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Økse

Økse
Backwoodz Recordz (2024)

Økse is a gathering of brilliant, creative minds. The project's roster is pristine, with avant-jazz phenoms Mette Rasmussen on saxophone, Savannah Harris on drums, and Petter Eldh on bass/synths/samplers joining electronic artist and multidisciplinery extraordinaire Val Jeanty (of the fantastic Turning Jewels Into Water project.) The result is a multi-faceted work that stands on top of multiple sonic pillars, as … Read more

Final

What We Don't See
Room40 (2024)

Justin K. Broadrick's prolific output keeps giving, and may it never stop! The latest release is one of Broadrick's earliest projects, Final, which started in the power electronics tradition but since its resurrection in the early '90s, it is solidly standing in the ambient realm. Final's new full-length What We Don't See continues on the same trajectory, relishing drone's minimalistic … Read more

Bambies

Snotty Angels
Spaghetty Town Records, Wanda Records (2024)

The digital files I’ve been listening to as I write this review are all tagged to begin with the band name, e.g. “Bambies Teenage Night,” “Bambies Love Bite,” etc. It seems like a fitting metaphor. The Bambies play the kind of Ramones-adjacent garage-punk that’s often self-referential and in on their own joke. The Bambies play leather jacket-clad, straight-forward punky songs … Read more

Buñuel

Mansuetude
Overdrive, SKiN GRAFT (2024)

With a stellar line-up featuring vocalist Eugene S. Robinson (ex-Oxbow), guitarist Xabier Iriondo (Afterhours, A Short Apnea), bassist Andrea Lombardini (The Framers) and Franz Valente (Il Teatro Degli Orrori), Buñuel return with their sophomore record, Mansuetude. A true follow-up to Killers Like Us, Mansuetude further exposes Buñuel's dark, twisted noise rock, from the get-go with "Who Missed Me." The dark … Read more

Night Court

$hit Machine
Recess (2024)

Forget all the stereotypes about punk. Night Court are a punk band, but they aren’t nihilistic or aggressive. Instead, they’re scrappy and DIY and -- while they are certainly cynical at times -- they carry an air of positivity. It’s a well-defined sound on the band’s fourth LP, with 17 bouncy songs to singalong to. “Human Torch” is a fitting … Read more

Pharmakon

Maggot Mass
Sacred Bones (2024)

Pharmakon's body of work is a visceral etude on the human condition. Since 2013 with the release of Abandon, Margaret Chardier has explored the darkest sides of the human mind, psyche, and body through the fierce nature of power electronics. This path resulted in the absolute highlight with 2019's Devour, with Chardier perfecting her style. Noise storms raging, abstracted rhythmic … Read more

Mouth Wound

Tallow
Handmade Birds (2024)

Alright! Handmade Birds, easily one of the most important underground extreme/experimental labels of the '10s, is entering a new phase with their Literary Criticism series of releases. The introduction is now upon with Mouth Wound, the project of artist extraordinaire, Trine Paaschburg, who dives head first into the intersection between dark ambient, noise, and industrial. Paaschburg has already been making … Read more

Bad Year

Bad Year
Motorcycle Potluck Records, Snappy Little Numbers (2024)

The last time I reviewed a Bad Year record, roughly four years ago, I thought of quirky pop-punk like BlackDots. On their new self-titled record the takeaway is poppy and anthemic, more akin to Broadway Calls or Ann Beretta. While the bands I just named are direct and smooth with their song structures, they lean toward crisp production. I’d say … Read more

The Peawees

One Ride
Spaghetty Town Records, Wild Honey Records (2024)

Many years ago I read an essay about how the difficult-to-decipher vocals of Joe Strummer was part of The Clash’s legacy -- how making the listener not key in just on the words, but the melody and movement instead makes it more effective and more open to interpretation in a good way. That concept stuck with me. A song is … Read more

Beak>

>>>> (2024)
Invada, Temporary Residence (2024)

Without fanfare or much notice, Beak>'s unexpected appearance is nothing short of a welcomed surprise. Since their inception, the Bristol (now) trio have offered an alternate approach to the meticulous arrangements and orchestrations of their close relative, Portishead. Their latest record, >>>> does not deviate from this path if anything doubling down on their live compositional and semi-improvisational approach. It … Read more

Chuck Ragan

Love and Lore
Rise (2024)

Genre labels have their place and I think they’re more useful than not -- but sometimes they just aren’t going to convey the point. Chuck Ragan, best known for his long tenure with Hot Water Music, also plays solo under his own name. I’m going to slap the “singer-songwriter” label on his solo work, though it pulls from bluegrass, Americana, … Read more

The Necks

Bleed
Northern Spy (2024)

Any record The Necks release is a pathway to a deeply meditative experience. From the vastness of Open to the cinematic introspection of Vertigo and the constant build-up of Unfold, this act rarely (if at all) disappoints. Their latest offering, Bleed, sees them return to their most delicate strand of minimalism, patiently weaving their compositions in an attempt to uncover … Read more

Massive Nightmares

Massive Nightmares
Independent (2024)

Right from the start, this EP sounds familiar. I can’t quite place the band I’m thinking of, but Massive Nightmares hit quickly in a warm and familiar way. They play punchy punk with a big dose of The Replacements-style rock ‘n’ roll. It’s killing me that I can’t place who, exactly, they remind me of, but members also play/played with … Read more

Aluk Todolo

Lux
NoEvDia (2024)

Aluk Todolo's experimentalism always felt boundless, not shackled to a particular sound or genre. Since their inception back in 2004, the instrumental trio put forth an overarching vision that would encompass krautrock motifs, noise rock, and no-wave practices via way of a blackened psychedelic foundation. And Aluk Todolo executed this vision accordingly, amassing a stellar discography that contained excellent releases, … Read more

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