Bandcloud 297

I need a break. Honestly. I think I can make it to 300 but after that, it's Furloughcloud.

Beth Shearsby - Lung Toy
What a gorgeous track, made from a "Tape loop, Particle pedal + toy accordion". It's a bit fun and silly, slightly harsh and intimidating, but overall brilliant.

~ anti bad vibes mix ~ w/ vida vojić
Recorded for Space Afrika's NTS show, this is a super dreamy mix, as the title suggests. Float away on lush clouds of sound.

Caro C - Say Cheese!
A cute "wonky waltz" made in 2000 and shared this week. Cute!

Beachers - The Xavier de Maistre Survival Guide
The tracks on this release were recorded late last year and early this year, inspired by Voyage Around My Room, a work written by Xavier de Maistre while he was under house arrest. How fitting that it should be released now. It's a very thoughtful release, with slowly expressed synth melodies and layers of chords, moments of quiet stillness and gurgling samples (possibly organic, possibly synthetic). 

AYBEE - REBIRTH EP
Aybee is simply brilliant, and every release is worth checking out. Rebirth feels like a rain shower on a sweltering summer day, mist rising off hot concrete. 'Secret Planets' feels like opening the curtains in the morning to blazing sunshine. It feels like the first sip of the first pint of Guinness. It tastes like the burst of flavour from whatever fruit you love the most. It's warm, rich, perfect. Then the stuttering 'How Eye' feels like the moments as the sun sets and warm air hangs heavily around you. 

HeLa Negative - Emotional Energy
Michigan native HeLa Negative drops this exuberant piece of work on Crisis Urbana. It's roiling techno, fascinating and invigorating. Pumping and exciting without being aggressive, it pounds, but in a good way. Heart and soul within the machines.

Siobhan Bell: Soundsystem Guest Mix 010 (ALL 2000’S)
Ugh. This is just too good. 2000s bangers. Neptunes, Swizzy, Timbo, Destiny's Child (actually I think 'Bug-A-Boo' is in there and that's 99 but fuck it). HITS.

Mama Matrix Most Mystical - Full Moon Ritual Cleansing Bath
"Bowls and flowers, water, amplification and electronics" were used "to form this cleansing journey", which was broadcast on Dublin Digital Radio this month. It's inspired by the moon and it offers sweet relaxation. 

Clangistan Vol. XI: Deus Ex - Live At Home 8th May 2020
Blazey blaze, calang calang calang. That's what goes through my head any time I see the name of Tayyab Amin's Clangistan series. This latest one went out on Leeds-based Sable Radio. It features lots of stuff I don't know, it's got Ursula K. Le Guin & Todd Barton, there's Kate Bush and Minor Science, Holly Herndon and 'Harrowdown Hill', which Tayyab recently worked into the funniest (though possibly the darkest) tweet I've seen in ages.

VA - Care Package (Easy Does It)
As the blurb for this release states, the NHS is not a charity. However, it's been terribly mismanaged by governments and so they simply don't have the stock of equipment they need (this is the case in many countries, of course!). So Easy Does It has assembled a selection of music from Leeds-based artists to raise money for PPE for front-line workers. There's interesting ambient stuff, slow-mo beats tracks, bass-heavy wonkers, technicolour floor workouts, dark rollers and more. I'm particularly impressed by the tracks from Nahi Sabhera, DJ Double Oh!, Cheap Thrill and T.C Young, but with 24 in total there's plenty to love. 

TC5​.​006 - Sonic Trade
Big dada. This album is a true collaboration, starting with The Doll sending six different artists descriptions of sounds they could could make in any way they chose. They responded with descriptions of six sounds for The Doll to make, only using vocals. Then, Trium Circulorum mushed it all together to create what we have here. Fascinating, no? Lots of dark noise, intense sounds, droning layers and ominous guttural noise. Cool!

Alex Roberts - Dream Feed
Well ain't this sweet. Alexander Roberts, who's previously released as Joseph Curwen and Kepier Window, put together this two-hour piece for his infant daughter, made from a recording of her own heartbeat. Aww.