Boy Attractions

Elvis Depressedly - “A Bible in a Bath of...

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:53:55 -0500

Elvis Depressedly - “A Bible in a Bath of Bleach”

Just a few days ago, Glamour Kills premiered a new 3-track EP—the apty-titled Glamour Kills-from Elvis Depressedly (Coma Cinema’s Mat Cothran), who recently collected his complete bandcamp output in the remastered comp. Cutters Only, the Ontological Anarchy of Elvis Depressedly. Allegedly recorded “in a laundry room on broken equipment”, “A Bible in a Bath of Bleach” is just as lovably forlorn as it sounds, finding Cothran shooing away demons over a tinny drum machine and organ swells.

For something notably more slick than the songs on Glamour Kills, take a peep at the studio-recorded “Waves of Bad Intentions”, which Cothran recently threw up on Summer Time In Hell with a tease of new material. Whether its a standalone single or part of a larger release is unclear, but it’s indeed cause for excitement.

mp3 // Elvis Depressedly - A Bible in a Bath of Bleach

Hodgy Beats - “Ave. (Prod. by Thelonious...

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:05:31 -0500

Hodgy Beats - “Ave. (Prod. by Thelonious Martin)”

Last night, as promised, MellowHype-man Hodgy Beats let loose a new Untitled EP featuring the star-studded production talents of Three 6 Mafia’s Juicy J, Stone’s Throw beatsmith Jonti, and the inimitable FlyLo. As someone who leapt off the OF bandwagon shortly after Goblin (eghk), I have to say—it feels nice to be excited about these guys again. Check out the Thelonious Martin-helmed gem “Ave.” above and cop the entire 9-track release for free here.

mp3 // Hodgy Beats - Ave. (Prod. by Thelonious Martin)

MondreM.A.N. - “Cloud” As a recent convert to the...

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 20:41:00 -0500

MondreM.A.N. - “Cloud”

As a recent convert to the Green Ova cult and a rabid fan of anything Main Attrakionz, I’m surprised it took me a month (as well as push from CMG) to cop MondreM.A.N.’s killer M A N EP, which dropped late last year via Dreamcollabo. Like 2011’s also-fantastic Dope Since ‘91, it sees Mondre smoothly honing his craft and kicking out impeccably delivered verses over lush, light-as-a-feather production. Among the undeniable breakouts here is “Cloud”, which, with a little help from Lil B associate KeyBoardKid, delivers an intoxicating blend of twinkling synths and lyrical swagger.

If you’re looking to bump this analog-style, the good folks at Crash Symbols have you covered with a stacked 18-track tape featuring remixes from, among others, Yalls, Blue Sky Black Death, and Pariah Carey. These things go fast, so I suggest you hop on over to bandcamp and claim yourself a copy.

mp3 // MondreM.A.N. - Cloud

Soothsayer - “II” The Lee Noble-curated No Kings...

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:57:44 -0500

Soothsayer - “II”

The Lee Noble-curated No Kings recently issued an excellent cassette from Soothsayer (Moon Glyph main-man Steve Rosborough) entitled Keynes Utopia, which offers up 6 tracks and 40 minutes of pure sonic therapy. Bask in the warming glow of “II”, which massages your headspace with coolly meditative ambience and woodsy field recordings—perfect for staring out the window and letting the drool drip down. NK appears to be sold out already (that was quick!), but you should be able to snag a copy from the Moon Glyph distro page.

White Hills - “Pads of Light” The new White Hills...

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 16:15:44 -0500

White Hills - “Pads of Light”

The new White Hills album, Frying On This Rock, arrives March 22 on Thrill Jockey. It’s almost guaranteed to kick ass.

Paco Sala - “Gifts of the Bloom” UK synthhead Paco...

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:10:44 -0500

Paco Sala - “Gifts of the Bloom”

UK synthhead Paco Sala (Konntinent’s Antony Harrison), who released the thouroughly fantastic Radial Sundown cassette on Digitalis Ltd. last year, has hit up the label with a brand new single from his forthcoming album Ro-Me-Ro, which is slated to drop this Spring. Though “Gifts of the Bloom” charts the same sort of space-age territory as Sundown, Harrison’s since joined forces with vocalist Leyli, who lends some truly divine pipes to his brand of sci-fi sheen. Stream the single’s instrumental b-side “Gold Zone” on bandcamp and watch for it to hit Boomkat in the coming days—this one’s not to be missed.

Spiritualized - “Hey Jane” Organ! Gospel harmonies!...

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 11:14:19 -0500

Spiritualized - “Hey Jane”

Organ! Gospel harmonies! Shimmering, stratospheric grooves! Either the local church has been dipping into some phenomenally potent holy water, or Spiritualized have a new track out. “Hey Jane” is the first single to be taken from the band’s forthcoming Sweet Heart Sweet Light (out 4/17 on Fat Possum) and it’s a typical J. Spaceman affair, stretching its hypnotic rhythms and righteous strummin’ into 8+ minutes of aural transcendence. Grab the 7” from Double Six and pre-order the record here.

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BODYGUARD - “DRY ICE ¥2K12” Earlier today James...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 20:52:00 -0500

BODYGUARD - “DRY ICE ¥2K12”

Earlier today James Ferraro, the always-surreal Frankenstein of pop culture detritus, followed up his recent mixtape under the guise of BEBETUNE$ with a fresh one entitled Silica Gel. Though he’s now dubbed his new-and-improved project BODYGUARD (hey, at least there’s no dollar sign), the mix more or less picks up where Inhale C-4 $$$$$ left off, skewering radio rap and the sensory overload of ringtone culture. Predictably, there are a lot of pitch-screwed vocals, hashtags, and poignant reminders that the world is slowly crashing down around us. Cop the mixtape and then hop over to the BODYGUARD homebase at Hippos in Tanks, who tell us that the “gang/mob/cru” is cooking up a debut LP due out this summer.

mp3 // BODYGUARD - DRY ICE ¥2K12

FWY! - “Marina Del Rey 6PM” I’ve been utterly...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 19:32:00 -0500

FWY! - “Marina Del Rey 6PM”

I’ve been utterly enamored with most things coming out of the Moon Glyph offices as of late, particularly the fresh-off-the-press San Clemente tape from San Francisco native FWY! (Horrid Red’s Edmund Xavier). In contrast to the rather goth-y German-language post-punk Xavier churns out with Horrid Red, the tunes on San Clemente are all slow, sunlit grooves and smooth sailing through faded pastel landscapes like the one you see plastered on the packaging. This would all sound sublime if the temperature was bumped up 15 degrees, but, hey, 55 ºF in February? I’ll take it.

While you’re digging through the Moon Glyph vaults, be sure to tune in to the newest sounds from Angel Eyes (previously on Not Not Fun), who just dropped a tape of goopy, zonked-out pop called Vice to Vice. You can stream “Flicked Bottle Tops” here.

mp3 // FWY! - Marina Del Ray 6PM

Sun Kil Moon – “Sunshine in Chicago” I’ve...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:42:00 -0500

Sun Kil Moon – “Sunshine in Chicago”

I’ve been on quite the Mark Kozelek binge lately, eating up everything from old Red House Painters records that I had never heard (Rollercoaster, Ocean Beach) as well as revisiting my favorites from his more recent solo and Sun Kil Moon work. It looks as if I’ll be able to continue my bender far into this year, because I was happily surprised to discover yesterday that he’s got a new album coming out May 29th through his own Caldo Verde Records, titled Among the Leaves. Although the beautifully plucked guitar melody and dream-like tone is what we’ve come to love and expect from him over the years, this teaser is surprising in two ways. For one, it’s only two and a half minutes long, a surprise coming from a guy who regularly loads his album with at least three tracks over eight minutes. But more importantly, he sounds more playful and loose, now looking back over his life with a mixture of bemusement and bittersweet reminiscence as opposed to the usual fare of soul-crushing melancholy. “Sunshine in Chicago makes me feel pretty sad, my band played here a lot in the 90s when we had / Lots of female fans, and fuck, they all were cute, now I just sign posters for guys in tennis shoes,” he sings, accompanied only by an occasional (charming) twinkling of xylophone.

The 17-track album isn’t up for pre-order yet, but stay tuned on the Caldo Verde page for future updates.

Pulse Emitter - “Hermits” Seasoned cosmonaut Pulse...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 10:18:00 -0500

Pulse Emitter - “Hermits”

Seasoned cosmonaut Pulse Emitter (Daryl Groetsch), who’s been pumping out sterling synth music at a healthy rate since his project’s conception in 2003, has a new one out on Aguirre called Aeons. Tackling four different periods of time from ancient earth (“Pangaea”) to the distant, virtual reality-dominated future (“Immortality”), the record comes equipped with some nice head trips and winding treks through the primordial ooze. Your journey begins with “Hermits” (listenable above), which according to the description was inspired by “a panel of the Ghent altarpiece representing Renaissance Europe”. Stream the rest of the Aeons on bandcamp and also peep the new album from Panabrite, who’s carving out some similar nu-age landscapes.

Mirroring – “Fell Sound” When news first broke...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 22:04:17 -0500

Mirroring – “Fell Sound”

When news first broke about Tiny Vipers and Grouper collaborating as Mirroring, I freaked out a little bit. Two of my favorite current artists on one record? Way too good to be true. Since then I’ve been anxiously waiting for any sort of snippet as to how the record would sound.

Their label have just released the beautiful, murky Fell Sound, the first track on record. This particular track definitely favors the drone we’ve come to expect form Liz Harris, but mixed with beautiful vocals from Jesy Fortino. A match made in heaven. Foreign Body is out March 16th on Kranky.

Chris Brokaw - “X’s for Eyes” Well,...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 21:37:00 -0500

Chris Brokaw - “X’s for Eyes”

Well, here’s a weird one: Chris Brokaw, lead singer of recently-reunited (and touring!) bummer kings Codeine, has a new solo tape entitled I Ace Sociopathic King out on boutique label Already Dead. The limited-run release comprises 9 tracks recorded live last year, featuring a half-and-half mix of acoustic and electric material. There’s nothing here quite as staggeringly gut-wrenching as, say, “Gravel Bed” (maybe that’s a good thing), but songs like the delicate “X’s for Eyes” (originally from 2005’s Incredible Love) show that Brokaw still has pulling the heartstrings down to an absolute science.

mp3 // Chris Brokaw - X’s for Eyes

Dustin Wong - “Toe Tore Oh” “I see all these...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 21:07:00 -0500

Dustin Wong - “Toe Tore Oh”

“I see all these pedals as a kind of textile factory. The sheers and colors are determined then the patterns are laid on top, one layer after another until it becomes a fabric mille feuille. Once that cake looks done it gets replicated through another delay pedal. I can keep building these sounds on top of each other and decide whether I want to take half of the cake’s slices or not—if I do, I can gaze at the symmetrical void of what I have taken.”

-Dustin Wong on his (apparently delicious) recording process

Guitarist Dustin Wong, who honed his chops shredding with the sadly defunct Baltimore collective Ponytail, dropped his sophomore solo effort on Thrill Jockey yesterday—the rather fantastic Dreams Say, View, Create, Shadow Leads. The new record picks up where 2010’s loop-heavy Infinite Love left off, but while Love was a work of meticulous studio assemblage, Dreams trades the intricate overdubs for live takes and a more loose, off-the-cuff feel. The song that really hits me in the gut is the 6+ minute burner “Toe Tore Oh”, which spins a bubbly tie-dye web of guitar plucking until it eventually sounds like Mark McGuire jamming in a field of flowers. Catch it above and watch the clip for the similarly gorgeous “Pink Diamonds” over at FADER.

Lower Dens - “Brains” Nootropics is out 5/1 on...

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:18:07 -0500

Lower Dens - “Brains”

Nootropics is out 5/1 on Ribbon Music.

Lapalux – “Moments (feat. PY)” If you’re...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:06:00 -0500

Lapalux – “Moments (feat. PY)”

If you’re interested in what I think of as being very “in” in indie music culture right now—namely, an obsession with elements of R&B, dub-y electronica, ambient music, and a postmodern fluidity between the three—I’d say that you can’t really go wrong with Lapalux’s new debut EP When You’re Gone, out on Brainfeeder. If that endorsement sounds cold and distant, let me happily clarify that this is a pretty damn satisfying 7-track collection of songs. Stuart Howard of Essex, the sole man behind the beats, already has mastered a lush, enveloping production style (see: “Face Down, Eyes Shut”) and successfully dips his toes in many different subgenres of electronic and hip-hop. This also means that the EP suffers slightly from his lack of a cohesive, unique sound, but the pros far outweigh the cons over these 28 minutes. He merrily explores intriguing musical directions and rarely does it when you expect him to, and it yields great results. Give it a listen over on Bleep and show him some $upport if you dig it.

mp3 // Lapalux - “Moments (feat. PY)”

Oren Ambarchi – “Salt” Experimental heavyweight...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:10:00 -0500

Oren Ambarchi – “Salt”

Experimental heavyweight Oren Ambarchi recently hit Touch with a new solo album—Audience of One—his first since 2007’s still-gorgeous In the Pendulum’s Embrace. In addition to being topped off with a cover of Ace Frehley’s “Fractured Mirror” (awesome), the record boasts an all-star cast of guests, including (but not limited to) violist Eyvind Kang and vocalist Jessika Kenney. Opener “Salt”, which you can sample above, reunites Ambarchi with Warm Ghost singer Paul Duncan, who lends some breathy, ethereal vocals to a backdrop of intoxicating sonics. Catch an excerpt of the epic “Knots” here and look out for a new Jim O’Rourke/Keiji Haino collaboration on the horizon—it’s gonna be a big one.

Main Attrakionz – “Focalin” Photo by Stephen...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:25:00 -0500

Main Attrakionz – “Focalin”

Photo by Stephen Loewinsohn

If you caught my 2011 year-end list a few weeks back, you’ll know how fond I am of the uber-industrious Green Ova Undergrounds, who’ve been steady killin’ it with mix after mix of absolute gold. Well today, key duo Main Attrakionz unveiled both a string of live dates leading up to SXSW (their first U.S. tour thus far) and the new, Tyler Bisson-produced “Focalin”, which you can catch above. Finding Squadda and Mondre operating in top form over a skittering, joyously addictive backbeat, the track stands up with some of the best material on last year’s breakthrough 808’s and Dark Grapes II.

mp3 // Main Attrakionz - Focalin

Dustin Wong – “Pink Diamond” Ex-Ponytail member...

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:50:00 -0500

Dustin Wong – “Pink Diamond”

Ex-Ponytail member Dustin Wong is releasing his second studio album Dreams Say, View, Create, Shadow Leads February 21st on Thrill Jockey.

Siinai – “Victory” Although it has been available...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:13:00 -0500

Siinai – “Victory”

Although it has been available in their home country since last summer, the debut album from Finnish krautrock revivalists Siinai, Olympic Games, is set to see a stateside re-release on the 21st of this month through Splendour Records. Judging by their band name, the album’s title, art, and track names (“Marathon”, “Finish Line”, “Mt. Olympos”), the band appears to be paying homage to the ancient Olympic spirit in it’s purest form, and as such there’s no subtlety to be found here. Think more like Vangelis meets Holy Fuck. As album highlight “Victory” illustrates, we are instead treated to staggering instrumental space rock, blankets of drone, and a profound love for the major key. “Victory” is indeed nearly nine minutes long, but it pays to stick around for the final two minutes when they unleash a climax so thunderously epic that it would make Zeus blush.