This latest album is astonishing even by the high standards I would have held Michael Begg to. Combining the normally distinct worlds of theology and thermodynamics, World Fair is a formidable work that rewards careful listening and engagement with the material. The heavy and daring philosophical musings are lifted by the stunning music created by Begg and his friends (including the return of Deryk Thomas to make Human Greed a duo once more). Altogether, they have made manifest an album of rare power that feels like it has years of epiphanies buried within it.
Two new shows just for you. We have squeezed out two extended release episodes for this weekend to get you through this week. They contain mostly new songs but there's also new issues from the vaults. The first show features music from Rider/Horse, Mint Field, Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, Anastasia Coope, ISAN, Stone Music, La Securite, Bark Psychosis, Jon Rose, Master Wilburn Burchette, Umberto, Wand, Tim Koh, Sun An, and Memory Drawings. The second episode has music by Laibach, Melt-Banana, Chuck Johnson, X, K. Yoshimatsu, Dorothy Carter, Pavel Milyakov, Violence Gratuite, Mark Templeton, Dummy, Endon, body / negative, Midwife, Alberto Boccardi, Divine. Cow in Maui from Veronika in Vienna. Get involved: subscribe, review, rate, share with your friends, send images!
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I have been following Vessel since 2012's Order of Noise album, as Seb Gainsborough always seemed like one of the most consistently compelling and distinctive forces in Bristol’s Livity Sound/Young Echo scene.  Somehow, however, his albums always fell just short of being something I could get truly excited about.  Punish, Honey admittedly continues that trend in some ways, but it is a huge evolution in others, as Gainsborough has largely untangled himself from current underground dance trends and embraced some very unhinged, adventurous, and heavy new textures.
Nearly a decade has passed since Kompakt's Total 3—the zeitgeist-defining compilation that turned me, and scores of longtime fans, onto the Cologne label in its heyday—hit the shelves. Some things never change: the latest entry in the Total series is a reliable-as-always tour through the state of Kompakt circa 2011.
New Orleans duo, Geisterfahrer, expand their previous palate by appearing to reduce it. On Stained Lunar they still eschew computers but also use clearer production, silence, and darker lyrics. The result is a separation of instruments and voices which better emphasize an ethno-catatonic, hypnotic, pagan sensibility.
As most listeners turn to low-quality downloads, online streaming, iPod earbuds, and cheap computer speakers, a handful of record labels seem to truly care about the sound quality of their new releases. Kranky is a label that cares, and A Winged Victory for the Sullen, in particular, lives up to its legend. Adam Wiltzie and Dustin O'Halloran recorded the album primarily in Berlin on a couple incredibly fancy, 9-foot grand pianos in large acoustic spaces; added strings and horns; mixed the record in a 17th century villa in Italy; and processed the songs all analogue, straight to magnetic tape. It sounds incredible.
The Hate Rock Trio have resurfaced, following an unthinkable tragedy, to present a new full-length album which will undoubtedly be met with a degree of disagreement amongst listeners. The group, now a duo, has strengthened their sound technique, creating a listening experience undeniably original, challenging, and captivating; however, the absence of the riffs—which were an integral part of Marry Me Tonight—is noticeable and sorely missed.
While his name may be most closely associated with the No Fun Fest he curates and the abrasive noise that is usually featured there, Giffoni’s own work tends to focus less on the harsh and more on the minimal electronics. On this album, he continues his focus on rudimentary analog electronics in a highly structured set of works that is arguably TOO structured.
Returning with their second full length, the East Coast Portland (Maine) foursome manage to not only defend their reputation as capable purveyors of riffs most heavy but also to expand their sonic palette in an unexpected but welcome way. With greater control of dynamics, a female guest vocalist and songs played across time scales better expressed in geologic terms rather than minutes, this is one of the best metal albums of the year.
