SINISTER LUCK ENSEMBLE Anniversary (Perishable) cd 14.98
Charles Kin's (Pinetop Seven/Boxhead Ensemble) instrumental project, featuring Ken Vandermark as well as members of Wilco, Handsome Family, Vandermark 5, Isotope 217 and the Chicago Underground. The sound is gorgeously lush and cinematic, falling somewhere between the Pinetop Seven, Calexico and the Coctails with lots of lonely strum, deserty twang, jazzy skiffle, melancholy melodies, thrumming upright bass, chiming vibes, muted late night horns and a mysteriously noir ambience. Really nice.
RealAudio clip: "The Black Pool "
RealAudio clip: "Cakewalk"
RealAudio clip: "Sinister Luck"

SINISTER REALM s/t (Shadow Kingdom) cd 14.98
Shadow Kingdom Records are apparently on a quest to rule the cult heavy metal underground, snapping up a lot of cool bands lately in the true metal/trad doom genres. This list we have the debuts of two of 'em, Argus and Sinister Realm. Both happen to hail from Pennsylvania, which isn't that odd since the Pittsburgh-based Shadow Kingdom would of course wish to conquer nearby territories.
Allentown's Sinister Realm, featuring a couple current and ex-members of stoner doom stalwarts Pale Divine, play a '80s influenced brand of "black candles & pentagrams n' shit" occult metal, on the midpaced, epick doomy side of things, with lots of headbanging, air-guitaring, invisible-orange-lofting potential. The bald domed, Anton-Lavey-in-leather lookin' vocalist really does the job right, his histrionic delivery the perfect match for the dark riffs and neo-classical shred offered up by the band's two guitarists. We get the idea that the bass player is the main songwriter, and he has a knack for stuff that sounds both sinister (yep) and anthemic. For fans of Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus, Mercyful Fate, as well as Satan (the devil, not the band, we mean) and also the Shadow Kingdom roster in general.
MPEG Stream: "(The Oracle) Into The Depths Of Hell"
MPEG Stream: "The Demon Seed"

SINISTER REALM The Crystal Eye (Shadow Kingdom) cd 14.98
Album #2 from Allentown, PA's Sinister Realm, and if you're looking for the most metal thing on this week's list, this is it! Well, next to the other Shadow Kingdom release, their reissue of Manilla Road's The Deluge. But that's an underground '80s metal classic, while this one is brand spankin' new. And it smokes. Sinister Realm are very epic and '80s sounding indeed, in the grand tradition of such bands as Judas Priest (livin' waaaay after midnight), Mercyful Fate, Manowar, Maiden, Candlemass... The kind of rockin' heavy metal that Satan actually listens to, 'cause you know he's at least as old as your dad, right?
Yeah, Satan would love this, with its headbanging riffs and commanding vocals... Especially on the slower, Sabbathier numbers like the title track, vocalist Alex Kristof really gets his Dio on. Dude's got a classic voice, and puts it to good use here, being Sinister Realm's main draw, though the prominent bass and the dual wailing/weedly guitars vie for supremacy as well. This is trudging and triumphant ("With swords held high we ride") all the way through to the ambitious album ender "The Tower Is Burning", nearly nine majestic minutes long, with eerie choirs and orchestration giving the definite impression that they love Satan right back.
Wow. Horns up! Another top contender in the string of excellent trad metal albums to come out this year thus far: Argus, In Solitude, Portrait, Twisted Tower Dire...
MPEG Stream: "Winds Of Vengeance"
MPEG Stream: "The Crystal Eye"
MPEG Stream: "At The Hands Of The Tormentor"

SINISTRI Free Pulse (Hapna) cd 16.98
Italian abstract analog glitch-rockers Starfuckers have been a long-time AQ fave. There's just nobody else quite like 'em. As their music has become ever more fractured and dissonant and dissolved in time, so too with the band itself it seemed...at least, we hadn't heard anything from the Starfuckers camp for ages.
But then we heard they'd changed their name to Sinistri, the title of the Starfuckers first cd in 1994. And now the Swedish label Hapna, whom we always look to for interesting music, have, much to our excitement, released Free Pulse, the debut Sinistri album (but also kind of the sixth-or-so Starfuckers release). On Free Pulse, Sinistri are a quartet, consisting of long-time core Starfuckers members Manuele Giannini (guitar, amps, echoplex, wah, speaker, computer), Alessandro Bocci (computer, sampler, mixer, synth, turntables) and Roberto Bertacchini (drums), plus newcomer Dino Bramanti (real-time processing/live mixing, sampling, MaxMSP code).
And it seems that these fellows are up to their old tricks here, proving their motto that "music is a pollution of time". If you've heard the Starfuckers last album Infinitive Sessions from 2002, you'll have an idea of what to expect here -- they're still in their newfound "funk" bag. (Song titles indictate this is intentional, from to "Pre-verb Fried Funk" to "Black Vamp #1"). Not that this sounds very funky, far from it, though you can kinda hear it in their chicken-scratch guitar "licks". And if the song titles are clues to their sound, then try these: "Deep Squeak" and "Red Angular Feelin'".
Sinistri play what they call "nonmetric music", but that doesn't begin to describe it. It's mostly-instrumental "rock" music, broken down into the merest tics and pulsations of sound, brief drum hits and stabs of guitar littering Sinistri's quiet soundscape, stark and sparse, interspersed with shortwave-sounding static. Noises that most bands use ProTools to *remove* are the building blocks of the Sinistri sound...there's nothing else here. What vocals there are never rise above a whisper (a sinister one that that), melody is almost nowhere to be found, and rhythmically this is impossible to pin down. Forget "post-rock", this is post-post-rock at least. Maybe we could compare 'em to Radian, or US Maple, maybe...taken to a further extreme. Microscopic sounds being played freely. Different from most musics, and to at least some of us here, endlessly enjoyable.
If this is the first time you've ever heard Starfuckers / Sinistri, you may be bewildered. Give it a chance...you'll either not get it (that's fine)...or you might love it. Like this disc's pen-and-ink cover art drawings, Sinistri are intentionally cryptic. "Getting it" is thus optional, but pretty cool if you do, we think.
MPEG Stream: "Holes In Between"
MPEG Stream: "Ampstone"

SINISTRI Timing The 183K Pulse (Utech) cd-r 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We've been huge fans of the Italian avant free glitch prog abstract whatthefuck outfit the Starfuckers forever, so when the band quietly morphed into Sinistri (the title of one of their best records) we were most definitely intrigued. Their debut record on Hapna reviewed here about a year ago, found the ex-Starfuckers getting even more out there, even more damaged, and unfortunately for us being faced with reviewing the record, even harder to describe. This new cd-r features the band expanded to a sextet, jamming wild and free last summer. Wild might be a bit strong as Sinistri traffic more in musical whispers than shouts, but it couldn't get more free. The instrumentation goes a long way to explaining Sinistri's sound: guitar, amp, wah left channel, amp right channel, drumkit, real time basses, pulses, MaxMSPcode, mixer, synth cd-j, contact mic, effects and am/fm tuner. Lots of parts, but assembled quite economically. The final product is a completely abstract assemblage of guitar skronk, percussive skitter, instrumental scrape and slither, short bursts of white noise, drones and ambient fuzz, very textural and very spacious. Imagine a free jazz record as a huge complex pile of buliding blocks. Then knock it over, dump all the blocks in a big pile and remove about 50 percent of the pieces and then try to reassemble them into the exact same complex structure. You end up with a similarly expansive and ambitious structure, but one with huge gaps and spaces, turning what might have been a dense slab of free jazz, or free rock, or free funk, into a splattery scuttling minimal beast. Occasionally the guitar get almost heavy unfurling some convoluted psych riffage, and the bass does dabble in funkiness, but it's a bizarre alien funk that bears little or no relation to any earthbound funk.
Sinistri are definitely a difficult listen, truly perplexing, baffling and confusional, but their peculiar sound manages to be as mysterious and beautiful as it is abstruse.
Packaged in gorgeous hand assembled card stock covers with pasted on black and grey obi. Limited to 200 copies, each one hand stamped. We only got about 30 or so, and we're pretty sure once these are gone we won't be able to get more.
MPEG Stream: "Tk IV (Pt. 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Tk VI (Pt. 1)"

SINK The Process (Kult Of Nihilow) cd 16.98
The Kult Of Nihilow website has this to say about Sink's The Process: "This is not a sludge record. This is not a drone record. This is not an experimental record." Which is not actually true, since it's actually an awesome mix of all three. More accurately, it's not an average sludge record, or a typical drone record, and isn't like most experimental music, but that's precisely what makes it so appealing.
Sink are from Finland and have shared a split with aQ faves, UK dronelords Marzuraan, and they traffic in a sound that is both crushingly slow, blindingly heavy, as well as mysteriously dark and droney, but just like anything, it's what you do with all that stuff that matters. Anyone can tune down and play an E chord for 10 minutes. But not anyone can make it sound like angels singing.
On their split with Marzuraan, we described their sound as "a swirling, sludgy wall of hissing fuzzed out blackened ultra noise, harsh and horrific", but there's nothing like that here. The Process is much more musical, and more measured, for a band who is typically defined as a sludge band, they spend much of their time unfurling dark muted shimmery dronescapes, hushed whispery smears of barely audible thrum. And even when they are dropping some serious sludge, it's not really sludgey, the guitars are thick and corrosive, but glimmering and crystalline, rife with haunting chords, the vocals deep monk like chants. The opener here is the perfect example, it sounds like Tibetan monks fronting a doom band, only the doom is strangely melodic, and hauntingly cinematic. Halfway through the track fades into some dark chiming ambience, all muted and blurred, before the crushing doomic blows begin to rain down again, those vocals returning to underpin everything with their thick rumbling whir (sounding quite a bit like Tuvan throat singing). It's a pity the track is only 11 minutes long. We could have gone for twice that! At least.
The second track is all soaring Sunroof! like streaks of sound and strummed acoustic guitars, sounding like a noisier doomier Kiss The Anus, but all washed out and smeared into bleary shoegazey drifts, reminding us of a way more abstract Nadja or Angelic Process actually.
Strangely enough, almost the whole rest of the record is devoid of any hint of sludge or doom, instead exploring longform guitar drones, super minimal sinewave skree, gentle dreamlike ambience, rumbling cavernous dronemusic, until finally, the not at all appropriately titled final song "The Silence", which is anything but silent, four minutes of murky corrosive drift, but like the opener, rife with mysterious melody, disembodied vocals, glimmering chordal blur, all spread out into a thick sluggish doom-ic haze, that seems to blot out the sun, bathing everything in a burnished blood red glow.
Beautifully packaged In an elaborate fold out sleeve, printed in full color with a little tab to hold it shut. LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES!
MPEG Stream: "Weakness (The Process)"
MPEG Stream: "Ascension"
MPEG Stream: "Receiving Silence"

SINNER DC Crystalized (Airecords) cd 14.98

SINNERJIZM Inject Them With Rabies (Black Top Fade) cd 8.98
From the dirty dirty dirty pun for a band name to the pornographic artwork on the vinyl (or the junkie grime on the CD), the Los Angeles instrumental glam-rock band Sinnerjizm is downright trashy; and that's the way they want it to be. A couple of the guys in Sinnerjizm also hail from the showboating '70s anthem rockers Jet Fuel, who've definitely got enough chops to venture into instrumental territory. Sinnerjizm sites Jesus Christ Super Star, Black Sabbath, Morricone, and the Butthole Surfers as their inspiration in making Inject Them With Rabies; and yeah, that's a pretty solid summation of their musical references. Obviously attuned to the folly of many an instrumental pop ensemble, Sinnerjizm is quick to make unexpected detours with some wah-wah porno funk here, a schmaltzy fun-in-the-sun groove there, and plenty of media samples which were rumored to be culled by Don Bolles of Germs / 45 Grave fame; but the band is best when transforming the 3 minute pop song into a kaleidoscopic marvel of sweet Hammond organ leads, immediately catchy Alice Cooper meets Link Wray riffs, and sweaty backbeats. Nicely done, boys.
MPEG Stream: "I Won't Remember Your Name"
MPEG Stream: "The Weeds Will Grow"

SINNERJIZM Inject Them With Rabies (Black Top Fade) lp 9.98
From the dirty dirty dirty pun for a band name to the pornographic artwork on the vinyl (or the junkie grime on the CD), the Los Angeles instrumental glam-rock band Sinnerjizm is downright trashy; and that's the way they want it to be. A couple of the guys in Sinnerjizm also hail from the showboating '70s anthem rockers Jet Fuel, who've definitely got enough chops to venture into instrumental territory. Sinnerjizm sites Jesus Christ Super Star, Black Sabbath, Morricone, and the Butthole Surfers as their inspiration in making Inject Them With Rabies; and yeah, that's a pretty solid summation of their musical references. Obviously attuned to the folly of many an instrumental pop ensemble, Sinnerjizm is quick to make unexpected detours with some wah-wah porno funk here, a schmaltzy fun-in-the-sun groove there, and plenty of media samples which were rumored to be culled by Don Bolles of Germs / 45 Grave fame; but the band is best when transforming the 3 minute pop song into a kaleidoscopic marvel of sweet Hammond organ leads, immediately catchy Alice Cooper meets Link Wray riffs, and sweaty backbeats. Nicely done, boys.
MPEG Stream: "I Won't Remember Your Name"
MPEG Stream: "The Weeds Will Grow"

SINOIA CAVES The Enchanter Persuaded (Brah) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "Dwarf Reaching The Arch Wonder"
MPEG Stream: "Naro Way"

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES Best Of (Geffen) 2cd 19.98
A self-explanatory collection that recounts the twenty year history of Steve Severin, Budgie and the ice queen herself, Siouxsie Sioux. All of the favorites are here, spanning from the incisive post-punk of tracks like "Arabian Knights" and "Happy House" to the glamorous Euro-club favorites like "Kiss Them For Me" (which I never realized was based on the breakbeat from Schooly D's "Saturday Night") and "Peek-A-Boo." Disc two will be of added interest to Siouxsie's collectors, as that disc featured a number of the hard-to-find extended mixes and remixes of their singles.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES Kaleidoscope (Geffen) cd 11.98

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES Nocturne (Universal) dvd 29.00
Although the centerpiece of this new Siouxsie & The Banshees dvd is the composite live concert footage from two nights at the Royal Albert Hall back in 1983, arguably the best parts are in the extras. The band's self-produced 'tv show' with performances by The Banshees, The Creatures and The Glove is a delight -- particularly the individual Banshee's distinct segments in which Siouxsie, Budgie, Steve Severin and Robert Smith each recite a spoken word piece in his/her chosen setting -- and the Old Grey Whistle Test tv footage which show the band in top form doing "Melt!" and "Painted Bird". Oh and the main concert footage is pretty great too. A definite fan pleaser!

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES The Scream (Geffen) cd 11.98

SIPPY CUPS, THE Electric Storyland! (Snacker Disc) cd 14.98
Yay Sippy Cups! What started out as a few local rockers doing Syd Barrett and Who covers for kids a few years back has evolved into a full-blown kids entertainment juggernaut complete with sold-out choreographed live shows (involving a juggler!) and a whole new album of original songs. Electric Storyland is for parents who want to wean their kids off Barney-type treacle and nudge them into something weirder -- but not too weird. The album's songs are catchy and fun and have playful hints of psychedelia -- from '60s-sounding pop songs with suggestive/innocent titles ("Little Puffer" and "Magic Toast") to songs that reference Yoshimi-era Flaming Lips ("I Am a Robot)". Buy it for your sister's kids -- chances are this is the only album you, your sister and her kids might find some common ground on!
MPEG Stream: "Magic Toast"
MPEG Stream: "I Am A Robot"

SIR HEDGEHOG s/t cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Get ready for some glorious seventies-worshipping heavy rock via the self-released debut cd from this oddly named Vancouver band. Not as overtly Sabbath-derived as fellow Canadian rockers Sheavy, but similarly excellent (and Sir Hedgehog's "Bitchlord" *does* sound like something from the Sabs), with a kick-ass vocalist somewhere up there in the Plant/Osbourne spectrum. They've got loads of supremely heavy riffs (more importantly, in the service of good songs) and are also capable of some fine spacey psychedelic detours. Better than most of the rest of today's "stoner rock" bands, for sure. Oh, *and* the album ends with an amazing hidden bonus track that combines covers of Blondie's "Call Me" and Sabbath's "Children of the Grave" (an idea Sir Hedgehog got from Chuck Eddy's book "Stairway to Hell"). They switch back and forth between the two seemingly separated-at-birth songs absolutely seamlessly -- brilliant.
RealAudio clip: " Magic Garden"
RealAudio clip: "Bitchlord"
RealAudio clip: "The Cleavage And The Clamp"

SIR HEDGEHOG s/t (Lunasound) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Swedish metal/rock label Lunasound (who recently brought us UK heavies Gorilla) have wisely picked up Canadian stoner rockers Sir Hedgehog, reissuing their previously-self-released, self-titled cd with new art and an extra track, titled "Monster".
Here's what we said about the original version, which still holds true: Get ready for some glorious seventies-worshipping heavy rock via the debut cd from this oddly named Vancouver band. Not as overtly Sabbath-derived as fellow Canadian rockers Sheavy, but similarly excellent (and Sir Hedgehog's "Bitchlord" *does* sound like something from the Sabs), with a kick-ass vocalist somewhere up there in the Plant/Osbourne spectrum. They've got loads of supremely heavy riffs (more importantly, in the service of good songs) and are also capable of some fine spacey psychedelic detours. Better than most of the rest of today's "stoner rock" bands, for sure. Oh, *and* the album ends with an amazing hidden bonus track that combines covers of Blondie's "Call Me" and Sabbath's "Children of the Grave" (an idea Sir Hedgehog got from Chuck Eddy's book "Stairway to Hell"). They switch back and forth between the two seemingly separated-at-birth songs absolutely seamlessly -- brilliant.
RealAudio clip: " Magic Garden"
RealAudio clip: "Bitchlord"
RealAudio clip: "Monster"
RealAudio clip: "The Cleavage And The Clamp"

SIR HENRY FIAT'S BASTARD Your Mom's A Fucking Mongo (Pandacide) 7" 3.98

SIR LORD BALTIMORE Kingdom Come (Universal) lp 16.98
In the annals of the "early heavy", the Sir Lord Baltimore (from Brooklyn) is up there with the likes of Dust, Bang, and yes Blue Cheer. Too bad their two albums have been pretty much out of print for ages, the last official cd reissue, a two-fer, was back in the early '90s. But, proto-metal fans rejoice, 'cause now both SLB records are back in action, individually, on vinyl! 1970's Kingdom Come and the self-titled 1971 sequel, both of 'em essential slabs of heavy hard rockin' from this seminal band in heavy metal history.
The debut, with the spooky trippy "ghost ship" painting on the cover, alone justifies SLB's cult status. Very few bands in 1970 were this heavy (though, it must be said, Black Sabbath were on an other level entirely). Aside from the primly pretty, baroque ballad "Lake Isle Of Innersfree", this whole record is pretty much a frenzied fuzz blaster par excellance. And when we say fuzz, we mean FUZZ! Just check out the title track, a majestic six and half minutes mixing tripped out lyrics with savage bursts of ultra distorted guitar. There's definitely a sixties vibe to the proceedings; you can imagine bikers totally digging it. And it's as energetic as the proto-punk coming out of Detroit at the time, too.
The follow-up album is a little fancier, more diverse, and dramatic, the band expanded from a trio to a quartet, with extra instrumentation (acoustic guitar, organ). There's a 10+ minute prog epic called "Man From Manhattan" (which still gets heavy!), but also ragin' rockers like "Woman Tamer". And you get to hear SLB kicking out the jams in concert on the live track "Where Are We Going".
What's not to love about this band? They're a Sir, they're a Lord, they even have a singing drummer! So if you haven't yet been flattened by SLB's fuzz, time to add these to your collection, especially if said collection already includes the likes of High Tide, Tiger B. Smith, Highway Robbery, Leaf Hound, Toad, etc.
MPEG Stream: "Kingdom Come"
MPEG Stream: "Master Heartache"

SIR LORD BALTIMORE s/t (Universal) lp 16.98
In the annals of the "early heavy", the Sir Lord Baltimore (from Brooklyn) is up there with the likes of Dust, Bang, and yes Blue Cheer. Too bad their two albums have been pretty much out of print for ages, the last official cd reissue, a two-fer, was back in the early '90s. But, proto-metal fans rejoice, 'cause now both SLB records are back in action, individually, on vinyl! 1970's Kingdom Come and the self-titled 1971 sequel, both of 'em essential slabs of heavy hard rockin' from this seminal band in heavy metal history.
The debut, with the spooky trippy "ghost ship" painting on the cover, alone justifies SLB's cult status. Very few bands in 1970 were this heavy (though, it must be said, Black Sabbath were on an other level entirely). Aside from the primly pretty, baroque ballad "Lake Isle Of Innersfree", this whole record is pretty much a frenzied fuzz blaster par excellance. And when we say fuzz, we mean FUZZ! Just check out the title track, a majestic six and half minutes mixing tripped out lyrics with savage bursts of ultra distorted guitar. There's definitely a sixties vibe to the proceedings; you can imagine bikers totally digging it. And it's as energetic as the proto-punk coming out of Detroit at the time, too.
The follow-up album is a little fancier, more diverse, and dramatic, the band expanded from a trio to a quartet, with extra instrumentation (acoustic guitar, organ). There's a 10+ minute prog epic called "Man From Manhattan" (which still gets heavy!), but also ragin' rockers like "Woman Tamer". And you get to hear SLB kicking out the jams in concert on the live track "Where Are We Going".
What's not to love about this band? They're a Sir, they're a Lord, they even have a singing drummer! So if you haven't yet been flattened by SLB's fuzz, time to add these to your collection, especially if said collection already includes the likes of High Tide, Tiger B. Smith, Highway Robbery, Leaf Hound, Toad, etc.
MPEG Stream: "Woman Tamer"
MPEG Stream: "Caesar LXXI"

SIR RICHARD BISHOP Salvador Kali (Revenant) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sun City Girl Rick Bishop's debut solo release on John Fahey's wonderful Revenant label. Pretty tunes (about knighthood apparently) that sound very "old world," like quaint italian restaurant music played on guitar instead of mandolin.

SIRATORI, KENJI + PENDRO Terminal Machine (Hypermodern) cd-r 6.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
It's been a while since we've heard anything from the Fflint camp, our favorite source for brilliant, damaged outsider avant electronic weirdness. But this week we've got not one, but two missives from the mysterious world of Fflint Central. And while Terminal Machine is not technically -ON- Fflint, Pendro does just happen to be half of the mighty Fflint duo so it most definitely count. Here he's teamed up with Japanese writer / musician / sound artist Kenji Siratori, who we heard from recently on the mind blowing Hypergenome666 4cd set with Nordvargr and Beyond Sensory Experience.
And like on Hypergenome666, Siratori is a man of words, literally. His texts are dense and bizarre, strange and so fascinating. For Terminal Machine, Siratori sent recordings of himself reading some of his works and gave Pendro the go ahead to transform those words into abstract sound.
The opening track features Siratori's voice gradually twisted into strange shapes as more and more effects are added, becoming more brittle and metallic, until the words almost sound like the plucking and scraping of steel strings. Later, the words are chopped and reshaped into some lurching post-Autechre IDM skitter, a smear of distorted melody and chittering rhythm, elsewhere the text becomes some droning sci-fi soundscape of processed vocals and FX drenched drones, another track finds the vocals obliterated, the only traces left a skittering, squelchy, splattery soundscape of Fflinty buzz and crumble. The final track is a dark, drifting dronescape, distant metallic buzz, bursts of microscopic grit, bits of high end glimmer and little upper register trills, all drenched in a thick patina of murk and mumble. The human voice twisted and tangled up into some seriously inhuman sounds. Pretty amazing stuff.
Packaged in a slimline case with some seriously disturbing 'meat-y' artwork...
MPEG Stream: "One "
MPEG Stream: "Two"
MPEG Stream: "Three"

SIRONE Live (Atavistic) cd 14.98
Most well known to most as the leader of the Revolutionary Ensemble in the 70's, Sirone was also a sideman for such jazz legends as Cecil Taylor, Albert Ayler, Archie Shepp, Charles Gayle, Ornette Coleman, Roswell Rudd, Clifford Thornton, Sonny Sharrock, Pharoah Sanders, Sun Ra and more. But he was way more than just a sideman, an amazing composer in his own right and a completely orignal and creative bass player. For this live set, recorded in 1991, Sirone teamed up with Dennis Charles on drums and Claude Lawrence on alto sax, and the results are sublime. The performance starts off with a long piece for solo flute. A dense squall of tweets and trills and twitters and flitterings, like strange and haunting bird calls. After that it's all about the bass, as Sirone stretches out and slides smoothly all over the fretboard with two tracks of almost nothing but bass (one track gets a smattering of free jazz rhythmic splatter), it's dark and deliriously languorous, warm and thick and totally dreamy. When the rest of the trio does join in, it's dense and focused and intense, with Sirone and Charles locked in tight but somehow still wild and loose and free, while Lawrence skips gingerly atop a squirming tangle of shuffling rhythms and throbbing pulsing low end. So good.
MPEG Stream: "Flute Song "
MPEG Stream: "Eyes Of The Wind"

SISARIO, BEN 33 1/3 Series: Doolittle (Continuum) book 9.95
Everybody loves the Pixies, and while a lot of us lean toward Surfer Rosa as our favorite, Doolittle is the one that pushed the Pixies squarely into the mainstream. And the cool thing is, they didn't have to change their sound one bit to do it. Read all about the adventures of Black Francis and his gang as they record a record that will go on to shape all of indie rock to come.

SISSY SPACEK s/t (Helicopter / Nu Form) cd 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
John Wiese (Bastard Noise) and his pal Cory Ronnau deliver what is probably the world's first plunderphonic grindcore record. Although in this case all of the plundering is self inflicted and self directed as the two record their own two piece (guitar and drums) blasting grind record and attack it with a razor blade (actually probably a laptop, but whatever) and spit out a garbled, sputtering, stuttering no-wave masterpiece. Think Oval, if he only scratched Drop Dead and Crossed Out cds. Nice.
RealAudio clip: "Track one"

SISSY SPACEK Scissors (Helicopter) cd 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Album number two from John (Bastard Noise) Wiese's cut 'n' paste, plundercore grind project Sissy Spacek. Short and sweet blasts of feedback and throat clearing kinda like Masonna crossed with the Locust. Like the spine says: "SISSISSPSSKSSISSRS".
RealAudio clip: "Cobra Heart"
RealAudio clip: "Hair Control"

SISTER IODINE Flame Desastre (Editions Mego) cd 17.98
Can you handle some noize? The French trio Sister Iodine have apparently been around in the underground for some years now. Jim here recalls that their early stuff was more akin to no-wave, angular rock music (and was quite curious about them having a disc out on Mego). The rest of us here hadn't heard 'em before... but really dig this, which is definitely much more in the noiserock vein of, say, Wolf Eyes, than DNA-ish no-wave. Yep, noiserock a la Wolf Eyes, Shit & Shine, Cadaver In Drag, Hair Police, heck even Hijokaidan. Total distortion overload, the very first track coming off like an exploding minefield of noise, shit blowing up all around. But at the same time, it's not JUST noise, there's enough rhythmic structure to qualify this as rock music, made with guitar, drums, Korg PS3010 synth, and little regard for common standards of musical practice, like, say, melody, or even, really, riffs. Instead these 12 "songs" are all about interesting varieties of throb and rumble, flangey FX and feedback. Further keeping us entranced are the ponderously heavy drum hits, making things almost Khanate-like in parts, run through some sort of monster Merzbowian filter, as on the slumping slomping sizzling trudge of "Terminal Pain".
It's all instrumental (or at least, we can't HEAR any human vocals amidst everything else) but the song titles perhaps give some sense of Sister Iodine's mood: "Lava Junkie", "Black Trauma Delice", "Napalmee", "You Burned", etc. are all in keeping with their general sonic demeanor. Yeah, kind of a negative vibe, yet paradoxically gleeful as the cathartic impact of noisemaking with such abandon takes effect as well. This is the type of noise rock action we find most satisfying, and it even works at low volumes, as gritty textural drone, but turn it up (if you dare) to be fully cleansed in the controlled crinkum-crankum chaos of their howling rocket launching saucer landing skree!
This album was originally released a while ago on vinyl (limited and long gone presumably), and is now reissued on cd with 2 bonus tracks by Editions Mego, in nice, slightly oversized folder packaging like they like to do. Limited to 500 copies, and quite recommended.
MPEG Stream: "You / Lacerate"
MPEG Stream: "Terminal Pain"
MPEG Stream: "You Doped"

SISTERS LOVE, THE Give Me Your Love (Soul Jazz) cd 21.00
Most rare groove fiends fell in love with The Sisters Love after hearing the 80's extended remix of their song "Give Me Your Love" which had disco aficionados like Larry Levan and Nicky Siano in seventh heaven. What's amazing is that the track was actually recorded in 1973, predating disco and demonstrating that if one dug a little deeper, one might discover that not only were The Sisters Love way ahead of their time but were also not merely a one hit wonder. Thankfully, as they have so many times in the past, Soul Jazz have come to the rescue putting together a totally stunning collection of the SL's deep hitting soul/funk recorded between 1969-1973. A vocal delivery with that perfect gospel influence that cuts right to the heart of the matter, and the sort of perfect production and orchestration that keeps the songs moving and practically begs to be sampled by the entire Stones Throw roster. Always such a pleasure to get a full helping of a group we only had heard in dribs and drabs before. After listening to this over and over we can safely say The Sisters Love have won a special place in our soul collection, alongside the likes of early Betty Wright, Ike & Tina and Candi Staton. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Give Me Your Love"
MPEG Stream: "Ha Ha Ha"
MPEG Stream: "Mr Fix-It Man"

SISTOL s/t (Phthalo) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This NON-cd-r release from the outsider electronica label Phthalo is the work of Vladislav Delay, recording here as Sistol. After his exemplary Chain Reaction releases, this Finnish technician tightens up his techno minimalism to terse glitchy noises within rigid beats, certainly for fans of Thomas Brinkmann.

SISTOL (VLADISLAV DELAY) Remasters & Remakes (Phthalo / Halo Cyan) 2cd 14.98
We had thought that Sistol was more or less a one-off project for Sasu Ripatti, the Finnish electronic producer better known as Vladislav Delay. The pioneering label Phthalo released an eponymous album back in 1999 as one of the first properly replicated discs after a slew of hand-duplicated cd-r releases. But for whatever reason, Sistol has resurfaced with this reissue of that 1999 album, buttressed by a second disc of remixes. Where Vladislav Delay's work has been a rather painterly smear of granular abstractions dotted upon a loose definition of the Chain Reaction rhythmic sensibility, Sistol has all of its sprockets engineered for a finely tuned precision. It's a very skeletal techno sound here, with a 909 kick drum pulse driving every track without much use for snares or hi-hats. Within this monophunk pulsation, Ripatti scatters small patterns of wooden electrical clacks and pings that again eschew most everything that could be construed as a melody. The insistence of the rhythm and the accretion of the pixel points settles into some curiously infectious grooves, although we'd be hard pressed to find this working on a dancefloor given how incredibly minimal this stuff is. The more austere moments of Thomas Brinkmann definitely come to mind as do the Wolfgang Voigt productions as Studio One, recorded about the same time as these cuts.
The bonus disc of remixes features John Tejada, Mike Huckaby, DMX Krew, Sutekh, Alva Noto, and like-minded techno types fleshing out Sistol's hyperminimal tracks with smooth Detroit / Berlin syncopations and darkened cybernetics. Given how minimal Sistol's work was, adding anything else completely changes the complexion of the original. Nevertheless, there are some mighty fine techno cuts to be found here. The noted exception to the techno offerings can be found in the remix from Ike Yard (yes, the recently reformed bleak No New York band with zombified leanings towards Cabaret Voltaire sounding very much like an updated version of themselves).
MPEG Stream: "Hac"
MPEG Stream: "Kojo"
MPEG Stream: "Nuomo (Ike Yard's Metalli Tulitta Remix)"
MPEG Stream: "Keno (Mike Huckaby S Y N T H Remix)"
MPEG Stream: "Hac (Alva Noto Remodel)"

SISTRENATUS Division One (Cold Spring) cd 15.98

SITAAR TAH Semimimimimin (aRCHIVE) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We first heard Sitaar Tah!, Tokyo's amazing 22-piece all-sitar "orchestra", a couple years back on another limited (and now out of print) aRCHIVE release, the sprawling, droning two cd set Animamima on which they collaborated with Japanese dark psych lord Keiji Haino! And we've been eager to hear more from 'em ever since. Now aRCHIVE presents a Semimimimimin, a 43-minute studio recording from the group. Sitars are GO!
So.... You like dense drone. You like exotic, Eastern raga-like stuff. You like psychedelic, pulsing, shimmering beauty. You like ghostly Phillip Jeck-like lo-fi surface hiss. Well what more need we say? You're gonna like this!
One long, trance-inducing track that weaves the sound so many massed sitars into complex patterns of rhythm and melody, modulating and building to more abstract and organic, swarm-of-insects levels... absolutely as soothingly nice as you could imagine.
Beautifully presented in the aRCHIVE tradition, in their usual oversized format, with art by SUNNO)))'s Stephen O'Malley, 4-color silkscreened cover, LIMITED TO 700 COPIES ONLY!
MPEG Stream: "Semimimimimin excerpt 1"
RealAudio clip: "Semimimimimin excerpt 2"

SITAR OUTREACH MINISTRY Spring Of 1970 EP (Auris Apothecary) leaf and twine wrapped cassette + magical seeds 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
First we've heard from this Indiana crew, but the name definitely had us intrigued, and the fact that it was released on Auris Apothecary, one of our favorite labels going right now, whose packaging is consistently mind blowing, this one's no different. Each one comes wrapped in a sunflower leaf, and tied with twine, inside is a packet of "magical sunflower seeds" and a sunshine yellow tape housed in an eco-friendly brown paper sleeve, all housed in a stickered NON eco-friendly ziplock plastic bag. Sonically, this might be one of our favorites in the AA catalog, sitar and acoustic guitar, which means plenty of mesmerizing steel string buzz. The A side is an awesome psychedelic version of Greig's "Hall Of The Mountain King", that immediately recognizable melody stretched out into a gorgeous and languorous sprawl of hypnotic buzz (though the sticker instead says it's "Rites Of Spring" for some reason!). The flipside is a much darker proposition, whipping that guitar and sitar buzz into a brooding psychedelic squall, thick pulsing swells, ominous and haunting, distorted and darkly threatening. Both sides are amazing, and WAY too short. definitely excited to hear more from these guys.
LIMITED TO 90 COPIES!!
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 1"
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 2"

SIX EYE COLUMBIA A Million Six cd 9.98
Strong songwriting dominates this debut release from the local rock group Six Eye Columbia. In addition to guitar and vocals, bandleader / all-around nice guy Josh Pollock also wields the banjo, xylophone, piano, and assorted toys. An array of guests offer pedal steel, cello, sax, trumpet etc. The effects-laden vocal delivery is similar to Guided By Voices' Robert Pollard -- tinny, staticky as if thru a bullhorn. Doleful male harmonies bring to mind Mark Eitzel's solo work, as does the simmering tension and midtempo pace throughout. Forlorn and depressing in a good way.
RealAudio clip: "Traitor Hygiene"
RealAudio clip: "Uranium Doll I"
RealAudio clip: "Joni Mitchell Songs"

SIX EYE COLUMBIA Judy At Carnegie Hall (Roosevelt Franklin) cd 9.98
AQ pal Josh Pollock, musical man about town and accomplished stage actor (having performed in a play based on the life of Rodd Keith, where the audience turned in poems at the beginning of the performance, and Pollack then wrote songs to go with the poems live on stage, a la Keith's legendary song poems) returns with his second release from Six Eye Columbia, his rock outfit, mostly Pollock's doing but with some occasional helping hands. Very Guided By Voices-ish pop, melodic and melancholy with some lengthy prog flourishes (he does after all play with David Aellen in the new Gong) and even the occasional Coldplay-esque lilting vocals. A bit more mainstream and polished than the last 6EC, with a lot more production polish and studio as instrument tinkering.
MPEG Stream: "15, Like Diamonds"
MPEG Stream: "She's Crying Diamonds"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE A Good Year For Hardness (Anchor Brain) lp 14.98
2009 has been quite a year for noise rock legends Six Finger Satellite. First, long lost recordings from 2001 surfaced as the album Half Control. Now, a few months later, the recently reformed band has returned with its first new studio record, and goddamn it's good to have them back. Sad to say though, but the general response (EXCLUDING this one, of course) seems to be overwhelmingly lukewarm, and even all out negative in some cases. Even around here, the first thing people mention is how this doesn't sound like the Six Finger Satellite of old. Perhaps there is some truth to that claim (though why should it necessarily matter?), but repeated listens really dispel it. It's just that current 6FS is a little less focused on experimental noisiness and more into full on rocking, something they've always done well. It's funny how A Good Year For Hardness is pretty damn bluesy. Maybe some folks just don't dig it, but the big 6FS fans around these parts are definitely pleased. After all, it's not like this shit sounds like typical white boy blues rock that you hear at the county fair. Far from it. This is coked out mutant blues being beamed in from outer space. Mean, depraved blues made by guys who are old enough to step into this territory without embarrassment or any desire to be seen as cool in the eyes of today's indie rockers, who they probably don't even acknowledge. This band has always been ridiculously tight, and the new lineup is no exception. The songs exude a grooving, almost classic rock vibe with warm bass, cool backbeats, and muscular riffage. But then there is singer J. Ryan's trademark vocals, all pissed off and pretty scary, every once in a while punctuated by crazy distorted James Brown-styled screams. And yes, the synths are there, they are just used a bit more sparingly, but to awesome effect. Rarely is the band "quirky" here, but every once in a while, the synths just make everything really weird and almost funny if they weren't within such disturbing songs. A lot of the songs venture into dark, brooding psychedelic territory, almost like some jagged post-punk Doors (some may disagree with this, but whatever). This is probably best demonstrated on closing number "Rise," driven by a warm bass throb and a steady beat with occasional bursts of heavily vibratoed guitar chords. Throughout it, the creepy synths pop up here and there as the barely controlled intensity of non-sceaming J. Ryan scares you just a little more. Awesome.
So far this sonuvabitch is available as an lp only, but the turntable deprived can rejoice over the inclusion of a free download card.

SIX FINGER SATELLITE A Good Year For Hardness (Anchor Brain) cd-r 12.98
NOW RELEASED AS A CD-R!! (Why not an actual cd, we don't know, weird.) This came out on vinyl last year, when we said...
2009 has been quite a year for noise rock legends Six Finger Satellite. First, long lost recordings from 2001 surfaced as the album Half Control. Now, a few months later, the recently reformed band has returned with its first new studio record, and goddamn it's good to have them back. Sad to say though, but the general response (EXCLUDING this one, of course) seems to be overwhelmingly lukewarm, and even all out negative in some cases. Even around here, the first thing people mention is how this doesn't sound like the Six Finger Satellite of old. Perhaps there is some truth to that claim (though why should it necessarily matter?), but repeated listens really dispel it. It's just that current 6FS is a little less focused on experimental noisiness and more into full on rocking, something they've always done well. It's funny how A Good Year For Hardness is pretty damn bluesy. Maybe some folks just don't dig it, but the big 6FS fans around these parts are definitely pleased. After all, it's not like this shit sounds like typical white boy blues rock that you hear at the county fair. Far from it. This is coked out mutant blues being beamed in from outer space. Mean, depraved blues made by guys who are old enough to step into this territory without embarrassment or any desire to be seen as cool in the eyes of today's indie rockers, who they probably don't even acknowledge. This band has always been ridiculously tight, and the new lineup is no exception. The songs exude a grooving, almost classic rock vibe with warm bass, cool backbeats, and muscular riffage. But then there is singer J. Ryan's trademark vocals, all pissed off and pretty scary, every once in a while punctuated by crazy distorted James Brown-styled screams. And yes, the synths are there, they are just used a bit more sparingly, but to awesome effect. Rarely is the band "quirky" here, but every once in a while, the synths just make everything really weird and almost funny if they weren't within such disturbing songs. A lot of the songs venture into dark, brooding psychedelic territory, almost like some jagged post-punk Doors (some may disagree with this, but whatever). This is probably best demonstrated on closing number "Rise," driven by a warm bass throb and a steady beat with occasional bursts of heavily vibratoed guitar chords. Throughout it, the creepy synths pop up here and there as the barely controlled intensity of non-sceaming J. Ryan scares you just a little more. Awesome.
MPEG Stream: "Hot Food"
MPEG Stream: "Rome From Home"
MPEG Stream: "Rise"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Half Control (Load) cd 15.98
In the '90s, there were two bands on the Sub Pop roster that, to anyone looking for their grunge or indie fix, made absolutely zero sense. One of those bands was the mighty Earth, who in the past few years have thankfully been reevaluated and recognized as the pioneers they were and are. Then there was Six Finger Satellite, spoken of with godlike reverence by their small but rabid fanbase, but still unjustly neglected by the majority of the human population. The big question here: WHY?!?! Six Finger Satellite was one of the great nihilistic rock bands of the '90s, the strange and unholy union of the Stooges, the Birthday Party, and Kraftwerk that turned into something else entirely. Their sound was hateful, tense, and disturbingly druggy, but most of all, they fucking ROCKED. While the synthesizer at this point in indie history seemed relegated to making cute little bleeping noises, 6FS wielded their Moogs like weapons of mass chaos, releasing 4 ESSENTIAL full lengths and a slew of equally awesome eps and singles before vanishing. Their provocative themes included a sinister but smartass referencing of, shall we say, "recent" German history, primates, and a Kraftwerkian synthesis of man and machine tailored to better suit a bunch of guys from Rhode Island. Their history is long, confusing, and even tragic (original bassist Kurt Niemand died of a drug overdose), eventually culminating in the departure of guitarist John Maclean - along with the band's synth arsenal - and his transformation into electro-dance act the Juan Maclean. Though they apparently soldiered on after their final full length, Law Of Ruins, that was pretty much it for Six Finger Satellite...
UNTIL NOW!!!
While the band has reconvened on a few occasions and are currently active, Half Control actually dates back to 2001. Surprisingly, the band's unstoppable drummer Rick Pelletier switched to bass for the reformed 6FS (and now he's playing guitar!), while the rhythm section was reconstituted from members of fellow Rhode Island noise rockers Landed. The resultant sound emphasizes the group's more pissed off, punkish edge - try to imagine the four-headed bastard offspring of Black Flag and the Jesus Lizard beating the shit out of itself - while downplaying their more meditative (relatively speaking for this band, of course) electro-kraut influences. For this reason, the initial reaction of many aQ staffers was that Half Control doesn't really sound like the Six Finger Satellite we all knew - remember that part about John Maclean and the band's collection of vintage synthesizers? Closer inspection, however, reveals otherwise, at least to the nerds in possession of the band's entire discography. While synths were and continue to remain integral to the 6FS sound, many people tend to overlook how guitar-centric they always were. Slashing and densely hypnotic riffing, throbbing basslines, and ridiculously tight drumming were just as important as their quirky but ominous synthlines. Singer/Moogist J. Ryan's feral vocals are as mean-spirited and distorted as they always were and the band still throbs and pulsates like a merciless machine that refuses to shut down. 6FS's sound was frantic but controlled, often verging on complete chaos, yet they managed to keep things together in a way only they could. With that in mind, it's clear to see that things are really just as great as they always were. The reality is that little has changed, it's just pretty mindblowing to think that we are hearing new sounds from a band that sadly *seemed* to drop off the map.
It should go without saying for anyone familiar with this fantastic band, that Load Records (who released their obscure but awe inspiring Clone Theory ep waaaaay back), is a much better home for them. It's not coincidental that much of that label's lineup and a great deal of the current noise rock scene is heavily indebted to 6FS, and while some of today's indie rockers may have unknowingly tapped into what these guys were about in the form of other bands, Six Finger Satellite has yet to be surpassed in ferocity, dark humor, and overall rockingness. Longtime fans should find plenty of reasons to rejoice, while newbies will freak out and have to accept mp3 versions of their out of print Sub Pop albums. To the rest of the world: WAKE THE FUCK UP. Six Finger Satellite is immortal, and even if this is their final statement (we sure hope not), it's more than we could have ever hoped for.
MPEG Stream: "Thrown Out"
MPEG Stream: "Artificial Light"
MPEG Stream: "Bored Oracle"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Half Control (Load) lp 15.98
Now available on vinyl!
In the '90s, there were two bands on the Sub Pop roster that, to anyone looking for their grunge or indie fix, made absolutely zero sense. One of those bands was the mighty Earth, who in the past few years have thankfully been reevaluated and recognized as the pioneers they were and are. Then there was Six Finger Satellite, spoken of with godlike reverence by their small but rabid fanbase, but still unjustly neglected by the majority of the human population. The big question here: WHY?!?! Six Finger Satellite was one of the great nihilistic rock bands of the '90s, the strange and unholy union of the Stooges, the Birthday Party, and Kraftwerk that turned into something else entirely. Their sound was hateful, tense, and disturbingly druggy, but most of all, they fucking ROCKED. While the synthesizer at this point in indie history seemed relegated to making cute little bleeping noises, 6FS wielded their Moogs like weapons of mass chaos, releasing 4 ESSENTIAL full lengths and a slew of equally awesome eps and singles before vanishing. Their provocative themes included a sinister but smartass referencing of, shall we say, "recent" German history, primates, and a Kraftwerkian synthesis of man and machine tailored to better suit a bunch of guys from Rhode Island. Their history is long, confusing, and even tragic (original bassist Kurt Niemand died of a drug overdose), eventually culminating in the departure of guitarist John Maclean - along with the band's synth arsenal - and his transformation into electro-dance act the Juan Maclean. Though they apparently soldiered on after their final full length, Law Of Ruins, that was pretty much it for Six Finger Satellite...
UNTIL NOW!!!
While the band has reconvened on a few occasions and are currently active, Half Control actually dates back to 2001. Surprisingly, the band's unstoppable drummer Rick Pelletier switched to bass for the reformed 6FS (and now he's playing guitar!), while the rhythm section was reconstituted from members of fellow Rhode Island noise rockers Landed. The resultant sound emphasizes the group's more pissed off, punkish edge - try to imagine the four-headed bastard offspring of Black Flag and the Jesus Lizard beating the shit out of itself - while downplaying their more meditative (relatively speaking for this band, of course) electro-kraut influences. For this reason, the initial reaction of many aQ staffers was that Half Control doesn't really sound like the Six Finger Satellite we all knew - remember that part about John Maclean and the band's collection of vintage synthesizers? Closer inspection, however, reveals otherwise, at least to the nerds in possession of the band's entire discography. While synths were and continue to remain integral to the 6FS sound, many people tend to overlook how guitar-centric they always were. Slashing and densely hypnotic riffing, throbbing basslines, and ridiculously tight drumming were just as important as their quirky but ominous synthlines. Singer/Moogist J. Ryan's feral vocals are as mean-spirited and distorted as they always were and the band still throbs and pulsates like a merciless machine that refuses to shut down. 6FS's sound was frantic but controlled, often verging on complete chaos, yet they managed to keep things together in a way only they could. With that in mind, it's clear to see that things are really just as great as they always were. The reality is that little has changed, it's just pretty mindblowing to think that we are hearing new sounds from a band that sadly *seemed* to drop off the map.
It should go without saying for anyone familiar with this fantastic band, that Load Records (who released their obscure but awe inspiring Clone Theory ep waaaaay back), is a much better home for them. It's not coincidental that much of that label's lineup and a great deal of the current noise rock scene is heavily indebted to 6FS, and while some of today's indie rockers may have unknowingly tapped into what these guys were about in the form of other bands, Six Finger Satellite has yet to be surpassed in ferocity, dark humor, and overall rockingness. Longtime fans should find plenty of reasons to rejoice, while newbies will freak out and have to accept mp3 versions of their out of print Sub Pop albums. To the rest of the world: WAKE THE FUCK UP. Six Finger Satellite is immortal, and even if this is their final statement (we sure hope not), it's more than we could have ever hoped for.
MPEG Stream: "Thrown Out"
MPEG Stream: "Artificial Light"
MPEG Stream: "Bored Oracle"

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Law of Ruins (Sub Pop) cd 12.98
Rhode Island's not so favorite sons perfect their blend of Stooges sludge rock and Moog powered space-out-kraut grooves. Internal debates have drawn blood over whether this is the best Six Finger Satellite record... regardless of the outcome, this is a great record and shouldn't be missed! Also comes in very attractive packaging (the vinyl is clear in a clear cover).

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Law of Ruins (Sub Pop) lp 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Rhode Island's not so favorite sons perfect their blend of Stooges sludge rock and Moog powered space-out-kraut grooves. Internal debates have drawn blood over whether this is the best Six Finger Satellite record... regardless of the outcome, this is a great record and shouldn't be missed! Also comes in very attractive packaging (the vinyl is clear in a clear cover).

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Machine Cuisine Companion Cassette (ABRN) cassette 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Did not see this one coming... but GODDAMN are we happy about it. Originally released by the band themselves in 1994 as, you guessed it, a companion cassette to the band's mighty Machine Cuisine 10", this little bastard has been out of print for years, attaining somewhat of a mythic status and fetching some pretty hefty prices the one or two times it ever ended up on eBay. Now, with 6FS operating once again, they saw it fit to reissue this cassette for the hungry masses in 2010, complete with a digital download card tucked inside.
A polarizing band if there ever was one, Six Finger Satellite was one of the few groups in the '90s to utilize synthesizers to their full potential, which they integrated into a traditional rock band setup for some heavy, hateful, and totally rocking results. While the Machine Cuisine ep itself found 6FS sans guitars, sounding a bit like a smart ass Kraftwerk meeting up with Chrome, the cassette rocks furiously, with the band's trademark demented vocals, machine like drumming and some razor sharp riffage. It's unfortunate that these guys never gained more than a cult following, but not really that surprising either. Listening to this stuff now, it's clear that they were not only completely out of step with much of the "indie rock" scene of the '90s, but also WAY ahead of their time. This may be a bold statement, but we imagine time will vindicate Six Finger Satellite and eventually find them mentioned along with all the other great, nihilistic drug bands like the Stooges and the Birthday Party. Highest recommendation imaginable, and we would imagine quite limited.

SIX FINGER SATELLITE Massive Cocaine Seizure (Sub Pop) 7" 3.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
For fans of Chrome and Kraftwerk.

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City ) cd 14.98
And lo, after several changes of the seasons, once again the musical mystic comes down from the mountain to play for the people his olden instrument of wood and wires. Meandering through meadows, pausing to serenade both man and beast, rock and flower with hushed blessings and blissful hummings. It's record number, what, 12 or 13 from Ben Chasny aka Six Organs Of Admittance. And the dust still chimes. This is the even brighter dawn after the luminous night.
Chasny is one of our very favorite practitioners of psych folk descended from the fringes of the Takoma tradition, American primitive meets Eastern acid, a la Basho and Bishop - Sir Richard being one of Chasny's compadres in Rangda, the fierce improv yang to this album's (mostly) gentle folky yin.
As befits its title, Asleep On The Floodplain is indeed a dreamy one, tickling with sweet tangles of strings (such as the acoustic guitar solo "Poppies"), shimmering with lovely drones (the harmonium laden "Brilliant Blue Sea Between Us"). With some tracks, like the album's intense side two epic "S/word And Leviathan" (over twelve minutes long) bringing all that together and more. It's esoteric, poetic in both inspiration and realization (there's post-graduate work to be done delving into the lyrical/conceptual side of these songs, instrumentals excluded, or not). Without such analysis, we know it's at least interesting, and more importantly emotive and evocative, whether Chasny is gently singing, or just caressing the strings. As always with Six Organs, we can surely say by now, recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Above A Desert I've Never Seen"
MPEG Stream: "Light Of The Light"
MPEG Stream: "S/word And Leviathan"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Asleep On The Floodplain (Drag City) lp 17.98
And lo, after several changes of the seasons, once again the musical mystic comes down from the mountain to play for the people his olden instrument of wood and wires. Meandering through meadows, pausing to serenade both man and beast, rock and flower with hushed blessings and blissful hummings. It's record number, what, 12 or 13 from Ben Chasny aka Six Organs Of Admittance. And the dust still chimes. This is the even brighter dawn after the luminous night.
Chasny is one of our very favorite practitioners of psych folk descended from the fringes of the Takoma tradition, American primitive meets Eastern acid, a la Basho and Bishop - Sir Richard being one of Chasny's compadres in Rangda, the fierce improv yang to this album's (mostly) gentle folky yin.
As befits its title, Asleep On The Floodplain is indeed a dreamy one, tickling with sweet tangles of strings (such as the acoustic guitar solo "Poppies"), shimmering with lovely drones (the harmonium laden "Brilliant Blue Sea Between Us"). With some tracks, like the album's intense side two epic "S/word And Leviathan" (over twelve minutes long) bringing all that together and more. It's esoteric, poetic in both inspiration and realization (there's post-graduate work to be done delving into the lyrical/conceptual side of these songs, instrumentals excluded, or not). Without such analysis, we know it's at least interesting, and more importantly emotive and evocative, whether Chasny is gently singing, or just caressing the strings. As always with Six Organs, we can surely say by now, recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Above A Desert I've Never Seen"
MPEG Stream: "Light Of The Light"
MPEG Stream: "S/word And Leviathan"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Compathia (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
Ben Chasny: hot guy. Bedroom eyes and a bottle of beer. What's up with the cover?? Well, apparently Ben's sick of people thinking he's some sort of sexless mystical elf, so he chose to pose for pictures on a rumpled bed complete with prone girlfriend (or groupie?). But even without the usual murky, evocative artwork of ghostly treelines this new, fourth album from Ben's Six Organs of Admittance is again a lovely piece of psych-folk-pop. Hippie jams updated for the kids today, taking cues from both Bolan and Basho. Gently drifting or discretely chugging, the majority of this record is devoted to mellow song-craft of exqusite beauty. So when the heavy psych guitar blow-out of the last track "Only The Sun Knows" (featuring Ethan Miller of Comets On Fire, who also plays the sitar elsewhere on the album) kicks in, your only warning will be this review! Recommended, from start to finish a really nice record.
MPEG Stream: "Close To The Sky"
MPEG Stream: "Wind In My Palm"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dark Noontide (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The excellent split LP that Six Organs Of Admittance recently did with Charlambides really whet our appetite for this disc, the third full-length album from Ben Chasny (Six Organs, on record at least, is pretty much just him). Actually, we've been eager for another Six Organs disc since Ben's last cd, "Dust & Chimes", brightened our world (in its melancholy way) back in 2000. Hunched over his 4-track up in the wilds of McKinleyville, California, Ben has outdone himself with the eight tracks on offer here. The album begins with a beautifully sung psych-folk song, soon delves into dark, sad drone pieces, early '70s krautrock-inspired tabla-and-feedback jams (you wouldn't think it's just one guy and a 4-track, but rather a stoned group of freaks really feeling the kosmiche vibe together), some gorgeous solo acoustic guitar in a Fahey mode, and more of his dreamy late-night acid-folk songwriting. Six Organs is definitely among the best of the currently-burgeoning "Terrastock Nation", and we'd certainly rank Mr. Chasny with similarily-inspired and inspiring contemporaries like Greg Weeks, Richard Youngs, P.G. Six, Masaki Batoh, Amps For Christ, Joshua Burkett, and Kawabata Makoto. So very recommended!
MPEG Stream: "This Hand"
MPEG Stream: "On Returning Home"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dark Noontide (Holy Mountain) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now on VINYL. Whoo-hoo! Here's what we said when we reviewed the cd version of this fine Six Orgs alb:
The excellent split LP that Six Organs Of Admittance recently did with Charlambides really whet our appetite for this disc, the third full-length album from Ben Chasny (Six Organs, on record at least, is pretty much just him). Actually, we've been eager for another Six Organs disc since Ben's last cd, "Dust & Chimes", brightened our world (in its melancholy way) back in 2000. Hunched over his 4-track up in the wilds of McKinleyville, California, Ben has outdone himself with the eight tracks on offer here. The album begins with a beautifully sung psych-folk song, soon delves into dark, sad drone pieces, early '70s krautrock-inspired tabla-and-feedback jams (you wouldn't think it's just one guy and a 4-track, but rather a stoned group of freaks really feeling the kosmiche vibe together), some gorgeous solo acoustic guitar in a Fahey mode, and more of his dreamy late-night acid-folk songwriting. Six Organs is definitely among the best of the currently-burgeoning "Terrastock Nation", and we'd certainly rank Mr. Chasny with similarily-inspired and inspiring contemporaries like Greg Weeks, Richard Youngs, P.G. Six, Masaki Batoh, Amps For Christ, Joshua Burkett, and Kawabata Makoto. So very recommended!
MPEG Stream: "This Hand"
MPEG Stream: "On Returning Home"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Dust & Chimes (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
Eureka, California based young'un Ben Chasny was the hands down big hit at this year's Terrastock IV festival of peace, love and psychedelic drugs, held in Seattle (where, by the way, we were excited to visit the Experience Music Project museum -- $20, and worth every penny!). At the festival, Ben's airy yet dark psychedelia was augmented with the talents of other bandmates specially put together for the occasion, but on "Dust & Chimes", his first album just now reissued on cd for the first time, he's working mostly alone. Concocting lush laments from acoustic guitar, chimes, and subtle distortion effects, Six Organs of Admittance bespeak a love for psych-folk not of the fey British variety, but more akin to the ethereal otherworldliness of Japan's Ghost. Fahey fans will also find much to appreciate. Every sound is carefully placed and joyfully played -- and this attention to detail came across live in spades, where the youthful energy of this band reminded me of the Olivia Tremor Control, giving it their all. On record, this energy is rather more dark and mysterious than any Olivias comparison would suggest. Very nice.
RealAudio clip: "Black Needle Rhymes"

SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE For Octavio Paz (Holy Mountain) cd 13.98
This came out as a fancy limited vinyl edition some months back, but those are long gone and now all Six Organs lovers who missed 'em can thank their lucky stars (and Holy Mtn) that the same splendidifidous folk-psych guitar gems found on that elpee are now available on ceedee. What we said before still applies, except it's just one, longer side now:
Two sides of instrumental transcendence from AQ fave, Ben Chasny's Six Organs Of Admittance. Recorded late at night, on a four track, these songs exude late nights, twinkling stars, crackling fires, rustling woods, broken hearts and burnished spirit. Side one is a series of soft and sweetly finger picked nylon string guitar pieces with the occasional haunting ethereal vocal and shimmering, tinkling bells. Side two is a side long steel string rumination, mellow and melancholy, minor key and meditative. Psychedelic folk stripped to its essence. So gorgeous.
Quite recommended to all under the spell of Mr. Chasny, or who would like to be. Lookin' forward to his new album due later this year on Drag City...
MPEG Stream: "They Fixed The Broken Windmill Today"
MPEG Stream: "The Acceptance Of Absolute Negation"