[Compilation] Between Two Waves – Vol. C (EardrumsPop)

Actually it did not happen much time ago when I reviewed one compilation (Between Two Waves - Vol. A) under EardrumsPop which consisted fundamentally of two-sided collaborations. In any cases, I am not able to put the temptation aside for not reviewing another one too because of my orthodox indie nature was came to the forefront with those 14 songs again. In a word, here is another great collection of songs shuffling inbetween jangle pop, dream pop, slightly folk-driven indie pop and also some more contemporary sounds are thrown over here (of course I referred to dream-alike electronic/chillwave undercurrents here). Although without whimsical tricks basically, in principle, the whole seems to be really virtuous in the vein of old indie tunes having lots of catchy angles and edges and refreshing air letting you feel yourself free. No doubt, you need to be relaxed and having some distance from effect-loaded pop experimentalism at least for some time. Here is one track that really imprisoned me during last days. Indeed, The Hurries (Sundae + Girl Alliance)`s Not That Easy sounds out as if hinting at a neutral zone between Pet Shop Boys and Mojave 3 somewhere.

Listen to it here

Children Of Ishizuke Tree Chameleon Straship (Clinical Archives)

In the first place I want to admit that the more I listen to this double LP (in total of 112 minutes) the more I fall in love with it. A duo from Minsk, Belarus, makes a subtle guitar-based dream pop music. If you are keen to draw parallels upon in a big manner, indeed, it sounds as if an equivalent version of post-rock version of Mercury Rev`s Desertoir Songs (1998) at times, altogether being described as ambient rock or atmospheric post-rock. Moreover, a sophomore album by Alexander Haletski and Marina Bartosh incorporates the elements of repetitronica, void-filled ambient/dystopbient/dark ambient, soothing drone wraiths, spoken word tunes and even some distant echoes of the ethnic music from East Asia. Alternatively, it might be a kind of lo-fi music in the midst of ambient shimmerings or a sort of underweighted My Bloody Valentine as well. This is an album through the essential touch!

Listen to it here

9.4

Shattered Darlings and Liquid Kisses Shattered Darlings and Liquid Kisses (Is This Music?)

Shattered Darlings and Liquid Kisses is a combo from Long Island, NY, USA, which is headed by songwriters Matt Richards and Tony Delgado (line-upped by James Johnson, Lillian Richards, and Debbie Hass, and their partly unknown keyboard player). Their debut issue is represented through 20 tracks within 53 minutes full of loaded guitar drives, subtly offered psychedelic synth shreds and solidly elaborated dream-alike vocal arrangements all in all building up dynamic sonic architectonics. If you have been a fan of My Bloody Valentine and the Irish quartet`s ascending guitar layers then their basic approach might be felt into your expectations and visions, though, SDLK does add their suggestive point of view. Moreover, by its loud, psychedelia-soaked and sometimes soothing approach does SDLK`s soundscape hint at the glorious and influential tradition of psych-rockers, dream poppers and power rockers as well. Honestly, it is a very pure rock`n`roll blowup obviously working superb in different situations and at any time out. To complement this experience for I highly recommend listen to SDLK`s EPs as well (In Tangiers; Chick Pop Vocals under Nana`s Records).

Listen to it here

9.6

[Old but important] Delta Waves Under Clouds Over Ground (Earth Monkey Productions)

In the 90`s Burnt Hair Records was cited as one of the most eminent labels in the Michigan-area and the main locomotive kind of to have pushed forward an experimental blend of spaced-out/ambient and drone rock sound along the Detroit underground scene. Indeed, they made out some influences for the future days of experimental rock. For instance, the clients of Larry Hoffman`s label were Windy & Carl, Auburn Lull, and Mahogany among others. The imprint finished off its existence with Delta Waves` release the DELTA WAVES dream in real time (2002). By embarked on in the mid of 90`s Delta Waves is being a band dictated by Greg Naumann, having seen lots changes of line-ups around him. Notwithstanding having been recruited later by other labels (Supple; Clairecords etc) as well Delta Waves seems to be genuinely related to Burnt Hair Records by its ideological perspective and fluctuations, though.

Under Clouds Over Ground, one of my all-time favorite dream pop/shoegaze issues, consists of 4 tracks released under the Earth Monkey Productions in 2005. The then-time line-up by Naumann, Anton Abramov, Ryan Anderson, and Jason Taylor did play up a lot of mesmerizing moments-monumentums, reminiscent by their darkwave-shoegaze crosslined approach of the likes of Lycia (at times Naumann`s murmuring vocal manner has got managed to approximate pretty close to Mike Van Portfleet`s fluids, the second time to circle around Neil Halstead`s emotive timbre). In any cases, this is not an example of such a band at all having somehow imitated the celebrities of the genre, instead diving into vague yet vastly exciting minutiae of sonic alchemy, being touched by minimalism, ambient, hypnotic, hiss-drenched drone, darkwave, shoegaze. All in all, it is used to be a dream-filled transcendence. Let`s repeat it once again just concerning on those otherworldly orchestrations and your heart will be lost for sure.

Listen to it here

[Compilation] Between Two Waves – Vol. A (EardrumsPop)

As I said once, the Norwegian-based EardrumsPop has been one of the finest single and compilation records around the world to date. (Unfortunately the first compilations are being down for a while because of purposed to save space for future issues. I hope those will be uploaded somewhere else, at Archive.org or Bandcamp, for instance). The music under this label does proof out as a voice of nowadays and classical sensed indie conscience. More profoundly, it does veer from jangle, twee pop, dream pop, baroque pop and sunshine pop currents to poptronica and electronic pop, and shibuya-kei notches (lots of artists represented herein come from Japan). Yet, in principle, the indie pop under EardrumsPop is rather a retrospective appearance, for sure, having avoided to be a hype-centric one (which is also very important!), instead aspiring for great classical melodies and astonishing harmonies to shuffle seamlessly the (theoretical) gap between nowadays and the previous decades.

On Between Two Waves - Vol. A (released in April of 2010) are represented 14 tracks by the following artists like Boa Constrictor vs The Honeydrips, Baffin Island (The Very Most + The Hermit Crabs), Suspicious for the Winter (Casa Murilo + Like Spinning), Jacob Borshard and Cake on Cake, Starlight Recorder (Dylan Mondegreen + Alex Rinde (The Margarets)), Leaving Rio (Cineplexx + Onward, Chariots), Peacock Dreams (Shelby Sifers + Spirituals), Saturnalia (The Lost Cavalry + We Walk On Ice), Kubot (Martin Gustafsson (Boy Omega) + Martin Bergström (New Beginnings/Sin Närmiljö)), Early to Bed (Wisdom Tooth + Me And The Horse I Rode In On), En handvändning (Solander + Jerker Kaj), Johnny Favourite and the Exs (Johnny Favourite + little xs for eyes), Dizzie Bird (The Marble Man + Angela Aux), and Broken Motion (Paragraphs + Me And My Arrow). As it can be witnessed for, regarding the collection title and concerning on the artists`specific juxtaposition to each other, each song in principle consists of a blend of (at least) two artists or musicians (can it somehow be related to the abandoning of the kind of snooty eccentricity, though?). The miscellany is full of great songs, though, some of them are outstanding - Baffin Island (The Very Most + The Hermit Crabs)`s You Make Two Weeks Two Days which is a fine ukulele-based troubadour pop reminiscent of some workouts by Jens Lekman and Sondre Lerche; Jacob Borshard and Cake on Cake`s Summer Will Have Its Way is a Belle & Sebastian-esque warble; Leaving Rio (Cineplexx + Onward, Chariots)`s Vanish does involve delicious doo wop harmonies, sung the first half in English, and the ending side in Spanish, respectively.

Listen to it here

[Artists] Jean Dean

Myspace
Lastfm

Jean Dean Steps (Jean Dean)

I have big pleasure and honour to announce the Tallinn-based ensemble Jean Dean released recently their debut single Steps and video for it at their Myspace page. Undoubtedly it is the day single (and obviously for the next days as well) of mine because of creating vast monumentums and evoking lots of nostalgic memories in my head and shaking strongly some of my soul`s inactivated edges and pouring over the imaginary borders, offering a flying platform for to get glidered from the snowy present toward the fairy tale-alike past to be drowned into great parallels applicated to Estonia and the United Kingdom as well. In any cases, Jean Dean is a quartet consisting of musicians known by their previous and parallel independent musical activities in various groups. Kene Vernik (song, guitar), Allan Pilter (guitar, synths, harmonica, electronics), Margit Korbe (synths, backing vocals), and Inga Nõlvak (bass, backing vocals) are intended to create suggestive, dream-filled (not catchy tunes in the first sense, though) soundscapes with crisscrossed guitar lines, velvet-infected noisy indie feedbacks, with lots ups and downs and key changes. If to come back to the above cued reference it reminds of apparently forgotten Estonian band 1983 (having been active in the first half of 90`s) and of course Lush ( their line-up consisted of 3 women and a man as well!), though, Jean Dean is used to be a bit more murky, a bit more dark-hued, more detailly, via mostly Kene Vernik`s lush, velvet-filled timbre. A perfect workout indeed. The nineties are coming back? It seems to be so at least...

Listen to it here

10.0

[Artists] Inverness

Inverness
Jamendo
Myspace
Lastfm

Tiny Fireflies ePop005 (Eardrums Pop)

By concerning on every kind of single labels around us I have mostly referred to Beko DSL, yet, there are other akin records as well, definitely enough worth to pay much attention. For instance, the likes of Club 7, Bad Panda, and Eardrums Pop are the names to be rememebered in the first place.

In fact, the last named record was previously known by its sizable indie pop compilations (13 compilations in total), having acquired a kind of magnificient quality the better you are hardly able to find out from somewhere else (indeed, your obligation is just to listen to those ones!). However, the last notches of its discography are exclusively the matter of singles, having a geographical stretch from Indonesia to The United Kingdom, from Finland to the United States. By stilistical approach it might be compared to the sounds of the legendary The Slumberland Records, and The Best Kept Secrets. Indeed, mellow indie pop, consisting of jangle pop and twee pop shadows, yet, having a nowadays touch via poptronic elements.

The Fireflies`s 3-tracks single set is the first missive, signifying the departure from the array of compilations. A duo (Leslie and Kristine) comes from Chicago, having been sharing their duties at Very Truly Yours, and proceeding their solo projects (Tiny Microphone; Fireflies) as well. One of those beatific tracks is a cover of Skeeter Davis` hit The End Of The World, inspired by Claude Longinet`s interpretation of it, and another (Holding Pattern) exploits a sample by Serge Gainsbourg`s La Horse. As it is said yet, it sounds really beatific reminiscent of chillwave oozings and sighs, getting quite close to Memoryhouse (Kristine`s hyper dreamy timbre and vocal manner turns/ascents tend to be similar to Denise Nouvion). On the other hand, a kind of slow(core) movement with the help of drum machines and cathedral-alike organs conveys a decent cue toward Beach House, though. Or hinting at the beautiful coverprint (by Minkee) could have it be named as "lovewave" instead of? A great music, no doubt.

Listen to it here

9.4

[Compilation] Beko DSL Beko_Fla (Beko DSL)

In fact, there is not much time passed by when I reviewed Bekos DSL`s compilation box_3 being dedicated to witch house/drag/haunted house/screwgaze/crunk shoegaze. It is another compilation, however, also subnamed as A Beko/Free Loving Anarchists Collab concerning profoundly on shoegaze, lo-fi, fuzz pop, dream pop, and post punk-influenced sound from one area/scene (Houston, Texas). Indeed, this miscellany can be dealt with as a fine indie stuff for nowadays people being seriously annoyed by the mediocrity and unvariedness of ordinary music examples. 8 tracks by projects like Rape Faction, Lois Magic, Pink Playground, Young Henry, The KVB, Virgo Rising, Wicked Crafts, Sacred Place do draft solid harmonies and catchy pace notches. The favorite numbers of mine are The KVB`s Into The Night which is an experimental drive on the level of DIY via pulsating trance-alike synth drones, and Joy Division-esque coolness; and Virgo Rising`s To Deal Without It based upon reminiscence of a track by My Bloody Valentine (find it yourself out, I guess) through a memorable synth repetition and spaced-out milieu.

Listen to it here

The Arctic Flow Club 7 003 (Club 7)

Supposedly everyone who is got deeply digged into the discography of the Holiday Records is not surprised at all to hear about such a name as the Arctic Flow, behind it is Brian Hancheck, a profilic musician from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Approximately a half year ago he released a pair of singles under Beko DSL as well. However, now it is proper time for another single label Club 7. Hancheck`s soundscape is profoundly dreamy and floating, consisting mainly of subtle indie pop numbers with certain shoegaze influences. On the other way, it could be described as shoegaze music without massive touch of abrasive guitars and psychedelic entering into a chaotic inner world, instead of it used to be reserved for nicely suffusing guitar chords driving over the middle layers of the sound. Though, it can be sounded psychedelic as well. First of all, if you are in to dedicate your time to such British indie luminaries as Slowdive, Ride, and Chapterhouse (especially the last named one) or have listened to music released under the label Slumberland, this release of 2 tracks (Sentiments and Artifacts; King of the Flood) is thought for you.

Listen to it here

8.9

This Lonely Crowd Entangled Chaos (Velvet Blue)

Hooray! Tweedledum, Tweedledee, Humpty Dumpty, Red Queen, and Jabberwock are proudly back. The expectations toward their sophomore release are really high because of their debut album An Endless Moment Eveyday All the Time (2010, Sinewave) being madly energic and artistic through shoegaze- and post-grunge guitars, reminiscent of vocally Billy Corgan`s manner from Smashing Pumpkins. A salient mix of dream pop and power pop.

A new release, new coverprint, new direction, new measures. First of all, Humpty Dumpty don`t search anymore for Corgan-esque abrasiveness in his vocal manner, feeling more soft, murmuring, and dreamy - and often doing it in the cooperation with Red Queen. In fact, the vocal part is diminished, too, and the sound is properly arranged - without the dominance of chaos-driveness, the collapses of mayhems, crazily intense key changes, and driving-in and driving-off effects. Instead of powerful guitars there are rather airy guitars to be represented in consisting of dreamy even lethargic soundscapes, which subtle movement is sometimes "disturbed" by massive brown noise-alike exorced keys of guitars throwing up elemental hooks of the AEMEATT. Yet once time, in comparison with the first album the song structures are more transparent and predictable, thereby being a bit less attractive, though. In conjuction with it the release seems to be too short (4 tracks) also for playing out their transboundary conception in the complete way. But by measured on the absolute scale, it is a solid work, though. And the quintet`s coverprints are still one of the best, too, conveying the spirit of golden age shoegaze music to this day. An eye is resting while watching it.

Listen to it here

8.8

Inverness Somewhere I Can Hear My Heart Beating (Psicotropicodelia/Jamendo)

The southern side of the American continent is and has been full of great artists, and Inverness is undoubtedly one of the best entries I am being honoured to listening to.

Four friends from Sao Paulo are there to push their idiosyncratic conception forward - Lucas de Almeida (voice, guitar, sampler), Marcio Barcha (drums), Mateus Perito (voice, guitar, sampler), and Flávio Fraschetti (bass) are joined together to create the experimental rock band Inverness. The name comes from a dream, a successive theme in the group's work.

However, four organic instruments (voice, guitars, bass, drums) plus samplers do constitute up a very reminiscent instrumental array of My Bloody Valentine, though, their intention is inclined to be going in a bit different directions. Besides lush noise outbursts, strumming beauty of guitars and fabulous cinematic orchestrations you can hear shitloads of different influences via intense sampling synthesis - from hazy sunshine pop and doo wop-infused easy listening and techno vibes to psychedelia and sub-ethnic music numbers (involving in new age-y flute passages and weird vocal manners). If you are not satisfied yet searching for some solid ground, to find out some examples, I maintain you to make some steps toward The Avalanches, and The Guillemots as well. 10 tracks full of fucking greatness indeed, being one of the best killers of the 2010 so far. Obrigado, lads!

Listen to it here

10.0

Ballpen The dreams trilogy (La bèl)

In recent years, among others, I am used to get deeply involved in music of some Italian labels having stylistically been offering different yet conceptually cutting-edge outputs. More specifically, every release under Barbie Noja, Chew-Z, Kill Mommy, Zymogen, and La bèl is an unexpected one and really worth to give a try. In fact, concerning specifically on in Italy residing projects I have discovered such ones like The Last Meredina, Nicola Ratti, con_cetta, Christian Alati, Barbagallo, The Japanese Gum, Menion, Elisa Luu, Difondo. By the side, speaking about the music from the Apennine Peninsula in a more general way, it would be a kind of crime not to mention the likes of Hox Vox, Ornitology, Les Dix-Huit Secondes, The reason is clear - because all of these aforementioned bands have put on their very own mentality to some Anglo-American influences. However, it seems so that there are two geographical peripheries in Europe which are really rich by their innovative music - Finland (their powerful avant-garde folk experimentations, so-called forest folk) and Italy. In the context, no chance to get over by Kraftwerk - Eleganz und Dekadenz Europa endlos

Actually the array will be completed with adding of Ballpen, the project of Alessandro Coronas, conjuring up really interesting and intimate dream-alike soundscapes. (And other billions of strange and funny combinations of the puzzle-pieces of my life - as he says himself) 11 tracks do search for their place and borders hovering between folk music, cowbell indie, sub-IDM beats, chamber music, dream pop, child music, even the classical approach of minimal, sometimes really minimal sonic palette (which is not suprising because of Coronas` conservatory-related background). Of course, the easiest way to chart the whole it would be tagged as "folktronic music", and indeed, this is correct on its own - at least partly. For example, fabulous tracks Anna Lisa goes to bed, and The magazine dream. On the other hand, all of those slowly progressing chamber music lines built up to half-evolved crescendos, intimate sonic insights and introspections, a lot of key changes, subtle minimal electronic and glitch-y ghosts-infused undercurrents are up for to eliminate stylistic walls around its concept and allowing to bring forth a lot of transcendental feelings for a subject. Listening to this I can remember (or it is remembered by) for some soul mates - Oscar Hallbert (Sweden), and Thuoom (Finland). Altogether, a great composition indeed.

Listen to it here

9.7

The Papertiger Sound Everything Matters (Auteur Recordings)

Dan Gelder ja Kerstin Wilson (aka Ker) on naasnud neljaloolise EP`ga. Nagu ikka, teevad nad sulnist popmuusikat, milles kõnelevad sulnid üleminekud, orgaanilised progressioonid pluss värviküllane erksus. Avalugu Atlas üllatab viiulikäiguga, instrumendiga, mida varem nende loomingus kohanud ei ole. Slowdivelikult strummivad ning õrna overdrive`iga rulluvad kitarrid on juba varasemast tuttav element. Can`t see why on link shoegaze`i ja New Order`i vahel, võttes jalad tatsuma ning viies indie-muusika kuldpäevi meenutama. Lõpulugu we`re modern recordists on atmosfääriline heiastus, kus pulbitseva hillitsetuse tagant näib kohe-kohe shoegaze-sein lahti pääsevat. Ometi seda ei juhtu, ning see ei pruugi ka halb olla. Igatahes see töötab. Kuid paradoksaalsel kombel ei jää nimilugu millegi poolest kõrva. Või tuleks ka edaspidi reliisid tiiteldada eeldatavalt nõrgima träki järgi, et kuidagigi sellele positiivset valgust heita?

Kuula albumit siit

9.0

Friends Demos (Bandcamp)

Jaapani trio teeb laupäevaõhtusse ideaalselt sobituvat popmuusikat. Valguseküllaselt strummivat-strammivat kitarrisaundi, mis on üle igasugu haipidest, mukkahvidest ning grotesksetest poppjobudest, eemal suurte ajakirjade ja webzine`ide fookusest. Aus muusika, noh. Nende ideoloogiline alge näib pärinevat 80ndate jangle pop`ist ning blonde hair indie`st, millele lisatakse natuke juurde dream pop`i (ning ehk ka shoegaze`i) esteetikat. Hoogne, samas sametiselt hägune naisvokaal ja üledraivivad psühhedeelsed klahvkaliinid teevad sellest tõelise maiuspala. Vana kooli indie-asi on igihaljas. Unustad enese ega suudagi aru saada, mitmes ring minemas on. Vist 20nes juba. Sõltuvust tekitav. Ja 4 lugu ning 9 minutit kõigest. We`ll Never Stay Together oma õhkamistes ja unistuslikes käikudes lausa käristab hinge ning lõpulugu Saturday (alles nüüd avastasin pealkirja!) on üks selle aasta träkke-käkke. Äkki peakski kogu kupatuse demokvaliteeti jätma? Näib hetkel peaaegu võimatuna, et "krohvimisega" võiks esteetilist naudingut kuidagi suurendada.

Kuula albumit siit

9.8

Loomer Coward Soul (Sinewave)

Brasiiliast Porto Alegre`st pärit nelik ringutab ja sirutab, näidates uuel albumil muskulatuuri. Nende aastatagune debüütalbum "Mind Drops" (Little Room) oli lihtsalt kena üritus, seesugune, mis tagantjärele meenub üksnes märgi mahapanemise tõigana. Kuid nüüd nad kuuluvad plaadifirma Sinewave hõlma alla ning see peegeldab ennekõike märki kvaliteedi tõusust.

Nagu bändi nimigi vihjab, on nende ristiisaks My Bloody Valentine. (Austraalias on teinegi samanimeline shoegaze-rühmitus). Kuigi "Loveless"-i 5-loolisel eriti ei märka, on seda enam "Isn`t Anything"-i mõjud esil. (Kuid igasugu tribuudist on asi siiski kaugel). Küllap tajute ka Slowdive`i, Swervedriver`i, Smashing Pumpkins`i, aga ka 94. aasta Bizarre`i jalajälgi. Vastandid on kokku kuhjatud - kriipivad ja huilgavad kitarrid, kõrvetavad feedback`i servad, massiivsed ja lainetena valguvad trummiliinid, mees- ja naisvokaali õhuline unisoon ning eraldatus. Võrreldes debüütreliisiga on grunge`likku segmenti masterdatud ning tühja, atmosfäärilist hõngu süstivat ruumi (kuuldavate) struktuuride ümber kuhjatud. Küte otsa ei saa, seda valgub juurde ja peale. Superlood on Coward ja Super Fuzz (muljetavaldav shoegaze`i ja grunge`i puhastustuli). Ilmselt juba kolmas album Sinewave`ilt minu selle aasta top 50-s (This Lonely Crowd`i ja Hangin Freud`i üllitiste kõrvale). Leegitseb, raisk!

Kuula albumit siit

9.4

The Big Sleep In Search Of Hades Ethos (23 Seconds/Jamendo)

Selle uhke ning müstilise nimega muusikaprojekti album on massiivne, eepiline ja ergas. Ning mõnes mõttes ka eriline. Samuti plaadifirmale 23 Seconds on nimetet ansambli lisamine oma rosterisse samm avardumise poole. Madridlase Abel`i alias Martin Anilom`i järg debüütalbumile "Ownland" (2008, Jamendo) ning kahele EP`le põhineb kolmel suurel vaalal - (post-)metal`il, shoegaze`il ning tantsumuusikal. Vähemusse jäävasse elementaariumisse kuuluvad gooti ja neoklassitsistlikud mõjud, dream pop, fuzz pop, space rock, ambient (rock), new age, progressiivmuusika, krautrock (bändi nimi muideks pärineb Tangerine Dream`i samanimelisest träkist albumil "Stratosfear" (1976)). Stratosfäärilisi, düstoopseid ning romantistliku alatooniga hirmule viitavaid elemente ja kombinatsioone on siin tõepoolest mitmeid. Drum and bass`i rütme võib vett "segamas" kuulda. Ei ole ju ilmas kuigi palju neid ansambleid, kes kasutavad ühel ja samal üllitisel kõrvuti doom metal`i (kitarre) ja tantsumuusika mustreid.Kuigi mõningaid sarnasusi võib tajuda seesuguste legenditega nagu Tangerine Dream, M83, Mars Volta, Smashing Pumpkins, ei ole Anilom`i muusika allutatud ühelegi (naglale) faksiimile. Sarnaselt helikeelele on üllitis temaatiliselt liigendatud, jaotudes neljaks osaks: faith takes control, prelude of global disasters, corruption, hope>wish. (Need osutused ilmselt ei vaja lahtirääkimist). Ka plaadiümbris väärib tunnustamist, meenutades veidi slept.`i omanimelist EP`d (2009, Test Tube). Siinkirjutaja lemmikträkid on Oceans of mistake ning Bagdag/System - kui esimene neist on kingapõrnitsemisest seestunud ekstravertne tantsumalakas, siis teine kaldub unistuslikkuses juba chillwave/hypnagogic pop`i poole. Ah jaa, lugudesse on sämplitud praeguse paavsti Benedictus XVI laulu (ilmselt veel tema kardinaliks oleku ajast) ning Barack Obama ja Martin Luther King`i kõnesid. Kokkuvõttes tuleb nentida võimsa reliisi olemasolu.

Kuula albumit siit

8.7

This Lonely Crowd Entangled Chaos (Velvet Blue)

Hurraa-hurraa!, Tweedledum, Tweedledee, Humpty Dumpty, Red Queen ning Jabberwock on tagasi. Rõõmustamiseks on põhjust küllaga, kuivõrd brasiillaste debüütalbum "An Endless Moment Eveyday All the Time" (plaadifirma Sinewave) selle aasta alul jagas hämmastava energialaksu power pop`i, shoegaze/dream pop`i ja hard rock/stoner`i kokteili vahendusel, kandideerides kindlasti üheks parimaks üllitiseks AD 2010. Vahepeal läkitas viisik mulle mõned uued lood, kus oldi suunda muudetud ning mis erilist muljet ei avaldanud.

Uus reliis, uus plaadifirma, uus suunitlus, uued võtted. Viimaste all pean ennekõike silmas tõika, et Humpty Dumpty ei kasuta enam distinktselt billycorganlikku kriipivat laulumaneeri, kuivõrd otsib oma (sageli unisoonis Red Queen`iga) - olles hillitsetum, sosisklevam, unenäolisem. Tõele au andes on ka vokaalosa vähemaks jäänud. Samuti on helikeel sellele vastavalt arranžeeritud - 4 träkki ei viskle permanentselt perutavates ning peadpööritavates kaosekeeristes-kollapsites, vaid rajanevad tinklevatel, õhulistel kitarridel, tõsi, mille letargilist loomust lülitatakse regulaarselt tasa massiivsete, pruuni värvinguga mürast seestunud kidraseinte ilmumisega, mida omakorda läbistavad monumentaalsed rifid, mille peale ei jää muud tõdeda, kui et This Lonely Crowd edeneb oma tuntud headuses - küll selle vahega, et struktuurid on rohkem läbinähtavad. Kokkuvõttes panen punkte vähem kui debüüdile, kuivõrd nende hüsteeriline (mina)pilt on jätkuvalt ahvatlevam.

Kuula albumit siit

8.8

Atlas Young beko_54 (Beko DSL)

Jaapanlase Atlas Young`i kahelooline singlitaies/EP on üks selle aasta impressiivseimaid. Hea meel on tõdeda, et kaunikõlalisus, eepilisus, panoraamsus, kaleidoskoopilisus, majesteetlikkus on epiteedid, milledel on tänapäeval taas üha enam tähendust ning jõudu kuulaja hinge tungimisel. Uued Pulp`id, Suede`id, Mercury Rev`id, Lightning Seeds`id on esile tulemas - milleeniumivahetuse pikk pohmell on ümber saamas ning suured meloodiad-harmooniad oma kohta tagasi võitmas. Erinevalt nt Memoryhouse`ist ja The Bilinda Butchers`ist - kahest teisest suurepärasest chillwave/glo-fi/dream pop-artistist ning leiblikaaslastest - on Atlas Young veidi karvasema helipildiga - trummid peksavad intensiivsemalt, kitarr kooldub atmosfääriliste kihtide keskelt valla, liikudes märkamatult elektroonilise shoegaze`i maastikele, kus kaugustesse suunatud ainitipilke häirib leitsaklik virvendus, konstrueeritud jõuetuksvõttev miraaž. Stephanie on selle aasta ilusamaid lugusid - eneseteadlikult joviaalne ja hõiskav, kus maskuliinne ja feminiinne alge ühtsuse leiavad. Penetreeriv ja orgastiline saund teisisõnu. Platon tantsinuks selle muusika järgi.

Kuula albumit siit

9.8