After a short break, goldfall from FirstPerson:

Plural 040 Schofield/Jarvis - 'Near Field Hypnosis'
"Cross country mind-meld following Schofield’s stellar “Frozen Stake” release (Singular 026) of last year. Schofield’s take on Guitar drone exists in “(…) a space between isolationism and monochrome psychedelia, Haino-esque notes run through a Dead C filter, the loose metallic strings ring out like spiralling bells through the dimness. The unpeeling, shining black sounds deep within these tracks take them light years away from run-of-the-mill feedback sourced rust jobs.”

Singular 041 Slow Listener - 'Bruise Journal'
"Taking time out from helping to run the CUROR label, Robin Dickinson has created a whole slew of essential releases in a very short space of time for such labels as Peasant Magik, Epicene, Celebrate Psi Phenomenon, Ruralfaune and Together Tapes with more forthcoming on Students of Decay, Tape Drift, Cosmic Germ, Phantom Limb and Calligraphic Tapes. “Bruise Journal” concentrates on the tonalities to be gleaned from a malfunctioning and over amped organ, producing attenuated feedback and sublime drones – “hotwired frequencies in slow decline”.

Plural 042 Xochipilli - 'Aircquocces of the Arc Tones'
"Based in Angers , France , Florian Tossitti records under many monikers including THE REGGAEE, COSMIC MANDOLINERS and GHOST BRAMES OF THE CERFS as well as running the LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI label. XOCHIPILLI is his duo with Antoine Clemot and finds the pair exploring a layered and smoke filled underworld. Submerged melodies jostle with raw field recordings, cheap synths and mumbled declarations. Images creep into peripheral vision only to disappear under close scrutiny; a truly dosed and ultimately rewarding journey."

Plural 043 Ghost of an Octopus - 'Two'
"Second outing for the Mancunian dream team of Stuart Arnott (SMEAR CAMPAIGN, TOTAL VERMIN label, BARBARIANS) and Joincey (PUFF, STUCKOMETER, COITS, INCA EYEBALL, SABOTEUSE). Real time gtr/bass throw-down, needle thin electric tone circumnavigates a yawning low end interspersed with static interruptions."

Plural 044 Ys Trys - 'Cy Clo Path'
"Whilst their STUCKOMETER comrades were out buying “White Lightning” and fag papers Karl and Pascal (whose drumming talents recently aided the reformed A BAND) thrashed out some pent up aggression resulting in three tracks of scorched improvised gtr and drums. Jaw-dropping stereo gtr pyrotechnics compete with Pascal’s attention deficit sticksman-ship with some choice garbled vocalisations thrown into the mix for good measure."

Singular 045 Culver - 'The Psychic'
"Like an imaginary out-take from Alan Splet’s work on the Eraserhead soundtrack, Lee Stokoe lays down some serious monochord drone. Dark, atmospheric and filled with glorious hidden tonalities, the jewels are buried way deep for those willing to take the plunge."

All titles 3” CD-R and limited to 75 copies. £3 each - All 6 for £15 (P+P is Free in the UK)



Samples, etc. HERE, inquiries go to EMAIL

And: All previous releases (001 – 039) will be available from now in editions of 50. Including titles by Ashtray Navigations, Neil Campbell, Alex Neilson, Ben Reynolds, Culver, Voice of the Seven Woods, Taiga Remains, Chora, etc…

Noise-tailor Fletcher Pratt presents eight untitled tracks titled ‘Leaking Brain Fluid’. In the pop-noise tradition of Bastard Noise, Fletcher experiments with manipulated sounds on canvases of radio-friendly length, occasionally and not accidentally hitting a musical stride which he then performs to upwards of eight minutes. Made of repeating figures and with small, anti-melodic flourishes similar to the work of Redrot and Pulse Emitter, these tracks stand out as his strongest, extrapolating the simple pleasantries of a stuck keyboard and crisp feedback into a layered round. All points of the standard decibel range are satisfied in these moments, making for a pleasantly full sound, one of weight and force. In many ways of the same minimalist sensibility as that of a drone work, all of Pratt’s pieces succeed by a focused point and few superfluous additions as best illustrated by the final piece of the disc, a LaMonte Young-inspired composition of spiky, sustained synthesizer and bowed sine wave. Blank CDr comes in a slim jewel-case with printer paper art which cannot do justice to the quality of this work. (Snip-Snip CDr, $4.5 HERE, or a little cheaper from Midori’s distro below)

Another recent Pratt release from his own Midori label in collaboration with Terence Fuller and his Abandoned Records, ‘KKRAKK!!’ is a tribute to cartoonish onomatopoeia as well as a reflection on noise music itself. Eight more tracks, now with names (sort of) and substantially longer length, the disc enjoys a far more human quality. Made from live percussion and feedback, and surely improvised, songs like “Splank” and “eee oooooooooooo” are raw, noisy, and raucous, anchored by old-timey radio snippets and plundered music. “ZZWUUMPH!” and the eight minute “tZZEEOOW” both center on live percussion and spare electronic sequencing with a touch of strings (provided by Fuller), suggesting that this set is more live than not, presented in order as the artist moves through the stations of the instruments. The 13 minute centerpiece “PFLATCH” and finale “oooootskratkkoooooo” continue to embrace the pots and pans disorder of percussion, now with extensive guitar mangling and slight vocal discharge. In the end, later track “TZKATOoosssh” appears best in line with Pratt’s ‘Leaking Brain Fluid’ as it would be performed live: slower, more calculated designs which better approximate the mimesis of the album’s 2D muse, plus an entirely badass saxophone line fed-out like machinegun Beat haiku. CDr comes in a thin clamshell with full-color comic collage art, hand-numbered to 50. (Midori CDr, $4 HERE)

More badness from out Thor's Rubber Hammer:

Sweet Teeth – ‘From the Fourth Hand of the Buddha the Lotus Was Born for the Seventh Time’ CDr $6
"Sweet Teeth combines both the sounds and members of Dark Meat and Long Legged Woman -- clusterpsych classic-rock tendencies paired with hypnotic avant-rock. ‘From the Fourth Hand’’s lone track, "Morning Raga," is a tribal drum-heavy affair recorded live at the 40 Watt in Athens, GA by the capable hands and ears of Asa Leffer. The monochordal frame has the band expanding the third eye in the crosshairs of Spacemen 3, Acid Mothers Temple and Pharoah Sanders." Artwork by the band. Pro-printed CDRs in a resealable polybag. Edition of 200.

V/A - ‘Brownturnsblack’ CDr $6
"‘Brownturnsblack’ is essentially a glorified mix CD disguised as a label sampler. Past/current TRHP artists contribute as well as other favorites and exclusives. New and obscure cuts ranging from psych-rock/folk and free-jazz to ambient and noise. Includes Owl Xounds, Chartreuse, Killick, Telenovela + Cat People, Altruizine, Saint Francis and the Christmas Donkey, Long Legged Woman, Magic Lantern, Smokedog, Eiliyas, and a rare occasion for Thor himself to record as Ancient Mariner y Caballo." B&W sticker on a large chocolate-brown envelope with a double black-sided CDR and blood-red insert. Edition of 198.

WEBSITE

Weeks ago I told Nate at Abandon Ship that I’d bump this sexy little batch up in line. Ta-da! this is what bumping looks like. I’m so behind. Thankfully they’re all still available from the label, which makes me feel less dumb for saying things like “I’ll bump this ahead in line!” Just the same, there have been a ton of great new AS releases since, so please don’t wait up.

Lucas Crane must be releasing some duplicate material out there somewhere – doubles, if you will – because there is literally not enough time in the year to release as much material as he does. This cassette by Crane alter-ego Nonhorse is ninety minutes long! According to the website, ‘Xol Mic’ is named for a student in Mother Crane’s classroom, the youth of tomorrow from whom “Torquqe binder” gains its inspiration. A rather indulgent experiment, the track is all non-linear improvisation with secondary instruments and smuggled electronics, sounding like an attempted symphony made by opening those boxes the ghostbusters use to trap spooks: a pedal is depressed, and a new spirit springs forth, howling at the sting of the air and singe of the daylight, assorted debris swirling in the ether. Other sounds are trapped as well – screaming kettles, electric trains, telephones – but the productive murk coalesces much of this into a single torrent of bassy chaos. “Tony’s Room” of side B, so named for the room in which it was recorded, begins with a swirl and a brassy buzzer before breaking into some hot-boxed black noise with Crane guest Foxy Pink Gloves emitting most-cautious clarinet bursts. Crane retorts with vibraphone notes and violent machine rumble, late-onset donkey squeal and dark clouds of electronic bass drone. By midpoint, repeating noise drone takes over, evolving a number of looping rhythms in stark minimalism. In the end, it is the trademark Nonhorse howl which dominates, a chorus of haunted winds which hum like a void. Recorded at Silent Barn, Brooklyn. Black cassette comes pro labeled on one side with a full color J-card, hand-numbered to 300 pieces - that’s a lot!

I had last seen CJA (Clayton Noone of The Futurians) on the badass ‘Pink Metal’ double CDr, a sprawling collection of what was seems upwards of 30 songs, an eclectic collection of distorted, folksy rockisms. Smokehouse (one Kaaterama Morehucan) is a new one, and despite the slash instead of an ampersand, this is a collaboration between the two and not a split as it otherwise suggests. I must say it is a mere perfect experience to hold this tape in your hands and observe the clean, well-organized cassette and cover Abandon Ship has laid-out, track listings for A and B sides placed neatly on the final panel in golden era cassette tradition. What’s more, when you press ‘play’ it sounds really good! Fulfilling the title’s promise, the ten tracks of ‘Whisky & Freedom’ are equal part lament and revelry presented in a lazy, hazy dog-day fashion ideal for these last weeks of summer. The gauzy atmosphere of the Spartan recording is thick, heightening that much more the warmth of this semi-improvised jam. In true lo-fi fashion, the duo share all duties, effortlessly retrieving songs from the guts of guitars, the teeth of organs, tops of drums, and with a most casual vocal delivery. In a classic Out/weird mode (Charalambides, Dead C, The Clean) there is a free mix of conventional – albeit “quirky” - songwriting and experimental sketches, with the benefit of variety derived from the fresh pairing of these two artists. Clayton’s rough delivery comes in nice compliment to Kaaterama’s depressed plaint; one man drowning and the other indifferent. And still, their guitars weep and rejoice in unison. At an ideal 30 minutes, this tape and its contents do the utmost justice to the medium. Apropos, full-color J-card houses a transparent red cassette with pro label, hand-numbered to 100. High recommendation. (Abandon Ship cassette, $5(US)/$6(No. America)/$7(World) HERE)

‘I’ve Wasted My Breath’ is a rare release by Buck Paco, a guy with a crew and an excess of songs – “about 95 percent of which have never been released” - and apparently a phobia of touching little red dots. From the label’s blurb on this, it seems a best of of sorts: five tracks compiled in a little 3” CDr for quick reference, a sampler, an introduction, or as the subtitle goes, A Buck Paco Primer. Paco plays guitar rock with a healthy, yet conservative (by modern standards) psychedelic tinge, hinting at Blue Cheer or even Der Steppenwolf of yesteryear, yet commiseratin’ with the Sic Alps and Wooden Shjips of this year. Each other track is an instrumental, starting with the tastefully-fuzzed jam “48 Hours and No White Elephants”, Paco’s guitar and two bass guitars carefully whittling around each other, trying not to touch swords as they shred on preciously different frequencies of distortion. “Don’t Tell Me”, if I may be so bold, don’t drop too far from the Queens of the Stone Age for Paco’s un-emotive (stoner) and understated vocals and weightless guitar entries. “Reciprocate” finds a very different speaker, his lines still delivered with detachment, yet the content more pained and kind of creepy; the repletion of guitar and double-fisted drumming make the menace complete, stalking between his lines with one big stabbing motion. At last, “Lonely Man’s Walk” struts a classic western bravado like a Morricone guitar solo, with radio squabble dust-devils in the backdrop. Very much a “primer”, each track stands alone and all are enjoyable, but it demands the legit release of similar tracks to really enhance to value of the parts. Labeled disc comes in a rad, disc/cartridge style case with tray and finely made paneled card. Hand-numbered to 100.

Working backwards, Abandon Ship number four is the label’s first CDr release - and a 3” at that – and honoring the position is ‘Zenit’ by the honorable The Futurians of New Zealand. With awesome b&w cover art and Crass lettering, the disc eagerly fucks with perceptions after traditional opener “Genetic Futurian” stomps its way to obsolescence. It’s like the band is evolving in the matter of 20 minutes. Omitting the sci-fi grunge punk of conventional releases up to this first track, we leap to the minimalist electronics display of “Black Gull”: all bleeps and bloops, sine-waving bass buzz, and Logan’s Run doorbell tones. “Laika” just gets artier, with squishy programmed percussion, tape manipulations, and piano-affecting synths into original flavor for an Airwolf midi solo. The 10 minute finale “Nuclear Future” presents an unprecedented dance minimalism, barely audible on purpose, machined bass drum beats punching dot matrices over a repeating note. One thing at a time until the sampled voice returns, then the volume raises and a rhythm enters the room, still too obtuse for dancing. This is truly futuristic, and it’ll make you smile. Labeled disc comes in a disc/cartridge style case with removable tray and card. Hand-numbered to 100. Start here. (Abandon Ship 3” CDr, $6(US)/$7(No. America)/$8(World) HERE)

Since finding this morning that these have been extinct/endangered for some time, I will keep this snappy. That is to say, the latest batch from Maine’s L’animaux Tryst (Field) Recordings sold out before the month of their release was up, leaving only the 3” CDr version of ‘Gora’ by Barry Burst to a few lucky stragglers. That is to say, in the L’animaux tradition the disc was released in two widths: the 5” medium (in my hands) and the 3” petite (soon to be in yours). Seeing as the album’s four tracks could fit on three inches, you may have already figured it brief. I didn’t, and before I put this one on, I expected a disc filled to the max with extensive raga-drones – possibly a good thing, but most likely an exercise in tedium. This could not be further from the truth, as the longest track “anja Sajan anja” peaks at seven minutes (and you will definitely wish it kept going), the rest no more than four and a half. There is absolutely no wasted space here. The aforementioned track is also the finale, half krautish slow-burner of keys, strings, and reverb-laced drums ala Faust or This Heat / half Harrisonian Starship pop-chant over tabla and flute loops, hand claps and traditional eastern strings, overlapping verses and a bulging bass-line to get your head rolling - pure incredibleness! But I get ahead of myself. Burst plays everything and records himself. The opening track “When the Bird Flies” launches from the chamber like a Yellow Submarine with a bittersweet flute arrangement, chimes, then into somewhere between Donovan and Syd Barrett herky jerk-melodic lyrics matching sitar licks and breathy chorus, crawling bass notes and hand percussion announce the post-British invasion vibe transposed all over the disc. In fact, the remarkable quality of this bedroom produced CDr sounds as though it was recorded by the very guy who made millions to record The Beatles, whomever this may be (yes, it pleases me not to know these things). A full-on raga, “Ke Bavajud Janata” is a million instruments in natural harmony, coupled with Burst’s modern Brit Pop verses, likewise approximating the lyrical works of Jewelled Antler, harmonized and chorused to a glazed perfection. In the face of all this glory, the pinnacle is found in the third quarter: “For Alice”, is a sprawling instrumental segue in the acidic mode of CAN with damp jazz drums, heavy piano clamp-down, and a rising tide of sitar and flute beckoned by the reedy cries of a horn - a preparatory ceremony for entrance to the final passage. I wrote that I’d keep this snappy before I played the disc; it has not been snappy and I apologize. This album has blown my mind. Slick, white-topped CDr comes in a handmade “Indian straw paper” sleeve (it’s really nice) with an ink-print sticker, hand-written notes and a Polaroid. Limited to a criminal 40 copies of each edition. Superior recommendation.

Not that you can have one, but the latest from Tempera, a cassette entitled ‘4.7.06 / 4.13.06’, is pretty good too. Despite its length three or four times that of ‘Gora’, there is much less to describe the two side-long performances, live sessions recorded a week apart in April of 2006. The Xeroxed insert which adjoins is difficult to read, but it appears that the line-ups differ slightly between days, with the latter seeing the addition of two more musicians to the presiding four. Uniform group chanting and the clatter of hammered percussion begins the first side, the voices of sincerely haunting quality and as though an earthen, northeastern compliment to the dark cantors of the southwest, say Robedoor and Changeling. There is a bassy mumbling of instruments beneath where shakers and various other hand percussives emerge, consolidating the meter of sing-along. There is a definite Amon Duul/Popol Vuh communal rhythm going on here, with the occasional missed beat shifting the beat’s direction momentarily. Perhaps inspiration struck late, because nearing the end of this first side, a solemn, Tortoise/Durutti Column type riff emerges in a chorusy haze, a fine addition entirely re-coloring the remaining revelry in darker hues as a bout of whistling flushes the rest of the band away in a steady wane. Side B, aka ‘4.13.06’, begins with a crunchy, Out Hud style trip hop beat and wordless female-sung scales, sounding as if processed through a busted sequencer or maybe replayed through a mono tape deck. I’ve got this down too low. There’s a male voice in there as well, making for a sort of wrath call and response thing going on. The drums break formation, getting a little crazy on the fills, and the jangle of a something resembling a guitar miked at the strings and not the pick-ups joins the rhythm, a clattery jiggle further conflating this with Out Hud and the !!!. The recording on this side is less clear, and despite the additional players, the result is one track of vocals and one track of clackaclacka which is actually quite enjoyable. Think Pocahaunted with a drummer. A number of odd instruments emerge in the last few minutes – something like a ukulele, possibly a harp, and piano and some definite knob spinning – but the mantra has already been established by the core components and the dominate drummer, hinting that the band is warming up for a new piece, off camera, shrouded by the drummer’s finale cymbal rolls. Sorry – Burst is a tough act to follow. Transparent red cassettes are hand-written with a full-color paper sleeve sewn with thread to create a little pocket. (L’animaux Tryst (Field) Recordings CDr, $8 HERE; cassette, SOLD OUT – try some distros: Tomentosa or Time-Lag, maybe?)

Arbor has taken off his shirt:

arbor19 Binges - 'Return To Whatever' CDr $6
"Binges are a hometown favorite here in Chicago. Up until this point their music has existed to the public in one form: the live set. For the benefit of those outside of Chicago, the duo, comprised of drummer Chris Robert and guitar/bass/drum/mic/tape dude Anthonyy Decanini, recently teamed up with Midwestern Raccoo-oo-oon to cover the west coast with their syncopated improvisations. It is only fitting that their first release be made up of live material(recorded to DAT tape and mastered with the utmost care). Decanini creates a vast number of growing and receding loops from his guitar, bass, contact mic, tapes, and other sources which act as the perfect foil to Robert's percussion(a serious thing to behold). It isn't so much one person acting as the leader as much as the two creating an absolute sonic union of sounds blurring the line between free jazz and noise." In an edition of 200 screened CDRs in screened sleeves.

arbor22 Watersports with Aaron Rosenblum - 'More' C20 $7
"If a tape should ever be described using the word "submerged" it is this one. Watersports is the Brooklyn duo of Russ Waterhouse and Lea Cho, who in the same configuration also make up Blues Control. The A side begins with "submerged" bubble sounds mastered from the inside of an aquarium. The serene scene ebbs and flows until shimmering keyboards pierce the murk like sun into the blimey deep. On the B side the duo is joined by Aaron Rosenblum of Son Of Earth/Sapat. This track is keyboard heavy from the start with what seems like all three of the players weaving sounds through each others keyboarding. A glorious and shimmering overtone blurs reality. Howling flutes act as sea creatures in crisis. If you put the shell up to your ear and concentrate you can hear Rosenblum totally shredding." In an edition of 100 numbered tapes in oversized double sided collaged tape cases.

arbor41 Warmth LP $13
"Even though Warmth main man Steev Thompson still appears to be incommunicado totally epic recordings continue to surface. Before Roxanne Jean Police was officially over and Steev still lived in Chicago, he joined up with another then Chicago resident Branden Diven of Quilts/American Grizzly Records. The jams that were created filled a couple of cdrs and the Warmth side of the split with Quintana Roo on Not Not Fun. This LP consists of a remixed and edited version of the original cdr running at just under 45 minutes. Forgotten smog floats through a Northside basement. Sounds emanate but their source is totally unrecognizable. Quiet growing tonal blobs erupt into washes of aural color. A complete union of samplers, synths, vocals, guitar, organs, percussion, and electronics merge to create the sounds contained within; a loss of individual existence. Completely serene." In an edition of 300 LPs on creamy yellow vinyl with hand stamped labels in pro-printed and screened fold over sleeves with art by Roy Tatum and an insert by Steev.

arbor51 Treetops/Cygnus split C20 $6
"At it's purest, recorded music is two things: basements and one track recorders. Treetops and Cygnus are a complimentary pair of basement sludge psychers armed with little more than a few effect pedals(no distortion?!). The Treetops track is a grower and coming in at just under 10 minutes one of the longer Treetops jams to date. Light guitar strumming, tape manipulations and the occasional incantation are the sole sources for "Wild Beauty". Sky bound riffs float through the storm clouds. This track is a companion piece to the upcoming Ecstatic Peace tape, "In The Vanilla Grove/ Man and Horse". Cygnus is the guitar/keyboard duo of Heath Moerland(Sick Llama/Fag Tapes) and his friend Glen. Heath and Glen use slow flanged strumming and haunted house keyboards all progressing at a slow-ed down pace. The second track starts out with some fuzzed heavy riffage and keyboard overload while progressively deconstructing itself to two guitars; a totally zoned out "I forgot we we're recording" style gem. Much more chill then their previous blown out shred fests." In a numbered edition of 100 sprayed/stamped tapes in red youth stickered poly cases.

arbor57 Evan Miller/Gown split C20 $6
"The power is out. The power is back. This tape juxtaposes two expert guitarists against each other on the natural A/B boundaries of the cassette medium. Iowa's own Evan Miller creates long drifting ragas (or as he like to call them, spells) of acoustic guitar work akin to contemporaries such as Fahey and Rose, but strays from their "minstrel in the country" vibe and going more towards "a fisherman on the wharf" style. Even though there are no words, the emotion and story of his songs are obvious. "Specter" was recorded during a storm adding an ominous atmospheric quality to the meandering spell. On the flip side, Gown creates sky high electric guitar drones similar to his work in Bark Haze, but his presence in the solo setting adds a particularly nice clarity to his work; much less of an overload leaving more time to really soak into the jam. "Pigeon Church" is one of his first recordings since leaving his internship at Ecstatic Peace and moving up to rural Maccan, Nova Scotia." In a numbered edition of 100 tapes in 3 color silkscreened sleeves with tape labels and an insert.

Arbor T-shirt $7
"Three weeks of my summer was spent in New York at a printmaking class. Chilling in the park, going to almost weekly GHQ shows, and printing among other things, these Arbor T-Shirts. In an edition of twenty available in size MEDIUM (a few smalls are available too) on a variety of colors(email if you have size/color preference and I'll let you know what I have available)."

pictures and ordering info HERE

Sometime before this disc arrived at my door, Trevor Pennsylvania of New Brunswick, NJ’s DIHD and Human Adult Band sent over a small blurb on the album. I saved it, or at least believe I did, yet cannot now find it. Luckily, the DIHD website is finally in working order, and you may now know what I know. ‘Myl itt lepiec eofh eaven’ is the band’s second “retrospective” collection, “about 15 songs” (there are 19 tracks, but who can say which are songs) from the last 3 years, peeled from out of print releases plus “at least 7” unreleased tracks. But here’s what you don’t know: the band’s garage rock sludge owes as much to The Melvins as they do Silver Apples and Comus; they’re guitar strum and 4/4 chops recall the modern psychedelia of Sic Alps, further likened by their creatively coarse recording techniques (or lack thereof). Opener “Teenage Parking Lot” may be their official anthem, lurking along where eagles dare at a pace retarded by urban sprawl, PA’s voice a post-puberty bark scaring up some guitar licks from behind the heavy scum of the rhythm section. The simple, three-chord propulsion of “Red Cent” is a necessary relief from the relentless unrelenting of the Human Adult Band glower; scrappy, over-blown experiment like “Samanther”, “Hot Hands”, and “Deep South” add further dimension to the band’s menace, striating the disc’s 64 minutes with marked variety. Originating from an assortment of releases with an assortment of meta-themes, several tracks eschew the inevitable pretension of maturity; songs like “Easton Ave Laundromat” - the consummate “B-side” – exists surely as an inside joke, dedicated to only the most regular of Court Tavern attendees. It seems the entirety of the ‘Are We Sleeping?’ CDr is included, and now making so much more sense in the scope of their tangential releases. My greatest regret is the muddy color of slow-burner “Skeltons”: difficult to read beneath all the tape noise, there is definitely some miraculous guitar-work down there; a winding snake charming its master, he moans with brutish frustration. Tribal beats and sort-of ironic hippie-babble appear scattered throughout, Gang Gang Dance-style audio snippets which explain where the band is coming from and what they’re smirking at. This handsomely labeled CDr comes with a colorful, hand-assembled paper sleeve and little more than a track-list. Mine included a laminated flier for a New Brunswick show with The USAISAMONSTER, which coupled with a Bull Tongue mention means a sign of the times that these guys rule the land of Johnson. That is, besides Johnson. & Johnson. (DIHD CDr, $5 HERE)

Here is a pair of 3” CDrs from Akoustic Desease, a young Italian label with a fantastic approach to the English language. Both artists also appear alongside Seht, Valerio Cosi, (VxPxC), Alligator Crystal Moth and more on the label's wonderful 'Trees in the Attics' compilation, a summery tribute to Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. But look here now:

Two pieces make ‘Faded on the Blowing of Winter’ by Fabio Orsi. Both simple, 10 minute drone meditations, the first builds upon layers: repeating layers of dull bass drone enhanced with a few taps of wooded percussion, loops of bells or guitar notes bent like bells weaving between the beats, a high harmonium note. The lot drops off as an overwhelming organ drone sears through, carrying layers of its own. The second track is made of warmer bits, drones like synthesized strings and extended passages of guitar recalling the first long-player by Growing. Besides Orsi’s own fame, further comparisons can be drawn to the works of Seht, Flying Saucer Attack, and Labradford for atmosphere and intense sense of depth. White label/red-black bottom CDr comes in a hand-made gatefold of heavy paper and color photography, very nicely done. Limited to 212.

In contrast to Orsi’s minimalism, ‘After Dinner Black Out’, the debut of Italian musician Donato Epiro, is a nearly 20 minute experiment in sound collage. A single track, the composition is made of several pieces of music and found sound, each cut to a reasonable length of no shorter than 30 seconds and up to five minutes. Like Ferrari’s compositional musique concrète, the sounds are intimately related, though not necessarily by timbre, tone, or anything else apparent to the unacquainted listener. All sounds are pleasant and clear as they are made to stand alone, satisfying merely by their presence. Water drips and a woman gasps with excitement. A cello squeaks with curiosity. Drum sticks prattle over a kit in free form. An overpowering by excerpted musical passages takes hold, and before mid-track a song seems wont to break out, the elements aligned in a coup against the lack of structure. However, this dissipates as quickly as it formed, the author denying our basest desires to hear a familiar rhythm. The sweeps of viola which end the piece signal a mature, studied chaos, a meticulous sequencing and pacing which fulfills music by defying it. CDr comes tabbed in a handmade folder of heavy paper with color art, hand-numbered to 106. (Akoustic Desease 3” CDr, 6 € (EU)/8 € (World) HERE)

During Animal Psi’s not too-recent cross-country move via the southwestern United States, I made sure to keep Jacob Smigel’s ‘New Mexico’ nearby, anticipating the rare opportunity to enjoy this ode to the state while actually experiencing it first hand. While my vantage speeding on interstate freeways and through urban hubs, and the bizarre presence of a Snyder’s of Hanover (Pennsylvania) pretzel factory in the middle of the desert [Is that legal? Did they annex this land as Hanover to keep it legit?] disallowed the rural, haunted vision which Smigel portrays, the storied weight of “The Land of Enchantment” was not lost in its hillside motifs and unique high-desert, and all the possibilities which lay not far beyond. Smigel begins his tribute with a tribute, “New Mexico”, a giddy acoustic plea to the xeriscape flushed with bells and drum kit, in effect a forward to the storybook of this album including summary of each chapter-like track, and introducing his cast of outdoors friends. Following track “Santa Maria De La Cabeza” starts with some plundered flute music, flamenco, and a pre-recorded welcome to the state - the latter’s constipated bourgeois fulfilling this collage of imperial defeat, postured before a young Smigel compatriot reads from a book on the Spanish civil war over a guitar interlude – a peculiar reflection. Breaking with the theme in the slightest, Smigel also includes more general stories of youthful outings and relationships, songs like “Let Me See If This Be Real” - a lonely, cloudy guitar song with watery field recordings implying a day at the lake, secluded in nature – and the Hidden Cameras-like “Mandarin Oranges”, the recording burnt in a red dusk. Longest track and centerpiece “The Pack Rat that Died Twice” is presented as a classic radio show, read/told entirely by Smigel, complete with sound effects and interludes. Revolving around a supernatural encounter with an indigenous animal, the true story complicates the character of Smigel the songwriter as woodsman, explorer, and interloper. Despite the crass barbarism and unprecedented inclusion of Smigel’s tale, the man’s style is so frequently that a break of such non-musical nature works well in the multi-faceted story-telling of the album. The introspective critique of the story, as well as the subsequent song “Broken Record”, tackles the problems and persistence of memory - the telling, elongating, lightening and aggrandizing of individual stories – and the bittersweet bliss of reconciling one’s limits. Leaving the obscurity of “Campfire Instrumental”, the disc soars into its final three tracks with the restrained, up-tempo “Half-imagined World” – a sort of goodbye to the modern/youthful world, and into the aged/classic ballad “Funeral of Enkidu” with its evocative words carried by sweeping drums and electric guitar textures. The album ends with Smigel’s sole recorded cover, the country song “If You Can Touch Her At All”: a warm, emotional lament, the song’s ambiguous use nicely concludes the album’s romance with people and place. Out-doing the packaging job of his previous ‘Eavesdrop’, Smigel nests this CD (the real kind) in an air-brushed digipak with plastic sleeve, inside a detailed booklet containing several pages of text, lyrics, and appendices. Edition of 500 copies. Recommended. (self-released CD, $12 HERE)

Something of a collective, Las Vegas Club centers mostly on guitarist/song-writer/Jacob’s friend Joe Kendall, with a loose cast of well-wishers and Smigel taking a subordinate role, mainly on drums. Newest full-length ‘In Gods We Trust’ is a collection of folksy, acoustic-based songs livened by chimes, choirs, and multi-tracked guitars weaving a dizzy, hazy spell. The disc holds an undeniable similarity to the (mostly) instrumental Unwed Sailor, particularly the simple-brilliance of ‘The Marionette and the Music Box’, built around similar revolving musical themes while casually ambling toward some fading sun. Even when the taut rolls of Smigel’s drumming are absent, the rousing left-right of Kendall’s guitar leads the child’s march of opener “The March of baby Jesus”, with flourishing fiddle and multi-part chorus; a salty segue inviting a break with the Twain-by-instrumental tale “The Fishhook of Hoori”, the eastern roots of the story mingling as a bell-piano with plucked guitar. The slow build of “Breadfruit & Betel Nuts” mimics that of Mogwai with an acoustic fetish, actually realized as Jim O’Rourke’s ‘Bad Timing’; at 4 ½ minutes, the song is one of the album’s longest, though ultimately one segment of a tightly-knit 15 tracks. A surprising, yet in no way displeasing electric guitar shreds through the acoustic bounce and scuttling drums in the back of “The Throne of Badbag B. De”, gong and timpani percussion deepen the mystery of “The Iron Hooves (of Iempos Moose)” - a tribal lullaby meshing cuddly guitar with primal screams – and the addition of natural sounds to much of the latter songs help variegate the comfortable space so inseparable from the style. Though the hints are obvious enough, it isn’t until track 9 or 10 that I realize this disc is a tribute to so many gods (as the title implies), filtering the world’s popular spiritualisms through a more or less neutral medium of western guitar music. CDr comes in an arigato pak with paste-on labels, handwritten title, and a Xeroxed insert. Edition of 200 copies. More recommended. (self-released CDr, $10 HERE)

New friends from Denmark, A Beard of Snails:

abos117 - Vlubä - '7op' CDr 6€(EU)/$7(World)
"New far out exaltations from this Buenos-Aires-by-way-of-the-Moon cult combo. ”7op” is about shamanistic space-rock jams and flanged free psychedelia, garnished with savage drumming and noisy toys. Comes in an elaborate fake fur clad cover in a poly bag. Limited edition of 75." BAND

abos118 - Inhibitionists & Rough Ride of Crafts - 'Wendigo in the Church of Merriment' CDr 6€(EU)/$7(World)
"The once-again-solo Inhibitionists outfit spent roughly a year in long distance collaboration with the Rough Ride of Crafts collective, resulting in a spooky, offbeat mish mash of lo-fi noise, stoner electronics, tape collages, pseudo hip hop and acid folk-fueled semi-songs. This semi-concept album is packaged in a nifty handmade cardboard picture cover." Limited edition of 50. BAND

abos114 - Die Stadt Der Romantische Punk - 'The Guitar E.P.' CDr 6€(EU)/$7(World)
"DSDRP is Jukka Reverberi of Giardini di Miro fame, and his ”Guitar E.P.” is, in our opinion, a 31 minute album. An album of minimalist tenderness, explosive rumbling noises, and tripped out basement aesthetics, brought on by, yes, effect-laden guitars (and bits of sweet violin.) The clear-labeled CD-R comes in a handmade digipak-esque paint sprayed cover, with a glossy front cover photo." Limited edition of 50. BAND

abos111 - Stormhat - 'Hypnagogia' CDr 6€(EU)/$7(World)
"This 45-minute trip through Stormhat's garden of earthly delights presents pre-dream dreamscapes channelling avant-composition, utilizing field recordings, bizarre percussion, and a laptop (do not be afraid.) Rough and forboding, calm and meditative, in all its intricate beauty. Packaged in a handmade digipak-esque cover, with glossy front and back cover photos." Limited edition of 100. BAND

WEBSITE and ORDER

Ryan LaLiberty is from New Hampshire [I’m serious!] and he records under the name of the most post-rock X-man, Colossus. Ryan also really likes Growing. ‘Aria’ is his newest full-length disc. The man calls it “New England drone”, and not that I think he’s attempting to carve a peculiar niche but rather just wants us to have a general idea of where he lives, I think he’s selling himself a bit short by stopping at “drone”. Ulitmately it’s drone, but it’s also much more – more variegated, more expressive. Start: “Verda” is a piece of stuttering, chorused guitar minimalism identical to recent Growing, and by logical extension, mid-career Black Dice; it’s good, and very capable, but by this mimetically lacking in its extreme similarity. “Moteahs” backs away toward the communal drone/natural pot, employing bright guitar drones blanketing feedback pitches and a faint, plunger percussion; alternately, “Molava” is a darker piece of similar components, psychedelic synthesizer like a calliope swinging near and far in the dusky haze. Things really get good when the knobs are turned clockwise for “Soncata”, “The Dread”, and “Reminiscience” [sic], a drone trilogy at full-gait, blasting from the prelude and full of storied chaos like a Hototogisu at half the frequency, with the final couplet built from gentle drones and whispered embellishment, an appallingly tasteful display of restraint. Stamped CDr comes in a full-color insert and heavy sleeve. Hand-numbered to 50 copies. Quite nice, thanks. (self-released CDr, $3 HERE. The guy’s practically giving it away - you’re a jerk if you don’t take one.)

Holy shit! Friends, look at all these great new things from Students of Decay:

SOD-36/37 Peter Wright - 'At Last a New Dawn' 2CD $18(US)/$20(World)
'"At Last a New Dawn" is a double disc set of truly epic proportions. It constitutes the first new recordings by Peter Wright released to CD since 2004's "Yellow Horizon," and is, without a doubt, a radiant high point, perhaps even the pinnacle, of his distinguished and exceptional discography. All of the familiar and wondrous Wright touchstones are present here in pristine form: a wealth of gorgeous, ghostly guitar drones and swells, and impeccably employed field recordings from manifold fascinating sources. Also worth noting is the emergence of some slightly harsher sounds found here, a divergence from the traditionally pastoral nature of much of Wright's catalog. This is reflective of Peter's current live setup, which employs increased overdrive and distortion. The album's title is, Peter asserts, a 'vauge reference to undying optimism in the face of gloom.' Many of the track titles too reflect a contemplation of death, pain,loss and tragedy. In fact, one of the tracks, 'Blue Light District,' was recorded on July 7th, 2005, the morning of the London terrorist attacks, its title referencing the rash of emergency vehicles swarming throughout the city in the wake of the violence. This is the sound of misery and death, and ultimately, of hope and redemption." (ltd.500)

SOD-40 Jefre Cantu-Ledesma - 'Shining Skull Breath' CDr $8(World)
'"Shining Skull Breath" documents the latest solo recordings by Root Strata label head and founding Tarentel member Jefre Cantu-Ledesma. Those familiar with Jefre's recent solo outings, such as "The Garden of Forking Paths" and"Floating Weeds," will recognize the stunning, wistful, barely-there melodies which abound on those albums. However, this time around these slow orbits of somber, evocative tone are submerged in boiling vats of molten fuzz and static making for an increasingly dynamic and bewitching listen. This truly is brilliant, potent, deep listening of the highest order." (ltd.100)

SOD-41 Meursault - 'Sleeping Debris' CDr $8(World)
"Meursault is the solo moniker of Shaun Falconer, a musician based out of Glasgow. The project first came to my attention by way of three simply gorgeous self-released cdrs birthed last year by Falconer's own Eagle + Serpent Recordings imprint. Sleeping Debris" follows very much in the trajectory established by those prior releases, but feels perhaps even more focused. Employing bowed guitars and piano, Falconer coaxes frail webs of cascading drones and beautiful swelling timbres into evocative mantras which hang thick in the air like fog. Cathartic and transportive in the best possible way." (ltd.100)

SOD-51 Procer Veneficus - 'The Cold Gloaming' CDr $8(World)
"Here at Students of Decay, we have long been fans of the gorgeous, desolate ambient/metal explorations of Procer Veneficus. It is thus with great pleasure that we present "The Cold Gloaming," a frozen journey into lonely twilight. In the words of Derek himself, ""The Cold Gloaming" is a "late-night effort to capture dusty nocturnal atmospheres and the presence of ghosts (nightspirits) infringing upon the realm of light and comfort that humans have attempted to construct for themselves, and thus it is a link to our primal past. This recording represents a submission to soporific realms of darkness, eerie sounds, unknown forms, and psychic uncertainty. Very earthy guitar-based drones and dark ambience." Sleep deep." (ltd.100)

SOD-52 Fabio Orsi - 'The Psychedelic Power of Bubbles (You and Me)' 3" CDr $8(World)
"The second installment in the 3" trilogy which began with "2 or 3 Moments in 1 Day" and will conclude with "Before Long, Before Anyone, The Stars Will Be Walls In My Mind," here the inimitable Orsi melds Eastern sounding drones with suffocating low register harmonics and field recordings to a sublime effect, flexing both his superb compositional skills and his mixing prowess. Another fantastic, captivating offering from this rising star Italian maverick." (ltd.100)

SOD-53 Slow Listener - 'Enthusiastic Pursuit of the Pointless' CDr $8(World)
"Following up simply stellar releases on Celebrate Psi Phenomenon and Ruralfaune, Slow Listener returns with"Enthusiastic Pursuit of the Pointless." Campbell Kneale's descriptor 'slumberpunk' for the SL C/PSI/P release proves germane on this album as well, with Slow Listener spewing forth deep, velvety pools of fractured, yet soothing, analog sound. Great stuff to play late into the night or early in the morning while rubbing the sleep out of your weary eyes." (ltd.100)

SOD-54 Robert Horton - 'Boot 2: The Ugly Music' CDr $8(World)
"Robert Horton continues his essentially ceaseless streak of releasing infallibly fantastic sounds with "Boot 2 (The Ugly Music)." This album is unique in the Horton canon, as unlike most of Robert's records, which typically feature him seemingly playing every instrument and non-instrument under the sun, here he relegates himself to his self-made stringed "boot" and vibrators alone. The result is some of the most damaged, elegiac and eerily beautiful acoustic Americana to grace these eardrums in quite some time." (ltd.100)

SOD-58 Emaciator - 'Resentment' CDr $8(World)
"Jon Borges (Pedestrian Deposit/Monorail Trespassing) returns with another supremely focused installment of his Emaciator project - focus being the operative word. I can think of few individuals who imbue their work with such an obsessive vision. Here, Borges weaves impenetrably dense, corroding waves of sound sourced from keyboard, tapes, guitar and effects. Constantly exploding tunnels of wonderfully pure tone. Brilliant and indespensible." (ltd.100)

CDrs are $50ppd for all 7. If you'd like to purchase the batch please EMAIL; distros please get in touch for wholesale rates. More info and sound clips at the WEBSITE

Following in the paw-prints of Lightning Bolt, New York bass & drum duo Blastocyst (Jay Dunbar and Brian Osborne) play skuzzy noise-rock music with aplomb like only a pair of completely wrecked instruments can provide. Particularly akin to that Rhode Island band’s first full-length, ‘True Tales for a New American Century’ on Greece’s Phase! Records mixes even amounts of low-end thrash-pummeling (“Let’s Eat Spanky”, “Goats Will Burn”) with open noise-experiment (“Polish Corn Gems”), with two tracks nearing 10 minutes each, and a collection of shorter tracks in the second half which work almost as a suite of crunchy variations. The boys’ enthusiasm often overwhelms the mics with which they record (“Chupacabre”), adding a third layer of inharmoniousness to the pair’s belligerent relationship to feedback. Though both members make bombastic vocal contributions, these serve less to encourage the melody than add some sense of rhythm to the song; really, there is little to sing along with in the arrhythmic fits, and actually, between the buzz of Dunbar’s bass and the murky recording which permeates, this disc can be likened more to the free-jazz impressions by Boston’s Eloe Omoe, trudging the depths of sound with a four-armed metal octopus. Sprayed disc comes in a carefully-assembled sleeve, hand-painted and glued with multiple inserts.

Phase! chief of police Panagiotis Spoulos takes a moment to share some of his own work on ‘Torpor’. Following the thrash, grind, and all-around ugly aggression of previous Phase! monsters by Placenta Popeye, Reverse Mouth, and the above, I am pleasantly surprised by the understated, introspective quality of Spoulos’ guitar-centered work. A pleasant babble of guitar creates a raga drone on opening track “Aluminum Cage (Easy To Break)”, chants and additional layers of guitar bolstering the drone from behind. “Night And Day” shatters the calm with a heavy-distorted practice amp anti-solo, then manifesting its title, a pause of silence leading into a subtle, quiet feedback sketch not unlike the altered metal of KTL. Again breaking sequence, “Hair Is Red, Hair Is Blood” sets clean strumming to dreamy, reverberated vocals in some old-fashioned Jandek psychedelic. Further Experimentation rules the rest of these eight tracks (40 minutes), including the wicked voice manipulation “Death Helicopter”, the SY-type guitar song “Paisley Star”, and the rough feedback-whipper “Heavy Moustache”. Final track “Damage In The House Of God” is a faultless piece of ambient noise with building amp drones, chanting, and a divine sense of intensity. Spoulos makes certain to throw in a little of everything on this disc and pulls it all off like a pro, making for a solid disc of many highlights and no regrets. Pattern-sprayed disc comes in a hand-painted sleeve with paste-on photo, stencil, and photo insert. Very recommended. (Phase! CDr, 5€ HERE. *Right now, the label is having a 3 for 10€ sale – get some!)

New label from the state of New York, Laughing Bride Media:

LBM001: BETA CLOUD - 'Nephology' $10(world)
"the second full-length from BETA CLOUD, over an hour of otherworldly drones and rich, layered electronic patterns adorn this magnificent release. for fans of: Klaus Schulze, Troum, Brian Eno, Fennesz & Zoviet France. written, performed & recorded by Carl Pace. artwork by Chase Middaugh. pro-packaged CD-r. first pressing: 100 copies."

LBM002: MUTUS LIBER - 'provided with eyes, thou departest' $10(world)
"the debut full-length from mutus liber (Chase Middaugh from NOVELIST). 7 tracks of dark ambience, black noise and drone soundscapes. for fans of: Deathprod, Slomo, KTL, Tim Hecker, Philip Jeck. written, performed & recorded by Chase Middaugh at the DOOMcave May 2006-July 2007. mastered by Carl Pace. artwork by Middaugh. pro-packaged CD-r. first pressing: 100 copies."

WEBSITE

I don’t know who invented the 12” CD sleeve, but this may be the best home for the wayward CDr bastard: the disc buttoned on long, slender sleeves creating a broad, yet uniquely confined canvas for artwork (incredible! See the painstakingly-fine screenwork of IlCaneDiCoda and weep, weep); snug in it’s 12x5 “optical bag”, it may tag-along with big brother LP, now the same height he hugs LPs side with a pal, knows what it’s like to be on the best shelf. Truly comfortable with the medium, Italy’s 8MM Records adorns its beautiful sleeves with appropriately handsome sounds.

High from recent greatness on the RRRecords ‘Portland’ 3LP and his own LP on Black Horizons, Pulse Emitter (Portland’s Daryl Groetsch) undertakes two live excursions on ‘Deadly Space Missions’. The first, a 19 minute performance from May of last year, is a Bastard Noise blow-out of sooty synthesizers, crackling and gurgling like entrée into some foreign atmosphere; mechanical oscillation is the closest thing to a rhythmic device – and a rather good one at that – the acceleration of which indicates some sort of take-off phasing up and out to a pin-head, blinks out, and then back again with higher frequency. Distress calls and sirens, guttural static and alien winds all take the center in the course of the track, an exploratory work of rich texture and abstract meaning. A soundboard recording no doubt - crystal clear and without room noise - for the sake of calling it “live”, this really just captures the prowess of Groetsch’s improvisational and performative abilities - and a possible inability to give titles to his pieces. The other, dated eight months prior, suggests a rawer sound, a slight bleariness caused by the intense vibration which surges in waves; chunky garble battles to stay afloat a sea of deep, slow vibrations, loose channels of hi-end static breaking in every so often over the tracks 13 minute stretch. An audible stretching signifies the end of the track - a literal reach for the end – elongating the vibrations from the beginning at a faster pace, though with a lower frequency throb. Despite the dark themes and the label’s suggestion we label this “cosmic fear noise”, the physicality of this music (as opposed to its psychological affect) is rather soothing, reaching for the spine through the temples. Blank white CDr comes in two-panel, heavy-paper sleeve, screened in two-tone with insert. Limited to 200 copies.

Competing for best album title of the year, Id M Theft Able looses ‘And I pulled the word and from my beard’ all over the place. Like label-mate Pulse Emitter, Skott Spear the man records from Portland.. Maine! - though by the sounds he creates, one might guess Kyoto or Bern. A miscreant to be certain, Spear’s compositions on ‘And I pulled…’ are pure sound barf: a collection of cheap sounds (found and otherwise) meticulously and belligerently compiled through a thousand minute cuts. Like sympathizer John Wiese, this naturally lends to frantic, anti-musical Dadaisms which enthrall with the same hand by which they repulse, creating a violent shaking sensation in the listener. In turn similar to Swiss artist and Wiese collaborator Dave Phillips, Spear relishes strings of organic, bodily-type noises abstracted from their filthy contexts to make for even filthier innuendo; the odd toy instrument is heard here and there, cut-outs of animal and human voices, tools, vehicles, and the contact-recorded environments to capture the claustrophobia of neurosis. Even the titles can’t stand to cohere, perhaps beginning with some sort of word association (“Milk for rotting teeth”), but quickly digressing from nonsense words (“Mc Cready visitant sirrer”), to no words at all (“Msiwkaemypgtarraasghe”). The disc is at it’s best when it piles on the most, as track “Cdr deer’s dream” collects layer upon layer, beginning with some homespun percussion of tapped fingers and tables, adding a maddening collection of tuneless flutes, tape manipulations, static, and teens of assorted, unidentifiable samples too dense to penetrate. Similarly in the extreme, the album scores big with its calmest moments, such as anomalous exit track “For chinga” which litters ocean waves of soft static with a nearly rhythmic snore and chirp, just a few hushed sounds to keep things interesting and off the Nature Sounds tip. A hefty collection at 55 minutes, this may be more Id M Theft Able madness than anyone need ask for. If not, it’s at least a lethal single dose. Mind-blowing, three color screen-job on heavy paper with screened insert. (8MM CDr, 6€ HERE)

The crew is called, the label is called Maths Balance Volumes:

miscegeny 10: maths balance volumes - 'black husk' CDr $8
"Most low-key maths recording in a while, and one of the best...mostly short pieces, with childlike melodies being forced into repetitious and grime-covered songs, trance-inducing synth/percussion grooves, black holes of tape murk, lullabies, and a few large ensemble explosions of rock n' noise..." 50 copies.

miscegeny 12: maths balance volumes - 'cirle path' CDr $8
"recorded directly after "hospital dubs", this one goes from blissed-out drone to rockin psych with a few battling chainsaws into beautiful song." 50 copies

PayPal to: twentybarrelsworth@hotmail.com (overseas add a couple bucks)

New today from Blackest Rainbow:

ROBEDOOR + POCAHAUNTED - 'Mouth of Prayer/Bright Sea of Singing Bowls' CDr £5
"Reissue of collaboration disc that I released back in Feburary. Accompanying the original seance psyche folk drone piece is a brand new track. These dudes are getting mad press right now having just supported Sonic Youth and a full lengther on Digitalis soon and something on Ecstatic Peace. This comes in a new full colour sleeve designed by Bethany of Pocahaunted and is limited to only 150 copies."

GARETH HARDWICK - 'Sunday Afternoon' CDr £5
"Gareth is from Nottingham and this is a recording from last month, one long slow burning lush lapsteel drone piece. Gareth also runs Low Point. A definite for fans of Growing, Stars of the Lid and other Kranky stuff. Housed in a usual Blackest Rainbow style package with artwork by Nikki Grout. Limited to 75 hand numbered copies!"

WEBSITE

Four from Ruralfaune:

rur025 SONIC TEMPLE ASSASSINS - 'III' 3" CDr 5€
"Third sacrifice by the cosmic assassins , after releases on 267Lattajjaa, We Burn, Oneiros and a split with Ashtray Navigations and Neon Death Slites ; here comes a 25mn journey through the psychedelic brains of finnish travelers.Let you rocked by a mighty guitarscapes maelstrom, a hypnotic and colored blitzkrieg that brings you to the next stage. Don't wake up the Wrath of God !" ltd50 More info HERE

rur026 SLEEPING BABIES - 'Arrow in the Earth' CDr 7€/$9
"Buried under the hills of Love, the Sleeping Babies' music is transpierced by an arrow of emotions. This patchwork of drones, carried by ethereal voices, dances among bells, flutes and percussions. It is a wonderful and shamanic trip to the holy Mantra.Featuring member of Quilts, Grateful Dregs, and head of American Grizzly." ltd86 More Info HERE.

rur027 (ETRE) - 'Voices Stomp Flames for Requiem Times' enhanced CDr (audio + video) 7€/$9
"In ontology, the study of being (etre), being is anything that can be said to be, either transcendentally or immanently (etre), a project of italian-born Salvatore Borrelli is a strange mixure between free-folk, experimental music & glitchtronica.It uses different typologies of medias, manipulated in real-time. Neon, ice, glass, fire, colours & chemical substances, robots, radios, metals, ethnic instruments, are melted in a particular approach that consists to produce a stratification but always with a constant relation between origin & becoming. These are the last true borders of folk. 4 long tracks, 42 minutes of music and one video made by Virgili Villoresi."Dear dead woman (for Paul Celan)" is a collage of home movies, an intimate moment of some dead lives , totally strange and hypnotic." ltd80. INFO. "Wondrous Horse" is his new project with Vanessa Rossetto ( the Mighty Acts of God)

rur028 TIM COSTER - 'Holding Plants' 3"cdr 5€
"From New-Zealand comes this fragile piece of Nature. This impressing audio work made of field recordings, environmental sounds and granular drones carry us to the microvegetal world where you can hear the plants grow.This subtle journey on the ground of the Earth lets appear some mysterious textured sounds. Beautiful and cerebral." ltd48. Tim Coster runs the label Claudia. INFO

Some extracts and a video sample are available HERE; Contact and order HERE. Ask for wholesales - Trades welcome!

From new French label Crier dans les musees!:

various artists - 'Cris & Chuchotements' CDr compilation 5€/$6
"Cover artwork made by Roope Eronen from Avarus, little drawings inside by Jani Hirvonen , Adam Forkner and Jonna Karanka." Featuring:

Aan, Valerio Cosi, Peter Wright, Black Forest/Black Sea, Ravi Padmanabha & Leathan Hardy, The Mighty Acts Of God, Kuupuu, Expo 70, Ghost Brâmes Of Le Cerf Magickal, Aaron Martin, Alligator Crystal Moth & Taiga Remains, White Rainbow, Enfer Boreal, Oroubos

Samples, etc. at the WEBSITE or EMAIL to order.

From label Small Doses:

'Killing is My Business' business card CDr subscription series
"If you haven’t yet signed up for the mailing list, this is the first you’ve heard about this. /Killing is My Business /is a business card CDR (also known as hockey rink CDRs. They look like a 3" CD with the top and bottom lopped off. Each holds approximately 5 minutes of music) subscription series. Here are the details: subscribers will receive twelve business card cdrs, each by one of the artists listed below, in three packages over 8-12 weeks. the cdrs will be limited to the number of subscribers plus copies for each artist. individual cds will only be available through each respective artist. the final package will include a box to hold all of the subscription cds as well as a standard cdr compiling all of the series tracks. Here are the artists:

conversations about the light, hoor-paar-kraat, haare, warmth, birchville cat motel, half makeshift, nordvargr, arc, ox, culver, fences, and torso

Here are the subscription price details:
*u.s. subscription*
*$40.00*
*canada subscription*
*$41.00*
*europe subscription*
*$46.00*
*eleswhere subscription*
*$50.00

I’m incredibly excited about this project. Sorry for the higher-than-I’d-like prices, but postal rates have increased, and it’s an expensive project to put together. I’m also hoping to have some subscriber only goodies to throw in as well. I’m hoping to have the first package ready in August. Though, I’m still working out the specific details, I’m planning on limiting it to 75 subscriptions, but that could change slightly. In any case, this will be a unique and limited box set/comp.

If you place your order with other items, you’ll save the nominal base shipping rates ($1US. $1.50 elsewhere). Be sure to add the appropriate Killing is my Business item to your cart to ensure you get a subscription."

Find more HERE

Best new label? I don't know. Please evaluate Cut Hands:

Maggoted - '1000 Shutdowns' CH015 3” CDr 7€(EU)/8€(World)
"At long last, a brand new burner by Pete Swanson (Yellow Swans, Badgerlore) and Robert Mayson (Grey Daturas) in their down low Maggoted guise. The moonlit shadow that looms over their more known outlets. 1000 Shutdowns enfolds the dark side of the duo through wailing walls of uncomprimising feedback backed up by gorgeous guitar noise evoking some kind of zombie choir style chanting affair. Beyond deep." Edition of 80 copies, squashed maggot artwerk by Jason Rohm.

Tunnels - 'Radiant Bodies of Scorched Light' CH017 CDr 8€(EU)/9€(World)
"Simply brilliant new collection of heady jammers by Tunnels aka Nicholas Bindeman (Eternal Tapestry, ex-Jackie O Motherfucker, Heavy Winged’s Jed Bindeman’s bro). Tunnels encapsulates the psygrrdelic space between rock and noise, head and body, stardust and gravelpit. Total all OUT experience that moves from Taj Mahal Travellers like spirituality to the vox vs. guitar/bells/chime hypnosis of Grouper/Fursaxa and the pastoral synth styled drone panorama’s of Tangerine Dream/Popol Vuh/Klaus Schulze. Heavy delay style." 50 copies in square dvd cases with full colour, pro printed cover magick by Matt Lock.

Cahier – 'Höyryveturi' CH019 CDr 8€(EU)/9€(World)
"Cahier is shaping up to be a grandmaster of contrast, dude’s got a thorough vision of how to soundtrack his growingly fucked up mind. This new joint collects some of his most extremely damaged psycho thoughts. Broken guitar amps singing through layers and layers of grey noise, piercing feedback symphonies which he actually manages to shape into melodic weirdo jams and a cold and wasted feeling throughout the whole thing. A fucked up fairytale for society’s lepers. We all know we’ll end up dead anyway." Edition of 50, black and white photo art, tragic.

Droughter – 'Beast Growth' CH020 CDr 8€(EU)/9€(World)
"From the dark side of San Francisco, Droughter serves up a plate of harsh noise phantasies. Inspired by cheap ass horror flicks and burnt meat, Beast Growth manages to shape harsh electronics, brutal vokills and terrifying lo-fi scuzz into engaging storylined tracks. These tunes go somewhere and they all add up to something grim and tormenting in the end. Droughter knows how to combine brutal and engaging. Sooo psyched to have this beast released, you’ll be hearing more from this guy soon, for real." Edition of 50 in polyvinyl sleeves, bleak artwerkkkk.

WEBSITE; buy all 4 at a discounted price - EMAIL for more

‘Drawing Spirits into Crystals’ is a 40-minute epic by Irish couple Bonecloud, from my vantage their best work to date. Front to back the track is veiled behind the static of disintegrating tape reminiscent Basinki’s ‘Disintegration Loops’, though with spacious improvised drone/spirituals replacing those tightly wound little loops. Accompanying a shifting array of metallic instrumental-weaponry, a vast howling mediates each leg of this track with regional vernaculars to identify the terrain like a map. Whether spooked or stoned from this way-out voyage, the high notes of the track’s last quarter begin to resemble horns playing some dust-laced jazz with the growling menace of electric guitar beneath the heavy fog leading to the question, where am I? Well, that’s what love songs often do. Sprayed and stamped CDr comes bagged with nice paper insert. Limited to 100 copies. Sold out for a while now, but maybe you can try some of DNT’s distro-pals.

Another long sold-out DNT from across the Atlantic, Jazzfinger’s ‘Wixxon Flag Bearer’ is 64 minutes of the English duo’s particular concoction of miniature melodies dwarfed by the group’s uniquely-pointed noise flurry. The damn-near pleasant “Birth of the Knife” pits a simple harmonium tune against long daggers of shrill metallic feedback, a duet in the vein of Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood which leads seamlessly into the 15 minute “Autumn Leaf Call” which tempers the noise and introduces clattering, arrhythmic percussion, half-human vocals, and a near-eastern string and wind dance number fractured by each errant burst of treble. Two deep, droning meditations transition into the fantastically-titled “The Machine That Turned Off Mars”, a playful piece of improv scattering various metallic gamelan over a repetitious piano song as the soundtrack to some 1940’s science fiction throw-away. The 24 minute “Caves” is a relatively abrasive test of stamina, discharging a plethora of mid-range feedback while rendering moot whatever complexities lay beneath. The degraded quality of this recording becomes most evident in the undying noise this and of final track “The Arrangement”: a murkiness which shaves of the group’s distinctive yet subtle perks, leaving a decent back-end of little dissimilarity from many of their No Fun-type cohort. And this is certainly nothing to gripe about. Sprayed, stamped disc comes with full-color paper sleeve and insert. Limited to 100 copies. (DNT CDr, good luck)

...so hot right now:

[TRHP07] Owl Xounds – ‘Stoned and Zoned’ 2x3” CDr $8
"One of NYC's most aggressive fire-jazz units, Owl Xounds, continues to link ESP'Disk and the Misfits, but here also approaches beautiful noise on two 20+ minute pieces. Mainstays Adam Kriney (drums) and Gene Janas (upright bass) are augmented by Bonnie Kane on amplified flute and sax with electronics. Kane's contributions bring the unit to its most psychedelic paramount, her feedback-sax worshipping at the gates of guitar gods like Les Rallizes Denudes and Blue Cheer, yet affectionately rooted in Ayler. Kriney (La Otracina, Rust Ionics, Castanets) moves the action forward, ravaging without destroying, and Janas (Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Bern Nix's Sedition Ensemble) practically rips the strings off his bass, yet both know when to let textures form on their own. Packaged in mini-LP plastic sleeve with insert and spray-painted stencil work." Edition of 99.

From Thor's Rubber Hammer HERE

Here are Owl Xounds, so very on fire right now. In the same three-piece formation as on their last vinyl appearance ‘Teenagers from Mars’ (Mad Monk/Colour Sounds), the permanent “rhythm” section of Adam Kriney on drums and Gene Janas on upright bass commingle with short-term collaborator Mario Rechtern on saxophones (yes, plural) in this live set from earlier this year in Washington D.C. The bulk of their contribution is the 18 minute “Orange Head Malformed into Dust”, a cracked bebop in several movements (emphasized through segments of near silence) best charted via the drum’s improvisation in reaction to the arbitrary melodic lines of the sax. Janas’ bass is unfortunately understated in this recording, robbing much of this track of the rich, deep purple which appears only in moments of calm on behalf of the other players; Janas’ voice, however, is made loud and clear as he goads the band along with some mid-lap jive, and then again into the companion “Three Minute New York Sex”: a denser tune by its own accord, the focus of a smooth-form, propulsive percussion plus the placing of sax in a headlock is filled-out by an increased bass presence, satisfying that full band itch that the prior left lingering. The applause which concludes both pieces is sparse though enthusiastic, suggesting this brave bunch will have something to brag about in the very near future.

Family Battle Snake picks up the back of this thing with “Larvae”, a 22 minute deconstruction of what little their side-mates managed to leave standing. Opening on a slowly rising wall of drone, the pan-European pair of Bill Kouligas and Harry Astras quickly unleash what may be the mightiest cacophony of discrete sounds ever recorded: above the thickness of the guitar drone emerges a shower of pots and pans percussion, the wild, splintering reeds of saxophones, and a bulk of electronic disorder persisting for the entire first half; the drone of guitar is here offset into the general wail as the detail of the strings begins to show. Around the final quarter, channels begin to drop out, leaving a dreamy, gold-dust howl so distant from the band’s initial brutality. Limited to a meager 50 copies in the BR’s patented folded paper sleeve, there’s no way this is still available. Totally recommended just the same. (Blackest Rainbow CDr, SOLD OUT, but you can get the cassette, £4 HERE)

A new co-release from Nothing Out There and Razzle Dazzle:

Polder/Przewalski's Horses split CDr 8€(world)
A split with 2x20 minute improvisations, from the fresh bands Polder (Benjamin Laurent Aman, french artist from Berlin who runs the Razzle Dazzle imprint) and Przewalski's Horses (duo with a french artist & the n.o.t. belgian head). Polder is cold and clinical like its name, and he comes here with a great 20mn of broken blues, like recorded by a blind old jack lost in a dead factory. Przewalski recorded in their country shelter, and turned everything rural weird, keeping in their minds the old folks in frozen east europa while grabbing their harmonica, acoustic guitars and loop station... Artwork wise..... 40 different copies with handmade drawings/collages from the artists - they look like the mishaps of a hippy amazed in a dusty grey library.... A5 format + great looking black/red cd-rs."

Try the labels HERE and HERE