Moving Mountains

What a glorious day to kick off the last week of autumn? Let's accompany this Indian summer feel with another blissful aberration from the Thrill Jockey stable in the form of Motion, the LP from one-half of excellent NY droners Mountains, Koen Holtkamp. This follows in the amorphous, hypnotic fashion of his "day band" - but there is a sense of naturalness, of being embalmed by warm light in the open expanses of Mother Earth, both here and in other, alternate universes, that wraps Motion up into an individual sonic cocoon of its own. Combine the six-track opus of Motion with the Collected Works CD offcuts, and you have over two hours of undulated synth loops, glitches and warm sine-waves, intercut with nebulous guitar lines and ephemeral bass, all evoking incremental movements of atmosphere - slowly escalating tension; slowly coalescing joy.

For me Motion is a sojourn through a million spinning lights; wading through psychedelic formaldehyde; a somnambulist's epiphany. So whilst 'Between Invisible Things' imbues every pitter-patter effect, sonorous synth line and syncopated beat into a journey of hope and sunlight, the insistent cyclical nature of 'Endlessness' is a little less ebullient, a little more weighted, shadows darkening the amber glow before inexorably disappearing through a cerebral wormhole... It's an album of cinematic mores, futurist inflections, emulations of life, and usurper of all things evil in this or any world. Fantastic stuff - just drop in and disappear.

You can get Motion here - its bloody great.

Barn Owl Is Alive (Thrill Jockey Update #7)

I finish off the week, and my two week catch-up with Thrill Jockey releases with one of my favourite current  affiliates from the Chicago label. Jon Porras and Evan Caminiti are strong drone explorers in their own right, but their forces are at their greatest when together as Barn Owl, having carved out some of the best desert-scorched psych releases in recent times. You could say I am a bit of a fan - Ancestral Star from 2010 is a minor masterpiece in my humble opinion, and Shadowland and Lost In The Glare (both from 2011) continue this excellent beginning. Yet I have been taken aback by their latest offering, V. Their guitar-driven aural invasions this time have been extremely tempered, underpinned by sonorous electronics that somehow augment the unnerving atmospherics to a razor's edge. This is ambiance in a desolate, desecrated concrete jungle, all twisted metal and human ashes, yet hope exists beneath the surface. It's insidious, so much so that by album's end you don't care that the guitar drones you came to the record for in the first place are almost non-existent. That in itself is a admirable feat. The true magic is the realisation that you don't care. Five releases in four years, and the serpentine meanderings of Porras and Caminiti continue to enthral.

Order V here.

Barn Owl - The Long Shadow
Barn Owl - Pacific Isolation

Waving At The Life Coach (Thrill Jockey Update #6)

Constantly churning out exploratory classics, Chicago's Thrill Jockey is privy to some amazing collaborations amongst likeminded souls. One I wasn't expecting (but still makes a fair degree of sense) is Life Coach. Last year Trans Am's Phil Manley released a solo record with this as its title, yet like Jason Molina and his Magnolia Electric Company, he liked the process enough to make it a project in and of itself. The collaborative process comes from Manley joining forces with Jon Theodore. This excited me for a number of reasons. Whilst Life Coach wasn't something that connected with me in 2011 (which is bizarre, since since listening to it again in the past week it's brand of kraut-inflected motorik minimalism is pretty damn awesome) I have always been in awe of Trans Am's sonic explorations - I bought Futureworld in my first year of uni based solely on its cover art and haven't looked back. Theodore was the original drummer from proto-prog act The Mars Volta (and for the record, I loved them in the beginning - De-Loused In The Comatorium is actually right up there in my favourite albums of the '00s - and I still kinda like em, despite their douchery - let the daggers fly), and he was by far the best. Since then he's ..., and there was that One Day As A Lion project he did with Zach de la Rocha. The key is that Manley and Theodore played together on Golden, and have been spiritual and musical buddies for nigh on two decades.

So what do Life Coach bring to the table? Alphawaves, effectively a continuation of Manley's cyclical solo instrumentals that nevertheless grow into amorphous beasts due to Theodore's unrestrained style of playing. He is a truly kinetic force, and his inclusion on songs like 'Lifeless Possibilities' is breathtaking. The album is further augmented by the inimitable Isaiah Mitchell (the brilliant Earthless and Golden Void) on lead on a few songs, most notably on face melter 'Fireball'. The album is apparently played in sequence in its entirety when performed live, and you can see why. Essentially an exploration in drone and rhythm in various genres, from Endless Boogie-esque free form rock to shoegaze, Alphawaves is unrelenting in its groove, failing to truly ease off its intensity, rather letting it shift incrementally. It's the variations in tone and style that shows off Manley's various artistic facets, and it becomes a bit of a masterclass due to the members involved.

You can buy Alphawaves here. Buy now and you can bundle it up with Life Coach too, well worth the effort. I don't expect Life Coach to be a long-term endeavour - but you never know. There has to be a music god out there somewhere...


Life Coach - Alphawaves
Life Coach - Fireball

Zomes Was The Time (Thrill Jockey Update #5)

I can't say I'm a long term observer of the evolution of Lungfish - in fact I haven't really followed them at all. But before you hang me up and burn me life an effigy, I have, however, kept tabs their members. The solo work that Daniel Higgs has done as well as working with The Skull Defekts (which I spoke about here); and on Baltimore's Zomes AKA ex-Lungfishian Asa Osborne. But it's clear on Time Was (another excellent Thrill Jockey issue) that there has been a sizable shift in sonic manipulation, fidelity, scope and vision. There is no tape hiss - these tracks are clean as a whistle. The addition of Hanna Olivegren on vocals (a collaboration allegedly pushed into play by a member of The Skull Defekts) lends a pastoral, almost elemental root to Osborne's minimalist organ flourishes that grounds it, allows a focus and slipstream for his ideas to course more naturally. Olivegren's improvisational beginnings with Zomes have had time to ferment also, and the combination is something to behold - at times ethereal, at times tribal, yet remaining true to a stylistic mantra that Osborne set as a template on 2011's Earth Grid. In fact, Time Was is something of a palimpsest - Osborne's previous incantations and meanderings washed off the page and a new composition takes its place, even though remnants of yore appear like ghostly sign-posts from then to now. So whilst continual plays on repetition and melody rear their head, the amount of improvisation has been pared back, or at least intensely magnified to the point that such a performance is more second-nature than a true exploration of whim. And most importantly, its a beautiful record, with so many gems hidden within that repeated listens are mandatory, and instantly rewarded. Time Was is a pleasant surprise.

Grab Time Was here.

Zomes - Loveful Heights
Zomes - Cave Mountain Stream

Taking It In His Stygian Stride (Thrill Jockey Update #4)

The Thrill Jockey juggernaut continues to roll forth. This synth-driven release is the eponymous debut of Stygian Stride AKA Jimy SeiTang (Psychic Ills/Rhyton), eschewing tradition rock formations and templates in favour of electronic music that nevertheless adopts the improvisational style he has honed his craft in for such a long period of time. These stylings are further hued by the usage of vintage analog synthesizers. Therefore the atmosphere that cloaks Stygian Stride comes across as a metallic, metronomic heartbeat, the score of a hallucinogenic dystopian desolation that still invokes creeping dread beyond the horrors that already exist on the surface. It isn't all fearful anxiety and despair - the pun 'Fade Into Bolivian' hovers on the edge of inebriatic bliss, an ecstasy of glacial glitch - but SeiTang's insistence on cyclical elongation and distortion of tones within these undulating rhythms means that nothing on these tracks can be taken at face value - for better or worse, you need to allow yourself to be submerged by the bubbling white noise. And like all true classic brainwashings, it won't be long before you are proclaiming, "I love Stygian Stride".

You can buy Stygian Stride here.

Stygian Stride - Drift
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Double Dagger, Then, Now, Later (Thrill Jockey Update #3)

One of the bands that Paul, the other party that gave birth to this beautifully twisted sister of a blog, introduced me to was Baltimore's Double Dagger. The first time I saw them play was in the now defunct The Rest Is Noise bar in Brixton in 2009, to about thirty people. The people moshing (well, jumping around into each other...) were myself and a few friends. The supports, Friendship and Bitches, were brilliant. But Nolen came out and did his thing, Denny and Bruce kept it locked down, and it killed. Later that night, a woman who had been throwing up outside attacked my girlfriend out the front, in the process ripping out strands of another friend's hair. Suffice to say that it left an impression.

A lot has happened since then. Double Dagger has called it a day, but there is much still to celebrate. Denny Bowen has since drummed for the Dan Deacon Ensemble (which saw him visit Brisbane early last year), as well as playing in Roomrunner. Nolen Strals has a few projects in the offing, and his graphic design continues to abound, as seen (by me at least) on the Part Chimp/Torche split record.

Bruce Willen has teamed up with good friend (and Future Islander) William Cashion to form Peals, whose Walking Field is coming out on Thrill Jockey this month. Peals is an entirely different beast altogether, using live loops to encapsulate an exploratory tome to ambiance and intimacy and their intricacies and connectivity. It, like their stablemates Mountains as mentioned two days ago, is all about fully immersive soundscapes, leaving the outside world behind and reaching within. Peals are already searching for the smaller, more intimate realms in order to play their music live too, oft-times preferring houses and small art galleries over larger stages. They have recently come off a tour that included shows with other Thrill Jockey-ites Dan Friel and Brokeback, as well as Romantic States and Bamboo, and will embark on another tour in support of Walking Field (which, if you pre-order now, comes with a free 7") in June. (Also go to their website here where you can manipulate and make your own version of another track, 'Furniture' - pretty cool.)

Peals - Blue Elvis

But the legacy of Double Dagger itself lives on, as for Record Store day 2013 we are granted the final, posthumous record 333, coinciding with If You Shout Loud Enough, a documentary showcasing the criminally underrated trio in all their fabulous glory. It seems that the album is going to not only underline such a standing, but that they broke up just as they were gathering in strength. The growth from the More LP to the Masks EP alone was monumental. It's a damn shame they aren't around anymore, but their legacy can live on through these songs (as much as they'll fucking hate to hear it).

Double Dagger - Heretic's Hymn

Here is the trailer for the doco too. It features interviews with many of the Baltimore scene, such as Deacon, members of Wye Oak, Future Islands, Ruiner, Thank You and so many more, and a staggering amount of live footage across their 9-year reign. You can only get this on RSD from your local independent record store. You can see If We Shout Loud Enough as part of the official selection of the Maryland Film Festival, with (hopefully) many more venues thereafter.


If We Shout Loud Enough - Trailer (Double Dagger documentary) from Thrill Jockey Records on Vimeo.

Vale Double Dagger, long live Double Dagger!

Breaking Back Through The Lonesome West's Black Rock (Thrill Jockey Update #2)

The second post looking back at this year's Thrill Jockey releases after yesterday's Mountains post is that of Brokeback and the Black Rock, the sixth album from Chicago instrumentalists Brokeback. The longstanding project of Tortoise's Douglas McCombs, Brokeback is a much heftier beast this time around with an established band in tow, and the results are outstanding. An overarching rustic charm persists, dust blown melancholy in a postmodern Morricone age. This is evident from opener 'Will Be Arriving' and continues right through to the excellent 11 minute closer 'Colossus of Roads', and whilst there are elements that echo heavily from McCombs' decades long foray into free-range instrumentation with Tortoise (and McCombs' unmistakable bass is prevalent throughout), this is a much more guitar-oriented experience. It's an incredibly solid release, benefiting from years of practice and touring before laying down these tracks (with the able assistance of Tortoise alum John McEntire). It's the kind of Western meltdown that takes the mind onto dark, desperate plains, filled with tension, reverb and the slightest hint of menace. A great instrumental record.

Grab Brokeback and the Black Rock here.

Soaring Central Ground On The Mountains (Thrill Jockey Update #1)

Due to the ebb and flow of Sonic Masala in the past month, there are some releases from certain labels that need to be addressed. Next week Ill be catching up with a whole bunch of recordings put forward by forever-searching Aussie label Tenzenmen Records, but this week's focus is on four releases from Chicago's own sonic explorers, Thrill Jockey.

First up is Centralia, the seventh longplayer from Brooklyn-based ambient astral travellers Mountains. 2011's Air Museum (one of my favourite albums of that year - see what I thought here) is a record that inexorably drifts back into my peripheral visions, what with its ethereal acoustics, elliptical electronics and interwoven, masterful histrionics. The duo has always been about exploration within the spaces, but Centralia more than any other of their attempts wholly succeeds in flooding their sound with presence; a world within the sounds. Everything is meticulous, its nebulous structures built on gradual ebbs and swells of static, washes of noise that are melodious, spacious and enveloping, like the clearest, deepest waters. Opener 'Sand' coalesces into a marathon of blissful shimmers and echoes before fading away with an elegant cello. There are acoustic flourishes, ephemeral pulses, and sudden dark squalls of white noise. The fact that the mammoth 20+ minute 'Propellor', anchors the album rather than dwarfs the rest of the tracks here provers how masterly the construction of the world within Centralia has been. The guys did pretty much every aspect of the production process themselves, and this all-encompassing attention to detail is the final essence that drives home how impressive this sound collage truly is. This isn't ambient music - nor is it otherworldly. There is something inimitably relatable to the album - there is a sense of space as place here, territories created that deserve to be inhabited. And if you are willing to give yourself to the experience, you may never wish to return to the real, or any other, world.

Centralia can be gleaned here. Seriously, if this is your thing, Mountains are incapable of steering you wrong right now - their opus doesn't just score your dreams, it creates them. Mountains are touring Europe in May (including another show at London's Cafe Oto - I don't get there til late June, so miss them again...), so have a look at the below dates and get your tickets.

May 02, 2013	Oxford, UK	Modern Art Oxford (Ertegun New Sound Series)
May 03, 2013	Brighton, UK	Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar
May 04, 2013	London, UK	Cafe OTO
May 05, 2013	Northampton, UK	The Church of the Holy Sepulchre
May 06, 2013	Glasgow, UK	Broadcast
May 07, 2013	Edinburgh, UK	Sneaky Pete's
May 08, 2013	Cork, Ireland	Triskel Arts Centre
May 09, 2013	Dublin, Ireland	Twisted Pepper
May 10, 2013	Leipzig, Germany	UT Connewitz
May 11, 2013	Berlin, Germany	Madame Claude
May 13, 2013	Berlin, Germany	Festsaal Kreuzberg
May 15, 2013	Lausanne, Switzerland	Le Bourg
May 16, 2013	Lucerne, Switzerland	Zwiekommasieben

Mountains - Sand
Mountains - Tilt

Riding The Air Over The Cloud Mountains

Mountains is a duo of sonic explorers, traveling the lines between acoustic and electronic music and creating some of the most densely layered and blissful music Ive heard all year. Im not sure what some of the detractors of this album are harping on about - sure, this is my entry point to Brendon Anderegg and Koen Holtkamp's soundscapes, all glistening warm synth, modular effects and panoramic aurality. It signifies Mountains’ first to use an entierly analog process of sound manipulation, which is so hard to fathom - Air Museum offers a suite of music that is seamless in its Vangelis-like electronic synthetics. There are tracks that stand well on their own, such as ''Thousand Square' and 'Sequel', but they become stronger when set in their place in the album. I was not sure what to expect when listening to this album - but Im very impressed. Its glacial and languid in its beauty, yet the sounds arent natural - they are bound within their own futuristic web. The fact that its been on repeat today, says more than anything else I could mention really. Mountains are something special - delve into their world.


You can get Air Museum from Thrill Jockey here. Mountains play at Cafe Oto in London tomorrow night - make sure you grab tickets, cos this is going to be something special...

Mountains - Thousand Square
Mountains - Sequel