WHITE HILLS The Process (Sonic Meditation) cassette 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Super limited cassette tape from aQ beloved NY psychedelic space rockers White Hills, two side long slowburn psych-kraut groovers, part of a series that offers up a sort of rough draft of some of the 'process' that went into the creation of their most recent full length H-p1, and as you might imagine, everything you (and we!) love about White Hills is present and in full effect, the skeletal motorik drumming, the low slung slithery basslines, the effects drenched guitars, the psychedelic swirls, explosive crescendos, the brooding grooves, weird samples, wah wah guitar freakouts, the sound murky and muddy and washed, out, super lo-fi, but it totally suits them, making this sound like some unearthed seventies psychedelic rarity. The A side is the murkier of the two, raw psychedelic minimalism, that splinters near the end into some weird found sound, and then a chaotic coda. While the B side is much more expansive, still pretty lo-fi, but more guitars going on, chiming and soaring, with swirling melodies, the bass especially thick and super distorted, and a long stretched out super blissy second half, which finds everything dialed way back, the band drifting druggily and dreamily, through a thick expanse of hum and hiss and thrum, finally finishing off with some tripped out backwards guitarscaping. Nice.
LIMITED TO 250 COPIES, already sold out so these are the last copies we'll be able to get.
MPEG Stream: "The Process: A Step In"
MPEG Stream: "The Process: A Look Outside"

WHITE HILLS They've Got Blood Like We've Got Blood (Fuck Off And Di) cd-r 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Synth psych kraut weirdness from NY. Julian Cope raved about it on his Head Heritage website. We have loads of the version the band released but Cope's remixed version is already out of print, and we only have a few copies left.

WHITE HILLS & GNOD Gnod Drop Out With White Hills II (Rocket) cd 19.98
Previously only available as a double lp, this sprawling slab of blissed out space rock psychedelia is now available on cd, and with a SIXTEEN MINUTE bonus track, which, if you're obsessive like us, and we know lots of you are, makes this essential, even if you (we!) already have the vinyl version. More on the bonus track below, but first, here's what we had to say about the record proper:
Touted as the first 'official' teaming up of these two outfits, we're pretty sure this is definitely at least the second, maybe the now out of print Aquarian Downer cd-r is not being counted as properly official, but having freaked out over that a while back, we already knew these two were a good match. And on this collaboration, the two mesh seamlessly, White Hills seeming to let Gnod dial down the intensity and all out rocking, and crank up the shimmery washed out dreaminess, we mentioned Tangerine Dream in our review of the cd-r, and that sound is all over here, but so is Neu!, Wooden Shjips, all sorts of things, but WH and Gnod are clearly space rock masters, and these 4 sidelong tracks only further cement their placement in our personal space rock kraut drone pantheon (what, you don't have one?)!
So for this record, White Hills are a four piece, again featuring Oneida's Kid Millions on drums, and Gnod are a SEVEN piece, so you would think 11 rockers jamming out would be a crazy mess, but nope, these guys are so obviously sonic soulmates, which is evident from the first track, a slab of slow groovy krautrock, motorik (multiple drummer-ed?) drumming, smoldering minimal riffage, mantra like vocals, the Neu! / Stereolab vibe here is huge, woozy synths, tangled psychedelic leads, all glistening and sunshiney, never exploding into full bore heaviness, instead, just unwinding lazily and dreamily, drowsy druggy drift giving way to super spare spaced out smolder, before launching into a muscular Hawkwind sounding jam, all downtuned crunch, caveman pound, swirly psychedelic effects, churning and chugging relentlessly, the rhythm and groove LOCKED in, while the guitars and synths and effects swirl and whirl all around, finally unwinding with a cool muted bit of cinematic drift, haunting ghostlike melodies that almost sound like strings, all in a softly fuzzy dreamlike haze.
Which leads into another bit of druggy drift, all rhythmic and almost new agey, cool repetitive melodies, simple and stripped down drumming, all laid over a deep rumbling synth drone, everything washed out and otherworldly. Eventually that gives way to a throbbing fuzzy bassline, matched up with a rock solid rhythm, more effects are applied, as are some wild fragmented super distorted leads, some warped Manzarek style organ, that main groove never faltering, total low slung incendiary psychedelia.
And so like us, you were probably expecting the final closing jam to be the full on blow out we had all been waiting for, a free for all freak out of epic proportions, but instead, the band dial it WAY down, and offer up some super sprawling, ethereal atmospheric space folk driftscape bliss out, all spidery crystalline guitars, barely there hand drums, thick languid basslines, gauzy restrained effects, soft focus finger picked neo-Appalachia, totally dreamlike and mesmerizing, it almost sounds like the Alps covering Hawkwind, converting heart of the sun heaviness into something hushed and pastoral, subtly lysergic and utterly divine. So good.
This cd version tacks on a final track, a NEW final track, a sprawling 16+ minute slow burn epic, that like the previous 'final' jam doesn't explode or freak out, instead offering up another gorgeous gauzy expanse of swirling psychedelia, loping woozy basslines, muted minimal drumming, soft swirling effects, and plenty of dreamily tangled melodies, sitar like buzz, tinkling chimes, synthy shimmer, all spread out into a blurred, head tripping, Eastern tinged, chunk of glorious smoldering dream psych. Awesome. And maybe just worth buying again...
MPEG Stream: "Run-A-Round"
MPEG Stream: "Spaced Man"
MPEG Stream: "Elka (Bonus Track)"

WHITE HILLS & GNOD Gnod Drop Out With White Hills II (Rocket) 2lp 27.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Finally back in print and available once again, but probably not for long...
This sprawling double lp of blissed out space rock psychedelia is being touted as the first 'official' teaming up of these two outfits, but it's definitely at least the second, maybe the now out of print Aquarian Downer cd-r is not being counted as properly official, but having freaked out over that a while back, we already knew these two were a good match. And on this collaboration, the two mesh seamlessly, White Hills seeming to let Gnod dial down the intensity and all out rocking, and crank up the shimmery washed out dreaminess, we mentioned Tangerine Dream in our review of the cd-r, and that sound is all over here, but so is Neu!, Wooden Shjips, all sorts of things, but WH and Gnod are clearly space rock masters, and these 4 sidelong tracks only further cement their placement in our personal space rock kraut drone pantheon (what, you don't have one?)!
So for this record, White Hills are a four piece, again featuring Oneida's Kid Millions on drums, and Gnod are a SEVEN piece, so you would think 11 rockers jamming out would be a crazy mess, but nope, these guys are so obviously sonic soulmates, from the first side, a slab of slow groovy krautrock, motorik (multiple drummer-ed?) drumming, smoldering minimal riffage, mantra like vocals, the Neu! / Stereolab vibe here is huge, woozy synths, tangled psychedelic leads, all glistening and sunshiney, never exploding into full bore heaviness, instead, just unwinding lazily and dreamily.
The second side starts off similarly, a super spare spaced out drift, before launching into a muscular Hawkwind sounding jam, all downtuned crunch, caveman pound, swirly psychedelic effects, churning and chugging relentlessly, the rhythm and groove LOCKED in, while the guitars and synths and effects swirl and whirl all around, finally unwinding with a cool muted bit of cinematic drift, haunting ghostlike melodies that almost sound like strings, all in a softly fuzzy dreamlike haze.
Lp 2 begins all rhythmic and almost new agey, cool repetitive melodies, simple and stripped down drumming, all laid over a deep rumbling synth drone, everything washed out and otherworldly. Eventually that gives way to a throbbing fuzzy bassline, matched up with a rock solid rhythm, more effects are applied, as are some wild fragmented super distorted leads, some warped Manzarek style organ, that main groove never faltering, total low slung incendiary psychedelia.
And so like us, you were probably expecting the final side to be the full on blow out we had all been waiting for, a free for all freak out of epic proportions, but instead, the band dial it WAY down, and offer up some super sprawling, ethereal atmospheric space folk driftscape bliss out, all spidery crystalline guitars, barely there hand drums, thick languid basslines, gauzy restrained effects, soft focus finger picked neo-Appalachia, totally dreamlike and mesmerizing, it almost sounds like the Alps covering Hawkwind, converting heart of the sun heaviness into something hushed and pastoral, subtly lysergic and utterly divine. So good.
The reissue is, like the original, sweetly packaged, and also like the original is VERY VERY VERY LIMITED.

WHITE HILLS + WHITE PEE Wish You Weren't Here (self-released) cd-r 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Even though it wasn't all that long ago that we were served with the serious space rock wallop of White Hills' most recent full length Glitter Glamour Atrocity, it was only a matter of moments before we were already jonesing for more. And while this is not a proper WH record per se, it is at least another heaping helping of that spaced out sound we can't get enough of.
Here, White Hills team up with SF noise outfit White Pee for a nearly 30 minute single track of space-y, druggy, krautdrone ambient noise. And it's a killer. Never heard of White Pee before, and because this disc is so abstract and sort of shapeless, it's hard to put a finger on what exactly they bring to the table, but these two groups together sound like one. The noise is relegated to brief bursts here and there, for the most part, this is gloriously tranquil blissed out dronescapes. Long expanses of slow flowing Tangerine Dream and Popol Vuh synth sprawl, the FX are muted but wrap their shimmery tendrils around everything.
Here and there, the meditative shimmer is disrupted by dense gnarled squalls of gritty guitar growl, arranged into strange almost-rhythms, a stretched out lurching throb plodding along over long ominous streaks of sci fi synth. The synths got from ethereal and whispery, to throbbing and fuzzy, from dreamy and barely there, to pulsing and propulsive, almost like some disembodied Gary Numan rhythm track.
The second half of the disc is wide open and spare, shades of Tim Hecker and Machinefabriek and that sort of buzzy blurred soundscapes, guitars ebb and flow, keening high end melodies drift WAY off in the distance, dense washes of distorted guitar crumble bathe everything in grit and buzz, plaintive piano drifts in and out like some unearthly transmission, all hazy and indistinct, darkly dramatic and so lovely.
This is a SUPER limited edition, except for the copies the band kept, these are ONLY available from aQuarius. LIMITED TO 85 COPIES!! The first 50 in hand made wooden sleeves, the other 35 in jewel cases, but also hand made and each one unique. We got about 30 copies of the wooden sleeved version, and a handful of the jewel cased version. While supplies last, you'll get the wood ones, but once those are gone, you'll get the jewel case version. Needless to say these will be gone in a flash...
MPEG Stream: "Wish You Weren't Here (excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Wish You Weren't Here (excerpt 2)"

WHITE HILLS / DER BLUTHARSCH split (WKN) 7" 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

WHITE HILLS / FARFLUNG split (Cobraside) lp 14.98
Another blast of spaced out psychedelia from aQ faves White Hills, hot on the heels of their most recent full length, the kick ass Frying On This Rock. For this split 12", those East Coast spacelords (and lady) have teamed up with LA space rockers Farflung, whose last record, A Wound In Eternity, we reviewed a while back, and as you might remember, we were kinda blown away by just how heavy and spaced out and gloriously psychedelic it was, so it sorta makes sense that they would end up sharing a record (and a tour) with White Hills...
Each band offers up a sidelong track, Farflung starting things off, and pretty much straight away, they launch into some seriously stomping psychedelic spaciness, which we're guessing will have most fans of the current crop of psych/space rock (The Heads, White Hills, Wooden Shjips, Carlton Melton, etc.) wondering how the fuck they've managed to miss out on these guys for so long. It's like Chrome via Hawkwind via the Stooges, the sound MASSIVE, thick and dense and HEAVY, punkish processed vox over crushing stoner space rock riffage, all wrapped in druggy clouds of dense sci-fi FX, swirls and swoops and bleeps and bloops, the vibe slithery and swaggery, pounding and explosive, before the band bring it down part way through and unfurl some blissed out kosmische shimmer, all hushed and heady and drowsily dreamlike, before blasting right back into a stretched out kraut-flecked hypnorock jam that will have Heads / White Hills hands in heaven. And then they somehow crank it up even further for the last few minutes, finishing off with a wild freaked out heavy psych blowout that KILLS.
White Hills opt out of a heavy space psych duel, with Dave W. and Ego Sensation instead turning their sound inward, channeling some serious cosmic drift, much more akin to the sound of last year's aQ instore, blissed out and dreamy, but even more mellowed out here, soft swirls and thick chordal thrum, all blurred into gloriously soft focus smears of celestial kraut-psych shimmer, with a super cool, super weird mid song interlude, with a strange sample bit of angelic vox, like some scratchy old pop record, in a haze of warm crackle and wreathed in streaks of space spidery psych melodies, before slipping right back into the warm, whirling sprawl of muted guitars and softly swirling effects that started things off.
Killer stuff from both bands, White Hills great as always, and hopefully the perennially unsung Farflung will get some big time love from the legions of White Hills fans, cuz they definitely deserve it.
Featuring super eye popping red and white Manga style artwork by Keenan Keller. The vinyl pressed on either red or white (to match the red and white cover art), with a printed insert inside with liner notes and more awesomely garish artwork. LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES!!

WHITE HILLS / GNOD Aquarian Downer (self-released) 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.
Latest from these aQ beloved, NY based drugdronepsychspace rockers, this time, they've teamed up with mysterious UK outfit Gnod, who add a whole other layer of fuzz and grit and blown out buzz, to WH's already heady heavy spaced out sound. In fact the entire first track are most of the second consists primarily of blurred, smeared ambient drones, washed out FX drenched soft noise, more Sunroof! that Hawkwind, but eventually, this sprawling freeform swirl begins to coalesce into something only slightly more cohesive, a shuffling tribal mantra, a cycle of simple percussion and whirring thrum that reminds us of No Neck or Sunburned Hand. Even into the third track, the record has yet to ROCK, instead, muted tablas, streaks of space-y effects, more warm shimmering whir, very tranquil and meditative and almost sort of stoned sounding. Track three finishes off with a little flurry of glitch and squelch, leading into still more muted bliss.
BUT, track 4 is when the band really start to intensify, the drums locked into a more Krautrock sounding beat, the guitars thickening, the ambience slightly more ominous, until finally, the band launch into a seriously heavy and dark, spaced out kraut jam, mostly drums, way up in the mix, pounding and pulsing, beneath a sky full of FX and riff-less guitars offering up clouds of rumble and throb, the bass, a thick black serpent, coiled up around the propulsive rhythm. It's even more intense and 'heavy' sounding after the first three tracks, that while awesome on their own, all dark and raga like, also served to build some serious tension, like some sort of super long intro. But this jam will definitely not disappoint long time WH fans in need of their drone psych space rock fix.
The record finishes off with some super intense synth dronebuzz, like a super ominous dark ambient Tangerine Dream, a simple wavery tone, whirring malevolently within a cloud of drifting muted effects, little bits of shortwave buzz, streaks of hiss and whir, eventually drums join in, but not to rock really, instead they just lock into a repetitive pound, laced with little flurries of percussive splatter, but mostly the drums just pound away, the cymbals unleashing huge sheets of metallic shimmer, the guitars again forgoing riffs and gushing blown out FX soaked buzz, over all that synths swirl, electronics bleep and bloop, it's like a chaotic blend of the heaviest most drugged out and damaged Acid Mothers Temple and Hawkwind outros, until the crowd sounds come in and it becomes clear that this was all live, which makes it even more impressive.
Packaged in a plain black cardboard sleeve, with a paste on front and back cover, and a photocopied insert with liner notes.
SUPER LIMITED as always. We got the very last copies. 40 of em. Not sure we'll be able to talk them into making more if they run out, we'll of course try if it comes to that, but best to grab one of these quick just in case!
MPEG Stream: "Hard Butter Reality"
MPEG Stream: "Subordinate Contact"

WHITE HILLS / WHITE PEE Wish You Weren't Here (self-released) 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 the super limited wooden cover version of this disc on the last list and sold out immediately. So here's the even more limited jewel case version, still with hand made covers, only this time housed in, you guessed it, a jewel case. There were only 85 copies made in total, 50 of the wood ones, and 35 of the jewel case version. We're the only store in the world to carry these, and we have about 25 of the jewel case version in stock. Once these are gone, they are gone for good, so this is probably your last chance to pick this up...
Even though it wasn't all that long ago that we were served with the serious space rock wallop of White Hills' most recent full length Glitter Glamour Atrocity, it was only a matter of moments before we were already jonesing for more. And while this is not a proper WH record per se, it is at least another heaping helping of that spaced out sound we can't get enough of.
Here, White Hills team up with SF noise outfit White Pee for a nearly 30 minute single track of space-y, druggy, krautdrone ambient noise. And it's a killer. Never heard of White Pee before, and because this disc is so abstract and sort of shapeless, it's hard to put a finger on what exactly they bring to the table, but these two groups together sound like one. The noise is relegated to brief bursts here and there, for the most part, this is gloriously tranquil blissed out dronescapes. Long expanses of slow flowing Tangerine Dream and Popol Vuh synth sprawl, the FX are muted but wrap their shimmery tendrils around everything.
Here and there, the meditative shimmer is disrupted by dense gnarled squalls of gritty guitar growl, arranged into strange almost-rhythms, a stretched out lurching throb plodding along over long ominous streaks of sci fi synth. The synths got from ethereal and whispery, to throbbing and fuzzy, from dreamy and barely there, to pulsing and propulsive, almost like some disembodied Gary Numan rhythm track.
The second half of the disc is wide open and spare, shades of Tim Hecker and Machinefabriek and that sort of buzzy blurred soundscapes, guitars ebb and flow, keening high end melodies drift WAY off in the distance, dense washes of distorted guitar crumble bathe everything in grit and buzz, plaintive piano drifts in and out like some unearthly transmission, all hazy and indistinct, darkly dramatic and so lovely.
This is a SUPER limited edition, except for the copies the band kept, these are ONLY available from aQuarius. LIMITED TO 85 COPIES!! The first 50 in hand made wooden sleeves, the other 35 (these) in jewel cases, but also hand made and each one unique.
MPEG Stream: "Wish You Weren't Here (excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Wish You Weren't Here (excerpt 2)"

WHITE LIGHT CIRCUS Break The Circuit (DC Recordings) 12" 13.98

WHITE LIGHT CIRCUS Rocket Ride (DC Recordings) 12" 11.98

WHITE MAGIC Dark Stars (Drag City) cd ep 12.98
We love when music is released to perfectly coincide with the season it's being released in. With new records by Richard Youngs, Citay and this new White Magic ep we feel like we are armed with the perfect sound with which to usher in the fall.
We had to wait so long for White Magic's full length after their debut ep, so we're very happy that they'vee quickly followed up that great first album with another e.p. of their dark and hypnotic psychedelic folk. Conjuring the spirit of Karen Dalton and Grace Slick at her most mystifying, Mira Billotte has proven to be one of the most distinctive and compelling voices in the underground music scene over the last decade. Her amazing voice and mesmerizing piano playing are perfectly complimented by the strong presence of her partner in magical musical spells, Douglas Shaw, who wrote and sings on the ep's closer, which is absolutely beautiful.
With songs that sound like they should be performed at some ceremonial ritual, White Magic have carved out a special place for themselves and have proven that long after the whole 'freak folk' hype is dead and gone they will remain, as a band who truly conjure up meaningful songs and remarkable music. While it's just four songs and only about 20 minutes long, Dark Stars might still find its way on some of our top records of '07 lists. So good!
MPEG Stream: "Very Late"
MPEG Stream: "Winds"

WHITE MAGIC Dark Stars (Very Late) 12" 12.98
Yes, on vinyl too!
We love when music is released to perfectly coincide with the season it's being released in. With new records by Richard Youngs, Citay and this new White Magic ep we feel like we are armed with the perfect sound with which to usher in the fall.
We had to wait so long for White Magic's full length after their debut ep, so we're very happy that they'vee quickly followed up that great first album with another e.p. of their dark and hypnotic psychedelic folk. Conjuring the spirit of Karen Dalton and Grace Slick at her most mystifying, Mira Billotte has proven to be one of the most distinctive and compelling voices in the underground music scene over the last decade. Her amazing voice and mesmerizing piano playing are perfectly complimented by the strong presence of her partner in magical musical spells, Douglas Shaw, who wrote and sings on the ep's closer, which is absolutely beautiful.
With songs that sound like they should be performed at some ceremonial ritual, White Magic have carved out a special place for themselves and have proven that long after the whole 'freak folk' hype is dead and gone they will remain, as a band who truly conjure up meaningful songs and remarkable music. While it's just four songs and only about 20 minutes long, Dark Stars might still find its way on some of our top records of '07 lists. So good!

WHITE MAGIC Dat Rosa Mel Apibus (Drag City) cd 14.98
Ever since Mira Billotte hit the scene with her sister Christina in the band Quix*O*Tic several years ago she has been a force to be reckoned with. Blessed with an amazing voice that cuts right through into your soul and gives you goosebumps all over.
Her debut as White Magic, an e.p. titled Through The Sun Door, from a few years back took the more fantastical and ethereal side of Quix*O*Tic to exciting new heights. When White Magic toured for that record on the west coast they opened for Ghost and put on one of the most jaw-dropping performances we had ever seen. To this day, people who were there continue to talk about the fact that they got to witness something so special. Admirers like Joanna Newsom, Vetiver and Brightblack were all in attendance dancing their hearts out to White Magic's rich, commanding sounds. Fast forward a few years and we still only had that great show and that same handful of songs from the e.p. No full length, as well as rumors that there might never be one, and just two new songs on a Tylenol promotional cd (yes the pain medicine), a split with American Analog Set to tide us over. As our patience began to fade, we finally heard the news we had been waiting for, a new full length was on the way. Dat Rosa Mel Apibus is our reward for waiting so long and so patiently. And it was well worth it. With members of The Dirty Three and Gang Gang Dance, Mira was able to craft a record that resonates with a deep strength and an intense presence. The kind of record that is of course fun to listen to, but it's when you really allow yourself to enter its world when the real magic happens. Songs that suck you right into their raging emotional storm. Melodies that wrap themselves around your brain and tie your stomach up in knots. Like Bjork and Joanna Newsom, White Magic possess that same kind of singular voice and vision that makes their songs resonate with a long lasting power and a deep emotional resonance. So good.
MPEG Stream: "The Light"
MPEG Stream: "Sun Song"
MPEG Stream: "Song Of Solomon"

WHITE MAGIC Dat Rosa Mel Apibus (Drag City) 2lp 19.98
Ever since Mira Billotte hit the scene with her sister Christina in the band Quix*O*Tic several years ago she has been a force to be reckoned with. Blessed with an amazing voice that cuts right through into your soul and gives you goosebumps all over.
Her debut as White Magic, an e.p. titled Through The Sun Door, from a few years back took the more fantastical and ethereal side of Quix*O*Tic to exciting new heights. When White Magic toured for that record on the west coast they opened for Ghost and put on one of the most jaw-dropping performances we had ever seen. To this day, people who were there continue to talk about the fact that they got to witness something so special. Admirers like Joanna Newsom, Vetiver and Brightblack were all in attendance dancing their hearts out to White Magic's rich, commanding sounds. Fast forward a few years and we still only had that great show and that same handful of songs from the e.p. No full length, as well as rumors that there might never be one, and just two new songs on a Tylenol promotional cd (yes the pain medicine), a split with American Analog Set to tide us over. As our patience began to fade, we finally heard the news we had been waiting for, a new full length was on the way. Dat Rosa Mel Apibus is our reward for waiting so long and so patiently. And it was well worth it. With members of The Dirty Three and Gang Gang Dance, Mira was able to craft a record that resonates with a deep strength and an intense presence. The kind of record that is of course fun to listen to, but it's when you really allow yourself to enter its world when the real magic happens. Songs that suck you right into their raging emotional storm. Melodies that wrap themselves around your brain and tie your stomach up in knots. Like Bjork and Joanna Newsom, White Magic possess that same kind of singular voice and vision that makes their songs resonate with a long lasting power and a deep emotional resonance. So good.
MPEG Stream: "The Light"
MPEG Stream: "Sun Song"
MPEG Stream: "Song Of Solomon"

WHITE MAGIC Katie Cruel (Drag City) cdep 5.98
You know you must be just a little bit obsessed and seriously dying for new material by a band when two little songs are more than enough to tide you over! And that's precisely the case with this new 2 song single from White Magic. Their debut (also an ep) came out a few years back (and is now out of print!), and we've been waiting not so patiently for anything, a full length would have been ideal, but we can make do with this kick ass single!
Their debut ep had to be one of the best things EVER. Mostly the brainchild of Mira Billotte, who spent some time in an equally great band with her sister called Quix*o*tic. Mira has one of the most chilling and beautiful voices in indie rock without a doubt. The kind of voice that holds you down and forces you to surrender to its warmth and mystery. While folks like Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom have garnered most of the attention, it's only a matter of time before the world catches on to the White Magic.
These two songs are such a gorgeously cruel tease, while we are forced to continue waiting as patiently as we can. The first song is their version of "Katie Cruel", an amazing arrangement of a classic traditional we fell in love with after hearing Karen Dalton do it, but the White Magic version might be even better! After that, it's "Hold Your Hand In The Dark" a stunning original with immaculate piano playing and once again THAT voice, so effortlessly giving us chills and the grandest of goosebumps.
MPEG Stream: "Katie Cruel"
MPEG Stream: "Hold Your Hand In The Dark"

WHITE MAGIC New Egypt (Latitudes 0:13) (Latitudes / Southern ) cd ep 14.98
It's almost impossible to keep ourselves still and write about this new White Magic release as every time we listen to it all we want to do is spin and jump around. We've only had New Egypt in our hands and ears for a week now but we've already lost count of how many times we've pressed repeat to hear this ten minute track over and over again. Like some kind of amazing mantra on love, hope, paranoia and what the future could hold, this is White Magic at their fiery and feverish best!
Taking some of the ingredients of what was previously our favorite White Magic song "One-Note" from their Through The Sun Door debut over four years ago and stretching it out with even more dynamics, more fire and a dizzying spell that casts its magic in such physical ways. What separates White Magic from the psychedelic folk masses is that they create music that actually creates a strong physical sensation as well as tapping into emotional realms. It's impossible to listen to "New Egypt" and not have your body start responding physically to the sounds, it's perfect for strapping on headphones and taking on the city and walking faster and with more purpose than ever before.
We'd been hearing that this was supposed to come out for several months, but somehow the timing of it finally arriving now seems so perfect for the crisp October air, as this really sounds like a ceremonial offering to the season of fall. There is a flame ignited at the core of what White Magic creates that's truly connected to all the Earth elements while still inhabiting a space that's filled with intriguing mystique. Make sure to play this one loud as we've found it resonates with such striking glory when it blasts through our skin and inhabits both the inner and outer realms of our psyche.
Packaged with the latitudes series usual classy cardboard aesthetic with a gold embossed pyramid on the cover giving a clue to the transcendental song that is within! While this one is a bit pricey for its length coming it at over a dollar a minute, the song makes that math equation a no-brainer as it really is a priceless gem!
MPEG Stream: "New Egypt"

WHITE MAGIC New Egypt (Latitudes 0:13) (Latitudes / Southern ) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
FINALLY AVAILABLE ON VINYL!! And like all Latitudes releases (especially lps), super limited! Here's our review of New Egypt from when we first had the cd...
It's almost impossible to keep ourselves still and write about this new White Magic release as every time we listen to it all we want to do is spin and jump around. We've only had New Egypt in our hands and ears for a week now but we've already lost count of how many times we've pressed repeat to hear this ten minute track over and over again. Like some kind of amazing mantra on love, hope, paranoia and what the future could hold, this is White Magic at their fiery and feverish best!
Taking some of the ingredients of what was previously our favorite White Magic song "One-Note" from their Through The Sun Door debut over four years ago and stretching it out with even more dynamics, more fire and a dizzying spell that casts its magic in such physical ways. What separates White Magic from the psychedelic folk masses is that they create music that actually creates a strong physical sensation as well as tapping into emotional realms. It's impossible to listen to "New Egypt" and not have your body start responding physically to the sounds, it's perfect for strapping on headphones and taking on the city and walking faster and with more purpose than ever before.
We'd been hearing that this was supposed to come out for several months, but somehow the timing of it finally arriving now seems so perfect for the crisp October air, as this really sounds like a ceremonial offering to the season of fall. There is a flame ignited at the core of what White Magic creates that's truly connected to all the Earth elements while still inhabiting a space that's filled with intriguing mystique. Make sure to play this one loud as we've found it resonates with such striking glory when it blasts through our skin and inhabits both the inner and outer realms of our psyche.
Packaged in one of those immediately recognizable black and white 12"s Latitudes sleeves with full color insert. And since it's only one song, the flipside is the SAME song, only the vinyl has been cut so the record plays from the inside out, plus al the stuff on the label is reversed too. Cool!
MPEG Stream: "New Egypt"

WHITE MAGIC Through The Sun Door (Drag City) cd ep 11.98
Somehow we'd gotten the mistaken impression that White Magic featured the vocals of Christina Billotte (Slant 6, Quix*o*tic, Casual Dots)...even listening to it didn't dispell that notion. That's 'cause the singer on this is actually Mira Billotte, Christina's sister, who's also in Quix*o*tic too. Her unlike-anyone-but-her-sister vocals are accompanied by her guitar and piano, plus the guitar and drums and handclaps of a couple other folks. There's six songs on this mini-album debut, mostly of artsy, moody, even a little bit bluesy indie-folk, culminating in the Heart-like rock finale of "Apocalypse".
MPEG Stream: "Keeping The Wolves From The Door"
MPEG Stream: "Apocalypse"

WHITE MAGIC Through The Sun Door (Drag City) lp 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Somehow we'd gotten the mistaken impression that White Magic featured the vocals of Christina Billotte (Slant 6, Quix*o*tic, Casual Dots)...even listening to it didn't dispell that notion. That's 'cause the singer on this is actually Mira Billotte, Christina's sister, who's also in Quix*o*tic too. Her unlike-anyone-but-her-sister vocals are accompanied by her guitar and piano, plus the guitar and drums and handclaps of a couple other folks. There's six songs on this mini-album debut, mostly of artsy, moody, even a little bit bluesy indie-folk, culminating in the Heart-like rock finale of "Apocalypse".
MPEG Stream: "Keeping The Wolves From The Door"
MPEG Stream: "Apocalypse"

WHITE MAGIC White Widow (The Mysteries) 7" 5.98
Damn, we've been anxiously awaiting this 7" for quite a while now. When White Magic performed a magical instore earlier this year, she expected to have them then, but they never showed, and in fact, it's been almost two years since rumors began to circulate about the impending release of this mysterious single.
Being that its the first release that Mira Billotte (aka White Magic) has put out herself, and the fact that she's been on tour, and just moved to Los Angeles after a lifetime on the East Coast, it's totally understandable that this record was in limbo for so long. But some artists are well worth waiting for, and "White Widow" is one of the most raw and haunting songs yet from White Magic. We're reminded that Mira's old band Quixotic (check out their amazing two albums if you don't have them!) once covered Black Sabbath, and "White Widow" really does cast such a doomic and mysteriously mystical spell. The flip-side is an awesome and rocking cover of Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit", and since Billotte's entrancing vocals have often been compared to Grace Slick at her peak, it's a perfect match. This will for sure please big time White Magic fans, but we also think folks who may not have listened to WM much before but who dig bands like Dead Meadow, Bardo Pond, The Entrance Band, Bark Psychosis, and the like might just love this as well!

WHITE MANNA s/t (Holy Mountain) cd 14.98
It's about time Arcata, California produced a spacey psych band, don't ya think? It is, after all, the home of drop-out hippies and farmers of Mary J. Wanna. Happily, we report that Humboldt County's sons are just as tripped out on distortion and fuzz as the new wave of other space-rock outfits - Lumerians, White Hills, Sweden's just plain 'ol Hills, and a whole host of other bands whose names may or may not contain the word "owl." But judging by the album art, White Manna don't want to travel space so much as explore the dense redwood forests of their homeland. What has this quartet found in the thick of those gentle giants? 1. Massive volume, on levels akin to that of a Who concert. 2. Crazy wah-wah sounds and spiraling guitar solos, like you just took a hit off a four-footer for the first time since 10th grade. 3. Vocals shouted from the depths of a tunnel.
Best of all, White Manna distinguish themselves with their ability to hang a song on the nail of a bluesy hook. Further, they forego slow build-ups - the addition of saxophone on the opening of "Don't Gun Us Down" is about as much of a prelude as you're going to get here - and tend to cut to the chase pretty quickly on each of this strong EP's five tracks. It's almost as if they want you to actually dance to their particular brand of neo-psychedelia, unlike Holy Mountain label-mates Wooden Shjips, whom we enjoy equally but differently. Track 2, "Keep Your Lantern Burning," blares with a Stooges three-chord dissonance. The last two tracks, "Don't Gun Us Down," and "Sweet Jesus," seriously boogie. The latter boldly ends with a variation of the "Mr. Mojo Rising" mantra until it breaks free into the most sprawling freak out of the whole set. We thank White Manna for ushering us behind the redwood curtain and can't wait to see what they do next.
MPEG Stream: "Keep Your Lantern Burning"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Gun Us Down"

WHITE MANNA s/t (Holy Mountain) lp 15.98
It's about time Arcata, California produced a spacey psych band, don't ya think? It is, after all, the home of drop-out hippies and farmers of Mary J. Wanna. Happily, we report that Humboldt County's sons are just as tripped out on distortion and fuzz as the new wave of other space-rock outfits - Lumerians, White Hills, Sweden's just plain 'ol Hills, and a whole host of other bands whose names may or may not contain the word "owl." But judging by the album art, White Manna don't want to travel space so much as explore the dense redwood forests of their homeland. What has this quartet found in the thick of those gentle giants? 1. Massive volume, on levels akin to that of a Who concert. 2. Crazy wah-wah sounds and spiraling guitar solos, like you just took a hit off a four-footer for the first time since 10th grade. 3. Vocals shouted from the depths of a tunnel.
Best of all, White Manna distinguish themselves with their ability to hang a song on the nail of a bluesy hook. Further, they forego slow build-ups - the addition of saxophone on the opening of "Don't Gun Us Down" is about as much of a prelude as you're going to get here - and tend to cut to the chase pretty quickly on each of this strong EP's five tracks. It's almost as if they want you to actually dance to their particular brand of neo-psychedelia, unlike Holy Mountain label-mates Wooden Shjips, whom we enjoy equally but differently. Track 2, "Keep Your Lantern Burning," blares with a Stooges three-chord dissonance. The last two tracks, "Don't Gun Us Down," and "Sweet Jesus," seriously boogie. The latter boldly ends with a variation of the "Mr. Mojo Rising" mantra until it breaks free into the most sprawling freak out of the whole set. We thank White Manna for ushering us behind the redwood curtain and can't wait to see what they do next.
MPEG Stream: "Keep Your Lantern Burning"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Gun Us Down"

WHITE MEDAL Chance (Rebirth) / Northern Mist (Ravens Dusk) (Grief Foundation) 7" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
White Medal! What an awesome name for a metal band. Not to be confused with white metal, or unblack metal, this is not any sort of Christian metal, this is some twisted damaged doom-ed blackened heaviness the likes of which we've never really heard before.
This stripped down UK horde, open up proceedings with gentle clean guitar, minor key melodies, a bit of dreamy drift, until the track explodes into a hyper distorted blown out chugfest, super stripped down and raw, but SO distorted, it was a bit difficult to tell if the band was plodding along doomily or blasting furiously, just a massive blown out rrrooooaaaaar. The drums pound away beneath an epic metallic riff that churns and throbs, slathered in blistering distortion, the sound almost more like Godflesh or Pitchshifter than black metal, too hot and loud to be lo-fi but the same sort of texture and timbre. Keyboards (it sounds like keyboards) enter the fray and the track builds to some sort of total majestic metal blow out. Like Godspeed versus Bone Awl or something.
The flipside starts with some static high end guitar buzz, and just like the A side, the song erupts into a furious chaotic pound, the sound on this side much more distinctly fast and blackened, but with the same super saturated ultra distorted guitar, buried drums and shrieked vocals, there are a few tranquil moments, the guitar still distorted and buzzy, just sort of hovering dreamily before the band launches back in.
The label compares this to stuff like Bone Awl, Ildjarn, Ancestors and stuff like that, and while we do hear a bit of that, the sound is also massive and majestic, making us think of bands like Godspeed, Menace Ruine and a bit of that postrockmetaldrone we dig so much. WAY recommended.
LIMITED of course, packaged in cool hand screened sleeves.

WHITE MEDAL Tread The Earth: Demo 08 (Grief Foundation) cassette + patch 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The return of White Medal. And that's MEDAL not METAL. There's nothing god fearing or white or light or positive or hopeful about the sound this grim horde spew forth. We had their 7" a while back, and it was a primo slab of blown out almost industrial sounding blackness. Like a black metal Godflesh, crossed with maybe some of the more raw stuff like Bone Awl or Ash Pool, but with a bit of post rock epic-ness mixed in. Not sure how all that stuff worked together but it did. We dug it big time.
So now here's release number two, this time a super limited cassette / patch combo, limited to 100 copies, and finds the band going in a bit more of a raw, old school black metal direction. Beginning with an awesome washed out creepy ambient intro, all clean guitar shimmer and dark moody creep, the band soon launch into a full on buzzy pound, the guitars murky and muddy, the drums a buried in the mix plod, the vocals weirdly effected, the whole thing gloriously gurgly and lo-fi, almost d-beat sounding at times, with some cool languid and woozy folky interludes.
The flip side is much more frenzied and furious and somehow even more-lo-fi, total washed out black buzz murk, everything wreathed in hiss and distortion and buried in an all mids and lows and no highs mix, making the sound almost sludgey and doomy even though the band is blasting frantically. So blurred and smeared, that the buzz and blast gets smudged into droning epic blackness, that occasionally slips back into crunch and chug, but more often swirls and shimmers, if the sound was even a tiny bit more washed out or even a little bit more lo-fi this could have ended up an awesome blackdrone record. Killer stuff. We definitely need to hear a full length from these guys one of these days.
Comes with a cool cassette sized embroidered black and white patch, featuring the band name, the legend: Tread The Earth, and a cool image of a strange skeletal figure wielding a scythe over a garden of what appears to be body parts.
LIMITED TO 100 COPIES!!!!!! We got about 20, and after that we will not be able to get more.

WHITE MEDAL Yorkshire Heathen Black Metal (Legion Blotan / Bubonic) cd 13.98
Long overdue collection from this UK black metal horde, gathering up a bunch of various way-too-limited demos, as well as a handful of unreleased tracks, the sound raw and seriously lo-fi, melding lurching doomed creeps to punkish almost D-beat pound and the occasional bout of furious black buzz.
But part of what we like about these guys (this guy?), is how stripped down and Spartan the sound can be, the drums are simple and workmanlike, the guitars buzz, but not blackly, more almost sort of jangly, check out the first track here, which begins as a haunting darkly melodic dirge, clean guitar melodies draped over murky buzz and doomy drum plod, before exploding into something much faster, but which in some weird way, sounds almost punk, or even noise poppy, minus the productions, and the demonic croaked vokills, this could easily be some weird indie rock outfit, but with the vox, and the swirling low fidelity buzz, it ends up being more melodic BM. And it's that mix that sort of defines the sound, and actually is a hallmark of much of the black metal we like, that stripped off the overt black metal tropes, could be some weird murky doom pop or some experimental noise rock. The second track here is a gloriously minimal murk rock blowout, that even with the vocals, still sounds more like some metallic cold wave oddity than pure black metal.
The second demo here (starting at track 8), dials up the muddy, murky, dirge, and takes all that poppiness and buries it, at least on the first track, a lumbering monstrous black doom trudge that kills, and that sonic filth spills over into the rest of the tracks, the sound way more black and grim, but again, close listening, it's easy to hear the melody and more traditional songcraft that lurks beneath the surface, whether intentional or not. The two previously unreleased tracks are the blackest of the bunch, with the second of the two boasting some super sick vokills, and a soaring majestic arrangement that manages to be both dirgey and doomy, epic and intense. The final track is from some comp and is definitely the weirdest one here, with big booming drums, super distorted guitar buzz, belched harsh vox, the whole thing confusional and stumbly and gloriously chaotic.
LIMITED TO 500 COPIES!!!
MPEG Stream: "Agbrigg"
MPEG Stream: "On't Borough"
MPEG Stream: "An Evil Crop"
MPEG Stream: "Nokthumbrian Tyrants"

WHITE MEDAL /CAINA split (Legion Blotan) cd 11.98

WHITE MICE ASSPhIXXXEATATESHUN (Load) cd 13.98

WHITE MICE Excreamantraintraveinanus (Blossoming Noise) cd 14.98

WHITE MICE Ganjahovahdose (20 Buck Spin) cd 10.98
This is at least record number 3 or 4 from White Mice, but somehow, we've never reviewed anything by these drugged out noise makers before now. Not sure how that happened exactly but these guys are long overdue for some aQ love...
Lots of bands, especially if they're sort of spacey and druggy get compared to the Butthole Surfers, who pretty much defined spaced out drug rock, but no one truly embodies the same sort of fucked up frenzied sonic chaos like White Mice, who sound a bit like Lightning Bolt crossed with Shit And Shine, which if we do the math correctly does basically add up to the Butthole Surfers, or at least some way heavier, way noisier modern day equivalent.
Take album opener "Passsthefissst" one part, pounded on over and over and over, wild relentless tribal drumming, throbbing buzzy bass, and distorted to oblivion guitars, locked into an endless loop, hypnotic and mesmerizing and mantra like but also totally blown out and filthy and noisy and heavy, with some sinister demonic vocalizations over the top. You can almost imagine how insane this shit must be live, nothing but strobe lights, the band a blinking blur, the crowd a writhing mass of bodies, an endless lysergic freak out free for all.
And that's pretty much how the White Mice roll, every song is another effects drenched low slung damaged psychedelic sludge jam, sometimes frantic and super intense, other times slowed down and all Brainbombs-y, but always totally in the red and blown out and trippy and freaked out. Makes sense that these guys are from Providence Rhode Island, home of Lightning Bolt and Landed and Pink And Brown (R.I.P) and all of those like minded costumed noiserockers, pretty sure they're part of the same crew too, the best part about them being from RI, is that there's a good chance they play live with big ol' tails and fucked up furry mice heads, which is pretty much the only way you could make this stuff any better.
MPEG Stream: "Passthefissst"
MPEG Stream: "Ganjahovahdose"
MPEG Stream: "Placenta The Crotchtower"

WHITE MICE Ganjahovahdose (20 Buck Spin) lp 14.98
This is at least record number 3 or 4 from White Mice, but somehow, we've never reviewed anything by these drugged out noise makers before now. Not sure how that happened exactly but these guys are long overdue for some aQ love...
Lots of bands, especially if they're sort of spacey and druggy get compared to the Butthole Surfers, who pretty much defined spaced out drug rock, but no one truly embodies the same sort of fucked up frenzied sonic chaos like White Mice, who sound a bit like Lightning Bolt crossed with Shit And Shine, which if we do the math correctly does basically add up to the Butthole Surfers, or at least some way heavier, way noisier modern day equivalent.
Take album opener "Passsthefissst" one part, pounded on over and over and over, wild relentless tribal drumming, throbbing buzzy bass, and distorted to oblivion guitars, locked into an endless loop, hypnotic and mesmerizing and mantra like but also totally blown out and filthy and noisy and heavy, with some sinister demonic vocalizations over the top. You can almost imagine how insane this shit must be live, nothing but strobe lights, the band a blinking blur, the crowd a writhing mass of bodies, an endless lysergic freak out free for all.
And that's pretty much how the White Mice roll, every song is another effects drenched low slung damaged psychedelic sludge jam, sometimes frantic and super intense, other times slowed down and all Brainbombs-y, but always totally in the red and blown out and trippy and freaked out. Makes sense that these guys are from Providence Rhode Island, home of Lightning Bolt and Landed and Pink And Brown (R.I.P) and all of those like minded costumed noiserockers, pretty sure they're part of the same crew too, the best part about them being from RI, is that there's a good chance they play live with big ol' tails and fucked up furry mice heads, which is pretty much the only way you could make this stuff any better.
MPEG Stream: "Passthefissst"
MPEG Stream: "Ganjahovahdose"
MPEG Stream: "Placenta The Crotchtower"

WHITE MOTH s/t (Angel Oven) cd 13.98
Not one, but TWO brand new records, brand new BANDS in fact, from the man behind avant black metal weirdos Pyramids, Sailors With Wax Wings and thie one, White Moth, both heavy and weird in their own way, and both featuring incredible ensemble casts, not so much guests and collaborators. In some ways it does both of these records/groups a bit of a disservice to lump them together, as most reviewers (including this one) do, but it's sort of unavoidable, for as different as these two records may sound, there are quite a few similarities conceptually and even sonically.
For those unfamiliar with Pyramids, we've been pretty smitten with these guys ever since we first heard their double disc debut on Hydra Head, a dizzying sonic concoction that infused black metal blasts with washed out shoegaze glimmer, swirling dreamy ambience, blurred slowcore drift, actually it might be more accurate to describe Pyramids as some sort of blissed out shoegaze slowcore outfit that flecked their dreamy sound with bits of black metal buzz, but either way, the sound these guys cooked up was heady and psychedelic and pushed our buttons BIG TIME. Everything we could want in a weird heavy band seemed to be all smeared into this gorgeously indistinct entity called Pyramids. And the interesting thing about that debut, is that it already sort of foreshadowed the genesis of these two new projects, by including a discs of remixes/reworkings featuring Swans drummer Ted Parsons, Toby Driver of Kay Dot, Colin Marston of Behold the Arctopus, James Plotkin of OLD and Khanate, Justin Broadrick of Jesu / Godflesh and French industrial black metal crushers Blut Aus Nord. And the recent 5 cassette box seemed to be another sign pointing at Pyramids' mainman R Loren's restlessness, and need to keep creating and collaborating, featuring hours and hours of interpretations and reimaginings. Which brings us to Loren's latest projects, a simultaneous release of two different record, by two different groups, each sonically disparate, yet inexorably linked, Sailors With Wax Wings, whose sound is like a more abstracted shoegazey Pyramids, and White Moth, whose sound has been described by Loren as "digital hardcore", but also infuses its drill and bass and industrial crunch with plenty of Pyramidal blissed out black metalisms (including vocals from John Gossard of Weakling and Asunder!).
White Moth is just as awesomely tripped out and confusional as Pyramids, with a lineup of collaborators as similarly expansive and eclectic as Sailors With Wax Wings: Alec Empire (Atari Teenage Riot), Shelby Cinca of Frodus (!), Lydia Lunch, Ashley Scott Jones (Treasure Fingers, Evol Intent), Sam Hillmer (the Zs), Jacob Kirkegaard, Christoph Heeman (H.N.A.S.), Colin Marston (Krallice, BeholdÉThe Arctopus), Dalek and of course John Gossard (Weakling, Asunder)...
White Moth splits its focus between textures/atmospheres/ambience, and beats, BIG gnarled drill and bass beats, mean hard heavy, self described 'digital hardcore' beats, but the opening track is surprisingly lovely, with its shimmery dreamy droney intro, its lush cascading guitars, a blissed out beat-heavy chunk of electronic pop, which is pretty much how the next few tracks play out, and to a certain extent the whole record, for all its purported black metal and digital hardcore elements, the resulting sound is electronic, and shoegazey, lots of buzzing guitars, but the buzz is muted and dreamy, giving the songs a more sort of washed out hazy glow, a surface of prismatic shimmer under which, beats and riffs churn and roil. It's not until the third track, that things get HEAVY, and even then, it sounds less like digital hardcore, and more like some sort of electronic flecked noise rock, howled almost emo vocals, soaring guitars, all on a bed of relentlessly stuttering squalls of sputter and crunch, occasionally slowing down to a doomy lumber, before smoothing out into a thick stretch of droned out guitars, and then finally some hushed ambient shimmer. "Shoot The Clock" features Dalek, and is a thick noisy swirl of guitar heavy hip hop skitter, that's definitely a perfect match, but then after all, it's the guy from Pyramids making this record, so he throws in some blown out saxophone, and layer after layer of throbbing psychedelic guitar buzz. The next three tracks are all cut from the same cloth, soaring swirling squalls of epic black metal guitar, over frantic frenetic beats, hovering somewhere right between blissed out prettiness and blown out electronic chaos, definitely leaning toward the former, even at its most extreme and punishing, it's like Loren has some pop gene, that no matter how hard he tries to subvert it, manages to worm its way into everything he does, but hell we're not complaining, it's precisely what makes this stuff so compelling, and listenable. We're all for a blackened wall of grinding beats and buzzing guitars, but when they're deftly assembled into something laced with melody and texture, even better!
The final track "To The Cathedral" is the one that features something you probably never thought you'd hear, the vocalist from Weakling, shrieking and howling over a bed of spastic electronic beats, all wrapped in gauzy streaks of blurred melody. and laced with dreamy crooned clean vocals, all tangled and chaotic and wonderfully blown out, the guitars here again are sort of black metal, but the buzz is more dreamy than grim, and you gotta listen close, cuz Gossard's vocals are buried WAY down in the mix, almost just another layer of buzz, and then it's all over in 3 minutes, a gorgeous blown out blast of hazy blackened metallic bliss pop electronica, which dissipates leaving a softly shimmering cloud of soft whirring ambient dronemusic to finish things off.
On first listen, White Moth sounds like a huge departure from Pyramids, and well removed from sister project Sailors With Wax Wings, but it only takes a few more plays to reveal that perhaps the differences are not as great as they seem, both White Moth and SWWW are buzzy and blissy, freaky and far out, psychedelic and atmospheric, brutal and beautiful, and while like Pyramids, both are probably WAY too far out to appeal to the true grim hordes, for everyone else, this is some bafflingly brilliant and abstract heaviness.
MPEG Stream: "There Was A Man With Tongue Of Wood"
MPEG Stream: "Two Women, Knitting"
MPEG Stream: "Blood And Torn Grass"
MPEG Stream: "Smiles Warm Red Light"

WHITE NOISE An Electric Storm (Island UK ) cd 17.98
White Noise's first album has long been one of the holy grails for kosmische / space rock collectors. Kinda strange, actually, because it's actually more on the "exotica" Moog side of things, as opposed to a Klaus Schulze or Conrad Schnitzler production... Released in 1968 on Island in a total vacuum, An Electric Storm could be a Perrey & Kingsley soundtrack to a Radley Metzger soft-core porn film with twee psych-pop vocal melodies (a la Beach Boys, Free Design, Monkees) topped off with lots of bizarre electronic squiggles that originated in the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop (home of the Dr. Who title track). White Noise's mastermind David Vorhaus keeps things pretty surreal with a track based around the recordings made at a orgy and with a precursor to the John Balance vocal mumbles about how "darkness was enshrouded by darkness and the darkness was deadeningly dark."
MPEG Stream: "Love Without Sound"
MPEG Stream: "Firebird"
MPEG Stream: "Your Hidden Dreams"

WHITE NOISE SOUND s/t (Alive) cd 16.98
Everyone into Wooden Shjips, Moon Duo, Spacemen 3, Loop, A Place To Bury Strangers, Swervedriver, Black Angels, The Heads, White Hills, Lumerians, Mugstar, Monster Magnet, Serena-Maneesh, Telescopes and similarly drugged out, psychedelic hypnorock, best make some space in your music collection for this, the latest addition to your blissed out space-psych drug rock section (what? doesn't everyone have one of those?), the debut from Welsh space rockers White Noise Sound, who pretty much sound exactly like a heavier, modernized Spacemen 3, all it'll take is a couple minutes of record opener "August", with its motorik drum machine, sung/spoken vox, looped psych guitar mesmer, and then when the band kicks in proper, heavy guitars and propulsive drumming, explosive and hypnotic and if you're anything like us, which we're guessing you probably are, you're done for, just let yourself be pulled under, and dragged along through thick billowing clouds of psychedelic effects, of gloriously bleary drugged out churn and chug, surprising female harmony vocals, wild squalls of psychedelic leads, buzzing sitars, whirring synths, heck there's even some glockenspiel! To be honest it took us a while to get further into the record, as we found ourselves playing that first jam over and over and over.
But it's worth the effort, the whole record is gorgeously lysergic, slipping from propulsive drone rockers like the opener, to tripped out blissy drifts like the follow up "It Is There For You", with its tinkling chimes, clouds of cymbal shimmer, skeletal guitar strum, and motorik pulse, spaced out and spacious. But even those mellow ones build to serious freak outs, the guitars exploding in shards of prismatic shimmer, coruscating sheets of feedback drenched melody, Hawkwinded heart of the sun jams that could (and should) go on forever and ever. In fact, the record for all its explosive moments, definitely spends more time in hazy, druggy, dreamy bliss out mode, letting the synths and sitars weave gloriously gauzy expanses of weightless sonic shimmer and softly pulsing kosmische drift, which only makes the heavier parts that much more dramatic and kick ass.
MPEG Stream: "Sunset"
MPEG Stream: "It Is There For You"
MPEG Stream: "Blood (Reprise)"

WHITE NOISE SOUND s/t (Alive) lp 17.98
Now on (purple!) vinyl!!
Everyone into Wooden Shjips, Moon Duo, Spacemen 3, Loop, A Place To Bury Strangers, Swervedriver, Black Angels, The Heads, White Hills, Lumerians, Mugstar, Monster Magnet, Serena-Maneesh, Telescopes and similarly drugged out, psychedelic hypnorock, best make some space in your music collection for this, the latest addition to your blissed out space-psych drug rock section (what? doesn't everyone have one of those?), the debut from Welsh space rockers White Noise Sound, who pretty much sound exactly like a heavier, modernized Spacemen 3, all it'll take is a couple minutes of record opener "August", with its motorik drum machine, sung/spoken vox, looped psych guitar mesmer, and then when the band kicks in proper, heavy guitars and propulsive drumming, explosive and hypnotic and if you're anything like us, which we're guessing you probably are, you're done for, just let yourself be pulled under, and dragged along through thick billowing clouds of psychedelic effects, of gloriously bleary drugged out churn and chug, surprising female harmony vocals, wild squalls of psychedelic leads, buzzing sitars, whirring synths, heck there's even some glockenspiel! To be honest it took us a while to get further into the record, as we found ourselves playing that first jam over and over and over.
But it's worth the effort, the whole record is gorgeously lysergic, slipping from propulsive drone rockers like the opener, to tripped out blissy drifts like the follow up "It Is There For You", with its tinkling chimes, clouds of cymbal shimmer, skeletal guitar strum, and motorik pulse, spaced out and spacious. But even those mellow ones build to serious freak outs, the guitars exploding in shards of prismatic shimmer, coruscating sheets of feedback drenched melody, Hawkwinded heart of the sun jams that could (and should) go on forever and ever. In fact, the record for all its explosive moments, definitely spends more time in hazy, druggy, dreamy bliss out mode, letting the synths and sitars weave gloriously gauzy expanses of weightless sonic shimmer and softly pulsing kosmische drift, which only makes the heavier parts that much more dramatic and kick ass.
MPEG Stream: "Sunset"
MPEG Stream: "It Is There For You"
MPEG Stream: "Blood (Reprise)"

WHITE OUT WITH JIM O'ROURKE Drunken Little Mass (Ecstatic Peace) cd 13.98
Well it's got Jim O'Rourke on it, and that's really all that matters, right? But if you need to know more, this is the second album from improv group White Out, consisting of downtown NYC avant-musicians Lin Culbertson (analog synth, etc.) and Tom Surgal (drums/percussion). For this disc, they've invited maestro O'Rourke to sit in with his guitar and Powerbook. The result ranges from the spacey to the noisy, the crazed to the kinda quite lovely. Recorded in one take with no overdubs or studio effects, so there. For fans of experimental free non-jazz non-rock stuff...

WHITE PEE Trumpets Bring On Gallows (self-released) cd 7.98
The only thing we've heard from local psychedelic noise collective White Pee, was a split they recorded with psychedelic space rockers White Hills, but as that was a collaboration, it was sort of difficult to parse just what these guys sounded like. But finally, the band have released their first proper record, and it's a doozy, featuring at least one member of local psych rockers 3 Leafs, along with a bunch of other SF noisemakers, White Pee reveal themselves as less 'noisy', like we imagined, and definitely more psychedelic, the opening track gets right into it, with some dense gnarled riffage, draped over a simple motorik rhythm, it's still noisy, but here that noise is employed in swirling clouds around that main riff/groove, swirling FX, all manner of buzz and thrum and skree, in a constant swirl. It's downright doomy actually, a dirgey doomkraut groove, laced with what sounds like some bizarre strain of vokills, the sound is most definitely psychedelic, and very trancey, the whole first track essentially a single part looped and locked, the band pounding and grinding away, the sort of heavy psych bliss out that induces deep sonic mesmer in the listener. After a brief bit of actual noise, a freeform drift of warped samples, drum splatter, horn bleat, and effects overload, the group bring it all back together for another kraut-flecked psychedelic jam, after some swirling ambience and mysterious samples, the band lock into a killer groove, the drums simple and propulsive, plenty of piano, lots of squiggly synth, and still more effects, it's a bit like a way more active, much noisier Necks, there's a Circle vibe too, that same sort of endless circular hypno-rock, wrapped in a thick squall of wild synth swirl, and while the band wind it up after about 6 minutes, it easily could have stretched out for another 6 (or sixty!). Finally, there's the epic 11+ minute closer, which begins all twangy and dolorous, woozy and washed out, buried drums, scraggly acoustic guitar, burbling sound effects, the first eight minutes or so spent drifting dreamily, the sounds hazy and blurred and softly psychedelic, before the guitar grows more urgent, horns surface from the murk, the piano gets pounded, the guitar grows angular, only to quickly settle back down into a gorgeously murky slow burn fade out.
Way recommended for fans of 3 Leafs, Circle, the Necks, Carlton Melton, and other cosmic psychedelic explorers...
MPEG Stream: "God's Snow Isn't Dirty"
MPEG Stream: "Unearthly Sensitivty And Caring"

WHITE RAINBOW New Clouds (Kranky) cd 14.98
Whoo hoo! Kranky cranks out another colorful psychedelic dose of nu new age dream-hop from Portland's Adam Forkner, aka White Rainbow. Considering Mr. Forkner has been at the forefront of the pysch-pop new agey dream drone thing for awhile now, its no wonder he's perfected his trance dance, acid bathed tribal ambient shtick into a polished slab of catchy tunes, that fit somewhere between Cluster, Cocteau Twins and the golden gate park drum circle. Wavering angelic vocals soar across space and time, trails of colors fall to the ground as sprawling nebulous rhythms come in one ear and out the other. Definitely one of those records where listening on headphones uncovers all kinds of details and special secrets. Dreamy, fuzzed-out rainbow riffs gazing over pitter-patter percussion and waves of ambient wash, the doors of infinity are open, are your chakras aligned??
Where past White Rainbow releases might have been more guitar and vocal driven, New Clouds seems to offer much more awesome synthesizer wizardry, which we dig. But compared to Prism of Eternal Now, it seems New Clouds offers less variation and is more one dimensional, maintaining a steady sonic thickness that may be very satisfying to some, but a bit monotonous for others. Any way you look at it, New Clouds is a fantastic edition to the Kranky catalogue and a perfect soundtrack for your next out of body experience!
MPEG Stream: "Major Spillage"
MPEG Stream: "All The Boogies In The World"

WHITE RAINBOW New Clouds (Kranky) 2lp 17.98
Whoo hoo! Kranky cranks out another colorful psychedelic dose of nu new age dream-hop from Portland's Adam Forkner, aka White Rainbow. Considering Mr. Forkner has been at the forefront of the pysch-pop new agey dream drone thing for awhile now, its no wonder he's perfected his trance dance, acid bathed tribal ambient shtick into a polished slab of catchy tunes, that fit somewhere between Cluster, Cocteau Twins and the golden gate park drum circle. Wavering angelic vocals soar across space and time, trails of colors fall to the ground as sprawling nebulous rhythms come in one ear and out the other. Definitely one of those records where listening on headphones uncovers all kinds of details and special secrets. Dreamy, fuzzed-out rainbow riffs gazing over pitter-patter percussion and waves of ambient wash, the doors of infinity are open, are your chakras aligned??
Where past White Rainbow releases might have been more guitar and vocal driven, New Clouds seems to offer much more awesome synthesizer wizardry, which we dig. But compared to Prism of Eternal Now, it seems New Clouds offers less variation and is more one dimensional, maintaining a steady sonic thickness that may be very satisfying to some, but a bit monotonous for others. Any way you look at it, New Clouds is a fantastic edition to the Kranky catalogue and a perfect soundtrack for your next out of body experience!
MPEG Stream: "Major Spillage"
MPEG Stream: "All The Boogies In The World"

WHITE RAINBOW Prism Of Eternal Now (Kranky) cd 14.98
If there's any justice in this world, it should be anytime now that Adam Forkner becomes a household name, well at least in houses that care about awesome underground music. His past bands, Yume Bitsu, Surface Of Eceyon and the ambitious project [[[[VVRSSNN]]]] all had amazing moments that swept us away, but we think it's in his newest incarnation as White Rainbow that he's truly tapped into some serious musical magic.
Much like his recent collaboration with Honey Owens for the limited cd-r by their duo World, Forkner has found a way to stretch out his sounds and tap into something transcendent. With it's Dr. Brommers inspired manic packaging, and it's equally metaphysical title, this is a record whose sounds are well able to back up the mysterious belief system its entire aura points to. Channeling the living spirit of folks like Terry Riley and LaMonte Young, Prism Of Eternal Now is not merely just a tribute to those icons but living proof of how their influence has touched and inspired a younger generation of musicians aiming to create dense, enchanting, and alive sounds.
The album reveals many different shades of Forkner's musical explorations. From the dreamy, subdued and shoegazey side to the active, relentless and spacious. This is music to get lost in, lost to and lost with. The kind of record you put on and that immediately has you drifting off in a million different directions. Forkner has made his own brilliant Rainbow In Curved Air for a new generation. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Pulses"
MPEG Stream: "For Terry"
MPEG Stream: "Mystic Prism"

WHITE RAINBOW The Making Of Thriller (Dub Narcotic / K) 7" 5.50

WHITE RAINBOW / STAG HARE White Stag (Marriage) lp 14.98

WHITE RING Hey Hey, My My / Felt U (Handmade Birds) lp 16.98
White Ring are another witch house outfit who manage to gain a serious amount of notoriety, with very few proper releases, relying more on YouTube videos and limited cd-r's, as well as downloads and filesharing, but of the many groups of that ilk, they were definitely one of our favorites, so it's not that big a surprise that they would end up on Handmade Birds, even less so once you get an earful of their amazing cover of Neil Young's "Hey Hey My My", which transforms the original into a hazy ethereal bliss out, that is until the drop, when the drums come in, and the buzzing synths, very reminiscent of Salem obviously, but it's a sound we're still not tired of, Southern crunk style hip hop skitter, over fuzzed out low end, everything wreathed in a dense cloud of dreampop haze, the vocals an almost wordless croon, which soar skyward along with the synths/beats, only to bliss out once again in between. We've listened to that track so many times it was ages before we even made it to the flipside, but it's a good one too, much more downtempo and dark, woozy and wondrously warped, the track building to epic soaring Salem like crescendos, reminding us of the blissed out shoegaze of M83, but then retuning to the murky skitter that is so much a hallmark of witch house / drag. Fans of Salem, and all the other witch house we've reviewed are probably gonna want this, and everyone into shoegaze and dream pop, who have yet to check out anything like this, White Ring might just be your gateway... Sorry if we run out though; couldn't get very many of this limited release.

WHITE ROCK Tarpit (Troubleman) cd 13.98
We've had this here for ages, but somehow, with all of records we have to review every couple weeks we only got around to listening to this a few days ago, and now that we have, we're really not sure how it slipped by us, being as we, like a lot of you, certainly do enjoy our daily dose of NWOUSFD. For those of you who don't know what that is, which would most likely be ALL of you since I just made it up, NWOUSFD stands for New Wave Of U.S. Free Drone and counts among it's main practitioners the Double Leopards, Skaters, Davenport, GHQ, Yellow Swans, Mouthus and the like. White Rock just so happen to be 2 parts Double Leopards and 2 parts Mouthus, the result being what you might imagine would be the perfect mix of the two. And truth be told, it's one of the best drone records we've heard in ages. But this isn't that sort of clinical ultra minimal drone, or even that organic slow moving pristine drone, no this is a ramshackle late night druggy abstract sort of drone, the kind of drone that could only come from your favorite Skullflower tape or Vibracathedral Orchestra tape or that very special tenth generation Hototogisu cassette you've had forever, left on the dash of your car in the hot sun for weeks and weeks, then left in the back pocket of your pants or in your bag or in the pocket of your jacket for the entirety of a three week road trip, during which time it gets wet, wrinkled and covered in sand only to be discoverd on your return home, where as you immediately throw it into your beat up old hand me down boombox, the one with the dying batteries and the blown speakers, you push play, using a piece of duct tape to hold down the button, and the sound that comes out is a gloriously gurgling murky morass of fuzzy, rumbling sludgy, crumbling drone. Two twenty plus minute tracks of instrumental ambience, with guitar grime spread like a thick paste over a rickety background of swirls and squalls, a foggy grey haze draped over streaks of subterranean gloom, bits of percussion surface, but it's as if they have corroded or melted to the point of being dull and worn and rounded smooth, a series of thumps and mumbles, angular but with all the jagged edges rubbed away, each beat and shuffle held under water, the rhythm bubbling up as a barely audible muted thrum, clang and clatter as heard through ears full of wet cotton. So delicate and beautiful but so ominous and creepy. There's a harsh grinding industrial edge, but it's being brodcast from a mile away, heard as echoes and reflections, each sound beginning to fray and distort as it travels over hills and through trees, obscured by clouds and falling ever so gradually earthward, each more and more indistinct, the sound dissipating into a late night soporific throb and whir, a sweetly suffocating stretch of thick nebulous sound that lays atop you like a warm wet blanket. So so nice.
MPEG Stream: "Untitled"

WHITE ROCK Tarpit (Troubleman) lp 13.98
We've had this here for ages, but somehow, with all of records we have to review every couple weeks we only got around to listening to this a few days ago, and now that we have, we're really not sure how it slipped by us, being as we, like a lot of you, certainly do enjoy our daily dose of NWOUSFD. For those of you who don't know what that is, which would most likely be ALL of you since I just made it up, NWOUSFD stands for New Wave Of U.S. Free Drone and counts among it's main practitioners the Double Leopards, Skaters, Davenport, GHQ, Yellow Swans, Mouthus and the like. White Rock just so happen to be 2 parts Double Leopards and 2 parts Mouthus, the result being what you might imagine would be the perfect mix of the two. And truth be told, it's one of the best drone records we've heard in ages. But this isn't that sort of clinical ultra minimal drone, or even that organic slow moving pristine drone, no this is a ramshackle late night druggy abstract sort of drone, the kind of drone that could only come from your favorite Skullflower tape or Vibracathedral Orchestra tape or that very special tenth generation Hototogisu cassette you've had forever, left on the dash of your car in the hot sun for weeks and weeks, then left in the back pocket of your pants or in your bag or in the pocket of your jacket for the entirety of a three week road trip, during which time it gets wet, wrinkled and covered in sand only to be discoverd on your return home, where as you immediately throw it into your beat up old hand me down boombox, the one with the dying batteries and the blown speakers, you push play, using a piece of duct tape to hold down the button, and the sound that comes out is a gloriously gurgling murky morass of fuzzy, rumbling sludgy, crumbling drone. Two twenty plus minute tracks of instrumental ambience, with guitar grime spread like a thick paste over a rickety background of swirls and squalls, a foggy grey haze draped over streaks of subterranean gloom, bits of percussion surface, but it's as if they have corroded or melted to the point of being dull and worn and rounded smooth, a series of thumps and mumbles, angular but with all the jagged edges rubbed away, each beat and shuffle held under water, the rhythm bubbling up as a barely audible muted thrum, clang and clatter as heard through ears full of wet cotton. So delicate and beautiful but so ominous and creepy. There's a harsh grinding industrial edge, but it's being brodcast from a mile away, heard as echoes and reflections, each sound beginning to fray and distort as it travels over hills and through trees, obscured by clouds and falling ever so gradually earthward, each more and more indistinct, the sound dissipating into a late night soporific throb and whir, a sweetly suffocating stretch of thick nebulous sound that lays atop you like a warm wet blanket. So so nice.
MPEG Stream: "Untitled"

WHITE STAINS Exploratorium (Eroto Tox Decodings) cd 14.98
Back in stock!
While it's been noted that White Stains began in the mid-'80s as a garage band out of Sweden, the earliest known recordings of the group were inextricably linked to Genesis P-Orridge, as a couple of the White Stains members had founded a Swedish chapter of P-Orridge's Temple of Psychick Youth. By 1994, White Stains had decided to call it quits, leaving behind a series of dark electronic eccentricities over the course of 5 albums, including one album in the legendary Anckarstrom series which included exceptional releases from The Hafler Trio, John Duncan, Arcane Device, Zbigniew Karkowski, Phauss, and the Sons of God. Exploratorium is a collection of their more esoteric and abstract recordings, many of which had originated as soundtracks to experimental films and a couple of tracks from that Anckarstrom album. White Stains infuse an absurdly darkened glee to their synthesizer driven tunes, resembling the clunky fumble of Hans Edler or Keuhkot with plenty of Teutonic militant Der Blutharsch-esque overtones.
MPEG Stream: "Nela Chela"
MPEG Stream: "Power Trippin' Blues"

WHITE STATIC DEMON Apparitions (Utech) cd 14.98
You would think Justin Broadrick had enough going on, playing in Jesu, Pale Sketcher, Final, Grey Machine, Blood Of Heroes, running his Avalanche label, but apparently there's always time for more, not that we're complaining, we're always up for more of Broadrick's noise, and noise is precisely what we get from his White Static Demon, a power electronics powerhouse, that tempers full bore white heat hiss with crumbling textures and dark melodic drones.
Two 20+ minute tracks, the first, a warped dronescape of processed electronic whirs and shimmers, pulsing and throbbing, a looped blur of gradually intensifying buzz drenched howl, underpinned by deep glitchy dubbed out thrums, before finally exploding into a super nova of Merzbowian white noise, a cascading wall of blinding skree and blown out crunch, but thankfully, this is no one dimensional noise record, instead, over the course of the rest of the track, the sound slips from superdistorted in-the-red buzz, to woozy weirdly melodic feedback drenched drift, to muted smoldering glitched out pulse, to tangled murky minimal click and shimmer, to corrosive hazy dronedirge crumble. And that's just the first track.
Number two also begins hushed and textural, a swirling muted convergence of various strands of glitch and crunch and rumble and whir, gradually building, the sound getting filthier and crustier, a wave of blackened grinding noise, underpinned by strange almost sci-fi sounding synth melodies, and unlike the first track, this one doesn't let up, it definitely cycles through various permutations of blown out buzz and caustic white noise, but it's pretty dense and intense, flitting from burnished and blackened to spectral and effulgent, total head splitting blasts of in-the-red upper register skree, colliding with avalanches of damaged low end, all wrapped in sheets of sinister hiss and sent careening into the heart of the sun, the sound a flash of deafening and blinding white light and sound, laced with barely there bits of melody, but for the most part, a serious planet busting, magnitude 10 burst of sheer electronic power.
Phew! Brutal, intense, heavy and noisy, and pretty fucking awesome, just maybe not for Broadrick dabblers, this one's most definitely for the iron eared, the stern of sonic constitution, and the power electronic elite!
MPEG Stream: "Endless Vacuum"
MPEG Stream: "Unforgiving Eidolon"

WHITE STRIPES, THE De Stijl (V2) cd 14.98
White Stripes = Mr. Jack White (of The Go on vocals, guitar, piano) and Ms Meg (percussion). Although the sleeve design and photos stylistically suggest a more mod candy-striped music direction, this is bare-bones blues with riffin' and slidin' swerve around wheezing harmonica, spartan piano and violin. Quite good, indeed.

WHITE STRIPES, THE De Stijl (Third Man / Warner) cd 12.98

WHITE STRIPES, THE Elephant (V2) cd 17.98
Ahhh the new long awaited White Stripes major label debut! At first listen I was scared that this was gonna be too slick 'n' radio friendly but I thought it would grow on me, and it did. It's really great. I can appreciate the tough position the band must have been in what with all the hype and expectations, and really they did a good job of keeping their charming qualities yet moving forward and doing new stuff, ya know 'evolving'. My (Sadie's) favorite record is still De Stijl for the stripped down bluesiness of it, but I am listening to this one over and over cuz it's new, and damn good too. The songs range from stadium rockesque guitar wankyness to simple simple stripped down rawness. The lyrics are clever and sweet yet mean as always. One song is sung by a girl whom I assume is Meg. Then there's this really funny track with both Meg and Jack White and guest Holly Golightly doing this lil' conversational piece. Kinda silly but I still eat it up. And a Bacharach cover, "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself". There's not much more to say really, if you are a White Stripes fan, and there are so many of us you probably are one, you won't be disappointed!
MPEG Stream: "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself"
MPEG Stream: "I Want To Be The Boy To Warm Your Mother's Heart"