Shining On Invisible Things

 

Sometimes when wading through the inbox messages, dreading another day in the office, something will drop down like manna from heaven and brighten the day. This is what Invisible Things, the new project for Mark Shippy (US Maple) and Jim Sykes (Parts & Labor, Grooms) has been for me today.

Sykes has always been an incredible drummer, and Shippy well equipped with extended guitar rock jams, but here it is taken to another realm, the duo both extending and contracting the form at will. With studies of Sri Lankan percussion and the elasticity of guitar exploration the driving forces, the 17 tracks on their LP Home IS The Sun becomes at once an experiment, a composition, a sonic wigout and an exercise in control. Whilst in similar realms to the likes of Hella or Lightning Bolt, there is an innate accessibility and verve here that opens itself up to a wider audience, but this is not a detriment – experimental rock is allowed to be warm and fuzzy sometimes! Such a psychedelic, progressive adventure should work as well as this clearly does, nor should it be such fun – but it easily commits to both. This is the kind of aural alchemy that makes existence on this mortal coil worth every shitstorm and concern.

 

You can get Home IS The Sun via Porter Records here – and you really should. It’s incredible.

Invisible Things – BEFORE The Seventh
Invisible Things – INTO Engine

Getting The Kellies In The Woods Of Tape Deck Mountain

I posted about San Diego's Tape Deck Mountain earlier this year, waxing on about their EP Secret Serf (check out our thoughts here). It was ace, still is, and now they are touring with a new track to boot. 'Kellies' is on a cassette that is only availbale from the band on their US tour, which is massive, starting in Los Angeles on the 2nd of June and continuing on until they reach Phoenix in July. Along the way they will tour alongside Grooms for a bit, and play a show with Keepaway in New York, but its the first leg we are excited about as they will be joined by the excellent Woodsman. The Denver outfit have some new stuff to back up their great Rare Forms album too (which I lost my shit over here) - this track, 'Tone Cloak', is eight minutes of classic psych sprawl. Anyway, check out their respective websites to ensure you don't miss em, ok?

Tape Deck Mountain - Kellies
Woodsman - Tone Cloak