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Sun Ra/Merzbow

Strange City
Cold Spring (2016)

Big kudos are due to Justin Mitchell of Cold Spring for making this release possible, and bringing to life one of the strangest meeting of the minds. Irwin Chusid of the Sun Ra estate released a few rare and unreleased tracks from the great artist, which would be remixed by noise maestro Masami Akita, also known as Merzbow. Strange City … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Pilkington

Soft Flesh
Black RD Records (2017)

On to the next single. Again we start with it's title track, of course: "Soft Flesh." This is the song that lured me into reviewing these singles. On "Soft Flesh" (the song) Pilkington uses a casiotone and they use it well. From the first second I was hooked. To finish the song of the guitar work here is very surfy … Read more

200 Words Or Less

Pilkington

All Around The Neighborhood
Black RD Records (2017)

Singles are something I usually avoid when reviewing. I find it difficult to say something that makes sense with so little to work with. For Pilkington I’ve made an exception. They offered me two singles. The four songs combined clock in at almost 14 minutes. I can deal with that! Pilkington is an indie band from Philadelphia. They released their … Read more

P.O.S.

Chill, Dummy
Doomtree (2017)

A new kidney hasn’t made P.O.S soft and introspective. On his return to action album Chill, Dummy, he’s as angry and pointed as ever. The album rages, with moments of reflection that turn outward instead of in.The Minneapolis rapper has had an interesting evolution. He sprung up as a DIY punk-turned rapper, helped found the Doomtree collective, and released records … Read more

Buck Gooter

100 Bells
Whar Cats Records (2017)

Bizarro punk/noise/rock duo Buck Gooter are releasing their 17th album in the span of 12 years. During all that time and through all the releases, Buck Gooter, now returning with 100 Bells, has not missed a beat. Their music radiates with the same energy as it did on the first day and the primitive sense is as raw as it … Read more

The Flatliners

Inviting Light
Rise (2017)

Since 2002 Canadian punk band The Flatliners have been making a name for themselves. It’s hard to imagine the same ska/punk band that put out Destroy to Create released an album like Inviting Light. If you couldn’t tell by the album names alone—it’s a departure. Inviting Light is by far the most mature sounding album the band has released, and … Read more

Matt Pond PA

Still Summer
131 Records (2017)

Matt Pond PA has delivered a flurry of music since their inception in 1998 around the enigmatic songwriter and namesake. His revolving cast of collaborators, creators, and guests have served him well throughout his career. Just as it goes, he is very underappreciated and underrated as a songwriter. They are that band, and he is that singer, that you just … Read more

Needles//Pins

Goodnight, Tomorrow
Mint/Dirt Cult (2017)

Needles//Pins are one of those hard bands to pin down. They just sound like what rock ‘n’ roll is supposed to be, you know? It’s catchy, gritty, relatable, and working class. It’s to the point without being mindless or jingoistic. Goodnight, Tomorrow is their second LP, the follow-up to Shamebirds (2014). The first record is an enjoyable romp, but it … Read more

John Frum

A Stirring in the Noos
Relapse (2017)

Technicality in death metal is a very common treat, and it has been present within the genre since its beginnings. Through time this idea has evolved, moving from the likes of Death and Suffocation to acts like Artificial Brain and Ulcerate. John Frum is a new entry in this tradition, formed by members of some elite bands of the extreme … Read more

Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones

Astrild Astrild
Denovali (2017)

At some point in the '90s a strange scene begun to form, spawning from the adventurous nature of Gore and their follow-up project Bohren & der Club of Gore and expanded by the likes of Asunta and Phantom City. Taking the cool jazz structures, artists begun performing alchemical experiments with ambient music, abstract rhythms, drone elements and aspects of dark … Read more

She Spread Sorrow

Mine
Cold Spring (2017)

Alice Kundalini is releasing the second album under the She Spread Sorrow monikier, following the her debut full-length, Rumspringa. Forged in the death industrial heritage of Cold Spring records, she continues to implement fierce power electronics over her bleak ambiance. The form she takes in Mine is a continuation of the sound of Rumspringa. Dark and pensive in its narrative, … Read more

Cayetana

New Kind Of Normal
Plum Records (2017)

Normally when I hear obvious shades of the 1990s, my first thought is straight from an ad campaign of the era: been there, done that. It’s an oversimplification, but you get the point. The real problem is mimicry instead of taking influence. Cayetana have some clear influences from the alt rock of my formative years, but they’re ultimately set in … Read more

Crystal Fairy

Crystal Fairy
Ipecac (2017)

Buzz Osbourne has nothing left to prove. His band, Melvins have sustained the ravages of time and, perhaps even more impressively, the ravages of the music industry. Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of Melvins' first album and within that time frame there has been few artists as prolific as Osbourne, whether it's with Melvins, or Venemous Concept, or … Read more

Nothington

In the End
Red Scare Industries (2017)

Few things are stable in this topsy-turvy world. One constant has been Nothington. With the release of In the End, the San Francisco band’s fifth full-length, they’ve continued down the road they started with All In. It’s classic chord-driven punk with a working class, heart on its sleeve aesthetic. Early reviews compared them to Social Distortion, which isn’t horribly inaccurate … Read more

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