Wolf: “A song I wrote in the desert this February standing on a distance
enough back from the world to gather a perspective on its spin and return
with this message from the dove – visiting me the morning a sandstorm was
making its way in – the video, compiled in part with my footage from my
yearly journeys is yours to disappear into too.”
TUTV: Wolf‘s voice stands out (again)
on this philosophising pondering.
Their 3rd LP. A concept one with a 24-page original comic
book created with longtime collaborator Rich Ragsdale.
Story: “Set in the once-glorious land of Cliptopia, where a sentient A.I. known
as Cliptron and his army of robots are resourcing everything, then turning it all
into Clipnex brand paperclips, the album follows young artist Hippard O. Campus Jr.
as he rebels against his father, Hippard Sr. (owner of the CLIPNEX corporation and
creator of CLIPTRON).
With help from salty sea-dog Colonel O’Coren, Hipp embarks on a fantastical adventure
to stop Cliptron’s cold, chrome heart from converting the world, humans included, into paperclips.”
Hipp’s quest leads across the sea to the Isle of Lucidity, where the all-wise Ministry of Manatees guide him to the Great Parrot-Ox, whose Golden Egg of Empathy is the only
thing that can bring understanding and emotion to Cliptron.
Claypool: “The album was over three years in the making and was the most labor intensive recording I have ever been involved in. The results are something Shiner and I are very proud
of. A relevant concept piece accompanied by a colorful, phantasmic comic book.”
Lennon: “The record is a cautionary tale of what could be in store for humanity if we continue to favor machines over men. It is a tale of a technocracy eclipsed by paperclips; a young man destined to unravel the fabric of his father’s folly, and a sacred feathered Goddess (played by WILLOW), who holds the egg-shaped key to their future.”
TUTV: Lucy in the sky with diamonds? Well, sort of. This unusual pair take you on a trip where they treat you with a mix of 60s dream pop, prog-rock, and rainbow psychedelia. Mind you, it’s an accessible record to go eight miles high to, but it goes a long way, 1 hour and 2 minutes, and the fictional story in play isn’t a simple one to get hold of.
En route, this retro-addicted duo play round elaborated poppy tunes that are dressed
up with yesteryear orchestrations, and plenty of space for Claypool’s bass extravaganza.
After a couple of spins, I’m not sure yet if this is a bad, good, or very good LP (certainly not a delirium one). I know that doesn’t make sense, I suppose. But yes, I’m confused, so I’ll get back to my headphones and see what happens this time.
It’s their debut and features serrated guitars and dance-floor synths locked in
a frenetic embrace, vocals that move from operatic power to breathy seduction,
and basslines designed to rattle both club subs and metal venues alike.
MMBD’s sonic palette evokes a post-apocalyptic ballroom and is a
bold statement of intent from a band that refuses to be predictable.
Utterly cool, glamorous, showy and inventive artwork.
Scottish dream pop collective BELLE AND SEBASTIAN released their
debut LP, called TIGERMILK, on 6 June 1996, today 30 years ago.
It came out through a small Scottish label, ‘Electric Honey‘, on a limited release of
just 1,000 copies. It sold out quickly, but it took 3 years to re-release it properly
and sell over 120.000 units.
The album is named after an instrumental that did not end up on the record.
All of the songs were written by Stuart Murdoch between 1993 and 1996, and
originally performed solo on the Glasgow open mic circuit.
The LP’s cover photograph was taken by Murdoch and features his girlfriend Joanne Kenney, who also appeared on the cover of the Dog On Wheels EP.
Pitchfork wrote: “Tigermilk is proof that pop can foster a community
without catering to elitism or attempting to be one-size-fits-all.”
TUTV: Start of a long, successful career for
the melancholic and romantic pop masters.
Press info: “An record called Roses would be concerned with romantic gestures.
Across the ten tracks, intimate spaces and stages of love are captured with a nostalgic, vaseline-coated lens. Candles burn inside red glass as lovers get close in a leather booth.
Celebrity headshots gaze down like angels in a restaurant. Elsewhere, carnations are pressed in a black book and dancers pull each other close. Widowspeak is a band that
riffs on big emotions without being too self-serious. The sweetness, even silliness, of an extended limerent phase that becomes as all-consuming as a pulpy trade paperback.
Cars and their drivers serve as a way to talk about codependency. If music can simultaneously be naturalistic and noir, saturated and lush, that is Widowspeak.
They’re a band that knowshow to set a scene.”
Far Out Magazine says: “Conjuring dreamy, folksy nuggets from life’s unassuming
corners, Widowspeak herald a charming return, delicately rippling with slowcore
ambience and a touching songcraft that carries Roses a respectable distance.”
TUTV: OMG, I’m lazy today. If I say that this record sounds like Mazzy Star backed
by Neil Young on acoustic and electric guitar I guess you know what to expect.
Renowed blues addict SEASICK STEVE (born Steven Gene Leach 75 years ago in Oakland, California) will release his 14th LP, baptized The Last Season Of America on September 18.
Press info: “In 2024, Steve and his wife Elisabeth took a road trip across America where
he witnessed the poverty and divisiveness in the context of the upcoming election.
They were in a New Orleans club where a house band leader welcomed two Belgian musicians on stage by saying “welcome to the last season of America”.
It led to a deeply personal, heartfelt reflection on the state of
his home nation with a new protest record in the truest sense.”
So far, the man shared 3 tasters, withBAD THINGS
as the one I can’t stop listening and cheering to.
Here’s a semi-live version (studio verion + some enthousiastic fans in the room). Steve raps like the best on this irristible hip-hop stomper that wipes the floor
with that American idiot in the White House.
