REVIEW: Shadows Of Our Souls - Sea Of Gold EP (2012)

A truly fantastic New Jersey reggae-rock project between two musically inclined brothers (Jeffrey and Jeremy King respectively), Shadows Of Our Souls put out this little gem of an EP, Sea Of Gold, on Soundcloud last year for any intrepid listener to experience. And if its of any indication, they're going to be a force to be reckoned with before a whole lot more time passes!

To elaborate, this set of tunes numbers seven, and even in that short space of music, its hard not to get taken in by their unique, laid back fusionized take on relaxation -- acoustic guitar idyllically riveting around some hip-hop texturing and the dazed, summery hip-hoppish banter and singing of the brothers themselves. 'The Crashing Tide' even featuring some nice, stoned out harmonizing that rises above some busy drum work and homegrown production. Incredibly promising stuff really, and yet another indication that some of the best stuff floating around there isn't being paraded around on Facebook giveaways or slick websites -- its the stuff being recorded by chill bros and thrown onto Soundcloud independently that the guys at the top need to be wary of...cause one day it'll rise up!

All that being said, anyone with a taste for something snazzy to smoke your next joint to would be wise to let Shadow Of Our Souls pay your browser (and your mind) a visit. Hell, you might even get hooked....you just never know!

Check It Out Here!!!

Dεpεchε Modε - Violαtor (1990)

Need I honestly embellish some bullshit reason for you to stick this methanized-or-mayhap-robotized pop classic somewhere in that unsightly wreck you call a collection? Really now? *laughs maniacally whilst not so subtly sneaking away to somewhere with better whiskey*.

Synths galore from every hipster's favorite 80's group...and it'll throck your socks off.

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Single Mothers - Indian Pussy (2012)

Primordial, filthy and sounding like something fresh out of an archeological dig for some kind of badass Californian pharaoh, Single Mothers are an L.A. act (led by singer-songwriter Harry Cloud) who are pioneering new, whacky ways to grind your brain to mush with their bizarre, yet beautiful take on buzzed out, modern day psychedelia.

Sonically, there's a billion comparisons but no true parallel within these seven cuts. There's a haziness throughout that brings back fond memories of everyone from Sleepy Sun a few years back to Kyuss, the Melvins... and even some of the more bizarre collectives out in Japan such as Acid Mothers Temple and Ghost. Unlike some of these aforementioned acts however, Cloud and co. never repeat themselves, and demonstrate diversity without fail: 'Tae's Watch' is comes across as gloriously pastoral despite some spaced out vocal madness early on, culminating in a blissful guitar solo in the second half of the piece, while instrumental 'Drowning' oscillates waves and waves of distortion that slowly gives way to soaring, choral serenity that soars above the noise.

My favorite cut, however, is the anthemic, chest-thumping 'Helicopter', a song that sounds straight out of the mid 90's in the best way possible. It's marijuana-laced pond scum with a pop sensibility, and I can think of a thousand bands out there who'd have killed to write something this good.

While I'm sorry to say I've never been to L.A., bands like Single Mothers keep giving me reasons to go and stay for a show, and that's not something I can say for just anyone.

Don't wait. Get this NOW...or regret it later!

Download/Buy Here!

Rαdioнεαδ - Hαil To Tнε Tнiεf (2003)

Just cause you feel it...doesn't mean it's there.

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Tнε Hεαvy Bliиkεяs - Tнε Nigнτ Aиd I Aяε Sτill So Yoυиg (2004)

Young, Canadian and vitally alive with the tremendous, timeless spirit of late 60's baroque pop, Tнε Hεαvy Bliиkεяs are an indie bunch with a fine ear for orchestrations and harmony, making things tick like fine clockwork toward a certain confectionery perfection...an ambition brought to fruition in 2004's Tнε Nigнτ Aиd I Aяε Sτill So Yoυиg.

Distinctive in many fashions but cut from the same glorious genetic cloth as outfits such as The Zombies, Todd Rundgren and The Association, I can only hope these guys continue to bless this ADD-riddled musical world with more timeless melody as the years roll on, and I don't think I'm the only one who'd like that either!

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All Ovεя Evεrywhεяε - Iииεr Fiямαmεиts Dεcαy (2010)

Of the immensely imporessive progressive rock projects that maestro Dan Britton has helmed or been instrumental in bringing about (Birds & Buildings, Deluge Grander, etc.), I can say without a doubt that All Ovεя Evεrywhεяε is perhaps the most beautiful of his involvements. Orchestral meandering? Check. Gorgeous female vocals? Check. Psychedelic folk blended with Mellotron drenched shoegaze rapture? You bet your goddamn ass-check!

Eight wondrous pieces through and through, a record that grows more and more beautifully fragmented and immersive as you work your mind and senses about it's sonic contours, and an exquisite masterpiece in modern progressive rock. Get it!

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Aиατнεмα - Judgεмεиτ (1999)

Poppier than any of Doom/Alt. rock outfit's Aиατнεмα's doom heralding LPs up until that point, the transitory Judgement retains enough morbidity and atrophic edge to satiate their Gothic consumer base whilst managing to sneak in numerous memorable moments [dare I say it, "radio friendly"] below the studio-induced haze (mid-tempo heartbeater 'Deep' and soot-laden anthem 'Pitiless' being my elected representatives in court at the moment).

Moody this is, but weaksauce it ain't, and it should serve as a lovely springboard for anyone with even the slightest remote interest in output by the brothers Cavanaugh.

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Gяiмεs - Visioиs (2012)

4AD debut of an unbelievably promising female artist who has taken Montreal by storm over the last few years, Gяiмεs is a surreal moniker that incorporates everything from New Wave to New Age to K-Pop into a buzzing wonder of pop inventiveness that rivals everyone from Blondie to The Jesus And Mary Chain in psychedelic posturing.

With all that in mind, Visions is indeed eclectic and an early contender in 2012's AOTY war. The flavors inside are endlessly delectable: opening single 'Oblivion' is very much in line with classic Cocteau Twins while a gorgeous 6-minute deep cut like 'Skin' takes Enya's late 80's New Age-lite to a level of immersioncraft that borders on the inexplicable. Yet beyond all that there is a distinctly modern dancefloor songwriting edge to the musical process at hand, particularly in the dubstep dreamthump of 'Nightmusic' and a beautiful albeit bizarre take on J-Pop meets Quarterflash fusion in 'Visiting Statue'.

As inherently retarded as a tag like "post-pop" seems in the greater scheme of things, this is one of those rare albums that seems to fit such a label's elusive critera. Its the sort of misfit music that doesn't fit comfortably in any era, the sort of soniconcoction that could only be made in the shadow of an insatiable Information Age where all barriers vanish in a puff of neon lights and button clicks. Astonishing.

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Dαмiεи Youτн - Fεsτivαl Of Dεατн (1994)

The indie equivalent to a Scott Walker with a bit more psychedelic charm and a preference for the stripped down and lo-fi, Dαмiεи Youτн has been recording some mighty fine gothic folk records since the mid 80's, and continues to be one of the best kept secrets of the American independent music community even into 2012. He's got an earthen sort of tone that quivers mighty strange against the windswept deserted places his guitar evokes, like a narrator to nightmares you haven't had yet.

Recorded on a cassette and ripped from lossless by yours truly, 1994's Fεsτivαl Of Dεατн should appease whatever stringent occultic-folk cravings some of you might have developed since my Bob Drake post way back yonder. Have fun!

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Sαlyu x Sαlyu - s(o)uи(d)bεαмs (2011)

Bizarre, bodacious, bombastic, beautiful and brazen - these are but a few numerous adjectives that come to mind when I think of this glorious collaborative effort between J-Pop singer/songstress Sαlyu and the ever fascinatingly eccentric Cornelius behind the deck.

Avant-garde doesn't even being to describe the tendencies within. Delicious J-Funk ('Mirror Neurotic') cuts a swath through the eerie vocalizations of After Dinner inspired cuts like 'Rain Boots De Odorimashou' and the gorgeous 7-minute wonderland sprawl of a title piece. You begin to wonder after awhile just how much beauty and madness can get stuffed into a single set of recordings, but then give up somewhere halfway and let the whole morass sink in with a great wooosh.

Arresting, insane, passionate and occasionally catchier than a 15th century death plague, I could see myself giving this as a birthday gift to someone else's significant other. Maybe they'll stop listening to The Jonas Brothers after a couple of rounds with this sucker!

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Kiиgs Of Coиvεиiεиcε - Rioτ Oи Aи Eмpτy Strεετ (2004)

There must be something awfully magical over in Scandinavia's water supply, because some of the best melodic-anything in a variety of genres has continually emerged out of Sweden and Norway with almost bewildering consistency. From progressive metal (Pain Of Salvation, Opeth) to AOR (Work Of Art, Treat)  and so on and so forth, there's a little something for everyone out there...almost to the point where you'd need half a dozen Twitter feeds just to keep track of it all!

That being said, you don't have to be a eclectic guy like me to appreciate the good stuff from that side of the pond. Just ask any Pitchfork-slobbering ponce from the last six years or your local Zooey Deschanel wannabes, cause there's one act that'll pop up again and again no matter where (if at all) you reside in the great Indie-sphere: Kiиgs Of Coиvεиiεиcε, a modern Simon & Garfunkel type who play some of the dardnest pretty folk stuffz you'll ever have the pleasure of hearing.

2004's Rioτ Oи Aи Eмpτy Strεετ finds guitar/vocal duo Erlend Øye and Eirik Bøe plucking and harmonizing away (and occasionally bolstered behind via strings, drums, etc.) in a contemporary homage to everyone from America to *insert singer/songwriter here* who's taken a leaf out of the playbook of Antonio Carlos Jobim. Although the more singles-oriented out there probably know this record from dancier tracks like 'I'd Rather Dance With You' and 'Love Is No Big Truth', a smarter listener will delve in beyond those two and find the real gold therein. Tracks like 'Surprise Ice' and the heart-wincing melody driven 'Cayman Islands' could have been recorded at any time over the last forty years and still come out as blindsidingly gorgeous. 

Great autumnal albums don't come 'round too often my friends, so take a gander and have your hearts be cured of sleeping miseries.

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Jαguαяεs - El Equilibяio Dε Los Jαguαяεs (1996)

Bloody swell debut from one of Mexico's best alternative rock institutions, and probably sounds even more potent to one's ears I 'xpect if you actually know any goddamn Spanish.

Buenas noches amigos.

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Destroyer - Kaputt (2011)

Easily cutting the best album to come out this year thus far, Destroyer is an interesting project from Dan Bejar (of The New Pornographers fame) that blends post-punkish Indie-pop sensibility with that dreamy jazz quality that marked the delicious commercial efforts of such 80's acts as Swing Out Sister and Prefab Sprout, with results that can only be described as magical.

Atmosphere reigns supreme here to these ears, groove-leaden basslines punctured teeth-and-all with horns and darkling sax, with keyboards occasionally manifesting before pulsating down south of the mix once more. I can see how the typical alternative listener wouldn't think much of any of this - jazz pop anything, "Indie" or not, has never exactly been high on this generation's radar.

People who don't let "old people music influences" get in the way of a good time will see this for the treasure that it is though: a contemporary slice of classy, laidback rock that should dissuade those thinking indie-rock has run out of ideas.

Listen Here - "Kaputt"



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The Reign Of Kindo - Rhythm, Chord & Melody (2008)

One of the more interesting post-2000's indie bands to emerge from the woodwork, The Reign Of Kindo are something like a music connoisseur's daydream - "What if The Shins or early Keane had the chops of a 1970's jazz-rock colossus like The Mahavishnu Orchestra?"

Well, that musing dream became cold reality two years ago when these blokes formed, and they are not to be underestimated. Melodic vocal-based pop songs led by an undercurrent of extremely furious instrumental talent isn't anything new in the indie world (take your pick of any of today's more pop-oriented math rock outfits) but this ensemble has a strangely post-bop feel at times, like a Miles Davis experiment gone ridiculously commercial. On top of that, the fact they crafted 13 excellent tunes on such a distinctively jazzy approach to the usual heartbeat of a post-Interpol musical environment is rather compelling from my point of view. Hell, it may even be remembered as one of the best debuts of the second half of the Noughties.

In conclusion, those of you looking for some fresh yet contemporary...tune in.

Listen Here - "Morning Cloud"


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