factory floor - bipolar

If you are in the mood for Joy Division and that minimal, sometimes electronic, uncatchy sound, then this is the most faithful near reproduction I've come across...in every way. Can you get enough Joy Division? It depends, it's such a specific sound, tied to an even more specific time period. Not to say this is dated there are other influences at work here, Can, Wire, experimental art influenced anti-pop, nearly pure conceptual tracks which, as much as they can pioneer, can also fail miserably. Bipolar is an incredible acheivement, but I wasn't loving so much 'Aeromodeling Club', this deadpan storytelling practically spoken word number from their myspace. Or the B-side 'You were always wrong', sound promising at first but yelling about the paperboy and england on fire sounds like it could be a lot better than it is. Overall it's a pretty mixed bag from instrumental ambient sound, to spoken word to Joy Division reenactment. They could just be highlighting their versatility but it seems uneven...I wouldn't expect anything else to sound like this single unfortunately.

You can paypal Outside Sound and for 5 pounds or roughly $100 us dollars you could play it for yourself. Saying goodbye to imports.

Norman records says:
Here's a debut 7" by Factory Floor who've clearly heard of Joy Division. In fact it sounds so much like Joy Division it's uncanny. It's called 'Bipolar ' which in case you didn't know is a condition affecting polar bears which makes them bisexual.... It's not global warming killing the polar bears... it's the bipolar thing... they don't know which polar bears to 'make sandwiches with'. Fortunately this isn't affecting the seals as they have no problems knowing which side of the bread is buttered. Here's a dark gothy chugging post punk influenced tune which sounds like it was made around that time. It's done rather well and Ant has just chuntered up that it sounds a bit like Artery in places. I think this is rather good. Well done boys.

Jeremy Jay on K records

The songs on the myspace reminds me of something like The Cure's, 17 seconds... really sparse production, not a lot of effects on anything, pretty basic except for the really chorused out vocals on some tracks, in others it's all reverb and half sung, kind of depressed, but all solid songwriting. I can see the Joy Division influence but higher vocals, and more expressive.
It ranges from heavy synth to single electric guitar. Really flat, shallow sounding drums, it's not just the crappy myspace quality, they have like no decay or something, like slap drums.
Anyway, this is some interesting stuff that would have been at home in some dark early 90's sad bastard club, a little dangerous sounding, but accessible and ending up on every mix tape.

It's like 3.75 from K recs.

Here's what aquarius had to say:

JAY, JEREMY "We Were There" (K Records) 7" 4.98
If you've been in AQ more then a few times in the last few months you probably already know how obsessed we've become with Jeremy Jay. There’s a pretty good chance we were swaying back and forth listening to his ep Airwalker over and over as we have countless times, and we still aren’t even close to getting sick of it. Mixing a twee sensibility with the power of the Factory Records vaults, creating songs that invite you to jump right in and throw up your arms as you close your eyes and enter a world so dreamy and infectious.
So of course we've been starving for anything else to get our hands and ears on by Jay, and luckily we have two new songs on this 7” to get lost with. The tracks here are quite different than the songs on Airwalker and show that Jay is not content with having an easily defined sound. The A side “We Were There” made us think of prime time Make-Up with it’s sassy rhythms and spoken/sung delivery.
The B side “Beautiful Dreamer” is what’s getting us the most, with it’s sparkling and dizzying cloudy sonics and late night haze. Two more reasons to love this young talent from LA!

Interpol • Mammoth

Heinrich Maneuver has all the things that should make it as good, as any other interpol release but maybe something has changed?
Lets face it everyone has made up their mind about them by now with this album, you either like them and you'll get this or you're over them.
Now that I saw the Joy Division movie Control... anyone that uses them and interpol in the same sentence is an idiot. They may have been influenced by them, but really any reference to Joy Division and their sound is completely off base.
Why is it that people would even make that comparison? Lyrically? Maybe, although I feel like Ian Curtis is more poetic, and naive. It seems like he's in that time of your early 20's where you think everything you write is great and it's lofty, it just happened to hit the mark in a lot of ways. Musically? I think that's where really the most differences are. Interpol uses a lot of effects and instruments when compared. JD had a much much more minimal sound, almost every instrument was right in the front and center of the mix, all separated. Look? Sure they have suits and ties and weird bedhead hair, ok they look the same. Attitude? Sort of, Interpol seems like they are in the same depressed universe maybe, but there's a fashion to them?...
Oh what the hell, just stop it, I'm sure they hate it anyway, and so does everyone else.

The release of Interpol's new single "Mammoth".
This Monday 3rd September see's the release of the new single Mammoth, available as a download, enhanced CD, gatefold 7" vinyl, and a beautiful etched 7" vinyl. The CD features the fantastic Erol Alkan remix of Mammoth, an orchestral version of Pioneer to The Falls plus the video. The gatefold 7" includes Evil recorded live at the London Astoria show back in July.

Mattress - in your pocket

I swear I just stopped listening to old live joy division from heart and soul, like disc 4, for a second to listen to mattress' myspace and I thought I forgot to turn JD off and it was still playing...crazy.

But only for a second, this song Mirror it has the same determination and drive as JD, the vocals start off a little subdued and dark and then launch into a chanting tirade. All of it sounds like it's been processed and played through custom circuits and then a radio shack mixer, in short it's that electro-punk greatness, but not exactly with that manic dance energy. It's darker, instead of dancing you should be looking over your shoulder for the experiments gone wrong in the corner of this basement show. Or it could be I've been listening to Joy division too long.
Have to go see control...tonight.

There is this great keyboard noise that even on the tiniest computer speakers is unignorable and piercing, I don't think anyone else can take it but I have to hear it again.
Wow, there was a liars noise at the end that was so perfect. Like from 'There's always room on the broom.' That indescribable electronic distortion.
I ordered this but it's been a while and I think it got filed next to the record player as 'must listen to', but that pile isn't getting any smaller, and these jems are waiting.

Damn I like these guys, I have to go listen to this 7" later....

You know that's why in the end I like myspace....it's the ugliest uniform piece of crap, but every band has a presence and I appreciate that.

Malt Duck records...keep it up.


Mattress 'In Your Pocket' 7-inch Single + CDR EP
(July 2007, includes insert, CDR holds 7-inch tracks + two bonus tracks, ed. 300, hand-numbered)

300 that's it? Wow thats really not fair. I have to see if these tracks are anything like mirror. If so, I have a new favorite band.