GOG Mist From The Random More (Utech Records) cd 14.98
In a world (our world at least) full to overflowing with drone records, dirge records, doom records, and yes, dirgedoomdrone records, the mysterious Gog have somehow always managed to transcend. From their very first release, the subtly spectacular Noriah Mills, Gog have continued to mine similar territory as so many other soundmakers, but with the resultant whole so much more than its constituent parts.
The music of Gog, while on the surface, perhaps seemingly simple, minimal, abstract, is the sort of sound that requires deep listening, upon which, the guitars then reveal themselves as so much more than electronic tone generators, the long strands of feedback and the layers of dense billowy buzz, so much more than just texture and timbre. And while on past releases, the band hinted at something a bit more black, their occasionally blissed out ambience drifting into darker and darker greys, on Mist From The Random More, the band have fully committed, creating what for them is a haunting otherworldly black metal suite, a droned out, blissed out, buzz drenched, almost static expanse of smoldering grimness, shot through with glimmering glistening effulgence, a bit like wrapping a black gauze around an exploding sun, the results, again, transcendent.
The record begins with a gorgeous, slow burning bit of guitar drone, that owes more to the kosmiche sounds of krautdrone than the downtuned glacial fug of more doom-ed entities. These guitars soar and shimmer, warm gouts of feedback enfolded by deep rich sheets of coruscating soft focus heaviness, any other band would stretch this out to fill up a whole album, and rightfully so, we'd probably be gushing just as much if Gog chose to do the same thing, but these Sunroof-ian solar sonics are only part of Gog's grand vision for Mist From The Random More.
The title track, taking up the bulk of the record, finds Gog fully immersing themselves in black metal, or at least their (very) loose approximation of what black metal is, or could be. The sound is grim, and frosty, but only in the sense that it reflects much of the black metal that came before, in every other way, it's anything but, the guitars glow, the riffs are fluid, organic, wrapped in a soft burnished buzz, that reminds us a bit of Jesu or Nadja, but the arrangement is more Necks. In fact, a shorthand descriptor might be "a black metal Necks", which if you're anything like us, would be all it would take. Simple skittery minimal drumming, almost looped sounding if it weren't so abstract, beneath a roiling cloud of layered guitars, grinding and whirring and hissing, and within that cloud, some gorgeously melancholic low end melodies, difficult to describe the strange blend of loveliness and heaviness, but there it is, a distinctly lovely heaviness, washed out and blurry, and hypnotic and epic and melodic, within this seemingly static structure, the sound swings and slips through various incarnations, moving from total blurred buzz, to a more slowcore lope, always wreathed in swirling clouds of blackened shimmer, until the end, when the track explodes in climax of effects drenched psychedelic churn.
The closing track offers a chance to decompress, a strange assemblage of soothing tones, shot through with streaks of feedback, very cool and clinical, almost a Raster-Noton sort of sound, there's a brief burst of super distorted crumbling sonic chaos, almost Merzbowian in its intensity, transforming into a haunting post industrial doomscape, before again returning to the relative tranquility of the first few minutes, eventually leaving just a single upper register tone, which also finally fades into the shadows.
Another fantastic record from Utech (after a whole mess of incredible releases, including last list's Aluk Todolo Record Of The Week), gorgeous packaging, an abstract skull, rendered in some kind of white dust (cocaine?), on a spare black background, a gatefold with printed liner notes inside, and yes, probably limited...
MPEG Stream: "Night Zoe"
MPEG Stream: "Mist From The Random More"

LOOP World In Your Eyes (Reactor) 3cd 22.00
Finally!! Ever since the first two Loop records got the deluxe multidisc reissue treatment, we've been anxiously awaiting the last two, their final record A Gilded Eternity, and this one right here, many folks around here's favorite, a compilation of 12"s called World In Your Eyes. Originally released in 1987, the updated World In Your Eyes, is even better, a TRIPLE disc collection of 12"s, 7"s, bonus tracks, unreleased tracks, demos, and covers.
Seemingly always (unfairly) overshadowed by their sonic brethren the Spacemen 3, Loop managed to give the drugged out drone rock thing their own distinct spin, infusing some serious krautrock mesmer and some metallic muscle into their slow burning drones and effects drenched psychrock workouts. Slipping easily from super dreamy one riff blown out hypno rock, to in-the-red space garage pound, to hushed soft focus inner space drift, Loop were masters of modern psychedelia.
Take the 10 minute drug drift of "Burning World", with its processed guitar chug, the swirling clouds of effects, the blooping bass, the motorik drums, like the perfect mix of Can and Hawkwind. Or "Brittle Head Girl", which sounded like a spacier more tripped out Galaxie 500, its lazy drawled vocals, and woozy guitar hook, and that irresistible bassline. Or "I'll Take You There", a super fuzzed out bit of garage-y space groove, the band easily out spacing the Spacemen themselves. We could probably go track by track, every one here is a gem, and the extras! Holy shit. Where to start? Besides a plethora of demos, live tracks and the like, this collection also includes some incredible covers, A spaced out version of a Pop Group track, Neil Young's "Cinammon Girl", Nick Drake's "Pink Moon" and Can's "Mother Sky (which Andee sez is better than the original, yeah we know, we know). Then there's the Arc-Lite 12" that takes up the first half of the third disc, one of our favorite Loop eps, and the track "Arc-Lite (Sonar)" is one of the best Loop jams ever, with its relentless riffing, it's strange flurries of tribal drumming, the echo drenched vox and the swooping streaks of effects, a 4 minute song that could easily have been ten times that. The song is reimagined as the "(Radar)" version, getting sort of supercharged, heavier and fleshier, less spare and skeletal and jangly than the original. There's a third version still, that gets all remixed into something less space rocky and more tripped out and dizzying. Let's not forget the ten minute "Sunburst", a sprawling bit of lysergic minimal krautdrone, woozy and druggy and slow burning. There's also the legendary live Prisma Europa Live 12", and finally, to top it all off, Loop's Godflesh cover, from their Loopflesh split 7", where each band covered the other, one of our Holy Grail 7"s, if anyone out there has one they can part with, we will be forever in your debt, and of course it's a killer, Godflesh's "Like Rats" transformed into something much spacier but no less menacing, in fact, it's most definitely the heaviest meanest slab of Loop-age ever, while still retaining plenty of that Loop-ed FX drenched shimmer. So goddamn GREAT.
These reissues have been shuffling tracks around enough to cause a little confusion, as some of the tracks on the original issue of WIYE are left off here, but are tacked on elsewhere on the other reissues, and disc 3 here seems like it could have been included on the Gilded Eternity disc as this disc highlights one of our favorite Loop tracks, the above mentioned Arc-Light, originally a 1989 single, which was lumped onto the cd edition of A Gilded Eternity which came out a year later in 1990. But who really cares, as long as it's all here, and it's ALL here, and then some. Space rock and drone rock and psychedelic rock fanatics should buy all four, one of the most supremely transcendent and kick ass bodies of work in rock. Hyperbole? We think NOT.
Killer packaging, three paper sleeves with various reproductions of the included 12"s, all housed in a slipcover, with a booklet that includes track listings credits, but sadly, not much in the way of liner notes.
MPEG Stream: "Head On"
MPEG Stream: "Burning World"
MPEG Stream: "Mother Sky"
MPEG Stream: "Pink Moon"
MPEG Stream: "Cinnamon Girl"
MPEG Stream: "Arc-Lite (Sonar)"

LOOP A Gilded Eternity (Reactor) 2cd 16.98
The final two installments in the long overdue comprehensive Loop reissue campaign are finally here. World In Your Eyes, the newly expanded 12" collection, reviewed elsewhere on this week's list, and this right here, the final proper Loop album, A Gilded Eternity.
Contemporaries of legendary drug rockers Spacemen 3, Loop took the same sonic influences but rocked a little harder, opting out of the extended soporific drifts the defined the Spacemen, (although they were perfectly capable of blissing out with the best of them) and instead creating looped, krautrock spacejams, that were downright heavy, as well as being space-y, druggy and surprisingly catchy. Guitars were fuzzed out, vocals way down in the mix, reverb and delay EVERYWHERE, riffs often processed into stuttering textures and looped rhythms, the drums alternatingly motorik and skeletal, and pounding and explosive, all wreathed in a glorious otherworldly haze.
A Gilded Eternity, their final record, originally released in 1990, might just be their heaviest and most rocking yet, definitely their tightest, album opener "Vapour" has one of those riffs TO DIE FOR, the main melody is so completely catchy, the song a woozy, repetitive chunk of gloriously propulsive dronerock, less space-y than much of what came before, but definitely more rocking and relentless. the next track "Afterglow" pushes that new heaviness even further, sounding not unlike Swervedriver, big crunchy distorted guitars, pounding tribal drumming, the arrangement a lurching start stop, that slips into cool washed out breakdowns, before exploding right back into the stuttery groove. And so it goes, the band unfurling their masterwork, in a career of masterful works, "Blood" is total abstract minimal krautrock, the guitars stripped away, leaving just a super spare drum part, wrapped all up in processed vocals and swirling effects, another jam that easily could have gone on for 10 more minutes. But then just like that, the band slip back into "Breath Into Me", whipping up another killer riff, the track a looped space garage groove that rivals record opener "Vapour". The record proper ends with the nearly 10 minute "Be Here Now", the Loop version of a slow jam, beginning with some strange processed guitar, the band ease into a languorous groove that drifts druggily through soft focus clouds of lysergic buzz, brief squalls of wild wah guitar, but remaining locked and looped, the weary vocals drifting above the warm endless buzz.
A Guilded Eternity comes with a bonus disc as well, perhaps the least critical of the bonus material, considering it contains 5 demo tracks and 3 Peel Sessions, BUT, it also includes the Loop track "Shot With A Diamond", which happens to be Jim's favorite Loop track alongside "Arc-Light." This track provides the perfect sonic segue between Loop and the sounds guitarist Robert Hampson would later explore with his post Loop solo project Main, an ominous bit of electronic sample laced dronemusic, creepy and haunting and so fucking awesome. Previously only available as a 7" single, and as a bonus track on the original cassette version. Essential!
In fact, all four of these Loop reissues are absolutely required listening for anyone with even the mildest interest in sounds space-y, druggy, metallic and psychedelic!!!
MPEG Stream: "Vapour"
MPEG Stream: "Afterglow"
MPEG Stream: "Be Here Now"
MPEG Stream: "Shot With A Diamond"

ONNA s/t (Holy Mountain) cd 14.98
Tons of folks were sufficiently wowed by Onna's lone 1983 7", thankfully reissued from oblivion and drooled over a few lists back. There was just something about Onna, we couldn't quite put our finger on it, but that record was just so mysterious, a completely mesmerizing slice of lost history. Out of nowhere came this highly evocative work of melancholy psych rock with pulsing drum machines and floating Japanese vocals, sounding like nothing else you might hear from 1983, or 2009 for that matter. Adding to the confusion was almost zero information about Onna, leading listeners to make their conclusions free from any tangible facts. That changes with the arrival of this mindblowing 10 song retrospective, but just barely.
Included are the two tracks from the 7", with an additional song from the same sessions, some live material featuring the guitar skills of a very young Michio Kurihara (White Heaven/Ghost, frequent Boris collaborator), as well as outtakes plus one song from the album Katawa, recorded in 2007.
Though we were relying on the minimal information found on the 7" when we reviewed it, and listed the group as a duo, Onna was in fact the brainchild of Keizo Miyanishi, a noted Japanese Manga artist who also held a highly iconoclastic outlook on rock music, influenced by the usual suspects like the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and the New York Dolls. Even then, these groups only serve as the most basic starting point for Onna's sound, and Miyanishi's detached yet somewhat nihilistic liner notes lead to more questions than answers. Said notes include awesomely vague anecdotes like "[The tour] was packed with enough incidents; nothing was easy. Enough weird shit happened to fill a book. . . I will say that around the time we returned, I received aggressively threatening telephone messages," (with none of these things actually described), and "It was around this period that I began to lose my concept of time." Hey, we'll take it, as timelessness certainly applies to Onna's musical approach.
For folks without turntables, or anyone who missed our review of the 7" or anyone who just happens to want the cd version as well as the vinyl, the two tracks from the 7" are worth the price of admission alone. The most obvious point of reference soundwise would be legendary psych/noise enigma Les Rallizes Denudes, especially in the vocal department. This is a very good thing for anyone who loves those somewhat lazy, partially detached, Japanese sung vocals of groups like LRD and LSD-March. The use of a drum machine keeps these songs pulsing like a mechanical heartbeat, which when combined with the fairly free form guitars, definitely gives this record its own vibe. The first track begins with a meditative two chord lament before noisy, white hot guitar squalls begin creeping about in the distance as simple and repetitive bass lines keep the foundation strong and focused. The second track introduces catchy psych guitar chords with a machine modified quasi girl group drumbeat, the bass again holding things down nice and steady. The heavily reverberated strummed guitars bubble about as fake cymbal explosions recede and return over and over again, until the prolonged fade to black.
"Were You To Become A Mother", the 7" outtake, flows pretty similarly to the other songs from that session. It is certainly just as awesome, with warm bass and a super bouncy drum machine which works in perfect contrast to the somewhat ominous nature of the melody. Above it all are Miyanishi's mournful vocals, which give the impression of being lost in the darkness of the song itself.
Next up are the outtakes from Katawa. Oddly enough, the liner notes are dated to 1999, ending with the seemingly definitive proclamation that "Onna lies here, dead." But as mentioned earlier, Katawa dates to 2007, and with three songs appearing from that time, you are confusingly forced to reevaluate everything you just read and wonder what the current status is on Onna. Anyway, enough rambling, you all really want to know what these songs sound like... Strangely enough, not much like the single in any way. The honest truth is that liking the 7" may not necessarily mean you will go crazy over the rest of this stuff. It is difficult listening, but in the most rewarding way. First off, there is no drum machine; there are no drums at all. In place of the scorching fuzz guitar on the single are percussively strummed acoustic guitars, sometimes kind of folky, sometimes bluesier. Miyanishi's voice is noticeably deeper, sounding weathered and more vulnerable after 24 more years of living. The unifying thread between these songs and the single is their overwhelming sadness, but in place of the drum machine's mechanical precision is Miyanishi's internalized sense of rhythm. Unlike the ever present density on the 7", these songs are able to convey a sense of loneliness and pain through all the open space on the recording. Strangest off all, however, is how hypnotic they manage to be. As crazy as it may sound, the result is similar to that of a drone record, not in your typical way with sustained electric guitars screaming through tons of amplification, but more so in its focus and repetition. It is hardly the kind of music you'll want to play at your next keg bash, but what the songs lack in accessibility and structure, they more than make up for in genuine emotion.
Like the 7", the live tracks also date to 1983, but they are also drum-free and super minimalist. There is a weird hum that may come from the recording, or possibly from the room itself. Either way, it works its way into the songs just like the instruments, adding a nice creepy atmosphere to the proceedings. Discordant slide guitars and piano are accompanied by heavily sustained fuzz guitar, as Miyanishi delivers another wrenching vocal performance. At various points, as Kurihara whips up squalls of feedback-laden psych guitar, you assume the plucked acoustic guitars will be overtaken by noise, but Miyanishi keeps his focus and never falters from the tone he sets. After the final live track, there is some sparse and uncomfortable clapping, then silence, as the audience was no doubt wondering what the hell they just witnessed. You might even react the same way.
Accompanying the album are a few photos of the androgynous looking band members and some examples of Miyanishi's astounding, grotesquely erotic art. These images seem just as integral to Onna as their music, but unless you speak Japanese, you will probably be left scratching your head. There is no doubt that Onna created some challenging music, but what you get out of this album depends on how much you are willing to put into the listening experience. There may be no easy answers, but some things are better left as is, and in the end Onna's music is powerful enough to live on, in spite of its obscurity.
MPEG Stream: "Cortigiana Dal Velo"
MPEG Stream: "Were You To Become A Mother"
MPEG Stream: "The Swan Song"
MPEG Stream: "Salamandra, Salander (The Three Sisters)"

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AA Essential Entertainment (Softspot Music) 7" 7.98
Debut release from this New York label and it's a doozy. A long lost post punk gem from Belgium. The band is called AA, and this, their first and only record, was originally released in 1981 and even then was limited to 900 copies. The second we heard "Suicide Fever" we knew we had to get this. More on that track in a second.
Taking cues from their contemporaries, Joy Division, the Fall, Wire, and of course their labelmates Cultural Amnesia (whose reissue we reviewed her recently), the sound is total stripped down, minimal raw new wave post puck rock, jagged chiming guitars, simple motorik drumming, thick buzzing bloopy basslines, and weary heavily accented sung/spoken vocals. Simple effects warp the sound, delay, flange, reverb, echo, each track is short and sharp, one part, MAYBE two, the melodies super catchy, the songs totally mesmerizing, groovy and coldly Teutonic, but always with some strange but of melodic warmth just below the surface.
"Suicide Fever" is the jam though, sounding a little like a less sludgey, more new wave Brainbombs! Total minimal punk pop genius, with a super haunting and hooky main melody and guitar line, those vocals way up in the mix, the lyrics nihilistic and grim, delivered so jadedly, while the bass and drums are locked solid, and the guitars ring out, soaring and chiming, so great. Most definitely the 7" reissue of the year!
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES. Each one hand numbered.

AAVIKKO Novo Atlantic (Stupido) cd 17.98
Electronic. Muysic. Finland. When we see those three words, which appear in small type on the top right corner of the cover to this album, we get pretty excited. Even when Music is spelled Muysic. ESPECIALLY when it's spelled like that. 'Cause that's means it's an Aavikko album. The mostly instrumental Finnish synthesizer/synthesizer/drums trio's new disc, Novo Atlantis, is finally here! Now, each album of theirs has always been a little bit different, but we've always loved Aavikko, from their early "maniacal monkey jazz" days as a lo-fi Casiocore band circa 1997's Derek to their more recent and polished productions of space age bachelor pad exotica like 2005's Back From The Futer.
So what's in store for listeners on Novo Atlantis? Initially we were struck by this album's even MORE electronic sound, taking Aavikko into techno-disco territory, more computery, less live band sounding. Though human metronome Tomi Leppanen (also the drummer for AQ faves Circle) is still behind the drum kit, there's plenty of purely electronic beats and rhythms on here it seems. Yet at the same time, this album also features French horn, trombone, trumpet, tuba, and even church pipe organ!! So while on one had it's all very futuristic (in a spaced out cosmic disco way), this also takes inspiration from way way back, the pre-electronic, classical music era in fact. You could call Novo Atlantis the "switched-on Bach" version of Aavikko, or more precisely, "switched-on Hoppel", Egil Hoppel allegedly being an obscure Finnish composer of the baroque period, discussed in the sleeve notes of Novo Atlantis. Supposedly he was some sort of child prodigy (he only lived 1722-1737!), an organist whose music has apparently become a major influence on Aavikko's new direction. We say allegedly and supposedly since we halfway suspect they made him him up, that he's a hoax much like those "funerary violin" fellows. Probably some quick Googling would resolve the question, but we prefer not to know for sure. If Aavikko invented him, they certainly were thorough about it - there are two purported Hoppel compositions included on the cd format as a hidden bonus track (we won't tell you how to find it, but check out our review of the most recent Agoraphobic Nosebleed disc for a clue!). And having heard those, it does seem like you can hear Hoppel's purported influence right in this disc's very first track, "Syntaksis", which definitely has an Aavikko goes classical feel, like a lot of the stuff here having shades of the "classically trained" approach of all those Moog-laden '70s prog keyboard bands a la ELP and krautrockers Novalis... But don't let that make you think this is somehow stuffy, over-serious or highbrow or whatever, nope not at all, far from it as any Aavikko fan would guess. While it's got its moody moments, most of Novo Atlantis is percolating, infectious electronic fun. Super groovy, quirky, krauty - in the Kraftwerk, Giorgio Moroder sense of krauty.
The album ends with what must be Aavikko's longest track ever, the 15 minutes of "Novo Atlantis II". Wow, quite an epic, with echoes of Joe Meek's "Telstar" in its melodies, and long mesmeric burbling sequencer trance-outs, something like early '80s Tangerine Dream, Wolfgang Duren, or Zombi's "Sapphire". A Lindstrom remix seems to be in order, where is it? Certainly Aavikko's new album fits nicely into the current disco craze. It also goes well with our obsession with skweee, too. Electronic muysic Finland, hooray!
MPEG Stream: "Syntaksis"
MPEG Stream: "Dies Irae Discodelico"
MPEG Stream: "Novo Atlantis II"

AAVIKKO Novo Atlantic (Stupido) lp 17.98
Electronic. Muysic. Finland. When we see those three words, which appear in small type on the top right corner of the cover to this album, we get pretty excited. Even when Music is spelled Muysic. ESPECIALLY when it's spelled like that. 'Cause that's means it's an Aavikko album. The mostly instrumental Finnish synthesizer/synthesizer/drums trio's new disc, Novo Atlantis, is finally here! Now, each album of theirs has always been a little bit different, but we've always loved Aavikko, from their early "maniacal monkey jazz" days as a lo-fi Casiocore band circa 1997's Derek to their more recent and polished productions of space age bachelor pad exotica like 2005's Back From The Futer.
So what's in store for listeners on Novo Atlantis? Initially we were struck by this album's even MORE electronic sound, taking Aavikko into techno-disco territory, more computery, less live band sounding. Though human metronome Tomi Leppanen (also the drummer for AQ faves Circle) is still behind the drum kit, there's plenty of purely electronic beats and rhythms on here it seems. Yet at the same time, this album also features French horn, trombone, trumpet, tuba, and even church pipe organ!! So while on one had it's all very futuristic (in a spaced out cosmic disco way), this also takes inspiration from way way back, the pre-electronic, classical music era in fact. You could call Novo Atlantis the "switched-on Bach" version of Aavikko, or more precisely, "switched-on Hoppel", Egil Hoppel allegedly being an obscure Finnish composer of the baroque period, discussed in the sleeve notes of Novo Atlantis. Supposedly he was some sort of child prodigy (he only lived 1722-1737!), an organist whose music has apparently become a major influence on Aavikko's new direction. We say allegedly and supposedly since we halfway suspect they made him him up, that he's a hoax much like those "funerary violin" fellows. Probably some quick Googling would resolve the question, but we prefer not to know for sure. If Aavikko invented him, they certainly were thorough about it - there are two purported Hoppel compositions included on the cd format as a hidden bonus track (we won't tell you how to find it, but check out our review of the most recent Agoraphobic Nosebleed disc for a clue!). And having heard those, it does seem like you can hear Hoppel's purported influence right in this disc's very first track, "Syntaksis", which definitely has an Aavikko goes classical feel, like a lot of the stuff here having shades of the "classically trained" approach of all those Moog-laden '70s prog keyboard bands a la ELP and krautrockers Novalis... But don't let that make you think this is somehow stuffy, over-serious or highbrow or whatever, nope not at all, far from it as any Aavikko fan would guess. While it's got its moody moments, most of Novo Atlantis is percolating, infectious electronic fun. Super groovy, quirky, krauty - in the Kraftwerk, Giorgio Moroder sense of krauty.
The album ends with what must be Aavikko's longest track ever, the 15 minutes of "Novo Atlantis II". Wow, quite an epic, with echoes of Joe Meek's "Telstar" in its melodies, and long mesmeric burbling sequencer trance-outs, something like early '80s Tangerine Dream, Wolfgang Duren, or Zombi's "Sapphire". A Lindstrom remix seems to be in order, where is it? Certainly Aavikko's new album fits nicely into the current disco craze. It also goes well with our obsession with skweee, too. Electronic muysic Finland, hooray!
MPEG Stream: "Syntaksis"
MPEG Stream: "Dies Irae Discodelico"
MPEG Stream: "Novo Atlantis II"

ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI 6 Loverboy (Cooler Cat Records) 2lp 17.98
Recorded back in 2001-2002, Loverboy was originally released as a bonus second disc with the first pressing of the House Arrest album. Later pressings did not include this record, and led many folks to freak out and obsess and do everything in their power to track it down!
So it should come as a delight to outsider pop lovers and Ariel Pink fans everywhere to discover that Loverboy is finally getting a proper release, as a super deluxe double lp. It's the one Ariel Pink record that features the most musical input from his buddy and bigtime AQ favorite John Maus, who co-wrote a few of the tracks and whose instantly recognizable deep croon can be heard on a few other tracks as well. AP also gives a much deserved nod to one of his idols, R. Stevie Moore, kicking out a cover of "Hobbies Galore", and on top of all that, it's also the record where we first got a sneak peak what would become the Holy Shit record that AP would make with Matt Fishbeck, as the track "I Don't Need Enemies" from that record first appeared here.
Like a boy-man running wild in a bedroom filled with demons and a busted 4-track, Loverboy is that boy-man's warped take on AM radio if it was programmed by drugged out visionaries from another planet. Loverboy has some of our favorite Ariel Pink songs to date, and definitely displays AP's range, from the absurd to the profound, hinting at his true potential. Like most Ariel Pink vinyl we're never sure how long these will stay in print, so best act fast if you want to get one of these for your collection.

ATAVIST II: Ruined (Aurora Borealis) 2lp 22.00
NOW AVAILABLE ON VINYL!!
Oh, the misery! Vying with the likes of Moss and Marzuraan for the title of Sludge Lords of England, Atavist offer up their second full-length (hence the title), following a split with Nadja not long ago. But Atavist are a complex beast with a tortured soul that in some ways is really less about sludge than it is about sheer sadness, opting for beauty over brutality much of the time.
Drums echo. Acoustic guitars weep. And then the walls of doom-drone (droom?) riffage come closing in, crashing down. But although there's heaviness galore, with gruff vokills raging, the gentle side to Atavist is nakedly displayed here too. Tranquil, haunting, Atavist possess almost a campfire drone post rockishness that curdles Khanate-like when the heaviness is let loose. All seven tracks, together something of a continuous emotional breakdown, demonstrate definite extreme mood swings, all of 'em melancholy and majestic, some of 'em massively metal. Actually it's a six-part dirge, plus a bonus track at the end, appropriately enough a cover of "I Hate The Human Race" originally by Boston sludge merchants Grief.
For fans of both Mogwai and Asunder for sure. So good.
MPEG Stream: "II"
MPEG Stream: "VI"

BLANK DOGS Under And Under (In The Red) 2lp 15.98
Finally available on vinyl!
Fuck YES! One of the most unstoppable and prolific projects in recent memory returns with full length #2... we think. Regardless, after a slew of limited run eps and singles, we were curious to see if Blank Dogs could handle the full length format as well as they - sorry, HE - did with the awesome On Two Sides lp a while back. It seems like some people were expecting Blank Dogs to crack under the pressure of increased exposure or in the face of a fiery hipster backlash. Well, we are happy to report that Under And Under more than ably delivers on all of the initial promise, another winner loaded with classic Blank Dogs and one of the most thrilling releases we have heard this year. It's pretty insane to think that someone could just keep churning this stuff out at such a rate with continually awesome results, but Blank Dogs sound as confident, or at least as melancholy, catchy, and propulsive as ever here. In terms of the actual sound, things haven't changed that much, which we consider a very good thing. The fidelity is maybe slightly higher, but just barely. The songs are a little tighter and more suited to a full length rather than an ep, making this one that will undoubtedly bring out more with repeated focused listens. But overall, this is just more of what we have loved since we came across Blank Dogs, with wandering bass lines, reverberated drum machines, super melodic single note guitar leads, and that awesome monotone voice all here in spades. In the end, Under And Under is a sure indicator that when it comes to actual songcraft, the man behind this project is clearly a cut above most others doing the lo-fi garage thing.
It's pretty accurate to mention bands like Joy Division and the Cure when describing this, but the more poppy numbers seem to follow a more Buzzcocksian approach while the transitions to the anthemic choruses are just classic pop. Some of these songs sound like fractured love songs, all warbly with upbeat guitar leads and weird spooky keyboards. They may be for all we know, though lyrical clarity has never really been an issue for Blank Dogs, the voice de-emphasized within the throbbing lo-fi recording almost like another instrument itself. These songs provide a nice contrast to the more menacing numbers, like the acknowledged hit (around these parts anyway) "Setting Fire To Your House" with its ominous bass and distinctive organ lead. Lo-fi but dense, Blank Dogs still sound like a lost Factory Records band being transmitted from some far away galaxy, but the whole album exudes a beautiful dreaminess that just can't be denied. There appears to be no end in sight for Blank Dogs, and we aren't complaining one bit.
MPEG Stream: "No Compass"
MPEG Stream: "L Machine"
MPEG Stream: "Setting Fire To Your House"
MPEG Stream: "Tin Birds"

BOSNIA Nazarene Hallucinations (Paradigms) cd 12.98
Paradigms continues to expand their sonic scope, while continuing to champion awesome and obscure heaviness. A look at past Paradigms releases reads like a list of aQ faves: The Angelic Process, Decrepit Spectre, Fog In The Shell, Gnaw Their Tongues, Hjarnidaudi, Wraiths, Woburn House, Ondo, Titan, Throne Of Katarsis, Utlagr and more, and the oddly monickered Bosnia fit right in. Hailing from Denver Colorado, this trio specialize in filthy, downtuned blackened doom crust, equal parts, Neurosis, His Hero Is Gone and other purveyors of gritty doomic filth, but these guys also inject some serious blackness into their crush and pummel. Woozy clean guitar parts wrap around tribal drumming, before launching into a lurching sprawl of blown out doom-ed black buzz, the vocals a monstrous guttural howl, the arrangements complex and a bit mathy, with stretches of lumbering chug bookending chunks of funereal slow motion crawl, leading straight into awesomely tangled obtuse melodic breakdowns, before exploding into raw feral bursts of punkish blackened pound.
Bosnia might be a bit too punk for the more troo grim metal hordes, but folks who dig shit like Kylesa, Baroness, Minsk, Damad and even sludgier shit like Eyehategod and the like, will probably dig this BIG time.
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES!
MPEG Stream: "A Flood"
MPEG Stream: "Assemblies Of God"

BRAINBOMBS Fucking Mess (Lystring) lp 22.00
We listed this once before, with a short sharp bit of effusive encouragement, recommending that EVERYONE try to get their hands on this new one from these legendary Swedish garage sludge filth mongers, but at the time we only had a handful and it was already out of print. Well, it got repressed again, still WAY too limited, we got more than we did before, but even then, not nearly enough. So fer chrissakes, grab one of these while you can, cuz Fucking Mess is A NEW FUCKING BRAINBOMBS RECORD!! And of course it rules. Heavy and droney and hypnotic and dirgey and AMAZING. Some impossible mix of lurching murky doom and pounding hypnotic garage stomp, the vocals weary and buried in the mix, weird horns lacing the abject miserablism of these sub-Stooges one riff jams, mesmerizingly brutal, and so fucking awesome. A Fucking Mess indeed, like a particularly grisly crime scene, every track here is a harrowing sonic journey through some seedy filth encrusted punk rock underworld, nasty and savage and brutish and heavy and groovy in some dementedly ungroovy way. Check the various other Brainbombs reviews on the aQ site for more gushing, they are after all one of our favorite bands. Needless to say, fans NEED this, newbies will be instantly converted, now we're just crossing our fingers for a cd version...

BULL, SANDY E Pluribus Unum (Sutro Park) lp 16.98
It's great to see these first three essential Sandy Bull lps on Vanguard finally get reissued, as his influence has been felt more and more lately. You can hear Bull's pluralistic presence especially in Sir Richard Bishop, as Bull was among the first key guitar players, along with the UK's Davy Graham, to combine styles and ideas from Middle Eastern, classical, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, chamber music and Appalachian folk sources. Yet Bull wasn't a purist, often pushing and pulling these wide-ranging ideas across instruments both acoustic and electric in ways that searched for the interior truth of the material. These were best expressed in his side-long excursionary tracks called "Blends" accompanied by jazz drummer Billy Higgins. Sadly, Bull had a short-lived career plagued by drug problems and illness, but these records are solid proof of his pioneering role in the solo-guitar genre.
There's even a documentary playing in San Francisco soon made by his daughter, K. C. Bull, that folks should definitely check out!
E Pluribus Unum from 1968 is the most experimental of Bull's recordings and perhaps our favorite. Comprised of two side-long tracks, "No Deposit, No Return Blues" and "Electric Blend" this is Bull's full on electric raga record. Using electric guitar and oud through vibrant tremolo effects, as well as Middle Eastern percussion and finger cymbals, Bull explores some psychedelic Bo Diddley territory channeled through the exotic mystique of Hamza El Din. Similar in vein to what was performed in the recently released live recording from 1969, Still Valentine's Day, time has been good to this recording as it sounds like something far more contemporary than its original critics gave it credit for. Perhaps its abandonment of classical sources and acoustic instruments in favor of more populist and drug friendly musical territory turned the more academically-minded musical purists off. And those druggy influences DID send Bull on a path he was never to return from, only recording one more full album after this one. Yet this record, like no other, captured his furthest exhilarating push into the depths of his musical being before he lost himself for good. Highest recommendation!

BULL, SANDY Fantasias (Sutro Park) lp 16.98
It's great to see these first three essential Sandy Bull lps on Vanguard finally get reissued, as his influence has been felt more and more lately. You can hear Bull's pluralistic presence especially in Sir Richard Bishop, as Bull was among the first key guitar players, along with the UK's Davy Graham, to combine styles and ideas from Middle Eastern, classical, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, chamber music and Appalachian folk sources. Yet Bull wasn't a purist, often pushing and pulling these wide-ranging ideas across instruments both acoustic and electric in ways that searched for the interior truth of the material. These were best expressed in his side-long excursionary tracks called "Blends" accompanied by jazz drummer Billy Higgins. Sadly, Bull had a short-lived career plagued by drug problems and illness, but these records are solid proof of his pioneering role in the solo-guitar genre.
There's even a documentary playing in San Francisco soon made by his daughter, K. C. Bull, that folks should definitely check out!
Fantasias (for guitar and banjo) was originally released in 1963, a year before John Fahey's debut turn on uncanny Americana, Blind Joe Death. It's often stuffed in the drawer behind Fahey's dirty socks though, such as it is that over the years, Fahey has taken a larger chunk of real estate in the guitar soli zeitgeist. But if Bull were to be compared with anyone, his playing style is much more influenced by Pete Seeger. Banjo was Sandy's first instrument and it was with a banjo that he first made an impression on the public as a precocious college freshman. Bull freely admits Seeger as being a mentor of his, and his "Carmina Burana Fantasy" is certainly inspired by Seeger's arrangements of classical pieces that were included on his "Goofing Off Suite" LP (released in 1955). But influenced or no, Bull had his own unique style and both his original compositions and arrangements of existing works are as good as much of the works of either Fahey or Seeger. "Blend", the first track which takes up all of side one (22 minutes), is a beautiful Sudanese-esque duet between Sandy on an open tuned guitar with jazz drummer Billy Higgins accompanying. A track that would make the Sun City Girls blush, "Blend", alternates between dark and slow musings from Bull to intense repartee between Bull and Higgins. Higgins does an excellent job of filling in, and avoids breaking the aesthetic by playing sans snare. The remaining four tracks on the album are all solo banjo and or guitar. Along with the aforementioned "Carmina Burana Fantasy", Bull pulls off a nice overdubbed arrangement of English Renaissance composer William Byrd's "Non Nobis Domine" on guitar, a rousing rendition of Appalachian folk ballad "Little Maggie" on banjo and a final piece simply entitled "Gospel Tune" played on a tremelo laden electric guitar.

BULL, SANDY Inventions (Sutro Park) lp 16.98
It's great to see these first three essential Sandy Bull lps on Vanguard finally get reissued, as his influence has been felt more and more lately. You can hear Bull's pluralistic presence especially in Sir Richard Bishop, as Bull was among the first key guitar players, along with the UK's Davy Graham, to combine styles and ideas from Middle Eastern, classical, jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, chamber music and Appalachian folk sources. Yet Bull wasn't a purist, often pushing and pulling these wide-ranging ideas across instruments both acoustic and electric in ways that searched for the interior truth of the material. These were best expressed in his side-long excursionary tracks called "Blends" accompanied by jazz drummer Billy Higgins. Sadly, Bull had a short-lived career plagued by drug problems and illness, but these records are solid proof of his pioneering role in the solo-guitar genre.
There's even a documentary playing in San Francisco soon made by his daughter, K. C. Bull, that folks should definitely check out!
Inventions (for guitar, banjo, oud, electric guitar and electric bass) from 1965 is considered to be Bull's best record as it fully covers his wide-ranging tenacity in interpretation and composition. Beginning with "Blend II", another side-long composition accompanied by Billy Higgins, the playing is born of a dark mystique, carving out bits from free jazz melodic motifs, and early-American folk tunes to Lebanese music and North African popular songs. The interplay between Higgins and Bull is more complex than the first "Blend" on Fantasias, with Higgins' standing on his own as a performer rather than a mere accompaniment. Side one ends with a short electric version of Bach's "Gavotte No. 2", which is repeated in a longer acoustic form at the beginning of side 2. The interpretation of Luiz Bonfa's Brazilian classic, "Manha de Carnaval" shows Bull experimenting with multi-tracking as he plays acoustic guitar, bass and oud. Here, Bruce Langhorne and Hamza El Din display their guiding hands on Bull's playing as Langhorne taught Bull the song, and El Din, the oud itself. "Triple Ballade" is a piece by renaissance composer Guillaume de Machaut, a gothic chamber piece performed with guitar, banjo and oud, while the final piece is Chuck Berry's "Memphis, Tennesee" a tremelo-laden rocker with Billy Higgins again on drums that sets the stage for the full on raga blues of Bull's third record, E Pluribus Unum!

BURIAL HEX / ZOLA JESUS split (Aurora Borealis) lp 21.00
A new installment of "oppressive necro electronics" from Burial Hex, aka Clay Ruby, who when not whipping up these abject clouds of filthy black ambience, spends his time rocking out psychedelically in Jex Thoth, getting filthy metal in Wormsblood, and creating all manner of folky weirdness in Davenport (besides running the kick ass Skulls Of Heaven label).
But Burial Hex is so far removed from Ruby's other combos, they barely warrant mentioning. Burial Hex is the sound of some ancient black ritual, some sick sonik sorcery, where, guitars wind around electronics, and are all smeared into thick heaving slabs of doomdronedirge. The first of two tracks here however sounds bit different that what we're used to, introducing vocals, a howled feral wail, that ends up making this sound like some post industrial blackened Oxbow, minimal guitar strum, bursts of static, fragments of electronic skitter, creepy and atmospheric but super ethereal and hauntingly tense.
The second track returns to more familiar territory, a long sprawling slow motion doomscape, downtuned guitars draped over fractured electronics, bits of shuffling minimal percussion, warm whirring church organs, samples and found sounds, all very mysterious, subtly folky, damaged and abstract, and very very cinematic.
Never heard of Zola Jesus before, but they're a good match for Burial Hex, countering with their own sort of blackened soundscapery. A softly whirling cloud of glitched out electronics, disembodied vocals, almost choral sounding, swirling swooping effects, shards of new wave-y synth, eventually transforming into a nightmarish industrial creep, doused in more effects, all wrapped in thick billowy sheets of downtuned rumble, slipping from spaced out otherworldliness to grim, blackened, doom drenched dronemusick.
Pressed on super thick vinyl and housed in gorgeous matte sleeves, all the text printed in clear reflective ink.

CAINA s/t (Universal Tongue / Bubonic Productions) cd ep 12.98
Latest from this one man UK avant black metal outfit, whose Temporary Antennae record on Profound Lore we raved about a while back, a four song ep that like Temporary Antennae, and most of the other Caina records, veers all over the place, taking seemingly disparate sounds and parts, and weaves them all together into something cohesive and compelling, mysterious and a bit bizarre.
The record opens with some sunshiney post rock, all warm sun dappled synths, simple drums, whooshing major key shimmer, epic and majestic and pretty, which only makes the second track that much more menacing, with it's overdriven crumbling guitars, its growled demonic vokills, its weird spaced out arrangement, more doom than black metal, until the song revs up and blasts blackly before slipping into something much more abstract, the vocals remain, but the music transformed into something more jangly and poppy, the sound once again shifting back toward something blown out and blissy, a soaring emotional coda that does not at all match the song's ominous beginning.
The third track is the most fucked up of the bunch, beginning with some plodding, weirdly melodic depressive black metal, before everything drops out leaving just the guitars, to unwind some folky fluttery melodies, over subtle bass throb, and warm synth swells, eventually dropping out completely, leaving just some sampled voices, which just so happen to be Jim Jones from the People's Temple recorded in Guyana, creepy and fucked up for sure, the music shifts to match, a lurching start stop that sounds a bit like the recent Funeral Mist.
The final track begins with some almost-cheesy Goblin-y soundtracky synth, laid over some simple shuffling drumming, spidery minor key guitar, post rocky and drifty and dreamy. About halfway through, some warped metallic chug gradually builds into a pounding math metal workout, again all very major key and epic sounding, gradually becoming less and less epic, as the sound shifts slowly toward a more raw and blasting blackness.
Cool stuff, definitely twisted and confusional, but we're beginning to think that's precisely why we dig Caina so much...
MPEG Stream: "Drilling The Spire"
MPEG Stream: "To Pluck The Night Up By Its Skin"

CORTES, LULA Rosa De Sangue (Time-Lag) cd 16.98
Lula Cortes will always be a big time AQ favorite for two reasons: the beautifully blissed out album he was involved with in the group Satwa, and the amazing record he made in 1975 with Ze Ramalho, Paebiru. That was an album that foreshadowed much of what would be heard in the underground music scene for decades to come and still sounds so mystical, mysterious and engaging all these years later. Rose De Sange is a 1980 album by Cortes that finds him in much more of a song based mood, but still displaying a healthy dose of weirdness and armed with a distinctly unique musical vision. There is a more prog-like feel to the sound of this record which also showcases his vocals way more then we heard on Paebiru. It's definitely an album that takes a few listens to really get into, but once you're in, it for sure holds up on its own, as opposed to constantly being compared Paebiru, because it's a much different beast, yet still filled with enough of its own magic to make it a worthy addition to any eclectic music lovers collection.
MPEG Stream: "Living Moon"
MPEG Stream: "Rose Of Blood"
MPEG Stream: "The Enemies"

CORTES, LULA Rosa De Sangue (Time Lag) lp 33.00
Lula Cortes will always be a big time AQ favorite for two reasons: the beautifully blissed out album he was involved with in the group Satwa, and the amazing record he made in 1975 with Ze Ramalho, Paebiru. That was an album that foreshadowed much of what would be heard in the underground music scene for decades to come and still sounds so mystical, mysterious and engaging all these years later. Rose De Sange is a 1980 album by Cortes that finds him in much more of a song based mood, but still displaying a healthy dose of weirdness and armed with a distinctly unique musical vision. There is a more prog-like feel to the sound of this record which also showcases his vocals way more then we heard on Paebiru. It's definitely an album that takes a few listens to really get into, but once you're in, it for sure holds up on its own, as opposed to constantly being compared Paebiru, because it's a much different beast, yet still filled with enough of its own magic to make it a worthy addition to any eclectic music lovers collection.
MPEG Stream: "Living Moon"
MPEG Stream: "Rose Of Blood"
MPEG Stream: "The Enemies"

COUGH Sigillum Luciferi (Forcefield / Electric Earth / Feast Of Tentacles) 2lp 30.00
Now At Last On Vinyl!!!
On first glance, you might assume this was a black metal record. The cover is all black, with intricate metallic silver inked designs, a strange pentagram like shape in the center, pentagrams on all four corners, there's even an upside down cross in the band logo. But then you realize the band is in fact called Cough. And that all around that strange pentagram like sigil in the center are the distinct shape of pot leaves.
Then the music starts with a solid 15 seconds of high end solid state feedback, before the band kicks in, and we are suddenly in druggy slow motion ultra stoner doom country, and we like it. In fact it's almost three minutes of nearly continuous Eyehategod style feedback, separated by the occasional crash of the band, before the song really kicks in, and then the band lock into a lurching druggy stoner groove, more Electric Wizard than Eyehategod, but still plenty of both. Clean vocals carry the melody, but harsh blackened shrieks pepper the landscape, the riffs huge churning downtuned black swells, about as slow as a band can get while remaining even slightly 'groovy'. And don't worry, throughout, the band pause now and again to unleash lightning bolts of high end feedback, before lurching back into action.
And so it goes. Six long songs, each blessed with a handful of kick ass riffery, oozing hate and distortion and filth and crust, the rhythms staggering from doomic plod, to druggy slither, to an almost rocking pound, the riffs slipping into Sabbath territory, but usually straying much further south. The band dabble here and there in tripped out space rock, getting a little psychedelic, the vocals wreathed in effects, the melodies crazy catchy, but no matter what, they thankfully never wander too far from their gloriously filthy fucked up drug drenched doom-ed sludge.
MPEG Stream: "Killing Fields"
MPEG Stream: "Lyssavirus"

DINOSAUR JR. Farm (Limited Deluxe Version) (Jagjaguwar) 2cd 14.98
It's weird to think that in the current climate of rock reunionism, there's probably not a single band you loved when you were younger that you can't imagine reuniting, touring, even making a record. It's even weirder to think that once that band did get together, they might make a record the rivals any of their classics from decades earlier, and while Farm is no Bug or You're Living All Over Me, it's really not that far off. Especially considering what you might expect from a band making a new record nearly 25 years since their debut. Even harder to believe with a band like Dinosaur Jr, whose acrimonious (to say the least) breakup had most of us assuming they would never speak again, let alone write and record and tour.
But here it is, record number two since the original Dinosaur lineup reunited. 2007's Beyond was great, and Farm just rules. It's heavy, catchy as hell, the band are tight, Mascis' voice sounds exactly the same, his leads are wild and all over the place, and while we never thought we'd be hankering for some seriously jammed out guitar rock, Dino Jr. makes us wonder how we did without it for so long. Some of the tracks on Farm ("Pieces") are so catchy and so rocking, they sound like they could have been Bug outtakes. Farm is even more like an old Dinosaur Jr. record as bassist Lou Barlow (Sebadoh, Sentridoh, Folk Implosion) contributes a couple of his old songs, and unlike the old days, when his tracks were gorgeous sad boy 4-track loner folk gems, his two tracks here are dense and intense, super heavy, super catchy melancholy rockers, that sound like kick ass Sebadoh jams, and have us hankering for a new record from those guys too!
We're getting tired of reunions like everyone else. Not every band we loved needs to come back from the dead, and most already have a catalog that's pretty perfect without adding some modern sub par attempt at relevance, but fuck, it's tough to argue with a record as good as Farm, and a band who still kick as much ass as Dinosaur Jr.
While they last (not long we're guessing), we have the deluxe version, with a 4 song bonus track, which includes two Dino originals, a Zombies cover, and a cover of a psych pop classic by Elyse Weinberg.
MPEG Stream: "Pieces"
MPEG Stream: "I Want You To Know"
MPEG Stream: "Your Weather"

DUMONT, OLIVIER Living In Holes And Disused Shafts (Utech Records) cd 14.98
The always intriguing and aesthetically striking Utech label is on a rumbling roll! Of their three newest releases, we made Aluk Todolo's Finsternis a Record Of The Week last week. Gog's Mist From The Random More is one of this week's Records Of The Week too. And then there's this, which is pretty awesome too, if you're into the more extreme end of textural abstract electric drone-groan. Three-for-three for Utech as far as we're concerned!
You might expect "holes and disused shafts" to be quiet places. Not so, if the ominously noisy soundscapes of French experimentalist Olivier Dumont are any indication. The holes where he goes are alive with chaotic crackling electric intensity, densely detailed distortion. Utterly satisfying stuff for those of us into this sort of sonic grit.
Dumont's Utech debut consists of five tracks, about 44 minutes total, all varied in approach and relative levels of "noisiness". It starts off with perhaps the most menacing cut, "Room 237", recorded solely with "buzz cable" (probably a patch cord connected to an amplifier, though we also could imagine something more massive and industrial, like some sort of repurposed undersea telecommunications cable). Switching to tape recorder and then feedback guitar for his sound sourcing, Dumont conjures sounds like buzzing airplane motors and swarming mechanical bees as this disc progresses. The final two lengthy tracks, the 16 minute "R-Grey" and the especially atmospheric album ending title track (9:30), are on the more subdued side, being mysterious organic improvs that draw the listener in rather than grind them underfoot. More beautiful than brutal in the end, this disc is quite recommended for noiseniks.
Nicely packaged in a slender, slightly oversized sleeve typical of Utech releases, with the usual black & white (mostly black) graphics, this is limited to just 500 copies.
MPEG Stream: "Room 237"
MPEG Stream: "Living In Holes And Disused Shafts"

EARTH Radio Live (Southern Lord) lp 21.00
Who would have thought that legendary, drug fueled dronemetal miscreants Earth would grow up to be a super tight and twangy, modern cinematic country drone gospel ensemble? But that's precisely what happened. Dylan Carlson and company now evoke sonic landscapes that have more in common with Ennio Morricone or Scenic or Savage Republic or, heck, even Friends Of Dean Martinez or Calexico. These days it would make more sense for Earth to tour with Calexico than Moss or Monarch. They're a new band, one we love, quite a bit, but there is very little of Earth 2 or Extra Capsular Extraction left in their sound.
Beyond that, the new band is stellar, amazing musicians, who apparently can play a live set so perfectly, that we could barely tell it apart from the records proper. Such is the case with Radio Live, an ultra limited live lp, featuring recordings the band in Vienna, Austria in 2007, and live on KFJC in 2007. The KFJC set features guest Trey Spruance from Mr. Bungle (on baritone guitar and sitar!), but even then, these songs sound perfect. If it weren't for the crowd sounds, the applause, and the brief bit of stage banter from Carlson, we NEVER would have guessed this was a live album. More like a collection of alternate versions. That said, this IS truly fantastic, more of Earth's dreamy drone-y cinematic twang, atmospheric and emotional, haunting and musically mysterious.
As with all things Earth, extremely limited, 3000 copies, originally released on cd, but so limited we never even saw a single one, cool cloth-like jackets, with reflective metallic foil stamp artwork, ONE PER CUSTOMER!

EL MICHELS AFFAIR Enter The 37th Chamber (Truth And Soul) cd 15.98
This could be a risky proposition: a live band interpreting instrumental versions of songs by one of the most iconic hip-hop groups ever, The Wu-Tang Clan. But the risk pays off, because this band is not only super tight, but they approach the material with an economy of touch, keeping the arrangements minimal and the grooves mean but still highly cinematic. Led by Brooklyn organist and drummer, Leon Michels (who also co-runs, the Truth and Soul label), the El Michels Affair really know how to tap into the sounds of hip-hop source material, the rare groove of '60s and '70s soul, jazz and deep funk, without it being pastiche. Their 2005 debut, Sounding Out The City, proved this was the soul-jazz group to watch, having previously released a single on the Daptone label. It was Raekwon, from The Wu-Tang Clan that tapped El Michels Affair to instrumentally rework Wu-Tang beats for a series of 12"s called The Shaolin Series which led to this full record. Peppered with samples from martial arts movies, the group even venture into some of the Wu-Tang offshoots, including an amazing version of Ol' Dirty Bastard's "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" with a chorus sung by kids. Also be sure to lookout for the hidden 37th track! This kills!
MPEG Stream: "C.R.E.A.M."
MPEG Stream: "Protect Ya Neck"
MPEG Stream: "Shimmy Shimmy Ya"

EMTIDI Saat (Lion Productions) cd 14.98
Lion Productions' extremely welcome krautrock reissue campaign continues! This reish is another from one of scenemaker Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser's labels, Pilz (after one by Guru Guru originally on his OHR label and Sergius Golowin's album on Kosmic Kuriere), and is appropriately trippy. Indeed, it's a minor masterpiece of cosmic-folk that no less an authority than Dag Erik Asbjornsen's encyclopedic krautrock tome Cosmic Dreams At Play calls "absolutely essential".
Emtidi were a hippy duo, Maik Hirschfeldt from Germany and Dolly Holmes from Canada, supposedly brought together by their participation in the Berlin production of Hair (not the first time we've heard such a story about artists from that era!). Emtidi made just two albums in their brief career, a self-titled, not-so-cosmic acoustic folk debut in 1971 (which has also recently been reissued by the way) and then THIS one.
1972's Saat is so special in part because they labored over it in the studio with well-known producer Dieter Dierks, creating a multi-tracked, synth-floating, electronically treated environment to support Dolly's airy and delicate vocals. Her sweet singing reminds us of UK folksters like Sallyangie and Pentangle, while the spaced out music is far freakier (generally placid, but including some acid rock guitar eruptions).
Maik plays vibraphone, synthesizer, bass, flute, guitar, percussion, and also contributes rougher, accented vocals, dueting with Dolly on several of the tracks, taking lead himself on the German-language closer "Die Reise". Dolly, as well as singing so beautifully, plays keyboards, Mellotron, organ and piano. And Dierks also performs on several instruments as well, including more Mellotron.
The album's centerpiece is the blissed out shimmer of the nearly 12 minute "Touch The Sun" but the cosmic journey actually begins with a walk in the park, on opening track "Walkin' In The Park". The combination of mellow, effected guitars/keys and the gentle vocals of Dolly (joined by Maik partway along) belies the stoned humor of the lyrics, something to the effect of: "There's a sign here... keep off... don't sit on the grass, it's too cold for your ass"! Though they do sound quite earnest about it.
As with all Lion reissues, this one boasts a thick cd booklet, with original album graphics, extensive liner notes, and a discography of the Pilz label.
MPEG Stream: "Walkin' In The Park"
MPEG Stream: "Touch The Sun"
MPEG Stream: "Saat"

FEARTHAINNE s/t (Glass Throat) 2cd 23.00
Much black metal has been coming out of Cascadia lately, Wolves In The Throne Room, Fauna, Echtra, but not all is grim and frosty and cold and buzzy and black in the Pacific Northwest. Fearthainne is the work of the two players who make up Fauna, whose Rain record we raved about a while back. But in Fearthainne, all of the buzz and lbuster have been replaced by delicate crystalline guitar, gruff emotive vocals, deep ominous drones, all woven into a slow, drifting, meditative mountain folk.
On the same label that in the past has brought us mysterious sounds from At The Head Of The Woods, The Elemental Chrysalis, Ruhr Hunter, Alethese and Beneath The Lake, Fearthainne sound right at home, blending dense whirring minimal soundscapes, with gentle meditative folk rituals. Long long tracks that slowly blossom, smoldering, clouded in warm browns and cool greys, strings weep and moan, effects gently cradle the various elements, adding texture more than changing the sound. Mesmerizing, trancelike ruminations on nature, on death, on the beyond. Simple percussion demarcates sprawling folk strum and fields of lilting shimmer and and delicate flutter. The vocals are a strange contrast, almost atonal, moaned more than sung, reminding us of solo records by either of the Neurosis frontmen, giving the proceedings a much more ominous vibe, ritualistic and hauntingly spiritual.
Gorgeous in its simplicity, mysterious in its minimalism, Fearthainne is the soundtrack to a land outside of time, of trees towering over a world unspoilt, clouds drifting across empty skies, night turning into day, the cycle of life continuing on, the world and the universe around it gradually moving into a new, more magical existence. Beautifully sublime.
Incredible packaging, full color 6 panel oversized sleeve, amazing images of ancient forests, late night rituals, and the band gathered beneath a mighty tree, cradling a baby, dressed like witches, and looking like a band of bearded forest dwellers (which they may very well be!).
MPEG Stream: "Fauna"
MPEG Stream: "The Veil"

G.E.S. (GESELLSCHAFT ZUR EMANZIPATION DES SAMPLES) Circulations (Faitiche) cd 19.98
The second release from Jan Jelinek's Faitiche imprint. The first being the too-good-to-be-true, past Record Of The Week, Ursula Bogner collection, a supposed archival compilation of various recordings made by a 40 something housewife who dabbled in electronic music in her spare time. We like to believe it was all real, and not some meticulously assembled hoax, but hell, even if it was in fact Jelinek, it was so well done, it almost makes it better. Almost.
For release number two, Jelinek has convened an imaginary body called the Gesellschaft Zur Emanzipation Des Samples, or Society For The Emancipation Of Samples, more an idea than an acting body (although it seems like Jelinek imagines it eventually being real, or maybe he's just messing with us again), the Society would exist to address the idea of environmental recording, when that recording contains copyrighted sounds. For example, a field recording of a state fair, where one of the rides just so happens to be blasting ZZ Top. Is ZZ Top then entitled to royalties from your recording of the fair? So Circulations is a sonic experiment of sorts, setting up similar situations, where various bits of recordings and samples are broadcast, projected or played in public spaces, which are then recorded, capturing not only those sampled sounds, but also the ambience, voices, footsteps, the sample becoming simply another found sound in a world of sounds waiting to be found. All very interesting for sure, thankfully the actual recordings are pretty fantastic as well. Not sure how much light they shed on the problem/issue, but from a purely listening standpoint they are super cool. Much of the sampled sound seems to be from exotica records, but they are broadcast in various locations which affect the sounds differently, sometimes it's a looped cartoon sounding oboe, wrapped in hiss, with a conversation taking place in the background, other times, there are the sound of footsteps, hidden behind what sounds like a blur of birdcalls and strange malfunctioning computers. Crackling lullaby like melodies wrap around machine like rhythms, the room sound adding all sorts of natural reverb, moody minimal dub loops wreathed in buzz and static drifting through what sounds like a big empty hallway, glitchy electronics and dramatic strings being broadcast amidst the clinks and clanks of a kitchen or restaurant or supermarket, minimal classical music underpins wandering couples, swooping backwards calliope music ringing out in what sounds like a mall or department store, regardless of place, or technique, the sounds and songs here are gorgeous, playful sometimes, haunting other times, the various sounds as important to the pieces and the overall sound as the samples, both elements blurred into one truly fantastic listening experience.
Beautifully packaged in a mini digibook, with extensive liner notes, in multiple languages, a few illustrations and even some footnotes.
MPEG Stream: "Orinoco, Bullerbu (Crossfade)"
MPEG Stream: "Oberhausen"
MPEG Stream: "Laokoon Lagoon"
MPEG Stream: "Samplecredits (Manipulated)"

GANGLIANS Monster Head Room (Woodsist) cd 13.98
Though it's been surprisingly cold here in San Francisco as of late, things are starting to warm up nicely, and if we needed any reminder that summertime is IN EFFECT, Ganglians' Monster Head Room does just the trick. This Sacramento group's lo-fi but somewhat orchestral approach to making bouncy, feel good pop is perfect for this weather, with a playful experimental side (check out the cool sound collage of "The Void" and the field recordings used in "To June") and breezy Beach Boys-esque harmonies blending expertly into the mix almost like another instrument altogether. Even at their more "out there" moments, Ganglians' songs are firmly in the pop realm and will no doubt appeal to fans of Animal Collective, good old '90s indie rock, and even the current crop of Shitgazers. There are plenty of mellow folky moments, but the band is not afraid to rock out either, like on the pounding, white hot "100 Years". Throughout it all, Ganglians have created a shimmering set of densely layered pop gems that we can't get enough of. Recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Lost Words"
MPEG Stream: "The Void"
MPEG Stream: "100 Years"

GOLDEN SORES A Peaceable Kingdom (Blood Lust) cd-r 14.98
Record number two from these Midwestern dronelords, with some loose connection to black ambient soundscapers Locrian, even if it doesn't go much beyond playing together and living in the same city. That said, if you dug the Locrian record from a few lists back, odds are you'll dig this to.
There's no black metal woven into the Golden Sores' sound, instead they offer up more of a spaced out krautdrone, ethereral, ephemeral, but somehow still dense and thick and HEAVY. Not sure what the instrumentation is, we'd like to think there are some guitars in there, but it hardly matters, it's what comes out of the speakers that matters, not what goes onto the tape. And what is coming out of our speakers right now is some gloriously heavy, throbbing, pulsating buzzing psychedelic dronemusick. The first track is just some totally divine spaced out new age kosmiche drone, the second is a wall of crumbling blown out distorted buzz, like taking the primordial ooze of Earth or Sunn, and hurling it into the heart of a dying star. The tracks shift after that from deep cavernous rumbles, to billowing clouds of blackened shimmer, to muted snarling buzzscapes, to glimmering outer space druggy drifts, and finally, to a gorgeously sprawling expanse of low end throb, crank the bass on your stereo and you'll have things vibrating right off your shelves, a sound so phsyical, after it's over, merely hearing music without actually feeling it, barely seems like enough.
Definitive deep drone listening for sure, recommended for those of you who gravitate toward the heavier, spacier side of the low end spectrum, as previously explored by the likes of Expo 70, Locrian, Vulture Club, Fear Falls Burning, RST, To Blacken The Pages, Karl Bosmann, Pussygutt and the like.
MPEG Stream: "Double Gyres"
MPEG Stream: "The Awful Rowing Toward God"
MPEG Stream: "We'll Wield Fire"

HANGING THIEF s/t (Digitalis Ltd.) cassette 8.98
So as Barn Owl made their way home from Austin, Texas this past spring, they made a pit stop in the ominous town of Tulsa Oklahoma to hang out with friend and owner of Digitalis records, Brad Rose. They got into Tulsa just in time, as a huge storm had followed in their wake. And with a dark looming sky of black clouds and the threat of a tornado touching down any second, what else could they do besides stay inside and record some dark psychedelic drooooones? And this they did, and the result is a new project called Hanging Thief, named after the giant, praying mantis-like insect that frequents Rose's porch. Barn Owl, Rose and his wife Eden together sculpt a slow rising monolith that gently creeps up from the cracked Oklahoma soil. Hazy vocals, faint synth sorcery and heavy guitar droning melt together into two 30 minute sides of slow building, grim atmospheric psychedelia. Limited to an edition of 150, this tape is pro-dubbed and decked out in killer hand drawn artwork by Eden, don't be sorry you missed out on this ritual offering of analog sorcery!

HAWK AND A HACKSAW, A Delivrance (Leaf Label) cd 14.98
Following up their glorious, but sadly very limited edition 78rpm 10" record Foni Tu Argile, A Hawk And A Hacksaw present their latest full length via more modern technological means. As always, the band remain deeply reverent and faithful to the traditional Eastern European gypsy folk styles that they hold near and dear. Their songs rush by at a frenzied pace. It's almost faster than your toe can tap, but the music does spur your limbs into action. We found ourselves moving a bit quicker around the store while it played. Even without our morning coffee fix! So if you've been trying to kick caffeine, maybe consider this a healthy substitute... no, seriously! Check out the wild piano action on "Kertesz" and the twisting horns on "Turkiye". Amazing musicianship! Stunning stuff! They do slow things down briefly for numbers such as the mesmerizing "Raggle Taggle" (though it ends with an unexpected lively clip!) and "I Am Not A Gambling Man", only to start back up again at an even more frantic tempo! If you've dug their previous recordings, this will surely please you a-plenty! Also recommended for fans of Beirut and Gogol Bordello!
MPEG Stream: "Kertész"
MPEG Stream: "Raggle Taggle"

HAYNES, JIM Sever + Severed (Intransitive) 2cd 19.98
Much like his art, the music of Jim Haynes is based on, and is a continual exploration of the act of decay, an imagining of natural (and un-natural) processes rendered into sound, a world of crumbling landscapes and of microscopic worlds collapsing. While he has yet to figure out a way to actually record the process of metal rusting, Haynes has managed to create a soundworld that sounds precisely how he, and perhaps we, might imagine it.
The process of decay, and erosion, found on and in Sever, is some sort of sprawling sonic time lapse, each track as much about the sounds as the sources, as much about the arrangements as the process of listening, as much about texture as timbre, as much about the tiny details, and the expansive whole, the opening track for instance, is all clatter and crunch, chiming and tinkling, to these ears it sounds like wandering through a ruined world, a dead planet, the sun drying every living thing to husks, these sounds are the dried carapaces, hung from rotted fence posts, rubbing against one another in what little breeze is left under a harsh midday sun. The sound of footsteps, the crunch and scrape of a despondent trudge, a death march, but all of this is carefully blurred and smeared, the obvious references are blunted, so the sound evokes all of the above, yet as if it were a dream, the edges a bit fuzzy, the sounds slightly gauzy, the colors hazy, the sound almost underwater sounding at times, a feverdream in sound.
The rest of the tracks explore a different world altogether. A world of darkness and blight, of grim emptiness and eternal blackness, three variations on the darkness beyond, varying shades of grey and black, ominous, haunting, threatening, abject, deep and so very dark. Almost as if the listener from the first track, stumbled into the cool darkness of a cave, sheltered through the sun, only to find his or herself wandering through an endless labyrinth of tunnels and caverns, the sound massive and bottomless, but simultaneously hushed and intimate, the blackness rife with buried melodies, with warm whirring textures, the haunting clang and clatter of bells? Some sort of metal on metal. Crunch and crackle adds grit to Haynes' subterranean drift, the sound growing ever more ominous, the low end shimmer transformed into a grinding hiss, a black hum, wreathed in clouds of effervescent static, beneath it all, an unlikely pulse, a barely audible throb, a machinelike anti-groove buried beneath, a slow swirling noxious obsidian haze.
The final track explodes with what sounds like the grind of stone against stone, whirring processed textures, that slowly shift and are pulled apart into strands of greyed melody, a whirring, gritty expanse of softly intertwined layers, that seem to extend forever, the various bits of grit and grime worn away as the track progresses, the sounds getting smoother as they grow darker, as if the sounds are dragging the listener further down into the dark, the light from above fading, becoming a warm orange glow, then a smudge of red, before any and all color is swallowed up, leaving just the echoes to ring out before they too disappear.
While they last, we have the super limited version, ONLY 100 COPIES MADE, of which we have less than 20, which includes a second bonus disc, featuring recordings from a sound installation that includes some of the source material for Sever.
MPEG Stream: ":"
MPEG Stream: "::"

HEADDRESS Lunes (No Quarter) cd 13.98
Texas trippers Headdress have been stirring up quite the fuss lately. First Mexican Summer reissues their out of print Turquoise cd-r on wax, and now Brooklyn's infamous No Quarter offers up their most recent effort, an unexpected leap into new territory for this psych/folk turned heavy drone duo. Seems these former folkie nomads have traded their knapsacks and peace pipes for distortion pedals and tube amps, not sure if it's for the better as we really loved the airy country atmospheres the old Headdress did so well. Lunes begins with a buzzing drone that lingers on and on as layers of tremolo organ and distant electric guitar creep in and out. The band have definitely dropped their Brightblack influence and instead traded it for other, heavier influences like Earth 2 or Nadja, not exactly a bad thing, though it seems their new droneyness is a bit flat and lacks the depth of other drone outfits. Their signature shoegazy, dreamy vocals don't appear until the third track, accompanied by a repetitive twangy riff that plods on and on into infinity, like watching the sun fall behind a never-ending horizon, definitely our favorite track on the album as it reflects what really makes this band unique in our eyes. Complete with trippy psychedelic artwork in a nice looking cd gatefold package, don't miss out on this slow burning drift into the golden summer sun.
MPEG Stream: "Seethrough"
MPEG Stream: "The Lost White Brother"

HEADDRESS Lunes (No Quarter) lp 13.98
Texas trippers Headdress have been stirring up quite the fuss lately. First Mexican Summer reissues their out of print Turquoise cd-r on wax, and now Brooklyn's infamous No Quarter offers up their most recent effort, an unexpected leap into new territory for this psych/folk turned heavy drone duo. Seems these former folkie nomads have traded their knapsacks and peace pipes for distortion pedals and tube amps, not sure if it's for the better as we really loved the airy country atmospheres the old Headdress did so well. Lunes begins with a buzzing drone that lingers on and on as layers of tremolo organ and distant electric guitar creep in and out. The band have definitely dropped their Brightblack influence and instead traded it for other, heavier influences like Earth 2 or Nadja, not exactly a bad thing, though it seems their new droneyness is a bit flat and lacks the depth of other drone outfits. Their signature shoegazy, dreamy vocals don't appear until the third track, accompanied by a repetitive twangy riff that plods on and on into infinity, like watching the sun fall behind a never-ending horizon, definitely our favorite track on the album as it reflects what really makes this band unique in our eyes. Complete with trippy psychedelic artwork in a nice looking cd gatefold package, don't miss out on this slow burning drift into the golden summer sun.
MPEG Stream: "Seethrough"
MPEG Stream: "The Lost White Brother"

HEAVY WINGED Shaking, Waking (Aurora Borealis) lp 21.00
Two more sidelong tracks from these masters of metallic psychedelic and blown out krautnoise bliss. And as always it's a glorious earful.
The first side starts out all woozy and contemplative, spaced out, but somehow already epic, doused in distortion and feedback, the band build the sound into a dense tangle of muted riffs, murky and washed out, bleary and buzzy, they stretch it out, total trancerock for sure, before eventually blissing out into deep swells of smeared and streaked feedback and warm crystalline shimmer, finally exploding into some full on chaotic supernova psychnoise. But even at it's most fr