It's Camera Phone, Camera Phone, Camera Phone!!!

Toby Altman has done it again. The dude from Luftwaffe (what are those guys up to anyway, hmm? Their EP Quiet Summer was one of our faves of last year, and now nothing...) who also goes by the name of Camera Phone continues to play with expectations. Just as I air his track 'Fauntleroy' in my warped dance mixtape the other week, he whips this bad boy out. Named after the creepy guy following the school bus in Rebecca Black's "seminal" pop hit 'Friday', Fat Usher is four tracks of completely warped sounds, warbled loops, echoing vocals, and incredibly entrancing jams. It may all be about regret, but there is nothing regrettable about these sounds - the emphasis of Camera Phone is on creating rhythms from the most unlikely of sources, and then to slow down the grooves in such a manner that the original sounds become indistinguishable. The result is pretty impressive - whilst the RnB via Twilight Zone effects of the titular track have garnered the most press, Im a massive fan of closer 'Still Life' - so Im gonna stick both on here. The EP itself is by far the best thing Altman has done, and can be gleaned from Cave Chorus Records here.

Camera Phone - Fat Usher
Camera Phone - Still Life

Hits From The Box #3

What a week to have your eye glued shut. Well, having a bung eye is never good, but there were a couple of nice days this week to venture outdoors, but I was too blurry eyed (and embarrassed) to make the journey to anywhere other than the NHS Walk-in Centre and the pharmacist. Which allowed me to pore over our inbox and see what juicy treats we had in store...

The first two acts have a common thread - they are projects of bands we have previewed recently, Luftwaffe and Smiley With A Knife. Firstly, Camera Phone is the solo project of Luftwaffe's Toby Altman, and is an interesting affair indeed, as its mainly made up of samples from the new Taylor Swift album... Red Stag (For James) is all shimmery lo fi dreampop though, that much we can be certain of. And its a nice little grab too.

Camera Phone - Red Stag (For James)

Late last year we posted about an instrumental math group from New Orleans called Smiley With A Knife, whose 3rd LP Long Now showed a real progression for the band. The guitarist from the band, Patrick Bailey, puts out musak of his own under the moniker LoOmis, and is releasing his own 3rd LP, A Solitary Attraction. Experimental looped ephemera. I likee...

LoOmis - Xanax Box

Talvihorros (AKA Ben Chatwin) has grace Sonic Masala with his presence before, with the Bad Panda backed track 'The Blue Cathedral' - check that one out here. Here he is extending his experimental exploration of the guitar with ‘Etude V’, a cut from the forthcoming album Studies For Acoustic Guitar and Electronics. I find his compositions alluring and enthralling – I cant wait to see what else he produces in 2011.


Etude V by Talvihorros

Slowwave have a component to their sound that is either a blessing or a curse for the Washington band, as the lead singer sounds at times like Jose Gonzales, or Jimi Goodwin, and at others very Chris Martin. Now I don’t mind, I think Gonzalez and Martin have good voices, and Goodwin’s is great. It just matters what the songs are like. And with Drag Lake Sin, Slowwave’s EP out on the 25th (through Savings n Loan Records, a small start-up indie label in Tacoma, WA), the songs a very strong indeed, particularly ‘Pour’ and ‘Gold’, although the electronics at times stands at odds with the rest of the sound. Drag Lake Sin will be in vinyl format sometime in the upcoming months too.

Slowwave - Pour

On Volcano, a four-piece from Tampere, Finland (a breathtaking part of the world I might add) have given the world New Blood. Their four track EP is beautifully emotive, sweeping along at a creeping pace, the hushed female vocals pushing the indie/post rock tunes towards a sudden rush of cacophonous exhilaration. You can download the entire thing here at their website.

On Volcano - The Explorer

Lastly we have Lady Lazarus, whose album Mantic is out on Tuesday. She is an acolyte to Cat Power with a smattering of Joanna Newsom there too. Its pretty good – very good in some places (‘The Eye In The Eye Of The Storm’, ‘Sick Child’). Just Lady Lazarus (AKA Melissa Ann Sweet) and her piano for the most part, making beautiful melancholic sparse compositions. And that Chan Marshall-esque voice...

Lady Lazarus - The Eye In The Eye Of The Storm

Happy Sunday!

When A Luftwaffe Creates A Scattered Summer...

The term Luftwaffe doesnt usually inspire confidence, what with the connotations with raining terror on the boroughs of London whilst a large bunch of people of a Jewish persuasion are being made to have rather unconventional shower breaks...

But the term generally means air force, and Philadelphia's Luftwaffe have created a 7" that positively soars in its shaky dreampop. Their own take on their sound is as "swampy, scattered pop music". Not sure about the swampy part, but as far as scattered pop is concerned, they arent far off. Each of the 3 tracks on Quiet Summer come and go effortlessly, as if the listener is in a heat-induced stupor, reclining in the shade of a weeping willow as a light breeze ruffles the cuffs of your trousers. 'Never Let You Go' is the standout track in my opinion, sounding like a lackadaisical Animal Collective that is more organic and stoned in its thought processes - its quite beautiful. And with the EP passing you by under 10 minutes, you know that in such a state that your response will be to play it again. And again.

Quiet Summer can be gleaned from their site here.

Luftwaffe - Never Let Me Go