Music
Album Review: Young Jesus – ‘Welcome to Conceptual Beach’
Saddle Creek ‘s emo-jazz-rock band presents its most accomplished album, a spiritual journey driven by a swirl of enthralling riffs
TRACK: The Dawdler – ‘Sign Of Growth’: a sad, cruciverbalist shoegaze rush
THE DAWDLER is the low-key musical alias of Tyneside singer-songwriter John Edgar, who describes himself on his Twitter profile as “Ambient pop. Sad.” He’s more than made us sit up to attention with the brace of songs he’s released since signing to London indie Akira Records: the heart-wrenchingly sad “Lava Lamps”, about the collection of …
CASSETTE REVIEWS: A trio of leftfield beauties from Fritz Pape, Stephen Molyneux, and Laura Luna Castillo
WHITED SEPULCHRE is one of those brilliant little labels nibbling away at, and fascinated by, what’s happening out on the margins. The artists driven less by adoring teens and the bucks, and much, much more by exploring what’s possible, following their muse ever deeper into a particular aesthetic. As la mode, many of Whited Sepulchre’s …
PREMIERE: Kazumichi Komatsu – ‘Orca’: textural dreamstate IDM
KAZUMICHI KOMATSU is a Japanese electronicist and multi-media artist who you can place quite firmly in a grand tradition of sonic playfulness and interrogation that also includes microsound artist Ryoji Ikeda (with whom he’s shared a stage – as well as The Field and Julia Holter) and the free-roaming IDM of Susumu Yokota. He’s been …
Album Review: Emily Kuhn – Sky Stories
New jazz… Chicago… must be another International Anthem release right? Well no, this is something from outside that powerhouse, the debut by Emily Kuhn, trumpet player out now on the BACE records. As a label BACE has been steadily releasing music from the jazz-tinged, electronic, experimental, post-rock whirlpool for a couple of years now and …
Say Psych: Album Review: The Spyrals – Same Old Line
Los Angeles based The Spyrals have this week released their fourth LP Same Old Line via Fuzz Club Records. Taking cues from The Velvet Underground, 13th Floor Elevators and The Stooges by way of Neil Young, Bob Dylan and Muddy Waters, the record sees the band carve out eight songs of raw, back-to-basics rock’n’roll that …
Premiere: Dumb Whales release chiming indie pop single ‘The Great Divide’
We are honoured to premiere the new single ‘The Great Divide’ from Melbourne-based indie band Dumb Whales. It’s an absolute thumping track: chiming, razor-sharp guitars carve their way over a steady and thunderous rhythm section featuring a rousing anthemic chorus and fulsome melodies. This is classic indie rock fashioned from sparkling guitars and celestial melodies. …
EP: Oscar Jerome- Breathe Deep Remixes
Although it’s been robbed of its live connection this year, the UK Nu- jazz train has kept up the momentum with a roll of dynamic and defining releases. Oscar Jerome’s ‘Breathe Deep’ album was one of those touchstones. It saw the KOKOROKO guitarist and super collaborator (with buddies like Shabaka Hutchings, Moses Boyd and Yussef …
Say Psych: Album Review: Mugstar – Graft
Centripetal Force (North America) and Cardinal Fuzz (UK/Europe) last week released the latest LP from Mugstar, Graft, the follow up album to their much-lauded live collaboration with Can’s Damo Suzuki released earlier this year. Mugstar have been hurtling through the sonic multiverse since 2003 and have left an extensive discography in their wake. Early on, …
Say Psych: News: Hills announce Frid repress on 2 colour vinyl variants and new gatefold sleeve
One of the finest psych bands to come out of Sweden, Hills, have announced a special ltd edition repress of their third and last studio album Frid. The repress will be available on ‘Fire Splatter’ vinyl (200 copies) via the Rocket Recordings shop and on ‘Blue’ vinyl (400 copies) via your local record shop. Hills are …