Vàli are a neofolk band out of Norway whose music shows references to bands like Ulver and Empyrium. It’s a rather gentle album with acoustic guitar and fiddle, reminding me of the American folk-rock band Changes and the Chinese neofolk band Raflum. A mellow experience.
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Reptilicus & The Hafler Trio – Designer Time
Continuing on the Industrial (and post-Industrial) theme, this album was sent as a promo album to me while I was a buyer for Aron’s Records, the best record shop in Los Angeles before Amoeba steamrolled the competition (and are now, apparently, either no more or barely hanging on in L.A.). Continue Reading
Throbbing Gristle – Throbbing Gristle’s Greatest Hits
In 1984, I was introduced by the luck of having a few weird friends in high school to the world of Industrial Music. This album was the first of many I would end up buying, not only from Throbbing Gristle, but the whole roster of freaks Industrial Records was putting Continue Reading
Jake Xerxes Fussell – Hills Of Mexico
Xerxes is not a name one comes across regularly in English, so when I saw James Xerxes Fusssell’s name pop up on my dashboard, I thought I’d give his music a listen. I’m glad I did. This is a one-track release of blues-tinged music sung in a peculiar manner that Continue Reading
Doll Klaw – Thorns EP
As a more-or-less native Los Angeleno who grew up running around clubs in the late 1980s and early 1990s in clubs like Club F**k, DAS Bunker and the like, hearing synth-pop like this makes me feel a sense of nostalgia. Southern California-based Doll Klaw has all the hallmarks of a Continue Reading
Various Artists – Color De Tropico Vol 2 Compiled by El Drágon Criollo & El Palmas
Spanish imprint El Palmas Music has released this compilation of music from Venezuela that covers reggae, salsa, soul, cumbia and joropo music. There are two tracks available to listen to until the release date of May 14, 2021, but judging by these, this compilation will be pretty damn good. From Continue Reading
Alostmen – Kologo
Ghanian band Alostmen are bursting with energy and come with a sound mixing highlife with a guitar style that reminds me, slightly, of Tuareg playing one could hear with bands like Tinariwen. From the band’s website: Formed by Stevo Atambire and produced by Wanlov (Fok’n Bois) and Percy Yip Tong, Continue Reading
Archbishop Samuel David – You Are the Light of the World: Antiochian Byzantine Hymnody in Toledo, Ohio ca. 1940s
In times of deep anguish, I’ve relied on the hymnody of the Orthodox Church to find peace. It is where I place my faith, and it has never failed me once. A lot of that comes from my devotion to the chanting I hear in the choirs. Archbishop Samuel David Continue Reading
Yu Su – Yellow River Blue
Chinese-Canadian composer Yu Su produces an album that left me pleasantly surprised by. Though I found this download under “ambient” music, it turns out that it may have more to do with the motorik music of Neu! quietly subdued by elements of dub, dance music and wee touches of Chinese Continue Reading
Gleb Kolyadin – Gleb Kolyadin
Russian progressive rock band iamthemorning have been at the forefront of the symphonic rock scene for nearly a decade now, and a lot of the reason for the band’s success lies with their pianist, Gleb Kolyadin, whose composing style reminds me of a lot of bands from the 1970s with Continue Reading