Friday Singles meltdown

Having been hard at work on reviews lately, I often fail to get a chance to post about 7"'s that just came out, or are available for preorder.
This Shannon and the Clams holiday single was announced yesterday from 1,2,3,4 Go Records. It's already Christmas this year and they were smart and must have gotten started on this a while ago..and they look so jazzed about the holiday! Oh joy! It looks like one of those Kmart portraits...they set up a tree and everything.



From 1,2,3,4 Go Records:

THIS IS A PRE-ORDER! SHIPS NOVEMBER 30TH 2010.

BLACK VINYL LUMP OF COAL edition. Limited to 100 copies!

The Clams ruin yet another family gathering! This one on christmas of all days!!! Bless em they're trying to make up for it with four christmas classics! Only available for the holiday season! 600 copies total are being made this year!

1. Melekalikimaka
2. All I Want For Christmas Is You
3. Blue Christmas
4. Fat Daddy

Now wait a second...the color vinyl on the site is 4.99, but the lump of coal, black edition is 5.99? It's bizzarro xmas prices.



Bringing more holiday spirit is Blessure Grave is at it with a split with Bestial Mouths. They tease with an acoustic and then bring it heavy with toms and their weird timing. Bestial Mouths sound like a good combo, minimal, heavy echo vocals and that feeling of dread.

Blessure Grave / Bestial Mouths Untitled 7” Split + mp3 code

Blessure Grave follow up their full length debut showcasing yet another hit single, while Los Angeles’s Bestial Mouths make their debut proper blasting through two epics loaded with torrential vocals and synthesizer led melodies. These bands do not upset, this is an excellent split single.

From Family Time Records



Then Stones Throw had to go and release this massive set that reminds me to go I have to go watch that 45 battle with DJ shadow on netflix again.

Ten 7-inch singles. Hip-hop music from the Stones Throw archive never before on 45, selected by Peanut Butter Wolf.

Debuted at our 10/10/10 event in Los Angeles, this is a box set of ten 7-inch singles - hip hop music from the Stones Throw archive never before on 45, selected by Peanut Butter Wolf. This will be released October 25, 2010, and is available now exclusively on Stones Throw's web store.

Finally this Blackbird Blackbird single on Firetalk Records. Warbly electronic haze with buried vocals. Playing all over overwhelming CMJ which is coming up this weekend...along with the WFMU record fair. Yikes.

As prolific as he wants to be San Francisco's Blackbird Blackbird drops an undeniable gem with the help of Emily Reo. Get lost in the shimmery production and ride a dream boat down a river of bliss. Dig!

LIMITED TO 500 COPIES

A - Fade To White (Feat. Emily Reo)

B- Letting Go

THIS IS A PRE ORDER
THIS 7 INCH WILL SHIP ON OR BEFORE NOVEMBER 23rd 2010

Blessure Grave on Mishka Records

After the preview post I did abut this single, Mishka Records contacted me about actually sending me this single, and I'm glad they did, it's time I forgot about videos for a minute and reconsider Blessure Grave based on the music alone. I learned my lesson, it's a mistake to make some kind of judgment about the band based on a directors visual decisions. His vision of Blessure Grave obviously didn't follow mine, but that's why books are better than movies.

I love the cover art, it fits perfectly, that superimposed sheet flying up supposedly appearing in front of a Victorian house. It has a creepy deceptive feel from the early days of photography when you could double expose a negative to photograph 'ghosts' and it was the craziest special effect anyone had ever seen.

'Stranger in this house', the first track on the A-Side would be enough for the single, but Mishka went to the trouble of pressing both sides at different speeds so there's two here. It's a typically great Blessure Grave style track with a rolling tom fill beat, recorded thin sounding, a hint of high end static distortion, slightly mechanical, echoing that dehumanized drum machine sound with a simple delayed chorus guitar melody on top. They don't ever rely on a lot of tricks or gimmicky effects to get this depressed sound, and that's why it works, it's going to stay classic. There's nothing to tie it to a particular technological invention.
Not relying on new sounds and then choosing to have a pretty minimal instrumentation adds to the isolation feel of the vocal delivery and lyrics. Reyna adds her vocal sparsely enough in contrast to T's layers of deep singing; she's the ghostly echo to his ceremonial chant.
The second track, 'Shadow', speeds things up and I realize I haven't ever heard them go the obvious slow tempo route to create their ominous sound, this one is bordering on punk even, it's warning a girl about lost innocence without it sounding at all cliche. They have a sincerity that comes through in all of their work I want to hear more of, I'm never disappointed at their catchy sinister sound. That's when the Cure or Joy Division are most successful for me, when they're writing fast, forceful songs about alienation and not drowning in their own droney overblown instrumentation.
The cover of Sleep's 'Dragonaut' is the one worth finding out a way to track down this single. It's not going to show up on anything else, and it's a great example of why bands do covers in the first place. To take a song like this from Sleep who became such an influence after the fact, but what sounded like groundbreaking stoner rock in '92, is heavily dated now. Blessure Grave puts their imprint all over the track, while slightly changing their own sound as well...that's the best cover, that kind of crossover. The original is reinterpreted, and re-exposed to a new generation of fans possibly who will do the research on the original track, and the current band might just hit on something new in the process. That's what's happened here. The vocals are completely different as well, they force the melody into their aesthetic, and this original epic metal translates well into their stripped down goth. Reyna and T. singing together on this one is a great direction for the original. They're both great natural vocalists anyway... I really have to see how this is performed live. They introduce a really low bass synth tone over a couple of layers of guitars, it sounded new in their sound and was a great way to solve the drone guitar sound from the original. It's a well executed cover, they really took their time with this one. It's one of those covers that's so different and interesting on it's own you would mistake it as their own.
Almost forgot to mention a friend of mine texted me the back of his rear view mirror which had this sinister inscription! Blessure Grave is all around us! Serious injury is everywhere!

Still available from insound, on black or clear pink vinyl with t-shirt.

Blessure Grave preorder on Mishka records?

If we're going purely on sound, I'm really into Blessure Grave, they have got a handle on just enough goth paired with a super low-fi aesthetic to throw it off in a Blank Dogs kind of way. Maybe that recording style evokes even more dread...like some kind of fog over the whole thing...it's murky, you don't know exactly what your hearing even and you fill in the blanks. Unlike Cold Cave who is leaning lately more towards some kind of electronic dance probably just do to the slickness of that latest one from Matador.

I was just about to catch a show of theirs in the neighborhood But I watched the video for 'Open or Shut' that afternoon and it just threw the whole image I had of them. I wanted the Hoods from the black and white Learn to Love the Rope sleeve, I thought they were a little bad ass. Black metal with a 4-track? The two of them? That's gold...maybe I'm still thinking of that Portal show. I wanted it that hardcore. Not playing with silly string, crying in the corner.



No matter what though 'I will reduce you to black smoke' on the split DiTG single will always be amazing, I just wish they didn't ham it up like it was goth 1989. They're just too stylized and into their image in a little bit of a cheesy way. There's just no defending that video. Why are you even in it? There was such an opportunity there.
Then they're collaborating with some kind of Urban Outfitters fashion label?
I'm totally confused.

This is available with or without t-shirt from insound.

Blessure Grave triple split 7" on Release the Bats Records

Oh boy, this one is going to make you insane like it did me, Blessure Grave has this split single from Release The Bats, the amazing Swedish label, but as far as I can tell, they are the only ones offering it for presale so far. It's 60 Kr, I can't be bothered to figure out the exchange because I'm sure shipping would be out of control.
I know Revolver/Midheaven, who just updated their site, (wayyyy easier to navigate and find this stuff), doesn't have it listed yet...just the full length from Captured Tracks, which I have to get over to Academy and pick up actually.
There's a lot of comparisons to Joy Division of course, who, if you believe everything you read, have single handedly spawned the last couple years of interesting music. I'm hearing how closely related it could be to Ian Curtis and Closer, but this is an evolved version of that sound, something closer to Bauhaus... that full on beginning darkwave goth era. It's taking a step back to the origins of that sound...I hope those kids I see walking around with Evanescence or Marilyn Manson shirts eventually get a clue and trace it back to hear what's really happening to their beloved genre.
How can they sound so downright evil with an acoustic guitar is an accomplishment, like on '90 plus days' from a cassette release a little while back. This isn't depressing sad bastard music, I keep getting the feeling Blessure Grave is just metal/doom enough to kick your ass. It's that stark and full of alienation...they have to fight every day for this kind of finely honed darkness. You don't ever wake up in a good mood or watch Southpark...I really imagine that stereotype scene of a house full of death obsessed Rick's from the Young Ones.
The vocals are a little Danzig at times, deep echo's, but the track 'Reduce You to Black Smoke' from their 3 way split on DiTG is a truly great mix of this great synth line, slightly distorted vocals, and pure unsettling melody.

preorder from Release The Bats...BG blogged they are huge fans of the label that has consistently put out stuff they believe in, and were their first choice for this single and their full length, which again is going to cost me to import...they are evil to my wallet and my ears. A double threat.

Blessure Grave now gives us their first release on With previous releases on Night People, Captured Tracks and Holidays, San Diegos BlessureRTB. A limited 7" with 2 exclusive tracks that will not be on the upcoming debut album Judged By 12, Carried By 6 (which will be released early 2010, LP on RTB and CD on Alien 8). A perfect blend of post punk and goth, with influences from Danse Society, Death In June and Killing Joke. Artwork by Shawn Reed. 500 copies made, split release with Nail In The Coffin and Grotesque Modern - Release The Bats

Cold Cave / Crocodiles / Blessure Grave on Down in the Ground Records + podcast EP 35

So let's see here, brand new label, tri-split from Down in the ground records, and a podcast with a brand new label Stumparumper records with it's founder Pat.

First the single:
The crocodiles are like some no wave nightmare... a lot of really nice sounding messed up feedback... Hell, I can like anyone that uses feedback like this...lots of distorted yelling, mechanical drums. It's pretty catchy sounding, like later JAMC. God, I reference them a lot, but really it's that kind of mondo post punk fuzz sound. I guess I didn't get much further than them....so that's my reference...or like a Place to bury strangers/cramps. Better? No.

Cold cave is working with clean mechanics...it's really kind of dancy, they could make a killing crossing over into some euro-disco scene...or like Daft Punk...take themselves seriously for a minute. The track 'Sex Ads' sounds like the drum pad from a cheap keyboard was run through a couple distortion pedals and then a first....a casio SK1 human voice sound is used for the first and last time successfully by an artist. I'd recognize that sound anywhere. He's really deliberate in the sounds...it's all compressed, the distortion is clipped...it's not left to chance. 'Always someone' on the other hand is working with the glitch in an epic way...there's thousands of sounds here on this digital shitgaze track. Disintegrating, swirling around in this haze of malfunction. The only other single I've seen on Hospital productions is long gone, this is about the only thing at the moment, other than a 12" on fusetron.

It really reminds me of seeing this band in high school at this local college. It was a dark basement, and this guy had a backing drum machine/synth track on a walkman. He was all gothed out singing in the middle of this room of 5 people. At the time I just wanted a huge show, tons of equipment, lights...what the fuck was this? I bought a tape...I think it was called 'the Love of Death' or something ridiculously pretentious. Sometimes I would play it when I was waiting tables at Dojo's. I have to find it and put it on vinyl. Maybe the label I start would be one of those labels of just weirdo found music.

Last but not least is Blessure Grave....it sounds like there's real drums and guitar doing the same things stylistically as the above bands....this would be one hell of a lineup. Why does this sound optomistic to me? It's very Joy Division, the vocal effects are great. It's really true to that dark sound, lots of tom beats, that chorus guitar.
On 'Steps' they actually use an acoustic and get even darker, with this pulsating darkwave synth sound...it's done in a kind of low-fi way that doesn't push it into ridiculous territory. it's hard to explain exactly how these bands are getting away with this. I'm sure you could play something from the late nineties that would sound nearly like this, but might be too ernest, to aware. This is done in homage, still sincere, but pushing the electronics and throwing in a few lessons learned from contemporary projects, but then throwing it away. Who knows how these guys will do...there's a mystery around it on this level that I love.

They are playing all over LA in Jan, if you are on the west coast, make sure you catch these guys... most of the dates are with the crocodiles actually.

Just found out about this, but there can't be many copies left...get it from down in the ground for $7.

Let me know if anyone gets a test pressing...


THIS IS A PREORDER! VINYL SHOULD SHIP BEFORE JANUARY 20TH.
One track from each band. San Diego's Crocodiles (ex-members of bands you liked/hated) give us something special from the past and the future simultaneously, whatever that means. Listen and it'll make sense.
Philly's Cold Cave lives up to their name. You will be left uncomfortable and aware of everything around you.
Blessure Grave combines 80's goth, neo-folk and post punk into something all it's own. Artwork by Mark McCoy of WOUND fame. Limited to 540 copies: 40 hand-numbered test pressings w/ alternate covers, 100 solid white and 400 solid black. All orders of 2 or more will receive one white copy and the rest black.

3 random orders will receive a test pressing along with their normal copy as a way of saying thanks and hello.

For the podcast this week I talked with Pat from Stumparumper records who is starting what must be the most limited edition run of singles I know about. He's pressing some of his projects in editions of 20 with peter king....that's podcast episode 35. I think it's the perfect example of the future of vinyl...small batches of you and your friends music. It's not hard...Pat's doing it. There's no reason you shouldn't either.

Or me for that matter.