Sad Lovers and Giants second album, a brilliant atmospheric post punk record with several elements akin to Joy Division and The Chameleons. We can definitely apply the term’ ethereal’ to these composition, certainly the sound is very oceanic and otherwordly melancholic, typical trademarks of the new wave renaissance. Recorded in 1983 – and released on their own label Midnight Music - Feeding the Flame showcases the original line up at its very best.
BADBADNOTGOOD is a young supremely talented trio of musicians made up of Matthew Tavares on keys, Chester Hansen on bass, and Alex Sowinski on drums. Since their inception at Humber College’s Music Performance program in 2011, the three have challenged the rule book on improvised instrumental music and taken jazz tradition into the future.
With early champions including acclaimed BBC broadcaster Gilles Peterson and Tyler The Creator who helped fuel their discovery with a series of live jams that instantly went viral and dubbed them the “Odd Trio”, the band released their first EP BBNG in June 2011 to wide praise. The marriage of jazz virtuosity and hip hop source material offered a fresh take on the traditional “standard” applied to hip hop classics by taking on choice cuts from the golden era rap cannon and writing inspired arrangements for them instead of one-dimensional covers.
The band hit a landmark by introducing original material into their composi- tions with BBNG2 in 2012. New songs like “Rotten Decay”, “Vices” or “UWM” carried on the proud heritage of musical juxtaposition by bringing together jazz, hip hop, punk, and dance music into vigorous balance. Since then, they’ve won praise from the four corners of the globe and collaborated with Frank Ocean, Earl Sweatshirt, MF Doom, Pharaoh Monch and RZA among many. Their no- torious live performances have brought fans across the whole musical spectrum together, taking the band around the world from Coachella to Glastonbury.
Now, the inseparable friends are prepping to release their biggest project to date III on prodigious young label Innovative Leisure, a highly-anticipated project ushering in the group’s newest explorations which are proving to be limitless.
The debut release from MINING, a collective of sound designers, programmers, improvisational musicians, graphic designers and photographers. Graphic designer Oli Bentley and generative artist Sock Baeus Redding took the storm data used in the composition of the music to produce an edition of limited double vinyl LPs and CDs. Chimetis a record to lose yourself in. Like the sea itself, it doesn"t give up its secrets easily. The listening experience seems to change dependingon yourstate of mind, and resonates on a primal level which belies its data led compositional approach. For generations, artists and musicians have been drawn to the sea for their inspiration. That emotional response to the vastness of the ocean is a powerful force. While the origins of Chimetlie in the numbers, theresultant record sits proudly in that artistic tradition. Music to watch the horizon to.
The entity known as ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES, would like to express its excitement to be working with the Seattle, WA based BAND Sandrider, and enjoyed the previous relationship of Damm and Weisnewski in their former entity known as AKIMBO. ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES is very much a fan of previous work from the BAND on Satanik Royalty Records and highly recommend new listeners investigate the discography further. The upcoming 2-song single by BAND, hereafter referred to as AVIARY/BALEEN has a limited-edition initial pressing on blue and white splatter vinyl pressing of 300 copies, and successive runs will not be as colorful. Immediate orders are encouraged. This cheeky duality of Sandrider is also captured perfectly in the subject matter of the EP’s two tracks: The explosive first track, “Aviary,” portrays the modern hellscape of social media as sinister, soulless mama bird, willfully vomiting disinformation into the eager mouths of enthusiastically consenting participants. “PLEASE MOTHER, FEED THEM YOUR BILE. DOUSE THE BABES WITH YOUR WHOLESOME RETCH,” vocalist/guitarist Jon Weisnewski wails over massive, frenetic riffs, rounded out by bassist Jesse Roberts’ warm low end and drummer Nat Damm’s ultra-hard, punch-like beats. The song concludes in a frenzy of danceable beats, with Weisnewski doing his best Painkiller-era Halford screams as he commands you to flood the whole damn thing – drown those who wish to destroy us. As pissed off as the song is, you’ll feel triumphant by the end anyway. Side B’s “Baleen” on the other hand (while ironically the angrier-sounding song of the two), is about a lighter thought that keeps Weisnewski up at night: Do you ever think about how fucking weird whales are? They’re enormous floating creatures that can't handle gravity, and they hang out in the deepest oceans. Yet they can’t breathe underwater, so they have to stay near the top and come up for air all the time. Seems inconvenient. And you’d think that the biggest mammal that ever lived would be a brutal carnivore, right? But no. They eat the tiniest creatures, through a bunch of hair in their mouths. What the fuck? Anyway, ponder on that while you bang your head along with Sandrider’s signature primal, hypnotizingly heavy riffs.
With its tenth record from Fortunato Durutti Marinetti, Quindi continues to celebrate songwriting and storytelling framed by curious musicality. In keeping with the label's trajectory to date, this is an album which draws on a universal human sentimentality and presents it with an uncommon flair. In the case of Toronto-based Daniel Colussi, the man behind Eight Waves In Search Of An Ocean, his melancholic poetry cuts through with a clarity which calls to mind all-time greats from Anette Peacock through to Lou Reed and Leonard Cohen.
Turin-born Colussi has drifted through various bands, guises and styles over the past 20 years, but since settling into Fortunato Durutti Marinetti as a vehicle for his songs, he's found a strong expressive impetus which transcends genre to become entirely hinged on the power of his words and melodies. The first album under this alias was a 2020 cassette album, Desire, later pressed on vinyl due to demand in tandem with the release of 2022's Memory's Fool. On each record, Colussi has found distinct arrangements of players to set the mood, ranging from gently lilting art and folk rock through to orchestrated balladry, but Eight Waves In Search Of An Ocean widens the palette of Fortunato Durutti Marinetti to create an album in which each song feels like a tale unto itself.
Colussi's renewed approach is instantly apparent as album opener 'Lightning On A Sunny Day' unfurls, informed greatly by producer Sandro Perri's input pursuing a hybrid electro-organic sound. The addition of drum machines and synths to the musical palette bring with them the strong connotations of pop while the sax and violin sounds similarly smooth and silky, and one can't help but think of John Martyn's slide into the digital sound of Sapphire or Kraftwerk's bittersweet synthetic tenderness.
Within this sound, there's still space for the energy to fluctuate according to the whims of songs. 'The Flowers' turns inward with a soft-touch composition as delicate as the petals Colussi describes falling to the floor. 'Misfit Streams' and first single 'Clerk Of Oblivion' savour the fluid, luxuriant tone of fretless bass with all the 80s connotations intact. Colussi remains the central focus whatever happens around him, in possession of the kind of unforced charisma which drives a song deep into the listener's heart. It's at once entirely his own style and yet comforting and familiar. The lyrics might sweep you into the singer's inner world, similarly to the experience listening to late 60s Tim Buckley, or you might well inhale the mellow jazziness of the harmonic movement like you would Joni Mitchell on Hejira.
The emotional direction of each track is never linear - 'Smash Your Head Against The Wall' snarls its rhythm section before the strings sow their aching beauty to cool the song's temper, winding up as a track of distinct halves jabbing at each other. "I Need You More' leaves space for spiralling flute solos and strangely stiff, militaristic drum rolls in the midst of a sweet, slightly sad synth ballad, the final wave receding back into the tidal undulations of Colussi's unique exploration of his muse.
The artist himself dubs his musical expression as "poetic jazz rock" with a sideways glance - it's not exactly poetry, far from trad jazz and it doesn't really rock, yet the tag feels uncannily like it fits, just like the curious music it's used to describe.
Percolating in the same watery diner coffee that spawned American Football and Hum, C-Clamp shrugged on and off the '90s slowcore and emo scenes in a hurry. Compiled here are the band's two albums for the venerable Ohio Gold label - Longer Waves and Meander + Return, plus a third LP of singles and compilation tracks, and a meticulously annotated book stuffed with lyrics, photos, flyers, and ephemera from their all-too-brief existence. This one's colder than a Chicago winter - better plug in that space heater.
Percolating in the same watery diner coffee that spawned American Football and Hum, C-Clamp shrugged on and off the '90s slowcore and emo scenes in a hurry. Compiled here are the band's two albums for the venerable Ohio Gold label - Longer Waves and Meander + Return, plus a third LP of singles and compilation tracks, and a meticulously annotated book stuffed with lyrics, photos, flyers, and ephemera from their all-too-brief existence. This one's colder than a Chicago winter - better plug in that space heater.
Moloko’s third album 'Things to Make and Do' marks a shift in the sound of the duo, with tracks more reliant on live musicians.
The first single “The Time Is Now” became Moloko’s biggest hit, peaking at number two in the UK. Roisin Murphy’s singing style, combining a variety of voices and textures, is as impressive as ever before. Mark Brydon’s musical palette is versatile and powerful, going from rock/dance to electro and hip-hop.
It is a great album from start to finish, including fan favourites “The Time Is Now”, “Pure Pleasure Seeker” and “Sing It Back (Boris Musical Mix)”. As masters of their own domain they created another excellent piece of music. 'Things to Make and Do' held the record as Echo’s (label) fastest-selling UK platinum record for six years.
Available as a limited edition of 3000 numbered copies on pink transparent coloured vinyl. The package includes a 4-page booklet.
Liam Cromby, known for his work as the lead singer and songwriter of We Are The Ocean until 2017, has today announced his forthcoming debut solo album What Can I Trust, If I Can’t Trust True Love, due for release on December 1st 2023, also sharing the title track, available to stream/download worldwide now.
His lyrics, whether in the heavy, four-piece rock band setting of his former life, or in the more soulful, acoustic-led songs of his solo work, have frequently touched on deep topics, often reflecting on the meaning of life itself, and a search for a sense of purpose. With the release of What Can I Trust, If I Can’t Trust True Love, he hopes to reach other people asking similar questions, and it’s clear that the music is already starting to find its way into their lives.
Hidden Sequence have appeared on legendary dub techno label Mosaic in fine form of late and now they land on the Lempuyang imprint with four more serene fusions.
Their Theories of Time EP opens up with the swaggering dub rhythms and bottomless depths of 'Distortion', a cut as heady as they come. 'Travelling,' as the title suggests, has a deeper rolling groove and more movement to it as it snakes through underwater dub caverns. Flip it over for more widescreen and serene explorations of the ocean floor with 'Shift' and mysterious leads of 'Delay' which is a fourth and final frictionless dub dream.
Following on from the psychoacoustic concrète of Outside Ludlow / Desert Disco LP (BT075), Sam Dunscombe returns to Black Truffle with Two Forests / Oceanic. Dunscombe has been active in recent years on multiple fronts, including as a key member of the Berlin community of Just Intonation researchers and practitioners; working with composers like Taku Sugimoto, Mary Jane Leach, and Anthony Pateras; and the release of Horatiu Radulescu - Plasmatic Music vol. 1 (the result of many years performance research into the thought and music of this seminal Romanian spectralist). In parallel with these activities, Dunscombe has been deeply involved in research on the role of music in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, prompting these two side long pieces, composed using field recordings and digital synthesis. As Dunscombe explains in the accompanying liner notes, music plays a key role in psychedelic-assisted therapy, yet it is often restricted to stock forms of New Age, ambient and electronica. Taking seriously the potential for spatio-environmental sonic experiences to add to the therapeutic process, these two pieces are intended to suggest how ‘a music-as-environment approach may help to add options to the therapist’s toolbox’. ‘Two Forests’ begins in a central Californian sequoia grove. Bird songs and buzzing insect life are treated with a variety of time-based processing methods (slicing and recombination, primitive granular synthesis, delay, and so on), which strip the field recordings of their linear, documentary character, reframing them in an enchanted web of traces and echoes. Analysing the pitches found in the original recordings, Dunscombe used them to generate a large Just Intonation pitch set. These tones are woven slowly into the field recordings, gradually building in density and complexity until the forest has been transformed into an unreal space of infinite proportions. Emerging from this cosmic expanse in the final minutes of the piece, we find ourselves in the Amazon rainforest outside Manaus, Brazil. As Dunscombe writes, the piece creates ‘a sense of place-gone-strange, of space and time simultaneously expanding and contracting across octaves, miles, and minutes’. On ‘Oceanic’, several recordings of different beaches fade in and out to create a texture both homogenous and constantly shifting in both the rhythm of the waves and each recording's sense of depth and distance. Tones relating in simple ratios to the average rhythm of each beach float over each other, colouring the white noise texture of the field recordings with shifting hues. In both pieces, Dunscombe forgoes the easy consonance that bogs down much contemporary ambient music for a richer harmonic array informed by extended tuning practices and spectralism. The end results suggest a hitherto undreamt-of meeting of Radulescu’s undulating sonic masses and the discreetly processed location recordings of Irv Teibel’s ‘psychologically ultimate’ Environments. Looking beyond the insularity that can afflict experimental music culture, Dunscombe’s work is a moving argument for the healing power of expanded approaches to sound and music. Even outside of a psychedelics-assisted therapy, frequent immersion in Two Forests / Oceanic is almost guaranteed to produce beneficial psychological results.
‘Just Before The World Starts Burning’ is the debut album from The Sleeping Souls. Known
globally as Frank Turner’s loyal bandmates and fellow road warriors they have played
together for over a decade. But alongside this role, Tarrant Anderson (bass), Matt Nasir
(piano), Callum Green (drums), Ben Lloyd (guitar) and together with Frank’s guitar tech
Cahir O’Doherty (Fighting With Wire, Jetplane Landing and currently New Pagans) on
vocals, they have branched out on their own with an album of driving and at time heavy
rock anthems that are as sharp as a butchers knife with poignant hard hitting lyrics and
crunching guitar riffs.
‘Just Before The World Starts Burning’ is the debut album from The Sleeping Souls. Known
globally as Frank Turner’s loyal bandmates and fellow road warriors they have played
together for over a decade. But alongside this role, Tarrant Anderson (bass), Matt Nasir
(piano), Callum Green (drums), Ben Lloyd (guitar) and together with Frank’s guitar tech
Cahir O’Doherty (Fighting With Wire, Jetplane Landing and currently New Pagans) on
vocals, they have branched out on their own with an album of driving and at time heavy
rock anthems that are as sharp as a butchers knife with poignant hard hitting lyrics and
crunching guitar riffs.
2023 Repress
Moon in Earthlight describes the phenomenon one can see in the first few days after a New Moon, when the slim crescent of the moon is completed into a full circle by a faint light that is not lit by sunlight but by the light reflected from Earth. It is also the apt title for the first album from an artist whose first love was astronomy. After 6 EPs over the course of 5 years, Wolfgang Tillmans now releases his first album, Moon in Earthlight, a singularly plural 53-minute piece comprised of 19 tracks.
Opening with more that connects us than divides us, 'Celloloop / More That Connects Us', a looped cello sets out a discursive path for a bright keyed melody to flirt with while the sounds of the organ and synthesizer build their supporting roles, all along a bouncing four-to-the-floor beat punctuated with bright electronic chimes and the rhythmic tempo of a shaker. The invitation is hard to resist as a yearning voice opens up to let us know he's left his "place in security." And, "you're shining … All the way down to this glittering place … you're shining." Where voices and laughter are then overheard in the background of another field recording sounding water dripping from a 'Rain Gutter' later caught by the soft, warm rhythmic bounce between two synth notes on 'Fourth Floor' where chime-like and percussive timbres resonate from the metal tine keys of the kalimba creating a meditative acuity, which Tillmans peppers with arpeggiated synth riffs.
A composition of multiplicities, Tillmans' album debut is a collage of sounds, field recordings, words, studio jam sessions and live recordings, voice, soundscapes, and instrumentation scored with audible space to breathe along the way. Keeping pace, the first 'Kardio Loop' is a vocal callisthenics contemplating 'the possibility of a happy life' and/or the propositional properties of its semantic constructions backed by the recording of a heartbeat from a cardiogram. This movement is gradually accompanied by a set of orchestral synth pads that build to a crescendo before the soft, twirling melody of 'Stonerella' carries us along a carousel-like melodic, pop, instrumental timed in the percussive clapping of pebbles.
Not knowing where one leaves off and the other begins is part of this album's enigma, as we move in and out of these aural spaces choreographed with the slightest, open hand, where we can float through 'Don't Kill It by Naming It' before dancing along 'Insanely Alive' all the while contemplating the inherent, fragile complexities of language and being.
This enigma also stems from the raw vulnerability of Tillmans' voice. Whether lyrically playful or introspective, it is always giving: intimately unfolding as in the surprising take on Simon & Garfunkel's 'El Condor Pasa' or shapeshifting in 'Can't Escape into Space' or fully naked as raw material expression in 'Kantine' and 'Ocean Walk'.
Whether it's Tillmans voice or voices overheard, a field recording or a pop synth melody, these sounds defy track listings, audibly held together as one of many in an aural space that becomes a reflective cycle that develops over the course of the album. The accumulative effect of which (reminiscent of the artist's installations), drives the singularity of each of the album's elements into a complete, unconsolidated whole. Like a phenomenon that marks time, Moon in Earthlight is the shadow and the reflection, fifty-three minutes in time.
Electric, their third album, came out in 1987 and really caused the band to explode to new levels of fame. It contains the massive hits "Love Removal Machine", Wild Flower" and "Lil" Devil" and was produced by Rick Rubin. Electric is a seminal work, featuring some of the band"s most iconic songs. It is a departure from the band"s previous work, with a raw, agressive and stripped-down sound. The album"s opening track, "Wild Flower," sets the tone with its pounding drums, blistering guitar riffs, and Ian Astbury"s wailing vocals. Electric was a commercial and critical success, propelling The Cult to the forefront of the hard rock scene and cementing their status as one of the most influential bands of the era. The album remains a touchstone for hard rock and heavy metal fans, a classic work that captures the spirit of rebellion and the power of rock and roll. The Cult has remained an important and enduring force in the rock music world. The band has sold millions of records worldwide and has earned critical acclaim for its powerful live performances. The Cult continues to tour and record new music, and their influence on rock music shows no sign of diminishing.
A Flor de Piel, the new album from singer-songwriter and composer Maria Monica Gutierrez (aka Montañera), is a meditative journey of self-discovery across oceans, time, and the traditional confines of genre. Originally from Bogota, Colombia, Gutierrez began the album as a way to explore her identity after a difficult move to London left her feeling untethered in a strange new place. The result is an examination of the immigrant's experience through a rich sonic lens of ambient pop textures, inspired by sources as disparate as Colombian traditional music, traditional Senegalese music, and whalesong from the depths of the Atlantic. The album begins with the title track "A Flor de Piel," Gutierrez's indelible vocals floating above a vast expanse before being joined by deep, silky bass and the plucks of a koto-like stringed instrument. "The song was inspired by traditional Japanese music," Gutierrez explains, "It's about making my heart a little lighter; I know that inside of me I can be as light as mist in heat, I can be fragile as the song of a sparrow." That sentiment perfectly encapsulates much of what makes A Flor de Piel so special. The album comes with a message of healing for all people, without forgetting the centuries of struggle and hurt that form the bedrock of modern society. The track "Santa Mar," for instance, is inspired by the musical traditions of afro-pacific women in Colombia, and the crucial role that they play as peacebuilders in the region. Backed by a hypnotic beat, the song features contributions from marimba player Cankita, alongside Las Cantadoras de Yerba Buena, an all-female vocal group that utilizes traditional Afro-Colombian music to preserve their history and promote peace. Standout track "Como Una Rama" is a futuristic take on bullerengue, a traditional style of music and dance originally developed by Maroon communities on Colombia's Caribbean coast. Deeply affecting, the song combines Gutierrez's indomitable voice with electronics that recall Steve Reich's rhythmic minimalism. "Cruzar," the final track on the album, feels almost like a lullaby, with a meditative harmonic style and trance-like vocal melody. "The lyrics," Gutierrez explains, "are a personal reminder of what is important to me: healing, letting go, breathing, evaporating, forgetting, changing, crystallizing." Across the 40-odd minutes of A Flor de Piel, Gutierrez triumphs at recontextualizing traditional sounds and sentiments into a modern form using synth-based and electronic textures. It's a fitting representation for the personal struggles that the artist endured during her move to London. Rather than dwelling solely on the past Guitierrez uses A Flor de Piel to summon the strength of past generations, and forge a new path forward. As she describes it, "The album has accompanied me through inner journeys of finding myself in a new territory _ of redefining myself, of remembering who I am _ in a strange place." As we drift towards an increasingly frightening and uncertain future, perhaps Montañera's A Flor de Piel is exactly what we need: something to give us strength, to bring us peace, and to accompany our journey into a strange new place.
The earth rotates, seasons change_there is but one long day_ Time is a beguiling, indistinct entity_sometimes standing still, sometimes bending back upon itself with premonitions or memories of the future. Growing out of a pen pal style correspondence that took place over the course of a year, separated by the Atlantic Ocean, Gloria de Oliveira and Dean Hurley passed thoughts and music back and forth that would eventually form their collaborative album, Oceans of Time. The result is an aural tapestry of that exchange: woven from conceptual threads of the celestial within, mortality and the realm beyond stars. The duo's partnership is an effortless merge, yet it's the steady presence of de Oliveira's vocals that endows the record with its sense of potency. Throughout the album, there is an innate understanding of how a lyric across a chordal color can sharpen an emotional truth. Much like a sunbeam that pierces a spiderweb to reveal its intricacy, her lyric and melody are purposely aimed in order to illuminate the truths deep within oneself_a process that ties us all to the universal. The Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, a professed influence, wrote about the truth as something that was inherently subjective, less about the concrete reality of what is believed and more about how it is experienced by the believer. Frequent David Lynch collaborator Dean Hurley sets the tonal and sonic landscape of each track on the album, lending a layered ether that envelops, frames and holds de Oliveira's vocals. With its impressionistic synths, shimmering guitars, and ethereal sonics, Oceans of Time at moments recalls the foundational dreampop of 4AD acts like Cocteau Twins and Lush. The album feels especially attuned to the connections between the physical and transcendental realms, and the best dreampop has a way of making the veil between two worlds feel just a little bit thinner. Oceans of Time is a key that has the power to release its listener from the handcuffs of reality, however briefly_
The earth rotates, seasons change_there is but one long day_ Time is a beguiling, indistinct entity_sometimes standing still, sometimes bending back upon itself with premonitions or memories of the future. Growing out of a pen pal style correspondence that took place over the course of a year, separated by the Atlantic Ocean, Gloria de Oliveira and Dean Hurley passed thoughts and music back and forth that would eventually form their collaborative album, Oceans of Time. The result is an aural tapestry of that exchange: woven from conceptual threads of the celestial within, mortality and the realm beyond stars. The duo's partnership is an effortless merge, yet it's the steady presence of de Oliveira's vocals that endows the record with its sense of potency. Throughout the album, there is an innate understanding of how a lyric across a chordal color can sharpen an emotional truth. Much like a sunbeam that pierces a spiderweb to reveal its intricacy, her lyric and melody are purposely aimed in order to illuminate the truths deep within oneself_a process that ties us all to the universal. The Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, a professed influence, wrote about the truth as something that was inherently subjective, less about the concrete reality of what is believed and more about how it is experienced by the believer. Frequent David Lynch collaborator Dean Hurley sets the tonal and sonic landscape of each track on the album, lending a layered ether that envelops, frames and holds de Oliveira's vocals. With its impressionistic synths, shimmering guitars, and ethereal sonics, Oceans of Time at moments recalls the foundational dreampop of 4AD acts like Cocteau Twins and Lush. The album feels especially attuned to the connections between the physical and transcendental realms, and the best dreampop has a way of making the veil between two worlds feel just a little bit thinner. Oceans of Time is a key that has the power to release its listener from the handcuffs of reality, however briefly_
Celebrating the 30 anniversary of this legendary cult band from Argentina, with more than 150 releases in labels from Japan, Europe, Oceania, Latin America and USA and shows played and their music presented all over the world. A nondescript, experimental, truly original band with a story to match their legacy. LP includes fold out insert. At last! A comprehensive compilation documenting the exciting career of the legendary experimental Argentinian cult band. A career overview through eight of their most mesmerizing compositions. The fact that their drummer and singer Miguel Tomasin has down syndrome not only makes them one of the longest-running and most notable inclusive rock bands of all time, but also allows us to appreciate the importance of Miguel's creative contribution, both for his singular way of singing and for his inimitable verbal inventions. For his work with the band, Miguel stands as one of the most relevant personalities with down's syndrome in the world and his name appears mentioned in diverse books of neuroscience and neurodiversity. Their long list of collaborators includes luminaries such as Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth), Pauline Oliveiros, Damo Suzuki (Can), The Nihilist Spasm Band, Michael Snow, N U Unruh (Einstürzende Neubauten), Alan Licht, Pajarito Zaguri, Acid Mothers Temple, John Oswald and many more.
Take the 101 north out of Los Angeles, and you'll pass by Agoura Hills, where the core duo of the band Dub Thompson grew up. Whatever you see in that town won't readily prepare you for the music they wrote while there, but you're free to look."Most everyone who's in a group who's our age lives on the Internet," says guitarist Matt Pulos. "The kinds of things that have shaped our band aren't anchored to any one time or place."Pulos and his bandmate, drummer Evan Laffer, are currently both 19 years old, and are putting that line of thought to the test; their musical influences travel from the Midwestern malaise of Big Black and Pere Ubu, to Kraut pioneers Can and Kraftwerk, while bowing to the British belligerence of The Fall and This Heat.Recording the album while living with Foxygen's Jonathan Rado at his rented house in Bloomington, the band had its first taste of a heavy Indiana summer, and all the humidity and insect life that buzzes along with it. "We woke up every day, ate hard-boiled eggs and stood on a porch," says Pulos of the experience.Their first collection of songs slyly unties the shoes of genre and convention, shapeshifts mischievously, and tramples on the promises delivered on the name itself.There are only eight songs on this rangy debut.Intense blasts of hook-filled noise rock ("Hayward!"), rocksteady marionette stomp ("No Time"), hypnotic bouts of doomy poetics ("Epicondyles"), outlandishly sexy groove rock ("Dograces"), and a number of other bite-sized forays into parts unknown are made manifest across 9 Songs. The vibes are strong here. Pulos sings and plays like he's working out long-standing grudges, pulling the most sinewy tones from an acoustic guitar and ripping huge chunks of demon flesh out of his electric. Laffer matches him step for step on the drums, an exacting presence behind the kit who pushes even the band's more placid moments into bouts of tension. Together they succeed in animating their musical ideas to startling, almost unnatural life. Reverb units, keyboards, samples and processing gluing everything together, saturated in the August heat and worn in until they sound second nature, it's like somehow you've been listening to these songs forever.
