I had a good time today. It's not often that over the course of a workday I'm able to direct some attention to my periphery, just enough that I keep to the necessary tasks while engaging with something more worthwhile. In this case, I spent some time today checking out some long overdue songs and artists that I'd meaning to investigate for the past few weeks. It's been a bit since I sorted through browser tabs.  That said, there's a lot to review. I hope you enjoy. Feel free to comment.  ____________________________ Deniz Cuylan: "Hidden Language Of Four" (from Rings Of Juniper releasing 10/14/22 by Hush Hush Records ) Deniz Cuylan · Hidden Language Of Four Courtesy of C L A N D E S T I N E  L A B E L  S E R V I C E S. Deru : "The Dirt" (from  We Will Live On  releasing 10/28/22 by Friends Of Friends ) Courtesy of Terrorbird Media.  Bill Nace : "E:E" (from  Through A Room  releasing 11/11/22 by  Drag City )   Courtesy of Drag Ci...

"Life got us confused? Where are we going?"  Speaking from personal line of sight, I find myself continually enamored with and challenged by the work of Camae Ayewa (Moor Mother). Following 2021's entrancing Black Encyclopedia of Air ,  Jazz Codes , Ayewa's 2nd LP for Anti-, has been announced with the lead single and video, "WOODY SHAW".  Following sprays of sonorous howls and a lovely red herring R&B set-up, "WOODY SHAW" takes a pause before shifting into a turbulent free jazz backdrop, a cyclical stand-up bass riff anchoring the otherwise discordant sax, drums, and vibraphone.  "Woody Shaw elevator outta town!" Ayewa speaks, "Life got us going up and down. Who's coming? Who's coming for our ratios?"  The video premiered on June 8th. Jazz Codes can be pre-ordered at ANTI- . Official release date is July 1st. All info and links were provided by Stereo Sanctity.  “It’s poetry that drives this album. The stories o...

The Austin-based experimental sextet known as The Young Mothers are releasing their second album this week, Morose .   Currently based in Austin, The Young Mothers tie together backgrounds as regionally varied as Texas, Chicago, New York, and Norway, engaging their multiple influences into a cross-genre synthesis of protest music and aural turbulence. As if to illustrate this perfectly, for the single "Black Tar Caviar," The Young Mothers compose a discordant, rhythmic tug of war that attempts to merge jazz-based improvisation with the bare-knuckle assault of hardcore or powerviolence.  Somewhat akin to the avant sonics and noise-fetish brass explorations of John Zorn , especially for its frenzy of a finale, "Black Tar Caviar" pairs confusion and aggression in a compelling way, pitting the avantgarde against the underground and reveling in the forms' rejection of each other.  Those opening Albert Ayler -styled sax notes almost seem like a red herri...

Pissed Jeans : "Ignorecam"  (via Sub Pop /YouTube) Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble : "Undying Love for Humanity" (via mutante-inc./ Drag City /Soundcloud) Unearthly Trance : "Famine" (Earsplit PR/ Cvlt Nation / Relapse Records /Soundcloud) David Bowie : "No Plan" (via YouTube) Monolord : "Lord of Suffering" (Us-Them Group/ Metal Injection / RidingEasy Records /YouTube) Pharmakon : "Trasmission" (via Rarely Unable/ Sacred Bones Records /Soundcloud) Equinox : "Goodbye (feat. Dementio13 )" (via Shameless Promotion/Soundcloud) Ummagma : "Winter Tale" (via Shameless Promotion/Bandcamp) Winter Tale by Ummagma Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Sleaford Mods Chubbed Up + Ipecac Recordings Released:11.29.14 Sleaford Mods is an interesting entity. Following much of the rhythmic and minimal throb of Factory-era post-punk and, of course, hip hop's rise from being a "sample sport," as Public Enemy once put it, to the largely trap-centric hit machine it is today, Sleaford Mods embodies a tirade-level synthesis of the two: a beat-powered device with which to bathe in poetic and profanity-laced commentary. The group (vocalist Jason Williamson and track maker Andrew Fearn ) gained some notoriety stateside with its 2013 release, Austerity Dogs , despite having been about five albums deep in its discography. The group's new release, Chubbed Up +, is a singles compilation that includes three previously unreleased tracks. It was released by Ipecac Recordings. The mostly repetitious loop'd loop of springy bass riffs and flat percussion offer Sleaford Mods the distinction of being the more sophistica...

Like many, I'd first heard of Sleaford Mods last year as the band's then-new release, Austerity Dogs , was gaining some momentum in the States.  With urgent sounds meeting jagged commentary, the UK duo is one of the more interesting outsider acts to garner attention, enough so that Ipecac Recordings is releasing Chubbed Up + , which is a singles collection.  "Jolly Fucker," one of the tracks featured on the compilation, demonstrates the group's subversive tone as well as their oddly composed backdrop. Chubbed Up + will be out on October 28th.  All info and links come courtesy of Speakeasy PR. SLEAFORD MODS RELEASE CHUBBED UP + VIA IPECAC RECORDINGS ON OCT. 28 SINGLES COLLECTION INCLUDES THREE PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED TRACKS NOV. 29 PERFORMANCE AT THE WICK IN BROOKLYN SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 30 – The UK’s Sleaford Mods join Ipecac Recordings’ roster with the Oct. 28 release of Chubbed Up + , a singles collection featuring three previously unreleased songs...

Lou Reed & Metallica Lulu Vertigo Released: 11.1.11 No Ripcord review Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

The man was a shock to my system when first my ears touch upon "Whitey On The Moon," Gil Scott-Heron 's bongo-powered indictment of White America's priorities in terms of taxpayer dollars: "I can't pay no doctor bill/(but Whitey's on the moon)/Ten years from now I'll be payin' still/(while Whitey's on the moon)."  It's not as if I hadn't already been exposed to Afro-centric pride and racially inspired backlash via the more vocal amongst hip-hop's reigning champions, (most notably the words of Public Enemy and then later with Talib Kweli and Mos Def ), but Scott-Heron's delivery, backed by one mere, simple hand drum, was compelling.  Yes, there was anger to the man, poetic outrage at the words' core.  But, Heron wasn't only a voice of dissent: he was the embodiment of protest art, his combination of words and tone a perfect conveyance of frustration and hope for something better, canvas worthy assessments of livin...

Gil Scott-Heron I'm New Here XL Recordings Released: 2.9.10 No Ripcord review Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead