Loomer (BR)

Loomer is a four-piece hailing from southern Brazil who came to light at mid-2008 and, since then, have been dedicated to make some of the nicest noise of the most recent history of this country. As the name indicates, their main influences are the feedback-fueled legacy left by Mr. Shields and its gang, as well as highly beloved names such as Ride, Swervedriver, Dinosaur Jr., Pixies, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Teenage Fanclub and many others that made the late '80 and early '90 the holy graal for the Alternative Rock. Despite their well-stabilished influences, their sonic world is very rich and original enough to have their own face and stand up for itself, unlike many copycats we see popping up at every corner of the Earth, therefore, it's not a surprise they became a reference when it comes to brazilian underground, sounding fresh and evolvent even among the high level bands that are blooming bright and healthy in the last four-five years or so. They've only released two eps across their careet, the '09 Mind Drops and '10 Coward Soul, both really astonishing, and their debut full-length is schedules for the last weeks of 2013. However, they released a single taken from this album about three days ago, You Wouldn't Anyway, a really good teaser for this forthcoming work that I (and probably many of us) are really eager to put our ears on.

You can stream and get this brand new single at the name-your-price method from their label, midsummer madness, right below, as well as a free download link from sinewave page for the Coward Soul EP, or free-stream their earlier EPs at the midsummer madness homepage. Either way, I hope you enjoy it all  the way it's deserved!

update:  You Wouldn't Anyway full-length is available for free download at sinewave page. One of greatest albums of 2013, just get it and stream it through your ears without thinking twice. ;)

sinewave (full length)

bandcamp (single)

download (sinewave)

Kigo

Kigo is an one-man project hailing from the aussie lands, more specifically, the city of Brisbane. Its sole member refers to himself as D.P. Pearce, whose pictures or further information is nowhere to be found. However, he's quite explicit when it comes to his artistic inspiration: My Bloody Valentine. Every song could very well fit in the Loveless album, or even in the M B V. That means you'll hear a lot of sweetened swirly fuzz conducted by whistable melodies and, deep down, you can listen to lo-fi vocals singing incomplete phrases and verses if you pay attention heavily.

Some might say they're not contributing to anything new into the Shoegaze scene but who cares? Kigo makes some of the most awesome ear candies that came out this year, and has a great potential of climbing even higher levels of sonic quality, and that's more than most of band has been bringing to us lately. So, just put the headphones on and enjoy the trip!

edit 1: New EP, Some Other Thing, was released last monday, May 27th. Yeah, the aussie gazer seems to be quite productive lately! This EP contains four deliciously blurry songs which display a slightly different approach than the previous works. The self-titled song is a amorphous slow-paced piece of melted noise which brings lovesliescrushing directly to our busted minds. The final song, Washed, has a strong J&MC's Psychocandy accent, while the remaining ones still orbit in the "MBV meets Astrobrite with drops of cosmicdust" fields. Noise Pop freaks like most of us can't go wrong with it! That's why I drop the bandcamp link for this EP right below, where it can be free-streamed and purchased at the name-your-price method. Enjoy! ;)

edit 2: It seems he's more creative and active than ever, as Kigo released another shining EP at 19th July. Titled Chance, this one has a blue blurry cover in the same fashion of the previous ones and explore some Electronics and Synth Pop layers that weren't present in them. It's great to see such motivated guy refining their work better and better in a way that I'm really eager to see what Kigo may be able to accomplish in the near future. If there's a brand new band out there you should keep up, that's surely one of them. Enjoy! ;)

edit 3: After a stream of fuzzy-drenched EPs, Kigo returns with a full-length under the arms. It's a 10-track collection titled So Lost Now. For those who enjoyed the previous EPs, there's no way you can go wrong with that. As I said, it's very nice to see so many people dedicated to make some noise and make our ears bleed, and of course, Kigo is included in this group. As always, I hope you enjoy! ;)

bandcamp

bandcamp

enjoy! (bandcamp)




















enjoy! (bandcamp)

enjoy! (bandcamp)

Soviet Soviet

Soviet Soviet started its activities at 2008, based in Pesaro, Italy (btw, there's a nice stream of obscure italian bands coming up, don't you think?). They have an EP, from 2010 and a full-length Nice, released one year after, which is nothing but the previous EP with a handful of unreleased songs. Since the first notes, you notice the great influence of Post-Punk they draw, with a strong 1980's vibe and such, but they aren't exactly a Joy Division re-interpretation as you must be wondering. The vocals aren't exaclty gloomy and monotonous  and the songs aren't exactly what you'd call melancholic and gritty, as it's usual for the genre. Of course, they must have spun many hours of Unknown Pleasures and Closer at their players of headphones, but it's the Killing Joke and Wire vein that really stands up as main references. Of couse, currently rising-up (and awesome) Post-Punk bands such as Motorama, Human Tetris anda little bit of the also italian Be Forest also come to our minds when popping up this album.

A very nice surprise that arrived in my ears at the last couple of months, for sure. They use a lot of retro cultural elements (just look at their names!) and references, but they're not simply satisfied to get stuck at the past, but use it as a reference to craft a corrosive, acid, fresh (and kinda badass-ish) sound that is capable to please not only hungry Post-Punk fans, but also those into the coler-than-ice tides of Coldwave and the darker side of the Shoegaze Universe, where the likes The KVB, The Soft Moon, Ceremony, etc. belong. more than deserveful of attention in this space. 

Update: Soviet Soviet debut album, titled Fate, is out! One of the brightest 2013 albums for sure. Enjoy! 

bandcamp









enjoy!

Lights That Change

Lights That Change (LTC) is a very nice british project consisting of the duo Mark Joy and Lisa VonH. Although it was born many years ago, according to the band self-biography here, it was not until this year of 2013 that their music saw the first beams of light. Their main influences include classic heads such as David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Morrisey, My Bloody Valentine, The Sundays, and, obviously, Cocteau Twins, Robin Guthrie and the 4AD bands, as it's easily noticed on songs such as Flying, from Rainbow On Your Shoulder EP, and Beautiful Soul, which is part of the homonymous single. Their music are centrally based on delicate oneiric sonic palettes peppered with bucolic, nostalgic feelings, typical from the Dream Pop Universe, however, they're able to gravitate from hazy underwater-like Ambient tones from simpler poppy singalong melodies and perform very well on both cases, which seems to be nothing but pure talent coming from these duo.

You can free-listen and purchase all their work at the bandcamp links right below, including their brand new EP, Rainbow On Your Shoulder, released at this very same day, October 28th. If you' have, at least, a thing for acts such as Cocteau Twins (Treasure phase), Swallow, Drowner, Cranes and related , you really can't go wrong with LTC and will surely enjoy their lush (sic), shimmering work. As I always say, I hope you all enjoy and support! ;)




2013.10 - Rainbow On Your Shoulder (EP)

bandcamp









2013.08 - Beautiful Soul (single)

bandcamp

2013.07 - Lights That Change

bandcamp

Spökraket

Spökraket is a danish five-piece from the city of Aarhus, which assembled together in 2010, and since then has been dedicated to crafting some of the fuzziest Space Rock around the Earth. Using the DIY approach, as they mention on their self-description at their facebook page, they made some outstanding records in a very short range of time, starting by the 2011 All Art Is Propaganda, followed by the split with The Road To Suicide (a great band that has sadly decided to pull the plug in the last few weeks) on May 2013, and now the second full-length, Darling Adharma, which came to light on last September 7th. Although I just found out about them last week, I readily realized they're a highly distinguished act into the neo-psych boiling seas they're sailing, when '60 Garage Rock mixes with the brain-melting Krautrock sonic legacy, the bottomless darkness of Drone and the best moments of the '80-'90 Scene That Celebrates Itself dreamy, feedback-fueled sonic atmospheres. All their songs follow a mantra-like structure, based on the repetition of the rhytms and central melodies, or an extensive use of crescendos instead of focusing on chorus and apices as most musical structures follow, creating a sort-of ritualist atmosphere that very well fits their sound.

All their work released so far can be free-streamed right below, or purchased for US$5 or less, depending on the album. Spökraket is surely a band that all of you who are reading this right now should keep up in the next years, and to be talked about, having its name spread the farthest possible, as we all know the cosmos is not the limit.

Enjoy!

2013 - Darling Adharma

  

bandcamp

2013 - Spökraket/Road To Suicide split

bandcamp

2011 - All Art Is Propaganda

bandcamp

 

Zeit

Zeit is a Gothenburg-based Shoegaze-meets-Dream Pop band formed around 2010, but its fiat lux refers to 2008, when they were born as a concept. Using the own band words, they can be described sonically as "pop music that makes you feel like you're traveling through a long-abandoned ghost town, with a body full of tranquilizers.", or "basically, it's just pop music drenched with fuzz", as they said in this blog .  They don't hide their love for late '80-early '90 independent music, namely My Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain, Sonic Youth, The Smiths and so forth, which is, of course, reflected in their music crafting, however, they explore these noisy elements in an intelligent and creative way even though it has a strong lo-fi accent, sounding fresh and tasteful among hundreds of thousands of new assembles that have been rising every day around the web2.0.


It's possible to free-stream and purchase both works released by Zeit so far, the brand new Life Is Just A Blur, who came to light at September 20th, besides the self-titled debut from 2011. I'm sure this is only the beginning of a very succesful career, as they've already achieved high-level sonic quality in such little time and have potential to be a reference among many modern gazers, eg. Ringo Deathstarr, Airiel, Fleeting Joys and many others. As usual, I hope you enjoy it!

 

bandcamp

 

bandcamp

Stress Waves

Hailing from Brisbane, Australia, Stress Waves is a very interesting trio (Nick, Josh and Errol) assembled to craft very nice, gloomy and icy pieces of Post punk-meeting-Coldwave (there's a tag called cyber-romantic @ their bandcamp, I think it fits their sound very well, if you may ask). I'm not aware of how long they're making music together, but they seem a quite young band which has only a couple of releases so far, the EPs Lost Lutre (released on October 11th, 2012) and Lurid Abyss (released on August 12th, 2013). Although they have only a total of 5 songs at their bandcamp, it is possible to notice their great potential which already allows them to achieve a very nice musicanship level and (hopefully) will eventually allow them to achieve higher and higher levels very soon. As I mentioned before, they orbit into the dark realms of the sonic spectrum, however, even though they display gratitude for the oldschool masters (e.g. Asylum Party, early The Cure, Norma Loy), theiy're not exclusively nostalgic, as they seem in tune with more modern incarnations of Post Punk such as Motorama, Human Tetris, Be Forest, etc.


Well, at the end of the day, you can download all their work at the name your price method right at their bandcamp, all of them featured right below these words. I hope you enjoy and support it the way it deserves!

bandcamp

bandcamp

Flying Cape Experience

Flying Cape Experience (FCP) is one of the most pleasant surprises I've came across lately. It consists of a duo, Johanna and Akira Kosminen, from the beautiful (and sometimes beyond cold-ish) Finland, who started making music some years ago and recording, producing and mixing their own pieces of art since then. Their debut, Let's Sing More About The Eyes, was released on May 6th of 2013 by the netlabel El Vals de Conejo (whose owner is João Bispo, the mastermind behind the great Joaquim Barato, which was alredy featured on this same page some time ago ;) ), whose music consists of ethereal, swirling voyages into stellar realms. Classical references from 4AD acts (mainly Cocteau Twins and Swallow) and Projekt ensembles such as Love Spirals Downwards, Autumn's Grey Solace, etc. can be noticed, although they're not exclusively bound to the canonical definitions of the Dream Pop sphere in any sense, free-orbiting into Ambient and Folk very often as well as Psychedelia, thus providing new, multi-textured colours and shades to their already rich sonic tapestry.

By no doubts it's a very impressive debut and will crack a smile in any explorer of the deepest shadows of Dream Pop, Shoegaze, Ethereal, Darkwave and such. You can download it by the name-your-price method, as well as free-stream it (and freely download it) at their soundcloud page, all of them featured right below. I hope you enjoy! ;)

 

bandcamp

Herod

Herod (formerly Herod Layne) is a Post Rock 4-piece ensemble formed in the huge city of São Paulo, Brasil, at the already distant year of 2006.  Differently from most Post Rock-ish groups, Herod does not make use of orchestrations, complicated arrangements or any pompous resource to craft their art, but simply creating (mostly) instrumental music with the traditional elements that made rock n' roll famous but without making rock n' roll itself. I've been keeping up with their work since their debut, In Between Dust Conditions, from 2008, when they were just a trio, and since then they were already delivering us some of the best quality music that has been done in the brazilian underground sphere. Roughly five years later, their latest album Umbra comes to light (sic), showing the great sonic evolution they went through along these years. Instead of keeping in the well-stabilished boundaries of Post Rock, these guys explored dark than deepest sea atomspheres, as the album name suggests, incorporating Shoegaze, Post Metal and even Drone in the already effervescent cosmos of their music such that you don't even feel the time flows by when listening to Umbra, even though it contains three songs (out of 8) with over 8-minute long. Besides, Umbra has some great participations along the album, as the likes of Cadu Tenório (Sobre a Máquina, Victim!, Ceticências), Jair Naves (ex-Ludovic, solo career now), Filipe Alburquerque (Duelectrum) and Joaquim Prado, the album producer who also colaborated with guitars or synthetizers in 7 songs. 

Although it may sound "natonalist" from my part, I'm not afraid to say Herod is one of the most creative and impressing Post Rock groups in the world by now. That's really great to see a "local" band crafting such high quality material as they are, even without the money and press they deserve to achieve such level. Alongside Labirinto, the aforementioned Sobre A Máquina, Loomer, The Sorry Shop and many others, there we have a blooming local scene, to put it in this way, which is delivering us some of the greatest music this country has ever produced. Therefore, I drop  a free download link for Umbra in the sinewave page, as well as the Herod's bandcamp, where you can get all their material released up to now by name-your-price method.


As usual, I hope you enjoy it!

sinewave / bandcamp

One Unique Signal

One Unique Signal, or simply put, OUS, is a London assemble dedicated to make delirant noisewaves since 2002. They have released a handful of albums and EPs so far (most of them can be downloaded for free, as you can find at the bottom of this post), the latest being the EP Luna Attractions, which came to light on September 1st. This work is pretty much on the same line they're following since their very beginning, i.e., what some people call Krautgaze. Yeah, the "kraut" comes from Krautrock scene of the late '60-early '70, whereas the "gaze" is taken from Shoegaze, as obvious as that. OUS pieces are usually repetitive and follow a mantra-like structure, mostly instrumental and always highly lysergic and brain-melting. Therefore, it's no surprising that they record and play live alongside Stephen Lawrie, the mastermind behind the unforgettable The Telescopes, under this very name since 2010. Mr. Telescopes couldn't make a better choice of support band, as they are one of the most impressive and accomplished "offspring" of their legacy.


You can find the bandcamp link for Luna Attraction right below, where you can download it at the name-your-price method, which is a "preview" of their forthcoming LP Aether, to be released on November 11th. Some of the band older material can be downloaded by the same method and, if you wish more info about them and even older stuff, you can find them in the OUS blogspot. I hope you enjoy it!















bandcamp

Everything Is Falling Apart

Everything Is falling Apart, or EIFA for the lazy ones (like me),  comes from mexican lands and was born at the already-distant 2006, composed of the duo J. J. Cerda and Ernesto A. Martinez. Although  I've never seen their name anywhere in all the world wide web until a week ago, they have already composed a handful of songs and EPs,  whose best songs were compilared at the album called Greatest Hits (there wouldn't be a better name, don't you think?). Recorded was recorded between the end of 2010 and the beginning of 2011 with an old notebook and modest instruments, and the same album was re-recorded later on, somewhere in the time interval between April of 2011 and the present moment. This time, with better equipment, and renaming it as Teenage Heart. 

Apart these curiosities and the technical limitations the duo endured, they did an astonishing work with this TH. Walls of noise, almost-muted vocals coming from some ethereal dimension, bittersweet gloomy melodies peppered with electronics here and there, some melancholy, hazy atmospheres, broken dreams... to summarize it all, plain great music for everyone into the classics My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Astrobrite and newcoming acts like Vinyl Williams, however (and fortunately), they go even further and guide their highly atmospheric Shoegaze with New Wave, Post-Punk and Coldwave vectors, reminding the works of A Place To Bury Strangers, Soft Moon and, of course, the eternally beloveth Joy Division, The Cure, The Smiths and the likes. Just give a listen at their covers of these two aforementioned bands and the version of "I Wanna Be Adored", from The Stone Roses, to notice what I'm talking about...

As usual, I drop a download link right below. I thank Ernesto for providing me a link for downloading his album, as the original one was broken. No more words, just let us drown in sonic bliss. ;)

update: A brand new song from the (now) mexican trio, called Post-Romantic, was released August 5th and is available for free in their bandcamp. This piece relates even tighter with modern Dream Pop outfits such as The Bilinda Butchers, DIIV, Dråpe, The Radio Dept., among similars, although their identity remains clear and bright as crystal. I'm very glad to see how EIFA is evolving, I'm sure they'll become one of the greatest bands dedicated to this "new" Nugaze in the near future. That's why you all should pay attention very closely to them. As I said before, just drown in sonic bliss and enjoy! ;)

bandcamp

get it! (new link from Mega)

Westkrust

Westkrust is a five-piece swedish assemble that started activities in 2010 and has released a few singles and one EP so far. Although they have just a handful of music in the pack, I can easly put them in the "nicest brand new bands to check out in the near future, very soon" tag (yes, I like really long tags). They're dedicated to a modern Dream Pop, which is (kinda) like a mix between My Bloody Valentine classics with Dream Pop and Surf Rock elements, thus creating a flowing, evolving sound which is just plain perfect for walks in the park on sunny spring afternoons, or just staring platonically to the sea as the hours passes by in a lazy weekend. For fans of DIIV, Beach Fossils, Minks, Young Prisms and Wild Nothing, it's surely your cup of tea! You can take a listen to all their work directly in the bandcamp links right below. I hope you enjoy it! ;)


Summer 3D / Weekends (2013):







bandcamp 




Junk (EP) (2012):











bandcamp




Touch (single) (2012):








bandcamp

True Widow

True Widow (TW) is a Texas-based three-piece and one of the nicest discoveries I made this year (ok, I know I've been repeating this a lot in this blog lately, but what can I do if it's true?). They started activities in 2007 and one year later they already had a full-length in the hands, the self-titled one. Since then, the musical direction of TW was made clear and they've been following that until the moment, which is the so-called Stonegaze, a label the trio has adopted to themselves in a half-joking way. Although labels can get quite corny and pretensious, that's not the case, as it fits the sonic world of the texan assemble perfectly.  Imagine that crunchy, sluggish guitar-driven rythms of early Black Sabbath, Electric Wizard, Sleep, Alice In Chains, Pelican and many others blended with the blurry Indie qualities of My Bloody Valentine, Belong, Codeine and Low. It's laid back, hazy, monotonous, contemplative and, of course, really stoned, perfect for road tripping or walking into a swampy forest. Now you have an idea of what's all about. If you're still having trouble trying to figure it out, that's easily solved if you click the bancamp link right below and give it a stream to their latest work, the fresh and warm Circumambulation, which came out just yesterday. That's a serious candidate for the best album of the year and I'm sure it'll appeal not only for the weed-fueled wandering spirits that inhabit these unholy lands out there, but for most daydreamy gazer fans as well! ;)  

bandcamp

In case you wish to dig even deeper in the TW's universe, just check the links right below for their previous releases, the 2011's "As High As The Highest Heavens And From The Center To The Circumference Of The Earth", the also 2011's EP Ino, besides the 2008 self-titled I talked about. I hope you enjoy them all! 

get it!

get it!

get it!

Sweet Smell Of Shining

Sweet Smell Of Shining (SSS) is an italian outfit consisting of three core members: Marco Ciardelli, responsable for the vocals, with the company of Masimiliano Piccagli (guitars, vocals, programming, drum machine), and Alessio Osculati (bass, programming). They also collaborated with electric guitarist Stillscreen (Ireland) on 5 tracks. On July 1st, they released their first full-length album: Beyond Waterfalls, as the result of three years of work. The SSS soundscapes orbit around the Shoegaze, Indie and Dream Pop, absorbing influences from the fuzzy world of Darklands' era J&MC, Adorable and Chapterhouse with the soothing layers of good ol' Indie such as Echo and the Bunnymen, The Cure, Radiohead and Depeche Mode such that they dress each song with a feel-good-yet-nostalgic sensibility. And they accomplish it with such naturality that make hard to believe it' only the maiden work! So, that's no surprise they're being featured in these pages.

You can have a taste of SSS (sic) right below , where the address of their bandcamp page is, and where you can get the album by the name-your-price method. I hope you enjoy it the way it deserves! ;)










bandcamp

Mellonta Tauta

Mellonta Tauta, named after a poem by Edgar Allan Poe, consists of a Shoegaze/Dream Pop band from our "hermana" Argentina, who were active during the early to mid '90, and sadly remains little known even for the hungriest noise fans. They released nothing but a full-length at 1994, Sun Fell, released by the defunct label Hyperium. After that, they released a couple EP, Fishes and Ocean, in the following year, and contributed to one song in an argentinian tribute to The Cure, fading into oblivion after that...

About their art itself, it could very easily fit in the 4AD catalogue of those years, as all the sonic elements required for that are accomplished with honour: buried and sweet female vocals,  melted guitars, ethereal atmospheres, everything carefully packed with a sort of nostalgic bucolism. Besides, they explore a Folk vibe in some songs, instrumental ones, giving them a Ethereal/Darkwave  flavour that could only be found in Love Spirals Downwards and Lycia at those times. By now, I guess it's not hard to realize their musical inspiration owe a lot to Liz Fraser and Robin Guthrie, as well as Lush, Slowdive, My Bloody Valentine, Throwing Muses and all those oneiric noisy makers that branded those times and we still regard with a lot joy and admiration. 

However, Mellonta Tauta never had a small fraction of their recognition and very few know about their existence even now, in the worldwideweb era. To be sincere, I only knew about them by my blog partner, Paloma, that showed me these guys and put their most famous song in Mixtape #2, Pull The Charriot, before that, not a single information about them reached me. That's why I have to do my contribution and share their beautiful work to the world, which can be found at the bandcamp's links right below.

//update: Mellonta Tauta reunited after almost 20 years of silence, pleasing us with a brand new album, Rainbow Melodies. All the ingredients that made these argentinians so beloved by us are still there: the ethereal vocals, dreamlike melodies, some bucolism and lush beauty in shape of soundscapes. I'm sure each one of you have a smile in your faces now when reading this news and it will grow even wider when you actually listen to it. Enjoy!









bandcamp

bandcamp

bandcamp






bandcamp

Mechanimal

"Mechanimal, formed in 2011 in Athens Greece, in the midst of an unprecedented economic and social decline. Spawned out like a “living creature with wires as veins” pulsating with abrasive vocals into a murky terrain of quirky sounds that are painted on with monophonic synth arps, delays and distortion. Mechanimal persist on finding beauty and hope in the unforgiving urban terrain not by distance but by submergence, a living, breathing new kind of music. Serious synths. Fuzzy drones. Spoken word. Mechanimal is alive."


...or pretty much like this. Mechanimal was founded by musical producer Giannis Papaioannou with company of Freddie F. and guitarist Tassos Nikogiannis and not long after its birth, the first effort was already done. Due to the great repercussion it had, it was re-issued worldwidely by Inner Ear Records and Rough Trade Distribution on June 15th. Their music can be compared to some Shoegaze-y Post Punk-meeting-Electronics such as The KVB, HTKR in some aspects, however, the Electronic beats is ahead of everything. Trip-Hop and IDM influences are visible (or, better, listenable) too, although Mechanimal vibes are usually darker than the usual of these genres. Each song that composes the self-titled album is a great portrait of the urban landscapes of the post-modern world and its inherent chaos, nihilism, unfulfilled desires and the economic decadence surrounding this scenario. Although there are many people working with this proposal, I assure you that most of them are not able to reproduce these portraits in shape of music as naturally and accurately as Mechanimal does.

If you're still skeptical about Mechanimal great potential, just check the bandcamp and soundcloud links right below. There you can free-stream the album or purchase it if you wish to. I hope you enjoy it!















bandcamp

The Stargazer Lilies

"The Stargazer Lilies slow motion bathing through space music is like sun glistening on the water in sound, ambient rock for daydreamers to bob their heads to. The Northeastern Pennsylvania based trio of guitarist/bassist/drummer/producer, John Cep, singer/bassist, Kim Field, and live drummers EJ DeCoske and Johnny Lancia, bring back the raw rock primal gaze, no bullshit sunshine haze."

That's how The Stargazer Lilies (TSL) define themselves in the bio presented in their own official website. John Cep and Kim Field names may sound usual to some of you as they're also part of the nugaze act Soundpool, who gained some attention in the last several years due to a nice combination of Shoegaze and Dream Pop, sharing stages noise masters such as Chapterhouse, A Place To Bury Strangers, Robin Guthrie, Ulrich Schnauss and many others. However, TSL purpose is a bit different from the duo's original one. They follow a more stripped out musical direction, focusing more on the basic ingredients that make the noise we all love and worship: sweetened melodies hidden beneath impenetrable layers of fuzz, ethereal female vocals, Supernovae, cosmic voyages,  lysergc delirium, besides butterfly wings flapping on fields of sonic flower buttoms.

Is that enough for you? It surely is. They have 4 songs available so far, the same ones that are available right below in the bandcamp links for free-streaming and acquisition by the name-your-price method. Oh, and don't forget there is a TSL full-length coming on September 10th!

As usual, I hope you enjoy it! ;)

TSL - We Are The Dreamers: 

TSL - Ahh:

bandcamp

TSL - Fukitol:

bandcamp

TSL - Sunday Is Monday At Midnight:

bandcamp

Starfire Connective Sound

Starfire Connective Sound (SCS) is a single-man project headed by Al Schenkel, who lives at southern Brazil. More specifically, in the city if Criciúma, state of Santa Catarina, and one of the most dedicated noise lovers of these tropical lands. The first apparition of SCS in our poor world happened at mid 2011, with the self-titled EP, featuring 7 self-recorded, self-produced songs based on sonic whirls of feedback driven by programmed drums patterns and, sometimes, electronic beats. The follow-up, named The Sound Also Rises, came not much longer after, featuring an even richer sound than the st. 

At early 2012, the single Where Go The Boats was released, featuring two products of a collaboration between Mr. Schenkel and This Lonely Crowd, in which SCS ventures into new horizons without forgetting to get even deeper on the older ones. However, the project was haulted after mid 2012 due to a serious motorcycle accident, where Schenkel stayed several weeks hospitalized and endured a long recuperation. But he's back on the field now, releasing a 3-track EP called That Melancholy, which consists on songs he started penning while still at the hospital, and will not be featured in the debut full-length that's going to be released soon. It's possible to notice the sonic horizons of SCS expanded and grew  even richer by now, as in the dense and dark-than-deepest sea Shoegaze of Self-induced Heaven, the post-modern Noise of That Melancholy, featuring spoken world poem as its lyrics, and the Drone-ish A Morte Fragmentada, the first SCS' title in portuguese. Those familiar with Sobre a Máquina and Bemônio, two headliners of current brazilian tortuous music, will be readily pleased when listening to this track, I assure you. 

Right below, you can have a taste of Schenkel amazing work. The brand new EP is featured at soundcloud and each song can be purchased freely, while the other releases can be streamed and purchased freely too from SCS' bandcamp. I hope you enjoy it! ;)

2013 - That Melancholy: 


























2012 - Where Go The Boats (single):

get it! (bandcamp)




2011 - The Sound Also Rises (EP): 

get it! (bandcamp)




2011 - Starfire Connective Sound (EP):

get it! (bandcamp)

The Great Artiste

The Great Artiste (TGA) is a french group whose name refers to a Boeing-based USA bomber who attacked pacific islands held from Japan during 1945 to 1948, and whose name was atributed due to bombardier Cpt. Kermit Beahan talents with bombing (and women, according to wikipedia...)

Well, the history class of today is over, so let's actually talk about the french group itself. The opening track is an obvious reference to the history related to its name, starting with the audio of a military operation and further developing into a deliciously fuzzed Shoegaze. The same tone is imprinted on the following 3 tracks that compose the EP At the Bridge of Dawn, released last March, taking inspiration on classic pre (or would it be proto?) Shoegaze acts like Spectrum and Spacemen 3, although they don't get stick to it and seem to dedicate themselves hardly to carve out their identity. The rythm here is always frantic, somewhat introspective, somehow suffocating and sometimes delirant, as if one's drowning in a flaming pool swirl of melted sounds. 

That's plain great that such great bands are popping up around the world lately. Therefore, just check out the link right below, containing TGA's bandcamp, where you can download the latest EP for the name-your-price scheme and spread the love for noise!

 

bandcamp

The Sorry Shop

Born in the southern lands of Brazil, The Sorry Shop (TSP) is one of the nicest surprises that came out in the last few years in the tupiniquim scenario. Lead by Régis Garcia, TSP is dedicated to a sincere and tasteful lo-fi-esque Shoegaze, sometimes sounding sunny, cheerful and laid back, sometimes sounding introspective, oneiric and amorphous. The obvious influences are there, i.e., My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Pavement, the classic brazucas of Second Come and Low Dream, but it's possible to hear they pushed their sonic verve beyond them, as I'm able to notice Ambient, Drone and Dream Pop in their latest work too, called Mnemonic Syncretism.

It's extremly pleasant to see such quality music done here in these tropical lands, despite all the financial struggles, lack of press or public interest as a whole. Together with other greats acts such as Lê Almeida, John Candy, The Concept, Sobre a Máquina, Single Parents and many others, TSP can be added as another strong name in this already-turning-classical scene.

Right below, there's a link offered by Régis himself, as well as their bandcamp, where you can taste their previous works: Bloody, Fuzzy, Cozy (2012) and Thank You Come Again EP (2011). As usual, enjoy!

get it!

For previous works of TSP, just check their bandcamp!