STILL CORNERS Creatures Of An Hour (Sub Pop) lp 16.98
When we first heard London retro murk poppers Still Corners, it was on a split single with another retro pop combo called The New Lines, and we were so smitten by The New Lines song, that it even had us wondering why it was Still Corners who got signed to Sub Pop and not The New Lines. Well, if there was any doubt about whether Still Corners should be on Sub Pop, it was wiped away within seconds of putting on their debut full length. Like Portishead crossed with Ennio Morricone crossed with Stereolab crossed with The Caretaker, the sound is so washed out and careworn, organs warble and wheeze, the drums minimal and skeletal, the guitars chiming and jangly, the production muted and muddy, all supporting the breathy angelic vocals of singer Tessa Murray, whose childlike croon is ethereal and spectral, the result is some sort of out-of-time faded memory dream pop. Opener "Cuckoo" is a perfect example, about as dreamy and divine as pop music gets. Fans of the various Girls bands (Dum Dum, Vivian, etc.), who want something dreamier and darker and more late night sounding, this might be the ticket. "Circulars" definitely displays the bands Stereolab side, propulsive and a little bit krautrocky sounding, but as if broadcast from underwater, or through an old radio hooked up to the sixties. The distinctive organ sound and the washed out production is what really defines Still Corners' sound, there aren't even any proper vocals on "Circulars", instead just some buried oooh's and aaah's, woven into the softly undulating fabric of the song's gauzy shimmer. Elsewhere the band look to Mazzy Star for sure, even the Cocteau Twins, but their sound is firmly rooted in sixties girl group pop, but not in the way the current crop of garage rockers channel that sound, no Still Corners have made that sound their own, it's not just echo and reverb, the sound is thick, and organic, the vocals dreamlike and crystalline, the songs subtly hooky, as much about the sound as the song, and vice versa.
Our favorite track would have to be "I Wrote In Blood", which almost sounds like a female Chris Isaak, channeled through some sort of Southern gothic PJ Harvey, the guitars fuzzy and distorted, but still minimal and spare, chiming melodies draped over the chugging swampy blues that seams to be blurred and smeared into a sort of ethereal slither, and when the drums do finally kick in, it's immediately all soundtracky, haunting and mysterious and so darkly evocative. And just as we pick that as our favorite, another one begins vying for the honor, until we finally give in and proclaim the whole record as our favorite. Easily one of the prettiest, darkest, most mysteriously lovely retro pop, dream psych records we've heard in ages, and absolutely destined to top our year end list. At least until that New Lines full length comes out...
MPEG Stream: "Cuckoo"
MPEG Stream: "Circulars"
MPEG Stream: "I Wrote In Blood"

STILLUPPSTEYPA Stories Part Five (Ritornell) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Who would have ever guessed that the first photo cover on the clinically sterile Ritornell label would have been this? A slickly produced cover photo of Stilluppsteypa donning faux-regal sparkling capes with huge stiff collars and one of the members (Sigtryggur?) in a fabulous/ridiculous pair of gilded boxing trunks with, of course, the ruby-red lightning bolt down the sides. In thinking of Ritornell's fascination with the glitch as both sound and methodology, this photograph is a perfect articulation of the glitch in the form of a visual mistake. This photograph shouldn't have ever been allowed to grace a Ritornell cover, but it has. And I'm very glad for it, but with the reservation that this should never become a regular occurance of the glitch community as this form of ironic self-description is almost always handled badly. Stilluppsteypa are certainly the exception to the rule.
I would hazard a guess that the visual sensibility of Stilluppsteypa has been informed by the odd conceptual agendas of Leif Elggren who is responsible in part for the Kingdoms of Elgaland / Vargaland (amongst a number of other oddball projects). Both Elggren and Stilluppsteypa play with the notions of royalty, as an residual political emblem of inflated egotism as well as of self-deprecating absurdity.
With that entire diatribe on how good the cover is, it needs to be stated that artwork completely betrays the integrity of the music within. Stilluppsteypa has developed into one of the most adventurous staples of the electronica glitch community. "Stories Part Five" deviates slightly from what is expected from Stilluppsteypa with their multipled layers of electro-acoustic minutae exploding into clinical technotic escapades, rippling with deep unwavering basstones. Stilluppsteypa's forays into techno minimalism are not the smooth tendencies of microhouse, instead preferring to enhance the skeletal grooves with a psycho-acoustic tension.
RealAudio clip: "Nice Things To File Away FOREVER!"
RealAudio clip: "When I Was Eight Years Old"
RealAudio clip: "All Drummers Shiver"

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN My Bag! (Hot Air) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
At last, we've got the new album from these witty British sampling artists. Possibly their best yet, truly the finest in dadaist electronica! Less overt spot-the-sample action than before. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of electronica as well as spacerock.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN My Bag! (Hot Air) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
At last, we've got the new album from these witty British sampling artists. Possibly their best yet, truly the finest in dadaist electronica! Less overt spot-the-sample action than before. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of electronica as well as spacerock.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN Organ Transplants 2 (Hot Air) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Stock, Hausen & Walkman's second volume of organ transplants is filled with lots and lots of organs. And we don't mean that in an eviscerated Hermann Nitsch kind of way... well sort of. The Manchester outfit has liberally spiked their lysergic electronica grooves with any form of organ deemed ripe for appropriation. Church pipe organs, Farfisas, hand-crank organs, Hammond organs, and tons more! Like records by fellow plunderphonists People Like Us, "Organ Transplants 2" is full of seemingly obvious musical quotations, tweaked just beyond the point of recognition. Beyond the brain-teasing / tongue-twisting frustration in trying to pinpoint the references (we're damn sure Aavikko pops up at the end of the record), this is wonderful collection of cool weirdness.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN Organ Transplants Vol. 1 (Hot Air) cd 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN Stop! (Hot Air) cd 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN Stripper/Broccoli (Eerie Materials) 7" 3.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Really nice downtempo sample-heavy trickery that grooves along, subtly minding its own business (read: doesn't hit you over the head), much like the recent Tipsy and Sukia records. And with a name like Stock, Hausen, and Walkman, you know they're on the right track. Highly recommended.

STOCK, HAUSEN & WALKMAN Ventilating Deer (Hot Air) cd 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

STOTT, ANDY Luxury Problems (Modern Love) cd 19.98
Luxury Problems is another stunning progression in the already brilliant catalogue of Andy Stott. The game is fully upped on this one, the dark hues even more melancholic, the fogged hiss and forlorn night drones ever present buried beneath sheets of crumbling percussion and is associated ether-rag induced slo-mo ghost house lamentations. It's a haunted sound for sure, as were his previous two mini albums, Passed Me By and We Stay Together, but it seems the bleak vaporous vibes of this Manchester artist are now fully realized. The addition of Allison Skidmore's beautifully woebegone vocals on most of the tracks provides just enough emotional power to really push Stott's vision forward.
Kicking off with "Numb", beautifully dark chords swell underneath Skidmore's plaintive and gorgeous utterances, sounding like that Julee Cruise/Burial collaboration we've all been dreaming of, recorded on a cassette deck and blasted LOUD from some reverberating corner of an abandoned bus station. Sorrowful and droning, the 4-on-the-floor way slowed down, everything blurred out and disintegrated. "Sleepless" is a standout as well, starting with a hissing Zoviet France like syncopated drone, with dubbed out reverb drenched percussion and off-kilter loopy sheets of unraveling hiss, the rhythm track slowly starting to creep in about halfway through. Hitting those drugged out R&B vibes we've been digging so much, a pitched down vocal loop intermingles with the drums, creating a hypnotically swinging, yet dirge like dirt-house stomper. Everything blasted out and fuzzy, the beat goes on, never peaking but developing into a blissed out trance state, time stretched windchimes cascading from left to right as the cut up vocal samples surface from some deep subterranean sonic cavern. Exquisite. "Hatch The Plan" has a field recorded mechanics vibe, starting and ending with what sounds like a rusted squeaking conveyer belt drenched in 'verb, a totally heavy and corroded sub baseline appears. This is one of the more minimal moments of the record. Essentially a bass line, a kick drum, and some percussion, and plenty of space for Skidmore's vocals, which are multilayered to brilliant effect. Elegiac vocal passages double and triple up over this blackened percussive skitter, subtle elements of noisy details peak through the mix, building towards a break in the drums, the angelic chorus of the vocals given full reign in the mix, haunting and sonorous, before the conveyer belt sound reappears and pitches up and up til being left alone, untreated, to cap off the jam. Drugged out and woozy, layers of dirt and skree undulating, altogether creepy, yet still, somehow sublime.
The vibe of the record remains totally consistent throughout, but what's truly great is how Stott finds understated ways to insert some funk into the proceedings. Stott, after all, has some dance floor cred, gained through his garagey bassy alter ego Andrea (also worth checking out is Millie & Andrea, Stott's collab with Miles Whittaker of Demdike Stare), but this is an Andy Stott record proper, so any dance floor tendencies are going to be handled with a handful of bleak dust. The title cut offers the best example of a clever infusion of dance floor tropes. A flickering breakbeat rolls along, slow and low slug swing, stark vocal harmonies commingle with a downtuned & groovy bass guitar line. Suddenly a 'verbed out to the max disco-y conga loop shows up, WAY high in the mix, giving the whole thing a very handmade, mid nineties NYC hip hop by way of Bristol vibe. Cut up and funky, yet with all the forlorn noise dappled feeling emblematic of Stott's sound.
"Up The Box" though, at least rhythmically speaking, may be the greatest departure on the record. It starts as a grinding and mesmerizing caustic drum drone. Again with some serious Zoviet France vibes, reminding us a little of our favorite Demdike Stare moments, the otherworldly percussive grime looping on and on, swirling hissing textures building until suddenly the whole thing turns into a screwed and chopped breakbeat work out! Although dirty and decimated as hell, just a breakbeat and a handful of effects go toward creating this stark rhythmic roller. Finally, "Leaving" caps Luxury Problems with more of Skidmore's beautifully funerary vocal intonations, multilayered and of course with a healthy dose of cavelike reverb, a gloomy gothy synth bass line combined with all the gauzy heavenly texture in these final moments has our collective hearts about to break. SO FUCKING GOOD!
Luxury Problems is definitely Stott's best work to date, which obviously means this is totally essential. The sonic palette here is definitely consistent with all the various releases under his own name, but the addition of the voice adds an incredible layer of emotional depth. Inhabiting a deep and dark nighttime universe, ghostly and mourning, disintegrating and dreary, the perfect soundtrack to those moments of lonely reflection. So utterly recommended! Beautiful Modern Love sleeve design too. (FYI, the vinyl version we had for a moment, but it's now being repressed, we'll list it when we can!)
MPEG Stream: "Numb"
MPEG Stream: "Sleepless"
MPEG Stream: "Hatch The Plan"
MPEG Stream: "Luxury Problems"

STOTT, ANDY Luxury Problems (Modern Love) 2lp 28.00
NOW ON VINYL!!
Luxury Problems is another stunning progression in the already brilliant catalog of Andy Stott. The game is fully upped on this one, the dark hues even more melancholic, the fogged hiss and forlorn night drones ever present buried beneath sheets of crumbling percussion and is associated ether-rag induced slo-mo ghost house lamentations. It's a haunted sound for sure, as were his previous two mini albums, Passed Me By and We Stay Together, but it seems the bleak vaporous vibes of this Manchester artist are now fully realized. The addition of Allison Skidmore's beautifully woebegone vocals on most of the tracks provides just enough emotional power to really push Stott's vision forward.
Kicking off with "Numb", beautifully dark chords swell underneath Skidmore's plaintive and gorgeous utterances, sounding like that Julee Cruise/Burial collaboration we've all been dreaming of, recorded on a cassette deck and blasted LOUD from some reverberating corner of an abandoned bus station. Sorrowful and droning, the 4-on-the-floor way slowed down, everything blurred out and disintegrated. "Sleepless" is a standout as well, starting with a hissing Zoviet France like syncopated drone, with dubbed out reverb drenched percussion and off-kilter loopy sheets of unraveling hiss, the rhythm track slowly starting to creep in about halfway through. Hitting those drugged out R&B vibes we've been digging so much, a pitched down vocal loop intermingles with the drums, creating a hypnotically swinging, yet dirge like dirt-house stomper. Everything blasted out and fuzzy, the beat goes on, never peaking but developing into a blissed out trance state, time stretched windchimes cascading from left to right as the cut up vocal samples surface from some deep subterranean sonic cavern. Exquisite. "Hatch The Plan" has a field recorded mechanics vibe, starting and ending with what sounds like a rusted squeaking conveyer belt drenched in 'verb, a totally heavy and corroded sub baseline appears. This is one of the more minimal moments of the record. Essentially a bass line, a kick drum, and some percussion, and plenty of space for Skidmore's vocals, which are multilayered to brilliant effect. Elegiac vocal passages double and triple up over this blackened percussive skitter, subtle elements of noisy details peak through the mix, building towards a break in the drums, the angelic chorus of the vocals given full reign in the mix, haunting and sonorous, before the conveyer belt sound reappears and pitches up and up til being left alone, untreated, to cap off the jam. Drugged out and woozy, layers of dirt and skree undulating, altogether creepy, yet still, somehow sublime.
The vibe of the record remains totally consistent throughout, but what's truly great is how Stott finds understated ways to insert some funk into the proceedings. Stott, after all, has some dance floor cred, gained through his garagey bassy alter ego Andrea (also worth checking out is Millie & Andrea, Stott's collab with Miles Whittaker of Demdike Stare), but this is an Andy Stott record proper, so any dance floor tendencies are going to be handled with a handful of bleak dust. The title cut offers the best example of a clever infusion of dance floor tropes. A flickering breakbeat rolls along, slow and low slug swing, stark vocal harmonies commingle with a downtuned & groovy bass guitar line. Suddenly a 'verbed out to the max disco-y conga loop shows up, WAY high in the mix, giving the whole thing a very handmade, mid nineties NYC hip hop by way of Bristol vibe. Cut up and funky, yet with all the forlorn noise dappled feeling emblematic of Stott's sound.
"Up The Box" though, at least rhythmically speaking, may be the greatest departure on the record. It starts as a grinding and mesmerizing caustic drum drone. Again with some serious Zoviet France vibes, reminding us a little of our favorite Demdike Stare moments, the otherworldly percussive grime looping on and on, swirling hissing textures building until suddenly the whole thing turns into a screwed and chopped breakbeat work out! Although dirty and decimated as hell, just a breakbeat and a handful of effects go toward creating this stark rhythmic roller. Finally, "Leaving" caps Luxury Problems with more of Skidmore's beautifully funerary vocal intonations, multilayered and of course with a healthy dose of cavelike reverb, a gloomy gothy synth bass line combined with all the gauzy heavenly texture in these final moments has our collective hearts about to break. SO FUCKING GOOD!
Luxury Problems is definitely Stott's best work to date, which obviously means this is totally essential. The sonic palette here is definitely consistent with all the various releases under his own name, but the addition of the voice adds an incredible layer of emotional depth. Inhabiting a deep and dark nighttime universe, ghostly and mourning, disintegrating and dreary, the perfect soundtrack to those moments of lonely reflection. So utterly recommended! Beautiful Modern Love sleeve design too.
MPEG Stream: "Numb"
MPEG Stream: "Sleepless"
MPEG Stream: "Hatch The Plan"
MPEG Stream: ""

STOTT, ANDY Passed Me By (Modern Love) 2lp 22.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We missed the vinyl versions of Passed Me By and We Stay Together the first time around, but ended up making the double disc compilation from Andy Stott our Record Of The Week back in December of 2011, now the original lps have been repressed and are available again separately. Here's what we had to say about Stott and Passed Me By:
UK producer Stott seems to have taken the minimal downtempo soul of Burial as a jumping off point, taking that same sound and slowing it down even further, adding more grit and grime, creating a sound now twice removed from the dancefloor, a soporific, somnolent techno that fuses murky dirgey slo-mo soul with abstract house music creep, conjuring up a music that is both haunting and sinister, mesmeric and minimal, an array of looped melodies, melded to skeletal thumps and heartbeat like pulses, fragmented samples woven into the mix mostly to provide texture and melody, but for the most part all of the various elements are recruited to either become rhythms themselves, or to be blurred and smeared into a grim washed out backdrop, over which the rhythms slither and skitter. The dub element is huge, but it's a muted sublimated dub, only really showing itself, when a voice escapes the gravitational pull of Stott's black hole dub, the swirl of effects dragging it right back down into the murk, quickly disappearing into the inky blackness, leaving just the churn and lurch, and it's that balance, a delicate one to be sure, that makes Stott's sound so special. Too much rhythmic murk, and it's monochromatic and dull, too much melody, and sonic filigree and suddenly it's not nearly so dark and mysterious. Stott deftly negotiates the middle ground, dragging the more melodic elements into the dark and repurposing them, using them to infuse his sonic black energy with life.
Released on the same label that gave us all the Demdike Stare records, which should give you an idea that while this might technically be techno, it's some murky dubbed out hauntology that transcends any sort of genre classification. A brand new unanimous store fave!
MPEG Stream: "North To South"
MPEG Stream: "Intermittent"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Details"

STOTT, ANDY Passed Me By (Modern Love) 2lp 26.00
We missed the original vinyl versions of Andy Stott's Passed Me By and We Stay Together the first time around, but ended up making the double disc compilation that bundled those two albums into one set our Record Of The Week back in December of 2011, now the original lps have been repressed once more (for the third time, by our count), and are again available separately, on vinyl! Here's what we had to say about Stott and Passed Me By:
UK producer Stott seems to have taken the minimal downtempo soul of Burial as a jumping off point, taking that same sound and slowing it down even further, adding more grit and grime, creating a sound now twice removed from the dancefloor, a soporific, somnolent techno that fuses murky dirgey slo-mo soul with abstract house music creep, conjuring up a music that is both haunting and sinister, mesmeric and minimal, an array of looped melodies, melded to skeletal thumps and heartbeat like pulses, fragmented samples woven into the mix mostly to provide texture and melody, but for the most part all of the various elements are recruited to either become rhythms themselves, or to be blurred and smeared into a grim washed out backdrop, over which the rhythms slither and skitter. The dub element is huge, but it's a muted sublimated dub, only really showing itself, when a voice escapes the gravitational pull of Stott's black hole dub, the swirl of effects dragging it right back down into the murk, quickly disappearing into the inky blackness, leaving just the churn and lurch, and it's that balance, a delicate one to be sure, that makes Stott's sound so special. Too much rhythmic murk, and it's monochromatic and dull, too much melody, and sonic filigree and suddenly it's not nearly so dark and mysterious. Stott deftly negotiates the middle ground, dragging the more melodic elements into the dark and repurposing them, using them to infuse his sonic black energy with life.
Released on the same label that gave us all the Demdike Stare records, which should give you an idea that while this might technically be techno, it's some murky dubbed out hauntology that transcends any sort of genre classification. A brand new unanimous store fave!
MPEG Stream: "North To South"
MPEG Stream: "Intermittent"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Details"

STOTT, ANDY Passed Me By / We Stay Together (Modern Love) 2cd 24.00
Before we had actually heard Andy Stott, we had a procession of folks come into the store and tell us how incredible his stuff was, and how we should definitely get whatever we could, and yet, with every 12" release, they disappeared before we could get any copies at all, and before we knew it they were gone. We did manage to hear bits and pieces, enough that when we discovered that two of the records were being reissued together as a double cd, we could barely wait, and once it arrived, well, pretty much everyone here has been playing it nonstop. UK producer Stott seems to have taken the minimal downtempo soul of Burial as a jumping off point, taking that same sound and slowing it down even further, adding more grit and grime, creating a sound now twice removed from the dancefloor, a soporific, somnolent techno that fuses murky dirgey slo-mo soul with abstract house music creep, conjuring up a music that is both haunting and sinister, mesmeric and minimal, an array of looped melodies, melded to skeletal thumps and heartbeat like pulses, fragmented samples woven into the mix mostly to provide texture and melody, but for the most part all of the various elements are recruited to either become rhythms themselves, or to be blurred and smeared into a grim washed out backdrop, over which the rhythms slither and skitter. The dub element is huge, but it's a muted sublimated dub, only really showing itself, when a voice escapes the gravitational pull of Stott's black hole dub, the swirl of effects dragging it right back down into the murk, quickly disappearing into the inky blackness, leaving just the churn and lurch, and it's that balance, a delicate one to be sure, that makes Stott's sound so special. Too much rhythmic murk, and it's monochromatic and dull, too much melody, and sonic filigree and suddenly it's not nearly so dark and mysterious. Stott deftly negotiates the middle ground, dragging the more melodic elements into the dark and repurposing them, using them to infuse his sonic black energy with life. The bonus tracks on Passed Me By, are much more active, the pulsing house-y "Stitch House" sounds like Stott covering The Field, still all fuzzy and washed out and Pop Ambient, but much more rhythmic, and less murky, while "Love Nothing" lets the rhythms come front and center, skittering and shuffling over a rubbery low end melody, and swirling synthy chordal swells, not to mention a deep dramatic croon. It almost sounds like a sketch for a future song that would find the various elements dipped in pitch, slowed down and blackened.
The second disc does dial back the murk a bit, instead focusing on the rhythmic component, wrapping everything in a Pop Ambient haze, but letting the beats break free of the whir and thrum, opener "Submission" is all hazy swirls, the only rhythm a sort of echo drenched dubbed out ripple, very dreamlike and abstract, before slipping into "Posers" which at first sounds very much like something off Passed Me By sampled water gurgles beneath a muted techno thump, but soon, fog horn like melodies drift in, and the beat blossoms into something much more active, a shuffling crunch anchored to a house-like pulse, processed vocals drifting over the top, the vibe groovy, but still washed out and druggily abstract. Which is how the first half of We Stay Together plays out, but then about half way through, the sounds begins to veer back toward the murk, "Cherry Eye" being a fantastic bit of muddied minimalism, even at its most propulsive, it's still a muted creep, as is "Cracked", although it does crank the beat a bit, conjuring up a sort of slow motion shimmy, that remains looped and mesmerizingly motorik.
The bonus tracks on We Stay Together, in some ways mirror those on Passed Me By, in that they actually sound more like their opposite, "Work Gate" is super minimal and sketch-like, a little dubby and darkly Portishead-y, while "We Stay Together (Part Two)" begins life as a hushed blur, but gradually blossoms into another Field like chunk of looped techno mesmer.
Released on the same label that gave us all the Demdike Stare records, which should give you an idea that while this might technically be techno, it's some murky dubbed out hauntology that transcends any sort of genre classification. A brand new unanimous store fave, and definite contender for Record Of the Year!
Packed in a super striking oversized gatefold sleeve, with a different cover for each album depending on which way you're holding it, both stunning black and white photos culled from the pages of National Geographic.
MPEG Stream: "North To South"
MPEG Stream: "Intermittent"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Details"
MPEG Stream: "Submission"
MPEG Stream: "Posers"

STOTT, ANDY We Stay Together (Modern Love) 2lp 22.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We missed the vinyl versions of Passed Me By and We Stay Together the first time around, but ended up making the double disc compilation from Andy Stott our Record Of The Week back in December of 2011, now the original lps have been repressed and are available again separately. Here's what we had to say about Stott and We Stay Together:
UK producer Stott seems to have taken the minimal downtempo soul of Burial as a jumping off point, taking that same sound and slowing it down even further, adding more grit and grime, creating a sound now twice removed from the dancefloor, a soporific, somnolent techno that fuses murky dirgey slo-mo soul with abstract house music creep, conjuring up a music that is both haunting and sinister, mesmeric and minimal, an array of looped melodies, melded to skeletal thumps and heartbeat like pulses, fragmented samples woven into the mix mostly to provide texture and melody, but for the most part all of the various elements are recruited to either become rhythms themselves, or to be blurred and smeared into a grim washed out backdrop, over which the rhythms slither and skitter.
We Stay Together dials back the murk that was all over Passed Me By a bit, instead focusing on the rhythmic component, wrapping everything in a Pop Ambient haze, but letting the beats break free of the whir and thrum, opener "Submission" is all hazy swirls, the only rhythm a sort of echo drenched dubbed out ripple, very dreamlike and abstract, before slipping into "Posers" which at first sounds very much like something off Passed Me By sampled water gurgles beneath a muted techno thump, but soon, fog horn like melodies drift in, and the beat blossoms into something much more active, a shuffling crunch anchored to a house-like pulse, processed vocals drifting over the top, the vibe groovy, but still washed out and druggily abstract. Which is how the first half of We Stay Together plays out, but then about half way through, the sounds begins to veer back toward the murk, "Cherry Eye" being a fantastic bit of muddied minimalism, even at its most propulsive, it's still a muted creep, as is "Cracked", although it does crank the beat a bit, conjuring up a sort of slow motion shimmy, that remains looped and mesmerizingly motorik.
Released on the same label that gave us all the Demdike Stare records, which should give you an idea that while this might technically be techno, it's some murky dubbed out hauntology that transcends any sort of genre classification. A brand new unanimous store fave!
MPEG Stream: "Submission"
MPEG Stream: "Posers"

STOTT, ANDY We Stay Together (Modern Love) 2lp 26.00
We missed the original vinyl versions of Andy Stott's Passed Me By and We Stay Together the first time around, but ended up making the double disc compilation that bundled those two albums into one set our Record Of The Week back in December of 2011, now the original lps have been repressed once more (for the third time, by our count), and are again available separately, on vinyl! Here's what we had to say about Stott and We Stay Together:
UK producer Stott seems to have taken the minimal downtempo soul of Burial as a jumping off point, taking that same sound and slowing it down even further, adding more grit and grime, creating a sound now twice removed from the dancefloor, a soporific, somnolent techno that fuses murky dirgey slo-mo soul with abstract house music creep, conjuring up a music that is both haunting and sinister, mesmeric and minimal, an array of looped melodies, melded to skeletal thumps and heartbeat like pulses, fragmented samples woven into the mix mostly to provide texture and melody, but for the most part all of the various elements are recruited to either become rhythms themselves, or to be blurred and smeared into a grim washed out backdrop, over which the rhythms slither and skitter.
We Stay Together dials back the murk that was all over Passed Me By a bit, instead focusing on the rhythmic component, wrapping everything in a Pop Ambient haze, but letting the beats break free of the whir and thrum, opener "Submission" is all hazy swirls, the only rhythm a sort of echo drenched dubbed out ripple, very dreamlike and abstract, before slipping into "Posers" which at first sounds very much like something off Passed Me By sampled water gurgles beneath a muted techno thump, but soon, fog horn like melodies drift in, and the beat blossoms into something much more active, a shuffling crunch anchored to a house-like pulse, processed vocals drifting over the top, the vibe groovy, but still washed out and druggily abstract. Which is how the first half of We Stay Together plays out, but then about half way through, the sounds begins to veer back toward the murk, "Cherry Eye" being a fantastic bit of muddied minimalism, even at its most propulsive, it's still a muted creep, as is "Cracked", although it does crank the beat a bit, conjuring up a sort of slow motion shimmy, that remains looped and mesmerizingly motorik.
Released on the same label that gave us all the Demdike Stare records, which should give you an idea that while this might technically be techno, it's some murky dubbed out hauntology that transcends any sort of genre classification. A brand new unanimous store fave!
MPEG Stream: "Submission"
MPEG Stream: "Posers"

STRANGER, THE s/t (Phthalo) cd-r 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Affiliated with the Manchester electronica terrorist outfit V/VM (Jansky Noise has provided additional production on a few tracks), The Stranger has produced one of the best records to emerge from that school of circuit / brain frying. Released on the outsider West Coast label Phthalo, this cdr release (limited to 250) is an alchemic concoction of boiling and crashing swells of digitized drone and sporadic post-Autechre break-skitter. Recommended!

STRATEGY Future Rock (Kranky) cd 14.98
Paul Dickow, one of Portland's brightest musical minds, has been a part of some of the most breezy, intricate and hypnotic recordings over the last decade in bands and projects like Fontanelle, Nudge, and Emergency. His third full length as Strategy finds him sounding better then ever. Combining multitrack live instrumentation, old-school synthesizers, digital sound design, and pieces of improv sessions and practice recordings, Dickow creates a seamless sound with an organic warmth that shimmers throughout. Subtle dubby beats with washed out ambiance, dreamy drifty shoegazing, a strong sense of rhythmic melody and surprisingly subtle pop delivery. Kind of like a Kompakt record with way more tricks up its sleeves. We started thinking that this is what playing Seefeel and Pole at the same time might sound like. We've been listening to this nonstop, it's one of those rare records that's just as satisfying to have on while doing other stuff, as it is to listen to with undivided attention. So nice!
MPEG Stream: "Can't Roll Back"
MPEG Stream: "Stops Spinning"
MPEG Stream: "Sunfall"

STRAY GHOST Those Who Know Darkness See The Light (Time Released Sound) cd 13.98
Another list, another fantastic release from local label Time Released Sound. This the latest from a one man band called Stray Ghost, who fuses washed out soft focus atmospherics, a la Tim Hecker, Machinefabriek, Jasper TX, with more modern new classical composition. Lush blurry soundscapes, ebb and flow, gauzy expanses of hushed hazy thrum, which give way to delicate pointillist piano, sweeping and darkly dramatic, haunting and quite lovely, swirling strings, the sound cinematic and at times near symphonic, a sort of faded dreamlike chamber music, shifting easily from layered ominous clouds of brooding electronics, to spare, contemplative drift, to delicate, crystalline shimmer, the sound wistful and melancholy, the spare prettiness and the lush brooding swells, continually blurring into one another, creating a gorgeous bit of electronic / neoclassical modern minimalism.
As with all TRS releases, the Stray Ghost comes in two versions, the standard, which is a proper cd housed in a heavy digipak, which subtly mirrors the meticulously designed packaging of the deluxe version, which is limited to just 100 copies, and is packaged in a handmade sleeve created from hand sewn sheets of antique Braille paper, all held in an origami style black fold up sleeve, hand stamped and Braille labelled, inside various pockets containing antique charts and drawings. As always. WOW.
MPEG Stream: "Migration / Refraction"
MPEG Stream: "Aubade"
MPEG Stream: "Lay Me Through The Cracks In The Storm"
MPEG Stream: "Signal / Noise"

STRAY GHOST Those Who Know Darkness See The Light - DLX Version (Time Released Sound) cd 40.00
Another list, another fantastic release from local label Time Released Sound. This the latest from a one man band called Stray Ghost, who fuses washed out soft focus atmospherics, a la Tim Hecker, Machinefabriek, Jasper TX, with more modern new classical composition. Lush blurry soundscapes, ebb and flow, gauzy expanses of hushed hazy thrum, which give way to delicate pointillist piano, sweeping and darkly dramatic, haunting and quite lovely, swirling strings, the sound cinematic and at times near symphonic, a sort of faded dreamlike chamber music, shifting easily from layered ominous clouds of brooding electronics, to spare, contemplative drift, to delicate, crystalline shimmer, the sound wistful and melancholy, the spare prettiness and the lush brooding swells, continually blurring into one another, creating a gorgeous bit of electronic / neoclassical modern minimalism.
As with all TRS releases, the Stray Ghost comes in two versions, the standard, which is a proper cd housed in a heavy digipak, which subtly mirrors the meticulously designed packaging of the deluxe version, which is limited to just 100 copies, and is packaged in a handmade sleeve created from hand sewn sheets of antique Braille paper, all held in an origami style black fold up sleeve, hand stamped and Braille labelled, inside various pockets containing antique charts and drawings. As always. WOW.
MPEG Stream: "Migration / Refraction"
MPEG Stream: "Aubade"
MPEG Stream: "Lay Me Through The Cracks In The Storm"
MPEG Stream: "Signal / Noise"

STREETS, THE A Grand Don't Come For Free (Atlantic) cd 13.98

STRESS Conspiracy Theory (Dark Entries) lp 15.98
Another fine collection of DIY electronic pop from another minimal wave band we're getting introduced to by Dark Entries! The history of Stress began in 1981 as a musical collaboration between the editors of two fanzines -- Adventures In Reality and Damn Latin - both of which covered the darker aspects of post-punk and new wave, with interviews and features on Bauhaus, SPK, Attrition, etc. Stress kept their songs girded to the taut electronics of sequencers and drum machines with vocal melodies that expand beyond the typical monotone delivery, falling not too far from Soft Cell's earlier tapes and Attrition's less baroque leanings. They released a couple of tapes by 1982, with contributions to numerous compilations to follow, leading up to their proper album The Big Wheel in 1984, which sported the witchy chart-topping single "Elisabeth Selwyn." The band split by 1985, with a few reunion gigs popping over the next couple of decades. Conspiracy Theory compiles tracks from those two early cassettes, remastered expertly as with all of the Dark Entries recordings. Comes with a fanzine, adopting a classic punk / new wave aesthetic with all sorts of appropriated texts about Stress and a cheeky spread on all of the gear that the band used. Nice.
MPEG Stream: "Tear It Down"
MPEG Stream: "I Stand Alone"
MPEG Stream: "Nothing New"

STRONEN / STORLOKKEN Humcrush (Rune Grammofon) cd 16.98
Members of Norwegian jazz/electronic outfits Supersilent (keyboardist Stale Storlokken) and Food (percussionist Thomas Stronen) collaborate in this duo, making their Rune Grammofon debut with Humcrush. Being fans of both Food and Supersilent (especially!) we were interested to hear this...also most Rune Grammofon stuff is pretty good. And this is! Improvised live in the recording studio but well and truly sounding like weird, tuneful 'songs', this album reminds us a bit of the Shaking Ray Levis, or maybe even a free improv version of Sagor and Swing, if you know either of them. The ramshackle rhythmic clatter of drums, the glitchy hiss and buzz of electronics, and the quirky synth tones combine quite temptingly to our ears. Not to many other 'improv' records boast cuts like "Marked East" that we want to hit repeat on right after they're over. From bright and bouncy (like that track) to moody and mysterious, Humcrush is an enjoyable ride.
MPEG Stream: "Acrobat"
MPEG Stream: "Marked East"

STUDIO West Coast (Information) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Imagine if you could erase time and create a special Hacienda party on the beach that New Order invited Robert Smith and Lindstrom to jam with them in an all night session under the stars as the waves crash on the beach under the glow of the starlit sky. Then you might get an idea of what this album by Swedish duo Studio is all about. Studio create a totally refreshing version of early '80s greatness that sets its focus on capturing a warm rolling sensation akin to ending up at the beach after a night of dancing and some of those ecstatic drugs still in your system. The record is bookmarked by two long cosmic instrumentals filled with shimmering synths that sneak in some kraut and subtle afro-beat influences with total perfection. The songs with vocals really do sound like The Cure and New Order joining forces as they catch an endless groove under a spinning disco ball. While there is some similarities to what folks in the DFA camp have been doing there is a much more smooth and golden sensation to Studio's sound. West Coast also reminds us a lot of Sorcerer's White Magic album, one of our favorite electronic records of last year. Both demonstrate the perfect way of extracting the warmth from synthesized sounds to bring the dance party back to the waves and water. A record that grows deeper in our veins each time we listen, we have become hooked! Not sure why it took us so long to list this but better late than never...
MPEG Stream: "Out There"
MPEG Stream: "Self Service"
MPEG Stream: "Life's A Beach!"

STUDIO Yearbook 2 (Information) cd 17.98

STUDIO 1 s/t (Studio 1 / Profan) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
If you're looking for work coming from the legendary Jamaican dub Studio One, well you've found a different Studio 1 that has nothing to do with dub. This disc is a collection of singles that continue to pour out of Germany as fast as the Studio 1 mastermind (Wolfgang Voigt) can manage. Voigt sets up a techno framework in which the variation of the pulse and the glitchy syncopations are controlled within very small parameters, for a surprisingly listenable form of technotic minimalism (along the lines of Thomas Brinkmann and Plastikman).

STUDIO 1 s/t (Studio 1 / Profan / Kompakt) cd 16.98
In addition to crafting utterly gorgeous breathtaking minimal pop ambience as Gas, Wolfgang Voigt was also responsible for some of the most influential minimal techno of the last twenty years, as Mike Ink, M:I:5 and a handful of other monickers. It's hard for us sometimes to describe techno music, and to define just what it is that makes us love one techno record and hate another, but this comp is wall to wall genius. Out of print since 2000, this comp is finally available again, collecting some of the best 12"s Voigt released in the nineties, as well as tacking on a handful of bonus tracks, every one a spare skeletal dubbed out groovescape of simple bubbly beats, minimal percussive thumps and beeps, everything tight and clipped, hypnotic and mesmerizing, futuristic dancefloor perfection, managing to swing, within fairly rigid arrangements. Pretty much every band on Kompakt, whether they know it or not, owe everything to this man, and these tracks right here.
Each track is named for a color, although it's unclear how those tracks reflect the colors they're named for, or if it's just a simple way of codifying the various grooves, either way, it does reflect the simple spare and minimal vibe of the sounds, the layout, the whole concept. It's hard to imagine people dancing to this, although we know they do, for us though, this is perfect chill out music, the beats bouncy but muted, the basslines barely there, usually just a streak or a brief thrum, the tracks hardly shift over the course of their 7-10 minutes, the timbre subtly changing, maybe another little skitter gets tossed into the mix, it hardly matters, as these songs start out pretty much perfect, and only get more perfect as they go on. Every track here could get locked into an endless loop, and we'd happily nod off, drift off, forever, letting the beats and austere ambience just wash over us.
Some of these tracks are almost 20 years old and still sound totally fresh, and even a bit futuristic, and the perfect soundtrack for some space age dinner party or some late night chill out sesh in a bad ass satellite bachelor pad slowly orbiting the Earth.
MPEG Stream: "Green "
MPEG Stream: "Yellow"
MPEG Stream: "Red"

STUNT ROCK Regret Instruction Manual Issue 03 (Addict / CLFST) 10" / book / sticker / poster / button / cd-r 15.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Holy crap those suicidal black metallers have nothing on Stunt Rock. At least in terms of pure self loathing misery. They talk a good game, and the music is appropriately miserable and melancholy, but their depression is so abstract, so much so that in some cases, it sounds as much like a gimmick as 'Satanism'. But this is indeed depression. Misery. REGRET. Past Stunt Rock releases didn't really give any idea that all this lurked below the surface, but this release more than hints at it, it takes his Stunt Rock heart, and pins it open, like a high school dissected frog, letting us poke and prod, and examine all the blackness inside.
It's also pretty funny too, if you think folks like Ivan Brunetti are hilarious, which we do. In fact, this is totally the record we could imagine Brunetti releasing. And it is in fact a sort of instruction manual, covering such topics as to how to choose a new mate, and to avoid the mistakes you made in past relationships. A page of little tags to place on your belongings for after you die when people dig through your stuff (for your pornography stash, for your box of old love letters, etc.), a very Brunetti like comic detailing a botched suicide attempt among other things.
The Prescreening A Potential Love Interest multiple choice form is amazing, it goes on for pages and pages, and is so gloriously black hearted. The there's the Learning To Forget & Adjusting To Living Alone section, also pages and pages, teaching you to do just as the title says, try different routes to work, repaint, get a new social circle, new wardrobe, but it's super well written, wry and bitter, fucking brutal here and there. There's also an activity section, with a form to write down all the songs you want played at your funeral (the first is filled out for you, Creed's "My Own Prison" haha), as well as a sort of last will style form, with spaces for things you want to leave for folks, as well as spaces for the people you want to make sure DON'T get anything (and the specific things you want to make sure they don't get. There's also an amazing section called Upsetting Things You Wrote When You Were Young. Poems, letters, lists of people who wronged you. But they're all blacked out CIA document style, leaving just the caustic comments by the author. All of this is gorgeously hand drawn and printed in a 10" book housed in a super nice cardstock screen printed hand numbered cover, each one hand numbered, the front a three color illustration of a blood splattered sink.
And there's a record. a 2 song 10", two parts of the same piece, titled somewhat cryptically "Dear Christian Girl (Parts One And Two)", a DJ Shadow style indie rock soundscape, lots of amazing (and amazingly depressing) samples, funny, fucked up, sad, melancholy, the song simple and hooky, but stretched out into a more electronic sort of groove, with thick buzzing synths wrapped around the Slint-y guitars, loping rock drumming, subtle hooks, no proper vocals, instead, the tale of the mysterious Christian Girl and Stunt Rock's saga of regret is told in a continuous mix of voices and sounds, of vignettes and fragments, in shuffling beats and melancholy melodies. Pretty great. And the perfect companion for the book. And as if that weren't enough, you also get a cd-r, with the same music as on the 10". All told, you get a 10" vinyl record, a 32 page book with hand silk screened covers, 3 Stickers, 1 Button, a cd-r and 1 of 4 different hand silk screened posters.
And we know all those forms are jokes, but we're really tempted to fill them out. Fun and funny, but only if you're a twisted bitter old crank, like us!

STUNT ROCK This Is Stunt Rock, Vol. 3 (Cock Rock Disco) cd 14.98

STYROFOAM A Heart Without A Mind EP (Morr Music) cd ep 11.98
For this new EP, Styrofoam's mainman Arne Van Petegem steps up to the microphone, introducing a vocal presence into his dreamy electronic instrumentals. This slips Styrofoam more in line with his labelmates electronic pop brethren LaliPuna or The Notwist.

STYROFOAM A Short Album About Murder (Morr Music) cd 15.98
Freshly reissued and ready to join your copy of Styrofoam's latest album Nothing's Lost in your cd library! Here's what we said the first time around:
Styrofoam presents A Short Album About Murder even though this isn't terribly short (7 tracks and 38 minutes) nor is it particularly murderous. Rather, this German group has produced some pleasant electronica walking between the romantic IDM sound of Boards of Canada and Locust and the electronica / post-rock elements of Kriedler and Console.
MPEG Stream: "No Matter What"
MPEG Stream: "There Is No Rest"

STYROFOAM I'm What's There To Show That Something's Missing (Morr Music) cd 15.98
We just got the new Isan / Styrofoam split album and Styrofoam's newest full length in stock which reminded us of one that slipped by us last year (although we did get the "A Heart Without A Mind" EP which was drawn from this album). I'm What's There To Show That Something's Missing is the third full length from Styrofoam (aka Arne Van Petegem). If you're not already familiar with his daydreamy music, imagine a more wispy washy Notwist, or a drowsy Postal Service. Layers of soft male vocals, delicate electronic mists, unobtrusive organ drones and gently applied acoustic guitar... get the picture?
MPEG Stream: "A Heart Without A Mind"
MPEG Stream: "You Pretend You Own This Place"

STYROFOAM Nothing's Lost (Morr Music) cd 15.98
Benjamin Gibbard fans have been tingling with anticipation for this cd for some time now and it's not even his own release! Well folks, the wait is over! We totally knew that a bunch of this Styrofoam cd were gonna fly out the door immediately simply due to the presence of Gibbard as well as some other current notable indie electronic pop darlings, but in case you're curious what the fuss is all about... here's the skinny: Consider this to be a Cinderella transformation of sorts. It's quite startling how much the spark and charm of Nothing's Lost can be so directly and audibly attributed to the talents of all the cool cats that Styrofoam (aka Arne Van Petegem) got to play on it. It's even more irksome that this release is going to be misleadingly filed under the Styrofoam name. A just-above-average electronic popster, Van Petegem gets totally gussied up by the help of many AQ faves -- the aforementioned Postal Service/Death Cab For Cutie's Gibbard, The Notwist's Markus Acher, Alias, LaliPuna's Valerie Trebeljahr, and American Analog Set's Andrew Kenny. The few tracks that are solely Styrofoam's domain are pleasant enough, but stand in stark (i.e, pale) contrast to the others. Now that's saying something right there... in almost every review I've read of Styrofoam's past releases, the word "pleasant" pops up with alarming frequency, and that's the downfall of most of his music, it never veers from the safety zone. Sorta the aural equivalent of some pretty pastel floral wallpaper. Alright, granted our expectations were somewhat raised, but overall this also pales in comparison to each of the individual artists' own work (almost seeming like their unfinished demos or cast-offs)... did they really have to put Gibbard's vocals through the Cher-style auto-tune processor?! The oddest, most jarring inclusion is the rapping by Notwist buddy Alias on the first track "Misguided". It's an eyebrow raiser, for sure. Really, the most credit that can be given to Van Petegem is for his savvy in assembling such an of-the-moment cast. We don't want to be totally down on this release, but feel the results are less (rather than more) than the sum of its parts. That said, those of you who can't stand to wait any longer for the next Postal Service, Death Cab, Lali Puna release might find just enough here to tide you over!
MPEG Stream: "Misguided "
MPEG Stream: "Couches In Alleys"

STYROFOAM The Point Misser (Morr Music) cd 16.98
Styrofoam is the electronica alter-ego of Arne van Petegem, who has also made a few Krankyish space-rock records under the moniker Tin Foil Star. "The Point Misser" is another offering from Morr Records and fits perfectly within Morr's particular niche of delicate electronica favoring the more melodic aesthetics of Boards of Canada and early Autechre. Bittersweet, pleasant, and aiming to tug at those heartstrings.
RealAudio clip: "Off Is Not A Speed"

STYROFOAM The Point Misser (Morr Music) lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Styrofoam is the electronica alter-ego of Arne van Petegem, who has also made a few Krankyish space-rock records under the moniker Tin Foil Star. "The Point Misser" is another offering from Morr Records and fits perfectly within Morr's particular niche of delicate electronica favoring the more melodic aesthetics of Boards of Canada and early Autechre. Bittersweet, pleasant, and aiming to tug at those heartstrings.

STYROFOAM The Point_Misser (Morr Music) cd 15.98
Freshly reissued and ready to join your copy of Styrofoam's latest album Nothing's Lost in your cd library! Here's what we said the first time around:
Styrofoam is the electronica alter-ego of Arne Van Petegem, who has also made a few Krankyish space-rock records under the moniker Tin Foil Star. "The Point_Misser" is another offering from Morr Records and fits perfectly within Morr's particular niche of delicate electronica favoring the more melodic aesthetics of Boards of Canada and early Autechre. Bittersweet, pleasant and aiming to tug at those heartstrings.
MPEG Stream: "Words Never Spoken"
MPEG Stream: "Off Is Not A Speed"

SUBIMAGE Bernal Hill (self-released) cd 9.98
Subimage has gone through quite a remarkable transformation for this third release. Following the very '80s inspired effervescent electro-poppy Etoc and Fruitpacifist, Mainman Chris Campbell has opted for more of a Brit rock approach, and expanded his lone mission into a trio with the addition of bassist Ruba and guitarist Greg. It's still got the thumpin' dancebeat, but Bernal Hill is driven more by snarly electric guitars than burbly synthesizers. That's not even mentioning the vocals. Campbell is sing-sneering up a storm. The big picture is sorta reminiscent of That Petrol Emotion and Primal Scream or the more recent sounds of Radio 4, Franz Ferdinand and The Rapture. Punchy with a lot more attitude.
MPEG Stream: "Hardwire"
MPEG Stream: "Evolve"

SUBIMAGE ETOC (self-released) cd 9.98
Subimage mainman Chris Campbell sure loves his synthpop and it shows! This trio's debut is filled with very very '80s rubbery dance pop a la Erasure. Lots of percolating analog synth bloopiness and uncomplicated programmed beats provide the videogame-esque backdrop for the ever so slightly strained male vocals. The songs are actually from 1989 through 1992, but they were re-recorded and remastered much more recently than that (2002 to be exact). Exuberant and fun! Oh and by the way, the cd's mysterious title ETOC is simply the abbreviation of the album's sixth song "Erotic Temptation Of Creation".
MPEG Stream: "Memorabilia"

SUBMERGED Before Fire I Was Against Other People (Ohm Resistance) cd 14.98
Not sure how we first stumbled across Submerged, but all it took was one listen and we became kind of obsessed. A dizzying mix of ethnic dubstep, old school drum and bass, classic industrial and experimental electronica, the sounds here are heavy and hypnotic, sounding a lot like stuff we were crazy about back in the nineties, but a bit supercharged and updated for the new millennium. The opener "Space Arabs" is a perfect example, a lumbering chunk of big beat dubstep, with thick undulating bass warble, but wreathed in all sorts of Eastern melodies, and fragments of classic Middle Eastern folk music, it sounds a bit like Muslimgauze if he had been raised on jungle and dubstep. The second track features Scorn and Dr. Israel (other guests on the record include Justin Broadrick of Godflesh/Jesu and Ted Parsons from the Swans/Prong, among others), and starts off with some thick buzzing bass, wrapped in clouds of hissy static, it's noisy and distorted and crumbly, when the drums kick in, it sounds almost dancehall-y, but fused to a more dubstep beat, with those staticky clouds returning throughout, adding all sorts of grit and grime to the stuttery beat and Dr. Israel's distorted flow.
Fans of the recent dubstep and dancehall collections, who lean toward dancefloor sounds that are dark and dangerous, this will definitely hit the spot, the sort of dance music, that is less about getting bodies moving, and more about evoking dread, or creating sonic mystery, building moods ominous and sinister. Then there are the jungle jams, where the beats get cranked way up, and it's like classic jungle but way more distorted and blackened, "Transport" takes a pounding two-step beat, adds some weird gnarled percussive melodies, and a layer of grinding static, while "No One", adds chugging metal guitar and howled vokills to wild spastic drill and bass, reminding us of aQ faves like Drumcorps and Aaron Spectre.
"Death Sentence" is another killer, a loping skull caving beat, clipped and distorted, over a noisy backdrop, and wrapped in some seriously cinematic ambience, the sound shifting constantly from dark and thick and layered to spare and skeletal to twisted and noise drenched. "Rorschach" too, with its strange melody constructed from processed vocals, and looped stutter beat, and wild swirling percussion, not to mention more thick bass, and one of those drops that would kill on the dancefloor if any DJ had the balls to spin something this heavy, and then finally there's "Dead", the 8+ minute closer, that starts out all blissed out and ambient, before transforming into a wildly tangled drum and bass squall, buried beneath a gauze of hazy shoegaze drift and buzzing metallic churn, the drums and production shifting constantly, a dizzyingly, insanely programmed psychedelic dubbed out junglenoise blowout. Totally ruling, some of the darkest heaviest electronica we've heard.
MPEG Stream: "Space Arabs"
MPEG Stream: "Nowhere To Hide (With Scorn + Dr. Israel)"
MPEG Stream: "Death Sentence"
MPEG Stream: "Dead"

SUBMODERN Inner Mission (Cryptic Funk) cd ep 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Check out the two releases we recently got from the local electronic duo known as Submodern. The first is their full length debut titled Object Oriented Mood Management and the follow-up is this six-song ep called Inner Mission. Submodern craftily construct their tracks from nice bloopy bleepy sequenced synth sounds atop dancefloor-primed programmed beats and basslines. The former are perfect for getting all tripped out to, and the latter keep things groovin' along at an easy-goin' pace.
This EP definitely shows some developments from the duo's debut. Its highlight track is definitely the third one, the moodily atmosphered "Stuck". Despite its title, it's anything but stuck! There's more layers, more textures and generally much more IDM-y action goin' on. The next track "Lurp" continues on that shadowy path. Can't wait to hear where they go from here.
MPEG Stream: "Stuck"
MPEG Stream: "Lurp"

SUBMODERN Object Oriented Mood Management (Cryptic Funk) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Check out the two releases we recently got from the local electronic duo known as Submodern. One is an ep called Inner Mission and the other is this, their full length debut titled Object Oriented Mood Management. Submodern craftily construct their tracks from nice bloopy bleepy sequenced synth sounds atop dancefloor-primed programmed beats and basslines. The former are perfect for getting all tripped out to, and the latter keep things groovin' along at an easy-goin' pace. The most kinetic of the ten tracks is the eighth "Minimal Angst". A nice little kick amid the mostly chill atmospheres.
MPEG Stream: "Honeysuckle Context"
MPEG Stream: "Minimal Angst"

SUBOTNICK, MORTON Volume 1: Electronic Works (Mode) cd 16.98
Collection of recordings spanning American electronic composer Morton Subotnick's career. It includes a remastered version of Touch, originally released in 1969 (his third commercially released composition) and created on the Buchla synthesizer and a four track. Also included is "A Sky of Cloudless Sulfur" (1978) also created using the Buchla, and a new piece entitled "Gestures" composed on a MacIntosh laptop computer using a graphical interface designed by his son Steven and includes voice from uber contemporary vocalist Joan La Barbara.
RealAudio clip: "Touch Part One"
RealAudio clip: "Gestures"

SUBSTANCE Relish (Scion) 12" 13.98

SUBSTANCE & VAINQUER Surface 12" 11.98

SUBTLE Wishingbone (Lex) 2cd 11.98

MPEG Stream: "Swanmeat"
MPEG Stream: "Farewell Ride"

SUBWAY II (Soul Jazz) cd 17.98
Have to say, we haven't always been too keen on some of the contemporary acts on the Soul Jazz label. What with all the amazing reissues and vintage compilations, the newer bands often pale in comparison. But on the last couple of Soul Jazz singles comps, the tracks by British duo Subway have always caught our attention. And now we have this full length (their first for the Soul Jazz label) and it has barely left our cd player (or turntable, for some of us)! The opener "Persuasion" is a stunner, marrying cosmic Baleria with Seefeel like dub house. Krautrock influences are on full display from Kraftwerk to Cluster (obvious with a track called "Harmonia"), but with a warm edge that feels authentic rather than a pastiche of styles. And it's not all just geared for the dancefloor, with thoughtful meditative soundscapes and propulsive Moroder-esque themes offering the perfect cooling off music for hot summer nights! Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Persuasion"
MPEG Stream: "Harmonia"
MPEG Stream: "Xam"

SUBWAY II (Soul Jazz) 2lp 27.00
Have to say, we haven't always been too keen on some of the contemporary acts on the Soul Jazz label. What with all the amazing reissues and vintage compilations, the newer bands often pale in comparison. But on the last couple of Soul Jazz singles comps, the tracks by British duo Subway have always caught our attention. And now we have this full length (their first for the Soul Jazz label) and it has barely left our cd player (or turntable, for some of us)! The opener "Persuasion" is a stunner, marrying cosmic Baleria with Seefeel like dub house. Krautrock influences are on full display from Kraftwerk to Cluster (obvious with a track called "Harmonia"), but with a warm edge that feels authentic rather than a pastiche of styles. And it's not all just geared for the dancefloor, with thoughtful meditative soundscapes and propulsive Moroder-esque themes offering the perfect cooling off music for hot summer nights! Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Persuasion"
MPEG Stream: "Harmonia"
MPEG Stream: "Xam"

SUM ONE Oblivion (Planet Mu) 2lp 14.98

SUN OK PAPI K.O. Orchestre Philharmonok (Sonig) cd 14.98
This is the silliest sounding (and looking) cd we've gotten in a long time. So much so that we spontaneously blurted out new words to describe it... like "twinkee booobles shplicka poing-poing"! Dunno quite what that means -- won't find it in a dictionary -- but it sure fits this Belgian fellow Laurent Baudoux's music. To boot, all the lyrics are befuddlingly sung in Japanese by MC Illreme! Yes, some folks might describe the tracks as being old video-gamey sounding, but there's more loopy-bloopy layers and jagged rhythmic outcrops going on that Super Mario would prolly have a hard time negotiating... but not us! Fans of Atom Heart (any one of his numerous personas) and Aavikko might experience particular breathless glee in Orchestre Philharmonok. More fun than a barrel of balloon-a-gram toting monkeys.
MPEG Stream: "Star Daughter"
MPEG Stream: "Papiko Riddim (feat. MC Illreme)"

SUNGOD Contackt (Holodeck) cassette 7.50
One of six new tapes from the always awesome Holodeck label out of Austin, Texas features a new release by Texas psych-heavies, Sungod. We raved about them awhile back for their debut release, Crash Galactic, now sadly out of print. On Contakt, these cosmic explorers are setting foot on a new and strange alien landscape, starting with a More-era Pink Floyd desert soundtrack vibe before breaking out with full kraut-inflected heaviness of lysergic guitar washes and pummeling poly-rhythmic momentum. A heady mix of gaseous electronics and acid guitar shred is nicely tempered by Blade Runner-like ambient passages of forlorn piano and slow burn synth-scapes. The final track, "Third Reichel" brings in layered acoustic guitar treatments in sequenced repetitions that evolves into full deep space rock take off. Limited!