‘Açid Blüüs Räägs Vol.2’ is the latest evolution of the sound of last year’s Volume 1. The debut album was described by Joe Banks for Shindig! Magazine as; “Shivering slabs of drone blues transcendentalism…a burning junkyard of sheet metal blues… Hot stuff.” Volume 2 builds on the skronk blues guitar, sax and electronic drones of it’s predecessor, to explore cosmic free jazz, concrete exotica and dub, channelling influences of Moondog, Terry Riley, 75 Dollar Bill and Wolf Eyes. Playing like the imagined film soundtracks to a dystopian, re-wilded, post eco crash world in the style of Tarkovsky's ‘Stalker’ and ’Solaris’, Jodorowsky's surreal desert western ‘El Topo’, or the early novels of JG Ballard. This new collection sees the addition of minimal analogue drum machine loops as well as live instrumental contributions from the new players of the ever evolving Invocation band, plus some superstar guest contributors.
Featuring five brand new tracks, including the forthcoming single; ‘Cosmic Fanfare’, has already picked up BBC 6 Music support from Gideon Coe. The new album was mixed by Alex McGowan (aka Captain Future) of Space Eko Studios and features Invocation band regulars Rick Jensen of Apocalypse Jazz Unit, Skronk and Oneirologist on sax and bass clarinet, Will Emms aka Tiki Eerie on melodica, horns and claviola, plus special guest appearances from Duke Garwood on clarinet and Mikey 'Moondog' Chestnut of Snapped Ankles on bass synth. “….Acid fried kosmiche blues meets drone raag transcendentalism”. Jonny Halifax is a primitivist free blues outsider, sonic shaman of the acid fuzzed lap steel guitar, demented blower of the howling harmonica of doom. His new band project now combines avant swamp blues heaviosity with kosmic free jazz experimentalism in a fluid collective of godless raag brut improvisations - sonic visions of an hallucinatory apocalyptic near future. Inspired by Henry Flynt’s avant bluegrass experiments fusing country blues with eastern acoustic musical stylings, Spacemen 3’s contemporary sitar music, and the monolithic drone doom immersion of Sunn 0))), THE JONNY HALIFAX INVOCATION build hypnotic instrumental soundscapes using lap steel and homemade slide guitars, harmonica and alto sax. Underpinned by layers of acoustic and electronic drone instruments and fed through an arsenal of pedalboard electronics that would make Kevin Shields weep, the blues are transmogrified, unhinged, reduced and re-imagined as intoxicating, trance-inducing, feedback-drenched noise paintings. THE JONNY HALIFAX INVOCATION follows Jonny’s junkshop skronk blues one man band Honkeyfinger, and the Julian Cope endorsed gospel fuzz psychedelia of Jonny Halifax & The Howling Truth, whilst not forgetting his ambient drone metal side project; Deathenteredinerror. His musical CV also includes studio contributions to tracks by Andrew Weatherall’s Two Lone Swordsmen, UK metal behemoths Orange Goblin, Heck and Melting Hand.
Search:halifax
- 1
Es ist ein Beweis für Stan Rogers’ Wirkung als Songwriter,
dass 40 Jahre nach seinem plötzlichen, tragischen Tod bei
einem Flugzeugbrand im Jahr 1983, als er gerade einmal 33
Jahre alt war, immer noch Menschen – ob jung oder alt –
seine Lieder singen und seinen Einfluss feiern. Seine Lieder
„Northwest Passage“, „Barrett’s Privateers“ und „The Mary
Ellen Carter“ sind tief in der nordamerikanischen
Seefahrtskultur verwoben. Jetzt erhältlich: Neupressungen
seltener Stan Rogers-Aufnahmen auf Vinyl. „For The Family
“ erschien erstmals nur Monate nach seinem Tod und enthält
Interpretationen traditioneller kanadischer Volkslieder,
darunter auch solche von Rogers’ Onkel Lee Bushell und
Großvater Sidney Bushell. „Coffee House to Concert Hall“ ist
ein Kompilationsalbum mit Live-Auftritten, und der letzte Titel,
„Down the Road“, wurde fünf Tage vor Stan Rogers’ Tod live
in McCabe’s Guitar Shop aufgenommen. „Home in Halifax“ ist
ein Live-Album, das im März 1982 im Rebecca Cohn
Auditorium in Halifax, Nova Scotia, aufgenommen wurde.
Prepare to be engulfed in the sonic maelstrom that is The Jonny Halifax Invocation as they unleash their blistering new single "Thank You”. Renowned for their mesmerising forays into extended sun-scorched psychedelic soundscapes on the critically acclaimed albums Açid Blüüs Räägs Vols.1 & 2, The Jonny Halifax Invocation now emerge with a thunderous new proposition in the form of their latest 7" single. A dynamic shift of gears in The Invocation’s sonic landscape, “Thank You” is a two minutes and thirty-seven second explosion of raw, primal energy, a revolutionary last call, an arrow shot of burning malcontent for this time. “Thank You” goes for the kill from the first beat of filthy amphetamine buzzsaw swagger cutting some heavy sonic rug with spiritual forefathers The Stooges and MC5. Cosmic free jazz saxophonic squawks soar, while the preacherman of the apocalypse invites the congregation to question the root of their original gratitude with life or death urgency. Meanwhile over on the flip side, "Gratitude Dub” slows the rumbling groove to a lurching, swaggering rollercoaster ride of hallucinogenic dub exotica just before the wheels fall off.
"_Acid blues punk meets freeform drone raag transcendentalism" JONNY HALIFAX is an untutored aleatoric free blues outsider. His new collection of sound is an instrumental departure into godless raag brut improvisations, layered, manipulated and sculpted into heavily immersive feral sonic collages. Invocations of an hallucinatory apocalyptic near future. Previously the creator of junkshop blues skronk one man band HONKEYFINGER, which then mutated into the gospel fuzz psych of Julian Cope endorsed JONNY HALIFAX & THE HOWLING TRUTH with their ""slitherin' electro -programmed slide guitar driven mung worship", alongside the ambient drone metal noisescapes of DEATHENTEREDINERROR, now THE JONNY HALIFAX INVOCATION channel heavy meditations on the present into an uncompromising free blues transcendentalism that burn raga-shaped holes into your chakra with searing psychedelic intensity. Inspired by Henry Flynt's avant bluegrass experiments fusing country blues with eastern acoustic musical stylings, Spacemen 3's contemporary sitar music, and the monolithic drone doom immersion of Sunn 0))), THE JONNY HALIFAX INVOCATION build hypnotic instrumental soundscapes using lap steel and homemade slide guitars, harmonica and alto sax. Underpinned by layers of acoustic and electronic drone instruments and fed through an arsenal of pedalboard electronics that would make Dave Gilmour weep. The blues are transmogrified, unhinged, reduced and re-imagined as intoxicating, trance-inducing, feedback-drenched noise paintings. AÇID BLÜÜS RÄÄGS Volume 1 plays like a psychedelic western movie soundtrack, frenzied electric lap steel guitar suites play to melting cowboy minds. Flaming tumbleweeds blow in slow motion across wide open concrete vistas. Jodorowsky's El Topo meets Ballard's High Rise in an apocalyptic knife edge disintegrating urban landscape. Shut your eyes and conjure the best nightmares you've never had. The JONNY HALIFAX musical CV also includes studio contributions to releases by Andrew Weatherall's TWO LONE SWORDSMEN, UK metal behemoths ORANGE GOBLIN, hardcore thrash upstarts HECK (formerly BABY GODZILLA), and pan european psych noise titans MELTING HAND.
There’s an alternate reality where everyone makes a living wage and the cleanest buses you’ve ever seen arrive every other minute. Where the most intense songs are about confessing your love to a crush at the apple orchard, and where gentle feelings and chaotic energy are inseparable best friends. This is the timeline where Cootie Catcher is right at home. This Toronto based four-piece exudes both vulnerability and unbridled excitement, creating a sound that hypercharges the open-hearted tenderness of twee pop with spiraling synths and giddy electronics. New album Something We All Got is the clearest and most vibrant reading of Cootie Catcher’s vision yet, with songs of sweetness, nervousness, and expectancy that beam out unguarded.
After releasing music made primarily in basement recording environments, Something We All Got is the band’s first flirtation with studio recording. The edges are still sharp, however, with some parts assembled from time-honored lo-fi methods and fun, personally-sourced samples seeping into the production. The sound is explosive and upbeat, with euphoric guitars, bubbly synth lines, speedy drums both played and programmed, and all other manner of sound constantly colliding. Cootie Catcher has three songwriters, Sophia Chavez, Anita Fowl, and Nolan Jakupovski, all of whom have distinctive voices but still manage to overlap in their writing on shared concerns like navigating the lines of romantic and platonic relationships, their city’s social scenes, and struggles in both the microcosmic experience of playing in a band and the zoomed-out challenges of living through late-stage capitalism.
Joy still touches every surface of Something We All Got. “Quarter Note Rock” bounces around the room in a fit of jangling guitar chords, scratched samples, and interplay between breakbeat loops and somersaulting live drums. It’s a blast of positivity even with lyrics about how disappointing it can be to meet your heroes. A smiling electro pop instrumental supports lyrics about having to step painfully away from an almost realized love on “Gingham Dress,” a song that subverts themes of domesticity as a backdrop for the dashed wilt of hopeless devotion.
Cootie Catcher rolls down hills and jumps through flaming hoops throughout Something We All Got without ever dumbing down the visceral emotions that drive these songs. There’s a palpable tension between the band’s exhilarating sonics and the raw, often uneasy sentiments expressed, but it’s an integral part of what makes them unique. Rather than hide behind the kind of calculated vagueness that plagues so much of the indie rock landscape in the time of cursed algorithms, Cootie Catcher runs full-speed toward every confusion and excitement, fearlessly direct and embracing the reality they’re in.
There’s an alternate reality where everyone makes a living wage and the cleanest buses you’ve ever seen arrive every other minute. Where the most intense songs are about confessing your love to a crush at the apple orchard, and where gentle feelings and chaotic energy are inseparable best friends. This is the timeline where Cootie Catcher is right at home. This Toronto based four-piece exudes both vulnerability and unbridled excitement, creating a sound that hypercharges the open-hearted tenderness of twee pop with spiraling synths and giddy electronics. New album Something We All Got is the clearest and most vibrant reading of Cootie Catcher’s vision yet, with songs of sweetness, nervousness, and expectancy that beam out unguarded.
After releasing music made primarily in basement recording environments, Something We All Got is the band’s first flirtation with studio recording. The edges are still sharp, however, with some parts assembled from time-honored lo-fi methods and fun, personally-sourced samples seeping into the production. The sound is explosive and upbeat, with euphoric guitars, bubbly synth lines, speedy drums both played and programmed, and all other manner of sound constantly colliding. Cootie Catcher has three songwriters, Sophia Chavez, Anita Fowl, and Nolan Jakupovski, all of whom have distinctive voices but still manage to overlap in their writing on shared concerns like navigating the lines of romantic and platonic relationships, their city’s social scenes, and struggles in both the microcosmic experience of playing in a band and the zoomed-out challenges of living through late-stage capitalism.
Joy still touches every surface of Something We All Got. “Quarter Note Rock” bounces around the room in a fit of jangling guitar chords, scratched samples, and interplay between breakbeat loops and somersaulting live drums. It’s a blast of positivity even with lyrics about how disappointing it can be to meet your heroes. A smiling electro pop instrumental supports lyrics about having to step painfully away from an almost realized love on “Gingham Dress,” a song that subverts themes of domesticity as a backdrop for the dashed wilt of hopeless devotion.
Cootie Catcher rolls down hills and jumps through flaming hoops throughout Something We All Got without ever dumbing down the visceral emotions that drive these songs. There’s a palpable tension between the band’s exhilarating sonics and the raw, often uneasy sentiments expressed, but it’s an integral part of what makes them unique. Rather than hide behind the kind of calculated vagueness that plagues so much of the indie rock landscape in the time of cursed algorithms, Cootie Catcher runs full-speed toward every confusion and excitement, fearlessly direct and embracing the reality they’re in.
- 1: God Help Me Now
- 2: Missing Kid
- 3: The Wheel
- 4: Dream Of Mine
- 5: Yellow Light
- 6: The World Is Not An Oyster
- 7: Disintegrate
- 8: Lonelier In Heaven
- 9: At Home In My Mind
- 10: Knowing
“Recording this album felt like the crescendo of years of struggling to understand myself. It can get quite claustrophobic living inside my head.” ‘At Home in My Mind’ is an open invite into the world of Halifax indie artist, Ellur (Ella McNamara). The album is a journey around Ellur’s mind, it dips into different musical genres that have shaped her for the past 24 years – from the 90s indie rock she grew up with, to glitch-pop she discovered in her late teens to the alt-folk she cherishes now. Ellur has created a warm abode for her thoughts and experiences as a young woman growing up in Yorkshire’s Calderdale Valley and ‘At Home In My Mind’ beds them all in, safely together. ‘At Home In My Mind’ has been produced by Joel Johnston (Far Caspian) and recorded from his Leeds studio. Johnston and Ellur first worked together on her previous EP, ‘God Help Me Now’ – a stunning body of work that saw Ellur’s fanbase bloom and received praise from national press, radio and an impressive international artists. The buzz around Ellur has lead to a very busy live calendar throughout 2025, including debut festival slots in US and EU, over 14 Summer festival plays in UK (including Latitude, Truck, Big Feastival) and sold out headline shows across the UK. ‘At Home In My Mind’ expands on themes Ellur draws on in her ‘God Help Me Now EP’, particularly an overarching theme of connection. Ellur connecting with her childhood memories, listening to her honest feelings, but most importantly, Ellur wants ‘At Home In My Mind’ to be an arm extended out, looking for people who need a hand to hold.
Indie-Store-Version Gold Coloured 2x12" Vinyl in Gatefold
Nach über drei Jahrzehnten Karriere und über zwei Millionen verkauften Alben bleiben PARADISE LOST die unangefochtenen Könige der dunklen Seite des Metal.
Die 1988 in Halifax gegründete Band wurde mit ihren frühen, bahnbrechenden Alben wie dem treffend betitelten „Gothic“ von 1991, einer Mischung aus Härte, düsterer Melodie und Atmosphäre, schnell als Pioniere des Gothic Metal bekannt. Sie waren nie eine Gruppe, die kreativ statisch blieb, und haben im Laufe ihrer Karriere unzählige Wege dunkler Musik erkundet, von schlammigen Doom-Death-Wurzeln über die Eroberung des Metal-Mainstreams mit den gewaltigen, satten Klängen von „Draconian Times“ von 1995 bis hin zu experimentelleren, elektronischeren Einflüssen. Sie haben so unterschiedliche Künstler wie CRADLE OF FILTH, HIM, GATECREEPER und CHELSEA WOLFE beeinflusst.
Jetzt, im Jahr 2025, kehrt das Quintett aus Yorkshire mit seinem atemberaubenden 17. Album „Ascension“ zurück, einem Album, das ihre Krone weiterhin strahlen lässt und unterstreicht, wie sie ihre Position erreicht haben. Produziert von Gitarrist Gregor Mackintosh in den Black Planet Studios in East Yorkshire, mit Schlagzeug und Gesang aus den NBS und Wasteland Studios in Schweden, durchqueren die zehn Tracks die gesamte Klangvielfalt der Band – von knallhartem Heavy Metal bis hin zu himmelhohen Melodien – und bewahren dabei eine unwiderstehliche Moll-Melancholie.
„Die Leute sollten erwarten, dass wir noch trüber werden“, scherzt Frontmann Nick Holmes auf die Frage, was Fans 2025 von PARADISE LOST erwarten können. Die Erklärung des Albumtitels und der Texte macht jedoch deutlich, dass sie ihr Handwerk weiterhin beherrschen, wenn es darum geht, solche Erwartungen zu erfüllen. „Der Albumtitel entspringt dem Glauben an den Aufstieg zu einem besseren Ort, in der Fiktion von der Erde in den Himmel, und all den damit verbundenen Anforderungen“, führt er aus. „Im wirklichen Leben streben Menschen oft von Geburt an danach, an einen besseren Ort zu gelangen und ein besserer Mensch zu sein, ungeachtet der Tatsache, dass der einzige Lohn der Tod ist.“ „Die Texte handeln von allem, was das Leben uns entgegenwirft“, fährt er fort. „Es ist nie vorhersehbar und kann gleichzeitig auch erschreckend sein. Wie Menschen mit dem Tod umgehen, welche Krücken sie benutzen und wie der mentale Zustand von lebensverändernden Situationen beeinflusst wird, ist immer wieder faszinierend.“
Genau wie die Musik selbst. Der Album-Opener „Serpent on The Cross“ beginnt mit einem herrlich düsteren Riff, bevor er nach der Hälfte in donnernden klassischen Metal übergeht, angetrieben von Doublebass-Drumming und einem fast METALLICA-artigen Riff. In „Silence Like The Grave“ singt Nick „über die Sinnlosigkeit des Krieges, das Sammeln von Punkten für die Menschheit“, untermalt von perfekter Gothic-Metal-Kulisse. „Tyrant’s Serenade“ zeigt derweil die tief verwurzelte Fähigkeit der Band, Einfachheit gewaltig klingen zu lassen, gekrönt von Gregors charakteristischen, eindringlichen Gitarrenleads. „Lay A Wreath Upon The World“ beginnt als ruhige Elegie, bevor es zu einem traurigen Höhepunkt gelangt, und das Schlussstück „The Precipice“ führt mit Klaviermelodien, bevor es zu einem würdevollen Abschluss führt.
All dies zeigt meisterhaft die Bandbreite dessen, was PARADISE LOST geleistet haben und leisten können, auf eine Weise, die bis heute keiner anderen Band vergleichbar ist.
„Nach 35 Jahren ist alles bewusst“, sagt Nick. „Bei einem so umfangreichen und abwechslungsreichen Backkatalog ist es schwierig, nicht hundertprozentig sicher zu sein, woher alles kommt. Aber letztendlich kommt es einfach darauf an, ob uns die Musik gefällt, die wir machen. Wenn ja, bleibt sie! Das hat sich seit unserer Jugend nicht geändert.“ Ascension ist ein stolzer Bestandteil von PARADISE LOST. Das Elend hört nie auf, aber, sagt Nick, so mögen sie es eben. „Ironischerweise“, lacht er, „ist es immer am angenehmsten, miserable Musik zu hören – und zu schreiben, schätze ich.“
- 1: Cheryl!
- 2: Brutalised Robotics
- 3: Talk, Clown
- 4: Notopia
- 5: Your Love Shines Down Like A Supernova’s Death
- 6: Rights Down 50
- 7: What Ya Gonna Do With Yr Days
- 8: Light Touch Of The Man Spreader
- 9: Golden Cerebellum
- 10: I Only Cry From A Distance X Time = Frustration
- 11: Blistered Eyeballs
Dez Dare launches into 2025 with his 5th album, ‘CHERYL! Your Love Shines Down Like A Supernova's Death'. Blending his unique mix of existential wordplay and experimental riffage to create an album that is at arms with itself while cohesive; cheeky and upbeat, simultaneously breaking our hearts. How often do we think about what we miss when we are distracted by shiny things? While fencing with social media, long winded stories, dreams of other lives, unnecessary toys, and irrelevant social experiments with happiness, we miss the things that make up our world. This album looks at those morsels of time and the bits that fill them, soaking existence… as well as manspreaders. Those people should be added to the 7th circle of hell… or suburbia. Either is probably a similar commute!
Dez Dare (AKA Darren Smallman of labels God Unknown, BATTLE WORLDWIDE, Low Transit Industries, and bands Thee Vinyl Creatures, The Sound Platform, Warped) grew up in Geelong, Australia, where he became involved in the local punk and rock scene in 1990. Sharing stages with the likes of 5678s, Cosmic Psychos, Fugazi, The Dirty Three and the Hard-ons, before shifting his focus to running record labels. In the 2020s we see Dez Dare take form in a spare room in Brighton, UK, where Dez starts building his own studio and producing music and videos that have been described as "sounds like MONSTER MAGNET and DEVO caught in a drug bust… highly unique and highly recommended" by MAXIMUM ROCKNROLL Nick Odorizzi to The Wire’s Edwin Pouncey "dynamically armed with a ten-pronged set of lyrical barbs and musical hooks that, once heard, sink deep and hold fast" to Crossfire Metal "minimalistic, electronic psychedelic hippie poop that is only bearable with a hell of a lot of acid, angel dust and LSD". On this album Dez was joined by Laura Loriga on backing vocals and Jonny Halifax on backing vocals and lap steel, expanding on the sound of previous records and adding a new dimension to his trademark weird-n-roll.
[a] 1.Cheryl! [Loading...
- Lights Out
- Naukluft Plateau
- Golden Gain
- Tangential Thoughts
- On The Accordeon Bus
- On The Accordeon Bus
Following a trio of quick sell out, limited lathe cut 45 to kick off 2025, Feral Child now embark on a stash of more widely available full lengths (from the likes of Lake Ruth, The Jonny Halifax Invocation and Polypores amongst others). First up is a wonderful follow up to 2023’s “Refrains” 10” EP from Swedish band TAPE. “Refrains” figured in 2 or 3 notable UK stores’ end of year polls, noticeably Monorail in Glasgow where Stephen Pastel gave it a top 3 for 2023 nomination. “Preludes” is -if anything- even more majestic and acts as a superb follow up. The record is released 11th April on Feral Child as one time pressing 10” vinyl only release, featuring beautiful artwork once more from Peter Liversidge and the calligraphic hand of Klas Augustsson. The return of Swedish trio Tape has been reassuringly slow motion. They’ve always moved at their own pace, these three peripatetic musicians – brothers Andreas and Johan Berthling, and companion Tomas Hallonsten – though it’s been over a decade since their last full-length, 2014’s Casino. Not a disappearing act, rather a break for consideration, time to explore other avenues of creativity, perhaps… But their reappearance, with the Refrains 10”, was one of 2023’s most encouraging moments; doubly so, as it was proof they’d not lost their way, at all, in the intervening nine years. The Tape modus operandi is one of deceptive simplicity and artful innocence. On Preludes, a typically right, one-word Tape title, this means five wordless songs that move between fully fleshed out, lovingly tended folk threnodies – the beautiful opener, “Lights Out”, that spins webs via simple, hypnotically repeating guitar – and textural conceits that hover, appealingly, in a kind of no-place. “Naukluft Plateau” is lovingly dappled, with ruminative piano adrift on a cascading tonal waterfall. Then, feather-fall strums of guitar meet huffing harmonium and electronic scrum on the brief “Golden Gain”. Is there a more perfect song title for Tape than “Tangential Thoughts”? It sums up the way their music, nimble and dainty but also carefully tended, lends itself to the reverie, the meander, the anfractuous. The madeleine-like power of this song’s two-chord figure allows the music to take flight: rustling organ, oscillating cymbal, droplets of percussion, a spinney of sound. And Preludes slips away “On The Accordeon Bus”: there’s something lovely about the way that title collapses transit, articulation and bellows, reflected in the see-sawing sway and glitch-like rivulets of sound that course through the song. So, Preludes, then – alive to the moment, both gentle and sturdy. A copse of tone, and a most gorgeous wool-gathering.
DMV-by-way-of-the-U.K. punk duo Teen Mortgage have announced their debut album, Devil Ultrasonic Dream, out May 9th on vinyl via Roadrunner Records.
Produced by the band alongside longtime collaborator Kenny Eaton, the album’s first single, “BOX,” is a two-minute sprint of seething defiance, packed with hooks and unrelenting energy.
The album’s title, Devil Ultrasonic Dream, leans into the 1980s-era satanic panic in rock and roll. “The Devil Ultrasonic Dream,” explains frontman James Guile, “is about realizing a fantasy that Christian fascists don’t understand or want you to have. The devil—Satan—has always been a symbol of counterculture.”
Originally from England, Guile had been toying with the Teen Mortgage project under various monikers for years, crafting a sound steeped in sociopolitical commentary and built for the mosh pit, heavily influenced by classic ’80s punk. After relocating to Maryland five years ago, he connected with drummer (and former nurse) Edward Barakauskas via a Craigslist ad. Since then, the duo have spent years building Teen Mortgage’s presence in the DMV scene. In between a global pandemic and Barakauskas serving as an ER frontline worker, they managed to drop an EP and a string of singles before signing to Roadrunner Records in 2024.
Teen Mortgage has earned support slots with a stacked list of artists, from Weezer, Smashing Pumpkins, OFF!, and Alkaline Trio and return to the UK in June to play Download Festival and support Weezer at their Halifax Piece Hall show.
- 1: Moss Lung
- 2: Even When All Was Silent I Was Not Alone
- 3: The Mountain
- 4: To Cry Out In The Wilderness
- 5: Fight Song
- 6: Equals In Hope
- 7: Over
Scions are a new innovative experimental ensemble. The group features members from the award-winning minimalist chamber-jazz quartet New Hermitage, the Polaris-nominated drone-hymn duo Joyful Joyful, and the acclaimed producer and composer Michael Cloud Duguay. Their collaboration began at the Sappyfest music festival in Sackville, New Brunswick, in August 2022. During this event, New Hermitage and Joyful Joyful connected for the first time and teamed up with Duguay for a spontaneous improvisational performance based on his song writing. The enthusiastic response, capped by a standing ovation, solidified the ensemble's decision to pursue the project further, with Duguay deftly shifting from front-person to producer and musical director. After being awarded a Canada Council project grant in early 2023 the group took residence in Hotel Wolfe Island on Wolfe Island. Over a week the seven core members lived and worked together, culling material from sunrise improv sessions and collaboratively shaping it into a unique body of work that would later become To Cry Out In The Wilderness. In June 2023, the ensemble, now joined by double bassist Gabriella Ciurcovich, recorded their debut album in Halifax’s north end. Led by Duguay’s distinctive approach to site-specific production, the recording took place in the sanctuary of St. George’s Round Church, with engineering by Jake Nicoll, known for his sustainable recording methods using a solar-powered, mobile control room. The resulting album, To Cry Out In The Wilderness, finds the ensemble expertly exploring and powerfully combining their skills in jazz, devotional, classical, drone, folk, ambient, metal, improvisational, minimalist and avant-garde music. The project culminated in a week of production, with contributions from numerous artists from Halifax’s creative music community. Scions then presented their work live, performing on the opening night of Halifax’s Everyseeker festival of experimental music, where they shared the spotlight with the renowned Sun Ra Arkestra. Speaking on the narrative of To Cry Out In The Wilderness vocalist and lyricist Cormac Culkeen said: "When we came together to make this body of work, we started from a narrative seed; a post-apocalyptic humanity relearning and recreating itself, after a total ecological collapse." Speaking on "Fight Song" they add, "“Fight Song” became the song we thought the last of us might need. It is sung for an imagined last stand. It is a rallying cry to wholeheartedly fight a losing battle. So it is for us now, in this time of great dismay and unease. The axe must be disobeyed.
Up To Here ist das diamantene Debütalbum von The Tragically Hip, das ursprünglich am 8. August 1989
veröffentlicht wurde.
Es enthält einige der beliebtesten Songs der Band: „Blow At High Dough“ und „New Orleans Is Sinking“
- beides Nummer-1-Radio-Singles in Kanada sowie die Fan-Favoriten „Boots Or Hearts“ und „38 Years Old“.
Die erweiterte Neuauflage von Up To Here ist ein Muss für Sammler. Sie wird in Form von vier Doppel-LPSets auf 180g-Vinyl sowie einem Vier-CD-Set und einem Buch, das die Geschichte des Debütalbums dokumentiert, präsentiert. Die Neuauflage enthält ein 2024-Remastering des Originalalbums, eine Aufnahme
von Live at The Misty Moon, dem 1990 für MuchMusic gedrehten Special aus dem The Misty Moon in
Halifax mit begleitendem einstündigen Konzertfilm auf Bluray, sowie die Demos der ursprünglichen Aufnahmesession von 1988. Vier bisher unveröffentlichte Songs, die es nicht auf das Original-Album Up To
Here geschafft haben - „She’s Got What It Takes“, „Get Back Again“, „Rain, Hearts And Fire“ - sind Teil
dieses erweiterten Pakets, das in Atmos neu gemastert wurde.
Erhältlich ab dem 8. November!
Cindy is to release a new six song EP called Swan Lake on 4th October via Tough Love. The title isn’t a nod to the folktale or ballet in any real way, but to the fact that it all has ended up in the collective imagination as an object, vaguely recognizable, a little suggestive, and mostly blank. Karina Gill, Cindy’s songwriter, likes to make use of that kind of resonance to connect sound and experience. The six songs on this EP continue the stripped-down habits of previous Cindy releases, while adding a few departures and left-turns. Cindy likes to work at the essentials and the elements here say exactly what’s needed. In other ways, these songs present a soft filigree that’s unusual for their recordings. Oli Lipton (Now, Violent Change) on guitar and Will Smith (Now) on bass play counterpoint melodies to Gill’s structures. Staizsh Rodrigues (Children Maybe Later, Almond Joy, Peace Frog) sings vocal harmonies that both offset and deepen Gill’s voice and delivery. There are playful drums by Mike Ramos (Tony Jay, Sad Eyed Beatniks) and coolly elaborate guitar lines from Stanley Martinez (Famous Mammals, Violent Change, Non Plus Temps). Gill’s songs strike this balance too: almost nonchalant reporting tied up in unexpected knots. A ride in an elevator connects up with questions about peace and/or the nature of things; the title track wonders about associative thinking and associative feeling; The Bell is an account of one of those times when everything makes sense but you can’t explain it; and there’s the scene of a party viewed with admiration for how friends can love each other. As Gill herself says: "People have told me that they can’t quite identify my influences. Me neither. The foundational layers of music of the past and my past have been metabolized like breakfast and turned into more me, sorry to say. But I experience the music of people I’m connected with and it impacts me in the moment. There’s the music I’m around – April Magazine, Sad Eyed Beatniks, Violent Change, Katsy Pline, collaborating with Mike on Flowertown – that I can feel a direct line from. Then there’s music that is being made far away but feels close, like Lewsberg, specifically, for this EP. " CINDY – UK Tour Dates: Oct 31st WOE is 6 @ Walthamstow Trades Hall, London w/ Cuneiform Tabs & Bobby Would. Nov 1st Coventry, UK Just Dropped In Records, 2 Halifax, UK The Grayston Unity, 4 York, UK The Fulford Arms, 5 Gateshead, UK The Central Bar, 6 Glasgow, UK The Glad Café, 7 Manchester, UK Rat & Pigeon, 8 Cambridge, UK NCI Centre.
Es ist ein Beweis für Stan Rogers’ Wirkung als Songwriter,
dass 40 Jahre nach seinem plötzlichen, tragischen Tod bei
einem Flugzeugbrand im Jahr 1983, als er gerade einmal 33
Jahre alt war, immer noch Menschen – ob jung oder alt –
seine Lieder singen und seinen Einfluss feiern. Seine Lieder
„Northwest Passage“, „Barrett’s Privateers“ und „The Mary
Ellen Carter“ sind tief in der nordamerikanischen
Seefahrtskultur verwoben. Jetzt erhältlich: Neupressungen
seltener Stan Rogers-Aufnahmen auf Vinyl. „For The Family
“ erschien erstmals nur Monate nach seinem Tod und enthält
Interpretationen traditioneller kanadischer Volkslieder,
darunter auch solche von Rogers’ Onkel Lee Bushell und
Großvater Sidney Bushell. „Coffee House to Concert Hall“ ist
ein Kompilationsalbum mit Live-Auftritten, und der letzte Titel,
„Down the Road“, wurde fünf Tage vor Stan Rogers’ Tod live
in McCabe’s Guitar Shop aufgenommen. „Home in Halifax“ ist
ein Live-Album, das im März 1982 im Rebecca Cohn
Auditorium in Halifax, Nova Scotia, aufgenommen wurde.
Es ist ein Beweis für Stan Rogers’ Wirkung als Songwriter,
dass 40 Jahre nach seinem plötzlichen, tragischen Tod bei
einem Flugzeugbrand im Jahr 1983, als er gerade einmal 33
Jahre alt war, immer noch Menschen – ob jung oder alt –
seine Lieder singen und seinen Einfluss feiern. Seine Lieder
„Northwest Passage“, „Barrett’s Privateers“ und „The Mary
Ellen Carter“ sind tief in der nordamerikanischen
Seefahrtskultur verwoben. Jetzt erhältlich: Neupressungen
seltener Stan Rogers-Aufnahmen auf Vinyl. „For The Family
“ erschien erstmals nur Monate nach seinem Tod und enthält
Interpretationen traditioneller kanadischer Volkslieder,
darunter auch solche von Rogers’ Onkel Lee Bushell und
Großvater Sidney Bushell. „Coffee House to Concert Hall“ ist
ein Kompilationsalbum mit Live-Auftritten, und der letzte Titel,
„Down the Road“, wurde fünf Tage vor Stan Rogers’ Tod live
in McCabe’s Guitar Shop aufgenommen. „Home in Halifax“ ist
ein Live-Album, das im März 1982 im Rebecca Cohn
Auditorium in Halifax, Nova Scotia, aufgenommen wurde.
Jeffrey Lewis’s 2015 masterpiece ‘Manhattan’ in random-colour reground vinyl. “Lewis’s catchiest and finest album” - (Grade: A) Vice. Blang Records are thrilled to announce they’ll be bringing the wild streets of Manhattan to the UK and Europe this autumn with the vinyl re-release of Jeffrey Lewis’s 2015 masterpiece ‘Manhattan’. The LP sold out of its first pressing and has been impossible to buy anywhere for years…until now. Out on exclusive Random Mix Colour Reground EcoVinyl in record shops from 20th September. Blang Records and Jeffrey Lewis have history: before Blang was a label, it started life as a live night at the 12 Bar Club in Denmark Street, hosting many a set of the NY Antifolk artists over on UK shores, including Jeffrey Lewis. Now 20+ years since Jeffrey first played Blang, it feels fitting that tour support comes from UK antifolk linchpins, Blang Records mainstay, and arguably one of the UKs most criminally underrated bands, David Cronenberg’s Wife (“A mix of 80’s fall and the Velvet Underground” - NME). Native New Yorker Jeffrey Lewis is a comic book writer/artist and a musician. A cult hero birthed from the now infamous antifolk movement that sprung up on Manhattan’s Lower East Side in the 90s, Jeffrey has released dozens of albums showcasing his unique blend of bleakly witty observations, scratchy, lo-fi punk and croaky folk/anti-folk, all firmly rooted in a strong DIY sensibility. Jeffrey and his band have toured the world multiple times over, released albums on Rough Trade, Moshi Moshi and Don GIovanni Records, and have been featured by NPR, The History Channel, The NY Times and more. ‘Manhattan’ was mixed by John Agnello (Dinosaur Jr., Phosphorescent, War On Drugs) and recorded by Brian Speaker at SpeakerSonic Studios NY, produced by Brian Speaker and Jeffrey Lewis. “We’ve been fans of Jeffrey Lewis since seeing him at the Sidewalk Cafe in 2001, so we’re really really pleased to be really-re-releasing the excellent album ‘Manhattan’ just in time for his September UK Tour. This all started when Jeffrey asked for help looking after his merch after his UK tour finished last year and we said we’d help him press some records in Europe from a UK address as the postage costs from the US were way too much. This ultimately led to us re-releasing his classic album (and respectful nod to Lou Reed's New York) ‘Manhattan’. It's beyond a dream come true. Blang is the home of fantastic lyricists and that's exactly what Jeffrey is - this is a perfect fit.” - Blang Records. “Jeffrey Lewis is an amazing musician, and if you don’t know his songs you probably have a hole in your heart that can only be filled by his words… I did!” – Regina Spektor. “Jeffrey is the best pure songwriter I know of… ‘Sad Screaming Old Man’… is one of my favourite songs ever written.” – David Berman, Silver Jews. Tour Dates: Jeffrey Lewis & The Voltage, w/ support from David Cronenberg’s Wife - Aug 29th Hertford – Corn Exchange, 30th Coventry – The Tin Music & Arts, Sept 1st Stockton-on-Tees – Georgian Theatre, 2nd York – The Crescent, 3rd Stirling, Scotland – The Tolbooth, 4th Birkenhead – Future Yard, 5th !SOLD OUT! – Halifax – The Grayston Unity, 6th Norwich – Norwich Arts Centre, 7th Northampton – The Black Prince, 8th Carmarthen – CWRW, 9th Nottingham – The Old Cold Store, 10th Southampton – The Joiners Arms, 11th Hastings – The Pig // Jeffrey Lewis solo: 12th London – West Hampstead Arts Center, 13th London – West Hampstead Arts Center
- A01: Spindyrella - Sinnlös
- A02: Imaginary Friend Feat. Riah - Knight Sugar
- A03: Karya Zevas - Cosmos
- A04: High Park Funk - Shades On
- A05: Ranko - Escalator Eyes (Cuts By Dj Juicy)
- A06: Brett Eclectic - Keep Goin' (Don't U Ever Stop)
- A07: Marcel Vogel & Tim Jules Feat. Mey - Reset Your Heart
- A08: Duktus Feat. Host Junior - Music
- A09: Illwig - Together
- A10: George John - A Passing Storm
- A11: Drunkenstein- Hollywood Boulevard
- A12: Sempra - Clairvoyant Dub
- B01: Filburt - Under 1000 Plays
- B02: Real Velour - Who You Are
- B03: The Chord Memory Club X Heron - L.t.g.o
- B04: Moff & Tarkin - Halifax
- B05: Lavan - Bring It Back
- B06: Jetson G - Bleep Express
- B07: Zacharias - Pretend To Be Active
- B08: Shesokey - Close Your Eyes
- B09: Jana Falcon - Cum Over
- B10: Dj Detox & Robyrt Hecht - Mi Casa
- B11: Marco Lazovic - I Never Forget U
- B12: Hearts - Elotranc (Rebirth)
This year's compilation is once again dedicated to the Bärenherz children's hospice here in Leipzig.
The people in this organization do such incredibly important work, but unfortunately it is all too often "invisible" - because if we're honest, it's not a topic you like to deal with unless you are directly or indirectly affected yourself. And then you realize that the costs of care, accommodation, supplies and psychosocial therapies are only partially covered by health insurance. The children's hospice does not receive any state subsidies, and that's why it is dependent on private donations.
We asked a few old friends from our new hood (now that we are no longer just mentally but also physically located in Leipzig) for tracks, as well as new ones - from Connewitz to Chicago - bridging the gap between Neo-Soul, good old Boom Bap, Modern Funk, Electro, Synthiepop, Breaks and of course, House Music in all its shades.
One love goes out to all artists and supporters!
Michael Chapman (1941-2021) released his debut album Rainmaker in 1969 on Harvest. He went on to release over fifty albums and influence many with his evocative songwriting and guitar prowess. From heady jams to expressive ballads to experimental noise, Chapman’s work continues to inspire. Tompkins Square recruited Henry Parker to curate a collection of covers by working musicians from Chapman’s home turf in Northern England. With stunning artwork by local artist Bunty Marshall mapping the important places in Michael’s life, this 12th volume of Tompkins Square’s Imaginational Anthem series is the ultimate tribute to a very dearly missed artist. Notes from Henry Parker: Tompkins Square approached me in Autumn 2022 about putting together a tribute album to Michael Chapman who had passed away one year ago, on my birthday, in 2021. I remember it well; Michael Chapman had always been a huge inspiration to me since starting out on the acoustic guitar and was the first artist I had heard who played the instrument with that heavy thumb, drop tuned sound. I first got the chance to see him live at the Bradford experimental music festival Threadfest in 2015 and then went on to watch him play many more times, in the northern towns of Halifax, Hebden Bridge and Preston, also getting the chance to support him on a couple of his Yorkshire dates in 2018, in Saltaire and his hometown of Leeds. With both Michael Chapman and myself proudly coming from the county of Yorkshire in northern England, Tomkins Square and I decided to make this compilation decidedly Yorkshire focused, bringing together seven other artists from the county who have drawn influence from the profound music of this man.For those who don’t know, Yorkshire is an area that spans much of northern England, with its people taking great pride in the county, never too seriously, and poking fun at the “soft south” or it’s near neighbour Lancashire. Michael’s sound always spanned from introspective folk songwriting to more experimental forms and naturally so does this album, created for Tompkins Square. When it came to choosing musicians to contribute to the record, I was grateful for the Yorkshire limitation on who I could draw from, as the resulting album is comprised of eight artists, who have all shared stages with each other across the folk and experimental scenes in the area. The lack of “bigger” names on the record feels natural, there’s no ego about this project as there never was with Michael, who always seemed content touring the smaller clubs and making records for anyone who was interested. The artwork for the project came together organically, and firmly within the Yorkshire cottage industry. Two months before I was asked to put this album together, I had played a show in Leeds for the launch of a new zine, centred on folklore and mythology. The artist and founder of the zine Bunty has an exceptional eye for detail and a profound love of Yorkshire landscape and culture. Her intricate maps and illustrations created for ‘Hwaet’ zine were the perfect starting point the for this record, and the cover art and inner sleeve is an ocean of detail for Michael Chapman’s incredible life, music and his connection to Yorkshire
British epic doom metallers Godthrymm (featuring members once
involved in such luminaries as My Dying Bride, Anathema, Vallenfyre, and
Solstice) return with their new album, Distortions
The follow- up to 2020's widely- lauded 'Reflections' shows the Halifax- based
quartet of Hamish Glencross (guitars/ vocals), Catherine Glencross (keyboards/
vocals), "Sasquatch" Bob Crolla (bass), and Shaun "Winter" Taylor-Steels (drums)
elegantly expanding upon their sound and vision. With tracks like "Follow Me,"
featuring former My Dying Bride compatriot Aaron Stainthorpe, "Echoes," and
"Devils," Distortions advances Godthrymm into the hallowed halls of the genre
they adore to death.
"I absolutely wanted to create a much more layered and complex arrangement in
the sound," says Godthrymm's Hamish Glencross. "Totally amping up the
contrasts to the extreme--the light shines brighter, and the darker depths are vast
trenches. There is a lot more harmony and melancholy for much of it, but also
some slab-heavy riffing, too. We wanted a total progression in the production and
more class and clarity in the sound, as opposed to Reflections, which could get
quite dense in tone."
Distortions is the second part of Glencross' Visions trilogy-- the third part,
Projections, is already in the works. Throughout its seven- track, hour- long
expanse, Godthrymm's sophomore effort delves deeper into the despondent
march of post-pandemic singles "Chasm" and "In Perpetuum," the latter released
exclusively on Decibel Magazine's Decibel Flexi Series in 2022. Glencross'
emotionally-charged vocals pair perfectly with his towering riffs and thoughtful,
crestfallen harmonies. The rhythmic foundation of Crolla and Taylor- Steels is
absolutely critical to Glencross' woebegone eclat. With Catherine Glencross'
angelic vocals and atmospheric keyboards stitched into the monumental "As
Titans," the granite-hard "Obsess and Regress," and the stirring "Pictures Remain,"
Distortions has it all.
The songwriting for Distortions began during the first lockdown. For an album
centered lyrically on grief, loss, regret, resolve, love, and determination, it's hard to
imagine something inexplicably heavy yet remarkably beautiful. Producer Andy
Hawkins (Hark, Grave Lines) was the perfect man for the job. Spread across The
Nave Studio in Leeds and Sasquatch Music Studio in Huddersfield, he captured
Godthrymm at their most menacing ("Unseen Unheard") and vulnerable ("Follow
Me"). The tones he extracted from Glencross, Crolla, and Taylor-Steels absolutely
crush, while the brighter moments (like Catherine Glencross' spell-binding vocals
on "Obsess and Regress") splinter Godthrymm's disheartened darkness in two.
Distortions was mastered by Mark Midgley (Doom, Hellkrusher) for Northern
Mastering Co.
- A1: Zake - Ll1
- B1: Coppice Halifax - Ll1 (Beige Mix)
- C1: Warmth - Ll2 (Faded Mix)
- C2: Aural Imbalance - Ll1 (Night Mix)
- C3: Influx - Ll1 (Acid Mix)
- D1: Innesti - Ll1 (Adrift Mix)
- D2: Asc - Llo (Line 1.5 Mix)
- D3: Aural Imbalance - Ll2 (Lull Mix)
- E1: Bvdub - Ll1 (Litsot Mix)
- F1: Zake - Ll2
- F2: Innesti - Ll1 (Calm Light Mix)
- F3: Nitechord - Llo (Lines Mix)
Another week, another new release from the unstoppable ambient powerhouse that is zake. His latest full-length LL has two new cuts by the American maestro with remixes from a hefty selection of equally prolific producers all served up on his home label Past Inside the Present and no fewer than six sides of vinyl.
Across this immersive two hours of music, there is a mix of ambient, drone, drum & bass, electronica, and deep techno from Warmth, Aural Imbalance, ASC and Bvdub. It is yet another essential release from zake and co.
Our earliest exposures to music can often be the most formative
For Toronto- based songwriter and multi- instrumentalist Eliza Niemi, that
influence came from her Dad who taught her the basics of bass and guitar at
home. These childhood experiences of playing music together by ear fostered the
sense of playfulness that she's approached her craft with ever since. They also
instilled an ethic in her creative work that prioritizes making music with friends
and loved ones.Those honed guitar — and later piano, cello and vocal — skills
make Eliza an ideal collaborator: starting in Halifax's rich music scene with the
mid-2010s experimental pop groups New Love Underground and Mauno, and
later in her role supporting artists Le Ren, Quaker Parents and Evan J. Cartwright.
Through the rhythms of touring and the brilliant spark that's shared in musical
exchange, Eliza found and developed connections across Canada's DIY music
communities. These collaborative moments fuel her creative practice, whether
playing solo, in an ensemble or releasing others' music as the founder of her own
label, Vain Mina Records.Connection and collaboration lives in the intimacy of her
albums, starting with 2019's Vinegar, an understated set of songs for cello,
keyboard and voice that wander with a comforting grace. 2020's Glass furthered
Eliza's reputation for writing songs that are boundless and experimental without
ever being alienating. There's an open, inviting quality throughout the record,
apparent from the close-miked instruments, to her softly sung and affable lyrics
that unfold like a conversation with a good friend.Her latest album, Staying
Mellow Blows, furthers these ideas and aesthetics to a staggering degree,
retaining the candor, humor and emotional humility she's known for, while letting
the vast number of supporting musicians shape each song with their own
emotionally resonant performances. The result feels whimsical and inspired, and
is the sound of an artist flourishing
180g 12" Deluxe Lavender Vinyl
Red Sparowes sweeping guitar orchestrations thrive unbound by narrative, reliant on the merits and strength of their power alone. "The Fear Is Excruciating, But Therein Lies The Answer" serves as a conduit where limitless amounts of imagery can reside within the grandiose scope of the quintet's lush symphonic vignettes. Though Red Sparowes’ music thrives unbound by narrative, the band provides a roadmap to their muse. Their 2005 debut album, At The Soundless Dawn, cast the scientific inevitability of the Sixth Extinction into a grand funeral oration, revealing the message within the individual track titles. Their second full-length, Every Red Heart Shines Toward the Red Sun (2006) provided a synopsis of the Great Sparrow campaign of the Great Leap Forward, laying bare its conceptual role. The Aphorisms EP (2008 digital, 2009 12" vinyl) served a thematic precursor to the next album. Red Sparowes' latest offering, The Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer, began with the larger existential pondering of truth, faith, order, causality, and the innate demand for an understanding of the larger world around us. While Red Sparowes’ majesty is hardly in need of story, the provision of the larger metaphor yields a heightened depth and gravity to their work. Red Sparowes consists of guitarist/keyboardist Bryant Clifford Meyer (also of Isis), bassist/pedal steel player Gregory Burns (ex-Halifax Pier), drummer David Clifford (ex-Pleasure Forever), guitarist/keyboardist Andy Arahood (ex-Angel Hair) and guitarist Emma Ruth Rundle (also of The Nocturnes). Tracks : 1 Truths Arise, 2 In Illusions of Order, 3 A Hail of Bombs, 4 Giving Birth to Imagined Saviors, 5 A Swarm, 6 In Every Mind, 7 A Mutiny, 8 As Each End Looms and Subsides
- Z]C To Infinity
- A2: Home Team
- A3: The Pit
- A4: Girl Guide Cookies (Feat Robo Robb & Eddie Quotez)
- A5: Well Wishers (Feat Illgil)
- A6: Translucence (Feat Kamilah Apong)
- A7: Years (Feat Nole)
- A8: To Friend Too Fortunate (Feat Thesis Sahib)
- B1: S Morganstern (Feat Ginzuintriplicate)
- B2: Nothin Fri3Ndly (Feat More Or Les, Wordburglar, Swamp Thing, The Mighty Rhino & Ghettosocks)
- B3: Lush Karma
- B4: Gjhs
- B5: What Would Buffy Ste-Marie Do? (Outro)
- B6:
The Library Steps is a new pairing of an old rapper named Jesse
Dangerously and a young producer named Ambition
The duo is named in remembrance of the now demolished stone stairs of the
Halifax Memorial Library entrance, where among a loose and ragtag assortment
of the city's rappers they would gather across generations every Friday as the
doors locked, to freestyle, beatbox, and play tapes in a cipher called Public Rhyme
Distribution. Jesse and Ambition have been members of the Canada- wide
collective Backburner since 2001 and 2009 respectively, but only started making
songs as a rapper/producer duo in the spring of 2017. It took them more than a
decade of intention to pair off as a team. All of the beats and rhymes for Rap Dad,
Real Dad were created in the next few months as a time capsule of that season's
preoccupations. The beats are jazzy, soulful, and moody, with a prominent nod
factor, and the rhymes are confessional and witty, vulnerable and boastful,
intimate and intimidating. Under their fingernails, no microscope is needed to
detect the DNA of golden era rapper/producer teams like Pete Rock & CL Smooth,
Gang Starr, a gentler Beatnuts, or any group that was part of Native Tongues or
Hieroglyphics. Just as present are the influences of turn- of- the- century
underground boundary pushers like Sage Francis, Aesop Rock, MF DOOM, and
Buck 65, and for that matter, just about everyone who was on Roc-A-Fella at its
peak. Refracted here, those chosen ancestors and more recombinate into a hiphop that challenges, from unexpected angles, traditional modes and narratives of
masculinity. They are your rap dads, and they just may be your real dads, too.
[n] B6 . [A,Z]A+[A,,Z]B+
If one always looks at the sky, he will end up with wings, a wise French man once declared. Halifax, Nova Scotia based musician Jeremy Costello had wings, long before he looked up. Wings of imagination. Brandishing in his head, transforming deep-rooted emotions into poetry and sound. Since 2012 the Canadian self-releases music as Special Costello, a moniker under which he records solo or with local friends like Saxophone player Nick Dourado or guitarist Dave Burns. His lyrics are sincerely woven poetic enunciations that balance between introspective emotions and existential philosophical demands. Lyrics from a spirit that is in love without an object, unconditional, mirroring his very own subconscious inner being. The music reflects his tempers in many colours. Glimpses of Synth-Pop, psychedelic rock nuances, traces of new romantic utopia, infantile Casio minimalism, Shoegaze haze, drama wave: Special Costello blends many styles, uniting all in his very own musing grandeur of pop music.
After an array of digital releases, Berlin based label Marmo Music now publishes the Special Costello touch for the first time physically fabricated on vinyl. Seven songs featuring the longing voice of Jeremy Costello, sometimes in correlation with spoken words and dialogues by noted artists, poets, and scientists. All creations have been recorded by himself between Spring 2017 and winter 2020, using the extrasomatic help of instruments and machines like Farfisa Combo Compact transistor organ, Roland JX3P polyphonic analog synthesizer, Roland D50 linear synthesizer, Roland Rhythm Composer TR-08, Arturia Microbrute monophonic analog synthesizer or a Gibson Thunderbird IV bass guitar. In communication with his sensitive inner blues, they created an atmospheric voyage into the heart of Special Costello, that fulfils Arthur Russel’s sapient declaration: being sad is not a crime! Seven musical paintings full of intimate, vibrant feelings and existential thoughts, veiled in an antidepressant neo new romantic glam. An epic tune like “The Next Day”, in which Costello’s singing links with thought-provoking spoken word samples, sounds like Robert Ashley is meeting Hans-Joachim Roedelius in a psychic séance with Brian Ferry. In comparison, a song like “If Not Depression, Then What?” grooves with a pulsating wave bass figure and an overall gently floating electronic majesty, while Costello’s voice takes deep listeners to an unknown higher ground. On the other hand, a composition like “Unsetting” offers a nonchalant graceful funk drift with reverberant hand claps, minimal guitar strains and a chromatic synth pop grace. Above all the music Costello’s voice cries, screams, whispers, and weeps with a compelling introspective elegancy, that invites to associate intensely with the nonpareil Special Costello touch.
Written, composed, and recorded by Jeremy Costello between 2016 to 2020 in Halifax, Scotch Village and Toronto (Canada).
Instruments used by the artist: Farfisa Combo Compact transistor organ, Roland JX3P Programmable Preset Polyphonic Synthesizer, Roland D50 linear synthesizer, Yamaha DX7 Frequency Modulation/Programmable Algorithm Synthesizer and TX7 FM Expander, Roland Computer Controlled Rhythm Composer TR-08, Arturia Microbrute Analog Synthesizer, Gibson Thunderbird IV bass guitar, MicroKorg Synthesizer/Vocoder, Electro Harmonix Small Stone Phaser, Memory Boy Analog Delay, Alesis Quadraverb, and finally, their voice was recorded using Shure Beta57A and AKG D 330 BT dynamic microphones.
- A1: Diamond Ring
- A2: Blue Trash
- A3: Black Lung
- A4: The Recap
- A5: Boots
- A6: Spaghetti
- A7: Miss Mary
- A8: Broken Cowboy
- A9: That Bastard Son
- B1: Snakeman Pt1 & 2
- B2: Time For Crawlin
- B3: Fat Little Killer Boy
- B4: Heaven In A Wheelbarrow
- B5: In Hell I'll Be In Good Company
- B6: Honey You
- B7: Travellin' Man
- B8: Banjo Odyssey
ENDLICH....das Live-Album der Bluegrass/Folk-Helden mit 17 Songs! Vor über 6 Jahren entdeckten wir die vier Gentlemen von THE DEAD SOUTH aus Regina, Saskatchewan während der Canadian Music Week in Toronto sehr spät am Abend in einem eher spärlich gefüllten Club. Unsere Begeisterung wurde von einer Vertragsunterzeichnung begleitet und so veröffentlichten wir im November 2014 ihr Debütalbum "Good Company". Natürlich sind wir ziemlich stolz, dass wir eine Indie- Erfolgsgeschichte mit der Band schreiben konnten, die nun mit einem Doppel-Live- Album namens "Served Live" gefeiert wird. Natürlich ist die Idee nicht ganz neu, aber wenn es bei einer Band doch Sinn macht, dann bei The Dead South, denn ihre Live-Shows sind schon jetzt recht legendär und vor allem auf der Bühne zeigen sich ihre Stärken, die doch recht schwer auf einem Studioalbum zur Geltung kommen: unbändige Spielfreude, eine genre-sprengende Live-Dynamik, eine gute Prise Humor sowie ein sich gegenseitiges Pushen sind nur einige Attribute, die mir gerade so einfallen wollen. Die "Die-Hard-Fans" der Band werden natürlich nicht 100%ig zufrieden sein, da trotz lediglich drei Studioalben sicher der eine oder andere Song fehlt - mir vor allem _ÇÜGunslinger's Glory', aber dieser ist halt auch sehr lang. Auch sind einige ihrer Cover- Versionen von Bands wie den Animals, The Decemberists oder diverse Tradionals Teil ihrer Live-Sets, aber hier sollten es halt nur eigene Songs auf die Platten bzw. CDs schaffen. Die 17 Songs auf "Served Live" wurden auf 17 verschiedenen Shows mitgeschnitten, denn die Band wollte so vielen Fans wie möglich ein kleines Dankeschön sagen, aber leider hat Covid-19 diesem Unterfangen einen für uns bedeutenden Strich durch die berühmte Rechnung gemacht und es fehlen jegliche Deutschland-Shows, wohingegen USA (L.A., Seattle, Portland, Boston, Atlanta, Denver, NY), GB (Manchester, London, Newcastle, Portsmouth, Belfast, Dublin) und ihre Heimat Kanada (Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal) vertreten sind. "Served Live" ein unglaublich energetisches und authentisches Live-Dokument, das auch hiesigen Fans von The Dead South sehr viel Freude bereiten wird und ein warmes Trostpflaster für die Zeit des Wartens auf die nächste Tour.
WINTERSLEEP aus Montreal veröffentlichen am 4. März 2016 über Dine Alone Records ihr neues Album - The Great Detachment . Zwei Jahre arbeitete die Band an dem Album, das eine Rückkehr zu den Ursprüngen der Band darstellt, aufgenommen wurde es mit Produzent Tony Doogan (Belle & Sebastian, Mogwai) im Sonic Temple Studio in Halifax (wo auch - Welcome To The Night Sky und die beiden Vorgänger des Durchbruchalbums entstanden sind) . Das Album wurde größtenteils mit der kompletten Band im Studio aufgenommen, um den Livesound der Band einzufangen und dabei möglichst organisch und transparent zu klingen. - Die Energie war anders als zuvor sagt Murphy, - aber es war genau das, was wir etwas vermisst hatten. - The Great Detachment ist ein Rock-Album mit einer musikalischen Wärme, die stark an Wintersleeps ersten Hit ‚Weighty Ghost' erinnert. Es ist ein Aufruf an ihre Fans, ein neues Kapitel mit der Band aufzuschlagen und dabei trotzdem einen Bogen zur Vergangenheit zu schlagen. - The Great Detachment fängt Wintersleeps Stärken und Markenzeichen perfekt ein und markiert gleichzeitig einen neuen Meilenstein in ihrer Karriere
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