Good stuff tomorrow night at local vegan restaurant, bar, and de facto freak flag flyin’ headquarters The Swan Dive (which has a website now).

Curstillistas, hailing from the Pine Tree State (that’s Maine, ya’ll), are a mysterious and mercurial collective who amalgamate soaring, sunny rhythms with totally schizophrenic instrumentation. Freak folk, yes, but there’s also a visceral accessibility and pulsating, aquatic vibe that makes you feels comfortable while it secretly slips LSD in your earl grey. These dudes are enlightened. They’re on MySpazz, of course, so go see ’bout them. Recommended if you dig Os Mutantes’ more chill repertoire, Benoit Pioulard, and High Places with a touch of Bark Psychosis. Broken twang folk dudes Little Gold and the gorgeously sparse and spacey western haunt of Egret (who you should look out for on the next round of Kentucky Fried Psychedelia) round out a totally fucked acoustic evening. Should be wicked, especially on a crisp fall evening with a body buzz. More info at Joel Hunt’s place.

Speaking of Maine, Phillip Bailey at LEO is reporting that Gucci Mane will not be playing in town next week because his ass is in jail. That sucks. It looked like I could’ve scored free tickets. “LOL Smiley Face,” with Trey Songz and the Soulja Boy, is the third best song of the year. The second is “The Be Colony” from Broadcast and the Focus Group. And the best is Das Racist’s “Combination Pizza Hut Taco Bell.” That’s what’s up, folks. That, and the show info below:

Cursillistas, Egret, and Little Gold
Friday, November 13
The Swan Dive
921 Swan St., Louisville (map that shizz)
9 p.m. / $5 / 21+ (FaCeBoOk)

MP3 :::
Cursillistas – Bag of Feathers

Louisville and the surrounding area considers itself a regionally and culturally ambiguous area. There’s probably truth to that. This mindset definitely yields some undeniably unique artists and groovy tunes that will rip open your mind with good vibes. It’s about time to highlight some of the music in the area that brings engaging cosmic riffage with a hint of colloquial charm. This is the first in an ongoing series of features. Here’s the first taste…

I’ve been meaning to write about Tiny Fights forever – at least since they debuted on the shortlived podcast back in May. This Louisville/Lexington collective straddles the median between driving motorik krautrock and crushed-lo fi freak folk bruisin’. These guys are next level. They fly on tattered and gnarly magic carpets, chiefing on the doom fire. Sonic warriors in every respect. I’m excited at the prospect of collaborating with Adam from Tiny Fights sometime in the near future (czech yo’ email, homes). “What’s Mine” is the club banger for the Sirens of Titan. Keep up with live shows on their MySpazz. (photo credit to Matty J @ Picasso)

Tiny Fights – What’s Mine
Tiny Fights – Passing Music For Trees

Idiot Glee was mentioned earlier this week, as he’s playing our show on Friday. I felt it was totally unfair to simply describe his music as “Brian Wilson incarnate,” because it’s so much more than that. Sure, James Friley belts out the distant harmonies coming from 50 fathoms under the sea as Wilson did (and Panda Bear and City Center currently do). But the unpolished cadence and hypnotic loops are what really makes Idiot Glee distinct, keeping the sun-bleached psychedelia slightly askew at all times. Friley slays all the chillbrocore artists (i.e. Neon Indian) that the blogosphere’s currently chubbin’ for. This shit is solid, and I can’t wait to hear the full length. And James… keep the production dusty and warm. Shrouds of mystery are what’s happenin’. Hear more on his MySpazz. (photo credit to James’ FaCeBoOk lolz, as captured by Jamie Lazich)

Idiot Glee – It

I’ve already discussed these groups in depth, but it’s worth noting again that Invaders and Phantom Family Halo are still the some of the best of Louisville. They are the monsters of folk. To the max. The Halo is touring with Russian Circles this fall, and are probably coming near you (if you’re a Yank). Go see about them. Invaders continues to come correct on the hashish sludge garage pop. They make Times New Viking look bushleague (and I like TNV a lot, no disrespect). And how fucking convenient… you can see both bands at Al’s Bar in Lexington on November 19. Epic. Both respective groups’ albums are available on heavy vinyl from local label Karate Body.

Phantom Family Halo – These Flowers Never Die
Invaders – Sinking Ship

Speaking of Phantom Family Halo, Softcheque is opening their album release show at Lisa’s Oak Street Lounge on November 25 (Turkey Day Eve). They exist hard in positive chillspace, cultivating a sort of live, art-damaged trip-hop teeming with good vibes. Think of them as Blues Control with pretty vocals, or a more sparse Broadcast/older Stereolab. Czech it, and if you’re in the area, RSVP to the event. I’ll be there style:

Pax Titania is like Silver Apples in the sense that PT’s Christopher Cpreck keeps the wrecked retro-futuristic electronic vibe thick by way of nothing more than homemade electrical equipment. See?

That’s DIY, son. It’s true beauty in dissonance. Pax Titania builds just enough tremolo-saturated structure to make shag music, yet just enough sonic distraction to appease the most post of post post rock talismen. No MP3s right now, but you can head over to his MySpaceTimeContinuum for a sample. “Terminal Implant” is a cut and a half.

Perhaps now would be a good juncture to share with you all that my own bedroom recording project, Meridian Signals, is now on Amie Street and Band Camp, which I greatly enjoy over MySpazz. Go see ’bout it (self-promotion lol). Just did a cover of Status Quo’s “Pictures of Matchstick Men” that Nathaniel at IGIF described as the fuzziest thing ever. It made mommy tear up.

Alright, until next time…

Oh, and if you’re in the area and feel you fit the description of… what did I call it? “Engaging cosmic riffage with a hint of colloquial charm,” I think. Yeah, so if that’s you, feel free to shoot me a submission at kb@thedecibeltolls.com. No Grizzly Bear weenie shit, though.

Hot Brown Mess, a new music promotions collective I am a part of, and I Guess I’m Floating are pleased to present Midwestern psychedelic pop purveyors Evangelicals with freewheeling sun-washed garage psych collective Holiday Shores and regional Brian Wilson incarnation Idiot Glee this Friday at Glassworks in Louisville. The show is short notice, sure, but it’s gonna rule. I has tickets to give you…

Alright, so the contest. I’ve been obsessed with Scott Hansen’s design work on ISO50. That’s what inspired the design of this show flier. I’m thinking about incorporating that whole Ektachrome look into a new design for The Decibel Tolls v4.0 (possibly a very similar image to the one I made for the poster above). That’s where you come in. E-mail kb@thedecibeltolls.com with your answer to the following question: would me redesigning the site for the third time in less than a year totally piss you off? Yay or nay? There’s no right or wrong answer. I’ll choose a winner at random by Thursday at noon. Good luck!

Evangelicals, Holiday Shores, and Idiot Glee
Friday, November 13
Glassworks
815 W. Market St., Louisville (map that shizz)
Doors @ 7:30
NOTHING BUT GOOD VIBES

MP3 :::
Holiday Shores – Tremor Rolls the Peak

Though it should’ve been obvious, it didn’t dawn on me that a live performance by Slint/Tortoise/Crain/Shipping News rowdy crowd The For Carnation at a forward-thinking art celebration (The Speed Museum’s Art After Dark) wouldn’t exactly be a traditional band-plays-in-front-of-you type of gig. No dice on that. While it was odd at first, you realized shortly into the set how original and exciting such an unusual show is to experience.  It’s what Pink Floyd tried to do with their theatrical five city tour for The Wall, except it wasn’t stupid. Regardless of how you felt about its execution, you’ll definitely remember it. After I reflected a bit on what they were doing, I really got into it.

So yes, The For Carnation performed live. But they did so remotely. The group members were stationed in different locales about the museum. The show that you saw happened in the Antiquity Gallery, and it was a video project of the band performing filtered through a pixelated mosaic.

You can’t tell from the photographic evidence, but if you looked closely within the pixels, each was some sort of image, though it was hard to make out what exactly they were. It was quite incredible, actually.

So here we find vocalist Brian McMahan next to the European art collections. Hey. I didn’t find the rest of the band, but I didn’t feel the need to go on an easter egg hunt either.

This show, as well as the entire event, was triumphant and groovy. I noticed other people were videotaping the performance. If anyone has access to other videos (and permission to share), please give me a shout. Have a taste with some video we shot:

The For Carnation plays at the sold-out Ten Years of ATP festival this December in Minehead with Tortoise, Shellac, Fuck Buttons, Deerhoof, The Melvins, Explosions in the Sky, Battles, Lightning Bolt, Sunn 0))), and a slew of other decidedly awesome acts. Get yr. passport notarized, yanks.

MP3 :::
The For Carnation – Emp. Man’s Blues

Anyway, back to the point… the most wonderful time of the year, the Reason for the Season – Halloween – is just around the bend. How do you plan to celebrate? Yeah, you could see Monsters of Folk at the Louisville Palace on this most ghoulish of holidays (whom are icidentally neither monsters nor fuckin’ folk). But it might be more festive and less sissy to bask in the horrifying power electronics and booty bass of new projects from 2/3 of Wolf Eyes and some excellent Derby City dirty noise thrashers foreboding enough to make Michael Gira change his cowboy hat. Think I prefer the latter for sure.

Headlining is Regression. From Boomkat: “Nate Young has taken the noise levels down several notches for his new solo outing as Regression, although the air of implicit, floating darkness cast over the whole affair is very much within his established oeuvre. You could neither classify Regression’s self-titled LP as a noise record or a death ambient record, instead the analog synth dissections and tape treatments more closely reference library music, horror soundtracks, or in its more austere moments, early electronic music. Regression is an outstanding album, proving to be more delicate than a Wolf Eyes full-length has ever been, yet it’s able to match the group’s sonic gravitas – and their uncanny ability to make the extremes of music sound so incredibly seductive.”

Library music? Oh shit yes. And his oft partner in crime John Olson is coming in as Spykes. He will probably still drink all the damn beer. The DIY-centric Nzambi is Louisville’s Christopher Cprek, who you may have seen tweaking knobs during the second (or maybe third) incarnation of Warmer Milks, as well as his other project Pax Titania. Cprek builds all his own shit, so no one could imitate his integallactic sounds even if they tried. Michigan’s Dog Lady opens up with some amplified violin, modified electronics, and various forest nymph summoning. In short, these guys put the “monsters of” in Mosters of Folk. Believe that.

Ya know what’s the weirdest thing though? This is all happening Saturday night at the Zanzabar! An insane noise show at the Zbar on a Saturday night! I guess somebody at the club owed Joel Hunt a serious favor.

Regression, Spykes, Nzambi, and Dog Lady
Saturday, October 24
Zanzabar
2100 S. Preston St., Louisville (map that shizz)
9 p.m. / $5
21+

“Black Vomit” is one of my favorite Wolf Eyes jams. It’s about having fun and making friends.

MP3 :::
Wolf Eyes – Black Vomit

Fuck! I just reported today how The For Carnation is playing their first show in, what, seven years or so at the Speed Museum’s Art After Dark event, then I realized that’s also the same night that Siltbreeze patriots Blues Control and locals Sapat bust brains across town. OMG MULTITASKING LOL.

Ya know, it is possible that The For Carnation will play a lot earlier than the general 10 p.m. start times at Lisa’s, so you may be able to do both. But then again, perhaps you might want to show up to the Blues Control/Sapat gig early, considering that Lisa’s is small, Sapat draws a fairly large crowd locally, and Blues Control spent a chunk of this year supporting Animal Collective on tour and probably picked up lots of fresh fans along the way. Good gravy, ya’ll, don’t know what to tell you. I’mma try to do both.

I submit for your consideration some previous write-ups I’ve done on both bands:

Blues Control (from the Puff EP write-up) – “Always on Time” is straight from space.  It’s the sound emitting from the SETI experiments.  Large, cavernous waves of radiation and solar wind flush around a simple, rarely changing Neu-esque piano melody with the reverb turned up all the way and dripping in condensation for 12 big minutes. The harmonica on “Behind the Skies” is the only indication that Blues Control is going to attempt to live up to its name, a mid-tempo, fuzzed-out burner reminiscent of Lightning Bolt on purple drank (perhaps there’s a connection between Ride the Skies and Behind the Skies?).  R-O-C-K in the U-S-A.

Sapat (from the Jana Hunter/Crazy Dreams Band preview) – Sapat is a local collective that features between eight and one million people (depending on the type of show), all of whom have a like-minded approach to fringe music. Sapat is a pulsating orb of eclecticism and mysticism – never cateogorizable, but always freaky, funky, and brain splattering. Sapat’s expansive beauty and unwavering experimentation is what makes Louisville amazing. They are truly a breath of fresh air. Remember that part in Amistad when they’re in the court room and the bro is all ike “give us… free!”? Sapat gives you free with every show.

Blues Control and Sapat
Friday, October 23
Lisa’ Oak Street Lounge
1004 E. Oak St., Louisville (map that shizz)
9 p.m.-ish
21+

Blues Control Unleash the Dragon World Tour 2K9*
*= not actually the name of the tour, though that might’ve been the name of an Aerosmith tour

10.12.09 – Princeton, NJ – WPRB – in-studio 3pm EST
10.16.09 – Philadelphia, PA – Pilam
10.18.09 – New Haven, CT – Bar
10.19.09 – Ithaca, NY – The Shop
10.20.09 – Scranton, PA – The Bog
10.21.09 – Pittsburgh, PA – Garfield Artworks $
10.22.09 – Cincinnati, OH – Art Damage Lodge $
10.23.09 – Louisville, KY – Lisa’s Oak Street Lounge %
10.24.09 – Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle – early show @
10.25.09 – Madison, WI – Good Style Shop
10.26.09 – St Paul, MN – Turf Club
10.27.09 – Kansas, City MO – Record Bar
10.29.09 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court – early show
10.29.09 – Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge – late show
10.30.09 – Boise, ID – Neurolux
10.31.09 – Olympia, WA – The Northern – Halloween &!
11.01.09 – Seattle, WA – Funhouse &
11.02.09 – Vancouver, BC – Little Mountain Studios
11.03.09 – Portland, OR – Someday Lounge
11.05.09 – San Francisco, CA – Hemlock Tavern =
11.06.09 – Oakland, CA – Continental Club +
11.07.09 – Sacramento, CA – Luigi’s Slice <
11.08.09 – Santa Cruz, CA – CREPE PLACE >
11.09.09 – San Luis Obispo, CA – Crossroads
11.10.09 – Irvine, CA – UC Irvine ^
11.11.09 – Los Angeles, CA – Synchrocity ^
11.12.09 – San Diego, CA – Soda Bar
11.13.09 – Phoenix, AZ – Trunk Space
11.16.09 – Denton, TX – J&J’s Pizza
11.17.09 – Austin, TX – The Mohawk
11.18.09 – Houston, TX – Mango’s
11.19.09 – New Orleans, LA – Allways Lounge
11.21.09 – Nashville, TN – Dino’s
11.22.09 – Asheville, NC – Harvest Records
11.23.09 – Chapel Hill, NC – Nightlight

$ Puffy Areolas
# Kurt Vile
! Tyvek
% Sapat
@ Ga’an
Chinese Stars
& Little Claw
+ Sic Alps
= Hank IV
^ Pocahaunted
< The Duchess and the Duke
> Lucky Dragons

MP3 :::
Blues Control – Behind the Skies
Sapat – Dark Silver

I’m not sure if the Slint/Tortoise/Shipping News supergroup The For Carnation ever officially broke up. Hence, we can’t call their return a “reunion” necessarily. So we’ll referred to this event as their triumphant return. While we haven’t heard new material since 2000’s eponymous record (not counting the 2007 Touch and Go reissue of Promised Works) and there are no rumors that they may be recording again soon, it does seem The For Carnation has been officially reignited when they agreed to make their first public appearance in years at All Tomorrows Parties’ Ten Years of ATP festival this December in the UK. That is, until last week… when it was quietly, almost nonchalantly announced that The For Carnation will be playing Art After Dark at the University of Louisville’s Speed Art Museum on October 23. Like out of nowhere. I just silently mouthed “holy shit” reading that.

The skinny:

Art After Dark: Remix (the first of three museum-wide events held throughout the year, each with a different theme) will tie together a lineup of music, visual spectacle, creating art, and fun. Remix will feature the premiere of a multimedia art collaboration between classically trained American cellist Ben Sollee (an NPR Top 10 Unknown Artist of the Year) and multimedia Louisville artist, Valerie Sullivan Fuchs. Also featured will be the uniquely dynamic, minimalist-informed, yet R&B inspired music of “The For Carnation,” a post rock band from Louisville formed by Brian McMahan (formerly of the legendary band “Slint”), as well as theatrical interpretations of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies created by the wacky minds of LePetomane Theatre Ensemble, and fire dancing performances from The Phoenix Collective on the museum’s front lawn. Visitors will also want to keep an eye out for break dancers, a critic at large, “un-tours” of the collection and films from Louisville Film Society.

The For Carnation is R&B inspired? Eh, I buy that. They’re dynamic dudes. I’m totally there, brah.

The For Carnation @ Art After Dark
Friday, October 23 @ 7 p.m.
The Speed Art Museum
2035 S. 2nd St., Louisville (map that shizz)
All Ages

MP3 :::
The For Carnation – Tales

Louisville’s Phantom Family Halo adds another page to archtype-laden book of rock folklore. Right before their long-awaited grand statement to the world drops, the sprawling 2 LP Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die, and they begin their nationwide vision quest with Russian Circles, the band’s auxiliary drummer, Tony Bailey, suddenly passed away. As an esteemed and prolific member in the local music community, the news sent shock waves through the city. However, the band did not utter a word about it publicly. Phantfamlo never discusses peripheral information in any capacity, even when directly relating to the people in the band, and they’ve always kept things close to the chest. Undoubtedly this adds to their mystique. Monliths, despite its foreboding mood, is congruent to this attitude. The grainy, dry psychedelia found within evokes both an intimacy and mystery not often found in this genre. If you knew nothing else about them, you’d probaby be baffled as to who they are, where they came from, and what they want from you. They probably like it that way. Phantom Family Halo doesn’t float above the horizon line like the flower power groups do – they’re standing behind you.

Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die is a bold, majestic record that’s viscerally formidable and fresh – a crafty stew of swampy acid rock, haunting soundscapes, immense space, a slight gothic flavor, and eternal heaviness. Five songs in is a track called “Dec 2012,” and I’ll be damned if I can find a better brain-burning soundtrack for the apocalypse.

Opener “Blackouts and Runaways” truly makes use of playwright Bertolt Brecht’s assertion of “The past inside the present,” citing that “the rapidity of change and the increase of knowledge in the modern world have forced us to see history in a new light: not as a finalized past but as a process in which the new continuously transfigures the old.” Without sounding pretentious and wanker (I promise you I’m not going in this direction), Phantom Family Halo has synthesized this idea to great effect. “Blackouts and Runaways” meshes conventional garage rock/harsh vintage psych and hauntological retro-futuristic electronic flourishes to create art without a time stamp, a warped perception of what rock music used to be (as we understand it), and a proclamation that fears the future. In other words, it’s fucking heavy, and it sets the tone for the rest of the album – an body of work that’s chronologically ambiguous yet sonically pointed.

The motorik 10-minute opus “Monoliths” scares the shit out of me. It’s the sound of someone looking into your window after dark, donning a masquerade facepiece and wielding a nine inch blade, making your balls retract ten-fold. No one has written more paranoid krautrock saturated in impending doom. “Third World War” is nothing but pure mindfuck. A twinkling, bucolic melody carries you through over a minute of serenity before pure menacing proto-metal and a blanket of vehement, Link Wray-style reverberated vocals dicks you in the dick. And yet, songs like “Alive and Well” peak out from around the corner – a playful, aurally credulous three-minute ballad that mixes a bit of Boards of Canada atmospheric synths with orchestral samples that, aside from the melodic vocals, wouldn’t sound out of place on Aphex Twin’s Richard D James album.

There’s a surprise at every corner. And while the instrumentation can be somewhat sparse and rigid, each movement through the album’s massive 18 songs reveals strata of mysterious sounds, cavernous imagery, and lush evil. Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die an invigorating and exciting listening, while at the same time, provokes your eyes to constantly dark around for predators all the while. It’s weird and it’s awesome. It’s the heat-induced forest fire ruining the hippies’ fun during the summer of love. Most importantly, Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die does not easily fit in any genre or subgenre, acting more as an anthropomorphic, mercurial, growing beast that is certainly one of the most profound statements out of Louisville in years and, and in my opinion, one that holds up well against any given heavy hitter in the experimental rock field. Get lifted.

Phantom Family Halo’s Monoliths & These Flowers Never Die is available now on beautiful vinyl or in digital download format courtesy of Karate Body Records.

For fans of:  Six Organs of Admittance, Fever Ray, Spiritualized, Boris

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating

As some footnotes to the review above, why don’t you go on and have a real taste yourself. Here is some video of “These Flowers Never Die” from their show at Lisa’s Oak Street Lounge last July that I went to and had a sweet time. Of course, sadly, this footage is some of Tony’s last. But, tour’s still on. I’ll post those dates closer to their leave after the holidays.

POSSIBLY RELATED :::
Phantom Family Halo is Awesome (7.16.09)

MP3 :::
Phantom Family Halo – Blackouts and Runaways
Phantom Family Halo – Alive and Well

Rachel Grimes, formerly of folklore-evoking Louisville chamber post rock collective Rachel’s (whose founder Jason Noble is the reason for the Shellac-headlining benefit show announced this week), celebrates the release of her new album Book of Leaves tomorrow night (Thursday) at the 21C. The show will be the first in 21C’s Hear + Now multimedia A/V series. Seeing as it’s been a while since Rachel or Rachel’s have surfaced, and this new record is her first solo outing, you shouldn’t in good conscience miss this show.

Backseat Sandbar writes: “The show will also feature works by Daniel Gilliam, Lou Moseson and Sara Maclean.  The Series will feature newly composed works by regional creators and performed by regional creators for all of us to experience.  I’ve even heard that there will be a baby grand piano placed in the center of the room with seating in a theatre in the round style.  21c always pulls out all the stops and this series looks to be very exciting.”

Book of Leaves mixes modern composition with field recordings, and remains one of the more intriguing releases that has graced these ears. The album is available on vinyl and digital release via hometown heroes Karate Body. Grip it here.

Rachel Grimes Record Release
Thursday, October 8
21C Museum
700 W. Main St., Louisville (map that shizz)
7 p.m doors
All ages

MP3 :::
Rachel Grimes – Every Morning

Jason Noble of Shipping News, Rodan, Rachel’s, and other Louisville royalty was recently diagnosed with cancer. Word is that he’s doing okay, but the medical bills are piling up. When Steve Albini got word of this, he put down the cards, left the poker table, and got Shellac together to do a one-off at Louisville’s very intimate 930 Listening Room. Proceeds will benefit Jason and his family during this difficult time, and all the good vibes will probably benefit them as well. This show will be insane! Steve Albini’s flat top in real life will also be insane!

Thanks to Buzzgrinder and Backseat Sandbar for the heads-up!

Shellac w/ Support TBA
Saturday, November 21, 2009
The 930 Listening Room (map that shizz)
7:30 p.m. doors
8 p.m. show
$17 advance
$20 at the door
Tickets on sale Friday, October 9 at 10 a.m. at ear X-tacy and the930.org

MP3 :::
Shellac – The Admiral