No reviews today as we prepare for Gregorian Calendar Christmas and finals for the school. In my stead, I offer to you Kazdoura, a singer from Canada who is of Levantine Arab descent. This is a touch of Arabic pop blended with trip-hop, jazz and psychedelic Andalou Rock.
Alternative
Various Artists – Passed Records: The Passed Year – 2023
Passed Records come from Uppsala, Sweden. This is a fine introduction to their label, which produces trip-hop, electronica, drone and post-punk. These guys are going to be fun to follow.
Dean & Britta & Sonic Boom – A Peace of Us
Dean Wareham is someone who could be called Shoegaze royalty. He has been partnering with Britta Phillips for some time now making some fine records, but this is a different, even more interesting beast. The Spacemen 3 centerpiece Sonic Boom collaborates with Dean & Britta for an album which combines Continue Reading
Bohmig – Birth In Birdsview
Another day, another unsolicited album, and another absolutely pleasant surprise! Bohmig are an Austrian band who produce a novocaine-like fuzziness housed in a dream pop vibe. This is a lo-fi affair, but with gentle vocals, a wispy guitar and, as mentioned, just enough buzz to give this an edge. Fine Continue Reading
Steve Albini & K.K. Null – Steve Albini & K.K. Null
These recordings are a sample of a 2-disc CD which I am not sure is still available, but since the passing of Steve Albini recently, K.K. Null has done the world a service by publishing these two tracks from that vaunted release.
Radian – Distorted Rooms
From Radian’s Bandcamp site: “Radian’s visionary approach to composition speaks to lifetime working in forward-thinking music. Brandlmayr, Siewert and Norman share an unconventional, wildly imaginative approach to sound. The trio’s collective experience finds an expansive and egoless outlet in Distorted Rooms, uncovering new sonic universes. After nearly 30 years of Continue Reading
Various Artists – Cardinals At The Window
Though there are no tracks to share with you from this release, I can say that there are 136 tracks of indie, alternative, folk and other genres coming together for Cardinals At The Window, a compilation whose purpose is to give funds to those who suffered from the horrible flooding Continue Reading
Wire: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
Today was a long work day at the school I teach at, so I leave you with the legendary Wire playing a Tiny Desk Concert from a few years ago. See you tomorrow.
Various Artists – Sharla: 100 vrati otvoreni
Respect to Sharla Records out of Skopje, Macedonia, who have produced over 100 records now of fine alternative music sung in the home language.
Valerie Renay – Peel the Skin
Though listed in the tags as dream pop, this feels more like a sultrier, weirder dream than I’m used to, and the track is all the better for it. Valery Renay is a singer based out of Berlin, Germany. Her voice is as alluring a thing as I have heard Continue Reading