STILL SINGLE

Dark Lingo – Little Black Glasses 7” EP (Dear Skull)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:42:50 -0500

Dark Lingo is a duo of Sandy Patton, of Memphis, Tennessee’s Wet Labia (who I’m not familiar with) and Nick Patton of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania’s Centipede Eest (who I am), and what we have here is the rare single which actually sounds kinda fun. An art product germinated in the much-ballyhooed creative class crater that is Braddock, PA, they market themselves as some manner of “ESG meets Hawkwind” blather, but what I hear is more early-1990s quirkiness (Thinking Fellers, Trumans Water, etc.) stripped down to bass, drums, and vocal basics. Lo-fi, no frills, no frivolous attempts to mask the fact that it’s a duo playing, and hardly much treble or midrange at all, which is fine with me. Lyrics on the A-side, “Little Black Glasses,” even made me chuckle once or twice. (http://www.myspace.com/dearskullrecords)
(Joel Hunt)

The Drastics featuring MC Zulu – “Love is War” b/w “Dub is War” 7” (Happy As a Lark)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:42:01 -0500

Uh, yeah … this is a ska record. This is Still Single. Still Skankin’ is somewhere else! Complete with reggae vocalist and two-piece horn section, hopping on the silkscreen abuse train (this thing looks worse than a Submission Hold record), here’s some vaguely activist-oriented jam, sounding like half the band could play funk if it wanted to, and the other half taking direct influence from the bumper music on “The Daily Show.” Drummer Anthony Abbinanti contributes the version by isolating some of the instruments and generally doing a lot less than what you’d expect out of the dub track. They seem proud of their song, and maybe a little too attached to it, to really make a difference – someone outside of the band should have done this mix. Mi Ami is the band I’ll take over this sort of side-street action, any day. Gray marbled vinyl, heavily-tattooed Arigato Pak sleeve. (http://www.thedrastics.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Explode Into Colors – “Coffins” b/w “Sharpen the Knife” 7” (M’Lady’s)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:41:00 -0500

Sleater-Kinney (or maybe Karen O) meets “Drumline,” with baritone guitar contributing to the flip. I don’t know. Seriously, three ladies play drums while one of them sings, and that’s their record … wow. I hate to piss on anyone’s parade, but I feel like we’ve come a bit too far from this. Features a one-time member of Japanther (bummer x 1000). The recording sounds pretty great but this is a snoozer and a stinker, though maybe perfect for a “Music Minus One” record where you play interesting things on guitar over top. Their first single, in an all-white embossed sleeve. This M’Lady’s kid has got some dap, but hopefully he does more with it than sit in the starting blocks with these “new” and “innovative” sounds. (http://www.mladysrecords.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Follow That Bird – s/t one-sided 10” EP (Monofonus Press)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:40:08 -0500

Austin’s Follow That Bird are a fine enough band; opening-strength, female-led rock ‘n’ roll with smoky, Stevie Nicks-acolyte vocals. These two ladies and a gentleman are way stronger than they let on, as several listens to this record revealed a casual durability to what would otherwise be a formulaic run through occupied territory. What makes it is their attitude – it’s very easy to envision this band playing on an East Side patio bar, ripping it up for fun. I hope I get to see them sometime; this is the sort of throwback that’s in many ways necessary, a humble band giving an existing idea a shot of outsized yet cool personality, and growing wilder as the record reaches a close. Interesting one-sided affair, manufactured with a 10” wide color sticker affixed to the B-side in lieu of the bummer world that is picture disks. Silkscreened cardboard flat, download card, and insert included. (http://monofonuspress.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Jesu – Opiate Sun 12” EP (Caldo Verde)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:39:21 -0500

I remember chiding an old friend (who hasn’t spoken to me in a while, come to think of it …) who was raving about Jesu circa Conqueror, telling him it reminded me of Hydra Head’s answer to Richard Marx. So glibly I dismissed Broadrick’s day job, more appealing to me in its earlier, more amorphous stages at time of comment, but I’m glad I’ve persisted, and been so selective in that persistence. I’m not sure what made me pick this one up, but it’s become my favorite single/EP type thing of the year. Gone are the drum machines and the hayzi fantayzee of the nascent shoegaze revivalism going on at times, leaving the calming, throbbing drift of time-extended melody as the basis for some heavy, heavy worship. It’s like 1992 all over again, bands trying to figure out how to slowcore as good as Codeine or Red House Painters were able to – hell, Kozelek put out this record – with two advantages: one, it’s 2009, no more bullshittin’ around in an established formula; two, it’s motherfucking Justin Broadrick. That tells me it’s going to have some weight to it (which it does), and that I’ll be surprised by some aspect of it. And I was – full band configuration, even if it’s just him alone in the studio, with live drums that really push these songs past where other Jesu successes have landed. I enjoy Conqueror now, and this is the closest thing I’ve heard to it in terms of the quality of the songs and singlemindedness of the approach. Melancholy, yet rarely minor-tuned riffage that just plows through the atmosphere, thick and full, yet balanced (heavy drum shots in the quiet parts do a hell of a lot to establish equilibrium) in how those unassuming, sturdy hooks come crashing in. An improvement on the past in several ways, and for personal reasons, totally my #1. (http://www.caldoverderecords.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Krysmopompas – “Gesa” b/w “Volker 7” (Avant!)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:37:47 -0500

Krysmopomaps is a four piece post punk band from Berlin who came to the attention of most Americans via their Heute Schlafen-Morgan Aufwachen double album on S-S last year, which compiled their two self released CD-Rs. They claimed the influences of Ionesco and Fassbinder, but what’s here is a hefty dose of 154 era Wire, and NDW bands like Die Tödliche Doris and F.S.K. if they had deadpan, spoken vocals in German (instead of hostile, shouted vocals in German). The shambling, DIY rock feel of some of the tracks on the 2xLP is absent from both sides here, leaning a bit heavier on the casio here, but they are of the same high level of quality. This is one of the best bands mining the post punk style these days, and if two albums’ worth of material seemed like too much to deal with, by all means, dig in here. Great record. (http://www.myspace.com/avantrecords)
(Chris Strunk)

The Mayfair Set – “Already Warm” b/w “Desert Fun” 7” (Captured Tracks)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:36:47 -0500

Dee Dee Dum Dum and Mike Sniper. Somebody got the better end of this deal. I’d rather hear her sing than Sniper, and based on past releases it sounds like she got more of herself in “Desert Fun” than “Already Warm,” so I’ll hang over there. I’d describe it further, but would you care? Was late on the draw with reviewing this, but I like one of the songs so I decided to get in the grind. Probably still in print, either as a single or on that Woodsist comp. (http://capturedtracks.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Dean McPhee – Brown Bear 12” EP (Hood Faire)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:35:50 -0500

Despite my initial skepticism towards Young Britons doing their take on Americana (though truth be told, some UK residents such as Ben Reynolds do it quite well), Dean McPhee’s solo 12” is a fairly decent take on late, reverb-soaked Fahey, or perhaps Loren Mazzacane Connors. That is, it’s certainly pleasant, though not particularly aggressive; perhaps polite in that oh-so-peculiar manner we Colonials expect. No rough guitar instrumentals akin to Neil Young’s Dead Man soundtrack, instead we get two short pieces on the first side, and a side-long piece on the second. And it’s over there where the politeness melds into a bit of sobering boredom, wherein McPhee smothers his once-again decent ability in typical guy-with-a-Line6 territory. However, if you like post-Fahey instrumental guitar, there’s enough here to at least point to some promising future releases. (http://www.hoodfaire.co.uk)
(Joel Hunt)

Pigeons – Lunettes 7” EP (Soft Abuse)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:34:55 -0500

More post-Vivian Girls jingle-jangle and cooey female vocals smothered in layers of fuzz and reverb. Somehow, it’s surprising to me that this style is so in vogue these days. If you had a time machine, you could go back twenty-five years, play someone this record, throw a paisley shirt on, suddenly you’d be transformed into a 50 year-old dude from Los Angeles that nobody cares about. But I suppose if I could predict when musical trends would crop up decades later, I’d be running a record label. Not sure why this sort of skilled-yet-not ineptitude is so prevalent, or why this band with NNCK connections (as I discovered from Google just now) exists, but there you have it. (http://www.softabuse.com)
(Joel Hunt)

Puffy Areolas – “Lutzko Lives” b/w “Bowel Movements (It’s All About)” 7” (Columbus Discount)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:34:06 -0500

The name is off putting and the title to the B-side … well, fuck it. Still, glad this trigger was pulled – if the rest of this long-touring, little-producing Toledo, OH band comes anywhere close to the racket splayed out on “Lutzko Lives,” I’m on board. Massive, speedy, High Rise-esque guitar freakout, bouncing off the walls and shocking itself alive. Brash, snotty vocals and a respectable mix keeps the hard-pounding drums in good places. The flip is a loose, formless jam (speaking of the subject matter) with a guest appearance by Raven, that guy who made a private press monster back in the ‘70s. The A-side is good enough for both halves, and if you have the means to acquire (seeing as it’s the first missive from Year 2 of the Columbus Discount Singles Club, you had a chance), you should. Supposedly someone quit Tyvek to join this band. I would have too. 400 copies. (http://www.columbusdiscountrecords.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Smokers Please – “Flensing” b/w “Grey Christmas” 7” (Yoko Ono Tribute Weekend)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:33:06 -0500

Noisy one-man-band squall over viola drone and guitar fuckery on the A-side, which may or may not excite you. Having heard plenty of records by A Handful of Dust, I wasn’t particularly excited, frankly. The label says to play at 33, but 45 sorta sounded better. B-side goes into “quiet, please” territory, and I’m not sure that’s much more of a thrill, either. This single left not much of an impression at all, and if the label didn’t have such a goofy name, I’d probably forget it in the middle of writing this review. Further research reveals that it’s a product of a New Zealander (Ben Spiers, of Glory Fckn Sun – Ed.) 250 copies. (http://www.yokoonotributeweekend.com)
(Joel Hunt)

Stillbirth/Prurient – The Mirror of Purification split 7” (Semata Productions)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:32:07 -0500

It’s been quite some time since I’ve checked out what Prurient’s Dominick Fernow’s been up to, whether that’s a function as now living in a flyover red state whose major city eschews noise (but they love it in Lexington, apparently), or being fully domesticated, I’m not sure. However, I’m glad I did, if only to hear something completely different from what I’m used to. The Stillbirth track, “The View Untangled,” has some nice mysterious computer sounds, almost akin to a chance meeting between Pita (the laptopper), the Caretaker (the V/VM-related weirdo), and pita (the bread) on a delicatessen tray. Fernow’s side isn’t much different, aesthetically, from Stillbirth, as processed synth and percussion sounds meld with some surprisingly suppressed spoken phrases I can’t quite make out, with a moan here and there. If anything, both tracks are too short, because by the time they’ve finished I’m still stuck wondering what’s going on. That’s not a bad thing. Grey marble vinyl, limited to 500. (http://semataproductions.com)
(Joel Hunt)

1069 – s/t 3x7” EP (self released)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:31:06 -0500

This box mysteriously showed up at the record store I used to work at, a nice purple thing with a sticker reading “Limited Edition of 100” over the opening. Upon further review after purchase, it turns out to be a new project by Louisville punk rock pioneers Steve “Chili” Rigot (of the legendary Endtables) and Michael O’Bannon (of Blinders and Antman, among many other projects), aided and abetted by young whippersnappers Sandy and Van Campbell (the latter the drummer of the Black Diamond Heavies). However, if you’re expecting some fast, futuristic tunes, 1069 (named after the address of Louisville’s first “punk house” – whose lot is now occupied by a Taco Bell) will bound to disappoint: laconic, slow-chooglin’ yet tender country rock (with more emphasis on country than rock) is the order of the day here, which immediately brings to mind the first couple of Palace Brothers recordings – back when nobody outside of Louisville knew who Will Oldham was. Unfortunately, though the tunes are fine, it seems like every single old dude from the punk scene in Louisville has already “gone country.” While Rigot and O’Bannon’s take is more tolerable than some of their peers, at this point I’m a little over it. Still, if you like finding out where-they-are-now (as I certainly do), you’ll enjoy 1069. Just not sure where the hell you’ll be able to find this, since it’s self-released. Maybe try calling Ear X-tacy in Louisville to see if they have any copies left? Limited to 100.
(Joel Hunt)

When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth/Batwings – split 7” (Us Two)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:30:00 -0500

From a new Dallas, TX label whose mission statement is to press up limited edition split 7”s … hmm … comes a new wave of the same sorta thing we’ve been passing around as rock-no-roll since the ‘90s. When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth is from Austin, where there’s such a surplus of musicians that they feature seven guys trying to sound like four, but on their contribution “Houston Voice” they do a pretty admirable Butthole Pavement Surfers’ slacker pop buzzer, with a wiry, theremin-like lead and no-nonsense 2/4 drumming over a load of looped, crazy-guy chaos that eventually takes over the song. It seems as if they had two songs and no bridge, and no way to end either of them (there’s no verse/chorus structure, and there doesn’t have to be, but … yeah). Ten years ago, you would have had no problem pegging Batwings as a San Diego band; seems like the hectic “toilet-stall” sound has never completely rinsed out of the townsfolk’s hair. The band looks to be a bit on the young side, perhaps too young to have absorbed experienced both the Camera Obscura (my old downstairs neighbor’s band … sup Duane!)/Kill Me Tomorrow-style melodic-cum-weird, energetic pop thing, and the whole Blood Brothers/Locust axis of emotional torpor/looking for drugs in person, but perhaps through legend and understanding from afar, they attempt to merge the two on “Dr. Ohm vs. The Exploding Amp,” with some metal moves over a synthesizer rumba, shouted and undermixed vocals, and plodding drumming that breaks down into a dirge. Texas wins out here by a good amount. The label’s Myspace site claims that 500 were pressed, though mine’s hand-numbered out of 150, in a printed vellum sleeve. Various colors of splatter vinyl in variants of black, red, and silver exist; seems like no two are alike, except that this sort of music is just sort of a lazy extension to a past that hasn’t necessarily cooled off yet. If you’re excited about finding the next Les Savy Fav but you just saw the Jesus Lizard reunion, you might have something to answer for… (http://www.myspace.com/ustworecords)
(Doug Mosurock)

Various Artists – Over/Bored LP (Cephia's Treat/Roofless)

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:29:29 -0500

A great regional compilation is a beautiful but rare thing. With MP3s rendering the compilation’s utility as a way to hear a bunch of unknown bands all but obsolete, this is a format that is rarely successful, especially nowadays. The Emergency Room compilation from Vancouver that came out a few years ago is the only great one I can think of from this decade. Over/Bored, on the other hand, is very much not. Here’s 26 bands from Tampa and Sarasota, Florida, with names like Ant Parade, No Arms No Legs, Pharaoh Faucett, Cash Monee Boulder Roxx, and Wrash. Pretty much every style of underground music is represented, from indie pop, to harsh noise, to power violence, to electro beats, to lo-fi home recorded meandering, bleeding into one another as only a mismatched, mediocre mess can. All of the tracks have the same muddy recording quality, to the point where if it turned out this record was the work of two or three people who made up a bunch of different band names, I wouldn’t be surprised. It’s always interesting to hear what people in different locales are up to, but there is no reason for anyone outside of Tampa or Sarasota to buy this because no one – even the people who participate in this scene – could listen to it more than once. I sincerely hope this LP serves as a good souvenir for the people on this record’s time spent in underground music and I mean that, but you may want to think twice before consuming it. (http://www.cephiastreat.com)
(Chris Strunk)

New COCKFIGHT Mix Streaming at WNYC.org

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 12:19:06 -0500

Me and Ronnie made this last month, and if you haven’t heard it yet, here’s the first half of it. Hope you enjoy!

http://tinyurl.com/yhxgkzq

DMPH (a/k/a Derek Monypeny Parties Hard) – “Oakland” b/w “Sacramento” 7” (Weird Forest)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:46:41 -0500

Well, they don’t improv very hard. This 7” is two sides of trio-style, sax-included skree that wants to be Borbetomagus but leaves an aftertaste of less-studied folly. People OWN records like this; they don’t play records like this. Maybe one other male owns a record like this, for that mutual nudge-nudge, though it’s virtually impossible for even the most dedicated noisenik to be moved by a free jazz 7” that sounds worse than a flood-damaged Shrimper cassette. If there’s more than two minutes of play on each side, most honest listeners will need a stopwatch to prove that more than 30-seconds just passed. Wild, wailing abandon? Not even in theory. (http://www.weirdforest.com)
(Andrew Earles)

Eleven Pond – Bas Relief LP (Dark Entries)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:45:21 -0500

Genteel, as-is reissue of a dark synth/New Romantic band from Rochester, NY. Eleven Pond sprung to life with this full-length around 1986, and it’s pretty easy to pick apart their bases of influence: A Flock of Seagulls, the Cure, early R.E.M., the roots of EBM, Aztec Camera; ostensibly a clearinghouse of what all the devastatingly handsome, isolated people skulking around college campuses and high school art classrooms were checking out. The band had a lithe, supple sound that weaves a unified personality out of all these styles, despite the trainhopping at play here. Their lack of a live drummer and the preponderance of FM synths and flanged guitars support these chameleon-like tendencies, at the expense of whatever edge these gents might have been cultivating. When they’re at their best, they are brooding and looking downwards (closer “Ask (Jealousy),” with its noble acoustic guitar lead and cloud-cover bass beds, is an example of that success), and it’s in these moments, about a quarter of the overall record, where Eleven Pond showed a bit more promise outside of being what was likely RIT’s only Goth band. First release on the Dark Entries label, and its hand-numbered, silkscreened sleeve suggests this release as a passion project for someone, but more likely an ideal debut release for a reissue label that’d put stock in something like this. (http://www.darkentriesrecords.com)
(Doug Mosurock)

Fungi Girls – Seafaring Pyramids LP (Play Pinball! Records)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:43:42 -0500

The Fungi Girls may only know three chords, but they’re the right three chords. This record brims with an amateur enthusiasm that feels legit (no whiffs of “shit-fi” posturing here) just a bunch of teenage i’jots inspired by their limitations and making no bones about their love for the Jesus and Mary Chain and summer vacation. Bursting out the gate, “Pacifica Nostalgia” is the feel good tune of ’95, a sunny major key anthem that sounds like the best song the Breeders never wrote, recorded on Home Blitz’s budget (yet somehow sounding as loud as Dinosaur). “Into the Cosmos” keeps on chooglin’; it’s loud, catchy and fuzzy but never snotty or overflowing with ‘tude. In fact the vocals overall are uniformly pleasant (not that this guy has the world’s most distinct voice, but he knows how to use it and it’s well placed in the mix). “Dream of Oz” starts with the familiar “Be My Baby” beat but eventually launches into a double-time blast of punk rock heat that kicks the song into interstellar overdrive and ends before it wears out its welcome. The first side of this slab is great, and only during a couple of out-of-place snoozers on side two do the Girls sound bored. Thankfully the gang picks up the pace and hit one out of the park with two-chord closer “Crystal Roads.” Seafaring Pyramids sounds crummy enough for the in-crowd, but not at the expense of the songs themselves. There’s a familiarity here that’s welcoming and begs for repeat listens. Ultimately our ears start to hurt from listening to too much “innovation”; we don’t want to listen to the Animal Collection all day. Give me C, G, and F and some searing, borderline-inept guitar solos and I’ll sleep like a baby tonight. (http://www.myspace.com/playpinball)
(Mike Pace)

Hunters, Run! – "If I Had Half a Chance" b/w "Simple and Calming" 7” (Battle Standard Recordings/At Arms Records)

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:42:30 -0500

Hunters, Run! is a band named after an exclusive gated community on the North Shore of Long Island and it sounds like it: vanilla and safe. No feather ruffling here, hands on 10 and 2, aiming straight for the middle of the road. If you want surprises, I would suggest ordering the fettucini alfredo at Denny’s. The recording is crisp and the band’s performance is a solid though ultimately workman-like stab at mainstream “modern” rock (the attempt at a catchy chorus and coda of “If I Had Half a Chance” didn’t go unnoticed and is applauded). The singer has a pro set of pipes, but it’s not clear who’s handling the vox since, sigh, the band is inexplicably using pseudonyms. There’s a hint of Peter Gabriel in “Simple and Calming,” but nowhere do their “RIYL” bands (Elvis Costello, Talking Heads, Husker Du??? C’mon, guys!) come to mind. What else can I say? If you like music, maybe you’ll like Hunters, Run! Limited to 200 on white vinyl (limit two per household … sigh - Ed.) (http://atarmsnyc.com)
(Mike Pace)