Bristol-based electronic experimentalist Nick Edwards aka Ekoplekz has made some of the most intriguing, intricate, and genuinely interesting music in recent years, with last year's efforts Memowrekz on Mordant Music and the Westerleigh Works EP on Perc Trax being among the most exciting stuff heard in 2011. It's only February and Edwards is already back with a stellar new EP on our favorite new label, London's Public Information. Dromilly Vale is probably his finest stuff so far, comprising five deeply compelling explorations into the history of electronic music, including a BBC Radiophonic Workshop reverence, dub musings, and delicate meanderings of white noise.
Today, the label sent out a newsletter that included two bonus tracks which cannot be found on the 12 inch, a dub-version of "Dick Mills Blues" from the EP and "Rotamation", a fabulous, strangely techno-leaning six minute jam that is highly accessible despite all its noise intrusions and rhythmic disruptions. A superb transmission that might serve as the perfect introduction to the universe of this inimitably imaginative mind.
Dromilly Vale is out now. Get it here, limited to 300 copies.
Ekoplekz - Rotamation
Below, listen to some excerpts from the EP:
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Another day, another project/moniker/guise by our man Zak Mering. This time it's a superb collaboration with Ryan Howe of Punks On Mars, with whom he had already worked together very recently on "Easy For Me (It's Not That)" from his latest, still forthcoming Raw Thrills full-length Sick Steez, out soon on Sixteen Tambourines. Peppermint Hairspray actually isn't that far away from Mering's 60s explorations on that LP, yet this time it's a real chart hit, being (you might have guessed it) a very true and honest re-interpretation of the Mamas and the Papas classic.
According to Mering, the two are currently working on many more new songs that will all hopefully end up on a Peppermint Hairspray full-length sometime this summer. Of course, we'll keep you updated.
Peppermint Hairspray - Monday MondayRead more →
Sucked-and-pulled percussion pulses and glides along with pitch-shifted glittering synth lines that sustain the off-kilter elegance of "Zozo wit a Broken Leg" by the Los Angeles based duo, Tigerbitch. At first listen, you may feel a bit edgy and tight stomached trying to grab a hold of the frenzied streaks of melodic familiarity you encounter until you give in and your head collapses backwards, eyes closed, over the rim of your nylon folding beach chair in sweet reverence of the swirling, hazy goodness you're encountering. The duo have two "subterranean outsider bangers" available via Brunch Groupe that were "composed and recorded in bomb-shelter conditions while Grant c'Db's recovered from a broken leg [in Los Angeles]." Check 'em out.
Tigerbitch - Zozo wit a Broken LegRead more →
Moon Glyph has once again been killing it lately, but the stellar label's 40th release (congrats) in one to top it all off: Two of our favorite synth boys on this planet, Xander Harris and Dylan Ettinger, sharing one delicious 7 inch is probably the theme of each wet dream the fine folks over at 20JFG are having every other day. We can't say much about Dylan's side "Tipoff" at this point but man, "The Driver" alone is almost dangerously excellent, a fabulously upbeat exercise in eruptive analog synth layers and a propulsive beat so irresistible you can almost feel yourself cruising through the deserted alleys of the decadent and rotten city, looking for what's left of the human civilization you once knew.
Edition of 500, get your copy now right here. Highly recommended.
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Nicholas James Alcock and Drew Auscherman's recent split cassette release features nearly 30 minutes of delicate, ambient compositions with sonic flight patterns shifting between moments of ominous observance and near-blissful acceptance of the space between yourself and the sprawling landscape around you. The style is something I wish George Fenton would have considered utilizing while creating his at times overly triumphant (albeit impressive) score for the epic nature documentary, Planet Earth. According to the duo, "'Moon' was composed with guitar and vocals [while] 'Rosie's Garden' and 'Hoops' are the products of Drew's Casio." The cassette can be ordered via email through the bandcamp page where you can also stream the entire release.
Drew Auscherman - HoopsUpdate: You can now listen to Alcock's side via his Soundcloud, too:
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As a quick reminder of our upcoming showcase this Thursday, March 1, at Kreuzberg's West Germany, here's a new track by relaxed beat enigma Slow Magic for you to enjoy. The wonderfully lush "Music" will exclusively be available on the cassette edition of ▲ via Brooklyn-based tape label Words + Dreams. The strictly limited tapes will be sold at the show by the artist himself (if they're not sold out already by then, that is).
Update: In April, Portugal's LebensStrasse Records will put out ▲ on CD and vinyl. Both releases will feature "Music" as well.
Tickets will be available at the door. For more info go here.
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This might be a rather devastating way to start your week, but William Sarradet aka Count Backwards' video for Teaadora's "Change" is something you simply can't afford to miss. Perfectly capturing the haunting, forlorn atmosphere of the song, the video marvelously blends footage of the singer's recent performance at Chicago's Soundscrape and other, subtly sadness-evoking scenes. The track itself originally appeared on Baku Shad-do's #OCCUPYXMAS charity compilation late last year. You can still get it via bandcamp.
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Manchester outfit Money, until recently a rather mysterious lot, whose devastating "Lonely Sexy Death" already made our best tracks of 2011 list, will finally drop another physical single (after Who's Going to Love You Now/Goodnight London on Sways Records) via French boutique imprint Almost Musique in mid-April. A few days ago, the band performed live in the studio of public broadcaster France Culture in Paris, where they debuted the song "SOLONG(GODISDEAD)", which will appear on said 7 inch. If so far you haven't come across Money and wonder what we're talking about, we'd like to straighten up things a little by directing you to Paul Lester: "Basically, if Manic Street Preachers at their most arty and pretentious (good things, we're sure you'll concur) came from Rusholme not Blackwood, they would be Money." Alright?
Watch the video of the live session now exclusively below.
MONEY - SOLONG(GODISDEAD)von francecultureRead more →
Another day, another project/moniker/guise by our man Zak Mering. This time it's a superb collaboration with Ryan Howe of Punks On Mars, with whom he had already worked together very recently on "Easy For Me (It's Not That)" from his latest, still forthcoming Raw Thrills full-length Sick Steez, out soon on Sixteen Tambourines. Peppermint Hairspray actually isn't that far away from Mering's 60s explorations on that LP, yet this time it's a real chart hit, being (you might have guessed it) a very true and honest re-interpretation of the Mamas and the Papas classic.
According to Mering, the two are currently working on many more new songs that will all hopefully end up on a Peppermint Hairspray full-length sometime this summer. Of course, we'll keep you updated.
Peppermint Hairspray - Monday Monday
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