Heilo En Varsovia “S/T” (Psychic Mule)

I’ve been holding out on reviewing this cassette from Madrid’s Heilo En Varsovia for a while now. To be honest, I was initially a bit turned off by all of the post-punk references I heard within this release. Hell, the band’s name alone translates to “Ice in Warsaw”, so right out of the gates you have to believe that this trio is trying to channel some serious Joy Division vibes. But after giving this tape multiple spins and a fair shake, I’ve come to hear a group that is on to something far more dark, complex, and epic than the vast majority of those derivative nth generation post-punk groups from circa-2002. On this U.S. debut release, Heilo En Varsovia arrive at an interesting cross-section of sounds that primarily balances dreamy, minimal wave synth pop with a darkened, post punk urgency. Gurgling vocals appear here-and-there, but are often buried in the mix, serving more to create added texture than to necessarily communicate anything directly. That being said, I don’t speak a lick of Spanish, which I assume is what language they’re singing in, so I could be completely off the mark. Scattered amongst this are a few extended, dirge-like instrumental passages that have a crushing weight to them. Taken as a whole, this self-titled release comes off as a murky, psychedelicized-take on post-punk, probably closer to something like Leaves Turn Inside You-era Unwound than anything from Joy Division, really. This tape release is in an edition of 100, each packaged in a hand-numbered cloth drawstring bag.

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DOLORES BOYS "DOLORES BOYS" (psychic mule records)

This showed up in the mail last week - popped it in and the tape was blank
Found it'd been previously reviewed by Barrett on CG - HERE

I needed a new blank tape to do some recording - so this was very convenient.
Keep the blank tapes coming - love it

Dolores Boys - S/T - Psychic Mule (ed. of 50)

Popping this one in, I honestly think my tape deck is dying. I have other hints suggesting this ailment, but the chipmunky croon of the Dolores Boys' singer can't be on purpose. Can it? Still, the rest of the music is unaffected by mechanical malaise. The grit and filth, scrowling keys and clanging guitars don't seem off-pitch. They do seem so wonderfully wrong, however. Recorded with too much reverb in a warehouse on some humid night, here is a deft collection of lo-fi goth surf. Half the songs are instrumentals, tense sketches of angular punk, dropped and abandoned as the moment of inspiration passes, soundtrack-like incidental pieces, really.

The way the Dolores Boys straddle the nu-Goth and neo-Surf vibes is well done. I'm a fan of the racket, the deep cavernous space they've sculpted their sound from, the tense metallic racket of the guitars. Doomy bass lines and frantic tom-toms evoke some spikey-haired horror in black lipstick and mesh. But the atmosphere of the music isn't some foggy graveyard on a cold autumn night, its hot, claustrophic and urban. Unending daylight, blinding hot sun.

And the song titles kill it for me, "Lead Singer in a Cover Band," "Jesus Gave Up On White Blues Singers" these boys understand the running joke that is rock and roll.

This might be the first full on summer burner of the year.

Peep that shizz: http://www.psychic-mule.com/