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Happy to announce a new EP from Jay Leo Phillips entitled Days. The first single, "During During," is available right now over on Bandcamp or, if you prefer, on YouTube.
I tallied it up recently and I've been listening to music from the mind of Jay Leo Phillips for 17 years. His band Apollo Up was a mainstay for me for years and, honestly, is still in regular rotation. This new EP is a marked new direction for him. While he still embraces his signature guitar playing style, it's more subdued and reshaped into less anxious soundscapes. In the press release we remark that it's more akin to Tortoise or The Sea and Cake, if you happen to be familiar with those bands.
The single will hit streaming services next week but don't let that stop you from enjoying it now. And you will enjoy it. Promise.
The single will hit streaming services next week but don't let that stop you from enjoying it now. And you will enjoy it. Promise.
Tangentially related to that previous post on The Art of Warez, the work of Komiyama Takashi is heavily ANSI / ASCII inspired. You might chalk that up to "pixel art" but a lot of these pieces seem restricted by the same character palette as many of the classic works from the early 90s. It goes without saying that these are quite elevated beyond that palette but there's clearly a throughline.
Let's make two things abundantly clear. First, I find the title Dad Jams for a record to be very off putting (and a bit lazy). Secondly, my complaint is likely null and void as the record stems from a band named Thee More Shallows, not exactly the best moniker in the world to begin with.
That snarky commentary aside, I'm excited to hear that the band has returned. The 2007 record Book of Bad Breaks was in regular, heavy, rotation for years. All of the prior albums received a solid bit of quality time as well and the band always felt like one of those unfortunately undiscovered gems.
This V13 interview with songwriter Dee Kesler explains the long stretch of time between albums (surprise, he became a Dad!) and shares the first single "Ancient Baby" which is a phenomenal name any way you slice it so my prior complaints are a complete wash.
Very limited run of LP's from Monotreme Records that I am confident will be worth the purchase.
This V13 interview with songwriter Dee Kesler explains the long stretch of time between albums (surprise, he became a Dad!) and shares the first single "Ancient Baby" which is a phenomenal name any way you slice it so my prior complaints are a complete wash.
Very limited run of LP's from Monotreme Records that I am confident will be worth the purchase.
I was recently reminded of the Integratron, a structure built in 1960 by UFOlogist George Can Tassel. Having spent some time with Skyway Man, this structure was not completely unknown to me but I did realize that I didn't know much about it beyond the anecdotal.
The Atlantic ran this piece, "A Time Machine In The Mojave Desert ," back in 2015 and it serves as a nice primer for the history of the place, the intent of the structure and its modern fate.
Obviously Wikipedia has plenty of info, the official site is pretty interesting and I recommend reading the Atlas Obscura entry for a full Quickstart guide on the place. Or you can just watch this Zwan video, filmed inside of it.
The Atlantic ran this piece, "A Time Machine In The Mojave Desert ," back in 2015 and it serves as a nice primer for the history of the place, the intent of the structure and its modern fate.
Obviously Wikipedia has plenty of info, the official site is pretty interesting and I recommend reading the Atlas Obscura entry for a full Quickstart guide on the place. Or you can just watch this Zwan video, filmed inside of it.
Sally Davies has a incredible body of work; some of which is portraits of NYC'ers in their highly decorated apartments. The quotes from each individual is almost always a lament back to the "good ole days" of NYC but that doesn't detract from the images of their homes. It's quite fun to pore over all of the details.
Tip of the hat to Jamie Dubs for this Juxtapoz piece on The Art of Warez, a short film from British artist-filmmaker Oliver Payne and American painter Kevin Bouton-Scott.
It's about 13 minutes about Bulletin Board Systems, ANSi art and the culture that revolved around them. Topics that are near and dear to my heart. I'm not much for nostalgia but this relics of pre-Internet days were formative, to say the least.
If you're looking for more ANSi art, there's a bunch on artpacks.org, 16colo.rs and ArtScene. It's a subculture worth spending some time with.
It's about 13 minutes about Bulletin Board Systems, ANSi art and the culture that revolved around them. Topics that are near and dear to my heart. I'm not much for nostalgia but this relics of pre-Internet days were formative, to say the least.
If you're looking for more ANSi art, there's a bunch on artpacks.org, 16colo.rs and ArtScene. It's a subculture worth spending some time with.
Namotasa 9 stimmig
say whaaaaaa
After a quick premiere via Flood magazine, I am happy to share two new tracks from Stone Jack Jones featuring Adia Victoria.
Back in 2019, yk Records released Black Snake from Stone Jack Jones; a pretty dark blend of folk, psychedelic and rock. It's not music that is easy to plop into a standard genre as there's something mystical about it. These two new songs - "I'm Made" and "Heaven Knows" - build on that same vibe.
The first track, "I'm Made", is actually 9 minutes long - a length that may appear daunting at first but a factor to the song that gives it time to really set the listener into a meditative and transfixed place. It doesn't feel like 9 minutes in the slightest.
I'm really happy to get these songs out into the world and think they capture a special collaborative vibe between everyone involved. Stone Jack Jones and Adia Victoria really do share a kindred spirit in terms of their embrace of the Southern Gothic and the contributions of Roger Moutenout, Robin Eaton, Kyle Hamlett, Kelly Diehl and Mason Hickman really take it to a special place.
TLDR: two new songs out on yk Records, give em a listen. Streaming everywhere.
The first track, "I'm Made", is actually 9 minutes long - a length that may appear daunting at first but a factor to the song that gives it time to really set the listener into a meditative and transfixed place. It doesn't feel like 9 minutes in the slightest.
I'm really happy to get these songs out into the world and think they capture a special collaborative vibe between everyone involved. Stone Jack Jones and Adia Victoria really do share a kindred spirit in terms of their embrace of the Southern Gothic and the contributions of Roger Moutenout, Robin Eaton, Kyle Hamlett, Kelly Diehl and Mason Hickman really take it to a special place.
TLDR: two new songs out on yk Records, give em a listen. Streaming everywhere.
Grandaddy, In a Trance and Wandering Around
performance film mixed with pre-recorded footage. Always good to see Grandaddy emerge with something.Some of the best and most unique and unusual vinyl record package designs
a well spent 17 minutes
Read in Style by Bowio
not gonna lie, this is clever enough to back.
Best Movies Never Made: Nolan, Tarantino, and more...
relevant to my interests
Flow: A lightweight browser with a new rendering engine
company Ekioh is trying to re-invent the browser. Very interesting read but it's a massive hill to climb.
Many thanks to the Nashville Cream for premiering this brand new video for "Mixed Signals" by Jack Silverman. I already loved the track but the video really recontextualized it for me - adding a layer of narrative that I would have never come to myself.
The G. Seth West / Ben Marcantel direction for it has an almost Dr. Katz feel with the simple illustrations and squiggly movement but there's Easter Eggs nestled throughout the whole piece. The "11:34" clock being the most obvious and pervasive.
Watch it and enjoy.
The G. Seth West / Ben Marcantel direction for it has an almost Dr. Katz feel with the simple illustrations and squiggly movement but there's Easter Eggs nestled throughout the whole piece. The "11:34" clock being the most obvious and pervasive.
Watch it and enjoy.
Crumb - Trophy [Official Video]
another absolute stunnerComfy Synth Music & Artists
I have discovered a new intriguing Bandcamp genre
I just recently learned about Roman Opalka and his lifelong art project painting to infinity.
In 1965, he decided to "to paint numbers that would progress sequentially from one canvas to the next for the duration of his life. " Starting on a black canvas he started painting these sequential Details for years. Around 1968, he starts to add 1% white to the canvas with the ultimate goal that the paintings would eventually have a fully white background with white numbers on top.
I'm usually not a big fan of these sorts of "invisible" works but there is something admirably meditative about the act of painting from 1965 to 2011 to the point where its not even visible.
In 1965, he decided to "to paint numbers that would progress sequentially from one canvas to the next for the duration of his life. " Starting on a black canvas he started painting these sequential Details for years. Around 1968, he starts to add 1% white to the canvas with the ultimate goal that the paintings would eventually have a fully white background with white numbers on top.
I'm usually not a big fan of these sorts of "invisible" works but there is something admirably meditative about the act of painting from 1965 to 2011 to the point where its not even visible.
Geiger von Müller - Interstellar Resorption # 3
this came through as a submission and I gotta admit, I really like the animation style.Megan McIsaac Tumblr
i found myself on Tumblr the other day and revisited this photoblog. Unbelievably good.
I recently came across the work of Demond Melancon, an artist from New Orleans "with extensive roots in the Black Masking Culture." If you're not aware of the Black Masking Culture, it's an homage to Native Americans and the African diaspora told through incredible elaborate costuming, always involving extremely intricate beading work. Here's a 2 minute documentary on that to catch you up.
Melancon takes the traditions of these Mardi Gras Indians and applies them to his fine art portraits. Most of the images from his site do not give the sense intricacy or scale involved with these pieces but they are often huge and always incredibly detailed.
I find the work to be fascinating from all angles - the method of execution in making it, the actual illustration style itself and the story each pieces tells.
You can find Melancon on Instagram, naturally.
Melancon takes the traditions of these Mardi Gras Indians and applies them to his fine art portraits. Most of the images from his site do not give the sense intricacy or scale involved with these pieces but they are often huge and always incredibly detailed.
I find the work to be fascinating from all angles - the method of execution in making it, the actual illustration style itself and the story each pieces tells.
You can find Melancon on Instagram, naturally.
A Cephalopod Has Passed a Cognitive Test Designed For Human Children
don't sleep on cuttlefish; dudes is SMART
Soundcloud recently announced Fan Powered Royalties - a different approach to paying out artists than what any of the other streaming services use. I've been fascinated with this approach ever since I read about Deezer's User Centric Payment System. This article does a good job of explaining "pro-rata" payouts vs "user-centric" payouts but the gist of it - instead of paying artists with the most repeated plays on a given platform, payouts are based on direct plays from subscribers.
Maybe I'm oversimplifying it or misunderstanding the approach but, as far as I can tell, they're going to try and pay out artists based on actual plays; not an algorithm of who should be paid. This is closing in on 1:1 plays to payments.
The Soundcloud promo site sells it pretty well but there's a lot of documents to sort through to figure out how to be eligible for it. To start, if you're on Soundcloud and don't have ISRC codes on your tracks, you should go ahead and do that ASAP.
However it shakes out, it's a very worthwhile experiment and I'm happy to see a big company like Soundcloud trying this out.
Maybe I'm oversimplifying it or misunderstanding the approach but, as far as I can tell, they're going to try and pay out artists based on actual plays; not an algorithm of who should be paid. This is closing in on 1:1 plays to payments.
The Soundcloud promo site sells it pretty well but there's a lot of documents to sort through to figure out how to be eligible for it. To start, if you're on Soundcloud and don't have ISRC codes on your tracks, you should go ahead and do that ASAP.
However it shakes out, it's a very worthwhile experiment and I'm happy to see a big company like Soundcloud trying this out.
The debut release from No Stress came out yesterday. Prelude No. 1 is a quick listen but it covers a lot of ground incorporating hip-hop, jazz, gospel and a bit of glitch all into one tidy package. It's a yk Records release and it's probably one of the most different things I've had a hand in putting out into the world. And I say that positively.
It's hard to pinpoint a favorite track because of the variety of styles. "Freedomlove" is a good jumping off point but there's something hypnotic about "We Sure This Is A Dream? and something entirely soothing about Trust Falls with My Enemies." All told, you really can't go wrong.
Pick it up on Bandcamp or stream it anywhere.
Pick it up on Bandcamp or stream it anywhere.
In promotion of their latest LP, In The City, Tower Defense has released the video for the lead track "Manifest Destiny." It's a highly stylized DIY affair that features bassist Sarah Shepherd hurdling through Nashville before ending in a rather precarious situation.
It's certainly not a big budget video but I have an intense fondness for bands that figure out a way to do something engaging without spending a lot. They put together an affordable green screen setup and figured out a way to make it work. I love the results.
It's also a great song worth repeating at least a few times. I know that's my bias talking but I really love how full force the band sounds here. Pick up the LP or digital over on Bandcamp or stream the record anywhere. And, of course, watch the video.
It's certainly not a big budget video but I have an intense fondness for bands that figure out a way to do something engaging without spending a lot. They put together an affordable green screen setup and figured out a way to make it work. I love the results.
It's also a great song worth repeating at least a few times. I know that's my bias talking but I really love how full force the band sounds here. Pick up the LP or digital over on Bandcamp or stream the record anywhere. And, of course, watch the video.
Blancmange - Lose Your Love
went on an 80s video binge. on the fence about the song but enjoying the video.Fuzzbox - Love Is The Slug
recent discovery. v into it.
Spoon - Girls Can Tell Inspiration Playlist
the album is 20 years old. The band put out a playlist of songs that helped inspire itSigue Sigue Sputnik - Sex Bomb Boogie
if anyone has an HD version of this, please direct me towards it
Another new yk Records artist debuted a brand new track today. Jack Silverman emailed me awhile back with a Soundcloud link of 3 tracks he had recorded with Roger Moutenot (Yo La Tengo, Sleater-Kinney, TMBG). It's not uncommon for me to get requests to put out new music but the release roster is generally already so full I have to politely decline. However, after one listen of Silverman's EP (Now What - due March 26th), I was hooked.
The first track from the EP, "Mixed Signals", is now available on Bandcamp or wherever you stream music. There's an oddly haunting voice throughout the track that has an intriguing back story.
This is the song that really started it all. I just started hearing this melody in my head, and then tried to find the chords that made it work. When I got set up, something in my guitar or pedal board was picking up radio interference, and I couldn’t get rid of it. When I turned up the volume, I realized it was a radio preacher. So I figured, hit RECORD. Some of those demo tracks are in the final mix, including the preacher.I already loved the track but learning that the voice was a bit of an accident made it even more enjoyable.
I posted about the upcoming No Stress album and am happy to announce a second single has dropped from March 2nd record. "Wake Up" is a very different vibe from the prior single but I love that. Hard stop. Dara Tucker provides some wonderful vocals to this legitimately soothing track.
Hear the track on whatever streaming service or pick up the record over on Bandcamp.