#39

Crabskull – Phlegm Rock #1 c90

I'm not 100% sure, but I think Phlegm Rock #1 is an earlier release than Jovian Black Opera. The sound is certainly different between the two. Here there's a much heavier emphasis on trip-hop and the tape feels more like an old dj mix tape than an album. The atmosphere is just as dark as Jovian Black Opera, but with a side of weirdness; lots of samples pertaining to cannibalism, illegal insect meat trade, and so on. Although this isn't really my scene, I found myself enjoying what Crabskull had to offer with Phlegm Rock #1.

Self released


Food Pyramid – Mango Surprise lp

Watch out, we've got a smörgåsbord of sound over here. Food Pyramid's got two full side's of wax and they're not about to let any of it go to waste with repetitive songs. Each tracks got it's own vibe ranging from kraut electronics to acid house to saxes & synths paired up. Mango Surprise is a really awesome release, with an experimental and playful nature. Not the thing for everyone, but if you're into this sort of music, it is a must have.

moon glyph


Invisible Circle/Hurricanes of Love – Split lp

I'm sooooooo digging this split. Invisible Circle kick things off with a few cosmic drone ragas filled with synths, beats, flutes, and chants. On the flip we get a handful of twangy, guitar fueled, psychedelic americana jams from Hurricanes of Love. All around rad stuff from both the groups. I think this is a tour only lp, so if you're on the west coast or in Canada, make sure to catch these guys live and snag a copy. Fuckin' awesome stuff here.

Self released


Mohawk Park – Ungeometric Circuit c30

Long, menacing drones mingle with shimmering electronics and distorted, repetitive percussion patterns, making Ungeometric Circuit an engrossing and mesmerizing listen. You want to trance out, but Mohawk Park's continually evolving sound just keeps pulling you back. You into electronic sounds? Then you're gonna be into this.

Scissor Tail Editions


Profanum Vulgaris/Wolfdoom – Split cd-r

Croatia's Profanum Vulgaris start this ep off with two tracks of depressive, melodic black metal. Both pieces are instrumentals and have the slightest doom undertone. The split gets wrapped up with a single track of raw, hateful black metal from Bosnia and Herzegovina's Wolfdoom. Solid ep from two kvlt black metal bands, so check it out.

Smell the Stench


Stardust – Des Letzten Novembers Trauersang c60

The dub job on this cassette is beyond fucked up. Mid song it switches between mono & stereo, the volume fluctuates, there's audio hiss, and so on. Normally this would merely annoy me, but it especially pisses me off here because A) I had to pay to have this shipped over from Deutschland and B) Stardust is fucking great DSBM & the dub quality ruins the tape. Yea, I know right, you wouldn't expect killer black metal from a band with a name like Stardust, but whatever. Anyhow, just 'cause the label fucked up on the album's production doesn't mean you should pass up Stardust; just check out cd version (which is hopefully better produced) of Des Letzten Novembers Trauersang instead.

Runestein Records

#38

Captain Three Leg/Cop Bar – split 3'' cd-r

Fuuuuuck yea. Captain Three Leg gets the split going with six tracks of grind infused with sludgy break downs and shouted, almost hardcore style vocals. There's a primitive, brutish vibe going on and I'm liking it. Cop Bar rounds out the split with six more tracks of abrasive, shredding grind. A tough call, but I think Cop Bar wins it by a hair. As if that wasn't all enough for you, the last track is all previous 12 tracks mixed together. Ridiculous. Now go get a copy.

Self released


Fains – s/t c30

A collection of 12 electronic compositions of bass, synth, and programmed percussion, I'm digging the laid back vibes Fains is serving up. It's easy for this style of music to get repetitive real fast, but elements of chiptune & glitch are laced through out the album and it manage to make each song stand apart from the others. Definitely worth checking out if you like laid-back, playful electronic stuff.

Scissor Tail Editions


Feberdröm – Att Födas I Dy För Att Gå Under I Lågor c40

Listening to Att Födas... causes me to have waves of vertigo. I don't know if you'd consider that to be a good thing or not, but I'm not too keen with it. Here's the thing, Feberdröm is a talented harsh drone unit that manages to blend strange psychedelic industrial drones and looped, militaristic percussion into a wall of sound, but I'm not a fan of harsh drone. It's good stuff, just not really my scene. If you're into power electronics and harsh drone, you'll prolly be going ape shit over this.

Järtecknet


Monde Céleste – Hazelscents cd-r

So, I can't really get into the whole blackgaze thing. You're playing post-black metal mixed with shoe gaze? No, that sounds fucking terrible. Being billed as such, I wasn't expecting much from Hazelscents, however I've found it to be fairly listenable. Monde Céleste isn't really a blackgaze band, but instead mixes elements of shoe gaze with noisy, distorted post-rock . It seems like that would be just as bad, but somehow it manages to come out quite nicely. This is an unusual album, suited for those into heterogeneous post-rock music.

Smell the Stench


Scab Smoker – s/t c90

I'm fucking loving this right here. A slab of grimy, lo-fi sludge, Scab Smoker will crush you. If you're a fan of the southern style sludge with rock and blues undertones, this isn't for you. These dudes are all about that heavy doom sound. Although you only get six songs, it feels more like a full length album than a demo or ep. Highly recommended.

Self released


Suburban Howl – Lady Hate c52

Sporting two side-long tracks of improvised psych, Lady Hate is Suburban Howl at their finest. Acoustic instrumental drones mingle with eastern sounding folk to create massive, churning funeral dirges. There's something a little dark and mysterious to the music here; it establishes quite a foreboding atmosphere. Oh yea, so recommended.

Full of Nothing


Warmouth – Bass cd-r

A collection of 21 short, bittersweet banjo melodies, I'm liking Bass more and more with each listen. Most of the tracks have a bit of a melancholy feel to them, but tracks like "corner store" and "papa bear's banjo diddy" are all sorts of upbeat, twangly, banjo pluckin' goodness. Rad little demo here, worth snagging if you're into bluegrass or folksy-pop stuff.

Self released