The Answer Is In The Beat

Unikove: Curious Creatures tape (Hollow Eyes, 2016)

March 4, 2017 at 11:47 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This one starts out sounding like it’s drifting up from a swamp, then it gets into sludgy heartbeats and grainy, disoriented textures. There aren’t many tracks but a bunch of them are kind of on the slower side, but not necessarily sounding like they’re slowed down or sluggish. There’s something steady and aware about them. Then the last track is more uptempo and clicky, and reminds me of a lot of Ryan Huber’s recent work. It ends just as unassumingly as it begins.

v/a: House, Disco, Boogie, And Other Oddities tape (Easy Bay, 2016)

March 4, 2017 at 11:22 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This came out a while ago and has already sold out two pressings, so I’m assuming people know about it already, but my copy’s been sitting on my desk for a while so I might as well get around to posting about it. It’s the first release on the Easy Bay label, and as the title indicates, it’s heavily inspired by ’80s funk, R&B, and dance music. Yes, there’s some 100% Silk-style deep house (but not lo-fi or outsider house), and some of it does get pretty out-there, such as the woozy, fuzzy synths on “Walk” by Ajukaja (a regular collaborator of Maria Minerva). Then there’s a borderline electo-swing track by Boogie Butter, and then on the second side it really starts to sound more like ’80s boogie instrumentals. There’s also an incredible Italo-influenced track by Cherushii (R.I.P.) which lives up to its title “Sunburst in My Sequencer”. Actually, listening again, it’s more house-y overall than I remember when I listened before. Anyway, you can still download it for free on Bandcamp.

Machine Girl megapost

February 26, 2017 at 4:51 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

I’ve been pretty late to the Machine Girl phenomenon, I hadn’t bothered to listen to their music until they toured with Five Star Hotel a few months ago. I guess I always confused it with the Enduser/Line 47 project of the same name from a while back. As soon as I looked up the newer Machine Girl on Discogs, I knew it was something I needed in my life (just based on “breakcore” and “juke” being used to describe the same releases). I guess Machine Girl used to be one guy but now it’s two, one playing Lightning Bolt-worthy drums and the other causing calamity with electronics and screaming. Total bursts of concentrated power. Machine Girl and Five Star Hotel released a split tape for this tour, and while it doesn’t contain the live drumming, it’s still filled with breaks, noise, and harsh feelings. All of the tracks originated as sketches from their previous tour, and most of them are named after places. “Ohio3” is the type of dose of hard jungle that I need in my life from time to time, and “Luciferian Live Version” is an intense mix of trance, breakcore, industrial, and the occult which never feels like it’s going in too many directions at once. “Portland2” starts out faster and more adrenaline-spiked and then slows down into a mutated version of Baltimore or Jersey club. Five Star’s side flows together perfectly, seeming like it could be the program for one of his live sets. It’s not quite his noisiest, harshest material, it’s a bit more trappy, but it slowly seems to become unwound and unhinged. There doesn’t seem to be any screaming on this one, so it’s not quite as cathartic or painful as Five Star can be, but it ends with a darkwave ballad called “For a Moment” which adds an icy new perspective to the Five Star Sound.
I bought some of Machine Girl’s older albums at the show as well. WLFGRL originally came out digitally in 2014, and I guess was the first Machine Girl album after a few EPs. This one seems to veer closer to ecstatic breakbeat hardcore rather than juke/footwork, which is entirely alright by me. Kind of reminds me of Evil Robot Ted. There’s super-fun kawaii rave (especially the delightful “Krystle”) that never gets unbearably cutesy, and there’s more darkside-leaning moments. “Ghost” is a really trippy, wavy blend of juke and house. “Hidden Power” on the second side is such an epic, awe-inspiring piece. All of this is just really exciting, energizing combinations of hard breaks, ecstatic synths, a few spikes of pure evil, and sick edits. I guess this album is pretty legendary by now. The tape version that I bought actually contains 3 tracks that aren’t on Bandcamp, adding some extra acid-sugar-rave to the album.
Gemini, from 2015 and released by Orange Milk, takes the sound of WLFRGL even further into the dream world. Some of the rave parts and breaks are harder, but then there’s woozier textures and melodies that seem like they’re being played by holograms. There’s maybe a little less of the evil twinges present in the previous album, but the last track is called “Machine Girl Vs. The Demons Of Her Psyche”, so there’s some sort of internal conflict at play here. I guess if Lone was into the breakcore scene some of his music might turn out like this. Anyway, it’s great, all Machine Girl is great, grab all of these tapes if you can.

Vectors 3 2LP (Power Vacuum, 2017)

February 25, 2017 at 3:58 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

The third release in Power Vacuum’s compilation series brings together 8 artists doing blasted-out, noisy analog techno, industrial and electro. The breakout star here is Pan Daijing, whose scud bomb “Very Uncomfortable, Please” is a true mind-obliterator and one of my favorite tracks of the year so far. Later in the release, Bintus remixes Daijing’s “Druid” into jittery, haunted techno with whipcrack beats and ghost-like wailing synths. Dr. Skime’s “RX7 Jams” is as bashed-out and lo-fi as its title suggest, basically sounding like several different sessions on a cheap drum machine smushed into one 8-minute track. Beau Wanzer’s track “Up Chuck’s” isn’t much more than a slippery uptempo beat which seems like it’s sweating. My longtime buddy Duran Duran Duran makes a surprise appearance with a hard, cracking electro track called “Drap Jam”. Not quite the same as his gonzo breakcore tracks from the early ’00s, but it’s still a major headrush. Another highlight is the trippy, sliced-and-shredded track by Opal Tapes’ Bleaching Agent.

Hydropark: untitled fifth tape (Life Like, 2016)

February 25, 2017 at 3:02 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

Hydropark released a series of excellent tapes leading up to their astounding full-length last year. This tape came out around the same time as the LP, but it seems to have came and went without a trace; it’s not even available online anywhere, as far as I can tell. This is a shame, as it adds more of an abrasive, electronic-heavy edge to their masterful Krautrock-y instrumental pop sound. The first side contains remixes by artists near and far, including Dykehouse, Lucky Dragons, Lymangrover, and Coyote Clean Up/Ice Cold Chrissy. It’s bass-heavy and blown out and crunchy, and it sounds fantastic. The first few mixes are a little breaky and hip-hop-leaning, kinda. Charles Trees’ mix tips toward cosmic drum’n’bass. Then it goes closer to trippy lo-fi house with David Shettler’s mix, and then two appropriately chilled (and chilling) dubby mixes from Chrissy under both his names. The second side seems to be some new jams from Hydropark, but they’re a little looser and synth-heavier than the album. “Evil Within” seems to be some sort of bubbly acid space rock with Black Sabbath riffs snuck in. Some tracks are more bashed-out garage-Kraut, and others like “What Do We Call You?” have the type of heavy, breakbeat-ish grooves of the mixes at the beginning of the first side. Super messy and casual, and sounds like it was recorded on an old, not-properly-functioning boombox, but this tape probably doesn’t exist outside of a few weirdos’ tape decks anyway. Maybe Fred still has some copies around?

Holy Motors: “Sleeprydr” b/w “Descending” 7″ (Wharf Cat, 2017)

February 25, 2017 at 1:38 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This is the second 7″ by an Estonian band doing the hazy, dreamy Mazzy Star thing, with the noir factor cranked up a bit higher. “Sleeprydr” is a lovely two-chord sleepwalker which sounds like it could be the theme to a modern spaghetti western film, or perhaps a really bummed-out surf movie. This mesmerizing song ends with a smoldering gutar solo, and the track’s six minutes float by quickly. “Descending” has more pounding drums and a bit more of a rainy day feel. The vocals aren’t over-expressive; they don’t need to be. This isn’t overtly ecstatic music, but it’s not a careless snooze either. It has its mood, and it expresses it well.

Staring Problem “Ghost” b/w “Lifelines” 7″ (Modern Tapes, 2016)

February 25, 2017 at 12:47 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This Chicago-based group were one of the biggest surprises for me at Barely Human Fest. I hadn’t heard of them at all, but they’ve been around for a while and have released a few tapes and 7″s already. Really hypnotic, dreamy post-punk which just hits the spot. This single came out a few months ago, and it’s two of their more uptempo tracks. Dark and driving but not super gloomy. Vocals are pretty distant and ghostly (fittingly enough), and the bass guitar is strong and upfront. Pretty straightforward but it does its thing really well. I think the B-side might be the winner here, but they’re both excellent. Listen/buy on Bandcamp.

Dregs One & Brycon: Invasion of the City Snatchers (Gurp City, 2016/Megakut Records, 2017)

February 25, 2017 at 12:32 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

Powerful, highly focused album from a San Franciscan hip-hop duo. They waste no time on this brief, potent album; every song and interlude offers profound insight on inner city struggles, racist cops, and people from the outside who could do something to help, but don’t. It’s straight-to-the-point and truthful, but it’s not imposingly serious or angry, or pointing fingers. It’s still hopeful (especially on tracks like “Say a Prayer”) and they still seem intent on creating songs that are easy to vibe to. Musically, it stays true to the golden era — jazzy loops, breakbeats, smooth flows, sharp lyrics. It’s refreshingly gritty and unpolished rather than commercial-sounding or trendy. Near the end of the album is “A San Franciscan Eulogy”, an a capella freestyle poem performed live on the streets, backed only by turbulent wind and clanking bottles. Listen now on Bandcamp.

Caracoa: New Middle Passage CDr (Inam Records, 2017)

February 18, 2017 at 4:17 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This is the first release from Caracoa, and while not much info is provided, it’s on Inam Records, so it most certainly involves Ryan Huber. It continues with his recent style of droning loops and clicky techno beats, sometimes approximating a punchier yet lo-fi version of the early Kompakt sound. Tracks such as the title cut seem to have some sparks shooting out from their crunchy, stamping rhythms. The tracks don’t generally seem to progress too much, or too far. They establish a pattern, add minor variations, and abruptly end after a few minutes. “Purge the Common” is a little slower and heavier than the rest, and there’s a few lighter tracks like “The Devil Runs Toward” and “Usurious”. “Oars in the Water” seems to be a distant bongo loop, although it’s hard to tell if the beats are actually repeating themselves, maybe there’s minor edits/alterations or it’s not a loop at all, but actually being played live. Free download at Bandcamp.

Guru Guru Groove Band: The Birth of Krautrock 1969 (Purple Pyramid, 2016)

February 9, 2017 at 8:34 pm | Posted in Reviews | Leave a comment

This album contains previously unheard early recordings by the band that became Guru Guru, recorded in the late ’60s and early ’70s. The presence of the word “groove” might make you think this is going to be some sort of mellow hippie jam session thing, but it couldn’t be further from that. This is harsher, noisier, and more chaotic than any other Krautrock you’ve ever heard, very much paving the way for… well, a lot of things. Industrial, Japanese psych, the Boredoms, This Heat, you name it. Of all the well-known bands commonly associated with Krautrock, only Faust seemed to reach the same levels of madness as this album. Rusty saxophones, never-ending echo chambers, so many amps plugged in that they short circuit the rest of the block. At some points, they screw around with tape effects, making it feel even more discombobulated. 7 is a killer drum solo from Mani Neumeier. The final track is a long jam called “Space Ship Live” that sounds pretty bootleg-y, and it doesn’t get quite as off the ground as its title suggests. For the most part, though, this album is utterly mind-melting.