Za! were introduced to me by a friend in Spain, and I have to say, both the band and their label, Galleta Records, are putting out fine minimal post-punk.
Indie Rock
Cecilia Ann – Azul
Cecilia Ann are an indie-rock group out of Granada, Spain, who have a wonderful jangly pop sound which reminded me of acts like Biff Bang Pow! The production is crisp, the sound is garage-friendly and the label they’re on, Elefant, produce a lot of amazing music.
Alif – Aynama-Rtama
I trust you, my friends, had a lovely Gregorian-Calendar Boxing Day. I spent mine listening to a Lebanese experimental band called Alif. At least as the liner notes on their Bandcamp site explain, it looks to be a collaboration between Lebanese and Egyptian musicians, and features the talents of the Continue Reading
Tindersticks – No Treasure But Hope
What a beautifully bleak, baroque piece of pop-music. You don’t hear too much of the Tindersticks‘ soul-inflected sound on this album, What you get, instead, is music that pulls from folk, goth (yes, if you can believe it), and even hints of work from Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. Continue Reading
Crows In The Rain – You Are Dying In My Arms (The Frozen Last Gasps)
There seems to be an explosion of indie bands popping up around Iran, and this one seems to be one of the most interesting of the lot. Crows In The Rain hail from Tehran and produce a very melancholic form of post-rock mixed with neo-classical influences. Solid material.
Various Artists – Meticulous Midgets compilation 2021
I almost feel bad for only promoting the download of this release. Our dear friends over at Meticulous Midgets, one of Russia’s finest experimental/avant-music record labels also releases a magazine to go with the album, and it’s a stunning affair. This is the second one I have had the pleasure Continue Reading
Brendan Perry – Songs of Disenchantment – Music from the Greek Underground
Dead Can Dance singer and multi-instrumentalist Brendan Perry is absolutely enamored with Greek culture, and it’s obvious because a lot of DCD’s work has an affinity towards it. Perry is especially appreciative of rebetiko, the local variant of the blues in Greek culture. This album is his paean to his Continue Reading
Tommy Guerrero – Sunshine Radio
Tommy Guerrero’s music came to me via a recommendation of a friend online. I had heard his name bandied about years ago because of friends of mine who were into skateboarding, but I had no idea he was making music. And such good music, I must say. The album is Continue Reading
Andrew Paine & Richard Youngs – Bonus Disc
This has to be one of the most charmingly weird, frankly unclassifiable discs I’ve heard in a while. Andrew Paine & Richard Youngs manage to pull together a collection that should sound like a mess, yet it’s a rather enjoyable one. The music goes from lo-fi disco tracks (which for Continue Reading
Toronja – QuedarseIrMorirEgo
This one-track release was in my queue while I was doing some work, and when it came on, I assumed it was a track of Spanish cold wave from the early 1980s. Toronja, as it turns out, is a Chilean project from this year, and they manage to do a Continue Reading