GRIPPERS NOTHER ONESERS At Slimer Beach (Olde English Spelling Bee) lp 21.00
Another new release, and another incomprehensibly confusional band name from James Ferraro, formerly one half of warped soft noise duo the Skaters, now a bonified solo phenom, with about a million cd-r's and tapes and lps under various monikers, including his very own actual mom and dad approved name
For Grippers Nother Onesers, Ferraro does more than loop and sample, there seems to be some actual riffing going on, as well as lots of singing, a warbly warped reverb drenched falsetto, over fuzzy fractured riffage, even some drumming, but all the instruments are smeared and blurred and muddied, so instead of coming even remotely close to sounding like a proper rock record, it still sounds like a Ferraro jam, but this time it's got more of a Ariel Pink meets Prince vibe (mostly cuz of the vox), the music tweaked and twisted, the fact that it's actually being played and then buried under a patina of muted hiss and hum, makes it all the more compelling. We're sure there was actual playing on other records, but this one sounds the most like a band, albeit a damaged drugged out band from another dimension, where all communication takes place via busted up old transistor radios, and all record players shift from 33 to 45 constantly, so all sounds seem to twist and melt before your very ears.
The soulful falsetto crooning is the high point here, turning even the most disjointed fucked up Jeck-ian jam into a dizzying slab of alien soul pop. Fans of Ariel Pink and other warped poppers, if you're not already hip to Ferraro's groove, now's the time...

GRIS Il Etait Une Foret (Sepulchral Productions) cd 13.98
We loved the debut release from the band Niflheim, as much as you can love something that dark and dour and depressing and miserable, but love it we did. A crushing chunk of soul shearing Burzumic buzz, laced with strange drones, and bits of haunting ambience.
For some reason the band changed their name to Gris, and this, Il Etait Une Foret, is the first under the new moniker, but, it's actually the 2nd chapter in Gris/Niflheim's musical quest which is apparently meant to span seven volumes. But we're off to a pretty good startÉ
But with the name change, the sound has changed as well, pretty dramatically actually, but before we get into it, we feel that we have to preface the following with this disclaimer: we definitely get pretty hyperbolic about the music we love, proclaiming things the best ever, the most fucked of all time, the heaviest, but you know, there's nothing wrong with that really, cuz often, for that moment, whatever we're listening to really is. You're not playing things side by side, not comparing two records, you're letting a single record and the music within overwhelm you and engulf you and carry you away, so it's no wonder, that in the throes of that sort of listening, whatever that record is, it IS in fact for that moment the MOST. The great records are the ones that continue to be the most even on repeated listens.
Okay with that out of the way, this Gris record has some strange ineffable quality, some wondrous confluence of heaviness and prettiness, that in short order has quickly made it our most listened to and probably favorite black metal record of the year so far. It's not the heaviest, or the fastest, or the grimmest, but it is truly strange, beautifully unique, mournful yet majestic, depressive yet dreamy.
The sound is definitely Burzumic, a loping lurching almost midtempo buzz, the guitar super brittle and crunchy, the arpeggiated notes dripping with crumbling distortion, the vocals some of the most anguished we've heard, recalling Weakling for sure, as well as groups like Hekel and Malcuidant. A raspy near hysterical wail, always on the verge of cracking completely. The riffs are moody and melancholy, intense and emotional, often a second, acoustic, guitar, offers up a melodic counterpoint, giving the depressive dirge a strangely stately and classical vibe. The songs often burst into epic crescendos, the screams growing even more tortured, strings soaring, it's like a black metal opera, over the top and super intense, cinematic and totally heart wrenching. Rare is the band of any stripe, especially black metal, that is able to illicit that sort of response in the listener.
Some of the tracks are just acoustic guitar and drums, a loose skeletal framework, the vocals a howling banshee wail scrawled across the rhythms below, bursts of machinegun like double kick drum, soaring guitar leads, flurries of piano notes, those tracks occasionally erupting into walls of blasting buzzing neo classical blackness, but still rife with mournful melodies and strange sonic flourishes, choral vocals, drifting drones, but the core is this super intense, ultra moving heaviness that loses none of it's emotional impact even when it's furiously pounding away.
Other tracks find the piano picking out a sad melody beneath a crushing doomic plod, wrapped in yet more strings, and the vocals, continuing their harsh howling lament.
Then there's the closing track, a full on classical piece, none of that fake synth ambient classical bullshit, this is a dense chunk of modern classical, strings and piano, wound into tense melodies, weaving back and forth, creating an epic and moving coda, dark and evocative haunting and mysterious, gloriously emotional and so stirring and lovely.
Not sure what else to say, at the risk of slipping into hyperbole again (but you -were- warned!), this record is absolutely amazing, a definite contender for BM record of the year, and not only does it have already anxiously awaiting chapter three, it's got us all fired up to go back and revisit the first one as well. SO recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Il Etait Une Foret..."
MPEG Stream: "Le Gala Des Gens Heureux"
MPEG Stream: "Cicatrices"

GRIS GRIS Live At The Creamery (Birdman) cd 14.98
It's impossible to predict which bands will get that big break and blow up and which bands will never get all the love and glory they deserve. It seems like the Gris Gris were always on the verge of their big break but for one reason or another it never seemed to happen, and we're not sure why. To our ears they were one of the most impressive and refreshing in the recent onslaught of psych revivalists. Fueled by a 13th Floor Elevators inspiration they cranked out songs with some serious fire and substance. In fact it's Greg Ashley's sophisticated songwriting chops that really set the Gris Gris head and shoulders above so many of the others, the bands who knew how to look the look and make all the right psychedelic signifier sounds and images but didn't really have the true songs to back it all up. Sadly they called it quits or at least decided to take a long hiatus a few months ago, but luckily their legend can live on through this great record, a live show recorded in Oakland this past spring. Fiery renditions of lots of our favorite Gris Gris tracks and further proof that this is a band that deserves more ears to hear just what made them so special.
MPEG Stream: "Everytime"
MPEG Stream: "Ecks Em Eye"
MPEG Stream: "Necessary Seperation"

GRIS GRIS Live At The Creamery (Birdman) lp 14.98
It's impossible to predict which bands will get that big break and blow up and which bands will never get all the love and glory they deserve. It seems like the Gris Gris were always on the verge of their big break but for one reason or another it never seemed to happen, and we're not sure why. To our ears they were one of the most impressive and refreshing in the recent onslaught of psych revivalists. Fueled by a 13th Floor Elevators inspiration they cranked out songs with some serious fire and substance. In fact it's Greg Ashley's sophisticated songwriting chops that really set the Gris Gris head and shoulders above so many of the others, the bands who knew how to look the look and make all the right psychedelic signifier sounds and images but didn't really have the true songs to back it all up. Sadly they called it quits or at least decided to take a long hiatus a few months ago, but luckily their legend can live on through this great record, a live show recorded in Oakland this past spring. Fiery renditions of lots of our favorite Gris Gris tracks and further proof that this is a band that deserves more ears to hear just what made them so special.
MPEG Stream: "Everytime"
MPEG Stream: "Ecks Em Eye"
MPEG Stream: "Necessary Seperation"

GRIS GRIS, THE For The Season (Birdman) cd 14.98
Talented Oakland guitarist/vocalist Greg Ashley's Gris Gris gang is back, with a fab sophomore album mostly recorded at a cabin in Texas belonging to Greg's parents. So it's not garage rock, it's cabin rock. Probably good that they were presumably far from any neighbors since this quite often one dang noisily feedback-filled and fuzzed-out freakfest that might have gotten the cops called -- and who knows what manner of illict substances fueled the recording sessions, with which Gris Gris wouldn't want to be busted? Maybe The Man would mellow out knowing that the noisy rave-ups co-exist on this record with plenty of catchy melody and jangly folk and relaxed droniness and other good stuff. Although "Ecks Em Eye" starts the album off with a free jazz warm-up with Funhouse saxophone, the Gris Gris' psychedelic trip soon passes through the overgrown, shadowy backyards of bands such as Pink Floyd and the early Stones ('specially on the fake raga of the title track). Ashley & Co's retro-sensibilities venture even further into total oldies territory on "Medication #4". More current artists that this sometimes reminds us of (or whose fans we think might also like this) include Mudhoney, Greg Weeks/Espers, Comets On Fire, and Devendra Banhart, a little. Definitely recommended to anyone into the psych scene today, and cabin rock of course. With songs with titles like "Big Engine Nazi Kid Daydream" and "Down With Jesus" these guys aren't ever gonna have hits, but in our little world they should!
MPEG Stream: "Ecks Em Eye"
MPEG Stream: "Big Engine Nazi Kid Daydream"

GRIS GRIS, THE For The Season (Birdman) lp 14.98
Talented Oakland guitarist / vocalist Greg Ashley's Gris Gris gang is back, with a fab sophomore album mostly recorded at a cabin in Texas belonging to Greg's parents. So it's not garage rock, it's cabin rock. Probably good that they were presumably far from any neighbors since this quite often one dang noisily feedback-filled and fuzzed-out freakfest that might have gotten the cops called -- and who knows what manner of illict substances fueled the recording sessions, with which Gris Gris wouldn't want to be busted? Maybe The Man would mellow out knowing that the noisy rave-ups co-exist on this record with plenty of catchy melody and jangly folk and relaxed droniness and other good stuff. Although "Ecks Em Eye" starts the album off with a free jazz warm-up with Funhouse saxophone, the Gris Gris' psychedelic trip soon passes through the overgrown, shadowy backyards of bands such as Pink Floyd and the early Stones ('specially on the fake raga of the title track). Ashley & Co's retro-sensibilities venture even further into total oldies territory on "Medication #4". More current artists that this sometimes reminds us of (or whose fans we think might also like this) include Mudhoney, Greg Weeks/Espers, Comets On Fire, and Devendra Banhart, a little. Definitely recommended to anyone into the psych scene today, and cabin rock of course. With songs with titles like "Big Engine Nazi Kid Daydream" and "Down With Jesus" these guys aren't ever gonna have hits, but in our little world they should!
MPEG Stream: "Ecks Em Eye"
MPEG Stream: "Big Engine Nazi Kid Daydream"

GRIS GRIS, THE s/t (Birdman) cd 13.98
It's the debut from this Oakland trio lead by guitarist/vocalist Greg Ashley, whose solo album last year Medicine Fuck Dream won kudos from many amongst our staff and customers...if you liked that, you'll surely like this. Very authentic '60s sounding stuff from a paisley garage a la the Yardbirds, Kinks, Stones, and Syd Barrett. Ashley's got a whispery voice well-suited to the new nuggets The Gris Gris deal out here, ranging from gentle jangle-pop to raucous feedback rockers and psycho-delic drone-outs. Along with The Cuts, two way-back aligned winners from Birdman n' Oakland!
MPEG Stream: "Raygun"
MPEG Stream: "Mary #38"

GRIS GRIS, THE s/t (Birdman) lp 14.98
Now vinylized...the debut from this Oakland trio lead by guitarist/vocalist Greg Ashley, whose solo album last year Medicine Fuck Dream won kudos from many amongst our staff and customers...if you liked that, you'll surely like this. Very authentic '60s sounding stuff from a paisley garage a la the Yardbirds, Kinks, Stones, and Syd Barrett. Ashley's got a whispery voice well-suited to the new nuggets The Gris Gris deal out here, ranging from gentle jangle-pop to raucous feedback rockers and psycho-delic drone-outs.
MPEG Stream: "Raygun"
MPEG Stream: "Mary #38"

GRISATRE Esthaetique (Dusktone) cd 13.98
Latest from this French one man depressive black metal band, whose name means 'greyish', which is actually not a bad description of Grisatre's washed out minor key buzz and blast, definitely a sort of 'grey metal', very melodic and melancholic, reminding us of Happy Days and Hypothermia, being yet another group whose shrieked vokills are mostly what keeps the sound firmly entrenched in the black metal world. And yeah, the guitars buzz, the drums blast, the recording is murky and lo-fi, but even at full blast, the guitars chime and ring out mournfully, and the songs evolve continuously (the three tracks here are all between 13-16 minutes long), so the sound slips into woozy midtempo melancholia as often, if not MORE often, than it explodes into blasting black buzz. Three long stretches of loping buzz soaked mesmer, peppered with bursts of more overt blackness, but also creepy shimmery drones, there even seems to be some warm swirls of softly psychedelic synthesizer in the mix, and amidst everything, there are some truly divine moments of melodic bliss, gorgeous bits of pop songsmithery buried in the murk, as well as twisted bits of production, that turn what could have been something more more generic, into something a little bit more far out and weirdly warped. It's also one of the rare BM records where you can actually hear the bass, and not JUST hear it, as it's a sinewy melodic driving force in the sound, giving much of this a gloomy post punk vibe as well. We're digging this big time, and we're guessing if you like buzzy melancholia and hauntingly melodic 'grey' metal (and really why wouldn't you?), then you will too.
MPEG Stream: "L'Abstrait"
MPEG Stream: "L'Impression"

GRIVF Sortenlund (Demo 2005) (NOTHingness) cd-r 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We reviewed a record by Canadian drone combo Ashtorath a few lists back, an amazing disc of dark and harrowing, cinematic dronescapes. Released on one of our favorite labels, NOTHingness. As we mentioned in that review, NOTHingness closed up shop, and in its place was born Consouling Sounds. We proclaimed Ashtorath the last NOTHingness release, when in fact there was one more, this, the 2005 demo from Grivf, a mysterious funeral folk metal one man band from Denmark. Reissued as a super limited cd-r last year, this is in fact the first we've heard from Grivf, and we have to say we're pretty into it.
Falling sonically somewhere between Skepticism and Make A Change Kill Yourself, but with long stretches of spacey dark ambience, no drums to speak of, so even at its heaviest, the record sprawls and oozes, the vocals a rumbling demonic gurgle, the guitars mournful and so so depressive, everything swathed in distortion, the melodies minor key and miserable, the tracks crawling and slithering, through black clouds and even blacker fields of sonic misery.
Some tracks lace acoustic guitars over pounded piano, unfurling a creepy funereal folk, that broods intensely, only to be swallowed up by a wave of crumbling distorted buzz, and harsh blackened vokills, but the guitar and the piano never stop. Instead infusing the black metallic drone with a super creepy vibe, elsewhere strings and synths play the same part, spreading out into long grey streaks, everything washed out and lit by a dying black sun, this is some of the most fantastically and gorgeously depressive music we've heard in ages. A few of the tracks take distorted riffage, steel string guitars, and piano, and let them get all tangled up, weaving a heartbreaking doomic black lament, weirdly melodic but still oh so melancholy.
Dark and depressive, heavy and slow, ambient and abstract, drone-y and sludge-y, miserable and mournful, drone-y and utterly haunting, some seriously essential listening for the black hearted.
SUPER LIMITED. ALREADY OUT OF PRINT. We did get a bunch, but these are the last copies, the label is defunct, so once these are gone, they are gone forever.
MPEG Stream: "Midgaard"
MPEG Stream: "Hvad Isen Skjuler"

GRIZZLY BEAR Friend EP (Warp) cd ep 8.98
EP's in the indie world in recent years usually equal some slightly different versions of songs you already heard on the full length and a throwaway live track or two. Luckily this trend has taken a little break in the last month or so as there have been some pretty great ep's lately from folks like White Magic, Bonnie Prince Billy (who has been guilty of the throwaway ep in the past) and now this great offering from Grizzly Bear. Anyone who has seen Grizzly Bear live in the last year knows they have really come into their own as a full band and this record really brings that into clear focus. With totally new versions of songs from Yellow House, a haunting cover of The Crystals "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss)" as well as covers of some of their tracks done by a few of their famous friends like CSS, The Knife and members of Deerhunter. Another exciting chapter in a band who are proving once again, that they're in it for the long run.
MPEG Stream: "He Hit Me"
MPEG Stream: "Shift (Alternate Version)"

GRIZZLY BEAR Horn Of Plenty (Kanine) cd 11.98
We initially thought this to be another of the menagerie of wildlife named artists associated with Animal Collective, but they aren't. While they do tread in and around a similar lo-fi, art-folk trail as A.C., their travels take a gentler pace through prettier passages. So hushed, introspective and slightly woozy with brittle male vocals, delicate chimes, an occasional guitar strum, barely-there drones and mysterious wisps of texture. The percussion sounds as though it's being tapped and shaken out on random twigs, pebbles and pods. Check out the seventh song "Fix It", a particular highlight on the album. A great rainy day record!
MPEG Stream: "Fix It"
MPEG Stream: "A Good Place"

GRIZZLY BEAR Shields (Warp) cd 15.98
It took some of us a while to come around, but we eventually ended up digging Grizzly Bear's debut, Veckatimest, quite a bit - orchestral pop equal parts Van Dyke Parks and Elliott Smith, lush and lovely, impossibly catchy, dreamily dramatic. So we were definitely prepared to dig this new one, but we weren't necessarily prepared for THIS. Give the opening track a listen (the first sound sample below), and be as baffled by us by GB's new sound, and we mean baffled in a good way, a really good way, in place of their sweetly twee Pitchfork-y pop, is something downright PROGGY, dark and driving, they sound like some obscure Italian prog from the seventies, we hear a little Yes too, some Comus even, everything minor key and darkly tinged, intensely strummed acoustic guitars, the vocals reminding us of Terry Reid, the dense mix rife with blooping percolating synths, driven by bombastic drumming, the sounds stereo panned, swooping from speaker to speaker, there's even some seriously hard rocking fuzz drenched psych guitar, it's total modern retro trip out psychedelic prog. We're curious how fans of the last record will feel about this, but we can definitely tell you we're LOVING it. Sort of the way Malachai reimagined seventies proto metal and fuzzy psych rock, the sound here, at least in places, is equal parts obscure prog and acid folk, a bit modernized for sure, but that opener, wow.
Nothing else on the record is so overtly retro prog, but that vibe does ooze into the rest of the record, giving the whole thing a definite retro feel, the production, the arrangements, the songs, plenty of tripped out experimentation, dark drones, GB's dreamy pop does of course shine through in places, but for the most part, the feel is a bit more haunting and melancholic, and yeah, folky / proggy / sixties / seventies sounding, with some of the songs dipping into early Peter Gabriel and Genesis territory (just check out "What's Wrong"), and others unfurling as almost classic rock sounding ballads, but darkly psychedelic and dramatically brooding (check out the closer "Sun In Your Eyes"), which makes for a cool / strange balance for the overt pop that surfaces throughout. Awesome!
MPEG Stream: "Sleeping Ute"
MPEG Stream: "Speak In Rounds"
MPEG Stream: "What's Wrong"
MPEG Stream: "Sun In Your Eyes"

GRIZZLY BEAR Shields (Warp) 2lp 31.00
It took some of us a while to come around, but we eventually ended up digging Grizzly Bear's debut, Veckatimest, quite a bit - orchestral pop equal parts Van Dyke Parks and Elliott Smith, lush and lovely, impossibly catchy, dreamily dramatic. So we were definitely prepared to dig this new one, but we weren't necessarily prepared for THIS. Give the opening track a listen (the first sound sample below), and be as baffled by us by GB's new sound, and we mean baffled in a good way, a really good way, in place of their sweetly twee Pitchfork-y pop, is something downright PROGGY, dark and driving, they sound like some obscure Italian prog from the seventies, we hear a little Yes too, some Comus even, everything minor key and darkly tinged, intensely strummed acoustic guitars, the vocals reminding us of Terry Reid, the dense mix rife with blooping percolating synths, driven by bombastic drumming, the sounds stereo panned, swooping from speaker to speaker, there's even some seriously hard rocking fuzz drenched psych guitar, it's total modern retro trip out psychedelic prog. We're curious how fans of the last record will feel about this, but we can definitely tell you we're LOVING it. Sort of the way Malachai reimagined seventies proto metal and fuzzy psych rock, the sound here, at least in places, is equal parts obscure prog and acid folk, a bit modernized for sure, but that opener, wow.
Nothing else on the record is so overtly retro prog, but that vibe does ooze into the rest of the record, giving the whole thing a definite retro feel, the production, the arrangements, the songs, plenty of tripped out experimentation, dark drones, GB's dreamy pop does of course shine through in places, but for the most part, the feel is a bit more haunting and melancholic, and yeah, folky / proggy / sixties / seventies sounding, with some of the songs dipping into early Peter Gabriel and Genesis territory (just check out "What's Wrong"), and others unfurling as almost classic rock sounding ballads, but darkly psychedelic and dramatically brooding (check out the closer "Sun In Your Eyes"), which makes for a cool / strange balance for the overt pop that surfaces throughout. Awesome!
MPEG Stream: "Sleeping Ute"
MPEG Stream: "Speak In Rounds"
MPEG Stream: "What's Wrong"
MPEG Stream: "Sun In Your Eyes"

GRIZZLY BEAR Veckatimest (Warp) cd 15.98
Looks like this is gonna be the album that establishes Grizzly Bear and brings them to the next level, and for good reason, as it's their most ambitious and assured outing yet. Filled with such lush deep harmonies, these are songs that create such lovely states of brooding, dramatic pop both smart and emotional. Imagine sprinkling Van Dyke Parks arrangements on top of the songs Elliott Smith was creating near the end of his life as well as a healthy dose of inspiration from Nina Simone and you start to get an idea for the kind of intense orchestral baroque pop Grizzly Bear have created with Veckatimest. They enlisted Nico Muhly to create arrangements on a few of the tracks, but even the songs without Muhly's touch are are still impossibly lush and rich sounding. Veckatimest almost makes us want it to be gray and wet outside forever as these are the kind of sounds to keep you warm in the darkest and coldest of times. So nice! And even Andee, who was never that keen on Grizzly Bear, was immediately smitten by the track "Two Weeks". If that track doesn't convince you, then maybe you just don't like pop music...
MPEG Stream: "Two Weeks"
MPEG Stream: "Cheerleader"
MPEG Stream: "I Live With You"

GRIZZLY BEAR Veckatimest (Warp) 2lp 25.00
Looks like this is gonna be the album that establishes Grizzly Bear and brings them to the next level, and for good reason, as it's their most ambitious and assured outing yet. Filled with such lush deep harmonies, these are songs that create such lovely states of brooding, dramatic pop both smart and emotional. Imagine sprinkling Van Dyke Parks arrangements on top of the songs Elliott Smith was creating near the end of his life as well as a healthy dose of inspiration from Nina Simone and you start to get an idea for the kind of intense orchestral baroque pop Grizzly Bear have created with Veckatimest. They enlisted Nico Muhly to create arrangements on a few of the tracks, but even the songs without Muhly's touch are are still impossibly lush and rich sounding. Veckatimest almost makes us want it to be gray and wet outside forever as these are the kind of sounds to keep you warm in the darkest and coldest of times. So nice! And even Andee, who was never that keen on Grizzly Bear, was immediately smitten by the track "Two Weeks". If that track doesn't convince you, then maybe you just don't like pop music...
MPEG Stream: "Two Weeks"
MPEG Stream: "Cheerleader"
MPEG Stream: "I Live With You"

GRIZZLY BEAR Yellow House (Warp) cd 15.98
If you're anything like us, you'd been hearing about Grizzly Bear long before you actually got to hear them. When we finally did hear "Horn Of Plenty", their record which came out a few years back, we immediately realized why people had been buzzing. And thus we were the ones buzzing about the impending release of Yellow House, a dark and delicious mix of rich pop and grand bedroom orchestration. Yellow House is the kind of record you keep by your side on cold and rainy days. It almost sounds like Sufjan Stevens on valium with Jim O'Rourke on the board and the Black Heart Procession helping out with extra moody layers of longing and a deep sweet musical ache. We love how their songs have a sense of movement and space, and how they actually write great goddamned songs. "On A Neck, On A Spit" is most definitely a contender for song of the year! And this entire record is turning out to be chock full of song of the year contenders. The perfect warm music to stave off the impending winter chill.
MPEG Stream: "On A Neck, On A Spit"
MPEG Stream: "Easier"
MPEG Stream: "Little Brother"

GRODY, DANNY PAUL Fountain (Root Strata) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
First proper solo record from this core member of SF post rockers Tarentel, as well as the mastermind behind another post rock combo we dig, the even dreamier The Drift.
Fountain is simply fantastic, a subtle and varied affair, that dips into various sounds and moods, with acoustic and electric guitars as the main instrumentation, although the guitars are augmented by melodica, keyboard, bow, voice, and of course, rain.
The sounds here are delicate and crystalline, lush and warm, dreamy and sun dappled, deftly fingerpicked abstract Appalachia, gives way to melancholic folk, chamber music drifts into thick layered dronemusic, hushed one second, exuberant and joyful the next, a gorgeous, ever shifting songsuite, that definitely harkens back to classic seventies folk music, but is infused with the more abstract home brewed abstract bedroom dronemusic of today, as well as nods to the post rock that informs so much of the music Grody plays.
Totally blissful and dreamy, from the hushed opener, simply strummed guitars, and slow shifting overtones, to the spare finger picked beauty of "Well Wisher", that gradually blossoms into a sunshiney bit of glimmery instrumental dream pop, to the pop ambient haze of "Covered Mirrors", to the sprawling "Eve", a gorgeous folk flecked steel string work out, interrupted part way by a gorgeous cloud of lush shimmering whir, to the dark, muted, blurred guitarscape that makes up the record's closer "Finding Time", notes suspended in space, tones drawn out into extended humming soft focus drones, little melodic fragments chiming in the distance, all moving glacially through a sepia toned haze. So so lovely.
MPEG Stream: "Dawn"
MPEG Stream: "Four Years"
MPEG Stream: "Route 1"
MPEG Stream: "Hungry / Haunted"

GRODY, DANNY PAUL In Search Of Light (Students Of Decay) lp 16.98
Such a gorgeous second solo effort from Danny Paul Grody (The Drift, Believer, Moholy-Nagy, Tarentel). Adding beautiful elements of harmonium, synthesizer, bows, and bells to his blissful guitar playing, Grody has made the perfect autumnal album. These instrumental tracks take you to a place where your mind and body start to gently sway, and the stress, sadness, and loss of being alive are both acknowledged while also allowing you to drift into a dreamier state of mind, recalling some of our favorite records by folks like William Eaton, James Blackshaw, Bruce Langhorne, Jozef Van Wissem, and Steffen Basho-Junghans.
While many other solo records by great guitar players can often feel as a show off session for how well trained they are, In Search Of Light is an album more invested in creating an actual mood and atmosphere then hitting you over the head with tricky playing or trying to sound exactly like John Fahey. In fact it's the patience and subtly of Grody's playing that always attracts us to his work and keeps us listening for the reward of repeated listens. So perfect for fall, this record makes us want to put on our favorite autumn sweater as we cuddle up near a fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate and read a book of poems or just daydream the afternoon away. Highly recommended! Comes with a digital download so you can also dream the day away while in transit or at your computer...
MPEG Stream: "Hello From Everywhere"
MPEG Stream: "Orbits"
MPEG Stream: "Stars Gaze"

GROMM Cold Old Thorns (BlackMetal.Com) cd 9.98
Everyone went nuts for the last Gromm full length around here. And it wasn't just because it was called Happiness - It's When You Are Dead, although that was a big part of what we wanted to hear these guys in the first place. That record was a gorgeous blast of Ukrainian black frost, rife with buzz and howl, blast and roar. Hailing from the same area as other AQ black metal faves such as Nokturnal Mortum, Mistigo Varggoth Darkestra, Drudkh, Hate Forest and others, Gromm share some similar sonic traits, if there was a 'Ukrainian sound' (which we do believe there is) then Gromm do fit right in, but as with most black metal we dig, especially the aforementioned Ukrainian ones, Gromm definitely had their own take on things, strange production, unique vocals, and of course their own brilliantly twisted and blackened riffs.
Cold Old Thorns (another great title) collects all the old demos, as well as a new song and an unlikely cover.
The first half of the disc is the Ferro Ignique demo from 2001-2002, originally a tape limited to 300 copies, which finds the band way stripped down and primitive, but no less ambitious, the sound is murky and lo-fi, the blasts seems to be played by a machine (or a very machinelike human), but the songs are still completely epic and fucked up, super dense convoluted arrangements, plenty of atypical not very black metal song structures, super dynamic, lots of start and stop, the vocals are even more tweaked than they are now, raspy and demonic, gnarled and super creepy, the guitars rip, incredible riffing, emotional and minor key, majestic but furious and fierce, all wrapped in a muffled muted production that makes the whole thing sound just that much more grim and gorgeous.
The second half of the disc is made up of the Nails For Gods demo from 2003, also originally a limited-to-300-copies cassette, this time, the sound is a bit more high fidelity, but the mix is insane, the opener "Black Madness" is totally unhinged, the guitars and drums blasting blackly along, pretty low in the mix, while the vocals shriek and soar WAY UP FRONT, it almost doesn't sound like a voice, it's like a strangely musical scraping, steel on steel, and here and there, another guitar part, more melodic and moody joins the fray, also way louder than everything else, making the sound so strange and creepy, but so cool. And those vocals, holy shit! The whole demo is like that, a blanket of buzz over which those crazy inhuman vocals rasp and scrape and various melodies surface and drift. Fucking awesome.
As if that weren't enough, there's a new song from last year, dense and fuzz drenched, midtempo and Burzumic, the vocals buried in the mix, just another layer of raspy buzz, four and a half minutes of loping droney black buzz, and a killer cover of Metallica's "For Whom The Bell Tolls", the classic thrash prog epic transformed into a totally necro blast of grimness, the vocals harsh and super distorted, the whole thing blurred into a relentless black blur, except for the chorus, which ends up sounding like the catchiest Darkthrone part Darkthrone never wrote.
Liner notes, lyrics, photos, and an awesome black and silver, shiny reflective sticker included...
MPEG Stream: "Cold Thorns"
MPEG Stream: "Black Fire Legions"
MPEG Stream: "Black Madness"
MPEG Stream: "Provocation / For Whom The Bell Tolls"

GROMM Happiness - It's When You Are Dead (BlackMetal.Com) cd 9.98
As far as black metal album titles, it's pretty impossible to beat Happiness - It's When You Are Dead. Sure Blizzard Beasts is awesome, so is A Blaze In The Northern Sky, even Rebel Extravaganza has its perverse charm. But no album titles we can think of are so simple and succinct. Happiness - It's When You Are Dead. Perfectly capturing the miserablism and death obsessed nihilism of black metal without the usual overwrought hand wringing wordiness. Simple. We like it. And we like Gromm too.
Much like how the Russian BM bands share a sonic sensibility, so too do the Ukrainian bands, Nokturnal Mortum, Mistigo Varggoth Darkestra, Drudkh, Hate Forest, and of course Gromm. If you like that stuff, odds are you'll like these guys too. And considering how insular and inbred those scenes are, we wouldn't be all that surprised if Gromm shared members with one, some or all of those bands.
For those new to Gromm, on the surface it's everything we love about black metal, furious and frosty, blasting and black and brutal, with guitars that are super distorted, so much so that sometimes they seem to crumble and overload the speakers, recorded so hot they shoot into the red adding another layer of (unintentional?) distortion, the vocals are raw and garbled, not growling or grunted so much as twisted and strangled, the drums are kick ass, furious and blasting, but there is tons of melody in the music of Gromm, and not just in the slowed down melancholy parts, but in the buzzing frosty blasts, melodies and strange catchy bits lurk everywhere. There's some super weird production too, like when an ultra loud effects-heavy acoustic guitar is laid over the black buzz, so loud and thick that it spreads out and almost completely obscures the music beneath it, making it sound really damaged and creepy.
And that kind of stuff is all over Happiness, but even without all the subtle weirdness, the record kills, the songs are amazing, the sound is epic and catchy, fast and fuzzed out, brutal and black.
Extremely recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Seeds And Bones"
MPEG Stream: "On The Way Of Chains"
MPEG Stream: "Without A Pack, Without A Herd"

GROMM / ENDLESS BLIZZARD In The Glare Of Black / Beyond The Frozen Gates (BlackMetal.Com) cd 9.98

MPEG Stream: GROMM "Oblomki Mertvogo / Fragments Of The Dead"
MPEG Stream: ENDLESS BLIZZARD "Rotten Forest"

GROMM / WINGS OF WAR In The Glare Of Black / War Forever (BlackMetal.Com) cassette 4.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

GRONG GRONG s/t (Alternative Tentacles) lp 13.98
We made a huge deal about the recent double disc reissue of this gnarled, noiserock classic from these Australian misanthropes, and lucky for you vinyl freaks, one of our distributors discovered a stash of the original lp release in their warehouse. So grab one while you can...
Grong Grong was born on a whim, named for a small Australian town, that one of the members just happened to be passing through, when he got home, he decided he had to start a band, and it had to be called Grong Grong. And apparently the simple approach of asking folks "Do you want to be in a band called Grong Grong?" was enough, and soon, Grong Grong were playing shows and making records. Or at least a record, and what a record, filthy, grimey, noisy, raw, primitive, pounding, chaotic, punk as fuck, a little post punk, a little new wave, crunchy angular guitars, throbbing low slung bass, wild drumming, and big bellowed vocals drenched in reverb, the band locking into a single riff, and working it and pounding away, the guitar spiraling off into weird little tangles while the bass and drums stayed locked into their groove, and the vocals swooped all over the place, the delay sending the grunts and growls careening from speaker to speaker. Not sure how these guys ended up on AT (well, Jello was a big fan), seems like they might have been just as at home on AmRep, where most of the other bands from this scene ended up.
Hardly matters, this is some awesome classic Aussie weirdo noise punk, and it sounds as good as it ever did, and listening to this now, it's shocking how many young bands are aping these guys big time, whether they realized it or not. Swampy, bluesy, woozy, psychedelic, lurching, lumbering, sloppy and loose, but so goddamn good, and those vocals, totally pushing all those same Killdozer buttons, but these guys were way more minimal, all about mood and texture and vibe, not parts, not verses and choruses, they sort of just launched into a song and kept going until it ground to a halt, or the band collapsed into a heap only to stumble into the next track. This is THEE shit.
MPEG Stream: "Grong Grong"
MPEG Stream: "Angels & Demons"
MPEG Stream: "Club Grotesque"

GRONG GRONG To Hell 'N' Back (Memorandum / Abberant) cd+dvd 19.98
We are SO PSYCHED that this has finally been reissued. Back in the eighties there was an amazing punk/noise rock scene happening in Australia, Lubricated Goat, King Snake Roost, the Kryptonics and of course Grong Grong, and it seems like the Memorandum label has been started up with the sole purpose of rescuing those classic sounds from obscurity. There is a double disc Lubricated Goat reissue coming soon, which will most likely be a Record Of The Week, the catchy Kryptonics record is reviewed elsewhere on this week's list, we've emailed the label asking them to please please please reissue the King Snake Roost records, which brings us to Grong Grong, Australia's answer to Killdozer, or maybe Flipper. Originally released on Alternative Tentacles, the record is fleshed out here with a ton of bonus tracks, live tracks, and even a dvd with amazing archival footage of the band! But you say, why should we care?
Grong Grong was born on a whim, named for a small Australian town, that one of the members just happened to be passing through, when he got home, he decided he had to start a band, and it had to be called Grong Grong. And apparently the simple approach of asking folks "Do you want to be in a band called Grong Grong?" was enough, and soon, Grong Grong were playing shows and making records. Or at least a record, and what a record, filthy, grimey, noisy, raw, primitive, pounding, chaotic, punk as fuck, a little post punk, a little new wave, crunchy angular guitars, throbbing low slung bass, wild drumming, and big bellowed vocals drenched in reverb, the band locking into a single riff, and working it and pounding away, the guitar spiraling off into weird little tangles while the bass and drums stayed locked into their groove, and the vocals swooped all over the place, the delay sending the grunts and growls careening from speaker to speaker. Not sure how these guys ended up on AT (well, Jello was a big fan), seems like they might have been just as at home on AmRep, where most of the other bands from this scene ended up.
Hardly matters, this is some awesome classic Aussie weirdo noise punk, and it sounds as good as it ever did, and listening to this now, it's shocking how many young bands are aping these guys big time, whether they realized it or not. Swampy, bluesy, woozy, psychedelic, lurching, lumbering, sloppy and loose, but so goddamn good, and those vocals, totally pushing all those same Killdozer buttons, but these guys were way more minimal, all about mood and texture and vibe, not parts, not verses and choruses, they sort of just launched into a song and kept going until it ground to a halt, or the band collapsed into a heap only to stumble into the next track, which is evidenced by the bonus DVD which features tons of old recordings, even their very first show, and even back then they were a serious force to be reckoned with. Seems like we already have a contender for reissue of the year and it's only January, only possibility of it getting knocked out of the running, is if those Lubricated Goat or King Snake Roost reissues materialize, and more than likely all three will rank in the top ten, but for now, this is THEE shit.
MPEG Stream: "Grong Grong"
MPEG Stream: "Angels & Demons"
MPEG Stream: "Club Grotesque"
MPEG Stream: "Black Hell"

GROOP, THE s/t (Sundazed) cd 14.98
The Mamas and The Papas meet Midnight Cowboy for some dark L.A. Sunshine Pop.

GROOVES issue #9 magazine 4.95
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Read about Amon Tobin, Christian Fennesz, Mum, Negativland, Suicide, Rosy Parlane, Wobbly, Ikue Mori, Goodiepal, and lots more in this ninth issue of the ever thicker and slicker "experimental electronic music magazine" Grooves. Music *and* gear reviews fill out the pages, making this good reading for both electronica consumers and producers.

GROOVES issue 4 magazine 3.00
"Experimental electronic music magazine." Their fourth issue, and now they've got a fancy color cover and use Pantone coated inks, a fact mentioned on the cover for some reason and repeated here for no reason. Lots of info on your fave cutting edge electronica artists, from IDM stuff to turntablism. DJ Krush, DJ Shortee/DJ Faust, Chessie, Tarwater, Third Eye Foundation, Kit Clayton, Plone, Stewart Walker all get features, among others. Plus a zillion reviews, ads from all the hip labels/stores/mailorder places, and photos of said fave electronica artists (often a short haired white guy sitting on the ground, as in the three photos found on three successive pages depicting Accelera Deck, TEF, and Kit Clayton). Looks great, lots of info, getting better and better all the time.

GROOVES MAGAZINE Issue 12 magazine 4.95
All kinds of electronic music get covered between the covers of Grooves magazine, a which is up to number 12 now and just getting bigger and better each issue. This time, Plastikman, Meat Beat Manifesto, Electric Birds, AGF, Mice Parade, Sami Kovikko, Diverse, Randy Yau, Tod Dockstader, Aelters, Christopher Willits, Dean Roberts and many more get written about or interviewed. Music consumers and gearheads both should be sated by the reviews and the ads found here.

GROOVIE GHOULIES Travels With My Amp (Lookout!) cd 12.98
When the Ghoulies are around you're guaranteed a good time. A veritable pop punk whirlwind of bats, monsters and creepy crawlies. Vocalist Kepi bounds around the stage like a possessed, manic monkey. And with this their newest release on Lookout! Records, you can almost relive their live show experience featuring their current line-up: Roach (guitar), B-Face (bass, formerly of the Queers), and new drummer Amy. Handwritten lyrics and an array of tour photos included.

GROSSMAN, STEFAN Flowers On The Wall (El / Cherry Red) cd 17.98

GROUND UNICORN HORN Damn I Wish I Was Fat (Three One G) 3"cd 6.98
As if he's not busy enough with his main band's latest fierce full length New Erections and running his own indie label ThreeOneG, The Locust's Justin Pearson juggles many a side project including this new one Ground Unicorn Horn. And well, actually we guess he and his three pals Chris Hathwell (of Moving Units), Amy Szychowski (of Josh Taylor's Friends Forever) and Chuck Rowell (of Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower) really didn't need a whole lot of time to spit out this lil' 2 song 3" cdep. It's a whopping three minutes and twenty four seconds of primitive eye-gouge and brain fry rawk which probably doesn't possess the potent cure-all and hallucinatory qualities found in the substance of the same name, but it sure packs its own riled up mucus-loosening wallop.
MPEG Stream: "Damn I Wish I Was Fat"

GROUND ZERO Conflagration (CreativeMan Disc) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The second in a series of three, this features remixes of Ground Zero's Consume Red disc. Bob Ostertag, Violent Onsen Geisha, Gastr del Sol, Stock Hausen & Walkman and others participate.

GROUND ZERO Consume Red (Recommended) cd 14.98
Japanese jazz/turntable ensemble's new album, the first in a three-disc "Consume" series that's a variant on Ground Zero leader Otomo Yoshihide's "Sampling Virus project". The next in the series will be a remix of this record by Gastr del Sol, Bob Ostertag, Violent Onsen Geisha and others. Following that will be an album made up of contributions from the general public (this disc contains an entry form) of works that use either or both of the first two "Consume" discs as their sole sound-source.

GROUND ZERO Consummation (Creativeman Disc) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The third volume of the three-part "Consume Ground Zero" project--this is the one which consists of "remixes" derived from volumes one and two, submitted by the general public and selected for this release. An international line-up of names neither you nor I have probably ever heard of before (Art Karaoke, Stomach Oh-Yeah, DJ Smallcock, Xonk, etc.) except of course for celebrated AQ-pals Matmos who also make an appearance here. Japanese digipak import.

GROUND ZERO Gig - Last Concert (Amoebic) cd 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
March 8, 1998 was the date of the final performace of Otomo Yoshihide's turntable/improv-jazz outfit, Ground Zero, with a huge ensemble backing him (Sachiko M, Hirose Jyunji, Kikuchi Naruyoshi, Okura Masahiko, Chino Syuichi, Masuno Tatsuki, Nagata Kazuano, Nasuno Mitsuru, Uemura Masahiro, Yoshigaki Yasuhiro, and Kondo Yoshiaki). The first two tracks are Ground Zero's speed-jazz-noise assaults pretty close to Painkiller and Naked City playing at the same time. While the last is the breathtakingly hypnotic Consume Red of super slow moving turntable rumble with almost Egyptian-reed-like flares of horns.

GROUND ZERO Live 1992+ (Doubtmusic) cd 24.00
Wow! This is a blast from the past. And we do mean blast (just listen!). Ground Zero was the crazy sampling + free jazz + noise rock outfit led by Japanese turntablist/guitarist Otomo Yoshihide. Hopefully you know 'em, they were right in there with Boredoms and Ruins and Omoide Hatoba and Altered States etc. for noisy underground Japanese avant-rock insanity back in the early '90s. Their now out of print, self-titled debut album from 1992 sounded something like John Zorn's Naked City, all chaotic jump cuts and skronking sax, and in fact featured the inimitable screaming vocal stylings of Eye Yamataka of the Boredoms, who also guested with Naked City. Eventually they turned into a drone-jazz behemoth, and also did a fantastic album of "standards". Since the dissolution of Ground Zero, there's been plenty more cool Otomo projects, from the Eric Dolphy tribute of his New Jazz Orchestra to his minimalist "onkyo" experiments in Filament and ISO to a variety of other interesting soundtracks and solo recordings... but the Ground Zero discs will always be a crucial swath of his discography. And a favorite of ours!
So, it's pretty exciting to get to hear this long-lost live show, from a old tape that Otomo recently rummaged out of his closet. The liner notes include this from him: "All I remember for sure was that it was a really good gig... The recording quality is terrible, but the recording, including that quality, really captures the atmosphere of the time." He's right, the sound is raw, but it suits the music perfectly. This is INTENSE. The lineup consists of Otomo (guitar, turntables), Hirose Junji (sax), Kato Hideki (bass, voice), Uemura Masahiro (drums), and Eye Yamataka (vocals). All five of 'em make a LOT of noise. Imagine the Eye-fronted Naked City falling down the stairs, in the throes of a violent seizure. This performance dates from just prior to their first album's release and shares its punked-out energy, as well as a few of the same "songs". Two additional tracks at the end of the disc are studio recordings, previously unreleased material from the sessions for that debut album. As the Doubtmusic website says, "this is remembrance of fresh / poisonous earlier Ground Zero after 15 years."
This comes in typically fine Doubtmusic packaging, a handsome digipack design, and is basically essential for all hardcore Ground Zero and/or Eye Yamataka fans! And its value as an archival release is enhanced in light of the fact that you can't get their first album anymore anyway.
MPEG Stream: "Bottom Out-X"
MPEG Stream: "Pseudopodium"
MPEG Stream: "VT"

GROUND ZERO Null and Void (Tzadik) cd 15.98
Otomo Yoshihide, the Japanese sampling dynamo, leads this 6-piece band in some creative jumpcuts.

GROUND ZERO Plays Standards (DIW) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Yay! After being out of print for the last couple of years, this fantastic album has finally been reissued! Unfortunately it's not a domestic reissue, so the price tag is still import-high. But it's well worth the $, being one of our very favorite discs by Otomo Yoshihide's amazing sampling/noise/jazz outfit Ground Zero. This one's all covers, Ground Zero interpretations of tunes as far ranging as Massacre's "Bones" to John Philip Sousa's "Washington Post March", Omoide Hatoba to Burt Bacharach... Includes liner notes in both English and Japanese explaining Otomo's reasons for doing each song. Great album, great band. If you missed it the first time, get it now!!
RealAudio clip: "A Better Tomorrow + I Say A Little Prayer "

GROUND ZERO Revolutionary Pekinese Opera Ver.1.28 (ReR) cd 16.98
The second record by Otomo Yoshihide's Ground Zero is an expansion of a concept started by German artists Heiner Goebbels and Alfred 23 Harth, and is modestly accredited as a "remix of the Peking Oper" by the aforementioned duo. The Revolutionary Pekinese Opera is an amazing aural collage, where Otomo deconstructs a recording of a traditional Chinese opera in the '60s, rearranging the bits into new forms as well as recomposing within the gaps for his Ground Zero group. The group is augmented with many sampled "guests" including Goebbels and Harth, Steve Beresford, Compostela (mysterious street band from Japan who had an incredible disc on Tzadik!), Christian Marclay and Jon Rose (whose violin work here is incredible!) among many others. A dense, exciting and cinematic listening experience.

GROUND ZERO / BASTARD (Pandemonium) 7" 3.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
GZ: One long, live track. Heavy on the sampling mayhem and turntable fuckery.
B: Truly bizarre, repetitive, turntablized hypno-rock.

GROUNDHOGS Split (EMI) cd 12.98
Hey! Just in time to tie-in with our recent review of the new album Rhythms From The Cosmic Sky by Earthless (a highlight on list #265), we've received several brand new cd reissues of old Groundhogs albums, among them this one from 1971, Split. What's the connection? Well... take a listen! And also recall that the bonus track on that Earthless disc was a cover of the Groundhogs' "Cherry Red", the original of which is to be found here. Knowing how much y'all love Earthless, we figured we'd order up on these and make it a highlight too. The other Groundhogs reissues we have to refamiliarize ourselves with a bit, but this one we know is an ultimate psychedelic blues rock classic. The title track is an extended epic four-part suite, taking the blues far into prog territory, while "Cherry Red" is simply a hard-driving, HEAVY bomb track for sure. And for this reish, the album's original eight tracks are augmented by four bonus BBC live in concert recordings, versions of "Cherry Red" and parts 1, 2 and 4 of "Split"!
Lead by guitar hero Tony McPhee, the Groundhogs were among the best of the late '60s British blues boom, heavy and freaky enough for today's backwards-looking proto-metal fanatics to cotton to. The occasional hippy goofiness and old tymey Beefheartian hijinx may or may not be to everyone's taste, but we (Earthless fans for sure) can all agree on awesomeness of the wailing fuzzed guitar parts, can't we? And those are NOT few nor far between. Split is all about the energetic riffage -- and the concept of (drug induced?) mental breakdown readily conjured by McPhee's wild soloing. File with other early, exploratory heaviness like High Tide, T2, Arzachel... and Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac as well.
MPEG Stream: "Split, Part 1"
MPEG Stream: "Cherry Red"

GROUNDHOGS Thank Christ For The Bomb (EMI) cd 14.98

GROUNDHOGS Who Will Save The World (EMI) cd 12.98

GROUP 1850 Paradise Now (Free) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Cd reissue of the 1969 second album by Group 1850, a Dutch heavy psychedelic group featuring (in addition to the usual bass, drums, and guitars) some freaky flute and droning organ, plus effects-laden vocals in accented English. Spaced-out-there in the Floyd realms for sure. Their first album, 1968's "Agemo's Trip To Mother Earth" is considered a sixties psych concept album classic, and this ain't too shabby either. Songs like "Purple Sky" and "Hunger" are quite stoned-sounding, and probably sound even better if you are.
RealAudio clip: "Hunger"

GROUP BOMBINO Guitars From Agadez Vol. 2 (Sublime Frequencies) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hope you didn't panic when the super limited vinyl version of this amazing record sold out. We're never sure if the SF lps will come out on cd, so far they all have, but maybe those Sublime Frequencies guys just like to keep us guessing. Anyway, for those of you who did somehow miss out on this, or did get the lp and want the cd too, it's now finally available as a cd! And is still, and again, absolutely essential...
Yet another new sonic document from the mighty Sublime Frequencies, this one a continuation of sorts, again exploring the world of Tuareg guitar music from Agadez in Niger, first explored on the amazing Group Inerane release a while back. And strangely enough, both band share members, so folks who loved the Group Inerane will likely love this too.
The music scene in Agadez is unique in many ways, but perhaps the strangest element is the fact that none of the bands can afford to own their own instruments, there is one PA and one set of amps that get passed from show to show, and guitars are borrowed and lent out, as are band members, with musicians joining different groups as they are available. Remarkably, while the sounds are indeed similar, they are also quite unique.
Group Bombino is headed up by 28 year old Oumara Almoctar, aka Bombino, who was inspired by more well known Tuareg musicians like Tinariwen and Ali Farka Toure to create his own music and to continue to spread the sounds and spirit of Tuareg and Agadez.
So here we have the first proper worldwide release by Bombino and his group, and it's gorgeous. Two distinct sides, the A side features Bombino's "dry" guitar sound, sort of acoustic, the guitars, spidery and slinky, the percussion simple and spare, hand claps, hand drums, the vocals lilting and emotional, all very repetitive and hypnotic, the vocals chantlike over the propulsive rhythms and the almost looped sounding guitar parts.
The flip side features Group Bombino plugging in and letting loose, the root sound is quite similar, but the guitars buzz and wail, chugging out those hypnotic riffs, but also spiralling out into wild leads, tangled melodies, the drums a bit hard, the vocals sitting further back in the mix, ebullient and joyous, but not without tension and emotion and some subtle sorrow and anger, this is after all the sounds or rebellion and revolution, an outlet for the frustration at the unrest and upheaval in Niger and Agadez. So fantastic.
As with pretty much everything Sublime Frequencies, ABSOLUTELY RECOMMENDED, and for sure, anyone who dug the Group Inerane (a past Record Of The Week), will go crazy for Group Bombino as well!
MPEG Stream: "Tenere"
MPEG Stream: "Imuhar"
MPEG Stream: "Boghassa"
MPEG Stream: "Imouhare"

GROUP BOMBINO Guitars From Agadez Vol. 2 (Sublime Frequencies) lp 25.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Yet another awesome vinyl-only document from the mighty Sublime Frequencies, this one a continuation of sorts, again exploring the world of Tuareg guitar music from Agadez in Niger, first explored on the amazing Group Inerane release a while back. And strangely enough, both band share members, so folks who loved the Group Inerane will likely love this too.
The music scene in Agadez is unique in many ways, but perhaps the strangest element is the fact that none of the bands can afford to own their own instruments, there is one PA and one set of amps that get passed from show to show, and guitars are borrowed and lent out, as are band members, with musicians joining different groups as they are available. Remarkably, while the sounds are indeed similar, they are also quite unique.
Group Bombino is headed up by 28 year old Oumara Almoctar, aka Bombino, who was inspired by more well known Tuareg musicians like Tinariwen and Ali Farka Toure to create his own music and to continue to spread the sounds and spirit of Tuareg and Agadez.
So here we have the first proper worldwide release by Bombino and his group, and it's gorgeous. Two distinct sides, the A side features Bombino's "dry" guitar sound, sort of acoustic, the guitars, spidery and slinky, the percussion simple and spare, hand claps, hand drums, the vocals lilting and emotional, all very repetitive and hypnotic, the vocals chantlike over the propulsive rhythms and the almost looped sounding guitar parts.
The flip side features Group Bombino plugging in and letting loose, the root sound is quite similar, but the guitars buzz and wail, chugging out those hypnotic riffs, but also spiralling out into wild leads, tangled melodies, the drums a bit hard, the vocals sitting further back in the mix, ebullient and joyous, but not without tension and emotion and some subtle sorrow and anger, this is after all the sounds or rebellion and revolution, an outlet for the frustration at the unrest and upheaval in Niger and Agadez. So fantastic.
As with pretty much everything Sublime Frequencies, ABSOLUTELY RECOMMENDED, and for sure, anyone who dug the Group Inerane (a past Record Of The Week), will go crazy for Group Bombino as well!

GROUP DOUEH Beatte Harab (Sublime Frequencies) lp 25.00
Full length number three from this amazing outfit, whose debut, Guitar Music From The Western Sahara, we made our Record Of The Week back in 2008, and whose second record, Treeg Salaam, we probably should have, both of those albums brimming with, as we mentioned in past reviews: "dizzying blasts of lo-fi electric guitar driven rhythmic African folk, clattery homemade percussion, jubilant vocalizing, repetitive and melodic and hypnotic, and super rocking."
This latest lp offers up a different side of the band's sound, songs that adhere to the roots of Saharoui music, the roots of Group Doueh's sound, played mostly on traditional Moorish instruments: the tinidit (a three string lute), the ardin (a kora-like harp), the tbal (a clay drum) and the kass (tea glasses), but this is Group Doueh after all so those traditional instruments are augmented by synths and GUITARS!
The opening track is sooooo gorgeous and sets the tone of the record, darkly rhythmic, lush and layered, sweet tangles of intricate melody, the arrangements emotional and propulsive and jubilant, laced with subtle drones and flurries of rapid fire notes, minimal but still so rich and dense and deep. Not all of the record is so tied to the past, after all the Group Doueh sound we know and love was born of this music, and is not really that far removed, so many of the other songs drift into more familiar territory, although the arrangements and instrumentation remain subtly closer to traditional Saharoui music, but again, since our exposure to that music has mostly been via Group Doueh records... well, you get the picture. Every song here is a fantastic celebration of sound, from sublime desert blues buzz to soaring vocal driven high life, to droned out psychedelia to super stripped down vocal/rhythm jams, and those vocals, again so incredible, so emotional and passionate, the perfect match for the music underneath which exudes the same sort of passion. The final track on side one slips back into a sound more minimal, a sprawl of hypnotic buzz and skitter, totally trancelike and hypnotic before exploding into a noisy psychedelic blowout, perfectly bookending the tracks in between.
The offers up still more fantastic desert blues folk bliss, singing strings, propulsive rhythms, vocal harmonies, some wild serious steel string wrangling guitar action of course, peppered with bits of that more minimal rhythmic traditional music, but all woven into the lush living colorful fabric of GD's gorgeous timeless sound.
As with all Sublime Frequencies vinyl releases, EXTREMELY LIMITED, this will most likely be sold out and out of print in the next week or two, pressed as always on thick vinyl and housed in a super swank, heavy full color gatefold sleeve.

GROUP DOUEH Guitar Music From The Western Sahara (Sublime Frequencies) cd 16.98
Finally! Available on cd! One of our favorite installments in the Sublime Frequencies series, originally released only on vinyl, and super limited, so it went out of print and remained that way ever since. Until now!
This installment is one of the few Sublime Frequencies with a focus on a single group, rather than an anthology of regional folk and pop or collaged radio broadcasts.
Struck by an ecstatically squealing lo-fi blast of electric guitar from a song heard on Moroccan radio, Sub Freq's main man, Alan Bishop went on a quest for the regional origins of that particular electric sound. Canvassing numerous cassette dealers, he was only able to identify the music as Sahwari and to pinpoint the region as the Western Sahara, a disputed territory nestled on the Atlantic Coast of North Africa between Morocco and Mauritania where frequent political struggles have caused a massive displacement of the region's indigenous people. A few months later, Bishop's colleague, Hisham Mayet, armed with Bishop's recording traveled back to Morocco to continue the search, ending up in the last outpost of the Western Sahara, Daklha, where through the help of the Sahwari shopkeepers was finally led to the creator of the strange music himself, Baamar Salmou, or as he is known in Sahwari, Doueh. Born in 1964. Doueh learned guitar on a homemade instrument fashioned from pieces of wood and steel strings. In 1981, influenced by Mauritanian music as well as Spanish cassettes imported from Europe and America of Jimi Hendrix and James Brown, he formed Group Doueh, fast becoming one of the definitive groups in the region, playing in festivals all over Northern Africa and even in France and Portugal. His wife Halima later joined as a vocalist and percussionist and in later incarnations, Doueh's son Jamal joined on keyboards. The tracks on this release are all taken from Doueh's personal archive except for two recordings made by Mayet, early last year. This is definitely some of the strangest and twisted ethnic music we've heard in awhile with its buzzing lo-fi circular guitar hooks and exuberant vocalizing and infectious rhythms, reminding us of aspects of Konono No.1's DIY tinkering, Tartit's desert trance-jams and a bit of the Shaggs self-taught charm (not so much in sound, but how a lot of the guitar parts follow the vocals). It's no wonder Alan Bishop was so struck by Doueh' guitar tone, since it reminds us a bit of that employed by Bishop's own band the Sun City Girls. This is so awesome and highly recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Eid For Dakhla"
MPEG Stream: "Eid El Arsh"
MPEG Stream: "Tirara"

GROUP DOUEH Guitar Music From The Western Sahara (Sublime Frequencies) lp 25.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Wow! The first vinyl-only (that's right, no plans for a cd we're told) Sublime Frequencies release focuses on a single group rather than an anthology of regional folk and pop or collaged radio broadcasts. Struck by an ecstatically squealing lo-fi blast of electric guitar from a song heard on Moroccan radio, the Sub Freq's main man, Alan Bishop went on a quest for the regional origins of that particular electric sound. Canvassing numerous cassette dealers, he was only able to identify the music as Sahwari and to pinpoint the region as the Western Sahara, a disputed territory nestled on the Atlantic Coast of North Africa between Morocco and Mauritania where frequent political struggles have caused the massive displacement of the region's indigenous people. A few months later, Bishop's colleague, Hisham Mayet, armed with Bishop's recording travelled back to Morocco to continue the search, ending up in the last outpost of the Western Sahara, Daklha, where through the help of the Sahwari shopkeepers was finally led to the creator of the strange music himself, Baamar Salmou, or as he is known in Sahwari, Doueh. Born in 1964. Doueh learned guitar on a homemade instrument fashioned from pieces of wood and steel strings. In 1981, influenced by Mauritanian music as well as Spanish cassettes imported from Europe and America of Jimi Hendrix and James Brown, he formed Group Doueh, fast becoming one of the definitive groups in the region, playing in festivals all over Northern Africa and even in France and Portugal. His wife Halima later joined as a vocalist and percussionist and in later incarnations, Doueh's son Jamal joined on keyboards. The tracks on this release are all taken from Doueh's personal archive except for two recordings made by Mayet, early last year. This is definitely some of the strangest and twisted ethnic music we've heard in awhile with its buzzing lo-fi circular guitar hooks and exhuberant vocalising and infectious rhythms, reminding us of aspects of Konono No1's DIY tinkering, Tartit's desert trance-jams and a bit of the Shaggs self-taught charm (not so much in sound, but how a lot of the guitar parts follow the vocals). Limited to 1000 copies, this is so awesome and highly recommended!!