An interesting record to say the least, Sleeping and Hiding is a consistent black hole of nuance. Ludvall creates a 3AM minimal synth version of Pink Moon, using a subtle electronic palate and a hushed vocal delivery. The rhythmic sounds are a muted industrial pulse that juxtaposes the more human songwriting in way that helps the songs move. The sounds here are European sounding yet surprisingly Ludvall hails from Long Island, the Hamptons no less, signaling a modern day Gatsby-like ennui is present behind the hushed gothic palate strokes...
continue reading "Tor Lundvall - Sleeping and Hiding (Dais)"
by STEVE LOWENTHAL on 9/11/2009
Right to the point of why Oneohtrix Point Never's Zones Without People is successful is at its heart its trance music. Within that it's engaging, melodic, repetitive and not altogether foreign. Rather, OPN stems from more of a conscious effort to reinterpret modernity through a perspective that was weaned on VHS and late night satellite beams. A solo project of Daniel Lopatin, OPN has emerged as the forefront of the analog synth movement by truly demonstrating compositional skill over effects and infusing his material with...
continue reading "Oneohtrix Point Never - Zones Without People (Arbor)"
by STEVE LOWENTHAL on 9/11/2009
 Before I ever met Matt Krefting, I found him to be an intriguing dude, especially his choice in haircuts. One trip down to Brooklyn, he’d be sportin’ some sorta butcher baby bowl cut that would make Moe Howard cringe and the next week I’d take a trip up to Northern Massachusetts to see him at some such gathering or another donning a quaff that would make Paul Mitchell shriek in purple envy. ‘Hmm…what makes this dudes’ sheers tick?’ I pondered from across the room while others weaved to and fro from the man. After that, I got to know him as a member of the barely there drone trio Son of Earth as well as the bass player for the shambling and defunct Glam Rock unit, The Believers. When I finally got to talk to the guy, I found him to be more than a haircut. He’s a genuinely swell cat with a sharp musical knowledge and a ferocious appetite for whiskey and wine.
continue reading "Matt Krefting interview"
by TONY RETTMAN on 6/16/2009
Despite a small population consisting mainly of descendents of England’s cast-offs, Australia has graced the rest of the English-speaking world with many excellent rock bands. AC/DC, the Saints, Coloured Balls, Radio Birdman, and the Birthday Party are just a few of the many Australian bands worthy of any rock fanatic’s collection. And now, with their second full-length album, Eddy Current Suppression Ring makes a play for inclusion in the annals of antipodean rock accomplishment. While the production value of...
continue reading "Eddy Current Suppression Ring - Primary Colours (Goner)"
by JOEL HUNT on 5/21/2009
It’s difficult to describe just how great a band Harry Pussy was, or how thoroughly the Miami-based trio demolished the line between provocation and confrontation, without noting that their least offensive aspect was their name. During their brief mid-1990s “career” they managed to utterly obliterate audience expectations, even when those expectations were at best marginal. The one time I was lucky enough to see ‘em, at a show I booked during their farewell tour, they even managed to bum out a small crowd of otherwise open-minded...
continue reading "Harry Pussy - You'll Never Play This Town Again (Load)"
by JOEL HUNT on 9/11/2009
Theres no getting around the inherent difficulty posed by the music of the Shadow Ring, one of the UKs most obscure, yet most rewarding bands of the past decade. Ironically, what makes their music difficult is its complete simplicity. Home Counties chums Graham Lambkin and Darren Harris (with later member, Tim Goss) outlined their early musical approach most succinctly in their 1994 album Put the Music In Its Coffin, whose title spells out the distinctly amateur (yet not amateurish) nature of their scrapes, wheezes, and plain-spoken lyrics...
continue reading "The Shadow Ring - Life Review (1993-2003) (Kye)"
by JOEL HUNT on 5/21/2009
Daniel Higgs does not have a publicist. Im pretty sure he
doesnt have a manager or a booking agent, either. He
occasionally obscures his identity by adding extra middles names, such
as Belteshazzar or Arcus Incus Ululat. In
the liner notes to some of Lungfish recordings on which hes
sung, hes not credited with his proper name. Theres no
official Daniel Higgs web site, no MySpace page, no Facebook profile.
And certainly no digital press kit, or any high-resolution jpegs.
What Higgs does have is a crucially singular approach to the song,
an approach that is so unique and intensely beautiful that few
musicians alive in the world today can match its power. That is no
mere exaggeration. And he achieves his sound with only his voice, a
long-necked banjo and, occasionally, a jaw harp.
continue reading "Daniel Higgs interview"
by JOEL HUNT on 4/26/2009
You know whats a good album? Andy Ortmanns new album. Ortmann is the man who documented his particular fetishes most famously in Panicsville now gives us his answer to an academic record in Provocative Electronics. Here, Ortmann shows his electronic prowess in a more stripped down environment. As usual his process and editing are specific yet at times there is definitely a mad scientist vibe as Ortmannn mixes his potions and laughs nefariously. In this sense its successful due both to its composition...
continue reading "Andy Ortmann - Provocative Electronics (Pan)"
by STEVE LOWENTHAL on 3/19/2009
Drunkdriver are a good punk band. People hate them for various reasons, their live shows are often exhibitionist and over the top, also guitarist Kristy Greene plays some of the most aggressive slide guitar since Teenage Jesus. On this new 7 the band sound more unhinged yet tighter than last years full length on Parts Unknown. Which makes sense as the band has hit the road and developed their chops. Michael Berdans vocals sound genuinely paranoid and the guitar/drum one-two punch sound mean and ready to go. Both tracks are solid and its a fine addition to your contempo-punk files.
continue reading "Drunkdriver - Knife Day (Fan Death)"
by STEVE LOWENTHAL on 3/18/2009
 Mouthus came out on more of the bash and pound side of the noise equation, although always showing allegiance to the Double Leopards axis of vague hippie tendencies. Mouthus played loud and hard yet they werent as negative as say, Air Conditioning. Since then the band has maintained a steady stream of increasingly psychedelic albums, Divisionals is an all synth album, a far cry from the loud free-style drums and guitar workouts of their earlier days. Outside of the bands established context, they manage to coax out a clearly defined aesthetic...
continue reading "Mouthus - Divisionals (Ecstatic Peace)"
by STEVE LOWENTHAL on 3/30/2009
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