So, that's another November billed and submitted for review. It's early 12/1 and I'm an hour into the workday, taking healthy swigs from a lukewarm large cup of 7-11's finest blend and struggling to stay focused on any task that needs to be handled and completed today. Focus has been a problem, something I mean to fix this coming year. Due to the frequent interruptions and fire drills I'll experience over the course of a day, the need for me to pivot at a moment's notice often leaves me unable to keep track of my prior tasks. I'll repeat steps and miss others. It's yet another boundary that I need to be able to set and communicate to workplace peers: "Yes, I'll take care of that in a minute, but please let me finish what I'm working on."  I'm turning 46 in 20 days. You'd think I'd have my shit together at this point. In line with getting ones shit together, "Best Of"s and "Favorites Of"s lists are being c...

Sprung aus den Wolken s/t Bureau B Reissued: 9/23/22 The crude, junkyard confrontation that composed the recently reissued self-titled LP from Sprung aus den Wolken emerged from Geniale Dilletanten , an art movement whose genesis is credited to a concert of the same name (albeit intentionally misspelled) that took place at the Tempodrom in Berlin in 1981. In some ways comparable to the No Wave movement of the late 1970s in grit-strewn New York City which challenged the authenticity of CBGB’s seminal platform, Geniale Dilletanten was a reactionary burst of primal and creative energy whose ethos was interpreted through art, film, and, of course, music. Geniale Dilletanten alumni also include Einstürzende Neubauten, Mekanik Destrüktïw Komandöh (M.D.K.), and Der Plan to name a few. Sprung aus den Wolken (meaning “Jump from the Clouds” in English) was formed by Kiddy Citny, (a.k.a. Inri Intrigo). Initially a solo project, the iteration of the group that performed for this LP featured Fre...

It's a Wednesday evening of sorting through browser tabs. Some tracks for your perusal:  Russian Circles: "Gnosis" (from Gnosis  releasing 8/19/22 by Sargent House ) Courtesy of Rarely Unable.  Buñuel : "It's All Mine" (from Killers Like Us released by Profound Lore ) Courtesy of Rarely Unable.  Child Bite : "Erect for Dystopia" (from Multicult / Child Bite split 12" by Hex Records ) MULTICULT/ CHILD BITE split 12" by Multicult/ Child Bite Kali Malone : "Living Torch II" (from Living Torch by  GRM Portraits ) Living Torch by Kali Malone Die Welttraumforscher:  "Glücklich. Traurig. Seltsam" (from Liederbuch releasing 8/19/22 by Bureau B ) Liederbuch by Die Welttraumforscher Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Side B — Assembled 1/10-1/14 Still working through the month's offerings.  Enjoy…  ______________________________________________________________________ Allegra Krieger : "Taking It In" (via Clandestine PR) Official Website —  https://www.allegrakrieger.com Bandcamp —  https://allegrakrieger.bandcamp.com/album/precious-thing Northern Spy — (Pre-order)  https://northernspyrecs.com/product/precious-thing/ Precious Thing  releases 3/4/22 ______________________________________________________________________ Die! Die! Die! : "Losing Sight, Keep On Kicking" (via Us-Them Group) Bandcamp —  https://diediedie.bandcamp.com/album/this-is-not-an-island-anymore This Is Not An Island Anymore  releases 2/18/22 This Is Not An Island Anymore by Die! Die! Die! ______________________________________________________________________ God Is God : "The Song Part II" (via mutante-inc.) Bandcamp —  https://godisgod.bandcamp.com/album/metamorphoses ...

Side A — Assembled 1/3-1/7 Following the turbulence of the Holidays and the excessive work schedules leading up to them, music continues to be my long sought-after balm for stress and the monotony of corporate drone'dom. Side A for the first week of January is light and loud, meditative or necessarily aggro. I'm happily excited about some of the records and singles I've had the opportunity to sample so far. Is it naive to assume this trend will continue well into 2023? Probably, but I'm content for now.  Enjoy…  ______________________________________________________________________ Tomato Flower : "Red Machine" (via Ramp Local) Bandcamp — https://tomatoflower.bandcamp.com/album/gold-arc Ramp Local — https://ramplocal.com Gold Arc releases 2/11/22 ______________________________________________________________________ Sea Change : "Is There Anybody There" (via Stereo Sanctity) Twitter — https://twitter.com/SeaChangeartist Shapes Recordings — https...

Good afternoon, Looking ahead at 2022. Here's some music I enjoyed this week.  ______________________________________________________________________ Wadada Leo Smith, Henry Kaiser, Alex Varty:  "Pacifica Koral Reef (preview)" (via 577 Records) Bandcamp — https://577records.bandcamp.com/album/pacifica-koral-reef 577 Records —  https://www.577records.com Via 577 Records: "I’m supposed to be writing about Pacifica Koral Reef , this record that I’ve made with my friend Henry Kaiser and his friend Wadada Leo Smith. And while the music it contains is, for me, a miraculous late-career achievement after 50 years of mostly playing in alternative rock bands, writing about it is a downright odd thing to have to do. In my parallel life as an arts journalist, I’ve interviewed everyone from Ornette Coleman to John Cage to Robert Plant but I’ve rarely had to write about myself, and I much prefer it that way. Fighting against my natural tendency towards self-effacement is the fact ...

To whom it may interest,  A few announcements for fans of the box: Engine Kid Everything Left Inside Southern Lord Released: 6.12.21 (RSD 2021-Drop 1 — Yes, this is late) Appreciators of sunn O))) and Goatsnake know Greg Anderson. Prior to the release of their new 6-LP box set, Everything Left Inside , I'm embarrassed to admit that I had no idea about Engine Kid , a Seattle-based post-hardcore trio whose initial make-up had been composed of Anderson (vocals/guitar), Chris Vandebrooke (drummer) and Art Behrman (bassist). From the promo selections that I've been able to listen through, Engine Kid's Everything Left Inside fits nicely alongside the audibly distraught and naturally abrasive sounds of Unwound, and would've been an obsession of mine during their days of activity had I been aware of them.   Treated for now as a Record Store Day release, which occurred 6/12, a later version of the box set meant for international distribution will be issued at a later date.  In t...