There's never much decent music to be found in the first days and weeks of the year. I remember as a teenager, the first NME single of the week of the new year always felt like it had been scraped from the bottom of the barrel. Nonetheless, I have been scouring around for new things, with some success. There are a couple of groups I aim to blog about in the next few days.
In the meantime, there is some arresting new material out there worth looking into.
The new Big Troubles record, Worry, has that now familiar mix of feedback-drenched pop and the generational necessity of a nod to late 80s/90s miserable types such as My Bloody Valentine and The Cure. Chillwavers Ducktails have something to do with these guys as well. The track Georgia has a hazy, delirious quality about it that I like, although you do wonder how much of this Cure-esque stuff the world really needs.
Away from the world of MBV hero worshipping, Hisato Higuchi's sombre new album, Henzai - recorded over just two days - is leaving a mark. Tiny Mix Tapes makes reference to its mix of blues notes, wordless vocals and moments of pure silence. The reviewer said one song even left him with a lump in his throat - so make of that what you will.
Their review helpfully includes one of the tracks from the record, the light, elusive Ashi No Nai Inu: Listen
Elsewhere, there are some highlights from the international DJ circuit that are worth checking out.
Firstly, veteran German electronics man Roman Flugel's How To Spread Lies, which mixes sparse, Susumu Yokota-esque piano with dancefloor beats. He used to be a part of Alter Ego, who were briefly amazing about 15 years ago before it all went a bit wrong for them. Listen here
The new 12" from French DJ Olivier Ducreux, otherwise known as Shonky, is another one for the dancefloor, but runs on a totally different groove. Where Flugel's track aims for detachment, Shonky's is all about warmth. Listen
No comments:
Post a Comment