No Joy - Motherhood

I've been a fan of No Joy since their first LP "Ghost Blonde" and I truly think "Wait to Pleasure" is the best shoegaze album of the last decade, due to the fact its focused on songs first, sounds second, which lets face it, it's often the reverse with most modern examples of the genre. Their last full length(obviously skipping the various eps/collaborations) came out in 2015, and I'll be honest, i wasn't into that album for whatever reason, even though "Everything New" is top tier No Joy jam. I think at the time I was burnt on shoegaze, or just didn't hit me at the right moment, but I'm planning on revisiting soon. So, 5 years later we are greeted with "Motherhood", maybe their best LP too date. This record is one of the weirdest, creative, unselfconscious and psychedelic thing I've heard in a quite sometime. It sounds like it should be coming out on RVNG Intl, its so experimental. So, I guess getting to the reference points I'm hearing, which is not to diminish it as its own work, is a crazy mix of Deftones, NIN, Enya, Garbage, Curve and 90s dance music like Deee-Lite with all the layering of wacky samples and sounds(baby coos!). My favourite No Joy songs(Lunar Phobia/Everything New) are normally the ones that are the dancey side of shoegaze like obvi examples being MBVs "Soon" or Medicine's "Slut" and we basically get an album full of killer dance songs! Its kinda what I've wanted from No Joy all along cuz Jasamine has a keen ear for weird rhythmic pulses, looped vocals that make me wanna spin around in circles alone in my apartment/room for years. Its PERFECT music for driving/solo walks. When "real" drums enter the mix, its like they got Abe Cunningham but told him to under play as much as possible. I wouldn't call this "shoegaze" in the traditional sense but to me it continues what the genre should be, pushing guitar music into more experimental directions. The songs often start and end in completely unexpected places, its a fairly unpredictable record.....which isn't something that can be said of most indie music right now. It also makes bold choices, that at first yr like 🤔, but by the end yr fully on board because the choice works! "Fish" is my personal favorite song, it somehow blends an Enya and NIN in perfect disharmony, and just throws you for a loop, I was grinning with glee when those guitars come in. My only real "issue" with the LP is the second track, which isn't bad or anything, I just dont connect with it for whatever reason, mostly do to the screaming/black metal kinda vibe it puts forth. Just personal taste, not for lack of poor execution. I want to reiterate, i know ive put a lot of reference points in this essay, but this LP is pretty singular, most bands arent this creative/exploding with ideas over the course of their whole discography and Jasamine does it in one LP. This definitely has skyrocketed to one of my favorites of the year. Enjoy

https://nojoy.bandcamp.com/album/motherhood

Jessamine - Don't Stay To Long

The 90s has a fair share of underrated bands, and to an extent genres, but the one that i think gets the biggest undersell and misuse of the term is post rock. When I say post rock, I'm talking Stereolab, Flying Saucer Attack, Pram, Quickspace, Moonshake, Broadcast and whom I'll be discussing here Jessamine. This stuff takes its influences from electronic music, exotica, krautrock, ambient, library music and the noisy/weird side of 60s pysch rock and mashes it together in truly experimental indie rock.A lot t of this stuff comes from the great labels Too Pure, Wurlitzer Jukebox and Kranky records, which if you haven't explored these labels release history outside the bigger bands (stereolab, pj harvey, broadcast, deerhunter) you definitely should. Jessamine were from Seattle, WA and are still relatively obscure band, they released three LPS on Kranky Records to hardly any fanfair as far as i can tell, with lack if info about em. Their first two records are good, a, I recommend giving em a listen, they are far more droned out sprawls of heavy psychedelic "rock" jams with synths and organs colliding, with some more streamlined songs, but for me eveything comes together with "Don't Stay Too Long" their final record. Here their love for krautrock rhythms, jazzy chords/rhodes and catchy understated beautiful melodies which are all sung lead by Dawn for first time in their discography. The first two tracks lull you into a hypnotic atmosphere of rhodes hits and wahhed out guitars, pushing and pulling you in and out of outer space. Then track 3 comes flying in with some low key space funk(idk how else to describe, its like Can but from WA) that has such a infectious pulse you can't helped but be pulled into their weird little world they create. Its by far their most consistent and concise work to date. The record continues to pulse with life, oscillations and disorienting rhythmic pattern's that culminate in final track that is the jazziest song on the LP, has an almost triphop vibe but stripped back to its barest bones, but still with their unique swagger. This band has been a huge influence on my music over the last few years, its such a strange distillation of genres that feels fresh and too weird for this world. Also, highly recommend their singles compilation "Another Fictionalized History", its def leans the more into the drugged out side of the band, unfortunately not available on bandcamp, you can find it on YouTube. Enjoy.

https://jessamine.bandcamp.com/album/dont-stay-too-long

7 Bandcamp Friday recommendations

It's that time again, the only people actually helping artists right now, the blessed Bandcamp Friday. Here are some recs from stuff I think is worth yr time.

SiP - Leos Naturals

This Chicago synth phreak was recommended to me by my buds in Smoke Bellow. This cassette is a fantastic combo of Herbie Hancocks experimental stuff, floaty new age reverberations and a motorik pulse.  Modern kosmische musik often fails to live up to its influences but this album is full of familiar sounds that are made new into one of my favorite releases of the year. If your a fan of Moebius, Roedelius and Terry Riley, this is not to be missed

https://sip-groop.bandcamp.com/album/leos-naturals

Rill Ghosties - Whiskey Landfill

I truly do not recall how i discovered this band from Upstate New York, but their influences being MBV and Stereolab of course I was curious. They had kept saying they were relasing this but then went silent. Than, outta nowhere, boom they release this to little fanfair in July. The record itself sounds very similar to Velocity Girl, Rocketship and noisy Belle and Sebastian. You can tell a lot of care was put into this release, and its a real shame thos band hasnt gotten more press, feel like tons of people would vibe. 

https://rillghosties.bandcamp.com/

(Liv).e - Couldn't Wait To Tell You...

Lojii, who put out one of my favorite releases of the year posted about this record on IG, so I immediately checked it out, and here we are, with what will definitely be in my top 5 of the year. Its been getting alil hype this week and well deserved, this is a kaleidoscopic swirl of RnB, Soul, Hiphop and Lo-fi production. Its feel like Ann Peebles and Quasimoto got together, dropped acid, and recorded an LP w a 4 track tape machine. It's just...so so good, damn.

https://o-liv.bandcamp.com/album/couldnt-wait-to-tell-you

Lifeguard - In Silence/Tin Man

For christ sake, Chicago is killing it right now, its the hub for some of the most exciting guitar bands in the country, and one of the newer ones is Lifeguard. They play a brand of experimental indie that isnt around much now. They take no wave, psychedelia, post punk and classic indie and stir is all together. Its classic SST kinda indie rock, its damn good.

https://lifeguardband100.bandcamp.com/album/tin-man

Blue Zero - Lemon

Shoegaze gets way to much shit considering emo, just saying but shoegaze also by in large is kinda whack, but for me its like I CAN MAKE FUN OF IT cuz I'm in it but you....who are you? Anyway, Chris from the killer band Marbled Eye has a "fun" side project called Blue Zero. As of right now, he only has one jam up but damnnn it's the way shoegaze should be, noisy, up tempo and guitars guitars guitars. Shoegaze should only be played punx, cuz everyone else fucks it up. HOPEFULLY,  Chris will upload more jams soon.

https://bluezero.bandcamp.com/releases

Bèret - Jesus White

This is a weird record, very singular and jagged. I feel like I'm getting chased down a dark tunnel when listening to this.......in a good way. Its in the same lineage of Women, Velvet Underground, Durutti Column or if Flying Saucer Attack was less interested in the sky, and more interested in the dirt. This shit is weird in the best way, and perfect soundtrack to current reality.

https://beret.bandcamp.com/album/jesus-white

Brenda Ray - Naffi Years 1979 - 1983

This compilation is 10/10, one of my favorite reissues of the last 5 years, its lofi dubbed out pop with amazing beats/proudction and vibe. The amount of dreamy space echo used on these tracks make for a extremely chill but engaging listen. I truly cannot recommend this enough.

https://brendaray.bandcamp.com/album/brenda-ray-naffi-years-1979-1983