Surprise release from Japanese experimental noise-ravers Suburban Musïk, on their label TAZUNA-KAI. There's only two tracks available for preview at the moment, but the album, entitled "Glory Hole", is supposed to be released at some point tonight. The two cuts on Bandcamp are quite unlike anything they had done before, more minimal and free-improv like.
"Glory Hole" will be released on a "duck-tape" coloured vinyl and can be pre-ordered here. You can stream it below.
This is most likely my last 2021 post, and there's no better way to close it than share the latest video single lifted from Low's excellent "Hey What". While "Double Negative" redefined their career, "Hey What" cements their status as one of the most exciting rock bands out there today. If you haven't listened to it yet, do yourself a favour. There are also some limited vinyl pressings available, including this white variant from Resident music store.
You can stream the whole album after the jump.
I found out about "Lunar Tredd" thanks to one of those end-of-the-year lists, and damn, I do appreciate this discovery. Follow up to his 2013 Moshi Moshi debut "Con-Fusion", this new album from the Trinidadian steel pan icon Fimber Bravo is a mellow and free-flowing party spread across twelve tracks, featuring among many others Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor, The Horrors' Tom Furse and Senegalese musician Mamadou Sarr. Even though it came out in March this year, it's a perfect LP to wrap up the year.
You can get it on vinyl here, and stream below.
MORGVE are Gonza and Nadia, two audio terrorists from Buenos Aires who have been steadily putting out witch-house/rave-punk releases over the last six years. Today is the premiere of their third LP "Halveksiva", without a doubt their most mature and cohesive album to date. Neatly balancing between dark witchy sound and more euphoric big club vibes, MORGVE managed to crystalise their identity while reaching out to new sonic territories for influence. Compared to their "Contra" EP from June this year, there's less distortion and noise, and more melodies, and it works perfectly. Big suprise for the end of 2021, make sure to give this one a spin.
Buy "Halveksiva" here, and stream it below.
Japanese label TAZUNA-KAI released a debut 7" single from experimental producer, vocalist and DJ セーラーかんな子 (Sailor Kannako). It's a bold release that sits on the edge of deconstructed club music, minimal electronica and spoken word. "Kanna-chan" stole my heart from the get-go, thanks to the classic Luniz sample paired with shouted manifesto. It contrasts with calmer "Hachi-chan", an ambient synth production accentuated with subtle percussion. Interesting debut, looking forward to more tracks from her and hopefully an album in the near future.
You can order the vinyl here, and stream the single below.
The Present Moment have just premiered their first single "Life-Line" from the forthcoming album, following up 2019's "Split" that came out on Oráculo Records. The LP will see the light of the day at some point next year, and will be influenced by the works of The Chameleons, Depeche Mode and Pink Floyd. You can stream the single below, I'll keep you in the loop about the album as more information comes my way.
New blink-and-you-miss-it set of edits and remixes from DJ Netflex, available for a limited time only until new year. Includes seven glorious hardcore, jungle, breakbeat, gabber, everything-goes refixes of Evian Christ, Orbital, Low and Liquid among others. Available for free from their bandcamp, but if you buy it, you'll be able to keep them forever. Stream the whole lot below.
Stay Healthy is a shrouded in the veil of enigma trio out of Melbourne, Australia, that debuted in August this year with single "Mallrat", soon followed up by "Sickem". Their style sits somewhere between SALEM's drag, Gothboiclique's take on emotrap and the crooning of Spooky Black. "Sunsleep" is their third official track that premiered just a couple of days ago. You can watch the video above, purchase their work on Bandcamp here, and stream their discography below.
New zombie rave mixtape from Edith Underground, 9 tracks of "sludgey n slowed down rave/dance", to fill in the post-Christmas void. Stream in full below and enjoy the ride.
Zhe Pechorin is a Belgrade-based music producer who released earlier this month her new album on Noir Age (home to Distant Tongues). "Signs" is a six track journey through otherworldly portals, gliding smoothly alongside sci-fi tones & droned out minimalism. Organically shifting and progressing through the noisy cosmic vortex, the album is a blisssful slow-paced trip that brings to mind the opening sequence in Blade Runner. Fantastic record that makes me want to dive into Zhe's back catalogue.
You can buy it on tape here, and stream it below.
Dawuna is a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Ian Mugerwa, previously known for his other project Ot To, Not To. Alternative R&B at its best, Dawuna's album "Glass Lit Dream" is a beautiful tribute to ethereal soulful music championed by D'Angelo, How To Dress Well and more recently RPG with production reminscent of delicate Nicolas Jaar compositions. Self-released (and unmastered) debut, got reissued this year via enigmatic O___o? label and starts getting all the attention it deserves. Hopefully we will see a physical version at some point next year.
Stream the whole album below, and support Dawuna by buying it here.
Rat Heart is an alias of a Wigan musician, producer and DJ Tom Boogizm. He creates deformed club sounds and murky beats with a lo-fi aesthetic, a bunch of which got compiled this year on a self-titled vinyl debut on Shotta Tapes. His music manages to channel Underground Resistance, Arthur Russell, screw and Kutmah, all at once - really eclectic mix.
The records are sold out, but you can stream and buy the digital here.
Smote is a psych-rock project of multi-instrumentalist Daniel Foggin, out of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. I came across his "Drommon" LP a few weeks back while browsing records at Rough Trade East, and man what a glorious ride it is. Psychedelic, almost ritual odyssey with folk undertones, that instantly made me think of early Haxan Cloak vs Hawkwind combo, 100% up my alley. The vinyl edition of the album, put together by Rocket Recordings, consists of two 15-min long tracks that were originally released on tape via Base Materialism in April, and two bonus cuts squeezed in between (you can check out the video for one of them, "Hauberk", below).
"Drommon" can be still ordered directly from the label here, and streamed in full below.
Latest album from the enigmatic producer New Mexican Stargazers, who's been steadily dropping obscure new age jams since 2018. "Highway Dreamscape" is his Not Not Fun debut, a trippy ode to cruising at night that smoothly blends hypnagogic pop, lo-fi synth music and interplanetary psychedelia, reminiscent of those classic Hype Williams LPs and proto-vaporwave from James Ferraro. This sounds like a tape Fox Moulder would pick up at some forgotten gas station during one of those Monster of the Week X-Files episodes.
Looks like the tapes are sold out, but I've found a vinyl fundraising campaign from NNF, so if you want to get this gem on vinyl head over here.
Found this interesting tape today while shopping at Industrial Coast. I'm not really familiar with the label (Noir Age) or their artists, but the collage on the cover did draw my attention. Distant Tongues is a duo consisting of friends Raphael Alvarez and Richard Vergez (who is also the head honcho of Noir Age). Their debut "Ongue Ditas" is a psych-drone record that oozes with trippy new age vibes, or as the label puts it a melding of early minimal music, ambient, and techno primitiv with Carribean, Portuguese, and Basque influence.
You can listen to the whole thing below, and order cassette version here.
She Lost Kontrol started accepting pre-orderds for the latest EP from Swiss coldwave/EBM band Savage Grounds. Now officially joined by the vocalist Kleio Thomaïdes, the trio (including Florin Büchel and Daniele Cosmo) is ready to unveil their new, seven-track project. The label has shared three tracks on their Bandcamp page, that sit somewhere between Milliken Chamber and Tearist, all georgously dark and expressive.
Order the limited to 100 copies, bandcamp-only "Silver Black Marble" vinyl here, or keep an eye out on the black vinyl variant in your fav local record shop. You can stream the EP below.
World, Interrupted is a coldwave/darkwave duo from Warsaw, consisting of Marta Sobczyk and Piotr Murawski. Their debut EP "Deception, Follow Me" came out on tape in September this year via German powerhouse Detriti. It's a five-track project that can pack a punch with its well executed instrumentals but also conjure feelings of melancholy and reflection thanks to the vocals. Their single "Climax" is an absolute darkwave banger, but I also love the sung in Polish slowly rolling cold jam "Nie Mając Gdzie Iść".
Unfortunately the tapes are long gone, but you can still buy the digital version of the EP here. Stream the whole lot below.
Robot Koch just dropped this incredible cover of Mariah Carey's classic, with Delhia de France on vocals. Massive James Bond theme song vibes here, in the best possible sense. Delhia's delicate and soothing voice goes hand in hand with Robot's haunting production. Easily my new fav Christmas song, it begs to be way way longer! Buy it here.
Earlier this year Boody dropped five club-friendly tracks split into two EPs on his recently rebooted NY-based Palms Out Sounds label. Those tracks were sitting on his hard drive for years, and now, all finished and packed were released for free. House, ballroom, jungle, future garage, and dozens other genres are molded into those jams (my personal fav is the lo-fi dubstep/garage sound of "We Had That"), it's a no brainer to snag them while you can.
Grab "Flatbush" here and "We Had That" here, and listen to them both after the jump.
The track above showed up on my Bandcamp timeline today, and surprised by the lack of title or even artist's name (well, based on the url I assumed it's S280False, turns out it's just S280F), I curiously clicked play. Alien IDM a'la Qebrus fused with mindfucktronica of Sadwrist, all sprinkled with shouty vocals and modern classical piano - ok, this is intense. After a bit of research I found S280F's proper Bandcamp and Soundcloud, turns out he's based in LA (or at least that's what the locators on those platforms state), and has at least two equally cryptic albums behind his belt, including one released this year by i8i. Published in April, "28" is a record whose exoskeleton is composed of all those sonic elements I've mentioned before, making it sound like it was sent to Earth from the Nostromo spaceship after orbiting our solar system in solitude for years. It's an organic sound design sculpture mixed with a score to a movie that never was, music that is both delicate and harsh, situated somewhere between Arca's warped electronica from "Xen" and Ben Frost's contemporary compositions. I'm actually still processing it after my first few listens, and will undoubtedly come back to it to discover all the intricacies it offers. This one needs your attention from the very first minute to the last, so consume in one sitting if possible.
You can buy "28" here, and stream it in full below.
Yeong Die is a producer, DJ, sound designer and visual artist based in Seoul. She jumped on my radar today while browsing AVYSS mag, and one link after another I fell into a rabbit hole filled with her mixtapes and albums. This year she released two of the latter, my favourite being "Tomorrow?" pressed on lathe by enmossed. Channelling mutant IDM, industrial experimentation and adding a touch of cinematic feel, Yeong's album is a unique ride into her aural world.
Records are sold out now, but you can download it for free here.
CRAVE is back with a new album on freshly minted Paso Inferior Tapes. His work has always been very cinematic, both in terms of visual references, storytelling and sample use, and it's no different here - the mood shifts throughout "Stabbed In The Jaw And Left Alive" keeping the listener on the edge all the time. It is an industrial record at its core, with experimental rap, harsh noise and power electronics influences ingeniously intertwined into an eerie and gripping project. The titular track even ventures into a hardcore/grimy rave territory, while "Betrayal" sounds like it could be pulled from a Texas Chain Saw Massacre-themed dungeon synth album. The result is seven tracks of uncompromising gritty electronics, an essential listen for anyone willing to hear the best in the current French underground.
Buy the album here, and stream it below. Also, make sure to follow CRAVE's obscure bootleg brand Paso Inferior on Instagram.
Kenji is an electronic producer, poet and writer based in Tokyo. On November 30 he published his album "Edge Of The City" via supernalsofttouch, a 16-track long audiovisual epic that merges the worlds of spoken word, deconstructed club and experimental electronic music. The execution of "Edge of the City" brings to mind musings of Triad God on his cult album for Hippos in Tanks mixed with the grandeur of Chino Amobi's Paradiso and emotional sensitivity of oFF Love. Working in collaboration with numerous filmmakers, Kenji also released videos for nine tracks off the LP, all compiled here (check out one of my fav videos to 綴り, directed by Speedy Lee Genesis, below).
You can download the album for free on his Bandcamp, and stream it after the jump.
The Archives Department premiered yesterday this new EP from Depression Quilts, a four-track set of emotional and leftfield beats, laid over warm ambience accentuated with layers of hiss and field recordings. "This Photograph is My Proof" reminds me equally of Daan Mol, Fifty Grand and HeveN, but manages to crave its own nostalgic trap niche. Beautiful music for sad times to give hope.
Edith flipping Grouper's classic track is one of those things that make life worth living. Last year she dragged "Heavy Water/I'd Rather Be Sleeping" for her visual mixtape "Neighborhood Watch", and today we get lo-fi house edit of "We've All Gone To Sleep". Someone should totally link them two for a collab project. Meanwhile, stream this gem below.
Hauntingly beautiful six improvisations from Chaz Knapp, a Texas based composer and multi-instrumentalist. Released on tape via British label Industrial Coast, "Escapism" was recorded in summer 2021 and consists of various field recordings and tape manipulations scattered throughout vast lands of drone and ambient music. Soundtrack to slowly floating in the outer space or falling down the bleak ocean floor. If you're looking for an album where the artwork (amazing photo by Harrison Palmer) visually translates and complements the musical content, this is it.
Buy the digital version directly from Chaz here, or order tape version from IC here. Stream the whole thing below.
New video single from FKA twigs, featuring The Weeknd and co-produced by El Guincho, Arca and Cirkut. I'm surprised we had to wait so long for this collab, but here it is. Twigs' part of the clip is beautiful, especially the choreography, but Weeknd looks goofy as hell.
100 copies on tape and digital only, cop it and stream here.
LuckyMe premiered first tracks from their annual music advent calendar. Now in its 12th edition, the Christmas compilation showcases some of the most exciting artists that release and collaborate with the label. So far we have 3 tracks (amazing Burial-esque joint from Jacques Greene, chill mix of rock and electronica from Cid Rim and classic r'n'b track from HIRA), and new ones will be unveiled daily. What's best - it's all free. Enjoy below!
Vienna Vox is a Los Angeles-based singer and songwriter, who debuted last year on the "Renewal" EP from Shhadows, in his cover of Desire's "Under Your Spell". I've been following her since then, hoping for some more music, ideally in an album form. Currently, her bandcamp has two more tracks, both featuring minimal, eerie compositions crafted by Shhadows and ethereal vocals from Vienna. One to watch.
Kwake photo by Keifer Nyron Taylor.
Ghost Cop, a NY-based cold/dark wave duo composed of Lucy Swope and Sean Dack, have just premiered their new video single for "You Can Never Go Home". VHS-filter heavy, the clip is an immaculate tribute to the MTV-era video aesthetics and serves as an ideal visual background for the minimal EBM beat adorned with Lucy's vocals.
You can cop the single on their Bandcamp here.
Today is the premiere of the new cassette from Ritualz which compiles first two volumes of his Rare Trax series. Originally released as CDRs for his 2016 SXSW show and 2017 European tour, now they're presented both on one tape, freshly remastered and with new artwork. Content wise we get an eclectic collection of beats, from his classic 2010-era witch-house sound in "Parasite" to dungeon synth in "The Keeper" and trance infused "Vapor" among others. One for the die-hard fans as well as seasonal collectors who look for their first foray into Ritualz' music.
You can order the tape here and stream it in full below. Also, bear in mind that Re:Mission Entertainment reissued his first two EPs on vinyl, so definitely do not miss out on that.
Debut album from Paris-based and NY-born producer, DJ and vocalist Louisa Pillott aka Louisahhh. She's been active on the techno scene since 2011, but this year's "The Practice Of Freedom" is her first official longplay, released via He.She.They. Drawing equally from EBM and industrial influences, the record consists of 11 tracks filled with dark and disruptive techno delivered with punk attitude. It may appear agressive and heavy at first, but behind that initial impression lies a deeply personal, emotional, and skillfully structured album that deals with love, loss and power in a brutally honest and refreshing manner. Mesmerising LP that just came on my radar recently and will definitely stay on my playlist for the foreseeable future.
In November the label reissued "The Practice Of Freedom" as a deluxe edition with a bunch of remixes, check it out here, and stream below.
Here we go, new video single from Alice Glass' upcoming album "Prey//IV". This one is bone-chilling, evoking her abusive relationship with former bandmate Alice narrates her story over a trippy witch-house/electro beat. After hearing all the singles I'm really hyped for the album, which comes out on January 28th on Glass' own label.
Spanish DJ and producer WLDV dropped a juicy 4-track EP on his bandcamp a few days ago, and it hasn't left my speakers for a couple of days now. He describes it as "synth-horror-electro-space-whatever" and that's pretty much spot on. There are echos of early Gatekeeper, UNO-era Fatima Al Qadiri and Carpenter Brut heard throughout, so if you like any of those artists or you're simply a fan of good giallo synthwave you'll definitely dig this.
Download the EP for free here, and stream below. He's got a handful of free releases there, so take a look around.
Male Tears is a darkwave band from Los Angeles, CA consisting of James Edward and Frank Shark. Initially a solo project of Edward, he released Male Tears' self-titled debut in February this year via Pacific Plaza Records. A tribute to the new wave sound, the album has proven popular with fans and is currently on its third cassette pressing. Fast forward a few months and on December 3rd we got a sophomore LP, this time with Shark as a permanent member, put out by the Canadian label Starfield Music. Entitled "Trauma Club", the album is notably darker and spookier from its predecessor, both in terms of the music production and lyrics. By conjuring the 80s goth aesthetic, often flavoured with EBM influences, they crafted seven catchy synth-pop/darkwave songs that will keep you vibing until the next Halloween.
Order "Trauma Club" on vinyl and cassette here, and stream it below.
In other news, Kutmah has also just released a new beat-tape "Insane Propane Dosage", you can stream and buy it here.
Peckham's Rhythm Section International released last month a new EP from the Chilean DJ and producer Paula Tape, which follows up her recent collab single with Volantis. "Astroturismo" is a breazy and upbeat house record filled with balearic vibes and early 90s swagger that should make you nod (if not dance) straight away. Four dancefloor hits for the upcoming winter, get moving.
Shout out to Record Turnover for introducing me to her music. You can stream the whole EP below, and order vinyl here.
Pure Life has just announced a vinyl reissue of "You'll Be Okay, I Promise" from the Canadian dreampunk luminary Sebastien Martin-Schultz aka w u s o 命. Originally released on cassette tape in 2020, this tense cinematic album will be available for preorder on 180 gram vinyl, in two variants: 'Smog' and 'Cloud' tonight at 20:00 GMT. Set your clocks, this one should fly.
Stream the album in full below, and order the vinyl here.
CRAVE posted a new two-track EP on his bandcamp a couple of days ago, follow up to his All Dogs projects from last year. The titular track is an essential listen for fans of gritty, unsettling storytelling backed with distroted beats drowned in layers of noise, while "Celebrity Morgue" is balancing between static-filled ambience and celestial sound design, a contemporary electronic composition that could easily be used in a cinematic sci-fi odyssey. Head over here to buy it and stream below.
I've discovered the London-based duo PC World just a month ago via their fantastic 2019 self-titled EP on Gob Nation (their cassettes sold out a while ago, but it got reissued via Wasted Tapes last year, so make sure to snag that one while in stock). Consisting of William Deacon and Ryan Bellett, PC World's dystopian EBM is exactly the sound I've been missing since //TENSE// called it quits years ago. In February this year Italian label She Lost Kontrol released their follow up entitled "Order", a synth/EBM soundtrack to the post-truth world of today, accentuated with industrial and post-punk elements. The four-track EP is backed with two remixes from Physical Wash and Aktion Mutante that seamlessly complete the package. A must for mutant punks and replicant rebels.
"Order" is out now on 12" vinyl (orange sold-out, but there's a sick-looking lime colour + classic black slab) directly from label's bandcamp. Stream the whole EP below.
The Archives Department is a record label and recording alias of Joseph Randolph, a producer and musician based in NY, also known as Depression Quilts and Rough Year (definitely check out his brilliant EP "Mongrel" from 2015). He's just premiered on label's bandcamp a two-track single "Solstice / Used To". "Solistce" is filled with mellow, leftfield beats that bring to mind works of AFTA-1, but with a post-dubstep bass lingeing somewhere in the back, while "Used To" has a fractured, chillwave-y feel to it. Short and sweet. Stream the whole thing after the jump, and buy for $1 here.
MONOMORTE has expanded his album "The Wiccan" with not one, but two bonus cuts since it dropped on Halloween. In November we got the eerie and atmospheric "The Mirror", and today MONOMORTE uploaded "Skyclad" - a sluggish synthwave track with submerged bassline. This is still one of my favourtie dark electronic albums of 2021, so make sure to check out my review here and buy the album here.
Scythe is a dungeon-synth project of Travis Egedy, better known as Pictureplane. His debut "Candlelit Descent Down the Initiation Well", released in May this year, is one of the best dungeon ambient albums I've heard in a long while. Filled with emotive synths that shape vast and brooding soundscapes, it's a sublime and haunting experience that will undoubtedly appeal to both melancholic crypt keepers as well as dystopian dreampunks. It begs for a physical release.
Download the album for free here (it's worth every donation though), and stream in full below.