OTRO MUNDO "Jellied" (Ascetic House)

Rather well recorded and goodly sounding acid garage (in the vein of Butthole Surfers, et al.) with a touch of touchy-feely that others might call melodicism (in the vein of what I can only describe as 90s "indie rock"). The burners on here really burn and there is some nice guitar on the slower jams. If you live near Tempe, AZ check this band out, as I'll betchya Otro Mundo are a real stellar live act, but their talent comes across quite well on tape as well. As is the case with just about every band these days, the vocals are buried in a little bit too much reverb, but maybe I just have to get with the times? Definitely more than worth the $3 the band is charging for it on their webpage:

http://www.theotro.blogspot.com/

COOKIE BROOKLYN "Get Out Of My Dreams, Get Under My Car" c40RORY STORM "Wirewreath" c30(Epic Sweep Records)

Epic Sweep is a New Zealand based label that appears to release the work of NZ based artists on lathe cut 7" and cassette. All of the runs are really small, with the Cookie Brooklyn tape being the real major production with a total of 40 copies made. http://epicsweeprecords.com/

This Cookie Brooklyn tape is definitely my kind of thing. A collection of recordings made between 1996 and 1999 and then completed from 2006-2009. You get a little bit of downer folk, you get a dollop of noise/drone guitar jamming, you get a healthy helping of avant-garde spoken word with piano and plunking sounds. The guy's got a really nice voice and it shines even when buried beneath murky instrumentation, as it is on some tracks. Plus there's a really funny double-sided foldout insert with rambling commentary from Mr. Brooklyn, whose real name appears to be Mark Williams. I hope to be reviewing the next Cookie Brooklyn tape in about 15 years or so...

I feel like I just might not be qualified to comment on this music accurately. As far as I'm concerned, the most slamming "techno" I've ever heard is "Come Out" by Steve Reich. That shit really gets me dancing. Be that as it may, Rory Storm's "Wirewreath" is a completely enjoyable collection of beats and blurps to get your party started. Well, at least until the much more harsh B side kicks in. While this sort of music isn't usually my cup of tea, I have to say I enjoyed this tape.

THE CHARRED RAMPS "Hunt The Grease" c62 (FMSMPRC)

From the look of the packaging, I thought The Charred Ramps was going to be a skate punk band, but they are actually and industrial/tape degradation duo that plays a little bit of thrash on the side, though it takes a while to become apparent. All in all, a very interesting and dark journey through a number of cool soundscapes. This tape is available for trade only. So send some music or art to the address below if you want a copy. Or you can download it from the label's webpage. By the way FMSMPRC stands for "Fuck Me Stupid Mountain Princess Recording Collective," in case you was wonderin'.

fmsmprc
1217 Douglas St.
unit 226
Los Angeles, CA 90026

http://fmsmprc.bandcamp.com/

BITTER FICTIONS "Percolator Glitch"BITTER FICTIONS "Looper Pedal Blues" (Shaking Box Music)

Bitter Fictions sent me two self-released tapes from good old Calgary, Alberta. That's in Canada folks. Appears to be the solo project of radio DJ and music writer Devin Friesen. "Percolator Glitch" is a series of atonal live guitar improvisations processed through Max/MSP (that funny computer program that looks like a spider web). The track titles form a little joke:

Side A
1. I remember listening to I'm Your Man
2. It had some nice pop hooks, but bad instrumentation
Side B
3. I just feel that was him getting old and thinking, I gotta seem young and hip!
4. Synthesizers! That's the answer!

I've got to say I completely disagree with that statement on general principle. Leonard Cohen's "Various Positions" (1984), "I'm Your Man" (1988) & "The Future" (1992) form one of the greatest triptychs in all of music. The weird tinny production is one of the things that makes those albums (especially the latter two) stand out from most of the rest of recorded music. Case in point:


Hell I'm so rankled now that I'm not sure if I can go on... Okay fine, I will. "Percolater Glitch" just really isn't my cup of tea. I can't say that I've ever enjoyed the combination of guitars and computers. "Looper Pedal Blues" I like a little more. Kind of Lee Ranaldo inspired songs that lead into guitar jams. There's more variation in the instrumentation and rhythm here and some of the music is tuneful in that atonal way we've come to know and love from about a million bands these days.

http://bitter-fictions.blogspot.com/

ALTO JEFFRO "Echo Together" c35SKY STADIUM "Ancient" c20(Lave Church Records)

I got two cassettes from Lava Church about a month back. The label is based out of Sarasota Florida and you can get all five of their releases for only $13.50. Now that's a good fucking deal. The tapes come come on with double sided color cardboard j-cards and an 80s "Super Stars" trading card. http://lavachurch.blogspot.com/

First up is Alto Jeffro "Echo Together" c35. I like this one quite a bit. Alto Jeffro is a duo from what is described as the "arctic woodlands of Massachusetts." They are a duo and they sure do echo together. Despite some of the tape's computerized Ariel Pinkisms, the proceedings are generally tuneful and enjoyable. Mostly keyboard and drum machine pop with echo on pretty much everything. There's a ukulele on one track, but no guitar that I can detect. Can't really understand the lyrics, but it seems like these boys are having a good time. You probably will too.

Next we have Sky Stadium "Ancient" c20. Sounds like what you might expect a band called Sky Stadium to sound like. What's that? You expect it to sound like a bunch of football hooligans whose idiotic screams are only hampered by the lack of oxygen in their mile high sports venue? Well you're way wrong! Vangelis is cool again (or maybe cool for the first time). This tape sounds like the opening of Blade Runner for 20 minutes. No beats of any kind, just the sound that dolphins make as they fly through space. It's okay.

HUNTED CREATURES "s/t" (Dynamo Sound Collective)

Pittsburgh, PA is a really strange place. The deeply weird concert promoters seem to be in some sort of perpetual war and the vibe can be pretty down. That being said, the city is geographically quite breathtaking, with tons of bridges and weird old buildings, not to mention one of the coolest collections of businesses ever to be assembled under one roof. 3138 Dobson St. on Polish Hill has the honor of housing Mind Cure Records, Copacetic Comics and Lili Coffee Shop. How's that for a one-stop? Apparently you can add Ryan Emmett's Dynamo Sound Collective to the list of things that are "A-OK" about Pittsburgh. The label has released over thirty tapes and this one is a nice atmospheric little bugger from the four member Hunted Creatures, that features Mr. Emmett, Micah Pacileo, Amy Hoffman and Darren Myers. The A side offers a bunch of swooshes and swoops, while the B side gets us started with a humorous sample of audience clapping before getting way into a swirling tribal jam that breaks down into sampler glitches. In conclusion, I think Pittsburgh is cool.

http://www.dynamosoundcollective.com

PROBLEMS THAT FIX THEMSELVES / MICROMELANCOLIE "Fractures" c47 (Already Dead Tapes and Records)

This is a split between two electronic artists. Again, I'd like to say that electronical music is really not my "thing" by any means, but I have been known to enjoy a repeated listen of Aphex Twin's "Come To Daddy" EP from time to time. The first side of "Fractures" is by Problems That Fix Themselves and it's very much in the vein of that Richard D. James mini-masterpiece. I don't really know the correct language to use when describing this stuff, but I can say that Problems' music is quite complex and utilizes a number of interesting rhythms and textures. Hey now, they even named one track after Jeffery Tambor:


The B side is by Micromelancolié and it's a lot more slow building, sounding like a room slowly filling with bees transitioning into the dead sound of a record spinning endlessly in its runout groove. Not as instantly ear grabbing as the Problems material, but It's a good match to the energetic workout you get on the other side.

The tape comes wrapped in a cardboard holder and the graphic design is pretty pro.

http://alreadydeadtapes.wordpress.com

BLUES PATROL - "ROCK" c20 (Hot & Ready)

Blues Patrol are a two piece from CA.Their newest cassette for Hot & Ready, is aptly titled "ROCK", which is pretty accurate, although after hearing it a few times, I think that "BENZO ROCK" would be more appropriate.Aesthetically, this has everything that I like about minimalist punk and pop acts of the 80's and 90's(see: awkward skinny male on cover, b+w breakfast/hangout photo insert, etc), and sounds alot like them, too.They've got the broken swagger and hiss of Beat Happening, without all the deep vox and painful cuteness.It's very simple, and could very well be 90% improvised.You start playing, and I'll catch up..and now we've got a song.Repeat.The guitars are distant and catchy, and sound just right for this kind of laced vocal style.The words just kind of fall out of his mouth.They've got a fairly heavy blues vibe going on, and like to keep things pretty laid back."Ain't No Gremlin Rock" has a rather infectious saxophone stumbling throughout most of it, and it's probably the best track on the tape.It reminds me the busted collage sound of the Shadow Ring, with a bit of that lo-fi creeper vibe of Russian Tsarlag, completely by accident..ROCK sounds like it's going to fall apart at any second, and it's a not a bad thing at all.Pick one up from Hot&Ready.

D//VV/D - "Gravitational Collapse" c30 (self released)

Phew!This one was a pleasant surprise indeed.D//VV/D reminds me a lot of Coil, more specifically, a Coil film score like Hellraiser.It's a strangely accessible mish mash of dark and bloodthirsty samples, synths and drum loops, who've all joined hands to dance maniacally around a church fire.Simple.It's a deeply foreboding listen, with some sinister vocals and deep industrial pounding.SPK and Skinny Puppy are decent reference points, although this guy wins because he's got a four-track vibe that keeps it honest and charming.Most of it hangs in the instrumental territory, and relies mainly on layers of grainy synthesizers and dense drum programming, although you'll hear a few coherently creepy voices rise up through the smoldering ash."Chaotic Summer" is a real lurker, and actually offers some tasteful vocoding.
Side B will really take you for a ride.It's mostly filled with demented drones and might be something that's playing in whatever they call "the depths of Hell" in outer space.Total cosmic doom.The standout track for me was "Gas Giant" which sounds like Throbbing Gristle playing some 90's club dub tune, at three different speeds, all at once.Black gold on a blue tape.Visit his site and pick one up before it's too late.Do it here.Edition of 50.

GOOD AMOUNT "Power" cs (Holy Page)

Okay, before listening to this cassette I had little to no previous knowledge of Good Amount, except for a few random internet blurbs and/or name drops by friends.By the time side B had ended, I was actually upset that nobody had bothered to turn me onto this much earlier.Power is the name of this cassette by Christian Filardo, aka: Good Amount, and it absolutely deserves it's title.From the very start, good vibes are pumped out in large amounts, like some kind of glittery neon elixir made of dolphin tears.A burst of synth chords swells up and withers away instantly.From there, they lay out a canvas so vast and endless, and begin to fill it.An arsenal of found sounds is spread out all over this thing, with random soft synth notes spattered over top.It's got a ton of open spaces, and yet it never seems to completely fade out or lag.The occasional ethereal voice will come into play, and whisper softly under a blanket of delays, followed by a swirling machine hum and percussive bump or two.This is a very warm and inviting batch of drones and loops, and it only gets deeper and more intriguing as it unfolds.I can't wait to hear more from them.Highly recommended for headphone listening, and mandatory listening for fans of Emeralds, OPN and the like.Pick one up for yourself or a friend from Holy Page.Edition of 100.

Son of A Bricklayer - Moose Without Antlers c24

Son of a Bricklayer was a name I was unfamiliar with but upon receiving Moose Without Antlers with its stunning orange shell and beautiful artwork I was excited to hear what I was seeing. Moose Without Antlers may be the intriguing name that I never understand - possibly the name of a weird sex position, one could only imagine. At first listen this tape blew me away. I am a fan of the drum and this album delivers - pure dream drum beats like I have not heard in a long time - tight breaks and slamming beats that knock off the ghetto blaster speakers. Deep down I realize this is the tape I've been dying to receive. Not just a drum and bass type of album - this features fantastic soundscapes that are alluring and hypnotizing. They complement the beats in such a way that I feel is uncommon in the realm of cassette culture. Well produced tape with beautiful artwork. Congrats I had An Accident for another great release.

Babelfishh - Eyeless Terror c32

Babelfishh has a long history of working with some great producers within the beat/hip hop scene. Split releases with Astronautalis, Oskar Ohlson, Tenshun, Filkoe, BeastMaster, and Edison have all shown the diversity of his talents. Eyeless Terror is not a typical beat album. In fact, its hard to call it such as all - blending thrash metal and noise into the beat style Eyeless Terror sounds more like a straight up noise album with thrash style lyrics. Self proclaimed garage racket the opening track "Vomiting Wallets" starts off with an intense guitar riff followed by a rattling of words and a crushing beat all behind a tenable noise frequency - this track really brings you into the entire album - each track following further identifies Babelfishh as out of the ordinary. Artwork was printed on hemp paper and features a collage style scene of a raccoon with knives and an eyeless George Washington. The tape itself is on lime green tapes - a rarity that I haven't seen much before. By far a surprising release that will receive much play in the tape deck.
Purchase this from I had An Accident Records for a mere $5

EKLIN - "Onwa" c45 (Night-People, 2011)

Yet another total winner from Shawn Reed's Night-People imprint.This one is a real gem, too.Eklin is a fairly new Dutch band, and their newest opus, Onwa, is a much needed breath of VERY fresh air.They are completely unique in style, and it's almost impossible to pinpoint any of their musical influences.They've got this really ethereal, cavernous vibe going, sounding completely natural and organic almost always, with very minimal instrumentation, leaning heavily on they rich beauty of singer Lo's soaring vocal arrangements.Her voice is just incredible.Eklin are an absolutely perfect machine when it comes to the rhythm section, with tightly syncopated percussion doing most of the work, with deep pocket grooves, and more then enough kraut-like pounding.and light and airy guitar flourishes that trickle down into the tiny cracks.Icy blue synths flow in and out of the songs smoothly, sounding like they're underwater and rising to the surface, if only to accompany the howling breeze that is Lo's voice.There is little to no contrast here on any front, and Onwa is anything but contrived.Some parts of Onwa are similar to the primitive minimalism of Gang Gang Dance, but even that comparison doesn't do this justice.Eklin are definitely doing something painfully unique and fresh, and this amazing cassette is worth every penny.Expect plenty of chills.Get it from Night-People.

MOFODiSHU - "Rhythm is for Gals / Live at the Court Tavern" c90 (Nacht Records)

                                                               

MOFODiSHU (moe-foe-dee-shu) is a free-noise/jazz/what-have-you quartet (at times a trio) that hails from New Jersey. This here bare-bones limited edition cassette brings together two of their previously released digital albums: Rhythm is for Gals and Live at the Court Tavern. Their interplay of scorched analog noise, buzzing guitar, and enlivened reed work, at first, took me back to what I imagined the Wolf Eyes & Anthony Braxton album was going to sound like when I first caught wind of it several years ago. It’s been so damn long since I’ve actually heard that album, so I’m not necessarily going to throw that out there as an apt reference point, but MOFODiSHU certainly do share a thing or two with these towering figures: lurching atmospherics, skewed melodic lines that cut straight through, and a clear understanding of tension and dynamics. As this c90 spins out, though, you begin to hear more of their laptop/turntable, generally ambient, flourishes come to the fore, which calls to mind some of the more abstract and forward-thinking jazzbos on the Rune Grammofon label. So like Supersilent, for instance, MOFODiSHU doesn’t really fit comfortably into any genre-specific box. This here’s a solid introduction, though, to a group making some fascinating NEW sounds.

Nacht Records

FAVORS - "Five Million Years" c40 (self released)

This randomly showed up in my mailbox last week, and I haven't been able to put it down since I popped it in my tape deck."Five Million Years" is the debut cassette from Favors, and anyone that digs on early 80's Manchester acts, and any "classic" electro-pop, is going to go bananas for this tape.Hints of New Order, ABC, Soft Cell, Cabaret Voltaire, and even Talking Heads, are all over the place, respectively.Favors are doing it right.It's all here, funky synth bass lines, heavy electro beats, icy synthesizer workouts, and the vocal hooks are cold and catchy.Some parts of Five Million Years lean more towards a rather modern electronica vibe, conjuring some more recent acts like The Faint, Holy Ghost, and Hot Chip.Whichever direction they are heading in, each track is really tasteful and easy to listen to, as this sort of thing can fall victim to the "generic" and "hacky" tags so easily, and they pretty much avoid that altogether.I didn't love every minute of it to death, but it's nice to see that someone is out there doing this kind of stuff well, really well.For a minute there, I was convinced that ecstasy was the only thing to make it out of that scene alive.If you are into this sort of dance revival, you will want to get a hold of this.Get a copy here.

SPIRES - "Puzzlebox" c30 (Lava Church)

  Lava Church is a fairly young cassette label out of Sarasota, FL.They've got a handful of noisy gems for sale, and this one is indeed my favorite thus far.Puzzlebox, is the newest mind melter from one man drone project, Spires.Their site says he has been making all kinds of music for the last twenty years, and if this is true, I'm about to be all over that junk.Puzzlebox isn't anything terribly original, nor will it offer any sort of religious or mind blowing experience.However, it's completely free of boundaries, and filled to the brim with weird.Most of the sounds on this tape are incoherent, and nearly impossible to make sense of, and this is a compliment.Industrial machine clank, minus the hard beats.Space signals mixed with subtle, low end drones and warm synths make up a good part of the album, and the constant shift in overall mood and tone is more than enough to keep you listening.Pieces of it are really compelling, as it swells and drops and random.You might hear a bit of Throbbing Gristle worship at times, and that is a very good thing.Rarely does a song take shape, but it's the lack of "song" that made this interesting.Nice stuff.Edition of 30!?Get one from Lava Church, quick.

HEX BREAKER QUARTET "Chemical Angel" & "Crowned And Conquering Child" (True Color Of Venus)

Grasshopper and Telecult Powers are two of the most high quality acts in New York's glamorous and cocaine fueled drone scene. Wait... let me start over. Grasshopper features two of the most in demand flugelhornists on today's light-classical scene and Telecult powers meet yearly at Bohemian Grove and drink virgin's blood. That's more like it, wait not quite...

Grasshopper and Telecult Powers, both formidable space travelers in their own right, become far more powerful than you could ever imagine under the combined Hex Breaker moniker. The seldom scene Quintet version of the group comprises the trumpets and electronics Grasshopper duo of Jesse DeRosa and Josh Millrod and the synths of Telecult Powers Mr. Matthews and Witchbeam. The more common configuration of this group, (the Quartet, which performs and records as a trio without Witchbeam) is the one found on this absolutely outstanding pair of tapes released on Mr. Matthews' True Color Of Venus label. Wait a second, "Quartet? Three member?" you say? Dig this: the fourth member is a fucking ghost. Just sit back and take that in!

What really sets these guys apart from the pack (besides their downright human decency and good hygiene) is the focused group dynamics and lack of overplaying. Yeah sure, one guy or gal could make this music with the aid of ample technology, but these boys keep it simple and work together to create something astonishingly beautiful (remember "bands", yeah they still exist). Matthews uses his homemade equipment to lay down the synth based bed on which the two horn players rest. Millrod generally plays beautiful "trumpet sounding" trumpet with a light echo effect and De Rosa plays the EVI, which is a high-tech electronic trumpet that sounds more like a synth.

Hex Breaker Quartet deals in subtlety and serenity and it's the highly methodical strain in their work that really makes them an essential group in my book. Maybe it's the fact that two of these guys are making the music with their lungs and the other is using instruments he built by hand that make the group sound so organic. But mark my words, this is a living breathing world that is worthy of repeated visitations.

The Quintet has a tape coming up soon on NNA, so stay tuned.

Buy a tape: mister.matthews@gmail.com
Audio samples here: http://soundcloud.com/hexbreaker
New Telecult and Grasshopper LPs here: http://thebakeryfloor.com/bt/

DAY CREEP "Underneath The Mess" c20 (Snow Clone)

Columbus Ohio. Wow! This tape is great! One man band from a guy named Aaron Troyer, who I hear has a band called Day Creeper. I think I'd sure like to hear that, cuz this tape is fitting me like a glove today. Much of it sounds like a full band and it's a rather wonderful rock mess, maybe along the lines of K Records best stuff. Or something better? This guy formed his group out of the ashes of a Thin Lizzy cover band if you'll believe that. Some of it's got a tough Johnny Thunders or whatever kind of edge, some of it is more "indie rock" but not all that cute. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for people who like music.

get at aaron here: aarondestroyer@yahoo.com
the label: http://tapesprogressadministration.blogspot.com/

PETER KALYNIUK "Willy Songs" & "Digital Dementia" c60 (Canada Goose Tapes)

This is what I'd like to see more of! It's such a wonderful thing to put on a new tape from an artist I've never heard of and immediately be met with a work of compositional brilliance that is both melodically and rhythmically inventive. It's not that I don't enjoy my fair share of drone and noise tapes, but I have to say that I'm always especially pleased when folks use the cassette medium to share other forms of music than the ones that so frequently grace these pages. (hear that you eccentric popsters, folksters, punksters, etc out there: send me your tapes).

This tape actually contains two albums by Peter Kalyniuk, one recorded on a digital 16 track in 2005 and the other recorded on an analog four track in 2001, but released just this year on a new label called Canada Goose. This makes me think "where on earth has this guy been for the past ten years"? A cursory internet search reveals little information: he's from Toronto, apparently he's also a comic artist. That second tidbit makes a lot of sense because his music definitely has a madcap cartoonish feel to it.

How to describe it? Maybe like a much more dense take on Esquivel for the current millennium? That definitely does this tape some justice. Across 30 different songs, Kalyniuk layers strange and varied keyboards over beats and assorted instrumentation (all digital? I can't tell, probably) to create one of the most strangely grooving releases of recent memory. It's actually kind of shocking to me that this guy doesn't have more of a name for himself as I can see this stuff fitting into collections of decidedly diverse bents. On second thought, who am I kidding? This stuff is pretty darn near psychotic. From madhouse carnival romps & space alien waltzes to psychedelic civil war marches, Kalyniuk delivers the goods in ways I'm not sure you'll even begin to comprehend.

Lucky for you, you don't have to, I've already done all the comprehending necessary, all you need to do is go spend $5 at http://www.canadagoosetapes.com/tapes/ (they've even got some audio samples up there).

RAIN DRINKERS "Urthen Web" c32 (Brave Mysteries)

This is a lovely and mature spooky/mystic kind of tape from the occult themed label Brave Mysteries. Omninous organ, desolate guitar work, bowed strings and dark chanting/moaning. Very organic. This is like some of the more atmospheric parts of some Sun City Girls records, but with none of the humor...or evilness for that matter. It's definitely something a little more than just music though, and it gets to really deep places almost from the get go. What ever portal these guys are trying to open, I think it's safe to enter. I think...

http://bravemysteries.com/

Various Artists "Negro Woman Of AmericaYour Electric Future is NowStay Beautiful"c80 (Teen Action Records)

What do you say about a compilation cassette/zine that features 19 different artists? I don't know, um..."I like this. This is good". Does that do? No? Okay. The San Francisco label Teen Action Records has put out the work of some of the best and brightest: Emeralds, Sword Heaven, Skin Graft, 16 Pileup, Tusco Terror, Cave Bears, Bee Mask, Ryan Jewell & Mike Shifflet (just kidding about Cave Bears, that's my band. Those people are assholes!). Well, you won't find any of those bands on this compilation and due to the format, I was not able to decisively determine which part belonged exactly to which artist, especially seeing as they are almost all unknown to me, but I can say that this compilation all flows together really quite nicely throughout it's 80 minute running time. A lot of the stuff on here sounds like it could have come off of some long lost Throbbing Gristle demo tape. Keyboards, both shrill and droning, vocal samples, a little live percussion and Burroughsian cut ups all wend their way throughout this jungle of seething weirdness. If this were one band, then they would surely be a force to be reckoned with. I've got to start listening again and make some track markers so I can find out more about who, or what, is behind my favorite parts.

Nineteen tracks and 20 pages of audio visual anomalies, creaking, blasting, groaning, squirming and churning through your innocent head holes, welcoming you to a bold new tomorrow. From ecstatic group improvs, to pummeling electronics, to blissful drones, and beyond, the electric future IS now. Includes a bonus cassette with music from INTERSTATES ETC., FURFUR, PREGNANT SPORE, COPY LAKE, POTASIUM SIANADA, CRIBDEATH, DR PVPKHS, REACHING, HISS AND HUM, RXCCXXNS, MILLION BRAZILLIONS, CHROME GENIE, SCOAM, FORKED, HORSEFLESH, BONEYARD JITTERS, FILTH AND PISS, CELINE DION, and 73 PEOPLE WHO CARE. Limited to 99 copies.

that's the description from http://teenactionrecords.com/, which is where you can go to buy this tape, or at least find out where you might still find one. If you want to.

Geweih Ritual Label: First Two Releases

I just got two really cool looking tapes from a new label called Geweih Ritual. While neither one of them is exactly up my alley, they sure might be up yours (no pun intended) and they look and feel so dang cool that I thought I tried to spread the word. Both tapes come in neat little cardboard folders with screen printed covers. One of them is hand sewn together. Cool! The main reason I'm posting this on here is that the quality of the actual tapes (as in sound quality) and packaging is astounding and I hope this guy continues to make more stuff.

The first (and better) tape is by Jah Connery, a Detroit DJ, and it's described as "30 minutes of instrumental, avant garde, break beats that consistently bloom from beautiful, erie sounds into intense hectic noises, laid over smooth and stylish grooves". Couldn't agree more! I enjoyed it. The second tape is a split between CA/OR artists Palo Verde/Cinder Cone. Both bands are guitar/drums duos. Palo Verde has no/vocals and Cinder Cone other has some/okay/vocals. Had/enough? The first band is a little more on the "heavy" side and the second is a little more on the "mathy" side. All well recorded, all well...okay. Good in fact.

This could be for you???

http://geweihritual.blogspot.com/

NUDE SUNRISE "Should Be" c62 (Spooky Town)

Stoners, skaters, psychers, slackers, jammers, burners. Chillin' with this tape. First time I put this one on was after leaving Chicago on the way to Dover, OH on a tour with some dudes back in April. We had just spent a weekend with these guys, who also run that dank Nitetrotter blog, first at their homebase Schwag City, a dumpy old house with a useless ceiling fan, and then at their now-defunct warehouse paradise called Drone City (RIP). There was a lot of getting high, mostly puffing on some Mary Jane but there was DMT around and some weird pills. They had some chill ass cats with names like Fela Booty and De'mond Dekker. We watched a gang of skate videos. We saw some noise shows. It was fucking tight kicking it with this crew of weirdos and their awesome weirdo friends but I had no idea what to expect from their music. We had been listening to all kinds of records at the warehouse so there was little to infer from their tastes alone. I guess I anticipated something tripped, considering that Jay Feather put on a Rene Hell tape for us to fall asleep to (it ended up giving us killer Starcraft flashback dreams). So when I cranked up the stereo from the backseat to hear the first song, which is the title track, I was pretty surprised to hear a one-chord, six minute space-blues jam with wah pedals and a funk-ass bass line, with some scrawny sounding dude singing about some weird trippy shit and asking "Are you a God? No? Then die!" like we were at some fucked up acid party on a star-temple or some shit. I was way down. The eight or so other tracks definitely keep on the psych/kraut jammer style but reveal a distinct aspect of the band with each song. There's an excellent Neil Young cover on here that even your dad would probably like. They have the blues down, no problems. They also do a particularly drippy T. Rex jam that is perfect for rolling and smoking a fatty doobie to. There's a live track on it too with some voice samples played in reverse with a primitive drum line, wish I could have seen that performance. This music can be listened to anywhere, that's one of this tape's strengths. I've played it at work, on drives, BBQ-ing and in between sets at shows. The dudes definitely locked in on something sick here. Future Americana Midwest Industrial Mutant Vibes, Chicago Style. Spooky Town Records in Brattlebro, VT just gave the tape the pro-treatment, complete with an innercity skate art j-card and fresh, pro-dubbed, grape-popsicle-purple cassettes, limited to 200. One of my favorite tapes of the year, hands down. Feeling good in the USA.