Grimes - We Appreciate Power

While she has certainly been doing her best to turn me away from her particular brand of pop music this year (i'm sorry, but hanging around Elon Musk and defending his hubris and bullshit, much less dating that gremlin makes you a dipshit), "We Appreciate Power," the latest jam from Grimes is an absolute banger.  Featuring an assist from pop artist HANA, the song takes Grimes's usual quirky, freaky pop music and pairs it with some industrial oomph.  Watch the video below and be on the lookout for a new album sometime in the near-ish future.

Friday Horror Trailer - The Hills Have Eyes

Parsnip

Last year, Melbourne, Australia's Parsnip put out a pretty good little 7" of girls-in-the-garage-style psych rock.  And now they're back at it again with their new "Feeling Small" 7".  Listen to the title track below and get the record here from Anti Fade.

Astronoid - I Dream in Lines

Boston band Astronoid's 2016 album "Air" was one of my favorite records that year, and now we've got the sophomore, self-titled follow up headed our way on February 1st from Blood Music.  I'm somewhat of a sucker for the band's blend of black metal, shoegaze, post rock, prog, and emo, the shredding riffs and blast beats giving extra oomph to the soaring, angelic vocals.  Watch the video for new single "I Dream in Lines" below and pre-order here.

Khruangbin - Christmas Time Is Here

We're in the post-Thanksgiving/pre-Christmas days of the year, which means Christmas music will be practically inescapable for the next 4 weeks.  But that's not necessarily a bad thing, as i've mentioned before, that despite my distaste and distrust for organized religion and rampant, unhinged consumerism, i love Christmas time and the pop music it brings us.  There's some good, even great stuff out there, both classic and new.  You just have to look for it.  And so we have Houston's Khruangbin and their soulful psych groove rendition of the Vince Guaraldi classic "Christmas Time Is Here."  You know, the one from Charlie Brown.  Anyway, give it a listen below and download it here from Dead Oceans.

Iceage - Broken Hours

Danish punks Iceage appear to not be quite through with us yet in 2018, dropping another new tune with the bleak and moody "Broken Hours."  Listen below, and if you haven't be sure to grab the band's "Beyondless" LP that came out earlier this year on Matador.

The Putbacks

Australia's really been killing it on the musical front the last several years, and the latest to give me goosebumps is Melbourne soul/R&B/jazz/funk/psych band The Putbacks.  The band combine smoky soul grooves with cinematic spy music jazz, and funky beats just waiting to be sampled by some enterprising deejay.  Listen to the Bilal assisted "The Ways" below and get the self-titled album here from HopeStreet Recordings.

Writhing Squares

If you work in retail like i do, these last couple of days have been pretty shitty, early mornings, late evenings and crowds of insufferable consumers consuming, consuming, consuming...  But, here's a little brain melter from Philly psych rock act Writhing Squares to even you out a little, or maybe to just blast the remnants of your body, mind, and soul into the outer cosmos.  At any rate, let's get away for awhile.  The upcoming "Out of the Ether" LP is headed our way from Trouble In Mind in January, but the music and brain melting gods have been so giving as to let us have the 20-minute fryer "A Whole New Jupiter" ahead of time, with plenty of krautrock, prog, jazz, and sax to massage all of those brain wrinkles.  Listen below and pre-order here.

Aesop Rock & Tobacco are Malibu Ken

Aesop Rock and Tobacco are making a record together.  Two great tastes that go great together.  Listen to "Acid King" below and pre-order the upcoming "Malibu Ken" album from Aesop Rock and Tobacco are Malibu Ken here from Rhymesayers Entertainment.

Friday Horror Trailer - Blood Rage

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

Unusual Sounds

If anybody's looking to get me an early Christmas present, i've got an idea for you.  Mexican Summer's Anthology Recordings offshoot just released "Unusual Sounds," a collection of obscure library music trading in all kinds of sounds, from rock to jazz to avant garde and beyond.  A companion record to the David Hollander curated book of the same name, this album hits all the notes that make my inner record collector giddy with glee.  Listen to low tempo, motorik krautrock of Klaus Weiss's "Survivor" below and get the album here.

Nicole Atkins & Mark Lanegan - November Rain

Two of my favorite voices in pop music have collided to cover an almost 30-year old epic rock staple, Guns N' Roses' "November Rain."  Nicole Atkins lends her old sultry country twang to the song along with Mark Lanegan's gravelly croon to create a piece of dusty Americana along with slide guitars and plenty of melancholy.  It works and it's great.  Listen below.

The Stargazer Lilies

I'm a longtime fan of shoegaze, that particular genre of noise and reverb and echo acting as an aural balm to my aching soul, and one of my favorite acts to come out in recent years who practice in that kind of sound is Pennsylvania band The Stargazer Lilies.  The group's "Lost" LP was one of my favorite records of 2017, and now they've got a couple of new tracks out, hopefully a sign of a new album to come.  Listen to the swirly drawl of "Supernatural" below and then get it here from the band.

Grave Flowers Bongo Band

Please just lift this plague from off my house.  We're all still sick around here, and going slightly mad because of it, so here's some tripped psych folk from Hoover iii member Gabe Flores and his wonderfully titled project Grave Flowers Bongo Band.  Listen to "Birds" below, which features bongos of course, and get the "Flower Pot" LP here from Permanent Records.

Perturbator - B-Sides and Remixes Vol. II

A few days ago, i posted about French synth wave producer Perturbator's new collection of B-sides and remixes, and lo and behold, now we've got a second volume.  Hooray!  Listen to "Rage Main Theme (Score)" below and get "B-Sides and Remixes Vol. II" here from Blood Music.

Friday Horror Trailer - Def by Temptation

Jon Spencer

It's insane to me that it's 2018, and we're just now finally getting the first official solo release from Jon Spencer.  The man has been blasting our ears with his particular brand of scuzzy rock n' blues n' fusion for decades via Pussy Galore, Blues Explosion, and more, so i guess it was going to happen eventually.  And so we get "Spencer Sings the Hits," a trip into the fuzzy shakin' groove the artist so easily employs.  Listen to "I Got the Hits" below and get the record here from In The Red.

Launder

LA artist Launder released an excellent EP earlier this year, and now he's got a new 7" headed our way in January.  Listen to the jangly, shoegaze and dreampop indebted "Powder" below and pre-order the record here from House Arrest Distribution.

Cindy Lee

One of my most favorite artists to get into these last few years is Cindy Lee, the wonderful project of ex-Women member Patrick Flegel.  The mix of old girl group sounds meshing with lo-fi noise and hum has been like something i was always searching for to listen to, yet never knew what it was.  And now, the artist has digitally released "Model Express," the instantly sold out cassette of unused takes, B-sides, alternate versions, and other unheard sonic detritus.  Stream the whole thing below and get it here via W.25th.

Superchunk with Damian Abraham

My son has been sick for days, his fever going up and down like a damn rollercoaster.  And i'm worried, but stuck at work, and posting mindlessly about music.  Anyway, Superchunk have a couple new songs out benefiting 350.org.  "Our Work Is Done" features a vocal assist from new label mate, Fucked Up's Damian Abraham, and "Total Eclipse" is a Klaus Nomi cover of all things.  Both are great.  Listen below and then go get them here via Merge, and help raise money to fight climate change.

Myrkur

December brings us new music from black metal/dark folk chanteuse Myrkur.  Always a welcome and wonderful thing.  Listen to the gorgeous and haunting "Juniper" below and pre-order the 7" here from Relapse.

Kosmischer Läufer Volume Four

I am continuously a sucker for the mystery band.  The more far out and exotic the back story, the more entranced i am.  And so we get the tale of German electronic composer Martin Zeichnete and his long lost recordings of motorik krautrock recorded between 1972 and 1983 as music for the East German Olympic program to train to.  And now these lost gems are being compiled by Unknown Capability Recordings, the latest of which, "Kosmischer Läufer Volume Four" is out later this month.

Of course, this whole back story is bullshit, but that doesn't make it any less fun.  And so far, no one's fessing up, though it's more than likely the work of the record label's founders.  Anyway, it's good stuff.  Listen to "Zeit zum Laufen 150" below, get it here, and then maybe take a run or something.

David Lynch - Ant Head

Good news everyone!  Today, David Lynch released a new experimental short film entitled "Ant Head."  It stars some ants and a kind of head-shaped piece of cheese and features some sounds and music from his recent Thought Gang album with Angelo Badalamenti.  The short is on YouTube now, it's weird, and it's kind of meditative.  Anyway, watch it below and get the Thought Gang record here from Sacred Bones.

Mercury Rev and Margo Price

It's been a little bit since we last got new music from the oft uncategorizable Mercury Rev, but it appears we have a new record on the horizon heading our way in February.  And it's a tribute/cover album of singer/songwriter country artist Bobbie Gentry's 1968 record "The Delta Sweete."  The band's take on the record, "Bobbie Gentry's The Delta Sweete Revisited" features a whole slew of guest vocalists as well, including Hope Sandoval, Rachel Goswell, Marissa Nadler, Vashti Bunyan, and more.  You can pre-order it here via Bella Union, but in the meantime, listen to "Sermon" below, featuring Margo Price on vocals.  The band's cosmic psych-leaning, hypnotizing music paired with Price's old school country vocals makes for a dusty, spacey, and fascinating listen.

Perturbator

Synth wave maestro Perturbator has a new album of B-sides and remixes out, coincidentally enough entitled "B-Sides and Remixs Vol. 1."  Listen to the artist's mix of fellow synth wave rager GosT's "Behemoth," and get your bangers out.  Then get it here from Blood Music.

RIP Stan Lee

Man, this one stings.  It's hard to even fathom the kind of impact Stan Lee has had on our popular culture, or more specifically on me when i was a kid.  I was painfully shy at times growing up, often paralyzed at even the thought of venturing out to make friends, and for a time comic books were my little world to get lost in, a balm for the loneliness.  And how i loved Stan and Kirby's and Ditko's creations, each one more iconic than the next.  They meant the world to me.  Forever a "Make Mine Marvel" guy, rest in peace Stan Lee.  Excelsior!

Keep Shelly In Athens

I feel like it's been a minute since we last heard from Greek artist Keep Shelly In Athens.  Well, the pop duo is here to remedy that with two new songs.  Listen to "Bendable" below and download the pair here.

Dravier

The Not Not Fun label has always excelled at releasing artists making dubby, gooey, warbly music to transcend planes to.  Seattle's Dravier is no exception, nor is new album "Spirit Channels."  It's the perfect kind of mind melter to listen to while making breakfast in the morning, clearing the head of that last holiday ale you probably shouldn't have had last night.  Listen to the kind of island vibe of the title track below, order the cassette here, and enjoy your bacon and eggs.

HEALTH x Youth Code

After some recent collaborations with Soccer Mommy and Perturbator, LA electro-noise makers HEALTH have a new jam out today, teaming up with fellow LA duo Youth Code.  Listen to the pummeling industrial slam of "Innocence" below.

Colin Self

I'm not really sure how to describe "Siblings," the latest release from New York artist Colin Self.  It's kind of a hybrid of new age, dance, world music, experimental melodies, and avant garde pop.  But whatever you want to call it, it sounds immense.  Watch the video for "Emblem" below and grab the album here via RVNG Intl.

Friday Horror Trailer - Pieces

Penelope Trappes

When you cite your influences as artists like Mazzy Star, Scott Walker, Nick Cave, Julee Cruise, This Mortal Coil, Leyland Kirby, and David Lynch, you've pretty much assured that i'm going to give your work a good, long listen.  And so we have "Penelope Two," the sophomore release from UK artist Penelope Trappes.  Her influences serve her well too, the record existing in some kind of melancholy ethereal dream state.  It's an almost overwhelming intoxicating listen.  Check out "Maeve" below and get the record here via Houndstooth.

The C.I.A.

Maybe someday i'll have the kind of energy and gusto that Ty Segall has, as the artist is set to release his 5th (or 6th if you count that "Orange Rainbow" cassette) this year.  New project The C.I.A. features Segall's wife Denee on vocals and is a little scorcher of a garage rock record.  Watch the maybe, kinda-sorta NSFW video for "Pleasure Seeker" below and be on the lookout for the self-titled album sometime in December on In The Red.

Black Arcade

I don't know how to feel about the results from last night.  Certainly there's some shit in there as Ted Cruz will continue to be my senator (shudder), and voter suppression is running rampant in Georgia, but my little corner of the suburbs flipped blue, as did some other long red areas surrounding Austin, and that's great.  But i still feel a little defeated.  That said, it's as perfect a time as any for some darkwave synth pop and post punk, this time around from Kentucky artist Black Arcade.  Listen to "Death Is Not a Lover" below and get the new "The Rectangle Rose" album here from the band.

Two People

Going to have to do my best to stay away from social media and election returns tonight.  I don't know if my soul can take it.  So, guess i'll be watching cartoons with the boys and listening to the sultry, dreampop meets trip-hop sounds of Australian duo Two People.  Watch the video for "In the Garden" below and be on the lookout for debut album "First Body" in January on Terrible Records.

Iceage - Balm of Gilead

Not content with just putting out what might be my favorite album the year, Danish post punk band Iceage are now starting up their North American tour alongside The Black Lips, and they've got a new single out.  "Balm of Gilead" will appear on a split 7" with their tourmates available at the shows.  Listen to the exasperated caterwaul below.

LCD Soundsystem - (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang

It looks like LCD Soundsystem has new record headed our way in the near future, "Electric Lady Sessions," a collection of live studio tracks.  And just in time for election day on Tuesday, or as a middle finger to the increasing wave of domestic terrorism in our midst, they've released a cover of Heaven 17's anti-fascist jam "(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang."  And even though it's pushing 40, the song is probably more relevant these days.  Listen below and be on the lookout for the record soon.

Also, go vote.  And then punch a fascist in the face.

Makaya McCraven

Admittedly, i am very much a novice when it comes to jazz music, and modern jazz in particular, but i still like it, can still feel it in my bones, and still try to seek it out, a kind of sonic soul cleanse of sorts.  That being said, Chicago label International Anthem is a great resource for discovering new jazz artists.  And i'm making good use of that.  Paris born, New England raised, and Chicago residing artist Makaya McCraven's latest effort, the sprawling and epic "Universal Beings" feels absolutely immense, almost too much to process, but also serves as a wonderful kind of gateway for any and everything going on out there right now, like it's tapping into some deep spiritual and human notion.  Listen to the Junius Paul assisted "Prosperity's Fear" below and order the record here.

Friday Horror Trailer - The Evil Dead

Boy Harsher

Still two more months to go in 2018, a year that has lasted a lifetime, and now we're already starting to get hints and tastes of music to come next year.  February sees the release of Massachusetts darkwave synth band Boy Harsher's newest album "Careful."  Dark, icy, and brooding, it should be just what the doctor ordered during the dead of winter.  Listen to "Face the Fire" below and pre-order the record here from the band.