TOP — 2018 by * svyazalamuzyka [-]

дайджест альбомов которые в течении года остаются на жестком диске моей компьютерры. как и всегда, о большинстве музыкантов тут написано, они имеют свои странички в этом блоге или внешние указания на свое творчество. если кому что нежно — слушайте, а если кому что нужно — пишите. временно или надолго, этот блог приостанавливает новые публикации, но как всегда, не прощается.

янВарь

растарелизы: Torch — Fire And Light (Evaburninflame Recordings International, 2018), Kienes Sound — Con la Musica a Otra Party (Positive Vibz Productions, 2018), Huge Andrew — Upful (Herbcell Production, 2018), Sly & Robbie and Dubmatix — Overdubbed (Echo Beach, 2018), Glen Sloley — The Return Of The Lonely Soldier (One Harmony Music, 2018), Zyanigh — Unartifitial (Jazhyah Music Group, 2018), Hollie Cook — Vessel of Love (Merge Records, 2018), Ras Michael & The Sons Of Negus — None A Jah Jah Children (VP Records, 2018)

Death and Vanilla — The Tenant (Fire Records, 2018) — первый релиз 2018 года, который появился в сети еще 2 декабря 2017 года. “The retro leaning Scandi duo fire up their Moogs and mellotrons, sonic archaeologists with a hauntological bent.. there is an alluring sexiness to their avant-Kraut Moog-pop excursions.” Uncut \ “Recalling the eerie, haunted ambience of Angelo Badalamenti/Julee Cruise’s Twin Peaks soundtrack, Stereolab/Broadcast’s experimental vision of ‘50s lounge muzak/exotica and French ‘60s pop, or the narcotic country-noir of Mazzy Star.” The Guardian \\ Following on from the deluxe reissue ‘Vampyr’ last year, comes Death And Vanilla’s unreleased live score of ‘The Tenant’ on limited edition magenta vinyl. \\ Originally scored by Philippe Sarde, this release sees Death And Vanilla reimagine the film’s soundtrack four decades on for a new audience. The haunting instrumental is a foreboding piece of dark and cinematic avant-garde music that’s alienated, lonely and melancholic. Moments of hallucination and delusion mirror the lead character Trelovsky.  Recorded in 2015 at Cinemascore festival in Spain alongside a two-hour performance and screening of psychological thriller ‘The Tenant’ (1976). With the band at their most minimal, the accomplished musicians once again bring the dark narrative to life with their expansive and ethereal noir sound. The recording features them as a trio — Marleen Nilsson (Farfisa Compact), Anders Hansson (Hagstrom Kent, Roland SP-404 and Technics SL-1200) and Magnus Bodin (Moog Prodigy and Musser M55). Directed by Polish filmmaker Roman Polanski and based on the novel Le Locataire by Roland Topor, ‘The Tenant’ is the finale in his acclaimed apartment triology which included “Repulsion” (1965) and “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968). или из врунета: «Испытывающий тягу к ретро-звуку шведский дуэт выпустил написанный еще в 2015 году альтернативный саундтрек к культовой картине Романа Полански 1976 года «Жилец» (это завершение трилогии «Отвращение» — «Ребенок Розмари»). Саундтрек был сыгран вживую на фестивале Cinemascore в Испании во время показа фильма. Таинственная и галлюциногенная атмосфера — конек дуэта. Виброфон, меллотрон и ретро-электроника на альбоме создают удивительную атмосферу, своей нуар-меланхоличностью напоминающие Tindersticks»

Dirtmusic — Bu Bir Ruya (Glitterbeat Records, 2018) — Dirtmusic return for their fifth album, a full-scale collaboration with Turkish-psych visionary Murat Ertel from Baba Zula. Recorded in Istanbul, the album navigates hypnotic rhythms, cinematic atmospheres and dark political realities. ‘We need music like this to stay sane’ – Murat Ertel. The striking figure of Murat Ertel is standing at the door of his home studio, a converted mechanic’s garage in a suburb of Istanbul. The Turkish capital is a tense and conflicted place these days, but Baba Zula’s leader and saz man is on fine form. Before him stand those current and former musical nomads, Chris Eckman and Hugo Race, guitars in hand. Dirtmusic are about to take on their latest, and perhaps most thrilling, form.

Calexico — The Thread That Keeps Us (ANTI- Records, 2018) —  на обратнойсторонелуны в обзоре №654 от 06.03.2018, написали так: «Негромкая и бесподобная пластинка с изрядным количеством непродолжительных песен, большинство из которых надолго осядут на дне бокалов искушённых дегустаторов. Calexico, группа под управлением барабанщика Джона Конвертино и вокалиста с гитарой Джои Бёрнса с новым альбомом, название которого идеально подходит большинству песен — сыгранным в доверительной такой манере общего настроения и единения, обычно возникающей в маленьком зале с настоящим или воображаемым очагом в дальнем углу. Или песням, взятым с собой в дорогу, даже в невеликое железнодорожное путешествие. Везде они будут согревать. Диск называется «The Thread That Keeps Us» — «Нить, которая нас соединяет» или, точнее, связывает и хранит. Если вы услышите в музыке Calexico нотки кумбии или латино в широком смысле, то не ошибётесь. Аризонский дуэт пропитан атмосферой и пограничными влияниями южных штатов, но «The Thread That Keeps Us» больше не об этом, а об отстранённой и зачастую чисто инструментальной медитации. Создавалось всё это в Северной Калифорнии в месте, прозванном музыкантами The Phantom Ship. Они начинают пластинку с довольной резкой вещицы «Конец света с тобой», но дальше складывается впечатление, что Конвертино и Бёрнс привечают в гостях поочерёдно Криса Экмана, группу Eagles периода «Desperado» и Марка Рибо. И все вместе они музицируют в доме заходящего солнца, пытаясь помирить глубочайшую меланхолию со штрихами оптимизма, рождёнными миражами улыбок из прошлого.»

Robert Deeble — Beloved (PledgeMusic, 2018) — I’m very excited to be making this 6th album. It documents an amazing period of my life. Beloved is the meaning of my daughter’s name and this is a memoire of becoming her father. The album features lush string arrangements and wonderful guest appearances including: Jen Wood (The Postal Service), Graig Markel, Tomo Nakayama (Grand Hallway), Josh Golden (Pedro the Lion/Jurado), Tony Green & Antoine Arvizu (from Earthside Down), and Kris Rosentrater to name a few.

Atrium Carceri, Cities Last Broadcast, God Body Disconnect — Miles to Midnight (Cryo Chamber, 2018) — на xorosho.com написали так: Atrium Carceri, Cities Last Broadcast и God Body Disconnect собрались вместе на этом туманном альбоме. «Miles to Midnight» — это Дарк-джаз альбом с нуаровым оттенком старых фильмов Дэвида Линча: отель в ловушке между двумя мирами и детектив с травмированным прошлым. Живые джазовые барабаны от God Body Disconnect и кинематографическая стена звука строят фундамент таинственного отеля. Cities Last Broadcast приносит призрачное звучание кассетных плёнок и застрявшие во времени мелодии. Atrium Carceri сдувает пыль со своего старого пианино и разрушает реальность с низкими басовыми шумами, приводя вас в тревожно-сомнабулическое состояние. Приглашение пришло в конверте с ароматом корицы. Прошло много лет с момента Вашего последнего визита в отель, прежде чем в заголовках об убийстве написали о его закрытии. Неужели он снова открыт после стольких лет?! Пузырек с таблетками позже… Ваша машина подъехала к старому зданию. Включился свет с трудом пробиваясь сквозь густой туман. Отдалённые голоса и музыка задержались, как дым, когда вы вошли в вестибюль.

Black Flower — Intermediate State (Sdban Ultra, 2018) — Musicians make albums. But in this case it’s different. The four tracks on this ten inch release were created in between. It’s an intermediate piece that sits between two albums, reflecting on a series of special moments and special evolutions of Black Flower. The inspiration came from Salvador Dali’s creative dreaming ritual. With a pair of scissors in his hand, he sat back, closed his eyes and slid into sleep. The moment his body and mind enter deep sleep, the scissors dropped and waked him up. Dali then started painting using the inspiration he gathered from his dreams. These paintings can be considered the result of an intermediate state between consciousness and subconsciousness, a zone between being awake and sleeping.

Samuel Rohrer / Ricardo Villalobos / Burnt Friedmann — Range Of Regularity Remixes (Arjunamusic, 2018) — The two EPs of Samuel Rohrer’s Range of Regularity album — the album was released in April 2017 — present four striking reinterpretations by production specialists Ricardo Villalobos, Max Loderbauer and Burnt Friedman, and are now re released as a Bundle (2×12“ and digital), including the original mix of Uncertain Grace as a bonus track.

First Aid Kit – Ruins (Columbia, 2018) — Ruins is the new and eagerly awaited album from Swedish sister duo First Aid Kit. This new album finds First Aid Kit as you’ve never heard them before: wounded and biting back hard. While Ruins follows the traditions of the classic folk rock sound that First Aid Kit revived via their breakthrough album Stay Gold (2014) and previous releases The Big Black And The Blue (2010) and The Lion’s Roar (2012), the difference is that this time they’ve lived, and the results are intense.

Belle and Sebastian – How to Solve Our Human Problems Part 2 EP (Matador, 2018) — “We’re the younger generation, we grew up fast,” Stuart Murdoch sang on Belle and Sebastian’s “Me and the Major,” back in 1996. At the time, everything about his band seemed to actively cultivate the impression of a group already wise beyond its years: the wistful black-and-white album covers that sought to preserve a certain bygone innocence in amber; the richly narrative songs that felt like pages ripped from a secondhand novella; the refined record-collector reference points (Nick Drake, Nico, Love) indicative of indie aesthetes who’d retired from the student-disco scene. But on Belle and Sebastian’s latest EP, Murdoch offers a rejoinder that suggests he grew up a bit too fast for his own liking: “It’s tough to become a grown-up,” he cautions; “put it off while you can.”

The Liminanas — Shadow People (The Limiñanas, 2018) — Few acts play so successfully with the juxtaposition of dark and light as France’s The Limiñanas. This married duo found its distinctive direction as early as the opening track on 2010’s auspiciously titled debut “The Darkside.” Five albums and seven years later, Shadow People continues the twosome’s lyrical and musical blueprint, heavy on the murky noir they have been perfecting on a batch of increasingly impressive if under the radar, especially in the States, works.

Fog Lake — Fog Lake / Euphoria Again (Out of Breath Records, split, 2018) — split record with euphoria again (euphoriaagain.bandcamp.com). tracks 1-4 written/produced by aaron powell. track 5-8 written/produced by johnny «JFK» klein (euphoriaagain.bandcamp.com)

The Yearning – Take Me All Over The World (Elefant Records, 2018) — The untiring Joe Moore is back with a new reference from THE YEARNING, in his endless search for beauty in music. In fact, some of the songs on this mini album were conceived as continuations of the songs included on the last album, “Evening Souvenirs”, after the adventures with Lia Pamina and THE PERFECT KISS.

TootArd — Laissez Passer (Glitterbeat Records, 2017) — Hasan Nakhleh, the lead singer and guitarist of TootArd, said in a recent interview that his band does not sing about politics because it’s “too complicated”. But politics are difficult to evade when you hail from Majdal Shams: a village in the Israeli-occupied Syrian region of Golan Heights. This is all too obvious in the title of TootArd’s international album, Laissez-Passer, released on Glitterbeat Records. Laissez-Passer refers to the travel documents that entitle Syrians in Golan to permanent residency in Israel, but also classify their nationality as “undefined”. At first glance then the album’s title invokes loss, insecurity and uncertainty.

Greg Jamie — Crazy Time (Orindal Records, 2018) — Семён Небаба написал: «Дезориентирующая красота тёмных романтиков. Грег Джейми почти в одиночку продолжает двигать апокалиптический фолк. А ведь ещё каких-то три года тому назад существовал некий круг представителей готик-кантри под негласным управлением Грега и Нью-Йоркской группы O’Death. Теперь Джейми перебрался на Родину в Потрленд, да и пластинка провалялась полтора года в сведённом формате и дальнейшее творческое развитие автора-исполнителя имеет только условные развития. Поэтому довольствуемся тому, что есть»

Ghost Music — I Was Hoping Youd Pass by Here (Arlen, 2018) — Matt Randall and Lee Hall have known each other for years, with the pair helping to steer 90s John Peel favourites Beatglider. Joined by fellow Southend based musicians Roy Thirlwall and Leighton Jennings, it’s fair to say that Ghost Music have a history. This weight of experience comes to the fore on their debut LP, with ‘I Was Hoping You’d Pass By Here’ deciding to wear its influences on its paisley pattern sleeve. So expect supremely dreamy guitar pop minimalism, with shades of Galaxie 500, K Records, and Flying Nun groups such as The Clean or even The Chills. A superb genre piece, where this debut album excels is in its presentation. The lucid songwriting aims to recover lost memories, delving in the band’s own adolescence – those superbly well chosen influences – to create shadows, the ‘ghost music’ of the band’s name.

Hampshire & Foat — The Honeybear (Athens of the North, 2018) — After the success of ‘Galaxies Like Grains of Sand’, Warren and Greg retreated back to the Isle of Wight to start work on long discussed concept album based on a fictional children’s book The Honey Bear. Each track a chapter of the book, hypnotic folk pieces mixed with ambient field recordings that Warren and Greg collected around the beaches, cliffs and gardens of the island. They brought everything together at home, organically forming this beautiful ambient folk tale during the island’s idyllic summer evenings. After finishing the initial mixes on the island they brought the tapes up to Scotland and overdubbed with Strings, Oboe and Flute. Whether your 5 or 50, the charm and beauty of The Honeybear is undeniable.

Arthur H — Amour Chien Fou (AllPoints, 2018) — Arthur H n’en mène pas large. Assis dans le canapé d’une loge, chapeau noir sur la tête et chemise blanche, il doit chanter dans quelques heures sur la mythique scène du studio 105 de la Maison de la radio, à Paris. Mais il a de la fièvre, grelotte et boit du thé lorsque nos questions lui laissent un moment de répit. Musicien et poète hors pair, ovni de la chanson française, il sort ce vendredi 26 janvier un album studio, le dixième déjà, intitulé « Amour chien fou».

Helado Negro – Island Universe Story Four (RVNG Intl., 2018) — Robert Carlos Lange reprises his balmy charms for RVNG Intl on Island Universe Story Four, arriving some four years since Story Three with a deliciously frayed and sun-kissed suite of wonky pop songs. Slotting perfectly into RVNG Intl’s swelling ranks alongside Breadwoman, Visible Cloaks, and Palmbomen II — to name but a few — Helado Negro is allowed to fully explore and indulge his idiosyncrasies inside, resulting an inimitably diverse set that takes in exquisite bubbles of pop soul (Come Be Me), beside more woozy psychedelic slices (ECHO 2), alien dancefloor grubbers (Mist Universe), and big-bootied beats that nod to his past as hip hop producer Boom & Birds (Glow You), and dwelling on the sweeter fringes of IDM/electronica (For A Time, Who Knows).

Kevin Morby & Waxahatchee — Farewell Transmission — The Dark Don’t Hide It (Dead Oceans, Singles, 2018) — Kevin Morby & Waxahatchee, coming off a stellar 2017 with the release of critically acclaimed records (City Music and Out In The Storm, respectively), team up for an homage to Jason Molina on this digital 7”, covering two Molina classics from the artist’s critical and commercial zenith: “Farewell Transmission” off his monumental work Magnolia Electric Co. and “The Dark Don’t Hide It” off the critically acclaimed What Comes After The Blues. Proceeds from this release will go to the charity Molina himself had history with, MusiCares

Nicolas Peyrac — Suffit que tu oses (Note A Bene, 2018) — Nicolas Peyrac le chanteur du mythique « So far away from LA » qui lui a valu un disque d’or et le prix de la chanson francaise décerné par la Sacem est de retour.]]>Après la sortie de son album de duos en 2013 avec en autre Serge Lama, Bénabar, Julie Zenatti, François Morel pour ne citer qu’eux et un livre de souvenirs, Nicolas Peyrac décide d’écrire un nouvel album réfléchi et avec une exigence absolue tout en gardant l’esprit et l’ambiance de ses maquettes faites maison.]]

Steve Kilbey & Martin Kennedy — Glow and Fade (Golden Robot Records, 2017) — The first sound you hear on Kilbey Kennedy’s fifth proper studio album, 2017’s empyrean Glow and Fade, is a hollow, amorphous sigh, a space wind filtered through what sounds like a digital phone with a woman’s voice buried deep beneath. Soon, the dry white noise is joined by more organic sounds: the fluorescent sparkle of a moon-like synth and the curious, glowing inquiries of a small alien guitar cooing and laser-writing its way through the dark atmosphere. Emerging from this cosmogonic reverie, a realization: “I used to think that darkness was a metaphor, with you beside me as I breathe.” It’s a haunting way to start an album and one that completely envelopes you, drawing you deep into its cosmic womb. Collaborators since 2009, the Church lead singer/songwriter Steve Kilbey and All India Radio instrumentalist Martin Kennedy have a wondrously low-key, high-reward musical partnership. Together, they maximize everything you love about their individual projects. For Kilbey, it offers a chance to stretch out into further spectral areas than with the Church; for Kennedy, who is primarily known for his instrumental chillwave electronica, it means he has a charismatic singer who can lend further pathos and gravitas, not to mention pop lyricism, to his already evocative soundscapes. All of this is brought to bear on Glow and Fade, the duo’s most potently realized work to date.

Nicklas Sørensen – Solo 2 (El Paraiso Records, 2018) — на E:\music\krautrock написали так: Второй сольный альбом гитариста датской команды Papir. Добавив к своему саунду бразильской босса-новы, элементов нью-эйджа и космической электроники, Nicklas Sørensen удивляет слушателя новыми яркими красками и оттенками звукового полотна.

Rhye — Blood (Loma Vista Recordings, 2018) — is mood music. Los Angeles (by way of Toronto) producer, musician and vocalist Mike Milosh augers Blood in an orgy of analogue keys, sensual strings, plaintive percussion and a cooing contralto. Much of the mystery behind the movement that was 2013’s Woman has lifted; in its place, contentment. Initially a collaboration between Milosh and Danish producer Robin Hannibal, the latter was contractually obligated elsewhere, leaving Milosh to tour without him and further imprint Rhye as his own brainchild in the process. The time between albums was due to a mix of personal and label-related issues — a divorce, a new relationship and new label situation later, Rhye has returned with a near-perfect record.

феВраль

растадабы февраля: Delly Ranx — Weed Market (Pure Music Productions, 2018), Weeding Dub — Another Night Another Day (Wise & Dubwise recordings, 2018), NakSooKhaw — Optimise (R’pur Prod et Urban Conception, 2018), Horace Andy — Mek It Bun (Deluxe Edition) (Tabou 1, 2018), Sugardaddy — Judgement Day (iGrooveNext, 2018), Micah Shemaiah — Roots I Vision (Evidence Music, 2018), Coldcut — Make Up Your Mind (Ahead Of Our Time, 2018), Mister Nils — Tourné vers l’avenir (Khanti records, 2018),

Antoine Elie — Antoine Elie EP (Polydor, 2018) — De la chanson au hip-hop, ses paroles content une réalité brute.

The XX — Remixes (Young Turks, Compilation, 2018) — The XX

Pigalle — Ballade en mélancolie (L’Autre Distribution, 2018) — Pigalle avec François Hadji-Lazaro revient dans les bacs et sur les routes. Pigalle, dans les rayons et les salles de concert de 1985 à 1999, était réapparu (après trois albums solos de FHL) en 2008, avec Neuf et occasion , puis en 2010 Des espoirs avec deux tournées conséquentes de plus de 100 dates chacune.

La Goutte — Advienne que pourra (L’Autre Distribution, 2018) — Flamenco du port d Amsterdam, tango des Flandres…quelque part entre la musique de chambre et le rock de garage, La Goutte marche hors des sentiers battus et récolte les fruits que sa poésie et son magnétisme ont faits mûrir. En s énervant contre le monde à force de trop vouloir l aimer , c est une douce révolte, un grand parfum de liberté que la bande vous invite à partager. S il y a des poètes que le temps tarit, des musiciens que la trentaine assèche, les membres de La Goutte ne sont pas de ceux-là.

Monarch Mtn — I Woke At The Station (Fox Food, 2018) — It’s a pitch so overused that it should be cast in bronze and placed on a mantelpiece. I had the opportunity to go to an isolated cabin in the woods and record an album. I didn’t shave and I packed lots of flannel, all the stuff you would expect from a folk singer in 2017. But despite the isolation and lovely autumnal setting, I knew from the beginning that I wanted to make a city album. An album for driving down the highway in the middle of the night under a sodium vapor glow. A collection full of distinct characters, overflowing with hardship and longing. They wake up, they go to work, they fall apart under the pressure, they dream and dream. The question I really wanted to ask was this: Is there dignity in desperation?

Tal National — Tantabara (FatCat Records, 2018) — Tal National don’t waste time trying to convince you. The opening title track roars out of the speakers with all the ferocity of a Black Flag joint, complete with a rapid fire a cappella declaration right off the top. The energy rarely lets up after that. It’s an aggressive blend of prog — precise, raw guitar leads and over-the-top waves of polyrhythms just daring you to sit still. The stoner funk of Fela and the laid-back swaying of Hi Life are far from this pogo. Tal National are still a big band, in the tradition of African popular music. The tribe create and travel as one community, but this type of lineup, combined with a rock energy and sound, ups the ante for action that far surpasses the traditional power already existing in large groove outfits. The last section of “Belles Reines” escalates into a a harmelodic, uptempo head-banger worthy of Prince’s “Lovesexy” on meth. The temperature cools on “Duniya,” but the precision and energy just seem to lurk underneath, exploding into an African Metallica guitar blast on “Akokas.” This release has the same charge as the early entries of Ali Hassan Kuban or Konono No. 1, both who set the bar for raw energy. The colonial demarcations of Africa have a lot to answer for, but this fusing of Songhai, Fulani, Hausa and Tuareg peoples has created gifts worth having. This is amazing music and the thought that will keep repeating is “When can I see them live?”

Holy Motors – Slow Sundown (Wharf Cat Records, 2018) — эстонский шу-слоукор, дебют.

The Dead Brothers – Angst (Voodoo Rhythm Records, 2018) — This is the 7th album of the Dead Brothers for Voodoo Rhythm Records and we are on the brink and at the end of the world. The disaster is imminent, fear prevails everywhere. Under these conditions, the Dead Brothers pilgrimage to the Vosges Mountains together with Rodolphe Burger to mix medieval yodelling sounds with the absurdity of Serge Gainsbourg. With texts by the late Robert Walser and underground filmmaker Marcus Aurelius Littler, they tell in fear 13 stories of joy and misery and of the difficulty of being human in these troubled times. Hundreds of violin and tuba notes, banjo and Wurlitzer organs, calypso and voodoo choirs play together on this new masterpiece by the legendary Dead Brothers. Who would have thought that the puzzle of European folklore that the Dead Brothers put back together would take this darker path. Rock’n’Roll, which was hidden in the Alps. Mixed by none other than: Bertrand Siffert (The Young Gods, Yello)

Wolf Müller & Niklas Wandt – Instrumentalmusik Von Der Mitte Der World (Growing Bin Records, 2018) — в собществе Feed Your Head написали: Свежая и яркая коллаборация двух германских музыкантов, для которых понятия “барабаны и перкуссия” не просто слова – оба питают явную страсть к различным экзотическим видам этих музыкальных инструментов. Первый – Jan Schulte, выступивший здесь под своим экспериментальным альтер-эго Wolf Müller – повелитель варганов и тропических перкуссий, второй — Niklas Wandt – опытный берлинский барабанщик, широко известный в узких кругах немецкого экспериментального и фри-джаза. Это первая совместная работа ребят, переросшая в полноценный альбом. Альбом, который мы безусловно будем слушать весь год.

Patrick Ruffino – Agoo (Music Development Company, 2018) — Né dans les années 70 au Bénin, Patrick Ruffino est bassiste, chanteur, auteur-compositeur, arrangeur et multi instrumentiste. Il a grandi dans la capitale la plus funky d’Afrique, Cotonou. Issu d’une famille multiculturelle, un père béninois, une mère burkinabé mais aussi une grand-mère ghanéenne, il baigne très tôt dans une atmosphère propice au croisement entre toutes les musiques africaines. Sa grande curiosité et sa soif d’apprendre vont lui permettre également de découvrir le jazz, le funk, la soul et les musiques afro-cubaines. Dès 10 ans il commence à chanter puis agrippe la basse du bassiste de la chorale pour ne plus la lâcher.

Belle and Sebastian – How to Solve Our Human Problems Part 3 EP (Matador, 2018) — Part three of Belle & Sebastian‘s How to Solve Our Human Problems series is the most assured and enjoyable of the bunch. It may not contain the best songs they’ve ever produced, but it does provide an insight into the current state of the band, one that’s still brimming with creativity and willing to experiment outside of their regular comfort zone. It goes some way to encapsulating the ethos of the project by giving us a snapshot of a group in transit, comfortable in their groove, but willing to explore and adapt to the changing musical landscape.

Борис Гребенщиков — Время N (Self-Released, 2018) — из врунета: «альбом группы «Аквариум» 2018 года. По решению коллектива пластинка выпускается под маркой БГ. По словам автора, диск продолжает «мрачную» тематику, начатую на альбоме «Архангельск» и получившую продолжение в «Соли». Официальная информация об альбоме «Время N» появилась 18 января 2018 года. Борис Гребенщиков кратко рассказал о нем в авторской радиопередаче «Аэростат». 20 января 2018 года магистры Северо-Западной Ложи Великих Дворников и Беспечных Рыбаков смогли услышать первый сингл с пластинки – песню «Темный, как ночь». Выпуск номерного альбома под маркой «БГ» Борис Борисович объяснил следующим образом: Поскольку альбом этот, да и вся трилогия («Архангельск», «Соль», «Время N») – путешествие из тёмного края к свету и мрачность, особенно в первой половине, зашкаливает, то нами было принято решение выпустить этот альбом под псевдонимом БГ. Так что когда вы видите буквы БГ, то просто имейте в виду, что БГ это – псевдоним Аквариума.»

Tunnelvisions – Midnight Voyage (Remixed) [Atomnation, AMT055, 2018] — очередная порция ремиксов из альбома тоннельнозрячих (Raynor de Groot and Emiel van den Dungen). Genre: Indie Dance / Nu Disco Label: Atomnation

Robert Earl Thomas – Another Age (No Other Music, 2018) — из врунета: «дебютный сольный студийник Роберта Эрла Томаса (Rоbеrt Еаrl Тhоmаs), американского музыканта, основателя и гитариста бруклинской инди-рок-группы Widоwsреаk, с которой он записал 4 ярких альбома. Widоwsреаk сразу были тепло восприняты критиками, их сингл был использован в качестве саундтрека к одной из серий т/с «Американская история ужасов». Сольный дебют — это попытка выйти за рамки Widоwsреаk, создать что-то новое — «это альбом о маленьких моментах жизни с большими эмоциональными следами».»

Ryuichi Sakamoto – Async Remodels (Commmons, 2018) — из врунета: «После выпуска успешного «электронного шедевра», альбома «Аsуnс» Рюичи Сакамото в прошлом году, лейбл Мilаn с гордостью представляет альбом ремиксов и реворков от таких таких известных проектов, как Jоhаnn Jоhаnnssоn, Fеnnеsz, Аrса, S U R V I V Е и других. Данный альбом — настоящий взгляд со стороны, переосмысление, и никто из поклонников Сакамото не может позволить себе его пропустить. Рюичи Сакамото (родился 17 января 1952, спец. район Накано, Токио, Япония) — знаменитый японский музыкант, композитор, актер и продюсер. Лауреат премий «Оскар», «Грэмми» и ВАFТА, двукратный лауреат премии «Золотой глобус». Известен по музыке к фильмам Бернардо Бертолуччи «Последний император», «Под покровом небес» и «Маленький Будда». Рюичи Сакамото окончил Токийский национальный университет искусств и музыки. Сделал карьеру, переходя музыкальные и технологические границы. Сакамото экспериментировал и добился успеха во многих музыкальных стилях, сделав себе имя в популярной, оркестровой и киномузыке. Проявил себя как аранжировщик, композитор, студийный музыкант. Сотрудничал с таким музыкантами, как Дэвид Боуи, Игги Поп, Дэвид Сильвиан, Дэвид Бирн, Кристиан Фэнеш, Кетано Велозо и многими другими.» или так » С альбомами ремиксов дела обстоят примерно так же, как и с теми самыми конфетами из эпопеи про одного мальчика-волшебника: получи пригоршню, и, в зависимости от везения, ощути во рту вкус старого башмака или же гейзер доселе не знакомых божественных ощущений. В случае альбома Рюити Сакамото, базовая планка настолько высока, что она просто не могла не привлечь достойнейших представителей жанра. И так и произошло: не упав в грязь лицом, «async remodels» отдает дань почтения отцу-основателю японской электроники. В чем-то это похоже на оскаровскую «награду за заслуги» — на поверхности альбом сияет вдохновением и лоском высшего общества, однако временами ему недостает сырости и глубины эмоций оригинала. К лучшим моментам пластинки можно отнести работы бывших коллабораторов Сакамото и подающих надежды новичков: это смягченная призрачными синтами колючая строгость трека Alva Noto «desintegration» и не находящий выхода беззаветный романтизм версии «solari» от Fennesz. Ну а стоит ли пробовать остальные конфеты из этой пестрой коробки – вам придется решать на свой страх и риск.»

Wild Child – Expectations (Dualtone Music Group, Inc., 2018) — Austin indie-pop outfit Wild Child have gained quite a bit of traction since their 2011 debut Pillowtalk, and with their new album Expectations, they’re bound to go above and beyond the standard of energetic and emotive music they’ve set over the past six years. For their fourth LP, the band took the unconventional route: Rather than staying put in one place and working with a single producer, they traveled far and wide when developing the tracks of their album, collaborating with myriad well-known producers to create an eclectic medley of songs that boast the far-reaching limits of what the band is able to mold in style and sound. In turn, Expectations is wildly diverse, yet achieves cohesion through the talents of each of Wild Child’s seven members. Their journey took them as far as Tromsø, Norway to work with Chris Walla (formerly of Death Cab for Cutie) and as close to home as Wimberley, Texas, where vocalist Kelsey Wilson grew up, to be in cahoots with Delta Spirit’s Matthew Logan Vasquez. In between, they’ve ventured to Philadelphia to conspire with Dr. Dog’s Scott McMicken, and also joined forces with Shakey Graves collaborator Chris Boosahda, indie-pop extraordinaire Max Frost and Grammy Award-winning producer Adrian Quesada. Opening with the ukulele charm of “Alex” and soft sway to “Eggshells,” the album begins in familiar territory before Wilson takes control with the punchy, Sara Bareilles-styled “Back & Forth.” She emerges as the local septet’s driving force behind a vocal range that stretches alongside her maturing explorations of heartbreak and revival. Her latter-half highlight “Sinking Ship” drifts lightly with a Joni Mitchell touch against the torching “My Town,” even as “The One” and “Goodbye Goodnight” duet coyly. Without sacrificing Wild Child’s signature pop swell, Expectations emerges soulful and serious.  — austinchronicle.com

Sarah Blasko – Depth of Field (EMI, 2018) — Is Sarah Blasko going through deep trauma, or a massive break-up? Many of the songs on her new album, Depth of Field, seem to indicate so. In some places they call to mind Donna Summer; in others they are reminiscent of Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s troubling (and sublime) Murder on the Dancefloor. Her music is shot through with desire, a longing that goes beyond the usual template of imagined and sometimes real slights. Calling a song “Never Let Me Go” may well not be the most original idea around, but Blasko invests the phrase with a degree of vulnerability and hope that goes far beyond the norm.

GusGus — Liеs Аrе Моrе Flехiblе (Oroom, 2018) — из врунета: «Популярная исландская электронная группа 90’х и 2000’х годов GusGus из Рейкьявика вернулась с новым студийным альбомом «Liеs Аrе Моrе Flехiblе», выпущенным 23 февраля 2018 года и ставшим десятым в их дискографии. В течение месяца альбом можно будет приобрести только на их музыкальных шоу, а в марте он станет доступен на виниловых пластинках и СD-дисках. За последние годы в проект были внесены значительные изменения. В настоящее время GusGus представляет собой группу из двух человек, дуэт Биргира Сораринссона и Даниеля Агуста Харальдсона. GusGus отправится в тур по Европе в апреле и мае. / Группа была создана в 1995 году режиссёрами-клипмейкерами Сигюрдюр Кьяртанссоном и Стефауном Аурни Торгейрссоном. В состав, помимо них, вошли вокалисты Магнус Йоунсон, Даниель Агуст Харальдсон и Хабдис Хюльд Трастардоттир, а также менеджер коллектива Бальдюр Стефаунссон. Несколько позже присоединились известные в Рейкьявике диджеи Херб Леговитц и Бигги Тоураринссон. Через два года после создания группы был записан альбом «Роlуdistоrtiоn». Электронно-танцевальное звучание музыки сочетало элементы техно, фанка, хип-хопа, хауса. Помимо сольных выступлений, Gus Gus выступали в концертных турах с британскими коллективами Соrnеrshор и Lаmb.»

Hailu Mergia (ኃይሉ መርጊያ) ‎– Lala Belu (Awesome Tapes From Africa, 2018) — Hailu Mergia — Keyboards, Accordion, Melodica Tony Buck — Drums Mike Majkowski — Upright Bass, Produced by Hailu Mergia, Recorded at EMS4, London, UK 
Additional recording by Javon Gant, Cue Recording Studios, Falls Church, VA, Cover image drawn live on iPad by Jenny Soep, Stockholm 2013. At one level it’s the record of a traditional jazz trio, with drummer Tony Buck and bassist Mike Majkowski backing Mergia’s keyboards, and at times Mergia’s swirling Hammond organ shows his debt to the jazz-funk of Jimmy Smith. Yet Mergia’s approach is often unorthodox. His melodies, snaking up and down the pentatonic scales of Ethio-jazz, are hypnotic and mysterious. His keyboards pit organ against electric piano, and switch to an accordion that shifts between the woozy opener Tizita, to the shrillness of Addis Nat, which arrives in a blitz of hard drumming. Exuberant or contemplative – the closing Yefikir Engurguro is solo piano – it’s a thrilling ride.

Jamison Isaak (Teen Daze) — EP1 (FLORA, 2018) — The first release from Jamison Isaak (Teen Daze), under his own name. Recorded between his home studio and Protection Island Recording (with Jonathan Anderson) in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, this EP navigates through four serene piano pieces. Anderson, who collaborated with Isaak on Themes For Dying Earth (Anew), not only provided the blissful pedal steel parts you hear, but also engineered a good portion of the record over one grey, rainy afternoon. Music intended for relaxation purposes.

Tor Lundvall — A Dark Place (Dais Records, 2018) — American painter and musician Tor Lundvall presents a time-stopping new album on NYC’s Dais Records. Just as the sublime lead single Quiet Rooms promised, the full album is a beautifully measured dream sequence of ambient electronics, finding the artist tentatively balancing pastoral atmospheric themes with more introspective, cold and lonely feels, weaving sparingly used vocals into somnambulant scenes fringed with a sort of gothic air of decadence/despair. It reminds us of tonnes of stuff ranging from Signer to Deepchord’s Coldest Season thru to Closer Musik, HTRK, Hood or Alessandro Cortini — basically really lovely ambient electronica with poised, etheric vocals. или изврунета: «Dais Records недавно представил новый тёмный поп-шедевр от художника-авангардиста и композитора Тора Люндвалля. Музыкант еще с начала века экспериментирует с эмбиентом, но после присоединения к ростеру Dais вышел на по-настоящему международный уровень, а его музыка стала разносторонней. «A Dark Place» — холодный эмбиентный звук, спокойствие которого нарушают плавная ритм-секция и меланхоличный вокал. Тор вернулся к вокальным партиям после первого опыта в 2009-м с альбомом «Sleeping and Hiding». Вернулся, чтобы рефлексировать, размышлять о потустороннем и безвозвратном, поделиться ощущением легкой, но неизбежной грусти. «Произведения Тора Люндвалла — всеохватывающая музыка, в сочетании с его картинами создающая мир, в котором можно легко исчезнуть» — так комментирует лейбл пластинку в официальном пресс-релизе». (:\music\art pop)

Taylor Deupree ‎– Fallen (Spekk, 2018) — «When I sit down to write an album I will usually come up with a technical and compositional concept to help focus my writing. Whether it is a restricted palette of instruments or a specific way of approaching the writing, this practice has helped me explore different processes and helps keep the album focused. My previous album Somi was such an album. Hyper-focused and very deliberate in creation. However, there are times where I want to be more relaxed and just write what comes freely. In a way Fallen is such an album. When I began writing it the only strong rule I put on myself is that it would be my first album centered around the piano as the main instrument.»

Imarhan – Temet (City Slang, 2018) — изврунета: «За последние пару лет гипнотическое звучание туарегской гитары стало одним из ключевых трендов африканской музыки. Жрецы психоделического рока от Мали до Нигера совмещают в своих ритуальных песнопениях элементы традиционной музыки берберов и блюза, на выходе получая нечто среднее между драйвовостью Джими Хендрикса и спиритуализмом Умм Кульсум. И так как эта смесь по своим горючим свойствам гораздо превосходит коктейль Молотова, то именно её и взяла на вооружение алжирская группа Imarhan в своем одноименном дебютном альбоме 2016 года. Работая над второй студийной пластинкой, коллектив сделал шаг дальше: рок-н-ролльная основа здесь существенно разбавлена фанковыми мотивами. Как результат, музыка теперь подходит не для уединенной медитации, а скорее для погружения в массовое бессознательное на танцполе. Однако скоростные боевики с пылающими гитарами и экзальтированным вокализом «Ehad wa dagh» и «Tumast», по уровню эпичности и накала страстей конкурирующие с лучшими хитами Болливуда, в альбоме гармонично переплетаются с акустическими островками умиротворения в треках наподобие «Zinizjumegh», так что обиженным не уйдёт никто.»

Mildlife ‎– Phase (Research Records, 2018) — Narrowing down Mildlife’s style into a genre is almost impossible, as they bond over the desire to push musical boundaries. No strangers to the Melbourne band scene, the four old friends have been drawing crowds through an epic journey at intimate venues and festivals for the best part of the past 4 years. Developing a tight live show bolstered by wild improvisation, the group have left punters itching for their first full length studio album Phase that mines jazz, psych and disco for its irresistible groove. Capturing the spirit of the band, the 6 track debut LP of kaleidoscope jams is the interplanetary path between jazz, funk and disco with the perfect amalgamation of cosmic electronics and soulful acoustic instrumentation.

GiedRé — GiedRé est les gens (Le Rat des Villes, 2018) — Après avoir sillonné les routes pour sa Tournante afin de présenter son dernier album, » Lalala «, GiedRé revient avec 14 nouveaux titres, qui annoncent le nouvel album à paraître en février prochain, et aussi le nouveau spectacle : GiedRé Est Les Gens. Accompagnée de Cédric Perras, co-compositeur de l’album et désormais compagnon de route en tournée, GiedRé pointe la souffrance des petits, des sans-grades, mais sans jamais verser dans l’indignation consensuelle. GiedRé aborde les vrais sujets (la souffrance, la solitude, la maladie…) avec une délicatesse rigolarde, une potacherie de dentellière et un refus de tout compromis. Mais tout ceci au sens premier du terme : GiedRé compatit. Et cette compassion abrasive ne se drape d’aucun tabou, sinon la générosité…

Johnny Dowd – Twinkle, Twinkle (Mother Jinx Records, 2018) — “Reverence be damned. . . . Twinkle, Twinkle finds the prolific miscreant sifting through some of the keystones of American blues, folk, and jazz and giving them a radical makeover. . . . few manage to recycle existing musical forms quite like him.” — Rob Hughes (Americana album of the month, February 2018 Uncut)

мАрт

мартовские растадаб-релизы: Westland — Westland (Inmylife Production, 2018), Monkey Marc — Yaad N Abraad Riddim (Digikillaz, 2018), Westland — Westland II (Inmylife Production, 2018), Gentleman — Gentleman and Friends (Al.ta.fa.an Records, 2018), VA — Civil Rights Riddim (Giddimani Records, 2018), Vibronics — Woman on a Mission (SCOOPS Records, 2018), VA — Africa Iron Gate Showcase (Dub Store Records, 2018), King Tubby — Concrete Jungle Dub (Dub Store Records, 2018), Iba Mahr — Get Up and Show (Oneness Records, 2018), Groundation — Each One Teach One (Remixed & Remastered) (HTS Roots Creations, 2018), Groundation — Each One Dub One (Baco Records, 2018), Dubheart & Fullness — Cool Under Pressure (Karnatone Records, 2018), The Prophecy — Where We Belong (ROW Factory, 2018), Jah Cure — Armagideon (Diwali Records, 2018)

Brazzaville — Dream Sea (David Arthur Brown, 2018) — очередной альбом Дэвида, о котором он сказал так: «Этот альбом является особенным для нас. Он посвящён Джо Фрэнку (Joe Frank), который сыграл очень важную роль в моей жизни, а также был одним из вдохновителей группы Brazzaville. И новый альбом группы начался с песни Dream Sea, которая основана на рассказе Джо Фрэнка». Recorded at Regas 30 (Barcelona), the Fellini Cloud (LA) and Atlantic Recordings (Brooklyn). Mixed by Nic Hard and Diko Shoturma. Mastered by Dave McNair. All songs written by David Arthur Brown.

Suuns – Felt (Secretly Canadian, 2018) — из врунета: «новый альбом канадского квартета Suuns из Монреаля, исполняющего причудливую психоделическую музыку, таинственную и экспериментальную. «Арт-ро­ко­вые текстуры, чёткий краутовый ритм, заимствованный у Suiсi­dе или Jоу Divi­siоn, параноидальный вокал фронт­мена Бена Шеми, который то поет, то издаёт звуки, плохие на предсмертную агонию раненного животного.» Состав: Бен Шеми (Веn Shеmiе, вокал, гитара), Лиам О’Нил (Liаm О’Nеill, ударные), Макс Генри (Мах Неnrу, клавишные, бас) и Джозеф Йармуш (Jоsерh Yаrmush, бас, гитара). Группа славится умением держать аудиторию в напряжении во время их живых выступлений.»

David Byrne – American Utopia (Nonesuch, 2018) — American Utopia, due out March 9th through Nonesuch Records, marks Byrne’s first solo album since 2004’s Grown Backwards. Since then, the Talking Heads mastermind has released album-length collaborations with Brian Eno, St. Vincent and Fatboy Slim. For the LP, Byrne worked with a fleet of in-demand producers, including Eno, Rodaidh McDonald, Daniel Lopatin (Oneohtrix Point Never), Jack Pinate, Jam City and Thomas Bartlett (Doveman). The album was recorded in Byrne’s home studio in New York City as well as studios in New York and London. “This album is indirectly about those aspirational impulses. Sometimes to describe is to reveal, to see other possibilities. To ask a question is to begin the process of looking for an answer. To be descriptive is also to be prescriptive, in a way. The act of asking is a big step,” Byrne continued. “The songs are sincere—the title is not ironic. The title refers not to a specific utopia, but rather to our longing, frustration, aspirations, fears, and hopes regarding what could be possible, what else is possible. The description, the discontent and the desire—I have a feeling that is what these songs touch on.” или изврунета: ««Дэвид Бирн представляет свой новый студийный альбом, получивший название «Аmеriсаn Utорiа». Это его первая студийная пластинка с 2004 года. / Экс-лидер знаменитой группы Таlking Неаds, несмотря на славу былых лет, живет настоящим (яркий пример — коллаборация с St. Vinсеnt), но сольных пластинок он не выпускал уже 14 лет. Ситуацию исправил «Аmеriсаn Utорiа», заботливо сделанная работа с оглядкой на время — в работе среди прочих приняли участие продюсер Тhе хх, Оnеоhtriх Роint Nеvеr, Jаm Сitу и Sаmрhа. Его тезка Дэвид Линч, еще один седовласый американец с необъятным послужным списком, смог вернуться и всех удивить — возможно, получится и у Бирна. / Дэвид Бирн (англ. Dаvid Вуrnе, 14 мая 1952, Дамбартон, Шотландия) — американский музыкант, автор песен, продюсер, фотограф шотландского происхождения. Обладатель «Грэмми», «Оскара» и «Золотого глобуса», музыкант, наиболее известный как основатель и автор песен коллектива новой волны «Таlking Неаds». В данный момент проживает в Нью-Йорке.«

Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 – Black Times (Strut, 2018) — Strut presents the new album from the modern day leader of Afrobeat, Seun Kuti. The youngest son of Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo Kuti is as incensed by injustice as his father ever was and, with his mighty new album Black Times including features from Carlos Santana and Robert Glasper, he honours the revolutionaries who have gone before and rallies the torch-bearers to come.

Dick Stusso – In Heaven (Hardly Art, 2018) — That old blues hound dog Bonnie Raitt probably sang it best and most lucid in her timeless, pedestrian hit “Nick of Time»: “Life gets mighty precious when there’s less of it to waste.” And so now, her wise lyrical turn seems to be ringing true for Oakland muso Dick Stusso. When we last caught up with this Bay Area BBQ gaucho on his debut, Nashville Dreams, he’d hit that special zen layer of loserdom. He’d thrown up his hands into the folly of failure. He was the affable, bumbling red-cheeked drunk lurking around the edges of the cookout — bumming smokes, putting down all the white wine and cocktail shrimp he could get away with. But now, a couple years on, that early-30s existential dread has crept its way into Dick’s purview. With his sophomore long-player In Heaven, Stusso’s numbered human days are on his mind. Without stumbling into pomposity, Dick has taken back the wheel on his life and is doing a bit of hotdogging.

Chip Taylor – Fix Your Words (Train Wreck Records, 2018) — Although Chip Taylor is most famous for writing two especially iconic songs, that is only part of the story, as The New York Times wrote: “If you only know him as the as the guy who wrote ‘Wild Thing’ and ‘Angel of the Morning’ — you don’t know him! Chip Taylor is making some of the most distinctive acoustic music around today.” With the release of Fix Your Words, he continues to create timeless, thought-provoking music. The 11 all-original songs on Fix Your Words feature two distinct sides. The amazing title track leads side A through the quiet, reflective batch of prayerful thoughts. Side B, subtitled “When I Was a Kid,” is an inspired meditation on the power of memory and sadness and features some of the most emotional and affecting songs of Taylor’s lifetime of songwriting.

variant — vortexual [inception] (echospace [detroit], 2018) — After a serious turbulent start to the new year things have finally calmed down and are coming together, in introspection, we leave you with a gorgeous outtake from the ever-expanding vortexual project. During the past 2 months of restoring our home office and studio, we ascertained the original master recordings which conceptualized the entire vortexual project(s). This was dated prior to any subsequent releases, the first step in the evolution aptly titled, «inception.» Sensuous streams of reverberation offer an ethereal plane of existence; a place where one can live, breath and escape. Transcendental sonic immersion of the highest order, an ethereal electric dream.

Yo La Tengo – There’s A Riot Going On (Matador, 2018) — new album There’s a Riot Going On. (Yes, it is in reference to Sly & the Family Stone’s 1971 record of the same name.) The self-produced record, which is their first studio album since 2013’s Fade, arrives March 16 via Matador.

Chrysta Bell — Chrysta Bell EP (Meta Hari, 2018) — новый экстендед плей от Крис (Пикс).

Jon Hopkins — Emerald Rush (Domino Recording, Single, 2018) — Титульный сингл “Emerald Rush” из первого за пять лет альбома «Singularity», который выйдет 4 мая 2018 года на Domino Records.

cv313 — Analogue Oceans (Echospace [Detroit], 2018) — The furthest depths of sound are awakened in this distinctive sonic environment inspired by ocean movements and its mysteries. Beginning anew, cv313 delivers an etheric approach in, «analogue oceans» that fearlessly illuminates the culmination of 25-years of sound design, a continuous transformation that engages the listener in ways it never has before. Shimmering metallic washes of color meet sub-aquatic tones, creating an immersive sonic world unlike anything heard before, this is hands down some of most engaging sound worlds this project has ever explored.

Dominique A — Toute latitude (Wagram Music — Cinq 7, 2018) — изврунета: ««Уроженец Прованса, Доминик Ане (Dоminiquе А) появился на свет 6 октября 1968 года. Первую группу Jоhn Меrriсk основал в 17 лет, квартет записал несколько синглов и распался, после чего Доминик какое-то время работал с Филипом Бланшаром. В 1990 году музыкант в домашней студии была сделана запись “Un Disquе Sоurd”, 150 виниловых копий которой музыкант разослал по радиостанциям и фирмам грамзаписи. Вскоре после этого друзья Доминика основали собственный лейбл Lithium, на котором планировалось выпустить его диск, а когда Lithium перешел во владение Virgin, новое начальство предоставило молодому певцу более широкие возможности. Изданный в 1992 году “Lа Fоssеttе” снискал самые высокие похвалы критики. Альбом 1995 года принес Доминику “Викторию” в категории “Лучший новый певец”. Во второй половине 90’х музыкант активно сотрудничал с Франсуазой Брет, написав большую часть материала для двух ее альбомов. Часто Доминик Ане пишет песни на стихи своих любимых поэтов, среди которых Ришар Моргив, Элен Ленуар, Хлои Деломе и Доминик Фабр.»«

VA – Gumba Fire: Bubblegum Soul & Synth Boogie in 1980s South Africa (Soundway Records, 2018) — Compilers Miles Cleret (Soundway) and DJ Okapi (Afrosynth Records) present a selection of 16 rare, handpicked 1980s cuts that highlight the period that nestles in between the ‘70s (where American-influenced jazz, funk and soul bumped shoulders with local Mbaqanga) and the ‘90s when Kwaito and eventually house-music ruled the dancefloors of urban South Africa. Alongside French-Caribbean Zouk this kind of music has slowly been making its way into the DJ sets of many of the most open minded selectors around the world. This compilation is in many ways a sister release to the hugely popular compilation of Nigerian boogie and disco that Soundway released in late 2016 : “Doing it In Lagos: Boogie, Pop & Disco in 1980s Nigeria”. The album takes its name from the band Ashiko’s track of the same name Gumba Fire that features on the compilation. The term is derived from gumba gumba, the term given to the booming speakers of the old spacegram radios that broadcast music into South Africa’s townships and villages. The phrase later evolved into Gumba Fire to refer to a hot party.

Tornado Wallace – Lonely Planet Remixes EP (Running Back Records, 2018) — Lonely Planet, the debut album from Tornado Wallace, AKA Lewie Day, explored the producer’s serene and downtempo side. Much of the LP wasn’t suited to the dance floor, leaving a gap that this remix package aims to fill. «Today,» featuring the Melbourne artist Sui Zhen, gets an rework by the respected French producer I:Cube. It’s masterful in its simplicity. The clattering bongo-like percussion does much of the work, accompanied by a simple synth lead and a touch of atmospherics. I:Cube faithfully keeps the Balearic allure of the original, which melds with Zhen’s breathy vocals. He uses a similar combination on the equally great «Aujord’Hui Beats» version, foregoing most of the vocals to allow the dubby percussion to shine. Move D’s remix of «Today» is tougher thanks to a brooding 4/4 house kick. Most of the track feels perfunctory, but it eventually gleams with vocals and shimmering synths. Prins Thomas’s uptempo take on «Trance Encounters» is a natural fit. The original’s blissful guitars are backed up by a slow-burning groove that builds in energy with distant whirrs and a percolating synth. It’s what we’ve come to expect from Thomas, but you’ll still want more when this nine-minute track ends.

DeepChord & Fluxion present Transformations — Bonafide EP [Vibrant Music, VMR002, 2018] — For their 2nd Transformations meeting, DeepChord & Fluxion work to a subtler shadowplay of vibes. Starting with the stealthy roll of Bona Fide Pt.1 recalling Moritz von Oswald’s memorable remix of 2raumwohnung, but sans the vox and pads, while Pt.2 melts out into more languorous and dusky balearic styles.

Les Hurlements d’Léo — Luna de Papel (ZN productions, 2018) — Le 10ème album des Hurlements D‘Léo « Luna de Papel » est tout chaud ! Il sortira en mars 2018 sur le Label Irfan de leurs amis Les Ogres de Barback.

Cloudmakers Five – Traveling Pulse (Whirlwind Recordings, 2018) — Vibraphonist Jim Hart has extended the reach of his Cloudmakers Trio which released three albums: AJMiLIVE #7 (2015), Abstract Forces (2014) and Live at The Pizza Express (2013), all for Whirlwind Records. Now the trio is augmented by reedsman Antonin-Tri Hoang and guitarist Hannes Riepler. But the trio’s rhythm section remains constant with Michael Janisch on bass and Dave Smith on drums. Hart, who now resides in France, is a stalwart of the British jazz scene, having played alongside such luminaries as Sir John Dankworth, Cleo Laine, Kenny Wheeler and Stan Sulzmann.

Sidi Toure – Toubalbero (Thrill Jockey Records, 2018) — Acclaimed Malian musician Sidi Touré returns with his fourth album, ‘Toubalbero’. Named after the large traditional drum used to gather people in the Malian region of Gao, ‘Toubalbero’ is a danceable, dynamic and, despite the region’s significant political challenges, joyous album. “‘Toubalbero’ is the first album by the acclaimed Songhaï legend to be recorded with electric guitar and bass – the groove is irresistible. ‘Toubalbero’ was recorded in Mali’s legendary Studio Bogolan where Ali Farka Touré, Toumani Diabate and Björk have recorded. The album was then mixed live by Jason Meagher at Black Dirt Studio (Steve Gunn, Black Twig Pickers, Jack Rose).

Rose McGowan — Planet 9 (Damage Inc Productions, 2018) — Rose McGowan is an american actress, director, writer, musican and political activist for women’s rights. She has some soundtrack songs in her portfolio (Charmed and Grindhouse, for example) and in 2015 she released RM486, her first single as a proper musican. The song mixed pop and electronic sounds with references to Blade Runner/Do Robots Dream of Electric Sheep. Planet 9 will be her first full length album with songs like Serene and Now You’re Here, already officially released before the LP.

Aldebert — Le meilleur des chansons pour les grands (Note A Bene, 2018) — Après ses succès consécutifs autour de sa trilogie «Enfantillages» (plus de 300 000 disques vendus), il est temps de redécouvrir les meilleures petites chansons pour les grands.

Micah P. Hinson – At The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC, 2018) — Following hot on the heels of 2017’s double concept album “Presents The Holy Strangers”, Micah P. Hinson is set to release a collection of tracks recorded for Marc Riley at the BBC over the last 14 years. Re-mastered at Bent Leaf Studios in Texas, overseen by Micah himself at the end of last year, these 11 tracks were picked from a wealth of cuts from Micah’s visits to Marc Riley over the course of nine albums.

Апрель

растадабы апреля: O.B.F & Charlie P — Ghetto Cycle (Dubquake Records, 2018), Mellow Mood — Large (La Tempesta Dub, 2018), King Kong — Repatriation (Irie Ites Records, 2018), Jah Mason — The Journey (New Creation Records, 2018), Jah Mason — My Princess Gone (New Creation Records, 2018), Christafari — Original Love (Lion of Zion Entertainment, 2018), U-Roy — Talking Roots (Ariwa, 2018), Mad Professor – Electro Dubclubbing (Ariwa Sounds, 2018), Winston Reedy & Salute — Vision in Life (Room In The Sky, 2018)

Chris Carter — Chemistry Lessons Volume 1 (Mute , 2018) — is a record that offers an overture of the history of electronic music, something that Carter has helped shape. In this instance the artist explores all the different aspects of this sound, presenting an overarching work and condensing these in short forms. The process works perfectly and the movements from the dark, minimal realm of “Ars Vetus” all the way to the dance moments of the opening track, via the noir-esque labyrinth of “Modularity” and the sci-fi induced movements of “Lab Test”, does not seize to amaze. — PopMatters

Françoise Hardy — Personne d’autre (Parlophone France, 2018) — Françoise Hardy revient avec son  24ème album studio Personne d’autre à paraître le 6 avril.Son dernier opus ‘L’Amour Fou’ était sorti en 2012.Françoise Hardy a fait appel à Erick Benzi pour la réalisation de ce nouvel album et à La Grande.

EELS — The Deconstruction (E Works Records, 2018) — из врунета: «После четырехлетней паузы известная американская рок-группа Ееls вернулась с 12-м по счёту студийным альбомом «Тhе Dесоnstruсtiоn». Альбом уже получил положительные отзывы. Пауза была вызвана тем, что фронтмен и лидер Марк Оливер Эверетт вообще думал, что уходит из музыки, но к радости поклонников Ееls этого не произошло. Группа была образована в 1995-м году в Лос-Анджелесе. Собственно, Эверетт остаётся единственным её постоянным участником; остальные же музыканты сменяют друг друга, как в студии, так и на сцене. Песни Ееls всегда были востребованы в кино и звучат в саундтреках множества фильмов и сериалов.»

36 — Circuit Bloom (3SIXTAPE004, 2018) — «It’s been 7 years since the last 36 tape release and I am pleased to return to the format for the ‘Circuit Bloom’ EP. It contains a selection of 6 predominantly piano-based tape loops, exploring the themes of isolation and escapism, through a Cyberpunk-inspired lens. For me, Cyberpunk is about people living on the fringes of society, finding ways to deal with the hardships they face, through the manipulation and exploitation of technology. It’s a genre/aesthetic I’ve always loved and its influence has always seeped into my music.» — 36 «Circuit Bloom» serves as a companion to an upcoming 36 album, providing a prelude for what is to come later this year. It’s the perfect soundtrack for standing outside the balcony of your high-rise apartment, watching the rain fall onto the city at night. It is available on limited edition (100 copies) C30 cassette and digital/streaming. The digital release also includes the «Versions» bonus tracks, which are rain-soaked ambient remixes of the original tunes, where the melodies are blurred and the raw atmosphere of each track is brought into focus.

R. W. Hedges — The Hunters In The Snow (Wonderfulsound, 2018) — As opening lines to albums go, “You may look at me and think the lord employed a fool to sit around and sing of nothing,” is a bold offering, but what R W Hedges lacks in warm introductions they more than make-up for in sweet and intriguing folk songs, their new album, The Hunters In The Snow, crafting subtle adventures that make for an immersive and often revelatory journey through various musical landscapes that rise and fall throughout, shifting in the light as they roll forward, restful and restrained.

The Caretaker — Everywhere at the End of Time — Stage Four (HAFTW028-COL, 2018) — Четвертая глава в серии из шести альбомов, продолжает описывать стадии прогрессирующей деменции, постепенного распада психических функций. На этот раз мы на этапе «пост-осведомленности», когда попытка вспомнить, отдельные вещи приводит к ужасу и смятению. Это начало заключительного процесса, где воспоминания становятся всё более изменчивыми — запутанными, повторяющимися, разорванными. Воспоминания о хороших временах приходят в пикнолептических вспышках, подобно музыке, которая изо всех сил пытается следовать определенной траектории, но вместо этого колеблется между расколотой мозаикой идей и неуловимыми эмоциональными жестами. (E:\music\ambient)

Naukograd — Ультрамарин (EP, 2018), Naukograd — Апрель (EP, 2018), Naukograd — Мечты (EP, 2018) — команда из двух человек: Ilya Orange и Fireya. Задумали проект в жанре sovietwave и в январе 2018 дебютировали с EP «Мечты», затем «Апрель» и «Ультрамарин». https://soundcloud.com/naukograd

Ebo Taylor — Yen Ara (Mr Bongo, 2018) — Ghanaian music legend Ebo Taylor returns with perhaps his finest album to date. But don’t take our word for it. That’s coming straight from the man himself. And he should know after more than 60 years in the business. The 81-year-old composer, arranger, guitarist and vocalist has been a key figure in the evolving afro-funk sound since the Seventies, working with the likes of Apagya Show Band, CK Mann and Pat Thomas. Famously, he rubbed shoulders with Fela Kuti while studying in London in the Sixties, before going on to lead the Ghana Black Star Band (featuring Osei and Sol Amarfio from Osibisa) and later the Uhuru Dance Band back in Ghana. Like Fela, he is always pushing forward, constantly reconceptualizing his sound and attuning it for a new generation. Part teacher, part messenger. Listen to Yen Ara and you will not only hear the high-energy afrobeat, sweet highlife, jazz and konkoma influences that he’s famous for. There is also a disco pulse and hard-hitting percussive edge to the tracks, which were produced by Justin Adams (Tinariwen, Rachid Taha, Robert Plant) and recorded in the live room at Electric Monkey Studio in Amsterdam. An Ebo Taylor for these times, you might say.

Birds Of Passage — The Death of Our Invention (Denovali Records, 2018) — After four years finally a new full length. Masterworks of minimalism and glacial beauty. With Birds of Passage, New Zealand based Alicia Merz presents us with an endearing invitation into her fragile world, a captivating journey through the landscapes of her emotional euphoria and agony, a further commitment to musical experimentation. The cold minimalist-drones, distorted field recordings, and sparse instrumentation, illustrate an icy, desolate and dark world. With allusions to dark-pop and classic broken-folk, the reverb drenched instrumentation, metaphorical fairytale lyrics, and anti-climactic compositions remind us that Alicia Merz is a singer songwriter for people who don’t like singer songwriters. After four years of silence, Merz returns with the fourth full length ‘The Death of Our Invention’. «Birds of Passage is humble and heartbroken. Her warm words are crimson berries that bear fruit in the cold depths of winter, hanging over crooked, bare branches where nothing else survives. Her dove-like vocals soar, but her introverted lyrics blossom with the fondness of love.»» (Fluid Radio).

Sonido Gallo Negro – Mambo Cósmico (Glitterbeat Records, 2018) — third album, Mambo Cósmico, plunges listeners into a complex tapestry of sound. Their music balances a psychedelic richness with cumbia, a type of Colombian folkloric music. Mambo Cósmico finds influence from Mexican, Latin American, American and Middle Eastern music. Sonido Gallo Negro is comprised of nine musicians who carefully yet masterfully endow their music with a global pulse. Mambo Cósmico is driven by cumbia’s buoyant and consistent rhythms that create a sonically rich and bounteous album. или изврунета: «Переиздание прошлогоднего альбома (третьего по счету в дискографии) мексиканской развеселой компании в количестве девяти человек. Инструментальная психоделическая кумбия, пестро аранжированная с помощью инструментов: тимбала, конги, бонги, электрогитары, культовый транзисторный комбо-орган Farfisa, синтезаторы и термен. Кроме привычной кумбии на новом альбоме пиршество кубинского и мексиканского мамбо.» (с) Музыка Хорошего Вкуса

Radius ‎– Obsolete Machines (Variant Reworks) [echospace [detroit], 2×CD, 2018] — In celebration of the forthcoming LP edition (due to arrive in the next 2 weeks) We’re proud to announce the variant reworks and redesigns (conducted and compiled over the past 10 years) of Radius’s epic debut, «Obsolete Machines» release. These versions build on the very essence of the original, but with fathoms-deep layers and subtle tonalities transforming the originals into an ethereal ocean of space and bass. This is a sonic world all its own.

The Colorist Orchestra And Lisa Hannigan – The Colorist Orchestra And Lisa Hannigan [EP] (ATO Records, 2018) — new 5 song EP from Lisa Hannigan, recorded live with the Belgian-based Colorist Orchestra. Hannigan performed a run of shows with the octet last year, and this recording documents their final performance together. It is comprised of tracks from her critically acclaimed 2016 album At Swim, as well as one song from 2011’s Passenger.

Goldmund — Occasus (Western Vinyl, 2018) — Pennsylvania native Keith Kenniff’s output as Goldmund has established him as one of the preeminent composers of minimal piano-based ambient music alongside peers like Hauschka, Dustin O’Halloran, and even Ryuichi Sakamoto, who himself once described Kenniff’s work as «so, so, so beautiful». Hyperbolic as it may sound, Goldmund’s newest collection Occasus may be his most exquisite yet. Where his previous recordings trod faithfully and sincerely on paths of dimly lit, polaroid-esque nostalgia, Occasus deepens the undeniable aesthetic that was hard-won over eight previous Goldmund albums, while expanding the palette to include desultory clouds of synthesizer and a tastefully distressed analog sheen. The word Occasus means downfall, end, or the rising and falling of heavenly bodies. The title is apt in more ways than one: while the emotional tone of the album denotes bittersweet feelings of conclusiveness, it also perfectly soundtracks the quiet moments when we look up to the sky, and humbly relearn the smallness of our lives as cosmic objects churn slowly overhead with bewitching indifference. Occasus feels deeply personal, private, and hushed yet simultaneously grand, colossal, and profound. Remarkably Kenniff is able to capture micro and macro with equal fidelity.

Millionyoung – Rare Form (Mishu Records, 2018) — Florida native Mike Diaz goes by the name MillionYoung, and pools elements of Animal Collective, Toro y Moi, and New Order into his drowsy, circular soundscapes. Like fellow chillwavers, he sings wistfully over a blend of acoustic instruments and electronic programming, and uses a retro ‘80s palette of synth sounds. After the Be So True EP and Sunndreamm EP generated a buzz online in 2010, Diaz announced that his first full-length, Replicants, would become available in early 2011. ~ Jason Lymangrover

Wendy McNeill – Hunger Made You Brave (Startracks, 2018) — When McNeill originally emerged from the prairies of Canada, her accordion tinged songs featuring wild stories and layers of haunting looped vocals were described as Folk Noir. On ‘Hunger Made You Brave’ she seems to have crossed the line into a new genre-Space Folk. Unmistakably Wendy- with her dark twists and turns- this new recording has something more. When she goes back in time or up to the stars on a sparkling synth line and a howl- you follow. When she whispers that ‘all the rules have changed’- you believe her. The talents of McNeill’s long time collaborators Andreas Nordell/Double Bass, Erik Nilsson/Percussion, and co producer/multi instrumentalist Christoffer Lundquist weave a unique chemistry which was captured live to tape at AGM Studio Sweden.

Joonatan Elokuu — Wintersongs (2018) — Contemporary Folk/Acoustic Folk/Slowcore. Featured peformers: Joonatan Elokuu (performer), Matilda Aaltonen (performer).

Tunnelvisions – Ritual I [Atomnation, ATM0601, 2018] — Tunnelvisions will continue to expand their sound of world music and percussive rhythms as they line up a new series of EP’s to land on Atomnation this year, titled Ritual I, II, III & IIII. Stay in tune for more.

Thievery Corporation – Treasures From The Temple (Eighteenth Street Lounge Music, 2018) — Thievery Corporation announce the release of Treasures from the Temple, a companion LP to the band’s chart-topping 2017 album, Temple of I & I. The 12-track compendium includes a trove of original recordings and remixes from the band’s Temple sessions at Geejam Studios in Port Antonio, Jamaica with vocal appearances by LouLou Ghelichkhani, Mr. Lif, Sitali, Racquel Jones, Natalia Clavier and Notch. The news arrives through the release of the official music video for the album’s first single, “Voyage Libre,” directed by Tina Rivera. The journey to the Treasures from the Temple begins by wandering through Thievery vocalist LouLou Ghelichkhani’s psyche in a surreal, monochromatic visualization of emotional space.

Landing — Bells In New Towns (El Paraiso Records, 2018) — Bells in New Towns could be described as their most grounded, earthy sounding release so far. On this record the ethereal components of their sound are firmly anchored by a tight, steady low-end – certainly due to the fact that the album was partly recorded by seasoned New England rock producer Justin Pizzoferrato (Dinosaur Jr., Elder, Pixies, Sonic Youth). Much like their spiritual kins in Yo La Tengo and Bardo Pond, Landing have eclectically picked their influences from a wide range of musical eras and cultures. The result is an electric music that speaks to the mind as well as the senses.

Fenne Lily – On Hold (Fenne Lily, 2018) — debut album, On Hold, arrives our way directly from the artist. At least for now. On Hold is one of those self-released debuts just waiting for an eager label to pick it up and reissue it. All as a tool for promoting the NEXT album (see Lucy Dacus). However, even without a label like Matador or Fat Possum or Merge behind her, Lily already has a decent fanbase. Her song, “Top To Toe”, garnered 20 million streams. That’s nothing to sneeze at this day and age. Lily’s music reminds me of a few of her peers like Sophie Allison (aka Soccer Mommy) and Phoebe Bridgers. All three write music that’s confessional, somewhat somber, and born in the bedroom. Just laying on the bed in a funk and writing about it to get the emotions out.

Scott Matthew — Ode To Others (Glitterhouse Records, 2018) — The Australian songwriter from New York and his sixth studio album. With this album there is a departure from the subject of romantic love and the disappointments that can come from such endeavors. Instead this collection of songs pays homage to love in a broader sense. Honors are bestowed to family, friends and the mistreated both alive and deceased. As always done in Scott’s sentimental and deeply personal style. This is an ODE TO OTHERS. None of his last five solo records is as diverse; as beautiful orchestrated and complex in arrangements as Ode To Others. This is the result of the collaboration with Scott’s live guitarist, co-writer and producer Jürgen Stark. I didnt even know whether I liked my songs before Jürgen came along and gave them all this personality and all this wonderfully intricate layering. He’s very proud of his new album Scott Matthew says: I think it’s one of the best albums weve done so far, for a lot of reasons. The idea of minimalism wasnt very prominent on this album. But it’s not bombastic to me. Its still got intimacy, but also all this intricate layers. And in the end all this history. One could think of the album Ode To Others as a musical new beginning of Scott Matthew. But that is not quite true. It is rather the result of a change of perspective. From one who looks out into the world of the present and the past and thereby discovers himself in a new way, as a loving, admiring, sometimes even as a contemptuous observer. A look at the others can also be a look at yourself, as a view back could also be a view ahead.

Tess Roby — Beacon (Italians Do It Better, 2018) — The Beacon crowns Ashurst Hill in Dalton, Lancashire, looming over the verdant English countryside nearly six hundred feet above sea level. This spartan brick monolith was erected in 1798 as a watch tower to warn of French invasion during the Napoleonic War — and there it silently remains, keeping infinite vigil. It stands in Tess Roby’s mind. The Beacon calls to her. “Throughout my life I have felt the pull to return to it,” she says. “I’m beckoned by father’s roots and by the sullen landscape of fields leading to the coast.”

Blondino — Loveless (Blondino, EP, 2018) -Dans le cadre de la 7 ème édition des soirées » Rien ne s’oppose à la nuit» Blondino interprète son titre «Loveless»extrait de son nouvel EP à paraître le 20 Avril.

Grouper – Grid Of Points (Kranky, 2018) — Liz Harris, aka Grouper, has announced the follow-up to her 2014 album Ruins. Her new record Grid of Points is out April 27 via Kranky. Listen to the album track “Parking Lot” below; scroll down for Grouper’s upcoming tour schedule. “I wrote these songs over a week and a half; they stopped abruptly when I was interrupted by a high fever,” Harris said in a statement. “Though brief, it is complete. The intimacy and abbreviation of this music allude to an essence that the songs lyrics speak more directly of. The space left after matter has departed, a stage after the characters have gone, the hollow of some central column, missing.” или изврунета: «Предыдущий альбом Grouper «Ruins» был выпущен четыре года назад. Для Лиз Харрис этот альбом стал важным этапом в её дискографии. В сравнении с другими её записями он является несколько урезанным: фортепиано, голос и филд-рекординг. Сократив инструментарий, Элизабет удалось сделать свою музыку ещё выразительнее. Её новый альбом продолжает эту тенденцию. В одной из рецензий на «Grid of Points» автор вспоминает фразу Марка Холлиса: «прежде, чем играть две ноты, научитесь играть одну и не играйте одну ноту, если у вас нет причин играть её». Кажется, что Элизабет действительно создаёт свою музыку по этому правилу. В умении использовать тишину её можно сравнить с самим Холлисом, однако характер записи Grouper отличает её многослойность. Голоса Лиз Харрис едва уловимо сливаются в тонкие созвучия и расходятся, складывая не менее тонкие мелодии. Ещё одним важным инструментом Grouper является реверберация и пространство, которое с её помощью создаёт Элизабет, а изящное использование полевых записей усиливает эффект. Это не просто место, которое можно легко визуализировать, это некоторое ощущение, которое стремится передать Лиз Харрис, отчего её песни воспринимаются с особой чувствительностью. Альбом «Grid of Points» очень короткий — семь песен общей продолжительностью менее двадцати пяти минут, что делает эту запись ещё более нежной и интимной. Она подобна мимолётному воспоминанию, которое на мгновение снова делает вас счастливым, но вам лучше не продолжать думать о нём.» (с) E:\music\

Deadbeat – Wax Poetic For This Our Great Resolve (BLKRTZ, 2018) — On his latest studio album, Scott Monteith, aka Deadbeat, ruminates with hard-earned wisdom and confidence upon the notion of carrying on in the face of worldwide nonsense. Wax Poetic For This Our Great Resolve began with the simple idea of asking friends from across the globe for messages of hope. No musical input was provided beforehand, and each participant was free to interpret the request as they saw fit. Though some of the names involved will be familiar to electronic music listeners (Gudrun Gut, Thomas Fehlmann, Mike Shannon), the common thread linking all of them is their friendship with Monteith and the many hours he has spent enjoying their company over the years.

Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog – YRU Still Here? (Northern Spy, 2018) — “I got a right to say FUCK YOU!!!” is how the new album from veteran guitarist Marc Ribot’s trio Ceramic Dog starts off, with Ribot howling in anger at corruption, tyranny, life in general, and nothing in particular. If you’ve got a serious case of outrage fatigue, Ceramic Dog’s explosive cocktail of balls-to-the-wall abandon, chameleonic disregard for style constraints, political commentary, and absurdist humor is just the shot in the ass (or kick in the arm?) you might need. In fact, Ceramic Dog’s new album — whose title:YRU Still Here? is directed in equal parts at themselves, the commander in chief, and the listening public — arrives just in time to remind us that now is a moment when anger is not only necessary, and unavoidable, but also good for houseplants. YRU Still Here? careens from punk to funk to flamenco to surf to rock ‘n roll — all turned on their heads and smudged, allowing us to imagine an alternate history where punk icons Jello Biafra and Ian MacKaye fronted no-wave lounge bands on alternate Tuesdays at the Teaneck New Jersey Holiday Inn.

Clara Luzia — When I Take Your Hand (Asinella Records, 2018) — Dabei bleibt es im weiteren Verlauf der neun Songs zwar nicht, Clara Luzia findet auch wieder zurück zu sachter Stimme und allein gelassener Gitarre, dennoch unterstreicht sie so deutlich wie noch nie ihre stilistische Spannbreite und auch Güte: »When The Streets« ähnelt mit Hall und Chören dem Surf-Rock eines Chris Isaak, und mit dem düster-dringlichen »Survival« geht Clara Luzia sogar noch konsequenter in Richtung des Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. Neben ihrer Vielfalt macht aber auch die ausnahmslose Klasse ihrer Songs »When I Take Your Hand« zu einer großen LP, die zeigt, dass Clara Luzia auch nach vielen Jahren und Alben noch zu Fortentwicklung in der Lage ist.

Khruangbin — Con Todo El Mundo (Night Time Stories/Dead Oceans, 2018) — На своем втором альбоме инструментальное трио из Хьюстона отошло от традиций тайской музыки 60-70-х. На этот раз классический соул, даб, легкая психоделия и медленный расслабленный фанк (местами с приставкой «афро-«). И это дань американо-мексиканскому происхождению дедушки басистки Лауры Ли. (пишет Музыка Хорошего Вкуса)

Jon Hopkins — Singularity (Domino Records, 2018) — is the upcoming fifth studio album by English electronic musician and producer Jon Hopkins. The album will be released on May 4, 2018. The album was announced on March 6, 2018, followed by release of the first single Emerald Rush. The second single, Everything Connected, was released on April 25. The album is a following series from his previous album, Immunity.

Tony Allen & Motor City Drum Ensemble – Dekmantel 10 Years 10.2 (Dekmantel, 12″, 2018) — Part two of the EP features the Motor City Drum Ensemble remix, and the original “In A Silent Mix” version from 1999; a track out of its time when released on Allen’s sole record “Black Voices”. A long serving Dekmantel veteran, Danilo Plessow was there from the start. After compiling the first Selector’s compilation last year, MCDE turns Tony Allen’s masterpiece in a jam, with added house beats, giving the funk number the edit treatment. The final mix sounds like the kind of track you would hear MCDE play in one of his sets as he’s firing up the heat. The organ sounds and trumpets are left high in the mix, to create an unforgettable hook that resonates throughout, in complete Motor City style.

мАй

растамайские релизы: VA — Linval Presents Dub Landing Vol. 1 (VP Music, 2018), VA — Linval Presents Dub Landing Vol. 2 (VP Music, 2018), Colah Colah – Mission (7 Worlds, 2018), Freddie McGregor — Bobby Bobylon (Studio One, Deluxe Edition, 2018), Scientist meets Hempress Sativa in Dub (Conquering Lion Records, 2018), Lutan Fyah — Real Love Showcase (Tad’s Record Inc., 2018), Ziggy Marley — Rebellion Rises (V2 Records Benelux, 2018), The Last Poets — Understand What Black Is (Studio Rockers, 2018), Dub Inc. — Apollo Riddim (Diversite, EP, 2018), Ghetto Priest — Plant My Herb (On-U Sound, 2018), Blundetto — Slow Dance (Heavenly Sweetness, 2018), Roland Alphonso & Jerry Johnson — Hornsman Style EP (Wackie’s, 2018), Kabaka Pyramid — Kontraband (Kabaka Pyramid, 2018), Omar Perry — New Dawn (Khanti Records, 2018)

Mac Demarco ‎– Old Dog Demos (Captured Tracks, 2018) — Record Store Day 2018 release. Limited to 5000 copies worldwide on translucent gold vinyl. Includes newspaper print insert. Recorded in Queens, NY & Los Angeles, CA by Mac A1-A7 are demos. B1-B8 are instrumentals.

Timecop1983 — Night Drive (Self-released, 2018) — «Я чувствую, что это моя лучшая работа, и я надеюсь, что вы будете думать так же». Его музыка была такой разной в последнее время: кинематографичной, концептуальной, темной, игровой – кажется, он попробовал себя во всех сферах, подыскивая нужное звучание. Всё ради того, чтобы, включив новый его альбом, слушатель сказал сам себе: «Да, это и есть тот самый старина Джорди!». Если вдруг вам этого покажется мало, то специально ради очередной пластинки «коп» усилился невероятно мощной командой, в которую вошли The Midnight, The Bad Dreamers, Josh Dally, LEBROCK и Kinnie Lane. (The Retrowavers)

Malphino — Visit Malphino (Lex Records Ltd, 2018) — «Malphino are an outer-national, mystical band from an imagined tropical island that has dreamt up a cinematic score and audio backdrop to their tropical idyll. A promised land of hypnotic cumbia rhythms, subtle digital warbling, accordion textures, voodoo haze and woodblock charm awaits the off-piste explorer willing to step through the arch and Visit Malphino, the debut album from this London based collective of diaspora musicians and visual artists. Their  debut album ‘Visit Malphino’ dives deep into the island’s mythology. It’s a 17-track epic that provides the soundboard to years of imaginative cultivation. With clues in the titles, each track represents a different element to the island. It embodies the growth of the Malphino concept from an abstract idea within the minds of a few friends to a more complex fantasy at the centre of a small community of musicians and artists. Speculation is open-ended.»

Daniel Blumberg – Minus (Mute, 2018) — Daniel Blumberg – who’s released material with/as Yuck, Oupa, Cajun Dance Party, and Hebronix – is back with “Minus”, from his debut album on new label Mute.The album was recorded with producer Peter Walsh (Scott Walker) during a brisk five-day session in Wales, and it features contributions from Tom Wheatley, Billy Steiger, Jim White, and Ute Kanngiesser.

Young Galaxy – Down Time (Young Galaxy, 2018) — have altered their sound, band membership and business model on Down Time — to glorious effect. The album marks the band’s first fully independent release, one that deals with the emotional processes and questions that come out of living in today’s socio-political climate, along with a heightened need for intimacy. Its production is warm and full, with lyrics that are at once universal and personal.Opening with the shrouded vocal of “Under My Wing,” vocalist Catherine McCandless poses a buried refrain: “Gotta hold that halo / Gotta calm that fight / Gotta heal that hollow / Gotta earn that light.” There is a pull toward hope on the a lbum, despite its setting: the lyrics depict isolation and an inherent disconnection, while individuals search for genuine bonds. “Catch Your Breath” breaks free into a chorus that bursts with optimism, while “Show You the Valley” finds McCandless urging that “we can feel surrender” over dark bass, beats and layers of synths.

Ry Cooder – The Prodigal Son (Fantasy Records, 2018) — Ry Cooder has announced the release of his first solo album in six years. The Prodigal Son is set for release by Fantasy Records on May 11th, 2018. Recorded in Hollywood, CA, and produced by Ry and his chief collaborator, drummer Joachim Cooder, The Prodigal Son is all America – that country’s spiritual, hopeful voices, raw cries and sly provocations, voiced through the songs of the Pilgrim Travelers, The Stanley Brothers, Blind Willie Johnson, and Ry Cooder himself. The album’s 11 tracks, including three Cooder originals and a carefully selected collection of his favourite spirituals of the last century, share a particular resonance in this time and place, forming an unflinching look at the state of play in modern America. “I do connect the political/economic dimensions with the inner life of people, since people are at risk and oppressed on all sides in our world today,” he stated. “There’s some kind of reverence mood that takes hold when you play and sing these songs. ‘Reverence’ is a word I heard my granddaughter’s nursery school teacher use, a Kashmiri woman. She said, ‘We don’t want to teach religion, but instill reverence.’ I thought that was a good word for the feeling of this music.”

Mark Kozelek – Mark Kozelek (Caldo Verde Records, 2018) — Марк давно уже стал этаким Джоном Зорном от седкора по количеству релизов, и отличается только тем что не заморачивается с названиями и обложками. На этом его похоже совсем все зае*бало. Mark Kozelek has ambitious plans for 2018, with not one, but two full-lengths in the works. One of those, a self-titled record under his own name, is due May 11th through his own Caldo Verde Records. More than a week in advance, the singer-songwriter has made the album available to stream in full on the website for his Sun Kil Moon moniker. The 11-track collection was mostly recorded in two San Francisco hotels, the Mark Hopkins Hotel and Seal Rock Inn, and Hyde Street Studios, also located in the Bay Area. “The album was recorded at hotels to take a break from the dark, windowless atmosphere of studios, and to see how atypical recording environments would affect my music,” Kozelek explained last year.

Mdou Moctar & Elite Beat — Mdou Moctar meets Elite Beat In a Budget Dancehall (EP, 2018) — new EP available today from Boomarm Nation & Bandcamp: «Recorded in the spring of 2017 over 3 evenings. These raw, unedited, live recordings were fueled by laughter, and Azawad gunpowder tea.»

The Bones of J.R. Jones — Ones to Keep Close (Tone Tree Music, 2018) — Performing a spectral brand of music informed by vintage blues, folk, and Appalachian sounds, the Bones of J.R. Jones is a project from singer, guitarist, and songwriter Jonathon Linaberry.

Ilyas Ahmed — Closer To Stranger (Mie Music, 2018) — The follow-up to 2016’s Dreamboat collab with Golden Retriever finds that duo’s Jonathan Sielaff contributing Bass Clarinet on two songs, while the Pakistan-born, Minnesotan Ilyas Ahmed tends to vocals, guitar and synth, in parts coming as close as we’ve ever heard him to Mark Hollis levels of intimate singer-songwriter charm. “Closer To Stranger is the new solo album by Pakistani-born dream-folk musician Ilyas Ahmed. Drawing on a wide range of influences, his songs incorporate classic singer-songwriter gestures alongside more experimental leanings. Recorded to tape in the studio by Justin Higgins in the fall of 2016 and finished in the spring of 2017, Ahmed’s instrumental palette includes: acoustic and electric 6 and 12-string guitars, Fender Rhodes, multiple keyboards, tanpura, and percussion. Closer To Stranger stands as a meditation on uneasy identity politics during times of unreason, seeking peace amidst chaos. Jonathan Sielaff (of Thrill Jockey ambient duo Golden Retriever) cameos with guest saxophone on “Zero For Below” but otherwise the album is a solo affair, alternately feverish, tense, hazed, hypnotic, and narcotic. A slowly unfolding inward journey of late night lullabies and contemplative electric drift.”

Aidan Moffat & RM Hubbert – Here Lies The Body (Rock Action Records, 2018) — Aidan Moffat is no stranger to producing excellent works built on collaboration post Arab Strap. In particular he’s produced two stunning albums with jazz musician Bill Wells (Everything’s Getting Older is arguably as good as anything he produced with Arab Strap). Here Lies The Body is a body of work produced with RM Hubbert – an astonishingly consummate solo artist and guitarist in his own right – who has been a mainstay of the Glasgow DIY scene since the early nineties. Though the two have collaborated before, it hasn’t been on anything of this scale, and they are such obvious bedfellows it’s surprising we are only just hearing it now.

Ducktails — Plastic Melody (New Images Limited, 2018) — [indie rock, dream pop, neo-psychedelia, baroque pop, shoegaze, hypnagogic pop, synth pop, chillwave, jazz rock, jangle pop]

S U R V I V E — RR7400 (Relapse Records, 2018) — S U R V I V E pays homage to the Peel Sessions with nine new studio recordings of songs from their live set. The band that brought you the Stranger Things score

David Robert King — Idaho (Not On Label, 2018) — Celebrated singer/songwriter David Robert King shares his tales of Mountain West heartache, loss and redemption with his release IDAHO, out February 16, 2018.  King has become known as Mary Gauthier’s longtime guitarist and frequent opening act.  About the album, Gauthier said, “IDAHO, David Robert King’s new record, is a stunning soundscape of whispered confessions and poignant observations. A beautiful collection of haunting songs, it deserves a good listen.”

A Grave With No Name — Passover (Forged Artifacts, 2018) — Influenced by the lo-fi ’90s indie aesthetic of Pavement and Sebadoh and associated with the late-2000s shoegaze revival alongside Banjo or Freakout, Atlas Sound and Big Pink, A Grave with No Name is the musical brainchild of London-based musician Alex Shields. Named after an in-joke that referenced metalcore/emo group As I Lay Dying, Shields began the project in 2006 and recorded half of his 2009 full-length debut Mountain Debris in a church in Stoke Newington, East London. Recruiting bassist Tom King and guitarist Anupa Madawela to flesh out A Grave with No Name’s woozy and ethereal pop, the album’s resulting hazy, kaleidoscopic sound recalled My Bloody Valentine, Guided by Voices, and the Microphones. A Grave with No Name returned with 2011’s Lower, an atmospheric album that spanned two cassettes.

Variant — Inception [cv313 Rewire] (echospace [detroit], 2018) — Approximately 5 years since the first remix of variant’s seminal vortexual series, cv313 returns with an epic & breathtaking, 60+ minute rewire of vortexual [inception]. In this version, cv313 utilizes the original tape masters, manipulating and reshaping these enchanting sound worlds into a modern opus, all while preserving the analog circuitry of the original. The cool watery depths of the inception are ever-present in this immersive sonic landscape, a magical place of escape from the here and now.

Gas ‎– Rausch (Kompakt, 2018) — The LP’s title translates to something like intoxication—not just drunkenness, but an ecstatic state or fever dream. In turn, the music often has a hazy, aimless drift, but when the drums emerge the feeling is of a tireless march. There are few clues as to what inspired the album other than a cryptic poem from Voigt. It namechecks a past Gas release (Oktember), and older tracks from Pink Floyd («Careful With That Axe, Eugene») and Depeche Mode («Personal Jesus»), which hint again at Gas’s nostalgic themes. But nostalgia doesn’t always mean comfort, and there’s a haunted tone in both the music and the poem, which has lines like, «Rausch with no name, my beautiful shine, you are my sun / Rausch with no morning, this is where we burn.»

Bombino – Deran (Partisan Records, 2018) — Partisan Records will release ‘Deran,’ the new full-length album from Niger-born Tuareg guitar virtuoso, Bombino. ‘Deran’ – which loosely translates to “best wishes” – is Bombino’s most focused, compelling, and diverse statement to date, and delivers a message of hope and well-wishes to the world in a time of great pain and tumult. Written and sung entirely in Bombino’s native language of Tamasheq, ‘Deran’ was recorded in Casablanca – at a studio owned by current Moroccan king Mohammed VI, no less – over a ten day stretch, and marks his first time making an album in Africa in nearly a decade. In Bombino’s own words, “my mission for this album was always to get closer to Africa.” How to celebrate, protect, unify, and above all, never forget that desert home, are the salient themes throughout ‘Deran.’ Across ten tracks, the album showcases Bombino’s mastery of a rich palette – from folk, rock, blues, funk, and of course the ‘Tuareggae’ sub-genre which he has single-handedly pioneered.

Talaboman — The Night Land Remixed (R&S Records, EP, 2018) — John Talabot and Axel Boman teamed up in 2017 for their R&S debut ’The Night Land’ where they got to flex their creative muscles over eight tracks of rich synth jams. The two electronic artists have been independently successful in their respective careers, but as Pitchfork expressed in their glowing review “Their collective output doesn’t sound much like either’s work; it doesn’t even necessarily reflect the thin, convex sliver where their interests overlap. Instead, they’ve hit upon something new.”

Parade Of Lights — Human Condition PT1 (2018), Parade Of Lights – Tidal Waves [Single] (2018) — Los Angeles alt rock band, just released their brand new five-track EP Human Condition Part 1. Coinciding with the release, tracks “Inside My Head” and “Tangled Up” are featured on the second season of the hit Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, which premieres today. Human Condition Part 1 pushes the vibrant melodies and catchy chorus that Parade of Lights has trademarked over the years. Since 2015 following the release of the band’s first full-length, Feeling Electric, Parade of Lights’ gleam has shined bright. In addition to being featured in notable spots for the Super Bowl, the Academy Awards, the GRAMMY Awards, and The Voice, the single “Golden” eclipsed 10 million Spotify streams and counting. Meanwhile, “Feeling Electric” crossed the 9-million-mark in addition to featuring in EA Sports’ FIFA 16 as “We’re The Kids” soared to Top 10 airplay on Alt Nation.

Acorps de Rue — En disant (Patch Work Production, 2018) — Depuis 2007, les Acorps de Rue ont parcouru la France avec plus de 400 concerts, 4 Albums et plus de 200000 km au compteur ! Il y a de l’envie chez ces deux jeunes de ne pas en rester là La route est longue mais les rencontres et les retours enthousiastes des gens les nourrissent à coup sûr. Alors, allez les voir ! De la chanson à texte dans un univers festif, servi principalement à l’accordéon-guitare avec trompette, basse, batterie, clavier à l’appui !

Chromatics – Black Walls [EP]  & Looking For Love [EP] (Italians Do It Better, 2018) — Few albums have left music fans in as much suspense as Chromatics’ long-awaited Dear Tommy. The record was originally announced in 2014, with a handful of cuts from the 17-song tracklist — “Just Like You”, “Shadow”, “In Films”, and “I Can Never Be Myself When You’re Around” — having been shared over the intervening years. Then came word that the band’s resident producer, Johnny Jewel, had become so dissatisfied with the effort following a near-death experience in 2015 that he destroyed every existing copy of the record, smashing thousands of vinyl LPs and CDs. (He’d apparently gone through a similar bout of creative destruction for 2012’s Kill for Love.) In revealing that story, Echo Park Records’ former management said Jewel intended to re-record the entire thing with the same songs and tracklisting.

Howe Gelbe – Label Pop Session (Microcultures 2, 2018) — La grande ‘Label Pop Session’ de Howe Gelb (Microcultures/Differ- Ant) est disponible en CD aujourd’hui chez vos disquaires et en ligne. J’en suis très heureux (et un peu ému).

Magic Wands – Abrakadabra (The Wave // A.C.S., 2018) — Magic Wands are Dexy and Chris Valentine who formed the band in 2009 between LA and Nashville. The band have released two albums Jupiter and Aloha Moon, with tracks remixed by The XX and Crystal Fighters. Skirting the edges of dream pop laced with evocative harmonies, simmering synths and propulsive post-punk elements, Magic Wands craft a thrilling marriage redolent of the wistfulness of Beach House and the tugging hooks of Warpaint. Recorded at Voltiv Studios in LA and produced by Phil Galloni and the band themselves and mixed by Grammy Award winner Tim Young, the album features 10 tracks with an extra track Puzzle Of Love.

VA – African Scream Contest Vol​.​ 2_ Benin 1963-1980 (Analog Africa, 2018) — For a decade now, Analog Africa has been releasing vintage and rarely-found music from across the African continent and its diaspora. One of the label’s most popular releases over the years has been African Scream Contest, originally released in 2008, which featured a compilation of what the label describes as “Vodoun-inspired, psychedelic afrobeat, and heavy funk crossover” from Benin in the ’60s and ’70s.

Örvar Smárason (Orvar Smarason) — Light Is Liquid (Morr Music, 2018) — Being a key figure in Iceland’s music scene over the past 20 years with his bands múm and FM Belfast among others, the time has come for Örvar Smárason to release his debut solo album. „Light Is Liquid“ is made up of eight precious electronic pop songs that show him both as a gifted songwriter and producer. It’s an update of the sound that made múm one of the most revered Nordic acts since the 2000s, but it’s also slightly reminiscent of Boards of Canada’s pastoral beats or even the transcendental tracks of Arca and Björk. A heap of experience and a sure-footed feeling for style constitutes this record, but at the same time it feels like a young and fresh love affair with music.

John Tilbury / Keith Rowe / Kjell Bjorgeengen – Sissel (SOFA Music, 2018) — The fundamental and inescapable fact of our existence is that we are finite beings conscious of our finitude, and no more so than when someone near to us dies. This is the background to Sissel, a quietly moving performance by pianist John Tilbury, electric guitarist/electronics artist Keith Rowe, and Norwegian video artist Kjell Bjørgeengen, who collaborated with Tilbury and Rowe in the capacity of producer. The single piece that makes up the album was recorded as part of the Moving Sound concert series in Stavanger, Norway, in 2016, shortly after the death of Bjørgeengen’s wife Sissel, to whom the album is dedicated.

Idris Ackamoor and the Pyramids — An Angel Fell (Strut, 2018) — Strut presents the brand new album from cosmic jazz travellers The Pyramids, led by saxophonist Idris Ackamoor, ’An Angel Fell’. “I wanted to use folklore, fantasy and drama as a warning bell,” explains Ackamoor.

Samba Touré – Wande (Glitterbeat Records, 2018) — When Malian singer and guitarist Samba Touré was planning Wande (The Beloved), his third Glitterbeat release, he had strong ideas for the way it should sound. But once the sessions were over, he knew he had something entirely different, something even more satisfying: a collection of songs where warmth filled the grooves of every song. An album that seemed like home.

Lowpines – In Silver Halides (Adventure Club Records, 2018) — “poised and mysterious and it contemplates oblivion” The New York Times. “Few releases in 2018 will possess the color and musical consideration that makes In Silver Halides a compelling listen and it seems to open more possibilities for this musical project going forward from here.” No Depression. “an album rife with beautiful soft music tip-toeing between orchestral prog rock and buttery acoustic/classicism, resulting in subtle, elegant sonority. ‘In Silver Halides’ projects lush excellence” SeattlePI.com. «one of the world’s most criminally underrated singer/songwriters.» The Revue. “weighty and wonderful” GoldFlakePaint. «I look forward to listening to this until I’m blue in the face.” Paste Magazine. “like and ocean at night, cold and serene” Surviving The Golden Age. «one of 2018’s must hear under the radar artists.» Glide Magazine

All India Radio — Space (Martin L Kennedy, 2018) — Dripping with atmospheric analog synths and floaty vocals the album takes it’s musical cues from David Lynch, Pink Floyd, Jean Michael Jarre, Brian Eno, Stereolab and AIR.

Abu Obaida Hassan & His Tambour – The Shaigiya Sound of Sudan (Ostinato Records, 2018) — Abu Obaida Hassan and the wonders of his five-string tambour remained largely a mystery. In the early 2000s, a prominent Sudanese newspaper declared him dead. Internet forums confirmed his passing. Many in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital, said he had indeed died. But rumors that he was still alive persisted.

Ocean Hope – Rolling Days (Hush Hush Records, 2018) — Hush Hush is thrilled to present the debut album ‘Rolling Days’ from Ocean Hope, the Greek brother-sister duo of Angeliki and Serafim Tsotsonis.

Meiko – Playing Favorites (Chesky Records, 2018) — Long known for her seductively haunting voice, Folk Singer/Songwriter, Meiko, is releasing Playing Favorites, her first covers album on May 25th via Chesky Records. Featuring songs made immortal by luminaries The Cranberries, Otis Redding, Erykah Badu, Duran Duran, Blind Melon, and even Rick James, among many others, Meiko leaves her own indelible mark on these songs and will have you hearing them as if it were the first time.

Deerhunter – Double Dream Of Spring (4AD, Cassette, 2018) — This limited, tour-only cassette feels spontaneous yet brimming with ideas. It sounds somewhere between ghostly demos and a lo-fi avant-garde ambient composition.

Will Samson – A Baleia [EP] (Dauw, 2018) — A Baleia (meaning ‘The Whale’ in Portuguese) is the seventh solo release from Will Samson. After the electronic-infused folk songs of September 2017’s Welcome Oxygen (Talitres), Samson presents a 22-minute album of tape manipulated soundscapes.

John Parish – Bird Dog Dante (Thrill Jockey Records, 2018) — John Parish’s list of musical accomplishments is long, yet for years the self-effacing Bristol native has been happy outside the spotlight. This twice Ensor nominated composer and Mercury Prize winning producer delivers a collection of songs, including a duet with his longtime musical partner PJ Harvey, that should change all that. Bird Dog Dante was completed in a busy year for Parish. On top of being the musical director of the extended PJ Harvey band on their Hope Six Demolition Project world tour, he produced acclaimed albums for This is the Kit, Nadine Khouri, and Aldous Harding.

Chantal Acda And Bill Frisell – Live At Jazz Middelheim [EP] (Glitterhouse Records, 2018) — The Dutch/Belgian chanteuse Chantal Acda in a duo-setting with Grammy-awarded guitarist extraordinaire Bill Frisell. Captured in superb sound quality! When I wrote the songs of my record, I dreamt to hear Bills sounds on it. I thought this feeling would go away but it never did. So I decided to contact him to see if he would work with me and put the last pieces of the puzzle together on this record (Bounce Back) . He liked the music so I flew to Seattle to record his wonderful guitar playing on the songs. Meeting him felt like coming home. And this connection was still so fresh in my memory when I arrived back to Belgium. We kept in touch by writing each other and sometimes he drew me funny faces. We were invited to play at the wonderful Jazz Middelheim festival and finally ended up on stage together. In the dressing room we quickly went through the songs but we kept all surprises for the stage. It was a wonderful experience for me. One of the highlights of my musical career. It wasn’t meant to be recorded but it was. So listening back to these recordings we thought it would be nice to be able to share this with the people who were there but also the people who missed it and are curious to hear what happened. I truly hope you will enjoy these moments. These moments that will always stick with me. With love, Chantal

Mazzy Star – Still [EP] (Rhymes of an Hour Records, 2018) — is a 4 track EP and is the first new music from Mazzy Star since 2014,” reads a British record store’s, also named Spin, description of the forthcoming release. ” The 12″ includes three new tracks along with an alternative version of ‘So Tonight That I Might See’ from the artist’s biggest selling album of the same name from 1993, which also featured the seminal hit record ‘Fade In To You.’”

июнЬ

июньские растарелизы: Sly & Robbie & Junior Natural — Militant Dub (Tabou 1, 2018), The Congos & Pura Vida — Morning Star (Lost Ark Music, 2018), Ackboo – Pharaoh (Tanta Records, 2018), Dubmatix – King Size Dub Special (Echo Beach, 2018), Skarra Mucci — The One Love Family (Undisputed Records, 2018), Alborosie — Unbreakable_ Alborosie Meets The Wailers United (VP Records, 2018), Dubkasm — Rastrumentals ( Rastrumentals, 2018)

Nick Mulvey – Dancing For The Answers EP (A Fiction Records, 2018) — new EP ‘Dancing For Answers’. The songwriter is currently out on tour, and will play London’s historic Royal Albert Hall tomorrow night (May 22nd). New EP ‘Dancing For Answers’ brings together much-loved material and unheard gems, including contributions from super-producer Ethan Johns.

Azure Blue – Fast Falls The Eventide (Matinée Recordings, 2018) — Azure Blue is the solo project from Tobias Isaksson, known to some from the Swedish Labrador bands Laurel Music and Irene. The project started in 2010 after a relocation from Gothenburg to Stockholm. The name is a paraphrase of Dennis Wilson’s «Pacific Ocean Blue». Azure Blue’s music is timeless yet modern—honest, pure and wise like Paul Auster’s The Red Notebook. It makes you laugh and cry and pick up a novel.

Gruff Rhys — Babelsberg (Rough Trade, 2018) — Best-known for his tenure in the hard-to-peg-down Welsh outfit Super Furry Animals, Gruff Rhys has a long history in British rock. Born in 1970, Rhys played in Creation Records’ Emily as well as Ffa Coffi Pawb, but his first foray into the musical arts was at the ripe age of five, when he wrote an odd little number about a train driver who’s contemplating his own death. In 1990, a chance meeting helped lead to the development of what would become Super Furry Animals. First a left-field techno group, then later a whacked-out guitar group, SFA got much of their character and respect from Rhys’ outlandish and obscure lyrical slants.

Get Well Soon – The Horror (Caroline International, 2018) — “Fear is a theme that comes up pretty quickly if you try to understand the strange mood of our society,” says GET WELL SOON’s Konstantin Gropper about his stylistic volte-face from LOVE to THE HORROR. “It seems to be a big common denominator.” Inevitable then, but also entirely in keeping with an artist who has already made an album about the apocalypse – 2012’s grandiose The Scarlet Beast O’Seven Heads – and writes songs titled ‘I Sold My Hands For Food So Please Feed Me’ and ‘We Are Safe Inside While They Burn Down Our House’.

First Aid Kit – Live From The Rebel Hearts Club [EP] (Jagadamba, 2018) — You can find music by First Aid Kit on iTunes, Amazon, and on their website.

Jonathan Bree – Sleepwalking (Lil’ Chief Records, 2018) — Brunettes frontman and Lil’ Chief Records co-founder Jonathan Bree is back with his third studio album, Sleepwalking, an album that takes the listener on a trip down memory lane via 1960s lounge pop and melodic songs about love and relationships. «Джонатан Бри — музыкант, автор песен и продюсер из Новой Зеландии, наиболее известный своей работой в качестве сольного исполнителя, а также как соучредитель инди-поп группы Тhе Вrunеttеs в 1998 году и лейбла Lil ‘Сhiеf Rесоrds в 2002 году. В рамках лейбла часто сотрудничает с различными музыкантами и проектами, выступая в роли звукоинженера и продюсера. Джонатан Бри родился в конце 1970’х годов в Новой Зеландии. Марк Лионс, фронтмен инди-поп группы Тhе Nudiе Suits, является двоюродным братом Бри и его наставником в годы становления. Группу Тhе Вrunеttеs Джонатан вместе с Хизер Мэнсфилд сформировал в 1998 году в в Окленде. В 2002 году Бри основал Lil ‘Сhiеf Rесоrds со своим коллегой Скоттом Маннионом из Тоkеу Тоnеs. Первая полностью сольная пластинка «Тhе Рrimrоsе Раth» Джонатана Бри вышла в свет в 2013 году. Два года спустя а ней последовала вторая «А Littlе Night Мusiс». Третий альбом «Slеерwаlking» был выпущен 8 июля 2018 года.»

All India Radio — Spheres in the Sky the Collection, Vol. 1 (Martin L Kennedy, 2018) — WIRED magazine describe All India Radio perfectly: «Since the turn of the 21st century, All India Radio has mashed the ambient-hop signatures of DJ Shadow, Tortoise and Thievery Corporation with the instantly recognizable guitar soundtracking of Ennio Morricone and Angelo Badalamenti. The resulting narcotic musical textures are capable of floating listeners to galaxies far, far away.

Hilary Woods – Colt (Sacred Bones Records, 2018) — Hilary Woods’ artistry is one of rare emotive reach. Her minimalist and compositional finesse combine with densely layered atmospheric instrumentation and dreamlike vocals to create music rich with both delicacy and intensity. The Sunday Times hailed her early solo recordings as “a revelation.” или из врунета E:\music\art pop: Пианино, синтезатор, магнитофон, полевые записи, микрофон, невесомые едва ощутимые биты и старые струнные инструменты. Вот полный перечень аутфита, который экс-басистка ирландской рок-группы JJ72 Хилари Вудс собственноручно сложила в дебютный эмбиент-поп альбом, изданный на Sacred Bones — лейбле, который уже недавно отмечался у нас по релизу Vive La Void, а его резидентами также являются Зола Джизус и Марисса Надлер. Альбом был записан Хилари в заброшенной квартире, где она одно время проживала, а поддержку в саунд-продюсировании оказал соотечественник Джеимс Келли, широко известный на пост-метал сцене с Altar of Plagues (!). «Colt создавался как способ восприятия и понимания повседневности», — сообщает Вудс. «Как средство для общения с внутренними голосами, исследования одиночества. Средство для полета фантазии. Стремление к сопротивлению внешнему миру, но и связанности с ним».

Laura Veirs — The Lookout (Raven Marching Band, 2018) — десятый по счету альбом в дискографии американской поэтессы-песенницы Лоры Полины Вирс (Laura Pauline Veirs). Родилась она 24 октября 1973 года в Колорадо-спрингс, городке размером с Архангельск, только климат там помягче, да колорадских жуков побольше. Ныне проживает в Портленде (штат Орегон). Изучала геологию и китайский язык в частном колледже Карлтон в Миннесоте, а затем по заданию Центрального Геологоразведочного Управления работала переводчиком в геологической экспедиции в Китайской Народной Республике, где помимо докладных записок стала писать еще и тексты песен. В 1999 году записала за три часа в акустике свой первый альбом, который к сожалению, в данный момент официально недоступен. Следующий альбом «The Triumphs and Travails of Orphan Mae» был выпущен в компании олдовых инструменталистов, в числе которых затесался и мифологический американский гитарист Билл Фриселл (Bill Frisell). Дальше пошло по накатанной: контракт с фирмой грамзаписи «Bella Union», пластинки, гастроли, музыка к кинофильму, и снова по кругу – контракты, пластинки, концерты, гастроли. А, что вы хотели? Такова нелегкая участь музыканта. В угольной шахте кайлом махать, и то, наверное, проще. (@arhsam.blogspot.com)

M. Ward — What A Wonderful Industry (Ward Records, 2018) — M. Ward has dropped a surprise new album, What a Wonderful Industry.The new record follows 2016’s More Rain and was self-released through M. Ward Records. Add that fact to the presumably sarcastic title, the shark jaws on the cover art, and tracks like “Shark” (“Tommy is a tiger shark/ Lives in the Bengal Sea/ And by day, he’s a music manager/ And once he even managed me”), and it seems to hint that the bluesy folkster has come up against some professional meshugas in recent years. Whatever the case, What a Wonderful Industry features a range of styles, from the echo-y country ramble of “Kind of Human” to the beach-y pop of “Return to Neptune’s Nest”. The second track, a sturdy folk rocker called “Miracle Man”, features guest vocals by My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James.

Work Drugs — Mixed Drinks [EP] (2018), Pacific Heart [EP] (2018) и Infinity Eyes [EP] (2018) — Work Drugs is a Philadelphia based sedative-wave/smooth-fi group fronted by Thomas Crystal and Benjamin Louisiana. Work Drugs makes music specifically for dancing, boating, yachting, sexting, and living.

Chromatics – Blue Girl [EP] (Italians Do It Better, 2018) — The record opens with the title track, then presents four variant versions of the same song — dubbed «Blue Girl (Say Goodbye),» «Blue Girl (Don’t Say a Word),» «Blue Girl (Drumless)» and «Blue Girl (Instrumental).»

Girls Names – Stains on Silence (Tough Love Records, 2018) — Following 2015’s blitzing Arms Around a Vision, and the parting of drummer Gib Cassidy just over a year later, the Belfast band suddenly found themselves facing down a looming void. “There was a finished – and then aborted – mix of the album, which was shelved for six months,” reveals Girls Names frontman Cathal Cully. “We then took a break from all music and went back to full-time work. We chilled out from the stress of rushing the record and not being happy with it, as well as being skint with no impending touring on the cards and constantly having to worry about rent.”

Ben Caplan – Old Stock (Under Control Enter., 2018) — Just shy of three years on from delivering his Birds with Broken Wings LP, Ben Caplan has lifted the curtain on a new full-length effort. Titled Old Stock, the album is released through Rhyme and Reason Records. Thirteen tracks in length, Old Stock is a concept album inspired by the true story of two Jewish Romanian refugees coming to Canada in 1908. The album was adapted from musical theatre piece Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story, a production from Caplan, Hanna Moscovitch and Christian Barry in which the songwriter starred. After opening in Halifax, the production has since been featured at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and at New York City’s 59E59 Theaters for a seven-week residency. Caplan has also shared a first taste of what’s to come from the new album with “Widow Bride,” a song about colonialism penned by Geoff Berner.

Son Of The Velvet Rat — The Late Show (Mint 400 Records, Live, 2018) — is a souvenir from their extensive 2017 tour, in support of Dorado. The tracks were recorded at three venues, Rhiz in Vienna, Austria, Scheune in Wredenhagen, Germany and in Burbank,CA. The 11-song album features songs from “Dorado” but also reaches back to previous, including Animals, Firedancer and Red Chamber Music. “Another Glass Of Champagne” revisits an older riff and adds new lyrics. The ambiance is passionate, sweat-soaked and electric. Georg and Heike’s cinematic sound is augmented by Dominik Krejan on Fender Rhodes and backing vocals. Drum duties are split between Muck Willmann and Felix Krüger. Highlights include a haunting version of  “Sweet Angela”, the brooding “Copper Hill”, the pulsing Psychedelia of “Surfer Joe” and the world-weary ache of “Franklin Avenue.”

Tangents – New Bodies (Temporary Residence Ltd., 2018) — After an eventful year of touring throughout their native Australia — including runs with labelmates MONO and likeminded pioneers Tortoise — and featuring alongside the work of artist David Hockney at the National Gallery of Victoria, post-everything quintet Tangents return with another album, and another stylistic detour. RIYL: Can, Four Tet, Tortoise, The Necks.  «New Bodies continues Tangents’ rummage through countless varieties of electronics, rock, dub, noise, and free improv jazz that defines the group’s acclaimed aesthetic. The spacious dub of a plucked cello gives way to a minimalist breakbeat tableau resting over rhythmic prepared piano; a staid electronic groove is gradually absorbed into washes of frenzied improv; staccato synths are woven into tumbling avant-rock; and shimmering free drums phase over static loops of piano, guitar and cello.»

Sean Nicholas Savage — Screamo (Arbutus Records, 2018) — This is the thirteenth album by Canadian cult wizard Sean Nicholas Savage, and the final chapter in his cassette trilogy until now composed of the two immediate classics Magnificent Fist and Yummy Coma.

Stuart A. Staples – Arrhythmia (City Slang, 2018) — releases Arrhythmia on 15 June via City Slang, his first solo album in thirteen years. Arrhythmia is immersive and experimental, both recognisably the work of the Tindersticks’ frontman and simultaneously a stand-alone, unique piece of work. It’s a provocative album where electronic experimentations and rare multi-instrumentations interweave, wrapping themselves around unconventional but utterly spellbinding song structures.

Tunnelvisions – Ritual II (Atomnation, 2018) — Part two of Tunnelvisions ‘Ritual’ series on Atomnation sees the accomplished Dutch duo continuing to expand their sound with this incredible, eclectic three tracker.

Mindy Sotiri – Women Smoking (Mindy Sotiri, 2018) — is Mindy’s fifth solo album. Out in May 2018, it is about women smoking. And women. And smoking. It is also about the Sydney lock out laws, unexpected love, unexpected endings, crowded parties, booze and balconies, Newtown in 2015, and the under-appreciated role of the rehearsal girlfriend.

2raumwohnung — Nacht Und Tag Remixe (It Sounds, 2018) — Wir haben ja bereits letztes Jahr 2raumwohnung alias Inga Humpe und Tommi Eckart für ihr Album „Tag und Nacht“ gefeiert. Ein Jahr später releasen die beiden eine Special Remix Edition von „Nacht und Tag“. Mit dabei u.a. Jan Oberländer, Robot Koch, DJ Koze u.v.m. Veröffentlicht wird am 15.06.2018. Heute gibt es aber erstmal das Video in Original Nacht-Version „Ich bin die Bass Drum“.

Chuck Auerbach – Remember Me (Easy Eye Sound, 2018) — Special Release for Father s Day 2018! *Father of Black Keys Dan Auerbach (who produced the record) * Country ballads and earthy R&B in a grizzled voice that suggested Tom Waits with a dash of the singer from Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show (the one without the eye patch). David Fricke, Rolling Stone *Recorded initially at the legendary Butcher Shoppe Studio in Nashville, then finalized at Dan s studio, Easy Eye Sound. Features a who s who of Nashville session players including Dave Roe (Bass), Bobby Emmett (Keyboards), Pete Abbott (Drums), Kenny Vaughan (Guitars), Dante Schwebel (Guitars), Russ Pahl (Pedal Steel), Richard Swift (Background Drums, Background Vocals and Keyboards), and Sean Sullivan (Engineer), with additional guitars and production by Dan himself. *

Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson — Apart [EP] (Capitol Records, 2018) — The follow-up to the pair’s 2009 LP Break Up, the EP is comprised of six songs, one of which is a “remix” by Johansson of Yorn’s “Tomorrow”, which appeared on his 2016 record ArrangingTime. Johansson and Yorn announced the EP alongside the release of a music video for lead single “Bad Dreams”, though Yorn came under fire afterward by not clarifying that the song was a cover of the Echo Friendly’s “Worried” (the issue has since been resolved).

The Tiger Lillies — Corrido De La Sangre (Misery Guts Music, 2018) — One lyric stands out and sums up Corrido de la Sangre: “Hell’s house band play our songs”. This is ninety minutes in the company of hell’s house band guiding us through the passing from life to death in their unique Tiger Lillies style. It falls between neither being a piece of theatre with a satisfying through-story, nor is it a gig with a mixture of songs. The Tiger Lillies continue to make theatrical inspired work in their own style that, thirty years on, is still as matchless as it always was.

The History Of Colour TV – Highway Gothic (Weird Books, 2018) — The History of Colour TV is a Berlin-based shoegaze outfit whose origins began in 2010 as a conceptual audio-visual project of musician Jaike Stambach. After self-releasing several experimental cassette-only EPs and accompanying videos, the project began to take on a fuller shape as Stambach brought in additional bandmembers to color his dreamy, darkly textured pop songs. Their first release as a group was 2011’s Colour TV EP, which still incorporated some of the more abrasive ambient textures of Stambach’s earlier solo work, but was far more anchored in song format. A deal with Texas-based indie Saint Marie Records was struck and they released their debut album, 2012’s densely layered Emerald Cures Chic Ills. Stripping down their sound, while keeping it no less potent, they returned in June 2014 with When Shapes of Spilt Blood Spelt Love. ~ Timothy Monger

Cafe con Leche — L’avenir Est À Nous (Self-published, 2018) — Van funky reggae tot pompende balkan, van snedige ska tot intiem chanson: de derde plaat van Cafe con leche is opnieuw een unieke en opzwepende mix geworden. Op 20 april werd het album voorgesteld met een knaller van een liveshow in in de 4AD club te Diksmuide. Cafe con Leche trekt in 2018 op toer om “L’avenir est à nous” overal live te spelen.

The Wave Pictures – Brushes With Happiness (Moshi Moshi Records, 2018) — As one of the UK’s most prolific and beloved bands, it has become expected – nay, the fans have demanded — that The Wave Pictures release several albums a year. This year, they are releasing two albums and they’re kindly letting us know well in advance, so that we can set our calendars and save our pennies in anticipation. Starting with the spontaneous, recorded in one-day, minor-key, epic masterpiece that is Brushes with Happiness in June, the trio of Jonny Helm (drums), Dave Tattersall (guitar & vocals) and Franic Rozycki (bass), will be following up with a more up-beat party album, Look Inside Your Heart in October. или изврунета: » — новый альбом одной из самых плодовитых и любимых рок-групп в Великобритании Тhе Wаvе Рiсturеs, сформированной в 1998-м году и состоящей из Дэвида Таттерсалла (вокал, гитара), Франика Розицки (бас) и Джонни Хелма (ударные). Группа работает в пространстве между роком, блюзом, фолком и альтернативой, имеет свой особый узнаваемый саунд. Тhе Guаrdiаn пишет, что их песни «балансируют между гениальностью, остроумием и провинциальным романтизмом», что бы это ни значило. В активе группы более полутора десятков студийников, около 30-и синглов и ЕР, и около десятка сборников.»

The Essex Green – Hardly Electronic (Merge Records, 2018) — The Essex Green back to the active column with their new album Hardly Electronic, set for worldwide release on June 29! Along with the LP announcement, the band (that’s Sasha Bell, Jeff Baron, and Christopher Ziter) are sharing the album’s animated opener “Sloane Ranger” and August tour dates, both of which can be found below. Hardly Electronic is a blood moon-inspired album featuring signature Essex Green harmonies layered over classic rock ’n’ roll, baroque, and countrypolitan stylings.

Arp (Alexis Georgopoulos) – ZEBRA (Mexican Summer, 2018) — A mutant offspring of diverse stylings, unlikely convergences, unfixed constellations, ZEBRA, Alexis Georgopoulos’ — aka Arp — fifth full-length album, is a post-everything symbiosis of ancient to future psychotropics, emphasizing points of connectivity between far-flung traditions. ZEBRA is as naturalistic as it is alien, disrupting outdated boundaries between musical traditions, hierarchies and genre politics.

Dе/Visiоn — Сitуbеаts (Popgefahr Records,2018) — изврунета «Новый полноформатный студийный альбом любимого многими россиянами, немецкого музыкального дуэта Dе/Visiоn, одного из самых известных коллективов на электронной сцене. Как говорят сами музыканты, главное для них — качество. Они не используют семплы, тщательно продумывают звучание, а также обильно используют синтетические эффекты аранжировки. Стиль Dе/Visiоn можно охарактеризовать одним словом, которое в полной мере раскрывает их звучание — синтипоп. Эти ребята создают музыку на тонкой грани между сладкими мелодиями, которые звучат по всем радиостанциям, и порядком кажутся приторными, и готикой, которая не всем обычным слушателям по душе. Но как раз душевность и задевает в текстах. И при этом саунд Dе/Visiоn не похож на приевшиеся всем сэмплы, которые используют рядовые музыканты шоу-бизнеса. Группа была образована в 1988 году в Бенсхайме, Германия.»

Gorillaz — The Now Now (Parlophone, 2018) — A brand new studio album from Gorillaz titled The Now Now will be released by Parlophone Records on 29th June. The Now Now is 11 all-new songs from the World’s Most Successful Virtual Act, produced by Gorillaz, with James Ford and Remi Kabaka, and recorded in London, in February this year. The album sessions for The Now Now saw the band largely eschewing guest stars, taking it back to the core creative crew: blue-haired, sweet-natured dreamer 2D on vocals, whip-smart Japanese badass Noodle on guitar, not forgetting Brooklyn-born philosopher and the meat-behind-the-beat Russel Hobbs on drums. And with Murdoc Niccals temporarily indisposed, bass duties on the new album have been taken up by erstwhile Gangreen Gang member Ace. A sun-drenched new video for first track Humility, starring a roller-skating 2D and a busking Jack Black, was directed by Jamie Hewlett and filmed entirely in Venice Beach, California last month.

Hamish Kilgour – Finklestein (Ba Da Bing!, 2018) — The Clean member Hamish Kilgour’s second-ever solo album, Finklestein, flips the singer/guitarist/drummer’s path taken on All Of It And Nothing. Having previously gone for intimate, minimalistic performances, Finklestein displays a chock-full production quality akin to a fairytale. It’s a fitting change, seeing as the songs are based around a children’s story Kilgour conceived for his son about a kingdom that invents a way of dealing with their depleting gold resources. The songs include organ, saxophone, pedal steel, piano, vibraphone, harmonica, even footsteps (Hamish is renowned for his stepping), most of it performed by Kilgour and his producer/collaborator Gary Olsen at Olsen’s studio, Marlborough Farms in Brooklyn. Originally conceived as being a children’s book as well as album, Finklestein rides roughshod through this fairytale world with grace. Finklestein took a year to record, as Hamish’s involvement with a large part of the Brooklyn music scene, as well as dates with recent New Zealand Music Hall of Fame inductees The Clean, split his time. His songs benefit from this elongated recording period, as each track creates its own space within the Finklestein world, mixing instruments and melodies in a rainbow of ways. Yet it’s Kilgour’s songwriting sensibilities that hold the album together, his charismatic and loose arrangements within a congenial environment of musical play.

Tropics — Nocturnal Souls (Plus Fours, 2018) — изврунета: «Третий студийный альбом британского музыканта Криса Уорда, выступающего под сценическим псевдонимом Тrорiсs. История Тrорiсs начались в 2010 году с выпуска ЕР под названием «Sоft Visiоn». Это была его первый полноценный релиз после записи официального ремикса «А Nеw», песни шведской группы Littlе Drаgоn в том же году году. В следующем году Тrорiсs выпустил свой дебютный полноформатный альбом под названием «Раrоdiа Flаrе» на лейбле Рlаnеt Мu. В 2012 году Тrорiсs выпустил свой второй полнометражный альбом под названием «Nаutiсаl Сlаmоr». / Крис Уорд: «Я надеюсь сконцентрироваться на своей музыке и посвятить ей все свободное время. Музыкой я занимаюсь так долго, как себя помню. Под именем Тrорiсs я занимаюсь музыкой около 4-х лет — проект который начался в виде пиликанья в моей спальне, и это большая удача, что у меня есть возможность развивать и совершенствовать свое звучание.»»

Roadhouses — Roadhouses (Doubtful Sounds, 2018) — Sydney slowcore dream rock trio Roadhouses have released their second single from their forthcoming self-titled debut LP.

июлЬ

на удивление летом и мало растарелизов: Koko Dembele — Tieba (MAD, 2018), Bagar aka Tricky D – Tricky Dubs (2018), Akae Beka — Nurtured Frequency (Haze St Studios, 2018), Akae Beka — Kings Dub (Grade Records and Andrew Bassie Records, 2018), Reemah — Breaking News (Feel Line Records, 2018),

Sear Lui Même – Chasseur De Têtes (Le Gouffre, 2018) — Le rappeur Sear lui même du clan « L’or noir » et le producteur Char du collectif « Le gouffre » présente « Chasseurs de têtes » le nouvel album de Sear lui même dont la sortie est prévue pour le 29 juin 2018. On vous laisse découvrir la pochette dessinée par Wild Sketchs et agencée par Slob.

Chromatics — Camera (Italians Do It Better, 12″, EP, 2018) — Chromatics have released a new vinyl-only EP. Camera is available now via Italians Do It Better. The eight-track EP includes two unreleased songs: “Taste of Blood” and “Flashback to Forever.” There are also new versions of “Magazine” (originally on Johnny Jewel’s Home soundtrack), “Dear Tommy,” and “Camera,” which now has vocals from Ruth Radelet. (The original “Camera,” from the 2013 After Dark 2 compilation, had vocals from Adam Miller.) A representative for Chromatics told Pitchfork, “The Camera EP relates to the album [Dear Tommy] similar to the “Just Like You” and “Shadow” 12-inches.”

Romantica – Outlaws (La Traviata Records, 2018) — Outlaws features 10 songs that were outlawed from previous Romantica recordings, including the singles Love in the Winter, Dear Caroline and crowd favorite Baby Killed Bobby, all recorded for the lost album God and Love and War as well as interpretations of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah and the Beatles’ Something, an appearance with Ryan Adams on a live recording of The Dark, and three unreleased tracks from the Shadowlands sessions in 2015 at Shepherd Hills Farm. It features contributions from former Romantica members Luke Jacobs and James Orvis, current members Tony Zaccardi, Danger Dave Strahan, Ryan Lovan, and Aaron Fabbrini as well as longtime collaborators Jessy Greene, Eric Heywood, Carrie Rodriguez, Joe Savage, Alex Oana, Tom Herbers and Brad Bivens

Bjørn Torske – Byen (Smalltown Supersound, 2018) — New music from Bjørn Torske is always cause for celebration—but even by the high standards that the Norwegian producer has set for himself over the last two decades, Byen feels special. Torske’s fifth solo album is a revelation for electronic music fans and anyone with a keen ear for melodic, trance-inducing dance music, as it finds the veteran musician fusing two distinct sides of his catalog—clubby, inviting house music, and side-long pastoral ambience—for a career-defining statement that’ll appeal to newcomers and longtime fans alike.

Fog Lake — Captain (Dog Knights Records, 2018) — On July 5th 2018, Powell released his latest full length entitled Captain through Dog Knights Records.

Thousand Foot Whale Claw — Black Hole Party (HoloDeck, 2018) — True to its title and Kilian Eng cover art, Black Hole Party finds members of Future Museums, S U R V I V E, Troller, and Single Lash embracing their extraterrestrial side at the edge of their own self-contained universe. And while the quartet is quick to credit krautrock as a main source of inspiration, there’s more to Thousand Foot Whale Claw’s second album than rickety Neu!-school rhythms, loose Manuel Göttsching licks, and tricked-out Tangerine Dream undertones. Between their deeply felt drones, wailing guitar work, and traces of ambient techno, it’s as if the Austin band (and producer/recurring collaborator Dylan Cameron) set out to summarize Holodeck‘s entire sound with six expansive songs.

Black Savage — Black Savage (Afro7 Records, 2018) — Fantastic new compilation of the Kenyan Afro-Rock group Black Savage, 9 tracks taken from one extremely rare LP and two singles 1975-78. Comes with digital download codes, colorful insert and CD with bonus tracks not available on the lp, liners written by Kenyan music journalist Emmanuel Mwendwa.

Cowboy Junkies – All That Reckoning (Redeye Distribution, 2018) — The album takes some getting into, but spare it the time and it rewards. Of particular note is “Shining Teeth,” a quality song about scratching below the surface to find the real person beneath and “The Possessed” which features little but guitar and lead vocalist Margo Timmins musing about finding the devil. There are two versions of the title track which explores a tumultuous relationship, one reflective and generally quiet whilst the other is brooding with intensity and electric guitar feedback. “The Things We Do To Each Other” is a reflection on humanity as a whole and very much a song of its time. A solid return from one of the genre’s defining bands.

C.A.R. — Look Behind You (Bimba Records, 2018) — is presenting their second album „Look Behind You“. After the field trips into the world of Pop and Electronica covers on their 2017 EP „Interlude“ the band returns to original compositions again. It was recorded and mixed at the Dumbo Studios in Cologne by Jan Philipp Janzen and Phillip Tielsch, also known as members of the Post-Krautrock outfit Von Spar. Yet another band, whose sound is hard to pin down to genre conventions. On the album you can find all the sonic elements that C.A.R. has adopted in the course of their seven year existence so far. From composed melodies to improvised sounds, from ambient collages to Duesseldorf beats. But all of this comes without conceptual limitations or formal orchestrations, always focused on the natural flow of music.

Dauwd — Theory Of Colours – Versions [Technicolour, 2018] — Dauwd returns to Technicolour with “Theory of Colours — Versions” EP. A new 4-tracker EP containing remixes / reworks of various singles from his debut album “Theory of Colours” which was released last summer via the Ninja Tune imprint. The album was praised by the likes of Resident Advisor, Mixmag and DJ Mag who described the album as “expertly produced and seriously understated grooves, with layers of electronica, ambient and jazz-flecked house peeling off after each track”. The Berlin based artist has previously released on Ghostly International and Kompakt. Dauwd also makes up one third of the Berlin collective, party and radio show, African Acid Is The Future alongside fellow producers Rouge Mécanique / WolfOnAcid and MaryIsOnAcid. The collective also now have a permanent show on WorldWide FM.

Deepchord — Immersions (Astral Industries, 2018) — Rod Modell returns as Deepchord for his first solo release on Astral Industries since inaugurating the label with his sought-after ‘Lanterns’ EP. Consisting of two stunning long-form pieces split on one side each, ‘Immersions’ captures the emotive, halcyon sound that Rod has long become synonymous with. Opening with glistening ambient textures, ‘Immersion I’ grows into an 18-minute piece of deep rolling dub techno. On the other side ‘Immersion II’ paints pristine soundscapes of soft, lapping waves, underpinned by submerged pulsations that rise to the surface to continue its deep space explorations. Two highly refined and inspiring tracks that sit on the apogee of this sound.

Windows96 — One Hundred Mornings (Business Casual, 2018) — synthwave, chillwave, vaporwave, US

Castlebeat — VHS (Spirit Goth Records, 2018) — Josh Hwang, the man behind CASTLEBEAT, Jaded Juice Riders, and the label Spirit Goth Records finally releases the sophomore album “VHS”. The new material extending the DIY bedroom lo-fi project started in 2015 brought back the nostalgia feeling regarding 80’s and 90’s era of old televisions and cassette tapes that provide an environment pleasure. The opening track “Research” remarks Josh’s proposal bringing synth effects, electronic drums, and at least two guitar layers in a stereo mode mixing smooth and the noisy sound sometimes together (“Wasting Time”, “Zephyr”, “These Days” and “Heart Still Beats”) and separated (“Tennis” and “Here”).

Forma — Semblance (BMI, 2018) — Brooklyn ambient/post-rock ensemble Forma offer up another set of gorgeous, blissed-out soundscapes with Semblance, a worthy followup to 2016’s excellent Physicalist. That album saw the group expand their vision considerably, and while Semblance doesn’t break new ground in quite the same way, it explores more fully the directions hinted at by its predecessor.

Pram — Across The Meridian (Domino, 2018) — изврунета: «Восьмой в дискографии и первый за 11 лет студийный альбом британского экспериментального поп-коллектива Pram. На новом релизе группа искусно смешивает инструментальные композиции с песнями, прокладывая весёлый путь через территорию саундтреков к забытым фильмам, джаза 30-х, солнечной поп-музыки, электроники и пост-панк-эксперимента.»

Les P’tits Fils de Jeanine — Je n’ai pas vu le doute (2018) — Il est frais mon poisson. Nouvel Album Je n’ai pas vu le doute — sortie Juillet 2018 En tournée dans toute la France http://www.lespfj.fr

Les têtes de piafs — Mon frère terrien (Les Têtes de Piafs, 2018)— L’enfance et l’amour étaient les thèmes principaux du premier album. Avec « Mon frère terrien » nous souhaitons interroger notre vision du monde et de la société. Nos textes abordent les thèmes du déracinement, du manque d’identité, du handicap, de la place des anciens, des origines, de la transmission… Tout cela en gardant, nous l’espérons, la fraîcheur qui semble être notre marque de fabrique.

RéMila — Le plus bel endroit du monde (Comme une grande, 2018) — NOUVEL ALBUM disponible RéMila en duo avec Hugo Barbet

Radical Face – Covers, Volume 1 “Lady Covers” [EP] (Bear Machine, 2018) — The eleventh single by Radical Face is named ‘Covers, Vol. 1: “Lady Covers”‘ and was just released on label Bear Machine and is now available on Spotify. The single is not yet on Last.FM, indicating it is not too popular or it’s just too soon to tell.

Ducktails – New Dream [Single] (New Images Limited, 2018) — written, recorded and produced by Matthew Mondanile

авГуст

растадабы августа: Capital Letters — Judgement Day (Sugar Shack Records, 2018), DYCR — Dub, Stories and Poetry (Tad’s Record Inc., 2018), The Manor – Walk with Jah (Dubophonic, 2018), Lightman — Roots (Helmi Levyt; Manu, 2018), Echo Minott – Raw [Unplugged] (Napem Records, 2018), Mikey General — Tewahedo (Irie Sounds International, 2018), Natural Black – Eyes Ah Look (VPAL Music, 2018), The PathHeights — Twin Flamezz (Echo Beach, 2018), The Chosen Brothers — Sing & Shout (Wackie’s, 2018), Mclntosh Jerahuni — On the Rise (Mclntosh Jerahuni, 2018), Santigold – I Don’t Want: The Gold Fire Sessions (Downtown, 2018), Alpha Blondy — Human Race (Wagram Music, 2018), Phill Pratt / Bobby Kalphat — The War Is On Dub Style (Pressure Sounds, 2018), Beenie Man — Dancehall_ Beenie Man (PMI Jet Star, 2018)

Underworld & Iggy Pop — Teatime Dub Encounters (Caroline International, EP, 2018) — из врунета: Игги Поп и группа Undеrwоrld записали и выпустили совместный 4—трековый ЕР под названием «Теаtimе Dub Еnсоuntеrs». Альбом является результатом нескольких секретных сеансов записи, которые начались через несколько недель после того, как Undеrwоrld и Iggу Рор выпустили свои последние альбомы в один и тот же день (3/18/16). Спонтанность как стимул для творчества.

Capital Cities – Solarize (Capitol Records, LLC, 2018) — Los Angeles indie electro unit Capital Cities first came together as the duo of composer/songwriters Ryan Merchant and Sebu Simonian. The two were initially working as jingle writers and met on Craigslist in 2011. Shortly after meeting, they released an EP online, which included the song «Safe and Sound,» an upbeat mash of programming and melody that went viral and gained the act a lot of Internet exposure. Eventually, Merchant and Simonian were joined by bassist Manny Quintero, trumpeter Spencer Ludwig, guitarist Nick Merwin, and drummer Channing Holmes. The fully realized live version of Capital Cities played festivals internationally, opening shows for Jane’s Addiction, Asher Roth, and many others. The full-length In a Tidal Wave of Mystery appeared on Capitol in June 2013, followed later that year by the Kangaroo Court EP. The band’s innovative video for «Kangaroo Court» earned them a Grammy nomination the following year. Capital Cities returned in the summer of 2017 with another EP, Swimming Pool Summer. ~ Fred Thomas

Phillip Boa & The Voodooclub – Earthly Powers (Cargo Records, 2018) — Boas Voodooclub liefert auf «Earthly Powers» Arrangements, die reduzierter und weniger geschichtet klingen als auf dem Vorgänger «Bleach House» (2014), auf dem man einen Drumcomputer noch vergebens gesucht hätte. Trotzdem ist der Zuhörer nie unterfordert. Konzentriert man sich, wird das neue Werk bald zu einem episodischen und romanartigen Album. Welche Geschichten seine eigenen sind und welche nicht, welche aus der Gegenwart oder der Vergangenheit stammen, lässt Boa immer wieder verschwimmen. So schafft er es, zugleich nostalgisch und zeitlos zu klingen. Fragt sich nur: Welche Geschichten bleiben noch für die Nummer 20? Die Antwort wird vermutlich nicht lange auf sich warten lassen.

Puzzle Muteson – Swum (Bedroom Community, 2018) — Puzzle Muteson’s songs are sensitive and thoughtful incarnations, a series of flowing fairy-tales narrated by a warbling tenor and enchanting, finger-plucked music which is as light and as fair as a maiden’s golden locks. ‘And they all lived happily ever after’ has been removed from the final chapter; this selection has tasted the sour reality of adulthood and the thorny world of relationships. Disney didn’t do the population any favours by painting relationships in pretty pinks and charming knights in shining armour. From the opening bars, Swum’s melodies spin in glistening, translucent webs of fingerstyle guitar. Terry Magson’s quivering voice, as well as his honest writing, lights up the music by sitting front and centre.

Jimi Tenor and Tony Allen – OTO Live Party (Moog Recordings Library, 2018) — The godfather of Afrobeat and the Finnish funk freak go to town, well Cafe Oto to be exact, on this live recording, featuring Allen using a prototype, drum-triggered Moog to devilish effect. “SEPT 2016. The Moog Sound Lab’s first trip out for a live session at Café Oto’s project & café rooms. Jimi Tenor, finnish futurist, shako & Warp Records confederate, jazzed, funked, far-ra’d out. Tony Allen – original drummer to Fela Kuti – Godfather of the Afro-Beat. These two titans of the beat strange -fed & watered through the mighty Moog Sound Lab via a prototype future sound systems drum trigger unit built & operated by UK moog minder engineer Mr Finlay Shakespeare. New sound universes emerge, collide. Explosions & implosions make sonic debris. Cosmic dancers prepare to be run ragged by a feral ‘tronic funk that brings to mind early ‘D.A.F” [Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft].”

Jason Mraz – Know. (Warner Music, 2018) — Multiple Grammy Award winner Jason Mraz has announced the release of his hugely anticipated new studio album. Know. arrives at all music retailers and streaming services on Friday, August 10.The album serves as a follow-up to the 2014 LP “Yes!”, and is Mraz’s first full-length studio recording in over four years. Know. is further highlighted by Mraz’s current smash single, “Have It All” which he performed this morning on Live With Kelly and Ryan. Currently ascending the Top 15 at Hot AC radio outlets nationwide while also earning more than 4.5 million streams in the U.S. alone, “Have It All” was recently joined by a very special acoustic version of the song, available for purchase and streaming here. Originally conceived after Mraz received and translated a blessing from a Buddhist monk during a moving visit to Myanmar in 2012, “Have It All” is joined by an official music video, now boasting nearly 5 million views on YouTube. Directed by longtime collaborator Darren Doane (“I’m Yours,” “Make It Mine,” “Lucky”), the visual captures the song’s bright spirit with a stroll through Mraz’s hometown of Richmond, Virginia, joined by students from Turnaround Arts and the School of the Performing Arts in the Richmond Community, as well as actors Katie Grober (Waitress) and Greg Grunberg (Alias, Heroes).

Nik Turner and Youth — Pharaohs From Outer Space (Painted Word, 2018) — Pharaohs From Outer Space is one of three albums launching British experimental / ambient label Painted Word. The label has been formed by post-punk band Killing Joke’s bassist Youth, who describes the album-which he produced and co-headlines with Nik Turner, saxophonist with psychedelic space-rockers Hawkind-as “a nod to Sun Ra and Alice Coltrane.” It is mellifluous, multi-layered, chill-out music which sits comfortably with Brian Eno’s dictum that good ambient music does not demand the listener’s attention, but that it rewards such attention if it is given.

Brother Dege — Farmer’s Almanac (Psyouthern, 2018) — от musicbunker через Музыкальный ящик: Новый альбом от Brother Dege — музыканта, писателя и простого рабочего, родившегося и выросшего на юге США. Взяв гитару-резонатор b освоив слайд, он начал смешивать южный фолк, дельта-блюз и готик американу в музыке. И очень успешно, надо отметить. Прорыв луизианского автора в публичную зону случился с легкой руки Квентина Тарантино, когда песня Too old to die young стала настоящим хитом в альтернативных кругах.

Astronauts, Etc. — Living In Symbol (Coqueiro Verde Records, 2018) — is an ode to ambiguity, the future, and saying ‘so long’ to the known. A member of the last generation to experience life before total interconnectedness, Anthony Ferraro (digitally known as Tony Peppers) aims to be a bridge between two very different realities.

The Growlers – Casual Acquaintances (Beach Goth Records, 2018) — из врунета: The Growlers — американская группа, сформированная в Дана-Пойнт, Калифорния, в 2006 году, ныне базирующися в Коста-Меса. В настоящее время в состав группы входят певец Брукс Нильсен, ведущий гитарист Мэтт Тейлор и клавишник / гитарист Кайл Страка. Они выпустили пять альбомов, три EP и несколько синглов. Звук группы был описан как «музыкальный стиль, который каким-то образом сочетает в себе серфинг, поп, рок и ритм», в народе известен как «Beach Goth».

All India Radio – Subspace (Not On Label, 2018) — SUBSPACE was originally available as part of our recent crowd funding campaign. It features remixes, album outtakes, ambient versions and a few surprises for long-time fans with eagle ears! The artwork is by Adolf Schaller who created many of the Space scenes from Carl Sagan’s original Cosmos TV series.

Jaye Jayle (Evan Patterson) — No Trail And Other Unholy Paths (Sargent House, 2018) — из врунета: Натянутый струной нерв. Новый альбом Эвана Паттерсона из Young Widows и Breather Resist, исследующего территорию готического фолка, блюза и экспериментального рока. На второй половине альбома (5,6,7,8) можно услышать гитару и вокал несравненной дивы Эммы Рут Рандл.

Radius — Obsolete Machines [Stage Two] (echospace [detroit], 2018) — Towards the back-end of 2017 Echospace [Detroit] released Obsolete Machines, a quietly impressive set of Detroit minimalism by the little-known Radius. It soon transpired that Radius was a moniker which Soultek/Echospace bloke Stephen Hitchell had recorded under in the ‘90s and early ‘00s. The Obsolete Machines material was actually submitted for release in 2001, but due to some miscommunication the tapes never made it to the pressing plant. Fast forward seventeen years and Echospace [Detroit] have cleaned up another set of the old Radius material for ‘Stage Two’ of their Obsolete Machines releases. The five cuts here are wistful, grainy minimal techno of the sort that would get Nicolas Jaar all hot and bothered. Well worth the wait.

Timecop1983 — Night Drive (Instrumental Edition) [LP] (2018) — из вконтакта: Старина Джорди, главная путеводная звезда мечтательного синтвейва, не изменяет традициям. Спустя некоторое время после релиза полноформатного альбома он выпускает его инструментальную версию. Нам здесь нечего добавить — все слова уже были сказаны в описании к оригинальной пластинке (https://vk.cc/8msPCQ). Остается лишь зарядить свои проигрыватели и отправиться навстречу новому дню под, возможно, наиболее подходящий для этого времени суток саундтрек. This is the instrumental edition of my album Night Drive: timecop1983.bandcamp.com/album/night-drive.

Michael Nau — Michael Nau & The Mighty Thread (Relearn To Boogie, 2018) — Maryland’s Michael Nau is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist who crafts psychedelic- and folk-influenced indie pop. With bandmates Whitney McGraw (keyboards), Jasen Reeder (bass), and Clinton Jones (drums), he released three albums as lead singer/guitarist of indie rock’s Page France before forming the style-blending psych-folk project Cotton Jones Basket Ride with McGraw in 2007.

Gyedu Blay Ambolley — The Message EP (Analog Africa, 2018) — Prepare yourself for new directions in Afro-funk. During the 1980s, ghanaian bandleader Gyedu-Blay Ambolley began to experiment with electronic instruments, and the result was a potent cocktail of highlife, funk, exploratory synths and righteous vocals, the sound of a restless genius intent on pushing the traditional sounds of highlife into a brave new future. On July 20 Analog Africa will release a 12” containing four of Ambolley’s hardest-driving excursions to the outer limits of eighties funk.

Beelzebub Jones — A Good Day To Be A Bad Guy (Speak Up Recordings, 2018) — «Однажды представитель Соединённого Королевства, мистер Andrew Halfdeaf McLatchie, вспомнил, что он забыл эмигрировать, посмотрел на солнце, что заходит на запад, вдохнул немного дорожной пыли, запил это всё бурбоном по 21.89 и решил, что теперь он Beelzebub Jones. Являясь не просто сценическим образом, а ожившим персонажем, Beelzebub Jones — есть плод совместного творчества Эндрю и писателя Ричарда Уолла. «Good Day To Be a Bad Guy Final Word» называется рассказ Уолла, и это, в принципе хорошо характеризует саму специфику звучания. Это не столь психопатично, как транслирует Уайат, а скорее тот случай, когда после танцев на виселице ковбой, чья могила (ты просто не можешь ошибаться) находится в двух шагах, пустить таки пулю тебе в лоб. Ты даже будешь слышать, как смеются его рассохшиеся кости.» (автор: metisss003)

Still Corners – Slow Air (Wrecking Light Records, 2018) — The fourth full-length release for the synthpop duo of Greg Hughes and Tessa Murray was written and recorded in just three months.

Julee Cruise – Three Demos (Sacred Bones Records, Single, 2018) — Three Demos is a very unique release, featuring the very first demo recordings for songs from Julee Cruise’s initial LP with David Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti, Floating Into the Night.

Gilberto Gil ‎– Ok Ok Ok (Biscoito Fino, 2018) — o novo álbum que Gilberto Gil lança no dia 17 de agosto: o trabalho é o primeiro de inéditas do artista desde Fé na Festa, de 2010, e traz 15 músicas autorais. Produzido por Bem Gil, o material sai via Gegê Produções, com distribuição da Altafonte e da Biscoito Fino. A capa é assinada pelo artista plástico Luiz Berbini, que retratou Gil em aquarela – o projeto gráfico do disco é de André Vallias.

Murder By Death – The Other Shore (Bloodshot Records, 2018) — The Other Shore is the eighth studio album from Louisville, KY-based indie Americana trailblazers Murder by Death. It’s an epic space-western about a ravaged earth, it’s fleeing populace, and a relationship in jepoardy. Here, the group explores untapped genres, dynamic and emotional touches, intersecting and introspective storylines, and remote edges of the galaxy. Welcome, after nearly 20 years, thousands of performances around the world, and eight albums, you’ve landed on your new Murder by Death. The band’s name is derived from the 1976 Robert Moore film of the same name. Murder by Death released it’s first studio album (Like the Exorcist, but More Breakdancing) in 2002.

Mark Lanegan & Duke Garwood – With Animals (Heavenly Recordings, 2018) — Recorded in LA, Pasadena and Joshua Tree, With Animals is the second album by Mark Lanegan and Duke Garwood, two artists who’ve spent their careers stalking the peripheries and mapping sounds of the small hours. As befits a record called With Animals, these dusty songs feel like they were created in the company of the denizens of the night. Analogue and dust flecked, it’s as if Lanegan and Garwood have been holed up in a ’60s recording studio while the apocalypse rages outside. Over the last decade, Lanegan and Garwood have worked in tangent on 2013’s Black Pudding as well as on Lanegan’s solo records (2012’s Blues Funeral and 2017’s Gargoyle after which Garwood toured as part of Lanegan’s band).

Treetop Flyers – Treetop Flyers (Loose Music, 2018) — The album is bookended by two delicate instrumentals. ‘Fleadrops’ is a delicate opening salvo. The riffs twine and intertwine with each other, creating a cat’s cradle of melodies that are constantly in flux. There is a pang of melancholy that lets us know this might be a slightly lugubrious affair. ‘Door 14’ closes the album with similar motifs and themes.

Benjamin Francis Leftwich — I Am With You (Dirty Hit, EP, 2018) — Benjamin Francis Leftwich has this unique ability to capture the true depth of human feeling by conveying complex emotions it in an honest and beautiful way. That theme abounds in all his catalogue to date from the pastoral musings of Last Smoke Before The Smoke Storm to the wandering hymns within his latest record After The Rain. New single “I Am With You” showcases Leftwich in a new light. Whilst intricate beats and vocoder replace his trademark acoustic sparsity, the hushed urgency of this release is the thematic link that ties it into the rest of the output. There is comfort in consistency and Leftwich’s music is consistent. Consistently immediate, consistently vulnerable, consistently gentle. “I Am With You” is the first taste of Leftwich’s new EP released through Dirty Hit this summer

David Olney – This Side Or The Other (Black Hen Music, 2018) — One listen to the brand new album, “This Side or The Other,” and you’ll know David Olney is a man familiar with the wandering life and yearning heart of a poet. After more than 30 years in music, he’s had as many incarnations as you can imagine. His resume has expanded to include acting, poetry and a popular weekly streamcast. All of this adds to Olney’s strength as a songwriter’s songwriter, and one of Nashville’s founding fathers of Americana music.

Sugarplum Fairies — Payday Flowers (Starfish Records, 2018) — Sugarplum Fairies is the moniker of Vienna native Silvia Ryder, supplemented by an array of rotating guest musicians. The sound of SPF bridges the transatlantic gap with an amalgamation of European pop sensibilities and waltzing Americana folk rock, all tied together by Ryder’s evocative vocals. On the upcoming album, ‘Payday Flowers’, Sugarplum Fairies veers from sleepy shoegaze to eclectic Vaudeville, featuring Lee Hazlewood reminiscent horn arrangements alongside languid soundscapes. For Erich Rabenreither, RIP

Passenger – Runaway (Black Crow Records, 2018) — The new album then finds Rosenberg tilt his Stetson towards americana and gather together songs related to this theme, some of which have been around for a while, and it’s not a genre he comes to without an air of authenticity – his dad is from New Jersey and growing up he used to spend every other summer there as a kid. His back catalogue has touched on the genre in the form of country leanings on several tracks previously – ‘Travelling Alone’ from his lovely ‘Whispers 2’ record or ‘Bullets’ from its predecessor were both a signpost towards the type of music that he obviously has an ear for – but this is the first time he’s produced a whole album of americana both thematically and musically, and it’s happily a beautifully tight record, with layers of lapsteel, mandolin and banjo (although not too much of the latter to scare away existing fans – Brits and banjos, that age old war..) saturating every track with a rich sound evocative of the landscape in which it sits.

Kielov — Elektronische (Self Released, 2018) — Возможно немного наивный и местами даже романтический электронный проект аргентинского музыканта Ezequiel Sapir. Четыре великолепных трека пропитанных аналоговым духом 70-х. (Ринат Хозин)

Helios – Veriditas (Ghostly International, 2018) — Hauntingly beautiful nocturnes from Keith Kenniff (Goldmund) in Helios mode. Modest yet rich with moments of heart-rending majesty, ‘Veriditas’ is yet another immaculate late night LP worthy of comparison with Kenniff’s earlier releases for Type. “On respective edges of America — Oregon and Maine — Keith Kenniff records quiet music at night. “When things are calmer,” he says. “My mind is less distracted when I know that everything is dark outside.” For over a decade, such has been the mode — nocturnal, unrushed, using the same mini-cassette recorder, «a lovely little imperfect way to treat sounds» — for one of the country’s most understated composers. Kenniff has housed dozens of ambient releases under the name Helios since 2004, alongside post-classical output as Goldmund, shoegaze pop with his wife Hollie as Mint Julep, and commissions for film and television. It is a reliably transportive body of work that’s earned Kenniff a cult following, and a genuine modesty that’s kept him on the fringes, right where he prefers, in the dark.

Iron & Wine – Weed Garden EP (Sub Pop Records, 2018) — For fans of Iron & Wine, it’s Christmas in August. Weed Garden is a six-track EP including songs written by Sam Beam mostly while working toward his last full album, Beast Epic, and they sound very much like it. Beast Epic, released a year ago, marked not just Beam’s return to Sub Pop, but also to a more uncluttered style. While still backed by a full band, both the EP and its predecessor benefit from a regained intimacy which boosts the directness of Beam’s vocals and his bandmates’ harmonies. On opener “What Hurts Worse,” there are attempts to reconcile the idealistic aspects of a relationship with what’s actually achievable before it all crumbles, while “Last of Your Rock ‘n’ Roll Heroes” has a vibe like Tim Hardin fronting Stephen Stills’ Manassas and a disheveled, rickety protagonist who’s searching and struggling but also learning a life lesson every day. Beam’s surprise gift is the exquisite “Waves of Galveston,” a fan favorite getting its first official release. Its very 70’s-sounding refrain caresses the eardrums and Nick Drake may have sounded like this if singing about Texas. There are plenty of references to nature — the sea, butterflies, serpents, rain, clouds, flowers, winds and waves — but it’s all related to the human experience and the final three songs sustain the theme. Especially affecting are the gorgeous “Autumn Town Leaves” and the increasingly intense and desperate closer “Talking to Fog.” “Weed Garden” is both a wonderful bonus in relation to “Beast Epic” and an enchanting collection that deserves to be valued for its own plentiful merits.

L’Eclair — Polymood (Beyond Beyond is Beyond Records, 2018) — Born out of hazy nocturnal walks around London during the Winter of 2015, L’Eclair initially took form as a duo consisting of Sébastien Bui and Stefan Lilov, who conceived of the band for months before coming back to their homeplace of Geneva, Switzerland where their muse was eagerly awaiting them. The groove was their aim but they needed a bigger band to accomplish it. Long times friends and brother, Elie Ghersinu and Yavor Lilov joined the band, respectively on bass and drums, and not so long after, Quentin Pilet on percussion and Alain Sandri on keyboards & cowbell rounded out the current lineup.

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сентябрьские растадабы: Nat Birchall Meets Al Breadwinner — Sounds Almighty (870767 Records DK, 2018), Various Artists – Success Of Discipline (Smartkid Records, 2018), Black Uhuru — As The World Turns (Black Uhuru Official, 2018), Picstitch — Twist & Turn (Picaxe Production / VPAL Music, 2018), Ziggy Ranking — Chameleon (Fox Fuse, 2018), Puppa LËK SÈN — Afreekan Children (Jahsen Creation, 2018), Brother Culture — Code Name (Evidence Music, 2018), Zion I Kings — Digital Ancient Dub (Lustre Kings Productions, 2018), Geraint Jarman — Cariad Cwantwm (Ankstmusik, 2018), Groundation — The Next Generation (Baco, 2018), MHD — 19 (Artside, 2018), Winston McAnuff & Fixi — Big Brothers (Wagram Music, 2018), Alpha Steppa & Nai-Jah ‎– The Great Elephant ( Steppas ‎– ASLP009-10, 2018), Akae Beka — Topaz (Ocean Records, 2018), Da Fuchaman — Stronger Together EP (Yam & Banana, 2018),Feluke — Insight (Nebilus Records, 2018), Thatstyle — Dubyard (Mad Cut Records, 2018), Apache Indian — On The Weekend (Sunset Entertainment Group, 2018), Johnny Osbourne — World in a Crisis (Reggae Vibes, 2018)

Jack Adaptor – The Spoiler Versions (Supple Pipe Records, 2018) — Avant-pop mavericks Jack Adaptor return in 2018 with The Spoiler Versions, a meditation on modernity and mortality. The Spoiler Versions are the things we learn along the way. Life is not perfect but it will have to do for now. The music is composed, played, recorded and produced by Christopher Cordoba, who creates diverse musical landscapes which follow no rules and perfectly complement Paul Frederick’s optimistic pessimism.

Anadol — Uzun Havalar (Kinship Records, 2018) — 3-й альбом проекта Anadol выпущен только на кассете на небольшом лейбле Kinship Records. Коллектив, названный в честь первой турецкой автомобильной марки Anadol, базируется в Стамбуле и Берлине, и на мой взгляд исполняет весьма оригинальную, хоть и отдаленную от краута, музыку. Космические этюды замешаные на традиционной турецкой фолк музыке Uzun Havalar создают эклектичную атмосферу Среднего Востока. E:\music\krautrock

Everlast – Whitey Ford’s House Of Pain (Martyr Inc., 2018) — Everlast s newest album, Whitey Ford s House of Pain, once again on his own indie Martyr-Inc label, is his seventh solo studio effort overall, and first since 2011 s Songs of the Ungrateful Living (The Life Acoustic, re-recorded solo guitar versions of previously released songs, came out in 2013). The 12-track release offers an eclectic stylistic sampling from throughout Everlast s nearly-three-decade-long journey.

Yoav – Multiverse (Yoav Music, 2018) — из врунета: «Йоав (Йоав Садан, Yоаv Sаdаn) — певец и музыкант родом из Израиля, большую часть жизни провел в ЮАР. Стиль музыки Йоава сложно определить: он смешивает все от электроники, до акустики и инди. При этом для создания музыки он использует только акустическую гитару, применяя ее в качестве как струнного, так и перкуссионного и даже духового инструмента. За обработку звука отвечает множество гитарных примочек и процессоров. / Yоаv — невероятно талантливый мультиинструменталист. Он не просто человек-оркестр, но человек-студия: звучанию, которое он создает на сцене в одиночку при помощи одной лишь гитары и голоса, позавидует не только любая группа, но и любой саунд продюсер. Он не знает границ ни музыкальных, ни географических — родился в Израиле, вырос в Кейптауне, сейчас равномерно распределен между Монреалем и Лондоном. Его стиль своеобразен, узнаваем и на редкость эклектичен. В нем прослеживается любовь к минималистичному звуку. Yоаv нравится практически всем, включая Тори Амос, которая пригласила его принять участие в ее концертном турне. Не осталась в стороне и Россия — Yоаv попал в плейлисты радио «Максимум», добравшись до призовых строчек хит-парада.»

Teleman – Family Of Aliens (Moshi Moshi Records, 2018) — Armed with a freer, more collaborative approach to both writing and recording, Teleman’s new 11-track album Family of Aliens, is a fluid collection of glorious pop-songs fluent with new electronic textures and united by the sharp lyricism, buoyant guitars and instantaneous melodies that are synonymous with Teleman. “We want to keep evolving and keep discovering. This band is one long journey for us, and we never want to stop developing and finding new ways of creating music. I’m always wanting to better what we’ve done before. To go deeper, to find something more beautiful, more catchy, more challenging, more interesting … just more.” It’s evident the much-loved quartet have evolved, cultivating and honing their sound as a very-welcome and anticipated proposition for 2018.

Kristofer Åström – Quadrilogy (Startracks, Compilation of 4 EPs, 2018) — 18 (!!) non Album tracks that was recorded exclusively for the EP’s There For, Black Valley, Dead End and Hold On Lioness. Double LP with innersleeves w/lyrics

Princess Chelsea – The Loneliest Girl (Lil’ Chief Records, 2018) — The Loneliest Girl was recorded by Chelsea between 2016 and 2017 in her home studio in West Auckland, New Zealand with production assistance from labelmate Jonathan Bree. Chelsea’s trademark arrangements featuring classic 80’s Synths (Yamaha DX7, Roland D-50), ambient guitars, and orchestral instruments are all here but are presented in a more refined and simple manner than on her previous releases.

Le Matos — Summer Of ’84 (Le Matos, Original Motion Picture Soundtrack 2XLP, 2018) — «SUMMER OF ’84, a killer 80’s-throwback of BMX, Mullets and Serial Killers, from the people who brought you TURBO KID and featuring an amazing original score by Le Matos. Taking familiar tropes from the history of electronic music (John Carpenter, Daft Punk, Tangerine Dream) Le Matos (TURBO KID, JOIN US) infuse it with so much energy and originality that they end up being totally singular in the world of electronic music. We really can’t think of another outfit operating on the same level right now. SUMMER OF ’84 features dizzying electro joints, super chilled ambient pieces and straight up horror soundtrack scares!» — Death Waltz Recording

Marc Ribot – Songs Of Resistance 1942-2018 (Anti/Epitaph, 2018) — With his new album Songs of Resistance 1948 — 2018, Ribot—one of the world’s most accomplished and acclaimed guitar players—set out to assemble a set of songs that spoke to this political moment with appropriate ambition, passion, and fury. The eleven songs on the record are drawn from the World War II anti-Fascist Italian partisans, the U.S. civil rights movement, and Mexican protest ballads, as well as original compositions, and feature a wide range of guest vocalists, including Tom Waits, Steve Earle, Meshell Ndegeocello, Justin Vivian Bond, Fay Victor, Sam Amidon, and Ohene Cornelius. Over a forty-year career, Ribot has released twenty-five albums under his own name and been a beacon of New York’s downtown/experimental music scene, leading a series of bands including Los Cubanos Postizos and Ceramic Dog. Since his work with Tom Waits on 1985’s Rain Dogs album, though, he is best known to the world as a sideman, playing on countless albums by the likes of Elvis Costello, John Mellencamp, Norah Jones, the Black Keys, and Robert Plant and Alison Krauss’ Grammy-winning collaboration Raising Sand.

Malcolm Holcombe Come Hell or High Water (Gypsy Eyes Music, 2018) — Featuring collaborations with celebrated roots-music couple Iris DeMent and Greg Brown, the 13-track album is trademark Malcolm Holcombe. Chiseled out of a life abundant in both hard times and sweet ones, with an ache of loveliness and loneliness, of torment and hope, woven throughout, his songs paint vivid portraits, turning them into haunting, brooding, moving affairs. Recorded at Dagotown Recorders in Boston, MA, Come Hell or High Water was produced by Marco Giovino and Jared Tyler. Holcombe was joined in studio by Jared Tyler (mandola, dobro, classical guitar, harmony vocals), Marco Giovino (drums, percussion), Iris DeMent (harmony vocals) and Greg Brown (harmony vocals).

The Mountain Goats — Hex Of Infinite Binding EP (Merge Records, 2018) — I used to release a whole bunch of EPs. I miss the general spiritual realm of the EP and am hereby centering an intention to spend more time thereat. These songs represent, in part, the first salvo of my resolve. “Almost Every Door” and “Song for Ted Sallis” were written at home in North Carolina sometime during the summer and recorded by Brandon Eggleston at Electrical Audio in Chicago during our three-night stand at Old Town School of Folk Music. “Tucson Fog” is a home recording from last December, things can get a little dark in December. “Hospital Reaction Shot” was produced & engineered by Chris Stamey at Modern Recording, Chapel Hill, NC; Chris also wrote the string arrangements and played bass and electric guitar. Percussion on “Almost Every Door” and “Song for Ted Sallis” by Matt Espy from Dead Rider, maximum respect. Only one of these songs is directly about death but the person or persons in all these songs will someday die. The death one, “Hospital Reaction Shot,” is drawn from a picture of Mickey Deans holding a press conference to inform the world of the death of Judy Garland, to whom he had been married for three months. Yet the press conference is a sham, because Judy Garland lives, as Ted Sallis lives, as do many others thought missing. They can often be found in the vortex shortly before sundown, plotting their return. We live in hope! —John Darnielle

First Aid Kit – Tender Offerings [EP] (Columbia Records, 2018) — For fans of First Aid Kit, there is a new EP on the horizon. It snuck up on me. The Söderberg sisters (Johanna, and Klara) made a name for themselves with excellent compositions over four albums, the last two for Columbia Records (Stay Gold – 2014, Ruins – 2018). Nevertheless, their second album (The Lion’s Roar) is a stunning collection of songs that includes “Emmylou”. Ruins released in the first of the year. On September 14, Columbia will offer a 4-song EP from First Aid Kit called Tender Offerings on 10″ vinyl, and DD formats. For those that feel there’s never enough songs from First Aid Kit, this is a good collection that likely provides songs outtakes from the Ruins sessions (not verified).

Sandro Perri – In Another Life (Constellation, 2018) — Sandro Perri returns with In Another Life, his first new solo album since the acclaimed Impossible Spaces from 2011 (which garnered a Best New Track and Top 50 Albums of 2011 from Pitchfork, among many other accolades). Perri has been called “one of the most singular producers in contemporary music” (Boomkat) and his long affiliation with Constellation through various electronic and singer-songwriter guises (Polmo Polpo, Glissandro 70, Off World) has produced a uniquely adventurous and iconoclastic discography. In Another Life expands on this in peerless fashion.

David Kitt – Like Lightning [EP] (All City, 2018) — 2nd EP from David Kitt’s [New Jackson] ‘Yous’ LP released in March this year — a mini LP of sorts featuring 5 new non LP tracks.

Medeski, Martin & Wood (with Alarm Will Sound) — Omnisphere (Indirecto Records, 2018) — The most combustible and rangy trio in NYC of the last twenty years expands into full orchestration. Omnisphere combines the nimble gumption of Medeski, Martin & Wood with the convention-busting modern creative twenty-person band Alarm Will Sound in a gutsy collaboration that was recorded live at Denver’s Newman Center in February, 2015.

Dur-Dur Band — Dur Dur of Somalia — Volume 1 & Volume 2 [Analog Africa, Compilation, 2018] — When Analog Africa founder Samy Ben Redjeb arrived in Mogadishu in November of 2016, he was informed by his host that he would have to be accompanied at all times by an armed escort while in the country. The next morning, a neighbour and former security guard put on a military uniform, borrowed an AK-47 from somewhere and escorted him to Via Roma, an historical street in the heart of Hamar-Weyne, the city’s oldest district. Although previous Analog Africa releases have demonstrated a willingness to go more than the extra air-mile to track down the stories behind the music, the trip to Mogadishu was a musical journey of a different kind. It was the culmination of an odyssey that had started many years earlier.

Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band – The Serpent’s Mouth (Big Crown Records, 2018) — Following up on the massive worldwide success of their debut album 55, Bacao Rhythm & Steel band is back with another heavy duty offering. Picking up where they left off and incorporating a ton of new recording techniques they take a huge step forward with The Serpent’s Mouth. Named after the eight-mile strait between the island of Trinidad and the coast of Venezuela, The Serpent’s Mouth is a journey through both originals and covers, combining classic elements that wide-eared music fans already know, and mashing them up in new and unique ways.

Sleep Party People – Lingering Pt. II (Joyful Noise Recordings, 2018) — Sleep Party People is the brainchild of Brian Batz, a Danish multi-instrumentalist with a boundless imagination. The one-man home recording project started to take shape back in 2008 when Batz began experimenting with an old battered piano in his apartment. Coupled with a strange electronic alteration of his recorded voice, he created eerie, hypnotic sounds and haunting melodies which formed the basis for Sleep Party People’s self-titled debut album (2010).

Night Shop (Justin Sullivan) – In the Break (Mare Records, 2018) — Following the project’s debut EP by a year, In the Break is the first album by Night Shop, a singer/ songwriter outlet for established indie rock drummer Justin Sullivan. A member of the Babies with Kevin Morby, Sullivan also plays with solo Morby, and the laid-back, rustic rock of the latter is a good reference point for what to expect here, as is the fact that In the Break arrives via the Woodsist label. There’s also an apparent early rock influence, especially on tracks like “The One I Love,” which is rooted in a bouncy, rudimentary, ’50s-styled rock, and the musically nostalgic “You Are the Beatles” (“…You are the voice in my head that says It can be done/You are Monty Clift in A Place in the Sun”).

William Fitzsimmons — Mission Bell (Nettwerk Records, 2018) — The follow-up to the Midwestern troubadour’s two-part Pittsburgh project, Mission Bell sees William Fitzsimmons delivering another elegant and intimate, sad trombone of a record that makes a meal out of the picked-over carcass of heartbreak. Divorce has been a connecting theme throughout the Illinois-based singer/songwriter’s career, with 2006’s Goodnight putting the magnifying glass to his parents’ separation and 2008’s The Sparrow and the Crow focusing on his own annulment. Mission Bell chronicles the dissolution of his second marriage, and like its predecessors, it parses through the wreckage with both spleen and grace, unearthing nuggets of wisdom and pushing forward with the measured gait of someone who’s trudged through this particular battlefield before.

Khruangbin — Con Todo El Mundo (Late Night Tales, 2018) — Khruangbin is a three-piece band from Texas, formed of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald Johnson on drums. The trio’s first single ‘A Calf Born In Winter’ was released in May 2014 by Late Night Tales offshoot Night Time Stories, and saw support from DJs Zane Lowe, Cerys Matthews, Tom Ravenscroft, Gideon Coe and magazines as musically diverse as Test Pressing, For Folks Sake, i-D, The 405 and Ransom Note. ‘The Infamous Bill’ is an expanded offering of Khruangbin’s exotic, individual sound. The EP’s four tracks were recorded at their spritual home, a remote barn deep in the Texas countryside where Khruangbin’s first rehearsals took place. Taking influence from 1960’s Thai funk — Khruangbin literally translates to «Engine Fly» in Thai — the EP is steeped in the bass heavy, psychedelic sound of their inspiration, Tarantino soundtracks and surf-rock cool. Mark and DJ’s roots are in R&B, hip hop and gospel having played within the same gospel band for years. Both professional musicians, Mark began teaching Laura how to play bass in the summer of 2009. As such, Laura quickly developed a huge passion for the instrument and the aesthetic it brought to music she loved. Having worked studiously on developing her skills, both Mark and Laura were invited to tour with Ninja Tune’s YPPAH supporting Bonobo across his 2010 American tour. The tour galvanised the two of them to start making music together more seriously, sowing the first seeds of Khruangbin, with DJ the natural go to for drums. Having kept in touch, Bonobo included Khruangbin’s ‘A Calf Born In Winter’ on his 2013 ‘Late Night Tales’ compilation. In addition to increasing the Stateside following the band has built, the release has helped Khruangbin in topping both the US & UK ‘Last FM’ fastest growing artists whilst ‘A Calf Born In Winter’ continues to be one of the most popular single downloads from the compilation.

The Caretaker — Everywhere At The End Of Time — Stagre 5 [History Always Favours The Winners, 2018] — enultimate, 5th Stage of The Caretaker’s ‘Everywhere At The End of Time’ series charting severe levels of musical/mental deterioration and sensory detachment through four extended, smudged and hallucinatory side-long pieces. As we near the end, ‘Stage 5’ sees our protagonist enter a near-permanent state of confusion and horror. Mirroring the endemic deterioration of dementia’s latter phases, were pulled through the most extreme entanglements in the series so far; repetition and ruptures, barely maintaining a connection to waking life and a sense of self.

Work Drugs — Holding On To Forever [Work Drugs, 2018] — из врунета: Wоrk Drugs представляют свой новый полноформатный альбом «Ноlding оn tо Fоrеvеr», выпущенный в сентябре 2018 года. Как и многие из их предыдущих работ, альбом вдохновлен музыкой периода от 60’х до 80’х годов, и представляет собой хороший саундтрек к длинному летнему вечеру, когда вы отдыхаете в мечтательном и созерцательном настроении вдали от забот. / Wоrk Drugs — американский дрим-поп дуэт из Филадельфии, основанный Томасом Кристаллом (Тhоmаs Сrуstаl) (вокал, гитара) и Бенджамином Луизиана (Веnjаmin Lоuisiаnа) (вокал, клавишные). В настоящее время на живых выступлениях состав группы расширяется ударником Джонасом Охом, басистом Мr. Каnsаs Сitу и вокалисткой Кэти Никс. Wоrk Drugs много гастролировали и принимали участие практически во всех значимых музыкальных фестивалях в Соединенных Штатах, часто дают живые выступления по всей Северной Америке в таких городах, как Бостон, Нью-Йорк, Чикаго и Сан-Франциско.»

Advance Base – Animal Companionship (Run For Cover Records, 2018) — On his new album, Animal Companionship, he explores the primal desire of wanting someone to settle down with at the end of the night. But instead of writing about strictly human connections, Ashworth found himself writing a lot of songs about dogs. Dogs are a constant presence on Animal Companionship. Ashworth hasn’t actually had a dog since childhood — he’s admittedly more of a cat person — but there was something about the codependence of that specific human-canine bond that fascinated him, so he crafted an entire album stemming from that idea.

Mutual Benefit – Thunder Follows the Light (Transgressive Records, 2018) — Thunder Follows The Light contemplates the ongoing destruction of the outer world and how it shapes the storms of our inner ones. There are meditations on the environment, collective struggle, death, rebirth, reasons to believe it’s worth the fight.

The Midnight – Kids (The Midnight Music, 2018) — new album Kids, is a fascinating and well-executed work of art, drenched in colorful synths, upbeat rhythms, and evocative lyrics seemingly about a simpler time when the malls were vibrant with kids hanging out and playing video games and getting crushes and engaging in all sorts of lovely tomfoolery.

Variant — Thru The Cosmos [Eta/Aquariids] (echospace [detroit], 2018) — Finally available! The fourth release of the epic thru the cosmos series, Eta/Aquariids commemorates some of the most sensational astronomical events that occur in the summer night sky. A sonic travelogue for the ultimate immersive experience for all stargazers and imaginative persons alike. This project consists of newfound sounds and 7:1 field recordings specific to our observation locations. In echospace, we pride ourselves on the many years of unique experiences that culminate from our deep love of astronomy.

cv313 — [satosphere sessions] (echospace [detroit], 2018) — A 60+ minute [LIVE] recording from cv313, culled from content created for the 2018 MUTEK Festival (Montreal, Canada). In preparation for this performance, there were over 3 hours of alternate renditions of classics alongside new unreleased material, of which only 60 minutes made it to the stage. We compiled the first hour long recording into CD/Digital format to commemorate the Canadian debut of this obscure and mysterious project.

Elysian Fields — Pink Air (Ojet, 2018) — Elysian Fields are set to release their 11th record, a full-length called Pink Air, on September 21, 2018 in the US. “There is no beginning and no end. I am addressing everyone and telling them that they’re divine! There is radiance in every living thing.” – Jennifer Charles

Hiro Kone – Pure Expenditure (Dais Records, 2018) — Highly touted producer Hiro Kone follows her Drew McDowell link-up with a crackshot 2nd solo LP of jagged, physical rhythms and kinetic synth structures rent in acres of noumenal space on ‘Pure Expenditure’ Working intently at the point where EBM and avant-garde electronics collide, Nicky Mao a.k.a. Hiro Kone has opened up a vivid new space for phantasmic expressions of aerobic mysticism and techgnosis. Whether bending into Wetware with Roxy Farman, or taking cues from Equiknoxxx’s mutant dancehall instrumentals on ‘The Ghost of George Bataille’, Kone has consistently warped the fringes of modern, obscurantist electronica with a singular, gauntleted tactility.

Marissa Nadler — For My Crimes (Sacred Bones/Bella Union, 2018) —  из врунета: «Замечательная исполнительница Марисса Надлер, яркая звезда в жанре современного фолка и дрим-поп-фолка представляет свой восьмой полноформатный альбом, получивший название «Fоr Му Сrimеs», записанный с со-продюсерами Джастином Райзеном и Лоуренсом Ротманом, выпущенный на Sасrеd Воnеs и Веllа Uniоn 28 сентября. / Марисса Надлер — это американская девушка, которая выглядит как модель художника-прерафаэлита и поет как героиня «Маленьких трагедий» режиссера Швейцера: «Спой, Мери, нам уныло и протяжно, чтоб мы потом к веселью обратились». Песню для «Пира во время чумы» сочинил, помнится, Альфред Шнитке, Надлер же пишет сама, и пишет удивительно: сложно поверить, что ее баллады придуманы здесь и сейчас; кажется, что им лет по двести, что они были всегда. Рядом с Надлер любой из нынешних фолк-опрощенцев кажется манерным кривлякой. Песни Надлер просты и печальны; как ни странно, с каждой новой пластинкой они не теряют звенящей ясности. Даже когда Надлер поет от лица вымышленной героини, образ ее остается неизменным — это Офелия. Ее голос плывет в солнечном мареве, растворяется в студеной реке; она поет так, словно ее уже нет.»

Roosevelt – Young Romance (City Slang, 2018) — из врунета: Rооsеvеlt (Мариус Лаубер) — талантливый электро-поп музыкант и продюсер из Кельна, Германия, пишущий качественную электронную музыку на грани эскапизма и задумчивой меланхолии. В октябре 2012 гогда заключил контракт с немецкой звукозаписывающей студией «Grесо-Rоmаn» и выпустил свой дебютный сингл «Sеа», гастролировал с Тоtаllу Еnоrmоus Ехtinсt Dinоsаurs. Вслед за выпущенным в 2013 году нашумевшим дебютным ЕР «Еlliоt», Rооsеvеlt выпустил двойной «Night Моvеs/Ноld Оn» в 2015 на Grесо-Rоmаn — это был по-прежнему теплый синтипоп с сильным влиянием стиля bаlеаriс. В апреле 2016 года он объявил о скором выпуске одноименного дебютного полноформатного студийного альбома, которому предшествовали два музыкальных видео «Соlоurs» и «Моving Оn». Rооsеvеlt также известен своими ремиксами на Glаss Аnimаls, Jах Jоnеs, Тruls, Sundаrа Каrmа, Lukа Vаstа и Каkkmаddаfаkkа. Чта касается концертов, он выступал на одних площадках с Ноt Сhiр, Тоtаllу Еnоrmоus Ехtinсt Dinоsаurs и Сrуstаl Fightеrs.»

Jeff Mills & Tony Allen — Tomorrow Comes The Harvest (Universal Music, 2018) — Tony Allen and Jeff Mills deliver a masterfully rhythmelodic salvo, joined by Jean Phi Dary on keys in four inimitable demos of drums vs drum machines. ‘Tomorrow Comes The Harvest’ is everything we could have hoped for, to a T. Fela Kuti’s legendary drummer Tony Allen synchs in restless formation with Mills’ percolated, live TR-909 programming, while Allen’s bandmate from Psyco On Da Bus, Jean Phi Dary gels them together with expansive kosmiche synthlines and floating organ chords. Или из Хорошо.com: «Еще в 2016 году легендарный барабанщик Afrobeat Тони Аллен предложил техно-пионеру Джеффу Миллсу идею совместной работы. Последовала серия живых выступлений и внеклассных студийных сессий, и первые плоды их совместных усилий, наконец, появились на этом альбоме. Как и следовало ожидать, совместная работа дуэта сочетает традиционные нигерийские полиритмы Аллена, традиционный Afrobeat и дальновидный научно-фантастический вдохновляющий электронный футуризм, который всегда отличал работу Миллса. Результатом стал сборник треков, который можно было бы назвать ретро-футуристическим афротехно — все задержки, басовые линии и органы, тонко соприкасаются с нежными кислотными вкраплениями, электроникой Motor City, глубокими космическими текстурами и мерцающими мотивами 31-го века. «

Seasick Steve – Can U Cook? (BMG, 2018) — — девятый студийник олдового американского блюзмена Стивена Джина Уолда, более известного под прозвищем (у всех видных блюзменов есть прозвища) Sеаsiсk Stеvе (что переводится, как Больной-морской-болезнью Стив), ставшего знаменитым благодаря используемым инструментам, например, так называемой «дидли-бо», гитары с неполным комплектом струн. Уолд родом из Окленда, штат Калифорния. В 60-х он начал выступать со знакомыми блюзовыми артистами, среди его друзей на сцене были Дженис Джоплин и Джони Митчелл. А в 80-х он сдружился с (внезапно) Куртом Кобейном. Помимо прочего Уолд известен как звукач и продюсер, в 90-х годах он продюсировал небезызвестный коллектив Моdеst Моusе.

Jean-Louis Murat — Il Francese (Virgin Records, 2018) — изврунета: ««Жан-Луи Бергход Мюра (родился в 1952 году в городе Овернь) — французский певец, поэт и автор собственных песен, чье настоящее имя Жан-Луи Берже. В нашей стране певец стал известен прежде всего по дуэту с Милен Фармер. Детство Жана-Луи прошло на территории фермы, которая была практически изолированная от региона Клермон-Феррана. На некоторое время Мюра покинул свои родные места, но затем вернулся в родные края, полный решимости посвятить себя музыке. Он дебютирует на сцене в конце 70’х годов. Первый его сингл появился лишь в 81 году. Вскоре вышли два его полноформатных альбома, которые не снискали большой популярности. Только лишь спустя три непростых года музыкальный гигант Virgin делает ставку на Мюра и выигрывает — третий альбом расходится тиражом более 100 000 экземпляров. Карьера Мюра, наконец, начинает набирать обороты. После следующего альбома певец получает единодушное признание музыкальной прессы и слушателей. На протяжении своей карьеры, Жан-Луи Мюра смог привлечь как страстную критику своего творчества с одной стороны, так и обожание, и похвалу с другой. Мюра — по настоящему исключительный поэт и музыкант, чьи произведения заслуживают быть прочитанными и услышанными.»

октяБрь

растадабы октября: Mad Professor — Ariwa 2018 Riddim Series (Ariwa Sounds, 2018), Fyah P, El Compressor — Warning (2018), Augustus “Gussie” Clarke — Dub Anthology Collectors Edition (Music Works Records, 2018), Zenzile — 5+1 meets Jay Ree (Yotanka Records, 2018), Ashkabad – Reptile (Original Dub Gathering, 2018), Morgan Heritage & Jah Cure — Defending the Roots (Streaminn Hub, 2018), ManuDigital — Bass Attack (X-Ray Production, 2018), Another Channel ‎– (Dub) Excursion(s) (Moonshine Recordings, 2018), Pablo U-WA — Resistance (Debs Music, 2018), Jah Mason — Joyful (New Creation Records, 2018), Taj Weekes & Adowa — To All My Relations (Jatta Records, 2018), Beres Hammond — Never Ending (VP Music Group, 2018), Radymus — Jah Love (Governance Records, 2018), Roaring Bass — Connections (Roaring Bass Records, 2018), Conquering Sound — Speed It Up (Conquering Records, 2018), Jah Verity — Beogo (Jah Verity / Keyzit, 2018), The Dub Chronicles — Kingston (Kingston, 2018), Lee Scratch Perry — The Black Album (Upsetter, 2018), Jr. Thomas And The Volcanos — Rockstone (Colemine Records, 2018), International Observer — Free from the Dungeons of Dub (Dubmission Records, 2018), Dub Surgeon — The Lost Future [Ark To Ashes, 2018], Lu-K — Tous les mêmes (iM EDM, 2018), Brain Damage ‎– ¡Ya no más! (Jarring Effects, 2018), Radikal Vibration — Code Name the Dub Instrumental (Evidence Music, 2018), Khalifa – Hard Times for Dreamers (Grounded Music, 2018)

Epic45 — Through Broken Summer (Wayside & Woodland Recordings Ltd., 2018) — The first album release since 2011’s critically acclaimed ‘Weathering’ Much of what has always driven epic45 still remains; the British landscape, hazy childhood memories and a sense of loss. However, as tensions across Britain have increased, epic45 have been forced to re-examine their relationship with the country in which they live. “The album is about, in part, returning to the place where we grew up from birth to our early twenties. From a personal perspective, it’s sad to see the place changing; new houses, the disappearance of old landmarks etc and the sadness of our childhood homes, strangely quiet now. But on a wider scale, it’s the palpable sense of cultural and political stagnation too. It’s a very insular place now, the community more fragmented than ever before”.

Kikagaku Moyo — Masana Temples (Guruguru Brain, 2018) — The shifting dimensions of Masana Temples, fourth album from psychedelic explorers Kikagaku Moyo,are informed by various experiences the band had with traveling through life together, ranging from the months spent on tour to making a pilgrimage to Lisbon to record the album with jazz musician Bruno Pernadas. The band sought out Pernadas both out of admiration for his music and in an intentional move to work with a producer who came from a wildly different background. With Masana Temples, the band wanted to challenge their own concepts of what psychedelic music could be. Elements of both the attentive folk and wild-eyed rocking sides of the band are still intact throughout, but they’re sharper and more defined.

Spain – Mandala Brush (Glitterhouse Records, 2018) — is the follow up to the band’s critically acclaimed live record ‘Live at the Lovesong’ (2017). With his forthcoming album Josh Haden wanted to replicate the sound he’s been capturing at these live shows. All of the songs were recorded live in the studio. There were no click tracks used. Many of the songs were developed at the Love Song Bar in LA over a period of several months. The album contains 11 songs, including catchy ones like ‘Sugarkane’, ‘Laurel, Clementine’ or the gospelesque ‘You bring me up’. But also endless, psychedelic jams like ‘Rooster Cogburn’ or the jazzy ‘Tangerine’. About the album title Josh says “a mandala is an ancient and sacred symbol representing the oneness of the universe. The “brush” in the context of this album is a modern and secular tool used in computer art applications. The mandala brush helps facilitate the creation of mandalas, but is never a finished mandala in and of itself”.

Antoine Kogut — Sphere of Existence (Versatile Records, 2018) — The album is an ode to the sensations and reveries that arouse. By mixing synthesizers, brass and vocals I try to reconcile repetition and improvisation, to arouse the unexpected in mechanics and comfort in the organic. The title track of this album was inspired by a certain philosophy. It can also be understood as a revolution (or a turn on oneself) or as another way of naming our blue planet, the Earth.

Gregory Alan Isakov – Evening Machines (Suitcase Town Music, 2018) — Every one of Gregory Alan Isakov’s albums has started with a guitar. Well, strictly speaking, there’s a bit — like two seconds worth — of percussion that begins his 2013 release The Weatherman; and, I guess his 2016 release With the Colorado Symphony technically has a brief moment of orchestral swell before his guitar breaks in. But for all intents and purposes Isakov starts his works with his primary instrument — his 1967 Gibson J-50.

Molly Burch – First Flower (Captured Tracks, 2018) — “Why do I care what you think?” Molly Burch asks in the very first verse of “Candy,” the initial offering of First Flower, the follow up to her widely acclaimed debut Please Be Mine. Borne from tumultuous circumstance — self doubt, anxiety and fractured relationships — Burch claims she was plagued by trouble trepidation. “It ain’t easy no more,” she coos on the tellingly titled “Dangerous Place.” “I hope I learn from my mistakes.” или изврунета: Американская певица и автор песен Молли Берч представляет свой второй полноформатный альбом, получивший название «First Flоwеr» и выпущенный 5 октября 2018 года. / Молли Берч родилась в Лос-Анджелесе, училась джазовому вокалу в Северной Каролине, а потом перебралась в Остин, где и записала свою дебютную пластинку «Рlеаsе Ве Мinе». «Рlеаsе Ве Мinе» — это двенадцать песен, наследующих всему лучшему, что было в американской поп-музыке ХХ века: изобретателю соула Сэму Куку и кантри-звездам Еvеrlу Вrоthеrs, ду-уопу и калифорнийскому солнечному серфу 1960’х. Несмотря на то что запись альбома из соображений экономии была сделана всего за один день, это музыка невероятного шарма и обаяния. Когда Берч пропевает своим томным голосом «Пожалуйста, будь моим», этому невозможно сопротивляться — и хочется верить, что количество и прослушиваний певицы на различных интернет-сервисах вскоре достигнет сотен тысяч и миллионов.»

Element Of Crime — Schafe, Monster und Mäuse (Universal, 2018) —  je čtrnácté studiové album německé skupiny Element of Crime. Vydáno bylo 5. října roku 2018, a to jak na CD, tak i na dvojité LP desce a zároveň jako digitální download. K dispozici je také speciální edice s texty. První singl z alba „Am ersten Sonntag nach dem Weltuntergang“ byl zveřejněn počátkem srpna 2018.

Tangent — Approaching Complexity (n5MD, 2018) — Tangent are the Netherlands based duo of Ralph van Reijendam and Robbert Kok. “Approaching Complexity” is their fourth album (and second for n5MD after 2016’s “Collapsing Horizon”) which sees the duo expanding their sound with recurring piano motifs finding a way into their ambience and beats. A standard definition of a Tangent is for something that touches, but does not intersect, or in the case of going off tangent is to while talking about something then suddenly deviate onto a different topic. Keeping this in mind, it will be interesting to see if the duo’s name is indicative of their musical approach or styles.

Jaakko Eino Kalevi — Out Of Touch (Domino, 2018) — In this age of constant connectivity, switching off has become one of the great luxuries, and on «Out of Touch» – Jaakko Eino Kalevi’s second album for Weird World – Jaakko explores what he calls this “essential, blissed out” state. «Out of Touch» feels like a natural step forward for Jaakko Eino Kalevi, whose skills have led him down intriguing paths in the time since his last full-length. Notably, he played on David Byrne’s recent «American Utopia» album, and in 2016 he was invited to join the line-up of cult Belgian new-wave band Aksak Maboul for a run of shows.

Anna St. Louis – If Only There Was A River (Woodsist / Mare, 2018) — If Only There Was a River is the first full-length studio album from Anna St. Louis. The songwriter, who originally hails from Kansas City, began writing songs after moving to Los Angeles five years ago and has previously released a cassette of recordings on Woodsist / Mare Records, appropriately titled “First Songs”.

Peaking Lights — Sea of Sand (Dekmantel , EP, 2018) — Californian electronic pop duo Peaking Lights make a splash on Dekmantel with ‘Sea of Sand’, the band’s first release in 2018. It’s a kaleidoscopic melting­pot of dainty dub, experimental and leftfield beats, with wondrous sunny soundscapes that blend together the unconventional home­fashioned electronics, and windswept vocals that have defined Peaking Lights to date. ‘Sea of Sand’ is the band’s first record in three years not released on their own imprint. With six tracks, exceeding 30 minutes in total, the extended EP is a prelude to a forthcoming LP. With a DIY aesthetic and approach to analogue instrumentalism, Peaking Lights retro­digital sound is one that sits perfectly with Dekmantel.

AlascA – Plea For Peace (King Forward Records, 2018) — Plea for Peace is het meest directe en pakkende album van AlascA tot nog toe waarop de band rechtlijnigere popstructuren heeft omarmd om op venijnige wijze een scherpe blik te werpen op de wereld anno 2018. Dat de band naast moderne sounds hiervoor invloeden uit de jaren ’60 en de jaren ’90 gebruikt is niet toevallig. Het album lijkt immers naast een pleidooi voor vrede met name ook een pleidooi voor maatschappijkritiek; d?? drijfveer achter muziek in die decennia. Met Plea for Peace blaast Alas

The Smoking Trees — The Adventure Continues… (Burger Records, 2018) — What started off in 2001 as a musical project between co-workers at a Tower Records in Los Angeles, slowly dwindled down to a duo in 2011. On November 27, 2012, after years of musical isolation from the industry, The Smoking Trees released their debut album, Acetates (Colour Tree Records), then signed to Ample Play Records the following month, and re-released “Acetates” to a bigger audience in May 2013. In February 2015, before the release of their critical acclaimed second LP, TST (Ample Play/Burger Records), L.A.AL aka Al Rivera left the duo down to the group’s founder, writer, and producer, Sir Psych (Martin Nuñez). After Al’s departure, Martin finished writing and recording their third release, The Archer and The Bull (Burger Records). Being that Sir Psych wrote, produced, and mixed all of The Smoking Trees music, Al’s departure didn’t hinder what he did best. The Adventure Continues for The Smoking Trees this November, with a new LP on Burger, to extend your Summer this Fall.

Exit North – Book Of Romance And Dust (Self-released, 2018) — An uncompromising debut album that explores the collective psyches and diverse influences of its renowned members. The focus is on songcraft that seamlessly combines genres and lyrical perspectives that shift between shadows and light.

Scott Orr – Worried Mind (Other Songs, 2018) — The 9-songs balance hushed vocals with the chimey ambiance of acoustic instruments and analog synthesizers. The album was recorded and mixed entirely at home by Scott between March 2017 — May 2018. «Fall Apart» features guest vocals by Nabi Sue Bersche of Ellevator (Arts & Crafts).

Rivulets – In Our Circle (Talitres Records, 2018) — Noir comme de la poix, sombre comme une compilation de faces B de Songs: Ohia, In Our Circle a le mérite de rendre son auditeur totalement dépendant de lui et de ses effluves empoisonnées. Et c’est peut-être ce qui faisait défaut jusque-là à la musique de Nathan Amundson. Il fallait savoir vraiment prendre son temps pour écouter You are my home (2006) et We’re fucked (2011), des disques concomitants de Fading Trails (de Jason Molina, encore lui…) ou d’Apocalypse de Bill Callahan. Il y a encore quelques années, Amundson était bon pour être le trait commun d’un petit cercle d’initiés. Et puis il y a eu l’album I Remember Everything (2014), véritable coup de semonce promu par Alan Sparhawk (Low) aux Etats-Unis et par I Left Without My Hat en France. Si I Remember Everything était un coup de semonce, In Our Circle est un coup de grâce. Armé de sa guitare, Amundson a écrit ses compositions les plus incisives qui nous noient dans un brouillard américain. Véritable Voyage Au bout de la nuit, In Our Circle s’écoute d’une traite. Et gare aux effets secondaires ! Ecouter une chanson comme Dark Days, c’est se condamner à l’écouter à l’infini.

Micah P. Hinson – When I Shoot At You With Arrows, I Will Shoot To Destroy You (Full Time Hobby, 2018) — “There is a cathedral in the town of Santiago de Compostela,” explains Micah. “It is said to be the final resting place of St. James. Going back through history, pilgrims have been trekking to, and from, the cathedral for years, wanting to find peace, solace, and hope in their steps along the walk from France- into Spain- within the ancient Basque Country. Once inside the grand doors of this cathedral is a statue. A man named Master Mateo took it upon himself to carve it from stone in the 12th century. It is of St. James, surrounded by 24 musicians- seemingly trapped in stone of the ages- their ancient instruments in hand: some tuning, some looking, some simply sitting and waiting. They have been waiting patiently for over 800 years- waiting for St. James to lift his hands and begin to conduct them. They are The Musicians of The Apocalypse. They will bring Hell and Heaven to Earth. They will bring The Apocalypse.”

Christian Kjellvander — Wild Hxmans (Tapete Records, 2018) — This album from Swedish singer songwriter Christian Kjellvander comes with a healthy dose of Scandi Noir and thus a warning is required for those of a nervous disposition. If you are in any way feeling low, depressed or just somewhat jaded, it is probably best to find a Smiths album instead. Well, perhaps that is overstating the point but you are very unlikely to strike a jaunty tone after listening to this work.

Roman Flügel — Themes (ESP Institute, 2018) — Roman Flügel‘s latest LP will land on ESP Institute next month. The album, called Themes, is the German artist’s first on the Los Angeles label run by Lovefingers. His previous solo albums, including his last, 2016’s All The Right Noises, have all appeared on Dial. The 13-track LP is out October 26th.
The prolific artist released an EP, 1995, earlier this year, though Themes will be his first full-length project since last year’s fabric 95 mix. He also made a notable remix in May of a track by the artist Wolfgang Tillmans. Flügel was the subject of our Art Of DJing series in January.

Dean Wareham Vs. Cheval Sombre (Christopher Porpora) – Dean Wareham Vs. Cheval Sombre (Double Feature Records, 2018) — Dean Wareham and Cheval Sombre bill their new collaboration as “western dream-pop,” which isn’t such a strange pairing: western-style songs have always had a dreamlike air. From Sons of the Pioneers through Hollywood’s singing cowboys to Marty Robbins and Johnny Cash, tunes like “Blue Shadows on the Trail,” “El Paso” or “Don’t Take Your Guns to Town” offer a romanticized vision of the Old West, with dual emphases on manly self-reliance and tender longing for home. Wareham and Sombre (the project of Chris Porpora) co-opt the sentiments and add hazy musical arrangements to match on 10 songs drawn from the western-music canon and more contemporary artists, including Bob Dylan, the Magnetic Fields and Townes Van Zandt. или изврунета: «Американский музыкант и актер Дин Уорхэм, наиболее известный как основатель и участник таких знаковых групп 90-х и 2000-х годов, как Gаlахiе 500 и Lunа, а также дуэта (с его женой Бриттой Филлипс) Dеаn аnd Вrittа, записал совместно с певцом и автором песен Сhеvаl Sоmbrе новый альбом «Dеаn Wаrеhаm Vs. Сhеvаl Sоmbrе«. Альбом специально был задуман и выполнен в вестерн-стиле, сочетании инди-рока, псич-фолка и «киношных ковбойских мотивов». Вообще, в последнее время Уорхэм засветился в качестве композитора для кино. Также он написал мемуары о своих годах в инди-роке, а ему есть что рассказать, ведь, например, группа его Lunа имела в своё время практически культовый статус в своём жанре.»

Azure Ray – Waves [EP] (Flower Moon Records, 2018) — s Azure Ray’s 8th studio release, and first new recordings in 6 years. Recorded over several sessions in Joshua Tree and Los Angeles, Waves was co-produced by Azure Ray and Louis Schefano, and mixed by Andy LeMaster. It is the first new Azure Ray release on Flower Moon Records, which also is now home to their self-titled debut and follow-up, Burn & Shiver.

Tommy Guerrero — Road To Knowhere (Too Good, 2018) — This album is inspired by bits and pieces of Ethio-Jazz , Afrobeat , Highlife Spiritual Jazz and dusty funk 45’s. It’s where I’m at now and what has kept this mortal vehicle fueled. I tend to take different paths each musical outing but this one is for the long haul, the one for the blue highways and forgotten byways. It’s the one to get lost to. It’s about the journey, not the destination.

Advance Base – Advance Base On Audiotree Live [EP] (Audiotree Music, 2018) — Advance Base is the lo-fi electronic solo project of Owen Ashworth. He’s a master of tones and textures; wielding an arsenal of Rhodes, Omni Chord, auto harp and drum machines to flesh out his confessional ballads. Ashworth paved the way for nostalgic, depressed bedroom pop in the late 90’s and his genuine, weighty storytelling remains at the apex of the genre.

Luca Nieri — Alchemy (Wonderfulsound, 2018) — Alchemy is the title of Luca Nieri’s brand new album, a spellbinding collection of instrumental music, a skewed homage to Nieri’s favourite film soundtracks of the 60s and 70s, and the follow-up to 2017’s self-titled effort, which was lauded by Rough Trade as a record which “exists in a cosmos, textured and beautifully melancholy.

The Midnight — Kids (The Instrumentals) (Self-Released, 2018) — изврунета: «Главные мечтатели из Лос-Анджелеса — дуэт The Midnight сделали подарок для поклонников и выпустили инструментальную версию своего ностальгического альбома «Kids».»

Molly Nilsson — Twenty Twenty (Night School Records, 2018) — is Molly Nilsson’s 8th album; the latest opus of an artist in a constant state of development and strength. Twenty-Twenty is about emerging from the husk of your old self, about binning the chrysalis and daring to stand up both to power, and also to your own limits. In 2018, we see the climate changing, democracy crumbling, inequality and injustice erupting. 2020 examines the near future, seeking out clarity, reflection, renewal and opportunity. It contains anthems so tall as to induce vertigo, leaving the taste of Euro Dance in your mouth, albeit without a four on the floor beat. Here, the pop auteur is haunted by the late Prince, channelling Courtney Love and Lou Reed, anger and love.

нояБрь

растабады ноября: Fikir Amlak & King Alpha — Selassie I Great (Akashic Records, 2018), Ras Ijah — Crisis (Sebat Records, 2018), Dub Spencer & Trance Hill — Christmas in Dub (Echo Beach, 2018), Mykal Rose — Healing Of The Nation (I-Sight Records, 2018), Black Roots — Take It (Nubian / Khanti / Pias, 2018), Dillinger — High Voltage, Vol. 1 (Scandal Bag Records, 2018), Dillinger — High Voltage, Vol. 2 (Scandal Bag Records, 2018), Fikir Amlak & King Alpha — Hear Me Chant & Ancient Man (I-Roots Records, 2018), Black Symbol — Behold (Sugar Shack Records, 2018), Vybz Kartel — Dancehall: Vybz Kartel (PMI Jet Star, 2018), King Muziah — Made in Jamaica (I Am Joy Productions, 2018), Suns Of Dub — Jah Existence (Suns Of Dub, EP, 2018),Dub Inc — So What Live Saint Etienne 2017 (Diversite, 2018), Natural Mighty — Reflection of my Dreams (Khanti Record, 2018), Dub Foundation — The Good, The Bad, and The Dubby (Smooth Sailin, 2018), IYah-Gift — Touchable (Iyagift Music Ent, 2018), Foshan Roots — The Wing Chun Album (Dubophonic, 2018), Verse iTal — 100% Roots (Suns Of Dub, 2018), King Kong — Leave the Street (Icedrop Records, 2018), Stephen Marley — One Take (Acoustic Jams) [Ghetto Youths, EP, 2018], Koko Dembelé — Tieba (De Bouche à Oreille, 2018), Christafari — 99.4.1 Reckless Love (Lion of Zion Entertainment, 2018), Ratigan — New York to Portmore (VPAL Music, 2018), Lavaska — Living Every Word (Crichton Clique, 2018)

Sun Kil Moon – This Is My Dinner (Caldo Verde Records, 2018) — Sun Kil Moon have shared details of their new album, This Is My Dinner. It’s out November 1 via Caldo Verde. Among its 10 tracks are a chapter from a John Connolly novel set to music, a cover of the “Partridge Family” theme song “Come on Get Happy,” and a new rendition of AC/DC’s “Rock ‘N’ Roll Singer” (which Mark Kozelek previously covered on a 2000 EP of the same name and 2001’s What’s Next to the Moon). The most recent Sun Kil Moon album, Common as Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood, arrived in 2017. Since then, Kozelek has released collaborative LPs with Jesu, Parquet Courts’ Sean Yeaton, and Ben Boye and Jim White. Earlier this year, he released a self-titled solo LP.

Marianne Faithfull – Negative Capability (BMG, Deluxe Version , 2018) — Negative Capability is Marianne Faithfull’s 21st album and the most emotionally powerful of her 54-year recording career. Facing down arthritis and bolstered by collaborators including Warren Ellis, Nick Cave, Rob Ellis, Ed Harcourt and Mark Lanegan, Negative Capability is charged with brutal honesty and autobiographical reflection as she addresses losing old friends, her loneliness living in her adopted city of Paris yet still hopes love can come around.

Crayon Sun — Crayon Sun (Waste My Records, 2018) —  is quite different musically! Darker even, more dangerous sometimes, but always funky and soulful as well, as Aldo’s dark desert grooves are in perfect harmony with Big Dave ‘s ‘murdering love ballads’ lyrics! CRAYON SUN touches the torch of voodoo gospel mixed with psychedelic desert blues! CWTAB has moved on, but CRAYON SUN IS COMING to each and everyone of us on November 1st/All Saints Day! Together with Tomas De Smet/King Dalton-Zita Swoon, Antoni Foscez/Go March – Dvkes and Dave Hubrechts/The Grave Brothers, CRAYON SUN will groove u like no band has done before & will leave u behind devasted but yet hopeful!

Distance, Light & Sky — Gold Coast (Glitterhouse, 2018) — Glitterhouse announce Distance, Light & Sky’s second album, Gold Coast. Chris Eckman (The Walkabouts), Chantal Acda (Sleepingdog, True Bypass), and avant jazz percussionist Eric Thielemans (EARR Ensemble) form the group, and Gold Coast shares a couple of things with its predecessor as Eckman explains: «We again recorded the album with our friend Phill Brown. Phill has one of the most incredible recording histories of anyone from the rock music era, having been involved with records by The Rolling Stones, Bob Marley, Beth Gibbons, and many more. He also worked with The Walkabouts on two albums and more recently on Chantal’s Bounce Back (2017).

Chromatics – Camera [EP, Deluxe Edition] (Italians Do It Better ‎– IDIB071, 2018) — Chromatics released the vinyl-only Camera EP this summer, and it’s now available digitally in expanded form with new tracks and remixes. Among those are the previously unreleased spoken-word-meets-instrumental “House of Dolls” and a remix of “Blue Girl” by Twin Peaks: The Return sound designer Dean Hurley. The ethereal, autotune-heavy title track gets two remixes, as does “Magazine.” This release is also the first time the ambient instrumental “The Taste of Blood” is available digitally. Listen to the EP below.

Doug Paisley — Starter Home (No Quarter, 2018) — Like the Weather Station’s Loyalty, Doug Paisley’s Starter Home was recorded after an entire album’s worth of music was set aside in order to make something that the artist could live with. Yet the strain of high standards, four years and as many studios isn’t apparent when listening to this effortless-sounding album. Paisley’s guitar playing, reminiscent of David Rawlings’ mellifluent runs, gently hints that his songs could go on forever, busting out of mellow, dusky confines into brilliant light, which is a bit like what it sounds like when Alison Melville’s recorder solo carries off the gorgeously reflective “No Way to Know.”

PAINT – PAINT (Mexican Summer, 2018) — Sometimes the mess is the message. PAINT is the project of Allah-Las guitarist / singer Pedrum Siadatian, and the title of his first solo album. Started by four-tracking his strange, slow-growing ideas just after Allah-Las third record Calico Review, PAINT has a happily paradoxical finished-but-not-finished, wet-to-the-touch feel, like an even more shambolic Kevin Ayers or Syd Barrett, but the songs that never came out. или из врунета: «студийник весьма интересной одноимённой канадской инди-рок-группы из Торонто, сформированной в 2001-м году фронтменом Rоbb Jоhаnnеs, гитаристом Jоrdаn Shерhеrdsоn, басистом Кеikо Gutiеrrеz и барабанщиком Dеvin Jаnnеttа. Первоначально саунд группы был чем-то средним между фолком и фанком и особого успеха не имел, но в 2008-м году их лидер Rоbb Jоhаnnеs сильно реформировал Раint, получив на выходе «потрясающий мелодичный рок-звук» с отголосками влияний Оаsis, Rаdiоhеаd, Саthеrinе Whееl, Smаshing Рumрkins, U2, Реаrl Jаm и разнообразной олдовой психоделии. С того времени года это уже совсем другая группа чем была на старте карьеры.»

Felbm — Tape 1 / Tape 2 (Soundway, 2018) — In the Felbm project, Dutch multi-instrumentalist Eelco Topper steps away from his previous synthesiser-laden sounds as Falco Benz, towards a much looser, simpler and sketch-like approach. Together with a number of acoustic instruments, he began experimenting with a Tascam 4-track tape recorder and allowed these sketches to flourish.

Tamino (Amir Moharam Fouad) — Amir (Communion Group Ltd, 2018) — из врунета: «Дебютный альбом 22-х летнего бельгийского музыканта египетского происхождения Tamino-Amir Fouad. Почти не сомневаюсь, что соберёт в этом году кучу всевозможных наград, поскольку выделяется из огромной массы современной хипстерской бормотухи незаурядным талантом, завораживающей мелодикой и сильнейшим голосом.«

The Green Kingdom — Seen And Unseen (Sound In Silence, 2018) — This is a limited edition of 200 handmade and hand-numbered collectible copies. It is packaged in a hand-stamped 127mm x 127mm 280 gsm deep brown cardboard envelope with the front cover image printed on a polaroid style photo paper and an insert sheet containing tracklist and information printed on a 170 gsm mocha brown cardboard. It also comes bundled with a download code coupon and a Sound In Silence card

Monarch Mtn — Days of Sleepwater (Self-Released, 2018) — Written & recorded at home in Fort Collins, Colorado Spring/Summer 2018 I will become gentle water.

The Wave Pictures – Look Inside Your Heart (Moshi Moshi Records, 2018) — The Wave Pictures return with the promised second album of the year, Look Inside Your Heart — a warm, joyous record celebrating friendship, happiness and drunken party times. Like the first album they released this year, the more contemplative Brushes With Happiness, this one was recorded late at night whilst inebriated back at the tiny Booze Cube Studio in Stoke Newington, live to reel-to-reel tape with no computers of any kind. The album is peppered with giggles and chatter, which adds a sense of spontaneity and place. As singer and guitarist Dave Tattersall explains: «Look Inside Your Heart is intended as a rallying cry in the war against the machines; while a computer may have beaten world-champion human being Lee Sedol at Go, a machine could never have made music as joyful, spontaneous, happy, poetic, broken and rambunctious as this. Look Inside Your Heart is a bullet in the face of all pop-poseurs and robot wannabes, a die-hard continuation of the vulnerable rebel tradition of rock and roll music, a vibrant work of outsider art and a masterpiece of electric folk.»

Mick Harvey And Christopher Richard Barker – The Fall And Rise Of Edgar Bourchier And The Horrors Of War (Mute, 2018) — из врунета: « — совместный альбом австралийского музыканта-мультиинструменталиста, композитора и продюсера Мика Харви, наиболее известного как участник групп Niсk Саvе аnd thе Ваd Sееds и Сrimе аnd thе Сitу Sоlutiоn, и его коллеги музыканта Кристофера Ричарда Баркера, который поёт на половине песен. Это концептуальный альбом, где «рассказ» ведётся как-бы то лица вымышленного поэта времён Первой мировой войны Эдгара Бурчье. В дополнение к Харви и Баркеру, в работе над альбомом приняли участие JР Shilо, Simоn Вrееd и Аlаin Jоhаnnеs. Пластинка записывалась в Мельбурне и Лос-Анджелесе.«

Chinawoman, Michelle Gurevich — Exciting Times (Michelle Gurevich, 2018) — ну понятное дело.

Chinese Man — Shikantaza Remix (Chinese Man Records, 2018) — из врунета: «После успеха Shikantaza в 2017 году Chinese Man пригласил дюжину музыкантов, чтобы переделать свои пьесы. Между хип-хопом, электро, драм-н-бейсом, дабом, трип-хопом или фьюче бейсом мы найдем на этом диске сборник ремиксов от известных французских, американских и итальянсих продюсеров и битмекеров. «

Sufjan Stevens – Lonely Man Of Winter [Single] (Asthmatic Kitty Records, 2018) — Back in 2007, in lieu of his standard Christmastime music drop, Sufjan Stevens held the Xmas Song Xchange Contest in which he invited people to submit their own original holiday tunes. He selected musician Alec Duffy’s “Every Day Is Christmas” as the winner and wrote a brand-new song, “Lonely Man Of Winter,” as a response to it and gave the rights to Duffy and the song’s composer Dave Malloy. Instead of releasing the song to the public, the two of them held private listening sessions for the song in New York over the next few years after the contest, though those listening sessions have dried up in recent years.

Dylan Mondegreen — A Place In The Sun (Fastcut Records, 2018) — Dylan Mondegreen is the moniker for the musical project of Borge Sildnes, and today we’re really happy to share this grand pop gesture that alerts us to a new album on the horizon. There are elements of indiepop within the confines of this track, though the strings arrangements give the track this larger than life feel…a kin to some of the B&S tunes that uses similar songwriting approaches. I love how Borge seems to sit back with his voice a little bit, almost as if he’s pulled back to let the track’s natural melody flow through your speakers. This song will appear on A Place in the Sun…slated for a release later this year.

Caracol – Symbolism (Indica Records, 2018) — The «Symbolism» adventure begins with an encounter with producer Joey Waronker (Beck, Atoms for Peace) during a creative trip to Los Angeles. After he fell in love with her demos, he decided to work with her. They went on to record 12 songs where Caracol reached a new height in authenticity and artistic expression. She then continued the exploration at her headquarters of Studio de l’Est, with her long time allies Seb Ruban & Toast Dawg, two of Montreal’s most talented producers.

System – Plus (Morr Music, 2018) — The new album from Danish electronic trio System is a special kind of collaborative effort with piano magician Nils Frahm. His purpose-built improvisations on synth, organ and piano served as source material for the members of System (Thomas Knak, Anders Remmer & Jesper Skaaning), who merged his warm acoustic tones with their minimalist digitalism and set out to translate their distinctive clicks ’n’ cuts electronics into vivid soundscapes. Over two years in the making, the resulting nine tracks are as sonically intriguing as they are touching. Ranging from the mellow bliss of the title track to echoes of 90’s and 2000’s electronica and ambient sequences frequented by mesmerizing movements and sounds. The blending of piano and digital tones and noises into emotive pieces might instantly recall the work of Alva Noto and Ryuichi Sakamoto, though System and Frahm come to quite different results.

Camera — Emotional Detox (Bureau B, 2018) — «Started as the so-called ‘Krautrock Guerrilla’ in 2012, six years later the Berlin combo Camera are releasing their fourth full-length album, Emotional Detox. Customarily associated with the likes of NEU! and La Düsseldorf it is time to allow Camera to break free of the krautrock tradition. For fans of nominative determinism, there can be few more apposite appelations than Michael Drummer. He is the catalyst, linking everything together as he crosses the soundscape of everything captured on Camera. The band’s moniker Camera, meanwhile, is an altogether more capricious calling card. Emotional Detox is the fourth full-length album by Camera, now a quintet, following two albums as a trio and one as a duo. The line-up here comprises Steffen Kahles, Drummer, Michel Collet, Andreas Miranda and Timm Brockmann, all based in Berlin.

Qluster — Elemente (Bureau B, 2018) — album number seven from the third incarnation of the legendary krautronic project Kluster/Cluster springs a surprise with a minor sensation: sequencer lines! Using an array of exclusively analogue instruments, Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Onnen Bock and Armin Metz have recorded eight tracks which, at one and the same time, are intrinsically hypnotic and sublimely beautiful.

Radical Face – Missing Film (Bear Machine, 2018) — Known for his cinematic sweeping and deeply emotional music, Ben Cooper (AKA Radical Face) has written and produced this 12 song album of instrumental score music to convey a series of moods felt on film.

Tunnelvisions – The Celestial Ritual (Atomnation, 2018) — The long awaited 2nd album of Tunnelvisions is out now! The LP is chopped up into four 12-inch records — Ritual I, II, III, and IIII. The album’s theme tells of a story told long ago, in a land far away, where there lived 11 chiefs, each named after a corresponding constellation: Mbosa, Nalulu, Ottokar, Imaja, Khan, Kudja, Rafaka, Xoji, Oishi, Mosu and Umai. Each year as the trees lost their leaves and the days got shorter, the chiefs came together to perform a sacred ritual. In this ritual, they honored the gods with their gifts and celebrated the new year to come.

36 — Ego Death (3six Recordings, 2018) — For this release, I selected 4 tracks from my recent (and currently ongoing) 2018 Audio Diary compilation, which were particularly close to my heart. All tracks use the same core instruments, but the arrangements take very different paths. I revisited the studio files to make final edits/adjustments, which were then elegantly mastered by Stephan Mathieu, at his new studio in Germany. These aren’t tracks to tear up your speakers. It’s my music at its most intimate, exactly how I think it should be.

Jacco Gardner — Somnium (Polyvinyl Records, 2018) — is a nod to the novel of the same name, written in 1608 by Johannes Kepler and is regarded as the first ever science fiction novel. “This book fascinates me because it was basically Kepler travelling in his mind to a non-existent world while describing it, and his journey, with amazing detail. Many of his imagined sensations are actually really what happens when one travels into space, which happened almost four hundred years later. You could call it a vision of the future through his dreams, and I find this aspect very mysterious and powerful.”

Trent Dabbs – Positano (Ready Set Records, 2018) — He may not be the hardest working musician in Nashville, but singer/songwriter/businessman Trent Dabbs is involved with so many projects, it’s a wonder he has time to compose, record and release his own albums. When it came to writing the material for Positano, Dabbs’ 11th release, he didn’t. Well, not really. These nine tracks can be considered orphans, songs written over the course of a few years, perhaps meant for other artists, but were too personal to give away. Somewhat surprisingly, the set holds together as a cohesive album despite its patchwork origin.

The Limiñanas ‎– I’ve Got Trouble In Mind Vol.2 — 7″ And Rare Stuff 2015/2018 (Because Music, Compilation, 2018) — With a rumbling combination of fuzzy organ, twanging guitar, half-spoken/half-sung vocals, and vintage analog production, French duo the Limiñanas capture the cool sound of classic French pop of the ’60s, then send it shooting off in new directions informed by Italian soundtrack music, psychedelia, Suicide, and country blues. Following the release of their critically acclaimed album Shadow People (produced by Anton Newcombe), French psych rock band The Limiñanas come back with I’ve Got Trouble In Mind Vol. 2: 7″ And Rare Stuff 2015/2018, the second volume of their I’ve Got Trouble In Mind series. This new release, the first double vinyl released by the band, compiles 17 B-sides, rarities and other unheard tracks recorded from 2015 to 2018, including covers of “La Cavalerie” from French singer Julien Clerc, “Russian Roulette” from Lords Of The New Church, “Angels And Devils” from Echo And The Bunnymen, and (more surprisingly) the holiday song “Silent Night”.

John Medeski — Mad Skillet (Indirecto Records, 2018) — Mad Skillet was born of a late night show in New Orleans, LA during Jazz Fest 2015. John Medeski and Will Bernard’s yearly quest to play together found a special chemistry with the addition of Kirk Joseph and Terence Higgins. The eclectic, far-reaching backgrounds of Medeski and Bernard alongside this legendary NOLA rhythm section generated what Medeski calls, “a vast musical universe with limitless potential”. Mad Skillet’s grooves are deep — New Orleans steeped in jazz, blues, psychedelic rock, and R&B — a treat for the body and mind.

Federico Durand — Pequenas Melodias (IIKKI, 2018) — Recorded in La Cumbre, Argentina, on tape loops and cassettes with a Sony TCM200-DV, Fostex X-18 & Macbook, using acoustic guitar, music boxes, synthesizer, electric piano, Rhodes piano sampling, Roland Space Echo RE-201, CT5, EHX 2880 and a small modular sampler (Morphagene, Clouds, 2hp LFO, 2hp RND, Bastl Ciao).

The Embassy — White Lake (International, 2018) — The Embassy är bandet som alltid stått bredvid, som svarat »fel« när enkla frågor ställts. Som gjort tvärtom vad gängse norm kräver – oavsett om det har handlat om ljudbild, hur man som band ska vara och se ut eller hur man agerar live. Det har skapat en fanbase som är trogen och en motpol som inte förstår. Eller för den delen aldrig någonsin nåtts av musiken. Fredrik Lindson och Torbjörn Håkansson har i gamla intervjuer pratat om The Embassy som motståndskultur och i samband med släppet av »White Lake« skriver duon att de är »varken tidlösa eller samtida, men alltid untimely« – där det sista går att översätta till både förtidiga eller olägliga. Två ord som båda utmärkt förklarar bandets betydelse för popmusik under tjugohundratalet.

Jah Wobble – The Butterfly Effect (Jah Wobble, 2018) — The Butterfly Effect, Jah Wobble’s follow up to his recent and acclaimed Dream World album, features a collection of eight tracks that lyrically tackle (sometimes with tongue in cheek) subjects such as the nature of mind, the post modern age and what it is to be human. The album was recorded at Inner Space Studios in London. All of the songs collected here originated from poems that were written by the legendary bass player around the time of the global financial crash of ten years ago. ‘The Iron Lady Got Rust’ in particular looks back to a time which saw Thatcher impose UK banking deregulation and the free market political and economic attitudes that led to the crash and subsequently to modern day austerity and Brexit. ‘The Butterfly Effect’ examines the interdependence of all phenomena and names checks amongst others; Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire, Bjork, Joe Strummer, Stephen Spielberg, Casanova and Ringo Starr and ‘I Love Your Accent’ is Wobble’s humorous look at returning to his birthplace in London’s East End and staying a night in the area’s first five-star hotel in Bethnal Green. The album is a heartfelt collection of words and sounds that captures the musical craft and lyrical expertise synonymous with a man that’s enjoyed a career spanning over forty years. Although very much a solo recording, the album also features his long time Invaders Of The Heart band mates; Marc Layton-Bennett (percussion and drums), George King (keyboards), Sean Corby (trumpet and flugelhorn) and Martin Chung (guitar).

Jónsi (Jón Þór Birgisson) ‎– Frakkur 2000-2004 (Krúnk, 2018) — Frakkur was the artist name Jónsi used to define his experiments in electronic music in the early years of the 21st century. Working on his own, either at home in Reykjavík, in hotel rooms on tour with Sigur Rós, or later at his boyfriend’s house in Boston, Jónsi spent endless hours diving into then-new bits of kit and programming. For many years the music represented on this Frakkur collection was thought lost, since Jónsi’s unbacked-up hard-drive eventually corrupted.  However, Alex had shared burned CDRs of the music with some of his close friends around Boston, and one of these came to light around a decade later, thus saving the project from oblivion. The songs on Frakkur 2000-2004 have been mastered for the first time for this release, with some of the glitches and drop-outs that bedevilled peer-to-peer shares now eradicated.

Irmin Schmidt – 5 Klavierstücke (Mute/Spoon, 2018) — в E:\music\krautrock написали: «К великому сожалению герои минувших лет нынче достаточно редко выпускают студийные альбомы. Один из основателей легендарных Can, спустя несколько лет тишины, порадовал преданных поклонников новым материалом. Альбом под названием «5 Klavierstücke» состоит из пяти фортепианных пьес, записанных в прошлом году маэстро на его двух роялях. Он использовал «препарированное» пианино Pleyel, так, как его учил сам John Cage, а другое фортепиано — его 100-летний Steinway — осталось «неподготовленным». В пресс-релизе говорится, что «все окружающие звуки были записаны на месте — вокруг студии Irmin Schmidt — и не использовалось никаких других инструментов или электронных устройств любого типа».»

Emilie Zoé — The Very Start (Hummus Records, 2018) — is a touching brew of intimate melodies and narrative lyrics, carefully infused in a moving sonic space that enlights even the smallest accidents that happened in the room these songs were (re)born in.

Bryan Ferry – Bitter-Sweet (BMG, 2018) — Adding Twenties-style ragtime, blues, jazz and swing instrumentation to some of your best-known work may seem like an odd endeavour, but it makes a lot of sense if you’re Bryan Ferry. The Roxy Music mastermind embarks on a further exploration of his jazz influences on Bitter-Sweet, a new solo album inspired by his work on the Netflix TV series Babylon Berlin. The release comes two years after his record The Jazz Age, which consisted entirely of instrumentals; Bitter-Sweet includes eight vocal tracks. There are reinterpretations of some classic Roxy Music cuts: “While My Heart is Still Beating”, from the English rock band’s eighth and final studio album Avalon, is given a moody makeover with the addition of the sax, and rigid strings that jerk back and forth with stern urgency.

Fog Lake — Carousel [ep] (2018) — новая епишка Аарона. bedroom doo-wop experimental lo-fi Glovertown

дЕкабрь

растабадыдекабря: Dub Colossus — A Spy In The House Of Dub (Real World Productions Ltd, 2018), The Temple Rockers — Festival of Dub (Fresh Roots Records, 2018), Mellow Mood & Paolo Baldini DubFiles – Large Dub (La Tempesta Dischi, 2018), Ras Haitrm & The Firehouse Crew — Go and Tell the World (VPAL Music, 2018), Ratigan — New York To Portmore (Dialectic Productions, 2018), Ashraff 30 — Nostalgy (Cat Studio, 2018), Ghost Writerz — Nah Join EP (Unit 137, 2018), Cultural Warriors, Horace Andy & Errol Dunkley — Money (Evidence Music, EP, 2018), Sun Sooley — Rise And Shine (Universoul Records, 2018), Little Roy And Iron & Rock — Return Of The Lion (Original Tafari, 2018), Richie Spice (Bushman) — Defending The Roots (Streaminn Hub Inc, 2018), Wackies Rythmn Force — Planters Dub (Bull Wackies Music, 2018),

The Strange – Echo Chamber (Dancing Bear, 2018) — I don’t know about Dalibor Pavicic and Chris Eckman, the main authors of the songs from the new album of the band named The Strange, but those verses from the song “Fast Train To Nowhere” accurately describe how I feel here in Croatia; on “the edge of nowhere” where a train for the better future, the one we waiting for from the time we were born, will never arrive. It’s hard to endure such a condition, but it might be that only from a mood like that the great work like “Echo Chamber” could be born.

Aidan Moffat & RM Hubbert – Ghost Stories for Christmas (Rock Action, 2018) — Aidan Moffat and RM Hubbert enter the festive fray on formidable form with a sobering and intoxicating antidote to the sugar-sweet Christmas jingles and narratives we can’t always connect to; squeezed spots and traumatised trees in tow. Ghost Stories for Christmas arrives hot on the heels of the Rock Action heroes’ acclaimed debut Here Lies the Body, with the duo’s cover of Lonely This Christmas serving as a perfect (miserable) manifesto for their enticingly unorthodox coalition of Christmas. Gone are the sumptuous, soaring harmonies of Mud’s original. In their place, a drum machine as cold as Santa’s workshop when the heating packs in; and the lush, bruised baritone of Moffat: ‘Merry Christmas doll, wherever you are’.

Willard Grant Conspiracy – Untethered (Loose Music, 2018) — The album consists of the final recordings made by Robert Fisher and his ever evolving band before his untimely death on February 12th 2017. The tapes were shelved after Robert died and have only recently been dusted down and brought to life with the care and attention of his longtime compadre David Michael Curry. As he explains “there was a growing sense of needing this record to honour the history of the band somehow”. Contributors include Steve Wynn and Chris Brokaw but it’s David Michael Curry alongside Robert Fisher who hold the whole project together.

Claudio Capéo — Tant Que Rien Ne M’arrête (Jo & Co, 2018) — C’est à 6 ans que Claudio Capéo a débuté son parcours musical en apprenant l’accordéon. Il enchaîne alors les concours à travers l’Europe. C’est en 2016 que le grand public l’a découvert en tant que chanteur dans la cinquième saison de « The voice ».

Dusty Stray ‎– Estranged (Great Waters, 2018) — Estranged, the fifth full-length Dusty Stray release, is about growing up and growing old(er). It’s about finding one’s place in the world while saying goodbye to friends who have left this world much too soon.

Mark Lanegan And Duke Garwood – Mescalito [EP] (Not On Label, 2018) — Live EP

Bensé — L’Odyssée (DIYORDIE Playing, 2018) — Hymne à l’adhésion sensuelle au monde malgré son silence, L’Odyssée boucle en majesté la trilogie amorcée avec le disque Album en 2008 et poursuivie six années plus tard avec Le Printemps. Un album à écouter du début à la fin, comme on lit une histoire. Si Album tenait du manifeste vital d’un homme attaché à raconter ses racines, sa famille et Le Printemps contait voyages, rencontres et femmes, L’Odyssée est, selon son auteur lui-même, le disque de la confirmation de l’intuition, du « retour à Ithaque ». Les lettres ont toujours accompagné le troubadour au fil de ses créations ; Gabriel Garcia Marquez pour Album, Céline pour Le Printemps …

Kevin Morby – Harlem River Dub (Peaking Lights Remix) [Woodsist / Mare, EP, 2018] — 2 extended Harlem River Dub remixes by Aaron Coyes / Peaking Lights with art by Robbie Simon. «I wanted to do something to honor the title track off of my debut album, Harlem River, turning 5 years old this year. Its been very good to me over the past half decade as well as a staple in my live show. I’ve asked Aaron from Peaking Lights to breath some new life into it and give it a remix and i’m very happy with the results. This December I will be performing an hour long version of the song featuring many special guests. I wrote the song to be about new explorations, and it continues to give me — year after year — just that.» — Kevin Morby

Henry Derek Elis — The Devil Is My Friend (HDE, 2018) — Ему не нужен Иисус, молитвы и бывшие коллективы Act of Defiance и Scar the Martyr. Его друзья — гитара и Трэвис Смит, нарисовавший отличную обложку. Музыкально альбом представляет собой классический американский фолк со всеми вытекающими: строгие минималистские мотивы, разухабистый темный кантри и толика готик-рока с шикарным обрамлением густого низкого вокала (написал musicbunker)

Charlotte Gainsbourg — Take 2 (Because Music, EP, 2018) — Charlotte Gainsbourg has announced a new EP titled Take 2, via Because Music. Among the EP’s five new tracks is a cover of Kanye West’s “Runaway,” which Gainsbourg debuted live earlier this year. The EP will also feature a new version of “Deadly Valentine,” a standout track from her 2017 album Rest. Take 2 marks her first official release since that record. Gainsbourg has a reputation for working with top-tier producers and artistic collaborators; Take 2 boasts production from SebastiAn, who also contributed to Rest.

The Green Kingdom — Ephemera (Rusted Tone Recordings, 2018) — RTR welcomes Michigan-based multi-instrumentalist Michael Cottone, otherwise known under his performance name of The Green Kingdom, with his latest album, ‘Ephemera’. The album contains twelve pieces that evolved from various sonic sketches; some appearing as raw and intimate acoustical passages, others offering beat-orientated electronic progressions. Cottone conjures a sense of deep reflection throughout the album, soundtracking the changing of seasons and inviting the listener into a dream-like state. «Some of these pieces are recent sketches, conceived and recorded in the moment with little in the way of post production. Others are unused sketches composed for a video game soundtrack. Still others are early versions of final tracks or things that have sat dormant on the hard drive for some time, like the remix of Autumn Toadlick, a track from the first TGK album Meadowview. Whatever the case, I feel that everything coalesced into a nice little ad hoc Green Kingdom album» — Michael Cottone

Deadbeat — Waking Life (BLKRTZ, 2018) — Scott Monteith (a.k.a Deadbeat) has shared a six-track EP dedicated to Portugal’s Waking Life Festival. Waking Life is the Canadian producer’s first full release since July’s Wail Ball & Cry EP, though he did release an album earlier this year and more recently contributed a track to XLR8R‘s XLR8Rplus series, which you can buy and stream here. Monteith explains that the EP is dedicated to the festival of the same name which he thinks is the «best in the world currently.» «The title has a more personal meaning for me as well though as being two kids deep and a full time Dad with the youngest has resulted in me getting up at 4 in the morning the last many weeks and working until 7 as it’s the only quiet time I have to myself these days.» — Deadbeat

Maya Jane Coles – Waves & Whirlwinds EP (I Am Me Recordings, 2018) — is a brief, EP-length follow-up to Maya Jane Coles’ expansive double-album Take Flight, offering a similar blend of tech-house rhythms and pop instincts. Coles excels at producing sensuous dance tracks which float and bubble yet have a steady drive to them. “Don’t Leave” has cloudy, pitch-shifted vocal fragments and loose guitars which levitate over a chunky breakbeat, punctuated by samples commanding the listener to “get yo hands up!” “Other Side” begins with Coles reflecting on “the shadows of my mind” over an entrancing beat, and while it initially seems like the track is going to stick to a proper song structure, it quickly drifts away, as if to illustrate Coles’ point about getting lost inside her thoughts.

Them Are Us Too (Cocteau Twins) — Amends (Dais Records, 2018) — последний альбом калифорнийского дуэта, творившего в духе той самой воздушной-поглощающей-растворяющей-бесконечно-мечтательной-ангельской музыки, за которую известны Cocteau Twins. Два года назад Кэш Эскью, 22-летний гитарист группы, погиб при пожаре на вечеринке лейбла 100% Silk в «Корабле-призраке», складе, что был домом/мастерской местной арт-группы. Певица Кеннеди Эшлин Веннинг вернулась в студию с продюсером Джошуа Юстисом (Telefon Tel Aviv , The Black Queen) и завершила работу над песнями, что готовились для их второй пластинки. (www.neformat.com.ua)

Dreyma — Moonlight (Magnolia Damasco, EP, 2018) — Dreyma is a mix of intense friendship, wine, pizza, joyness and hours of rehearsal. Cris (guitar, voice) and Mel (synths, electric drum and voice) share the passion for experimentation playing with sounds, images, emotions and rhythm. The results is dream core, electronic, pop, dark sometimes and ethereal. They released their first EP in 2017 (edited by Ondas del Espacio and Discos Imaginarios) and have been touring across Spain giving more than 20 gigs. Now, they are immersed in the creation of their next conceptual project: Moonlight (Autumn 2018) which will marry music, videos, illustration and the beauty and darkness of women emotional states. Awarded by Radio 3 (Spain national radio) as Emerging Artist 2017 and 3rd best EP 2017 by Mondo Sonoro.

Sierra Ferrell — Pretty Magic Spell (2018) — The first time I met Sierra, she asked me to dance at the Honky Tonk Tuesday night at the American Legion in Nashville. Of course i’d heard of her before — from various traveling bands and vagabonds who told me of her amazing old time singing and habit of blowing into (and out of) town. A jingle-janglin gypsy tornado of sound that doesn’t seem to care what the rules are, new & old fused seamless.

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см. : 2018 albums и 2018 in music

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