awesome record, did something similar, in that they only ever used one chord, for the whole record, the band was appalled that no one noticed, but it just goes to show you what someone can do with a single chord, making more with less, a concept that Chord also embody, especially considering their sound has most definitely blossomed into something much more than just a quirky concept. Really great. And WAY recommended for fans of Fear Falls Burning, Final, R.Y.N., Elm, RST, Vulture Club and other practitioners of guitardronedrift.
And just to make things totally confusing, the cd and the lp are TOTALLY different. Progressions is a single collection of songs spread out over both formats, so the record starts on the cd, and continues on the lp, the music on each exclusive to that format. So if you do want ALL of Progression, you have to buy both, although most folks would probably be fine with one or the other.
MPEG Stream: "EbMaj9 (Descent)"
MPEG Stream: "Gm11 (Pelagic)"

CHORD Progression (Important) 2lp 22.00
The return of high concept ambient dronescapers Chord, a sort-of side project of post metal heavies Pelican. Chord, as their name implies, only ever play a single chord, each track a different one, this time around it's EbMaj9, Gm11 and D6. Sounds boring, but it really isn't, in fact probably most drone outfits play one chord their whole career, but this, this is something more, with each member contributing a note, the notes forming a chord, and all of them playing different instruments, different tempos and timbres, the guitars shimmer warmly, the piano (?), swirls and drifts in a sea of hazy reverb, there seems to be some burbling bass too, it's all woven into something lush and dreamy, hypnotic and mesmerizing.
When we reviewed the first Chord album, we pointed out that we had come up with the idea of a 'chord' band on our April Fool's list way back when, with SUNNO))), Earth and Boris each tackling one of the notes, to make a mighty E chord. We still like to think that's where they got the idea. We also mentioned the late great Physics, a San Diego supergroup who always played a C, long spaced out jams, with multiple guitar players, always C. But as we mentioned before, Chord is a much more thoughtful project, definitely on the nerdy side of the spectrum, I mean, they made a song called "EbMaj9", and the group is as much about concept for the players as it is about the sound, but whatever the inspiration, the resulting soundscapes play out like our favorite guitardrone records. Smoldering slow burning expanses of deep layered thrum, hazy, washed out drifts of abstract choral blur. Whereas the other record occasionally built into Sunroof!-worthy squalls, Progression seems to be much more minimal, hushed and restrained, the only deviation is near the end of the epic 40 minute "Gm11", where things get full on heavy, a crushing avalanche of crumbling, superdistorted, blur and buzz, before slipping into the final track, a surprising bit of twang flecked folkiness, wreathed in a hazy buzz, and underpinned by some FX shimmer, but otherwise, sun dappled and dreamy, and for the record, all in the chord of D6.
And speaking of single chords, the most recent Austerity Program, besides being an awesome record, did something similar, in that they only ever used one chord, for the whole record, the band was appalled that no one noticed, but it just goes to show you what someone can do with a single chord, making more with less, a concept that Chord also embody, especially considering their sound has most definitely blossomed into something much more than just a quirky concept. Really great. And WAY recommended for fans of Fear Falls Burning, Final, R.Y.N., Elm, RST, Vulture Club and other practitioners of guitardronedrift.
And just to make things totally confusing, the cd and the lp are TOTALLY different. Progressions is a single collection of songs spread out over both formats, so the record starts on the cd, and continues on the lp, the music on each exclusive to that format. So if you do want ALL of Progression, you have to buy both, although most folks would probably be fine with one or the other.
MPEG Stream: "EbMaj9 (Descent)"
MPEG Stream: "Gm11 (Pelagic)"

COHEN, TIM Bad Blood (Captured Tracks) 2x7" 10.98
A sort of companion to Cohen's recent Magic Trick solo full length on Captured Tracks, which was less a solo record, and more of a new band record, that new band being his 'Magic Trick' who also back him up here, on this double 7", and like the full length, the sound is definitely closely related to that of his other band the Fresh & Onlys, a gorgeous collection of lush mini pop epics, that range from classic jangle, to woozy balladry, reverb drenched countryish twang to fuzzy indie jangle, bouncy, hazy folky strum to gloomy post punk pop. And the thing is, whatever Cohen and crew decide to do, somehow it works, and sounds amazing, Cohen's deft popsmithery is pretty much unrivalled these days, with a release schedule that by all rights should have made us sick to death, but instead, we can barely get enough, every new record, a new collection of perfect(ly imperfect) pop, that will remain stuck in our heads until the next batch.
There are lots of highlights here, the raspy voiced, shimmery strummy drift of "Delicate Creatures", the Johnny Cash-esque, swaggery twang flecked shuffle of "Doctor, Doctor", the gloomy new wave-y brooder "Purpose In Life", and the sixties dream folk jangle of "Rock Bottom"... Like we said, it's all good, and even still we find ourselves, hankering for more. Luckily we probably won't be waiting long...
MPEG Stream: "Delicate Creatures"
MPEG Stream: "Fight For The One You Love"

COHRAN, KELAN PHIL & LEGACY African Skies (Captcha Records) cd 11.98
We at first balked at getting this 1993 recording by the great Sun Ra disciple Phil Cohran, because (and this just may be our own particular bias) more often than not we find that great and vital jazz artists from the sixties and seventies rarely stay quite as vital as time goes on. Or perhaps it's not the artist, but the technology of instruments and recording production as well as the aging and general mellowing of the culture that seem to give the music a less fresh vibe in our minds. But we were surprisingly blown away by African Skies, a live performance at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago as a memorial tribute to Cohran's former mentor and friend who had just passed away.
Ranking up there with the best of Cohran's recordings, African Skies is a beautiful cosmic jazz masterpiece utilizing mostly acoustic instruments such as harps, flutes, upright bass, francophone, bowed piccolo bass, and trumpet with some occasional ensemble and solo vocals. Looking at the back cover, this performance looks amazing too, with performers in traditional African garb playing these amazing large harps under a surrounding backdrop of projected galaxies. The pieces are minimally arranged with hypnotic rhythms and blithe flourishes. Occasionally a plaintive trumpet makes its presence known, or a woman vocalises soulfully, but it's really all about the fluidity of the sonic undertow that is vibrantly repetitive, and elusively graceful. Cohran doesn't try to mimic Sun Ra, but to emphasize the strongest qualities that he took away from the master: Beauty, Majesty and Reverence. Highest Recommendation!
MPEG Stream: "Theme"
MPEG Stream: "White Nile"
MPEG Stream: "Kilimanjaro"

COLLINS, LYN Check Me Out If You Don't Know Me By Now (People) lp 12.98
The work of the woman who was without a doubt one of the most smoking soul sisters to come out of the James Brown camp, this 1974 album finally gets the new vinyl reissue it deserves. With 'The Minister Of New New Super Heavy Funk' Mr. James Brown on board as producer, Check Me Out If You Don't Know Me By Now shows off the fiery hot vocals of Lyn Collins, with the undisputed cream of the crop of funk and soul players backing her up. With burners like "Rock Me Again & Again & Again & Again", poppy nuggets like "Mr. Big Stuff" and emotionally rich tracks like "Put It On The Line", this is an album that displays Collins' amazing range all the while keeping an authentic core that rings so strongly through each of these songs.
An absolute must have for fans of Betty Davis, Betty Harris, Marva Whitney and the rest, and it seems likely that modern day folks who are keeping it real like Sharon Jones & The Dapkings have listened to this album a LOT. So damn good.

DER VENTILATOR s/t (Silbing Sex) 7"+cd 8.98
Didn't know too much about this Spanish combo, but the fact that they seemed to often be described as equal parts Kraftwerk and Arab On Radar definitely piqued our interest. And once we finally heard this latest 4 song blast of electro punk crunch, we'd probably add Black Bug to the equation, the same sort of urgent punked out riot grrly rrroooaaar. But instead of BB's synthpunk howl, the sound of DV is more garagey, a sort of punky Stoogesy groove, laced with bits of electronics and peppered with dueling boy girl vocals. The opening track here, "Kill D.I.Y Idols" is itself a killer, with fuzzy bass, programmed beats, caterwauled vocals, and a bad ass main riff, the tripped out FX and minimal electronics only adding some extra weirdness. In an odd way, it reminded us a little of Burzum, the same sort of lilting electronic melodies, but here wedded to some garage punk blast. Super dynamic, with some rad stop starts. "Potential H-Bomb" is more of the same, with a postpunk groove, some cool weirdly harmonized vox, some noisy chaotic guitars, and lots of fuzzed out synth blurt. "Scrawl" applies the same sonic approach to punk folk, acoustic guitar, simple drums, off key crooning, sassy female back up vox, and occasional feedback drenched squalls of noise. Finally "Lightning Field" gets back to the warped electro punk, with thick synth buzz under some frenetic programmed beats, some bloopy spaced out melodies, crunchy guitars swirls, the whole thing pretty spaced out and psychedelic, again laced with occasional blasts of in-the-red buzz and howl, everything wreathed in alien synths and fractured FX. So killer. A bit surprised these guys (and gal) aren't way more popular. Imagine it won't stay that way for long...
Super nice packaging, thick super striking black and white sleeve, with a full color printed insert, pressed on orange vinyl, and includes a cd version of the same music on the 7"!
MPEG Stream: "Kill D.I.Y. Idols"
MPEG Stream: "Lightning Field"

DIGNAN PORCH Deluded (Captured Tracks) 12" 13.98
Brand new batch of twisted psychedelic summery druggy dream pop from this oddly monikered UK one man band, and it's simply more of what we loved about the last record. If anything, this new one sounds way less lo-fi, the guitars are alternatingly warm and jangly, crumbly and crunchy and fuzzy, the vocals are multi tracked into strange harmonies, the sound simple but so sweetly shimmery, the vocals reverbed and draped over lilting major key jangle pop, sounding almost like a more home brewed bedroom version of aQ pop faves Telekinesis.
But it's not all sunshine, the band do manage to get a little bit dour and minor key now and again, and those might be our favorites, "Like It Was Again" (a redone and polished up version of a song from the first record) is total mix tape heaven, simple propulsive drumming, fuzzy jangle, sweet vocals, and a haunting Cure like melody wrapped around everything, there's also a buzzy minimal guitar solo that just sort of replays the main melody. "Stream" is another one, a brooding strummer, with creepy fields of feedback, and a gorgeous main minor key melody, the song exploding into full psychedelia, the guitars distorted and heavily effected, before slipping right back into the lope and brood. And in fact, the record gets less and less summery feeling with each listen, maybe more like a rainy summer day, indoors, the sun hidden behind the clouds, the sound a little bit gloomy and barely cold wavey here and there, but so catchy, and as much as we dug Tendrils, this one sounds EVEN better. Most definitely a new fave. And fans of the Captured Tracks usual suspects (Beach Fossils, Blank Dogs, Hanoi Janes, Minks, Soft Moon), who have yet to check this guy out, well, this would be as good a place as any to start!
MPEG Stream: "Yards"
MPEG Stream: "Like It Was Again"
MPEG Stream: "Stream"

DODOS No Color (French Kiss) cd 12.98
The Dodos continue to remain one of the most immediate and satisfying voices to rise above the crowded indie rock scene. With each subsequent record they've built on what came before, pushing it a little further every time, their sound becoming more fleshed out and fully realized, and the songs just getting better and better.
With their last outing, Time To Die, Dodos showed they could make a record that kept their frenetic energy but also really raised the bar on their songwriting capacity. On No Color, they've made an album that so perfectly melds their unique ability to sound so urgent while also being rife with such lush melodic layers, unique time changes, incredible guitar shredding, and powerful percussion, all of which really makes their songs sound like sonic marching orders to get through the mundane of the every day.
There is an epic nature to these tracks, as Dodos have the rare ability to make a four minute song sound so big and wide in scope, yet still remain grounded by an intimacy that shines through it all. It doesn't hurt that their pal Neko Case joined them on many of these songs. Alongside Pinback, they stand as one of the most substantial and engaging indie rock bands around!
MPEG Stream: "Black Night"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Try And Hide It"
MPEG Stream: "Good"

DODOS No Color (French Kiss) lp 12.98
The Dodos continue to remain one of the most immediate and satisfying voices to rise above the crowded indie rock scene. With each subsequent record they've built on what came before, pushing it a little further every time, their sound becoming more fleshed out and fully realized, and the songs just getting better and better.
With their last outing, Time To Die, Dodos showed they could make a record that kept their frenetic energy but also really raised the bar on their songwriting capacity. On No Color, they've made an album that so perfectly melds their unique ability to sound so urgent while also being rife with such lush melodic layers, unique time changes, incredible guitar shredding, and powerful percussion, all of which really makes their songs sound like sonic marching orders to get through the mundane of the every day.
There is an epic nature to these tracks, as Dodos have the rare ability to make a four minute song sound so big and wide in scope, yet still remain grounded by an intimacy that shines through it all. It doesn't hurt that their pal Neko Case joined them on many of these songs. Alongside Pinback, they stand as one of the most substantial and engaging indie rock bands around!
MPEG Stream: "Black Night"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Try And Hide It"
MPEG Stream: "Good"

DREYBLATT, ARNOLD Turntable History (Important ) cd 14.98
Musicians are an odd bunch. We used to joke that whenever you'd get a bunch of musicians together, if they ever went into some cool house, or a store, or a basement, or a bus, or a water tower, or an attic, or a yard, or a barn or really any sort of space, someone would always point out that said space "would be a great place to have shows". Similarly, as musicians discovered the musicality in everyday objects and everyday sounds, it seemed that everything and anything could be recorded and made into 'music'. Field recordings were no longer just the jurisdiction of naturalists and scientists. And it wasn't just the sound of frogs, or insects, suddenly it was melting ice, the beep of a respirator, the sound of drag racing, a zamboni, literally anything. It got to the point where we would hear something, and our first thought would immediately be "wow, if this was a record, we could totally sell a bunch of these".
Back to the odd musicians... composer Arnold Dreyblatt was faced with a serious illness, and went through a series of MRI scans, which stands for magnetic resonance imaging. You know, one of those big machines that a person is loaded into as a huge magnet swings around the body taking pictures, you've definitely seen people getting MRI's on House or Scrubs or St Elsewhere or about a million other hospital shows, and if you've ever had one, you realize it's pretty loud, a thick machinelike buzz. But if you're a musician, odd by nature, then you also think to yourself, as we most likely would, "wow, this machine makes an amazing sound, I need to record it". Which is precisely what Dreyblatt did, but this is not a straight recording, nope. Instead, he made multiple recordings of the machine, at different settings, thus creating different sounds, different tones, and then organized the recordings by pitch and rhythm and various other elements, and created a composition from these MRI recordings, and then used said composition as the sound component for an installation, which took place in a huge, resonant space, which is where this recording was captured.
And it's definitely a gorgeous set of sounds, warm metallic whirrings, pulsing rhythmically, the multiple recordings deftly layered creating fantastic overtones and subtle sonic shifts, from whirring minimal thrum, to dense swirling high end harmonies, the sound is actually remarkably psychedelic, and a little bit spacey, it's not hard to imagine something similar being created by some dude and his suitcase full of ring modulators and effects, but this, this is way more unique, the mechanical source occasionally revealing itself, but quickly disappearing into another layered pulsing cloud of machinedrone dreaminess, or throbbing metallic shimmer, the whole thing so lush and dense and fantastically mesmerizing.
MPEG Stream: "Turntable History (excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Turntable History (excerpt 2)"

EYES LIKE SAUCERS Parmalee, Tribute To A Dog (Ikuisuus / Ruralfaune) cd 13.98
We first heard from Eyes Like Saucers back in 2007, when we reviewed the record Still Living In The Desert, which found ELS, aka Jeff Knoch, fomerly of hypnotic psych folkers Urdog, abandon his band, and his friends, ditch all the usual rock band instrumentation, and head off for places unknown, with nothing but a VW van, a handful of acoustic instruments, most importantly, an Indian harmonium, and his faithful canine sidekick. That record, was a fantastic bit of hypnotic dronemusic, a wheezing, druggy droniness, whirring and shimmery and meditative, steeped in the traditions of Indian ragas and modern minimalist drone music more than the psychedelic sounds of his former outfit.
Parmalee is the follow up, and is dedicated to his canine companion, as the subtitle suggests: "Tribute To A Dog". Hopefully this is just an expression of love for his dog, and they are still wandering the wilds together. Our first assumption was that perhaps Parmalee had died, and this was a musical eulogy, the sounds are definitely dark and moody and contemplative enough to be some sort of sad send off, but either way, these are some fantastic psychedelic space drone ragas, all wheezing organs, warm whirling chords, the sound thick and lush, but definitely ragged around the edges, urgent and intimate, captivating and totally mesmerizing. It's impossible to not fall immediately under their spell. Once again, we're reminded of nineties NZ dronerockers Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos, but this is much more ritualistic, much more home spun drone folk. The rest of the record introduces strange percussion, electronic synths, chimes and bells, slipping from alien folk ritual, to spare almost Appalachian sounding strum, to sea shanty like ballad, all culminating in the gorgeous woozy three part 23 minute epic Warrigal, a lush harmonium workout, the chords and notes wheezing lazily, all sun dappled and drone drenched, the sounds so organic and hypnotic, laced with bits of percussion and tinkling chimes, so haunting and hazy, meditative and dreamy.
MPEG Stream: "Sun And Moon"
MPEG Stream: "Warrigal Part One"

FABRIC A Sort Of Radiance (Spectrum Spools / Editions Mego) lp 21.00
Fabric is the work of Chicago's Matthew Mullane, who could be seen as a one-man doppleganger of Emeralds. Not only does Mullane have an album of acoustic solo guitar work on Vin Du Select Qualitite, following Emerald's guitarist Mark McGuire in such an honor; he's released this stunning piece of liquid electronica that could fool even the most die-hard Emeralds fan. To further matters, A Sort Of Radiance had caught the attention of Emerald's John Elliott, who released the album through his Spectrum Spools imprint manufactured by Editions Mego. Present throughout A Sort Of Radiance are the percolating cosmic synths with the same classical overtures to Cluster, Fripp & Eno, and Schulze that Hauschildt and Elliott would adopt on those brilliant Emeralds records (especially What Happened and Does It Look Like I'm Here?). Even with very similar synth programing through step sequencing and hypnotic iterations of electronics, Mullane also seems to tap into the same bittersweet expressivity found on those Emeralds album. The same rounded notes which brought Emeralds' What Happened to a conclusion are reprised on Fabric's "Light Float" (an apt name for this levitational track with all of its fizzing lines of patterned electronic static), and even the harpsichord sounding electronics which girded Emeralds' near poptune "Candy Shoppe." The similarities can be unnerving; but when you forget about this and just listen to the wonderful music within... A Sort Of Radiance is a thing of beauty.

FARNETI, MICHAEL Good Morning Kisses (Companion) lp 21.00
We can always count on local reissue label Companion Records to foster the kind of rare hidden musical gem that perhaps won't appeal to everyone, but will get a select group of enthusiasts very excited over the discovery of someone's sincerely unique, but often-times misguided musical vision. Companion's specialty has always been private press vanity records, such as the Louie Louie, Charlie Tweddle, Marc Mundy and New Creation records, and for their first foray into vinyl releases have given us two quite amazing but very different musical visionaries: the latent mope-psych of Stan Hubbs (reviewed elsewhere on this list) and the spirited orchestral lounge stylings of Michael Farneti.
Hailing from South Florida and recorded in 1976, Michael Farneti's Good Morning Kisses is a brilliant head-scratcher. Indeed, it seems Farneti is channeling Van Dyke Parks, The Neon Philharmonic, Harvey Sid Fisher and Scott Walker in his wide-eyed enthusiastic and sometimes melancholic songs about Movie Stars, ESP, New York Muggers and Georgia Peaches. Without a hint of irony, Farneti exudes a wonderfully naive charm with strange (and perhaps unintentionally humorous) lyrics and sometimes goofy songs (an example: "Shower, shower, shower until you smell like a flower" on the title track). While we admit we maybe use Ariel Pink's name as a comparison too much in our reviews, it does seem apropos here, because if Ariel Pink played piano in a Reno airport lounge in the seventies, it might sound a lot like Good Morning Kisses. It definitely has the falsetto harmonies, Theremin flourishes, and washed out orchestral yacht rock arrangements that can be heard on Doldrums. Though some songs may make you cringe ("Rock Candy Roll"), there are plenty of golden moments and for fans of unique musical visionaries like the ones we mentioned above, Good Morning Kisses has a lot to offer. Limited to 500 copies. Sweet!
MPEG Stream: "Nineteenth Summer"
MPEG Stream: "Movie Star"
MPEG Stream: "ESP Switch"
MPEG Stream: "In The Jungle"

GARET, RICHARD & ASHER THAL-NIR Melting Ground (Contour Editions) dvd-r 17.98
Here's a beautiful dvd-r from Richard Garet and Asher Thal-Nir. While Garet's greysmear minimalism has hypnotized us via his previous releases, it's his visual sensibility that provides the sublime, slow-motion drama here. Asher, too, is an exceptional understated composer whose signature lines of soft-focus static gird his musical accompaniment to Garet's film. There are only a few interlocking elements to the sounds and visuals for Melting Ground, with Garet providing a single tracking shot of a series of Alaskan glaciers viewed from above by way of helicopter; and Asher's piano interludes look back to the delicate compositions of Satie, hovering above that audio snow that he so often uses within his work. The treatment that Garet gives to his film is quite remarkable, as he really does an excellent job in simulating the antique patina of a hand-cranked camera whose imperfect motion creates a pulsing flicker with overexposed flashes of bleaching white and Rorschach blots of underexposed inky blacks. Coupled with a fine coat of fabricated film-dust, scratches, and debris, the film itself has the bruised visual corollary to so many of the sounds generated out of Phillip Jeck's vintage turntables. The pacing of the film is deliberately slow, panning across enormous mountains of crumpled earth jutting out of looming banks of suspended fog and vast patterned surfaces of ice. The effect is one of a found-piece of film, uncovered from somewhere deep within one of those glaciers as an artifact from a lost team of explorers. The elegiac timbre of Asher's composition supports a similar antiquity, given the early 20th century references he seems to be making. Even the softened static that grounds all of his clustered piano notes, seem to have been extracted from the surface noise of a wax cylinder from that same time period. There is a sense of wonder, awe, fear, and beauty to this piece, one that parallels Leif Elggren's minimalist abstraction Arranging for an Opening of a Teleport to Shangri-La, which appropriated Frank Capra's early film Lost Horizon into a smear of drone and slow-burning visuals. Melting Ground's magic lantern approach to the material gives it more of a haunted, excavated aesthetic, with all of it addressing an allusion to the perils of climate change, especially in its impact upon the glaciers which hold so much of the world's fresh water. Limited to a mere 150 copies, and nicely packaged in an oversized folio.
MPEG Stream: "Melting Ground (audio extract)"

GRAVES AND ORCHESTRA PITS s/t (Utech) cd 14.98
Surprising Utech release here, not (quite) so droney as they often are, but rather more rhythmic, and in fact downright prog-rocky. Graves And Orchestra Pits are a transcontinental two-piece, one guy (based in Stuttgart, Germany) on guitars, synths, and much else besides; the other guy (from Tokyo, Japan) on drums and electronics... Not sure how they got together, but they make a fine team, stirring up a lot of noise in a quirky, confusional, chamber-prog context. The beats are big and effected, going whap whap whap, amidst all sorts of interesting textures, some of this quite lovely really. Droned out blissful bits coexist with electronic glitch, gentle strings wrap 'round crashing cymbals, snatches of electronica intersect improv skitter... each track adding something new to the sonic stew. A compelling listen, these eight unique, instrumental mini-epics of full of fractured melody, odd noises, and disturbing drumming...
The duo format, and Japanese drummer, and overall kinetic energy, makes us think of the Ruins, but this, with its "Orchestra Pits" moniker, has an additional, avant-garde classical music gone wrong atmosphere to it, field recordings and found sounds juxtaposed with piano and glockenspiel... Plus, guests contribute violin, viola, vibes, flute, sax, etc. on a few of the tracks. So it's not exactly a stripped down sound, this is dense and chaotic and complex, though calm and sparse some of the time too, to catch you unawares.
Packaged in the usual slim, slightly oversized Utech style sleeve, and limited to just 300 copies!!
MPEG Stream: "Spill The Unicorn Blood"
MPEG Stream: "Moles"
RealAudio clip: "I Can See The Ape In You"

HOMOSTUPIDS Strawberry Orange Peach Banana (Fashionable Idiot) lp 13.98
It's a little surprising that we haven't reviewed anything by these knuckle dragging noise rock punk thug weirdos, some of us are big fans, every one of their records, all twisted blasts of fractured, fucked up gnarled distorto stomp 'n crunch. Here's a list of bands, if you dig any or all of them, odds are you already love these guys too, or really seriously should: Harry Pussy, Rusted Shut, Violent Students, Liquorball, Drunkdriver, Twin Stumps, Breathilizor, Dead Meat, Billy Bao, Shit And Shine, White Mice... You get the drift, this is chaotic, noisy, punk as fuck, sub Stooges, garage noise chaos, loose and wild, and unhinged, seriously fractured and frantic, blown out lo-fi and sweat soaked, sludgey and crusty and grimy and filthy and fucking RULING.
Plus they're just bizarre, the record opens with what sounds like a long slow stroll to the studio, culminating in a quick piss, before the door opens, the guitars get louder, the band eventually stumbling into action, and what glorious, lumbering and lurching action it is, the bass thick and buzzy, the drums loose and wild, the guitars all Black Flaggy and the vocals, yelped, crooned, mumbled, multiple voices, not really harmonizing, just sort of all doing their own thing. But within all this messy chaotic rocking, these guys rip, the songs killer, the riffs bad ass, the Stooges vibe is huge, but filtered through thick clouds of bongsmoke and heaping helpings of bathtub meth, the sound shifting from warped midtempo creep, all atonal guitars and low slung bass to full bore rocking, in-the-red and on the verge of total collapse.
And the weirdness definitely extends well beyond the sound, check out the song titles, all inexplicably with some variation of 'man' in the title: "Beneath The Blackman", "Cannon Fodderman", "In The Basementman", "Nightman", "Noseman", "Sea Wolfman", etc. And what does any of that have to do with the fruit-y title: Strawberry Orange Peach Banana? Or the thrift store oil painting artwork? Who cares? All we know is we love everything about these twisted noise rock psychos, and this record is kicking our asses!
MPEG Stream: "Wildman"
MPEG Stream: "Starman"
MPEG Stream: "Nightman"

HUBBS, STAN Crystal (Companion / Gloriette) lp 21.00
We can always count on local reissue label Companion Records to foster the kind of rare hidden musical gem that perhaps won't appeal to everyone, but will get a select group of enthusiasts very excited over the discovery of someone's sincerely unique, but oftentimes misguided musical vision. Companion's specialty has always been cd reissues of vintage private press vanity releases, such as the Luie Luie, Charlie Tweddle, Marc Mundy, and New Creation records, and for their first foray into vinyl, have given us two quite amazing but very different musical visionaries: the spirited orchestral lounge stylings of Michael Farneti (reviewed elsewhere on this list) and the latent stoner mope-psych of Stan Hubbs.
Released in collaboration with Gloriette Records (Nite Jewel, Ariel Pink, and Puro Instinct), Stan Hubbs' 1982 recording Crystal is more out of its time than ahead of it. Recorded in his rural Sonoma County living room, it seems like the band almost can't decide if they're latent hippie stoner boogie-folk, eighties shred-guitar rock or progressively disaffected mope wave, which makes for an unusually intriguing sound that is hard to pin down. Hubb's vocals sometimes sung in a near monotone with female singer Kriss O'Neil can sound as much like a downer Fleetwood Mac as it can resemble some of today's gloomy pop found in Beach Fossils or Crystal Ships. But it's Larry Doyle's kitchen sink electric guitar approach that makes it really out of sync in an amazing way. Using lots of psychedelic effects and sounding like he's eager to show off his shredding licks to anyone who comes along, Doyle shows just barely enough restraint not to overstep the hazy vibe the singers and keyboards are laying down. Imagine if Simply Saucer did a cover of America's "Tin Man", and you'll sort of get the idea. But this is regionalism at its best, taking lots of big musical ideas from different popular styles and making something completely home-brewed, a bit oft-kilter and super genuine. Limited to 500 copies, comes with a full reproduction of the 16 page booklet of lyrics and drawings that came with the original release. Hot Damn!
MPEG Stream: "Joe and Gina"
MPEG Stream: "Let's Go On Back To Camp"
MPEG Stream: "Golden Rose"
MPEG Stream: "Seems Like It's A Rich Man's World"

HYPE WILLIAMS One Nation (Hippos In Tanks) lp 17.98
New mysterious lp from the equally mysterious duo, Hype Williams. Housed in a blank white 12" sleeve with a blank white label and white vinyl and no identifying information whatsoever, except for a sticker on the shrink wrap. Hell, it took us awhile to even figure out what speed it's supposed to play at and we're still not really sure. Crackly and hollowed out synth washes and bouncy but distant drum machines play in deceptively basic minimal-funk pitch-shifted arrangements that slowly wooze and morph into dreamy soul refractions. Hazy and murky like their witch-house contemporaries would be good descriptors, but it's much more of a hot muddled electro mess than spindly goth horror daydream. Dam-Funk on Nyquil, perhaps? Supposedly these songs have titles, but there is no listing, maybe if we slavishly followed the blogs, we might have a clue, but it's hard to tell where one track ends and another one starts. We don't even know which is side one or two. Hype Williams may revel in their particular brand of confounding prankishness and seem not to care if you are in on their joke or not, but if their output wasn't so curiously intriguing, we might have not given this a second thought. Truth be told, we can't stop trying to wrap our heads around it, so that's gotta be something, right?

IASOS Inter-Dimensional Music (Hearted Hand) lp 12.98
This awesome new age classic newly reissued on vinyl!! And at a nice price!!
New age. Pretty much the ultimate diss when you want to put down someone's musical taste. Or harsh on some band, or record. Tough to think of a more purely musical putdown. Sellout? Maybe. Poser? Definitely, but not necessarily musical. But New Age. Oof. Moms and Grandmas listen to new age. Yanni ferchrissakes! And with all the ambient music we love so much here at AQ, we're extra conscious of negative New Age connotations, cuz it's always a fine line between shimmery droney dreaminess and whooshy New Age schmaltz. But take our word that if you're only ever gonna buy one unabashed actual New Age album (and Andee hasn't already forced you to get some George Winston or Kitaro), then this should absolutely be the one.
Iasos was born in Greece and moved to America when he was 4, began playing piano at 8, then flute at 10. In the late sixties, he began to hear a 'new' music in his head and moved to California to try and realize this "heavenly music". And finally in 1975, he did it! Iasos 'invented' new age music with the release of 1975's Inter-Dimensional Music Through IASOS.
It's all here, tinkling piano, swooshing synthesizers, running water sounds, bird calls, maudlin melodies, fluttering flutes, crickets chirping, lots of nature sounds, thunderstorms, strange sound effects, gentle keening drones, whirling sonic washes and sweet swirls of soft focus sound. Even the song titles: "The Bubble Massage", "Rainbow Canyon", "Crystal Petals", "Clouds Prayer", Libra Sunrise." Yep, this is definitely New Age, there's no two ways about it, but if you can look past that 'stigma', this record is actually quite beautiful. And mysterious. And delicately lovely. It has lots of elements that plenty of AQ faves share, strange production, lots of fuzzy airy drones, plenty of insect sounds, bird calls, all wrapped into sweet expanses of dreamy sound. In fact if we listed this as some super limited cd-r on some upstart microlabel in Tasmania, and it had some murky forest photo on the cover, we'd sell tons, and no one would be the wiser. It's easy to forget that the modern crop of drifting ambient experimentalists owe quite a bit to new age pioneers. And let's not forget about all the pretty cool bands who either WERE new age, became new age, or incorporated elements of new age into their sound: Popol Vuh, Ashra, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Deuter, Jean-Michel Jarre, and Vangelis.
But Inter-Dimensional Music, regardless of pedigree, or genre classification, is just a dang good record. A little cheesy in places maybe but so what, hasn't stopped us from listening to this practically every day!!
MPEG Stream: " Libra Sunshine"
MPEG Stream: "Formentera Sunset Clouds"
MPEG Stream: "Lueena Coast"
MPEG Stream: "Rainbow Canyon"

INDEX Black Album / Red Album / Yesterday & Today (Lion Productions) 2cd 25.00
Index was a band like thousands throughout the '60s, encouraged by the birth of rock 'n' roll a decade earlier and fueled by the waves of British bands that would hit the American shores. This quartet was born in the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe in 1967, at a time when the country was beginning to experience the pangs of turmoil and Detroit itself could be seen almost as a microcosm of the social unrest that was beginning to unfold. The heritage of Index is certainly notable, as the lead guitarist of the band was one John Ford. While the liner notes penned by drummer Jim Valice never overtly state that John's family was THE Ford family which spawned the automotive empire; the implication is quite clear that it is. While the affluence of John and fellow guitarist Gary Francis certainly helped in getting some great gear and recording equipment, the sound of Index is one of adolescence entering adulthood with an awakening disbelief that so much could be wrong in the world. At least on their first album, Index played with an urgency that sounded like the end of the world was near, as an underlying horror of bleakness lies beneath Index's punchy garage-pop beats and spring-reverb overloaded distortion. Their amateurish production that stumbled upon a cavernous sound certainly helps with this assessment. Think Jandek trying to mimic the sound of Martin Hannett's classic production sound for Joy Division.
The band drew from the '60s songbook, covering the Byrds' "Eight Miles High", The Supremes' hit single "You Keep Me Hanging On", and The Bee Gees "I Can't See Nobody", and the band claims Hendrix as a huge influence on their sound, with an incendiary feedback encroaching into their beat pop tunes, at times coming across like Davie Allan and at others looking forward to Ron Asheton's work on The Stooges' first album. All of this came to fruition on what would become known as The Black Album, which was recorded with a single microphone in a large empty ballroom, whose acoustics gave the album its unusual sound. The spring reverb drips upon the overdriven guitar leads and forceful rhythmic guitar jangle, which for 1967 would have been pretty damn heavy. The vocal duties of Index rotated from song to song, occasionally finding all of the members singing these emphatic, if monochordal harmonies that oozed with bittersweet energy and late-teen angst. This is typified on one of Index's best songs "Fire Eyes" and furthered along through their cover of "Eight Miles High". Another great highlight of note is the proto MC5 oil'n'motorcycle grind found on the instrumental track "Feedback".
When Index recorded their second album in 1968 later pegged as The Red Album, they had picked up a sound-on-sound cassette recorder, which seemed to be something of precursor to a 4-track. Unfortunately, in this technological jump, Index lost the cavernous murk of that single microphone recording in that ballroom, but they still managed some great songs dominated by Ford's spring-reverb soaked guitars, including a reprise of "Eight Miles High". "Paradise Beach" is a wonderfully downer, '60s pop number, and "Break Out" is a spry instrumental with a fine backbeat lifted from Booker T & The MGs. The band stumbles with the one boogie-rock blues number, but otherwise, The Red Album makes for a great listen.
The second disc of this set is a collection of tracks from an unreleased third album in 1970, recorded mostly by Ford and Vallice. A paisley-pop jangle settles into the mix with less of the expressive feedback that drove so much of The Black Album, and the songs show a maturation in the vocal harmonies as well. But the band broke up with the various members torn by their commitments with college, girls, and work. So the world turns.
A highly recommended find!
MPEG Stream: "Eight Miles High"
MPEG Stream: "Fire Eyes"
MPEG Stream: "Feedback"
MPEG Stream: "Paradise Beach"
MPEG Stream: "It's All In Your Mind"

JUV s/t (Miasmah) cd 16.98
The Miasmah label has been on fire lately! Without a doubt they have become one of the most consistently dependable labels releasing layered, dark, haunting, droned out mysterious sounds. This time around the label has gone back to the '90s to unearth some amazing sounds that somehow never managed to get a proper widespread release. It makes sense that this Norwegian band's moniker means 'abyss'. The music makes the listener feel like they are floating around the charred remains of a civilization that has been doomed, yet there is still something so paralyzing and beautiful about the void and desolation.
It's so impressive that this was recorded between 1996-1998, a decade before the outburst of so many drone based recordings that we have constantly freaked out over. With a sound that is so haunted, nuanced, layered, and so perfectly executed, taking in the more ambient and creepy side of black metal and doom drone luminaries like Burzum, SUNNO))) and Paysage D'Hiver, the soundscape imagination of Philip Jeck, and the minimalist intensity of Tony Conrad and Deathprod.
Like the soundtrack to a horror movie that isn't as much about shock and awe as it is about casting a very real spell that shimmers with isolation and a beautiful kind of despair. As with most things on Miasmah, so very recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Los"
MPEG Stream: "Stue"
MPEG Stream: "Forvarsel"

JUV s/t (Miasmah) 2lp 23.00
The Miasmah label has been on fire lately! Without a doubt they have become one of the most consistently dependable labels releasing layered, dark, haunting, droned out mysterious sounds. This time around the label has gone back to the '90s to unearth some amazing sounds that somehow never managed to get a proper widespread release. It makes sense that this Norwegian band's moniker means 'abyss'. The music makes the listener feel like they are floating around the charred remains of a civilization that has been doomed, yet there is still something so paralyzing and beautiful about the void and desolation.
It's so impressive that this was recorded between 1996-1998, a decade before the outburst of so many drone based recordings that we have constantly freaked out over. With a sound that is so haunted, nuanced, layered, and so perfectly executed, taking in the more ambient and creepy side of black metal and doom drone luminaries like Burzum, SUNNO))) and Paysage D'Hiver, the soundscape imagination of Philip Jeck, and the minimalist intensity of Tony Conrad and Deathprod.
Like the soundtrack to a horror movie that isn't as much about shock and awe as it is about casting a very real spell that shimmers with isolation and a beautiful kind of despair. As with most things on Miasmah, so very recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Los"
MPEG Stream: "Stue"
MPEG Stream: "Forvarsel"

KALEIDOSCOPE s/t (Shadoks) cd 17.98
Record Of The Week honorees Los Dug Dugs aren't the only vintage psych band from south of the border that we dig, of course. Here's another, recently reissued rarity as well. The Mexican Kaleidoscope, not to be confused with the UK Kaleidoscope (a huge AQ favorite) or the USA Kaleidoscope either. Actually this Kaleidoscope was only sorta from Mexico - while record was originally released there, the band had begun in Puerto Rico, and then later moved in on the Mexican scene, via a stopover in the Dominican Republic, where this album was recorded, in 1967. Interestingly, on the back cover of the cd booklet, there's a show poster for 'em (billed as The Kaleidoscopes) that says they're from here in San Francisco, psychedelic central at the time, a promoter's claim made probably just to help sell tickets. But they did sound like they *could* have been from 'Frisco all right.
Swirling organ and guitar fuzz dominate the uptempo numbers, like garagey, groovy opener "Hang Out", and there's plenty of organ and fuzz to be heard on the more melodic, moody likes of "Once Upon A Time There Was A World", a somber eight minute opus that one. Definitely killer psychedelic pop stuff for all you "Nuggets" fans, Kaleidoscope for sure fitting in with such acts as The Electric Prunes, Strawberry Alarm Clock, Question Mark & The Mysterians, The Lollipop Shoppe, and others of the era. They seemed to specialize in the wild and unhinged, there's even a song called "I'm Crazy".
The urgent and intense "Colours", with its stinging fuzz, burbling electronics, sudden horn-honks, and desperate vocals, is especially tripped-out. Crucial lines from the lyrics: "acid colors burn my brain / I'm just insane"! Also something about the singer's delivery on that track reminds us of Mexican-American punks The Plugz (of Repo Man soundtrack fame)... That's probably the number one nugget here, a classic, but all the tracks are pretty good. One song here, with the great title of "I'm Here, He's Gone, She's Cryin'", was written by their Venezuelan pals Ladies WC, the others all originals.
This is a nicely done, totally legit reissue (they even tracked down the original cover artist), with extensive liner notes, vintage photos, and cool full color artwork in the cd booklet. It also includes 3 bonus tracks: 2 bluesy ones from a Kaleidoscope offshoot (which may or many not date from the '60s, we wonder) and a live recording of Kaleidoscope in 1969, doing Donovan's "Season Of The Witch". Shadoks pronounce themselves pleased to put this out, and they should be.
MPEG Stream: "Hang Out"
MPEG Stream: "A Hole In My Life"
MPEG Stream: "Colours"

KVELERTAK s/t (Indie Recordings) cd 14.98
It was beginning to get pretty ridiculous, for ages we were hearing all about this band, how great they were, reading about them in metal mags, hearing other metal bands rave about them, much talk of how amazing their record was, appearances in top ten lists, pictures of the super striking John Baizley cover art everywhere, even beginnings of a backlash on the blogs about how overhyped they were, but the only problem was, you couldn't find the record ANYWHERE! At least in the US, we spent months and months, trying every metal distro, every non metal distro, we had just about given up, when voila, it finally got picked up and released domestically, with a whole mess of bonus tracks to boot. So was the wait worth it? Does Kvelertak live up to the hype?
Well, yeah, actually it was. This stuff IS pretty awesome, and bizarre, a weird blend of blasting black metal and D-beat cock-rock Turbonegro style over the top rock. Just have a listen to the opening track, which explodes in a frenzy of buzz and blast and shriek, only to switch gears into a way more groovy heavy metal punk pound, the shrieked vocals the only thing keeping it from going full Turbonegro. In fact, the NON black metal parts kind of sound like a supercharged Hellacopters, which is not at all a bad thing. And the sound is epic, the production massive, the energy through the roof.
But it's that sort of heavy rock groove thing, that might deter lots of the more true and kvlt metalheads. "Mjod" is all pounding pianos and tamborines, and big rock riffage, epic and swinging, that Hellacopters vibe huge, and the vocals are shrieky, not counting the deep bellowed gang vocals on the chorus, there's even a little acoustic guitar break, and then suddenly, a stretch of blasting black metal, which slips right back into the soaring cock rocky chorus. And so it goes. Hard to tell if these guys are black metallers indulging their inner KISS (or Turbonegro, or Hellacopters, or...), or if it's just some heavy rockers who toss in a blast here and there or a little tremlo picking to add some cult cred. Cuz it is a weird mix, and it doesn't always flow so smoothly, but we're digging it a lot, and if anything, it sounds like these guys probably KILL live. And that definitely comes across here big time.
MPEG Stream: "Ulvetid"
MPEG Stream: "Mjod"
MPEG Stream: "Fossegrim"
MPEG Stream: "Sultans Of Satan"

LOCRIAN The Crystal World (Utech) lp 19.98
This killer slab of blackened ambient doom drone, a Record Of The Week here when it came out on compact disc, NOW ON VINYL!!! (But it doesn't include the bonus 2nd disc that the cd had.)
Full length number three from these black drone audio alchemists, offering up their latest sprawling epic, this one conceptually based on a JG Ballard novel about a leper colony, and the mysteriously crystallizing forest that threatens their existence. Heady stuff, but the sort of concept perfectly suited to Locrian's sprawling sonic mystery, epic and cinematic, haunting and harrowing, the music of Locrian already plays like a soundtrack, their sound evoking all manner of other worlds and alternate realities, lost civilizations and spiritual planes, underworlds and inner worlds and what lies between.
Normally a duo, here Locrian have been expanded to a trio, with an additional member contributing electronics and percussion, allowing the band to expand their sound even further, stretching out into lengthy explorations, drifting from deep buzzing drones to starry fields of glitched out electronics, swooping spacey black ambience to lumbering blackened doom, abstract post rock to churning crumbling low end dirges.
After what plays like a black metal power electronic intro, all corrosive black buzz, layered drones, distant buried melodies, howled anguished vox, and delicate tinkling chimes, the record shifts into a more tranquil blackness, the two tracks connected by those tinkling chimes, that melodic refrain, distant melodies drift beneath chant like vocals, processed guitar throb and thrum, eventually evolving into a stretch of gorgeously epic doomic plod, deep ominous vocals over keening high end melodies, subtle tribal drumming, and swirling ambience, a glacial groove that finally dissolves into a squall of white noise.
Gorgeous looped proggy guitars drift over electronic squelches, dizzying and hypnotic, multiple guitars layered into a mesmerizing harmony, eventually, another melody, and a thick crumbling distorted riff join in, drums too, and it's a fantastic bit of hypnotic chaos, laced with squealing guitars and bursts of free drum splatter.
The record unfurls an epic bit of hushed dronemusic minimalism, that also eventually erupts into some abstract rhythmic churn, looped and cyclical, all over grinding guitars and FX drenched squealing electronics, before slipping into some caustic blackened drones, abject and grim, the guitars rumbling and crumbling and super distorted, while voices wail and howl way off in the distance. Finally the record finishes with a long stretch of moody melodic doom, acoustic guitars, crooned wordless vox, swirls of psychedelic guitar, high end electronic streaks, which expand into another pounding dirge, this one strangely pretty, even the anguished vokills can't take way from the track's lilting loveliness, a hazy bit of metallic slowcore, wrapped in increasingly frantic psychguitar, before all of that fades out completely, leaving just acoustic guitar, strings and what sounds like harmonium or accordion, a darkly emotional outro, culminating in a wild tangle of frenzied freaked out strings. So good.
And like the cd version, housed in a super swank eye popping jacket with gorgeous grim art by aQ pal Justin Bartlett, aka Vuberkvlt. Only 500 copies pressed!
MPEG Stream: "Triumph Of Elimination"
MPEG Stream: "The Crystal World"
MPEG Stream: "Pathogens"

MAGICAL POWER MAKO Hapmoniym 1972-1975 (Bamboo) 5cd-box 62.00
Another '70s Japanese psych reissue treat from the folks at Bamboo. Actually this is the third time we've seen this released. First there was a set of five individual cds on the Japanese Mom 'n' Dad label in the early '90s, though those were almost impossible to obtain. Then, in 2004, the now-defunct MIO label out of Israel released 'em on slimline jewel-cased cds in a red box set. Now Bamboo has brought this amazing collection of private jams by psychedelic guru Magical Power Mako back into print, the five cds (each a single long track) packaged with a booklet in thin sleeves inside a cardboard box with new, poorly Photoshopped cover art, though featuring a suitably strange photo of, we assume, Mako himself.
We reviewed the MIO version, but didn't say a whole lot about it, 'cause "probably only people who've been looking for these five cds ever since they were first released in limited and expensive form in Japan...are likely to want to pay nearly $120 for this box set reissue, and they already know they want it and why, so we needn't go too far overboard with our description."
Well, that may be. But now it's quite a bit cheaper, isn't it? And it is a marvelous artifact of '70s psych weirdness, for a whole new generation (reared on Julian Cope's Japrocksampler?) to enjoy. The material that makes up Hapmoniym 1972-1975 was recorded while Mako was working on his second masterpiece for Polydor, Super Record (also reissued and raved about here recently). Mako's early work has often been compared to krautrock pioneers Faust, and this collection IS an incredible assemblage of sound experiments, collage pieces, tape manipulations and astral folk-psychedelia so epic and so out, that one might be so bold to state that Hapmoniym as a whole even surpasses the density and innovation of the mighty Faust Tapes! (Are we going overboard, yet?).
And, apparently MPM was only a wee sixteen years old on the earliest of these recordings, wow. We are especially fond of disc two, the part where it sounds like Jimi Hendrix jamming with a meowing cat. Also, Keiji Haino fans should take note, as he appears on the first disc, on what's possibly one of his most spaced out psychedelic trips ever.
When Mom 'n' Dad first brought this forth, these five volumes were billed as just the first third of a projected 15 disc set, chronicling ALL of the legendary MPM's unreleased studio stuff from the '70s. The remaining 10 discs, however, never materialized. MIO had intended to take up the torch and do two more box sets, but that never happened either, unfortunately. We wonder if those will ever see the light of day, or if they really even exist in the first place? In any case, great to have this back, and 5 discs is nothing to sneeze at, really! Should keep you and your stereo magically powered up for a long while....
A "collector's limited edition" of 1000 numbered copies.
MPEG Stream: "Hapmoniym Part 1"
MPEG Stream: "Hapmoniym Part 2"

MAMIFFER Mare Decendrii (Sige) cd 14.98
The last few months have given us a flurry of Mamiffer releases, first a split with Aaron Turner's House Of Low Culture, then another split with dark drone-noise heavies Oakeater, and now a brand new full length. With a pedigree that includes members of Everlovely Lightningheart and These Arms Are Snakes, and a crew of guests that has included folks from Isis and Helms Alee and others, you think this band would be sonically in line with their Hydrahead brethren, but instead, Mamiffer do their own thing entirely, which is not at all metal, and certainly not heavy, at least in the traditional sense. Instead, Mamiffer traffics in sprawling expanses of piano driven ambience, epic soundscapes the drift and shimmer and smolder, sometimes hushed and abstract, other times dense and dark and ominous and yeah, a little bit heavy.
This brand new one, released on Aaron Turner's new label Sige, finds the band perfecting their sound, creating a collection of songs that sounds like a more sinister Godspeed, the arrangements intricate and complex, the long songs drifting through multiple movements, all deftly assembled into these mini epics.
Take Mare Decendrii opener, "As Freedom Rings", which begins with a hazy layered bit of shimmery drone, before haunting piano joins the fray, then it's like some sort of haunted chamber music, eventually some heavy guitar comes in, but instead of launching into some crushing doom, the rest of the band switches gears and play something that sounds like the Rachel's, over which someone has laid thick swaths of crumbling distorted guitar. There are drums, and when they come in, the song gets marginally more propulsive, and a bit more proggy, in come strings as well, super cinematic and soundtracky, chantlike vocals, its like some strange Three Mile Pilot / Master Musicians Of Bukkake hybrid, brooding, and haunting, and mysterious and fantastically epic.
The rest of the record follows suit, varied for sure, but all woven into an elaborate and ever shifting tapestry, from soaring female vocal driven minimal chamber rock dirge, to shimmery hushed high end ambience, to creepy apocalyptic folk (at moments sounding like a piano-fied Woven Hand), to dark drifts of solo piano, to slow building doom flecked post rock churn, to barely there minimal low end thrum, to dreamy drifty abstract soundscapes...
Good stuff, another strange and mysterious, haunting and beautiful collection of heavy avant sonic abstraction from these audio alchemists!
MPEG Stream: "As Freedom Rings"
MPEG Stream: "We Speak In The Dark"

MEGABATS Goes To A Lemon (Debacle) cd-r 8.98
We've slowly been dipping into the impressive catalog of Debacle Records, and pretty much everything we've heard so far has ruled, the recently reviewed Blackout cd-r by space psych explorers Expo 70, and the synth and vocal bliss drone excursions of The Slaves, and now this, the most recent record from Megabats, whose pun titled cd-r offers up a selection of sounds that definitely fit pretty perfectly between both The Slaves and Expo 70, as well as other spaced out electronic weirdos like Fuck Buttons and Oneohtrix Point Never and Pulse Emitter, a sort of sci-fi synth drone tethered to pulsing minimal electro, and then blurred into hazy expanses of far out shimmery drone flecked electro synth throb, that manages to be energizing and urgent, while somehow remaining blissed out and spacey and oh so hypnotic.
The 'beats' are buried underneath thick layers of synth buzz, the beat usually a barely audible pulse, a sort of heroin house underwater rhythm, skeletal and spare, there less for propulsion or groove, and more for an anchor, a mesmerizing metronomic center, which entrances and enthralls, as the layers of buzz and thrum slowly wrap themselves around you and fill your ears with liquid warmth.
Total late night drugged out, sun rise chill out drift off soundscapery, every track here is epic and repetitive and hypnotic, many ditching the pulse completely and instead unfurling lush landscapes of glistening glimmering synthy shimmer, sun dappled sheets of spacey swirl, culminating in the title track, which takes all of the above, and adds a strangely ominous vibe, cinematic and darkly sinister, a fuzzy low end drone drifting beneath crystalline melodies and hushed buzzy blur, the two elements inexorably linked, a darkly beautiful bit of soundtracky synth swell, haunting but also weirdly spacey and soothing, a brooding new age spacesynth finish to a pretty fantastic collection of otherworldly, electro zoner-drone drone-drift bliss!
MPEG Stream: "Smugshot"
MPEG Stream: "Medicine Hat"
MPEG Stream: "Goes To A Lemon"

MEGATON LEVIATHAN Repeating Patterns Of Love (Demo 2011) (Feretro) cassette 7.00
We all went a little crazy for the debut from Portland doomlords Megaton Leviathan, whose particular brand of doom was on the poppy, melodic, washed out and dreamy side of the doom spectrum. So much so that we felt obligated to come up with a new term for their sound, 'soft doom', when we made their cd a Record Of The Week. And we still can't get enough of these guys' woozy, spacey slowcore laced, drone flecked soft doom. So we were psyched to discover a brand new cassette, their newest demo, a teaser for their forthcoming full length, and if anything, the 'softness' of their doom has been transformed into something more like spaciness this time around. At least on the opening track, that sounds like Hawkwind crossed with Spacemen 3 and slowed down to a plodding, nodding dirge, hazy squalls of wah guitar, sung/spoken vocals, everything drenched in effects, shards of vocals, slivers of guitars, sent spinning into space trailing streaks of echo and reverb and delay, a sprawling drug rock space drone epic, that rivals most of the other bands out there who set their controls for space rock. In the case of Megaton Leviathan, it somehow sounds more organic, like their quest for slo-mo soft doom heaviness just somehow ended up here.
And as the record plays on, it becomes evident that the first track was no fluke, the doom almost entirely replaced by drugged out space rock and psychedelic slowcore, sure it's still dark and heavy, and slow and dirgey and okay, a bit doomy, but it's way less 'doom' and way more washed out, woozy, lysergic, hazy, gauzy, hypno-dronerock, repetitive, and cyclical, and hypnotic, the production simultaneously lush and lo-fi, the distortion cranked way up, but instead of making it heavy, it makes the sounds crumble and wash out and crystallize, making the overall sound seem that much more warm and rough and organic, especially when the band slips into slow spaciness, all low slung bass, melodic guitar echoes, and big drums, lumbering and loose, the sort of thing Three Mile Pilot were masters of in the old days, loads of space, all held together by sinewy basslines and krauty rhythms, and then the guitars come back in, and again, we're well past doom, the sound lifting free of the surface, and drifting heavenward, somehow mixing Hawkwind, Codeine, Low, Spacemen 3, Loop, a little doom, lots of drugs, and even more effects, into the sort of thing that should have fans of the current crop of space rockers (Wooden Shjips, Carlton Melton, White Hills, Moon Duo, Heads, Lumerians, White Noise Sound) losing their shit.
LIMITED TO 200 COPIES. Each one hand numbered, and record on swank reflective gold cassettes.

MONTEIRO, ALFREDO COSTA & BEN OWEN Frele A Vide (Contour Editions) cd-r 11.98
Two quietly busy sound-artists wrangled together a not-so quiet album of unstable electro-acoustics. Ben Owen is a NYC based sound artist we have been familiar with over the years, in part due to his work running the always impressive Winds Measure Recordings label, complete with some exceptional letterpressed packaging to house the hushed minimalism and subtle field recordings. Monteiro Alfredo Costa is one of those artists who's been very prolific throughout the European sound-art / improv circles but is something of a mystery to us. His work purports to share an interest in low-fi technologies and unstable processes - with crappy tape decks, feedback systems, found objects, and old record players working into his repertoire of electro-acoustics. It is a model of instability that seems the modus operandi for this collaboration with pierced tones of variably sourced feedback wavering upon that high-tension wire between sonic evaporation and sonic obliteration. These oblique, ear-ringing hums couple with microwave sizzlings, deadened electrical buzzes and gravel-crusted static to form chunks of sound that butt up against one another. Compared to the brutalist agenda of Merzbow, Prurient, The Rita, etc, this would hardly qualify as a noise record, as the compositions are thoroughly detached from any overt confrontation, but these grey rumbles and bright rattlings can get quite noxious. One can think of Joe Colley, Chop Shop, or Kevin Drumm during their introspective ruminations on electro-acoustics and noise disintegration. Released on the small Contour Editions imprint, run by the very talented Richard Garet. Limited to 150 copies.
MPEG Stream: "Sans Titre 2"
MPEG Stream: "Sans Titre 3"
MPEG Stream: "Sans Titre 4"

MONYPENY, DEREK Don't Bring Me Down, Bruce (Raheem) lp 14.98
Bay Area folks might remember Derek Monypeny from the ferociously explosive, improvisational trio Oaxacan. Their fiery brand of Eastern flecked, face-melting psych mastery was truly amazing to behold live. Sadly their time as a band was short-lived, but guitarist Derek Monypeny continues his journey into the desert cosmos with his debut lp of solo oud. Though he has also played guitar in Sir Richard Bishop's touring band, Mr. Monypeny decided to put the blaring fuzz and virtuosic six-string tendencies aside and opted for a more traditional approach here. These beautifully minimal pieces of eloquent, contemplative oud unfold like ancient narratives, evoking dramatic images of ghostly mirages, shimmering horizons and the desert sun sinking under pale dunes.
Side A unfolds with gorgeously sparse, delicate movements of slowly picked oud, each note rising up then dropping down like diamonds in the sand. We love the patient, reflective pace of the songs, each note carefully plucked and sent off like a gentle offering into the night. While side A reveals Monypeny employing the art of restraint and patience, side B finds Monypeny on the periphery of tradition, drenching the oud in hazy reverb and other effects that tastefully reiterate the instrument's Saharan roots. Reminiscent of Sandy Bull's oud outings, these final two pieces warble and melt in the hot sun, tremolo washes and smeared melody hover in the arid sky as the rhythmic haze and gentle noise lull you deeper into the cosmic badlands. So gorgeous and so perfect. Highly recommended for fans of anything related to Sublime Frequencies for sure. Limited to an edition of 250, don't be left in the Saharan dust!

MUDHONEY Head On The Curb (Sutro Park) lp 16.98
Killer collection of demos and outtakes from arguably THEE only grunge band that mattered (Nirvana who?), sure we love Tad and Soundgarden and all the rest, but Mudhoney are one of the few bands who always ruled and somehow STILL rule, swaggery and heavy, and punky and bad ass with some of the catchiest songs EVER.
Head On The Curb goes way back, to when original bassist Matt Lukin was still in the band, a bunch of tracks that would mostly go on to make up Piece Of Cake, although a few jams here went on to be B sides, or never went on at all, which is enough to make this worthwhile. Besides the fact, that this is Mudhoney at their fiercest and heaviest, the sound varies, but for the most part, this is super distorted, ultra heavy, raw and urgent, caustic and chaotic, that Mudhoney sound you know and love, just a bit less polished, the guitars muddy and murky, everything fuzzy and blown our, Mark Arm's yowl in fine form, there's an acoustic jam, a super obscure cover, but for the most part this is prime vintage Mudhoney.
Absolutely essential for fans, newbies might want to try Superfuzz Bigmuff first, but then again, what the hell, if these jams, in all their raw unpolished glory, don't convince you of Mudhoney's rulingness, then hell, nothing will.
Pressed on super thick vinyl, and housed in heavy old school black and white jackets.

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS Waves Of The Random Sea (Blackest Rainbow) cd 14.98
We got a tiny handful of these a few weeks back, the brand new record from this French psych folk drone duo, and we were happy to get even those, considering how criminally limited NSB releases usually are. Those flew out of here and we figured they were just gone for good. But lo and behold, a batch somehow made it across the sea to one of our distributors and we snatched up all the copies we could, although that wasn't really all that many, so if you're an NSB fanatic, best act fast.
And if you're not a fanatic, well, then why the hell not. This duo conjures up some of the most fantastic otherworldly psychedelia we've ever heard. Long tracks that ooze and sprawl and drift, folk songs blurred and smeared into ambient outer space shimmer, drones undulate beneath clouds of slow swirling melody, effects whir and thrum, meditative and tranquil and dreamily druggy, the songs slipping from that sort of untethered psych drift to something much more earthbound, a woozy forest folk, tangled steel strings, minimal percussion, but still wreathed in the same sort of spaced out haze that seems like at any moment could blossom into full on heart of the sun ambient abstraction, and often does.
The one thing we can say about NSB, is that their records all sound like they were cut from the same sonic cloth, a glorious, fantastical, psychedelically colored cloth sure, but the sound remains quite similar, as if each record is less like a proper new album, and more like the next movement in some multi part epic, which is fine with us, this must be part 10 or 11 by now, but the sound remains so hypnotic and enthralling. The perfect blend of dark witchy psych folk, and deep shimmering dronemusic, of swirling psychedelic new age and ritualistic foresty primitivism, sun dappled and dew scented, all the sounds prismatic and crystalline, whether floating weightlessly in a field of hushed minimal thrum, or roiling darkly in a cloud of reveberating low end, Natural Snow Buildings are masters at creating this other world, conjuring up a soundtrack to takes us there with them and as always, the results are utterly breathtaking, and fantastically captivating.
ALREADY SOLD OUT AT THE LABEL!! These could very well be the last copies we get...
MPEG Stream: "The Waves Of The Random Sea"
MPEG Stream: "The Ice Fortress"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND, THE Tuck In With... (Now-Again) cd 18.98
It's the return of the hard hitting British jazz duo with the really dumb name but the funkiest old school breaks augmented by organ, flutes and marimba. So how could we complain? Sounding like a revival of noirish jazz with occasional Latin tinges from the sixties and seventies, like the best of Creed Taylor's Verve label productions for Lalo Schifrin and Cal Tjader and a host of other cool cats, but with a futuristic twist of Moog-y delight. This new release doesn't change the formula so much from their last one as it expands upon it, including at the end of the the album proper, 18 or so additional "Biscuits" (sort of like J Dilla's "Donuts"), short sketches of organ and Moog squelches or drum breaks for you to sample and manipulate yourself. Cinematic and tightly knit, another score for the Now-Again label!
MPEG Stream: "Invisible Ink"
MPEG Stream: "Tweed Suit"
MPEG Stream: "Psalm"
MPEG Stream: "Forever Drowning"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND, THE Tuck In With... (Now-Again) 2x10" 21.00
It's the return of the hard hitting British jazz duo with the really dumb name but the funkiest old school breaks augmented by organ, flutes and marimba. So how could we complain? Sounding like a revival of noirish jazz with occasional Latin tinges from the sixties and seventies, like the best of Creed Taylor's Verve label productions for Lalo Schifrin and Cal Tjader and a host of other cool cats, but with a futuristic twist of Moog-y delight. This new release doesn't change the formula so much from their last one as it expands upon it, including at the end of the the album proper, 18 or so additional "Biscuits" (sort of like J Dilla's "Donuts"), short sketches of organ and Moog squelches or drum breaks for you to sample and manipulate yourself. Cinematic and tightly knit, another score for the Now-Again label!
MPEG Stream: "Invisible Ink"
MPEG Stream: "Tweed Suit"
MPEG Stream: "Psalm"
MPEG Stream: "Forever Drowning"

O'ROURKE, JIM & CHRISTOPH HEEMANN Plastic Palace People Vol. 1 (Streamline) cd 14.98
Plastic Palace Alice? Let's hear it for Scott Walker, first of all; but the mad genius of baroque pop has nothing in common with the long-form stupor and granular synthesis that these stalwarts of the avant-garde produced way back in 1991. At that time, O'Rourke was a recent graduate of music school with a head full of knowledge about vangarde composition, the whole Luc Ferrari back catalogue, and an standing invitation to perform / record within Chicago's preeminent postindustrial ensemble Illusion Of Safety; and Heemann was in the process of dissolving his seminal dada-montage project H.N.A.S. The two began a correspondence that led to him travelling to Germany where they jumped into a heady collaboration in Heemann's studio. Why none of these recordings have yet to see the light of day is anybody's guess, but here's what may be the first in a series of archival recordings produced by O'Rourke and Heemann.
A buzzsaw drone gradually introduces the first of three long-form pieces of stratified minimalism. As the piece grows and blossoms, an uneasy set of harmonic overtones dominates the stage, holding a firm grasp on the psychoacoustic properties that an epic Eliane Radigue or Phill Niblock piece can achieve. The track collapses through a weird gurgling of electronics only to swell back again with a chorus of LaMonte Young inspired drone-vocalization rasped through electronics and / or coupled with sympathetic drones from a guitar, only to mutate into a spasmodic explosion of electronic granularity and sine-tone modulation. Really amazing stuff, for sure! The second track, picks up with what we'll assume to be O'Rourke's buzzing guitar drones giving way to a devilish montage of vocalized growling, suffocating gaspings for air, and other grim sound poetics that look forward simultaneously to the lupine babbling of Sudden Infant and the tortured incidental black-metal ambience of Spektr. The profound spookiness of the second track dissolves into the pools of shimmered tone and radiant beauty of the third, as something of a harbinger of where Heemann would direct the Mirror project with Andrew Chalk almost a decade later. So nice!
Again, we have to wonder why the hell did it take so long for these recordings to come out? They are simply too good to have been sitting dormant on some shelf!
MPEG Stream: "Track 1"
MPEG Stream: "Track 2"
MPEG Stream: "Track 3"

OBITS Moody, Standard And Poor (Sub Pop) cd 13.98
It's really kinda hard to know what to say about Obits, when we first HEARD ABOUT the band, we were basically already primed to be blown away, c'mon, this was the new band fronted by Rick Froberg, he of late great math rock/post punk masters Drive Like Jehu, not to mention the mighty and mighty missed Hot Snakes. Froberg's guitar playing and super distinctive wail (rivaled only perhaps by his labelmate Mark Arm of Mudhoney) are indie rock underground treasures, and wherever they end up, you can bet, we'll be there front and center, digging the sounds. And we are digging this new Obits big time, it's not a huge departure from their Sub Pop debut I Blame You, which already was a bit of a shift from the looser, more rocking Snakes... Obits offered up the same sort of garagey rock, but maybe it's that the band was no longer youngsters, in fact most were married with kids and thus, the sound was way more mature, in a good way, the songwriting concise and tightly wound, and if anything, they continue to shift in that direction on Moody, Standard And Poor, the sound still low slung and swaggery, stomping and propulsive, but even more broody and dark, the sound much more stripped down, a serious Wipers vibe to these ears, that same sort of classic songsmithery, wreathed in more modern post Stoogesy stomp. And the songs here are fantastic, they suit a more minimal approach, it's like a modern punk rock take on classic rock, harkening back to a time when bands were as concerned with songs as they were with songs, and thus, these are the kind of songs that will remain lodged in your head. The sort of record, that sounds pretty great on first listen, but by listen 10, and then 20, and beyond, well, then it gets harder and harder to imagine listening to anything else. Easily one of our new favorite records. So good. (PS comes out Tuesday, so you won't find it in the store 'til then, but you can certainly order it now.)
MPEG Stream: "You Gotta Lose"
MPEG Stream: "I Want Results"
MPEG Stream: "I Blame Myself"

OBITS Moody, Standard And Poor (Sub Pop) lp 16.98
It's really kinda hard to know what to say about Obits, when we first HEARD ABOUT the band, we were basically already primed to be blown away, c'mon, this was the new band fronted by Rick Froberg, he of late great math rock/post punk masters Drive Like Jehu, not to mention the mighty and mighty missed Hot Snakes. Froberg's guitar playing and super distinctive wail (rivaled only perhaps by his labelmate Mark Arm of Mudhoney) are indie rock underground treasures, and wherever they end up, you can bet, we'll be there front and center, digging the sounds. And we are digging this new Obits big time, it's not a huge departure from their Sub Pop debut I Blame You, which already was a bit of a shift from the looser, more rocking Snakes... Obits offered up the same sort of garagey rock, but maybe it's that the band was no longer youngsters, in fact most were married with kids and thus, the sound was way more mature, in a good way, the songwriting concise and tightly wound, and if anything, they continue to shift in that direction on Moody, Standard And Poor, the sound still low slung and swaggery, stomping and propulsive, but even more broody and dark, the sound much more stripped down, a serious Wipers vibe to these ears, that same sort of classic songsmithery, wreathed in more modern post Stoogesy stomp. And the songs here are fantastic, they suit a more minimal approach, it's like a modern punk rock take on classic rock, harkening back to a time when bands were as concerned with songs as they were with songs, and thus, these are the kind of songs that will remain lodged in your head. The sort of record, that sounds pretty great on first listen, but by listen 10, and then 20, and beyond, well, then it gets harder and harder to imagine listening to anything else. Easily one of our new favorite records. So good. (PS comes out Tuesday, so you won't find it in the store 'til then, but you can certainly order it now.)
MPEG Stream: "You Gotta Lose"
MPEG Stream: "I Want Results"
MPEG Stream: "I Blame Myself"

OIKOS Ecotono (Utech) cd 14.98
One of THREE new Utech releases this week (plus the vinyl of the latest Locrian!), and the first we've heard from this Spanish duo, but hopefully not the last, as these guys push all our heavy spacey droney buttons. A series of long form, atmospheric space outs, draping thick pulsating guitar grit over swirling electronics, fusing Morricone-ish twang to spiraling streaks of synth shimmer, creating a sort of hazy, droney space folk, or maybe a folk flecked bit of space drone, either way, this stuff is divine, hypnotic and mesmerizing.
The opening two tracks seem to function as one single two part epic, crafted from a Tim Hecker like cascade of warm whirring chordal blur, beneath soft spacey pulsations, some twangy guitars, a bit of thick Earthy buzz, all blurred and smeared into a thick, organic, undulating dronescape, the fuzz and buzz gradually receding, leaving a sky full of crystalline guitar shimmer, that seems to pick up grit and whir as it goes, eventually it fades out completely, leaving just a lush shadowy cloud of muted crunch and swirling ambience, only to erupt into some distorted guitar crunch, laced with strangely rhythmic streaks of hiss and glitch, before finally fading out into something much more tranquil.
The rest of the record offers up variations on this twangy spacey droney sound, often resulting in something that sounds like a Tim Hecker / Barn Owl jam, ethereal and ephemeral one minute, all spidery melodies and slow shifting glimmer, pulsing and electronic the next, strange flurries of stuttering melody wrapped around gentle steel string strum, and hushed chordal background blur. There are moments when the sound transforms into something much more soundtracky and spacey, "Red Forest" for example sounds like it could be an alternate score for Logan's Run, a haunting retro-futuristic creep, all swirling minor key synths, loping basslines, and pulsing electronics, quite ominous and haunting, but which gives way to the warped squelch of "Threshold" all murky and muddy, but again, haunting and futuristic sounding, like another lost sci fi synth score, the whole record wrapping up with the hazy drone psych of "Jatavena" warm whirling buzz, murky distorted rumblings, strange bits of noisy background detritus, the tone of the track gradually shifting and getting more and more ominous, before again seeming to shrug off the sonic clouds, closing with a warm whirring bit of softly melodic droned out drift.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!! Packaged in super sweet Utech style mini sleeves, black ink on heavy brown paper.
MPEG Stream: "Pulsar"
MPEG Stream: "Ecotono"
MPEG Stream: "Jatavena"

PADANG FOOD TIGERS Born Music (Blackest Rainbow) lp 21.00
Brand new full length of hushed minimal pastoral psychedelia from the duo of Spencer Grady and Steven Lewis, who also do time in aQ fave Rameses III, and like we mentioned in the review of the cd ep we listed a while back, the sound of Padang Food Tigers is like a more minimal version of the sound of their main group, the songs lush layered expanses of hushed folky drift, laced with field recordings, the sound of rainfall seems to run throughout, as if the listener was eavesdropping on some intimate back porch rainy day jam.
Most of the songs here feature just a couple instruments, usually guitar, banjo, lapsteel, piano, even harmonica, the song a gradual unfurling of some lazy woozy melody, the sound rich with room sound, a lush natural reverb, a dream like echo, the opener introduces the record with the sound of rain, over which a haunting piano plays a funereal lament, accompanied by banjo, the two playing out a skeletal harmony, often making it difficult to tell which is which, the perfect intro to such an introspective record.
Much of the record is like some sort of abstract, Appalachia, subtle strum, slippery slide, all spread way out, letting notes flutter and fade, spinning surprisingly lush streaks of warm whirring buzz, the tracks with banjo sound like slow motion bluegrass, other tracks introduce more natural sounds, rushing rivers, chirping crickets, and suddenly the jam seems to have moved creekside, the notes bouncing off the porch and joining the sounds of the woods and water, a few of the tracks build and become epic and emotional, like the soaring majesty of "Right Up Rosster", a lush swirl of strummed high end steel strings and warm piano chords, the sound almost liturgical, but so dreamy and divine.
And the record finishes with a bit of music box like melody, woven into some spare late night folk, all warm and lit by flickering firelight, a darkly dreamy finish to a darkly dreamy record. So nice.
LIMITED TO 250 COPIES, already sold out at the label!
MPEG Stream: "Born Music"
MPEG Stream: "Rise Before The Rain"
MPEG Stream: "Every Heaven I've Ever Seen"

PAPERCUTS, THE Fading Parade (Sub Pop) cd 13.98
We've always appreciated the music of the Papercuts, but we still felt like they were capable of more. Not all the elements had come together, something seemed to be missing, something kept it their sounds from achieving greatness. Always lovely and lilting and dreamily folky, but with Fading Parade, they have finally made the record they always seemed capable of creating. Perhaps it was getting signed to Sub Pop, but the Papercuts have elevated their song writing and delivery into an entirely different league. The recording of the album is so perfect in capturing a warmth and seduction in their songs that we had never felt before. Jason Quever's vocals are some of the most smooth and dreamy male vocals we've heard in such a long time.
Not to keep pressing the Sub Pop connection but we can hear sonic and song comparisons to two of the labels best releases of the last decade, Chutes Too Narrow by the Shins and Teen Dream by Beach House. From their touring with Beach House this past year, we can tell that the Papercuts were able to really learn how to incorporate such rich and hypnotizing atmospheres into their songs. We also hear a touch of the elegance of The Clientele. This is an album that's both hazy and woozy, while also being catchy and emotional and immediate. We always love when a band we've been on the fence about, makes that huge leap and delivers a record that makes us all hardcore believers!
MPEG Stream: "Do You Really Wanna Know "
MPEG Stream: "Chills "
MPEG Stream: "Charades "

PAPERCUTS, THE Fading Parade (Sub Pop) lp 14.98
We've always appreciated the music of the Papercuts, but we still felt like they were capable of more. Not all the elements had come together, something seemed to be missing, something kept it their sounds from achieving greatness. Always lovely and lilting and dreamily folky, but with Fading Parade, they have finally made the record they always seemed capable of creating. Perhaps it was getting signed to Sub Pop, but the Papercuts have elevated their song writing and delivery into an entirely different league. The recording of the album is so perfect in capturing a warmth and seduction in their songs that we had never felt before. Jason Quever's vocals are some of the most smooth and dreamy male vocals we've heard in such a long time.
Not to keep pressing the Sub Pop connection but we can hear sonic and song comparisons to two of the labels best releases of the last decade, Chutes Too Narrow by the Shins and Teen Dream by Beach House. From their touring with Beach House this past year, we can tell that the Papercuts were able to really learn how to incorporate such rich and hypnotizing atmospheres into their songs. We also hear a touch of the elegance of The Clientele. This is an album that's both hazy and woozy, while also being catchy and emotional and immediate. We always love when a band we've been on the fence about, makes that huge leap and delivers a record that makes us all hardcore believers!
MPEG Stream: "Do You Really Wanna Know "
MPEG Stream: "Chills "
MPEG Stream: "Charades "

PULSE EMITTER The Palace Of Love (Ruralfaune / Synth Series) cd-r 9.98
Latest batch of swirly swooshy, psychedelic sci-fi synth new age drift from Pulse Emitter, aka Daryl Groetsch, and since we've raved on and on about PE over the course of close to 15 releases (and those are just the ones we were able to get enough of to list) we most definitely risk repeating ourselves, which is probably okay, as this is another perfect installment in Groetsch's ever expanding catalogue of otherworldly synthscapes.
This one is crazy limited too, we only have about 15 copies, and it's already out of print so odds are these will be gone in a flash, fans, you already know what you're instore for, and probably want to grab one of these quick. Newbies, prepare to be transported to some strange futureworld, but one as envisioned by our 1980 selves, rocket cars, and space probes, cities in orbit around dying planets, whole worlds buried beneath the ruined surface. We can't help but envision Logan's Run, especially on the first track here, a percolating arpeggiating synthscape laced with laser beam effects and deep buzzing ominous basslines, super soundtracky, and evocative of some low budget sci-fi future.
The second track is a bit more sun dappled and new agey, but is cut from the same cloth, so in some ways it almost sounds like the love scene from that imaginary future, but it too is laced with weird swooping low end buzz, and strange streaks of blooping and bleeping FX, which transform the tranquility of the main synth lines into something a bit more dramatic.
After a short-ish, music box like synth ballad, thick swells beneath tinkling melodies, comes the 10+ minute closer, a sprawling expanse of sci-fi space kraut synth drone bliss, super spare and abstract, dreamy and woozy and mediative, hazy and hypnotic, and the perfect soundtrack to drifting off, and floating weightless into space. So good.
And again, LIMITED TO 100 COPIES. Already sold out at the label so these are indeed the last copies we'll be able to get...
MPEG Stream: "07:12"
MPEG Stream: "05:15"

PURO INSTINCT Headbangers In Ecstasy (Mexican Summer) cd 13.98
As these young ladies from Los Angeles settle into their new moniker (they first hit the scene known as Pearl Harbor) they continue to evolve their hazy take on breezy and washed out shoegaze pop. There is something about the overall sound on Headbangers In Ecstacy that induces in us such a swirling and cloudy state. With songs that seem to exist in worlds that bring to mind The Swirlies, The Feelies, Chapterhouse, Lush, and Blondie. Or what it might sound like if Ariel Pink got to produce a record for Julee Cruise. It's dream-pop that's detached enough to let your mind take it wherever you want. This is the perfect album for those days when you can't tell whether you are happy or sad but you know that you just want to keep floating somewhere in-between.
MPEG Stream: "Everybody's Sick"
MPEG Stream: "Lost at Sea"
MPEG Stream: "Silvers Of You"

PURO INSTINCT Headbangers In Ecstasy (Mexican Summer) lp 16.98
As these young ladies from Los Angeles settle into their new moniker (they first hit the scene known as Pearl Harbor) they continue to evolve their hazy take on breezy and washed out shoegaze pop. There is something about the overall sound on Headbangers In Ecstacy that induces in us such a swirling and cloudy state. With songs that seem to exist in worlds that bring to mind The Swirlies, The Feelies, Chapterhouse, Lush, and Blondie. Or what it might sound like if Ariel Pink got to produce a record for Julee Cruise. It's dream-pop that's detached enough to let your mind take it wherever you want. This is the perfect album for those days when you can't tell whether you are happy or sad but you know that you just want to keep floating somewhere in-between.
MPEG Stream: "Everybody's Sick"
MPEG Stream: "Lost at Sea"

RENAUT, HELENE The Deer Convention (self-released) lp 14.98
Spirited debut album from this local French folk chanteuse and multi-instrumentalist. Helene Renaut teamed up with Papercuts' Jason Quever and members of Skygreen Leopards to bring us this sunny and wistful record that is perfect for the fresh beginnings of Spring. Renaut's songbird voice and dulcet harmonies with spare chamber arrangements of guitar, violin, glockenspiel and a brass ensemble remind us of singers we have loved from the past, the airy British folk of June Tabor, the folk-pop eccentrics of The Roches and Kate and Anna McGarrigle, the beautiful fragility of Connie Converse, Ruthann Friedman and Kath Bloom, all with a sense of French pastoralism from her native Brittany. Limited to 250 copies, each one hand-numbered. Quite lovely, indeed!

RIVAL SCHOOLS Pedals (Photo Finish) cd 12.98
We may have missed out on legendary punk rock outfits Gorilla Biscuits, CIV and Youth Of Today (even though one of us is indeed straight edge), but holy shit did we love Quicksand, the connection being frontman Walter Schreifels, who played in all four, but for many of us, Quicksand was our introduction to Schreifels, and what an introduction, totally epic heaviness, huge riffs, killer songs, the band a crack team of crushers, Schreifels' voice so distinctive, raspy but emotional and intense.
After the dissolution of Quicksand, Schreifels went on to start various projects, one called Walking Concert, and this one, the long running Rival Schools, but unlike the heavy post punk crush of Quicksand, most of Schreifels's post Quicksand output was way more pop, a sound he was surprisingly well suited to (which was definitely hinted at in Quicksand), the first Rival Schools record, United By Fate, still kills, so we were super excited to find out about a brand new record, the first RS record in a decade, and very little has changed since United By Fate, big crunchy powerful pop songs, like a stripped down Quicksand in a way, another one of those bands that if there were any justice, these guys would be playing stadiums, and Letterman, the sound is aggressive, and heavy, but also jangly and hooky and way melodic, the vocals as distinctive as ever. Might be a bit too wimpy for punks and metalheads, but heavy pop fiends should definitely check this out (and United By Fate).
MPEG Stream: "Wring It Out"
MPEG Stream: "Choose Your Own Adventure"
MPEG Stream: "Racing To Red Lights"

RIVAL SCHOOLS Pedals (Photo Finish) lp 22.00
We may have missed out on legendary punk rock outfits Gorilla Biscuits, CIV and Youth Of Today (even though one of us is indeed straight edge), but holy shit did we love Quicksand, the connection being frontman Walter Schreifels, who played in all four, but for many of us, Quicksand was our introduction to Schreifels, and what an introduction, totally epic heaviness, huge riffs, killer songs, the band a crack team of crushers, Schreifels' voice so distinctive, raspy but emotional and intense.
After the dissolution of Quicksand, Schreifels went on to start various projects, one called Walking Concert, and this one, the long running Rival Schools, but unlike the heavy post punk crush of Quicksand, most of Schreifels's post Quicksand output was way more pop, a sound he was surprisingly well suited to (which was definitely hinted at in Quicksand), the first Rival Schools record, United By Fate, still kills, so we were super excited to find out about a brand new record, the first RS record in a decade, and very little has changed since United By Fate, big crunchy powerful pop songs, like a stripped down Quicksand in a way, another one of those bands that if there were any justice, these guys would be playing stadiums, and Letterman, the sound is aggressive, and heavy, but also jangly and hooky and way melodic, the vocals as distinctive as ever. Might be a bit too wimpy for punks and metalheads, but heavy pop fiends should definitely check this out (and United By Fate).
MPEG Stream: "Wring It Out"
MPEG Stream: "Choose Your Own Adventure"
MPEG Stream: "Racing To Red Lights"

RODEN, STEVE Three Roots Carved To Look Like Stones (Sonoris) cd 13.98
Here's a 2003 release that we've never stocked before, from one of our favorite sound artists. Steve Roden built this album originally as the sound design for an installation back in 2000, with all of the sounds sourced from three musical instruments found in a Chinatown giftshop, including a toy wooden flute, an aluminum wind chime, and a paper accordion. Where so many musicians would take these instruments and render their sounds cute, cheeky, or ironic, Roden has always been an artist with a profound sensitivity for his source material; and he deftly extracts harmonically rich and emotionally resonant hues and tones from all of those instruments. The first piece, sourced from the wooden flute, elegantly weaves sustained wisping tones out of a deep, almost sinewave-sounding thrum of down-pitched low-end rumbling. The looping hypnosis of this track harkens to the pre-digital smears of flutes that Zoviet France created on such albums as Shouting At The Ground or Shadow Thief Of The Sun - in other words, haunting, sublime, and gorgeous. The second track is adopted from the aluminum wind chimes, collects an aggregate of variably pitched sounds of those chimes, with deep resonance, metallic textural scrapes, and chittery clicks coming into the mix. The pacing of this track is quintessentially Roden, deliberate and hypnotic, becoming all the more engrossing the further one engages with the track. The final composition is for the paper accordion, whose spare notes evolve into a beautiful elegy of lilting tones that overlap and loop with each other, upon sets of miniature abrasions and a thick set of low-drones, which must have been designed to simulate those on the first track. Like much of Roden's work, this is a lovely piece of introspective minimalism, slowly germinating into a beautiful ambience.
MPEG Stream: "8 Breaths Of Different Lengths"
MPEG Stream: "Hands Moving, Slowly"
MPEG Stream: "Air Chamber With 4 Holes"

RONETTES, THE Be My Baby: The Very Best Of The Ronettes (Phil Spector / Legacy) cd 13.98
Vivian Girls, Dum Dum Girls, Best Coast, Girls At Dawn, and on and on. So many of our favorite lo-fi garage pop bands of the last few years share one common bond, a deep love and appreciation for Phil Spector's production and the girl groups that he helped bring to life. When it comes to his production and THAT sound he perfected, it just doesn't get more classic than with The Ronettes. The 'Wall of Sound', the drenched reverb, the hypnotic warmth, the catchy melodies, the heartache and yearning.
Makes it extra heartbreaking and bittersweet to revisit these songs knowing all we do now about the troubling relationship that Phil Spector and Ronnie Spector had and of course the ongoing black cloud that haunts Spector's life. But no one can ever take away the amazing and revolutionary sounds he helped create with The Ronettes. These recordings really did help shape the landscape of so much of the best pop music that would follow over the next quarter century. From The Beach Boys to The Ramones, all of the greats have been influenced by the sounds of The Ronettes.
MPEG Stream: "I Wish I Never Saw The Sunshine"
MPEG Stream: "Be My Baby"
MPEG Stream: "Walking In The Rain"
MPEG Stream: "Here I Sit"

SABBAT Sabbatrinity (RIP Records) cd 14.98
Huh, we haven't really ever reviewed any Sabbat before... except for one crazy out of print triple 6" vinyl release, a long time ago. That's despite the fact that all the troo cvlt metalheads here at AQ have lots of Sabbat in their collections. We're talking about the Japanese Sabbat here, by the way, not the thrash '80s British one - though these guys are thrashy and '80s sounding too, and also totally black metal. Heck they did that triple six inch, after all! Can't get much more Satanic than that.
So, about time we reviewed something else by them. They've got a massive discography spanning the years, from way back in 1985 'til now, many full-length albums but also a bewildering array of eps and splits, with an unlikely preponderance of their releases being super limited edition LIVE recordings. Sometimes as many as nine in one year. Weird. Who do they think they are, Pearl Jam?
Anyway, at long last, this is a new studio recording, and while it's not presented in as quite a "cult" format as that aforementioned 3x6", it's still a fetish object of sorts, the packaging fiendishly glimmering and glittering, with the art and logo in metallic red ink on a white background. And even though it's a domestic US release, they've included a Japanese-style obi strip, nice. A band that gets this lavish attention, either definitely deserves it, or made a pact with the Devil, in this case, probably both!
So, for those who have yet to come to the Sabbat, let's explain what you're in for: total raw black metal mayhem, a la Venom and early Slayer, played with infectious enthusiasm by Japanese maniacs so old school and true that they make Darkthrone look like posers. With some NWOBHM elements (this band's Cronos, bassist/vocalist Gezol, is also a member of Metalucifer, after all) they display real heavy metal musical chops even amidst the thrashing, noisy chaos that these songs deliver with such high speed and seeming insanity.
That insanity partially manifests this time via a focus on witches, there's no less than four songs here that factor "witch" into the title: "Witchflight", "Witch Hammers", "Witch's Torches", and the instrumental "Witch's Weed"! Don't ask why, or witch. Stereotypically Japanese with such obsessiveness, Sabbat are as over the top as ever on this new album.
While our other favorite Japanese black metal band, Sigh, took off in weird avant-garde directions from their Venom-worshipping beginnings, Sabbat stay true to the source, earning a special place in the pantheon of all-time underground black metal greats. Sabbatrinity is further testament to that.
MPEG Stream: "Black Metal Scythe"
MPEG Stream: "Witch's Torches"
MPEG Stream: "Karmagmassacre"

SAME SEX DICTATOR From Beneath You It Devours (Longway) lp 10.98
Hard to not dig a band described as "deep space power violence", which is fine, cuz we dig the shit out of this. The debut full length from this two piece from Seattle, who like many heavy duos before them, make a sound much bigger than their lineup would suggest. And yeah, that whole deep space power violence thing actually seems pretty accurate, the band flitting from churning chugging heaviness, rife with gnarled riffage and bellowed vox, to spaced out synth driven minimalism, even stretching out into weird woozy ambience, and they're at their best when they cram all of that stuff together, like on "The Shocking Discovery", with its tribal drumming, and squelchy synthy electronics, it's spaced out and psychedelic, until the riff comes in, then it gets heavy fast, before slipping back into something WAY more hushed: minimal drumming, a loping two note bass melody, all wrapped in feedback, until some howled vox starts bringing it all back in, getting more and more anguished, the drums getting busier, then some seriously thick bass buzz bursts in, and the song explodes like a progged out power violence Ruins, the song slipping effortlessly from part to part, tempo to tempo, hence the progginess.
The songs are all super varied, sometimes blossoming into some weird sort of bass driven spaced out psychedelia, but just as often some sort of lumbering downtuned doom, or electronic synthy drift, or super intricate post punk power prog, the various power violence elements holding all the disparate elements together, those vocals, the murky grinding low end, but the cool thing, is, when they're at their heaviest, there's still some weird spacey shit going on, and when they're getting all psychedelic and spaced out, there some serious heaviness happening simultaneously.
Some seriously rad twisted heaviness, way recommended for anyone into, well, anyone into twisted heaviness. Which we're imagining is a whole lot of you...
MPEG Stream: "The Shocking Discovery"
MPEG Stream: "Get Out Of My Dreams And Into My Trunk"
MPEG Stream: "The Redeadening"

SANDWITCHES, THE Mrs. Jones' Cookies (Empty Cellar) cd 9.98
These fine ladies from San Francisco have been quite busy ever since we first fell for them so hard, a couple years back, with their debut full length How To Make Ambient Sadcake. Since then they have been playing out like crazy and releasing 7"s and 12"s at a dizzying pace. We love how they have taken advantage of the different formats to play with and display different sides of their sound. With their new full length outing, Mrs. Jones' Cookies, they've released their most satisfying and coherent recording yet. We've loved everything they've put out so far, but all those releases felt way more about the individual songs, while this one really feels like they've mastered the ability to create an overall mood and feeling with a set of songs that flow so well with each other.
Mrs. Jones' Cookies is what it might sound like if Neko Case or Jolie Holland did way stripped down, haunting covers of The Roches, Fleetwood Mac, The Incredible String Band, and Karen Dalton. The Sandwitches greatest strength is that while you can tell they have such a rich and strong understanding of music's past they never sound like some nostalgic act, as there is such an immediate and fresh perspective that they deliver in all of their songs. So good!
MPEG Stream: "In The Garden"
MPEG Stream: "Black Rider"
MPEG Stream: "Joe Says"

SANDWITCHES, THE Mrs. Jones' Cookies (Empty Cellar) lp 14.98
These fine ladies from San Francisco have been quite busy ever since we first fell for them so hard, a couple years back, with their debut full length How To Make Ambient Sadcake. Since then they have been playing out like crazy and releasing 7"s and 12"s at a dizzying pace. We love how they have taken advantage of the different formats to play with and display different sides of their sound. With their new full length outing, Mrs. Jones' Cookies, they've released their most satisfying and coherent recording yet. We've loved everything they've put out so far, but all those releases felt way more about the individual songs, while this one really feels like they've mastered the ability to create an overall mood and feeling with a set of songs that flow so well with each other.
Mrs. Jones' Cookies is what it might sound like if Neko Case or Jolie Holland did way stripped down, haunting covers of The Roches, Fleetwood Mac, The Incredible String Band, and Karen Dalton. The Sandwitches greatest strength is that while you can tell they have such a rich and strong understanding of music's past they never sound like some nostalgic act, as there is such an immediate and fresh perspective that they deliver in all of their songs. So good!
MPEG Stream: "In The Garden"
MPEG Stream: "Black Rider"
MPEG Stream: "Joe Says"

SCALE THE SUMMIT The Collective (Prosthetic) cd 14.98
We loved the last Scale The Summit record, a soaring shredding, super epic, majestically scenic chunk of instrumental metal, jubilant, sweeping, kinda prog, but totally mesmerizing in its scale and cinematic vibe. Like we mentioned in the review of that record, it was almost like a metal soundtrack to one of those nature films, the sweeping shots of the coastline from a helicopter, or maybe the music playing while the credits roll, and the main characters drive off into the distance, the shot growing wider and wider, until the car becomes barely a speck on a fantastically panoramic vista. As we also mentioned, the only downside, and it's a downside that didn't really seem like a downside at all to us, is something that probably dogs lots of epic instrumental prog metal bands, the fact that no matter how rocking, or how shredding or how epic things get, it's hard not to think of Joe Satriani's Surfing With The Alien. Lots of folks out there probably don't even remember that record, but when that record came out we LOVED it. Now it's considered supremely cheesy, but at the time it was totally epic shredding genius.
Which we suppose makes Scale The Summit the modern Surfing With The Alien, which is fine with us. And this record is more of the same. Maybe even better than the last one. It's heavy, the riffs are awesome, the arrangements are intricate and complex, the vibe is totally epic, like a shreddy prog metal Godspeed, but the band slip deftly from that sort of slow build chug, to super intricate stop/start progged out workouts, and then right back into something emotional and cinematic and sweeping. There's some fretless bass, and some woozy almost jazzy bits that definitely drift awfully close to cheese, but those parts are few and far between, and in the context of the whole, they offer a brief respite from much of the rest of the record's Champs meets Satriani progshred crunch.
Check out the sound samples, it'll probably take you all of 30 seconds to figure out if this is your cup of tea, but trust us, if you find that it is you might find it hard not to blast this in your convertible as you speed down the highway along the coast, driving off into the sunset...
MPEG Stream: "Colossal"
MPEG Stream: "Whales"
MPEG Stream: "Emersion"

SEA-DERS, THE s/t (Groovie Records / Lion Productions) cd 11.98
Israeli band Churchill's, reviewed a few lists back, aren't the only vintage '60s act from the Middle East to get a reissue recently. We also just got this, from the somewhat more obscure Sea-Ders (aka The Cedars) of Beirut, Lebanon, who sound a bit like a Middle Eastern Monkees or something! There's 8 tracks here, apparently everything they ever recorded, all from singles circa 1966-'68. It's jangling and energetic, exotic East-meets-West psych pop beat action, a la lot of the Turkish stuff of the era we like so much, complete with ripping bouzouki, saz, and/or oud alongside electric guitar, and in fact a couple of their popular songs here were covered by Turkish artists, comped on that Turkish Delights collection we used to have. Any fan of Middle Eastern psych (or psych with Middle Eastern motifs) a la 3 Hur-el or The Devil's Anvil, should enjoy this.
Liner notes provided by both Mike Stax, editor of Ugly Things magazine (which featured an interview with one of the former Sea-ders in issue #26), and also Lenny Helsing of Shingdig! magazine as well.
MPEG Stream: "For Your Information"
MPEG Stream: "Thanks A Lot"
MPEG Stream: "Better Loved"

SHEFFIELD, COLIN ANDREW First Thus (Elevator Bath) cd 14.98
A 2005 release that somehow slipped through the cracks here, Colin Andrew Sheffield's First Thus is a magnificent, spectral drone album. Sheffield's day job is in the book industry, where the title of the book would hold some meaning in speaking of a first edition of a book that had been previously available but in a slightly different form. Sheffield applies this sensibility to his own appropriation of "other commercially available recordings." Of course, what those recording might be aren't made known through the radical disfiguration and obfuscation that Sheffield applies to these sounds. One can think back to Aphex Twin, and a remix he was commissioned to create for a band he despised, so he sped up an entire Jesus Jones track to a microsecond burst and used that bit of digital abrasion as an ancillary hi-hat in his polyrhythmic electronica. Whatever Sheffield may have thought of the original recordings has become irrelevant in the perpetually cascading streams of digital vibration and hypnotic ambience. Time-stretching is an obvious weapon within Sheffield's arsenal, but he's so heavily layered all of the cross-phasing patterns that massive washes of op-art inspired pulsations ripple through the protracted echoes and cavernous reverberations. His aerosolized sonic mist takes on a similarly ghostly patina found in the Leyland Kirby recordings and the frigid digital shimmer of the darker contributions to the Pop Ambient series. Pressed in a batch of only 330 copies, of which there can't be very many left in circulation.
MPEG Stream: "Miles Away"
MPEG Stream: "Come Closer"
MPEG Stream: "Like A Memory"

SLEEPING PEONIES Ghosts, And Other Things (Khrysanthoney) cd 14.98
We all loved the blurred washed out buzz of weirdo black metallers Velvet Cacoon. Even the non metalheads around here. And when they called it quits, thus was born Clair Cassis, which was like an even more fuzzy, dreamy, and poppy version of Velvet Cacoon. But if you ever wished even Clair Cassis was more dreamy, more shoegazey and WAY more lush and poppy, well then Sleeping Peonies are for you.
Most folks missed out completely on their debut, Rose Curl, Sea Swirl, we only managed to get a tiny handful for the store, but we loved what we heard, and wanted to make sure that the next SP record would get reviewed and listed. And so here it is. Like the debut, this is a lush, smeared, soft focus buzzscape that's as much eighties 4AD shimmer as it is black metal buzz, if not more. Sure there are blast beats, and howled vokills, but they drift in thick clouds of warm whirling haze, and lustrous chordal thrum, and most of the more blackened blasts end up fading into sweet sonic swirls, notes are doused in reverb and left to drift in the ether, the sound seesawing between murky buzz and spacious glimmery drift. There's also lots of cool weird production, thick corrosive low end rumbles underpinning anguished wails, piano like melodies hovering over deep softly roiling shimmer, bursts of heaviness that are so high in the mix, they causes strange ripple effects as the sound threatens to overwhelm all the other sounds around it, yet even at its heaviest, it's so ethereal and ephemeral, the sound so washed out and woozy, that the black buzz is often rendered more as a sort of blurred doomgaze ambience. Within that ambience, swaths of dreampunk drift rife with lilting melodies blossom into heaving Nadja-worthy swells of crumbling distorted rumble, or collapse into gauzy fuzz drenched slo-mo dream doom. There's also a definite cold/new wave vibe, that reminds us of a way more lo-fi, ramshackle, blackened Soror Dolorosa, who themselves are indebted to eighties gloom pop anyway...
Gorgeous stuff, total blissed out dreampop blackmetal weirdness that should absolutely hit the spot for anyone into Velvet Cacoon, Clair Cassis, Alcest, Amesoeurs, Les Discrets and other purveyors of dreamy buzzy blackness...
LIMITED TO 150 COPIES!!! House in a nice thick black envelope, with a hand bound 16 page booklet filled with lyrics, and a poster!
MPEG Stream: "Anomie"
MPEG Stream: "Pasmina Veils"
MPEG Stream: "Lips And Candyfloss Wisps"
MPEG Stream: "Wicklewood Haze"

SPACEMEN 3 Take Me To The Other Side (Fire) 12" 13.98
The Spacemen 3 vinyl reissue campaign continues, with the Glass Records eps now getting their due. Considering the amount of repetition in this band's catalog, many may be asking themselves whether or not they need another record with the same songs on it, and it may come down to just how obsessed you are... wait, scratch that, OF COURSE YOU NEED IT! It's awesome to have these eps available to us again individually (having been previously compiled together on cd via Taang! Records, and who knows, probably by someone else as well) because it lets you really get into the drugged out mindset of the band. Listening to these as they were intended, you can get a better idea of how Spacemen 3 established themes within their music. Rather than release mere 7" singles, they instead developed and reinterpreted certain songs on the 12" format. Which makes sense, as the band was certainly in no rush to adhere to 3 minute pop songs if they weren't up to it. In fact, calling these "eps" is a little misleading, as the boys stretch things out to album lengths.
Take Me To The Other Side was the companion ep to the band's mighty - nay, GODLY - Perfect Prescription lp. In other words, this ep represents the band at the height of their unified powers, and the title song itself (taking up side 1 at 45 rpm; side 2 goes at 33) is no doubt one of their strongest pieces. Kicking off the second side is "Soul 1", a slow burning soul-inspired (duh) number with blaring, sleepy horns given the Spacemen 3 treatment, followed by "That's Just Fine", which has appeared tacked onto various editions of the Perfect Prescription. No matter how you weigh it, it's awesome having the bulk of the Spacemen 3 discography available as these handsome vinyl reissues. Playing this stuff alongside so much of what we carry, it's obvious that this band has seeped into underground consciousness like the legends they were always destined to become. But you know what? There's only one Spacemen 3.

STEEL MILL Jewels Of The Forest (Rise Above Relics) cd 16.98
Attention fans of '70s heavy hippie rock!! Another primo proto-metal reissue from the fine folks at Rise Above Relics, who brought us the fantastic Bang boxset we listed not long ago. 'Tis a band/album well deserving of the deluxe treatment given here, especially welcome since only other Steel Mill reissue we've seen in the past was somewhat shoddy looking. THIS, though, is really nice, packaged with an elaborate illustrated 32 page booklet, in a slipcover adorned with new art (while the original, quite effective, surreal cover painting remains preserved within). They've renamed it too, the original lp from 1971 (there it is again, brothers and sisters, Nineteen Seventy Freaking One!!) was called Green Eyed God, this gets a new title of Jewels Of The Forest (Green Eyed God Plus) on account of all the bonus tracks included, and the remastering job, and other improvements.
So, with a name like Steel Mill, you'd expect this British band to be industrial-strength HEAVY, maybe even coming close to Black Sabbath territory. Well they do... and they don't... heavy, yeah, but opting for artier, more progressive atmospheres a lot of the time. Opener "Blood Runs Deep" is a good example, combining big, loping, rather urgent guitar riffage with passages of much mellower, jazz-inflected psychedelia via languid saxophone. Give that one a listen, and if you're like us, you'll know you want this right away. That "jazz" element, represented by what sometimes seems like pagan riot of horns, gives Steel Mill a vibe of mystic, exotic grooviness, putting 'em rite in there with underground tribes like Comus and Cromagnon. Some of these songs sound like rock rituals, like "Treadmill", with its fuzz and (literal) grunt.
Ultimately, they're an excellent, eccentric "heavy progressive" outfit, a la early King Crimson (you can be sure they loved "21st Century Schizoid Man"), Gnidrolog, Gravy Train, Tucky Buzzard, Wild Turkey, Sweet Slag, Steamhammer, East Of Eden, Murphy Blend, Amon Duul II, Culpeper's Orchard, Blackwater Park, Necromandus, etc.
Their acid rock guitar solos and lumbering riffs lean towards the Sabbath, but there's also gentle ballads ("Turn The Page Over") and fluttering flute (featured on the moody "Black Jewel Of The Forest", and elsewhere). Not that, as we've pointed out before, Sabbath themselves didn't indulge in some of their own flute flutter now and then! Steel Mill balance the light and heavy with aplomb, often in the same song. Darkly dreamlike and outre, yes, but also heavy enough for any proto-metal head. If someone were crazy enough to try and compile a collection of 1971's heaviest riffs, they'd definitely have to give Steel Mill some attention. (Er, although technically, some might quibble, as while this was recorded in '71 and the "Green Eyed God" released as a single then, the lp itself was apparently not released until 1972, and then just in Germany, with a UK release only appearing in '75.)
The original album is great all by itself, but we're also digging the bonus tracks. There's 9 of 'em, including songs from a 1972 single, as well as five unreleased studio demos of garagey popsike recorded in 1970. And, one last song - a new one, recorded by a reunited Steel Mill in 2010, "A Forgotten Future, A Future Past". And you know what, it's pretty good! Better than you might expect, actually, fitting in remarkably well. Nice how a lovingly done reissue like this can give an long lost band a new lease on life.
MPEG Stream: "Blood Runs Deep"
MPEG Stream: "Treadmill"
MPEG Stream: "Green Eyed God"
MPEG Stream: "Get On The Line (bonus track)"

STORY OF RATS, A Relinquishment (Flingco) cassette 5.98
Ultra limited (only 100 copies) cassette release from this lesser known solo project of Garek Druss, who plays in PDX dronedoomsludge combo Tecumseh, and also records as Dull Knife (who split a cd-r a while back with aQ faves and weirdo outsider heavies Inh Halentropy). And it's some hazy, heady, gorgeous stuff. A lush layered landscape of grimy, gristly, crumbling, softly distorted dronemusic, at once warm and melodic, caustic and corrosive. Waves of feedback crash over churning buzz, all blurred and blearily blown out, but within this noisy swirl and squall, is a lovely and serene core, a deep meditative sonic swell, that infuses the noisiness with an impossible loveliness, the whole thing seems washed out and sun dappled, any of the jagged edges are smoothed out, and as the sound builds, in volume, and intensity, the sound remains rooted in melody, and drifts dreamily dragging a contrail of crunch and hiss and swirling overtones in its wake.
The first movement (side) is a much more incendiary affair, building to an almost deafening (but still dreamy) Sunroof-style ur-drone roar, a blazed sprawl of zoner drift and spaced out shimmer, but the second half (side) dials it back a bit, the sound more cavernous and echo drenched, the melodies less abstract, and woven into something almost propulsive, wheezing chordal blur over undulating deep swirling swells, a captivating bit of grey ambience, the sound rich with overtones, and buried melodies, hypnotic and woozy and in its own way strangely tranquil, a gauzy droned out minimalistic drift, total dreamdoomdrone bliss for sure...
LIMITED TO 100 COPIES, nice thick printed cardstock sleeves, and cool transparent cassettes...

SURFACE OF THE EARTH s/t (Gunn Amps and Smashed Guitars) (Utech) cd 14.98
This legendary document of nineties New Zealand noise/drone rock, originally released on Bruce Russell's (Dead C) Corpus Hermeticum label has finally been rescued and reissued by the fine folks at Utech, and it's strange that a 15 year old record sounds so right at home amongst the rest of the Utech catalog, but it does, which either speaks to the curatorial genius of Utech, or the extreme sonic vision of the guys in Surface Of The Earth. Most likely both!
Fans of this era of New Zealand underground rock are no doubt familiar with these guys, in fact, lots of folks out there probably already own this, but for those who don't, this is some glorious, Dead C style drone-noise soundscapery, thick billowing expanses of humid guitar drone, lots of clatter and crunch, static and hiss, voices, amp buzz and various sonic detritus that most bands would do everything in their power to get rid of, but for Surface Of The Earth and other NZ bands at the time, the lo-fi-ness was as much a part of the sound as the sound itself. No pretenses, no bullshit, this was music for music's sake, organic, personal, and intimate, this was sonic creation, and everything involved in that creation was worth including on tape. Modern slo-mo drifters like Earth and Barn Owl and the like owe these guys a huge sonic debt whether they realize it or not.
These sprawling smoldering dronescapes are epic and majestic yet still strangely minimal, tones laid out like thick sheets of black fog, the sound alternatingly warm and liquid, lush and layered, or dark and crumbly, distorted and detuned, this stuff takes the whole guitar-against-the-amp thing to another level, not so much playing the guitars as coaxing the sound out, in fact in many ways, the player seems to be removed from the equation. Unlike with most bands, where the physicality of the playing is inexorably linked to the sounds produced, Surface Of The Earth, seem to toil behind the scenes, they are musical alchemists, more concerned with producing these magical mysterious sounds than 'rocking', it's hard not to imagine these guys set up in some huge dimly lit space, not all robed like SUNNO))), no dry ice, no colored lights, just these shadowy figures, hunched over their instruments, lit only by the little red light on their amplifiers, ghostly figures creating these ghostly sounds, surprisingly physical sounds that have weight, and heft, modern NZ guitardroners like RST are obviously channeling the spirit of SOTE, worshipping at the altar these guys constructed 15+ years ago, and left as a monument to these very sounds. Multiple guitars pealing in a dark room, creating black clouds of sound, warm and whirling, dense and hypnotic, peppered now and again with some synths, or some walkie talkies, or some other random noisemaker, but those moments are subtle, and are as likely to slip by unnoticed, it's really all about the guitars, and 'the sound', the energy and emotion, the power of these sounds, listening to this stuff again, it definitely puts the current crop of guitardrone wannabes in perspective. Like anything, it's easy to do, but to do well, there has to be some magic involved, and this stuff is truly magical. Dark, ritualistic, dreamlike drone magic. Awesome.
Incredible packaging, a thick fold out heavy black paper jacket, embossed with the record's original artwork, inside a printed black and white insert. Limited to 500 copies.
MPEG Stream: "4.02"
MPEG Stream: "Causer Grid"
MPEG Stream: "Voyager"

TAPE Revelationes (Hapna) cd 16.98
We knew after their breathtaking collaboration with Bill Wells last year that Tape were really reaching a zenith in their career. With a back catalog rich with so many beautiful records, it's so nice to see them continue to reveal subtle shifts in their sound and sonic scope. Revelations flows with such melancholic grace. Instrumental songs that are filled with rich tones and warm melody, taking you to some perfect place, evoking that feeling of staring out the window on a long drive, late at night when there is nothing left to say to the person in the seat beside you.
Other bands that have tried to create a sound like this end up falling so short, coming off as nothing more then post rock band with more moody intentions, but lacking the means or depth to make something really substantial. Tape exist on a totally different level, absolute masters of their craft. Nothing ever feels forced or contrived in their songs. There is an integrity in their compositions that allows you to sway back and forth and get lost in swirls of musical memory and long lost images of other times and places... An utterly gorgeous record.
MPEG Stream: "Dust And Light"
MPEG Stream: "Gone Gone"
MPEG Stream: "Byhalia"

TORO Y MOI Underneath The Pine (Carpark) cd 14.98
Somehow we never carried the debut by Toro Y Moi, which fit crazy comfortably next to releases by Washed Out, Neon Indian, and Nite Jewel as one of the most promising offerings in the 'chill-wave/glo-core' movement that seemed to blossom a couple years ago. With his anticipated follow up to that debut, he's shown there is much more to them to just being a part of a potentially passing trend, as this album proves with glorious cascading pop sounds that come swirling and dripping from all of his songs. Imagine if the Sea & Cake let their hair down and loosened up big time, that's the vibe of this record, the sounds rushing and swirling with a tropical breeze that just feels so damn good. Instead of trying so hard to be weird or lo-fi like so many of his peers, Toro Y Moi has shown he's way more interested in creating a broad sonic landscape that invites you in with open arms and leads you ever deeper and deeper, going wherever the sounds may twist and turn. So delightful.
MPEG Stream: "New Beat"
MPEG Stream: "How I Know"
MPEG Stream: "Good Hold"

TRAP THEM Darker Handcraft (Prosthetic) cd 14.98
Trap Them are another band that seems to have slipped through the cracks for whatever, maybe it's inevitable with SO many bands and SO many records, but these guys are seriously kick ass, and definitely deserve some aQ love.
These New Hampshire heavies are a glorious grimy mix of grindcore, crust punk, death metal and dirgey Swans like crush, all woven into a blown out, in-the-red, sledgehammer to the skull. Folks constantly compare these guys to Entombed, Cursed, Converge (whose Kurt Ballou recorded this, and it sounds MASSIVE, impossibly heavy, maybe the heaviest record since that Dragged Into Sunlight we reviewed a few lists back), all of which make perfect sense, the sound here is vicious, punishing, brutal, relentless, a definite D-beat vibe going on, the guitars dense and gnarled, the drums pounding, the vocals a glass gargling howl, the songs slipping easily from frantic punkish blast, to twisted proggy weirdness, to doomy plod and back again, makes us actually think of a supercharged Tragedy or His Hero Is Gone, that sort of metallic punk but cranked way up, with a sound SO heavy and distorted, all the sounds seem a hair's breadth away from clipping, which helps make this stuff sound so fucking fierce. One of our new favorite metal records for sure...
Features some of our favorite Justin Bartlett art yet, not to mention a big booklet filled with solid black pages (!), the jewel case housed in a fancy slipcover, also adorned with some serious Bartlett visual sickness...
MPEG Stream: "Damage Prose"
MPEG Stream: "Slumcult & Gather"
MPEG Stream: "Every Walk A Quarantine"
MPEG Stream: "Scars Align"

U.S. GIRLS / DIRTY BEACHES split (Silbing Sex) 7"+download 8.98
From the same label that brought us the killer 7"/cd from Spanish electro punk outfit Der Ventilator (reviewed elsewhere on this list), comes this killer split, featuring long time fave US Girls, and new super hyped combo (or one man band, we're not sure), Dirty Beaches.
US Girls, aka Megan Remy offers up another fantastic batch of lo-fi psychedelic greywave, all murky and muddy, haunting and ritualistic, a strange drum driven vocal chant starts things off, her voice witchy and warped, all wreathed in a cloud of whirring low end, before the sound blossoms into a weird electronic groove, all minimal programmed percussion, beneath a soft haze of distortion and tangled psychedelic guitars, before launching into the final and longest track, a sort of creepy underwater goth dub workout, that sounds a bit like a more minimal avant lo-fi Zola Jesus, a looped sonar rhythm, Remy's vocals chant like and mesmerizing, eventually the beat and vox are swallowed up by a cloud of electronic squiggles and warped spaced out FX. Dirty Beaches is similarly murky and echoey, but instead of witchy electronic minimalism, he/they offer up a moody croon over a super minimal bit of rhythmic crunch, and some barely audible melody, the sound a woozy, warped bit of washed out drift, the rhythm more like a distant chugging train, a hushed pulse, there seems to be some super minimal guitar too, an almost Johnny Cash bit of low slung strum, but it too is wreathed in murk and transformed into just another warped undulating throb, the whole thing dark and dreamily dubby.
Super sweet packaging, full color cover in a thick plastic sleeve sealed with a sticker, pressed on green vinyl with a download coupon too.
MPEG Stream: US GIRLS "Mah Marie"
MPEG Stream: DIRTY BEACHES "Drunk Driving"

V/A In A Cloud: New Sounds From San Francisco (Secret Seven) cd 8.98
Finally on cd, this killer comp of mostly exclusive jams from some of the best SF bands around, a seriously kick ass primer on the San Francisco underground indie rock scene. Most folks won't need to know much more than the list of bands contributing new and in most cases exclusive tracks:
THEE OH SEES, TY SEGALL, THE FRESH & ONLYS, SONNY & THE SUNSETS, KELLY STOLTZ, TIM COHEN, THE SANDWITCHES...
But there's way more, there's also Hannah And Raven of Grass Widow, the Trainwreck Riders, the Exray's, Paula Frazier (of Tarnation), Dylan Shearer, Jacques Butters, and Donovan Quinn + The 13th Month (he of the Skygreen Leopards), a pretty stellar collection, and it sounds as good as you might imagine. Sonny & The Sunsets' offer up some warm summery jangle, the Fresh & Only's get all new wave with a song that sounds at first like Devo's version of "Working In A Coalmine", before getting all twangy and reverby, Thee Oh Sees track is a twisted garbled-vocal sixties shuffle / murky Monster Mash groove, Tim Cohen offers up a bit of classic Beatles-esque pop, haunting and stripped down, the Ty Segall track is a snotty noisy garage rock dirge that RULES, and we could go on...
Needless to say, fans of any or all of the above outfits are gonna want this, and it just might introduce you to some other local combos that could very well become new favorites...
MPEG Stream: SONNY & THE SUNSETS "Heart Of Sadness"
MPEG Stream: FRESH + ONLYS "You Owe Your Life To The Streets"
MPEG Stream: THEE OH SEES "Contraption"
MPEG Stream: TY SEGALL "Hey Big Mouth"

V/A (FELIX KUBIN) Historische Aufnahmen (Gagarin Records) lp 38.00
This is one of those records that is either one of THEE most amazing and bizarre collections of random and far out archival sounds and recordings, or it's one of the most meticulously assembled sonic hoaxes EVER. And as it usually is with records like this, it almost doesn't matter. If it IS real, well then WOW. How some of these recordings exist, and have never been heard, hard to fathom. If it's all fake, then WOW again. Gorgeously presented, the liner notes detailed and super informative, complete with archival photos, and all presented in a jacket that looks like one of those classic collections of library music. BUT. This was compiled by weirdo outsider musician Felix Kubin (whose career retrospective compilation cd we raved about recently), which makes us think this is just the kind of thing he would think up, and actually create. Plus, some of these recordings are so impossibly bizarre, and some of the sounds are so weird, and often don't sound at all like what they purport to be.
So let's dig in. A recording of a demonstration record, demonstrating a mechanical automatic speech apparatus, lots of talking in German, then the actual demos, a weird mechanical series of tones, meant to be vowel sounds, the first step in a machine that will emulate human voice. Next is a lost recording of a Finnish telephone exchange from 1938, that sounds more like some strangely musical bit of dronemusic, all reverby and woozy and washed out, haunting and soundscapey. Up next is some music from a Norwegian Whaling Festival, in 1948, a surprisingly high fidelity blast of what could be Avarus, a cacophony of crowd sounds, voices, clanging metal, all nearly drowning out the skronk of various horns. Then there's a recording from a fraudulent attempt to raise money for a new '16 track tape' (twice as good as the 8 track that was so popular at the time, 1967), a recording of what we presume to be the factory where they make the tapes, all industrial whirs, voices, clanks and rumbles, the tape having remained unheard due to the fact that it was an obsolete format.
Up next, a supposedly early piece by David Tudor, possibly his first, a stretch of near silence punctuated by bits of crunch and glitch, weird warped tape sounds, it could be Tudor, hard to say. Then comes a hydrophone recording of a project to record plankton, capturing the plant's electronic impulses and converting them into sound, this recording however is from the cockpit of a submarine, so everything is murky and muddy, voices and underwater warble, quite an awesome recording, genuine or not. The side ends with what might be the most bizarre track of them all, a recording of a man performing with barnyard animals in the UK, a part of variety shows that were apparently quite popular at the time, the man beats a drum, his rumbling voice soon joined in by mooing cows, oinking pigs, meowing cats and clattery horse hooves percussion.
The second side doesn't get any less far out, beginning with what is meant to be a recording of a Pygmy hunting ritual, recorded in 1934 in Africa, and again, it sounds almost like some modern lysergic forest folk weirdness, super distorted, lots of percussion, wailed voices, super dense and chaotic, definitely raw and primitive sounding, but definitely suspect. Then comes another demonstration recording, this one from Oskar Sala, who created the soundscapes for Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds, here he demonstrates the Volkstrautonium for the infamous Joseph Goebbels of the Third Reich. Then there's an early early 'remix', created in 1965 from wax cylinder recordings of Persian foot soldiers in 1921. Next up, a found reel to reel tape, that came with a player, and was discovered to contain what is purportedly a recording of a Situationist project to construct a non authoritarian kindergarten "aimed to engender a spirit of subversion in children", and is essentially a recording of a man and a child, interrupted by various strange sounds. Then comes an unknown tape recording "presented here as a curiosity", a twisted blast of mysterious voices and garbled analog electronics, a technical experiment perhaps, we'll never know. And finally, an untitled player piano composition by Hans Henny Jahnn, a "playwright, novelist, organ builder, music publisher and polymath", and his masterpiece was apparently about a man who tried to notate the grain of birchwood into musical notation, and it seems Jahnn tried to do the same in real life, using birchwood grain as a blueprint for musical notation. Wow.
Incredible. And incredibly strange. A fantastic, and fantastical listen for sure. Everything here so bizarre and baffling, and in most cases almost TOO bizarre and baffling. But like we said, it hardly matters, regardless of their provenance, this is an amazing document of some truly wondrous sounds, recordings that if not genuine, are at least genuinely freaky and fascinating. And, unfortunately, we have but a handful.

VYGR Hypersleep (Creator-Destructor) cd 10.98
It's been a while since we've been excited about a post metal doomgaze post Neur-Isis outfit... It was a sound that, we, and lots of other folks got pretty obsessed with, mixing the mathy sprawl of post rock with the doomy heft of sludgey metal, but like most exciting new discoveries these days, it didn't take long for us to be inundated with boring clones, and pointless pound and meander. There were definitely exceptions, bands who took that sound and made it all their own, Pelican, Snowblood, Cloaca, Conifer, Rosetta, and you can Boston heavies VYGR to that list. Formerly called Voyager, a shift in sound and membership resulted in the moniker change, and while we have no idea what they sounded like before, we love how they sound now. This epic post metal writ surprisingly melodic, the only holdover to the forefathers is the bellowed vocals, without those, this would be more like a metalized Explosions In The Sky, the same sort of slow build brooding majesty, but this is definitely metal, massive downtuned riffage, big pummeling drums, flurries of double kick, but for every bit of doomy crunch, the band get all synthy and proggy, spacing way out, getting super melodic and poppy, wedding double kick to spacey synths and woozy major key melodies, or taking those same melodies and dropping them right into the middle of some serious metallic churn.
"Galactic Garbage" is a highlight, with its almost stonery groove, its cool minimal droned out space rock middle, and a killer chugging second half. So is "The Hidden", textured and dynamic and melodic, the synths way up in the mix, adding a sort of sci-fi prog element to the loping post rock doomisms, not to mention one of the best little chunks of guitar harmony EVER, we wish the song was 10 minutes longer just so that part would never end.
And it's those guitar parts, the harmonies and leads, that definitely elevate this stuff, adding a distinct melodic and almost poppy component that works surprisingly well amongst the chug and pound.
Unfortunately for these guys, the specter of Isis and Neurosis and all the post metal that came before will loom large, but it's still an awesome sound, and this is a killer record, and if you're like us, and love THAT sound, then this stuff will for sure hit the spot.
MPEG Stream: "The Hidden"
MPEG Stream: "Solar"
MPEG Stream: "Flares"
MPEG Stream: "Galactic Garbage"

VYGR Hypersleep (Creator-Destructor) 2lp 14.98
It's been a while since we've been excited about a post metal doomgaze post Neur-Isis outfit... It was a sound that, we, and lots of other folks got pretty obsessed with, mixing the mathy sprawl of post rock with the doomy heft of sludgey metal, but like most exciting new discoveries these days, it didn't take long for us to be inundated with boring clones, and pointless pound and meander. There were definitely exceptions, bands who took that sound and made it all their own, Pelican, Snowblood, Cloaca, Conifer, Rosetta, and you can Boston heavies VYGR to that list. Formerly called Voyager, a shift in sound and membership resulted in the moniker change, and while we have no idea what they sounded like before, we love how they sound now. This epic post metal writ surprisingly melodic, the only holdover to the forefathers is the bellowed vocals, without those, this would be more like a metalized Explosions In The Sky, the same sort of slow build brooding majesty, but this is definitely metal, massive downtuned riffage, big pummeling drums, flurries of double kick, but for every bit of doomy crunch, the band get all synthy and proggy, spacing way out, getting super melodic and poppy, wedding double kick to spacey synths and woozy major key melodies, or taking those same melodies and dropping them right into the middle of some serious metallic churn.
"Galactic Garbage" is a highlight, with its almost stonery groove, its cool minimal droned out space rock middle, and a killer chugging second half. So is "The Hidden", textured and dynamic and melodic, the synths way up in the mix, adding a sort of sci-fi prog element to the loping post rock doomisms, not to mention one of the best little chunks of guitar harmony EVER, we wish the song was 10 minutes longer just so that part would never end.
And it's those guitar parts, the harmonies and leads, that definitely elevate this stuff, adding a distinct melodic and almost poppy component that works surprisingly well amongst the chug and pound.
Unfortunately for these guys, the specter of Isis and Neurosis and all the post metal that came before will loom large, but it's still an awesome sound, and this is a killer record, and if you're like us, and love THAT sound, then this stuff will for sure hit the spot.
MPEG Stream: "The Hidden"
MPEG Stream: "Solar"
MPEG Stream: "Flares"
MPEG Stream: "Galactic Garbage"

WOODEN STAKE Dungeon Prayers & Tombyard Serenades (Razorback) cd 10.98
Now, our appetites fully whetted by their debut out of print cd-r ep, their more recent split cd with Blizaro, and their 7" single reviewed last list, here at last is the first full-length from the ultra-cult (cultra?) Wooden Stake, one of the only boy-girl doom-death duos around, and in any case our fave, as the most "extreme metal" example of the female-fronted occult rock mini-phenomenon happenin' now, a la Jex Thoth, Blood Ceremony, The Devil's Blood, etc.
We've described 'em as playing "slomo sludge", that's "part Black Sabbath, part Jex Thoth, part Obituary" and that's still just about right. Yeah, imagine Jex Thoth occasionally channelling her inner Cookie Monster, that'd be Wooden Stake's Vanessa Nocera. She's the wicked, witchy woman on vocals and bass, while Wayne "Elektrokutioner" Sarantopoulos (also of Decrepitaph, Encoffination, Father Befouled, etc.) handles the guitar and drums, and would slay you in a staring contest, no doubt, to judge from his picture here.
Their music is scary stuff, too, and also wonderfully underground, old-school, and horror-kitschy. The album opens with "Cadaverum Caecorum Liber", yet another of metal's tributes to the Blind Dead movies, from '70s Spain. Nocera first intones the lyrics in spoken rather than sung style, double tracked, over a quietly gloomy guitar backing, lulling and almost lovely, before busting out some raspier vokills (and she'll have you know, by the way, that no effects were used on her voice anywhere on this album). The next track, "Salem, 1692", showcases her more melodic siren song style of singing, that's where the Jex Thoth comparisons come in (and we're also thinking Bliss Blood, a bit). But her throat-shredding deathlier vocals are also employed for contrast. Musically, the gloominess of course continues, lo-fi rumbling riff repetition that's a doomic delight, grinding down down down into the ground. And so it goes, the many moods of Wooden Stake (gloomy, gloomier, gloomiest) highlighted by the multitracking of Nocera's varied vocal personas - she's a one-woman coven, indeed.
All nine of the Dungeon Prayers and Tombyard Serenades found here hit the spot for us, this album never lacking for eldritch atmosphere, whether conveyed by quiet creepiness or loud riffiness. Ferinstance, behold the instrumental interlude "Cemetery Closes At Sundown", a gentle somber solo, leading into the lumbering lurch-out of "Skullcoven", a composition combining bashing brutality with sloppy psychedelic Sabbathry. Which would describe a lot of this record, really. Electric Wizard fans, here's a witchier witchcult for you!
Well, hopefully we've already convinced you in previous reviews to worship Wooden Stake, and like us, you were just waiting for this to come out. But if you haven't yet been initiated, appropriate attention to this album under certain conditions (by the light of the full moon, in a graveyard) ought to do the trick...of course, that's right where it puts you, anyway.
MPEG Stream: "Salem, 1692"
MPEG Stream: "Skullcoven"
MPEG Stream: "Bleeding Coffin"

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ACID WITCH Stoned (Hells Headbangers) lp 17.98
Cackle cackle cackle. Now we've got the vinyl version of this slab of stoned psych freak doom death metal! So you can see the warts of the witch in the cover painting closer to "life" size...
Hails to Hells Headbangers, the label is on a roll lately, bringing us long-awaited new releases by two of the most outre of AQ metal faves: Ominous Doctrines Of The Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm by black metal aberrations Inquisition (a recent Record Of The Week) and this, the more simply titled Stoned, from psychedelic doomsters Acid Witch! It's their 2nd full-length, after the now out of print debut Witchtanic Hellucinations we cackled over a couple of years back. Once more, Shagrat and Slasher Dave (minus Finnish friend Lasse Pyykko, who wasn't actually the main guy in the band as it turns out) have stirred up a bubbling cauldron of tripped out, horror-loving metal that draws upon their love of old school death metal, doom, fright flicks, and drugs! They say it best themselves: "Metal, punk, comic books, and horror vhs / Nothing else to live for so you might as well obsess / Discovering books of power on the arcane and occult / Eating psilocybin leaves you feeling quite possessed" (lyrics from their song "Stoned To The Grave"). Now, we're not gonna say if we condone that lifestyle or not, but we sure do like the sick, slightly tongue in cheek music that results!! And if you can appreciate a song title like "Metal Movie Marijuana Massacre Meltdown", then you'll probably like this album and band. THAT song features another verse we've just got to quote: "Seen these movies so many times / Turn off the volume cause I know all the lines / So fucking high, just let the stereo play / But only if it's Lizzy Borden or Fastway." Sheer poetry to our ears. However, Acid Witch themselves sound a lot more underground than those '80s metal bands they mention, the Hellhammer poster and Bulldozer t-shirt in the band photo represent more likely '80s inspirations.
So, if you've heard their debut, you what to expect. After an intro of Goblin-y keyboards and looped samples, the album kicks into metallic gear with track two, "Witchfynder Finder", a song about turning the tables on Matthew Hopkins, Witchfinder General. It's a catchy juggernaut, sounding not unlike Cathedral or Electric Wizard (or Pykko's band Hooded Menace) riding Hawkwind's "Silver Machine". One of the many killer cuts here with skull caving riffery and fuzzed out guitars. Those Goblin-y keys return later on the eerie "Whispers In The Dark" and elsewhere... while in "Live Forever" the keyboards take on more of a Deep Purplish hue! All in all, a heavy, rockin', horror show of guttural vokills, '70s Sabbathry, and spooky-ooky atmospheres.
Their favorite holiday is obviously Halloween. October is a long way off but if you like Halloween too, Acid Witch have a treat for you right now.

DAWNBRINGER Nucleus (Profound Lore) lp 16.98
This highly lauded metal masterpiece, NOW ON VINYL!!
Now that the Profound Lore label has released this Chicago-based metal band's fourth full-length, we think more people are gonna start paying attention to 'em. We know WE are. Though we thought we knew what they sounded like before, we were blown away by this. Note we said "metal" band, and didn't qualify that in any way. Didn't say black, thrash, doom, true, etc. That's 'cause Dawnbringer are sorta ALL those things. Well, they used to have a lot more black metal aspects, death metal too, as we remember. But through a process of experimentation it seems they've arrived at THIS sound, a perfection, a distillation, a PURE metal sound that is traditional... yet advanced and yes, still experimental.
On Nucleus, Dawnbringer bring it, all right. They can be triumphantly shredding in speed metal glory, or NWOBHM-ishly rockin' ("Swing Hard"), or thrashy ("The Devil" approaches black metal velocities), and then slow, sad and majestic... sometimes all within the same song. And SONG is the operative word, as is singing, the versatile vocals often approximating the melodic gruffness of Lemmy, or James Hetfield, sounding tough, yet vulnerable... so Dawnbringer have their Motorhead and Metallica sounding moments, also musically reminding us of Maiden and other old school metal greats. Another reference point would have to be Hammers Of Misfortune, if you stripped away most of Hammers' prog elements and exposed the metal core.
'Tis utter headbanging heaviness, inspiring "invisible orange" style air-grabbing for sure, but not without neo-classical artistry as well. Impressive as hell, especially considering it's mostly the work of one man, Dawnbringer being masterminded by multi-instrumentalist (and singer) Chris "Professor" Black, a former member of psychedelic black metal act Nachtmystium, also drummer for power metallers Pharaoh and the genius behind NWOBHM worshippers High Spirits (whose record you can find reviewed elsewhere on the aQ site).
MPEG Stream: "So Much For Sleep"
MPEG Stream: "The Devil"
MPEG Stream: "Cataract"

DEAF CENTER Owl Splinters (Type) lp 23.00
This recent Record Of The Week, now repressed on vinyl and back in stock, however it no longer includes the bonus cd that came with the original vinyl version. But it IS on different colored vinyl!
So if you missed it a couple weeks ago, here you go:
We really can't get enough of the dark, cinematic soundscapes conjured by so many of the artists on such likeminded labels as Type (UK) and Miasmah (Norway). This new release on Type by Norwegian duo Deaf Center (cellist Erik K. Skodvin and pianist Otto A. Totland) is our current fave, it's just their second full-length in six years, as clearly it takes time to craft music this moody and gorgeous, this time around produced in a proper studio, in Berlin, on analog equipment for maximum fidelity. Also the two members of Deaf Center have been busy with their own, individual projects - Skodvin, for one, is the man behind another AQ fave, Svarte Greiner, plus he also runs the Miasmah label! And if you like the "acoustic doom" of Svarte Greiner, you should also appreciate Deaf Center's evocative combination of modern classical, ambient, and electronic strains on Owl Splinters.
Atmospheric opener "Divided" sets the mood, all abstract, monastic moan and droning string-scrape, hushed and floating. Then "Time Spent" introduces sparse melody, played on pensive, pretty piano, alone in the dark. Third track "New Beginning (Tidal Darkness)" is one of subtle crackle and glitch, the music ebbing and flowing through drone build-ups and more exquisite piano reveries. Once again, moody and somber, but beautiful. And so it goes, Deaf Center getting much heavier (eventually) in the midst of the grinding epic, "The Day I Would Never Have", the album's nearly 11 minute long centerpiece (which is infinitely longer on the vinyl version, as it ends the first side with a locked groove). Dense tones resonate with great emotional presence.
Skodvin's deep cello sawing can get spiky too, as on the nervously dramatic "Animal Sacrifice", though all is soothed by the luminous fuzz of the ambient background. Another epic track appears before the end of the disc, "Close Forever Watching" being 8 minutes of glorious, massing drone shimmer - play loud!!
With its balance of delicacy and weightiness both, Deaf Center's Owl Splinters coincidentally in some respects reminds us of two other releases recommended on this week's list - the new album from Earth, and also the Klute soundtrack! The recent Ural Umbo lp highlighted here last time also comes to mind.
Essential for fans of all things Type and Miasmah, particularly (of course) Svarte Greiner, also Elegi, Jacaszek, Fjellstrom, etc. A great going to sleep album for some of us, if you're ready for some perhaps suspenseful dreams.
MPEG Stream: "Time Spent"
MPEG Stream: "New Beginning (Tidal Darkness)"
MPEG Stream: "The Day I Would Never Have"
MPEG Stream: "Close Forever Watching"

EL MICHELS AFFAIR Walk On By: A Tribute To Black Moses (Truth & Soul) lp 17.98
Now available on vinyl.
El Michels Affair and Budos Band should have some crazy battle of the amazing modern soul/funk bands sometime, because both groops are such heavy hot groovers in their own takes on instrumental soul/funk. Last time we heard from El Michels Affair they were interpreting the work of Wu Tang Clan in a way that was strong and soulful and not at all some sort of gimmick. They have returned, doing the same to the amazing music of Isaac Hayes, paying tribute to him by interpreting his songs (both his hits and more obscure tracks) in such a rich and free flowing way. They don't try to mimmick the originals, instead they really do inject a new vibe and energy into them, and they help remind us all that Isaac Hayes was much more than just Shaft, or a cartoon character on South Park, but in fact one of the most brilliant musical minds of our time. This sizzles and burns with such delight! Some parts remind us of the slinky grooves on that Xero soundtrack by Rockford Kabine.
MPEG Stream: "Walk On By"
MPEG Stream: "Hung Up On My Baby"
MPEG Stream: "Shaft"

EXMAGMA 3 (Daily Records) cd 17.98
Back in stock, now way cheaper than before!
Previously unreleased 3rd (double) album from cult krautrock trio Exmagma (no relation to French prog masters Magma). Recorded in 1975 at Conny Plank's studio, this excellently-produced opus somehow eluded release for over thirty years. Now finally here it is, with vintage artwork, informative liner notes, and most importantly, 17 tracks, 69 minutes of quirkily wacky krautrock that had lain dormant for far too long. If you've heard either of their first two albums (the self-titled from '73 or Goldball from '74, both of which are available together on a single cd reissue) then you know they're a freaky band, a bit like Guru Guru but with more jazz-fusion stuff going on. This is still pretty jazzy but more rock than before - with more singing too. Definitely betrays the influence of Captain Beefheart (with the track "Torpedo Tits" perhaps coming uncomfortably close to Frank Zappa lyrical territory) but also that of Miles Davis as well. A lost krautrock effort that we'd wager doesn't sound like too much else in your cd collection, with hard, angular grooves, druggy concepts, zany rock, confusional hippie humor, and journeyman jazz chops - for a gonzo Frankenstein of an album only Exmagma would dare design and build.
MPEG Stream: "Box 25"
MPEG Stream: "The Pope"
MPEG Stream: "Stoned Chicken"

EXMAGMA Exmagma & Goldball (Daily Records) cd 17.98
Back in stock, now way cheaper than before!
Ok, let's get the first question everybody has about this band out of the way: they've got nothing to do with our favorite Seventies proggers, Magma from France. The trio Exmagma was also from the '70s, but from Germany (featuring an expatriate African-American drummer though) and are known as Exmagma simply because they had originally called themselves Magma, until they found out about the French group and changed the name! Some understandable confusion resulted, we're told, because Exmagma's second record Goldball was only released on a French label...and the "real" Magma kinda sound more German than French what with their Wagner influence. Anyway, THIS band was more of an acid rock meets (free) jazz fusion kind of thing. Freaky, wild, and groovy. Laid back weirdness, some sax, lots of electric organ and piano, doublenecked bass/guitar...Mostly instrumental, with only some very rare Faust-like vocal parts. This disc contains their two albums, both recorded by Krautrock production maestro Conny Plank, with the first self-titled one from '73 being perhaps the more far-out and abstract, while 1974's Goldball more solidly grooved. Maybe. However, both LPs are "drug jazz" classics. Also, on the cover to Goldball (reproduced in miniature here) the band sports the craziest bellbottoms we've ever seen...they're on stilts under them I guess!
MPEG Stream: "The First Tune"
MPEG Stream: "Adventures With Long S. Tea"

FUSHITSUSHA Allegorical Misunderstanding (Avant) cd 32.00
Ok, just like the gone-in-a-flash handful of Keiji Haino's So, Black Is Myself's we listed a few weeks ago, here's another out of print Haino related cd that we have but THREE copies of, that we found hidden in a dusty corner of the same local distributor's warehouse. So, we're not gonna go all out reviewing it, probably either you know you need a copy of this, or you don't, and if you do, act fast! For the record, though, it's the very first (and still one of the only) *studio* recordings by the Japanese guitarist's (former) band Fushitsusha, who were a darkly psychedelic, improvising "free-rock" trio unlike any other. This album, released in 1993, is a particularly unique item in their discography for sure, perhaps due to being a studio recording, this is a bit different from some other Fushitsusha efforts, relying less on amplified distortion and feedback. Instead, it's remarkably clean, quiet and controlled (relatively speaking, this is still seasick miasmic murk, really!), the 10 tracks here, each titled "Magic", I through X, being precisely structured, if counterintuitive, compositions, working their trance-inducing magic via tense, tightly wound repetition, at the edges of which you may hear Haino's familiar angst-filled vocalizations.
'Twas one of the earliest releases on John Zorn's Japan-based label Avant (forerunner to Tzadik), hence the import pricing. While old, these are still "new" copies, complete with obi strip.
MPEG Stream: "Magic II"
MPEG Stream: "Magic IX"

JOHANNSSON, JOHANN Virdulegu Forsetar (Touch) 2lp 22.00
A reissue of the 2004 album Virdulegu Forsetar from Iceland's post-classical composer Johann Johannsson. Since the release of this album, Johannsson has jumped from Touch to 4AD, with international acclaim following right along. Virdulegu Forsetar is an hour long piece written for 11 brass players (trumpets, horns, tuba), percussion (Glockenspiel and bells), electronics, organs and piano. Virdulegu is all brooding, slow building, minor key, cinematic epic. Warm and lush, rich with harmonic overtones, and melodically very grandiose. The sounds here are very visual and definitely bring to mind vast expanses of land or space, whether it's the sun slowly rising over the desert, the moon peeking from behind a planet, a slowly spiralling galaxy, and even the Olympics. Huh? Yep, the Olympics. The melodies and instrumentation are quite similar to the fanfares used during the opening ceremonies, or over montages of past Olympiads, lovely nonetheless. And of course much darker and dronier than any of the music actually used for the Olympics. Each epic fanfare / flourish dissipates into a rumbling subterranean drone, where it hovers and slowly shifts until another fanfare surfaces in it's place, shines briefly, only to quickly sink back into the inky darkness.
MPEG Stream: "Part One"

LITURGY Renihilation (Ormolycka) cassette 5.00
BACK IN STOCK!!
This incredible collection of Pure Transcendental Black Metal is now available again, this time on the KVLT-est of formats, the cassette tape, and if you needed another reason to buy this Liturgy record again, other than it RULES, and that as we mentioned, KASSETTES ARE KVLT, well, the tape version includes a bonus track, a remix in fact, by our very own Andee. His FIRST EVER remix. Created with basically no knowledge of sound programs, and none of the original tracks, but within those constraints, he's whipped up a pretty kick ass, heavy, noisy, old school jungle version of maybe our favorite Liturgy track.
Here's what we had to say about Renihilation when we first listed it a year or two back:
These guys sent us an lp a long while back, and somehow we totally slept on it. Not sure why, a 12" x 12" image of a cloudy sky, the sun glinting in the background, and the words "PURE TRANSCENDENTAL BLACK METAL" writ large in big black records across the front, and inside, just what the cover promised some seriously buzzing blazing blackness. It's not surprising these guys found their way to 20 Buck Spin, a pretty good fit for sure for this NY horde.
Unlike the blissed out blackened ethereal transcendentalism of the lp, back when Liturgy was a one man bedroom black metal band, Renihilation finds Liturgy expanded to a 4 piece, and the sound is much more raw and organic, still blown out and pretty blissy, goddamn soaring and epic in fact, but it sounds more like a proper rock band, although the drumming is still inhumanly fast, and the band lock into these cool, weird, and very un-black metal sounding high end trills, that only make the sound that much more mysterious and mystical. The band claim some unlikely non-metal influences, but as you get into Renihilation, it's easy to hear that there's way more going on here than Ulver or Darkthrone worship, the band slipping into lurching, almost mathy breakdowns, incredible dynamics, that almost sounds like Harvey Milk at 78rpm, the sort of stop start, sway and lumber, that only works if the band is tight as fuck.
These songs are not super long either, but they feel majestic, and sprawling, and never ending, in a good way, the guitars are frantic, the drumming relentless, the guitars seem to exist only in the upper registers, like wild psychedelic leads transformed into some sort of blackened tremolo picking, so instead of black metal, these jams almost sound like modern classical compositions, like Arvo Part composing for black metal band, when a song ends, you feel exhausted, and drained, like at the end of a long journey, but before you can even catch your breath, the band explode into action once again. And before you know it, they're locked into another high end blast of extreme tension, no let up, no slipping into acoustic interludes, it's almost like the musical version holding your breath, soaring as high and for as long as (in)humanly possible, so when the band does pause briefly, it knocks you on your ass, of when they switch gears and get all spacious and dynamic, it nearly blows your mind.
When we first got this, we only listened to it a couple times, and thought it was pretty cool, but on repeated listens it is proving itself to be truly transcendental, unlike almost all of the other black metal out there, and is quickly becoming one of our new favorite black metal records...
MPEG Stream: "Pagan Dawn"
MPEG Stream: "Mysterium"
MPEG Stream: "Ecstatic Rite"
MPEG Stream: "PGN>DWN (TICWAR-ped MIX) (Excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "PGN>DWN (TICWAR-ped MIX) (Excerpt 2)"

LOIRI, VESA-MATTI 4+20 (Porter) lp 16.98
This 1971 Finnish flute folk jazz freakout, now available on vinyl too!!
If you're anything like us, all it will take is three simple words to convince you that you need this: FLUTE. FINLAND. 1971. Okay, so that last one's not really a word, but yes, this fantastic chunk of Finnish Flute heavy jazz folk was indeed released in that magical year, and is pretty much everything you could hope for from a seventies Finnish flautist, it's groovy, jazzy, folky, a little bit rocking and a lot bit pretty goddamn weird. Just take the opening track, after some field recordings of seagulls and lapping waves on the shore, Loiri whistles along to some simply strummed acoustic guitar, and suddenly you realize it's essentially a jazzed up cover of Blind Faith's "Can't Find My Way Home", hand drums and flutes swing in, some deep wordless "la la" vocalizing and then it's back to the waves and birds. Definitely an odd way to start a record, but these guys are Finnish after all.
The rest of the record is not so obviously strange (or is it?), the second track is some groovy flute driven folk, the flute playing is stellar, woozy stand up bass, intricate hand drumming and more steel string strum, there's some bluesy psychedelic guitar leads, and then there's a drum solo, accompanied by humming (or is that kazoo), and then it's right back into it, Loiri often singing and vocalizing through the flute (a la Roland Kirk), which makes it even more far out.
The record shifts gears constantly, the next track begins playful sing songy lullaby, suddenly transforming into some sort of gypsy folk music the next, what sounds like a drunken tavern sing along, and then it's right back to the lullaby like fluttery flute of the opening, and then a strange old field recording of a carnival or circus. All a single track. The next track is more straight ahead jazz, some incredible flute playing and amazing drumming, the next track too, sounding almost Latin Jazz, but then along comes "Mummon Kaappikello" a groovy bit of big band jazz, backing up some sped up chipmunk vocals, turning the otherwise trade jazz into something totally warped, and then it's right back into it, some seriously swinging seventies jazz funk, and still more kick ass flute.
The final three tracks are more folky jazzy grooviness, some serious strum heavy drum driven rhythmic jazz, gives way to some jazzy cabaret, with deep crooned dramatic vocals, and finally finishing off with a brief bit of folky flute and acoustic guitar that returns to the opening bit of Blind Faith. Wow. Awesome, and bizarre and amazing and easily one of the coolest things Porter has dug up. And again: FINLAND. FLUTE. 1971.
Eye popping pop art cover with a big foldout poster, both depicting Loiri in aviator's helmet and goggles, with a painted on bright yellow and red bullseye shirt and little angle's wings!
MPEG Stream: "4 + 20 (Session 1. A)"
MPEG Stream: "Turkish Coffee"
MPEG Stream: "Candle Dance"
MPEG Stream: "Coming Home Baby"

PICKPOCKET ENSEMBLE Memory (self-released) cd 14.98
We've long known that the veteran San Francisco acoustic group Pickpocket Ensemble never fail to deliver the goods, and their sixth cd reaffirms this. Those of you outside the Bay Area might already be familiar with them and this album from their airplay on NPR. It's sure to please old fans as well as attract plenty of new ones. Always rich in mood and atmosphere, they deftly meld inspirations and instrumentation from around the globe. Some are fleeting like single threads in their lustrous tapestry, while others (such as the Appalachian folk and Balkan gypsy influences) appear more solidly, forming artfully arranged patches of the PPE musical quilt. Along the mesmerizing way, they visit and revisit the twist and turns of jazz, flamenco, tango and chamber music. Equally at home in a sunny sidewalk cafe or a vivacious cabaret, Memory is a dark and sultry album that captures the flair and charm of a bygone era.
MPEG Stream: "Bird In A Web"
MPEG Stream: "Memory"

SOFT BOYS, THE A Can Of Bees (Yep Roc) lp 21.00
If you deliriously dug into the recent Soft Boys Underwater Moonlight vinyl reissue, and are seeking more... Well, look no further than that album's older brother, the band's 1979 debut full length which has also been reissued on lp by the fine folks at Yep Roc. Robyn Hitchcock's obtusely peculiar lyrics rally with Kimberley Rew's guitars - at once, somehow both jangly and angular. Granted A Can Of Bees is not quite as bountiful with immediately charming hooks as Underwater Moonlight, but there's still plenty of top notch infectious goodness on it from Hitchcock, Rew and co. Unquestionably though, the band dishes out far more delicious piss'n'vinegar than normally expected from bands inhabiting the neo-psych folk pop arena. Still great thirty two years later!

VAMPILLIA Alchemic Heart (Important) cd 14.98
So, what exactly is a "brutal orchestra"? That's what this Japanese band describes themselves as, and their brand of loud, dynamic, droning chamber prog with violins and piano vying with wordless vocals (and bass, and drums, and turntables, and electronics, and etc.) in an constantly swelling, cinematic onslaught is certainly orchestral, and kinda brutal (volume, noise, density) but also beautiful. So, OK, brutal orchestra it is. And making 'em even a bit more brutal than they might otherwise be, they've got special guest Merzbow bringing some additional noise n' distortion to the proceedings. Among other guests is, on vocals, Jarboe of the Swans (shades of her collab with Justin Broadrick a while back, as there's a Jesu-ishness to this, somewhat). Also apparently drummer Tatsuya Yoshida of Ruins fame appears here, and a few Boredoms related folks contribute too. So, some high powered personnel present, and put to use!
There's two loooong tracks on this album, one with Jarboe, the other with Merzbow, "Sea" (24:43) and "Land" (24:36), titled after things both of which unhappily have proven cruel and threatening to the beleaguered populace of Japan in recent days. Their elemental power is portended here, in the build-build-build ups of these ominous, abstract, slowly unfolding compositions, making this release fit in well with the doomdirge side of Important's avant roster, for sure.
May or may not be representative of Vampillia's usual sound, we've seen some YouTube videos that portray them as much more of a surreal, circus-y affair, a facepainted freakshow vibe of artrock absurdity. There's hints of that here, but the entirety of this has more of a coherent, atmospheric impact, almost like a Miasmah label release multiplied in intensity and amplification.
MPEG Stream: "Sea"
MPEG Stream: "Land"

WIRE, THE #326 April 2011 magazine 9.98
Type artist Richard Skelton on the cover. Also on the cover (attached to it with gummy stuff) is another installment of The Wire's "Wire Tapper" sampler series, a cd with 20 tracks by lots of weird electronic and/or noisy folks. Inside this issue, you'll find Funkystepz, Peter Evans, Olivia Block, Charlie Nothing, Jenny Hval, and a piece on the legendary Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music center, among other things, including all the usual reviews.

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V/A Bossa Nova And The Rise Of Brazillian Music In The 1960s Vol 1 (Soul Jazz) 2lp 26.00
NOW ON VINYL, spread out over two separate double lps...
Blame it on the Bossa Nova! What Americans experienced of Brazil's biggest cultural export in the sixties (think Astrud Gilberto's "Girl From Ipanema" and Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66) was actually a watered down version of a vital cultural renaissance of luxury and prosperity in a country transforming itself from its agrarian roots to a new industrial power on the world's stage. Soul Jazz has released this terrific new compilation to highlight the origins of this tremendous and far-reaching cultural shift, with many of the genre's original innovators: Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto, Elis Regina, Jorge Ben, Gilberto Gil, Nara Leao, Wanda Sa, Maria Bethannia, Milton Nascimento as well as plenty of others we had never heard before. With its cool vocals, complex but economic melodic structures and sophisticated jazz motifs, Bossa Nova represented a huge shift away from traditional music to a new modern jet-setting sound. What's neat about this compilation is that even though the names may be familiar, many of the tracks are not the typical hits you may have heard before, reflecting the urgent embrace and hopeful optimism of a country stretching into its new identity. Sadly it wouldn't last. By the time, American's were fully seduced by Bossa Nova's warm wave of tropical sophistication in the mid-sixties, Brazil experienced a military takeover and many of the musicians (namely Jobim and Mendes) were forced to flee to the US. They were able to have successful careers (perhaps even more successful than when they were in Brazil) but Bossa Nova in America became something symbolically different, an almost Imperial embrace of laid-back Latin coolness while completely overlooking the political unrest that displaced it. Thankfully another musical and cultural revolution, Tropicalia, was gearing up to take its place. Still, whatever association you might have with Bossa Nova, this compilation is full of surprises and well worth the listen. So freaking good!
MPEG Stream: EDU LOBO "Ponteio"
MPEG Stream: TAMBA 4 "Samba Blim"
MPEG Stream: GERALDO VADRE "Hora De Lutar"

V/A Bossa Nova And The Rise Of Brazillian Music In The 1960s Vol 2 (Soul Jazz) 2lp 26.00
NOW ON VINYL, spread out over two separate double lps...
Blame it on the Bossa Nova! What Americans experienced of Brazil's biggest cultural export in the sixties (think Astrud Gilberto's "Girl From Ipanema" and Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66) was actually a watered down version of a vital cultural renaissance of luxury and prosperity in a country transforming itself from its agrarian roots to a new industrial power on the world's stage. Soul Jazz has released this terrific new compilation to highlight the origins of this tremendous and far-reaching cultural shift, with many of the genre's original innovators: Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto, Elis Regina, Jorge Ben, Gilberto Gil, Nara Leao, Wanda Sa, Maria Bethannia, Milton Nascimento as well as plenty of others we had never heard before. With its cool vocals, complex but economic melodic structures and sophisticated jazz motifs, Bossa Nova represented a huge shift away from traditional music to a new modern jet-setting sound. What's neat about this compilation is that even though the names may be familiar, many of the tracks are not the typical hits you may have heard before, reflecting the urgent embrace and hopeful optimism of a country stretching into its new identity. Sadly it wouldn't last. By the time, American's were fully seduced by Bossa Nova's warm wave of tropical sophistication in the mid-sixties, Brazil experienced a military takeover and many of the musicians (namely Jobim and Mendes) were forced to flee to the US. They were able to have successful careers (perhaps even more successful than when they were in Brazil) but Bossa Nova in America became something symbolically different, an almost Imperial embrace of laid-back Latin coolness while completely overlooking the political unrest that displaced it. Thankfully another musical and cultural revolution, Tropicalia, was gearing up to take its place. Still, whatever association you might have with Bossa Nova, this compilation is full of surprises and well worth the listen. So freaking good!
MPEG Stream: ROBERTO MENESCAL "Inverno"
MPEG Stream: GINGA TRIO "Yemenja"
MPEG Stream: JORGE BEN "Lalari-Olala"
MPEG Stream: ZIMBO TRIO "Zimbo-Samba"
MPEG Stream: DOM UM ROMAO "Jangal"

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----* In Stock, Not Yet Reviewed :
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If you want to order one of these, just search on the item, then click on the buy button and it will be added to your cart!

ACID MOTHER'S TEMPLE / STEARICA "Sterica Invade Acid Mothers Temple" (Homeopathic) cd 17.98
ACRYLICS "Lives And Treasure" (Hot Sand / Friendly Fire) cd 13.98
AGUATURBIA "Psychedelic Drugstore" (Relics) cd 17.98
ANAL CUNT "Fuckin A" (Patac) cd 11.98
AUTUMN "Synthesize" (Minimal Wave) lp 26.00
BANJO OR FREAKOUT "s/t" (RBR) cd 15.98
BARDO POND "s/t" (Fire) 2lp 27.00
BIRDS OF AVALON "s/t" (Bladen Country) cd 14.98
BLOOD OF HEROES, THE "s/t" (Ohm Resistance) cd 17.98
BLUES MAGOOS "Electric Comic Book" (Mercury) lp 12.98
BURZUM "Fallen" (Byelobog Productions / Candlelight) cd 14.98
CASSLE "s/t" (Shadow Kingdom) cd 13.98
CHATHAM, RHYS "A Crimson Grail (Outdoor Version)" (Nonesuch) cd 16.98
COSMONAUTS "s/t" (Burger) lp 16.98
CRYSTALS, THE "Da Doo Ron Ron: The Very Best Of The Crystals" (Phil Spector / Legacy) cd 13.98
DANAVA / EARTHLESS / LECHEROUS GAZE "s/t" (Kemado) lp 19.98
DARK DAY "Strange Clockwork" (self-released) cd 12.98
DECEMBERISTS, THE "The King Is Dead" (Capitol) cd 17.98
DESTROYER "Ideas For Songs" (Triple Crown) lp 21.00
EKEROTH, DANIEL "Swedish Sensationsfilms" (Bazillion Points) book 19.95
EL COMBO XINGU "Xingu" (Disco Es Cultura) lp 16.98
FLOATING BRIDGE "s/t" (Aurora) cd 17.98
FRIEDBERGER, MATTHEW "Meet Me In Miramas" (Thrill Jockey) lp 11.98
GANG OF FOUR "Entertainment" (Rhino / Warner Bros.) lp 24.00
GHAST / ZOMBIE BLASPHEMY "split" (Lost Rivers Product) cd 9.98
GILBERTO, JOAO "O Amor, O Sorriso E A Flor" (Doxy) lp 26.00
GOOD ONES, THE "Kigali Y' Izahabu" (Dead Oceans) cd 14.98
GORGON "The Lady Rides A Black Horse" (Todestrieb) cd 14.98
GRAND MAGUS "Hammer Of The North" (Roadrunner) cd 27.00
GRAYCEON "All We Destroy" (Profound Lore) cd 13.98
GREEN DOOR KIDS, THE "Muzikal Yooth" (Optimo Music) lp 16.98
GUISHER "Hide Your Cold Dome" (self-released) cd-r 11.98
HAINO, KEIJI, JIM O'ROURKE, & OREN AMBARCHI "In A Flash Everything Comes Together As One There Is No Need For A Subject" (A Black Truffle / Medama) 2lp 29.00
HAMMER, JOSEPH "I Love You, Please Love Me" (Pan) lp 36.00
HECKER, TIM "Mirages" (Alien8) cd 14.98
HELEN LUNDY TRIO, THE "s/t" (HLT Records) cd 11.98
JOKERS "s/t" (Fading Sunshine) cd 14.98
KACIREK, SVEN "The Palmin Sessions" (Pingipung) cd 17.98
KREIDLER "Tank" (Bureau B) cd 17.98
KWJAZ "s/t" (Brunch Groupe) cassette 6.98
LARD FREE "Gilbert Artman's Lard Free" (Wah-Wah) lp 30.00
LEVI / WERSTLER "Avalanche Of Worms" (Magna Carta Records) cd 21.00
LI, LYKKE "Wounded Rhymes" (Atlantic) cd 13.98
LIFELOVER "Konkurs" (Prophecy) 2cd 21.00
LIFELOVER "Sjukdom" (Prophecy Productions) cd 16.98
LITTLE RICHARD "Here's Little Richard" (Doxy) lp+cd 27.00
LITTLE WINGS "Black Grass" (Rad) cd/lp 11.98/13.98
LOVE, DARLENE "The Sound Of Love: The Very Best Of Darlene Love" (Phil Spector / Legacy) cd 13.98
MACHINEFABRIEK / KLEEFSTRA / LIONDIALER "That It Stays Winter Forever" (White Box) cd 15.98
MAJUTSU NO NIWA "Ecstatic Crystalization" (Musik Atlach) cd 16.98
MARATHON MAN / THE PARALLAX VIEW (MICAHEL SMALL) "OST" (Film Score Monthly) cd 17.98
METABOLISMUS "Mauser Ok" (Amish Records) 7" 10.98
MOORE, THURSTON "Solo Acoustic Vol. 5" (Win Du Select Qualitite) lp 19.98
NACKT INSECTEN "Reality Bridge" (Blackest Rainbow) lp 21.00
NAKED ON THE VAGUE "Twelve Dark Noons" (Sacred Bones) cd/lp 11.98/14.98
NEW YORK DOLLS "s/t" (Mercury) lp 12.98
NIGGAS WITH GUITARS "Ethnic Frenzy" (Digitalis) lp 16.98
OH SEES, THEE "Singles Vol. 1 & 2" (Castle Face) 2lp 22.00
OSCILLATION, THE "Veils" (All Time Low) cd 14.98
OSWALD, JOHN + 1,001 VINTAGE POP STARS "Perplexure" (Fony) lp 14.98
PANDA BEAR "Surfers Hymn" (Kompakt) 7" 10.98
PATTON, CHARLEY "Founder Of Delta Blues" (Yazoo) 2lp 32.00
PAVAN "Holy Volt" (Harmonia) lp 26.00
PSYCHIC REALITY "Vibrant New Age" (Not Not Fun) lp 14.98
PUCE MOMENT "Avoiding Certain Topics / Essence Of Mann e.p. / Puce Moment" (self-released) 3 x cassette 9.98
PURO INSTINCT "Stilyagi / Put Medved To Bedved" (Mexican Summer) 7" 5.98
QUICKSAND DREAM "Aelin - A Story About Destiny" (Planet Metal) cd 10.98
R.E.M. "Collapse Into Now" (Warner Bros.) cd/lp 17.98/26.00
RABELAIS, AKIRA "Caduceus" (Samadhisound) cd 16.98
RENE HELL "The Terminal Symphony" (Type) lp+cd 23.00
ROBA EL KHALIYEH "A Different View Of Darkness" (Starlight Temple Society) cd-r 5.98
RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE, THE "Departing" (Saddle Creek) cd 14.98
SAXANA - THE GIRL ON A BROOMSTICK (MICHAJLOV, ANGELO) "OST" (B-Music / Finders Keepers) cd 16.98
SHANNON AND THE CLAMS "Sleep Talk" (1-2-3-4 Go!) cd 14.98
SHIFLET, MIKE & DANIEL MENCHE "Stalemate" (Sonoris) cd 13.98
SHIVER, THE "Walpurgis" (Garden of Delights) lp 34.00
SLITS, THE "In The Beginning" (Vinyl Lovers) lp 27.00
SLOATH "s/t" (Riot Season) lp 17.98
SPECTOR, PHIL "Wall Of Sound: The Very Best Of Phil Spector" (Phil Spector / Legacy) cd 13.98
SPECTRE FOLK "Blackest Medicine Vol. 2" (Woodsist) 12" 14.98
SPIN "April 2011" magazine 4.99
SPIRITUALIZED "Lazer Guided Melodies" (Plain Recordings) 2lp 24.00
STACCATO DU MAL "Sin Destino" (Wierd) cd 11.98
STROKES, THE "Angles" (RCA) cd 14.98
TAPE "Revelationes" (Immune) lp 16.98
TEAMS VS. STAR SLINGER "s/t" (Mexican Summer) 12" 19.98
THX 1138 (LALO SCHIFRIN) "OST" (Film Score Monthly) cd 17.98
TRUST "Candy Walls" (Sacred Bones) 7" 4.98
TYRANNOSAURUS REX "My People Were Fair and Had Sky In Their Hair... But Now They're Content To Wear Stars On Their Brows" (Vinyl Lovers) lp 17.98
V/A "Black & Proud Vol. 1" (Trikont) 2lp 28.00
V/A "Brand New Wayo: Funk, Fast Times & Nigerian Boogie Badness 1979-1983" (Comb & Razor Sound) 2lp 21.00
V/A "Brazil Bossa Beat! Bosa Nova & The Story Of Elenco Records, Brazil" (Soul Jazz Records) cd/2lp 23.00/24.00
V/A "Cartagena! Curro Fuentes & The Big Band Combia And Descarga Sound Of Columbia 1962-72" (Soundway) cd 16.98
V/A "Casual Victim Pile II" (12XU) lp 14.98
V/A "Club Foot" (Subterranean) lp 12.98
V/A "Cult Cargo: Salsa Boricua De Chicago" (Numero Group) cd 17.98
V/A "Dead Beat Vol. 1" (No Nothing) book + cassette 14.98
V/A "Demoler: Rock Peruano 1965-1974" (Repsychled) cd 14.98
V/A "Groove Club Vol. 3: Cambodian Rock Intensified!" (Lion / Get On Down) 2lp 22.00
V/A "Guitar Mood 2" (INST) lp 10.98
V/A "Java-Java: Indonesia Screaming Fuzz" (Nosmoke) cd/lp 25.00/32.00
V/A "Rhythm" (Gruenrekorder) cd 16.98
VACANT LOTS "Confusion b/w Cadillac" (Mexican Summer) 7" 5.98
VEKTOR "Black Future" (Heavy Artillary) 2lp 31.00
VENA "Nomadic" (Paradigms) cd ep 11.98
VESTER, HEIKE / OCEAN SOUNDS "Marine Mammals And Fish Of Lofoten And Vesteralen" (Gruenrekorder) cd 16.98
WILLIAMS, LUCINDA "Blessed" (Lost Highway) cd 15.98
WOLFE, CHELSEA "The Grime And The Glow" (Pendu Sound) lp 15.98
WONG, DUSTIN "Infinite Love" (Thrill Jockey) 2cd+dvd 17.98
WRAY, LINK & THE WRAYMEN "s/t" (Rumble) lp 24.00
ZM73 "And There Is Only Sky Above You" (self-released) cd 14.98

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Please place your order via our website.

[1] We will contact you to verify your order and let you know when it will be shipped. Please note that occasionally it may take a day or two for us to reply. We are not a faceless bunch of computers replying to your order -- we are human beings!

[2] If we are out of some of your items and we think we will get them within the same week, we can wait to ship. Or... If it's going to be more than a few days to complete your order, we will ship what we have and then will contact you as the remainders arrive.

[ note ] Due to the everchanging nature of the independent record business, we are not responsible for listed price changes (due to supplier price changes) and often cannot update our site fast enough to reflect these changes, but we will always try to let you know of any differences.


NEW DOMESTIC SHIPPING RATES :
--------------------------------
STANDARD (DEFAULT):

1 CD (or cassette or DVD or 7") : $2.95 USPS First Class

1-3 CD (or cassette or DVD, but not 7"s) : $5.00 USPS Priority Mail via flat rate box

4+ CD,orany package with LPs in it (also books & box sets), any number of items: $9.95 UPS Ground

Also, please note that UPS will not ship to PO Boxes, so those packages that would have gone UPS will be sent USPS Priority for $9.95, or you may select USPS Media Mail instead, see below.

UPS shipments are automatically trackable and include insurance up to $100.
USPS shipments (First Class, Priority, and Media Mail) are all automatically trackable.

OR, you can choose instead to have your order shipped by MEDIA MAIL:

1-3 items (i.e. w/ LPs) : $5.95 USPS Media Mail

4+ items : $7.95 USPS Media Mail


Special shipping needs (e.g. UPS Next Day) are also doable, just ask for a quote.
Also, if you are just getting 1 item that would therefore ship USPS First Class, and for some reason you would rather have it sent Priority, then you could say so in the comments field. (Note: however, 7"s are too big for the Priority flat rate boxes.)

NOTE: UPS permits their drivers to determine if there is a secure location at the shipping address to leave the package if no one is there to receive it (unfortunately some are less cautious than others!). If you'd prefer that they not do this or if you have specific instructions for the driver, please include a note in the comments section of your weborder form.

PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK SHIPPING ADDRESSES BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR ORDER. Aquarius is not responsible for orders delayed or returneddue to incorrect or undeliverable addresses provided by the customer. Returned packages will be reshipped at the customer's expense.

Shipping rates are charged per shipment.


INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING :
-------------------------------- For foreign customers we ship via US AIRMAIL ("First Class International"). Your price is based on the actual cost of shipping plus $1. You can check the US Postal Service international rate calculator: http://ircalc.usps.gov/. (Use the "Package" category and see the price for "First Class International". 1-3 cds is usually 1 pound.)

We highly recommend insurance for your international package, but it is very expensive! You can check the US Postal Service international rate calculator: http://ircalc.usps.gov/. (Use the "Package" category and see the price for "Priority Mail International". 1-3 cds is usually 1 pound. 1 lp is usually a little over 1.5 pounds.)


INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE :
-------------------------------- You are hereby forewarned that Aquarius is not responsible if your international package gets lost in the mail. Insurance is your only recourse if your records never show up. Since the terrible events of 9/11, mail service has been slow and undependable... and while we haven't experienced any *confirmed* permanently lost mail, insurance might provide some additional piece of mind in this time of upheaval. We strongly recommend it. But yes, it is very expensive. It's your choice. Again: Aquarius is not responsible for lost mail, so if you aren't willing to take a (slight but real) risk, please buy the insurance.

International insurance is very expensive! In fact often the insurance costs more than the value of your package, in which case it obviously does not make sense to insure it. You can check the US Postal Service international rate calculator: http://ircalc.usps.gov/. (Use the "Package" category and see the price for "Priority Mail International", which is the way insured packages are sent. 1-3 cds is usually 1 pound. 1 lp is usually a little over 1.5 pounds.)

For example: for a one-pound package worth $18 going to England, shipping without insurance is about $11.00. But with insurance, the shipping / insurance total is over $26.00!

It is your reponsibility to check the international rate calculator in order to determine whether or not you want international insurance. If you tell us you want international insurance, we will add it to your order no matter how much it costs!


PAYMENT :
-------------------------------- We accept the following credit cards: Visa, MC, Discover, and Amex. We will not charge your credit card until your order is ready to ship.

Money orders are accepted, but only in $USD. International customers please note that they must beinternational postal money orders purchased at a post office. Additional processing fees may apply.

If you wish to pay by money order, you must confirm the order with us through email or phone BEFORE you send any payment. It's best to just use the secure order form on the website, and when checking out mark money order as your payment choice. We will then process your order and respond with all the crucial payment info.

We also accept payment by Paypal. If you opt for this payment method, we will send you a paypal total and payment instructions as soon as we've confirmed your order with you. Please do not send payment until you have received human contact from our mailorder department.

Unfortunately, we cannot take personal checks for mailorder, sorry!


QUESTION?
-------------------------------- Email the mailorder department: mailorder@aquariusrecords.org
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SOME SELECTED UPCOMING RELEASES

----} on the way to us now
True Widow "As High As the Highest Heavens and From the Center to the Circumference of the Earth" cd/2lp on Kemado
Monarch "Sortilege" limited edition tour cdep on Heathen Skulls

----} March 29th
Mountain Goats "All Eternals Deck" cd/lp on Merge
The Alps "Easy Action" lp on Mexican Summer
Dalek "Untitled" lp on Latitudes
Hunx & His Punx "Too Young To Be In Love" cd/lp on Hardly Art
Lecherous Gaze "s/t" cd on Tee Pee
Radiohead "King Of Limbs" cd
Pains Of Being Pure At Heart "Belong" cd/lp on Slumberland
Peter Bjorn & John "Gimme Some" cd
Gridlink "Orphan" cd on Hydrahead
Gridlink "Orphan/Amber Grey" lp on Hydrahead

----} April 4th
Burzum "Fallen" lp

----} April 12th
Zomes "Earth Grid" cd/lp on Thrill Jockey
Alexander Tucker "Dorwytch" cd/lp on Thrill Jockey
D. Charles Speer & the Helix "Leaving the Commonwealth" cd/lp on Thrill Jockey
v/a "Princess Nicotine: Folk And Pop Sounds Of Myanmar (Burma)" lp vinyl reissue on Sublime Frequencies

----} April 16th RECORD STORE DAY
The Wake 3x7" bundle on Captured Tracks (2 reissues + 1 split featuring Beach Fossils & Wild Nothing covering The Wake)
Earth "Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light I" 2lp on Southern Lord
v/a "Local Customs: Pressed At Boddie" cd/2lp/cassette on Numero Group
Arp "Pastoral Symphony" 12" on Smalltown Supersound
Oxbow "King Of The Jews" lp reissue on Hydra Head
Flying Lotus "Cosmogramma Alt Takes" lp on Warp
Oval/Liturgy split lp on Thrill Jockey
Isaiah Mitchell (Earthless) + Phil Manley (Trans Am) "Norcal Values" lp on Thrill Jockey
Prurient "Many Jewels Surround The Crown" 7" on Hydra Head
Os Mutantes "Everything Is Possible" lp version on Luaka Bop
Shuggie Otis "Inspiration Information" lp version on Luaka Bop
Steve Gunn & Ilyas Ahmed split 7" on Immune
Black Twig Pickers / Glenn Jones split lp on Thrill Jockey
Nada Surf "The Moon Is Calling" 7" on Barsuk
Akron/Family "Cosmic Birth And Journey" 2lp on Dead Oceans
Antony & The Johnsons "Swanlights EP" 10" on Secretly Canadian
Bear In Heaven / Lindsrom split 12" on Hometapes
Frightened Rabbit / The Twilight Sad "Demos Cassette"
Damien Jurado "Live At Landlocked" LP on Secretly Canadian
The Luyas / Twin Sister split 7" on Dead Oceans
Pinback "Information Retrieved A" 7" on Temporary Residence Ltd.
Superchunk / Coliseum "Horror Business / Bullet" split 7' on on Temporary Residence Ltd.
v/a "Sacred Bones Presents: Todo Muere Vol. 1" lp on Sacred Bones (featuring Moon Duo, Cult Of Youth, Zola Jesus, etc.)
Yeasayer "End Blood" 7" on Secretly Canadian
Fleet Foxes "Helplessness Blues" 7" on Sub Pop
BitzenTrapper "Maybe Baby" 7" on Sub Pop
Lower Dens "Deer Knives" 7" on Sub Pop
Deerhoof "Friend Opportunity" lp on Polyvinyl
Black Angels "Another Nice Pair" lp on Light In The Attic
Gold Panda "Marriage" 12" on Ghostly International
Vivian Girls "I Heard You Say" 7" on Polyvinyl
Of Montreal "Past Is A Grotesque Animal" 12" on Polyvinyl
Superchunk "Here's Where The Strings Come In" cd/lp reissue on Merge
Caribou "Swim Remixes" 12" on Merge
Wild Flag "Future Crimes" 7" on Merge
The Velvet Underground "Foggy Notion" 7" on Sundazed
Deerhunter "Memory Boy" 7" on 4AD
The New Pornographers "Moves" 7" on Matador
Fucked Up "Town Comp" lp on Matador
Arthur Russell "World Of Echo" 2lp reissue on Rough Trade
Esben & The Witch "Chorea" 12" on Matador
Dirty Beaches "True Blue" 7" on Zoo
Ty Segall "Ty Rex" T-Rex covers lp on Goner
Deerhoof / Xiu Xiu xplit 7" on Polyvinyl
Roll The Dice "Live In Gothenburg" 12" on Leaf
Puffy Areolas / Purling Hiss split lp on Permanent

and very likely a special AQ-only RSD release TBA...!!!

----} April 19th
Bill Callahan "Apocalypse" cd/lp on Drag City
The High Llamas "Talahomi Way" cd/lp on Drag City

----} also in April
Winter "Into Darkness" cd/lp reissue on Southern Lord
Weedeater "Jason The Dragon" lp version on Southern Lord
Grouper "A I A: Dream Loss" and "A I A: Alien Observer" lps

----} May 10th
Alvarius B "Baroque Primitiva" cd version on Abduction
Mark McGuire "A Young Person's Guide To Mark McGuire" 2cd on Editions Mego
Rene Hell "The Terminal Symphony" cd on Type

----} May 24th
Electric Wizard "Black Masses" domestic vinyl release on Metal Blade
Boris "Attention Please" cd/lp on Sargent House (delayed from 4/26)
Boris "Heavy Rocks" (different from the old Boris album of the same name though!!) cd/lp on Sargent House (delayed from 4/26)

----} also upcoming sooner or later or sooner or later or whenever
Ugly Things magazine issue #31
Spiders "High Society" 7" on Kemado
Zond "s/t" lp on Kemado
Tecumseh Return to Everything cd on Beta-Lactam Ring
Withered Hand "Good News" cd on Absolutely Kosher
Marijata "This Is Marijata" cd/lp on Academy
Marijata "Pat Thomas Presents Marijata" cd/lp on Academy
Conrad Schnitzler "Ballet Statique" lp reissue on M=Minimal
v/a "Dirty Water 2: More Birth Of Punk Attitude" 2cd/2lp on Year Zero
Jerusalem "s/t" vinyl reissue on Vintage/Rockadrome (slightly delayed)
Bong "Live At Roadburn" cd/lp on Burning World
ONJT + "Lonely Woman" cd on Doubtmusic
ONJT + "Bells" cd on Doubtmusic
Evil Madness "Super Great Love" cd version on Editions Mego
Steel Mammoth "Radiation Funeral" lp on Ektro
Unholy Cadaver "s/t" 2lp+cd on Shadow Kingdom
Starfuckers "Metallic Diseases" lp on Holy Mountain
Loss "Despond" cd on Profound Lore
Bullet "Highway Pirates" cd on Black Lodge
Console "Herself" cd/2lp on Disko B
Mount Eerie "Song Islands Vol.2" on P.W. Everum & Sun, Ltd.
Liars "Proud Evolution" ep on Mute
Expo 70 "Black Ohms" vinyl edition on Beta-lactam Ring
The Sticks "s/t" cd/2x7" on Upset The Rhythm
Jim Haynes "Rocks. Hills. Plains" on Root Strata
Nurse With Wound "Skrag" cd on United Dairies
Jonathan Coleclough "Flutter" 2cd-r on October
Johann Johannsson "And In The Endless Pause" lp on Type
Jay Reatard "Blood Visions" lp on Fat Possum
King Khan & BBQ Show "Invisible Girl" cd/lp on In The Red
Felix "You Are The One I Pick" cd on Kranky
Anton Batagov "Passionate Desire To Be An Angel" cd on Long Arms Records
Japancakes "If I Could See Dallas"
Jazzfinger "The Sun's Golden Blood" cd on Beta-Lactam Ring
v/a "Noise Room" cd on Soniq
Country Teasers / Ezee Tiger split lp on Holy Mountain
Erase Errata TBA cd on Kill Rock Stars
Rodan TBA cd/lp on Quarterstick
Swell Maps "International Rescue" clear vinyl LP reissue on Alive
Boduf Songs "Strait Gait" cd/lp on Latitudes
The Fall "Future Our Clutter"
Panda Bear "Tomboy"
Ken Camden "Lethargy & Repercussions" cd/lp on Kranky
Nurse With Wound "Second Pirate Session" cd on United Jnana

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Lots of love from your devoted AQ staff

Andee Cup Jim AllanIrwinScottNickJonandAndrew