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thesunlounge · 3 years

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Reviews 370: Coyote

I have been mostly absent as of late due to the pressures of completing my PhD studies, but now that the work there is finishing, I am trying to return to regular reviewing. And for months and months now, one of the records I’ve most wanted to discuss has been Coyote’s Buzzard Country, released last year on their home station Is it Balearic? Recordings. In fact, my delay has been so extreme that, not only has Coyote released an accompanying Buzzard Country Remixes 12”—which I will cover here as well—they have also dropped the incredible Return to Life 12”, and even announced a new 2xLP slated for the summer called The Mystery Light. But better late than never, and there is no way I can pass up the chance to at last write in depth about the music of Timm Sure and Ampo. I say “at last” because, despite the fact that I consider Coyote amongst my very favorite recording artists, you would be forgiven for not knowing that by scanning the Sun Lounge archives. Though I’ve had opportunity to discuss their work here and there via remixes (such as on Blank & Jones’ Relax: The Sunset Sessions 2 and Joe Morris’ Cloud Nine 12”), by some strange turn of fate, Coyote has released no vinyl of their own since this blog’s inception...something that only changed very recently. Indeed, prior to 2020, the last time the duo put out solo works on wax was their stunning 2016 run, which included the Song Dogs LP, the Fight the Future 12” on Clandestino, and the seventh EP in their long running self-titled series on Is It Balearic? Which is not to say they weren’t active, and in fact, Timm Sure and Ampo delivered a really great set of digital singles and EPs in collaboration with Music for Dreams, and additionally, they remained active with remix and DJ work. As well, Buzzard Country was due quite a bit earlier than 2020, but was unfortunately plagued by production delays. To at last get to the point, this is all a roundabout way of saying that I am really excited to have plenty of Coyote to write about now and in the future, so that I can finally pay proper tribute to this foundational duo of the modern balearic beat.

As I’ve explored the balearic soundworld, Ampo and Timm Sure have always been beacons of light guiding me on my path, whether through their eclectic productions as Coyote, through the curation of Is It Balearic?, Über, and the Magic Wand edit series, or through their mixes and DJ sets, which are typically loaded with unheard treasures that lean towards the trippier and dubbier ends of the chill out spectrum. And it is this tendency towards the psychoactive that most endears me to Coyote, for the duo have always championed an authentic balearic spirit, one that foregrounds the music’s connections to the hippie hedonist heydays of Ibiza, to the second summer of love, and to a spirit of ecstatic abandon, one that is equally imbued with a magical sense of melancholy…of a feeling of being in paradise, but knowing it can’t last…as if the moments of revelatory magic—of wild nights dancing and sunrise comedowns—are tempered in real-time with senses of longing and regret. Which brings me finally to Buzzard Country, Coyote’s fifth full-length LP and a pitch-perfect encapsulation of their signature mixture of wistful melodic nostalgia and daydream seaside grooving. Across the album, baggy beats morph between downbeat disco, stoner dub, and world exotica while bottom heavy basslines work the body. Echoing vocal samples thread around hand drums tapestries, emotional washes of synthesis flow over radiant piano chords, and at crucial moments, the exotica guitar flourishes of longtime collaborator Saro Tribastone carry the mind away to lands of faraway fantasy. As for the Buzzard Country Remixes 12”, the A-side is given over to the Hardway Brothers, who brilliantly transform the album’s “Sun Culture” into varying landscapes of ultra deep Chain Reaction style dub wizardry. Then on the B-side, Woolfy vs. Projections and Max Essa respectively flip album stand outs “Shimmer Dub” and “Ranura de Marihuana” into their own specific strains of equatorial dancefloor euphoria, with each remix pushing the mind, body, and spirit towards maximal beach boogie mania.

Coyote - Buzzard Country (Is It Balearic? Recordings, 2020) “Soaring” begins with buzzard calls and hovering breaths of synthesis evoking a new dawn. Ripples form in the ether via bubbling squarewave synth leads, and pulsating dub bass sits beneath a blanket of sighing strings. The carrion calls continue streaking through the mix and celestial pianos rain down while echoing playfully across the spectrum. Plucked bass electronics bounce in counterpoint and hesitate woodwind glimmers call to mind flashing laser lights beneath a beautiful sea surface…almost as if a flute has been transmuted into a rapid fire fractal vibration. At times the strings back away, leaving layers of rainbow colored ocean ambiance to flutter and dance, all before ending with white noise delay oscillations that mimic the swell of ocean waves. Then in “Soft Top Saab,” an echo-soaked voice muses on the sunrise, with chills running down the spine as the solar affirmations are increasingly surrounded by space age string synths, and by Sara Tribastone’s mystical guitar filigrees. Reversing melodies enter the spectrum and swell the heart while shakers and tambourines hold a gentle beat. Tribastone’s guitar serenades softly overhead, with plucked textures of synthetic wood and stone dancing in the background. Further delay-laced pianos fade into view, with the track ebbing and flowing…growing and receding…and sometimes backing down into understated back and forth between guitar and piano, wherein harmonious brass layers and swells of spectral space glitter moving at the periphery. The result is a conversational interchange between seaside melancholy and romantic nostalgia, one which is eventually superseded by cosmic flutters, soft six string dances, and the spoken spells of a reggae mystic, who gives thanks to the sun, and its bounty of restorative light.

Dusty acoustic guitars and sunrise vapors introduce “Shimmer Dub,” while dancing dub bass portends the first real taste of a groove. A rocking hypno-rhythm comes into focus and laid back snares guide the infectious glide, while tablas roll overhead and evocative vocal layers thread through the mix. Steel pan synths are seen through the titular shimmer and wavering wavefronts of blurred melody wash over everything, until the mix drops down into a haze of stoned exotica comprised of a minimalist pallet of tabla rhythms, bleary-eyed pads, and thrilling vocal incantations…the effect like awakening on the shores of some faraway ocean paradise, with visages of desert caravan rituals preceding in the distance. The dubbed out groove eventually resurges, with passages given over to extended echo percussion experiments and the fragile songs of tropical idiophones. Feminine vocals glow like some intoxicating gas of multi-hued magic, and springy basslines guide the body while hi-hats and snare work through a psychedelic skank. Smoldering currents of ether move through the stereo field and moments of subtle intensity erupt from the horizontal vibe out…with airy woodwinds shrouded in static, claps cracking, and hand drums creating webs of groove mesmerism. And as the beat starts to vaporize, echo oscillations set the air aflame amidst fantasy orchestrations.

“Ranura de Marihuana” bathes in echo acoustic guitars that seem beamed in from some distant past…these evocations of classical folk music futurized via layers of fx. An ecstatic scream washes the mix clean, and a four-to-the-floor kick drum emerges to pound in the void, while overhead, Flamenco-indebted guitars spin webs of magic and reverberating vocals call to the spirits of sea and sky….sometimes whispering, other times shrieking wildly into the night. Sub-earthen bass movements are felt more than head, with exotic dub lines moving far beneath the surface. Bongos and congas pop and nervous shaker patterns lead the downbeat disco strut, while guitars work through further Mediterranean hooks and Iberian flourishes. A moment is given over to heavy bass and kaleidoscopic hand percussion–with scatting vocals, reverberating snaps, and lost souls wailing in desperation–and when the groove snaps back, there are touches of tango kissing the preceding, which bring to mind a rose-in-mouth glide across some dark and mysterious dancefloor, wherein spindly psych folk guitar melodies work the mind and airy drum rhythmics entrance the body. The kick climbs back towards dancefloor strength, with desert mystic percussions moving all around the mix and vocals morphing though fever dream echo layers. Elements from across the track refract through oscillating delay machines, and touches of rave haunt the rhythms, especially as subsonic basslines and subdued breakbeats work together.

A single piano note brings light to the darkness in “Sun Culture” and layers of radiance rain down in the form of heart-melting piano chordscapes, with some of that Screamadelica soul bliss suffusing the progressions. Warming pads envelope everything and deep dub pulses walk down white sand beaches, with shakers and lysergic breaths giving shape to the groove. Hi-hats, snare taps, and beachside bongos enter and buzzing guitar notes give off waves of golden light while overhead, liquids drip from the roofs of ocean cliff caverns. The single piano note continues to glow while souflul chords hold the mind in a state of psychedelic rapture, and space age ethers blind all vision as they spread outwards, then recede. Coyote move the track progressively towards a state of horizontal bliss, with almost everything washing away except the summery piano incantations, which are so soaked in reverb as to generate billowing cloudforms with every single note. Hushed rhythms return and hand drums take on a slight sense of urgency while pads generate layers of oceanic warmth, resulting in an audial invitation to greet the rising sun, and a naturalistic tribute to crashing waves and drifting clouds.

Intergalactic pads breath in “Dos Canas,” with tones wispy and suffused with inner light. Palm-muting electric guitars dance like bubbles through the ocean blue, and a touch of kosmische ambiance is soon tempered by bulbous dub basslines and splayed out layers of percussion, wherein the mechanic and organic merge seamlessly. Electroid sketches and seed shakers move in time as a slow and low balearic skank emerges, with glorious tones of brass pulsing overhead before ascending to the heavens on currents of humid tropical air. Hand drums circle the mix as the heavy atmospheres recede, leaving vaporous rhythms and golden synth strands to intertwine. Heartwarming chords give off mirage shimmers as the dub bass works its way back in, bringing with it further layers of world drum delirium. Soft sirens pan before giving way to more of the ascendent brass synthesis, and hisses of white noise add layers of subtle psychotropia. Snares are blasted into bursts of desert sand and all throughout the mix, various strands of melody and harmony are caught within oscillating delay cycles…progressively distorting and roaring into the ether. Shakers and 16th note hi-hats lead the groove while bongos and idiophones dance playfully against the snare and kick, until it all breaks down into an ambient outro of serene static, sighing strings, and layers of phasing rainbow light.

“Feedback Valley” closes the show with synth incantations portending the glow of a glorious sunrise, while shakers generate an infectious shuffle. Tribastone and his acoustic guitar explore Flamenco landscapes and a four-four kick drums hits against the body while layers of synthesis radiate compelling colorations. Babbling voices ride a serpentine synth sequence and touches of acid bass move in support, with cut-off filters opening as the snare drops, creating a head-nodding and body bopping groove that lifts the spirit towards the sky. The sequential electronics are so effective as they bob and weave through the mix, creating an effortless vibe of beach dance perfection…of hands-in-the-air euphoria and the abandonment of all worry or fear. Additional touches of six string sunshine push the mind every towards the shores of Ibiza and during a breakdown into burning delay feedback, synthesizers filter into solar squelch and guitars drift towards psychedelic delirium. A slow yet anthemic snare roll calls to mind big room trance as it brings the groove back into focus, now with 3D synth snaps firing in the left ear as the ever-present sequence reduces to a calming purr. Tribastone continues letting loose threads of sunshine lysergia and points of synthetic light swell into magnificent globes of blinding incandenscence. And towards the end, an echo-shrouded choir of the sea sings beneath a brief guitar fantasia before it all washes away in a scream of oscillation.

Coyote - Buzzard Country Remixes (Is It Balearic? Recordings, 2021) The Hardway Brothers take “Sun Culture” into ultra-deep territory across two versions on the A-side, with the first being the very aptly named “Balearic Channel Remix”…which is of course a reference to the work of Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald. Underground warehouse kick drums pound beneath hissing space fluids, as a low down Chain Reaction-style groove emerges, though with its eyes locked on a melting sunset panorama. Liquiform chords flow into cold industrial caverns and string synths suffuse the reverberating spaces with splashes of sunshine, while sub bass motions vibrate the soul. Shadowy tracers flit across the sky and DMT vibrato waves squiggle at hyperspeed, yet their effect is blunted and muted. Claustrophobic clouds fade in then out while melodic piano chordstrokes reflect in strange ways off of glowing walls of stone, their effect like gemstones glimmering underwater, yet with their luster sanded away by the march of time. Muted dub chords are caught in crackling delay chains and the deep kicks and jacking bass never relent in their heads down, hands-in-the-air stomp. Snares are reduced to a whisper and shaker patterns cause head-bobbing hypnotism as funky chords bring touches of liquid fusion grooving…only as if proceeding in the middle of a dub techno fever dream. Insectoid chitters move in from all corners of the mix, sawing sirens swirl into screams of feedback, and all the while, drum circle flourishes are shattered into a web echoing delirium.

Next comes Sun Culture “(Hardway Brothers Meet Monkton Uptown),” which sees the bass going even deeper somehow, as growling riddims menace the mind and rattle the ribcage. We soon find ourselves in another subaquatic dub techno dopamine dream, wherein kick, snare and hi-hat lock in for maximal hypnotic effect. Sometimes the bass guitar of Duncan Gray seems to take on a post-punk drug chug edge, and at some point, the rhythms pull away, leaving chopped up voices to decay into the void. Bassline and beats return and streaks of feedback sing softly over everything, while fogs of seafoam move at the outer edges of the stereo field. Clouds of solar static are seen from millions of miles away and traces of flamboyant fuzz guitar are submerged into a pooling vortex of deep dub delirium, emerging stretched out and mutated into currents of neon starshine. Gray's melodic basslines serenade through the underground club grooves, those funky chords return to sing their 70s fusion songs within layers of sighing feedback, and increasingly, the mix is overwhelmed by distorted blasts of drug-induced haze. Abstracted voices filter from one ear to the other…their unintelligible spells of esoteric mystery pushing the mind ever further towards astral activation. And towards the ends, the original tracks Primal Scream-style piano chord structures can just be heard amidst feedback fires, delay detritus, and morphing vocal abstractions.

In the Woolfy vs Projections mix of “Shimmer Dub,” the original track’s hand percussions intermingle with gurgling rhythmic fluids…the effect like wandering upon some tribal jungle ceremonial. Big blasts of downer synth bass are soaked in reverb, repetitive synth pulses tickle the mind, and pillowy arpeggios flow into view while those familiar synthetic steel drums shine in the sunlight. Fingers roll across myriad skins as the kick drum drops away, leaving the mind to swim in a world of equatorial energy. Then, as the bass drum resumes–with shakers never relenting–a new bassline emerges, bringing with it a heavy touch of wiggling squiggling Italo boogie. The vibe is hesitant…anxious even…with a persistent refusal to lock in, and as bass bursts grow in intensity, the rest of the mix begins reverberating into a balearic dreamscape. Following a delirious pause, the track explodes into flamboyant disco funk perfection, as sweltering chord hazes melt from the sky and bouncing basslines join an infectious and tropically tinged body groove. Chords scat, virtual marimbas dance, synthetic steel pans shimmer across the spectrum, and swells of white light synthesis overwhelm the mind...the whole thing as massive a groove as there could possibly be. Touches of electro kiss the rhythms and futuristic synth riffs fire as we back down into a swinging breakbeat, with rapid keyboard riffs locking into heady funk cycles and stadium-sized tom tom fills splaying out across the stereo field. Guitar licks are soaked in sunshine as they lead a dubwise swing, and as we explode once more into the block rocking groove, double time shakers and hats push the vibe towards dance party mania…all as coral-colored leads rush through star ocean fx clouds.

Max Essa’s take on “Ranura de Marihuana” sees a four-four kick smacking with infectious disco dance energy and hand percussion flowing all around. A snare crack introduces another groove indebted to Italo boogie, with big bottomed synth basslines accentuating the vibes of beach dance euphoria. Shakers spread into sandy clouds of atmosphere and heatwave pads sweat and squelch as starlight arppegios race across the sky. The vibe of Ibizan melancholia is here perfected, causing body and soul to merge in hedonistic ecstasy, and though the track resembles one of Essa’s characteristic blue ocean dancefloor cruisers, its a little slower and baggier than usual, which fits completely with Coyote’s zoner stoner vibe. Seascape pianos bring a peaktime fee and at certain moments, the groove momentarily recedes, only to rush back in on an infectious snare crack. Ivory melodies are increasingly strange and psychotropic as they flutter across the mix, with decaying vibration tails carried away on an aqueous breeze. The radiant piano chords and vocalizations from the original swim into the stereo field as Essa barrels down into a heavy bassline stomp, with every pulling away aside from smeared out voices and 70s prog rock pads that evoke a string orchestra tuning to the sounds of the stars. Further clap cracks bring back layers of equatorial euphoria and the vocals are used to incredible effect, with echoing snippets repurposed as anthemic hooks. Pianos continue their alien dance over relaxed disco rhythms and snapping funk basslines, and as we move towards the end, claps and basslines fire rapidly as vocals morph through slapback oscillations…all before dropping into one last expanse of seaside dancefloor magic, with dub disco beats, infectious world percussion rolls, and a pleading voices diffusing towards a gorgeous sunset horizon.

(images from my personal copies)

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maelsonga · 5 years

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she is better now .

she goes whole days without wishing for a flood ; she wakes up in sunlight & walks until her knees are hurting . she is relearning her body , her muscles , her bones . she doesn’t let her thoughts float in dirty water anymore — she gets them out , spreads them over paper to dry , a rising tide of lyrics surrounding her . she is appreciating the beauty of wind , pushing gently on her back — she is appreciating the beauty of standing still or drifting off , the beauty of choice , too .

but at night she dreams of him .

it’s not a conscious act , it’s no method of self - harm . she spends so much time tiptoeing around her own head , trying hard not to stir awake the thought of him : it’s only fair it should creep up on her at night , when she is open & exposed , bleeding wound welcoming the salt . he bleeds into her dreams in disguise . it’s never really him — it’s versions of him , feelings that come with him , single moments stretched into eternity .

one night she dreams of kissing him for a year , kissing until she’s out of breath . one night she dreams he is a song echoing around her , & everytime she opens her mouth it comes out of her lips , her lungs , her heart .

one night she dreams of a world where the rain won’t stop . time goes by & it just keeps on raining - people have adapted to living in half - flooded houses , walking through half - flooded streets , leading half - flooded lives . she knows the concept of him , she looks for him everywhere . sometimes she hears him - his voice is distant thunders & lightning , his voice is the lost melody reverbing behind a closed door . she never finds him . she navigates through centuries , calling out his name . in the end his lifeless body collides in the water with her boat - he’s soaked , he’s drowned , the life washed out of his skin . his lips are purple , the sharp blue of his eyes is gone : she weeps , she pleads , but the air has long left his lungs , & there aren’t even thunders anymore , no sounds , no songs . it just rains harder now , as hard as she is crying . bent over his body , she begins to understand that she is the flood .

she wakes up , like every other morning , empty .

for all her learning & healing , she hasn’t found a way to fill herself up again . she tells herself it’s okay : the wind’ll blow through her sails , it’ll carry her forward one way or another . she is so scared of wanting any more than what she deserves , now — settling for a gentle form of survival seems as good a compromise as any other . still the absence of him echoes even now , through the freshly - painted walls of her recovered life . every step is stumbling into thoughts of him , his words , his touch , his voice — she is exhausted by the effort of carrying on , when part of her only wants to lie down & sing of him , forever .

that morning she wakes up & can’t shake the thought of his blue lips . he appears behind her eyelids constantly — she finds herself in the shower , still as marble beneath the water , haunted . she brings a hand to her own lips : warm , alive . weird , how that is somehow a consolation . it’s not like their lungs are connected — it’s not like her tragedies have to somehow ripple into his . still she can’t shake the feeling of air leaving her lungs . not like it’s happened before : not like the water’s taken it . it’s something else entirely , like parts of her shutting down , refusing to go on .

like a heart , stopping .

they call her around the time it begins raining . margot’s voice trying to be quiet , trying to hold it together — a dam barely containing the water . he’s in the hospital . he had a heart attack . don’t know if he’s gonna make it .

she forgets all about her body , then . her muscles , her bones - nothing works . she melts to the floor , raindrops like bullets against the window behind her back , vaguely wishing they could break the glass , shatter all over her , shock her back to life . she slips into an aching space between life & her dream . she sees him , floating over the water : she calls him . please sing to me , she pleads . i was wrong to cover my ears , i need to hear it again , that song you sung where you & i were whole & happy , where we could dance , & swim , & never drown , & never leave .

she doesn’t move . it feels as though the world is hanging by some extremely fragile , precarious balance — a belief settles in her bones , that the moment she moves is the moment everything collapses . she doesn’t move . she sits , dead - like .

she tries to breathe , but she loses focus . she tries to count instead .

how many songs has he written ? how many notes has his voice hit ? how many stages has he walked ? how many times has he called her name ? how many times has he looked her straight in the eyes , telling her to stop , stop throwing yourself into the ocean , come back , be here ? how many pounds of flesh has he given her , cut them out to repair her broken parts , to make her whole ?

& she never even tried to stop the bleeding .

she snaps then : fuck the balance of the world . the world amounts to nothing if he leaves , the world is worth shit if he stops singing . she has been taught now to get her thoughts on paper before they hurt her , so she turns to notebooks the way a sinner turns to god . she begins writing furiously , feverishly , like writing can take the poison out , like writing can fix this .

she writes miles of pleas , oceans of apologies . she has never truly atoned , has she ? she can never be forgiven . she believed martyrdom in the form of suicide could cleanse her , free her , but that was selfish too : throw yourself in the ocean , for what ? the ocean never asked to pay for her sins . is it her fault then , that the ocean saved her ?

she imagines afterlife . she imagines the dark getting thicker , darker than a human eye can comprehend . she imagines the end of it all , the essence of her life — her mother’s voice , echoing from somewhere distant , asking the final report on what her life has amounted .

a few songs . a couple houses . plenty of mistakes . miles of broken lovers .

an angel , suffocated .

i didn’t know what i was doing , mother , i am so sorry , she would beg . i never wanted to bring him down with me . mother , please spare him . he belongs to sunlight & supernovas , to the vibrations he makes , to the songs only he can sing , no one else , no one else ever can . take me instead : make something good grow from my chest , make a home for the fishes between my ribs . in centuries , when life has claimed what remains of me , perhaps the good i’ve done will outweigh the bad . in centuries perhaps i will make this right .

she falls asleep on the floor , when the sun has set already . the notebook pressed to her chest , rivers of tears like veins on her cheeks . the rain has stopped by the time the phone rings — everything is grey .

they're saying he’s okay . he’s gonna make it . she holds the notebook to her chest so tight the spine snaps in her hand . she doesn’t reply . she can barely end the call before she’s bursting , a tidal wave erupting in the form of sobs . they taught her about crying , too : that if the ocean stays inside it’ll only drown her again , let it out , morgan , be free . so she cries for hours . when her lungs get tired of all this sobbing , when her stomach is aching , tears start pouring silently instead , an endless stream . she wanders , aimlessly desperate , through her house , wishing she could take it out on anything , wishing there was a form of comfort hidden somewhere . everything is just an echo of her despair : it bounces off windows , walls , it gets louder with every second .

she needs to see him . to know his lips will be red again , his lungs full , his heart strong . the aching for him is intolerable , unforgivable — it cuts her breath off , but she has no excuse now . she has to keep breathing . she turns to the window , presses her palms & her forehead to the glass —— the dampness sticking to her forehead , the cold igniting her skin . she is aware of the pull still , it begs every cell in her body to just get out & into the waves . but , no : it’s not the water . it’s the pull of him — as terrifying as ever . it would be so easy to flee it once again , to slip back into the belief that she belongs to something dark & evil , that she has not deserved the sunlight & the air & the cosmic forces driving her towards him . it would be easy , to just slip back into the depths .

the hard part is staying above water , carrying on . exorcise the thoughts out of her head . the hard part is waiting , admitting her heart stopped , too , when his did — & no matter how many stories she makes up , no matter how many floods , there is no song if there isn’t him , there is no music , there is nothing at all .

so she might as well just keep treading water .

she might as well just sing about him .

#* echo sessions.#era: echo.#seasick yet still docked.mp3 / file.#suicide /#death /#IT'S DONE #THE LAST DRABBLE FOLKS #this one fucked me up to write hahahaha i'm fine #it's just mo literally thought the love of her life woud die #i'm fine #i'm so fucking fine

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oneweekoneband · 5 years

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cehryl, “blush”

As the ukulele sounds once again on “Blush,” you’re probably thinking, isn’t this just “Troubleshooting” 2.0?, but make no mistake; cehryl doesn’t take pages out of the radio-pop playbook (Sam Smith, anyone?) and pen tired permutations of the same track in one album. “Blush” does, however, begin where “Troubleshooting” left off: finally home, with the embarrassed glimpses under the portico and conversation sputtered by is-this-a-kiss-or-hug-date thoughts.

At first, “Blush” is sopped in reverb, permeating with a reluctance to love in cehryl’s croons (“Don’t you know you’ll never be enough?”), until the metronomic beat that ushers in the next verse breaks the spell. From there, cehryl’s lyrics delineate the fever dream of love that she never experienced in “Damage Done,” starting with the acquiescence of first dates and the introspection of a last kiss, and there are 3 key moments that bring this story to life:

The “near...er”: In writing/performance, people always throw around those blasé aphorisms of “show, don’t tell” and “it’s not what you say, but how you say it,” but you rarely see these phrases come to life in recorded music. Nowadays, breathing life into song is all about how you do it in concert -- Is there Halsey’s iconic backbend and belts? Or is the only impressive part Dua Lipa’s (lack of) stage presence? At the end of the first verse though, cehryl proves that you don’t THAT range or full-blown choreography to be what music journalists deem expressive/impressive in music. That simple pause as cehryl barely completes the word “near...er,” the first syllable lingering with rubato (translating literally into “stolen time”), is all you need to feel the twinge of trepidation she has vis-a-vis falling in love, almost being able to imagine that first touch, before giving into romance.

The atmosphere’s plunge: “Blush” is also unique in the fact that its second verse lives in a distinct sonic landscape separate from the first. With cosmic synths, you can almost imagine the confession of love after the first chorus in a planetarium, stars scattered across the dome of midnight blue. But as the second verse begins to unravel, the chaotic whirs of a satellite spiraling down, cehryl’s voice still exudes confidence (“I know”) which brings me to…

The finale of cyclicity: I don’t know if there are any songs that I’ve listened to that have had the full circles of “Blush.” The Billboard Hot 100’s always end with some gratuitous chorus or an outro that didn’t really need to ?? exist?? (@ SZA’s “The Weekend”). “Blush,” on the other hand, almost works like a cinquain, going back to the first two melodic lines to show how far her relationship has come, beginning with “Oh my god, this talk is makin’ you blush/ Don’t you know you’ll never be enough?” and ending with “Oh my god, your talk is makin’ me blush/ Just your words -- they may be big enough.” And what a way to show how love can maybe, just maybe, become big enough to hold onto (3) when the sky is falling down (2).

#cehryl

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reverbmod · 6 years

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2018 Posting Schedule

Drum roll for... Reverb 2018! Without further ado, here is this year’s exciting lineup:

June 15 (Fri). Operation Ask a Meister Out

artist @innocentcinnamonbun with author @addude present Operation: Ask a Meister Out featuring Marie, Stein, Spirit, and Kami

June 16 (Sat). Creatures of the Dark

artist @snowbunnie42 with author @victoriandancer present Creatures of the Dark featuring Soul and Maka

June 17 (Sun). Cursed

artist @texsnavvy with author @soundofez featuring Soul, Maka, Black Star, Kid, Patty, Tsubaki, and Liz

June 18 (Mon). eclipse of the heart

artist @azrael-does-art with author @cxao-s present Dearly Beloved featuring Soul and Maka

June 22 (Fri). Meeting the Family

artist @chaoticlivi with author @dismayhems present Meeting the Family featuring Maka and Soul

June 23 (Sat). Paradise

artist @gunningtwice with author @sahdah present Paradise featuring Eruka and Free

June 24 (Sun). Wish Upon an Envy

artist @piercelovewonton with author @lavendermatrix present It’s Always Greener on the Other Side featuring Soul, Wes, Liz, and Patty

June 25 (Mon). Sketch Me, Baby

by artist @nori-wings with author @piercelovewonton present Sketch Me, Baby featuring Soul and Maka

June 29 (Fri). the sea may carry us

artist @thenoctivagant with author @drywavelength present The Sea May Carry Us featuring Crona and Maka

June 30 (Sat). Go the distance

artist @peregr1ne with author @sahdah present Go the distance featuring Maka and Soul

July 01 (Sun). card eating (come have your fortune told)

artist @soundofez with author @blinkfl0yd present come have your fortune told featuring Kid, Liz, Patty, Asura, Spirit, Maka, and Lord Death

artist @soundofez with author @happyisahabit present Card Eating featuring Black Star, Maka, and Spirit

July 06 (Fri). untitled

artist @cronas with author @kaen-ace-of-ravenclaw present untitled featuring Crona

July 07 (Sat). Social Hierarchy

artist @addiedraws with author @kermitsewagesigh present Social Hierarchy featuring Maka and Soul

July 08 (Sun). Color Me Red

artist @happyisahabit with author @l0chn3ss present Color Me Red featuring Maka and Black Star

July 09 (Mon). Firefly Dream

artists @mystery-shrouded and @arialis with author @soundofez present kiss me in a field of fireflies and cloudy skies featuring Soul and Maka

July 13 (Fri). Deep Down

artist @highlyinsecure with author @professor-maka present Deep Down featuring Kid, Liz, Patty, Maka, Soul, and Tsubaki

July 14 (Sat). Explorers of Mind

artist @daciafu with author @kaen-ace-of-ravenclaw present Explorers of Mind featuring Maka, Soul, Kid, Tsubaki, and more

July 15 (Sun). be not defeated by the rain

artist @cosmic-absentia with author @redphlox present be not defeated by the rain featuring Soul, Maka, Wes, Black Star, Tsubaki, Kid, Liz, and Patty

July 16 (Mon). My Star...

artist @darklingarts with author @addude present My Star featuring Tsubaki and Black Star

July 20 (Fri).

Free day for Honorable Mentions

#soul eater #soul eater evans #maka albarn #death the kid #Tsubaki Nakatsukasa #Black*Star #Liz Thompson #Patti Thompson #modpost #2018 schedule

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thesinglesjukebox · 6 years

Audio

SUFJAN STEVENS - MYSTERY OF LOVE [6.29] Editor is too blown away by Claire's blurb to write a snappy tag.

Alex Clifton: How does Sufjan do it? How does he write music that sounds so beautiful and easy? "Mystery of Love" sounds like a Carrie and Lowell outtake with its delicate instrumentation, but it's better than that. There's a magic here that's hard to translate into words--that sense of wonder and awe and pleasure, much like the feeling of someone stroking your arm gently with one finger. Like much of Sufjan's work, there is a quiet bittersweetness that lingers, the feeling that these good things never last, but the music skitters and swirls so much that it feels like a comfort rather than a detriment. Damn near perfect. [10]

Tim de Reuse: Sufjan adheres rigidly to the exact same sonic pallet he used on Carrie and Lowell: meek, whisper-soft vocals, rhythmically static backdrop, cottony reverb smothering the whole thing by the end. Heart-baring songs about his dead mother or suicidal ideation worked well in an oppressive stasis, but this more straightforward love song wants to uplift and gets weighed down instead. That's unfortunate in itself, but as far as love songs go, this wouldn't have been one of Sufjan's best no matter the surface presentation; it feels hastily assembled, with no coherent emotional core. "Palisades" was the wonder of summer camp self-exploration, "Futile Devices" was fuzzy domesticity, "Impossible Soul" was a three-act arc in itself, and this is... a concatenation of adorations, the barest hints of narrative, tell-don't-show. [4]

Alfred Soto: His song too on the nose, too lacking in subtlety, too detached from sexuality for the finely calibrated Call Me by Your Name, Sufjan Stevens nevertheless creates a breathy, yearning standalone. I mean, the film's Elio is too smart to say, let alone think, "Woe is me," to the accompaniment of an arpeggio. [5]

Scott Mildenhall: "Mystery of Love" sadly has little of Call Me by Your Name's best feature -- the palpably all-encompassing stimulation of senses in complete communion, of course -- but like "Visions of Gideon", it's highly suited to its conclusion. Why can't good things always last? Why does the cliche of Greek love have to lead to the casual discarding of women? Why does Oliver have to be a creep who should know better? Sufjan sounds embattled with at least one of those mysteries; quietly and wondrously. With a superficially dainty imprint, the feeling burrows. [7]

Ryo Miyauchi: Enveloped in such a fragile riff, each little verse contains a distinct world pertaining to the different cycles of love. I wish Sufjan Stevens would expand each into a full song length; I fall particularly for the bliss written in the first. But isolating the song to a sole moment won't do the titular subject justice, where the curiosity lies in how love can take many different forms. [6]

Maxwell Cavaseno: Incredibly stuffy and full of conceit, you can practically see the exaggerated facials of this song. Perhaps a good way of trying to comprehend the enraptured quality of this song, and its sense of relinquishment... Or perhaps being too mannered for one's own good. Either way, hardly a satiating experience. [2]

Claire Biddles: I remember the night we met, sitting outside on your front step with you for two, maybe three hours until the door opened and your friend held out your phone and told you it was your girlfriend on the line, but I kissed you anyway. I remember that kiss better than I remember whole relationships. I remember reading Call Me By Your Name for the first time two years later, freshly torn open by one of our sporadic meetings, and melodramatically thinking "this is me, this is us," as it described the kind of love that is wholly separated from time and intellectualisation. I remember going to meet you when you visited five years ago, walking around the block, making myself ten minutes late even though I got off work exactly on time. I remember going to a record shop together, you buying All Delighted People by Sufjan Stevens, and me making fun of you because I thought he was too twee for my sophisticated tastes, but I went straight back to the shop after you left to buy the same record, and played the title track on repeat for weeks. I remember the last time I saw you, three years ago, looking back down the platform after you kissed me on the cheek at the station when I left. I remember seeing Call Me By Your Name at a film festival in February, hearing "Mystery of Love" for the first time and feeling like the victim of a cruel cosmic joke: a fictionalised version of "All Delighted People" in the centre of this fictionalised version of my love for you, Sufjan's twin "what difference does it make?" lines threading the two together. I remember the day this summer when you changed your status on facebook to 'engaged' after deleting me from your friends list. I remember last week, dropping my phone on the ground in a faraway country and realising that I couldn't retrieve any of the numbers, including yours, and breaking down in tears because that was it, you were gone, even the idea of you was gone, and all I could do was stand and cry in a doorway listening to "All Delighted People" and "Mystery of Love" on a loop, thinking about the real version of you, and the fictional versions of us in the film, and the fictional version of you that I embellished in my head for eleven years, gone. I remember everything, and I'm only embarrassing myself by submitting this as my review because it might be my last chance to find you -- maybe not now, but years in the future if you see Call Me By Your Name and hear "Mystery of Love" and somehow, impossibly come across this long-forgotten page -- and finally have the chance to ask, like Elio in the film: Do you remember me? Do you remember anything at all? [10]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox ]

#Sufjan Stevens #Call Me By Your Name

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songwriternews · 4 years

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New Post has been published on SONGWRITER NEWS

New Post has been published on https://songwriternews.co.uk/2020/08/crowd-pleaser-is-country-rock-retro-futurism-by-swamp-music-players/

Crowd Pleaser is country rock retro futurism by Swamp Music Players

youtube

Crowd Pleaser ⛽☢ country rock “retro futurism” by Swamp Music Players. https://ffm.to/oyal0dy Featuring and co-written by Virginia Americana artist Joseph Gearheart. The Swamp Music Players are an international collective of artists with a passion for swamp music and Cosmic Americana. ‘Crowd Pleaser’ is so retro it’s now!

Special guest on backing vox, Hollywood’s “Sugar Parks”. Produced and mixed by Wynn Gogol. Mastered at 1 Ton Studio.

Transistorized Southern Roots Rock with authentic plate-reverb, retro tech synth inspired by John Carpenter and customized effects.’Crowd Pleaser’ is a fun retro track of Swamp Rock and Cosmic Americana. The song was inspired bythe literature of Hunter S. Thompson and Philip K. Dick as well as mirroring of events between the 1970s and current day. The new cold war, the rise of populism and the cry for freedom. We live in interesting times.

Swamp Music Players Copyright Swamp Music Players Inc. Written by Joseph Gearheart and John Kayden Executive Producer John Kayden (Don Danger Jon)

www.swampmusic.info

LYRICS for ‘Crowd Pleaser’

Looky now baby see the rockets in the sky Somewhere there’s someone steady Staring upwards as they die Some folks is frownin’, doubtin’, But we never play around Spike a holy ball of fire From the heavens to the ground

They’re all looking for a crowd pleaser Rockets in the sky A crowd pleaser Lit up like the fourth of July

Beautiful and deadly like a devil femme-fatale Got people cross all nations screaming “Can you hear us now?” No stranger propaganda We’re all suckers for a show Grab a weapon at the door And leave behind your moral code

Yes we’re all looking or a crowd pleaser Rockets in the sky A crowd pleaser Lit up like the fourth of July

Yes the waves have all crested And we’re all in a daze We’re all down in the valley Just living through the haze Seem’s history has ended Time to cash in those chips But you ain’t seen nothing yet That fuse has just been lit

It’s a roadrunner, air-grabber Out on a cruse A workin’ man, ridge runner Burnin’ the blue She mah kissing’ cousin, wild hearted But her aim is true Top up, window flashing My babies howling at the moon

Yes we’re looking for a crowd pleaser Rockets in the sky A crowd pleaser Lit up like the Fourth of July

Looky now baby see them lights up in the sky Looky now baby see them rockets in the sky source

All of the Artists Featured on our pages are already getting lots of publicity everywhere!

Emerging Songwriters & Artists – Songwriter News has evolved into a slick robust music press platform with a smart trendy multi-platform adaptive appearance and an increasing level of site traffic which numbers approx 30,000 page views per week – circa 120,000+ page views per month.

Fans and followers – Get access to the Latest upcoming hits and stars before everyone else ! – Artists and Songwriters get your music in front of our fast growing audience !!

Now Independent songwriters and artists have access to our platform via our online Press-Room where it is possible to create your very own press release and run a campaign to gain the attention of industry, fans, followers and other site visitors.Find out more by clicking on Press Room in the menu above. Businesses – Studios, Producers , Music Coaches Event Organisers – We have a place for you on our pages too – Click on the Advertising section to see our banner advertising rates and Find Your tribe with SongwriterNews.

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lunapaper · 7 years

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Album Review: ‘DREAMGiRL’ EP - QUIÑ

QUIÑ’s rise to prominence so far has been out of this world.

After gaining a cult following on SoundCloud, the singer (born Bianca Quiñones) soon found herself collaborating with the likes of G-Eazy (on ‘Think About You’) and rapper gnash (on ‘rip’ with fellow rising star, Buddy). But she showed the true depths of her self-proclaimed ‘fantasy soul’ when she released her debut EP, GALACTICA, last October, a seductive space odyssey featuring the celestial ‘MATH’ and the luxurious ‘Sea of Space.’ And while her latest EP is still very much cosmically inclined, DREAMGiRL sees QUIÑ this time explore lighter, breezier horizons.

Our unearthly goddess wanders a throbbing club pop landscape on ‘The Beginning,’ hung up on a human lover as she sighs ‘When the sun is all gone/And the gloom is all I ask of you/I hope the weather gets better soon’ before it comes time to ‘enter the consciousness’ as the beat soon transforms into a digital jazz rendezvous. ‘Happened to Happen’ (featuring Buddy) also has her ‘stuck in a daze’ as QUIÑ drifts her way through a fog of chunky reverb and stuttering snares, while on ‘Sailboat’ - under a wave of trap-fuelled synths, bloated bass and languid 808s - she muses: ‘The water’s deeper where I come from/I’d rather dive in for the long run,’ unable to resist an eager lover who’s slowly getting caught up on the ‘wild side’ with her.

On ‘BB,’ meanwhile, QUIÑ reminds an indecisive partner ‘You coulda had a bad bitch by your side,’ almost mocking in its delivery as her faraway vocal and nostalgic chimes signal the end, sick of all the games. This dreamgirl isn’t gonna wait around forever, y’know.

You couldn’t imagine a better musical collab, though, than QUIÑ and The Internet’s Syd on current single ‘Sticky Situation,’ pairing QUIÑ’s sensual shimmer with Syd’s fever dream RnB. Jangling, sun-kissed percussion grinds up against muted keys and slinky synthesisers as QUIÑ channels her inner Erykah Badu on her most upbeat track yet, trying to free herself from a booty call whose sticking to her like the most stubborn of caramel (‘…you're losing your flavour/And sugar, honey, I ain't got the patience’). This brief affair might end on a sour note, but a candy-coated QUIÑ proves just as sweet as her space cadet self.

The LA native’s second EP sees her shadowy dreamscape broaden with glossier, more vivid pop textures and bolder nods toward trap and hip-hop. But the (fantasy) soul thankfully remains intact. As QUIÑ recently told Billboard about DREAMGiRL: ‘I think there’s an infinite amount of moods and colors and that shouldn’t have to fit into a box.’

Not when you can paint your whole universe with them…

- Bianca B.

#music #QUIÑ #dreamgirl EP #quin #new #reviews #albums #Bianca B

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cnox · 5 years

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Rowen for Distant Mirror Zine #1.* ROWEN is a project between Cristahel and Cantrith Knox. They play a subgenre of the dark ambient / dungeon synth movement they call Mythical Electronic. They have years of experience and also operate Hollow Myths in New England. I thank them for their contribution to the first issue of Distant Mirror. First, Rowen is a collaborative effort between Canrith and Cristahel Knox - do you have specialties which you like to focus on when creating (someone runs the drums and arrangement, someone finds the melodies)?

Eve, Thanx for the interview. We both play synths, drum machines and write together. As of now, when playing live, Criss handles the synths, vocal whisperings and I play the electronic drums. Along with our visuals, fog and lighting. We are introducing more vocals on some new songs. In the studio, we also add our field recordings and percussion as part of composing. We sit and mix each song side by side.

Tell us about your musical histories before forming Rowen, because its somewhat obvious you both have experience which maybe led to the result of what Rowen is on "Ashen Spirit"!

Both of us have electronic music in our past. Cristahel with Minimal Synth and I with Darkbeat. One of the first ideas we had for Rowen was to start all over. As part of the experiment, finding ourselves and each other through making music anew. See and hear our music become it's own entity. We started developing the concept in '14, in '16 we began recording and had our first release in '18. We set out with a clear vision of what we want to do with Rowen.

Also tell us how you discovered music and what your first true love in music was... How did you come to find music that would lead you to this underworld of music culture?

Canrith: I discovered music on a radio at age 3. First, second and third grade, I would stay up nights crashing on Ritalin (due to being diagnosed as Hyperactive) watching the first ever music videos on a UHF channel in Colorado called FMTV which predated MTV by a year or two. Laurie Anderson - O Superman, Kraftwerk, Barnes & Barnes - Fish Heads videos all had a great impact on me as a kid. During that time, late 70's - early 80's, I was hooked on the music and image of both Kiss and Devo. One of the first albums I owned was AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap on cassette that I purchased at K-Mart. Summer '81 NYC, I saw the first video air on MTV. Later, watching another UHF channel out of Boston called V66. Heavy Metal led me to the Black Metal and the dark electronic music underground. Dark Ambient and Dark Dungeon Music have always been a particular interest of mine. Mail order distro tapes and free box extras in orders started my collection as far back as the mid 90's. In the late 90's, I got really into BM, then obsessed in '03 onward, as many UGBM labels and distros were rising on the web. We are also into Minimal, Martial, Electro, Techno, New Beat, Cosmic, Italo, 8-bit, Video Game, Soundtrack, Old School Dungeon Synth, Winter Synth and so on...

Cristahel: My first exposure to music as a child was through my grandfather, who began teaching me to play classical piano by ear at the age of four. We would sit for countless hours at his black upright Steinway as he would play Chopin, Bach, Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky etc. a few measures at a time for me to memorize and string together until I had the whole piece memorized. His love and enthusiasm for music, and the time he took to develop that in me, is something I will always be grateful for. Also my cousin Sue was a few years older than me and was like some kind of magical mixtape faerie, forever bestowing masterfully crafted gems upon me filled with things like Lush, Kate Bush, Cocteau Twins, and Mazzy Star that served to mold/blow my little mind.

By my late teens it was the late 90's/early 2000's and I was immersed in a maelstrom of kraut/prog, electro, early new wave and electronic/industrial, shoe gaze. I was fortunate at the time to have a lot of friends with varied tastes and massive record collections they wanted to share with me, because back then there was like, only Napster to try and download music off this nebulous internet thing they had just invented.

I spent a lot of time not doing my homework and dancing around my room on speed and/or klonopins listening to things like Tangerine Dream, Cluster, Miss Kittin & The Hacker, Dopplereffekt, Chris and Cosey, SPK, early Human League, Slowdive, Clan of Xymox... all of which in their own ways began to inform the atmosphere of the music I create now, warped and haunted meandering electronic melodies, analog synths, string machines and rhythm boxes, pounding 303s and 808s, tape echoes, analog delays, layered sounds lost in chasms of reverb...

I moved to NY and started making music, playing shows and djing a bit (mostly playing gabber techno synth new age sets at London squat parties to kids who wanted to hear nu rave), getting into minimal synth, and beginning my love affair with collecting and recording with analog equipment.

Of course now anything you want is available immediately online, compared to how the 80’s and 90’s crowd discovered music. I’ve asked the other artists a similar question - how do you feel about the loss of mystery these days and what will happen in the future to return to that?

I feel the ability for creating mystique is greater now thanx to the internet. Almost anyone can record some music, upload it to bandcamp, make artwork, physical releases, open an online shop, start a label, etc.. If one is good at what they do, be it a hidden persona or being a face, presenting a strong sound, image and aesthetic, either way, when done right, it works. In some ways even mystery can be a gimmick.

You both are lucky to have grown up in the best time period for music. But what about movies and books people should check out?

I collect children's books, read a mess of olde and new Black Metal zines, Books about Black and Death Metal. Sexy comics about Vampiress and Faeries. Presently reading The Devil's Cradle, a hard back about The Story of Finnish Black Metal. It was a gift from Criss. Everyone should read Lords of Chaos '98 (then '03) and Lucifer Rising '99. I still need a copy of that leather bound Mortiis - Secrets Of My Kingdom book '01.

As for films, we watch obscure horror, foreign horror and documentaries.

Here are some if you have not already read or watched them;

Read: Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs ('78) James and the Giant Peach ('61) Masquerade ('79) The World of the Dark Crystal ('82) The Book of Alien ('79) Moebius - The Collected Fantasies of Jean Giraud Series ('87 - '94) Flowers in the Attic - Dollanganger Series ('79 -'86) Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo ('78) William Klein: Films, 1958-99 ('99) Wreckers of Civilisation: The Story of Coum Transmissions & Throbbing Gristle ('99)

Watch: Christiane F. ('81) Out of The Blue ('80) Deadbeat at Dawn ('88) Combat Shock ('86) Street Trash ('87) Brain Damage ('88) Zardoz ('74) Excalibur ('81) Emerald Forest ('85) Wicker Man ('73)

If atmosphere seems to be a heavy orientation for your creative drive, is your local landscape an important part of this? or is it personal experiences driving the music towards such a dark and melancholy place? something about Rowen is both light and dark.

We live on a island North East New England and seldom see others. Most of our time is spent outside, alone with the wind, the trees, on the marsh, in the mist and rain, sea side mornings, hawks at dusk and in the woods every evening. Pretty, evil and sad is what we do. We are hoping folks will also consider us in the Nature Synth category.

New England must be a very interesting place to live... what is your favorite time of year there, and what is your favorite part of the landscape there?

We love the woods, day hikes, mountain tops, swimming holes, water falls, gorges and quarries. Small towns, old houses, fields, orchards, pumpkin patches, bonfires. Train tracks, trestles, towers, castles, monuments and graveyards. I was born in October so naturally I love the fall. Hallow's Eve and all into November. Leaves turn, death comes and things change. There is nothing like a cold moonlit night in the snow. I appreciate being where we can really experience all four seasons.

Also You are so fortunate to live on an island.. That’s amazing. It’s cliche to talk about misanthropy with dark music but is this the reason for being secluded? What do you feel is the best thing for people could do with themselves in (what is in my eyes the end of the world?)

We made the decision to come here for a time of research, get to know each other, talk about our dreams, foster our ideas. Focus on only that of which we love and gives us purpose. Live away from it all. If everyone did what was the most important to them, a different world this might be.

Rowen is listed among other trees in occult literature as a tree of magical powers... Is this the reason for using the name? Is there personal beliefs at play in Rowen?

As a band we have our own ideologies, as musicians, our own theories, as artists, our own creative processes and as members, a belief system. These are shared between us and are expressed through the music, words and imagery of Rowen.

The Greeks, Norse, Celts and Druids all told mythology of the properties and significance of this mystical tree. The Greek Goddess of youth who lost her magical chalice to the demons. An eagle was sent to retrieve it. From battle, it's blood splatter on the earth grew Rowan trees. It's leaves as feathers, it's berries, the blood. The Norse myth speaks of the tree from which woman was made. And man, from a mountain ash. Saved Thor in the underworld. Runes are burned on Rowan wood. In the British Isles they tell of the folkloric tree which protects against witchcraft. The red berries of fall make up the 5 points of the Pentagram. Goes also as the Goddess or Faerie tree. The Druids used the bark and berries to dye the garments worn during lunar ceremonies black. Rowan twigs were used for divining, particularly for metals.

I had no idea the importance of Rowen to ancient people. Yes, it is true that Norse belief teaches humans were originally trees before given life and awareness by Odin, Vili and Ve. Is there any interest for you both to express your philosophy on things in the music or is this an affair of escapism and pure magic.

"The Past is not Dead, it lives on in a Woeful Drift." We are connected to our roots, our family trees, where we came from, our heritage and lands. We could only hope that our music would offer an escape. Magic is the only way.

If you could live in any time period, what time period would you live in and what would you be doing?

Canrith: I feel lucky to have been a child of the 70's and we grew up in the 80's, 90's & 00's. We were there, I wouldn't change it. I would love to live in some medieval castle in the mountains, riding a black Clydesdale, wielding a mace, reeking havoc across the land.

Cristahel: Same as Canrith but on a white Clydesdale with a halberd.

What's the most important part of the creative process for Rowen - is there a certain revelry for using old mysterious pieces of synthesizers or do you enjoy the vast possibilities of computers? There's always the game of analog vs computer in the electronic scenes, what is your thoughts on this?

For us, again, the most important part of the process is the experiment. We use all analog synthesizers, drum machines and record live. Roland, Korg, Yamaha. Same goes for our stage show. We have used and are not opposed to using digital synths on recordings and live. Casio & Yamaha synths, Simmons drums. For instance, "In Another Dream, You Were Mine" from "Ashen Spirit" was made almost entirely on a Casiotone. We record and mix on a desk top home computer.

What are you both really enjoying listening to at the moment?

Listening to cult 80's video Game music on YouTube while answering these questions.

do you have any thoughts on where this rising momentum will lead as far as the dungeon synth genre is headed, and do you feel proud of your place in that? am i wrong in assuming you both also run Hollow Myths?

We are proud of our place in DS. Though we set out to make our own mythical electronic music. And think the genre is progressing as it should. We have been very active in the scene going on six years now this November. As supporters, label, distro and band. We are most appreciative of the support we have received. And from the Black Metal Underground. Our first demo was released on pro-tape by Personnel Records, a sub-label of Seedstock Records ran by Marco Del Rio of Raspberry Bulbs aka He Who Crushes Teeth of Bone Awl. We are finishing our second release that will be out on CD & Cassette this time.

Hollow Myths, the label and distro, is the work of us two. Releases, artwork, layouts, Photography, bios, press, promo, videos, zine, jewelry, leather work, patches, we also offer clothes that we call Cryptic Raiment for After Dark. Official Dungeon Synth, Dark Ambient, Black Metal, Hollow Myths* Shirts, Long Sleeves, Hoods, Record Bags, Altar Cloths...

Correct me if I’m wrong, but Hollow Myths has had to dig deep into the underground and re-release old gems, which is like reissuing from the archives.. many people don’t really appreciate that, can you tell us about what that’s been like and if anything else like that will ever happen?

Hollow Myths* have re-released limited special versions of cult classics in a row of how I first discovered them back when. Being also from Dallas, TX, Equitant - The Great Lands Of Minas Ithil (City Of Isildur) '94 was one the first tapes I owned of the genre (and our first release from H/M* on cassette) after I found a copy of the Mournlord - Reconquering Our Kingdom Demo from '95 (SE) for a $1 in a bargain bin. These strange and very limited cassette releases helped crystallize what Dark Dungeon Music was to me. Like hearing the Caduceus - Middle Ages Demo '95 (LT) for the first time or later with the Corvus Neblus - Chapter I & II - Strahd's Possession tapes from '99 / '01 (LV). Our second re-released offering was Equimanthorn - Entrance To The Ancient Flame on cassette, another Texas born Ritual Black Ambient project with both Equitant and Proscriptor of the Mythological Occult Metal band Absu as members. After which, we made a chain of very special limited re-releases from; Gothmog, Depressive Silence, Solanum, Lunar Womb, Cain, two from Aperion, Arthur as well as Xerión with more to come. At the same time, we have introduced many new Dungeon Synth artists, some with their follow ups; Isåedor, Wyver and Wizzard to name but a few. We began in '16 and have 43 releases to date. Some mentioned above will see second pressings in the near future.

What has been your favorite release to work on this past year and what sort of artists does Hollow Myths look for?

We focus on outsider music and art and put our blood, sweat and tears into every release. Since we are primarily a physical label and distro (Tapes, CD's, Vinyl, Merch, etc.), it has been interesting to curate and mix the last three Shadowlore Compilations.

Each run over 2 hours long and feature new and exclusive songs by legions of Dungeon Synth artists from around the world. Being Digital, we offer it for Free or name your price for those who want to add it to their collections. Corresponding J-card "tape trade" layout print outs are included in the download, so one can make their own 2x cassette version. To be shared with friends, to inspire tape trading, for more reach and exposure for the artists' projects. Shadowlore Four will be released this Summer Solstice.

Other releases from last year we are very proud of: Apeiron - Stardust / A Separate Reality. Cosmic / Dark Ambient / Black Metal from Austria. '95 & '97 and featuring a never before heard hidden track from '96 titled "Dimensional Chanting" exclusive only to this release. Xerión - O Espírito Da Fraga / O Trono de Breogán. Black Metal / Dark Ambient from Spain. The first two demos from '01 & '02 with 3 new songs recorded exclusively for this release including a Windir cover. Galician Mythology and Folklore. Wyver - Tragedies of Lost Village (Demo II). Dungeon Synth / Fantasy Music follow up. (PDX) Hypogeum - S/T. Introducing outsider, Raw Black Metal from the woods of Oregon. Wizzard - The Cauldron Descent. Cryptic Dungeon Synth follow up from Sweden. Morihaus - The Empty Marches. Eccentric Dark Ambient / Dungeon Synth debut from Kentucky.

Tell us about Rowen’s plans to start touring.

We just played our first show at the Northeast Dungeon Siege MMXIX festival. Now we are working on piecing together a tour that will begin this summer in the north east coast with the plan to then head down, across the south to California, up the west coast, pacific northwest and back across the north and through the mid-west to return late fall. We recently put the word out that we are up to perform anywhere, anytime and received an overwhelming response. If we can get on tour, stay on tour, get back to Europa without haste, we would be more than pleased.

The first two shows will be outdoor camping events. Mythical Electronic, Dungeon Synth, Black Metal, Acoustic Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom, Crust, Folk, Country, . . . Both are on private land, in the forest and BYOB. Bring a tent, water, food and supplies. Crossbows and throwing knives.

Rowen Seasons of the Savage at The Sonorous Glade June 22nd Topsham, VT w/ Haxen, Sombre Arcane, Fed Ash, Gorcrow, Melkor, Black Axe, Void Bringer, Acid Roach and Wild Leek River

Rowen Woods of Gallows II August 17th West Chazy, NY w/ T.O.M.B., Worthless, Sombre Arcane, Ordeals, Malacath, Lightcrusher, Hræsvelgr, Graveren and Callous

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rollingstonemag · 5 years

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Un nouvel article a été publié sur https://www.rollingstone.fr/the-b-52s-playlist-flashback/

The B-52's : les 15 titres cultes d'après Kate Pierson

La première bombe de The B-52’s explose en 1979. Quarante ans plus tard, le groupe est enfin de retour sur scène après une longue pause. Flashback sur les titres qui ont marqué la carrière de l’autre quatuor d’Athens en Georgie.

À l’instar de Drive-By Truckers ou R.E.M., les B-52’s sont originaires d’Athens en Georgie. Exubérants et fantasques, les cinq membres du groupe (Fred Schneider, Cindy Wilson, Ricky Wilson, Keith Strickland et Kate Pierson) aiment la pop, les nappes de synthés cheap et le son reverb des guitares Mosrite. Sur scène, leur show d’une ferveur presque théâtrale devient vite une formidable machine à danser. Après un premier essai transformé en succès, le quintet enchaine en 1980 avec l’album Wild Planet, enregistré à Nassau aux Bahamas en compagnie de l’ingénieur du son Rhett Davis (Dire Straits). S’en suit la parenthèse avec l’EP Mesopotamia (1981), confié aux mains d’un David Byrne un peu trop envahissant. Le quintet finira par le congédier et reprendre son destin en mains en studio. Le 12 octobre 1985, le guitariste Ricky Wilson meurt du sida, pendant l’enregistrement de leur quatrième opus, Bouncing Off The Satellites. Dévasté et incapable de poursuivre l’aventure, le groupe s’accorde un break de trois ans. La formation américaine jettera son spleen aux orties en 1989 et reviendra par la grande porte avec Cosmic Thing, un nouvel album solide et abouti. Produit à New York par Nile Rodgers et Don Was, The B-52’s renoue avec le succès et l’inspiration avec le morceau « Love Shack », comme un coup de sang tonique et rédempteur. Depuis, Kate, Fred et Cindy continuent à sortir des disques et à remplir les salles. Quelques semaines avant le début de leur tournée estivale, la pétulante Kate Pierson dévoilait sa playlist à Rolling Stone et revient sur les 15 titres qui ont marqués l’histoire des B-52’s…

1) « Rock Lobster » Album : The B-52’s 1979

« On a enregistré une première version de ‘Rock Lobster’ à Atlanta pour le single et une seconde pour l’album, au soleil des Bahamas à Nassau. Ricky Wilson a composé la mélodie et Fred Schneider s’est chargé du texte. L’histoire de cette chanson décrit avec un humour fantasque, une fiesta qui se déroule sur la plage. Soudain, tout part en vrille, avec une arrivée de crustacés farfelus… Avec Cindy Wilson, on s’est éclaté sur les parties vocales de ce morceau qui est notre premier single. »

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2) « Planet Claire » Album : The B-52’s 1979

« Le titre fait plus de 4 minutes. L’intro est assez longue, avant que Fred prenne la voix et rentre dans la danse. L’ambiance musicale de ce morceau ressemble à un film de Fellini en version S.F. (rires). C’est un classique incontournable de notre répertoire que l’on jouera évidemment à Paris sur la scène de l’Olympia. »

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3) « Lava » Album : The B-52’s 1979

« ‘Lava’ est une chanson torride qui figure sur notre premier album. Elle parle d’amour et de sexe. C’est brûlant et torride, du premier au dernier couplet. »

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4) « Dance This Mess Around » Album : The B-52’s 1979

« Tout le groupe a participé à l’élaboration de ce titre qui est chargé en nostalgie et émotion. C’est l’histoire d’une femme délaissée et brisée. Le piano de Fred donne une intensité émotionnelle supplémentaire à ce titre. »

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5) « Devil In My Car » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« En 80, c’en était fini pour nous d’ouvrir pour les Talking Heads, nous nous produisions désormais en tête d’affiche en concert. On a prouvé sur scène, que The B-52’s n’était pas juste un groupe fun mais composé de bons musiciens qui maîtrisaient leurs sujets. ‘Devil In My Car’ est l’aventure d’un diable qui se retrouve au volant d’une vieille Chevrolet à fond sur la freeway. C’est frais, pétillant et rythmé de nappes de synthés. »

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6) « Strobe Light » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« Encore un tube très sexy. C’est une femme pleine de fantasmes qui a envie de s’envoyer en l’air sous une lumière stroboscopique. Tout un programme. »

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7) « Private Idaho » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« On a enregistré cette belle chanson avec Rhett Davis qui avait acquis une certaine expérience de producteur aux cotés de Brian Eno. La mélodie est admirablement éclairée de synthés. Il y a toute la panoplie pop et new wave de The B-52’s à l’intérieur de ce morceau. »

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8) « Dirty Back Road » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« Cette mélodie hyper accrocheuse parle de l’état de bien-être que produit la vitesse en voiture quand on a le pied sur la pédale et du sable dans les cheveux. »

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9) « Quiche Lorraine » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« Malgré le titre, on ne chante pas notre joie à l’idée de déguster cette spécialité culinaire bien française. Rien à voir. C’est beaucoup plus délirant, ça parle en effet d’un chien teint en vert, qui porte des lunettes de soleil et un bonnet. On était tout de même haut perchés à cette époque (rires). »

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10) « Give Me Back My Man » Album : Wild Planet 1980

« La voix de Cindy est fantastique. C’est une femme qui veut reconquérir son homme. Pour cela, elle est prête à tout : lui préparer du poisson et l’abreuver de bonbons. Question équilibre alimentaire, je ne suis pas sûre du résultat, mais bon… (rires) »

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11) « Whammy Kiss » Album : Whammy! 1983

« ‘Whammy Kiss’ est un morceau très entraînant qui annonce notre virage electro. On compose sur des ordinateurs. Ricky a rangé ses guitares à la cave. C’est du synthé-pop avec un esprit festif. »

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12) « Ain’t It A Shame » Album : Bouncing Off The Satellites 1986

« C’est l’une des dernières chansons de Ricky Wilson qui nous a quittés en plein enregistrement de l’album. On a tous vécu ce drame comme une épreuve terrible. Sa présence nous manque toujours aujourd’hui. »

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13) « Love Shack » Album : Cosmic Thing 1989

« En fait, c’est Don Was qui a produit ce titre. Travailler avec Don et Nile Rodgers fut un vrai bonheur sur cet album. Avec eux, on a retrouvé la spontanéité de nos débuts. Vous savez que le break de ‘Love Shack’ n’a pas été prémédité du tout ? Il y a eu un incident dans le studio et l’on s’est tous arrêter de jouer. Par contre, Cindy ne s’est aperçu de rien et a continué de chanter .C’est elle qui re-booste la machine en criant ‘Tin roof / Rusted!’. Don Was a adoré la prise et on a sorti le morceau tel quel. »

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14) « Deadbeat Club » Album : Cosmic Thing 1989

« ‘Deadbeat Club’, rend hommage à notre jeunesse passée à Athens. Michael Stipe de R.E.M., un de nos compatriotes, apparaît d’ailleurs sur le clip de la chanson. »

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15) « Roam » Album : Cosmic Thing 1989

« C’est un hymne au voyage, à la tolérance, à la découverte du monde. C’est un morceau à l’image de cet album, il y règne une vraie paix intérieure. »

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De retour, cet été, en Europe pour plusieurs concerts, The B-52’s sera à Paris sur la scène de l’Olympia, le 5 juillet.

Philippe Langlest

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thesunlounge · 4 years

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Reviews 351: MAÂT

At the end of 2019, Growing Bin Records tossed a special surprise into one of my mailorder packages, which took the form of an unmarked and incorrectly sequenced test pressing of an upcoming release. Even without any context to anchor myself to, I dove over and over again into the entrancing landscapes of world music infused post-rock, cinematic sunset disco, solar stoner blues, seaside psych folk, balearic dub pop, organic studio jazz, and new age fusion contained therein, all the while feeling as if I had some secret sonic treasure completely to myself. And after spending a few weeks in blissful ignorance, having no clue where or when in the world this music was created, its source was finally revealed as the trio of Adrien Colle, Tim Karbon, and Maxime Castanet, otherwise known as MAÂT. Far from spoiling the magic though, knowing the authors of Solar Mantra only enhanced the experience, as did the loose ideological framework provided by the song titles and Alan Briand’s enigmatic artwork, for now, I had conceptual signposts to guide my imagination as it continued exploring the trio’s exotic environments, where rainforest rhythms anchor skeletal stoner blues riffs as smoke-shrouded vocals croon towards the sunset; where bass synths filter between fusion walks and subsonic growls while idiophones of every color splash and sparkle; where pastoral prog guitars jangle over the heavenly drone of an electric organ; where chanted harmonies flow into mantric incantations above spiritual synth cascades, swelling cymbal shimmer, and ambient funk basslines; and where heady angel voices melt down over soul-affirming expanses of dub-kissed dreampop psychedelia. I was also thrilled to discover that MAÂT dedicated the album to Don Cherry’s, Naná Vasconcelos’, and Collin Walcott’s work in Codona, a favorite group of mine who here provide less of a direct sonic inspiration and more so a spiritual one, as Solar Mantra sees another trio of gifted and sympathetic collaborators pushing each other to the limits of individual creativity in the search for sonic transcendence.

MAÂT - Solar Mantra (Growing Bin Records, 2020) In “The Walk,” echo-soaked toms, tambourines, and chain off snares gallop through the void while claps crack, four four kicks beat beneath dreamspace vibraphones, and desperate smears of singing fade into focus. Then everything cuts away, leaving space for ceremonial organs and fat acid basslines to ambulate beneath a pair of voices seeming to intone “can’t you see how they walk?” as bells and shakers swell violently. A squelching synth solo seeks out the sunrise and light kisses of dub delay work the snares as the track spreads further out into pastoral folk psychedelia, with ecclesiastical organ chords supporting jangling acoustic guitars. Vibraphones add soulful jazz flourishes and harmonize with bleary-eyed fusion leads as pleading vocals thread in and out of the stereo field and at the track’s conclusion, kick drums and shakers move together, hand drums spill over themselves, and those smokey vocal hazes continue flowing in round over light acoustic guitar brushstrokes, before it all ends in a fractal storm of xylophones and shakers. “Jaki & Bryn” comes to life on smoldering synth swells as twanging guitars play single note snake charmer leads before working into a potsmoke chug. Synthetic bells melt and pitter patter percussions pop beneath lyrical incantations, with everything slowly devolving into self-oscillating abstracting. As we snap to the groove, we find ourselves floating on a post-punk raga of skeletal guitar riffing while shakers and bongos guide the hypnotic groove. Organs dart and dash like fireflies and haunted vocalisms flow in each ear, with touches of downer prog and crooning blues mergin into a stoner lullaby. At some point, everything cuts away, leaving lonely lyricisms to float in the void, accompanied by a light panorama of shakers and melting chordscapes. Later, as ping pong echo drums rush us back into the groove, music box arps move drunkely over melting FM synth environments…the whole mix growing strange and alien. Subtle blasts of galactic magic suffuse the stereo field as we work towards the end and eventually, it all reduces to minimal guitar work and hazy vocal hymns, with drums clattering wildly and everything filtering towards darkness.

Minimalist organs join a dancing panorama of filtering chords in “Feuglace” before everything starts reversing in time. Subsonic drums and shakers emerge amidst a bubble cloud of echo-morphing vocal expressionism and as soul-soaked house chords pan across the spectrum, we drop into the groove proper, where dazzling cymbal patterns work around slap bass fusion lines while snares and claps swing on the beat. Idiophones play melancholic island melodies and at some point, the groove grows abstract, with militant percussions pounding then fading as kalimbas, marimbas, vibraphones, and tapped cymbals dance through a cloud of reverb. Then comes a smash cut into tribal hand drum rolls, Afro-folk guitar refractions, and ghostly vocal harmonizations while xylophones beat out sunshine refrains. And later, after the vocals morph into a cloud of fevered insect psychedelia, smeared deep house pianos return alongside handclaps and equatorial fusion basslines to guide an irresistible groove, wherein sparkling ride cymbals and cycling organ riffs refract sunshine and those scatting echo vocal swim far in the distance while the stereo swells with mutating choral hazes. The A-side closed with “Solar Mantra” and its steel pans dancing in a picturesque sunrise. Shakers and tambourines glitter over a tropical bongo groove and layers of plucked psaltery slowly suffuse the stereo field with a jangling dance of polyrhythmic string psychedelia. Sensual sub basslines soften the vibe and kalimba melodies fall like a gentle summer storm until suddenly, vocals ride in on effervescing tapestries of electronic drumming and sing towards the sky: “I want you to grow / praise the sun”. Bleary-eyed synths solo softly and vocal scats imitate shakers as everything reduces down to simplistic hand drumming, ambient thumb piano atmospheres, and plucked string shimmer. But eventually, the groove slowly builds back in strength, though somehow it all seems shambolic and barely held together as various passages flow in and around each other according to some unknowable logic, with plucked psaltery glowing and smokey vocals moving between the titular solar mantra and wordless soul reveries.

“Quetzal Pacino” builds wondrous anticipation from the outset, with mallets tapping and ethereal atmospheres swelling. Violins soar to the surface and drums take on a spaghetti western gallop before dropping into disco intoxication, with hi-hats working the mind via energetic double time flourishes and big synth basslines snapping and sliding. The background swirls with fantasy orchestrations and occasionally, marimbas emerge to beat out anthemic island melodies. Basslines filter into a monstrous growl, martial snare rolls portend some mighty climax, and radiant whooshes of electro-psychedelia flow across the mix until the drums drop away, leaving basslines and layered mallet instruments to pound on the beat, ride cymbals to swell into flashes of white light, and oceanic phaser strings to seek out the sky. Then, things reduce further and string synths start weaving paradise spells amidst a rainfall of cymbal shimmer. And as the extasy-laced disco groove builds back to epic proportions, with a sunset symphony swimming overheard and filtered basslines roaring, the vibe is of some thrilling chase scene…of convertibles careening down seaside highways in the light of the setting sun…the heart racing along with urgent disco drum pulsations while textures of tropical exotica subsume the spirit. Cosmic electronics harmonize with Renaud Guy-Rousseau’s clarinet in “Clairière,” with druidic cycles and ancient melodies spreading into delirium drone. Textured clicks move beneath howling ghosts while cymbal and rimshot splashes bring to life a tribalistic drum groove, which kicks fully into gear once romantic basslines begin executing drunken dances amidst layers of polyphonic idiophone mesmerism. Synths percolate like bubble clouds, hi-hats bash away, and moaning brass electronics mimic a siren until the rhythms disperse, leaving behind machine screams and computronic synth flourishes. Eventually, the clarinet re-emerges…its touches elegiac and reverb soaked jazz enticing the groove back into focus, now with sawing strings and sliding portamento sonics reminding me of the magisterial post-rock and desolate folk Americana of GY!BE, especially Efrim Menuck’s screwdriver guitar freakouts.

In “Mount Bevray,” blurred e-piano bass chords support solar feedback swells as slap jazz and fusion funk basslines dance across shimmering ocean wave crests. Layered cymbal polyrhythms gleam in the sunlight, brass polysynths spread outwards into new age fusion cloudforms, and all the while, wordless vocal cycles build in support…these paradise incantations of impossible beauty…so simple yet so emotionally affecting. At some point its all obscured by dark filtering, with the cymbal patterns fading and synths soloing through banks of moonlit seafog. But soon, the radiant rhythms of tapped metal return, bringing with them the psych pop vocal cascades and nimble bassline motions as the background overflows with wavefronts of balearic bliss. “Llomé Dub” opens in a futuristic seaside saloon setting, where lofi island percussion and snake tail rattles surround daydream ivory leads and tapped cymbals fall like rain. Droning organs sing LSD lullabies and an upright piano flutters on an echo breeze until we lock into a breezy psych pop groove featuring Laurel Canyon basslines that occasionally transmute into subsonic bubbles and drums that swing and sway in the dubwsie sunshine. Echo modulating tom toms and hyperkinetic ride taps join dopamine choirs to background lazed acoustic guitar strums and after a devolution into crazed delay fx and anxious musique concrète, we transition towards one of the best musical moments of 2020, as vocalist Leya descends upon the mix like some balearic angel to sing flower power dream lullabies while heavy dub basslines skank over bopping reggae-pop drumbeats, body swaying clap rhythms, and soaring 60s organs. The good vibes only increase from here, as the song works itself into a breathtaking closed eye chorus seeing Leya’s vocals move towards pure wordless revery while crazed echo lasers whoosh upwards…the whole thing so perfect as to soar the spirit towards a cloudland paradise. Then, it all breaks down and returns again to the seaside western settings of the intro, as saloon pianos and echo panning guitars move over a ghost town bassline thump. And as the drums resume, bringing rimshot taps and a jazz pop swing, glorious cascades of piano chord mesmerism flow over seasick sequences and oceanic organ wavefronts before it all gives way to an outro of bleating synth detritus, abstracted ivory flutters, and underwater dub bass.

(images from my personal copy)

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thesunlounge · 4 years

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Reviews 354: Nailah Hunter

As its name suggests, Nailah Hunter’s Spells is a sonic experience devoted to ritual and incantation, one that sees the artist painting the air in restorative hues of new age fantasy and dreamscape ambient via angel voice, effected harp, and a minimal palette of cosmic electronics. As discussed in Leaving Records’ press materials, this luminous journey of vibratory mysticism traces its origins to Hunter’s choice to rethink her approach to songwriting and performance, which then lead to the inspired decision to craft musical spells, where, in the artist’s own words, “each layer is one of the steps in an incantation.” In striking upon this new path, a sense of meditative freedom emerged, for the artist was no longer tempted to overthink things, relying instead on intuition and ritualistic process to create layered ceremonials guided by the flow of the universe. As well, Hunter is here focused on using music to create a sense of place, with each individual spell meant to induce visions of serene natural settings, or, as the artist calls them, "sonic places of rest, places to ponder and consider your feelings.” In fact, several of the otherworldly locations evoked by the music are breathtakingly rendered by Ianna Vasale, whose fantastical paintings of gemstone caverns, sunset beaches, ancient flower field structures, glowing potions, and swordbearing sky goddesses are woven together across the J-card panels with written spells of Hunter’s own creation, so that the textual and visual elements work together to enhance the album’s air of mysterious adventure and its function as a tool for magical healing.

Nailah Hunter - Spells (Leaving Records, 2020) Opening track “Soil” is accompanied by the spell “a seed is sown / a song from silence,” which is fitting, as the composition billows in from the void and immediately establishes an aura of mysticism and wonderment. Harp arpeggios decay into empty spaces…perhaps even into the gem-encrusted caverns depicted by Vasale on the cover art…while heavenly hazes of reverb kiss the flowing melodic clusters and interspersing chasms of silence, which are eventually filled by Hunter’s operatic flutters. The artist’s voice moves through wordless vibrato enchantments awash in atmospheres of mystery and melancholy and eventually, the harps drift away from the mix, leaving druidic vocal incantations that slowly transmute into a resonant shadow. Something else the artist explores throughout Spells is synesthesia, and for second track “Ruins,” Hunter suggests the warming hues of magenta and clementine, colors which radiate off of the song’s smoldering drone clouds…these thick banks of swirling fog suffused with the light of a cinematic sunset, or, ”the dying light of gold” as described in the accompanying spell. Psaltery sparkles like crystal, or like the “dust of rose at dusk,” and sub-bass synthesizers float the body while elsewhere, key changes owing to spiritual jazz change the vibe as synthesizers bend in ways reminiscent of dopamine deep house and 90s extasy ambient, with everything coming together like some lost Beverly Glenn-Copeland meditation. Insectoid streaks of noise thread throughout the mix and pitch-shift over a bank of chirping crickets and tropical birdsong and eventually, the shimmering psaltery chords are overlaid by fantastical harp explorations, with the sparkling diamond cascades and high-note melodics touching on energies both ancient and futuristic.

The spell for “Enter” involves repeating the phrase “enter in”…a sort of mantric invitation into the track’s filtering galactic wavefronts and modulating color hazes, which swirl together into a psychoactive miasma of deep space drone. Lasers swoosh upwards, streaks of starlight sparkle overhead, and if you listen closely, you can hear Hunter’s harp dancing far in the distance. At some point, the immersive walls of cosmos drone unexpectedly recede, leaving behind a glorious passage of multi-layered vocal fantasy…a sort of gothic expanse of Enya-style singing that invites the mind to picture some goddess of the forest lost in a trance, her mysterious vocal incantations flowing outwards like silver threads, which are then caught by nymphs and satyrs and woven into spectral mirage that slowly fades towards darkness. “Quite Light,” as described by Hunter, is meant to evoke the “feeling of being like golden light in a cold still pool of water.” And in the accompanying spell, Hunter writes: “take up now this silver sword / find yourself restored,” which suggests the aforementioned pool of water is in fact the cave lake depicted on Vasale’s album cover, where hovers the silver sword of restoration. As for the music, plucked harps and barely there keyboard meditations sit above spiritual blankets of soft-focus electronic and prayer bowl-sourced drone. Chittering insects are effected into fractal droplets as the harps continue their dance of dreamfolk romance and a monstrous current of squelching alien acid synthesis emerges randomly to disturb the flow, bringing with it quivering bass synthesizers and their chanted cosmic mantra. Garbled vocalizations are heard amidst the eternally ringing prayer bowl drones and later, as the harps dance on starbeams, they radiate pearlescent colorations in all directions.

Returning again to the album’s explorations of synesthesia, there are mentions of white, navy, and lilac in the spell for “White Flower, Dark Hill.” And going further, Hunter describes the track in the press materials with the following poetic string of thoughts: “the idea of the purples and navies of the night sky and the way that shadows appear under full moonlight, the different shades of moonlight, and how it always brings out the color white.” Sonically speaking, electronic chords flash, bend, and mutate into an ethereal panorama of dream magic while lullaby harp arps dance through washing waves of ambient warmth. Strummed psaltery jangles in the light of the moon while vocals alight on ambient soul and dreampop adventures, which pull my mind towards the work of Grouper. And eventually, almost everything fades way, until all that remains are child-like harp melodies and transmuting vocal babbles. The fact that Nailah Hunter resides in Los Angeles is perhaps most apparent on closing track “Talisman,” which is built around these sparkling synthesizer cascades that overflow with emotional currents of sunset melancholy. In fact, the vibe here is not so far off from the paradisiacal synthwave, both real and imagined, of Cliff Martinez and Symmetry, though of course, Hunter’s harp can be heard glowing deep in the background ether, with all attack sanded away, leaving the instrument to generate muted hues of rainbow warmth. Clouds of of angel mist and solar haze sit over the entire mix and at crucial moments, Hunter executes thrilling key changes that rush the spirit ever closer towards an exploding sundown horizon. And as the track progresses, with hissing wisps of starshine threading around blurred synthetic howls, we find ourselves entering spiritual communion with “soil / air / and sun.”

(images from my personal copy)

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thesunlounge · 4 years

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Reviews 312: Joe Morris

I’ve had considerable difficulty putting down my thoughts concerning Joe Morris’ Exotic Language, though not because of the music…a sonic paradise so panoramic and immersive that my mind is completely overwhelmed with hyperbolic descriptors and imagined fantasy landscapes. No, the difficulty comes from determining how to properly contextualize the work of an artist whose music has meant so much to me over the last few years and who has been a constant guidepost as I’ve explored this vague soundworld we all call “balearic”. So perhaps it’s best to go back to the beginning, which involved me trawling through the Is It Balearic? Discogs page picking out titles whose label art resonated with me…visuals that captured some indefinable spirit of beachside meditation and solar fantasy dancing. This of course led me to Joe’s Golden Tides 12”, the label art of which was given over to impossibly beautiful sunset scenes, ones that were washed out into a sparkling tapestry of golden radiance. It was exactly what I was looking for and from then on, I’ve been in a near constant love affair with the producer’s work, which has led my spirit through so many wonderful musical environments, whether it’s the mystically inclined Bahia EP on Balearic Social, the Cloud Nine 12″ on Wonder Stories, or the increasingly esoteric remix work of Clandestino, Joe’s party crew and studio project run in conjunction with Iain Mac and Nick J. Smith, who have perfected a particularly tripped out style of jacking dancefloor ritualism.

But as great as those works are, the undoubted high point for me came with the release of Jacaranda Skies on Pleasure Unit, an EP that opened Joe’s sound up considerably and foreshadowed many of the adventurous environments he would travel to on his epic full length. Across the 12”, the listener was treated to a tropical house slammer, a futuristic acid jazz ritual, and one of my favorite tracks of recent memory, “The Lost Garden,” which melted the heart with timeless string descents while mallet instruments danced amidst sparkling synths, reverberating guitars, and island percussion exotica. After the release of Jacaranda Skies, I just knew Joe had to drop an album, one that would allow his increasingly adventurous and cinematic sonics to spread all the way out, unrestricted by space or time considerations. Thus I was completely blown away in 2019 as my fantasies came true in the form of Exotic Language, the producer’s magnum opus and a near perfect summary of the many colorful sonic universes he has visited across his career. It’s a true album experience, with well considered track sequencing taking the listener on a oceanic dream journey encompassing Italo deep house, Chicago club workouts, spiritual Afro-trance, ethereal pop-ambient, acid-laced downtempo, aqueous guitar mesmerism, amorphous dub, and so much more. And though mostly realized as a solo effort, including the fantastic artwork, Joe is joined by some crucial guests in the form of Private Agenda and his son Milo.

Joe Morris - Exotic Language (Shades of Sound, 2019) We open on “Firefly Beach,” with guitar swells creating aqueous ripples amidst cricket chirps and crashing waves...the vibe not unlike Onyricon’s “Sweet Dream.” Plucked harps flow through interstellar fluids and synthetic arps smear into seafoam as momentum builds, with hand drums and cymbal taps leading to a low-key climax of downbeat ocean grooving. Tambourines shake through layers of brass synthesis and basslines blur in and out of focus…all while crystalline tones descend amidst solar flare vibrato orchestrations. Next is “Perfume,” a collaboration with Private Agenda that, if released in the 90s, would have appeared on every single balearic comp, so closely does hit that essential seaside pop vibe, with touches of ethereal R&B married to oceanic chill-out in away strongly evoking the work of Afterlife, especially “Dub in Ya Mind (Beach Club Mix)” and the legendary “Speck of Gold.” Rhodes keys sparkle, big bottomed jazz breaks keep the body vibing, and dreampop guitars swim through ether as funk basslines slide through sexual smoke. Elsewhere, pianos constructed from ocean glass play melodies of dream melancholia alongside blazing string themes and laserbeam sequencing. And carrying the whole thing is a chilling vocal performance from Sean Phillips, his multi-layered and soulful hooks pushing the heart towards pure sunset euphoria. Our first taste of club fire comes via “A Dance With Jupiter,” which touches on Chicago house as well as the intense rave workouts of Clandestino. The track starts with loon calls, spectral rattles, mermaid hazes, and bongos popping over tubular basslines before we flash into a jacked out four-four house groove. Anxious cymbal work cuts up the air, electrified claps crack on the beat, and waves of angel synthesis wrap around the spirit while elsewhere, we breakdown into smacked kicks, brass heatwaves, and hand drum tribalisms. And as acid lines filter in from the void, the track snaps back into a tech house fever dream, with increasingly wild 303 patterns spraying neon liquids over anthemic chord riffs while 90s rave whistles are danced around by polychrome pan-pipe tracers.

At the start of “Echo Station,” cymbals flow through timelag generators, guitars flutter, and hand drums pop through mutating fx chains until we drop into a subsonic bass groove, with dubwise drum beats pulsing through a stoner paradise. Weirdo reggae riffs wiggle in each ear, with organs and trumpets mutating into insect psychedelia and metallic chords wavering through delay-soaked mirages. Spacey six-strings shimmer, pianos skip across new age sunbeams, and flutes execute LSD dances as the rhythms refuse to coalesce, creating that classical drug touch…a sort of fevered fantasy space where everything constantly shifts through humid layers of rainbow fog…the vibe not unlike the recent work of Androo. There’s a moment where the rhythms fade to gas amidst rimshot cloudforms while anthemic ocean wavefronts fade in, with touches of ambient prog glory shining through the deep blue hazes. Fantasy sequences climb playfully towards the clouds and synthesizers filter into neon magic as the dub riddims finally return, now with piano starlight sparkling amidst drunken brass fanfares. Next comes “Celestial Plantation,” wherein pads settle like a ghostly ocean fog, one aglow in prismatic hues of mother-of-pearl. Birds chirp, waves crash, and hand drums cascade through delays before blurring into a flutter of blutterfly wings…all while bass pulses give the abstracted groove a touch of tribal body magic. Melodic brass themes peel away to reveal sparkling gemstone electronics and electro cymbals hiss across the spectrum as the vibe grows ever more blissed out, with the spirit soaring on waves of coral colored euphoria. The heart overflows with balearic majesty and all bad vibrations are washed away by starlight electronics and glowing melodic crystals as Joe sets the body afloat via gaseous chill-out rhythmics. And best of all, there are these glorious moments where the spirit seems to rise above the clouds, with synths swelling and white noise hazes parting to reveal spiritual whistle tones and elven pan-pipes…a sort of new age paean to the spirits of the sea pulling the mind towards a beachside oasis, with palm trees blowing in a tropical wind while birds of paradise flit amongst the fronds.

In “Dream Clouds,” galactic vapors rattle amidst an angel choirs comprised of male cyborg breaths and glimmering fairy voices. A four-to-the-floor pulse is accented by acid bass jacking, hi-hats spread into ticking psychedelia, and clipped snares give the beat a faint disco pulse as we soar through Joe’s own paradisal imagining of Italo dream house....a euphoria-kissed fantasy world of lush dancefloor exotica…spread out, gaseous, and with billowing waves of ether stoking hallucinogenic visions. Filtering phasers infuse the aqueous pad motions, paranoid rimshots transform into kosmische energy tracers, and feedback marbles glisten in cold solar light as the snares and claps fire in that distinctly Clandestino way…the mind never allowed to settle while pushing ever closer towards hyperventilated delirium. Elsewhere, kicks pull away for a machine jazz jam, all rigid robot bopping before slamming back into fantasy dance magic, with blistering chords ringing out, white light pads bending into dolphin sirensong, and crystalline chords conversing with reverb-soaked cricket chirps. “Acid Safari” hits similar notes of freaky forest acid as “Mangrove Dawn” from Jacaranda Skies, though replacing that track’s ritualistic percussion flow with fat-bottomed rave breaks and a dubwise bass skank. The baggy and zoned out 90s-style beat science is accented by industrial tom-tom splatter, echo-soaked hand percussion, cave crack snares, and mechanized cymbal hiss, with the mix increasingly suffused by monkey howls and orchestral heatwaves. Sunbeam guitar percolations and syncopated synth riffs morph through delay layers until the vibe grows murky, resulting in a mystical environment of dispersed rhythms and machines that growl like jaguars. Cosmic acid lines diffuse in and hand drums carry the soul towards the heart of the jungle, with sunlight filtering through the dark tropical growth in the form of six-string echo dances. Blasting back into sunshine rave breaks and dub-kissed psychedelics, mutating acid lines roar at the edges of the mind and as we move towards the end, saloon-leaning Rhodes chords portend a cinematic western sunset while string synths melt towards an impossible horizon.

There’s some mystical magic happening within “Spirit Walker,” with Joe taking deep inspiration from Larry Heard as he crafts an ambient house epic. But that’s not all, for amidst the mermaid choir fantasias, harmonious whalesong hazes, and clouds of cyborg psychedelia, snare drums rattle into a free jazz fever dream, shakers keep a hypnotic pulse, and hand drums alight on adventures of Afro-beat intensity…the track coming together as some inspired amalgam of ecstatic future dance energy and ancient tribal magic. Animalistic acid lines growl down low and dream house piano chords blur through sunset colorations until eventually being replaced by pure trance vocal synthesis…these chopping waves of angel bliss pushing the mind towards transcendence. There’s a moment where the basslines pull away, leaving behind a gaseous world of spiritual jazz, wherein pianos decay while cinematic pads are surrounded by whooshing layers of aquatic ambiance. Then, as we slam back into Afro-house firedance, balafons and kalimbas weave in and out of the Goan voice layers…a mix of idiophonic rainfall and slow motion trance ecstasy that could float my spirit forever. Closer “Milo’s Theme” begins with morphing synth chords…like pianos obscured by alien foam. Hovering sea-spirits radiate aquamarine while dream sequences dance ear-to-ear and after a gaseous burst, we flow into an immersive groove of downtempo drumming and bongo tropicalia. Chopping vibrato hazes diffuse in and out of empty space, guitars sing spiritual songs of seaside blues, and gemstone melodies flow upwards as feedback tracers mimic sad seagull cries. Then, the rhythms disappear and the song gives over to a new age soundbath, one that celebrates the newness of life with joyous baby babbles (sourced from Joe’s son Milo) and bubbling strands of melted ocean glass. And after a climactic reprise of sunset groove majesty, with layered guitars, tremolo psychedelics, and squelching piano chords hovering over post-rock rhythmics and balearic beat expanses, we return again to a world of ambient sea-spray, abstracted echo weirdness, and gurgling infant breaths.

(images from my personal copy)

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thesunlounge · 4 years

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Reviews 340: Gene Tellem

No one makes a house beat crack quite like Gene Tellem and across three slabs of wax released on SOBO, Wolf Music Recordings, and her own Bienvenue imprint, the artist has laid down some of the most physical rhythm structures I’ve ever heard. Indeed, Tellem’s world is one of deep house drum ritualism laced through with touches of bebop jazz and supported by future funk basslines, subsonic pressure grooves, and spiritual contrabass vibe outs. And over her all-consuming beds of rhythm, Tellem layers fire-spitting cymbal patterns, soulful piano hooks, lazer haze synth swirls, dopamine vocal samples, braindance star clusters, percussive woodwind melodics, exotica hand percussion loops, slip-sliding dolphin tracers, space-age sequences, and so much else besides. Most recently, Tellem has been dropping heat through her home base La Rama Records and the label’s limited lathe cut series, which I’ve slowly been covering over the last few weeks (see my reviews of Max Segal here and Bunzinelli here). The newest such release is a radical 10” called 2 Nu Trax 4 Dance, which sees an A-side given over to broken beat house jams, jacking squarewave basslines, metalloid organ hazes, amphibi-bionic acid textures, sci-fi bleep sequences, and affirming spoken word snippets. Then on the flip, sleazy funk basslines fall over themselves, jazz house boogie beats move the body, and celestial orchestrations soar while G-funk leads get the hands swaying side-to-side.

As well, late last year Tellem released the Big Bill (Live Mix) b/w Tender as a (Flute Mix) 10” on La Rama Dubs Ltd, which captures portions of a live performance from MUTEK Montréal 2019. “Big Bill” originally appeared on Tellem’s untitled Wolf Music 12” and featured shaker grooves, ghostly dub chords, jazzy drum accents, airy house rhythmics, and wiggling bassline stabs that refused to lock in. In contrast, the live mix of “Big Bill” is a deep space dancefloor excursion with the hardest hitting drums I think I have ever heard leading the body towards a pulsating progressive bassline that is truly something to behold. The original’s morphing dubchord panoramas survive, but otherwise, the track is a complete transformation towards dark and minimal trance euphoria, with swirling hazes of galactic magic simulating the feeling of raving through a sea of starlight. Then on the B-side sits “Tender as a (Flute Mix),” which is a more subtle yet no less transformative rerub of “Tender as a Rhodes” from Tellem’s The Inner Dance EP. Much of the original track survives…the deep disco beat structures, jangling tambourines, funky clavinet lines, and liquid vocoder tapestries …though everything is re-ordered and re-arranged. But whereas the original features soulful diva hooks and barely there jazz-fusion Rhodes leads, this new mix instead sees Paul Horn-style flute meditations carried by infectious bubble funk basslines, heady fx fogs, and dubchord ether sequences.

Gene Tellem - Big Bill (Live Mix) b/w Tender as a (Flute Mix) (La Rama Dubs Ltd, 2019) In the live mix of “Big Bill,” the kick hits harder than seems possible, with four-four patterns caving in the chest while crushed claps interlock with popping jazz snares. Kinetic hat patterns sit beneath hissing cymbal fire and anthemic voices are stretched into a metallic ether as they pan slowly across the mix. Melancholic dub chords pulse in hues of dark purple and ethereal laser fogs rush across the sky while the track picks up understated currents of intensity…cymbals spitting louder, drums cracking harder…until all of the sudden, an incredible Italo-tinged bassline rushes into the mix, with acidic filtering kissing every single second of the groove. And from here, we are barreling down into the depths of the night via a cosmic dancefloor excursion, one so physical and subsuming that all conscious thought disappears, leaving only spiritual rave communion. It almost feels like progressive house in how propulsive and driving it is, with mutating panoramas of galactic magic swirling amidst aqueous gas clouds and soaring siren waves while ghostly piano chords stoking vibes of trance euphoria. Heady voices work against the groove…these babbling “uhs” and stoner mumbles sourced from the producer’s “Chipped” (appearing on The Inner Dance EP)…and dazzling snare rolls hit at just the right moment to stoke maximal groove mesmerism while elsewhere, the subsuming ether hazes recede…as if a black fog has been lifted from the mix. What remains are insectoid acid bass manias and punishing house rhythms working beneath wildly filtering whipcrack dub sequences (think Basic Channel) and drum accents that suck backwards in time. It sometimes even feels as if we are building back towards galactic dancefloor intensity, but instead, Tellem lets the storming groove slowly chill out beneath interstellar color clouds.

“Tender as a (Flute Mix)” begins with tribal drum loops sketching out paranoid patterns over throbbing four-to-the-floor kicks while a flute drifts into the stereo field, bringing airs of mystical temple magic. All the while, the beats pick up strength as crisp hi-hats, bouncing polyrhythms, and stuttering finger rolls add propulsive shape…like house infused with a touch of sexual disco energy. At once, everything cuts away to silence, and when the groove resumes, it is smothered in those familiar cyborg vocoder liquids from the original “Tender as a Rhodes” while tambourines jangle over the uptempo stutter rhythms and single note synth leads blow on echo breeze. Clavinet electronics bring touches of sci-fi funk, Chain Reaction-style dub panoramas swirl deep in the background ether, crunching chords intermingle with blasts of static, and as the flute re-enters to blow its spiritual reveries, an insanely infectious bassline throb works the body with offbeat pulses, lyrical slides, and warming subsonics. The result is compelling mixture of cosmic abstractions, descending 70s-style dancefloor hooks, and jacking house beats overflowing with atmospherics of disco and funk while everything else transmutes through wavering hazes and psychosonic fx fogs. The woodwinds, meanwhile, continually alight on closed eye paeans to the spirits of the sky…like a lone satyr playing against a wall of ritualistic club intensity, with touches of Paul Horn and, therefore, Mood Hut’s Disco Mantras shining through. There’s a moment where we reduce to kick drums, clapping, and pastoral jazz-flute serenades…the vibe sprightly and pushing towards fairy kingdom fusion, even as fiery cymbal patterns hiss into the mix to give the beat a sense of muscular motion. And moving towards the end, dub chords flash above a punishing kick drum march.

Gene Tellem - 2 Nu Trax 4 Dance (La Rama Dubs Ltd, 2020) The A-side is given over to broken beat house rhythms that slowly morph with a narcotic energy. Snares smack and tinny hats work through modulating patterns, a syrupy voice speaks soothing nothings into the mix, and entrancing melodies start moving back and forth…the vibe futuristic and meditative…almost as if e-piano chordscapes have been stretched into a gas cloud. White noise phaser wisps snake through the stereo field, IDM electronics spew forth from unseen vents, and reptilian acid tracers spectrally transform before disappearing as the aforementioned voice speaks “all I want you to do is simply submit / listen / get involved.” Tubular squarewave basslines jack in support and give the jam a kind of hallucinogenic stutter pulse and kosmische organ currents blow through mix…almost like a breeze suffused with microscopic crystal shimmer. Voices continue speaking over the hypnotizing break patterns while machine hats, cowbells, and stick clicks progressively filter towards cosmic electro weirdness and there are hints of DJ Sprinkles perhaps, especially in how the synthetic bass lines thump on and off the beat through anxious funk abstractions and deep house majesties. Briefly, things recede, only for that cyborg organ wind to blow back through the stereo field, this time carrying computronic tracer melodies and Kraftwerk-ian bleep leads that blend together while the mutating electro rhythmics. Towards the end, snares dance energetically and white noise wavefronts crash against some unseen shore until the track eventually recedes into closed eye mesmerism, with cowbells, stick clicks, and billowing e-piano riffs pushing the mind towards a hypnagogic trance state as the rhythms slowly reduce.

Jumping over to the B-side, hi-hats cut up the air and harsh rhythmic loops cycle underneath as a muscular kick pushes massive columns of air in the stereo field. The hats slowly filters as they open up and low slung boogie funk basslines work into the mix, though the energy is zany and futuristic, with notes colliding together and falling over themselves into an elastic rubber slop. Overhead, insectoid electronics squelch and claps crack as the rhythms continue working towards a sweat-soaked house jammer, replete with G-funk style vibrato leads wavering through the sky…the warming west coast vibrations stoking hands in the air euphoria as Tellem cranks to shuffle knob to get the body moving. Basslines dance nimbly and haunted choral hazes sweep through the stereo field…these billowing wavefronts of ambient dream magic that surround abstracted future funk synth solos, wherein twiddling leads and clustered runs approximate extra-terrestrial jazz fusion. Later, string synths soar amongst the clouds, with long ethereal currents progressively echo-soaked and reverb-manipulated into an ocean of interstellar light. Then, during a moment where the mix breaks down, basslines, snares, and swinging bebop accents float the body in a world of airy rhythmic perfection until eventually, the all-encompassing sonic gas clouds resume their panoramic swirl while the G-funk mirage leads and squiggling fusion solos interrmingle. And as we approach the end of the track, majestic string orchestrations sing songs of melancholy, cosmic electronics fire like laser beams, and amphibian acid funk electronics are danced around by Latin woodblock accents.

(images from my personal copies)

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