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Eric Copeland Goes Dumpster Diving on New LP

Published

on September 12, 2009

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alien in a garbage dump
What exactly is the proper job title for Black Dice member Eric Copeland? Is he a DJ? A producer? That guy who forever fucked your hearing capabilities when he opened for Animal Collective? Eric Copeland is an artist who willfully contorts and choreographs samples (both original and appropriated) into pieces for his dragnet sound collages. Unlike much sample-based production, where bits are carefully drafted from hours of crate-digging and then plugged into a master design, Alien in a Garbage Dump holds a loose leash over it’s children. Elements coexist like creatures dropped in a fishbowl; often in competition with each-other, but occasionally moving in a strangely organic unison.

This new full-length on Paw Tracks is a synthesis of the Alien in a Garbage Dump and Al Anon EP’s, which were gradually constructed over several years of recording and revisiting jams. Those familiar with 2007’s Hermaphrodite should feel right at home with these new tracks, which seem to have no agenda to convert the masses but simply to reaffirm the faith of those already aboard. With no hope of conventional beauty, Copeland leads his deformed sounds to conquests of pure rhythm and atmosphere. The off-beat, helium-fueled dance of “Corn on the Cob” marries poignant analog chirps to a wheezing chorus that slowly shifts up and down to the hobble of the machine’s clicks and clacks. Sometimes, however, as the album jerks about like a radio scanning for a clear station, it arrives at moments of minimal resolve. Tracks like “Everybody’s Libido,” which employs a short verse of Spanish vocals played at various speeds and pitches, can feel more like exercises in context and contrast rather than finished songs. But although Copeland’s soundscapes can be frustrating, claustrophobic, and even menacing, Alien in a Garbage Dump is also home to some of his most ecstatic moments. “Auto Dimmer” lays down a late night 4/4 shuffle as a catchy B-movie synth circles above. A skronky keyboard riff hangs on the very edge of the beat, injecting bursts of movement into the hazy groove . Even in an increasingly noise-tolerant music culture, this is an adventurous listen, and that alone should have your earbuds watering by now.

Alien in a Garbage Dump is out now on Paw Tracks.

For fans of: Black Dice, Gary War, Ariel Pink, Growing, Excepter

MP3 :::
Eric Copeland – Auto Dimmer
Eric Copeland – Corn on the Cob

Lightning Bolt – Earthly Delights

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on September 8, 2009

in Praise and Malaise

. Comments

earthlydelights Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights

Can Lightning Bolt even make a bad album? Well, I suppose if they, I dunno, started sporting J Crew, ripped off Paul Simon’s whiteboy Afrobeat, and wrote a concept album about how rad their dad’s Cape Cod estate is, sure, that would be relatively gnarly. But worry not, this is Providence-reared, Load-loyal Lightning Bolt – ADHD rhythmic, skull-crushing low-end fuzz purveying, ski mask doning, intestinal fortitude testing, Frances Bacon meets fridge art shit on their album covers makin’, inclined toward all that is guerrilla style, quite possibly spawned from the primordial ooze Lightning Bolt. A veritable Rush for the noise kids; everything the two Brians touch is aces. And with their forthcoming Earthly Delights, Lightning Bolt comes correct… uh-gain… with an effort every bit as strong as Hypermagic Mountain and with an even more adventurous spirit to boot.

Though I wanted to hold off a bit after first hearing the jam hive before publishing my thoughts in narrative form, I did post some quips on the blog’s Twitter a couple of weeks ago. I think I said something to the effect of “Earthly Delights is Lightning Bolt’s Meet the Beatles’ and ‘I could get my folks into this record.’ Well, none of that is exactly true, but there’s a very odd, visceral melodicism running underneath the album. I noticed this on the first track I listened to, “Nation of Boar.” I chose to listen to this particular canticle first since it’s called “Nation of Boar.” The song exits with a rather gorgeous, mystic progression that makes me feel like returning to nature. Weird, right? Well, while LB hasn’t exactly gone verse-chorus-verse on us just yet, the more concise songs (half the album features songs under five minutes) yield less dissonance and fuckin’ around, replacing the new space with extremely structured, simple, almost hummable compositions. That is not to say that LB has lost any edge, but simply that Earthly Delights throws a little Occam’s Razor into the mix. The group’s opting to keep their disposition a bit simpler and less freeform. Hence the hyperbolic comparison to Meet the Beatles. I have to say that I like the results.

“Colossus” bring a slow-burning, nasty stoner metal groove to the forefront, and acts as one of LB’s most driving songs since Wonderful Rainbow’s “Assassins.” But don’t think the Brians are ever looking behind, because “Funny Farm” comes at you out of no-fucking-where. It’s a country song. That’s right, B Gibs does Buck Owens-style western licks through his grody bass distortion. Shit you not. “Funny Farm” is outta control ridiculous. “S.O.S.” then takes you through East London for a little oi punk call-response at machine gun speed. Again, awesome. After four years, you’d have to expect something insane to end up on the new record, especially with these bros.

As with all Lightning Bolt releases, there is one real ultimate epic trek through Middle Earth jam. Hypermagic Mountain’s was “Dead Cowboy,” Wonderful Rainbow’s was “The Two Towers” (interestingly enough, huh?), and with Earthly Delights, they save the big guns for last with closing track “Transmissionary.” The 12-and-a-half minute flight is definitely the closest that Lightning Bolt has brushed against psychedelia-leaning prog, and I mean that with all due respect and good vibes. If The Moody Blues cut the foreplay after Seventh Sojourn and just fuckin’ rawked, they may have gotten close to “Transmissionary.” The cut showcases an almost orchestral approach – organic, resplendent, and soaring to climax. It’s a sumptuous journey that leaves you refreshed, enlightened, but upset that Earthly Delights just ended real cold-like. Oh well… just gotta hit repeat on that sucka and get lifted again.

Earthly Delights solidifies once again that Lightning Bolt unequivocally remains one of the most relevant bands today. I hope they tour crazy on this record, and as soon I get some some dates sent to me, I’ll definitely let you all in the loop. In the interim, go buy Earthly Delights at your favorite record dealer when it drops October 13. Or preoder it soon from Load. Do it, poopypants!

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating
steelydan1 Lightning Bolt - Earthly Delights

MP3 :::
Lightning Bolt – Nation of Boar
Lightning Bolt – S.O.S.

I Was Wrong – New Lightning Bolt Coming Out in October

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on August 17, 2009

in Uncategorized

. Comments

earthlydelights I Was Wrong - New Lightning Bolt Coming Out in October

I don’t mind being wrong on this one. We’ll all be privileged to hear the latest from Lightning Bolt, Earthly Delights, one month earlier than what I posted on Friday. It drops October 13, thanks to Load. Prasie be to Allah.

That, indeed, is the cover up there. It’s like fridge art, except with a Frances Bacon spin. And here’s a new jam below. Methinks LB just discovered jazz drumming, which is utterly insane.

MP3 :::
Lightning Bolt – Colossus

Sweet Jesus! New Lightning Bolt Album Out in November

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on August 14, 2009

in News

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l_b9f216099a0b481697e0c881dc8f7301 Sweet Jesus! New Lightning Bolt Album Out in November

It’s about goddamn time, too! I mean, I know the Bolt Bros have been busy keepin’ it trill – what, with Black Pus and Wizardzz and a collaboration list that expands exponentially like pi. But it’s been four years since the near-flawless Hypermagic Mountain dropped and made thousands of kids realize their capacity for both love and hate.

Lightning Bolt will drop their load on Load on November 13, and it’s called Earthly Delights. I will buy this record when it comes out. I will partake in some earthly delights whilst the long player plays long on my ghetto blaster. I will turn my phone off. I am not to be disturbed.

And of course, new album means that LB will probably build another great play-on-the-floor-kumbaya tour. When I know, you’ll know.

Tracklist:
1. Sound Guardians
2. Nation of Boar
3. Colossus
4. The Sublime Freak
5. Flooded Chamber
6. Funny Farm
7. Rain on Lake I’m Swimming In
8. S.O.S.
9. Transmissionary

Can’t wait to hear the second track… cuz it’s called “NATION OF BOAR,” you see.

MP3 :::
Lightning Bolt – Birdy

Nothing People – Late Night

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on August 11, 2009

in Praise and Malaise

. Comments

l_ae0f5b5d5f7645749456d0aed765b8f2 Nothing People - Late Night

I feel like a doof for being completely un-fucking-aware that Nothing People dropped a doosey of a jam hive earlier this year until I read Joel Hunt’s review in LEO and got stoked. Late Night is a definite departure from Anonymous. The sound is richer – less spastic and noisy – and straddles the median between tremolo-saturated acid rock and shoegaze. Sure, the tone of this equation sounds like a drugged-induced exercise, but Nothing People keeps the songs focused and concise. This is a group that truly loves and understands Piper at the Gates of Dawn, creating a definitive post-millennial primer for more ominous trips down the rabbit hole.

For those unfamiliar, Nothing People, as a reference point, is Sonic Youth for Hawkwind fans. Despite the general downtempo movement of the group’s repertoire, there’s a subtle punk ethos/urgency that runs under the thick layers of reverb, knob tweakin’, and fuzzy psychedelic haze. And like all the aforementioned collectives, the line between what is improvised and what is intentional is quite blurry. I love it.

Late Night gets things started off brutally. Dig the swamp boogie of “Stuck in the Mud,” with its swinging rhythm and funky low end, or the subterranean sludgy summoner of stoner rock demons and kraut rock pulsars that is “It’s Not Your Speakers.” From there, the mood changes drastically, staring with “Pushing the Buttons,” a beautiful, windswept, desolate dirge that might invoke paranoia in the less hearty of us. “1-11″ stacks backwards samples and crossbreeds those dudes with gorgeous harmonies that, if I had my way, would’ve ended up in one of the Lord of the Rings movies (maybe the part in The Two Towers when Treebeard is all like “fuck ya’ll” and starts a riot). “Another Rattle” should please fans of Wooden Shjips, showcasing thick atomic age analog organs and a dusty, low key, heavy groove (courtesy of the new, uncredited former Monoshock keyboardist). “Janet” is what you hear right before you die, I think.

The album ends with the title track, and it’s actually a cover of the Syd Barrett’s “Late Night” (the same one that Belong beautifully reinterpreted last year). Nothing People adopts a more nauseating angle, with syrupy and sick synthesizers that cultivate a real woozy effect.

Nothing People tackle a myriad of approaches to brain melting rock/psych/post-punk/noise, and in doing so, upped the ante from their debut Anonymous. Late Night is a richly satisfying listening experience and a must-have release for any psych fan. Look for it on the year-end list. I hope Nothing People sells 5 million records.

Late Night is available now courtesy of S-S Records. Nothing People is (are?) also on MySpazz.

For fans of: Wooden Shjips, Dead Meadow, Indian Jewelry, Bardo Pond

Fagen-Becker Quality Rating

MP3 :::
Nothing People – It’s Not Your Speakers
Nothing People – 1-11

Black Pus Continues the Noise Genre’s Tradition of Great Band Names

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on July 22, 2009

in MP3 and Visual Aids

. Comments

black-pus Black Pus Continues the Noise Genres Tradition of Great Band Names

Perhaps one reason we haven’t heard a whole lot from the monolithic Lightning Bolt since 2005’s flawless Wonderful Rainbow is the myriad of undoubtedly time-consuming side projects. Black Pus is one of them, featuring Lightning Bolt’s Brian Chippendale. While Chippendale maintains the holy spastic drumming, interdental vox, and ADHD garage prog vibe that christens the church of Lightning Bolt, he seems to utilize Black Pus as a vehicle to branch out into other songwriting styles, including movements that are almost, zounds!, poppy. Have a look and listen to “Land of the Lost,” a highly hummable tune (the melody almost sounds like the chorus to INXS’ “The One Thing”… almost) with an excellent visual brain rape akin to Paper Rad:

Black Pus just released 0: Ultimate Beat Off on Armageddon. I have yet to hear all of Ultimate Beat Off, but I bet it rules, and Forest Gospel has a review better than anything I could’ve written.

MP3 :::
Black Pus – River That Ran Too Far

Fuck Summer, Give Me Bleak Metal Instead

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on July 21, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

grief_no_absolution Fuck Summer, Give Me Bleak Metal Instead

Earlier this afternoon I posted a review and some tracks from sunny shoegazers The Legends, saying the album was perfect for these warmer months. But I failed to include the Sunn o))) fans in this conversation, many of whom probably find summer to be “lame,” and probably make up a healthy portion of this blog’s readership. Never fear, Chicago’s FSS label just dropped a new doosey by the metal-informed noise/power ambient Grief No Absolution.

Grief No Absolution is truth in advertising. This is suffocating, horrifying, paranoid music – the soundtrack you hear when you’ve been demoted a circle of hell or two for insolence. The group, who formed in 2008 in the orb of primordial ooze that rotates near the Earth’s core, makes Khanate look like more of a “pastel black.” GNA will be releasing two vinyl EPs next month, Eurostopodus Argus and Crypsis, which will also be available for purchase as a single package download. Both EPs play as a full single movement, so the MP3 below is simply an out-of-context taste of what you can expect. Enjoy the sample, then boogie on down to church.

Eurostopodus Argus and Crypsis are available August 10 courtesy of FSS. Celebrate good times.

For fans of: Sunn O))), Wolf Eyes, Earth, Prurient

MP3 :::
Grief No Absolution – My Hands Are Your Fading Cinder

Nasty Psychedelic Dub Courtesy of Forest Swords

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on July 9, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

l_9752bee17e4f4144ad59c4cc5d665f40 Nasty Psychedelic Dub Courtesy of Forest Swords

If the preview of Sun Awar’s latest joint gave you a tingling in the solar plexus, then you’ve gotta hear what Forest Swords are bringing to the table (besides weed). From what one could ascertain from the few songs we’ve heard thus far, Forest Swords do not fake the funk and very much keep their shit extraterrestrial.

“Red Rocks Fogg” showcases heavy, mystic, syrupy dub pipped through fuzz pedals. “Down Steps” takes it one step further, introducing the trip as a sparse reverberated soundscape a la Ambient-era Aphex Twin, then organically builds the celestial grime into an ultra low-end groove so nasty that your face crunches up a bit and you expel a gasp of “daaaang, that’s nasty.” The title track from their forthcoming cassette-only debut Miarches comes correct with acid-damaged minor key pop sensibility, samples resembling some sort of outer space communique picked up by SETI, and actual vocals – giving the song a sort of space dub reinterpretation of early Indian Jewelry.

Forest Swords are sick. Be on the lookout for more from them. Miarches is available for preorder courtesy of Leftist Nautical Antiques.

For fans of: Pocahaunted, Growing, Religious Knives, Scratch Perry

MP3 :::
Forest Swords – Miarches
Forest Swords – Red Rocks Fogg
Forest Swords – Down Steps

Sir Richard Bishop and Oaxacan – Swan Dive, Louisville – 6.24.09

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on June 25, 2009

in Rockshows and Visual Aids

. Comments

Sir Richard Bishop and Oaxacan - Swan Dive, Louisville - 6.24.09

I’d like to be candid with you all before beginning this review of last night’s Sir Richard Bishop performance, saying that what I’m providing you right now is a piss poor concert review. It’s entirely possible that I might spend the majority of this review discussing how goddamn hot it was instead of the actual music that was performed. But that was the reality of the situation – it was practically impossible to bring you all any quality photos and videos since well over a hundred people were packed into the basement of the Swan Dive, there was no stage, and it was about 110 degrees Fahrenheit in the room. Trying to make it to the front was like standing in the entrance to the mouth of hell (and some Oaxacan songs could provide the soundtrack for that). I mean, I do… I like you guys. But I don’t volunerably-standing-in-the-burning-depths-of-a-boiler-room like you. No offense, dude.

At this point, it’s also worth mentioning that I have to plug The Kin Ship gallery. Based on the type of event they were promoting their current exhibit at and the design of the flier, I can assume this is a pretty cool art gallery. However, I’m mainly plugging them because they were a life saver last night. That flier became a makeshift fan that I’ve never been more thankful for having. Thank you, Kin Ship.

Now, on top of my inability to properly cover this show, I missed the legendary, reclusive local freak folk collective Sapat’s opening set. So I can’t even give you an account of how awesome that probably was. We did, however, make it in time for the beginning of Oaxacan’s set. And holy smokes.

It’s very clear why Richie B invited Oaxacan on his tour. Not only were they a perfect example of an incredibly talented, compositionally tight, blisteringly intense noise band (almost in the vein of Lightning Bolt), Oaxacan exhibited a very strong traditional Middle Eastern influence. While they carried the instruments of a rock band (drums, bass, guitar, samplers), Oaxacan sounded like a crazed, futuristic, Persian prog collective. Amy Friebertshauser used her voice, manipulated through samplers, to sound like a cross between incendiary lute riffs and deranged yodeling, cutting through the layered percussion and guitar textures like poisonous tentacles. The 45-minute opening set, with encore, provided a great sondtrack to a Mad Maxian desert documentary… or perhaps the current unrest in Tehran. I was delightfully shocked and emotionally spent after Oaxacan’s set. New fav band alert.
(Oaxacan on MySpazz)

Here are two samples of the exorcism that took place. The second video prominently features the dome of one Matt Minter (ex-Hair Police). We run a professional ship here at The Decibel Tolls, replete with videos of the backs of people’s heads.

Like clockwork, after Oaxacan fizzled out with a soft crash tap, crazy ol’ Richard strolled through and began to set up. Oaxacan did double duty as his backing band, and it was basically like seeing an entirely different band perform. I was impressed… again.

The knighted one ripped right into selections off of The Freak of Araby, using electric guitar as his new divining rod of choice. The former Sun City Girl again, as with his acoustic show I saw opening for Animal Collective, showcased an unreal musical prowess and exploration across vast lands of the Ottoman Empire. As mentioned, it was too hot to even attempt to see the Freak of Araby Ensemble, so this was my view for most of the show:

Sir Richard Bishop and Oaxacan - Swan Dive, Louisville - 6.24.09

So Lana and I found the “awesome zone,” the area of the bar in line-of-sight of the basement’s sole AC unit. We camped out there, drank La Fin Du Mond, and enjoyed the acoustics of Bishop’s live renderings. We really had no intention of leaving this spot. Even if we did make it to the front, there isn’t much to see with Richard Bishop. Without visuals or the like, Bishop’s show consists of a longhair noodling on guitar, probably in a sitting position. This, of course, would be the perfect ambiance for a campfire or intimate outdoor performance, but due to the sweltering conditions inside, it was hard to keep attentive. The music was excellent, but the setting was wrong, I believe. Swan Dive is certainly an awesome locale, but it was a small, narrow space with no stage and a lot of people crammed in the front – all of which happened on an evening in the middle of a very nasty heat wave here in Louisville.

My final thoughts on the show, as if I didn’t already drive this point home – despite Bishop’s mastery of guitar technique and international fusion, Oaxacan kinda stole the night. They were simply amazing.

POSSIBLY RELATED :::
Sir Richard Bishop The Freak of Araby Review

MP3 :::
Oaxacan – Tokyo Lazrs
Sir Richard Bishop – Sidi Mansour

A Tasty Treat from the Animal Crack Box

Published

Kenny Bloggins

on May 16, 2009

in MP3

. Comments

A Tasty Treat from the Animal Crack Box

The long awaited box set of early performances/demos of Animal Collective, spanning roughly 2000 to 2003, recently became available in limited quantities… and said quantities are all gone. Not sure if Catsup Plate is planning on a wider distribution, but Hansen was fortunate enough to grip a copy. Fans of Sung Tongs and before will be absolutely delighted with the sound quality and inclusion of unfamiliar tracks, especially if you were disappointed with Merriweather Post Pavilion (as many of this blog’s readers were, I believe).

That reminds me, if you loved pop-friendly Merriweather Post Pavilion, there’s a good chance you might hate Animal Crack Box. Animal Collective started as a noise and Holy Modal Rounders-style folk band that used to shred hard with C Spencer Yeh and his crew. And now they’re kickin’ it with Letterman! They grew up so fast… But yeah, I love the older stuff, so Animal Crack Box is Christmas come early for me.

Below is a small selection of some of my favorites from the box set with the corresponding liner notes:
“Hey Friend” – recorded live to MiniDisc winter early 2001 at 67 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn by Avey/Panda
“Covered in Frogs” – recorded live to MiniDisc sometime and somewhere in 2003 (recording details are lost) by Avey/Panda
“Jimmy Raven” – recorded live to MiniDisc 18 September 2000 at the Cooler, NYC by Avey/Panda

MP3 :::
Animal Collective – Hey Friend
Animal Collective – Covered in Frogs
Animal Collective – Jimmy Raven