I've got 0.0001 Excuses and Brainbeau Ain't One

I'm so happy that local neon synth weirdniks Brainbeau have got a vinyl release - SO HAPPY! I have said a few times already that I think the duo might just be the best thing in Brisbane's music scene, and I hope this is just another step in the right direction. Hell, Scraps is on Fire Records nowadays, why can't Brainbeau reach such heady heights?

Anyway, the new 0.0001 Excuses EP 7" is out now through new label Good Samaritron. It features old classic '50c Casio Rave'. Its got handmade stickers that come with it. It sounds like a Euro nightclub that is in a bunker in the middle of nowhere in the mid 80s, the club filled with disinterested Amazons in minidresses and hairy furballs in velour, all of them trapped in a convulsing lava lamp. It's ridiculous. And insidious. And oh so satisfying.

And '50c Casio Rave' is still killer, the best banger from Brisbane ever likely to exist - until Kat and Chelvis write a new one.

Living In Electric Scraps

Laura Hill continues to impress. For those who have seen her myriad shows around Brisbane as Scraps, you are already on the bandwagon - but for most of you, her knowing-naive-synth-pop knows no bounds. In fact Hill has gotten so attuned to finding the infectious groove in the dirtiest, tinniest, trapped-in-a-metal-bin beat that it becomes a surreptitious delight, sneaking up on you in usually inopportune moments, hooks bearing fruit in your mind days or even weeks after the song last rang in your ears. Her plaintive disco wraith stylings may seem simplistic but are anything but - Scraps is a dark electro-pop force to be reckoned with.

And as is the way with a bunch of great Brisbane bands (Blank Realm being the most obvious), UK label Fire Records has latched on Scraps' inimitable wasted disco jams, putting out her Electric Ocean record (it's due in March). The brilliance of this album is what makes Australia, and indeed Brisbane, such a beguiling and creative dustbowl of musical innovation - Electric Ocean comes solely from Hill's viewpoint, living by the day, scraping together vignettes of sullen ennui that occasionally spikes in a glorious winning moment, but can just as inexorably spiral into sweat-stained exasperation. And its through the music, a pastiche of childhood rememberings and upbeat anthems shone through a prism of close-at-hand instrumentation and world-weary battles, that Scraps overcomes. What I'm saying is, Scraps is the real deal, a triumph in belief over matter. It's there in every fiber. Dancing in pain; dancing for pleasure.

You can pre-order Electric Ocean here.

Healing Powers From The Warped Heart Of Toronto

Received these two albums last month from Toronto's Healing Power Records. I had a flick over at the band roster and recognised The Deeep, so I dived in - and how refreshed I became. 

First album was Tecumseh from Matthew 'Doc' Dunn. This didn't mean much to me at first, until I realised Dunn was indeed the Doc Dunn that has been a collaborator on some of the recordings of celestial flyers MV&EE. Apparently recorded back in autumn 2008, Tecumseh blazes a languid trail through pastoral psychedelic ramblings, with touchstones of Native American mythology and pastoral associations. Canadiana? Perhaps. It makes for buoyant listening though - place the headphones on and drift.

Then there's the double-headed bubbling electronica of Toblerone Boys/2 Cool 2 Hate, the double-cassette release by Toddler Body/Toblerone Boys (at least I think - it is all rather on the vague side). Aside from having a moniker that brings up often disturbing articles when plugged into a Google search, the (artist? collaboration? art installation? aliens?) provide some seriously warped trips that lie somewhere between Dan Deacon, Scraps and an aggressively deluded Tobacco, such skronky effluent should hurt the brain. Not every track works, but with the amount of material here, that isn't exactly the point. Guerrilla soundscaping under the influence of Amytal.

Healing Power also released an album from Brodie West (The Ex/Drumheller) - clearly this label has its finger on the weirder pulse of Toronto. I'll be watching these guys closely in the future.

...Primitive Motion...

There are some bands that surprise you with their sudden rise in popularity. I'm excited to say that one act that has had light shone in their general direction has been the off-kilter experimental synth pop of Primitive Motion. Made up of ex-Deadnotes members Sandra Selig and Leighton Craig, the duo, much like another underground explorer from Brisbane, Scraps, delve into ethereal melodies and sonic manipulations, loops and echoes, repetitions and monotones, all within some semblance of a traditional song format. Selig's musical dexterity - she often swaps between saxophone, flute, tuba and keys, as well as singing - is the drawcard, whilst Craig's flat vocals are often discordant notes in themselves, all the while the ephemeral oscillations swirl around the elegantly wasted chaos. It is something that teeters on the precipice of destruction, such is its fragility and awkwardness, and it sometimes does. But when listening to the excellent Two Ellipses, their latest cassette (out through Room40 offshoot A Guide To Saints), the magic is indelibly strewn throughout the seven songs' DNA. Admittedly more ambient and drone-oriented than a lot of their stuff, the fact that it sees the duo truly take flight speaks volumes of Primitive Motion's promise. They have enthralled many, and in the past few weeks have picked up support slots for Deerhoof and (most importantly) the coveted opening for Godspeed You! Black Emperor.

You can get Two Ellipses here. Primitive Motion are the headliners in local collective Lofly Records' monthly Hangar showcase this Saturday March 9. Supports are Melbourne's Faspeedelay and locals Ghost Notes. Its at the Waiting Room, $10, BYO. BE THERE.

Primitive Motion - Two Ellipses
Primitive Motion - Unchanging Light

All Day Breakfast comp

 

Midday Music is a compilation showcasing much of Brisbane’s underground music scene was put out last year on cassette. Handcrafted (featuring tactile “fried eggs” – white and yellow Blu-tac, on the outer sleeve) and collated by 4ZZZ presenter Makeda Zucco and her project All Day Breakfast, outlet for the documentation and exploration of music and that which pertains to it, the 25-track compilations covers the gamut, from experimental synth pop (Shooga, Brainbeau, Scraps), nihilist rock aggression (Per Purpose, Sewers, Slug Guts), avante-garde noise (Cured Pink, Sky Needle, Multiple Man), unhinged guitar pop (Blank Realm, Heart Flew, Old Growth Cola), slacker malaise downers (Kitchens Floor, Martyr Privates)… In fact, although there are a few bands on the release (X In O, Fig, Perpetual Nervousness) that I haven’t actually caught or even heard much of, the cross section of bands here is pretty indicative of what I immerse myself in here. It is all lo-fi recordings, as you can imagine, but if ever there was a document detailing much of the diversity of the scene (without going into the Long Gone, Lofly or Lost Race crews), this is a mighty fine one.

 

Unfortunately all the cassettes are sold out, but you can download the compilation for free here. Do so – there are some artists here that never get exposure, either because of their standing, their sound or because they never put out that much music for private consumption – then get out and about, supporting these bands in the live arena.

Knee Chin – Thrall Of It All
Greg Boring - Tomb
Cannon – I Should Be In A Fucking Museum