ruò tán are China’s more organic answer to old post-Industrial/cassette-culture bands like Germany’s Cranioclast. The music is eerie, yet so utterly engaging. Probably the best reference to this music is for those of you who remember not only the aforementioned band but the early works of projects like O Yuki Continue Reading
Rudy Carrera
Blogger, label owner, record store buyer and all around charming lad who loves to share music with one and all.
Joe Williams – Can’t Resist You – My Summer Love
This is simply a masterpiece. Joe Williams was one of the most lauded voice in the big band era, and worked with legends like Lionel Hampton and Count Basie. From Nagel Hayer’s Bandcamp site: “Simply one of the greatest Jazz or even Blues vocal albums of all time. Joe Williams Continue Reading
Various Artists – Pacific Breeze 2: Japanese City Pop, AOR & Boogie 1972-1986
From Light In The Attic Records, this is perfect Sunday listening: “With Pacific Breeze 2: Japanese City Pop, AOR & Boogie 1972-1986 we dig deeper into those sounds of bubble-era Japan. From the proto-City Pop funk of Bread & Butter and Eiichi Ohtaki to the crate-digger favorites Eri Ohno and Continue Reading
Jonny Benavidez with Cold Diamond & Mink – My Echo, Shadow and Me
Finland’s Timmion Records has released Chicano-soul rocker Jonny Benavidez who provides a radio-friendly (for 1965) soul cut that sounds so authentic that it takes you back at least two generations, which seems to be a specialty for the record label.
Kit Sebastian – L’addio / Hayat
A brilliant single from the always-impressive Mr. Bongo Records by London-based Kit Sebastian. From the band’s Bandcamp site: “‘L’addio’ saw the band perfecting their production and orchestration, with strings, horns and double bass, and an Italian synth found in a French dump. The music was greatly influenced by Italian soundtracks Continue Reading
They Came From Hell – Osteotome
There are two very short tracks on this release by They Came From Hell, one of the many fine side projects of composer Philippe Gerber, but the music is so oppressively dark are foreboding that it would make for stellar soundtrack music.
Roman Stolyar – In Gleisdorf
Our dear friend Roman Stolyar has released a new live solo recording with him performing on the piano and recorder from a show recorded literally last weel in Gleisdorf, Austria.
Various Artists – Azerbaijani Love Songs
Music from Azerbaijan comes in many forms, but one of the genres not well-covered on disc outside of the country is its rich tradition of love songs. Caucaso Records, a Baku-based record label, has begun the process to fix this issue.
Chihei Hatakeyama – The Ancient Forest V
I can’t say I’ve ever had the pleasure of introducing Chihei Hatakeyama to my readers before, but he is a master of elegant sound design. These three compositions are based on his travel to Amami Oshima, north of Okinawa.
Magicien Blanc – End The Beginning
A fellow expat, Christian Locke (Magicien Blanc) has come up with one of the best prog rock albums I’ve heard in a while. There are some cues from French and Italian prog bands from the 1970s and 1980s, some influence of bands of the Berlin school and Goblin, and it Continue Reading