From Karelia with love. Deep from the tremendous beauties of Russia's northwestern Republic of Karelia, the world is blessed with some incredible soundscapes materialized on tape by the magic of magnetism: The tiny, home-run cassette imprint Full Of Nothing has just released a split between Ous Mal and Bedroom Bear. The former is the solo recording project of Olli Aarni from Helsinki, Finland. After a few CDrs and his first full length Nuojuva Halava on Australia's Preservation, the 22-year old artist continues with his slow-burning drone folk of utmost, sweetest beauty, creating unagitated yet spellbinding sounds drenched in vinyl and tape noise. Bedroom Bear aka the young Sergei Dmitriev from near Saint Petersburg, Russia, on the other hand is more straightforward and new age-leaning, with splendid yet droning synth and e-piano loops, layered and reverberated to build up an intriguing tension.
The combination of these young artists from two geographically and culturally connected regions who have discovered the world of contemporary psych experimentalism absolutely makes sense, so this is in every way a highly recommended release. You can find all the details for ordering over here.
(Photo: "Sunset over Karelia")
Ous Mal - KaupunkejaBedroom Bear - Sun GlyphRead more →
Youth Lagoon is the recording moniker of 22-year old Boise, Idaho resident Trevor Powers. Living the average life of a twenty-something in the western hemisphere, i.e. generally suffering, like many have done before him, Trevor has decided to sublimate his sorrows about girls and college and all that, starting to make music just as broken and desperate as his own miserable existence. The album that has come up as a result of Trevor's distress has aptly been named The Year of Hibernation, and it's gonna be put out by Juno Beach Records sometime in the coming months, the label recently founded by Josh Blalock, Lance Smith and others. Listen to the first single, the beautifully forlorn July, below. Where would be art without those guys?
Youth Lagoon - JulyRead more →
Good old indie rock usually isn't exactly our cup of tea (anymore, admittedly), but we can't help but face the simple fact that there still is a good amount of finest, straightforwardly guitar-based music out there that does indeed evoke those same old feelings. Take as an example Los Angeles outfit Races (formerly known as Black Jesus): There's not that much to it, but hell is this an addictive chord progression. And with some wonderfully subtle psych hints, this strangely feels like home, or like the nineties at least, and weren't we young and restless back then? We don't remember, but kinda like the idea.
Big Broom b/w Cruel and Rude is out very soon via LA's beautiful Jaxart Records. Pre-order over here.
Races - Big BroomRead more →
Minneapolis, Minnesota's De Stijl Records is more and more becoming one of my favorite labels, dropping gems like it's no one's business lately. The fine folks are about to release the first proper full-length by Jerusalem and the Starbaskets, a very decent psych outfit made up of Columbia, Missouri via Memphis songwriter Jeremy Freeze and Kim Sherman. First single Walkin' Across Your Grave is an excellent teaser for DOST, heavily distorted guitar noise setting in after a few bars, rising over the course of the three and a half minutes until it eventually drowns Freeze's vocals. Perfect, very late 60s-induced psychedelic pop.
Jerusalem and the Starbaskets - Walkin' Across Your GraveRead more →
I've already put this on our tumblr yesterday, but the sheer beauty of combining our boy AyGeeTee's electronics with the otherworldly ethereal visuals of Camilla Padgit-Coles' (of Future Shuttle) video works demands at least a little feature here on NFOP. Watch out for AyGeeTee's debut LP, due next month on AMDISCS.
Read more →
Phoenix, Arizona master of all dark and twisted beats Zach Vogt aka Yojimbo Billions shared this brand new tune with us yesterday, the first from an upcoming EP rather mysteriously named Ysalamiri 95 which is currently in the works. Return To Rama is the "sequel" to the amazing track Rendezvous With Rama from last year's Sunburn EP that we had featured back in January, and it's just another example of Vogt's incredible approach to screwed electronica.
Yojimbo Billions - Return To Rama
previously:
Yojimbo Billions - Rendezvous With RamaRead more →
Tremendously gloomy yet seriously beautiful dark synth pop here by Toronto, Ontario male/female duo Trust, consisting of Robert Alfons and Maya Postepski, according to their label "born out of desperation in the brutal Canadian winter of 2009". Standing on the shoulders of all cold wave giants, Candy Walls is the eerie a-side of the outfit's debuting 7 inch, available now and fittingly put out by Brooklyn's Sacred Bones Records. Order here.
Trust - Candy WallsRead more →
London's swell Tough Love Records have released the second installment of their Young & Research sampler series today, featuring "a gamut of friends, family, old flames and future lovers". We're particularly overwhelmed by the fragile beauty of NFOP fav Lonely Galaxy's brand new tune Strawberry Adore and the nice garage sounds of Belfast outfit Girls Names (who have their debut LP Dead To Me out in April via Tough Love in the UK/Europe and Slumberland in the US), but the rest of the 13 song compilation is a joyful listen as well. Download the whole thing for free over here.
Girls Names - I Don't MindLonely Galaxy - Strawberry AdoreRead more →
Youth Lagoon is the recording moniker of 22-year old Boise, Idaho resident Trevor Powers. Living the average life of a twenty-something in the western hemisphere, i.e. generally suffering, like many have done before him, Trevor has decided to sublimate his sorrows about girls and college and all that, starting to make music just as broken and desperate as his own miserable existence. The album that has come up as a result of Trevor's distress has aptly been named The Year of Hibernation, and it's gonna be put out by Juno Beach Records sometime in the coming months, the label recently founded by Josh Blalock, Lance Smith and others. Listen to the first single, the beautifully forlorn July, below. Where would be art without those guys?
Youth Lagoon - July
Read more →
