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We scored a stack of this limited 10" from the Northern Ashram label. Westerbur and Rowe are a Detroit based duo that composes sonic excursions of organ/synth and drums that are pushing ever further into the cosmos. A duality is at work in these instrumental cuts, where the music seems to be influenced by the past while still sounding like its headed towards the future. Hints of Yes, Pink Floyd, Harmonia, Zombi and King Crimson are slithering throughout this EP of studied kosmische prog rock.
Westerbur and Rowe have a decidedly analog warmth coursing its veins lending a very vintage quality to these two side long cuts of well practiced musicianship and thought out composition making this here 10" a stone cold RECOMMENDED winner in our opinion.
EDITION OF 500 ON ORANGE VINYL, SOLD OUT AT SOURCE!
Collector folk take note! Immune Recordings has put this long out of print CD-R onto the vinyl format for all you WAY OUT THERE heads.
We've raved like banshees in the past about all things White Hills and "Abstractions and Mutations" is yet another platter of hot ass space rock that needs to be on the shelf next to your "Heads On Fire", "Frying On This Rock", "H-p1" and "A Little Bliss Forever" records. Scratch that, it needs to be on your turntable burning up your ears with its monster grooves of cosmic blues and unstopping head nod pummel. "Abstractions and Mutations" supplies the otherworldly drones that culminate into headbanging space rock cacophonies that'll have you going for days. White Hills' swirling effects washes blistering guitar work, 70's flavored bass runs, and free-jazz power drumming, are make for some damn fine galaxy cruisers.
We are fully on board for this first-time-on-wax head-for-the-stars RECOMMENDED affair.
PAY ATTENTION: Sex Cult is now "EX-Cult" and they've just released their kick-ass debut long player on Goner Records. We dig it and so should you.
Taut, urgent buzzsaw riffs slice their way over a rhythm section that is locked in so tight, we might need some WD-40 to grease 'em up! Recorded with juuuuuust the right amount of fidelity by San Fran wunderkind Ty Segall, who really knows how to make everything sit perfectly in the mix - the bass thumps, the drums pound and most of all, the guitars are loaded with a punch belying someone who's used to capturing the primal tonality of a guitar turned up to 11.
Wire, Urinals, (Aussie) X are all accurate comparisons musically - we hear lil' bit of Aussie troglodytes UV Race in there too, dark, art-damaged, forward-thinking and blown-the-fuck-apart garage rock. There's a whole crop of this stuff heatin' up the South these days (T.S.O.T., Gary Wrong Group, Vincas) and we're expecting great things from Ex-Cult! We're diggin' the hell outta this one - could be a late-breaker for end-of-the-year lists!
RECOMMENDED, for reals dudes. Damn.
Sweaty, cacophonous garage scree from the misty woods of North Carolina - you smell that? It's PAINT FUMES. Dropped like it's hottt from our bros over at Slovenly Records, so you know you oughtta dig it.
Reminds us of the glory days from Crypt or Rip-Off Records! The record cover to "Uck Life" shows the dudes half-dressed, chillin' under a garbage-strewn, spray-painted viaduct, with one band member pants-less and his hand stuffed into his crotch. That about sums up the album right there; lecherous, with a definite confidence and swagger.
It's an album that kicks and spits out the primal and furious R'n'R that Slovenly has been perpetrating these days (Egyptian Rats, Acid Baby Jesus, Jack Of Heart, Thee Oops). You like to party? Paint Fumes might have the party you're lookin' for - just don't pass out, you might wake up with a penis drawn on your face.
'Ucking Recommended!
Chilly synth-pop from Angel Eyes - a.k.a. Melbourne musician, Andrew Cowie. After a couple of cassette releases on Not Not Fun and Moon Glyph, "Final Fare" gets the vinyl treatment by the alarmingly consistent Bedroom Suck Records!
We realized that "Angel Eyes" also happens to be the title to a Roxy Music tune (from the 'Manifesto' album) - Cowie's definitely a fan and you can definitely hear their influence an the tunes that comprise "Final Fare" - the spacey, pastoral synth washes, shellacked with echoey vocals and the skitter of a distant drum machine mirror the neo-romantic, retro-future vibe on (late era) Roxy's signature album 'Avalon', with Cowie crooning o'er top like a bastard son of Brian Ferry and Ian Curtis.
Despite the calming musicality of the whole of "Final Fare", there's a claustrophobic air not unlike Joy Division's "Closer" album, or some of Angelo Badalamenti's work on the Twin Peaks Soundtrack. A great left-field surprise from Bedroom Suck - one to watch in 2013 for sure!
RECOMMENDED for all you cold wave/minimal synth junkies out there... but bring some mittens - it's cold in space. (Can you play a synth with mittens on?)
The Bedroom Suck label delivers another winner from Down Under, this time from Superstar.
Melbourne's Superstar make gentle and lithe music, perfect for napping on the side of a sun drenched mountain or late night back roads cruising. "A Toast To... Superstar" is comprised of 5 tracks of guitar, keyboards, minimal drum machine and lovely lady croon doubled a male accompaniment. Superstar make mid-tempo swoon inducing songs in the vein of Cocteau Twins and now that you mention it, this act would fit in just fine with the early 4AD roster.
A pleasant affair from beginning to end, "A Toast To... Superstar" is yet another bodacious release from the ongoing Australian renaissance that has been dominating music for the past couple of years. There seems to be no end in sight and we are just fine with that. Super Recommended.
The Great Pop Supplement has been releasing high quality cuts for quite some time now and I Am AMpersand just adds to the glory of their catalog.
"Grave Goods" is an even tempered album of sunshine pop with sprinklings of Syd Barrett twisted mind yearnings, T. Rex stomp and plenty of bass groove upping the attitude. I Am Ampersand ride the line perfectly of combing classic pop song writing elements and infusing the sound with subtle electronic flourishes making the music thoroughly modern. An impressive outing as a solo work to say the least,Matthew Hainsby's psychedelic folk pop is a charming collection of light-hearted tunes in the realm of Fleetwood Mac, Cornershop, and All Things Must Pass.
Obviously a personal work, "Grave Goods" never dwells in the downers, instead juxtaposing emotional turmoil with steadfast saccharine ensconced pop tunes that'll leave you humming the live long day away. Recommended.
The Les Disques Steak label drops yet another brain splayer of hedonistic rock action in the form of Destination Lonely's new long player.
"Kiss Or Kicks" is 6 tracks of twangged out, distorto balls to the wall garage strut. Hailing from the southern region of France, Destination Lonely are one of many bands in the scene with acts like The Liminanas, Sonic Chicken 4, and Jack Of Heart, all the while breathing fresh air into the lungs of rock tropes.
Destination Lonely are taking on the classic sounds of Stooges, Link Wray, Cramps and Nuggets minded clatter while pumping in some pop craft and that certain "Je ne sais quois" that lends to the overall rip-roarin vibe. Get on board with the Les Disques Steak train, it ain't gonna let you down. Recommended
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BRAND NEW album of quirky, chiming pop from indie rockers Big Dipper - their first since their 1990 major label debut/swan song "Slam", rocketed into the world by Almost Ready Records!!!
These guys have been at it for a long time and have garnered some heavyweight fans along the way like Superchunk's Mac McCaughan and GBV main-man, Bob Pollard (who provided the cover art), and listening to "Crashes On the Platinum Planet", it's no surprise - the seedlings of the melodic palette of Msrs Pollard and McCaughan are all over this record; shimmering guitars that crash back and forth into each other, soaring double harmonies and pop hooks that last for days!
If you dig GBV, The Go-Betweens, Smithereens, Superchunk, or Versus, then Big Dipper's sure to cure what ails ya! We thought this was an odd one for Almost Ready, until we remembered that The Embarrassment's Bill Goffrier was guitar-slingin' in Big Dipper (Almost Ready sub-label 'Last Laugh' reissued The Embarrassment's classic KBD single "Sex Drive" in 2011) and then it all clicked. A thrilling return to form for these guys - we're stoked! RECOMMENDED!
EDITION OF 500
The Last Laugh Records folks have pressed up the Mentally Ill's "Strike The Bottom Red", an album cut by the band in 1999 at Electrical Audio by Steve Albini. Never on vinyl, "Strike The Bottom Red" finds the Mentally Ill still spitting venom and hitting hard and frantic. Some 20 years from their masterpiece single "Gacy's Place", The Mentally Ill are still bringing the top notch KBD style onslaught they were known for.
"Strike The Bottom Red" is eleven searing cuts of base perversity with sure to be classics like "Split Crotch Straight Jacket", "Bathroom Gays", "Doggie Sex" and "Dom and Nate" to name but a few of the filthy punk gems you will find on this malodorous platter. Ready made for a rave-up in a padded cell, "Strike The Bottom Red" is psychopathically Recommended.
Yay! The Vinilisssimo label has lovingly reissued this criminally overlooked gem from the early 90's: Bark Psychosis' Hex lp.
The UK's Bark Psychosis were experimenting with textures and varied instrumentation being added to the classic guitars/bass/drums rock set up well before most of the bands that got to bask in the glory the music media would dub "post rock". Their floating opuses had waves of effects mixed into their very original take on experimental shoegaze-y modern rock. Bark Psychosis weave together music as far reaching as minimalism, introverted indie rock, psychedelia, post-punk, industrial noise, and electronic dance music. And they do it with a subtlety and craftsmanship that is rarely matched by their peers.
While contemporaries like the above mentioned Tortoise, Labradford, Talk Talk, Long Fin Killie, My Bloody Valentine and The Telescopes are all sonically similar and start to give an indication of what Bark Psychosis are bringing to the table, in reality this band is about as unique as they come. They have forged their own sound that is an intelligent concoction of many different genres that when all cylinders are firing makes for some seriously thrilling music. Here's hoping 2004's stellar "///Codename: Dustsucker" will be getting the reish treatment in the near future!
Mega Recommended.
MEGA-SUPER-ULTRA rare Israeli psychedelic rock from Churchill's - and when we say "psychedelic", we mean it! U.K. label Axis Records reissued this beast and DUDES, this is one of those records that TOTALLY lives up to its reputation!
Weirdly, the first side of the record are tunes the band recorded for the soundtrack of a motion picture called "A Woman's Case" and that 6-song suite is a (comparatively) more straight-laced affair of dreamy psych-pop numbers. The second side is where the band's unique vision really shines through - KILLER tripped out tunes replete with backwards masking, crazy phasing, acid-guitar freakouts, strange sound effects ("arguments", burps, "water pipes", money), exotic Arabian instrumentation, and (above all) great tunes! "Straight People" has a whiff of Zappa-esque societal dissection (i.e. "the square's don't understand us maaaaaaaan"), while "So Alone Today" starts off with some trippy, ethereal soundscapes before lurching into a backwards burner reminiscent of "Are You Experienced" crossed with Canned Heat.
This bad-boy's pressed on lucious 180gm vinyl too - so grab your own personal "water pipe" and some "harry larry" (look it up) and vibe out to the heavy-duty sounds of The Churchill's! ~ RECOMMENDED!
EDITION OF 400
The Great Pop Supplement has been releasing high quality cuts for quite some time now and this High Wolf / Kunlun Split just adds to the glory of their catalog.
A killer pairing of artists on this split single makes for the total package. High Wolf are heading deeper into the miasma with their churning hypnotic dronescapes, while Kunlun take a slightly lighter voyage of kosmische space travel. All in all two fine outings here and another stunner on the highly acclaimed Great Pop Supplement imprint. Recommended.
EDITION OF 400
The Great Pop Supplement has been releasing high quality cuts for quite some time now and their latest batch of releases just adds to the glory of their catalog, especially this Thelightshines 7 inch.
Definite whiffs of the salty air of Sixties California jangling 12-strings, but with a definite sense of an overcast future. "Soul To Skin" has sunshine "la la la's" peppering the chorus and a shimmering guitar lead launching it into the sky before dissipating into the atmosphere. There's a melancholic undercurrent amidst the U.K.-inflected pop chops a'la The La's, The Lilys, or Ride.
The flip, "Love The Amnesiac" drones in a more latter-era (read: poppier) Spacemen 3, with a hot-wired guitar poking it's head up amidst the dreamy pop ether. A really solid 2-sider, and REALLY limited too- only 400 copies to be had and (we're told) sold out at the source, so JUMP ON IT! Recommended, dudes!
EDITION OF 400
The Great Pop Supplement has been releasing high quality cuts for quite some time now and their latest batch of releases just adds to the glory of their catalog, especially the new two song single from Violet Woods.
The A-Side "Raw Love" is a real shuffling head-bopper, that calls to mind the best of late-eighties/early nineties UK pop like Charlatans (UK), or Stone Roses, while "Cyanide Suns" is a mellow groover that starts off soft, but builds to a fuzz-laden peak with a blistering guitar lead!
KILLER stuff, housed in a sweet letter-pressed sleeve and uber-limited to 400 hand-numbered copies (apparently already sold out at the source!), so don't snooze! RECOMMENDED!
Newish Chicago based label, Notes and Bolts, duped up a stack of tapes for the latest from Chicago's Verma, and we got some waiting to make your boombox happy.
Wow! Verma are exploring some new territory on Coltan, moving into darker realms and expanding their sound to experimental stretches of extended tones and a slow and even swagger. We dug the shit outta of the Exu album, self released earlier in 2012, and now to get another helping of Verma, much less one so different, is truly a treat. Keep your eyes on this act cuz they way they are stretching out and trying new sounds we guarantee they will be adding even more amazing release to their steadily growing catalog of work.
Super Recommended.
