As regular readers of this mediocre blog (as well as our Twitter followers) are aware, both Hansen and I are obsessed with LOST. Here’s a photo of me drinking a DHARMA beer. I mention this because the last and current seasons of LOST touch on the ideas of the Multiverse and time travel (by way of the Time Loop Theory). This relates to Steven R. Smith, a.k.a. Ulaan Khol, in two ways. The first and most pedestrian point – dudes who are into shit like time travel, theoretical physics, mysticism, and the like can groove to Ulaan Khol no sweat.

Secondly (and most importantly), Ulaan Khol’s latest, III, practices what it preaches – bouncing about time with great ease like a pandemensional cosmic ball. Sacred mystic moods and Ben Chasney-esque eastern modal tonalities fraternize with apocalyptic noise and ambient bliss blasts from the future. Both sides make a compromise by settling somewhere in ’70s lo fi freak outs a la early Can.  Ulaan Khol is timeless not in the sense that he amalgamates genres from many movements or that he fails to convey what place in time his music exists, but rather, Ulaan Khol has no time. Does that make sense? I promise I’m not stoned.

As evidenced around the 1:15 mark of “Untitled Two,” included below, Ulaan Khol is a bad dude. III is available from Soft Abuse this Tuesday, March 9, and it will dislodge your dome.

For fans of:  Six Organs of Admittance, Can, Flying Saucer Attack, Sir Richard Bishop

MP3 :::
Ulaan Khol – Untitled 2

Both us and No Conclusion immediately tear open emails from De Stijl Records as soon as we get ‘em, just like how Christmas used to be. And with good reason – everything around those parts are 100% solid, and this beautiful damage jammage from Jerusalem and the Starbaskets is no exception. Jerusalem grabs the crusty grit of Elevators-style garage, adds a touch of space rock expansiveness, and calibrates said sounds to match their Midwestern stomping ground. While the tones are interstellar, they, kinda like Amen Dunes, have the uncanny ability to create a bucolic, rural psychedelia that’s as dusty as it is cosmic. Mega like.

Go see about them over at De Stijl’s website.

MP3 :::
Jerusalem and the Starbaskets – Gulf of Mexico

The first awesome album of 2010 is about to drop from a group of guys you’re probably not familiar with. Hopefully that changes soon. Meet The N.E.C., an acronym for Natural Extension Concept. Their shit is enlightened. The group’s 10″ EP was listed in our Year End List 2009, wherein The N.E.C. was referred to as “the southern response to No Age.” That’s a good reference point, as is fellow Atlantans Deerhunter, though The N.E.C. maintains a more acute and strictly defined approach to space punk.

The N.E.C. has concocted a beautiful, cohesive album with Is, and the only disappointment is its brevity (mas roca, por favor)! Laced with pervasive, dub-like tape echo, atomic shoegaze tonality, loose song structures with gritty production, violent monolithic reverb, ambient explorations, snakey riffs, and an overall melodic sheen, The N.E.C.’s retro futuristic garage psych is distinct yet familiar.

“It’s Right,” within a minute and a half, lets you know where The N.E.C.’s loyalties lie, and they fight fervently on the side of Echoplex, complemented with triumphant percussion, total decibel damage, and guitars so crunchy that gallons of Korova milk couldn’t make that shit soggy. The epic “Dead of Night” explores various strata – everything from fuzzy dream pop to classic dust-swept garage rock to noise in under three minutes, ending with an explosion of skull-crushing… bells. You gotta hear it.

This band is awesome. This record is awesome. And the passive voice is always on point. Is is available at the group’s website. Go see about it. If Is is not RIAA-certified gold by the beginning of Q3 this year, I’m calling shenanigans on all you dorks.

For fans of:  No Age, Spacemen 3, Nothing People

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating

MP3 :::
The N.E.C. – It’s Right
The N.E.C. – Dead of Night

Coming correct with nasty guitars, a hollow and spacious organ sound, and a thick psychedelic blues flavor with spring reverb permeating throughout, Spirit Vine is the type of super retro tent revival that garage rock needs some more of. With great reverence toward the holiest of holies – 13th Floor Elevators, Blue Cheer, and The Seeds – Spirit Vine pulls out the bluesier movements in the Nuggets catalog, dusts ‘em off, and slows that shit down to a syrupy pace. The result is a driving, groovy, peyote-fueled swamp rock vision quest.

Sure, it’s not groundbreaking, but Spirit Vine, as demonstrated with “Golden,” is thoroughly solid and a crafty, fun throwback to the gritty garage. Moreover, it was a welcome reprieve from all the, I dunno, fucking retarded Neon Indian mixes people send me. I hate music sometimes.

I expect Ecstatic Peace to give these guys a call soon, lest I go find Thurston myself and put one of his guitars in standard E tuning when he’s not looking just to fuck with him. The band’s web presence is over here.

For fans of:  Black Rebel Mototcycle Club, Blue Cheer, Darker My Love

MP3 :::
Spirit Vine – Golden

Diggin’ on the odd Nuggets vibe I’m getting from San Francisco’s Maus Haus. Maus Haus is certainly a quirky burgoo. The vocals reminds me a bit of Jason Lytle from the much missed Grandaddy, accompanied by a backing back of dudes with reverence for retro kitsch, sci fi movies, old modem sounds, theremins, and grimy garage rock. The melodies are firmly planted in major key, instantly hummable, almost bubblegum hooks. Yet something sinister brews under the surface that remains somewhat intangible. Hence the paradoxical “noir” label immediately following “bubblegum.” Therein lies the reason Maus Haus is an interesting listen.

Though they haven’t ventures too far out from the Bay Area, they’ve opened up shop for heavy hitters such as Black Moth Super Rainbow and Wooden Shjips. The group has a full length called Lark Marvels that you can grip through their MySpazz.

MP3 :::
Maus Haus – We Used Technology (But Technology Let Us Down)
Maus Haus –  Rigid Breakfast

A quick and barely coherent review, as I’m groggy from holiday travels and a bit buzzed from holiday libations. But seeing as Sisterworld leaked almost 24 hours ago, we had to get this review up a.s.a.p. Hopefully Web Sheriff won’t shut down down like he/she did last year at this time for the Merriweather leak. So, moving forward…

I’m not sure if Liars often find themselves in the same conversation as some of the most revered names in contemporary music. Probably not (though they don’t need the overhyping). Their trajectory runs quite parallel to, say, Radiohead and Wilco. Liars, like the aforementioned, began their journey as something accessible, and over the years, acutely turned into something more unique and significant. At the height of the dance punk craze, Liars’ released their boring debut They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top. It was loved and fans were engaged. Then, the band got very interesting and released They Were Wrong, So We Drowned. It was a Lou Reed moment – the album was strange and bore no resemblance to their previous jam hive. I loved Drowned personally, but it was generally disliked. Liars honed in their experimental sensibilities in a more focused and acclaimed work through Drum’s Not Dead, then followed up with their more straightforward eponymous record one year later. Many distinct movements, all without jumping the shark. Sound familiar?

Sisterworld finds Liars taking another turn. The noise bursts of their latter work is gone, and so is the rhythm of their early releases. Sparse, epic, eclectic, shape shifting, and somewhat optimistic, Sisterworld is accessible and bizarre. It’s even pretty at times (see the, like, almost tender vocals and Cocteau Twins-like synth swells on “Too Much Too Much”). “Here Comes All the People” boasts cinematic strings, and “Drip” is a slow burning, glacial lament to lull you before being slung against the wall on “Scarecrows on a Killer Slant.” The trademark chanting of Angus Andrew stamps “Proud Evolution”  – the only mark that this is a Liars track, as this song acts as the group’s first real foray into remarkably majestic dream pop. “I Still Can See An Outside World” adopts the popular ’90s post rock quiet-loud dynamic, yet while looking to the future (for example, the guitars are tuned in a way in which the riffs sound backwards… take a listen below). Epic shoegaze punk finds its way on “The Overachievers.”"Goodnight Everything” begins with samples of, perhaps, androids being built on the assembly line over a snaky guitar line, which snowballs into a battle march. Raping and pillaging ensues.

So, the common denominator here is that Liars have moved from the garage to outer space. Sisterworld is large and expansive, sounding close to some sort of vague concept record without coming off as pretentious or wanky. Liars drop another nickle in the awesome jar, and perhaps have earned a spot on the “most underrated” list over the past decade.

MP3 :::
Liars – I Still Can See An Outside World
Liars – Too Much, Too Much

Deerhunter are generous motherfuckers, especially this weekend. The band’s blog not only posted a bootleg of (what I think is) Lotus Plaza’s second live show in Atlanta, but we were also treated to the very first recorded evidence of Deerhunter – a CD-R called Carve Your Initials. It’s much more electronic than any of their latter stuff, and seemingly was recorded after a few hits of acid. Maybe not, but it’s delightfully fucked. “Snow Dogs” is particularly awesome, in part because the jam reminds me of my favorite Cuba Gooding Jr. flick. You can grip the whole guy here.

So yeah, in case you weren’t aware, now you know. Enjoy.

ZIP :::
Lotus Plaza – Eyedrum, Atlanta, 12.11.09

MP3 :::
Deerhunter – Snow Dogs
Deerhunter – Three Dolphins Melting Into Orange Wax

Can’t figure out this band name. It’s one of three things, right? Black Feelings are either keeping in line with the tradition of naming your band Black ____ (Black Eyes, Black Dice, Black Sabbath, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Black Lips, Black Keys, Black Mountain, Black Angels, Black Kids, Black Flag, Black Francis, Crunchy Black, Fleetwood Black, etc… DUDES, MY SHIT IS CONFUSED), relating some sort of odd commentary on race relations, or it’s something nonsensical/an inside joke we’re not privy to. It’s perhaps worth mentioning that none of these dudes are black (though race is a social construct, but that’s a different conversation). They are all Canadian, though, and more importantly, they are a neo-no wave collective that totally rip.

The little bit of press that this evil triage has garnered most often compares them to Liars. I think that’s fair, though I think their lush, brooding, echo chamber art punk is closer to This Heat and Suicide with a slice of shoegaze aesthetics and freak electro.  However, Black Feelings have a sound all their own. A little bit of Throbbing Gristle’s abrasiveness here, a dash of epic angular battle marches a la Swell Maps there, and insane sound effects peppered about in a very Acid Mothers Temple manner, all conceived in a relatively easy-to-swallow package that is both fun and mind-expanding. A real joy to listen to, despite song titles like “Eternal Bad Trip.”

Their eponymous debut is available now on the very underrated Alien8 Recordings.

For fans of:  Swell Maps, This Heat, Women

MP3 :::
Black Feelings – Golden Children
Black Feelings – Eternal Bad Trip

Somewhat of a strange bill, but I’ll take it. Two Chicago brain burning luminaries, Tortoise and Disappears, will be storming the castle known as Louisville’s Headliners Music Hall. While Tortoise is legendary, I think I’m more stoked on Disappears. Sofa king loud, dude. There are only a few select dates, and you can peep them on the Disappears blog here.

Tortoise and Disappears
Thursday, February 11th
Headliners Music Hall
1386 Lexington Rd., Louisville (map that shizz)
9 p.m. / 18+
$15 advance / $18 at the door
On Sale 12/4 @ 10am (at ear X-tacy and Ticketweb, presented by ProdSimp)

POSSIBLY RELEVANT :::
Disappears – Another Great Verb-As-Noun Band
Tortoise – Beacons of Ancestorship

MP3 :::
Tortoise – Yinxianghechengqi
Disappears – Lux

To Whichever BBQ Bro It May Concern,

Hey everybody! What’s good? Not much here. Just getting ready to fuck up a can of Campbell’s Chunky for lunch. Should rule.

Welp… heard you all got in a lil’ pickle outside of Nashville in Hopkinsville, Ky. Got nailed for having a lil’ “controlled substance” for party hard solutions. That’s a bummer, man. It’s kinda like the song “Rollin’ Dirty” with the Bone Thug bros. I probably would’ve been humming that to myself if I were in a similar situation. Anyway, good to hear you’re out of the slammer. Hope you followed protocol and bitched up to someone. I’ve not been incarcerated myself, but it’s my understanding that doing such is just good standard operating procedure. When in Rome, amirite?

Alright, let’s get to brass tacks. I recently read that Sam Hunt, your booking agent with Windish (who’s a super great guy who helped us secure a lot of awesome shows for WRFL when I hung tough there – tell him we said hello), gave the local reporter in Hopkinsville a couple of preliminary ruminations from the band: “I’d kind of be surprised if they played again,” Hunt said. “It’s been a real drag, you know? It’s been a real shame for a lot of reasons. They’ll probably never set foot in Kentucky again.”

Ever play again? What, are you guys that wimpy? That shit’s sad, Khan. Lil’ Wayne’s getting his ass arrested all the time, but he still seems to release 500 mixtapes a year and rock a House of Blues or two. I mean, you’re following in a fine tradition of rock stars sporting the fluorescent jumpsuit – check out Rolling Stone’s Hall of Fame. Work this to your advantage. All press is good press, guys. That’s PR 101.

Secondly – “never set foot in Kentucky again”? Dude, that’s some Laguna Beach shit. Like, “She tried to hook up with Stephen, I’m never talking to that bitch again.” What’s with the pedestrian playground mentality? You guys are Pitchfork fodder with a deece record contract. Time to put on the big boy pants now.

Look… unfortunately, there’s no room in this letter to discuss the nature of the war on drugs. Sure, it totally sucks you all were arrested and jailed for a non-violent crime and drug laws in the states are kinda fucked. But the fact of the matter is, right or wrong, the law is the law, and drugs are crazy illegal (see your local statute book and The Wire). So if you’re going to do something illegal, don’t get caught. If you have drugs in the car, it should go without saying that you roll careful style. And if you don’t successfully evade Johnny Law, displacing blame for getting caught with your own stash (that you’re fully aware is not legal) is kinda immature and makes you sorta look like an asshole. Just sayin’.

I understand that you weren’t pulled over for speeding or the like, but were stopped at a random safety checkpoint. Regardless, an officer cannot search your vehicle (“illegal search and seizure” in legalese) in any case without either probable cause or your consent.

The band’s official statement said “officers located a controlled substance in the cab of the vehicle.” That begs the question – how did the officers locate your shroomage? Did you allow them to search your van?  Or did you have your paraphernalia all strewn about the vehicle, providing plain sight probable cause? If it’s the former, what the hell? I have nothing else to say to you. If it’s the latter… dude, hide your shit. Especially at checkpoints! It didn’t exactly sneak up on you, ya know! The majority of the Interstate system is comprised of long stretches of completely straight asphalt, as per the original Eisenhower plan. Especially in places like western Kentucky where it’s flat!

The only other scenario I can picture is that manager Kristin Klein’s expired or suspended license warranted the search. Maybe someone who had a driver license should’ve been behind the wheel. Again, good job.

So, like, all things considered, responding to your own ineptitude by saying “fuck this state, we’re never coming here again” is rather asinine, don’t you think? Saving face and manning up is a good style. Just somethin’ to chew on. If you do decide to tour these parts again though, The Decibel Tolls will be more than happy to sponsor it. Shit, I’ll even give you some pointers and show you how I hide my own stash and keep my mouth shut.

Best,
Kenny Bloggins

MP3 :::
Times New Viking – City on Drugs
The Rain Parade – Prisoners
Ariel Pink – House Arrest
Mazzy Star – Free