July has been one hell of a great month for new music. We just had to squeeze in another one of these before it was over. August is already looking to be a cracking 4 weeks as well…
Meadowsilver – “Hushabye Mountain”
We may be in the middle of a heatwave, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t take a turn into the autumnal electro-folk sounds of Meadowsilver.
Comprised of Stephen Stannard of Rowan : Morrison/The Rowan Amber Mill, Grey Malkin of The Hare and The Moon and Gayle Brogan of Pefkin, Meadowsilver blends gothic synth rock with the darkly pastoral elements that are heavily associated with the soundtracks of classic Folk Horror films, like Blood on Satan’s Claw or The Wicker Man.
For this single, the band takes the already eerie “Hushabye Mountain” from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and pushes it deep into a world of shadows, forgotten cemeteries and pagan spirits. You can practically feel the sun become blotted out above you and your blood running cold as the track progresses. Never before has a combination of flutes, keyboards and a tango rhythm felt so chilling.
If you enjoy this track, keep an ear out for the upcoming album later this year. Learn more about them here.
The Mighty High and Dry – “Bobby Sterling”
From my old stomping grounds of Rochester, NY (and a sort of sibling band to Dangerbyrd) The Mighty High and Dry are quite simply a rollicking great time. Like placing a new, well-oiled engine into a rusted out ’54 Chevy, the band here breathes new life into the haggard spirit of “heartland rock” with this swaying barroom ballad.
“Bobby Sterling” is a haunting yet astoundingly catchy tune about squandered opportunities and wasted lives at the hands of alcoholism. Shades of The Boss are certainly detectable here, but the track’s brutally honest lyrics and country-tinted sound very much brings to mind the work of Margo Price and Rayland Baxter.
If the tough and defiantly resilient city of Rochester had a voice, it just might sound like the music of The Mighty High and Dry.
Bitches in The Beehive – Itty Bitty Spaces
The last roundup post featured music by Minda Lacy, and since then, she pointed me towards her band, Bitches in The Beehive.
This folk rock group fuses together elements of bluegrass, gypsy jazz and blues with surreally personal lyrics. All of the songs here have an air of fun (even if their words say otherwise) and contain sweet melodies and relaxed attitudes. It’s hard not to smile and feel yourself start to decompress while listening to this record.
Apart from Lacy on guitar and vocals, the band features: Larrea Cottingham on violin and viola, Caleb Kalisher on bass and back-up vocals, Lindsay Mercer on accordion and back-up vocals and David Rauenzahn on drums and Brooklyn Baron on kazoo and back-up vocals as well.
If you’re a long time reader of RCU, you might find that the sound here is a little reminiscent of past artists that I’ve covered here, like Erika Lundahl and Mulberry Soul.
Burnt Paw – “Silver Antlers”
Burnt Paw’s music exists outside of time. It sounds both new but also ancient. It feels as though it just continually exists, like a great hill of unchanging stone in a grand landscape.
His Lunar Vortex Incantations album is a gorgeous collection stoic English folk-influenced songs and skillful fingerpicking. His music appears to be just as inspired by the likes of Nick Drake and In Gowan Ring as it is by the moon, the forests and the spiritual beauty of the world around him.
The newly released video for “Silver Antlers” highlights this aspect of his music well. Surrounded by props of the sun and moon that bear the styles of pre-Christian British art, the video brings out some of Burnt Paw’s pagan elements. The reverence for the natural world is deeply apparent throughout the piece of film, and this point is driven home by the hand painted sign at the end that states: “everything that lives is holy.”
You can buy and hear his full album here.
De Lorians – S/T
My god, what a debut!
It’s absolutely astounding that De Lorians is a contemporary band with just one album under their belt (thus far), instead of a weathered team of well-seasoned jazz fusionists in 1974, that have cut at least ten records already. This record is that good.
Receiving a release by Beyond Beyond is Beyond Records this week (the label clearly can do no wrong), this stellar LP is a showcase of pure musical prowess, as the Japanese band hurtles from one complex time signature to another, while juggling absurd polyrhythms and a whole kaleidoscope of surreal tempos and styles.
It doesn’t do them justice at all, but it has to be said…these cats can play.
Their monstrously psychedelic jazz-rock jams are so tight; you’d swear that the band has to be telepathic. Their sound and playing abilities are akin with Third-era Soft Machine, Larks Tongues-era King Crimson and The Mothers of Invention at their peak. Even the weirdness of Henry Cow and Floh De Cologne is hinted at here and there. In other words, De Lorians might be some of the most skilled musicians operating today.
Pre-orders are still open for splattered colored vinyl, black vinyl and CD here.
Speaking of BBIB, did you buy a copy of their 2019 Summer Sampler yet? It’s $5 and features Prana Crafter, TENGGER, Tarotplane, Dire Wolves, The Myrrors, De Lorians, Garcia Peoples, and many other heavy hitters. Most importantly, all proceeds go to the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. So what’re you waiting for??
Hurricane Heart Attacks – S/T
Between the electro drums, dry bass and chromatic reverb during the first thirty seconds or so of Hurricane Heart Attacks’ self-titled album, you might get the impression that you’re listening to a synthy ’80s New Age record. However, if you stick with it for about a minute longer, things start to take a trippy turn into acid shoegaze territory.
This Argentinian band takes minimalist industrial pop compositions and refracts them through a prism of Spacemen 3’s music, leading to a very dark and stark psychedelic rock.
Despite the roots of their sound, this is one of the most lysergic albums that you’ll likely hear this year. The whole record is filled with pieces that meander with hypnotically repetitive beats, mind-frying guitars and vocals that are totally slathered with the eeriest of echoing effects.
“Fake Gold” stands out as being a highlight. The track is a shadowy world of disturbed mechanical psychedelia, sounding like a potential counterpoint to the Spacemen’s “Walkin’ With Jesus.” It pairs beautifully with following track; the euphorically high “Close to The Sun,” which is as bright and freeing as the title might suggest.
For best results, play this one loudly in the dark, very late at night, while you’re wearing shades.
This is just one of several releases that I’ll be reviewing over the next few weeks by the good folks over at Little Cloud Records. You can buy this record from them here.
Ami Dang – Parted Plains
To be fair, I have so far only heard the preview tracks that’ve been released thus far, but based on the strength of those songs alone, you’re in for a powerfully enriching time with this record.
Ami Dang has combined here elements of raga, electro-pop and astral ambience a blanketing seascape of warmly surreal sounds. Sitars float freely around through an atmosphere of pulsating drones and skittering electronics. If you imagine Popol Vuh being remixed by St. Vincent and Amorphous Androgynous, you might get something like this.
What I really love about the three currently available songs (no worries, the full release will come out in about a week) is how much of a healing and loving vibe comes through the music. Even though these pieces are just instrumentals, they make you feel comforted, sheltered and at peace. This is a record that I think all of us need this year.
Preorder it here on vinyl and digital today.
-KH
Record Crates United 