A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS s/t (Killer Pimp) cd 13.98
We'd been hearing about this band quite a bit, often touted by reviewers as being "the loudest band in New York", which is all well and good, but that sort of thing generally doesn't translate very well on record. What we can tell you, is that more than any band we've heard in ages, these guys have their My Bloody Valentine, Loop, Spacemen 3, Jesus And Mary Chain chops down pat. But before you get all exasperated as we would be likely to do, we do realize that the bands who actively rip off some or all of those bands couldn't be counted on your fingers even if you had a thousand hands. And most of those bands steal the sound, but then have no idea what to do with it anyway. And most of them don't even get the sound right.
So it's definitely saying a lot, when we can say that, yes, these guys owe EVERYTHING they have to MBV and Jesus And Mary Chain and Loop and Spacemen 3 but still manage to totally rule. And somehow, they manage to make all of this borrowing sound totally fresh and original and exciting, and loud and heavy and like they just might have made our new favorite record.
From the first track these guys have it nailed. Murky, fuzzy, lo-fi, super blown out, with a weird buzzy guitar sound, wrapped around an almost gothy Interpol-ish bassline and keyboard melody, but when the vocals came in we were immediately transported to Psychocandy era Jesus And Mary Chain, the vocals and melodies and even the drums buried beneath clouds of billowing crumbling distortion. The second track is even more in-the-red and distorted, a crashing wave of dissonant guitars, that gives way to some almost Stereolab like Neu!-worship, and some sing songy indie boy vocals, which of course are summarily crushed by the moaning massive bursts of guitar fury and what sounds like bleating horns in the chorus.
"To Fix The Gash In Your Head" begins with sputtering drum machine and is quickly ensconced in thick minor key swells all dramatic and gothy, and the other distinct side of the band is revealed, a sort of super charged extra heavy Depeche Mode, which is in no way a bad thing. But on this track especially, the vocals are super Dave Gahan, with some industrial Skinny Puppy-isms thrown in for good measure, but still the heart of the song is a throbbing synthy new wave. And it sounds amazing!
Later tracks veer from swirling washed out wall of sound dronerock, to murky doom pop, to super eighties John Hughes soundtrack electro-pop, to grungy distorted Grebo, to throbbing Joy Division miserablism, to rocking Swervedrivery shoegaze, to shimmering glimmering M83 blisspop, but always liberally doused with waterfalls of coruscating white light guitars, sheets of roiling feedback, massive walls of buzz and hiss. Noisy and chaotic and furious and epic but always with a heart of pure pop and a halo of washed out guitar shimmer. So great.
MPEG Stream: "Missing You"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Think Lover"
MPEG Stream: "To Fix The Gash In Your Head"
MPEG Stream: "The Falling Sun"

A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS s/t (Important) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now on vinyl!
We'd been hearing about this band quite a bit, often touted by reviewers as being "the loudest band in New York", which is all well and good, but that sort of thing generally doesn't translate very well on record. What we can tell you, is that more than any band we've heard in ages, these guys have their My Bloody Valentine, Loop, Spacemen 3, Jesus And Mary Chain chops down pat. But before you get all exasperated as we would be likely to do, we do realize that the bands who actively rip off some or all of those bands couldn't be counted on your fingers even if you had a thousand hands. And most of those bands steal the sound, but then have no idea what to do with it anyway. And most of them don't even get the sound right.
So it's definitely saying a lot, when we can say that, yes, these guys owe EVERYTHING they have to MBV and Jesus And Mary Chain and Loop and Spacemen 3 but still manage to totally rule. And somehow, they manage to make all of this borrowing sound totally fresh and original and exciting, and loud and heavy and like they just might have made our new favorite record.
From the first track these guys have it nailed. Murky, fuzzy, lo-fi, super blown out, with a weird buzzy guitar sound, wrapped around an almost gothy Interpol-ish bassline and keyboard melody, but when the vocals came in we were immediately transported to Psychocandy era Jesus And Mary Chain, the vocals and melodies and even the drums buried beneath clouds of billowing crumbling distortion. The second track is even more in-the-red and distorted, a crashing wave of dissonant guitars, that gives way to some almost Stereolab like Neu!-worship, and some sing songy indie boy vocals, which of course are summarily crushed by the moaning massive bursts of guitar fury and what sounds like bleating horns in the chorus.
"To Fix The Gash In Your Head" begins with sputtering drum machine and is quickly ensconced in thick minor key swells all dramatic and gothy, and the other distinct side of the band is revealed, a sort of super charged extra heavy Depeche Mode, which is in no way a bad thing. But on this track especially, the vocals are super Dave Gahan, with some industrial Skinny Puppy-isms thrown in for good measure, but still the heart of the song is a throbbing synthy new wave. And it sounds amazing!
Later tracks veer from swirling washed out wall of sound dronerock, to murky doom pop, to super eighties John Hughes soundtrack electro-pop, to grungy distorted Grebo, to throbbing Joy Division miserablism, to rocking Swervedrivery shoegaze, to shimmering glimmering M83 blisspop, but always liberally doused with waterfalls of coruscating white light guitars, sheets of roiling feedback, massive walls of buzz and hiss. Noisy and chaotic and furious and epic but always with a heart of pure pop and a halo of washed out guitar shimmer. So great.
MPEG Stream: "Missing You"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Think Lover"
MPEG Stream: "To Fix The Gash In Your Head"
MPEG Stream: "The Falling Sun"

A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS Worship (Dead Oceans) cd 14.98
Often touted as the "loudest band in New York," A Place To Bury Strangers has lived up to the billing with their Jesus & Mary Chain worship, played out through squalls of guitar noise, post-punk rhythmic propulsion, and the laconic vocal delivery of frontman Oliver Ackerman, who gives a spot-on impersonation of JAMC's Jim Reid. Over the course of their discography, they've experimented more and more with Ackerman's handmade effects pedals that give their incendiary guitar noise a pretty distinct crackle and buzz. But, on Worship, A Place To Bury Strangers seems to be parting ways with the band that's been the object of their own worship since the beginning. Well, at least a little bit! The Reid brothers presented their jet-black surf noise with a sneering fuck you, and their punk attitude was never too far away from canonical rock 'n' roll posturing; and A Place To Bury Strangers doesn't entirely embrace that JAMC too cool for school aura. They are expressionists at heart, and they want to connect with their audience through the dynamics of noise, even if that expression is accompanied with bleeding ears! The JAMC structural template may remain, but the guitar noise here is all the more explosive, twisted, darkly psychedelic, dynamic, and downright fucked-up. As a song, "You Are The One" isn't much to write home about with its Simon Gallup basslines and a semi-whispered narrative; but the guitars blast around the song in so many directions, rocketing through a constant barrage of distorted explosions, punctured by short, gated pauses at which the noise rapidly change directions due less to melody and more to a stomp on yet another pedal. "Mind Control" warps the underlying song through a heady tremolo pattern and flanging, tight delays that launch into a form-destroying crescendo at the end of the track. Amidst all the infernal noise, A Place To Bury Strangers exhibits a considerable amount of subtle, deftly rendered dynamics that would totally be lost in their conquest of the title "loudest band in New York." Maybe they're becoming a two-headed beast, with the studio work becoming more intricate, while the live side remains bloodthirsty for that sonic destruction.
MPEG Stream: "You Are The One"
MPEG Stream: "Why I Can't Cry Anymore"
MPEG Stream: "Leaving Tomorrow"

A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS Worship (Dead Oceans) lp 19.98
Often touted as the "loudest band in New York," A Place To Bury Strangers has lived up to the billing with their Jesus & Mary Chain worship, played out through squalls of guitar noise, post-punk rhythmic propulsion, and the laconic vocal delivery of frontman Oliver Ackerman, who gives a spot-on impersonation of JAMC's Jim Reid. Over the course of their discography, they've experimented more and more with Ackerman's handmade effects pedals that give their incendiary guitar noise a pretty distinct crackle and buzz. But, on Worship, A Place To Bury Strangers seems to be parting ways with the band that's been the object of their own worship since the beginning. Well, at least a little bit! The Reid brothers presented their jet-black surf noise with a sneering fuck you, and their punk attitude was never too far away from canonical rock 'n' roll posturing; and A Place To Bury Strangers doesn't entirely embrace that JAMC too cool for school aura. They are expressionists at heart, and they want to connect with their audience through the dynamics of noise, even if that expression is accompanied with bleeding ears! The JAMC structural template may remain, but the guitar noise here is all the more explosive, twisted, darkly psychedelic, dynamic, and downright fucked-up. As a song, "You Are The One" isn't much to write home about with its Simon Gallup basslines and a semi-whispered narrative; but the guitars blast around the song in so many directions, rocketing through a constant barrage of distorted explosions, punctured by short, gated pauses at which the noise rapidly change directions due less to melody and more to a stomp on yet another pedal. "Mind Control" warps the underlying song through a heady tremolo pattern and flanging, tight delays that launch into a form-destroying crescendo at the end of the track. Amidst all the infernal noise, A Place To Bury Strangers exhibits a considerable amount of subtle, deftly rendered dynamics that would totally be lost in their conquest of the title "loudest band in New York." Maybe they're becoming a two-headed beast, with the studio work becoming more intricate, while the live side remains bloodthirsty for that sonic destruction.
MPEG Stream: "You Are The One"
MPEG Stream: "Why I Can't Cry Anymore"
MPEG Stream: "Leaving Tomorrow"

A SCANNER DARKLY s/t (Gilead Media) cd ep 10.98
This Philip K. Dick obsessed band's debut offers six tracks of heavy, raging, artful metalcore. Named after one of PKD's paranoid sci-fi novels (soon to be a major motion picture directed by Richard Linklater!) these guys specialize in unleashed terror in the form of low-end dirge, screaming vocals and guitars, and battering drums. It's kinda like a post-rock band that's REALLY REALLY UPSET about something, combining the atmosphere of an imaginary, scary sci-fi soundtrack ('specially on the mostly ambient track six) with loud, fast, crushing 'core. For fans of Coalesce, Neurosis, Old Man Gloom, Discordance Axis, Isis, Knut and the whole Hydra Head scene.
MPEG Stream: "Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?"
MPEG Stream: "Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said"

A STORM OF LIGHT As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver Memories Fade (Profound Lore) cd 13.98
Latest slab of epic, apocalyptic, psychedelic doom from A Storm Of Light, the project of Josh Graham, who also plays in Red Sparowes, Blood And Time, and of course the psychedelic doom sludge granddaddies of them all Neurosis. So it makes sense that Graham's project explores similar sonic territory, but where Neurosis is all downtuned crush and bellowed howl, ASOL is more spaced out, more Hawkwind, more melodic, more atmospheric. Even moreso than the last full length, As The Valley spends much of its time drifting, and smoldering, hovering and shimmering, but when the songs do lock in, and get heavy, it's still on the melodic psychedelic side of heavy, the vocals the driving force, way up in the mix, wreathed in echo and delay, giving the sound a bit of a Kyuss vibe, which is definitely not a bad thing, but when the band do crush, the sound MASSIVE, the guitars impossibly heavy, the production epic, but those stretches of extreme heaviness surprisingly brief with the tracks more often than not slipping back into the broodier moodier minimalism that much of the record explores, and those pronounced vocals, and the vocal heavy mix, definitely give this As The Valley a distinctly pop vibe, which probably screams sell out to some, but to us, just makes this less a doom metal record, or a post doom record, or whatever you want to call it, and transforms it into something tougher to pigeonhole, a sort of pop flecked metallic psych, or psychedelic doom pop. But let's to put too much of an emphasis on the pop element, cuz this stuff is still pretty goddamn heavy, it just happens to have hooks and melodies, and chooses not to bury them, and instead flaunts them, and often lets the melody, instead of the riff, drive the song. Which is actually pretty refreshing...
MPEG Stream: "Missing"
MPEG Stream: "Collapse"
MPEG Stream: "Black Wolves"

A STORM OF LIGHT As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver Memories Fade (Burning World) 2lp 33.00
Latest slab of epic, apocalyptic, psychedelic doom from A Storm Of Light, the project of Josh Graham, who also plays in Red Sparowes, Blood And Time, and of course the psychedelic doom sludge granddaddies of them all Neurosis. So it makes sense that Graham's project explores similar sonic territory, but where Neurosis is all downtuned crush and bellowed howl, ASOL is more spaced out, more Hawkwind, more melodic, more atmospheric. Even moreso than the last full length, As The Valley spends much of its time drifting, and smoldering, hovering and shimmering, but when the songs do lock in, and get heavy, it's still on the melodic psychedelic side of heavy, the vocals the driving force, way up in the mix, wreathed in echo and delay, giving the sound a bit of a Kyuss vibe, which is definitely not a bad thing, but when the band do crush, the sound MASSIVE, the guitars impossibly heavy, the production epic, but those stretches of extreme heaviness surprisingly brief with the tracks more often than not slipping back into the broodier moodier minimalism that much of the record explores, and those pronounced vocals, and the vocal heavy mix, definitely give this As The Valley a distinctly pop vibe, which probably screams sell out to some, but to us, just makes this less a doom metal record, or a post doom record, or whatever you want to call it, and transforms it into something tougher to pigeonhole, a sort of pop flecked metallic psych, or psychedelic doom pop. But let's to put too much of an emphasis on the pop element, cuz this stuff is still pretty goddamn heavy, it just happens to have hooks and melodies, and chooses not to bury them, and instead flaunts them, and often lets the melody, instead of the riff, drive the song. Which is actually pretty refreshing...
MPEG Stream: "Missing"
MPEG Stream: "Collapse"
MPEG Stream: "Black Wolves"

A STORM OF LIGHT Untitled (Latitudes / Southern) cd 14.98
The latest in the ongoing series of limited Latitudes releases comes from psychedelic doom heavies A Storm Of Light, whose most recent full length, As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver Memories Fade, we just reviewed on last week's list. ASOL is the project of Josh Graham, who is a member of epic doom sludge legends Neurosis as well as Blood And Time and Red Sparowes.
And like that full length, this is another killer batch of epic psychedelic doom jams, the guitars chugging and churning, the melodies epic and soaring, the drums a colossal pound, the vocals effected and tripped out, the sound like a swirling druggy hybrid of Neurosis, Hawkwind and Godspeed, the tracks smoldering slow burners, which sometimes erupt into full on crushing metal blowouts, but just as often, remain murky and psychedelic and droney and dirgey.
"Tempest" starts out kinda weird, with some cool lo-fi backwards guitars, some creepy whispered vox, dark dolorous piano, a staticky field of what sounds like chirping crickets, before finally exploding into a lumbering, mathy post metal workout, and their version of Joy Division's "Day Of The Lords" sounds like it could have been an ASOL original, but the big surprise is the final track, a spacey psychedelic cover of Big Black's "Kitty Empire", which definitely adds a new twist to an already ruling jam.
A handful of guests pop up too, one of the Wolves from Wolves In The Throne Room, and the legendary Lydia Lunch, among others. Packaged as usual in that distinctive Latitudes packaging. the cd in a brown and white origami style sleeve, with a red metallic foil stamp on the front, and a full color insert inside with liner notes, the lp in a black and white sleeve, with the same insert. BOTH LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES, each one hand numbered!
MPEG Stream: "Day Of The Lords"
MPEG Stream: "Vast And Endless"

A STORM OF LIGHT Untitled (Latitudes / Southern) lp 16.98
The latest in the ongoing series of limited Latitudes releases comes from psychedelic doom heavies A Storm Of Light, whose most recent full length, As The Valley Of Death Becomes Us, Our Silver Memories Fade, we just reviewed on last week's list. ASOL is the project of Josh Graham, who is a member of epic doom sludge legends Neurosis as well as Blood And Time and Red Sparowes.
And like that full length, this is another killer batch of epic psychedelic doom jams, the guitars chugging and churning, the melodies epic and soaring, the drums a colossal pound, the vocals effected and tripped out, the sound like a swirling druggy hybrid of Neurosis, Hawkwind and Godspeed, the tracks smoldering slow burners, which sometimes erupt into full on crushing metal blowouts, but just as often, remain murky and psychedelic and droney and dirgey.
"Tempest" starts out kinda weird, with some cool lo-fi backwards guitars, some creepy whispered vox, dark dolorous piano, a staticky field of what sounds like chirping crickets, before finally exploding into a lumbering, mathy post metal workout, and their version of Joy Division's "Day Of The Lords" sounds like it could have been an ASOL original, but the big surprise is the final track, a spacey psychedelic cover of Big Black's "Kitty Empire", which definitely adds a new twist to an already ruling jam.
A handful of guests pop up too, one of the Wolves from Wolves In The Throne Room, and the legendary Lydia Lunch, among others. Packaged as usual in that distinctive Latitudes packaging. the cd in a brown and white origami style sleeve, with a red metallic foil stamp on the front, and a full color insert inside with liner notes, the lp in a black and white sleeve, with the same insert. BOTH LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES, each one hand numbered!
MPEG Stream: "Day Of The Lords"
MPEG Stream: "Vast And Endless"

A STORM OF LIGHT / NADJA Primitive North (Robotic Empire) 2lp + cd 25.00
Not sure why we never reviewed the recent full length from A Storm Of Light, if we remember correctly, it was a pretty excellent collection of post Neurosis brooding metallic heaviness. But we can't review everything, so we'll try to make up for it with this one, which features ASoL teaming up with big time aQ faves Nadja for some seriously blissed out doom drone heaviness.
The A side features two tracks from A Storm Of Light, "Brother" and "Sister", the first, a sort of Neurosis / later period Swans hybrid, the verses a sprawling snare flecked rumble, the male vocals a deep croon, countered by more ethereal female vox, the verses crashing into an explosive chorus, huge soaring downtuned guitars, howled vocals, pounding drums, dirge-y but not doomy so much as epic, the guitar layered into thick swells, the whole thing getting almost orchestral near the end. "Sister" follows up with something a bit more mathy and lurching rhythmically, the vocals more raspy and rough, the guitars wreathed in effects, keyboards swirling and shimmering, the drums tribal and solid, the middle part features long stretches of softer drift, the arrangement almost sounds almost sea shanty-ish, albeit lumbering and heavy as fuck, super dramatic, and almost emo sounding when the two vocals harmonize near the end.
Nadja counter with a sidelong jam called "I Make From Your Eyes The Sun" which begins with warm muted backwards guitars, skittery barely there percussion, tinkling chimes, woozy sun baked melodies, lots of gauzy hiss and whir, even some piano, eventually, as it always does, the song blossoms in a slow motion supernova of sound, the guitars thick and viscous, the vocals a near whisper way down in the mix, the drums spare and simple, a gentle pop song buried beneath all manner of distortion and decay, woozy and washed out and dreamy and distant, although at one point, the ethereal guitar parts coalesce into some serious chugging, and for a short stretch the sound of Nadja gets all Godfleshed, a fierce industrial pound, beneath streaks of feedback, and undulating layers of buzz building and building and building to a warm, wonderfully warped climax, before the parts gradually slough off leaving just a minimal bit of warm whir.
The last two tracks are remixes, the first lets Nadja transform ASoL's "Brother" into something very Nadja-like, a slow, brooding build up, all deep swell and swirls of muted feedback, warped reverby guitars, bits of backwards swoop, gentle tinkling keyboards, until the MASSIVE breakdown, ultra heavy pounding crush, the guitars epic and crumbling and fierce as fuck, the drums distorted and pummeling, the drums eventually dropping out for the most part, leaving just the guitars to drone and buzz their way to the end. And finally, A Storm Of Light gets to tackle the Nadja track, and right out of the gate, they chop it up quite a bit, bumping the vocals up in the mix, muting most of the guitars except for a little industrial squall of grinding buzz, stretching it out into something less warm and woozy, but still dark and ominous, eventually letting the guitars tangle and wrangle over the roiling sea of murk below, all sort of atonal and off kilter, the drums more machinelike, finishing off with a weirdly dreamy stretch of crumbling chug.
Normally there would be a side 4, but here, that side is instead rendered unplayable by a beautiful super detailed etching. And both lps are pressed on super subtle blood red / black vinyl. And the packaging, holy shit is it over the top. The artwork is super eye popping photoshopped fantasy art with strange humanoids and polar bears and sweeping expanses of tundra and starlit skies and ruined castles, and birds and rams, it's almost silly it's so over the top but it's VERY striking. Gatefold, super thick, inside there's also a full color printed lyric sheet with liner notes AND a cd (not a cd-r) featuring all the music from the two records.
MPEG Stream: A STORM OF LIGHT "Brother"
MPEG Stream: NADJA "I Make From Your Eyes The Sun"

A STORY OF RATS Vastness & The Inverse (Translinguistic Other) lp 16.98
Latest from these Pacific Northwest doomdronedirge crushers, and it's another fantastically epic sprawl of tranced out blackness in the form of two sidelong jams, PLUS a 'reinterpretation' of the A side by Author And Punisher included with the digital download - more on that in a second.
While these guys are most definitely heavy, historically they've tempered their churning creep and abstract black ambient drift, with something much more melodic and psychedelic, never moreso than here, the A side beginning with a simple plodding, ritualistic drumbeat, which is soon joined by some dreamy sitar like buzz, swirling swaths of chordal drone, and some effected chantlike vox. Imagine a more mellow Sunroof" mixed with a little Om-ish dirgery, and then spaced out into something much more prismatic and dreamy. It's not until about half way through that things get truly doomy, the residual synthy swirls and woozy melodies remain, but in the place of that slow tribal plod, the drums have become a caveman pound, the guitars too, now corrosive and crumbling, the whole song shifting into full on doom dirge mode, but everything swathed in a hazy sun dappled dreaminess, that makes everything sound less heavy, and more hypnotic, sans the vokills, this could be some lost instrumental Nadja jam. It also reminds us of recent aQ slowcore doom faves Bell Witch.
The B side offers up a similar variation, working with the same sonic palette, but this time beginning with a softly pulsing dronescape, all distant rumbles, buried melodies, murky textures, slow soft swells of chordal thrum, which gradually gives way to a lumbering slowcore dirge, but more washed out and weary, that heavy, clean guitar chords are hung over the simple drums, the harsh vox buried way back in the mix, the result a sort of woozy, buzzy ballad, those clean vocals resurfacing again, making the whole thing sound more gloomy and gothy than metal, a sort of gloomdirge dreaminess, which here blossoms into something epic and majestic, soaring melodies, all the sounds building and building to a post rock style denouement, but again, still retaining all of the darkness of the group's doom core. The last few minutes finds the heavy guitars peeled back, and the drums dropping out, leaving just a gorgeous stretch of blissed out psych-drone drift, melodic, melancholy, and surprisingly lovely.
The accompanying download includes the songs proper of course, but also a bonus track, a reworking from Author And Punisher, who employs his arsenal of homebuilt noise makers, to at least initially, make the sound even more abstract, a sea of roiling rumbles beneath the simple drum plod, and creepy cinematic main melody, before adding some serious industrial pummel, and robotic pound to the second half, as well as a corrosive layer of crumbling buzz, culminating in an epic outro, that whips all the sounds up into a dense, tense, emotionally charged, and sonically punishing finale.
Super swank silkscreened packaging, metallic silver and grey on matte cardstock sleeves, with a download coupon obviously as well.
MPEG Stream: "Huldrefolk"
MPEG Stream: "Her Teeth Are Nil (Author & Punisher Remix)"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW Ashes Grammar (Mis Ojos Discos) cd 13.98
Not many bands have a sound that fits their moniker as perfectly as A Sunny Day In Glasgow. Though they hail from Pennsylvania, their lush swirling day dream shoegaze pop really evoke not only so many great Glasgow bands but also exactly how we imagine a crisp bright sunny day over there to feel like. The band's debut Scribble Mural was an out of nowhere sleeper hit of 2007, in fact it was one of our favorite records of that year. Ashes Grammar finds them upping the ante, adding even more complex elements to their already dense mix of sounds. There is definitely a really nice 4AD influence in their sound as we're always reminded a bit of the Cocteau Twins, and there are BIG nods to Loveless era My Bloody Valentine. This time out you can also hear hints of 21st century composition in their saturated colorful approach to dense avant pop. Imagine if The Swirlies and Seefeel collaborated to create some seriously shimmering blissed out pop perfection!
MPEG Stream: "Canalfish"
MPEG Stream: "Nitetime Rainbows"
MPEG Stream: "Shy"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW Ashes Grammar (Mis Ojos Discos) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Not many bands have a sound that fits their moniker as perfectly as A Sunny Day In Glasgow. Though they hail from Pennsylvania, their lush swirling day dream shoegaze pop really evoke not only so many great Glasgow bands but also exactly how we imagine a crisp bright sunny day over there to feel like. The band's debut Scribble Mural was an out of nowhere sleeper hit of 2007, in fact it was one of our favorite records of that year. Ashes Grammar finds them upping the ante, adding even more complex elements to their already dense mix of sounds. There is definitely a really nice 4AD influence in their sound as we're always reminded a bit of the Cocteau Twins, and there are BIG nods to Loveless era My Bloody Valentine. This time out you can also hear hints of 21st century composition in their saturated colorful approach to dense avant pop. Imagine if The Swirlies and Seefeel collaborated to create some seriously shimmering blissed out pop perfection!
MPEG Stream: "Canalfish"
MPEG Stream: "Nitetime Rainbows"
MPEG Stream: "Shy"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW Nitetime Rainbows (Mis Ojos Discos) 12" 13.98
Finally, new music from this East Coast sunshine shoegaze dream pop combo. Both of their full lengths, Scribble Mural and Ashes Grammar ended up being big faves around here, so we were definitely excited for more more more.
And thankfully, everything we loved about ASDIG is still present, the shimmery jangly guitars, the ethereal vocal harmonies, the woozy rhythms, but this time around the band have added some new sounds, the opening track for instance, has a cool breakdown where things get all washed out and in comes a muted techno thump, before the launch right back into the rock, only to have that electronic skitter follow them, getting al tangled up with the vocals. The guitars are crunchy here and there as well as jangly, "Daytime Rainbows" is crazy catchy, and finds the band at their heaviest, channeling the spirit of nineties shoegaze legends the Swirlies. That electronica finds its way into the third song as well, before they finish off with "Piano Lessons", a midtempo groover with fuzzy low end synths, laid over a seriously dreamy swirl of sounds.
As if 4 new songs weren't enough, this 12" also tags on 3 remixes, all of which take the original songs in dramatically different directions, the first is a pretty straight up electronic reimagining of the title track, the second one though buries the original under all sorts of crumbling distortion and blown out buzz. If you can imagine Wold remixing ASDIG, it might just sound like this. Finally, Ezekial Honig, whose Surfaces records we reviewed a while back, turns that same track into something super space-y and minimal, hushed and abstract. Really nice.
MPEG Stream: "Nitetime Rainbows"
MPEG Stream: "So Bloody, So Tight"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW Scribble Mural Comic Journal (Mis Ojos Discos) cd 14.98
More divine modern shoegaze, we just can't get enough. Fergit Belle And Sebastian. Camera Obscura, who's that? There's a new yummy band in town who're giving those bands a run for the money and adding a healthy dose of shoegaze-y shimmer -- umm, but the town they're in is not actually Glasgow. Nope, these kids are a trio from Philadelphia, but Ben Daniels and his twin sisters Robin and Lauren sound remarkably authentically wooly tartan'd. From now on when you think of Scotland, you just might find yourself thinking of A Sunny Day In Glasgow. Scribble Mural Comic Journal is a swirlin' shoegazin' blissed out treat all awash with fuzzy guitars and dreamgirl vocals in the lovely tradition of Sarah and Slumberland Records. With heaping helpings of gauzy Cocteau Twins swirl and abstract deconstructed My Bloody Valentine buzz. Press 'play', curl up in a windowseat, and enjoy!
MPEG Stream: "Wake Up Pretty"
MPEG Stream: "Things Only I Can See"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW Scribble Mural Comic Journal (Ruined Potential) 2lp 29.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now available on vinyl, a super deluxe double lp package, both discs pressed on 180 gram vinyl, new artwork, thick textured paper, a Japanese style obi, each hand numbered and limited to 330 copies. Includes exclusive remixes, one by Ulrich Schnauss, and one by Asobi Seksu!!
More divine modern shoegaze, we just can't get enough. Fergit Belle And Sebastian. Camera Obscura, who's that? There's a new yummy band in town who're giving those bands a run for the money and adding a healthy dose of shoegaze-y shimmer -- umm, but the town they're in is not actually Glasgow. Nope, these kids are a trio from Philadelphia, but Ben Daniels and his twin sisters Robin and Lauren sound remarkably authentically wooly tartan'd. From now on when you think of Scotland, you just might find yourself thinking of A Sunny Day In Glasgow. Scribble Mural Comic Journal is a swirlin' shoegazin' blissed out treat all awash with fuzzy guitars and dreamgirl vocals in the lovely tradition of Sarah and Slumberland Records. With heaping helpings of gauzy Cocteau Twins swirl and abstract deconstructed My Bloody Valentine buzz. Press 'play', curl up in a windowseat, and enjoy!
MPEG Stream: "Wake Up Pretty"
MPEG Stream: "Things Only I Can See"

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW You Can't Hide Your Love Forever Vol. 1 (Geographic North) 7" 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This Philly band captured our hearts a couple years back with one of the best shoegaze inspired records we had heard in ages, Scribble Mural Comic Journal, an album with which we fell more and more in love with every listen. So we were excited to see that they were picked to kick off this awesome new series of 7"s put out by Geographic North, called You Can't Hide Your Love Forever, which will also feature talented folks like Tarentel, Tussle, and more! These two new songs find ASDIG in perfect form, delivering more of their swirling daydream delights that remind us of brighter sunnier Cocteau Twins. Perfect for the 7" format as this is a band who creates songs that only get better with constant listens, we've been playing this over and over! Comes on cool blue vinyl and of course pretty limited as most of these sorts of things tend to be.

A TASTE OF RA Morning Of My Life (Hapna) cd 16.98
What a way to start your day... Morning Of My Life begins with what resembles a tuning session for the woodwind section of a pit orchestra. Long, drawn out high pitched whines drill themselves deep into your cranium. Egads. Fortunately they stop, giving way to pleasingly gentle strokes of an acoustic guitar and bows slipping across violin strings. Aaah, so nice! But then it tumbles abruptly into main man Nicolai Dunger's over-emotive vocals (think: a cross between Boz Scaggs and Joe Cocker) and strange jazzy ramblings. This cd's lone 42-minute track is uneven and joltingly varied for sure, but when Dunger's takes a lighter touch, the results are all too fleeting lovely moments of absolute bliss. Definitely a head-scratcher, but not in the dreamily wonderful odd way he's done in the past. We'd recommend maybe treating yourself to his two previous self-titled releases, before venturing this-a-way. This Taste of Ra is an acquired one.
MPEG Stream: "excerpt 1"
MPEG Stream: "excerpt 2"

A TASTE OF RA s/t (Hapna) cd 16.98
Also known as... Swedish soft folksy popster Nicolai Dunger! We were initially surprised to find him on the Hapna label, but after hearing just a couple of songs we see it's a perfect fit. His music under the alias A Taste Of Ra is far less conventionally structured than his (recently reissued domestically) 1999 solo album This Cloud Is Learning, and more slowly unravelling and hallucinatory. You might say, he's offering a Swedish take on the soulful bluesy avant-folk of contemporaries such as Devendra Banhart and Animal Collective. Yes, comparisons will undoubtedly be drawn, but Dunger possesses a more soft-spoken thoughtful delivery. Actually this album plays smoothly right into the new Vetiver EP which flows nicely right into the new Jim White soundtrack album (which is how we listened to those three new releases here today). Almost like a waking dream.
MPEG Stream: "Final Embrace"
MPEG Stream: "Ride Your Smile"

A TASTE OF RA s/t (II) (Hapna) cd 16.98
Whereas under his given name Nicolai Dunger makes gentle music that invariably adheres to a linear traditional pop song structure, under the moniker A Taste Of Ra he roams freely in a slightly odd, aberrant nature. This is the second installment in his A Taste Of Ra self-titled trilogy. As he meanders the pastoral landscape, he puts the squeeze on what sounds like an old accordion, slides a bow drowsily across a few strings, picks a smattering of guitar strings and sings non-verbal ribbons of la-di-da-di's and Jandek-ish moaning utterances. Neo-folk melodic passages materialize unexpectedly, and no sooner have they become apparent than they dissipate. A slowly unravelling cryptic calm. For fans of Jandek, Wooden Wand And The Vanishing Voice and Skygreen Leopards.
MPEG Stream: "Flowers, Bats And Boats"
MPEG Stream: "The Fox And The Frog"

A WILD MAN BRANDISHING AN UPROOTED TREE s/t (Supermegacorporation) cd 8.98
Geoff Soule from Fuck's solo cd is varied and subdued. Very mellowwwwwww. If you are sad that Fuck is now defunct, then here is a chance to enjoy the similar quality and charm in a whole new guise.
RealAudio clip: "Punk"
RealAudio clip: "Monkey"
RealAudio clip: "Vegas"

A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN s/t (Kranky) cd 14.98
Debut release from this duo, featuring Adam Wiltzie of aQ-beloved dronescapers Stars Of The Lid. He's teamed up with composer Dustin O'Halloran, for a suite of songs that doesn't veer to far from recent Stars Of The Lid releases, but focus on the piano as the main instrument, with the duo seeking out large spaces and grand pianos, with which to fully realize their sonic vision.
The opening track, far too humbly titled "We Played Some Open Chords", lets chords on the piano ring out, the natural reverb carrying the notes off and letting them gradually fade. The piano underpinned by some sweetly sorrowful strings, and some mournful horns, a strangely melancholy bit of modern chamber music, all laid atop Wiltzie's masterful and subtle guitar drone shimmer. The two part "Requiem For The Static King" is lush and lovely and sounds like a soundtrack, all soaring strings, dramatic melodies, the second half veering into slightly darker territory, the piano resurfacing, the strings dialed back, the guitar drones allowed to swell and shimmer, while "Minuet For A Cheap Piano" sounds to be just that, the sound slightly muted, subtly distorted, and again, wreathed in what sounds like strings but could very well be the swirl of droned out guitars, hushed and delicate and dreamlike. "Steep Hills Of Vicodin Tears" is another bit of chamber music, the strings softly swelling, the arrangement strangely rhythmic, as of the instruments were breathing, the song laced with a delicate piano melody, the mood swoonsome and melancholy.
"A Symphony Pathetique" the longest track at nearly 13 minutes, seems to be the record's centerpiece, that piano suspended in a field of gauzy dronemusic, the track is epic and gorgeous, a sprawling stretch of hushed minimal beauty, the background sounds in constant motion, shimmering and undulating, overtones loosed to drift dreamily, all the while the piano plucks out painterly melodies, and like all the best songs, we would have been happy to have this stretch out and fill up the entire rest of the disc. Instead, the song fades gradually into the ether, from which drifts "All Farewells Are Sudden", a very UN-sudden sonic farewell, all slow swirling swells, hazy ambience, and most surprising, female vocals, creating a lush lovely droney harmony with the strings, and what in lesser hands could sound maudlin, ends up sounding simply beautiful, especially with the strange addition of what seems to be field recordings, only to have the whole song gradually unfurl into a darkly moody soft focus piano coda. So gorgeous. Fans of recent Stars Of The Lid will be in heaven, and anyone into dreamy mysterious ambience, minimal melodic drones and avant chamber music will definitely find much to love here.
MPEG Stream: "We Played Some Open Chords And Rejoiced, For The Earth Had Circled The Sun Yet Another Year"
MPEG Stream: "Requiem For The Static King Part Two"
MPEG Stream: "All Farewells Are Sudden"

A WINGED VICTORY FOR THE SULLEN s/t (Kranky) lp 14.98
NOW, AT LAST, ON VINYL!!!
Debut release from this duo, featuring Adam Wiltzie of aQ-beloved dronescapers Stars Of The Lid. He's teamed up with composer Dustin O'Halloran, for a suite of songs that doesn't veer to far from recent Stars Of The Lid releases, but focus on the piano as the main instrument, with the duo seeking out large spaces and grand pianos, with which to fully realize their sonic vision.
The opening track, far too humbly titled "We Played Some Open Chords", lets chords on the piano ring out, the natural reverb carrying the notes off and letting them gradually fade. The piano underpinned by some sweetly sorrowful strings, and some mournful horns, a strangely melancholy bit of modern chamber music, all laid atop Wiltzie's masterful and subtle guitar drone shimmer. The two part "Requiem For The Static King" is lush and lovely and sounds like a soundtrack, all soaring strings, dramatic melodies, the second half veering into slightly darker territory, the piano resurfacing, the strings dialed back, the guitar drones allowed to swell and shimmer, while "Minuet For A Cheap Piano" sounds to be just that, the sound slightly muted, subtly distorted, and again, wreathed in what sounds like strings but could very well be the swirl of droned out guitars, hushed and delicate and dreamlike. "Steep Hills Of Vicodin Tears" is another bit of chamber music, the strings softly swelling, the arrangement strangely rhythmic, as of the instruments were breathing, the song laced with a delicate piano melody, the mood swoonsome and melancholy.
"A Symphony Pathetique" the longest track at nearly 13 minutes, seems to be the record's centerpiece, that piano suspended in a field of gauzy dronemusic, the track is epic and gorgeous, a sprawling stretch of hushed minimal beauty, the background sounds in constant motion, shimmering and undulating, overtones loosed to drift dreamily, all the while the piano plucks out painterly melodies, and like all the best songs, we would have been happy to have this stretch out and fill up the entire rest of the disc. Instead, the song fades gradually into the ether, from which drifts "All Farewells Are Sudden", a very UN-sudden sonic farewell, all slow swirling swells, hazy ambience, and most surprising, female vocals, creating a lush lovely droney harmony with the strings, and what in lesser hands could sound maudlin, ends up sounding simply beautiful, especially with the strange addition of what seems to be field recordings, only to have the whole song gradually unfurl into a darkly moody soft focus piano coda. So gorgeous. Fans of recent Stars Of The Lid will be in heaven, and anyone into dreamy mysterious ambience, minimal melodic drones and avant chamber music will definitely find much to love here.
MPEG Stream: "We Played Some Open Chords And Rejoiced, For The Earth Had Circled The Sun Yet Another Year"
MPEG Stream: "Requiem For The Static King Part Two"
MPEG Stream: "All Farewells Are Sudden"

A-FRAMES 333 (S-S) 3lp 36.00

A-TRAK Oh No You Didn't (Disque Primeur) cd 15.98

A.M.P. STUDIO Alien Registration Office (Ochre) cd 17.98
The A.M.P. Studio recordings are the solo work of Richard from Amp. Outside of the delicate drone-rock of Amp, Richard experiments with drum & bass breaks, swooping psych/space rock electronics, egyptian horns, and vaguely darkwave electronica. Still pretty dreamy stuff.

A.M.P. STUDIO Unconscious Country (Fourth Dimension) cd 16.98
The second solo album from Richard Walker of Amp features two lengthy tracks of atmospheric space-rock that venture into hazy electronic noodling with metronomic downtempo techno pulses and Roy Montgomery like improv-guitar solos.

A.R. & MACHINES Echoes From Times Of The Green Journey (Polydor) cd 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
An anthology of the hypnotic output of this krautrock/electronica pioneer, taken from albums spanning the years 1971 to 1975. Beautiful, rhythmic stuff, way ahead of its time. For fans of Frippertronics, Cluster, Neu, Kraftwerk, Can, and (more recently) Kriedler. Not new, but we just got a few of this fantastic disc at a bargain price, so we thought we'd list it, get it while you can. We've had it before for 19 bucks and it was worth it at that price too!

A.R. KANE Complete Singles Collection (One Little Indian) 2cd 21.00
The Cliff's Notes summary of A.R. Kane often begins and ends with the brief description: "the black Jesus & Mary Chain", which wouldn't be too far off the mark, if it weren't for the gradual / unfortunate shift that Alex Ayuli and Rudy Tambala made from blustery dream-pop to house-lite electronica. This collection of all the band's singles produced outside their three albums proper maps out that history from when they began as a beautifully scalding group that most definitely deserved all the Jesus & Mary Chain / Cocteau Twins comparisons to the less than stellar end of their career when the guitars were ditched in favor of some rather tepid Euro-pop numbers. Fortunately, the best work - the earliest stuff - is all found on disc one; so you can just leave the second disc firmly planted in the package and just forget it. The first single really does embrace that JAMC model fully with Psychocandy style hurricane-shock distortion grafted onto concise post-punk tunes, and even the Bobby Gillespie snare & floor tom dum-dum beat. As A.R. Kane, Ayuli & Tambala only recorded one single for 4AD, the lush, proto-shoegaze ep "Lolita" (1987) with a rather languid dreamy-pop number entitled "Sado-Masochism Is A Must" making the sexual fetish crowd swoon with the squalls of oceanic distortion instead of the sharp sting of a whip. The opening track to the following ep "Baby Milk Snatcher" (1989) is all about blowjobs followed by the rather stiff jangle of "Sperm Travels Like Juggernaut", lending to much critical debate from the stuffy British music press.
When A.R. Kane was signed to 4AD, label boss Ivo Watts-Russell suggested that the duo collaborate with the sample-heavy dance-pop outfit Colourbox; and they produced just two tracks - one of which is featured here in the downtempo proto-MBV number "Anitina." The other track was the chart-topping floor filler "Pump Up The Volume", also ascribed to their collaborative name M/A/R/R/S. It's not featured here; but for those who grew up in the late '80s and early '90s, that track is permanently etched into your memory anyway, it being a wholly memorable darkly-disco-pop number.
By the end of 1989, A.R. Kane left the guitars behind for sure, with the dubby martial funk of "Is This It?" which cops its moves from the post-industrial outfit 23 Skidoo with plenty of spooky atmospherics and atonal cornet blurting. But after this, it's all downhill. David Byrne signed them to Luaka Bop and A.R. Kane's quality control and their aesthetic choices took a serious nose dive. Buy this for disc one (which is brilliant!) and forget about the second.
MPEG Stream: A.R. KANE "Haunting"
MPEG Stream: M/A/R/R/S "Anitina (The First Time I See She Dance) Remix"
MPEG Stream: A.R. KANE "Baby Milk Snatcher"
MPEG Stream: A.R. KANE "Up"

A.R.E. WEAPONS Street Gang (Rough Trade) cd ep 6.98
Can you say "Suicide"? The band, that is. No, this isn't a new Suicide project, but everything -- from the music to the back cover basically says "Alan Vega, I so want to be you." From the same uber-hyped NYC scene that produced the Mouldy Peaches and The Strokes.

AA Essential Entertainment (Softspot Music) 7" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Debut release from this New York label and it's a doozy. A long lost post punk gem from Belgium. The band is called AA, and this, their first and only record, was originally released in 1981 and even then was limited to 900 copies. The second we heard "Suicide Fever" we knew we had to get this. More on that track in a second.
Taking cues from their contemporaries, Joy Division, the Fall, Wire, and of course their labelmates The Cultural Decay (whose reissue we reviewed her recently), the sound is total stripped down, minimal raw new wave post puck rock, jagged chiming guitars, simple motorik drumming, thick buzzing bloopy basslines, and weary heavily accented sung/spoken vocals. Simple effects warp the sound, delay, flange, reverb, echo, each track is short and sharp, one part, MAYBE two, the melodies super catchy, the songs totally mesmerizing, groovy and coldly Teutonic, but always with some strange but of melodic warmth just below the surface.
"Suicide Fever" is the jam though, sounding a little like a less sludgey, more new wave Brainbombs! Total minimal punk pop genius, with a super haunting and hooky main melody and guitar line, those vocals way up in the mix, the lyrics nihilistic and grim, delivered so jadedly, while the bass and drums are locked solid, and the guitars ring out, soaring and chiming, so great. Most definitely the 7" reissue of the year!
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES. Each one hand numbered.

AAIMON Amen (Klangverhaeltnisse) cassette 9.98
It's easy to tell something very witch housey is going on with these guys, present are all the usual signifiers, the band name is actually spelled with a triangle instead of the first 'A' in the band name, the song titles are a mix of lower case and capital letters, as well as all manner of symbols, but the proof as they say is in the creepy, electronic gloom pop ambience, and so it is, as the band unfurls a haunting expanse of swirling ominous ambient synthscapery, before the beats kick, an awesomely distorted and blown out dream-drag groove, a little bit skitter, the beats crumbling in clouds of buzz and crackle, the opener is super epic, almost a sort of cinematic theme type vibe, you can almost imagine some backlit figures walking in slow motion through the ruins of some old Victorian ballroom. And so it goes, we're gonna stop feeling like we need to defend witch house, cuz separated from the blog hyped hipster championed genre signifier, there's very little NOT to dig about this stuff, and this tape in particular. The second track offers up a sort of decayed Portishead, a skittery slowcore downtempo creep, the vocals an almost death metal cookie monster growl, but slowed way down so it sounds even more demonic, the in-the-red synth stabs, that sound more like a malfunctioning dubstep bass wobble only add to the woozy off kilter feel. There are of course creepy angelic (demonic?) female vox, gloomy and gothy and dreamy, with later tracks almost sounding like bastardized gloom pop versions of radio ballads. For everyone into Zola Jesus, LA Vampires, Circuit Des Yeux, Esben And The Witch, as well as the usual witch house culprits like Salem, Mellow Grave and Mater Suspiria Vision. But again, unlike those outfits, Aimon deliver something more darkly dreary and fuzzy, gloom-poppy and bestially balladic.
Of course as these things always are, EXTREMELY LIMITED, includes a download coupon as well!
MPEG Stream: "Pure"
MPEG Stream: "Amen"
MPEG Stream: "Maasym"

AAN Ajaton Vie (Pseudo Arcana) cd-r 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Anyone familiar with the name Aan? Well howabout Uton? Right, Uton, one of our favorite Finnish exports (among many!), and one of the least prolific, who somehow survive without releasing a cd-r every two weeks. In fact a new Uton record is a cause to celebrate around here. So we were equally excited to discover this latest release from Uton Satellite Aan, who take Uton's already blissed out tribal drift, and spaces it out even more, turning it into some gorgeous cloud of foresty drone, a gentle assemblage of various vibrating strings, and simple muffled percussion, fragmented melodies, fluttering birdlike trills, bits of acoustic guitar, bleating horns, distant droning swells, all tenuously held together, the various parts allowed to drift off, and then later resurface from amidst a cloud of glistening distant siren like wails.
Another band that definitely sounds like they're channeling legendary Japanese drone collective Taj Mahal Travellers, and one of the few who seem like they understand the spirit behind that sort of soundmaking. Music as an organic entity. As a spirit, that can not be captured, only guided. The members of Aan are shamen, coaxing the spirits from their instruments, then shaping them, guiding them, arranging them into dark dronelike shapes, capturing their essence on tape, and then letting the sounds drift apart and return to whence they came. So lovely. Another fantastic chunk of dreamy meditative forest bliss.
Beautifully packaged too, and oversized full color booklet, filled with striking tripped out black and white images, the cd housed in a pouch affixed to the inside back cover.
MPEG Stream: "One"
MPEG Stream: "Two"

AAVIKKO Back From The Futer (Muysic For Peoples) cd 17.98
Wow! A new Aavikko full length! This just might be the year of the Aavikko. When we first slapped this aluminum disc on our system we must admit we were a little taken aback: Hi-Fi Aavikko? Could it be? For so long these Casio-crazy Finns have championed the most primitive of production aesthetics with a sound only once removed from a ring tone. But here they were in crystal clarity and using the entire spectrum of the audible sound range. Did they get a sponsorship with some big keyboard company? Sources close to Aavikko are keeping tight-lipped about the group's new cache of keyboard equipment. Okay, let's put this in perspective before we go any further: a "hi-fi" Aavikko is still "lo-fi" by most standards, so don't expect any enormous shifts in the Aavikko sound. Bigger than their production changes is perhaps their new-found love of exotica and classic space-age bachelor pad music as a launching pad for their new compositions. Andee pointed out that a lot of the tunes on Back From The Futur sound like a lo-fi Tipsy. Their retro-futurist vision also smacks mightily of Kraftwerk (vocoder makes its way into a couple songs as well), Gershon Kingsley with bubbling and arpeggiating synth lines, catchy melodies and upbeat tempos, and maybe even the soundtracks for Roger Corman sci-fi flicks. We love it!
MPEG Stream: "Una Lira Soluziona"
MPEG Stream: "Erotica"

AAVIKKO Derek (Bad Vugum / Humppa) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A whole lot has changed since we first laid our ears on this glorious slab of cinematic Finnish casiocore way back in the twentieth century. At the time Derek, the debut full length from these Finnish freaks, was released, it was just about the weirdest and coolest thing we'd ever heard. And the last few years haven't changed that one bit! What has changed is the fact that now, the whole world, at least the underground music world, have their eyes squarely on Finland's fertile music scene. Eating up anything and everything, and it's all amazing! Circle, Kemialliset Ystavat, Avarus, Anaksimandros, Paavoharju and on and on and on. But before all these bands (except for Circle) Aavikko were busy creating impossibly catchy, Eastern tinged synthesizer scores for imaginary Westerns, or Bollywood movies, or whatever crazy Finnish movie could handle being accompanied by this maniacal music. Think of it this way, the fictional filmscores of Godspeed You Black Emperor or Barry Adamson are meant to be played at 33 rpm, to capture all of the scope, space, and time of their bleak sonic imagery, right? Well supposing that is indeed true, then Aavikko's utterly absurd and gloriously frolicsome music is some alternative universe version of those filmscores meant for 33, but played at 45. Or heck, 78!! Manic twin casios wiggle out catchy tunes that could easily have sprung from the mad mind of Martin Denny, had he been composing for 60's spy thrillers. Tomi Leppanen (Aavikko's human metronome, and currently the drummer for Circle AND Pharoah Overlord) propels the casio madness with pseudo disco syncopations and hyper-active breakbeats, while second hand synths weave surprisingly lush noir soundscapes, equal parts moody cocktaily jazz, propulsive spy thriller soundtrack muzak, spastic mechanical sounding krautrock and pretty much every musical stop in between. The surprising thing is that every song, no matter what strange twist or direction it takes, is wildly fun, unbearably catchy and weird as fuck. Full of hooks and unlikely sounds, funky grooves and hauntingly playful circus music, this record is one of the greatest warm and fuzzy, feel good, psychedelic groove lounge freakout records EVER! Aavikko's original label Bad Vugum coined the term maniacal monkey jazz for Aavikko, and we're not sure we could come up with anything better!
We can't tell you how psyched we are to have this back in stock. This is one of THE essential Finnish records, definitely one of our top five Finnish records EVER. This reissue is so long overdue as Derek has been out of print practically for freaking EVER! 7 or 8 years! Until now! Plus, this reissue includes two bonus tracks from the also long (and still!) out of print Aavikko cd ep. And who can argue with MORE Aavikko?!?!
MPEG Stream: "El Cebo"
MPEG Stream: "Galaktus"
MPEG Stream: "Ostsee"

AAVIKKO Finland Group Aavikko Meets Hit Singer Kabar (Muysic For Peoples) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Finnish synth pop nuts Aavikko are back! Now available for a very limited time Aavikko have teamed up with Kabar, an alleged terrorist suspect. The group met up with Kabar apparently by chance when they found themselves detained together at the Las Vegas airport in 2002. Due to a freak mix up, Kabar was released with Aavikko when they passed their security clearance. A singer in his own, mysteriously unnamed country, Kabar joined Aavikko to record one song at a Las Vegas studio. This 7" contains that track, an instant Aavikko classic, and a "Spoken Word Story" (a retelling of the crazy circumstances that led to their meeting set to music). The track, "Eye of the Leopard" is the very definition of kick ass, third world keyboard rock. Erstwhile electro-punk posers take heed, "this is the real experimental shit!" Comes pressed on beautiful, incredibly thick and heavy blue vinyl. Super limited edition, we can't stress that enough.
MPEG Stream: "Eye of the Leopard"

AAVIKKO History Of Muysic (Muysic For Peoples) cd 16.98
At long last, back in stock!! Here's our review from list 207...
Fuck. That's always a great way to start any decent review here at Aquarius. Fuck Yeah! That's even better, and certainly more appropriate for a disc we've been lusting after for so long. Aavikko is one of those elusive bands that we never seem to be able to keep in stock long enough to escape becoming a mere legend and a fading memory. The problem seems to reside in a lifetime of poor distribution and lackluster label attention. But now Aquarius has secured a direct pipeline to the band in the hopes of rectifying this shortage. Aavikko, for those who've yet to experience their magic, are easily the reigning kings of "electronic instrumental rock" (their own genre?). Hailing from Finland -- that in and of itself should be a clue -- Aavikko have honed a lo-fi electro-punk sound that's oft imitated, but never equaled. Using only cheap electric organs (most notably the Yamaha PSS Home Organ), drums and archaic analog recording technology, Aavikko compose Slavic disco, garage surf punk with rumba beats and insanely catchy pop tunes that bring to mind soundtracks to 8-bit videogames of yesteryear. History Of Muysic is an impressive collection of both no longer available Aavikko classics and unreleased tracks dating back to the group's inception in 1995. The latter includes their first rehearsal demo, outtakes from the Derek! ep sessions and their theme for the Kumman Kaa TV series (which has become one of the most popular ring tones in Finland!), among others. In the long lost and now out of print category, we're most excited by the inclusion of the eight tracks from the first, self-titled Aavikko 7". These are a veritable holy grail of primitive electronic rock and expose imitators for the slick hi-fi hucksters they really are. Probably recorded direct to cassette, you can even hear the tape drag and occasional drop outs. Fellow lovers of Bjorn Olsson will be excited by this and all analog anomalies indelibly pitted into the digital realm. All under three minutes in length, the tracks on the eponymous debut are tight and gritty pop ditties, completely trimmed of fat: the words 'overproduced' and 'Avvikko' will never be found in the same sentence but for this one. Also included on this anthology is the entire Oriental Baby CD, their collaboration with Mono Pause "Of Stomping Men", an unreleased live recording off of the beloved WFMU in NJ, their contribution to the Team Yamaha compilation and last, but in no way least, their most recent single, for the first time on CD, the amazing Eye of the Leopard with Kabar. Really folks, do yourself a favor...
MPEG Stream: "Alas Volgaa"
MPEG Stream: "Seikkailu Villi"
MPEG Stream: "Eye of the Leopard"

AAVIKKO Multi Muysic (Hawaii Sounds / Spinefarm) 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 gotten some import copies of the latest full-length from this beloved Finnish band! We'd heard rumors of its release for some time, so we were thrilled to finally track it down. At first listen, while the Casios and '80s video game noises are still in full effect, this album is much less frantic and frenetic than the Aavikko we remember -- which means, it's *still* fairly frantic and frenetic! But they're learned some new swanky, suave moves as well. Their old "maniacal monkey jazz" tag doesn't quite fit anymore (the maniacal part, anyway). Maybe they've mellowed into something sort of like a stranger, more disturbed Jimi Tenor? And much as we loved the kooky, chaotic sounds of their old Bad Vugum album "Derek", sometimes change is good and this is a smooth shift from one eccentric realm to another. Even slowed down a bit, they're still our favorite tripped-out instrumental lounge exotica group! Utter smile-inducing retro fun.
RealAudio clip: "New York - London - Siilinjarvi - Tokyo"
RealAudio clip: "Omavastuualue"

AAVIKKO Novo Atlantis (Stupido) cd 17.98
Electronic. Muysic. Finland. When we see those three words, which appear in small type on the top right corner of the cover to this album, we get pretty excited. Even when Music is spelled Muysic. ESPECIALLY when it's spelled like that. 'Cause that's means it's an Aavikko album. The mostly instrumental Finnish synthesizer/synthesizer/drums trio's new disc, Novo Atlantis, is finally here! Now, each album of theirs has always been a little bit different, but we've always loved Aavikko, from their early "maniacal monkey jazz" days as a lo-fi Casiocore band circa 1997's Derek to their more recent and polished productions of space age bachelor pad exotica like 2005's Back From The Futer.
So what's in store for listeners on Novo Atlantis? Initially we were struck by this album's even MORE electronic sound, taking Aavikko into techno-disco territory, more computery, less live band sounding. Though human metronome Tomi Leppanen (also the drummer for AQ faves Circle) is still behind the drum kit, there's plenty of purely electronic beats and rhythms on here it seems. Yet at the same time, this album also features French horn, trombone, trumpet, tuba, and even church pipe organ!! So while on one had it's all very futuristic (in a spaced out cosmic disco way), this also takes inspiration from way way back, the pre-electronic, classical music era in fact. You could call Novo Atlantis the "switched-on Bach" version of Aavikko, or more precisely, "switched-on Hoppel", Egil Hoppel allegedly being an obscure Finnish composer of the baroque period, discussed in the sleeve notes of Novo Atlantis. Supposedly he was some sort of child prodigy (he only lived 1722-1737!), an organist whose music has apparently become a major influence on Aavikko's new direction. We say allegedly and supposedly since we halfway suspect they made him him up, that he's a hoax much like those "funerary violin" fellows. Probably some quick Googling would resolve the question, but we prefer not to know for sure. If Aavikko invented him, they certainly were thorough about it - there are two purported Hoppel compositions included on the cd format as a hidden bonus track (we won't tell you how to find it, but check out our review of the most recent Agoraphobic Nosebleed disc for a clue!). And having heard those, it does seem like you can hear Hoppel's purported influence right in this disc's very first track, "Syntaksis", which definitely has an Aavikko goes classical feel, like a lot of the stuff here having shades of the "classically trained" approach of all those Moog-laden '70s prog keyboard bands a la ELP and krautrockers Novalis... But don't let that make you think this is somehow stuffy, over-serious or highbrow or whatever, nope not at all, far from it as any Aavikko fan would guess. While it's got its moody moments, most of Novo Atlantis is percolating, infectious electronic fun. Super groovy, quirky, krauty - in the Kraftwerk, Giorgio Moroder sense of krauty.
The album ends with what must be Aavikko's longest track ever, the 15 minutes of "Novo Atlantis II". Wow, quite an epic, with echoes of Joe Meek's "Telstar" in its melodies, and long mesmeric burbling sequencer trance-outs, something like early '80s Tangerine Dream, Wolfgang Duren, or Zombi's "Sapphire". A Lindstrom remix seems to be in order, where is it? Certainly Aavikko's new album fits nicely into the current disco craze. It also goes well with our obsession with skweee, too. Electronic muysic Finland, hooray!
MPEG Stream: "Syntaksis"
MPEG Stream: "Dies Irae Discodelico"
MPEG Stream: "Novo Atlantis II"

AAVIKKO Novo Atlantis (Stupido) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Electronic. Muysic. Finland. When we see those three words, which appear in small type on the top right corner of the cover to this album, we get pretty excited. Even when Music is spelled Muysic. ESPECIALLY when it's spelled like that. 'Cause that's means it's an Aavikko album. The mostly instrumental Finnish synthesizer/synthesizer/drums trio's new disc, Novo Atlantis, is finally here! Now, each album of theirs has always been a little bit different, but we've always loved Aavikko, from their early "maniacal monkey jazz" days as a lo-fi Casiocore band circa 1997's Derek to their more recent and polished productions of space age bachelor pad exotica like 2005's Back From The Futer.
So what's in store for listeners on Novo Atlantis? Initially we were struck by this album's even MORE electronic sound, taking Aavikko into techno-disco territory, more computery, less live band sounding. Though human metronome Tomi Leppanen (also the drummer for AQ faves Circle) is still behind the drum kit, there's plenty of purely electronic beats and rhythms on here it seems. Yet at the same time, this album also features French horn, trombone, trumpet, tuba, and even church pipe organ!! So while on one had it's all very futuristic (in a spaced out cosmic disco way), this also takes inspiration from way way back, the pre-electronic, classical music era in fact. You could call Novo Atlantis the "switched-on Bach" version of Aavikko, or more precisely, "switched-on Hoppel", Egil Hoppel allegedly being an obscure Finnish composer of the baroque period, discussed in the sleeve notes of Novo Atlantis. Supposedly he was some sort of child prodigy (he only lived 1722-1737!), an organist whose music has apparently become a major influence on Aavikko's new direction. We say allegedly and supposedly since we halfway suspect they made him him up, that he's a hoax much like those "funerary violin" fellows. Probably some quick Googling would resolve the question, but we prefer not to know for sure. If Aavikko invented him, they certainly were thorough about it - there are two purported Hoppel compositions included on the cd format as a hidden bonus track (we won't tell you how to find it, but check out our review of the most recent Agoraphobic Nosebleed disc for a clue!). And having heard those, it does seem like you can hear Hoppel's purported influence right in this disc's very first track, "Syntaksis", which definitely has an Aavikko goes classical feel, like a lot of the stuff here having shades of the "classically trained" approach of all those Moog-laden '70s prog keyboard bands a la ELP and krautrockers Novalis... But don't let that make you think this is somehow stuffy, over-serious or highbrow or whatever, nope not at all, far from it as any Aavikko fan would guess. While it's got its moody moments, most of Novo Atlantis is percolating, infectious electronic fun. Super groovy, quirky, krauty - in the Kraftwerk, Giorgio Moroder sense of krauty.
The album ends with what must be Aavikko's longest track ever, the 15 minutes of "Novo Atlantis II". Wow, quite an epic, with echoes of Joe Meek's "Telstar" in its melodies, and long mesmeric burbling sequencer trance-outs, something like early '80s Tangerine Dream, Wolfgang Duren, or Zombi's "Sapphire". A Lindstrom remix seems to be in order, where is it? Certainly Aavikko's new album fits nicely into the current disco craze. It also goes well with our obsession with skweee, too. Electronic muysic Finland, hooray!
MPEG Stream: "Syntaksis"
MPEG Stream: "Dies Irae Discodelico"
MPEG Stream: "Novo Atlantis II"

AAVIKKO Oriental Baby (Hawaii) 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.
The Finnish Casio-pop band we so adore from their two discs on the Bad Vugum label return with this six-song ep (that we've finally tracked down import copies of). Consider this cd for your next party of circus freaks. With "Oriental Baby" as the soundtrack, it's guaranteed to go on into the very wee hours. A feverishly demented Denny-esque boogie session with no end. The neighbours downstairs will reduce their broom handle to sawdust as they pound away at their ceiling. Definitely music to put a gleeful yet puzzled grin on your face. Featuring occasional Circle percussionist Tomi Leppanen. Wonderfully disturbingly fun.
RealAudio clip: "Pelihelvetti"

AAVIKKO s/t (Bad Vugum) cd 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Let's just say that the fictional filmscores of Godspeed You Black Emperor or Barry Adamson are meant to be played at 33 rpm, to capture all of the length, space, and time of their bleak work. With that absurd presupposition, Aavikko's music are those filmscores meant for 33, but played at 45. Manic twin casios wiggle out catchy tunes that could easily come from Martin Denny, if he had been composing for 60's spy thrillers. While T. Leppanen (Aavikko's human metronome) propels the casio madness with pseudo disco syncopations and hyper-active breakbeats. Bad Vugum has coined the term maniacal monkey jazz for Aavikko! Please note, we have carried their records from time to time, but always managed to sell out of them by the time this lists actually get sent out. So act fast, vigilant AQ customers!

ABBASI BROTHERS, THE Something Like Nostalgia (Dynamophone) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another new addition to the steadily growing flock on the Bay Area's Dynamophone label (also see the new boxed 3" cdr by Curium on this list)!
The shimmering atmospheric piano dappled washes on their debut Something Like Nostalgia are a perfect fit. The Abbasi Brothers follow serenely in the formidable footsteps of granddaddies of ambient quietude Brian Eno and Philip Glass. Really really pretty.
MPEG Stream: "Kompa"
MPEG Stream: "Camera Flashes Blue"

ABBC Elevator Baby (Wabana) 7" 4.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A mere glimpse of things to come... this is a two song collaboration between the wonderful Calexico and Amor Belhom Duo, with whom they've toured and are now making an upcoming full length.

ABBC Gilbert / Butterfly Mouth (Easy Tiger) 7" 5.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Attention Calexico lovers! Here's another collaboration between them and the Amor Belhom Duo. You better hop on it though 'cause this one's limited to 1000. UK import pressing.

ABBC Tete a Tete (Wabana) cd 14.98
What happens when you combine equal parts Calexico and Amor Belhom Duo? A darker, sparser sound than either of the two groups. Raw, uneffected guitar, deep, rich strings and accordion, some french lyrics. We got a mere hint at the melancholic conspirings of these four men on their 7" entitled "Elevator Baby" which is also the lead off track on this album. And on the other end, closing the cd is a very lengthy, atmospheric, almost sinister track. The unsettling sounds of a hot arid eve in Arizona (where, by the way, this was recorded).
RealAudio clip: "La Valse des 24 Heures"
RealAudio clip: "Gilbert"

ABE VIGODA Reviver (Post Present Medium) cd 11.98
We were totally knocked out by the energetic blast of tropical punk on Abe Vigoda's full length from a few months back. So this follow up ep did throw us for a bit of a loop as much of what we loved from Skeleton seemed to be missing here. Much less angular and energetic, Reviver finds the band 'maturing' maybe a bit prematurely (if that's possible). Even the recording quality seems aimed at a much different kind of sound, more akin to TV On The Radio and Interpol than No Age or Brazilian post-punk. Sadly, to our ears most of the exuberance and energy that made us love Skeleton so much seems to have disappeared. Too bad...
MPEG Stream: "Don't Lie"
MPEG Stream: "Wild Heart"

ABE VIGODA Skeleton (Post Present Medium) cd 13.98
Over the last few years Abe Vigoda have been creating quite a stir as latest in a long line of spirited bands from Los Angeles who have taken the sweaty spirit of punk rock and injected their own twists and turns and warped pop sensibility. Up until this point the band was always mentioned in the same breath as their fellow Los Angelinos No Age, whom they share a similar aesthetic and home turf all-ages venue of choice, The Smell. (This record was also released on a newly formed label run by one of the members of No Age.) But boy do they deliver the goods on Skeleton, so much so that it's just a matter of time until everyone starts freaking out and giving them some of the same sort of mass attention that No Age have enjoyed over the last couple years.
This is some seriously caffeinated and super charged now-sound. Sort of like Feels era Animal Collective but with an extra dose of angular punk and a big bottle of Jolt cola to wash it all down. There is also a really nice and subtle tropical vibe within much of the record, reminding us a little of some of that early '80s post-punk out of Brazil we dig so much. There couldn't be a more perfect month then August for our ears to latch onto this record as Skeleton is the perfect album to blast over and over as we try to hold on to the summer for as long as we can.
MPEG Stream: "Lantern Heights"
MPEG Stream: "Hyacinth Grrls"
MPEG Stream: "Visi Rings"

ABERFELDY Young Forever (Rough Trade) cd 15.98
Really, what is it about Scotland that for years has fueled such a steady fountain of wonderful wispy folky pop (Belle & Sebastian, Camera Obscura, The Delgados, Heavenly, etc)? Scones? Cock-a-leekie soup? Haggis? Whatever it is, it's cemented their corner of the market. Now along comes this new band o' Scots with their debut album that's gone and knocked the needle clear off of our twee-meter! Broken the darn thing, dagnabit! Seriously tho' if your sugar tolerance is anywhere near 'low', you should probably steer very very clear of Aberfeldy. Even folks around here who have brawny sweettooths (uh, sweetteeth?) have been having a hard time with it. But for those of you who can't get enough perfectly precious twee pop a la the above mentioned bands, well, then by all means, this just may well be the perfect fit!
MPEG Stream: "A Friend Like You"
MPEG Stream: "Something I Must Tell You"

ABOUT Bongo (Cock Rock Disco) cd 14.98