It was 2007 when I became aware of Sic Alps, a San Fran psych-garage act that were somewhat of an obsession following my purchase of and connection to the album Pleasures and Treasures . Pleasures and Treasures was the band's proper full-length debut, but they'd produced some 7" singles and 12" and cassette EPs, all of which were issued by labels like City, Animal Disguise, Awesome Vistas, Skulltones, and Folding Cassettes. Folding Cassettes was a cassette label owned by former Sic Alps member Mike Donovan, the sort of SF-area enterprise meant to keep the oddball creatives and fringe artists documented and available to any against-the-grain listenership willing to dig into the catalogue. I was very drawn to the Folding Cassettes website, not only because of the tunes that were made available, (some of which I remember being experimental noise projects), but because of its aesthetic. From memory, I recall the entire interface being built from a single image of a rugge...

So, it would be turn out that in addition to Sons of Kemet and Kamasi Washington , there were other jazz-based artists to hear in 2018. This morning, I've been listening to a sampler provided by ears&eyes Records , which offers a selection of the label's 2018 output. Featured are various jazz-based offshoots ranging from beat-oriented ( Matterhorn ) to chamber-centric ( Redwood Tango Ensemble ), exploratory ( Chad Taylor ) to reverent and modernized ( Juan Bayon ). The label is run by artist Matthew Golombisky , who is also leading another project called Thirsty Robot Media . TRM's purpose is to promote budding talent outside of the ears&eyes framework in an effort to provide exposure for more artists. Here's the Volume 6 of the  ears&eyes Records  sampler: Volume 6 Sampler by ears&eyes Records Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

A selection of Italian artists' electro-centric ditties have been amassed into a four-sided new compilation from Stroboscopic Artefacts entitled, Flowers From The Ashes: Contemporary Italian Electronic Music.   While I'm not familiar with the label's roster, it was based on the strength of this Caterina Barbieri composition, "Virgo Rebellion," that I entered this collection onto my wishlist.    You can listen to this track here: All of the info on this compilation was provided by Modern Matters.  You can preorder the album here .  Flowers From The Ashes: Contemporary Italian Electronic Music Flowers From The Ashes is the latest multi-artist project to bear the acclaimed Stroboscopic Artefacts imprimatur. There is a sensibility of decadence and corroded grandeur etched within its four album sides, reminding us that historically “decadent” times have nonetheless resulted in some of the boldest acts of individual and collective creativity. Lik...

Yes, it's April 20th.  4/20: The day all marijuana connoisseurs and casual appreciators light up as a community and celebrate their common love of altered reality.  Normally, I'd be combing through my music library trying to locate the perfect songs for the occasion and throwing together a nice little online compilation for everyone's enjoyment.  Instead, I'm going to take the opportunity to spotlight a series of stoner rock compilations from RidingEasy Records , Brown Acid , which, as of today, will see the release of its fourth installment.  Beginning with its first volume in 2015, Brown Acid is comprised of obscure stoner rock and proto-metal singles from the 60s and 70s, located and curated by Permanent Records ' Lance Barresi .  Collaborating with RidingEasy's Daniel Hill , Barresi's passion for digging up these largely forgotten tracks has offered new life to this music via this expanding collection.  So, since Brown Acid: The Fourth Trip is...

For today, I have an avant/ambient treat directly from Constellation Records . In anticipation of three new debut releases from Jason Sharpe , Off World , and Automatisme , the good people at Constellation saw fit to compile and share two tracks from each release.  I gave the tracks a listen earlier today and very much enjoyed the lengthy, dystopian chill of Automatisme's "Simultanéité 1," and the infestation of plucked strings that carry Jason Sharpe's "A Boat Upon Its Blood (Part 1)."  I was also taken by the very loose "Wonder Farm" from Off World, its frontier-ist twang strange against the seesaw tumble of artificial swats of percussion.   You can sample the tracks below: Release information and links were provided by Rarely Unable.  If you like what you hear, please head over to Constellation and spend a couple bucks. CONSTELLATION SHARE NEW MUSIC FROM THREE DEBUT ALBUMS; INCLUDING NEW RELEASES FROM OFF WORLD, AUTOMATISME & JASO...

For twenty years, Brian John Mitchell of Silber Records has been independently releasing ambient and drone projects from numerous performers and bands while publishing zines and comic books and holding down paid gigs in the real world.  While I have written about some of Silber's releases in the past, I thought I'd take the opportunity to throw a spotlight on the label by posting about three new releases for June.  If you like what you hear, I encourage you to head over to the site and spend a couple bucks.   Yellow6 Springsun/Conrad#2 Silber Records Released: 5.30.16 See that cover?  That's exactly what Yellow6 's two-track Springsun/Conrad#2 release sounds like.  Gorgeous and vast, it's the type of lush and ambient arrangement you want to hear as dawn transitions into morning.  You can purchase the album digitally here . springsun by Yellow6    Chvad SB Phenomenalism, Cartesian Doubt and Bomb #20 Silber Records Released: 5.3...

Hey, everyone.  We're talking labels today.  In 2012, I reviewed the Fatherland EP by Mr. Dream and Weird Wild World by Sleepies , both of which were released by the Godmode label.  Specializing in post-punk and some of the more avant variations of R&B and EDM I've heard, Godmode, which is owned and run by former Pitchfork editor and current Mr. Dream drummer Nick Sylvester and Capitol Records A&R rep Talya Elitzer , recently released a new cassette compilation called, Common Interests Were Not Enough To Keep Us Together. Featuring new music from the label (plus a couple new tracks from Mr. Dream and Sleepies which were a plus for me), the comp provides a varied selection of sounds that range from club ( Shamir ) to vocal ( Soft Lit ) to experimental ( Yvette ), which ultimately affirms Godmode's place as a home for both very inviting to likely alienating performers. You can check out the comp here: Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Tapes of a Neon God is a cassette label out of Nashville, Tennessee that specializes in keeping loud and destructive music in circulation.  My introduction to this label was through the band Pink City , whose 2011 release, Designing Women , and Great Falls split were both enjoyed and detailed in earlier reviews.  As I remain devoted to the abrasive oddity and aural ruination provided by the underground, especially when it's continually delivered to an audience through the hissing spindles of lovingly manufactured cassettes, I thought it would be worthwhile to spotlight Tapes of a Neon God by acknowledging three of the label's 2013 releases. Japanese Women Quality Control Released: 1.1.13 It's possible you've heard the powerviolence, crust punk and D-beat mutations from the new 2013 releases of Nails and Dead in the Dirt .  Quality Control , which was released at the beginning of the year by the band Japanese Women , (the members of which are neither), is on ...