unholy rhythms

Secluded, I listen to you retell a story in your native tongue. My eyes fixate on your pink, glistening lips as your mouth forces out sounds somewhat unfamiliar to me. The way the words float into the air sends warm shivers all throughout me. Childlike and enamored, I giggle uncontrollably. As the story concludes, the sun becomes eager to greet us. I cannot decide which I should focus on more - the glowing, humble sun that is languidly rising - or the effervescent, unsure smile that has found its way to your face. Nervous and anxious, dazzling and clandestine, your soft fingers soon meet my blushing cheeks - brushing aside my timorous thoughts. Here we are, united in flesh, without a single acknowledgement to meaningless, idle vernacular.

PARTY TRASH+TOP GIRLS+RAW MOANS all unite in two gorgeously, harmoniously dusky layered tracks. Get it at bandcamp.

♫ File under: electronic, ambient soul

You and I plan to eliminate the troubles in our life by concocting a treacherous scheme. We reminisce about our mistakes, our wrongdoings, and what we may have done to shorten our time apart. As the rain plummets the windshield, you are reminded of the my hair-trigger temper, my insecurity, and how you were not first in my mind. Brooding and sullen, we travel far to execute our deed seeped in deceit and bloodshed. We shall be loathsome victors - triumphant and adorned in gore.

Winks’ “Animal” is complete with jangly guitars, fuzz, and a memorable, infectious hook. The thumping of a drum machine simulates the erratic pattern of a nervous heartbeat. Vocals, near shouting yet symphonic, ache and croon. There’s an amount of longing and pining that hits you instantly. It demands endless repeats and to be played loudly - singing, unrestrained “I wish I was/an animal”. Animalistic in its craving - a melodic, solitary envisage of unity.

Stream Winks’ “She’s Done” from Friend Records and buy the CS release while you’re at it.

♪ File under: lo-fi, winkalicious

The fog rolls in languidly as we stand in silence - blanketing our bodies with a gentle mist. Kissing our flesh, it leaves traces of its presence. As much as I may protest, it is difficult to deny the beauty in existence at this moment. A cold, bitter wind slaps our pores and pinches us awake hoping to revitalize us. Twigs snap beneath our feet as we climb higher and higher. Striving to leave behind our past tragedies, our undoing, we escape into the woods. You had promised me sanctuary, a new beginning, if only I were to leave with you immediately. Like my clouded and confused mind, the fog begins to obscure our vision. I can no longer tell if it is you that I truly desire or if my craving to own you has manifested into something much more sinister. Thinking of your skin makes my stomach growl and thinking of our demise puts my mind at ease. An abominable, atrocious transformation.

Mountainhood’s latest, “The Boat Makers Daughter”, is a humble celebration of transformation. “Apacotees” is sprinkled with vocals that sound as if they’re about to break, harmonizing in a delicate yet slightly off centered way. A soft, strumming guitar accents the yearning and breaking in his voice. It is pensive and not overdone - creeping softly like a fog that overtakes the landscape.

You can purchase the record at Blackburn Recordings.

♪ File under: lofi, freak folk, folkish

When the darkness obscured his figure, he felt comfortable lurking in the night. Blackened and bloody, he hid until all eyes were closed and he blended in perfectly with the murky, pitch black sky. We had no sense of what was creeping, unaware that we were being watched - examined and studied. As we laughed and carried on as if nothing was happening, he edged closer and closer to our existence. If the sound that rang out was anything but the usual bumps in the night, we might have been alarmed. All at once, everything became a swirling, befuddled, denigrated nightmare - one which would forever tarnish our once quaint memories. For you are now jumpy, mute and shaken and I angered at the cause of our distance; I sought solace in the dark corners of my grisly and hemic imagination. Ensanguined and crimson.

Nightsatan, from Finland, creates the perfect homage to early horror soundtracks on their debut album “Midnight Laser Warrior”. It is eerie and atmospheric, owing a great deal to John Carpenter and Goblin. While these tracks pay homage to the giallo Italian film movement, there is a freshness to them. They’re never stale or hokey - it is a breath of fresh air of what once was - something new yet familiar. A perfect imaginary soundtrack to a giallo film that was never brought to fruition.

Check out Catcus Mouth for his post on what would be considered their counterpart, Umberto. Prepare to be awed.

♪ File under: lasermetal, oh yes

Booty Thrill’s “Hard To Resist” off the aptly entitled upcoming album,”Phewture Funk”, is an infectious, head-bobbing, body moving electro-future funk track that will have you salivating for more. It is a perfect mix of past and future funkiness - with enough slapping bass and clandestine vocals that seem to encourage the beat of the music. In essence, the song is hard to resist. If this is the sound of the future, I’m excited for tomorrow.

“Phewture Funk” will be released sometime after Christmas. Stay tuned for more.

♪ File under: future funk, electro funk, get down

“Could you not grip my heart so tightly,” I asked as I struggled for breath. Murky, soiled, and bloody, he replied with a glimmer in his eye, “I have no choice. There is no other way for me to be.” As I tried to break free, I noticed the hold growing stronger and stronger.  The desperately throbbing, erratically pulsating heart would become weaker and weaker with every beat. While I squirmed and writhed in the bloodbath we had created, you fixated your eyes upon mine. Overexerted and exhausted, I closed my eyes every other second, hoping that your appearance was but an apparition. Fading further and further into the warm and comforting darkness, I could feel my breath exit my body - at the exact same time your put your lips to mine. Succumbing to your every wish.

Haunted Interned - Zone A (fantastically screwed/drag, ambient track)

♪ File under: ambient, synth, screwed, oh my

I want to be able to reach out to you and share the things that I know in my heart. To do so, I have concluded, would be terrifically poisonous. You, once knowing my feelings, would then slowly rot from inside, changing the way you view you me, the way you view us, the way you view the world. Had I enough courage to expose to you all my secrets, I would do so. While I may wear my heart for all to see, I’m afraid of divulging information I hold close and locked away. Unlike others, so sure of themselves and full of confidence, I hide against the wall; in the same way I hide my face, my smile, my existence. You may have thought of me as self-assured and sanguine - in reality, I am weak and delicate, fragile and frail, vaporous and vitreous. For a small fleeting moment, I want you to truly acknowledge me for who I am: small, mirthy, and smitten.

Horses - Golden Palms.

♪ File under: lofi, freak folk, short and sweet

On the morning after the world came plummeting down, I held my love for the first time. Although we were surrounded by chaos and destruction, everything else faded out. I couldn’t hear the screams, the devastation; I could only focus on the sound of the pounding beat of your heart. 

Wintercoats have returned with another fantastically gorgeous, almost snowy track. “Spend This Day” is dream-chamber-pop accompanied by vocal layers and xylophones. Undulating and glimmering exquisiteness - a slow approaching climb that sustains a restrained jubilation. A clandestine musical suitor that woos you and succeeds in 4 minutes. 

Snag it here.

♪ File under: dream pop, chamber pop, i can’t help falling in love with you

**Premiere - The Great Valley - “Tall Smoke”**

Those purveyors of lo-fi spooky pop, The Great Valley, are back with a new album entitled, “In The Silver Dream”. I was fortunate enough to have Peter let me premiere a track from it and it certainly does not disappoint. The sounds seem to have turned a little more carnival-esque, somewhat marquee but still possess a certain amount of eeriness. The vocals are charmingly broken - twisting and turning as the noise accompanies it along for a ride. Roller-coastering effects and distortion unite and disperse. It is joyful yet a bit hexing - like getting stuck in a carnival at night, when all the rides and puppetry comes to life.

You can purchase it at Spookytown or through Bandcamp.

♪ File under: lo-fi, spooky pop, carnival pop, mécaniquepop

I watched you from afar as you would engage in activities that were highly forbidden to me. As a child, we were taught to not associate with your kind - our family’s way was the only lifestyle for us. Believing this to be true, I would fight in the name of what our kingdom held true, however at night I would break bit by bit. In order to cleanse myself, I would seek self flagellation, striking my white flesh until the skin broke. A soft, sweet copper scent would fill the room - its aroma signalling the arrival of what I desired. More and more I became enamored with you: a glowing, grotesque, and gruesome image of a man that I should have shunned. With your hulking, oversized, vein-ridden muscles, and ideal which sought only to protect those you loved - I could not help but submit to your standards. One could say that it was you that uncovered the film from my eyes - the grey and cloudy substance which justified blindness. Credit did not need to be given, for at night when I would steal away to the darkness that surrounded me, I would credit you; whispering your name in my sleep. A somnambulant soliloquy only for you.

SIΔMESE NOIR’s titular track off their latest EP, “One”, is dark, vexing, and hypnotic. It intoxicates you with a pulsating, throbbing bass line and, as the song progresses, charms you with drunken, distorted vocals that accent the track accordingly. There is a caliginous playfulness to it - a juxtaposition courtesy of fluttering synths and vocals urging you to “say one”. Gorgeously spellbinding - atramentously alluring.

Get at bandcamp.

♪ File under: dark, ambient drag, hush

Over the past couple weeks, I have been relatively absent from music blogging. The downside to this is that I miss great tracks when they come out. Last week, the awesomely great Smoke Don’t Smoke premiered this wonderful, heart-fluttering track by Saskatchewan.

The track opens with just the presence of layered voices and quickly gives way to soft ticking sounds and humbly ascending instruments. Dreamlike and a bit cloudy, clear yet somewhat clandestine, “Beast Coast” is a fabulous track - one that makes you feel as if you’re falling in love with the sounds. A tender, shy bard serenading you sweetly as you descend. Magnificent. 

(via Smoke Don’t Smoke)

♪ File under: dream pop, oops - i just feel in love again

I began to know your schedule - when you would come by and on what days. Eagerly awaiting your arrival, I would check the clock and the door for any sign of you. Everyone that passed, that was not you, was a sheer disappointment. They were not the ones I was seeking. Mumbling under my breath, I’d feign cheerfulness in hopes that you would always see me smiling. To reveal anything but happiness was unheard of; you always left me giggling and nearly blushing. Time would pass so slowly, I thought, or you would never show… When you finally did, in your awkward and blundering charm, my heart would swell. 

Over the past couple months, I declared that I was done with “guitar music” for a while. I wanted more electronic, beat driven music. I was done with the music that saturated my ears over the past months - I still like it, yes, but I was ready to move on. Enter Mowbird, a three piece surf-punk band from Wrexham with a penchant for writing ridiculously infectious, lo-fi surfer-slacker-pop. Heartfelt and never pretentious, simple without being dull, “Excellent, Ok” made me eat my words. Jangly, catchy guitar hooks, pounding drums, and despondent yet somewhat snotty, distorted vocals, Mowbird captured my heart from the first listen. A must for fans of the aforementioned lo-fi, slacker-pop genre.

Get “Excellent, Ok” at bandcamp.

♪ File under: lo-fi, diy, slacker pop

Oh, come dance with me - under the trees of the green and skies of blue.
Oh, come rest with me - under the frosty clouds and falling leaves.
Oh, come listen with me - under the pimpled ceiling and hardwood floors.
Oh, come be with me - under the right times and the warm places.
Oh, come kiss me - under the moon lit sky with chilled, bitter winds.
Oh, come love me.

Monster Rally just released Moonglow - a lovely 3 song digi single full of warm, luminescent loops and exotica aural pleasure. It pulls you out of the ennui, out of the bitter chilled winds that might surround your body and envelops you with whimsy in standard, sublime Monster Rally fashion. Lovely - loop scholars. 

♪ File under: tropical, instrumental, loop troop

I would walk, staring at the sky, while music flowed in and out of my ears. The sky would change colors, the clouds would move in time to the beat, and my heart would soar out of my rib cage. If the thought of you crossed my mind, I could swear you were right beside me. Our invisible hands, gripped tightly, while we walked in transparent, imaginary unison down the brick street. A warmth would envelop my entire being, warming me from head to toe, as the bitter wind fought to devour me. From time to time, I would take a moment to jump in the layers of leaves that fell under the trees. This would distract from the absence I felt. My carefree display of juvenile playfulness created a complacent shadow which would emerge when I was at my lowest points. You, my apparition, were my one true happiness - my love and heart.

Lush - Hidden Landscapes - gorgeous, layered and luxurious chill soundscapes.

Get it at bandcamp.

♪ File under: ambient, instrumental, soundscapes

Alone, my heart raced faster than it had ever beat before. Almost leaping, beating a staccato rhythmic pattern, I would try to keep the rhythm of my heart in time with the music. As the clock displayed the time, I nervously checked the landscape around me. Whirring, blurring buildings, green hazy grass, all passed before my clouded eyes. When the stop was finally announced, I surveyed my surroundings, trying to verify that I was in the right spot. There you stood, awkward and nervous, ready to embrace me with open arms. How you had changed, I thought to myself, while remaining the same. I could not resist your presence, your glowing, inviting aura that I gravitated towards. Each time I thought I had broken away from you, you somehow pulled me back again. And with every chance I got, I would fall, gladly, from my steadfast and headstrong position.

Empty Chairs’ self-titled EP is a floating, swirling, kaleidoscopic foray into prismatic, psychedelic pop. Sounds ascend and descend, accompanied by pianos, heart beat-ticking percussion, cushioned, velvet vocals and soft, strumming guitars. A nice diversion for downtrodden, solitary days.

Get it at bandcamp.

♪ File under: psychedelic pop, chill, psych~

the changing of the seasons belongs to you,
when you acquired this ownership, is unknown,
but the fluctuation has your name.

my utmost hope, dear one, is that you,
you, current owner of these thoughts and associations,
will divorce this seasonal betrothing.

these melodies also belong to you,
you are, pitch, timbre, melody, sweet, dark sounds,
these have been stamped by your hand.

when the time comes, my darling one,
i beg you, release me from this affiliation,
relinquish these rights to another.

should i, oh uncontaminated one,
acknowledge your being in all that is around me,
in all sight, sound, and thought?

should i, oh deeply wounded one,
retain these blushing, charming remembrances,
cradling them for all eternity?

cradling them tenderly, bitterly, lovingly,
until these thoughts are no longer yours,
no longer yours,
but mine

Soft powers’ “plastic future smiles” grips your heart like a distant, hazy memory of forgotten days - a bittersweet memory that will not let go. As hard as you might try to rid yourself of associations, you still fondly hold on to fading thoughts of the past.

♪ File under: dream pop, hazy pop, fuzz pop

Underneath all the chaos and confusion, rests a feeling so pure and pristine. It glimmers like a shining light, a reflection so bright, it was blinding. Trying to grasp it would be impossible, it would only elude those that hope to contain it. This feeling was not meant to be possessed by those that selfishly desired to own it. For years I had chased it, knowing once what it was like to have it merged with my being. Angry that I could no longer remember what it was, I strove to discover something similar. Alone and heartbroken, I would cry until my eyes were red and swollen. My eyes would remain puffed out and shut - aching whenever daylight hit. Endlessly I would search, until my feet were calloused and torn from walking. When I wanted to surrender to exhaustion, I would catch a glimpse of it - rejuvenated and sparked by further motivation.

Vacation’s “Never Awake” contains serene mostly instrumental soundscapes in 11 parts. Experimental, gentle ambient works to easily lose yourself in. A true vacation from harsh noise - sonic waves.

Get it at bandcamp.

♪ File under: instrumental, ambient, vacation had to get away