Yargo - Bodybeat (London Records, 1987)

This 1987 album was first released in UK and France and the year after in Europe. When I listened this album it was distributed by Barclay in my country. So it's a mainstream release and the music is clearly mainstream ready. Also if I remember well, at least in my country, the Pop/Rock mainstream reception has been extremely positive.

So why would I want quote this mainstream release? Firstly even if the music is mainstream ready it's not at all pure catchy stuff to attract the masses. Secondly I never understood why this album has never been re released, it's for me a clear classic that would worth a re release and perhaps a remaster.

The music genre is... a bit difficult to pinpoint. It's minimalist and it succeed merge high intensity, laid back, captivating groove, and on some tracks a sort hypnotic mood that could remind Kraut Rock. It's a sort of merge of Soul, Reggae, Dub, Downbeat and a bit of Jazz, and there's also some distant links with Pop/Rock from a large perspective. One element is more kicking than others, even if it's a part of the whole, the vocals are incredible with a constant subtle or more direct tension, and with a voice that sounds a bit like Harmonica. It' a great release and quite unique, even their second album, quite cool too, didn't succeed to capture the same magic.

To listen: I couldn't find any major streaming sites allowing to listen it. So try this 130k vbr preview.
To support the artists: Apart used I haven't found any link to buy it, not even any digital releases.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.

Family Curse - Twilight Language (Self Release, 2013)

This is the first album of the band. They tagged it as Art rock and Art Punk and that's quite pertinent, it's also a sort of Post Punk with some Art Rock relationships and strong roots in Punk without to be Punk.

There's various sources of influences on this album and their dominance depends of the track. For example the singing use three distinct directions, a path quite close to some classical Punk, another almost spoken or shouted with influences from Hardcore singing, and another reminds Art Rock declamatory. Another example is the guitars. It's almost Punk riffs on some tracks and on some other other it seems come from a New Wave close to Post Punk like "NY NY NY" with strong echoes of sounds color and guitars melodies that seem come right from Cure first albums particularly the first. And on some tracks the abuse of guitars break seems come from Art Rock.

One great element of this album is the composition quality. It's a solid Punk/Rock composition talent, not at all aiming Pop. The compositions are  diversified and there's a direct efficiency despite some sophistication in instruments, vocals and tracks structures. That's enough to allow enjoy it a lot, but there's perhaps missing a more distinctive style, more uncommon and more clearly identifiable to attract the attention and remind you to re listen it once more. It's anyway a very good first album, strongly advised if you like modern Punk or Post Punk.

To listen: Band's bandcamp page. Or 130k vbr preview.
To support the artists: Buy the digital.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig. 

Eleven Year Old - Harakiri Krishnas (Jingle, 2012)

This first album of the band is mainly Surf Garage with a non common approach. On most tracks the vocals and choirs are clearly influenced by Surf Music, there's some guitars slides games typical of Surf Music, and compositions are often partially influenced by surf Music.

But there's also a very good work on Garage sounds, the compositions are influenced by more than only Surf Music like modern Garage and a bit Psychedelic, the vocals and choirs have a an unusual color for Surf Music, they use a higher pitch and are more shouted. There's also an excellent work on vocals intensity and tension that transfigures the music. A great Garage Surf album both very catchy and surprisingly uncommon.

To listen: Band's bandcamp page. It's a "choose your price" download, put 0 to download it for free. To support the artists: Buy the digital. There was also two very limited releases on cassette, but I have no link.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.

The Sufis - The Sufis (Ample Play, 2012)

The band released last month their second album, Inventions, on the labels Ample Play and Burger. I need listen it more before post or not some comments on it in the blog, but it pushed me comment shortly their first album, The Sufis.

This first self-titled album was initially a release with a free download on bancamp. But this didn't last long because the band found the label Ample Play to release the album.

This first album is very influenced by Pink Floyd era with Syd Barrett and more generally by 60's Psychedelic. It's musical games collecting psychedelic tricks, merging them and chaining them to build tracks from catchy to almost experimental for few tracks. It's great stuff and the strong echoes to that Pink Floyd era isn't a problem because it's still different and it's not a frequent lineage.

The only difficult point is that few tracks are borderline experimental which could make them difficult to listen depending of your mood. But there's only two tracks that are very close to experimental and they are smaller, about 1"40 each, it's "In the Ashram" and "Light Tunnel". But the parts or elements more experimental add a lot of spice to the whole album. Most tracks use almost experimental elements or at least weird elements and merge them smartly to make most tracks both catchy and uncommon. On most tracks the experimental aspects are even almost hidden by the smart merging, great first album.

To listen: Streaming sites like Deezer, Rdio or Spotify. Or 135k vbr preview.
To support the artists: Buy at Ample Play the vinyl or the CD. Or the digital on the various standard places.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.

The Space Padlocks - The Space Padlocks (Close Up, 2012)

With that EP released at the end of 2012 this French band made a leap forward. They choose explore a style more uncommon than the styles of their previous releases, ie this new EP is a sort of Heavy Space Garage.

There's a good diversity of the tracks, even the vocals use a different approach on the tracks, multiple vocals with different textures and a bit slow on first track, soft and slow on second track, relatively acid and faster on third track with multiple vocals games, and relatively acid and fast in last track. It's four great tracks well diversified, it's a rounded tempered Heavy Garage with clear influences of Space Rock and perhaps more hidden references of Sludge, a great EP.

To listen: Label's bandcamp page. Or 128k vbr preview.
The Band: Band's bandcamp page.
To support the artists: Buy the Vinyl or digital.

Boogarins - As Plantas Que Curam LP (Other Music - Burger - Fat Possum, 2013)

This is the first LP of a Brazilian band. I already posted in the blog some comments about their first EP released sooner this year. The EP was a free release on bandcamp but it isn't available anymore to allow the official release of this LP which includes the 6 tracks of the EP plus 4 new tracks.

This extension doesn't change the quality of the whole, it's great uncommon Psychedelic Pop that sounds both almost ready for mainstream and still surprisingly uncommon. Check the comments on the EP for few more details.

For this official release it's not that the band founds a label but they found two labels! Burger for the cassette version and Other Music for the vinyl, CD and digital releases. Other Music is a label that operates through the Fat Possum label which manufactures and distribute for them. It's not really a surprise, the surprise was more to not see it on start on a label. Anyway that's a great LP an it's great they found those labels.

To listen: Streaming sites like Deezer, Rdio or Spotify. Or 135k vbr preview.
The Band: Band's page.
To support the artists: Buy the vinyl, CD, or digital at Other Music, or at Fat Possum. And the cassette at Burger.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.

Catholic Spit - A Pact with the Devil LP (Bad Touch, 2013)

Imagine a huge sphere rolling on a slope. It isn't perfectly round so there's many subtle variations in the rumble of thunder produced. A little girl stays with ease on top of the rolling sphere, and she shouts and sings without restraint with acidulous vocals and clear Punk lineages. And now the part more difficult to imagine, all of that happens in the sky where some Horror movie is screened. Job done, I think this describes you faithfully the music of this album.

There's an excellent abuse of bass tones making it Heavy and aerial like a troupe of elephants dancing with grace. Add to that some discrete but efficient echoes of Horror movies music, and on top of the sounds waves the vocals are frenetic, speedy, and acidulous. The whole is very fun, and more subtle than could let feel a superficial listening, a great stuff transmitting its excess of enthusiasm, refreshing.

To listen: Band's bandcamp page. Or 130k vbr preview.
To support the artists: Buy the vinyl at label. Or  Buy the digital on bandcamp.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.