E.T. Habit - Venomous (HoZac, 2012)

Before this EP the group released two very Progressive albums. The first one, self-titled, was released in 2010 on the label Skrot Up. It's Prog Rock colored by Psychedelic on many tracks. The second, Panthers On The Roof, was released in 2012 on a label created by the group. Despite there's 5 tracks from their first album, the two albums have a quite different mood. This second album is much less psychedelic. In fact the 5 tracks reused are sometimes very different and other times are remastered and this makes them less Psychedelic and more Heavy. Both are very interesting but personally I prefer the first one whom I find more original with this mixture of Prog Rock and Psychedelic.

However with this Venomous EP released on HoZac the band reach another dimension with a Garage Prog approach and a work on the sounds which is dared and original. It is a little bit strange, especially during the first listens, but the ear becomes used fast and in the end it is very catchy and very original. It is an excellent and original EP, I hope that the group will released an album with in this approach.

You can listen the album on some streaming sites, I noticed Deezer, Rdio and Spotify. Or you can preview it here but at a quality only a bit better than standard streaming, and be fair, if you like dig it, support the artists and don't forget to buy the EP.

To support the artists you can buy the vinyl 7" at HoZac label. You can also buy the digital album at the various standard places.

Various Artists - Le Garage Se Rebiffe (Close Up, 2013)

This recently released Garage compilation has a shift when compared to current Garage. It's quite old school oriented with a sort of 60's color, and it's not much focused on the dirty aspects of Garage unlike most modern Garage. Moreover many tracks has winks to French Yéyé music from the beginning of the 60's. All of that gives to this Garage compilation a very uncommon color in comparison to modern Garage.

Another very interesting element is despite this rather old school and falsely naive approach, in fact many tracks are quite interesting musically with uncommon and funny instruments plays and compositions. It's an excellent merge of false naive and old school with relative sophistication and originality mildly hidden. The whole is very fun, very refreshing and quite interesting. I applaud and with a little louder clapping for the he girls side which is the A side, and also for the special track concluding very well this compilation.

You can listen it on Close Up label bandcamp page. Or you can preview it here but at a quality only a bit better than standard streaming, and be fair, if you like dig it, support the artists and don't forget to buy the album.

To support the artists you can buy the vinyl at Close Up label. You can also buy the digital album at Close Up label bandcamp page.

Unwed Teenage Mothers - Forever Until You Are Bones (Hiss Lab, 2013)

This four tracks EP is quite different than the previous band's releases that I listened, "Blonde Girls" LP and "If That's Love" EP both released in 2010, and an EP released in 2012 by Speaker Tree label.

It's still in Garage area but the tracks of this new EP are faster, more energetic and dirtier. They are also more Pop with catchier hooks including some vicious choirs. The result is sort of bombastic aggressive dirty Garage Pop quite funny and juicy!

You can listen it on Hiss Lab label bandcamp page. Or you can preview it here but at a quality only a bit better than standard streaming, and be fair, if you like dig it, support the artists and don't forget to buy the EP.

To support the artists you can buy the vinyl 7" or the digital at Hiss Lab label bandcamp page.

Coyote Indigo - Horning (Self Release, 2013)

This is a Psychedelic Rock album by a Brazilian band. Its sound has a lot of relief and has a very clear sound color, this isn't common in this genre. There are many parts with saturated and sizzling guitars but the sound is very clear anyway. The frequent use of echo on the voice and the numerous saturation effects from the guitars do not build a noisy, dense or psych sound, they are just tools to compose the tracks and it's surprisingly fun and catchy.

In my opinion the album has a small imbalance in the tracks order. Basically the first part is very dynamic, has energy and hangs easily. While the second part is quieter and more difficult to listen. The effect is a bit strange and makes the second half a bit difficult to listen. By the third listening of the album I changed the tracks order to balance the album, I simply put the 4th track between the 6th and 7th tracks. For me this order is more effective and more balanced, if you also have this feeling of imbalance and that it bothers you, try this order a little different.

Anyway this is a beautiful album of Psychedelic Rock with a sound approach that gives some originality. You can listen it or download it for FREE at band's bandcamp page.

White Lodge - Demo Tape (Self Release, 2013)

The second best album of The Gun Club has just been released this year, and better, it's a very tasty Lo Fi Garage genre. That is a good news!! OK OK it is not the first album made by a zombie which would have gone out of its grave, nor even a lost and found tape. It's the first release of this new Australian band which has strong and assumed influences coming from The Gun Club but in a very dirty and very lo-fi Garage genre. That's not the only influence but this one is striking and the result quality proves that it's a great choice.

It's an excellent EP which half seems to consist of covers but that's original tracks. This kinship with The Gun Club is a quality, because every piece remains very different from what has done The Gun Club even if there's many strong echoes. The result is invigorating and the echoes which it can evoke increase even more the listening pleasure. It's very Lo Fi so remind to raise widely the sound volume to appreciate fully.

That's great stuff, enjoy, it's a free download at bandcamp.

To support the artists you can buy the cassette to the band, check their Facebook page for more information.

Mozes and the Firstborn - Mozes and the Firstborn (TopNotch, 2013)

This is the first album of this Dutch band. It's mildly Heavy Rock with a strong 70's color,  some laid back Grunge influences and a bit of Psychedelic on some tracks. If the tracks have most often a sort of simplicity, both in the style and in the complexity, there's also an excellent composition diversity along the album.

It's not that sort of album that instantly slap your face, instead it seems at first a bit harmless, that sort of second grade album, very pleasant to listen but that's it. But after more listens it grew on me quite a lot. I did notice that to fully enjoy it I need listen it with care, probably because it has a mildly laid back approach that doesn't drag back the attention easily. Anyway now it's great stuff for me.

You can listen it at band's bandcamp page, or it's a "choose your price" download at bandcamp, so don't hesitate to put 0 for a FREE download.

To support the artists you can buy the vinyl at TopNotch label or you can choose the price you want for the digital version.

White Fence - Cyclops Reap (Castle Face, 2013)

No matter the manufacturing context of this album, only the result matters. If there are several echoes from the previous double album, on the other hand there is a surprising style evolution, it's crystalline Garage Rock. This is paradoxical but this is really the style of this album. Not only sounds are very pure, but even the dirty sounds are more symbolic dirt and become crackling from which the slightest vibration is clearly audible, acid sounds tend to be very clear, and noise is build with textures allowing to hear any detail of the weaving.

But the most impressive element building that crystalline Garage is coming from the orchestration, mixing and production. Most often there's two lines and sometimes three lines of guitars, there's the singing and few times two vocal lines, there's the percussions and sometime a bass, and all this is orchestrated and mixed with a surprising clarity. Every instrument, every effect and every note can be heard clearly. And in spite of all this sound clarity, the feeling that it's Garage is very present. Garage fans could be disappointed by this special approach of Garage, and the previous double album had tracks with a relatively similar approach, but they was only draft of what achieves this new album which is a kind of paradox.

Personally, even if I consider the previous double album is a masterpiece unmatched by this new release, I adore this new Cyclops Reap album which is unique including when it is compared to the previous album. For sure it would be even better with fewer echoes from this previous album. But it's just echoes, each past albums had also many echoes from the album that preceded it, and it's very far from cloning. Anyway, the point is it's a great unique crystalline Garage Rock album.

To listen: Streaming sites like Deezer, Rdio or Spotify. Or 115k vbr v6 preview.
To support the artists: Buy the vinyl, CD, or the LP limited edition at Castle Face label. 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.