Kevin Greenspon: “Maroon Bells”.

02 Mar 2012 — Henning Lahmann

Californian multi-talent Kevin Greenspon can legitimately be called a regular on these pages, with his own output as well as with his wonderful label Bridgetown Records, but it's been a surprisingly long time since we've actually featured his music. Anyway, he has just released the tape Maroon Bells, a six-piece collection of, in his own words, "concise recollections of a very specific set of personal memories", including "those first times you had dreams of disappearing to somewhere new, seeing a city from the mountains, being dwarfed by the skeleton of a skyscraper, and the deafening railroad tracks that threaten that hope of sleeping to dream once again". Of the two samples that you may listen to below, it is the cassette's title track that struck me as one of the most intuitively yet subtly beautiful pieces I've heard so far from this artist. An enchanting melody slowly unfolds while "Maroon Bells" meanders along gently, building up a calming atmosphere that seems to last forever before it eventually fades abruptly by way of a sudden crumpling noise which surprisingly does not destroy the overall peaceful feeling that just set in. Marvelous. Maroon Bells is now out on CDr (edition of 100, stamped and in full-color printed jackets) or C20 cassette (edition of 100, dubbed in real-time on chrome tape, packaged with full-color doublesided inserts) via Bridgetown Records, also available as part of the label's Spring Batch 2012 special package deal. Kevin Greenspon - Maroon Bells Kevin Greenspon - Passing the Days Read more → Californian multi-talent Kevin Greenspon can legitimately be called a regular on these pages, with his own output as well as with his wonderful label Bridgetown Records, but it's been a surprisingly long time since we've actually featured his music. Anyway, he has just released the tape Maroon Bells, a six-piece collection of, in his own words, "concise recollections of a very specific set of personal memories", including "those first times you had dreams of disappearing to somewhere new, seeing a city from the mountains, being dwarfed by the skeleton of a skyscraper, and the deafening railroad tracks that threaten that hope of sleeping to dream once again". Of the two samples that you may listen to below, it is the cassette's title track that struck me as one of the most intuitively yet subtly beautiful pieces I've heard so far from this artist. An enchanting melody slowly unfolds while "Maroon Bells" meanders along gently, building up a calming atmosphere that seems to last forever before it eventually fades abruptly by way of a sudden crumpling noise which surprisingly does not destroy the overall peaceful feeling that just set in. Marvelous. Maroon Bells is now out on CDr (edition of 100, stamped and in full-color printed jackets) or C20 cassette (edition of 100, dubbed in real-time on chrome tape, packaged with full-color doublesided inserts) via Bridgetown Records, also available as part of the label's Spring Batch 2012 special package deal. Kevin Greenspon - Maroon Bells Kevin Greenspon - Passing the Days

Video: Grimes - “Oblivion”.

02 Mar 2012 — Jesse Thompson

Check out "Oblivion", the first video from the Montreal-based Grimes (aka Claire Boucher) staggering new LP, Visions, which will be released by 4AD and Arbutus, hitting the stores worldwide March 12. http://youtu.be/JtH68PJIQLE Read more → Check out "Oblivion", the first video from the Montreal-based Grimes (aka Claire Boucher) staggering new LP, Visions, which will be released by 4AD and Arbutus, hitting the stores worldwide March 12. http://youtu.be/JtH68PJIQLE

Featureless Ghost: “MindBody EP”.

02 Mar 2012 — Jesse Thompson

The Atlanta, Georgia dystopian synth-wave duo Featureless Ghost have yet another release available for your listening pleasure. Their seven song MindBody EP is a collection of reflective, shadowy dance floor electronic jams that will have your consciousness twisting and tilting with its multitude of compelling synthetic rhythms and alternating vocal lines. Like all of the group's previous work, these songs are both sonically and visually provocative, and the Fantastic Lands produced "Know-U" video available below embodies the bold aesthetic that Matt Weiner and Elise Tippins continue to build upon and refine. Their songs are both fresh and familiar at the same time and provide a valuable dose of uniqueness to the ever-expanding homemade digital music landscape. As of today, you can snag a cassette copy of this release with artwork by Shawn Reed via Night People Records. The label will also be offering up a vinyl LP release this summer. Read more → The Atlanta, Georgia dystopian synth-wave duo Featureless Ghost have yet another release available for your listening pleasure. Their seven song MindBody EP is a collection of reflective, shadowy dance floor electronic jams that will have your consciousness twisting and tilting with its multitude of compelling synthetic rhythms and alternating vocal lines. Like all of the group's previous work, these songs are both sonically and visually provocative, and the Fantastic Lands produced "Know-U" video available below embodies the bold aesthetic that Matt Weiner and Elise Tippins continue to build upon and refine. Their songs are both fresh and familiar at the same time and provide a valuable dose of uniqueness to the ever-expanding homemade digital music landscape. As of today, you can snag a cassette copy of this release with artwork by Shawn Reed via Night People Records. The label will also be offering up a vinyl LP release this summer.

Video: Former Selves - “Many Moons”.

02 Mar 2012 — Henning Lahmann

Paul Skomsvold's very worthwhile project Former Selves, which has always been as much about sound as it has been about vision, returns with a new tape of contemplative ambient meditations on LaGrange, Georgia imprint Hooker Vision. The below video for title track "Many Moons", premiered on Tome To The Weather Machine on Tuesday, is another example for Skomsvold's impressing comprehension of the correlation of our visual and aural senses. Made with a technique called "video feedback", the muffled, warm synth meanderings blend smoothly into the faintly psychedelic frames that are almost exclusively held in soothing pastel shades. Truly mesmerizing. Many Moons is now out on Hooker Vision. Read more → Paul Skomsvold's very worthwhile project Former Selves, which has always been as much about sound as it has been about vision, returns with a new tape of contemplative ambient meditations on LaGrange, Georgia imprint Hooker Vision. The below video for title track "Many Moons", premiered on Tome To The Weather Machine on Tuesday, is another example for Skomsvold's impressing comprehension of the correlation of our visual and aural senses. Made with a technique called "video feedback", the muffled, warm synth meanderings blend smoothly into the faintly psychedelic frames that are almost exclusively held in soothing pastel shades. Truly mesmerizing. Many Moons is now out on Hooker Vision.

Panabrite: “Soft Terminal”.

01 Mar 2012 — Henning Lahmann

For someone who seems to have been around forever, not least on this blog, it came as a surprise to read that Soft Terminal is actually to be considered the proper debut LP by Seattle drone/ambient mainstay Norm Chambers aka Panabrite. What I've always admired most about his music is that despite all his playful experimentalism that frequently results in breathtakingly complex arrangements and layer over layer of analogue synthesis, each single track always remains instantly accessible and almost effortlessly enjoyable, and the eight tracks on Soft Terminal are no exception to this. In fact, maybe his music has even never been more accessible than on tracks like "Janus", which adds a finger-picked acoustic guitar to the mix, or the sublime album opener "Rainbow Sequence", which you may listen to below, that starts with a heavily processed voice and simple, delayed chords before the composition develops a massive, sprawling soundscape that can only be called jaw-dropping. This is a superb effort, something we cannot recommend enough. Soft Terminal is out today on Digitalis Recordings. You may order directly from the label (US and Canada) or via Boomkat (rest of the world). Read more → For someone who seems to have been around forever, not least on this blog, it came as a surprise to read that Soft Terminal is actually to be considered the proper debut LP by Seattle drone/ambient mainstay Norm Chambers aka Panabrite. What I've always admired most about his music is that despite all his playful experimentalism that frequently results in breathtakingly complex arrangements and layer over layer of analogue synthesis, each single track always remains instantly accessible and almost effortlessly enjoyable, and the eight tracks on Soft Terminal are no exception to this. In fact, maybe his music has even never been more accessible than on tracks like "Janus", which adds a finger-picked acoustic guitar to the mix, or the sublime album opener "Rainbow Sequence", which you may listen to below, that starts with a heavily processed voice and simple, delayed chords before the composition develops a massive, sprawling soundscape that can only be called jaw-dropping. This is a superb effort, something we cannot recommend enough. Soft Terminal is out today on Digitalis Recordings. You may order directly from the label (US and Canada) or via Boomkat (rest of the world).

Premiere: James & Evander - “Let’s Go”.

01 Mar 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

I can't believe it's already been two years since James & Evander dropped their splendid mini-album Sunlight & Cicuirty, an album cover so beautiful that it was easily recognized on several blogs' 2010 end of year lists, even though the hype around them wasn't exactly massive. Since then they've grown a little bit out from the synthpop pond and into bigger, glitchy waters, leaning more towards disco pop now than ever. Somehow they have still managed to keep their cape of spacey darkness intact, making you feel like your body is rushing through cities in fast-forward motion, with lines of light streaming towards you from every corner. "Let's Go" (below) is the A-side taken from a 7 inch vinyl that will be out on March 20th via Gold Robot Records. James & Evander - Let's Go Read more → I can't believe it's already been two years since James & Evander dropped their splendid mini-album Sunlight & Cicuirty, an album cover so beautiful that it was easily recognized on several blogs' 2010 end of year lists, even though the hype around them wasn't exactly massive. Since then they've grown a little bit out from the synthpop pond and into bigger, glitchy waters, leaning more towards disco pop now than ever. Somehow they have still managed to keep their cape of spacey darkness intact, making you feel like your body is rushing through cities in fast-forward motion, with lines of light streaming towards you from every corner. "Let's Go" (below) is the A-side taken from a 7 inch vinyl that will be out on March 20th via Gold Robot Records. James & Evander - Let's Go

Maundrie Fox: “I Miss”.

01 Mar 2012 — Tonje Thilesen

You might want to add these aching, Baths-meets-Shlohmo beats of Maundrie Fox on your list of new musical discoveries today, as we can guarantee it will not be the last time you'll hear from this guy. Originally from Philadelphia but currently based in South Korea working at the booking agency Super Color Super, the producer and multi-instrumentalist Eric Anderson creates soundwaves variying from minimal, organic flows to the slightly more synth-infused, Slow Magic esque future pop, but performs it in an elegant, exploring way. It might just as well have come out of Australia. His first self-titled EP release can be purchased via Bandcamp or streamed below. Read more → You might want to add these aching, Baths-meets-Shlohmo beats of Maundrie Fox on your list of new musical discoveries today, as we can guarantee it will not be the last time you'll hear from this guy. Originally from Philadelphia but currently based in South Korea working at the booking agency Super Color Super, the producer and multi-instrumentalist Eric Anderson creates soundwaves variying from minimal, organic flows to the slightly more synth-infused, Slow Magic esque future pop, but performs it in an elegant, exploring way. It might just as well have come out of Australia. His first self-titled EP release can be purchased via Bandcamp or streamed below.