June 1, 2010

Is it June yet?!?!?


The weather systems down on your blue-green planet seem to be a bit haywire lately - is this climate change, or just the return of that little bastardo, El Nino? Had enough rain? Well howzabout some burning bright starlight shining through the clouds? Okay then... commence beaming down love, light, and crazymusix...!

We begin with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, in a triumphant return to form with their noisiest yet still quite accessible effort to date. Liars have also topped themselves with this new release, bringing back some of their earlier postpunk guitar crunch to their dark electronic weirdness. Alcest have gone beyond the heavy shoegaze of their debut for a full-on metal assault that remains just as transcendent and psychedelic as before. Serena-Maneesh have also expanded on their glam-gaze sound incorporating everything from bliss-pop sheen to motorik mayhem. Speaking of motorik, the Brian Jonestown Massacre seem to be dabbling in it now - who do they think they are, Primal Scream?

Continuing that rushing momentum are Mi Ami, adding berserk latinesque polyrhythms and insane falsetto vocals (yes, that's a dude singing), Holy Fuck, with THE most acid-drenched stunner this year, Nice Nice, dabbling in their own off kilter psych/motorik, an expansion of their previous math rock incarnation, and Wooden Shjips, who almost manage to get funky on this rawkin' track.

Then it's time for a mid-set epic with a massive sprawl of kaleidoscopic repetition and nonsense from obscure Long Beach outfit Magic Lantern, who I can't wait to hear more from, and their lead guitarist takes it down a notch to let our minds and ears rest in this solo exploration as Sun Araw (read it backwards).

Broken Social Scene always manage to add spacey elements to their otherwise hook-filled yet delightfully skewed avant pop, and this instrumental track brings me back to their very first album, a little-heard gem of an album of mostly instrumental post rock. I promised you some new Society of Rockets last month, and here it is, finding them more Stereolab than Sly & The Family Stone, to great effect.

Warehouse dwelling utopians can be a mixed bag, musically speaking, but some of the ones who pull it off (Akron/Family, anyone?) are worth cutting through the bohemian pretentions to find the meat of mind-altering jams. Case in point, the paisley pop meets synthy sonics of MGMT, and the retro-futurist 70s/80s worship of Yeasayer.

Just to throw a late set left hook I slipped in a Pit Er Pat track, here exploring their spacier dubbier side. And we bring the set to crescendo and conclusion with a brand new head trip from the illustrious Cave. I hope this brings the light of this reluctant summer into full display. There's no reason you can't enjoy some earthly pleasures like warm days, cold beverages and a gently swinging hammock while your mind wanders the heavens in search of solace and spirituality. Cheers!

The following tracks should appear in the player below:

Spacerock Continuum Intro - bRambles - BeeDub's Spacerock Continuum
Half-State - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat the Devil's Tattoo
Scissor - Liars - Sisterworld
Percées de lumière - Alcest - Écailles De Lune
Ayisha Abyss - Serena-Maneesh - S-M 2: Abyss In B Minor
Tempo 116.7 (Reaching For Dangerous Levels Of Sobriety) - The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Who Killed Sgt. Pepper?
Latin Lover - Mi Ami - Steal Your Face
Silva & Grimes - Holy Fuck - Latin
A Vibration - Nice Nice - Extra Wow
Vampire Blues - Wooden Shjips - Vol. 2
At The Mountain Of Madness - Magic Lantern - s/t
Get Low - Sun Araw - Heavy Deeds
Meet Me In The Basement - Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record
Circulate And Sing - The Society Of Rockets - Future Factory
Siberian Breaks - MGMT - Congratulations
Wait For the Wintertime - Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
Specimen - Pit Er Pat - The Flexible Entertainer
Brigitte's Trip (White Light/White Jazz) - Cave - Pure Moods