The New Breed is a high mark in Jeff Parker’s substantial catalog.
Following the unprecedented darkness of their previous effort, The Barbarellatones lighten up a bit for an album that most clearly defines their unique outsider sound.
Jane in Space, out August 19th on Aion Records, is a record that has been carefully crafted with a sharp attention to detail and the instincts to execute their vision flawlessly.
Saxophonist/experimental composer Lea Bertucci follows her extraordinary collaboration with cellist Leila Bordreuil with a trio of spacious tracks that reside within the realm of Dante.
In 2016, there are few records as lyrically and musically rich as Anagrams.
Though not heralded as a bastion of underground music, the college town of Lawrence, KS actually sported a close-knit DIY scene through the ’80s that centered around The Embarrassment and The Micronotz, whose entire discography gets digitally reissued, as part of Bar/None Records’ 30 year anniversary celebration.
Influenced by 90’s alternative, singer Sarah Pech’s intimate, breathy vocals call to mind Aimee Mann or Kim Deal, and the grungey guitars and fuzzy basslines are reminiscent of The Breeders as well.
Long-standing, Mancunian psychedelic rock/folk band Politburo drops an epic, retro-60s hybrid lead single.
Portland, Oregon-based electronic/shoegaze band Vibrissae enchants on its stylistically varied debut album.
At nearly an hour in length, Hobbitozz is an ambitious rock opera/fairy tale, which this San Francisco prog-rock quartet claim is the “first in a multi-part series of psychedelic sci-fi/fantasy rock albums.”
“The magic, merry-go-round keyboard washes remind the listener of fun times and maybe just a hint of The Chills, alternating between the somewhat downcast lyrics and bright, swirling melodies. It’s this dichotomy that makes this band and its forebears so fascinating.”
Among his contemporaries, Little Richard was an icon.
Into The Light scores those countless ever-changing landscapes Anderson can’t or won’t let go of.
After last year’s highly impressive debut, London/Bristol fuzzmongers The Fireworks return with a four song EP that shows their sound evolving.
Tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler was an innovator beyond his contemporaries, though his earliest known session with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Sunny Murray most clearly defined his futuristic sonic path.
This is particularly true on the the the brilliant B-side “Summertime,” which any fan of female-fronted noise-pop will spin over and over again.
London’s Cosines return with four songs that show the group growing at an exponential rate.
“An Italian shoegaze band with a cinematic sensibility to their art, and a barrel of creative ideas and visions to elevate your listening experience far above the typical ‘gaze band.”
“Listening to them is like stepping out of time and being suspended in golden sunshine, eyes closed against the dazzling brightness and feeling comforted by the beauty of this music.”
Thought to be just a rumor for nearly fifty years, some digging into the Columbia vaults has uncovered the legendary sessions for Betty Davis’ unreleased first album, produced by then-husband Miles Davis and featuring musicians from his and Jimi Hendrix’s bands, alongside some earlier recordings made with her previous beau, Hugh Masekela.
“All Move fans should own these, as well as any fan of late 60s English psychedelic pop with baroque flourishes, so jump on these while they’re still available.”
In January of 1980, a relatively unknown post-punk quartet from Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK (a town just 24 miles northwest of Greater London) called Funboy Five released their debut – and only – 7”, “Life After Death” b/w “Compulsive Eater.”
U.K. musician/songwriter/artistic collaborator Barry Snaith flies high with his new electro-rock single “Bold Ego Fledgling” featuring Ang Kerfoot on vocals.
Brett Sullivan and cohorts of anti-folk/punk band American Anymen deliver an explosive, expletive-filled politico-socio-economic rant on “Selectively Stupid”.
Influenced by the theatrics and atypical dynamics of Kate Bush, My Unwinding State feels like a set of compositions just dying for choreography.
“You can look at C87 as a sequel of sorts, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the original C86. Neil Taylor once again does the honors, contributing extensive liner notes on top of a substantial booklet featuring illustrations of original record sleeves, flyers, and so forth. There are more than 70 tracks here, ranging from well-known artists to obscuro musicians making their debut on CD. None of the tracks here have been available on any of Cherry Red’s recent compilations either. So you can view these three disks as a treasure trove of period music.”
Steve Kilbey of The Church and Frank Kearns of Cactus World News collaborate on a captivating, atmospheric dream-folk/electronic album.
Unlike NYC roots-rocker Mark’s previous seven with longtime backing mates The Van Dorens, Stowaways veers from the group’s signature barroom blues and country-rock style.
A Temporary Human Existence_ is an album that occasionally struggles and fails to find its footing, but it also shows a band with a lot more to show and an identity that will only solidify with further releases.
Veteran Stereolab keyboardist, Morgane Lhote, turns more toward the light on her sophomore single as Hologram Teen.
Nancy, France’s Slit Plasters return with a brief blast of their signature psychotic fury on a limited one-song flexidisc.
“It’s this filtered brightness and pain that make this music so compelling. Emily’s beautiful voice trembles with feeling, though she keeps the listener at a distance. It’s like watching life through dirty lenses, you squint to see everything, but reality is only partially revealed. It’s this mystery I like so well and what makes Emily stand apart from her contemporaries.”
Given its occasional schizophrenic nature, it’s possible this could have worked better as a long-ish EP, but the album nevertheless remains the product of a lot of forward trajectory from a still young band.
A shocking amount of ideas and themes are tackled over the course of a very short EP that undoubtedly leave the listener with even more questions about Native Ground then before.
Joys and Horrors is the natural and perfect continuation of the themes and moods first put forth by Joy Division in the late ’70s.
Eric Anders is a singer/songwriter from the Bay Area, who has been releasing consistently compelling and ethereal music since the turn of the century.
Like its predecessor, II is a short but sweet mash-up of classic genres that oozes confidence and flair.
Long before “Walk Like an Egyptian” soared to number one in the late ’80s, The Bangles were a group of girls playing melodic garage rock as part of LA’s Paisley Underground movement.
‘Together’ finds The Explorers Club continuing to reign as today’s Beach Boys.
Inspired by a new rhythm section, guitarist/founder Kawabata Makoto takes Acid Mothers Temple into the loudest, heaviest parts of the universe for what could possibly be their best album to date.
One can think of The Notekillers as the precursors to the type of noise rock prominent in the ’90s on labels such as Amphetamine Reptile as well as instrumental power trios of that era such as Don Caballero.
“Do the words enchanting, delightful, magical, and incandescent mean something to you when you think of music? If not, the one listen to this record will fill the bill for you. This Leicester UK five piece fronted by singer Robyn Gibson have created a 60s pastiche of elegant and timeless songs you won’t soon forget.
“Every Little Thing is a very human reflection on the ebbs and flows of our relationships. It also spurs the questions naturally asked when certain life milestones are reached.”
“The album is majestic, cinematic, and epic from a sonic perspective, yet it seems to wing by effortlessly, transporting the listener to another dimension.”
In 2010, Michael Gira resurrected Swans after fourteen years of inactivity with My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky, which blended the gospel overtones of 1987’s Children of God with his more recent work in Angels of Light.
Named for a 1972 Isaac Asimov novel, this Seattle trio’s second album dabbles in plenty of that decade’s music styles – most notably its soul/R&B, funk, and disco – even more than on their 2014 self-titled debut.
With the exception of singer Dan Greene’s drowsy, deliberate drawl, this New Haven, CT foursome’s fifth full-length sounds almost unrecognizable from 2010 double LP Apple Mountain’s spooky, lo-fi campfire folk.
Los Angeles, CA’s Dr. Boogie turn to ’70s hard rock for inspiration…and succeed!
