Our beloved friends at Russia’s finest indie music magazine, Meticulous Midgets, has released their annual compilation of weird experimental, lo-fi and avant-garde music. Featured artists include Russia’s own Assembly of Honey, the Italian ambient sound sculptor Marco Lucchi and Latvia’s Шумилов Бор (Shumilov Bor) among a host of talent worldwide.
Lo-Fi
ZA! – Eki Eki Eki Kazam!
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.
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 Continue Reading
handwrist – The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste
As we celebrate Christmas on the Julian Calendar this day, I thought it nice to share with you an album I found from a Portuguese composer called handwrist, working in the medium of psychedelic, progressive and drone rock, perhaps with lo-fi touches, basing his compositions on the aforementioned Forty Martyrs Continue Reading
noemienours – The Dry Path
It’s hard for me to make out the influences of this album, but I can say with certainty that listening to this rather weird album was a pleasure. From noemienours’ Bandcamp site: ““The Dry Path”, noemienours’ 5th LP, developed around a Gobi Bear narrative of barren edge conditions as an Continue Reading
Al-Qasar – Who Are We?
The bad news about the release of Al-Qasar’s new album is that there is currently only one track available to hear at the moment. The good news, however, is that it features Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo as well as Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra. From the band’s Bandcamp site: Continue Reading
L’Aventure des Plantes – L’Aventure des Plantes
I can’t say where L’Aventure des Plantes are for sure, but their record label, Kotorosl Records, is from Barcelona, Spain. The music is highly influenced by Berlin School electronics, experimental music and ambient music, and they do honor to the genres.
Donny Vegas – Pharmakós
It seems like Donny Vegas has been listening to all the right post-punk records for my taste. One can hear influences of early Cabaret Voltaire, Suicide, a touch of Throbbing Gristle, and yet, by some odd miracle, it sounds both fresh and lo-fi. A quirky release, but I like this. Continue Reading
Of Sun And Rain – The Flutter of Wings
Starry Earth is a record label out of the United Kingdom offering lo-fi electronic artists with stunningly beautiful minimalist artwork and packaging, releasing cassettes as well as digital downloads. Of Sun And Rain were of particular interest, as the music is hauntingly sparse and engaging.
Tothmo – Spider (and a bunch of other songs)
If you can believe it, this Czech EP was recorded by a 17-year-old kid who has a profound appreciation for bedroom pop, new wave and indie. He’s quite a decent storyteller, and despite the lo-fi production, there’s a lot of charm in this album.