If you can imagine 1969-era King Crimson played on Chinese traditional instruments and a more relaxed feel, you would have this new album by the Guangzho-based band Zhaoze. The music is definitely progressive, touching upon art-rock, but so solidly based in traditional Chinese music that one can call this a sound all its own.
Tag: Art-Rock
Pere Ubu – Trouble On Big Beat Street
Avant-rock legends Pere Ubu have a brand new album out! From the band’s Bandcamp site: “Pere Ubu unveil their new album, ‘Trouble On Big Beat Street’, nearly four years after their previous record for Cherry Red, ‘The Long Goodbye’. ‘The Modern Dance’ (1978) marked the end of Rock ‘n’ Roll. ‘Trouble On Big Beat Street’…
Peter Gabriel – Live in Athens 1987
It’s incredibly nice to see Peter Gabriel release the bulk of his solo material on Bandcamp. He even offers a subscription for rare tracks and remixes, most of which are perfectly okay. This release was a pleasant surprise, as it was, I believe, once released as part of the So box set, but it sounds…
Abandoned Toys – Where Tides Defy the Moon
This is a curious release. Abandoned Toys manages to balance ethereal ambient music with symphonic progressive rock. A rather brilliant balance, indeed.
Kara Jackson – Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love?
Kara Jackson certainly knows how to leave a strong impression! If you can imagine Nick Drake’s guitar being willed to Nina Simone with a touch of the spirit of David Bowie (see the track brain for reference), then you have this incredibly powerful album. I had no idea what to expect when I saw the…
PoiL Ueda – PoiL Ueda
This is a heavy, near-monstrous release involving Japanese singer and bassis Junko Ueda and the French avant-prog group PoiL. From their Bandcamp site: “PoiL Ueda is the result of a collaboration between Junko Ueda, a vocalist and satsuma-biwa player from Japan, and PoiL, a French rock/contemporary music band. The creation is based on the 13th-century Japanese…
David Bowie – Lodger (2017 Remix) – Classic Music Review
Thirty years on, still no one is quite sure where to place Lodger. In a way, that’s appropriate: as the title suggests, it’s a record that doesn’t … David Bowie – Lodger (2017 Remix) – Classic Music Review I’ve had the pleasure of following altrockchick for a good while now. This is one of the…
Bruce Licher – Tape Excavation (Special Expanded Edition)
Bruce Licher is an icon in the art-punk/post-punk/post-Industrial music scene. He was a member if the seminal band Savage Republic, runs Independent Projects Records and Independent Projects Press for his graphic design work. Though we’re a bit early to the party, so to speak, Bruce will be reissuing an album called Tape Excavation, which has…
The Chills – Scatterbrain / Scatterbrain-Storms: Outtakes
We have two releases today to share with you. Both come from New Zealand’s greatest indie rock band, The Chills, and at least to my ears, should be seen as one cohesive session. The first, Scatterbrain, came out in September of 2021 is a rather lush affair, quite different from the early, stripped-down lo-fi albums. …
Zhaoze – The Life of a Dayfly | 蜉生记
I suppose one can call this post-rock with Chinese characteristics. Zhaoze are a progressive rock/post-rock band out of Guangzhou, China, and this is the first I’ve heard of them. Their sound is mellow, almost dramatic in a TV-theme way, yet the music, though soothing, is also engaging, especially after about the 5 minute mark, where…