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

As one looks for comparisons when attempting to explain a musical arrangement as gratifying and cinematic as "Heron" by JG Thirlwell and Simon Steensland , I immediately went to Mahavishnu Orchestra and Magma and Kōenjikyakkei and Alain Goraguer . The vocal passages are lovely and the composition itself wasn't what I expected from the guy from Foetus . Granted the mood conveyance of "Heron" isn't particularly uplifting, but the overall tone shifts greatly from some of those early Foetus tracks, (thought the immense, ensemble feel is intact), and benefits from lush melodies and moments of respite.  That said, "Heron" is the first peek at a new album from the Thirlwell/Steensland combo called Oscillospira. As an early intro to this album, I am looking forward to this one. It's out via Ipecac — a true mark of quality — on 4/24.  All info on the release has been provided by Rarely Unable. JG THIRLWELL & SIMON STEENSLAND ANNOUNC...

An album both despairing and lovely, I’ve been listening to Saltland ’s second LP, A Common Truth , over the last week or so. The solo moniker of Rebecca Foon , co-founder of Esmerine and member of Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra , Saltland’s latest LP is a composed reflection on climate change and its environmental and social impact. With a fascinating marriage of electronic/ambient elements and rich, textural string arrangements, plus instrumental assistance from Warren Ellis of The Dirty Three and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds , Foon’s commanding presence, both instrumentally and vocally, moves through this piece with a captivating blend of emotion and warmth. I find her vocal in “I Only Wish This For You,” particularly haunting, her inflection breathy and kind of devastating. On the instrumental track “Forward Eyes I,” it’s as if you can hear the promise of a new day being slowly eradicated as time elapses, opportunity fading into the ether as daylight fades. A C...

Rebecca Foon : "I Only Wish This For You" (via Rarely Unable/ Constellation Records /Soundcloud) King Champion Sounds : "Fool Throttle" (via mutante inc./ KCS Press /Bandcamp) Hauschka : "Familiar Things Disappear" (Terrorbird/ Temporary Residence Ltd. /YouTube) Oozepus : "CYN" (via Earsplit PR/ Malignant Records /Soundcloud) Joy : "Cut to the Nerve" ( Blood & Ink Records / Decibel Magazine /YouTube) No Joy : "Califone" (via Forcefield PR/ Grey Market / NPR /YouTube) Sunless : "Urraca" (via Earsplit PR/ Bandcamp ) Urraca by Sunless Parlor Walls : "Play Opposites" (via Northern Spy Records/Bandcamp) Opposites by Parlor Walls Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Faith No More : "Separation Anxiety" (via Speakeasy PR/ Vice /YouTube) Matmos : "Ultimate Care II Excerpt Five" (via Thrill Jockey Records/YouTube) Richard J. Birkin : "Vigil I" (via Rarely Unable/Soundcloud) Heron Oblivion : "Oriar" (via Sub Pop/ Stereogum /YouTube) Tsyphur Zalan : "Dobryy Vechir" (via Us/Them/ Vice's The Creator's Project /YouTube) Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Ought : "Waiting" (via Rarely Unable/Soundcloud) Wolf People : "When the Fire is Dead in the Grate" (via Sure Shot PR/YouTube) PINS : "Waiting For the End" (via [PIAS] America/ Brooklyn Vegan /Vimeo) PINS - Waiting For The End from PINS on Vimeo . Christina Vantzou : "Going Backwards to Recover That Which Was Left Behind" (via Rarely Unable/ Kranky /Soundcloud) TOY : "It's Been So Long" (via [PIAS] America/YouTube Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Pontiak : "Wildfires" (via Thrill Jockey Records/Soundcloud) New Bums : "The Killers and Me" (via Rarely Unable/ Drag City /YouTube) Mt. Royal : "Missing Reward" (via PIAS/ Brooklyn Vegan /YouTube) Doomsquad : "Disremember/Dismemberment" (via Force Field PR/ Noisey /Soundcloud) C O L L E C T R E S S : "Spell" (via Rarely Unable/Soundcloud) Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead