Ben Vida - “Zizzlers”
“The intent with this work is to escape the stereo image and create an activated listening space of expanded spatialization”
Ben Vida’s esstends-esstends-esstends, a collection of potentially mind-altering modular synth experiments, is out now on PAN. Do not attempt to drive or operate large industrial machinery after watching this video.
Mount Carmel - “Hear Me Now”
As a change of pace from the inordinate amount of drone, ambient, and otherwise totally weird stuff I’ve been posting lately, here’s a smokin’, take-no-prisoners cut from throwback rockers Mount Carmel, who recently delivered on the rollicking promise of their 2010 debut with the tremendous Real Women (out via Siltbreeze). Just as The Men’s Open Your Heart revived the spirit of the ‘Mats in awesomely sweaty fashion, Women straps into a time machine and zaps back to the 70’s, channeling the sizzling blues-rock of yore. If tracks like “Hear Me Now” don’t make you leap from your desk chair and start shredding the air guitar, check your pulse—you’d be hard-pressed to find music more fun, lively, and free of pretense in this young year.
mp3 // Mount Carmel - Hear Me Now
Concessionaires - “Introducing Rocket Skeleton Summer”
“Best enjoyed with a pot of chili and a Bourbon barrel ale. Thanks for listening.”
Artificial Interface, Brad Rose and Pete Fosco’s latest drop under the Concessionaires moniker, sounds a lot like the image above (or like that Twilight Zone episode where the 3 astronauts crash-land in the space cemetery—you know the one). Like a slightly darker twin to Panabrite’s recent space odyssey Soft Terminal, it uses rumbling synths and dense atmospherics to stew up some heavily martian vibes. Sink your teeth into the wordy but properly trippy “Introducing Rocket Skeleton Summer” and pick up Interface over at Under the Spire.
NHK’Koyxeи - “638”
PAN continue to tighten their vice grip on the realm of rad experimental music with their latest batch of releases, which includes the positively vibrant (and equal parts mind-boggling) Dance Classics Vol. 1 from Autechre/Conrad Schnitzler associate NHK’Koyxeи (Kouhei Matsunaga, if that’s easier to remember). Matsunaga’s brand of tunes might skew slightly towards the bizarre, but that doesn’t stop Dance Classics from living up to its name; tracks like “638” deliver their glossy, finely mathematical grooves in a way that would light up any right-minded dance floor (though perhaps cause people’s legs to snap off). Pick this one up on vinyl/digital here and find more NHK goodies on Important.
mp3 // NHK’Koyxeи - 638
Jon Porras - “The Black Tide”
Come April 17th, Barn Owl’s Jon Porras will follow up his über-gorgeous Undercurrent LP for Root Strata with a new one on Thrill Jockey entitled Black Mesa (pre-order here). Above you can catch the murky, vaguely disconcerting clip for unreleased track “The Black Tide”, which pairs exceptionally well with Porras’ brand of wind-swept meditations.
Robert Pollard - “Picnic Drums”
Would I be chased out of town by a mob of torch-wielding GBV fans if I said I liked R. Pollard’s new Mouseman Cloud (out now on Fire) better than recent reunion disc Let’s Go Eat the Factory? Probably, so I won’t. I will, however, say it’s one of the year’s best thus far, and one of Pollard’s strongest musical statements (solo or otherwise) since his recent creative renaissance. While Cloud dishes out plenty of bite-size confections (see: the 1-minute “Dr. Time”) that indulge Pollard’s typical knack for pop hooks, one of its biggest surprises is the impeccably-paced “Picnic Drums”, which patiently builds towards a jangly, singalong-worthy finish. Do not fret, proud brothers—Uncle Bob’s still got it.
Vatican Shadow - “Harbingers Of Things To Come”
Since 2010, Prurient noisehead Dominick Fernow has been getting in touch with a more beat-driven, techno-oriented side of his sound under the Vatican Shadow moniker, putting out a string of quality cassettes on his own Hospital Productions. This alter ego apparently struck the fancy of Type Records, as they’ve chosen to give his 2011 collection Kneel Before Religious Icons (previously a 4-tape box set) a vinyl reissue. “Harbingers of Things To Come” is a particularly vicious cut from said release, hammering forth with weapon-grade bass and a flurry of icy, spine-chilling synths à la Bermuda Drain. Listen above and get your hands on a fresh-pressed LP over at Boomkat.
Polonaise - “Trocadero”
Help ring in daylight savings (the real start of spring, as far as I’m concerned) with the crystalline sounds of Polonaise (Scott Goodwin and Avalon Kalin), who just put out their killer Trocadero EP on Not Not Fun offshoot 100% Silk. Steeped in the sweaty Italo-dance we’ve come to expect from the upstart label, the release shimmies and sways through 5 cuts of cartwheeling synths and tightly-wound groovin’. Pop on the title track and just let your head nod—you’ll be seeing disco balls in no time.
mp3 // Polonaise - Trocadero
El-P - “The Full Retard”
“So you should pump this shit like they do in the future”—so goes the bid that opens El-P’s thunderous “The Full Retard”, the 2nd track (and first official single) we’ve yet to hear from his long-awaited Cancer for Cure. The track was leaked earlier as part of an official album announcement (May 22 on Fat Possum—prepare accordingly) and it contains all the hallmarks of a Producto banger, from the dystopian grit to El’s verbose, fine-tuned snarl. C4C certainly has a high standard of quality to uphold (listened to “Squeegee Man Shooting” Lately?), but “The Full Retard” is proof that we need not be worried. This is the sound of El-P firing on all cylinders, and it sounds fantastic.
mp3 // EL-P - The Full Retard
Isle of Pine - “Again (Whistle Version w/Nancy Graves)”
“Foot stomping acoustic ramblings, akin to how it must have felt for Robert Pollard before he got a four-track, or for Beck before he got his hands on a drum machine. Grimy yet stunning, melancholic yet brutally honest.” - Pop Montreal 2011 Festival Guide
It’s been a little while since we last heard from Tim Beeler, the multi-talented troubadour behind Isle of Pine, but he has returned with the nine song …And Farther Away EP recorded over the course of an afternoon in Montreal. Fans of intimate lo-fi acoustic recordings would be wise to give this a listen—he sings about ex-lovers and saints with his buoyant, wistful voice that pairs just as well with these scratchy recordings as apples do with peanut butter (for those who haven’t tried it: it does). The track above is a definite highlight, a soothing campfire-style duet recorded, in his words, “cross-continentally wit [his] gurl”, which is probably the most adorable thing ever. Go pick it up for free on his Bandcamp page.
