Swerving Into The Setting Sun

Everyone is probably writing about this, so why shouldn't we? Especially seeing as one of the best sets of the 2009 My Bloody Valentine-curated ATP Nightmare Before Christmas festival where Sonic Masala was conceived was by Swervedriver (it must be said though that it had been a loooooong weekend, and I found both Bob Mould and Yo La Tengo to be incredibly boring that weekend - so take that as it lies...) Mezcal Head has been a standout record of mine for years and years now (even moreso than Raise). Now, in 2015, the Oxford giants are releasing a new LP! The first official single off I Wasn't Born To Lose You is the languid 'Setting Sun' ('Deep Wound', the first new song that the band had released in 16 years that was put out on legendary Brisbane label Tym Records last year, also makes the album cut). What with this, Adam Franklin's incumbent solo record as Bolts of Melody, Rise's ultra successful reformation shows, the resurgence of walls of sonorous noise worldwide (including on this very label with the continuing love for Roku Music), it is a very exciting time to be a shoegaze enthusiast, that's for sure.

Guilty Of Nothing

We put out Roku Music as our first label release, so you know that Sonic Masala is all about good quality shoegaze. Of course in this day and age there are so many variations that it's hard to discern the good, the bad and the ugly - you get enough of the last one and you are likely to turn off from all the noise (bless me Kevin for my blasphemous tongue...) Philly's Nothing certainly use some of the tropes emblematic of shoegaze, but there is definitely a lot more going on here - this band has their roots as entrenched in early hardcore as they do in 80s English midlands. This is apparent on their excellent record Guilty of Everything.  The vocals remain submerged in the miasmic swirling noise on display, but its the dynamic at play here that makes this a different beast altogether. It comes down to the calm and quiet that nestles amongst the bluster – a sonorous quality permeates tracks like 'Hymn To The Pillory', 'Endlessly' and 'Dig' allowing the noise to seep smoothly into the pores of your being. There’s a familiarity in the wavelength-like undulations of Guilty Of Everything, but that makes it even more arresting. A seriously good release - and if I hadn't put out the best shoegaze album of 2014, then this would surely be it...

Guilty Of Everything is out through Relapse now - get it here.

Peeling With Their Bloody Knives...

We have been mightily impressed with the musical output of Austin doom-laden noise merchants Bloody Knives, especially as their shoegaze aesthetics have continually been twisted and corrupted into some other seething beast. I say shoegaze, mainly due to the wall of sound, but there is no guitar - this is more A Place To Bury Strangers and Health than MBV here. Each release is a further spike into the heart of dissonance, the bile pumping out then molded into a strangely alluring mantra of soothing darkness. The Death EP (their third - see what we thought of the first two here and here) is spiralling even further into the muck and the mire, yet even more productive in finding melody and warmth amidst the abject nihilism. This trio are seductive, tapping our deepest, base desires - give in and live.

Death is out now on Saint Marie Records (who have some stellar releases in the bag - stay posted) - you can buy it here. Check out the track 'Peeling Away The Skin' below.

ATP Melbourne 2013 Mixtape

Not much to say really. Im heading off to Melbourne ATP. This is the mixtape that has been floating about the past week – amazing. I don’t want to rub it in, so Ill leave it at this. If you’re at ATP, yell out Sonic Masala and Ill come a-runnin. If not, well, enjoy whatever you’re doing!

Gumming On The Novella

 

Here are two releases from UK bands that I was writing about separately, but seeing as they played together a couple weeks ago, I’m using that tenuous link to bring them together.

Novella are London-based trio Sophy Hollington, Hollie Warren and Suki Sou, having met in “sunny” Brighton back in 2010. Claiming that months listening to the likes of Polvo, Guided by Voices, Broadcast, Calico Wall and My Bloody Valentine sparked their desire to form a band, it’s not hard to see why tracks like 'Mary's Gun' rock the casbah. Melding guitar pop zaniness with crackling bursts of noise, the trio (who flesh out to a quartet in the live arena) love dipping their sweet dispositions into a vat of battery acid and Alka-Seltzer.

 

Then there is GuMM, taking the reverb-drenched shoegaze noise monster and ramming their spikes through its cerebral vortex. The Bristol kids (on the great Howling Owl Records roster) are a guitar band through and through, unashamedly stealing from their predecessors’ playbooks, but with such a delectable outcome delivered with naïve abandon, who fucking cares? It isn’t all earaches and bluster either – the quieter moments elevate the charm tenfold. I am gushing a little here, about both bands – they have yet to truly prove themselves. But these guys back to back have ruled this day, so they deserve the accolades – and a stamp of approval. Keep an eye out for these crazy kids.



Expect to see other releases from these two out soon (Novella is in cahoots with Gravy Records, just so's you know what to expect...)

Ringo Deathstarr Go Terra Mauve-a

 

Keeping with the weak headings... Another pun on the band album title! WIN.

Seeing as I have never spoken to the Texan trio known as shoegaze upstarts Ringo Deathstarr, I don’t know what their thoughts are on the name. Naming a band something as tongue in cheek as Ringo Deathstarr can come back to bite a band (see Test Icicles, a name that founder Dev Hynes has forever since regretted, despite the band having been defunct for quite a few years now). Nevertheless these guys continue to make the “wall of noise, fringe in eyes, eyes on floor” aesthetic fun with latest release Mauve.

Mauve is a great follow on from their 2011 debut Colour Trip, and it sees the band consolidating their sound whilst continuing to inject it with cheeky nous and charm. It is lazy, perfunctory, and easy to continually draw comparisons to the 90s bands from across the pond that highlighted such a musical approach and delivery (The Guardian once wrote that “There is a direct line between My Bloody Valentine, the Jesus and Mary Chain and Ringo Deathstarr. And it stops at Slowdive Central” – vom…) – and it can be difficult to avoid such reflections and analyses based on a sound that so wholeheartedly indebted to their idols – but Mauve succeeds in offering a Ringo Deathstarr sound, even if it is a nuanced variation of a common sonic theme. As guitarist/vocalist Elliott Frazier has stated in the past, they write pop songs buried under a mountain of noise, but when songs like 'Rip' come into focus, you can see the melodies are far more transparent to the point of being at the forefront of the wall of distorted effects. Furthermore, 'Slack' actually punches a huge hole in the loudest, brawniest tracks in Colour Trip, albeit with its pants around its ankles and a dumb grin on its face; whilst 'Please Don't Kill Yourself' is a great pop song.

I think that whilst there are many shoegaze bands out here – and many of them are pretty damn good – there aren’t many that can infuse their own young, carefree personas into the squalling morass of noise like these guys can, and that is definitely a plus. A great album.

 

Mauve is out on Club AC30 - get it here.

Ringo Deathstarr – Please Don't Kill Yourself
Ringo Deathstarr - Rip

We Are...SNØSKRED

I was sent the single 'We Are' yesterday by Norwegian band Snøskred, a quintet who all sing (and presumably all dance?) over a enviable brew of benevolent noise. The perfect permutation of dreampop and shoegaze, 'We Are' is at its best a glorious microcosm of interstellar sonics, a sinewave of sinuous sound and; at its worst, its a MBV-lite cast-off. Either way you look at it (and I'm definitely in the former camp), it's an assured track, an ecstatic preamble to what will hopefully provide a stellar debut longplayer.


You can grab 'You Are' on a 7" through Riot Factory Records.

Let's Get Shellaced

Hole E Shit. As if I WASN'T going to be excited about Shellac's first Australian appearance since 1993 - I saw these guys only hours before this blog was conceived at the My Bloody Valentine ATP! But of course they (alongside another couple of greats, Lee Ranaldo and Billy Bragg) had been garnered for this year's Melbourne Festival, so assumptions were high that the only way to catch the rambunctious trio was to wing it south. Not so, as all three acts will alight in Brisbane in late October as part of an East Coast tour (not all together, separate tours - I would pay to see Bragg and Albini in some verbal confrontation. Actually, anyone with Albini will find it hard pressed to get on top, he is one opinionated mofo). So get your tix here for Shellac's Tuesday October 23 show at The Zoo, with Pikelet in support. They are 30-odd bucks, incredibly cheap really, so expect these to fly out the door.

Averkiou Show A New Imperative - To Rock!

The first of two Gainesville, Florida releases to show off today (crazy, right?) is this EP The New Imperative by Averkiou (pronounced av er queue). It offers four tracks of warm and fuzzy guitars and vocal harmonies, like Yo La Tengo doing their best My Bloody Valentine, but with more heart. I can't believe I haven't heard of this quartet before! It makes me jump around my bedroom with giddy abandon like it's the late 90s all over again (when I used to jump around my bedroom with giddy abandon. Probably after writing bad poetry). If you could build a castle out of overdrive pedals and dig a moat with reverb, then but in that moat crystalline water from which sung the most alluring of Sirens, The New Imperative would be your blueprint. Awesome-o.


The New Imperative (look at that cat! Cats, man!) is put out through Sound Study Recordings, and can be gleaned here.

Averkiou - Fuzzy Photograph

New My Bloody Valentine!

OK, this has been out in the ether for two days now, but seeing as Sonic Masala was conceived at a My Bloody Valentine concert I better jump on the bandwagon! With all these remasterings going on (and I must admit that it's getting a little out of hand), there is some good coming from Kevin Shields' revisiting their back catalogue - such as NEW SONGS! Not new new, just unreleased, new to these ears new. This track comes from their EPs collection. What a great way to start the day!

My Bloody Valentine - Good For You (via Pitchfork)

Drowners Never Go Away

Take a moment to meet Drowner, fittingly from Space City USA - Houston, Texas. Their press ticks off influences that colour each corner of the shimmering guitar rock spectrum - Ringo Deathstarr, My Bloody Valentine, Mogwai, Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, The Cure... And whilst the shoegaze elements are inherent in their self-titled debut LP (out March 13 on Saint Marie Records, a niche label that specialises in this sound and have also added SM faves Bloody Knives to their roster), making such connections is a little too safe. Case in point is second track 'Never Go Away', at just under eight minutes a creeping track that is Siren-esque in its gossamer, eerie calls. The washes of guitar are actually delicate, meticulously balanced, even in the stronger rock numbers such as 'Point Dume' or 'Written'. After bringing Fonda's comeback to our attention last year, Crash Avenue are responsible for pushing this release, and with good reason. This reminds me of when I heard Whirr (the band formerly known as Whirl) for the first time. Seeing as their Distressor EP is one of my favourite releases of its kind in the past few years, that is saying something. Get on board.



Drowner - Never Go Away
Drowner - Point Dume

The Briefest Candles Burn Brightest

Another little known band, another great release! This time Im talking about Milwaukee band Brief Candles, whose Fractured Days LP (out on Guilt Ridden Pop) is nothing short of spectacular. Marrying the shoegaze sonics of My Bloody Valentine with the finesse and whimsy of the Swirlies with some sort of Superchunk sugar rush in there too? At first description many of you will think "So Fucking What? Every band and his two-legged companion is doing that!" Well, that isnt that true, but when done well you nod and applaud. When done really well, like what is on offer on Fractured Days, then the lathered sweat is warranted.


Its so loud and guitar driven, yet the vocals and lyrics are incredibly affecting - look no further than the brilliant tete a tete on single 'Small Streets' ("In 1983, when we first heard ‘Come On Eileen,’ / I knew that you could see and you could understand. / We knew the same small streets, the same small towns, the same small creeps, / and we knew that we would leave or die by our own hands.") Those words are closer to my teenagehood than Id like to admit.

Which is interesting, as Fractured Days is so 90s indie that it has me tearing up at how affected it all was, and how much posing goes on today. When I look at a lot of the utter pandering "look at me! Ill pretend to be disdainful but really relish any attention, positive or otherwise!" bullshit bands that get lauded over, it makes me physically ill. So thank you Brief Candles, for reminding me that whilst guys like you are still around, everything just might turn out OK...

Brief Candles - 10 Weeks
Brief Candles - Small Streets

Mesozoic Laurels

Photo courtesy of Sangye Christianson

A few months ago, Texan psych legends The Black Angels toured Australia. I went to the Brisbane show at the Hi Fi Bar. It was the third time I had seen them, and the show was notable for three reasons - The Angels' killer set (as per usual), Brian Jonestown Massacre's Joel Gion's abysmal DJ "set", and the incredibly loud shoegaze proffered by Sydney act The Laurels.

The quartet have a six-track EP out called Mesozoic that isn't overly new in terms of its shoegaze aesthetics, but what it does it does bloody well. Jesus & Mary Chain, Spacemen 3, My Bloody Valentine, even newer exponents such as Beaches and A Place To Bury Strangers (both of which they have toured with) - it's all there in spades. Shit, Swervedriver's architect Adam Franklin is a devotee! But not only is it good, it such an awesome punch, a miasma of visceral noise that permeates the tracks that excites. This is how shoegaze ought to be played.

The Laurels were just in Brisbane, supporting Seekae, but you won't have to wait long for a return tour de force. They will be here as part of next week's live music and conference extravaganza Big Sound (Sept 7-9).

The Laurels - Black Cathedral

Ringo Sparkles on the Deathstar(r)

Just when you thought Ringo Deathstarr couldn't get any more MBV, they get all Sparkler on your arse. But this is actually a step back in time in more ways than one - Sparkler (out on Club AC30) is a collection of RD tracks from back in 2009, before their "breakthrough" debut of earlier in the year, Colour Trip. It's not brilliant - it is clear that there isn't much in the way of ideas in these tracks, it is all pretty embryonic - yet they are good tracks in their own right, and a nice prologue to the band. Plus, I like me some MBV, but I also like a good MBV imitation - Im sure Shields doesn't mind either.


Grab Sparkler here. Its well worth it if you like your shoegaze predictable yet loud and luscious to boot - which, to be honest, I do!

Ringo Deathstarr - Swirly
Ringo Deathstarr - Some Kind Of Sad

Panophonic Constellations

Stellarscope's leading man (and founder of Patetico Recordings since 1998), Tommy Lugo, takes you on a voyage throughout the boundaries of space and time as Panophonic, blending pop song-writing, ethereal guitar soundscapes, bleeps, noises, samples, electronic beats, & floating vocals. He has just recently added to his plethora of releases with two new EPs, End Game and Space Age Transmissions. Im a fan of the MBV vibe of 'Great Times' and the swirling distorted guitars on 'Just Like Flowers' from End Game (on Patetico), yet the tripped out electronics on Space Age Transmissions (via Factory Fuzz)are what grabbed me more. You can get the releases here and here.

Panophonic - Great Times (from End Game EP)
Panophonic - Lay Off (from Space Age Transmissions EP)

20 Years On, We're Still Riding To Nowhere

Im not gonna beat around the bush on this one - only a couple facts need to be stated here. Ride are having their seminal debut LP Nowhere re-released as a 20th anniversary reissue complete with a thick booklet of old photos, liner notes, and a Jim DeRogatis-penned look back on the Oxford shoegazers' near-perfect debut. Nowhere is beautiful - a conterpoint to that other shoegaze band, My Bloody Valentine, almost a yin to their yang, a great hook-laden pop record with insane levels of noise. These songs were built to last - and last they have.

The first great reissue of 2011 is here. If you do not own it, then now's the time - the reissue by Rhino Records is expansive, a must have. Thank you , Rhino - my new favourite album of 2011 was written in 1991...

Ride - Seagull

White Noise Sound Head For Space - And The Windmill

Im always filled with trepidation whenever a new band is given glowing accolades by the likes of Q magazine and Artrocker. These once-biblical musical tomes are now often behind the times, showcasing acts that fail to be anything more than pale imitations of greater bands of yore. Or are just plain shit. So Im happy to say that White Noise Sound live up to the hype, which I should have guessed seeing as their debut self titled album was produced by Sonic Boom from Spacemen 3 and Cian from Super Furry Animals. The sound is so steeped in My Bloody Valentine/Jesus and Mary Chain/Spacemen 3 musical tropes that its hard not to think of those bands' seminal masterpieces, especially Spacemen 3's output. (NB - its eerie to think that only a week ago I was listening to Play With Fire with renewed vigour, just for this release to come across my desk). White Noise Sound are very accomplished at tiptoeing along the tightrope of aggressive distorted white noise and ethereal dreamlike psychedelics, therefore marking themselves at the forefront of the true shoegaze acolytes.

You can check them out yourselves tonight at the Brixton Windmill, before they head off to spend February touring France and Belgium. And as White Noise Sound have honed their live stage chops supporting the likes of Spectrum, The Warlocks and Super Furry Animals of recent times, this is a prime opportunity to see what will in all probability be an awe-inspiring set up as close as possible - dont miss out.

White Noise Sound - Sunset

White Noise Sound - Fires In The Still Sea

The Swell Of The Secret Serf

I missed the boat on Tape Deck Mountain first time around. The San Diego band's debut Ghosts hit back in 2009, and it was an impressive if somewhat disjointed affair. Well now they are back with Secret Serf (out on Lefse Records), a four track EP that is not just impressive, but pretty damn great, and properly showcases the duo's penchant for spacey dreamgaze. Sure, every boy and his Stratocaster is aping My Bloody Valentine these days to varying effect - but when it is simply one of the best sonic sounds ever, there is always room for another act to jostle for recognition. The thing is, if this release is anything to go by, Tape Deck Mountain are primed to be leaders of the pack. Opener 'P.I.' is the only clear vocal track present, the rest being swept away in the sunkissed fuzz like many of its beach pop oriented brethren. But the key here is that this is not a Spector-worshipping summer play - it at its heart is a tape pop record, with a huge expansive sound propelling the tracks forward (the melancholic 'Trevor' sounds like a rockier Low covering Pixies' 'Silver', whilst the all-encompassing title track begs to be listened to whilst stuck in a pea soup mist). Tape Deck Mountain have given the world their take on skewed dream noise pop, done at a languid pace, and its admirable stuff. I know we are early in the year, but this is my favourite EP - nay, release - thus far. (Actually that is a big call, but its my favourite this week, ok???)

Tape Deck Mountain are currently embarking on a tour of the West Coast of the US - if you are around, I strongly suggest you make it a priority to catch these guys - they're only getting started.

Tape Deck Mountain - P.I.

Listen To T54, "Because I Told You To..."

Over the past month or two Ive been mentioning a slew of NZ acts that I think are pretty special - Surf City, Secret Knives, The Mint Chicks, Die! Die! Die!, Paperghost, Glass Vaults, FATANGRYMAN, Popstrangers... But what people outside of New Zealand may not realise is that the majority (OK, all) of these acts come from the North Island. Now, Ive spent my fair share of time around Christchurch and the South Island, and there didnt seem to be much of a burgeoning music scene bubbling under the surface - unless you're into dub, then you are pretty much set. (I must admit though that I havent been there since 2006, so that is a lot of time between drinks of Speights...)

T54 are determined to prove me wrong, and if they are anything like the Russian tank they are named after, I best get out of their way. They have an EP on its way on Christchurch label Gold Sounds called Drone Attacks, and if 'Julie K' is anything to go by, they have a record collection solely made up of My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth, along with a healthy fixation on Japandroids' Post Nothing and Male Bonding's Nothing Hurts. Which is fucking great. Where were you guys 5 years ago when I had to gnaw off my own arm in Christchurch just to have some aural anarchy? Sure, its beautiful and all, but still...Im a convert. I had dreams of moving to the Canterbury region back then, and if there is a scene like this being mustered, I may just go back to that dream...

Head over to their bandcamp and not only can you pick up 'Julie K', but a list of demos (which features some Dick Dale-isms along with their no wave love) they did under the name Superdicksystem, a play on a 90s album by NZ band The Feelers. I agree with the sentiments...

T54 - Julie K

Hope This Friday Cover Up Finds You Well...

(Photo by Ryan Muir)

I'm posting this track without due conversation with Paul, so you may get two cover versions for the price of one today - if so, lucky you!

Regardless of this possible breakdown in communication, I wanted to post about Hopewell anyway. The New York band have just released a live album, recorded at this year's Truck Festival as well as ATP New York (having been handpicked by The Flaming Lips). It showcases their penchant for spaced psychedelia, a mainstay of the band since founder Jason Russo toured as a part of Mercury Rev when only 19. They have released a number of albums, the last being Good Good Desperation last year, and have had a steady rise in following since supporting the likes of psych pop slackers The Brian Jonestown Massacre, kings of shoegaze My Bloody Valentine and Swervedriver frontman Adam Franklin. They are about to embark on a Stateside tour with The Dandy Warhols, who may not be at the top of their game but at one stage had the pysch pop slacker corner pretty much covered. This live album (titled, funnily enough, Hopewell Live) is a well realised affair, so much so that some of the tracks are studio quality. It came out on Tuesday via South Cherry Entropy, but is digital only at the moment though - check it out on their Bandcamp site here.

But why a Friday Cover Up? Because they close off proceedings with a pitch perfect rendition of Jane's Addiction's 'Of Course'. And if Perry Farrell had a bit more down home nostalgia to his freaked out wigouts, Hopewell might have been his starring vehicle. Enjoy Sonic Masala-ers - see you on the other side.

Hopewell - Of Course (live - Jane's Addiction cover)
Hopewell - Trumpet For A Lung (live)