The title of this split is something of a misnomer as the artists on this disc get along just fine, with more randomness within in each song than between each contribution; three long, more or less convivial tracks, one from each artist, adding up to 48 minutes of dense meditation and relaxation. There is precious-little information, only artists listed on the cover and song names on the disc (there is a slot for a booklet, though no booklet). Everlovely Lightningheart fills the opening slot with the film-music of “Loom”, a narrative led by liberally-effected keyboards, accented by erratic, stifled saxophone and assorted ambient noises. The mood and scope is reminiscent of Pan American, though the additions of organic (random) ornaments liken it also to disc-mates, My Cat Is An Alien; if we can pin anything to the Italian outfit, it is space – wide, open, swirling space. “Aliens in the Crowd” uses feedback drones, field recordings, keyboard loops, and good old dolphin shouts to extend the vortex with sheets of unrequited noise over an otherwise soothing uhm. Nothing mind-blowing, but a fine segue into the huge contribution of (VxPxC), “A Positive Aspect of Dimensional Collapse”: fuzzy guitar and drums exploring the lost highway, transfiguring through effects panel, meddling with harmonium, aspiring pulses, and slowly turning over into a rain-dance of keyboards, drones, and distorted percussion. Some of (VxPxC)’s best work comes via compilation (I’m thinking of their fine track for Foxglove’s ‘Wailing Bones’ series) – contributions which never amount to less than what they bring to their own releases. In total a strong album, good for what ails you when you want to tune out (I took it like a valium on a recent plane ride – perfect). Professional CD in a paper gatefold with a fancy sticker on the cover, hand-numbered to 250. (Indieworkshop CD, $11 HERE)

The Servant Sun is Brad Rose of Tulsa, Oklahoma and Peter Wright of London, working through postal collaboration. You would never know it though, as the pieces of ‘Cold Harbour’ flow with incredible finesse. In fact, the perfect lack of rough, uneven angles is perhaps the album’s strongest point as the warm hum of each track holds a steady tone from start to finish in the manner of early Kranky releases. The loose compositions strung concentrically evoke the bulk of Charalambides up in here; the folksy timbres and darker tones reaching the territories of that band’s many side-projects. “The Juniper Tree” (and later, “Ornaments”) inevitably calls to mind John Fahey and other guitar meanderers for its solo strum; simplistic, yet shouldering heavy humidity with a ceaseless soundscape of insect symphonies. “Bed of Needles” and “Old Mouldy Coat” in different ways call to mind Rose’s other works as The North Sea, in which he utilizes eastern strings to cheat out exoticism, though skillfully positioning these sounds amongst guitars and raga in the Six Organs strata of good vibrations. “The Final Hours Before Dawn” requires yet another Tarentel comparison - though this time specifically ‘From Bone to Satellite’ with its layers of guitars glazed with dark ambiance and dank texture. “Cemetary for Decaying Ivy” [sic] brings to mind Seht and other micro micro-tonal mechanics - though such a glacial composition contradictorily played at a triple speed in order to exaggerate such tonal shifts. Apart from the regional and traditional influences of each composition, the extensive use of ambient/natural recordings on this album entitles each song to a claim of local context, be it the cicadas of Appalachia or oceans of British rain. In the sense, when listening, I wonder about the logistics of this collaboration. The insert lists the instrumental contributions of both players - and indeed there is a wealth of instrumentation to be found on each track - yet I cannot help but think there are disparate worldings at play (urban England v. mid-west USA), with the cohesion of each track requiring an uneven authority deferred to one artist or the other (there is also a suspicious use of English English in half the titles). This of course is in no way a negative (the album is likely much stronger for it, if it indeed occurs); it is instead a revelatory point in the case that it is not the case. Stamped CDr comes in a stamped, hand-numbered vellum envelope with heavy-stock inserts featuring two pieces of gorgeous photography. Limited to 123 copies, and very nice. (House of Alchemy CDr, $9(US)/$14(World) HERE)

L'animaux Tryst (Field) Recordings is a new label from Portland... Maine! "with a focus on 3"cdrs and cassettes in lovingly handmade packaging and extremely limited editions." This is their first release, and it looks good:

Cursillistas - 'Les Biches'
"In which--that is to say, therein--Cursillistas performs five songs of varying lengths and degrees, all vaguely within the realm of psychedelic lo-fi folk rumbles, but with more electricity than ever before. The a-side begins with an epic build, layers upon layers of electric guitars, vocals, distorted percussion, Indian flute, horns and feedback drones, which drops out at its most intense to reveal the quiet echoing guitar strum and broken-microphone vocals of the gentle " dirt.palm.line". The bee side features rudimentary use of a nine-note toy xylophone throughout, beginning an extended toy tone trance. The Langley Schools celebration sounds of "Bag of Feathers" follows, with amateur-choir vocal layers claiming pre-eminence over the trumpet call, and the album closes with more layered vocals and a focus on xylophone and reverse guitar, gently leading the raft of sea tones to the coastline of does."

001b - les biches 3"cdr - $9
hand-painted & hand-stamped 3"cdr, with handmade, hand-sewn packaging. edition: limited, 40 copies.

001c - les biches cassette - $6
hand-painted and hand-stamped white 26-minute cassette, with dirt & feather-covered packaging. edition: limited, 26 copies (lettered a-z).

Postage-paid within the US. EMAIL for ordering instructions.

A very-different, much appreciated side of the difficult-to-type (VxPxC), ‘Strange on Hind Legs’ is a three-man excursion into free-form/psychedelic garage rock, with the welcome addition of burn-out vocals over the band’s always awesome guitars and standard kit. 16 minutes of the CDr’s 8 tracks is the incredibly-variegated opener “Pillow Mountain”, lurching head-long from this Mouthus (‘Loam’) rock-type thing into a breathy, gloomy guitar and wind song sounding like mid-late Tarentel, then into a loose non-committal stoner jam with drums that mysteriously floats away on trails of violin over thick billows of gilded guitar feedback, finally settling in a final switch into a cute Scandinavian (maybe Solbakken?) harmonium/piano exit. It’s almost exhausting how much they fit into this single track, a release in itself. Things become considerably more focused with the next task, “Fuck Friends”, chugging stutters of black-sludge behind curtains of noise and ambient, industrial percussion, with vocals again disguised by layered effects boiling down into “Near Needles”- presumably about driving in the desert - a dark, bassy comedown laced with streaks of noise and faint hand/contact percussion. The band always does well to switch-up their instrumentation, from the harmonium of this track to the banjo of “Down at the Plodshop”, but their overriding skill comes forth in crafting rich, multi-layered tracks, exemplified in brief passages such as “Short Life” and “Waiting for Fall”. “Clear Stains”, despite the title and subtle organic noises, suggests not sexual function as much as longing and grief, as singer and organ wail sincerely over shimmering grey drones, reminiscent of the sound and themes of Maquiladora’s ‘White Sands’. Finally, “Under Pillow Mountain” is a surprisingly coherent (post)rock song (think early Fly Pan Am and the like), enhanced with rich effects, strategic recording angles and washed out tones; a fantastic coda to the diversity of this fine collection. The disc comes in an edition of 50 in paper “arigato” sleeve with beautiful label, stamps, cutting and drawings, plus full-color insert card. There was a major postal setback in getting this disc (released in November), plus my own vacation schedule requiring that I blow everything off for a few weeks, so there is a good chance very few of these remain – don’t fuck around: GO NOW. Excellent to the max. (self-released CDr, $10(US)/$12(World) HERE, HERE, and HERE)

Japanese dynamo 777 was 666 has just announced the coming addition of PayPal ordering. You now have no excuse not to break into some of the craziest releases around. Check out the CATALOG, and what 2007 will bring.

For your ordering convienience, from the label:

[General Ordering Info]

- All listed prices inc p&p worldwide by air. You can order by international money order or registered concealed cash. USD/EUR accepted at current exchange rate. 100 yen is about 0.85 USD/0.67 EUR.

- Please email first with the title(s) you want to purchase. I'll let you know availability, the total cost and where to send money. The item(s) will be reserved for 2 weeks.

- Please don't write 777 was 666 or anything like that on the envelope. It would be appreciated if you would enclose a paper with "typed" your mailing address to deliver the parcel to you securely.

- The parcel will be sent out by air on the same day when payment is received and I will email you and let you know when it's sent out. Usually the parcel will arrive there within a week after letting you know when it's sent out. I will attach a scan of the receipt as proof of posting if you want.

- If you cancel the order, PLEASE let me know as soon as possible. I NEVER blame you. Just drop me a line "i cancel the order".

- If you live in US try http://fusetronsound.com first.

- Wholesale inquiries welcome. 70 percent of retail price.

Mangdisc is berserk!

#44 Witcyst + id m theft able - '~TILDA' DVDr $5
"trans-hemisphere audio / visual collaboration....... NZ's fearless magician Witcyst puts up still dripping hunks of ?????????????? (with cracked styrofoam and torn apart plastic wrap and "Ring on The Meat Key" stickers) repeatedly having the cosmixxx windszz blow blow blow thy conical hat clean off..... that id m slice ticks huffs and puffs up, and big video 'omit ball of eatless dough. the protagonists, kittens, and ~TILDA, dreaming in the flickers..... 1 hour...... of noisess....... i offer you this sample from the "script" ::::::::::::::: "Hello grasps of crowds to lacrosse's a low-cost and aircraft, Did produce a sudden to me stochastic and adult stick us little aha you are run around and saw the use of a cake and run but can use it"

Crank Sturgeon + id m theft able / Eric Boros / Noggin CD $6
"3 way split released by Manufacture.....with a distro on the mangdisc tip.... Noggin are noggin, guitar and violin noisend SPRK FLRK HEEEB of HMM tscch GRAW..... Eric Boros slices and dices vocal-heavy live performances into one excellent slice of beard stroking wonderment ..... and Crank + id team up rub summer bellies and pay sweet spit dripping hommage to our beloved neighbors to the north (le nord), the canadian, celestial noise chunks/murmer churns, and the usual taunts that went into those '03 librarian trash cans...... days of yore days of yore."

#43 Shea & Skot of Maine - 'Philomel 2: Dogshit' C-60 $5
"is a dog-poo encrusted, inadvertent hommage to milton babbit's electro-supranista masterpiece "Philomel". Crumbling junk electro-whatevs that's bent magics and such (pulling figures from the air type-of-stuff...ghosts, you know), guest appearances from stuttering inuits, milton berle and a found libretto that was literally smeared with dogshit. two 6 foot 4 inch long men poke each other with wishy washy lighthouse affairs."

#46 id m theft able - 'Star Guts' CDr $5
"±%Š®Õd,=G¥c MOONS *ýF¢Yp†0rq× MENSTRUATION —VDÍ‚¹õÕ»—d•Éc SUNS ² cÉ$r:�z|6dÀÇ=ý+:•¬ÈWnã®tPULLS ÙUg
 òim´°F SPIT Žr*] W#›N‰ n$ FRICTIONS Œw•FENCES ,f'�/P1ŠèÂÔl$Šé.F THRIFT STORES Tà÷Í>BçÍ0ïaŽEtM) RAINBOWS 2¶£ÓR¸µŠgÒŸû½°9"”Tm MENSTRUATION `iŒb,9'Ö©Ê®Ò SPACE ˜ö�ýéóÆ; ET C."

#45 Sven Densities - 'Prior To A Persnicket We' cassette $3
"sleepily faux asian (azn) late night meanders to or of perhaps warbly 70's/80's educational soundtracks (with shortwave accompanyment) to or of truckers in big rigs wobble ominous in the wee hours to or of people-of-under-the-lonely-motel-vending-machine-type-music but tis' not faux, to grow.....in the background you can hear the ceiling fan whirring."

AND from our FOUND SERIES (which is dedicated to sounds culled primarily from home recorded cassettes found in thrift stores and/or dumpsters.)

FS#8 'The Gift That I Never Got' CDr $5
"The unbelievably intimate, insane and beautiful audio journal of a teenage girl. Blunt honesty, absurd paranoid rants, surreal confessions.... Tame gluttons mellow a hoax piaraffe and get glendings to hum thoroughly through wingdings and etherials thereof........towards a biting of."

FS#6 'Pa's Music & Singing' CDr $5
"An old man obtains a 1980's model Yamaha keyboard and, with seemingly minimal technical ability, pecks out what he remembers of a few old songs. Sometimes he sings along, sometimes he doesn't. Sometimes he turns on a beat, but then almost always completely ignores it, his melodies and singing phase in and out of time with the preprogrammed thumps. Above the din his voice wavers and cracks sounding melancholy and forlorn (but who am i to speculate?), he sings of the pines of maine, jumping out of windows into hornets nests, and growing old. Beautiful."

FS#5 'The Weeny Man' CDr $5
"Here we have a collection of recordings culled from multiple tapes, all displaying the antics of little girls and what they do with tape recorders. Featuring creepy religious songs, surrealist commercials about giant feet, radio shows about committing sex acts with stuffed animals, and on and on. Comes in a regular jewel case with a beautiful booklet hand rendered by Michael Connor (of "Coelacanthous (the zine, not the noise artist)" fame)."

shipping? variable, get in touch with orders and/or questions. EMAIL and WEBSITE

Old pals Rusted Rail return with three fat new babies. These should all be winners:

Autumn Grieve - 'Terra Infinita' 3" CDr
"Autumn Grieve has delivered unto us an extended player called "Terra Infinita" which melds ethereal folk with classical leanings. This 3 inch EP was recorded with Deserted Villager and multi-instrumentalist/ composer Scott Mc Laughlin and emerges as a warm sonic weave with both traditional and experimental textures, encompassing earth tones and pastoral passions, and housed in a deluxe gatefold handmade sleeve with fold-out booklet."

Cubs - 'Stonewater' 3" CDr
"Cubs were formed under the influence of long winter nights and the avoidance of musical hibernation. A splinter grouping of United Bible Studies, Cubs have delivered an ep of intimate, improvised instrumentals and night time melodies. These recordings emerged from late night sessions beneath the stars and rain in a glasshouse in Galway on the west coast of Ireland, and veer from oblique takes on folk to rustic evocations with a hint of the space-age through to bijou interludes. Weaving mandolin, guitar, accordion, tin whistle, banjolin and occasional wordless singing, Cubs forge a completely improvised yet coherently intimate set of songs."

Plinth - 'Wintersongs' 3" CDr
"Plinth has revisited the classic "Wintersongs" EP, expanding it to a forty minute deluxe edition of wonderful winter warmth. From the southern coast of England, the Dorset sound emerges..."

For ordering, samples, etc. - AQUI.

Though before today I had yet to hear one of Dead White’s several much-praised releases, I did have the good fortune to catch this no-goodnik play a set a little over a year ago in mine barrio; this “set” was actually a single piece (unless I got there late) – about 10 or so minutes of heavy feedback, manhandled by a boy and his guitar. This is in essence ‘Holy Deprivation’, or at least the first track. “Che Life 12/14/05” – presumably recorded live at the Che Café sometime in December – is just under 10 minutes of wicked feedback blasts, sounding like a sword-fight layered over the calliope of (looped?) mid- to high-end guitar feedback. At the time of the show I remember thinking “Thurston Moore”, though this recording is thematically darker, howling like a one-man Robedoor, Lambsbread, or maybe Changeling. “Perceived Doors” flips it completely, disrupting both early expectations of the album and one’s depth-perception. Like a woodsier Hive Mind track, the track slithers along on a deep drone, though propelled more by wind and feathers than Greh’s metallic tentacles. This subdued procession twitches and rattles with electronic outbursts, until the last of its 18 minutes when it leaps up to reveal a brightly-colored underbelly of feedback spikes and teeth. The third and final (untitled) track switches-up again, churning a beat out of a sloshy loop, with thick, vibrating drones, and near-unbearably high feedback tones refracting like sunlight in your eye; the back end pushes back the highs to make room for some high and low chanting (!), mixed nicely into loops which throb to the end of the disc.

The CDr is sprayed, stamped, and comes folded in an incredible heavy stock, double-sided color print (attributed to Jelle Crama and PinkDeathStar@Yahoo.com) – a brilliant package, this doubles as two pieces of very-frameable art for your bathroom or kitchen. Limited to 130 copies, and exceedingly excellent. (Arbor CDr, $7ppd (US) HERE)

Bird By Snow is in essence one character, Fletcher Tucker. Partaking in the great Northwestern tradition of solo singer/songerwriters like Thanksgiving, Phil Elverum, Little Wings and so forth, sharing their influence and their influences. However, there are a lot of natural themes in his music which give it a certain mystical air separate from the others' overtly social themes. Tucker’s voice is rather erratic: often understated, his words sound stuck in his throat (à la Hayden), which at times distracts from the song, but mostly the converse. BBS is built on solid melodies, maintaining a classic stance, with smart variation in timbres and instrumentation to keep things fresh and interesting.

The First BBS release, an LP, 'Antlers and the Sun and All the Things that Grow Old and Pass Away', opens with a few chords of organ, then banjo, then – whrrr – the track stops, and a lone acoustic strums “Exhaling Lungs”, a melancholy song of guitar, banjo, and Tucker’s repeating wounded-bear plaint “with exhaling lungs” over his own harmonizing hum. “Great Glower and Gloam” makes brilliant use of whistle and sparse hand claps to give a single repeating verse depth like it were recorded on a canyon, and not in a bedroom. The instrumental “Sea Lion” is surprisingly up-tempo, and totally disrupts the albums early tone by switching to a quartet setup with alto sax, bass, drums and guitar. This sort of flip ingratiates BBS to the beard of Little Wings, as “Fat New Born Baby” follows right behind, back in the blue, though with a programmed beat and strokes of (auto)harp inserted as samples in a pop-savvy love song, K Records style. Side B opens with the dark, banjo-centric “I Will Age 1,000 Years and Not Improve”. Filled with organic noises, plus well-placed tape and guitar interventions, the song recalls rarer moments of Songs: Ohia or perhaps more accurately, Woven Hands, who I think has used the same exact riff (though maybe not on banjo). “Please Favor Me World” is both lyrically and musically Thanksgiving, with the pleasant addition of a higher-register harmony and a pretty-decent acoustic solo. It’s an interesting layout, as the last three tracks end with the same dark tone with which the album began, with the nice addition of a small backing-choir on final track “Antlers and the Sun”.

BBS’ second LP ‘Sky’ conscientiously comes with a CDr version, which means I can put the portable away for a minute while I write. “White Sky” opens the thing off, and by the third note it's clear that Tucker’s been practicing his art. Concocting a nice mix of nylon and electric strings, he uses each instrument’s part with greater attention to composition - giving ‘Sky’ a greater complexity. Most of all, his voice sounds surer and his words bolder, synthesizing a sincerity which pushes his songs closer to those of his aforementioned compatriots. The album is united with a central string/scrape sound like that of piano strings. I imagine this is the dulcimer that appears in the notes of each song; to be bowed or plucked, the instrument lends the songs a simultaneously sinister and mythic inflection, particularly when coupled with the song’s feedback blasts and picked guitars. “Black Elk in the Mountains” has a swaying acoustic plucking and refrain that momentarily recalls folkier rock like Joni Mitchell or Cat Stevens, though with an overt darkness that would never fly in such mainstream recordings; “Plato’s Cave” is more like Nick Drake than not, and is followed by a nice wilderness field-recording/ukulele song called “( )”. “The Sound and the River within the Sound” is one of BBS’ best compositional moments, with the repetition and harmony “there is a sound/and there is no sound” skillfully laced across layers of banjo riff, accordion, stick and bell percussion, and various manipulated adornments. Final tracks “I am not the Moon and neither is the Moon” and “Animals Calling” again parallel much Thanksgiving, though with the severe sentimentality and melodramatic optimism that informs the majority of Tucker’s lyrics thus far.

It was a surprise to see that ‘Industrial Collapse’ was recorded after both BBS LPs, as it is a pretty low-maintenance 7”, with rougher production and slightly silly lyrics on the two songs. However, listening to it now, I recognize a maturity in the songwriting, as the A side “No Beard Now” moves from a demo of single acoustic and voice to a full electric band (who Tucker appropriately credits as his “very own Crazy Horse”). Dual guitars (equals dueling solos), hand-clap percussion, and big, fuzzy bass-line, the song comes in nice contrast to the finger-picking B side “Chew Your Fucking Legs Off (If you have to)” – a track recalling a melody and harmony of Granfaloon Bus, with additional woodsy hand-drumming and other exotic timbres.

Fletcher releases Bird By Snow on his own Gnome Life Records, where as CEO he enjoys carte blanche to make his records as fucking sexy as he wants. Both LPs come pressed on heavy red- and blue-transparent vinyl; all of the handsome art is block-printed by the man himself, and each record has extensive, hand-written liner-notes. All three releases are limited to 300 copies and remarkably affordable (save that international shipping - maybe a brave distro will step up?). Definitely recommended! (Gnome Life LPs ‘Sky’, $12(US)/$20(World), and ‘Antlers…’, $10(US)/$19.5(World); 7” ‘Industrial Collapse’ $5(US)/$9.75(World) – samples and such at the WEBSITE)

The latest installment from the always gracious Root Strata:

Pete Swanson - 'Static Space' CDr $6(US)/$8(World)
"As one half of the noise/drone/skree duo Yellow Swans, Pete Swanson has spent the last few years traversing the globe splitting brain cells in two with a table full of electronics and a microphone shoved deep in his mouth. Not nearly as caustic as some of the Swans' jams, 'Static Space' is a slowly shifting neon sculpture filled to the brim with interweaving feedback and billowing static. Each one comes with a unique oil/acrylic painting. Edition of 100."

Gregg Kowalsky - 'Tape Chants A Million' CDr $6(US)/$8(World)
"Recorded live on KFJC radio, 'Tape Chants A Million' is another smoldering slow burner from Oakland based Gregg Kowalsky. Running a small battery of acoustic instruments through his laptop, Gregg creates what The Wire magazine calls "...gorgeous electronically treated drones that seep into the listening space on a cloud of softly clashing microtones and teased out harmonics..." Yea, that sounds about right. Each one comes with a QSL Amateur Radio card from somewhere in the world other than the USA. Edition of 100."

Also available (for a few minutes), a repress of John Davis' 'At Home & Afield' 3" CDr; "Metallic drones for the nature set", revived in a second edition of 50. $6(US)/$8(World)

Run along to the WEBSITE for samples, ordering, and other such relevance.

Finally, the man with the wrenches, Jef Cantu-Ledesma, has a number of new releases enummerated on the above website, as well as a handsome new blog for music reviews, found HERE. Take it like a supplement, but don't forget your protein!

Maybe I've fallen into a niche (or was I pushed?). From Arbor:

Arbor29 Ghosting - 'Live/Oakland+' C40 $6ppd
"This Portland drone duo manages to create lengthy tracks with a psychedelic precision that makes you forget what time is/was/will be. This tape contains a track from a live show in Oakland with bustling airy drones and the dinging of bells luring the ears to go to places they have not been before. The track progresses thoughtfully with exact subtleties building to a climax only to come tumbling down with that exact progression. The B-side is a deja-vu conjugated burner starting where the other side ended. In a numbered edition of 100 copies with individually inked and sprayed tape labels in a silver sprayed case and ink drawn cloudscapes."

WEBSITE

Robedoor lite? Sure! I’ll take it. Title jam “Proceed the Weedian” is all like BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!, stomping out dark, rolling clouds of dread, but sharp and persistent beams of light cut across it like an Archon unicorn, soon drowning-out the low end as it fills your brains (the clouds eventually burst and only light remains). Sounds exactly like a Buddha Machine, if the Buddha Machine could manage any bass. Flipside “Oaxacan Pollen” has a distinct tribal beat – possible dual-drumming - layered with a high, sustained pitch, and a high-frequency, almost Sun City Girls-like chant/singing. Like the A-side, a pretty consistent piece in its repetition, with a steady rhythm and something verging on melody; like other Robedoor tapes, two distinctly different tracks that are totally worth your time. On spray-painted green tapes with paper inserts in a plastic case. Limited to 50 copies. (Buried Valley cassette, $6 HERE)

Also new from Buried Valley, ‘Age of Quandary’ by Insaniacs is the completely sanctioned unity of Britt from Robedoor and Roy from Changling playing muddy-as-fuck warehouse death rattles (the sound a warehouse makes when it dies) - considerably heavier on the Changeling tip, if that makes a difference to you.

New badassness from No No Diversión:

Horse Head - 'The Defeatist' CDr $5
"For a while it looked like OC loners Horse Head were gonna follow the path out to pasture and never look back. Their Birds and Bees tape (Arbor) was pure nature, a feathery field recording of grassy, buzzing bliss, and even the singer/songwriter folk diaries of Make It Something Else (also Arbor) were pretty unplugged and barefoot-vibed. However: NEVERMIND, cause The Defeatist fucks this theory/trajectory to hell. Gone is the wind-in-yr-hair acoustic delay, the whispery poet croons. In its place? Total teenage guitar trash, exploratory garage chaos, psychedelic puberty. Percussion like metal shelves full of wrenches being kicked on to concrete. Pissed kids scream-talking at dry walls. Uncomfortable and ugly. Maybe this is a concept album? Hand-stamped CDRs in blurry woven fiber paper, with one-of-a-kind collaged wooden horses, and a hand-numbered insert. Limited to 64."

A++/Soft Shoulder - 'Live' CS $5
"The holidays are supposed to be AWESOME. You wear crazy scarves, hang out with weird cousins, and secretly spike the eggnog (with soy-nog)!! Another good thing to do is play shows with your friends and go crazy. That’s why this applause-heavy C30 is PERFECT. A++ are the trumpet/drums pop-monster duo starring Grace from Foot Village/Gang Wizard and their side documents an Il Corral show from 2006 summertime. They pass out trivia questions, yell about animals and sneak attacks, and even cover some 80s song. The sonic equivalent of rainbow confetti exploding in yr face. Tempe, Arizona’s hardest working posi-wave trio Soft Shoulder shred sax, riffs, and drums across the B side, which is culled/compiled from a trilogy of early December shows in Phoenix and Flagstaff. Their jump-cuts from angular feedback action to beatless skronk drift keeps you (and the crowd) guessing. Good luck! Printed-label tapes in stapled, spray-painted cardstock fold-over cases. Googly-eyed horn-blower blob beast art by Manda. Hand-numbered, and limited to 100."

WEBSITE

An impeccable live recording, this document of a night of Anakrid is as clear and dynamic as any home/studio-recorded tape could hope to be. Presented without titles, each side of this C31 appear as a single track, ending abruptly when we run out of tape, sort of like moebius strip of music. As a three-piece, I suppose there’s a need to stay on mark, but these guys just sound straight tight with a composed-yet-easy style which lands right in the sweet spot. Side one starts as a bouncy, bubbly keyboard line over a wall of metallic shrieks and clattering, sounding like a soundtrack to some 80s sci-fi/horror film (may I recommend ‘Scanner Cop’?). The keys drop away, leaving the shimmer of automated metallic doom, much reminiscent of the fantastic HsDOM CDr of a few weeks back. Each time the slide-whistle electronics come back, they bring along a new batch of clanging noises which hang out after the lead disappears again. No signs of vocals anywhere on this thing – a nice change. The flipside has some crazy electronic rhythm going with a clanging of what sounds like church chimes attempting to stay in time; accordion (!) jumps in there too, and all the sounds sort of phase in and out of a polyphonic pattern that’s quite remarkable. More 80s/90s sci-fi here, kind of like ‘Aeon Flux’ and the like, fading into sparser moments of bizarre sounds surely originating from a weird grab-bag of instruments. The extensive use of synthesizers make moments like the tape’s last few minutes sound damn near prog, as a drummer appears and astro-jazz saxophone carries the thing off to the mothership. This superior recording means there’s no mistaking every move these guys make, and while I’m not totally sure what they’re aiming for, I really enjoy their sound and the guessing. The nubile Black Horizons is setting the bar for rad packaging with this one: tapes have gorgeous printed labels and come in plastic cases with a color transparency riveted (!) onto a fancy, printed card with stamped numbers. Limited to 80 copies.

Changeling is weird: I find it hard to differentiate between releases, yet paradoxically, each consecutive release seems better than the last. In fact, I can hardly point out the differences between each song on ‘Deep Reflection’, yet I think it’s great and certainly the most vital Changeling thus far. [post-script: the label site has it ‘Deep Reflections’ plural, though I believe this to be a typo - I mean, come on, right?] One thing’s for sure: the mix on this tape is the best to date, dynamic and rarely muddy (my only qualm with past releases), and even then, only in the right ways. The fact that this is also the longest Changeling thus far bids well that Roy is headed in the right direction. “Bowing Mass” is what we call it when the evil heat turns on, wafting upward in thick, howling drones of vocals and indefinable guitar/bass (?) swells. The consistency of repetition in the vocal drones creates a static effect, making for more nuanced shifts in the layers of Om. While prior Changeling tracks came labeled with vivid title imagery (“Sanctuary by the Sea”, “Astral Arch”) for a narrative reference, “Bowing Mass” and the following shorter track, “Shut” utilize a more abstract approach, leaving room for open interpretation - as well as space to get seriously lost. Side two’s “Veils of Mist” returns with a more concrete vision while the track moves beyond the fog of the previous tracks. The voices have become louder and more distinct, as though we are getting closer to something, and little points of high-frequency light begin to pierce through the deep rumble; this appears to be an illusion, and in the end, the groan is subdued yet the voices remain. Brilliantly labeled-tapes, in a plastic case with incredibly-printed heavy J-card, stamped, and printed in color on one side. I am beside myself (Hi, me!). Limited to 66 copies. (Black Horizons cassettes, $6 HERE)

release the bats #18: NONHORSE - 'HARAAM, CIRCLE OF FLAME' CD
"Nonhorse is the solo act of Gabriel Lucas Crane from Wooden Wand & The Vanishing Voice and this is his debut album. On Haraam, piles of mysterious old cassettes are used as source material to create magic in a stunning way over 42 moody minutes. Different audio fragments on top of each other, over and over again, hand-mixed and orchestrated at what feels like must have been ritualistic tape laborations taken place somewhere where the sun never shines. Various echoes from the past are buried under layers and layers of manipulated voices, train signals, animal sounds and god knows what. Abrupt endings which burns like fire in your head. Churches in flames, the soundtrack to The House With The Laughing Windows played backwards, alien autopsys, cemetery fog, total devestation... Haraam is a beautiful junkyard nightmare, a horrifying and atmospheric album. 13 songs. Mastered by Pete Swanson." 500 copies

WEBSITE

Nuevo de Spacelessjam:

crank sturgeon - 'glory tape and trough of beslubbering fish' c48 $5
"typical crank crunk. old reel to reel recordings from 2003-2004 dumped clean onto 100 tapes for your pleasure. rough and gritty junk. adsfjlk;agjhljgaljdlkjalg;jljglajdg. stop, im serious. limited edition of 100, comes with nice handmade drawings and typewriter'd inserts."

WEBSITO

Fresh freshness from Arbor:

arbor09 Dead White - 'Holy Deprivation' CDr 7$ppd
"Dead White is a one-man dream team comprised of drone maker/dreamscaper, Andy Brack. Whirling loops of sound bounce off of the walls this dude creates with his voice and guitar. Too many muted fire alarms must blare through Andy's hallway while he is snoozing. Three tracks and just short of forty minutes, this recording splatters the sound canvas with aural landscapes; evoking images of really big bird cages and sacred Tibetan caves. Comes in six color silkscreened fold out posters by Belgian wizard Jelle Crama. Keep (dead) noise alive(in an edition of 130).

Arbor21 Empty Vessel - 'A World Of Dew' C-12 5$ppd
"Ah man, you know that feeling when you wake up early in the morning and walk out hazy-eyed into the hazy world to pick up the newspaper? It's a trip. Empty Vessel is Roy Tatum of Quintana Roo, Changeling, Black Monk, etc. Electronics sweating with overdrive. Transcending the aural spectrum with a dew inducing haze of harsh drones. The ebb and flow of a confined stream; tranquility turned up to 11. In an edition of 100 numbered copies."



Arbor 32 Pocahaunted - 'Native Seduction' 3" CDr 5$ppd
"Recording? Compact disc? Before the arrival of the white man to the new world, these two tribal sisters would chill out, harvest grains, and participate in drum circles while creating smoke signals. The white man introduced the electric guitar and microphone as well as recording technology. The girls turned in their primitive gear to go analog! Vocal chants for a good harvest. Guitar strums coupled with bass drum dreams to protect oneself from the evil spirits. Backed behind a teepee of protective electronic hum. All is good. In two color silk-screened sleeves with splattered disc dot/ enchanted feather print keeping the cd in its place, all tucked in a plastic sleeve. In a numbered edition of 100 copies."

Order, etc. at the WEBSITE

Pocahaunted is a deceptively dark/jokey name for this sunny/legit band. From what I’ve gleaned, they are a duo of young ladies, at least one of which has been installed within the Not Not Fun regime (high-bias(ed) production by NNF/Robedoor generalissimo Britt). The twentyish minute ‘What the Spirit Tells Me’ cassette is (I believe) only their second release (new CDr soon on Arbor), but they have their sound pegged. “The Waking Wind” features a light, simple drum beat and picked guitar riff as sweet, lofty, wordless singing floats over like heat off grass, behind which a swell like PA-vibration throbs from some invisible bassist. Midway, veiled trumpet comes in like a crossed frequency, like it’s summer and the windows are open and the curtains are thin. Though titled as a sequel, “And How It Carried Me Away”, forms no more of a narrative than its prelude – instead it carries on the same optimistic lethargy, though with a more active band stomping-out a mid-tempo with reverb-warmed guitars and little blips of strings or keys or something tag along in rhythm. The female voice on this side is of the same open-mouth sort, though this time with more variation and the addition of a deeper (male?) harmony or two towards the end. There are strong similarities here with mid-90s indie/shoegazer/bliss-out bands like Ganger and Eleventh Dream Day, though this seems very likely accidental. A great tape with lots of character, I’m eager to hear what these two do with a full-length release. Sprayed and spayed purple cassette with heavy-stock, (kind of boring) glittery J-card in a blue case. Limited to 50 copies. Get this! (Buried Valley cassette, $6 HERE)

I’ve been hearing this album for a couple weeks now and have had no idea who it was. Now that I’m sitting down with it, I say “Oh, great!”; "Oh, great!" because I like it. This is Root Strata’s second pressing of ‘Eastern Light’ by Starving Weirdos, an apparently prolific, though somewhat elusive duo from North California. From the start this can be an imposing package, as you open it to find five tracks sprawled across two CDrs. This is certainly not a deliberate listen (if that makes sense), but more of a soundtrack for doing low-impact daily chores (i.e. reading and writing). It is a very sparse, leisurely affair, rarely requiring immediate attention, though with scattered reference points through which to enter the recording when you feel like it – sort of a psych/noise Boxhead Ensemble.

Despite the insert’s assignment of a disc one and disc two, there appears no deliberate order to these tracks, let alone from one disc to the next. Regardless, “Plastic Gagaku” opens the first with a nice organ and horn (?) overture, echoing into the ether of erratic, organic percussion and whispy, droning winds. The horror-movie soundtrack of “Sea-Foam at Midnight”, likely recorded at a show, oscillates between severe, metallic shrieks and simmering ambient noise, including what sounds like venue or intercom chatter. The effect is kind of spooky, as the noises are all so nondescript that you cannot discern real noises from recorded ones, so the question: does the music become daily milieu or does it absorb it? “Quiet Shit” carries this theme, though with a more persistent rhythm which breaks into some strings, xylophone. At 42 minutes between these last two tracks, you may want to break before leaping into the second disc; conversely, if you want two solid hours of study/psych time, play them back to back. Disc two’s two tracks are dominated by the 44 minute “Recital Hall” – a most lively affair of tribal drums, shakers and rattles, soon overwhelmed by tape loops and ambient noises, and some far-off trumpet player; sounds like Afrobeat practice, where all the players are screwing around with jazz timbres before the singers arrive. There’s some pretty great acidic guitar doodles in the last five minutes, leading out and into the conclusive “Bro-In-Out”, a 20 minute track of loops and mechanical sounds, creating a rhythm over which wails of electric guitar and puffs of flute and/or sax are laid. The rhythm drops out after the first third, leading into a segment of solo, weaving brass – some clean, some disfigured – and then into a gamelan of chants, chimes, and assorted glints of anonymous sound. Reminiscent at times of No Neck Blues Band, Sunburned Hand of the Man, and probably several other bands with long, bizarre, possibly alliterative names, these weirdoes create provocative, often hostile pieces of voodoo, and always to maximal length.

Counter the insert’s claims of varied recording sessions, I imagine the band collects a variety of instruments and non-instruments that make good noises, throw these in a big room, and hole-up for a weekend with some friends. The recent, very-fine works by (VxPxCx) come to mind, as both bands share a loose form, creating large, variegated sound “spaces” with a variety of foreign “instruments”. And sure, in general things could logically be shorter and more focused, and likely no one would want to play editor with these massive tracks, but I imagine this is a concerted decision which will likely reveal its logic through repeat listening. Two somewhat-annoyingly-blank CDrs in a gatefold sleeve with the always delightful Root Strata spray and paint job making each disc unique; mine looks like a cinnabon! Limited to 150 copies. (Root Strata dbl-CDr, $12(US)/$16(World) HERE)

At it again! More from Fuck It Tapes:

FIT037 WOODS - 'At Rear House' c44
"Limited to 100 with hand painted cassettes. CD on SHRIMPER (jan 8th) /LP on WOODSIST (soon) another batch of folk fucked gems by the woods family. more songs this time around. keep it on!"

FIT030 SWORD HEAVEN - 'Fan Death' 2003- 2005 c60
"Repress with one extra track. Monolithic epic metal/doom/lumber ala Swans/Speed Trials era NY scum from a group that enjoyed an excellent split LP with 16 Bitch Pile-Up a while back. Excellent package and limited as usual."

What a great year for comps (cite your own examples). Arbor’s first release, like most, is a compilation mixing regulars and well-wishers of a more-or-less friendly disposition. However, unlike many early label-comps, ‘Arbor 01’ is long, lean, and covered in jewels - just like a tennis bracelet. 17 tracks, all 80 minutes. Nestled inside a handsome 18-page, full-color digest with art contros from each band, this CDr is littered not only with top-form submissions from each band, but also huge production quality and thoughtful editing so the tracks flow with little incident. I almost fear that these songs aren’t originals, like this is a sampler (is it?) or something equally misleading. That would be disappointing, because it’s just so huge (think Polyamory’s ‘New Skin for the Old Ceremony'):

Sneaky Pines play “Ice Age” which opens the comp with an all too brief Thanksgiving/Palace piece which drops off after the first refrain. Hannu Karjalainen flips it for real with some Ui/To Rococo Rot-skills; not just some immature experiment, this song cycles through breathy, glitchy beats, toy-piano melodies, and assorted layers of whispy-thin samples, including some exotic, thieved monologue. Futurians whip-out “NEON”, a straight-forward, mid-paced garage romp with reverb like the singer’s drowning. Bagels and Cream Cheese play some blown-out bubblegum instrumental, totally demented for its complete lack of irony. e*rock’s “Waves” is a little collage of gentle noise creating a soundscape of real and abstract liquid imagery – a classy exercise which seems to be all but forgotten lately; in related news, Treetops’ “Laffy Taffy” is a skilled composition of found/nature sounds, metronome, improvised sax (?), and sheets of heavy metallic textures. Pow - Raccoo-oo-oon are at their most heavy-handed and reckless on the thinly-veiled drum solo “Dust March.” The whole kit gets a workout in this quasi-free jam, backed by feuding brass and chants. The longest track thus far, it is a nice, deep side-trip to split up the comp journey.

Gastric Female Reflex get nuts with some plundercomic/thrash vérité, preparing the ear’s delicate palate for the incredible “Light Feelings” by Horse Head. A gorgeous guitar piece with tape accompaniment (or perhaps just recorded to recycled tape), the song is almost flamenco for its clapping, swaying pace. These guys (?) have long-evaded my stereo, but I will be immediately pursuing more in the hopes that their other releases are even in the same arena as this. Joe + n rocks it doom-lite, verging on that Shipping News/Bitch Magnet sound, though unfortunately distracted by some high-end (intentional?) loose-wire/tape distortion. The Goslings pick up le pace with the 8-minute epic “Sanibel”, yet keep the doom with a huge wall of fuzz-gloom and pounding war drums – the wash unexpectedly pierced by high, angelic vocals, making me think of what Lush would sound like if they grew up with Sabbath instead of The Slits. Speaking of Lush, “The Upstairs Room” by Ethelscull sounds like some 90s 4AD/Brit-pop which has had all its over-produced color burnished-down to a nice dusty-glow, and mastered to be just-inaudible (I’d say a bit too much so). Silver Daggers play some full-band post-ska (yeah I did), first with a skronky/brassy up-dance-beat, then a dark, free-jazzy down-stopdancing-droopy beat, filling out the back-half of its 8 1/2 minutes in a tense state of dirty breakdown and full-band harmony. My boys Robedoor do not disappoint with “Coma Toes” (cuute!), a buzzsaw and bass slow-burner lathering into Pruriential orgasm, hissing as it sinks into the lake of hell and black make-up. Barrabarracuda “Wiretap-tap-tap” out a sloppy no-wave party jam with great group vocals and wicked back-end reprise. Haunted Castle pick up their junior Wolf Eyes-badge with “Killer (rad) Bees”, a track that has less to do with bees than it does barfing quivering laser beams into a wall of staticky TVs. Loopool cap this fucker off with a mystic jazz of trumpet, clean keyboards, and funky bass; and like the intro by Sneaky Pines, “River of Muck” starts going somewhere rad, then evaporates – leading back to the beginning in a cycle of awesome fucking music.

I suppose the word just isn’t getting out there, but I find it incredibly aggravating that there are still copies of this available. For anyone apprehensive about the multitude of releases out there these days, this is an ideal place to find your bearings. Recommended like a motherfucker. Limited to 200 copies. (Arbor CDr, $8 HERE – a fucking steal!)

Damn. I thought I could get away with skipping a year. Check out this desert storm:

Subscribers get 12 tapes over the course of 2007, each with 2 acts delivering 9 to 10 min long epic songs. The first tape ships in Jan. If you subscribe after Jan your first shipment will include all the tapes you've missed, then you will recieve one tape per month till the end of the year. These are the 24 acts providing exclusive material for the tape club:

Deerhoof, Fat Worm of Error, Black Pus (member of lightning bolt), Can't, Extreme Animals (members of powdered wigs & paper rad), lazy magnet (member of dynasty), Torturing Nurse, Realicide, Social Junk, Robbin Williams on Fire, Robedoor, Unicorn Hard-On, Dave Kendall, Unnessesary Surgery (member of Captain Ahab), Foot Village (member of friends forever), shearing pinx, child pornography, Abe Vigoda, No Age (ex-wives), tik///tik, Kitty Midwife, Oscillator (member of To Live & Shave in LA), Honed Bastion, Toecutter

In addition to these 12 tapes, subscribers can pay a little extra to get 6 bonus tapes currated by Jessica Rylan of Can't. The acts that Jessica has confirmed so far are:

Captains of English, Julia Holter, Timeheater, Three Bees, Secret Diary, Milkhorse, David Payne, Crystal Cocks over Canada

Deathbomb Arc Tape Club, Year Three - $40(US & Canada)/$60(World) or $50(US & Canada)/$70(World) for the 6 bonus tapes (18 tapes ÷ $50 = yeah!). Word has it they're adding cases and artwork this year as well - the only thing that sucked before (you try stacking 12 tapes with tea-bag labels and no cases).
*Discounted price for renewed subscriptions, EMAIL for details. Check the WEBSITE for more.

From Important Records:

Ocean - 'Fork Lashing Eye' LP $14
"Ocean has pressed their original demo recordings on vinyl and packaged it in deluxe foil printed jackets hand made by Ocean's Reuben J Little. These two tracks total 36 minutes and it was this breakthrough recording that set Ocean buzzing. This record is limited to 500 copies. We have 60 copies of blue vinyl, 60 copies of red and 100 black copies. The first 120 orders will receive color. You can find more info about this on the news page of our website. The limit is 3 per customer. If you order more than one copy your first record will be color and the rest will be black."

Important has perhaps the most convoluted ordering system available. Go HERE and figure it out for your damn self.

‘Embarrassment of Riches’: The album’s short (6 songs), but the songs aren’t (all around 5 minutes). Elephant Micah are playing straight-forward, Midwestern-folksy rock songs – did you say “Free Country”, Elephant Micah? I’ll buy that. Fancy psychedelic guitar-work under tight, full band melodies make this disc killer. Very pleasant, understated vocals as well. Surprisingly well-crafted tracks considering the rough collage of the cover (which is awesome, by the way; unique, chromatic cardstock in a plastic gatefold sleeve with a sewn-in lyric booklet). Serious Neil Young all over this thing, particularly the first track, “Feedback, so long”, a sad duet about kids getting old. Mid-era Songs: Ohia is another suspect. “The Ecstasy” could be a Molina/Low collaboration, moving from a rusty guitar-line into another double-mid vocal duet. “Events Near Dove Cottage” features dynamic shifts from vocal/guitar to full band, and accessing nostalgia for Beck’s ‘Sea Change’ (sorry, my references suck right now). “What Directions” is perfect Midwestern “alt-rock” (Canyon, maybe?) with those rustier colors that rarely translate across the divide. I detect hints of the Verlaines in this album, though having not heard the Verlaines in over a decade, this means nothing. Kingsbury Manx just came to mind on “Red Roving”, Jeff Buckley on “False Aspirants”. I wouldn’t be surprised if these folks have been courted by the Secretly Canadian syndicate. [post-script: they’ve got a CD out on Bluesanct - Fuck yeah! Maybe I’m not so off today.] Lovely stencil job on the CDr. Recommended. (Self-Released/LRRC CDr, $9 HERE)

‘The Lark’: This album is even shorter, burning through 10 tracks in 20 minutes. Not all are songs, however, as entries like introduction “Invocation” are more like excerpted experiments, fully-realized though kind of a tease for not playing longer than 30 or 40 seconds. Microwave Background evoke the song and voice of early-to-‘Thief’ era Destroyer, as well as early 90s Merge like Butterglory. I think the band is from Indiana, though this is not the only reason I recognize sounds like Drunk and Bevel in 'pop' modes; particularly on track three, “Ocean Floor”, all melancholy sunshine, like beach music for September. “Returning Dash” is like an upbeat Johnny Marr instrumental, with rockabilly lead guitar and skittery drums. “Many Chosen Few” is a great lo-fi Pop song with twiddling guitars and rapping beat – International Pop Underground style, Built to Spill, and so forth. The “Dance Intermission” leads into another sort of Smiths homage (Pernice style), with the sappy/ironic ballad “Stuck in the Ballroom”. Fun album, with no string attached. Features perhaps the best spray-stenciled CDr I have yet to see. (Passing Tone Recordings CDr, $8 - available from LRRC)

New from Below PDX:

BELOWPDX08 Argumentix – 'Nightmarcher' Cassette (25 min) $6
“Life in the Pre-Apocalypse brings Argumentix time of leisure to reflect on the immediate. The newest album joins pain and sorrow knuckle scraping on cement floors. A smashed throat spurting grunts, moans and crooning thorns against tape loop manipulations, sequencer configurations, and urban field recordings. A departure from previous albums with focused anger and reluctance to acknowledge the future. Existential crisis has never felt so optimistic. Cover art by Shoosha screenprinted by Nick Bittakis on wallpaper samples of various colors and patterns. Limited edition of 94." Mp3: "Industry Standard Massacre"

BELOWPDX09 Argumentix + Ghost to Falco – 'Widow Masters' CDr (41 min) $6
“We first found these two soldiers experimenting with extreme art punk hardcore band Alarmist. These days find the two bare souls strutting their solo projects, but this collaboration doesn’t sound too much like either while retaining some familiar elements (argumentix vocals/sample/loops and ghosttofalco guitar, synth, vocals). There’s real bells, there’s a song composed, practiced and recorded over 2 hours and the rest is improvised. James Squeaky (ARG) and Eric Crespo (GTF) are very close friends and this CD is a great exploration of the love and intimacy that they share, totally without boundaries of self-consciousness. In jewel cases with stencil spray paint on case with art by Eric Crespo. Limited edition of 100” MP3: "WIDOW MASTERS"

(WEBSITE)