Pulp my Monday

Now this isn't the sort of post we normally do here at SM, but I'm sure many people today are rather excited. I'm sure you'll of heard from other, more regular music news sources this morning that Pulp are reforming, with the original members, for shows next summer. Top of the list is a headline slot at SM's favorite Barcelona festival Primavera, tickets here, and then headlining at that Wireless thing in Hyde Park, London, then who knows, Glasto?

A certain Blur 2009 déjà vu can't be helped I must say. Anyway its a excuse for some Monday morning excitement and couple of old favs that always seemed to get played at our ATP chalet parties.

Pulp - Babies
Pulp - Common People

Pyramid Of The Sun Provides Bittersweet Brilliance

Athens Georgia's post rock Gorgons Maserati are releasing their latest album Pyramids of the Sun on Temporary Residence - and it is what you'd expect from the three piece who have cornered the instrumental rock-via-LSD-via-Stonehenge-via-Studio 54 market. In fact, it surpasses that to actually capture the innate intricacies, grooves and emotions that Maserati have been dealing out for the past decade. Nevertheless it is with more than a tinge of sadness to think that they are now reaching the summit of power that they themselves have created, as long time drummer and integral songwriter Jerry Fuchs passed away late last year in a freak accident. The songs ooze with confidence, perfectly shaping a Trojan's horse of noise that can one minute be making your body move whilst tinging the disco aura with menace; or colouring their rock orchestrations with a kaleidoscopic miasma of joy and hope. You have the sense that the remaining members, Coley Dennis, Matt Cherry, Chris McNeal, have gone the extra mile to ensure that Fuchs' final legacy is monumental. I believe that their efforts are duly warranted - whats more, the end result is incendiary.

Maserati - Pyramid Of The Sun

Maserati - Bye M'Friend, Goodbye

Ganglians Eating Skulls At XOYO Tonight

Another week, another rad Upset The Rhythm show to get along to. Tonight sees Sacramento jangly upstarts Ganglians take centre stage at XOYO, supported by scuzzbuckets Eat Skull and minimalist garage punks Graffiti Island. Im mega pumped for this - Eat Skull's LPs out through Siltbreeze and their latest Woodsist Jerusalem Mall 7" have been dirty slices of enjoyment, whilst Graffiti Island have garnered some intriguing word of mouth thumbs ups (if thats possible?). Enjoy - we certainly will!

Ganglians - Voodoo

Eat Skull - Dont Leave Me On The Speaker

Graffiti Island - Head Hunters

Cults Guard Their Family Secrets

Sonic Masala have championed the lo-fi musings of Cults in the past here - and if you haven't got their Go Outside 7", hurry up and do it! Then along comes Guards, effectively Richie Follin, who dishes out his organ-heavy retro pop like its the last day to dish out organ-heavy retro pop. And as it transpires, he is the brother of Cults' Madeline Follin. And this lovely sibling ring a ring a rosie comes full circle on Guards' debut EP that you can get for free on his Bandcamp (and its pretty much the only thing on the World Wide Web attributed to him, being all mysterious and such). With a penchant for featuring great female vocalists (Chairlift's Caroline Polacheck appears on 'Trophy Queen'), he teams up with his sis on 'Sail It Slow', in my eyes the best track on show. Its a solid release (even though the toe-tapping 'Resolution Of One' inexplicably reminded me of Cold War Kids - shudder...), and there is some real promise here. Nothing overly original, but the creative seed has been sown...

Guards - Sail It Slow (ft. CULTS)

Guards - I See It Coming

Guards - Swimming After Dark

Black And White Pictures Shot At Night, Sung By A Deep Voice

We received an email from Laurent, a Parisian musician better known as Burzinski, about his new EP Ghostly Female Faces.

This 5 tracks EP is an intriguing listen. Laurent's low croon of a voice lends an otherworldly, yet world-weary nuance to the gothic romanticism on display. He has taken as reference points bands such as Joy Division and early Cure, The Tindersticks, Arab Strap and Sparklehorse. Very apt. Furthermore, you can almost see Laurent in a nearly empty 1950s diner at the twighlight hour, smoking at the counter, ashing onto the saucer of his now cold black coffee... Sparse yet affecting. And this post's title is the succint explanation by the man himself on what this EP has in store...

Ghostly Female Faces is out November 15.

Burzinski - The River

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)

I should mellow over Damaged Erase Errata

You won't believe this... but this is God's honest truth. For the past week I've been preparing a post about San Francisco's Erase Errata, one of those posts about a recent band that have drifted off the radar of late, where are they now? Wish they'd drop some new material, etc, etc. Then in a total coincidence they go drop a new track! The first since 2006 L.P Nightlife. I'm not making it up, its not some convoluted intro for news about a 7" release, honest.

So you can imagine my excitement upon discovering the Erase Errata's new 7" Damaged, out on Kill Rock Stars that dropped this time last week. It does have one slight drawback in that my original post is now totally defunct, but its a small price to pay to have Erase Errata back in the fold. But to be honest its not like the San Francisco trio don't have previous form when it comes to making us wait. Their last two long players, At Crystal Palace (2003) and Nightlife (2006) dropped three years apart, so surely after four years a new album in overdue? Anyway I was going to wax lyrical about how good the abrasive angular funk-punk shapes that made up Erase Errata's sound were, how the bucking bass of 'The White Horse is Bucking' was so perfect, how 'California Viewing''s thudding rhythm could batter even the coldest of hearts. Then there's Nightlife, Tax Dollar shouldn't need any introduction, if it does you're really missing out, there's the rumbling descent into chaotic noise and timing change that is 'Another Genius Idea from Our Government', the fog inducing heat haze of 'Rider', I could clearly go on forever but it seems all a bit academic now, you want to know about the new material.

Erase Errata - Another Genius Idea from Our Government

Well it seems the sands of time have smoothed Erase Errata's hard angles, they've softened their edges, rounded their sound like a granite stone lost at the bottom of a stream covered in a cold fog. But there's a catch - underneath their new mellowed pebble form Erase Errata are still as hard as they ever were, you can still feel that bass rumbling away, more so on b-side 'Ouija Boarding'. Its all points to a new subtlety, an intriguing prospect for any new Erase Errata L.P.

Erase Errata - Damaged

Remember Remember...TO Get Good

Ah, the bizarre British tradition of Guy Fawkes Day has come around again, where the nation celebrates a moment in history where an ambiguous terrorist's plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament are foiled...by blowing shit up. Its strange, bewildering, and yet an exciting time. And what better way to celebrate this date than to post a newish track by Scottish ambient post rock masters Remember Remember, whose album RR Scorpii came out last week on Rock Action Records. Ive sat on it til now, so enjoy - play this while you drunkenly go blow some shit up, in slow motion, and hopefully come away with the strong urge to purchase this release here - and all your limbs still fully attached.

Remember Remember - Get Good

Playing Sports On The Weekend...Will Piss Your Neighbours Off...

Yeah, here is another loud, fuzzy band that I have been meaning to share for a while. Not to be confused with equally rad Baltimore band Weekends (see, they are plural people, PLURAL!) who put out a fantastic cassette they put out through Impose - chek out here if you missed that one - Weekend are just about to release debut LP Sports on Slumberland Records (having released a 10" previously on Mexican Summer - they are keeping the right company) - and it is very, very good. Opening with noisy jammer 'Coma Summer', these young San Fransiscans lurch and speed through ten tracks of varying levels of feedback-drenched noise, sculpted into columns of infectious pop in the effortless manner that ol' Ed Scissorhands mangles a block of H2O into something majestic and arresting. Weekend have had a extremely fast ride since forming last year (maybe up a 70 degree incline? Thats a pretty fast rise, yeah?), and Sports shows that it was not all hype at all.

If you are in the US, chances are you will be catching Weekend play as they do extensive slots with The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, after which they'll tour with Young Prisms - lucky beggars!

Weekend - Coma Summer

Weekend - End Times

Welcome To Sky Valley...Again...

Here we are another reunion what the fuck moment. With every band under the sun travelling down the reformation to pay the bills and drug habit route, it was a matter of time before gods of desert stoner rock Kyuss decided to reform. Im not sure what to think - ok, Ill drop the pretense - IM MORE THAN A LITTLE FUCKING EXCITED!! Founding members John Garcia, Nick Olivieri and Brant Bjork are back, and are bring their mammoth back catalogue to the UK in March/April next year! Under the moniker Kyuss Lives, they will be visiting then suitably destroying Nottingham, London, Wolverhampton, Manchester and Bristol.

Hmmm - no Josh Homme? He is a guitar wizard and really drove the later tracks of Kyuss forward - but why am I a smidge glad he hasnt attached his name as of yet? Maybe I have reached my limit with him for the moment - hello Jack White? Yes, they do some amazing stuff, but its been a bit on the decline in my opinion, and they are on the verge of disappearing up their own backsides if they dont just shut up and play. OK, rant over - excitement overdrive ramps up again!

Kyuss - Conan Troutman

Snap, Crackle, and Purling Hiss

I know that Philly's Purling Hiss has just released an EP that I am yet to listen to, or the Woodsist newie Public Service Announcement, and that PH mastermind Mike Pollize is in another band, Birds of Maya, that is his apparent 'day job' - and yup, havent heard them either. Which makes me a bit of a bastardero. But whilst Im endeavouring to brush up on these three factors, Im going to introduce you to this self-titled debut LP. Purling Hiss is fuzzy, indulgent, ambling, incredibly loud and unrepetent. Think of recent SM postees Bo Ningen and their ilk - that Japanese psych that curls in and out of itself, and is so insanely fucked up that you cant explain why you like it, you just do. Then mate that with the dissonant sleaze scuzz of Puffy Areolas...oh yeah...

It comes from the bosom of the jam, and refuses to leave. Hang on a minute, it does - middle tracks 'White Machine Noise' and 'DUI' are less than a minute bites of mangled noise - but the album is bookended with such ridiculous hyperbolic sojourns into rainbow noise that they are more a 'blink and you'll miss it' break up to the rest of the album's trip.

Purling Hiss is out now through Permanent Records - if you can still get a copy. If not, Hissteria is out on Richie Records (who have also had Kurt Vile in their midst), whilst start saving for the Woodsist debut Public Service Announcement.
 

Purling Hiss - Montage Mountain

Gig - Screaming Females/Not Cool/Trogons @ The Luminaire, 27/10/10

It is a small intimate affair for this evening's Upset The Rhythm show at The Luminaire. One of (if not the) best venues in London, Kilburn's Luminaire offers the avid reverence to music that true music lovers desire - and the venue's lack of adherence to any one musical style or genre heightens the altruistic nature that its velvet and warm glow exudes.

Tonight we are here to witness the energetic garage pop fury that is New Jersey's Screaming Females, but before they enter the frame we view Trogons. Steeped in 60s/70s psych pop, Trogons offer up a Doors-esque sound that is driven by the high in the mix keyboards, which is not a disservice as it is these flourishes that help this fledgling act rise above any more cliched tropes. The lead vocalist showed a nice range, although many of the songs required a low, deep register, and it is here that the songs got lost, as the vocals helped to enforce the drive of each track. They certainly had their moments, when the band would collectively wig out on a less common trajectory, but on the main Trogons didn't stray too far from their idols' (aforementioned Doors, with a sprinkling of Spacemen 3) paved-in-success frameworks, with their one venture into the abstract, their second last offering, coming off more carnivalesque than trailblazing.

Not Cool - Um, You Didn't Do That In The Soundcheck

Not Cool came on next, and without much ado they launched into one of the best (and definitely expected) support sets I've seen this year. Of course this came out of left field, which always heightens the experience, but it was with the wanton abandon these boys set about thrashing the shit out of their tightly-coiled garage punk with such precision that blew me away. A new song (for them at least; to me they were ALL new) is dedicated to their landlord, and this explains some of the band's innate tightness - three twentysomethings in a band, in the same house, playing every day... And whilst lead Matthew, with his skinny jeans, coiffed hair and his Garfield jumper, is decidedly not not cool, the 'engine room' are about nothing else but the music. The way in which bassist William flailed about nonstop for forty minutes - at one moment facing the amps limbs akimbo, at another bent double like a vertical foetus - reignited in all the sense of wonder in discovering the joys of a simple chord and playing it to within an inch of its life. Drummer Andrew was anything but mechanical, belting the skins like his life depended on it - and it probably did. Japandroids may have some stake in what is being dished out on stage, but by the end of the set, it is evidently clear that Not Cool are decidedly cool as fuck, and they don't even know it. Hopefully it stays that way, because they have the potential to wreak global carnage.

Screaming Females - I Don't Mind It

This is one of the quickest UTR gigs yet, for not long after Not Cool have exited in a blaze of spontaneous combustion that Screaming Females are ripping into their first number. Marissa Paternoster ambles meekly onstage and straps her guitar on. She is diminutive and cute, like a cross between the sadly defunct Ponytail's Molly Siegel and Edna Mode, the fashion designer from superior Pixar film The Incredibles. And to be honest, as soon as the first song is under way I cant get this out of my head. Paternoster is a guitar demon, a vocal visionary, and a screaming (female?) banshee, a true presence that threatens to burst forth and envelop the entire venue in effervescent joy. She is a maestro, and the way she contorts her body and voice whilst her hands eviscerate the fretboard is truly jawdropping. The band hits the turbo button, blasting from classic rock to 90s indie slacker rock to amazingly loud punk noise with nary a space for a necessary breath. The set was smattered with tracks from last album Castle Talk and newie Power Move in what was a seamless setlist, ending with a squalling noisefuck of a track that had Paternoster channelling her inner Reagan from The Exorcist whilst the 'engine room', Jarrett Dougherty and King Mike, propelled proceedings to the nth level. Screaming Females leave the stage having made their statement - that indie rock can be warped and incredibly loud, intricately noodled, and amazingly rendered - with a sledgehammer. I think I'll have tinnitus for a few days after this, and for that I am grateful.

More pics soon.

A Belated Halloween Gift From Mickey Mickey Rourke!

It was a sad week last week. Well, it was actually awesome, but there was a certain emptiness - did you feel it too?

Yes - where was our weekly Mickey Mickey Rourke fix?

Well, it was there - Mr M M Rourke sent me a new cut from upcoming LP Magic User for my perusal, but the madness that was last week meant that I let it slip through my fingers! Naughty me! So here it is - 'Satanic Youth Brigade'. We (AKA I) have loved everything MMR has dipped his multicoloured toes in so far, and will continue to do so until I am no longer breathing of my own free will.

Dont Keep Your Knives A Secret

Ive sat on this one for a while, and for that I am paying the consequences! Ash Smith, a Wellington NZ musician who plies his trade as Secret Knives, sent me an email in relation to a post I did about friends of his from Glass Vaults and Paperghost, as well as music collective Sonorous Circle. The release in question is Affection, an effects-laden pop trip that evokes 80s shoegaze but dials down the wall of noise, instead choosing to infuse each track with a sense of innate warmth that most of its ilk commonly lack. Whilst he tours as a quartet, Smith is responsible for the mesmeric wizardry on offer here, and never does there seem to be a weak link in the songwriting process - evocative lyrics delivered in dreamy vocals, awash with spidery guitars and sweeping atmospherics, muted basslines that heighten the otherworldly soundscapes... It still has its loving homages to My Bloody Valentine, never moreso noted than in opener 'Black Hole', and its still got its waves of noise in tracks such as 'The Northwest States' and 'The Garden', yet what makes it special is its sparing usage - it adds to the impressive sonic arsenal, rather than become a staid trick. Affection is a fantastic release, by a fantastic talent. Whats more, he's giving it away for free here! Expect to hear a lot more from this guy, sooner rather than later too.

Secret Knives - Affection

Secret Knives - The Northwest States

Pocahaunted keep on haunting

Grief can be a debilitating affliction especially when it comes to getting posts up in a timely manner. I'm of course talking about the passing of my favorite Los Angeles, psych, trance, drone, dub mistresses Pocahaunted. The fact that it has taken me til now to comment on their winding up back in August shows how gutted I was to hear the news - the fact its taken til now to mention Pocahaunted's parting gifts, live L.P Live From The New Age and 7" single Threshold, that dropped either end of September respectfully, is just plain rubbish. But anyway both of Pocahaunted's last outings of the duo's four year history are out now on Not Not Fun, although the label has sold out of the 7". I'm sure we'll be seeing reincarnations soon though, be it in the guise of LA Vampires, Vibes, or the future releases of Not Not Fun - I'm sure Amanda, Bethany and Pocahaunted will live on somehow. Taste and vid for 'All Of Is Of', taken from this year's L.P Make It Real, below...

Pocahaunted - Threshold


Pocahaunted - All Of Is Of from Not Not Fun on Vimeo.

Spending Christmas Running Into The Night

US Christmas (or USX if you're into acronyms) are a band that hark from the Appalachian mountains of western Carolina and Tennessee. They deal a neat line of droning psychedelia that pulls no punches, delving as far into the murk as they can with the constant threat that they will pull you under, never to return. New album Run Thick In The Night is their best example yet of how sometimes beauty can only be gleaned by wallowing in the filth and the dirt, the dank and the dark. Thirteen minute opener 'In The Night' is the perfect prelude of what is to come - over an hour of relentlessness. I think the best way to imagine this is to replace this album as the soundtrack for the film The Descent, but with the film in slow motion. Its not evil, its not even inherently heavy, but it is ephemeral in its adherence to spiralling jams that are punctuated heavily by Nate Hall's evocative howls and croons. He is a great vocalist, unlawfully overlooked in this day and age for bands that use their frontman as a front man, rather than as a underlying cog that drives forward the steaming hulk of a whole. Im reminded (for better or for worse) of Monster Magnet's rather rad Dopes To Infinity due to the mammoth drawling riffs that roll across this LP, but they are able to elevate their sound to a more varied (and amazingly produced and executed) sonic plane. I only came to US Christmas a couple months ago, by hearing 'Black Lung' off last year's Eat The Low Dogs thanks to great blog Swan Fungus. Now I can add another destroyer to the upper echelons of my psych dirge temple.

US Christmas are supporting Neurosis on a few US dates in early 2011. Run Thick In The Night is out now through Neurot Records.

US Christmas - In The Night

US Christmas - Wolf On Anareta

US Christmas - Black Lung

Fancy some Tambourine with some Evil?

South West England's best new independent label Art Is Hard are riding high after their excellent first release Brink Of The Clouds, which came with individual Tshirt designs - remember that? Well the second release is on its way, and it is awesome. Whilst the gimmick quotient has been dialled down, the attention to detail has not, and it is a perfect showcase of two of SW England's great acts to highlight their new sonics. Exeter's New Years Evil (the press release says No Age covering The Wedding Present - cant really fault that!) combine with Falmouth's The Black Tambourines for a 7" split that is trussed up to the nines in special garb. Art Is Hard have worked with some of their fave photographers to ensure that each 7" comes with an original print, and just to spoil you, there's a digital copy and a zine for your hard earned dosh when its released on November 29. Bargain, right? Right. If you doubt me, head to soundcloud and taste the two tracks on offer - you wont be disappointed...

And well done to to New Year's Evil who have picked up a support slot for Wild Nothing on their Cargo show on November 11! Rad.

Invocation Kits me out

KIT's track 'Merticane' was described by the excellent blog 20 Jazz Funk Greats as 'skate video where every broken ankle sprays phosphorescent goo...' and you know its bang on. Whereas most garage shaped, girl fronted bands this year seem to be taking things seriously, the L.A./Oakland four piece give the impression of approaching every track with a grin on their faces. Practicability isn't something KIT do, there's surprises around every corner, changes in rhythm, switches in tempo, descents into skull rattling noise and hardcore mayhem, from straight pop to chaotic punk, KIT embrace it all with sweet abandon.

They just dropped their second L.P, Invocation, on Upset The Rhythm, the follow up to 2007's Broken Voyage and 2008's Dreams Are Burend E.P. KIT have lost none of their raw energy. Invocation is a more focused affair compared to KIT's previous recorded outings. It may be a more considered trip but it still gets you to KIT's twisted world of fun, just this time around Invocation gets you there quicker, more direct but with a slight feeling of nausea and dizziness from an altogether more intense dark rush. Ever found Pre great but a touch too manic or just wished Death Sentence: Panda! would lighten up for just a second? Then Invocation will be right up your ally. Taste below and purchase here.

Kit - Merticane
Kit - Cure Light Wounds

Former Ghosts Channel Taurean Dreams...and other Ruppert Flights Of Fancy

We here at Sonic Masala are apologising. Not that you'd know any better, but I in particular am sorry that we have not been able to run a stream of Former Ghosts posts over the past few days in the lead up to the Xiu Xiu/Zola Jesus/Former Ghosts mega gig of death at XOYO tonight. Suffice it to say that there will be follow ups - a gig review, a brief album review of New Love, Former Ghosts' second LP, an interview with FG frontman Freddy Ruppert, and a look at Zola Jesus' upcoming releases. None of this has come to fruition though - the interview is still yet to be written up, the reviews tying in with said interview, yadda yadda. Its my fault - Im sorry. So Ill leave you with this track, off the new LP, and hope you garnered tickets for tonight's show. It will be amazing for sure.

Former Ghosts "Taurean Nature" Music Video from Amir Shoucri on Vimeo.

Austerity...With An Air of Abject Brutality

As I mentioned about a month ago, Torche are releasing their new LP, Songs For Singles, through Hydra Head Records. Since then all I have done is immerse myself in HH's catalogue of amazing loud aggressive releases - Helms Alee's Night Terror being the one of note in the past fortnight. Whilst over there I picked up a free sampler called Phoning It In - go on, you go do it too! And apart from reiterating why my mate from Oz Jason thinks Pyramids With Nadja's release from the beginning of the year is killer, it also brought to my frontal lobe The Austerity Program.

This two piece deal in dark aggressive attacks of noise sustained by a staccato drum machine. Imagine if you will that Nine Inch Nails had been formed by Steve Albini. Their album of '08 Black Madonna is a dark minor masterpiece, and the strength of that drawn out affair is honed to even stronger levels on new EP Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn.

I fucking love this band.

I know that sentence (either verbatim or in a paraphrased form) gets bandied around here at SM - mostly by me - but you may notice that I never stand down from these notions. They are not kneejerk reactions. Anyway, regardless of the past, The Austerity Program is a different beast - it sounds like it was formed from Satan's loins with me expressly in mind. Think new musical acquisition Helms Alee, some Shellac, a sprinkle of industrial noise a la Nine Inch Nails, a smidgen of Minutemen, and a healthy dose of nihilism, and the brutally seductive elixir is complete. This EP is angry, funny, stark, serrated, and oh so addictive.

The Austerity Program - Song 27