• Music

    Throbbing Gristle – Throbbing Gristle’s Greatest Hits

    March 5, 2021 - By 

    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 out, like Cabaret Voltaire, Monte Cazzaza, S.P.K. and The Leather Nun. As today is Bandcamp Friday, I point to those who want to get to understand the genesis (pun intended) of Industrial music to purchase and listen to this survey.  It is anti-music, but with a warm touch to it.

  • Music

    Jake Xerxes Fussell – Hills Of Mexico

    March 4, 2021 - By 

    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 I found to be enjoyable.

  • Music

    Doll Klaw – Thorns EP

    March 3, 2021 - By 

    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 1980s indie band – the ethereal vocals, the cold synthesizer, the catchy, dance-ready grooves and a fashion sense that screams ‘retro’.  As synthwave is making a comeback, the band have managed to come at a perfect time to take advantage of it. If you like bands like Red Flag, Xymox,…

  • Music

    Various Artists – Color De Tropico Vol 2 Compiled by El Drágon Criollo & El Palmas

    March 2, 2021 - By 

    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 their Bandcamp page: El Palmas and El Dragón Criollo once again leave their skin immersing themselves in the musical archives of the” Venezuelan Saudi ”, today almost buried in oblivion, for the defense of prodigious works whose brilliance did not have time to be fully assimilated in the middle from…

  • Music

    Alostmen – Kologo

    March 1, 2021 - By 

    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, Alostmen’s music is based around the Frafra traditions of the kologo, a stringed lute, using traditional instrumentation in entirely new ways. “I like to force my instrument to work,” explains Stevo. “I’m a yout’man and into rap, reggae, Malian music. I add these to the band’s sound.” “I had toured…

  • Music

    Archbishop Samuel David – You Are the Light of the World: Antiochian Byzantine Hymnody in Toledo, Ohio ca. 1940s

    February 28, 2021 - By 

    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 was a Syrian-born priest who rose through the ranks in the Russian Orthodox Church and was a lightning-rod of controversy during his day, being excommunicated by the Antiochian Orthodox Church, his home diocese, before being received once again and made archbishop. Canary Records does it’s usual sterling job of restoring…

  • Music

    Yu Su – Yellow River Blue

    February 27, 2021 - By 

    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 traditional music buried underneath.  She has launched her own record label, bié Records, which is based in my working location, Beijing, China. As I plan to return in June, provided the government there opens the doors again, I’ll have to look the label up and see what else is coming…

  • Music

    Gleb Kolyadin – Gleb Kolyadin

    February 26, 2021 - By 

    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 far better recording studio access. This is Gleb’s solo debut record, which was released in 2018.  The music is as dense as it is with iamthemorning, but there is a more varied cast of prog rock superstars participating here. The personnel on this album are: Gleb Kolyadin – grand piano,…

  • Music

    Suzanne Belaubre – (DIY)

    February 25, 2021 - By 

    Record label and magazine La Souterraine offer the best indie music coming out of France these days.  Their latest release by Suzanne Belaubre is bound to be a cold wave masterpiece. The tracks are short and the production is excellent, if sparse.  That sparseness works well with the music, and it gives the music an odd, very French, electro-pop vibe to the tunes.  It’s a quirky album, but well worth hearing a few times.

  • Music

    Various Artists – Mailbox Records: Music for Another Sky

    February 24, 2021 - By 

    This collection of ambient music is curated by British record label Mailbox Records.  From their Bandcamp site: About this release: This compilation has been put together in order to raise awareness and/or raise money for the UK charity, Refuge. This means 100% of proceeds from all sales will go to them (after the standard deductions from Bandcamp and PayPal). It was 1971 when Refuge opened the world’s first safe house, so this year marks the 50th year they’ve been helping women and children escape a life of abuse and violence; the first to make the point that violence in the…