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Aidan Baker w/ Claire Brentnall – Delirious Things

17/2/2017

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dream pop, shoegaze, ambient
Pleasence Records
Gizeh Records
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Here is Aidan Baker again, by now probably to most frequently occurring artist on this website. Not that I mind, Baker's works are pretty much always welcome in my inbox,, whether it's Nadja, Caudal, Hypnodrone Ensemble, his solo musical endeavors or his cooperations with people like Karen Willems or Tomas Järmyr. In that, this release is no different. but in some other aspects, this is a completely new direction for Aidan.

That new direction is mainly guided by his interest in coldwave, shoegaze and dream pop, but also by the distinct voice of Shield Patterns' vocalist Claire Brentnall. Together, Baker and Brentnall have created something amazing, something that almost made me replace the genres on top of this review with the word 'magic'. Away from the usual drones and soundscapes we are used to by now, this cooperation beautifully pierces itself into the dream pop scene.

With that, I do indeed recommend this album to every fan of acts like Cocteau Twins,  This Mortal Coil and here and there even early Dead Can Dance. Apart from two interludes, this album is filled with atmospheric, dreamy songs. Brentnall's vocals fit in perfectly with the soundscapes and often appearing mild drums. Opener 'Delirious Things' and the breathtaking 'Wingless' are jewels, and they are far from the only ones on this album.

So yes, this is an awe-inspiring album, one that will undoubtedly become a favorite for many fans of Aidan Baker. I don't think I am the only one who wants to experience this magic live and I hope that I will have that opportunity one day. But for now, this album is going straight into my day-to-day playlist, perhaps even twice so the songs appear more often. I suggest you do the same. This is pure magic...


Serge
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Sweet Nico - R Evival

8/2/2017

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dream pop 
Raging Planet
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Apparently, somewhere in Portugal, someone is incredibly sad and melancholic. At least, that's what I think after listening to some of the songs on this gloomy and emotional album. Sweet Nico is a dream-pop duo consisting of vocalist and lyricist Marisa da Anunciação and guitarist and producer David Francisco of post-rockers When The Angels Breathe. Together, they wrote and recorded nine songs that will undoubtedly weigh on your soul, and they top it off with a cover of Mazzy Star's 'Fade Into You'. You can indeed say that Mazzy Star has been a major influence for Sweet Nico, along maybe with acts like Slowdive and Radiohead. Yet, in a way, the songs on 'R Evival' gnaw deeper, probably because of the edgy, lo-fi sound of the whole thing. 

When I close my eyes and let my imagination wander, I can see images of an abandoned village, soon to be completely demolished. Yet, somewhere on the edge, in an old, gloomy café, sad music is playing, slowly lingering over the empty streets and into the moonlight. The music feels like ancient blues, driving on soundscapes and percussion which are just as sad and nostalgic as the voice the accompany. Sometimes, the tempo goes up, caused only by the percussion and drums. All else remains slow, dreary and mirthless. Colors seem to fade away, nature seems to retreat. For now, there is only that old café and that murky music.

So no, this is not a happy album, not at all. This is something for shoegazers, dream pop addicts and sombre minds. Fans of Mazzy Star, Slowdive and The Jesus and Mary Chain will definitely appreciate songs like 'Honeymoon', 'Love Caravan' and 'Rain'. The latter is my personal favorite here, a heavily emotional ballad, so minimal it almost hurts your heart. So if you're in for a decent crying session, or you just want to wander in the darker regions of your innerself, you might want to give this album a shot. In that case, this comes highly recommended. 


​Serge
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Brieviews 18

14/1/2017

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Hurray, the first edition of Brieviews of 2017 is here and once again it's a damn varied one. From shoegaze to grindcore and from techno to djent, it's all in here. I'm sure that there is something you like in here. Enjoy...
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Blushing - Tether

shoegaze / dreampop
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Two husbands and wives making music together, that's always a better idea than go on a joint bicycle trip while wearing similar fluorescent bike-wear, not? Well, it certainly proved to be an excellent time spending idea for these four Americans, making blissful dreampop and shoegaze. In these four tracks, they easily please fans of Slowdive and Cocteau Twins while also coming with with some gritty grunge sounds. Opener 'Tether' is a damn catchy tune, one that might easily get stuck in your head. The other songs are perfect shoegazing tunes, once again highlighting in 'Mess'. This truly is a recommended ep.

88 Mile Trip - Blame Canada

stoner rock
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Another neat idea comes from Canadian stoner rockers 88 Mile Trip. During a beer drinking and record spinning session, they discovered some awesome songs from their home country and decided to cover the ones they like the most. That results in groovy stoner rock versions of songs by Bachman Turner Overdrive, Red Rider, Doug and The Slugs, Neil Young and Stampeders. Yet, the band manages not only to cover the songs but to make them their own, eventually resulting in a surprisingly coherent sounding ep. Although, as good as the ep is, I can't help but continuously singing South Park's 'Blame Canada'. Perhaps a cover idea for the future? 

The Empire Line - Syndicat de la Couture

electronic / ambient
Avian
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Scandinavian multi-disciplinary artists Jonas Rönnberg & Christian Stadsgaard come up with some haunting electronic ambient like only experienced techno producers can do. Opening with the creepy 'Fragrance Arpege', this ep is as atmospheric as it is varied. 'Cafe Anglais' drives on electronic percussion and unidentified noises while 'Jewelry Armoire' is post-apocalyptic soundtrack material with eerie soundscapes. Closer 'Syndicat de la Couture' eventually brings out the analog beats and techno influences, but in a good way, a trancy and somewhat hypnotic way. Nice little gem, certainly recommended.

Movement Of Static - Novelty Seekers

post rock
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We also have something nice for fans of post rock, namely the Greek band Movement Of Static who have released their quite promising debut ep. Although, ep, the whole thing last over half an hour, which gives us plenty of time to get acquainted with these beautiful tunes. In four songs, Movement Of Static provides the listener with an excellent blend of post rock and ambient with some heavier passages and loads of atmosphere. Opener 'Telomeres' is a brilliant piece of work, dark, creepy and immersive, like Godspeed meets Deftones.  If you like well-varied post rock music, you just can't go wrong with this ep.

Cowards - Still

black metal / hardcore
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Somewhere in the extreme spectrum of the musical universe, we find French horde Cowards and their brand new ep 'Still'. With a blend of black metal, hardcore and sludge, this act plans a vicious assault on your sanity. The music is gritty, noisy and more in-your-face than you can imagine. Pulverising riffs, blasting drums and a vocalist who seemingly feels like he doesn't need his lungs, this thing is out for nothing less than utter destruction. However, they do have a sense of humor, brilliantly covering The Horrorist's 'One Night In NYC', which actually is one of the coolest covers I've ever heard. Anyway, if you want music to murder you, this ep might be worth a shot

Dead Neanderthals - Dolphin

heavy jazz / noise rock
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Dutch heavy jazz combo Dead Neanderthals are seemingly doing everything in their power to make something unique. As a gift to their fans, they uploaded this eleven minutes lasting epos of sax, drums, chaos, intensity and insanity. It's stuff like this that connects the jazz scene with the grindcore and noise rock scenes and I have no idea what most jazz fans will think about this. That aside, I would recommend checking it out, preferably at a ridiculously loud volume and start throwing things against the walls. It therapeutic, I promise, you'll feel a lot better when it's all over. Rare jongens, die Nederlanders...

The Stone Cox - Blackboard

alternative rock
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Hell yeah, time to rock 'n roll  and for that French combo The Stone Cox are the perfect companions. On this ep, they come up with three high energy rock tracks, influenced by everything between Led Zeppelin and Foo Fighters. The first two are heavy and groovy rockers that can get every party started. Closer 'Not Going Home (Hard Red Sun)' somewhat reminds me of a band like The Scabs and shows a more musically gifted side of this band. Anyhow, rockers of all ages can easily appreciate this ep and I hope that soon this will be followed by a full-length. 

Death Metal Pope - Harvest

doom metal
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Imagine that, a death metal pope, growling his yearly "urbi et orbi" from a black and red painted Vatican. Would be funny. However, this Death Metal Pope has nothing to do with Christianity and just barely with death metal. This is a doom metal band which often comes very close to Black Sabbath and on other occasions blasts some guttural grunts and some psychedelic passages in your face. Although I still had my doubts in title track 'Harvest', 'From The Dust Returned' convinced me that this is an awesome ep, one that is certainly worth your attention if you're into old school doom. A must-have for doom fans, that's for sure.

Ben Blutzukker - Analog Blood

heavy metal
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German one man electro band Blutzukker becomes German one man metal band Ben Blutzukker and comes up with something surprising. As you can see on the cover, one of the influences is Guns 'n Roses but the whole thing sounds more like an Abbath side project, exploring the massive history of heavy metal. The four songs on this ep are quite gritty metal songs, reminding me of acts like Venom or Motorhead. Not bad for songs that were initially electro/industrial tunes. My favorite is 'Red' but I'd certainly recommend every open minded metalhead to check this out and compare the songs to the originals.

A Cunning Man - Practical Applications Of Theurgy

power metal / heavy metal
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Another one man project, and one with a quite unusual twist. A Cunning Man describes his act as "One man metal project with a strong Scottish accent", something I can't deny. Of course, the Scottish accent makes the whole thing sound somewhat weird and drags it into the world of pagan metal. Yet, the music feels like a mesmerizing amalgamation of metal styles, from the power metal of bands like Hammerfall over black and death metal to modern day arena rock. The ep contains three songs which certainly deserve your attention, especially if you want something familiar yet unique. 

Beneath A Godless Sky - ​Beneath A Godless Sky

hardcore / progressive
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French djent-act Beneath A Godless Sky comes with a debut that will pierce you in more ways that you could possibly imagine. Now, personally, I'm not a connoisseur of the whole djent scene, which to me makes this whole ep sound like something between Meshuggah, Periphery and Tesseract. I guess that's not a band list of bands to be compared with. I do know that the songs on this thing are loaded with energy, intensity and brutality. Besides, some passages here are damn immersive and most riffs are well-worth of an intense headbanging session. In its entirety, I know that this is nothing for me but for fans of progressive hardcore and djent, it is definitely a must-have.

Elusion - Desert Of Enticement

symphonic meal / gothic meal
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This debut by Belgian band Elusion does not sound like a debut, far from it. If you told me that this was a new effort by After Forever or Epica, I might have believed you. The three songs on this ep are high quality symphonic metal songs, played by seasoned musicians and sung by a talented  woman. What's more, these songs rock, making them perfect headbanging material. Personally, I didn't really follow this particular genre anymore but I'm damn sure that these three tunes, especially the folky closer 'Facade' will appear in my day-to-day playlist quite often from now on. They should appear in yours too if you're into this genre.

Rumah - A View To The Sea

techno
Wolfskuil
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At festivals, I often wander into the dance hall, even though I do not consider myself a techno fan. However, I usually enjoyed these sonic adventures for a while, which is exactly why I sometimes decide to review a techno ep This one comes from English producer Rumah and contains four high energy dance tunes, mainly inspired by the Detroit scene of the nineties. The first act that came to mind to compare this ep with, was Joey Beltram and you can add people like Jeff Mills or Dave Clarke to that list as well. So yes, this is a recommended release if you're in for some decent, old school dance music.

American Anymen + Lise - Oui

alternative / singer-songwriter
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From the United States comes a nice cooperation between anti-folk act American Anymen and singer-songwriter/keyboardist Lise. In four songs, both acts seem to explore the possibilities of this get together. Opener 'Nobody Made Me Smile Like You Did' is an excellent ballad while 'Less Complex' and 'Does Anybody Still Think Of Me' are uplifting rock songs, driving on acoustic guitars. Closer 'H' is another ballad, but probably my favorite track on this album. I wouldn't really know who to compare this ep with, Beck maybe? But then again, nice pop songs like these don't need comparison, they just need to be listened to.

The Vomiting Dinosaurs - Exoplanets

death metal / thrash metal
Grimoire Records
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And we end this edition of Brieviews with a short but destructive assault by American thrash-death horde The Vomiting Dinosaurs. In mere  fifteen minutes this trio blasts nine songs of gore and brutality over their listeners and I'm sure those listeners will enjoy the abuse.  Most of the songs drive on fierce hardcore punk tempos and issue an array of guttural growls and screams. If this stuff doesn't get your grindcore party started, you are not having a grindcore party, that's for damn fucking bloody sure. A favorite? Nope, this whole thing is only fifteen minutes long, which makes the entire thing well suited for a session of audible SM.

Serge
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Brieviews 17

17/12/2016

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Ummagma + A.R.Kane - Winter Tale 

dream pop
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Ummagma
A.R. Kane
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The one thing I dislike about Christmas, is the music. From those appaling bells to the 'Frohe Weihnachten' by The Wiener Sängerknaben, it's all horrible. Luckily, this year, there's a decent alternative, a little cooperative single by shoegaze / dream pop acts Ummagma and A.R. Kane. 'Winter Tale' is a gentle, dreamy and quite minimal song, guaranteed to get you into the wintery atmosphere. If you're into stuff like Cocteau Twins, 'Winter Tale' could easily guide you through the darkest days of winter. I also really dig the two remixes, taking on an ambient approach. Nice work...

Verein Freude - Schnappschuss

jazz / krautrock / post rock
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Somewhere between the immersive atmosphere of post rock and the psychedelic approach of krautrock we find the inspiring music of Verein Freude, a German band. On their facebook page, this quartet mentions Miles Davis, Avishai Cohen and several other jazz-musicians, and with good reason too. The music on this ep is a perfect combination of jazz and post rock, well, the mild, subdued version of post rock that is. The end result is a nice relaxed piece of music, perfectly suited for the quiet winter evenings and the lounge bars at the summer beaches alike. Check it out, this is a pleasurable listen.

dy - Flip Side

electronic / idm
ampbitifgo
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On to the electronic scene then, where we meet a project named Dy and his weird, gloomy electronics. In a way, I think it's safe to place this ep between your Aphex Twin and Autechre albums. Dark, haunting soundscapes and broken rhythms make up most of this release, brilliantly highlighting in 'Flipped Out'. Although, I have the say, that eerie opener, 'Cheap Seats' is a great piece of electronic (dark) ambient as well, reminding me even of Deutsch Nepal's percussion rich works. In all, this is a splendid effort, containing five original and immersive pieces of electronic sound art, definitely good enough for my daily playlist.

Architectural - Cubismo

techno
Triple Vision
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Time to put on your dancing shoes and join me in the discotheque. Spanish producer Architectural comes up with an ep containing four dance tracks, seemingly inspired by the early industrial techno scene of Detroit where strange soundscapes and noises meet repetitive beats and minimal percussion. For me, the ep highlights in the second track ('Cubismo 8.2 (Lost in Buenos Aires)), probably because of those awesome ambient soundscapes. Yet, I just might recommend this one to everyone who isn't afraid of some electronic dance music once in awhile, especially those who nudge towards industrial.

Guruzsmás - Üst A Gríz Felett​

rock / experimental
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Back to the world of rock music, more specifically the experimental corners of that industry. Guruzsmás is a band from Hungary, four guys playing some complex, confusing and fascinating music. It's just as alternative as it's psychedelic and reeks just as much of jazz than it reminds me of Frank Zappa. There are flashes of surf rock, post rock, math rock, noise rock and so on. Hell, there is a didgeridoo and it's mainly instrumental, apart from some troath-singing. Yes, this is a weird album, but nonetheless one that deserves your attention if you want something else, something unique. This is something unique!!!

Crimson Tusk - Crimson Tusk

stoner / doom
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Driven by the sheer power of the riff, Oxford quartet Crimson Tusk come up with a heavy but groovy four track ep. On this, they deliver a solid blend of sludge metal, stoner rock and heavy blues, obviously resulting in delicious fuzzed out rock songs in the vein of Dopethrone, Bongzilla, Weedeater and so on. My favorite track is 'Stray Dog', a guaranteed party started, but I guess that could easily be said about all four of these tunes. Even more so, throughout the album, the party seems to intensify. 'Rollin' made me start a little head-banging session. What a fine stoner doom tune that is. Stoner doomers, you have got to buy this one!!!

Cities of Mars - Celestial Mistress

psychedelic doom
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Swedish doom masters Cities Of Mars take us on an interplanetary mission. With heavy riffing, psychedelic passages and firm, intense vocals, this trio comes knocking on the doors of Yob, Conan, Mastodon and The Obsessed. The three tracks on this ep are simply epic doom metal anthems, with title track 'Celestial Mistress' being an eleven minutes lasting highlight, both on this ep and in the whole doom metal scene. Fans of the above mentioned bands can easily trust Cities Of Mars to deliver the goods so it'll be no surprising that this galactic gem comes highly recommended.

Ur - Hail Death

black metal / doom / thrash
Arachnophobia Records
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Another shocking piece of extremism comes from Polish horde Ur. They present a six track ep with a grim blend of thrash, doom and black metal. The result is a damn varied piece of work with some fierce headbanging potential. Bands that come to mind include Voivod, Venom, Sodom, Absu, Marduk and so on. Yet, it does feel like a coherent effort. 'The Tongue Of Fire' is probably my favorite song on this one but that's a difficult choice to make. Whom I'd recommend it to? Well, obviously  all those old school black & thrash metal fans out there. This is the real shit!

Dark Messiah - Dark Messiah

thrash metal
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Hailing from Canada, Dark Messiah blends metal, metal and metal into metal. The band was formed in the summer of 2015 and already come up with their debut ep. In a way you can actually hear that. Although the five songs here are decent metal tunes, they're not yet close to the heroes that influenced Dark Messiah (you know, Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera...). But who knows, give time, effort and a professional producer, the future might shine bright for these Canadians. If so, in a few years, many fans will start looking for this debut, so you might as well just buy it now...

Stillborn Slave - 7 Ways To Die

metalcore
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Formed in 2009, French melodic hardcore combo Stillborn Slave have a lot more experience under their belts than the band above, and you can actually hear that. In seven songs, with a total of twenty-eight minutes, these guys blast some brutal metalcore, deathcore or whatever core through your speakers. The absolute highlight is 'End Of Everything', a song that sounds destructive enough to deserve such a title. This definitely is something for the younger generation of metalheads. However, I'm sure seasoned metal fans can easily appreciate the high level of musicality on this one.

Expo Seventy - America Here & Now Sessions 

drone / ambient / psychedelic
Essence Music
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After all that metallic violence, it's time for something completely different. For that, this massive jam session definitely is a highly recommended piece of work. Like we're used to from Justin Wright, this album is an hypnotic trip through cosmic music and psychedelic rock, something between acts like Om, Earth and Barn Owl, along with the jam bands from the sixties and seventies . This time, two drummers have been added to the mix, giving the whole something jazzy and psychedelic. The end result is a mesmerizing album that will definitely accompany my late-nite writing sessions from now on.

Tellma - Swansong

folk / rock
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Tellma is a French duo, dedicated to playing elegant rock music and that's exactly what you get on this ep. The acoustic guitar is the central instrument on which a number of calm, emotional pop rock songs are written. The songs are not complex, not overly distorted, not rocking your socks off but they are certainly a pleasure to listen to. The music reminds me a bit of Radiohead, David Bowie and Jeff Buckley. The title track remains my favorite, followed by the tearjerking version of Queen's  'The Show Must Go On'.

Deathblow - Demolition Deployment

thrash metal
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While preparing their upcoming full-length, Salt Lake City thrashers Deathblow throw this short but brutal assault in our faces. The ep contains two songs and a cover version of Motorhead's 'Mean Machine'.  Obviously, this is stuff to bang your head to. Think Overkill, Kreator, Testament, any of your eighties thrash favorites and you'll be very close to what Deathblow delivers. It's fast, varied and relentless, exactly what this kind of music is supposed to be. So thrashers of the world, what are you waiting for? Get your hands on this ep or are you not a true thrasher? I mean, it's only a dollar...

Deep Fryer - Deep Fryer

punk / hardcore
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Songs about hangovers, groundhogs and whatnot, recorded in a basement by a band constisting of members of other Fredericton, New Brunswick based bands, a band with the seering hot name Deep Fryer. I'm not sure if this is all too serious, but that doesn't really matter. What matters is the fact that these are four fierce, aggressive and fast hardcore punk songs that will even make your chamber plants start a moshpit in your living room. My personal favorite? The band's name. I know, I'm not really a hardcore fan but if you are, you have to download the shit out of this. Besides, it's free so you have no excuse not to.

Parallel Colors - Inoculation

post rock / psychedelic / progressive
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Also free, and certainly worth the effort is the very first single by American progressive rockers Parallel Colors. Inspired by everything between Tool, Caspian and Russian Circles, these guys come up with an immersive, technical and varied eight minutes lasting track. If this really is the harbinger of things to come, like a full-length, Parallel Colors might become one of thé discoveries of 2017. I certianly hope that they will send me the album when ready and come over to Belgium and the rest of Europe for some magnificent gigs. This truly is promising stuff...
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Killing Surfers - You Never Cared

7/11/2016

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alternative / rock / shoegaze
Crooked Tree Records
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A captivating and amazing album by an emerging alternative rock band from Brazil, You Never Cared, by Killing Surfers, is a six tracks album – Pillow Face, Another Horizon, I Wanna Sleep, She's Like Heaven, Sunrise and Medications – with beautiful and delicate escalating harmonies, poetically uplifting and surprisingly wonderful. Being somewhat a weird, but functional mixture of an indie rock apparently influenced by The Smiths, with a puncture of The Verve, The Velvet Revolver and New Order, this is one of the most surprising gifts I have heard from my own country in a while! With a refreshing degree of originality, and an intriguing ability to surprise, their strong melodies speak as wonderfully as an eternal horizon could fulfill an everlasting sense of beauty into your eyes. With gracefully amazing lines of guitar, striking vocals, powerfully fulfilling, but soft at the same time, You Never Cared is a major underground achievement, and Killing Surfers – I strongly hope, for sure they have talent to do this – it’s the future, and the only future we need in the underground Brazilian scene.

With a fulfilling sense of poetic joy, the second song, Another Horizon, not just reminded me the amazing grace of The Smiths, but overwhelmingly surpassed a marvelous sense of transcendental sensibility. With a compassed strengthened rhythm, a fine sense of security, and a magically divine output, characterized by refined harmonies, You Never Cared is a straight and dynamic shot, direct to the point. Poetic, enthusiastically emotive, spirited and free, this is a groundbreaking achievement not just for the band itself, but for the entire underground Brazilian scene!

A great, great album, that made me really happy while listening to it, this is a state of the art work! Coming from a region from Brazil – the northeast – mostly known as a stronghold of popular regional genres of music, few people, possibly including myself until I have listened to them, knew that such an astounding, cool and carefree alternative rock band could arise from this corner of the country, that is mostly hostile to this genre.

Certainly the future of the underground – if they manage to undertake all the difficulties that being in a rock band means in a country like Brazil – in the national scene (and why not internationally also? they certainly have talent for it), Killing Surfers is an amazing alternative rock band, and You Never Cared is the best alternative rock album that I have heard in a while. And certainly, musically, restores my faith in my own country, for a long time!            


​Wagner
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STFU - What We Want

2/8/2016

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dream pop / trip hop
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Although people usually see me as a metalhead, I've always been a fan of electronic music. From Kraftwerk over Front 242 to the whole new beat scene and later variants in drums & bass, trip hop and IDM, I've constantly been following the odd world of electronics. Yet, I have to admit that many of today's electronic acts are quite stale and soulless. Many of the acts I've seen live lately, sounded exactly the same, a light version of dubstep perhaps.

But here we're dealing with something very different, something very good indeed. Obviously, the fact that this is gloomy dance music is a massive plus but regardless of darkness, this album is energetic, full of soul, dreamy and immersive. But what would you expect from seasoned musicians Dean Garcia (Curve, SPC ECO) and Preston Maddox (Bloody Knives). Their experience in the alternative underground certainly did them some good.

What you get on this album is dance music, sometimes eighties industrial loaded songs like 'Do It Now' or 'Secret', sometimes eerie and trippy dubstep-induced pieces like 'Dead Right', and on other occasions dreamy trip hop tunes, like the title track 'What We Want', reminding me of Massive Attack or Tricky. All of these songs are layered with dream pop arrangements, shoegaze soundscapes and gentle, subdued vocals, making this album stand-out in today's electronics scene.

In fact, the whole thing reminds me more of 4AD bands (like Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, Slowdive) than the DJ-driven manure of the electronic dance music world, even though 'Deeper' could be a massive club hit, part Eurythmics, part Daan, part Terence Fixmer. I also really dig the ambienty 'Slow' and the deep 'Trickery'. Hell, I like all the songs here, but my favorite has to be the haunting 'A Thousand Cuts'.

Now comes the hard part of this review. Who do I recommend this album to? Shoegazers? EDM fans? Dream-poppers? Trip-hoppers? Well, let's simply go with all of the above. I doubt that there will be anything more hypnotic and immersive being released this year. You can bet your ass that this album is going into my "sweet electronics" playlist where it gets the company from fine people like Massive Attack, Bonobo, Plaid, Tricky, Subheim and Miwon. I suggest you do the same thing...


​Serge
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Novanta - Hello We're Not Enemies 

20/7/2016

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electronic / dream pop / shoegaze
Seashell Records
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Well, that's a fairly decent way to start a conversation, "hello, we're not enemies". I think it's a suggestion every single person on this planet needs to stick to. After all, hasn't it been enough with all the hate, fear, abuse and aggression? Isn't it time we need to put the humanity back into the human race? Wouldn't a little love, empathy and respect make this world a better place for everyone and everything living here?

Italian one-man act Novanta surely seems to agree with me. This project, formed by Manfredi Lamartina, dwells in the gentle but gloomy area of shoegaze and post-punk, using dreamy electronics as a basis to explore his sound. Guitars and an often equally dreaming voice make up the rest of the music, highlighting in songs like 'Tell A Story', which comes close to trip-hop or the heavy shoegaze 'Goðafoss'.

That being said, this album is pretty varied to begin with. While listening to 'Mike', I can't help but think of Smashing Pumpkins for some reason. '​Akureyri' delves into the sound of acts like Boards Of Canada or Bonobo. 'Blue Lagoon' hints towards Slowdive while 'Melted Eyes' combines eerie drones and soundscapes with almost distresses vocals. That's plenty of variation, without losing grip on his own style, and that certainly deserves a compliment. Recommended stuff? Absolutely!


Serge
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Pinkshinyultrablast – Grandfeathered

24/2/2016

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shoegaze / dream pop
Amazon
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About a week ago I posted a list of stuff I was looking forward to in 2016 (read). I also wrote, and I quote (‘quote’ being a fancy word for CTRL-C, CTRL-V) “This is just a handful of stuff, no doubt there will be countless of amazing releases”. And what do you know: completely out of the blue (for me) there is this, the second full-length of Russian shoegazers Pinkshinyultrablast.

With their debut album ‘Everything Else Matters’ it was apparantly sort of a big deal they were Russian. “What? Russian shoegaze?” Pffftt, as if the place you come from necessarily defines what sort of music you can or can’t make. As if great music can’t come from anywhere on this wretched ball of dirt.  I mean, it’s 2016, there are no boundaries when it comes to genres and nations. So, I’m not going to make a fuss about their heritage, I’m just going to focus on what’s important. This amazing album.

Amazing it is. I’m not going to say it never happens, but it is very rarely that I get instant goosebumps and I’m instantly smitten with music. No Joy, for instance, is such a band where I had that instant magical feeling of discovering something very special. That ‘this is what I want, this is what I need’ feeling. But here it is again, with Pinkshinyultrablast.

This 5-piece pushes so much of my buttons it’s hard to begin describing this. It’s not quite shoegaze because there’s a lot of indie electronica in it. It’s not quite indierock, because it’s far too noisy for that. It’s not quite dreampop because there’s a lot of math-rock in it. It’s not quite postpunk because of the huge distorted wall of sound.. It is a glorious concontion of all of those things. What works exceptionally well are the transitions between the softer, dreamier parts and the loud, noisy eruptions. At times it sounds almost angelic and at times it feels that there are jumbo-jets flying just a couple of metres above your head. That, and the fact that it has bucketloads of reverb and echo thrown over it. And I love reverb and echo.

A lot of shoegaze is basically just hazy, dreamy blurred guitars (nothing wrong with that, mind you) but Pinkshinyultrablast have layered ‘Grandfeathered’ to the max and there’s just a ton of things going on in every song. Great guitar hooks, a brilliant rhythm section and loads and loads of synths and effects. The dynamic range of everything in general is just spot-on. It is quite remarkable that with all the noise going on that everything stays quite clear at the same time. I know that’s a bit of a contradiction, blurred and noisy and clear at the same time but Pinkshinyultrablast are just unique in that aspect I guess. The cherry on the proverbial icecream is Lyubov’s lovely angelic voice. She’s been compared to Cocteau Twins’ Liz Fraser and I can sort of hear that but I feel she is unique enough by herself and doesn’t really need those comparisons. Sometimes the vocals are barely there, sometimes buried underneath the big wall of sound, sometimes drifting and soaring above it almost like a synthesizer melody. But always lovely, just lovely.

So there we have it, yet again a highlight for 2016 and yes, it’s still only February. I’m very curious to see if they can live up to my high expectations live so here’s hoping that ‘Grandfeathered’ will be followed by a big tour with sold-out venues. Because they sure deserve it..


Bjorn
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Dream Koala - Exodus

27/12/2015

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dream pop / ambient pop
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Today's electronic scene, especially the radio-friendly version, is filled with cold, soulless copies of the bands that had a huge hit a few weeks earlier.  Sometimes those copycats make it to the big festivals and receive mixed reactions. Luckily, sometimes one of those acts add some decent songwriting, storytelling and real talent into the electronic mix. Judging from the calm, soothing sounds I'm listening to right now, Dream Koala is one of the latter.

This three-track e.p. is quite a nice piece of work, not that different from most of today's electronic scene but seemingly rooted in a richer history than the usual autotune artists.  While others drive on dubstep tempos and deep basslines, Dream Koala adds a sense of new wave, something between Kraftwerk and Eurythmics, to the earlier mentioned elements.  That combination makes this ep warm and very listenable.

My favorite track is opener 'Dimension Sleeper', which strangely is the most friendly one as well.  'Synthetic' is a bit darker and closer 'Threnody To Earth' even comes up with a little bit of soft rock.  All of course, firmly enhanced by electronics and the gentle voice of this French-Brazilian singer/songwriter.  If you're into deep basslines and slow tempos, check it out.  Perhaps you will like it as much as I do now...


Serge
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Ummagma - Frequency

31/10/2015

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dreampop / shoegaze / synthpop
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​One thing I can't resist in music, how strange this might sound for someone who usually reviews quite heavy stuff, is fragility.  Since founding this website, I discovered several acts and artists creating dreamy electronic shoegaze with female vocals and I'm almost always sold immediately.  Today, I'd like to add Ummagma to that list.  Floating somewhere between synthpop, ambient pop and electronic post-rock, this Canadian-Ukranian duo sounds extremely promising.

This ep contains five new songs plus three remixes for the beautufil and highly danceable 'Lama' (somewhere betwxeen Joy Division and The Human League).  The names of the remixers are quite interesting:  Robin Guthrie (Cocteau Twins), Malcolm Holmes (OMD) and Lights That Change.  Those names prove that Ummagma already has made some impact in the world of electronic music and with good reason too.  I really like all the versions of 'Lama' but let's go into the other tracks as well.

'Orion' is a fragile, electronic piece of work, gently and dreamy.  It's sounds a bit like a dreampop lullaby, beautifully sung by Shauna.  In fact, that song inspired me to do the 'fragility' intro of this review.  'Winter Tale' sounds a bit like Massive Attack meets Boards Of Canada meets Austra, which is a stunning combination to be honest.  'Galacticon' delves a bit deeper into ancient synth history and somehow reminds me of the very early days of Kraftwerk or Klaus Schulze.  'Ocean Girl' is an odd, folky tune and a decent closer for this ep.

So yes, Ummagma bight become one of the acts to keep an eye out for in the near future.  I can defintitely see them touring with big acts, from the trip-hop giant Massive Attack to shoegaze deities Slowdive.  I can also see Ummagma gain many followers everytime they play.  I wouldn't even be surprised if 'Lama' becomes a huge hit, both in the alterative as in the popular scenes.  


Serge
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Ewian - We Need Monsters

30/10/2015

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indie rock / post rock / dream pop
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​'Dream noise', a term given by the band themselves, seems to be quite a good description for what you get on this album.  On the other hand, I'm used to quite a bit of noise and this is far from noisy.  It is dreamy, that I'll admit but still very far from the harsh sounds that often find the way to my speakers.  I'll also admit that I really like this album, beautifully blending shoegaze, post-rock and pop rock and that way creating some stunning songs.

Ewian is a duo from Köln, Germany.  In 2013 they started working on these songs, carefully composing, writing and recording their songs.  'We Need Monsters' is the second full length, after 'Good Old Underground', which was released last year, a single and an ep.  Slowly, Ewian seems to be growing, evolving and getting more and more followers.  At least, that's what I hope.  They actually deserve it, especially with great songs like opener 'Ticket From Kingdom Come' and 'Star'.

What Ewian does, isn't really new but that's quite impossible these days.  Yet, they seem to be experienced and skilled musicians, borrowing influences from acts like Radiohead, Coldplay, Muse, Sigur Ros and many more alternative rock acts.  I also recognize some Belgian bands like Zornik, Gorki and (especially in 'Song For The Psychonauts') even Noordkaap/Monza/Meuris*.  I'm not sure if Ewian are familiar with these bands but they should definitely take that as a compliment.

Soft, gentle piano passages often alternate with fuzzy guitars.  So, there also seem to be elements from ambient, grunge and even a little hint of jazz, meticulously interwoven in the fabric of the songs.  Just like the previously mentioned bands, Ewian has a tremendous feel for songwriting, mostly taking on a very emotional approach.  Most of the songs are atmospheric ballads, hence the post-rock reference. 'Fragile Ghost' is one of my favorites.  

In all, 'We Need Monsters' is an excellent album, certainly one that has the potential to score. Maybe the whole gets a bit too emotional and dreamy by the end, especially for the rockers among us but here too, that problem is easily solved by creating amazing songs.  I'm quite curious about what Ewian will do with this material and I hope they will soon tour Europe.  I'm sure they will do great on stage and gain a lot of followers that way.


Serge  

*These are three bands, fronted by vocalist/songwriter Stijn Meuris and some of the most popular rock bands with Dutch lyrics
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Malka - The Constant State

15/8/2015

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shoegaze / dream pop
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I mentioned earlier that today is quite a miserable day but luckily there are some things that can always cheer me up.  One of them is a bunch of steaming hot pancakes.  So I went to the kitchen to bake me some.  Right before that however, I loaded this debut into my media player.  I was curious about this band since the email arrived a few days ago and I wanted to listen to something that would fit perfectly with this drizzling weather.  

Malka is a dream pop and shoegaze band from New York, founded in 2013.  Their goal is to create a reflection of the 'triumph and tragedy of the world, compelling us to look deeper into the realms of our consciousness'.  They do so with beautiful, somewhat mysterious sounding music and dreamy vocals (both in English and Spanish) by three different lead vocalists.  This of course placed perfectly in a highly atmospheric setting, ranging from shoegaze to post-rock and incorporating elements of krautrock and psychedelic rock.

The album opens with 'A Flock Of Crows' and immediately references from Jesus and the Mary Chains, Slowdive and Lush come to mind.  It takes me right back to the nineties when several alternative rockband took on a slow and emotional approach.  'Corazon Sin Sangre' continues in that direction and becomes a first shoegazing highlight on this album.

In fact, this deeply emotional atmosphere is present throughout the entire album.  It breathes the same air as bands like The Cure (in their 'Disintegration'-era) and My Bloody Valentine.  'Diamond Girl' even enhances that level and 'For Now We Live' brings it to an astonishing early grand-finale by including a brilliant post-rock passage.  This rising level of quality music makes the album grow upon the listener, increasingly convincing him of the abilities of this American quartet.

In all, I really dig this album, which by the way reaches another huge highlight at the end where 'Wolves And Sheep' turns into my favorite track.  It looks like there's currently a shoegaze and dream pop revival and if that's true, I believe Malka could be one of those bands on the forefront of the present day scene.  I sure hope they cross the channel one day and play in venues allover Europe.  This could make up for one magical evening.


Serge
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