Zach Hill - Face Tat

What's that you say? You want the new blog-hype band? Sure, here you go!

Psychedelic Horseshit-esque no wave noise rock. I'm assuming it's awesome but I couldn't tell you as my speakers are broken (FUCK!), so no digi-releases for me. I'll only be listening to vinyl for a while....

Oh well, download and enjoy! Let me know if it's any good...

Try it

The Phantom - Love Me (correction)

If you remember I posted an LP that was credited to The Phantom which featured Love Me and 8 other tracks a little while ago. Turns out the people that pressed that album thought The Phantom was Nick Todd and so tracks 2 through 9 are Nick Todd's recordings. I was pretty annoyed by this for two reasons; one being that Nick Todd's songs are slow and boring. And two; having an incomplete release is one of my pet peeves. So, here's the correction. Only two tracks... Whisper Your Love is a great mellow love song to complement the raw energy in Love Me.

Try it

Cat Whisker - A Cat Whisker Radio

Just received this last night. I really enjoyed it - it's a little different from the norm around here, but change is good I suppose. This album could be described as lo-fi folk-punk. A little light on the lo-fi/fuzz side, but still enough to please those who are used to abrasiveness. Definitely check this out if you've been looking for something to bop around to!

Download this album on his bandcamp!

Update

Finally after almost two months of being disconnected, I'm back to sucking on the teet of the Cyber Mother God we call the "Internet"!

Expect a crap load of new posts to make up for my absence.

Trite music

Raffa Jo Harris

Avoid that person's music at all costs.... the cute girl folk bullshit has worn out it's welcome years ago....

Nobunny - LP

Wow. Now this is something!! Nobunny has been blowing up since around 07 or 08, but this is the culmination of that... This records production values are waaaaaaaay past his other fuzzier stuff (which I prefer), but that's not to say these songs aren't heavy - it's still the same masked bunny crusader of garage rock that we all know and love.

Enjoy!

Try it

Woven Bones - I've Gotta Get 7"

What else could be said about the Woven Bones that hasn't already been said? Well, for one I guess I could be honest and say, although I did enjoy all of their 7" singles, their LP was a complete disappointment to me. All the songs on it were filler.

They kind of made up for that (very slightly) with this 7". Side A sees them putting more emphasis on guitar technicality and showing an almost surf style of playing it. Very catchy song, and although the guitar is very clear on this song, there's still plenty of fuzz to go around.

Side B has the usual fuzzed-out guitar sound. It features an awesome guitar solo half way through. The song is a bit of a slow one, however, it's still a gem.

Try it

The Boo Jays - Is Just To (And Be In)

I came across a supposedly new release from The Boo Jays. I checked their site, doesn't say anything about this coming out soon or anything, but it's definitely them playing.

Really dark and broody stuff going on. A lot more down-tempo than their previous release. They seem to have shifted styles slightly, veering away from the spooky-surf sound and going more towards a softer Woven Bones sound. Not really sure how I feel about that though.....

At any rate, download and enjoy!

Try it

NO INTERNET

I'm currently without internet....coupled with the fact that the fall semester just started one could only imagine how sparingly I'll be posting for a while. However, if things turn out well, this weekend I'll have a mega post! I've got a lot of bands emailing me releases and I've got a special post about the Solace Media Corporation's second compilation album that just came out! So please check back this weekend!

Waylon Thornton - Paranormal High School

I couldn't help it! I decided to post an extra album from White Moon Recordings. This one is very special though.....it's Waylon Thornton sans The Heavy Hands. He's also the one running White Moon Recordings with his Wife and partner in crime and music. Recorded during the Witching Hour (don't you love all the occult references! I do!), which is anywhere from midnight to 6am in some cases. Not the Waylon most of you are used to, it's very stripped down and mellow but still very spooky. Awesome change of pace and I'm really looking forward to his second installment in the Paranormal High School series!

Try it

Lost Boy? - MTV

Another Lost Boy album for you kids. If you guys enjoyed the last Lost Boy album I posted then definitely download MTV (released by White Moon Recordings). Nothing really too different from his past albums, but I can say he's gotten a lot better - but what do you expect, this guy has released more albums than anyone could handle (and all of them are free!), and it's obviously paying off when it comes to his sound. There are some old favorites of mine on this album (Grim Reaper, Taste Butter, Ice Cream Man).

Try it

A Duck Named Ping - The Dirty Queen and The Coming Clean

I didn't want to like this, but it ended up being enjoyable. Not really sure what to write - either because I'm speechless or just not well versed in this genre of music (maybe a little of both?). It's just really simple, melancholy, piano-based songs. The artist resides in Richmond (which I believe Nerve City does as well when he's not in Miami!). I get the same heavy feeling when I listen to this that I do when I listen to Daniel Johnston....it's a sort of "not wanting to look at a car crash but you end up looking anyway" feeling...

This is part of the releases that White Moon Recordings sent me, one more to come plus a special surprise post!

Try it

Ghost Coast - Draft Dodgers

Every now and then someone sends me something truly remarkable....and this is that 'something'. Waylon, from the band Waylon Thornton and The Heavy Hands, is running a label called White Moon Recordings - this is one of the bands he features. They're a couple of high school kids from Texas who make this incredibly fuzzy, grimey, lo-fi garage country-twang music that is just fucking incredible! Very similiar to Nerve City. and Pipsqueak! (how odd that both bands have punctuation in their names...) but not in a derivative way. This band needs to put out a record soon if they haven't already, they would blow up for sure...

Try it

Lil Daggers - Unmastered Demos

South Florida is just thriving with awesome music lately. These guys just released (or will soon, not sure) their King Corpse (Korpse? I've seen different sources with different spellings) 7". I came across this, which is the same release just unmastered, and it still sounds fucking amazing! These guys rival the Jacuzzi Boys in terms of raw, unfiltered garage punk energy. They accompany the broody vocals with a creepy church organ and stomping drums. All tracks on this 7" are completely amazing, however, Devil You Know is too fucking good!

"I like my drinking ffffffffffast, and my dancing slooooooooooooow"!

Try it

Bunker Hill - Singles Collection

Former gospel singer with a roaring voice as strong Metatrons' (get it? gospel singer, bible joke?). I've only come across something that was released so early and still heavy and punk-like as this a few times (Los Saicos and The Phantom)....

This is a collection of his singles I've gathered and compiled into one zip file for you guys. One of the singles, Friday Night Dance Party is credited towards Link Wray, but since it's Bunker Hill that's singing (Link rarely sings) I figured I'd add it on anyway.....it's also my favorite one, so....

At any rate, enjoy!

Try it

Waggers Over The Station - Upekkha

"....My name is Waggers Over the Station, and this album I am sending you, "Upekkha" is one that has been the largest part of my life for the most of a year, I have done all the instrumentation, vocals, recording, production and mastering myself and have spent many hours trying to perfect the sound which I have wanted to create.

Though all songs are written originally as pieces for guitar and voice alone, but they morphed into much different animals, and my love for the sonic qualities of Noise bands like Wolf Eyes and Sword Heaven made their print along the way, as well as the drone and oriental sounding pieces of bands like Natural Snow Buildings, Sun Araw and Grails, though some songs are down-right poppy with the exuberant nature of Animal Collective, and occasionally soft and Folky in the way Phil Elverum presents his early Mount Eerie albums.
The album was conceived as a whole, and is a cycle in itself, but not so much that I would discourage listening to a single track to see if you enjoy it, though each song has it's own idiosyncratic rules and sonic design, there is no technique or set of instruments that carries from one to the next, though the moods should be sufficient to make it a cohesive whole."

Listen to this music....right....now

Try it

The Phantom - Love Me

LISTEN TO THIS RIGHT NOW!

This is extremely amazing surf/rockabilly styled garage rock that really puts me in the mood to wear my blue suede shoes and start dancing! "Love Me" is the opener on the LP and it's The Phantom's hit single. It's really ahead of it's time - incredibly wild and crazy. The style reminds me of Los Saicos in that it prochronistically channels this sort of intense punk energy. There are about 4 or 5 songs that are "rockers", while the rest are slower love songs. Definitely a must listen!

Try it

Women - No Reasons

This is a pretty interesting mix of hardcore punk and garage punk, leaning more towards the Kommie Kilpatrick kind of punk. It's fast, aggressive, loud, and messy! This is the groups second release which can be purchased at womenphiladelphia.com. The purchase includes immediate download in any format you desire plus the limited edition vinyl and two bonus songs!

The whole album has a total 80's/90's hardcore punk sound and complete "fuck you" attitude that you've come to love about punk. The cover (which is pretty awesome) pretty much depicts this album perfectly - two similar things spliced together in the most gruesome fashion to form something that could sort of work (a music frankenstein?). Drunkenly belted vocals, aggressive guitar and drums, and songs that fall under the two minute mark are what you can expect and you'll love every minute of it. Garage gutter punk for the don't-give-a-fuck teen in you.

Try it

Pipsqueak - s/t CS

Really raunchy, lo-fi, garage rock from cali. They released this cassette on the AMAZING Burger Records and it's really a big hit. Garage tunes with a blues twang at times and even some old school R&B. Wish I could write more to convince you guys, but I have to get ready for work. Take my word though - check this guy out. Also be sure to buy his new 7" that just came out

Try it

Jeromes Dream/Orchid - split 7" (skull shaped vinyl)

I wonder how many of you actually come to my blog for the screamo/grindcore I rarely post? Judging by the download count of the previous screamo I've posted, I'd say about.....10 people in total. Hahahaha, oh well...

I couldn't resist posting this! It's a mother fucking SKULL SHAPED VINYL! It's one sided with Jeromes Dream playing from the outside to the center and Orchid playing from the inside to the outer rim of the vinyl. Jeromes Dream section is amazing as always; chaotic, crazy, and shrieking vocals. Orchid comes in with their melodic and more structured hardcore influenced screamo. Both are a pleasure to listen to.

Try it

Lost Boy - 1991

Weird pop music... kind of hard to describe. Fuzzy, lo-fi, and high falsetto vocals. Fun music, and most importantly, FREE MUSIC! He posts all of his albums on mediafire for your downloading pleasure. This one's my favorite of his. I find his other albums too long and they start to fade into the background.

Try It

Terror Bird - Sociopaths Are Glam CS

Canada is such a weird place when it comes to music.... These guys are from Vancouver and they've released a few cassettes, however, this is the only one I've listened to as it was released through one of my favorite labels (Night People). This is dark brooding pop for an 80's goth prom - minimal synths and piano are washed over with Nikki's reverb drenched voice. It feels very nostalgic at times. This music is almost like (dare I say it?) proto-Witch House with the slow tempo, dissonant vocals, and, as previously mentioned, the minimalistic synths.

Definitely check it out if you're info female vocals, pop, witch house, or cheesey 80's glam anything

Try It

Teepee Interview

How did your solo music project, TeePee, come about?

Before I started Teepee I was playing in bands like the The Mutiny, Cocksuckers Anonymous, Tusks, & Free Improv groups. They were all amazing groups but I really wanted to try and write solo based material. One particular event that just struck the whole thing was when the Electric Bunnies needed a guitarist for a show in Orlando. I told them that i'd be willing to learn the material and play the show. They decided to take me in. We drove up to Orlando and I experienced a whole new world of music. We stayed the night at Rich's house from Florida's Dying records. He was running his label/distro out of his house at the time. All of us crammed into a small room and listened to everything he had for sale. I was blown away by a lot of the records and bought a few records my friends told me to pick up. I was glued to the records and I decided to seriously take on a solo project.

How do you feel about juggling time/creative efforts between The Electric Bunnies and Melted Sunglasses and your solo music?

I guess I have a lot of energy when it comes down to playing/writing/recording music. Whenever the time comes when I have to practice with all the bands I feel good and productive because i'm running around the city, spending late nights rehearsing or recording, talking about music, and all that fun stuff.

Which band/music project offers more creative freedom?

Also I noticed at So Raw you had a live band - mostly I've seen you play entirely solo... Would you care to elaborate on this new expansion?

Teepee. Especially when I play live, I feel more freedom because I don't have to play a particular song exactly the way its recorded or even have to play the versus and choruses the same length. At times I have musicians sit in with me and the songs end up being completely different. Even though I play most of my shows by myself. Whenever I do have other musicians sit in with me, I love it because they add their own feel to the song. I'm a fan of Jazz so I kind of transferred the whole "jam session-like" mentality over to Teepee. Since I don't have a "band" yet, I like to have all kinds of musicians play with me.

How do you feel about the local music scene and the resurgence of garage rock in today's underground music scene?

I'm very excited about it. I like how there's no specific genre that were all playing. If you compare the Electric Bunnies to Jacuzzi Boys you obviously have 2 completely different sounds. In my opinion the music genre is all over the place, in a good way.

A lot of your releases (S.S Norway) seem to have very elaborate and interesting background stories, how do you come up with them?

Everyone is full of stories. Sometimes I hear a particular story that really effects me and if it strikes a musical idea, I'll tend to use it.

Also, any other release of yours have an interesting concept to them besides S.S Norway?

I released a cassette called "Wooden Noise". And the idea came to me while I was listening to chain saws cutting down trees. Their were about 4 men cutting down trees that day and I noticed that each chain saw had it's own note and the intervals of each note made a very dissonant chord in the air. I grabbed my field recording mic and recorded a few minutes of it. After that I decided to create a few songs on wooden instruments but I used some keyboard effects to enhance the sound.

Any releases we should look forward from you or your various bands?

My main project at the moment is my 2nd LP. It's been in the works since December 2009. My partner in crime, Albert Ovadia is the engineer for the album and he's done an amazing job so far. The production and sonic quality of this record is over the top (in a good way of course) compared to my past releases. Since we have no deadline we've been taking our time with it. And this album will actually consist of a band! So i'm super stoked for that!

other stuff to come out one day:

Teepee 10" on Mastermind Records

Nerve City/Teepee Tape split

The Dreams/Teepee 7" split on Kill Shaman Records

MillionYoungs/Teepee Record split on Sweat Records

V/A HoZac Hookup Klub 12" Compilation on HoZac

I fucking love this guy. Awesome local florida music!

Moonhearts - s/t LP

UH OH! Charlie and the Moonhearts now just go by "Moonhearts". Worry not; they still play the same garage rock you guys love!

I'll post/write much more when I have the time...

Try it

Best Coast - LP

Bethany has cleaned up her sound for her new album Crazy For You, but don't let that turn you off, it's still just fuzzy enough and all of her infectious melodies are intact!

Try it

Solace Media Corporation - An interesting interview

So, some of you might remember I mentioned Solace Media Corporation on Record Store Day. They focus on harsh noise and drone and they're pretty interesting. Here's an interview I did with them about a month ago....I received it in a weird format, but knowing them they probably wanted it to stay that way. So here it is; unedited!

Royal Jelly: What inspired you as a label to focus on noise/drone?

Solace Media: well it depends on what answer you are looking for?

1.
we dont really focus on anything, we trust the law of attraction...
dont you know the secret?
LOL
2.
LIST :
domestic violence, WIC cheese, dirt, radio static, UHF consumption, electromagnetics, UFOs, ghosts, the whistling sounds of trains from far away,copy machines, brain damage, self consciousness, self awareness, self humiliation, mistakes, accidents, boredom, transference,prescribed amphetamines, zero, death, sunyata (the void), demons, infinity, altered states, dreams, psychic phenomenon, feedback, stand up comedy, performance art, lies, honesty, CONFLICT, RESOLUTION ...



&TONS OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE...

3.
i saw Emil Beaulieau on july 13 2003 that's what made me realize that i can do whatever i want to do.

i didnt feel alone anymore.

HARSH NOISE

i have always been fascinated by recording sound:

i had been recording in my bedroom on tape recorders since 1996 or something... just fans and pillows and breathing and and casio keyboard
all cut up in collage, i didnt know that people already did that sort of thing WAY before i was born, i thought i was doing something new.

RJ: The packaging designs are really amazing, who comes up with the?

SMC: OUR DESIGNER

RJ: What is the inspiration for them?

OUR DESIGNER SAYS:

"I AM NOT INSPIRED BY ANY ONE THING FOR EACH RELEASE IS ITS OWN FLAVOR, AND DESERVES ITS OWN THOUGHT SPACE AND ITS OWN REASON TO BE. I LIKE TO LISTEN TO THE RELEASE WHILE I AM COMING UP WITH THE ARTWORK FOR THE COVERS"

RJ: What are your goals as a label?

SMC: our goal is to keep up the good work

release sounds that we feel need to be released

into the future, but most important is the present

RJ: What are some of your favorite releases/bands that you've featured?

SMC: kommissar hjuler und mama baer from flensburg germany

we put out a cdr for them they put out a cdr for us we did split with them

and they are on the 2010 compilation

they are really funny





sir calvi from manchester makes some sweet beets

the mesmerists are my favorite local band (cincinnati)

wasteland jazz ensemble is my second favorite local band

nebulagirl is probably the nicest person i have ever met

RJ: Anything planned for the future?

SMC: another compilation coming soon more tightly wound around the core solace media corporation members

**********
Junk thought


sir calvi


the mesmerists

AV

post phobia phobia
********

we are re-releasing wasteland jazz ensemble's first cassette on CDR



new calvi & scab release coming soon



working on working on a collaboration with cloaca FROM FAT WORM OF ERROR



new junk thought soon


EVERYONE LIVES EVERYONE WINS /JUNK THOUGHT SPLIT



COMING SOON TOO



LOTS
&
LOTS
&
LOTS
&LOTS


????????

Crooneres Decadentes - Ærø

Brazilian lo-fi rock. Pretty cool music to chill to...

Here are their influences; The Libertines, Silverchair, Sonic Youth, St.Vincent, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, My Bloody Valentine, Mombojó, Los Hermanos, The Kills Death From Above 1979, Nirvana, At The Drive-in, Queens Of The Stone Age,The Black Keys and Incubus.

Try it

So Raw - Interview

So Raw is a garage-punk-whatever music festival that's been making waves since last year, going on to win "best of" in the Miami New Times!

Royal Jelly: So, who came up with the idea of this festival, who were involved, and how did you get it off the ground?

Nicole Irizarry: The festival was thought up by Danny Bratkowski of Danny Denim, Melted Sunglasses, and most recently of the acclaimed So Raw/Chicago band, Brian's Dirty Business. He was complaining that bands rarely travel down to Miami because there is no festival type event to look forward to. So we made one. Christiane Allen came on to help me with all of the boring stuff and Danny handled the music and bands for the first year. We also rely heavily on our friends' free labor and acceptance of beer as payment.

RJ: Last years festival was very successful, would you attribute that success to the growing support for the local miami/florida music scene?

NI: Yeah, totally. We've seen the Miami scene grow like crazy. More bands are forming and more people are heading out to shows. People like Matt from Roofless Records, Ricardo from This Heart Electric, Sean from the Deaf Poets and Rob from the 305 Fest, put on great shows that help support tons of bands. Miami finally has a scene.The only thing missing is a venue.

RJ: I've noticed some you involved seem to be personal friends with a lot of the bands you feature; has that helped build a better sense of community within this scene?

NI: The music scene is for the most part a pretty incestuous community. Usually, a person is part of a few bands and everyone seems to know each other so it's no surprise we're all friends. We also like supporting other people that are doing similar things to us, like Roofless Records, so we eventually become friends that way. It's very cool to see a large group of people with the same goal; to drink as much canned beer as possible!

RJ: The Sweat-Stock After Party was a great experience for me (sans the fights), how often do you guys throw parties during the year (besides the So Raw Fest)?

NI: We don't really have a set number of parties or shows . The only constant is the festival. This year we did 8 shows in between the two festivals and opened up our store. It was a busy year that involved way too much drinking.

RJ: Tell us a bit about the So Raw Store.

NI: We combined our love of coffee, records, and snacks and made a store. It's a pop up store so we'll only be around until the end of July, hopefully a little longer. During the day we sell Cuban coffee and snacks and we're planning some night time events to get people drinking our beer. We're open Monday through Saturday from noon to 6pm. Come visit and bring us big macs.

RJ: What do you think of the current trend of garage rock, especially in Florida?

NI: We have tons of bands coming out of Miami and the rest of the state that are nationally known and are fucking awesome and more and more people are getting into the DIY sound.

RJ: Any surprises planned for the future?

NI: If there are any surprises, I'll be the last to know.

RJ: I'd like to thank you for taking the time for this interview. Anything else you'd like to say to our readers?

NI: Keep drinking our beer please!

The Sonics - Here Are The Sonics

The kings of Garage Punk - The Sonics! So incredibly raunchy and loud! You'll feel cool as fuck listening to this at your local jukebox bar....

Formed in the early 60's these guys took regular ol' Rock n' Roll and stepped it up by playing everything faster and harder. Sticking true to their roots, they cover a lot of classics in their albums but their original material is where they truly shine. Songs like The Witch and He's Waiting deal with the occult, and others deal with typical teenage culture at the time. I didn't like the album upon first listen (I even deleted it), but I changed my mind after hearing The Witch again. I suppose the album may be a grower for some of you. Regardless, be sure to check it out

Try it

The Mummies - Fuck CD's, it's THE MUMMIES!

Sorry I took so long posting this... I hope most of you know about The Mummies! If not, you're in for a fuzzy, thrashy, garage-punk treat! Formed in the late 80's, they came up with the idea of "Budget Rock" and as such, opted to record and play only on outdated and broken equipment. They would also go on stage in mummy outfits... awesome? Yes! Undead garage rock should make a come back!

They've had various releases, but this one resonates with me the most.

Try it

The Traditional Fools - Self Titled

I hope you guys aren't too tired of awesome garage rock cause here comes some more! This band was/is one of Ty Segall's many music projects. I believe this is him at his best. To be honest: he's ruined the Sic Alps (made them into a cliche noise rock band), his solo work has gone downhill (what the fuck was Melted supposed to be?) and his collaboration with Mike is subpar...

The Traditional Fools however don't pull any punches, they don't rely on any gimmicks.....just pure, heavy, fuzzy garage rock to blow your ear drums into oblivion. The opening song is pure magic!

Try it (link borrowed from Static Fuzz)

The Anasazis - 7"

One of the greatest pleasures in this world is listening to a perfect 7" record... and this is one of them. Four tracks of perfectly rowdy and simple garage rock songs. I'm really looking forward to hearing an LP from The Anasazis but they haven't posted any updates yet.... I'll keep you guys posted if anything!

Try it

Drawgasmic

Many of you may not know this, but technically, this blog is also a visual arts blog. So to honor that, I'm going to promote Drawgasmic. It's a one day art show which will then be cataloged into an art book. My artwork is included in the show and in the book. The book can be purchased the day of the show. Over 1,000 artists will be featured!

Surfers Blood

Just wanted to inform everyone that Surfers Blood is utter shit.

Weird Totem

Bedroom Psychedelic Pop. This guy has just started this project and is looking for some exposure. He's got a lot of stuff to offer and is hoping to expand into a full band. If you've got the time, head on over to his myspace page, check out his demos, and let him know what you think.

Myspace

Terraform - Temporal Junk

This is a really awesome tape I was sent from a band named "Terraform". Don't know much about these guys. They remind me of this local band named "TUSK" who play the same brand of "broken jazz rock". All songs feature very extravagant vocals that lend well to the stop and go rhythm section. The sax blares drunkenly and the guitars churn out riffs over a ring leader-esque persona that commands your attention. It's a lot to take in at first, but trust me, give it a second listen! They're selling the tape at Karamazov Recordings, but like every generous indie band, they offer their music for free! So, be sure to check them out!

Try it

The Sonics - The Witch

Amazing! Look forward to their album which I'll be posting later this week!

The Super Vacations - Thicker Milk

Some more mind-bending psychedelic rock for you guys from The Super Vacations! It's some really abrasive stuff, not really what I look for but still a solid release. Haphazard melodies fold out in huge guitar riffs. A lone voice echoes, bouncing through a forest of fog to urge you to step deeper in and lose yourself. Creepy enough? Anyway, this LP is coming out in June through SHDWPLY, make sure to check that out!

Try it

Modest Mouse - Tube Fruit, All Smiles, and Chocolate (rare early cassette release)

So, I stumbled upon this on 4chan of all places. The guy won it on an ebay auction for an unspoken amount of money (I'm guessing around $200) and he decided to upload it for everyone! It's, from what I understand, the FIRST demo tape Modest Mouse recorded. I believe less than 100 copies were made. It's very self-indulgent in sound - similar to Jeff Mangum's early tapes. Most songs are spastic 30 seconds of artistic leakage from the lead singers brain. Speaking of the lead singer; he's all I hear on the tape. Perhaps it was a solo thing? Anyway, I can't say I'm a huge Modest Mouse fan, if at all, but I'm one that can greatly appreciate hearing something so intimate like this.

Try it

Top Surprise - Everything Must Go

Pug Records, a new label located in Brazil, has just released this awesome tape from a band called Top Surprise. They play a brand of shitgaze with an influence in pop-punk. The vocals are great as far as the lo-fi aesthetic goes - sounds like they're coming out of blown out speakers. The fuzzy guitars lazily sway back and forth and meld perfectly with the hollow drums. I'm not sure if the band is from Brazil, but all the vocals seem to be in english. It'd be nice (assuming they're from brazil) if they had some songs in their native tongue as it's always nice to listen to music in another language. The tape ends with a folky Jeff Mangum-esque song. All in all it's a solid tape and I look forward to seeing this band mature

The record label, which I mentioned earlier, just started out. This is their second release and apart from producing awesome handmade lo-fi tape releases they actually offer all the music they have (except for their distro stuff) for FREE. That's right, they actually support blogs and agree that, without this sort of attention, most underground bands might not reach as much people....

Make sure to check out their other release and also take a look at what they're offering at their distro because they have some REALLY great tapes for sale like Beat Happening, Tiger Trap, and a few under-appreciated Elephant 6 bands!

Try it

Pug Records

Waylon Thornton and The Heavy Hands - Pure Evil

More spooky garage rock to sooth the soul. This band is a husband and wife duo from gainesville florida that churns out really great tunes. These are rockin' and rollin' songs that'll get a party started and I can only imagine how great it'd be to see them play live. The guys' voice has a spooky preacher vibe that reminds me of The Amazing Defenders with their brand of gospel inspired garage rock - other than that, you can just expect loud and heavy music in the vein of Woven Bones and Ty Segall.

Check it out!

Try it

Another thing...

Below the awesome new logo Le Noise has provided is a character some of you may be familiar with....he's the King Slime from Dragon Quest. I figure he'd make a nice mascot for the blog.

New logo!

Thanks to Le Noise I have a new logo!

Besides taking the time to make text graphics for me they also post really amazing music in the vein of garage rock/pop and noise rock, so be sure to check them out if you haven't already.

I've got a few more posts planned for next week including a rare Modest Mouse demo tape.

The Band In Heaven - Demo

I've been meaning to post this up since last week! This is a shoegaze band from Orlando called The Band In Heaven. They, of course, give off MBV vibes and everything, but I sense something else buried under everything - I sense a Black Tambourine/Noise Pop influence. Fuzz drooling amps pulse as the dreamy vocals sweep in and completely surround you. I hear a keyboard on top of everything which adds a nice touch. The vocals are really on point. "Tunnel into Your Dreams" has dual male/female vocals which are always an awesome thing with a genre that gives off hazy/dreamy vibes like shoegaze. Their cover of The Cranberries "Dreams" is so incredibly epic and if you're not into shoegaze, at least check that song out. The three song demo ends with "High Low" which is my least favorite of the songs featured in the demo. I can see a lot of growth for the band and I'm sure they've got something planned to release soon, so be sure to check them out!

Post Script; if anyone can guess what angel I decided to use for the picture I'll....I dunno...I'll post anything you request

Myspace
Band Site
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American Football - s/t

Perfect album...... that's all I'd like to say, honestly. However, part of running a blog is voicing my opinion in a more in depth manner so.....

I'd like to start with the album cover. It says so much about the emotion behind the album - which is what a good album cover should evoke, I suppose. It has a very nostalgic feeling. Perhaps it was the singers home when growing up? My interpretation is that of an ex-boyfriend looking up, longingly, at his former girlfriends house. Perhaps he's trying to get her back by playing guitar or something? I dunno, but it's sweet...

As for the music it's really mellow math-rock influenced emo. I'm assuming everyone understands that when I say "emo" I mean actual emo: 90's emo. Not the mindless dribble that get's tagged with emo. The guitar and layering in "Never Meant" is so amazing. Some songs feature a sax or something and it surprisingly fits in really well.

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Los Saicos - Wild Teen Punk From Peru 1965

Wild Teen Punk From Peru 1965.... that title says it all, really. This band is completely mind blowing for two reasons: first, for the time period, music this heavy was unheard of and second, the band claims to have never listened to garage rock from America before. Could Los Saicos be the first proto-punk/garage band? Maybe... One thing I know for certain is that this is one of the BEST garage rock albums ever. Throat heavy vocals over swirling surf-punk guitars... yum. This is a collection of all their singles and an unofficial album. They never released an LP before breaking up to lead normals lives. Listen to the song Demolicion. You'll thank me later...

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The Boo Jays - Happy Halloween 7"

I was sent this awesome 7" from The Boo Jays last week to post on my blog. I was actually already planning on posting it because I've been listening to the mp3's of this 7" for quite some time now and I must say, it's a really amazing release. Yes, more garage rock, but they've got a definite sound that's all their own. Think of a spooky Halloween party at an abandoned house with a surf punk band dressed up as various demons and fiends playing some awesome tunes.. Most of the lyrics are occult themed, or at least the title of the songs are and it definitely radiates a spooky vibe. More so if you buy the glow-in-the-dark 7"...

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The Sunshine Fix - A Spiraling World of Pop

I'm on a cassette roll! This is the first album Bill Doss (most famous for being in the Olivia Tremor Control) recorded under the moniker "The Sunshine Fix". This tape actually predates The Elephant Six Recording Company; it was recorded sometime while Doss was in high school and then later re-released with the E6 stamp of approval. This tape really evokes that sort of "friends banding together to make something awesome" feeling that most listeners of anything from E6 are familiar with. Except for the song "Leonard Upon Entering the Fish Market" - there's nothing too crazy or abrasive like Jeff's early tapes... just awesome fuzzy pop songs.

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Neutral Milk Hotel - Rare Demo Tapes

NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL MEGA POST! This post contains 6 rare demo tapes and 1 live bootleg recorded at a record store...

Beauty; Pretty good tape. It's a probably one of my favorites because of the track "conversation with Will Hart" which, as the title suggests, is a conversation with Will from The Olivia Tremor Control. Stand out tracks include "Engine", "Circle of Friends", and "Bucket". Volume is kinda low on this tape so make sure to turn up your speakers.

Hype City Soundtrack; The first "official" album from NMH. Pretty interesting tape. I love his sound collages and whatnot. This one is my all time favorite tape, so be sure to check this one out.

Invent Yourself A Shortcake; WARNING; avoid this one unless, like me, you can appreciate sound collages, noise, or drone. This is VERY experimental and not at all like Jeff played at the end of his career. Favorite tracks are; "Digestion Machine", "Calypso", and "A&E Melody".

Shannon's Monroe House Demos; I will quote this from neutralmilkhotel.org; "This recording is a cassette of Jeff Mangum home demos recorded circa 1991-1993 originally given to Shannon Palmer in August 1994 by John Fernandes (Olivia Tremor Control) when they were housemates. In November 2005, Shannon kindly sent the tape to neutralmilkhotel.org to digitalize and enable it to be shared online. We wanted to first get Jeff's permission, however he has been elusive and has yet to give a verdict. A few songs have "leaked" from it, however.
It came with no track info, so most of the song titles have been guessed (Unconfirmed titles are indicated on the tracklist in parenthesis), though some have been identified thanks to detective work and friendly folks." Very awesome tape, it WAS my favorite....but I've grown tired of it honestly. My favorite tracks are "Jennifer", "Arms So Real", "Smile".

Unreleased Demo #1; Not much to say; no one really knows much about this tape at all. It just showed up on soulseek one day. Worth a listen.

Unreleased Demo #2; Same story as above....it surfaced around 2005.

Aquarius Records Show; One of the BEST Neutral Milk Hotel bootlegs. It's a live solo show Jeff did to promote In The Aeroplane Over The Sea. This is one of the few time he's played "Oh Sister" the partner song (and the better of the two) to "Oh, Comely". I'm not sure which one you're suppose to listen to first, but they definitely are related...

Anyway, here are all the tapes split into two links.

Part 1

Part 2

ENJOY!

Bones That Have Been Woven - Debut LP

FUUUUUUUUUUCK YEAH!

The new WOVEN BONES LP is out. Head over to my favorite blog Le Noise to check it out! I'll write up a nice post about it once I digest it. But of course, you'll be greeted with the same wild, fuzzy hard driven garage rock that we're all used to.

Jacuzzi Boys - Smells Dead music video

Jacuzzi Boys first ever official video!!! It suits them. It has a really hazy vibe...

Jacuzzi Boys - Smells Dead from John McSwain on Vimeo.

DRAWGASMIC!!!

I know I've been ignoring the art aspect of this blog for a while, but this post will definitely make up for it! My art is being featured in drawgasmic! It's going to be a one night show with a book being published as a follow up!! Awesome? Yes!

Neon Tongues - Big Kid

I fucking love Neon Tongues! This is their Big Kid tape - it only has two songs. Side A is a scuzzy, lo-fi, garage-pop jam that will be permanently ingrained into your brain because it's so damn catchy! Side B is good as well; not really much to say. I really hope these guys release something new though, I haven't heard anything from them since this tape was released 7 months or so ago.

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Dick Dog - Demo

I got this submission about a week ago and it's pretty great. Dick Dog, from cali, play a brand of shoegaze influenced garage rock/pop. Tracks like "The Buzz" have really dreamy dual vocals with a female vocalist. They're pretty good song writers, but I can see a lot of potential for growth as this band matures.

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Sweatstock and Record Store Day

Took me an entire 24 hours just to recover from Sweatstock and Record Store Day. I'll line out my entire day and include a link to see pictures of the event.

We get to Sweat Records an hour after it opens to get the first picks on the exclusive records. Sweat had a problem with their distributors and were short-stocked on all the releases. Nothing really caught my eye...I saw a Thee Silver Mt. Zion release that, as far as I know, was not a RSD exclusive. Mountain Goats release looked pretty good, but that's about it. I was really looking forward to the Black Tambourine re-release, however, they didn't have it in stock. Everyone was clamoring over the extremely over-hyped and mediocre Surfers Blood split 7". I can't even say their name without spitting. YUCK! After that, we decided to kill some time until the bands played, so we went down the street to acquire food products for sustenance. Got back and the scene was complete chaos...middle-aged hipsters wandering around the freebie table holding at least two Malfi's (the friendswithyou toy giveaway) and a bunch of posters of bands they don't like (Tokio Hotel).

Outside the bands had begun to set up. To me, the bands were filler until the Jacuzzi Boys and No Age, however I was pleasantly surprised by Animal Tropical and Otto van Schirach. The singer from a musical act I already hated (Raffa and Rainer) pissed me off though, leading me to hate her music with an even more fiery passion and indignation... You know when you see someone and you just instantly hate them, and everything they do pisses you off? Well, that's what happened with her. I mean, seriously, who the fuck wears a yellow dress and turquoise boots? And that whole "cute" folk bullshit is so overplayed. Fuck Raffa and Rainer!

Anyway, the Jacuzzi Boys were a great show but being that it was so bright out, the music didn't go well with the mood. Otto Van Schirach blew my fucking mind with their stage antics. Costumes, magic staffs, and a giant phallic trash bag filled with air, bopping over the crowd is was everyone that caught their set were greeted with. Afterward I caught half the No Age show and then headed inside see my friend MC Jumanji perform with Juan Basshead (did I get that right?). They were great - they basically got half the people from outside to come in and filled Sweat Records to the brim with people. By now it was 11 and the show shifted from Sweat Records (who were getting ready to close) to Churchills! Didn't really get to enjoy much of Sweatstock Part 2 at Churchills because I was planning on going to the So Raw after party. However, I did catch this one band (whose name I did not catch) that sounded like the Yeah Yeah Yeah's (in a good way).

At So Raw I was greeted with, after paying the 5 dollar cover fee, free beer and jello shots! Yum. So Raw was exactly the kind of place I was looking for. They were playing fuzzy garage rock all night, the mood was just right. Then, to my surprise, the Jacuzzi Boys started setting up (bonus Jacuzzi Boys show!). The reason it was a surprise was because the only bands on the bill were Teenagers and Lil Daggers, none of which, to my knowledge, played. I later found out it was due to a family emergency. Here's hoping everything is fine. Anyway, they setup and TeePee get's up and plays first (another awesome surprise). Now, here's where the night get's a little weird...half a song into the Jacuzzi Boys set a fight breaks out...the band slowly stops playing and lead singer wields his guitar like a battle axe. Then another brawl broke out and it was lead outside at which point they closed the barb-wire gate and continued with the show leaving the brawlers locked outside. I left after this, I believe it was around 1am or 2am, and I figured Lil Daggers weren't going to play.

So, there you have it, I hope everyone had a good time on RSD and for the locals; I hope you enjoyed Sweatstock!

For anyone curious as to what I bought, I got the Solace Media Corporation Comp CD. I had no clue what I was buying. The packaging was really great, everything was DIY. It was limited to 111 copies. Turns out it was a noise/drone/sound collage compilation. Not what I was hoping for, but not disappointed either. I'd upload for you guys, but it turns out their website allows you to grab it for free, so I'll post a link at the bottom for those interested.

Links;
Sweatstock pictures
So Raw Fest
Sweat Records
Solace Media Corp

Dose One - Soft Skulls

Spoken word album, so not really much to say on my part. Really contemplative and moody. Some lines are kinda witty as well. I did some research on this guy, apparently he's associated with Anitcon and Why?. Take a listen if you're interested in a change of pace.

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Black Vatican - Zed Omega

One of my favorite Night People releases (next to The Twerps, of course)! Black Vatican are one of the best blown-speaker-pop bands I know about. The dusty fuzz and scuzz is all part of their charm. They released this cassette in 07, I believe, and I haven't heard from them much after that. Which is a damn shame - I would've liked to have seen what else they could churn out. Halfway through the album, after all the fuzz dies down, they have this very zen-like song that features trickling water.

Stand out tracks are; "I Was Born To Live Life", "I Don't Wanna Fight", "Dream Jogger", and "Hey, Do It".

UPDATE: Andy from Black Vatican contacted me with this info; "BV is putting out a new full LP this Summer on Locust Music. It's called "Oceanic Feelin'". A lot of the stuff on this tape also appears on a split LP with True Primes also on Locust. This split kinda didn't register for whatever reason, even though I think sounds good."

Be sure to look out for it when it gets released! It'll be completely worth the purchase as these guys are great!

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Combatwoundedveteran - I know A Girls That Developes Crime Scene Photos

Not the kind of music I usually post or even listen to, but I have a soft spot for Florida bands. Combatwoundedveteran play a brand of hardcore punk that is heavily influenced by early screamo like Orchid and Jeromes Dream and grindcore. Extremely sonically abrasive music. Not recommended unless you already enjoy (early)screamo, emo-violence, grindcore, or hardcore punk. With that said, most people seem to think that the lyrical content is mindless dribble - while true in some cases, this band was actually very socially pro-active and most of their lyrics reflect as such. They dealt with social issues such as gender roles, materialism, politics, etc. Most songs fall short at just under a minute, while some songs, on their earlier release, pass the 6 minute mark.

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Ariel Pinks Haunted Graffiti - YAS DuDette

A rare tour-only cassette tape featuring hard to find Ariel Pink songs and obscure/unreleased b-sides. I went through a phase with this release - I really enjoyed the first half, but once I passed the mid-point it starts to drag out and get redundant. I don't listen to it much anymore, but, if you're a hardcore Ariel Pinks Haunted Graffiti fan, you'll know what to expect and enjoy it regardless. Stand out tracks for me include "Bogalusa, Louisiana", "My Molly", and "Poultry Heads."

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Psychedelic Horseshit - Shitgaze Anthems

So many things one could say about this band! For starters; their name! What the fuck is "Psychedelic Horsehit?" I personally enjoy it but everyone seems to really hate their name. Anyway, this band is completely underrated in terms of jump starting the entire "shitgaze" movement. "What is shitgaze" you might ask. Well, shitgaze was coined as a joke at first to describe the sonically abrasive manner in which this band played - to further explain it's a reference to the "shoegaze" genre of music and the fact that, because they pushed the amps to their limits, it sounded like "shit". To those with sophisticated ears, you can very easily hear the pop aesthetic buried under the awesome layer of fuzz. Those that can't/won't are missing out.

One good reason to follow this band is the drama the lead singer is always providing with various feuds with other bands such as Wavves and TV on the Radio. Here's a funny interview showcasing as such.

Anyway, check out this awesome album if you're into lo-fi rock/pop or, and I might be stretching this, shoegaze.

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