light becomes movement

Missoula, Montana's This is a Process of a Still Life create cinematic scores for non-existant films. Toss them into the vat of gorgeous goo that also consists of Mogwai, GYBE, Explosions in the Sky, Sigur Ros, Emery Reel, Early Day Miners and more.

Glacial, melodic, impossible-to-dislike guitar instrumentals with cymbal flourishes and well-implemented chord changes, all evoking some far away place enshrouded by fog.

Yes, there are lots of bands doing this these days, but certainly not all of them are great- and these guys are. And whereas lots of these acts get trapped in the darker passages of life as we know, the Process are more than happy to focus on the good stuff. I hate to use the painting analogy, but it is true that they build up their sounds on the canvas to paint a wonderful, well, not portrait but still life one would presume. Catch them out on tour right now until the end of september supporting their 2nd disc on Firefly Sessions.

This is the Process of a Still Life - No Memory of the Airshow

summer is over

Against my bad-taste nature of posting Katrina and the Waves or When the Levee Breaks, I am instead going the happy route that stands in direct opposition to the deluge of rain that is hitting the midwest now that the hurricane has moved inland.

Elkland is a recent act out of middle-of-nowhere New York state, not city, made up of four pretty boys. And while it has become the norm to namecheck the 80s these days, Elkland are unapologetic and pure to the sound of the synthpop - fully embracing the sounds of New Order, the Smiths, Erasure, the Cure, etc. But they also are not just another grouping of retro-rehash, their songs dig in deep and demand repeat plays. At 45 minutes in length, its the perfect length for just that, and I have found a number of their songs stuck in my head for the past few days.

Check out their myspace account for a few more awesome tunes and be on the lookout for their upcoming fall tour where they will be hitting much smaller locations than their tour where they opened for Erasure this past spring.

Elkland - Apart
Elkland - It's Not Your Fault

slave-ghost draculas

The Antarcticans self-titled cd starts as if its going to be another dissident 90s-esque indie-rock album out of DC, but maybe with the instrumental feel of Chicago. By two minutes in, the story has changed to a dark NY noize that has the gauze of a cinematic Canadian arts-collective by the time the track is half way finished. Then the build happens, like explosions in the Texas sky. When the levee breaks, its feedback and sludge pouring over your head, speeding up to a frothy oily flood until you're left doing the dead man's float as the tide and winds sweep you out into the ocean as the sun sets during the final moments.

And thats track one. There are three chapters to this tale and I don't want to ruin the ending so go hear it for yourself (buy it!) from the New Black Music, complete with beautiful handmade artwork and packaging. And check out their live tracks at their myspace page. Yowza!

the Antarcticans - Untitled I

vapour steals the glow

Southampton England's Mat Sweet is whispering dark phrases into my ear. Not the altered beast, Matthew Sweet, but one of Kranky's new signings also known as Boduf Songs. Previously self-released on Blue Baby, we are lucky to have a domestic package soon to be on our doorsteps. And trust that while the path might look the same, we are not going to Scarborough Fair.

Sweet isn't trying to be weird, and by not merely sliding into the glut of "freak folk" has created a concise and wonderful photograph. An authentic air of british countryside via acoustic guitar, hushed electronics, field recordings and other simple embellishments. All the while not running from its own lo-fi-ness and embracing it in much the same ways that made Devendra's first album such a breath of fresh air for us all. More sound clips here.

Boduf Songs - Vapour Steals the Glow

quantum dispositioning

Attention: the Innershell Shielding is being disrupted due to the Planck Factor. Entangled Photons have gained Heisenberg Compensation and Ionic Crystals and Entrophic Decay is imminent. The Probable Densities of the Orbital Wavelengths of the Information Quanta has an inverse relationship to the EPA Effect to the Quantum State Recombination Wave Function. Also, the Isotopic Balance is wavering due to the Uncertainty Principle Variables.

No clue what I am saying? I don't either, but these old dudes might. They helped develop the original ARPANET that was the precursor to today's Internet, which is what we used before the Wide World of Intranets Web came along. Now imagine these three guys as a Kraftwerk robot, Sir Aphex Twin, and Derrick May and you have the soundtrack for one of the biggest technological innovations of the century.

Rephlex Records' Arpanet is a project shrouded in mystery. Nearly no public performances or names are attached to the name, but the packages seem to arrive to the label from Detroit. Sci-Fi chromified for utopian workouts and martian picnics. The second full length from Arpanet comes out later this month.

Arpanet - Probability Densities
Arpanet - Isotopic Balance
Arpanet - Quantum State Recombination

save a horse, ride a cowboy

Haley Bonar has a voice far beyond her age and experience. She is not another female singer-songwriter playing coffeeshops and penning poem-songs about her pets. I first encountered her on the Chairkickers Union tour a few years back along with Low and if thousands. What started as just another Low gig for me changed quickly upon Haley's arrival onto the stage. I had always trusted Alan's taste for what he chose to put on his label but really I had no idea. Her voice commanded the room and quieted the already quiet Low crowd. The CD is just as impressive, a warm intimacy for acoustic guitar and Rhodes piano for you and you alone. There really is no reason why Haley shouldn't be one of the biggest and certainly bestest ladies you hear on modern radio. But hey, I can't afford payola like Sony.

Haley Bonar - Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy
Haley Bonar - Razor That Wins
Haley Bonar - The Water
Haley Bonar - Drinking Again

the retribution gospel choir saved me

Normally I wouldn't blindly cut and paste an ENTIRE press release verbatim but good god damn this is huge news in my little world and I haven't seen nearly enough other media pick up on the news just yet. I only wish they were coming nearer to my neck of the woods- maybe I will take a roadtrip to Lawrence, KS? What will they really sound like- who knows. Alan's Black Eyed Snakes project might be a slight hint. And these mp3s might be a hint to it as well. The first is Red House Painters' cover of the KISS classic 'Shock Me' from the 1994 4AD EP of the same name. Following that are two of Mark Kozelek tunes that he made famous on his 'What's Next to the Moon' AC/DC cover album. These are live versions from the White Christmas Live cd that SubPop put out.

ALAN SPARHAWK AND MARK KOZELEK JOIN FORCES FOR FALL TOUR AS THE RETRIBUTION GOSPEL CHOIR

(August 4, 2005) - Alan Sparhawk (Low, Black Eyed Snakes) and Mark Kozelek (Sun Kil Moon, Red House Painters) join forces for a Fall 2005 tour. Longtime friends and musical compatriots, Sparhawk and Kozelek will be part of the ever-in flux The Retribution Gospel Choir, featuring Duluth residents Eric Pollard on drums and Matthew Livingstone on bass.

Breaking from their respective "traditions," The Retribution Gospel Choir ups the sonic ante with Steve Vai v. Ralph Macchio influenced guitar solos (what this really means is to expect covers that span from the Rolling Stones and Neil Young to Pink Floyd, Pere Ubu and Flock of Seagulls) along with interpretations of Sparhawk and Kozelek's own catalog.

Sparhawk and Kozelek have long been friends and entertained the idea of working together. "Mark and I have known each other for a while and we both have a secret love for classic guitar rock and a penchant for playing guitar solos," Sparhawk says. "I've always come away from any collaboration excited and invigorated. When Low worked with the Dirty Three, it was one of the most fulfilling things we had ever done. And really, musicians used to do this kind of thing all the time -- it was a way to inspire each other. I think it's something that still needs to be in music now and that you don't have to make a record to back up and validate the music that you are playing. I mean, Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight are touring together right now -- isn't that the same thing?"

THE RETRIBUTION GOSPEL CHOIR TOUR

Tue. August 30 Lawrence, KS - Gaslight Tavern
Wed. August 31 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge
Thu. September 1 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
Sat. September 3 Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe
Sun. September 4 Portland, OR - Berbatis Pan
Tue. September 6 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
Wed. September 7 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
Thu. September 8 Costa Mesa, CA - Detroit
Fri. September 9 Tempe, AZ - Stink Weeds
Sat. September 10 Tucson, AZ - Plush
Mon. September 12 Denton, TX - Haileys
Tue. September 13 Austin, TX - Emo's
Wed. September 14 Houston, TX - Mary Janes Fat Cat

Red House Painters - Shock Me (electric version)
Mark Kozelek - Rock 'n' Roll Singer (live)
Mark Kozelek - What's Next To The Moon (live)

time to echolocate

Labels write the most absurd bios for their bands:

Though retrofit and stabilized on the surface, San Francisco churns and shifts on rivers of lava underneath. The Ebb & Flow bring the tense balance of these tectonic shifts to the surface through an aural montage that unites kraut-rock, 70's progressive, soul, post-rock, jazz and synth-pop. They channel the sounds of the future through the organic, analog instruments of the past.

Then comes the real kicker line: If Sun Ra, Wendy Carlos, Nico, Neil Young, & Faust had one musical offspring, it would be called The Ebb & Flow.

HUH!? I like all these artists but somehow this combination is seriously not possible. Luckily I do like their music but I still don't understand this description. I guess it did its job of catching my attention and twisting my arm into listening to the songs, so mission accomplished. I will catch them live later this week and find out just who wrote that wacky paragraph. Check out their newer songs on their MySpace page, as well.

Aug 8 - Middle East - Boston, MA
Aug 9 - the Manhattan Room - Philadelphia, PA
Aug 10 - The Lime Spider - Akron, OH
Aug 11 - 2nd Story - Bloomington, IN
Aug 12 - Hideout - Chicago, IL
Aug 13 - Off Broadway - Saint Louis, MO
Aug 15 - Vaudeville Mews - Des Moines, IA
Aug 16 - Club Eden - Omaha, NE
Aug 18 - Larimer Lounge - Denver, CO
Aug 19 - Sugarbeats - Salt Lake City, UT

the Ebb and Flow - Breaststroke

don't fear the reefer

Pittsburgh's Air Guitar Magazine are as ridiculous as their name implies. But, they are also so much more than most of the current stock of bands playing in costume (except for maybe Fat Worm of Error).

When I first loaded up AGM's music, the first thing I thought of was a stripped down version of the Dutch band Dog Faced Hermans, (who were an offshoot of the Ex and had a couple of great releases on Alternative Tentacles and definitely deserve their own blog entry in the near future). AGM's lineup is drums, bass and trumpet. They say their sound is "trumpet-heavy noisy costume freakout-cluster of mariachi, prog, avant-cowbell rock, and Ukranian folk -- total dance party". I don't remember anything prog ever being remotely dance-o-rific but I guess I will find out tonight when they roll through town to play with NormanOak and the Retching in a basement a few blocks from me.

Air Guitar Magazine boasts members from now sadly defunct Arco Flute Foundation, who made a delicious GYBE style racket and Meisha. Both of which also featured Mike Tamburo, who I made a post about a couple of weeks ago for his new project and tour with Keenan Lawler.

Air Guitar Magazine - Big Fur(r)y Hat

under my skin I am laughing

Its no surprise that Earwig ended up on shortlived 4AD subsidiary Guernica after their line-up and name change to Insides. Consisting of chanteuse Kirsty Yates, Sergei Tardo, and Dimitri Voulis, the trio only lasted for one album, 1992's Under My Skin I Am Laughing, which was released on La-Di-Da in America along with a handful of impossibly out-of-print 12"s and the Past compilation, which, believe it or not compiles their singles from the past.

Some reviewers liken Earwig's sound to 'if Stereolab had listened to early Factory Records (instead of kraut)'. Thats interesting, and Yates and Co certainly embraced modern technology much more than the Neu-worship of the Lab, but also had brittle drum programs bouncing off stark white walls and a much more stripped down sound. And in there you can also hear the tender birth of their full-on minimalist future, where on Insides' Clear Skin EP they channel Reich and Riley into a gorgeous 40 minute whirling electronic dervish.

Earwig - Safe in My Hands
Earwig - When You're Quiet

As an extra-added-bonus treat, a reader emailed me the only track off the early EPs that did not make it onto their singles compilation! Now you can hear the true evolution of the band. Enjoy...

Earwig - Blind Stupid and Desperate

spooky vibes

Most people have bad connections with the flute in rock music. Its either some hippie-dude (pictured here) or Jethro Tull. But that is not always the case... Take for example obscure shoegazers Blind Mr Jones. The classic comparison that is most easiest to make and has probably been made time and time again is Ride jamming with a flute. But thats certainly not all there is to them. While most bands layered on the fuzz and noise, BMJ took time to find a much looser space for their meandering flute lines, which certainly helped them stand out from the then crowded field in the early 90s. Also, while the lyrics are the general hazy bliss fare, the basslines are slightly more leaning towards the Gallup/Hook realm.

After two EPs on Cherry Red, they issued their debut, Stereo Musicale in 1992. By 1994's sophmore Tatooine LP they had lost most of their wandering flute adventures (much to the chagrin of some folks) and developed more of their own style, but rest assured it still wasn't very far removed from the core sound of the genre. Cherry Red issued a 'very best of...' compilation of choice cuts from the two albums more recently, which is your best bet for finding these out of print gems aside from the used bins.

Blind Mr. Jones - Spooky Vibes
Blind Mr. Jones - Small Caravan
Blind Mr. Jones - Dolores
Blind Mr. Jones - Mesa

guru mother

Kirsty Hawkshaw was more than an ethereal beauty behind the pop house outfit Opus III. She may have claimed to be from another galaxy, but that quirkiness benefited the sonic grooves composed by the U.K. four-piece. Their 1992 debut, Mind Fruit, was more than just another techno record in the face of the genre's underground taking shape during the early '90s. Hawkshaw's dove-like vocals transcended into freewheeling soundscapes; the remake of Barton & Jane's "It's a Fine Day" is melodically enchanting with loopy trance vibes and textured synth waves, but the crafty version of King Crimson's "I Talk to the Wind" composes a dreamy synthetic wave. Opus III was barely a step ahead of electronica's late '90s surge, yet it was just strong enough to join the ranks or move beyond the scene. Hawkshaw would later contribute vocals on cuts for BT, Deep Dish, and Orbital. (Halcyon & Lush) - AMG

Watch the classic video for Fine Day here. The sound quality is low but the beautiful shaved head of Kirsty is quite prominent! Check out her website for info about the re-release of her mid-90s solo album.

Sorry for the lacklusterness lately, I have moved residence and things are hectic to say the least.

Opus III - Its a Fine Day
Opus III - I Talk to the Wind