Category Archives: UPDATE

LTFR 028: PETE FOSCO – ‘VACATIONLANDED’ C43 $5
While electric guitar mangler / vibe-generator Pete Fosco may call Kentucky home, he is nonetheless a man smitten with Maine. After a trip up the coast to Acadia and Belfast last summer (which included a show with MV & EE and Herbcraft at the now-sadly-defunt Roots &Tendrils), Fosco was so inspired that when he returned home he sat down in front of some warm tubes, strapp’d on a six-string, and let rip on some true Vacationland meditations. What we’ve got here are four extended improvisations/compositions for solo electric guitar, with Fosco bending, growling, coaxing, and summoning tones with fingers, slides, and other mystery implements. The sounds evoke dusty winds streaking across the Desert of Maine, Northern Lights shimmering from atop Cadillac Mountain, and vertiginous views from Pemetic. Sometimes sparse (Fosco is a master at the pregnant pause), sometimes as swirling and dense as a January blizzard, the soundtrack Fosco creates is a heavy homage to the dark mystery and latent wonder of exploration in the Maine wilds. Black shell cassettes with hand-painted and typed labels, held in polybox with full-color, pro-printed insert on vellum, enclosed in a piece of a vintage map of Maine. Limited to 75.

LTFR 031: PLANETS AROUND THE SUN – ‘WE O WE’ C43 $5
Ditching the domestic life for a stint of wild-abandon nomad drift, Planets Around the Sun departed from Maine in July to unplug and roll on down the line… WE O WE is their parting gift to the musical community that launched them into new orbits. Drawing from every era of the band’s career and pointing forward to new phases, it is a carefully crafted full-length mixtape of past trysts and future haunts. From the opening acousto-electro instrumental shimmer we move to a stretched-out heavy drone-folk version of the classic White Light side “Saraswati”, here completely re-figured with the addition of guest baritone guitar and cello from local duo South China. The Ian Paige solo excursion “Agnes” follows, with drones and steel strings lulling raga moves into your atmosphere; once the tablas and electric guitar hits, you’re halfway between Demolition Derby and Country Stash, truly a vapor to be savored and returned to often. The B-side hits with “We Owe”, a possession-ceremony standard with netherworld vocal chants circling around watery bass wobbles and wah’ed synth stabs. This flows into “May Day” and its extended doom-dub treatment “Version”, moving from Velvety melodic guitar-scorched psych to a half-tempo high-stepping astral-funk groove. But enough about the past. Planets point to their present/future with the closing track, a cracked lo-fi country-folk tune that serves as their on-the-road calling card. Sure to be a counterculture hit in 22nd-Century America. Hand-written (in white paint) cassettes held in a case with full-color pro-printed art, featuring a reproduction of a totally psychedelic needlepoint by Paige’s grandmother. Limited to 75.

LTFR 032: ALTERED GEE – ‘EUROPEAN GEES’ C69 $5
It may be counter-intuitive to think of “G-funk instrumentals” as a possible product of an icy and blizzed-out Maine winter, but holed up at the House of Hits (aka Hit Factory) in Winter 2011 with an array of analog synths (SEIL OR 400 for the highs, Moog Taurus II for the lows) and hip-hop golden-age drum machines (E-mu SP-1200, Drumulator, and Korg DDD-1), Key Jr. Dee Jay and Slouch formed Altered Gee amid a thick cloud of purple smoke and didn’t stop making hits til the tape ran out. Recorded entirely on 8-track cassette(!), the deep-grooved trunk-rattlers on European Gees ride that line between suave Euro electro-futurism and dank, dirty, post-Zapp R&B boogie and G-funk, all stretched out, heavy-lidded and dazed. Weightless, pitch-shifting, portamentoed synth lines arc over and around each other, anchored by heavy-bounce syrupy-thick bass and Slouch’s ace reverbed-out kick’n’clap beats. This is dance music with runtimes long enough (in the case of “Magnum Opus”, 15+minutes of synth-funk ecstasy) to get lost in the transcendence of the groove. The song titles say it all: “Dowsed”, “Funky Airs”, “I Wanna Lay You Down And Feel You Up”… this is some sexy, fonky shit, ideal for sittin low in your Coupe de Ville and gettin scandalous in some sweaty bedsheets. 69-minute white cassettes with individually-chrome-painted and typewriter-engraved labels, held in a case with full-color pro-printed j-card designed by the band. Limited to 75.

LTFR 033: LIGHTNING STRIKE LIGHTNING – ‘CREEPY POWER’ C40 $7
Way back in 2008, The Wire magazine named Lightning strike Lightning’s “The Moon” 7” single as one of the top 10 of the year, while Foxy Digitalis’ Brad Rose remarked that they were “quickly becoming one of my favorite bands” while naming it the Best 7” of the Year. So what’s been going on since then? Public silence; private Creepy Power. After four long years of hermetic writing, recording, re-recording, editing, mixing, re-mixing, and so on, LsL finally emerges once again with their second full-length, the follow up to their 2007 disc Turn Myself Into The Ocean. Many of the original ingredients remain (worldless female haunt-vox, busted mini-amp guitar growls, tom-violating rhythm tracks, banjo ruffs) but are in service to arrangements that are both tighter and more expansive. Moments of breathless spectral visitation bloom alongside forest-folk recitations, bell loops drawn out to time-bending drone, heavy dirge remembrance, and general free-form folkery. While the murk of of the previous recordings has been dialed back a bit on Creepy Power, the gossamer echo chamber that remains—combined with the slightly-higher-fidelity—makes for a smoother ride and headier drift; this is one to get lost in.
SPECIAL ONE-TIME-ONLY ART EDITION: Clear cassettes with in-house screen-printed labels, held in a case with double-sided reversible pro-printed j-card, each with a one-of-a-kind Land camera photograph taken by band member S.Turley with tracklisting handwritten on back, held in a sewn fabric sleeve. Limited to 33.

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Innercity – ‘Terrestreality’ LP
Terrestreality is second vinyl offering on Aguirre.. Following up  7″ on NNA tapes and BACKWORLD LP, co-released from Release The Bats and Ikuisuus earlier this year. Loads of damaged and otherworldy synth bubblles sweat over 12 tracks recorded April-June 2011. Vocals on “Opiate vague” by Bram Devens (Ignatz). Mastered by Fear Falls Burning. Edition of 300 copies. The first 50 orders on aguirre’s website get a free bonus tape which is the gatekeepers of ecstacy album by the monikers of bottoms of black lakes which was originally released in an edition of 30 copies on the why so serious?. LISTEN

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Wether – ‘Dismissal’ CS
Heat Wavepleased to present. head honcho of the ever-creative gutter label 905 tapes, mike haley, throws down a heavy zoned out slab of gutteral synth fuckery for HEADS… .. .. dont stare into the sun too long. limited edition, full color j-cards by alex.

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m. geddes gengras – ‘tetragrammaton’
Intense emotions, vibrant colors, and candid sounds flood the listeners senses. This tape cosmically guides it’s listeners through it’s superabundance of sensory feedback, bringing on a sense of weightlessness. limited edition of 100, art by adam.

hobo cubes – ‘pearl mirage’
Foisted into an idyllic underworld, where fanciful dreamlike realities rule and banal existences fall by the wayside, electronic tones and keys reflect neon lights, which illuminate and lead the listener through this unearthly realm. limited edition of 100, art by adam.

spirit catepetl – ‘lai khur’
These tracks take the listeners on a post-ritual journey in the form of astral story telling. The listener is inserted into raw and mesmerizing, but obscured, strings accentuated by grainy electronics, which transport them on this late-night odyssey. limited edition of 100, art by adam.

gimu – ‘a season in your soul’
Orchestral and nostalgic, these tracks, in their composite simplicity, bring on the sense of a life once lived in grandeur. Obscured and muffled, the drones have a markedly ancient tone about them that alludes to the multi-layered, yet monochromatic, nature of the piece. limited edition of 100, art by adam.

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905.157: OPPONENTS – ‘SCOPES SARCOPHAGUS’ C44 $6(US)/$7(CAN)/$9(World)
opponents have this way of blending paralyzing trance nuggets with jagged crunchers that just send you into a total state of confusion. it’s insane. top it all off with alien answering machines messages and scopes sarcophagus is ready to blast you off to never never never never land.

905.156: GRASSHOPPER – ‘CLASSICAL MUSIC’ C20 $6(US)/$7(CAN)/$9(World)
hot on the heals of their full length baker goodnight sweet prince, classical music is a two track, 20 minute journey into deep delphi zones from next level experimental wizards grasshopper. between inventing new coke and rolling super tight pinners, derosa and millrod manage to be the most consistent dudes in the game. instant hits from the bong.

905.155: MOTEM GOLD TROWTH – ‘SPLUR INTERRUPTER’ C35 $6(US)/$7(CAN)/$9(World)
totem mold from an alternative universe / time line / time zone / line zone. scuzzy bloopers and sticky-icky creepy crawlers. total weirdo stuff.

905.154: RUST WORSHIP + DANIEL J. MOORE SPLIT C44 $6(US)/$7(CAN)/$9(World)
a gentleman’s melee between obsolete units’ front office man paul haney’s rust worship endeavor and daniel j. moore, who is no stranger to the 905 game (family treasures, heaven people). both dudes clang out in, steel cage style, creating strident soundscapes while figuring out how to keep the vibes hypnotic.

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FAB006 A FULL COSMIC SOUND s/t C30
A Full Cosmic Sound (AFCS) is a constantly rotating improvisational ensemble from Santiago, Chile.The inspiration to form AFCS was born during the equatorial summer of 2007 in Carlos Barbosa, Brazil after Alvaro Daguer (a frequent collaborator of Chilean psych-jammers La Banda’s), Felipe Mantovani and Clovis Barbosa (both members of the experimental/dub franco-brazilian project Du O des Etoiles) shared a casual psychoactive-inspired UFO sighting.Since then, and with varying lineups, AFCS has been a natural and spontaneous union of bodies and souls on a cosmic trip. On this, their debut release for Fabrica Records, AFCS deliver a total of 5 tracks which conjure up the sounds emitted by playing dusty early “easy listening” electronic music records on your turntable, the psych/sonic explorations of Throbbing Gristle, early Sonic Youth, Spectrum, Experimental Audio Research, and the echoes of Santiago’s busy urban sound-scape. AFCS features current and former members of Chilean psych-ensemble La Banda’s and Psychedelic Schafferson Jetplane. Pro-dubbed edition of 100 (only 50 copies will be available for distribution in the USA).

FAB008 ORBLESS Spinning Liquid Mirror C30
Spinning Liquid Mirror is a suite of deep journeys through modular synthesis. Influenced by research into planetary harmonics, phenomenological frequencies, and zero point energy systems, Orbless has delved headlong into closed system frequency modulation and self generated looping patches. With SLM, Orbless has pushed further into new realms of synthesis based composition. Pro-dubbed C-30, edition of 100.

FAB009 EARTHMASTERS Dwellings C20
EarthMaster’s compositions and improvisations produce submerged and cavernous sound environments. Heavily influenced by psych, drone, and slowed down 80′s new wave, EarthMasters taps into zonked out lo-fi psych pop, ritualistic chanting, and lush synth/vocal drones to create an ethereal sound-scape. Pro-dubbed C-20, first edition of 50.

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Knotted Cord – ‘Polyphonic Beasts Expand In Parallel’
Knotted Cord is the band of Northern California-based musician Rebecca Keehner. Rebecca plays all instruments in the band, including Guitars, Drums, Bass, Keyboards, Violin, Vocals, Horns, and Percussion. Rebecca has played guitar in noisy multi-piece bands for several years. This is her first solo project which she began in August 2010. The band’s influences include Deerhoof, Spiritualized, Psychic Ills, and D Rider/Dead Rider, and has also drawn comparisons to Thurston Moore/Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Throbbing Gristle, Philip Glass, and Wendy Atkinson. The band is located in Sacramento, CA, US.  Polyphonic Beasts Expand In Parallel is Knotted Cord’s first full-length release following up on the Moth-Shaped Flame EP (S/R Feb 2011).  The songs on the new album expand on the dreamy fragmented minimalism of the EP with denser compositions, elastic rhythms, layered guitar and bass melodies and dissonant noise, analog keyboards, and emotional and chaotic drums. Vocals are used as a layer of instrumentation—often flowing in and out of instrument sounds, lyrics relate to dreams, tension, out-of-body experiences, parallel realities, and coinciding occurrences. Ongoing insomnia while writing and recording contribute to the frenetic energy and psychedelic dreaminess of the album.

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KWJAZ LP $12
San Franciscan Peter Berend’s mystery mixtape unit, KWJAZ, flashed forth this debut self-titled slab of “post-plastic sublime decomposed luxury grooves” on cassette via his own rarified Brunch Groupe imprint early in 2011 and the 120 listeners lucky enough to grip a copy know who they are. It only took half a listen before we green-lit this tape-degraded gem for vinyl treatment and we are dee-lighted to present it thusly. Comprised of two side-long suites, “Once In Babylon” and the oddly monikered “Frighteous Wane,” KWJAZ nimbly ebbs and flows the proceedings through airy cloud-jazz passages (complete with smoky crystal vibes keys and narcotic hiss-hazed horn sections), bouncy weirdo dub-funk vignettes, stretched-out syrupy synth stews, and smooth faux-Steely D soft-rock abstractions, all without ever sounding schizo or style-hoppy. A major feat, and a real riddle of an LP that deepens and ripens with each spin. Hopefully you were savvy enough to catch him on his recent coast-to-coast summer tour with Swanox and Sudden Oak; if not, tune in to this. Black vinyl LPs (mastered at Dubplates in Berlin) in jackets with cosmic floral artwork by Austin Cho/Casey Grr. Edition of 700.

ROBEDOOR – ‘TOO DOWN TO DIE’ LP $12
LA’s most downer erosion architects continue their 6-year-deep narco drip into psych-streaked bleak house, the latest saga of which is Too Down To Die, the band’s first full-length since March 2010’s Burners LP and the journey there-and-back was a cryptic and crooked crawl. The entirety of Side A is dominated by “Parallel Wanderer,” a lumbering kosmische bruiser triptych and consistent live staple that spills from astral ambient dread (bathed in crystal piano and trademark MGG modular synth textures) into a loner riff march before detonating into a wasted ghost-rock vacuum. The B features a suite of songs new and less-so, from the industrial headbanger “Universal Migration” to the nod-out braindead negative throb closer, “Afterburners.” Out of step and out on the ledge. Recorded at Green Machine in East LA and cut at Dubplates in Berlin. Black vinyl LPs in jackets with blasted orb artwork plus a photocopied insert. Edition of 600.

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To Live and Shave in L.A. – ‘The Cortege’ LP
The Cortege is the closing installment to two decades of remarkable albums and riveting live performances from To Live and Shave in L.A. The core trio of Ben Wolcott, Rat Bastard and Tom Smith has led this collective of legendary musicmakers since the early 1990s when they crossed paths in the early Miami Beach punk/noise/experimental scene. Recorded by Don Fleming in 2007 at Think Tank studios in Hoboken, NJ, The Cortege is a completely different journey from what one might expect from TLASILA. Songs like Flattering Circles of Hell and Til Their Legs Gave Way go far beyond the usual noise exercises they are known for. The Cortege finds TLASILA utilizing an almost pop format in terms of not only length but repeating themes throughout each song. Bright Lights, Theatre, Fur inaugurates the LP with its minimal electronics introduction until it explodes with guitar, delayed violin, and its almost singalong repeat of the title. While some songs seem minimal in execution throughout, such as a Rodent, others like I Found My Ruin Instead immediately layer guitars and sax below Tom Smiths tortured vocals. When you reach the end of The Cortege is hard to not think to yourself that not only is this TLASILAs best LP, but also a glimpse at what avant music can be when focused, yet boundless. The TLASILA collective for The Cortège includes Ben Wolcott (oscillator and treatments), Rat Bastard (violin), Tom Smith (lead vocals), Misty Martinez (lead vocal on Flattering Circles of Hell, backing vocals, saxophone), Andrew W.K. (backing vocals), Nondor Nevai (backing vocals), Cherie Lily (backing vocals), Mark Morgan (guitar), Chris Grier (guitar), Don Fleming (guitar), Dimthingshine (percussion and voice), Mark Shellhaas (percussion), Kelly Jamison (percussion), Graham Moore (synth modules), Gaybomb (magnetic card readers), and Patrick Spurlock (electronics).

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Sarongs s/t $5
Shotgun blast evil surf from Syracuse, NY.  Born in Lindsey’s beer-soaked attic when everyone would get together and play really loud and people would usually show up and get really shitfaced and a show would happen.  Socio-political taunts bellowed over searing riffs and quick-snap time changes that hit the city like a tire iron to the ribs.  It was everything we needed up there: dark, immediate, brash, honest.  Then graduation rolled around and Lindsey moved to L.A. and that was the end of it.  It’s our pleasure to release this first tape of songs compiled from a number sessions the band did last winter when we were all buried under 6 feet of snow and there wasn’t anything to do but make something that burned. Edition of 50 on black cassette.

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