The Nightchild - Some Stories And Thoughts (2011)

Jamendo
Afmusic
Lastfm

7.8

/Gothic rock, Electro-rock, Synth rock, Post-punk, Alternative rock/

Comment: a pathetic dark pop/rock combo from Ukraine, consisting of Alexey Nightchild A (vocals, guitars, keyboard, programming) and Olga "Holy Cat" (bass guitar). Rigid bass/drums-driven progressions are the base for such kinds of explorations veering from gothic post-punk to brooding electro-rock to more Nightwish-esque pompous symphonic metal approach. Business as usual, yet, seems a little bit weary.

Art Boys Collection - Stoned Wall (1972/2011)

Golden Pavilion
Free Music Archive

9.2

/Art rock, Acid rock, Psychedelic rock, Psych-folk, Soul rock, Progressive rock, Proto disco/

Comment: Art Boys Collection was an Austrian (1969-1975) sextet who offers a delicious set of the blend of psych-folk, art rock, psychedelic rock, and progressive rock. Walter Holz`s organ-driven vibes are on the ball, variegating a bunch of (at times heavily jamming) guitars and sublime vocal mannerism round it. The chords and moods are craftily fixed there, resulting in as a spectacular whole. This 12-track issue reminds of the Canterbury scene, and 60`s angelic introspective folk ensembles a la Dulcimer. But not such obscure artists only. It takes on The Beatles, Queen, and even Motown`s proto-disco vibes as well. In a foreign country, and Jesus said had big potential to blow off the charts. This amazing album was initially recorded in 1972.

Omara - Schubfaktor

Dreamphish - Garlic Icecream (1997)

Bandcamp

10.0

/Experimental indie, Art pop, Dream pop, Alternative pop, Indie pop, Art punk, Shoegaze, Post-rock/

Comment: Dreamphish was one of the foremost Estonian indie pop/rock bands with Dallas, Bizarre, and Borax in the second half of the 90`s. Their debut album Garlic Icecream (released on the cassette format only) rings out even today in an idiosyncratical and vanguard-ish way. While the quintet`s irresistible compositions are based on conventional yet majestic song structures it is spliced up with more uncompromising progressions - trip-hop-relied shadows, naughty punk rock, lofty shoegaze forays, and darkly gleaming post-rock-ish outer space. You can perceive the connections with Pulp, Stereolab, Portishead, Sonic Youth... . Most of the time the 10-track album induces to be longing and looking so hopefully for the future. Indeed, it is a glorious chapter of the Estonian innovative pop/rock. Inspite of missing nostalgically for those old good times, however, the album chimes perfectly on its own. I recommend listen to their follow-up It Is I (2000) either.

Morbo y Mambo - Das Papier EP (2011)

Bandcamp

8.8

/Improvised music, Cool jazz, Fusion, Crossover, Psychedelic, Free jazz/

Comment: no doubt, this is a lush, spatial improvisation set by a sextet from Argentina. Cool jazz-approved trumpets, acid-fried stumbling synths, rattling drums function to take on frenzied grooves and psychedelic washes everywhere. Indeed, it is pleasantly perverted by language.

The Grey Field Project Names - Without Meanings (2011)

Mediafire
Lastfm

9.3

/Ambient, Avant-rock, Epic, Minimal, Soundscapes, Post-rock, Crossover, Ambient noise, Dark ambient, Experimental rock/

Comment: behind these ten exhilarating ambient rock explorations is Adam Kalamàr, a young musician from Tapolca, Hungary. Before starting to create such amazing sound he played in punk (The Extrended Crackers) and screamo/grindcore combo Who Told You This Room Exists. It is an epic and majestic one where clear-cut visions are tensely mixed up with unidentified hiss-buzz and murmuring noise and hazy droning and concrete sound-infiltrated developments. At times it turns out to be essentially abstract (9).

Brad Sucks - Look and Feel Years Younger