Look what we sneaked online while you were sleeping….
Transmission 2….
Revolutions of a 45 and 33 kind…..
This transmission features –
Barrett’s Dottled Beauty, ZOFFF, Jo Bartlett, Amonism, ummagma, dead gurus, mary ocher, david bowie, ulan bator, dollkraut, bureau b, Jessica curry, Maurizio Abate & Matteo Uggeri, so beast, liquid library, smiling strange, zero gravity tea ceremony, woe town, elaine rasnake, Pethaugarw, Laetitia sadier source ensemble, blanck mass, menace beach, kramies, Manuel Ferrer, yerba mansa, minami deutsch, eureka California, schizo fun addict, pull the plug, zoll, moonwalks, ourselves the elves, n-qia, children of alice, kindred spirits, the polymer cities, zone six, way past cool, wonderfulsound, clangers, karen Dalton, jenny hval, sunrise ocean bender, Supersize Me, Peachy Hat, Tara King Th, Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions, Orange Drop, mark and the clouds, Junkyard Liberty, cult of dom keller, Eggs in Aspic, Strange Collective, the heaters, Moonwalks, has a shadow, kevin krauter, savants, megami acorda, more than human, sppols out, kelman, shed show, serafina steer, wolfgang tillmans, gospel, poppies, space age turntables, lathe cutting, hey colossus, haxan cloak, optical sounds, buzzcocks, los microwaves, caetano veloso, gilberto gil, Ronnie von, os mutantes, rock n’ roll dance party, sonic realities, nite jewel, metal hurlant, sonny day and the tony ray combo, rolf trostel, laura marling
first great album of the year, now there’s a hefty notice to be saddled with and have to live up to, yet it’s a description that’s well deserved for this debuting full length from Barrett’s Dottled Beauty appears to emerge from a rarefied fog that’s far removed and remote of pop’s populated path. The collaborative work of an Electroscope and a Kitchen Cynic, ‘owls in her eyes’ comes pressed in a strictly limited 80 only wax variation housed in hand made / hand numbered collage sleeves. Upon its grooves four soft psyche siren-esque psalms quietly stare, seduce and enchant, beguilement doesn’t begin to touch it, ghostly drone mosaics, which as reported on previous encounters, arrive trimmed in classicist vintage whose lineage ripples to a dawning of time whilst sonically balanced on a finite point located somewhere between the primordial psych folk utterance’s of Alphane Moon, Ghost, our glassie azoth and the bewitching trips of George Harrison’s ‘blue jay way’ – non more so is this better exemplified than on the title track itself, buried in the twilight mists hushed murmurs rise and float amid washes of waking atmospherics, the effect very much tuned into some hitherto lost Nico-esque ghost folk mystic. But then to attempt to describe the overall effect of ‘owls in her eyes’ is to liken it to spirit walking through a dream, for here the melodies float in part, in ethereal rapture and wood whittled wooziness to dissipate and dissolve in the ether, delightful spectral symphonies weaved in the wind and arrested upon an unmoored fluidity that sees them shape shift with an alluring eeriness that’s both seductive and enchanted. Here the frost chipped ice sculpturing of ‘the cynic, the dipper and the thrush’ shimmer hazily softly unfurling their kaleidoscopic mantra drawing upon a sonic mysticism that threads elements of Dodson and Fogg with John Fahey. Given its sparse detailing ‘forvie’ – frankly the best thing here it should be said – reveals itself as a lushly toned cosmic ghost light, a celestial rapture graced in hymnal hues and chill tipped choral coos all traced upon lunar pulsars and kissed with an otherly presence. ‘the rain has come in misty showers’ draws matters to a close and as such crafts out something bruising, crushed and lovelorn, its shadowy folk noir toning teased in a fracturing and surrendering beauty that hints of both Preterite and Dead Can Dance whilst similarly soured in the fragile hollowed majesty of Glissando. Irrefutably essential. https://barrettsdottledbeauty.bandcamp.com/album/owls-in-her-eyes
heading out of deep distance later this month, the debut full length from ZOFFF. Originally out in 2014 via CD, ‘ZOFFF 1’ finally gets the long overdue full wax treatment, ZOFFF feature among their cosmic party various members of Levitation, Field Music, Sons of Adrian and Noel and the Cardiacs with this set arriving as a strictly limited 300 only pressing. You can get an early listening via their bandcamp page which while you’re there we suggest you strap yourselves in and recalibrate your head space for the cosmic colossus that is ‘Kozfest MMXVI’ – a 44 minute head expanding trip into the oblivion recorded at their appearance at last year’s Kozfest in July, an improvised lunar leviathan of hulking kosmiche beardiness spooling astral tripping freak outs and out there mind blasts to culminate in a grizzled space stoner opus of monumental tripping heaviness, better roll a fat one this ‘un. https://zofff.bandcamp.com/album/kozfest-mmxvi
by all accounts currently being prepped as a future Kodiak Island track, here’s Jo Bartlett in the intimacy of her living room performing an acoustic take of ‘no easy game’ – with a touch of Sandy ghosting on its shoulder, this little heartbreaker stings and cuts to the quick with a becoming hope crushed reflection.
Many thanks to Matt Bower of Wizards Tell Lies for sharing this (the Wizards will be thawing from hibernation with a new download only full length – details to be confirmed), not rightly sure if this is newly peeled or something drawn from the vaults, still it’s good to have Amonism back on our sound player and sounding, it has to be said, quite empirical and epic. This is a track entitled ‘from the dark explodes light’ – hell’s teeth this is massive, I mean cinematic massive, like Jerry Goldsmith and John Williams huge, hulking massive – all at once an emotional rollercoaster, a chest beating call to arms graven in the regal and ceremonial blood lust for battle. Stunning in a word. https://soundcloud.com/amonism/from-the-dark-explodes-light
welcome return of dream pop duo Ummagma, you know some releases just write their own reviews, ‘winter tale’ initially appearing on their 2015 EP ‘Frequency’ gets a much-deserved remodelling with these mixes featuring a guest appearance by the much adored, around here anyway, AR Kane – more about that in a second though. As the title might suggest and hint, ‘Winter Tale’ comes shimmered in twinkling snow drops, all at once frail and fragile, this ice carved cascade purrs to a Angelically prettified pulsing procession that softly orbits lonesomely in the celestial stratosphere. Over on the flip side you’ll find the ‘AR Kane 69 mix’ – indeed a retooling by Rudy Tambala and a nod to the duo’s late 80’s landmark ‘69’ album, which despite its atonal etching endows the original mix with a somewhat distractively dreamier quotient with the gruff flotillas of wiry feedback sprays and the woozy cosmic electronic warbles seemingly acting as guide lights shepherding Shauna’s vocals homeward bound. https://ummagma.bandcamp.com/album/winter-tale
clearly folks with a thing for ‘psycho candy’ era Jesus and Mary Chain, though that’ll be the Reid brothers inaugurated into the temple of the Fuzztones, this is or should I say these are, the dead gurus with a track ‘ starlight sisters’ pulled from a forthcoming full length for – fast becoming our favourite label – Wrong Way – entitled ‘Acid Bench’ .Oodles of fuzzy twang here with primitive grooviness and that kind of swamp dragged primordial swagger much beloved around these here parts though buried deep beneath an impenetrable stoned out and dead eyed psychedelic wall of sound, shades are indeed a required accessory here mind you having heard it twice now we’re now thinking it sounds the fleshtones and red lorry yellow lorry or is that just me.
Now I’ll be truthful here in saying that we were just going to give this a quick listen and file it in the essential listening section of this extended weekly missive. It deserves more than that. I’d say we were entranced, mesmerised and locked into its ethereal enchantment the minute it crackled into life. This is a teaser track entitled ‘endlessness’ taken from Mary Ocher’s ‘the west against the people’ full length. Produced by Hans Joachim Irmler, the album is due for release on the klangbad imprint, this first hearing is approaching something truly immaculate, described as cold wave which personally I feel underplays its beauty, this minimalist hymnal is touched with an air of isolationist classicism, the melodies whispering and yearning are ice framed upon a willowy seductive murmuring whose frosted noir tracing really is unworldly and captivating leaving us here with the kind of jaw dropped adoring which has rarely came troubling our way since the first time we hooked upon early teaser copies of Goldfrapp’s ‘felt mountain’.
Reaching through the veil shrouded in a hazy intimacy and closeness, crackling to life upon TV screens in a small road side shop window (Newton Electronics – a nod to a distant past), a vapour trailing hymnal from beyond, what first appears chilling and tearful soon shifts with wondrous adventure to reveal something understated and quietly euphoric, much like the returning echoes of Major Tom in ‘Space Oddity’ and ‘Ashes to Ashes’, this is a goodbye from the beyond. Reflective, lost and cut adrift, there’s no tears, no regret, just resolution. This is ‘no plan’ by David Bowie, as in life so to in death, he surprises and continually reinvents art as a form to move, communicate and amaze.
Heading out shortly on Bureau B, herewith three sampler snippets heralding the imminent arrival of new groove from Ulan Bator in the shape of ‘stereolith’ – I bet you were expecting galactic kosmiche of some form or other so were we if we are being honest, instead and this is, assuming that our listening radar is in full working order, we are picking up the undeniably whiff of Edward Ka-Spel stalking across the title track albeit as though busily rewiring Floyd’s ‘the wall’ while ‘blue girl’ is consumed by a strangely industrial grooving whose playfully angular noir shimmering picks around the edges of a ‘Baal’ era Bowie leaving ‘NeuNeu’ – clue is in the title methinks – to round out this brief soiree with some nifty kraut grooved Magazine-esque mantra. https://soundcloud.com/bureau-1/sets/ulan-bator-stereolith-snippets
look i know it’s so last year, but admirers of Bureau B might be minded to check out their ‘best of bureau b 2016’ set – 24 tracks plucked from last year’s enviable release roster and all available to download for free, a fair few rich pickings here including cuts from Camera, Conrad Schnitzler, Qluster, Die Krupps, Automat, Solyst and Rolf Trostel the latter of whom whose kosmiche pulsing ‘sehnsucht’ from his third full length – 1982’s ‘der prophet’ has had us somewhat smitten mainly due to its pristinely air cooled cosmic pop chassis. https://soundcloud.com/bureau-1/sets/best-of-bureau-b-2016-24-free-downloads
merrily macabre, a haunted fairground creeper eerily stilled in a vintage sepia framing, so chillingly playful you can feel ice droplets forming on your brow. The impish dark twin of Goldfrapp’s ‘felt mountain’ if you must under the influence of Add N to X, this is Dollkraut with the teaser track ‘oblivian’ culled from a forthcoming set for Dischi Autunno entitled ‘holy ghost people’ – sounding like, as the press release rightly notes, a lost 70’s era ‘European genre cinema’ soundtrack rephrased by Broadcast under the guiding spirit of Komeda and Korzyński. https://soundcloud.com/dischiautunno/dollkraut-oblivian
Three impeccable releases from the time released sound imprint, starting out with something forthcoming from Jessica Curry entitled ‘fields were the essence of the song’ this being just a four minute extract of an extended 22 minute opus. A curious release that asks for involvement by the listener, the press release describes it as a site specific soundtrack for a film that doesn’t exist, the idea I guess is for the listener to colour the emotional landscape in response to the melodies. The press release continues to litter clues, a soundtrack for an environment to wander about in perhaps to dream, the listener’s relationship to the music switching from slave to master in so much as the ambient sounds don’t dictate the moods but merely act as a conduit. Well I hope that’s what it means. As to the music itself, undulating piano braids serenely sprayed in breezy pastorals all at once touched with a bruised melancholic twist and a nature dancing canter, atop a drifting dialogue hypnotically draws the listener in adding to that unmistakable sense of loss and regret. A release best enjoyed during a quiet moment away from the maddening crowd and clanging chatter of a busying daytime and into the stilled yawn of a late evening. Serenely beautiful in short. https://soundcloud.com/time-released-sound/jessica-curry-fields-were-the-essence-of-the-song
Staying with time released sound, quietly emerging at the tail end of last year, a collaboration between Maurizio Abate & Matteo Uggeri entitled ‘beyond time’ somehow managed to slip our listening net. Again another release best served and enjoyed in the remoteness of a late evening headphone experience for fear that the days hectic activity may shatter the spell of the tranquil beauty unfurling within. On this occasion we’ve sampled the delights of ‘part IX’ – a gorgeous ice carved idyll expressed in genuflecting shimmer toning rushes, the melodies deftly plucked craft out a wood carved sense of magic enchantment that delicately see saws with affectionate tenderness to captivate and allure with a stilled mysterious elegance. https://timereleasedsound.bandcamp.com/album/beyond-time
December’s offering from time released sound, a bit of a delightful sore thumb it has to be said and something that sound wise is a detour from the usual established TRS sonic format, in truth something you’d expect to sneak out of the Bureau B label, it’s not quite Automat but it’s not far off, that is if the excellently titled ‘sex, love and cooking oscillator’ is anything to judge by. This is So Beast with a set called ‘Kira’ – the track in question prickling our ear lobes not least because it wonderfully mutates with such disconnected zeal one minute a crookedly hypnotic and sparsely toned kraut industrial grooved slab of spectral edginess – think part DAF part Lydia Lunch, the next lurching, fragmenting and assuming a sleazily feral uprooting to waywardly detune itself superbly into an angular slab of art groove boogie. https://timereleasedsound.bandcamp.com/album/kira
There’s nothing like an opening description ‘this is some cold shit’ to catch our eye and have us flocking blindly towards. An excellent compilation entitled ‘hoarfrost’ put out by the guys over at Bristol based Liquid Library who describe this in passing as a gathering ‘of ambient sounds with a wintry theme’. Fifteen tracks lurk within, all from artists who’ve so far managed to avoid our radar, we’d love to give over time to them all but alas time constraints deny us the opportunity, so here with a brief picking of what’s about starting with the set opener, to the genteelly oceanic majesty this is the caressing ebb and flow sigh of Elaine Rasnake with the rather beguiled and dare we say aptly titled ‘comfort’. Next up and in sharp contrast, Pethaugarw serve up the skewiff ‘crystallisation’ – all scraped riffs, atonal scowls and freeform mischief set upon an ominously pulsing backdrop, quite eerie and erratic if you ask me – admirers of those Henry Cow chaps will surely adore. Somewhere else, and utilising the same eerie pulsars, Woe Town serve up the hypnotic’83 84’ which to these ears sounds not unlike the pulsing tones found from under a control panel from a resting flying saucer – very chilling and ominous. Be honest, calling yourself Zero gravity tea ceremony and having the nerve to name your track ‘merry fucking Christmas thanks for destroying everything now can I have a hug’ was always going to get our attention no matter how pitiful the sounds might be, happily its quite dandy in a post apocalyptic stars going out end of days type way, while we part to the bruising stoner shoegaze vapour trailing of Smiling Strange’s ‘petelumant’ – maybe it’s just me but did someone order in Codeine to impart their appraising artistry of My Bloody Valentine’s back catalogue. https://liquidlibrary.bandcamp.com/album/hoarfrost
I can feel an adoring rash forming the minute the ear assimilates, translates and connects the sounds to the synapses, rippling outwards they seductive shimmer, shimmy and swoon playfully radiating an addictive and amorphously affectionate free spirited jazz lounge vibe that sounds as though its stepped from out of an early 70’s summer. This is a teaser track from a forthcoming set entitled ‘finding you finding me’ for drag city by Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble. Delectable and squiffily intoxicating, ‘undying love for humanity’ flutters flightily dipping and ducking delightfully just off centre rewiring an unmistakable back glancing nod to both Stereolab’s ‘dots and loops’ and ‘sound dust’ whilst flavouring it in the essences of Os Mutantes, Sergio Mendes and Steve Reich. https://soundcloud.com/drag-city/laetitia-sadier-source-ensemble-undying-love-for-humanity/s-b7QRB
Absolutely smitten by this, an early preview of incoming groove from Blanck Mass, this is ‘please’ from a forthcoming set for sacred bones entitled ‘world eater’. Don’t mind saying, but by these ears this sounds like the dogs, utterly consuming and majestic with it, a gloriously fluid convergence of styles stirred into a joyously expansive chill toned down tempo jubilant hymn that’s sure to crush and caress in equal measure, the coolest club floors across the land. https://soundcloud.com/sacredbones/blanck-mass-please/s-MbAQX
Due to arrive housed in a scratch n’ sniff sleeve via Memphis industries, Menace Beach are set to unveil their ‘lemon memory’ full length – like next week, from it and being sent ahead on scouting duties this is ‘suck it out’ – three and a half minutes of effervescently fried dayglo pop replete with ear candy cooing police siren riffage and a devilishly prowling and mooching off kilter angular slacker grooving, tell me again what’s not to love then. https://soundcloud.com/memphisindustries/menace-beach-suck-it-out-1
Described by its authors as an ‘abstract tribute to David Bowie’ and rescued from a box of forgotten demos recorded many years ago by Kramies, what is now ‘la nuit de Brixton’ was passed to friend Manuel Ferrer to work on as a collaborative exercise. Fixed in the heavens among the stars, a visiting farewell lunar lullaby twinkling in the great beyond sighed by the caressing lilt of oceanic symphonic sprays all delicately hushed, softly spectral and drifting onward out of sight and earshot in the vast void, its parting transmission a nod to ‘Space Oddity’ and then with its message sent, silence and nothing.
Another incoming from the deep distance dudes to go with that aforementioned ZOFFF happening, the self titled debut platter from Yerba Mansa is due for touchdown sometime next week, 300 only pressing all on clear khaki wax. A freeform brain fry, absolutely zonked out wigness of the highest order and something you’d rightly expect to emerge from the sound house of riot season. These freaked out scabbed arabesque mantras arrive blistered and cut upon locked grooved head- tripping primitive hallucinogenic séances of stoned out juju. Yowzah. https://soundcloud.com/yerba-mansa/sets/untilted-excerpts
There will be Sulatron mentions aplenty shortly if not in this particular missive, then definitely the next. For now cosmic cadets here’s the cruise controlled star hugging lull of Minami Deutsch with a spot of lunar loveliness, incidentally the shortest track on their February arriving self titled full length, entitled ‘terra recipe’ which unless our ears do deceive, squirrels in at its close aa little riffing nod to a certain Will Sergeant, though not before tuning itself into the kind of head expanding and motorik murmuring astral arabesque that imagines Sunray sharing studio smoke with Fly. https://soundcloud.com/sulatron/minami-deutsch-terra-recipe
Damn we are getting so dizzy with the dishevelled distraction that this bad babe is pouring forth not to mention feeling a tad pinned down by the g-force velocity as it shifts up through the gears to fraying and frying intensity. ‘What’s he saying’ I hear you say while the rest of you cry ‘what’s he on about’ – new happening from Eureka California is to what we refer, a feral slab of awkwardly spotty goof groove, untamed, unruly and discordantly dandy. It be called ‘wigwam’ and its heading out of HHBTM as part of a fair price campaign for 7 inch singles. Over to the flip there lurks ‘only birds no feathers’ and ‘slack motherfucker’ – the former found scuzzing out and delightfully bastardising thought familiar riffs from a distant modern lovers back catalogue, the latter a storming up close and personal loose and loaded, scab picking and volatile cover of an old lost Superchunk ditty – who said the riff sounds like it was nicked from the Pistols ‘great rock n’ roll swindle’.
Where does the time go, seemed only like yesterday that we were mentioning this – somewhere here in fact https://marklosingtoday.wordpress.com/2016/12/24/schizo-fun-addict-6/ – anyhow new Schizo Fun Addict single ‘Chrome Rush’ is now available to download for free, flip side ‘dominion stungun’ is an old gem rummaged and rescued from the recorded vaults and brought back in the light – no excuses now – fill thy boots…. https://soundcloud.com/schizofunaddict/sets/chrome-rush-b-w-dominion
Some essential podcast listening happenings over at the ‘pull the plug’ sound house with a newly unveiled broadcast being aired via resonance FM, again as always this becomingly bijou and often slightly distracted broadcast plucks out the finest sounds from the underground, this one in particular hooking itself upon a kosmiche-y vibe. Amid the miscues and strange technical glitches recent polytechnic youth-ers Tomorrow Syndicate and the recent blink and it was gone outing by Australian Test Labs Inc – ATL – rub shoulders with Ghost Box-ers Pye Corner Audio and Rocket recording dudes Gnoomes while there are two sneak tasters from the forthcoming Polymer Cities incoming full length ‘recreation’ , as the man rightly notes ‘capsuleland’ really does have a ‘tin drum’ feel’ albeit reframed by yellow magic orchestra and remastered by Thomas dolby. https://www.mixcloud.com/Resonance/pull-the-plug-12th-january-2017/
Apologies to whoever sent this to us, but until I manage to track down your email you are alas uncredited, but many thanks all the same. Continuing our current pre-occupation with bands whose names start with Z – only joking, here’s Zoll, not to be confused with ZOFFF, the latter of course quite ably acquitted in the cobbling together of kosmiche kool with the latter though absorbing a shadowy post punk vibe on the quite titanic ‘Leopold’ which starts, stirs and surveys its sparsely detached wasteland for a moment or two before untethering itself and erupting in a most psychotic way, the likes of which we were much minded to root out our well thumbed copy of ‘Ocean Rain’ by the Bunnymen, if only in order to bask in the gloomy unrule of ‘thorn of crowns’. https://soundcloud.com/zolltheband
So enamoured were we by their appearance on the newly pressed Sunrise Ocean Bender (see somewhere to the foot of this missive) that we felt obliged to go off in search of more of their ear gear. ‘dust is magic’ is the flip side of that aforementioned ‘a little touch of gravity’ track, a beauty that freewheels with an unerring assured majesty that freefalls to join the invisible dots that join together the sonic worlds of Toy and Hookworms. Run out track ‘the joy of geraniums’ is pretty tasty to, annoyingly brief but enough vintage 60’s twang here to suggest one or two of the bands collective number have a thing for the craft of Meek and Barry. https://moonwalks.bandcamp.com/album/in-light-the-scales-in-the-frame
Another newly peeled lovely, this one comes in the shape of ‘wounds’ by ourselves the elves which grumblingly ends a little abruptly but apart from that, is cut with the kind of fragile sighing soft burn that has the hint of the Sundays swooning in its wake whilst swapping notes with Siddeleys as it distractively dreams its way with its head in the clouds draped in a purring forlorn framing that many moons ago wouldn’t have looked out of place on a Sarah records release schedule. https://ourselvestheelves.bandcamp.com/
Regular observers of these cobbled together missives will be all too aware of our fondness for N-qia, frost tipped love notes from the far east. Judging by the liner note descriptors ‘straight forward’ is heading out in some shape or form on the Virgin Babylon imprint, at once trimmed in a neo classical tracing this beautified thawing visitation comes sweetly harvested upon a lost in the moment funky delirium kissed in celestial sprays whilst shyly primed to duck your defences. Adorable in a word. https://soundcloud.com/n-qia/straight-forward
As hard as we are trying, we’ve yet to unearth sound cloud links heralding the imminent release on Warp of a debuting set from Children of Alice so I guess we’ll just have to leave you with the dedicated band page via Warp for a brief hint as to what’s heading down the tracks. For those unaware, Children of Alice is a sound collective that gathers together the talents of Broadcast co-founder James Cargill, keyboardist Roj Stevens and Julian House. The band name refers to ‘Alice in Wonderful’, the late Trish Keenan’s favourite film – the sounds – well from the brief taster on the lock groove player – very trippy and minimal, much like an acid fried kaleidoscopic Radiophonic Workshop. http://childrenofalice.com/
Okay once we’ve gotten around to spring cleaning a few unfinished reviews from way back before Christmas and rummaged through the email mountain, I’m suspecting that there may be a fair few mentions for the Aetheric imprint in the offing. Foe now however there’s this eerie visitation from Kindred Spirits to have you taking up ‘a thought’ safe residence behind the sofa. Not as chilling as fellow label mates Hole House but all the same dead headed with a becoming disquiet with its hypno grooved glacial pulsars and icily isolationism. https://soundcloud.com/aetheric-records/primitive-blessings-kindred-spirit
Ah, the Polymer Cities, surely that debut set must be close, here’s ‘neon beach radio’ to seduce your listening lobes a track which we may have already stumbled over via the airing of Resonance FM’s ‘pull the plug’ transmission wherein references where made to it sounding a tad like ‘tin drum’ era Japan / Mick Karn. Anyway by these ears it’s all futuro lounge spiced in Balearic afterglows – an imagined sound tracking of tomorrow worlds envisaged through the printed words of Bradbury, Dick and Asimov, a sonic picture postcard of automatons at rest refuelling on alien beach fronts lazing beneath sun fired skies, hints of YMO, Vangelis and Plaid did not escape our attention. https://soundcloud.com/midwich-youth-club/neon-beach-radio
Rumours abound that there’s a live album in the offing from these dudes pencilled in for the Spring release schedules of Deep Distance with a new studio album mooted for sulatron records to come later. For now here’s a spot of wigged out head expanding trip-a-rama from Zone Six, this particular cut entitled ‘Cosmogyral’ is taken from their last mind melter ‘love monster’ – a fifteen minute cosmic blues astral stoner which aside sounding as though its emerged through the wasted haze of some particularly potent bliss smoke ought to appeal to admirers of the much missed Green Milk from the Planet Orange, ripe for those who love their sounds beardy and out of it – see Sendelica, Earthling Society and Cranium Pie. https://zonesix.bandcamp.com/track/cosmogyral
Additional listening resources….
tearaway twanging, swamp dragged rock a hula and fuzz fried garage groove are the order of the day on the highly essential turntable teasing Way Past Cool podcast – alas no track listing but what do you ya know a download option – highly recommended…..
https://www.blubrry.com/garagepunk_pirate_radio/19862973/way-past-cool-episode-53?sbe=1
over at Soho Radio the Wonderfulsound dudes are busy doing their stuff with an hour and a half’s worth of lights lowering lounge loveliness – features Goldfrapp’s frankly gorgeous ‘paper bag’….
https://beta.mixcloud.com/sohoradio/wonderfulsound-libraries-02012017/
sounds from more than human this show features selected cuts from Equikknox, Suzanne Kraft, howlround and the latest from the polytechnic youth sound house ATL….
https://soundcloud.com/morethanhumanrecords/more-than-human-205
Spool’s Out retrospective anyone…..
https://robinthefog.com/2017/01/01/2016-in-retrospect-part-1-mixed-blessings/ – which features a two hour mix cloud gathering with track list to boot….
https://robinthefog.com/2017/01/09/2016-in-retrospect-part-2-spools-out-2/
a great band and much missed I’m saddened to say….a few selected classics from Kelman – now on bandcamp….
Serafina Steer in cahoots with Ben Polhill – another quality mix cloud session I’m afraid…..oh and before I forget its called the Shed Show…
https://www.mixcloud.com/ShedShow/10th-january-2017-unhinged/
how on earth we missed this, is well, frankly puzzling, emerging out of fragile last summer this is Wolfgang Tillman’s ‘device control’ – did I hear you say a warmer and more emotionally responsive version of Kraftwerk, you might well be right……
https://soundcloud.com/fragilelabel/wolfgang-tillmans-device-control
spotted this on the interti**t – Brazillian grooviness a go go….
another of those essential ear candy garage punk happenings, this one features an hour’s worth of shaking boog-a-loo courtesy of ‘rock n’ roll dance party’….
https://www.blubrry.com/garagepunk_pirate_radio/20062888/rock-and-roll-dance-party-010917?sbe=1
apologies for being late to the party with this, but another podcast / mix cloud set that found its way onto our sound player just before the silly season, this is transmission #6 from the Sonic Realities dudes, a real mix bag of grooviness featuring Alec Empire, Spectres, the Oh Sees, TVAM, Maps, Goldfrapp and much more including the quite devastating ‘running out of time’ by Nite Jewel which we defy anyone getting through without neither shedding a tear nor feeling somewhat lost for words. https://www.mixcloud.com/sonicrealities/sonic-realities-episode-6/
Haxan Cloak podcast….. over at https://www.mixcloud.com/NTSRadio/haxan-cloak-10th-january-2017/
moving pictures….in memoriam – David Bowie….
An extended discussion about ‘life on Mars’ – aired originally on Radio 2 earlier in the week….
An interview recorded for Dutch TV in 1977….
‘Sound and vision’ – a BBC documentary…..
One of the prime cuts from that aforementioned Way Past Cool pod set – this is Sonny Day and the Tony Ray Combo with ‘creature from out of space’…..
Mentioned earlier in brief – see Bureau B best of 2016 – here’s another taster of Rolf Trostel, this is ‘new age of intelligence’ from his ‘der prophet’ full length released in 1982…..
Actually caught this via the aforementioned wonderfulsound pod, this is Laura Marling’s recent ‘soothing’ – rather lovely yet oddly subdued…..
One of the featured tracks from that superb shed show pod……los microwaves from way back in ’82 with a sentiment I have on a daily replay ‘time to get up’
Don’t care what anyone says, but this still hits the spot when I’m feeling blue…….
Stuff……
Nice to see both Lake Ruth and the New Lines getting mentions in the big takeover best albums of 2016 list, in truth had we been bothered to do a list the New Lines set ‘love and cannibalism’ was streets ahead of everything else we heard by a country mile and more…..also great to see New Model Army topping the selection haul with ‘Winter’ – ridiculously overlooked everywhere else.
quick heads up to say that the latest issue of Optical Sounds is currently imminent and available to pre order, these things go like the proverbial hot cakes, so don’t say you weren’t warned……
http://opticalsoundsfanzine.bigcartel.com/product/optical-sounds-issue-11-pre-order
Buzzcocks – early days – with Devoto to get a long overdue appraisal by Domino with re-releases of ‘Spiral Scratch’ and a set of ’76 demos ‘time’s up’ – all manner of badges, posters, booklets and a reimagining of the fanzine ‘Shy Talk’ – more details here …..
and here……
http://www.dominorecordco.com/uk/albums/10-01-17/buzzcocks-mk1-box-set/
yea yea yea – so we don’t feature many comics, in fact we just don’t – so to even up the score – cue cheap marketing ploy to get the kidz onboard here’s a feature we spotted on the legendary Metal Hurlant –
http://hhhhappy.com/the-daring-french-sci-fi-comic-that-inspired-akira-blade-runner-and-star-wars/
far out space age sound systems….
http://thevinylfactory.com/features/space-age-record-players-stereos/
Beginners guide to lathe cutting your own records……
http://thevinylfactory.com/features/a-beginners-guide-to-lathe-cutting-your-own-records/
vinyl type stuff you need in order to stop the cooler kids laughing at you……new ‘best of’ set from Hey Colossus – out and selling very fast – hulking two disc set entitled ‘Dedicated to Uri Klangers’ – press release our parts of give the background…….
Press Release : ‘In 2015 Hey Colossus released two albums on Rocket Recordings, In Black and Gold in February and Radio Static High in October. Dedicated to Uri Klangers is a look back. It’s best summed up by the 3000 words that can be found on the inner sleeve of the record, the tale begins: “The 2xLP comp that’s in your hands now was initially released on cassette by S.O.U.L for our 10th anniversary show, September 2013, about 50 tapes were made and sold on the night. We thought a BEST OF would be hilarious. We were average at that show and I’m being generous. I’d give us 5.5/10. A shame. Hacker Farm and Helm also played. It was at The Sebright Arms in London, somewhere out East…..” – The cassette sat in the MIE car for three years, soundtracking journeys back and forth across the country. When a new car was bought, criminally minus a tape deck, the decision was made to put it on vinyl. Included are one or two tunes from all the HC albums released 2003-2013, it also includes the Witchfinder General Hospital track (only 100 pressed on 12″). All vinyl versions of the albums from this era are long gone. The discography is a bit of a mess now, the band doesn’t fully know and the Discogs site is not much help – godspeed anyone trying to buy all the back cat. 2xLP, gatefold sleeve, full printed inner sleeves with stacks of photo’s and the aforementioned spiel / tale of woe / occasional victory. 500 copies. This record is a fine way to dig into the first 10 years.
In case you’ve been living under a rock these last ten or more years Hey Colossus kinda go like…..
essential listening….and stuff we missed along the way…..
many apologies for having initially missed this, dropped our way just before the festive melee, this is the strangely catchy ‘Dutch priest’ by the Savants, a drunkenly tripping slab of atmospherically edgy and wiring twang toned rock-a-hula, reference wise think of an unholy gathering séance enacted by Pavement, Jumbo and a youthful of arrowe hill.
Another track that slipped our radar is a rather dream pop lovely from Megumi Acorda entitled ‘(Unexpectedly)’. Alas no information on these folk, not even sure whose actually handling it either, safe to say with its corteges of chiming cascades and dream dazed vocal demurs that there’s more than enough here to attract the attention of shoegazed swooners whose listening preferences slipstream into saint marie et al terrains.
Briefly to this, sneaked up on our player, a little something from Kevin Krauter entitled ‘diamond’ – this honey comes cooled in a mellowing sunny sided 70’s MOR the likes of which we’d hazard a guess ought to appeal first port of call to those much admiring of the Brigadier and the Lancashire Hustlers – though more pertinently the latter mentioned in one of their earlier guises the Panda Gang.
Four piece hailing from Brooklyn, NY these are Poppies with the achingly beautiful ‘mistakes’ – a track pulled from their slow to burn ‘double single’ set, is it just me that’s picking up the Mazzy Star vibe, though that’ll be Mazzy Star twinned with the crestfallen softly toned demur of the much missed Anna Kashfi.
Of this we’ll just settle for sublime……from Jenny Hval ‘the great undressing’
mentioned this a little while – here in fact https://marklosingtoday.wordpress.com/2016/11/28/gospel-3/ – they must have hated the review because they never replied back. Ah well. Anyway though we’d mention this again because aside now being officially out for download it’s also graced by a moving picture show. This is Gospel with ‘bodies’ – utterly adorable by our humble reckoning and still sounding very much like the Insect Guide in a lovelorn tryst with Maudite Dance.
New sunrise ocean bender playlist has landed and it’s a bit of babe, features a plethora of mind morphing kaleidoscopic sonic wooziness, some of these dudes we will be seeking out for further listens not least the two opening acts Supersize Me and Peachy Hat, the former doing a rather nifty take on the Crimea being rewired by Mirror, Mirror thee latter providing a cosmic campfire cutie of such blissful brilliance I could have swore I was being visited upon by an out there and deeply stoned The Church. Elsewhere cuts from the adored Tara King Th who I must say we ought to feature more, oldie ‘astro girl’ really is up there with the debuting Soundcarriers full length, then there’s the frankly faultless into the trees’ by Hope Sandoval and the Warm Inventions which I’ll just say, has to be heard to be believed, a brace of Mega Dodo’s – the excellent Orange Drop and mark and the clouds, tastiness from the Junkyard Liberty and a sneak peak of a track from an ultra limited live cassette from cult of dom keller from our new favourite label Eggs in Aspic – been warned this is selling fast on pre sales we hear. Add to the mix new things from Strange Collective and the heaters – the latter like wow sounds like the cavalry heading fast over the hills, an ultra cool mind frying dandy from Moonwalks and a killer thing from has a shadow whose ‘sorrow sorrow tomorrow’ I must admit sounds as though its stepped out the best bits of an early 80’s positive punk scene. Look do yourself a favour, forget me waffling just tune into the blighter…. http://www.sunriseoceanbender.com/dont-let-them-tempt-yousob-1-12-17/
…and finally, a moment of greatness………from Karen Dalton….
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….and leaving you with this….
….some loveliness from the Clangers to see us out……ta ta for now x
the sunday experience 