7/4 Days with St Augustus

Throughout the long Easter weekend here in London, we had some wild, predictably unpredictable weather. Friday was amazing and sunny; Saturday cool with rolling, sharp stabs of rain deluge; Sunday threatened to storm but gave a fine afternoon, before the heavens broke in killer winds; and Monday was a shapeshifter, taking in all shades, albeit at mildly more accessible climes. Which means I spent a lot of it inside. And the vast majority of that time was spent listening to Seven Days, the debut album of St Augustus, the solo guise of Brisbane entity Cameron Smith (Ghost Notes, Tape/Off, Tiny Spiders, Spirit Bunny).

And it is a true triumph years in the making.

He breaks the mould with the loose and raucous 'Always Ends', taking a GVB via Nova Scotia (one of the best little Brisbane bands to come out of the place in the past decade IMHO) fuzzed-out blast. But it is the still, sparse moments that have always resonated. Trouble outlasts with the devil in the chest on 'Limit, Limitless', a brilliant song that haunts as it stills the breath, shadows of Jason Molina in its shake-you-to-the-core mourn; 'Run Away' a folk-drunk dream about finding the special moments among the mundane of daily life which is draining as it is still grasping for the last gasp for something great with a capital G.

I don't know if I am supposed to find 'Candy' funny - its quintessential Cam, the maudlin realisations of past activities now being beyond/beneath you, a curmudgeon kicking out against the former self, with broken, sloppy elements that are almost grandiose in their Big Song longings and shaggy singalongs. It's a theme that echoes through another rollicking pop song, 'Afterthoughts'. Then there are small moments littered throughout that continue to resonate and haunt - the cascading effect in 'Walk Right Through' a synthetic comedown (that - dare I say it - reminds me of my childhood love of Richard Marx's 'Hazard'); the echoed backing vocals on 'The Goldilocks Zone'; the flatness of the recording and the musical saw permeating the Nick Drake-esque 'Song For A Windy Day', about being too young to know how to connect with mortality so close to home; the glockenspiel-like chimes underneath the Sparhawk evoking miniature 'Descending'.

By the time the heart-rendingly magisterial closer 'I Didn't Come Calling' comes to rest, I am in tears. Literally, tears. It's hard to explain - Cam is a dear friend, and knowing how much he has touched my and many other people's lives, both through his work and his quiet friendship, I know hearing this evokes a lot of personal emotions. But also knowing that someone I know so well put together such a awesome (in its truest meaning) suite of songs, with every timbre, note and emotion front and centre - I feel blessed to be able to be a part of it, just as a listener. I'll see you on the other side of the night. Please go pick Seven Days up - and pay for it.

Gun Outfit's Dream Far From Over

Dream All Over, Olympia-bred Gun Outfit’s 4th album, came out October last year, but I thought it was worth a revisit seeing as they tour the UK next month. I have had this album for months on the work computer, but only really embraced it over the Christmas break, the subtly rambling record becoming a staple of early morning hazed malaise (it was a gooood holiday). Which I didn’t expect. I expected to like it, but because of what Gun Outfit was – their last three records more burnished, burnt, bent out of shape, a delightful cacophonous mess of post-punk malapropisms (especially Possession Sound).

Dream All Over follows a rebirth not that dissimilar to The War On Drugs or The Men – although neither wasted garage psych or bristling hardcore, all three bands found their equilibrium in blues-inflected hues, finding space and hushed tones a freedom rather than stifling inertia. For the uninitiated – Dream All Over isn’t a gear change more than a total overhaul. There is the spectre of Low hovering over the sparse, balalaika-infused ‘Angelino’, sung with haunting elegy by Carrie Keith (her touches throughout the album are always stunning); the Yo La Tengo breeze blowing through ‘Blue Hour’ and ‘Legends Of My Own’; Neil Young in a cracked, silent bathysphere on ‘Came To Be’; a Jason Molina-meets-Conor Oberst-meets-Lee Ranaldo manicured desert shambolism in ‘In Orbit’. ‘Matters To A Head’ has a rustic, flannel-in-the-Appalachians undercurrent, imparted through both Dylan Sharp’s slightly more curled vocals and humble yet bruised lyrics.

There is a measured, assured elegance that permeates every track here – although nothing approaches fever pitch, the seams of warm pastoral riches more than makes up for it. I can imagine these songs scoring a night under the stars in the desert; driving into the sunset through the desert; the sun tipping its head as it pierces the desert horizon…

OK so I am leaning heavily on that well-worn “desert” descriptor. But it is so apt here, as is one description I read of it being “canyon-cult blues”. Again, the shift to LA seems to have had a profound effect on Gun Outfit. To be honest, the new direction fits like a glove. Dream All Over works best on the periphery of reality, of consciousness, in locales and dimensions that are slightly skewed and wild. This echoes with the ghosts of Laurel Canyon and the Mansons killing the Age of Aquarius, Neil Young steering the ship, the consummate folklore punk. Dream All Over sounds like a reimagining; Gun Outfit are on the beach, in the sun, burnishing with wry chagrin that belies a ramshackle energy. You really should get this record (out through Paradise of Bachelors here). Gun outfit play The Lexington Friday February 12 - see you there.

Innocence WAAAAAAAAAAASTEEEEEEEEEEEEED

I have made no bones about my immense for the fried psych squalls that inventive brothers Carney develop as Pontiak. Yet even I was surprised by the brevity of the tracks that litter Innocence, their latest album on Thrill Jockey. I'm not complaining - one of my all-time favourite tracks of last year was the title track, all two minutes and 17 seconds of it, and it came out at the tail end of the year. Every time I hear the crunch, the scree, the wails, the moans, the groove - fuck everything else, I'm out the door and gone to lose myself. The rest of the album doesn't entirely live up to such a balltearer of an opening, but with the sludgy groove of 'Lake Lustre Rush', the insistent crunch driving forth 'Ghosts', the fat 'Sabotage' bass and fuzzed out and deep Black Sabbath riffs of 'Surrounded By Diamonds' - there is just so much blasted rock here to enjoy.



There has been a bit of stick thrown at Innocence though, mainly reserved for a triptych of songs in the middle third - 'It's The Greatest', 'Noble Heads' and 'Wildfires'. I must say that having these slower tracks after the hectic opening is a bit strange - on first listen. But after a while it's like John Cusack says on High Fidelity - you have to take it down a notch, you don't want to blow your wad too early. And these tracks are great - an organ-fuelled malaise floods the first track here, before becoming an arms outstretched ode to Jason Molina at his most Neil Young/Crazy Horse; 'Noble Heads' is actually a sonorous country ballad that resonates the more it gets played. 'Wildfires' is quite sedate, and this is where I think this is my love of the band that allows me to rise above the lull. Those crashing cymbals and brotherly harmonies, though!


Pontiak - Wildfires from Thrill Jockey Records on Vimeo.

Innocence roars out of town after this on a brace of pretty killer tracks, especially closer 'We've Got It Wrong', what I can't help but think that I've actually experience the truest example of an album that displays the band's personalities. There is a ruggedness, a playfulness, an innocence that comes from being in a close-knit group, heightened all the more by the fact that the trio are kin. And whilst the next album might see them back to their brilliantly experimental full-bore psych ways, Innocence stands as an album that shows that Pontiak can do pretty much whatever they want and turn it into gold.

This goes without saying - y'all should be picking up Innocence right this minute.

Karl Flies Kites

The Melbourne-via-Perth duo Sodastream holds a special place in my heart. I was introduced to them by my then flatmate Niall (he also incessantly played Tracy Chapman and Bob Marley to the point of aural cringe, followed quickly by red-mist rage, but that's another story...). The album - 2000's Looks Like A Russian. The combination of Karl Smith's plaintive acoustic guitar and deadpan, oft beauteous lyrics with Pete Cohen's double bass and baritone backing vocals formed a beguiling worldview, one which still sends shivers down my spine. Songs like 'Wedding Day' and 'Done With Everything' still resonate with me over a decade on, and I truly believe that their show at the Troubadour a couple years later (in support of sophomore album The Hill For Company) rivals the Mark Kozelek show there last year (the venue now known as Black Bear Lodge), or even the Magnolia Electric Co show I saw in London in 2009, for reverence and magisterial beauty.


The band split up in 2007, after four great albums, but have since gravitated towards each other - Cohen joined Smith in the band Lee Memorial in 2011, and this year they reformed as Sodastream for some shows. That said, Karl Smith is releasing some material on his own in the form of the album Kites (out now through Fortuna Pop) - and man, the memories came flooding back. Smith's voice was the first hook - that elegant, fragile timbre. Then there are the songs themselves - the gentle, undulating plucking of acoustic strings, the fragile delicate nature of their construction... The songs reverberate with the conflicting emotions Smith was feeling as he prepared for the imminent state of fatherhood, a daunting yet exhilarating process, and songs like the excellent 'Little Lucy' and opener 'After Mr Morrison' perfectly capture such swirling emotions.

For a man who was born in New Zealand, raised in Bangladesh, schooled in India and kickstarted his musical career in earnest in Perth, Smith is not only worldly, but steeped in the intimate knowledge of isolation in its many forms. This echoes through his acute observations, always a pleasure to behold. Welcome back into my life, Mr Smith.

You can (and really should) buy Kites here, now.

Aping Realities And Boosting Calcium

Seeing as I swung Washington way to delve wholesale into Royal Trux earlier today, why not linger amongst the new crowd? Another killer record of the year that has been a constant on Planet Masala but has (until now) missed these pages is Cruise Your Illusion (out on Fat Possum), the official debut longplayer by Olympia's Milk Music (their Beyond Living 12" is one of the best things I've heard in the last five years, FACT). Despite the ace play at the "classic" Guns n Roses double albums, the album riffs on plenty of influences straight off the bat - the instrumental intro 'Caged Dogs Run Wild' seems to inadvertently pay homage to the sadly departed Jason Molina; 'Illegal And Free' (and indeed any of lead guitarist and vocalist Alex Coxen's frayed leads) takes us into J Mascis territory; the buzz and hiss of the 90s seeps through the cracks and over the edge of everything. Yet there is an inimitable electricity that permeates this album, and indeed this band - they are alive, and are above and beyond any constraints, restrictions and cares. The carelessness that the noodling and Coxen's wails on 'New Lease On Love' permits is freedom personified. If you can't listen to this record and immediately feel younger and carefree in the most positive way possible, duly transformed by the amber gold of the music, then your heart ain't beating.

You can (and really should) grab Cruise Your Illusion here.

Milk Music - Illegal And Free
Milk Music - No, Nothing, My Shelter

Vale Jason Molina

In August 2009 I was having a bit of a weird time. I had broken up with my girlfriend back in April (halfway through a holiday travelling around Eastern Europe - you don't want to be depressed in Romania...) and had a strange few months with lots of amazing highs but incredible lows. I had walked out on my job which would have guaranteed remaining in the UK through a sponsored visa, thus left Hertfordshire and moved to London. I was living on people's couches, drinking a lot, partying hard, doing amazing things yet hating every moment of it.

Towards the end of that month I had come back from the Sarajevo Film Festival. It had been a fantastic week, but when touching down at Gatwick airport I felt at a crossroads. I had answered an email about potentially writing for online magazine Low Rise, and they liked my writing, yet they wanted me to offer up something current (other than an album review) before considering my application. I hadn't been to a live show in months (Dan Deacon and Future Islands in May at ULU) and hadn't really been interested either. A cursory look in Time Out, and I saw my opportunity. Magnolia Electric Co. were playing at Bush Hall. It was a miserable night weather wise - which being London and all shouldn't have been a surprise - but as soon as Jason Molina and his merry men hit the stage, it was like an epiphany, a dream come true.

Without going into details of that night, my review was in the magazine the following month and it was my first step in the right direction with a lot of things. Therefore the news that Molina succumbed to organ failure due to alcohol abuse this weekend at the age of 39, whilst not that much of a surprise (he has been fighting a losing battle for the past year), it is completely gut-wrenching. I wasn't prepared for the level of sadness that the news brought over me. The world has lost a true talent, a master of the written word, a troubadour of the ages. Not everyone I know who loves his music had the same connection as I did, but all were touched.

Jason, you will be sorely missed.

 

Shanghai Grows A Pair(s)

 

Got this self-deprecating email last week from Pairs, an intense two-piece based in Shanghai. The band is one of opposites – boy/girl (Xiao Zhong on drums and vocals, F on guitar), Australian/Chinese, nihilistic/silly, angular/pop “that goes alright sometimes.” At times Xiang’s vocals are droll, a plaintive Australian drawl a la Brendan Suppression, whilst the musicianship hinges on F’s gunshot switches from slacker strumming to squalls of white noise, Zhou’s drumming hovering between a tight metronome and a sledgehammer.

Pairs have been fairly prolific, putting out a live recording, an eight track album and a double LP in the past few months, whilst they have dabbled extensively in videos and various formats (vinyl, cassette, CD, DVD, USB). They have come close to Aussie shores, having toured New Zealand thanks to SM mates MUZAI Records, whilst spreading their wares to much of Asia. They are intrinsically tied to China though, being part of a dun Shanghai that may be small but with enough bouncing off the walls to constantly refill the creative well.

But what do they sound like? Well, in the past the band have slated influences such as Royal Headache, Die! Die! Die!, Batrider, Kes…and Jason Molina. Seriously. And to be honest, there are moments on tracks such as ‘Cat Food’ from their If This Cockroach Doesn’t Die, I Will double album that I can take the bait. There is lo-fi slacker pop requiems to be taken, but in the main this is zany art noise with extra crunch (like those moments in Shooting At Unarmed Men when Jon Chapple nailed it – that was hit and miss, but Pairs get it closer to the mark) – which is built into my lifeblood.

Head over to Pairs’ Bandcamp to sample/buy any/all of their releases. Sonic Masala would love to get these guys to come to Australia for a tour – leave a comment or email them me if you agree!

Pairs – Gig Of The Week (from Grandparents)
Pairs – Mean Buzz (from If This Cockroach Doesn’t Die, I Will)

Friday Cover Up - Supporting Beautiful Magnolia

So we reach another Friday. Its cold and wet here in Brisbane, and Im feeling a little maudlin. Ill perk up very soon, what with tonight's stellar Sonic Masala Presents... show and all, but I thought Id end off the week with this. I mentioned earlier this week Shimmering Stars' cover of Jason Molina's 'Hold On, Magnolia', the closing track of the last album recorded under the Songs:Ohia moniker (and in my opinion by far the best thing he has ever done), The Magnolia Electric Co in 2003. I got to see Molina in his Magnolia Electric Co. format at Bush Hall in London back in 2009, and I was a little disappointed, mainly due to the fact that I wasn't enamoured with the later stuff he had done with this band. Still, when they kicked out this song, along with 'Farewell Transmission', it fucking slayed me. So to think this genius is hanging on to life in a metaphysical sense by the skin of his teeth is some of the worst news to bear. It's bloody fantastic that Shimmering Stars are using their latest 7" EP to shed a light on this tragedy and are donating 10% of all earnings from this release to Molina to get him back on his feet. If you want to donate directly, head here - it's an incredibly worthwhile cause. Below is the A-side - click forward for the cover.



The cover itself is faithful to a T - but this song is faultless as is, so why fuck with it? I liked Shimmering Stars before this - I love them now. You should too.

Happy weekend folks.

Almost Musique To Mine Ears Times Three

Paris-based label Almost Musique have set up a 7" series that features new and unreleased material from new, promsing bands from all around the world. The most notable of these acts to appear in the series so far (to SM acolytes, at loeast) is Vancouver's Shimmering Stars, their throwback doo wop guitar pop never sounding better on this, their Ghosts Past EP. Furthermore, the band have a cover of the excellent 'Hold On, Magnolia' and are donating 10% of the proceeds to Jason Molina to help out with his financial and medical maladies, all the more reason to buy it. The other two acts to appear thus far are also exciting prospects. Hhappiness (that is not a typo...) hails from Sweden, and their brand of woozy slacker pop is perfectly implemented on double A-sides 'Bananas' and 'All Kinds Of Trouble'. Then we have France's own Arlt, and this baroque act really spin the wheel on 'Le Pistolet', playing around with conventions and holding their tongues firmly in their cheeks, although B-side 'Chien Mort, Mi Amor' is a superior track in my humble opinion. These are great pieces of wax, and with more in the pipeline (including the next one from a Manchester band called Money), it's an electric project from a devoted label. Check it out.

Shimmering Stars - When I See You Again

Hhappiness - Bananas
Hhappiness - All Kinds Of Trouble

Arlt - Le Pistolet

In Between Mountains & Valleys Lies The Beach

Displaced Aussie Michael Beach had a nice little 7" out at the dawn of the year, A Horse (have a read and listen here). I really liked it. Well, he is releasing a mini-album to coincide with his forthcoming US tour, and it's the best thing he's done yet. Mountains + Valleys (through Spectacular Commodity and Twin Lakes) is a ballsy and accomplished collection of rustic rust, and it sounds amazing. This could do with the people he has roped in to help out - drummer Utrillo Kushner (Comets On Fire), Raymond Raposa (Castanets) on guitar and vocals, and Trans Am’s Phil Manley on the desk (Wooden Shjips and Barn Owl have enlisted his services in the past), Mountains + Valleys traverses darker terrain with more bluster than before, and is all the better because of it.


There are only 100 copies of these suckers (possibly much, much less), so try grab one here. Otherwise head here to get the digital. Its fantastic stuff. Reminds me of Jim Ward's or Jason Molina's solo stuff, but with Sonic Youth tracks occasionally coming across the radio wavelength. Really great stuff.

Michael Beach - Straight Spines
Michael Beach - Mountains + Valleys

The Dream Goes On and On and On...

We wrote not too long ago about HAM1, the Athens, Georgia conglomorate that is helmed by Jim Willingham's idiosyncratic narrative and psych-inflected folk Americana. With their 4th LP Let's Go On and On and On With HAM1 (through Orange Twin Records) not far from hitting shelves, the release of another song is welcome, and in 'Its Only A Dream Unto Itself', we are offered something special indeed. There are elements of Jason Molina and Neil Young in the soaring, warbling guitar twang here, whilst Willingham's vocal delivery is added from slicker production and emphasis on the effortless lyrical delivery. Its actually a beautiful song with just that hint of darkness and melancholy in the chorus that provides that precious hook. I've had this track on repeat since the weekend (sandwiched as it were between White Hills and Barn Owl, which I covered yesterday - seems an ill fit in principle, but worked well in my Swiss cheese fugue yesterday...) and I think you will like it too.

NOTE: Im unable to put downloads on here for the time being, but you can download this track from Soundcloud. Keep your eyes peeled for the release of HAM1's LP too.

It's Only a Dream Unto Itself by Deus Ex Machina Publicity