Incredible scenes. Hope you're not suffering from World Cup-related excitement. It's kind of a relief not having my country there, less pain and anguish. Especially after Euro 2012...
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Quiltland - Sisto
Bandcloud favourites Astro:Dynamics are prepping the Quiltland LP, and ahead of that they just put out Sisto, a limited cassette release that features a selection of tracks she's done since finishing the album. It's a mixed bag, inspired by big trance riffs and arpeggios, 90s pianos, and a delicate ambient bent. 'Forever' is definitely my pick of the bunch (either version). There's also a new remix to stream from Ond Ton, a murky affair that evokes crashing waves on rocky crags.
AU+ EMILY EP Cassette (MT1)
An "electro/industrial/live improv/jazz/free group in which electronic noise meets jazz", this one. It's very quiet, low in the mix. Worth a listen for sure though, certainly an antidote to ~good vibes~ and whatever.
Concretism - Forewarned is Forearmed
I won't lie - this is not particularly inventive. In fact, it sounds quite like the early work of Boards of Canada (Hi Scores/Twoism-era stuff). For that very reason, however, I love it. Actually, the chopped-up vocals in the opening track sound just like 'An Eagle In Your Mind'. Still.
Deru - 1979
This is really muggy, heavy, sweaty synth music laden with sludge. Heartbreaking, emotive, summer music to listen to when you feel like crying because your heart's been broken or just because it's too warm and your clothes are sticking to you and a smelly person just sat next to you on the bus.
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Slinky - 12 Penny Nails
Dark murky offbeat electronic sounds. Almost techno? There's a genre title for you (question mark essential).
Jack Murphy's guest mix for TTT on NTS
Your boy Jack Murphy aka the Techno Detective offers up an hour of 80s sounds (and one 70s track) for the Trilogy Tapes show on NTS. Some ambient, some experimental, some new wave and pop, all intriguing. #dattrumpet
Mumdance - Take Time (Mr. Mitch Peace Edit)
The original is a vibrant grimey workout with fierce bars from youngster Novelist. This is a deeply affecting take that slows it down, throws in a shedload of wild-west gunshots and makes you nod your head in a manner both reflective and responsive. No words do it justice.
MIXED BY Jessy Lanza
Jessy Lanza done a mix for Thump. It's got lots of rap and rnb and all that good shit.
Auburn Lull - Hiber
I don't really know anything about these guys, or the label they're on, just that this was tweeted with the comment that it's "one of the best tapes so far this year". A short, 20-minute selection, it's just a nice bunch of ambient tracks really.
Orlando Volcano - Nice To Meet You EP
Irishman in New York Orlando Volcano drops the first release under this new moniker. He's bee around years but he's always trying new things and working with different people.There are little shoegaze elements here (wall-of-noise backgrounds, tremolo solos etc) mixed with the more familiar tropical kinda style he's explored before. One thing I really love about his tracks is that they never outstay their welcome - where other producers/musicians might let a track keep running and extend its length, he knows when to let it finish. 'Isa Asleep' is a perfect example, a track that could run to five or six minutes, but not in his hands. Perfect.
Bake All Caps - Covering for Ben UFO on Rinse FM (June 12th 2014)
All Caps boss and blindingly good DJ steps up to cover the Hessle show on Rinse while Ben and co were off in Barcelona for Sonar. I've been checking the All Caps releases with increasing glee this year, but this show was the first time I'd heard Bake's DJing skills. I only recognised a few tracks (Kassem Mosse) for example, but he manages to make them sound utterly new the way he mixes them. Brilliant stuff.
Wonj - Melancholy Italo Disco Pod Past Vol II
First lady of Bandcloud Wonja offers a second Melancholy Italo Disco Pod Past. It's a load of sad disco jams that show where Aeroplane got their style for their first tracks remixes. I felt a bit guilty listening to this actually, not having any grounding in this world, but hey, we live and learn.
Shadow Dancer - Al's 4 43am Mix
It's the longest day of the year tomorrow, and to mark that occasion in 2011 Al from Shadow Dancer did a mix to coincide with the moment the sun traditionally rises on that date. It's a real ~journey~ of a mix (don't let that put you off), with tracks from Jean-Michel Jarre, Seefeel, Global Communication and more. On two occasions I played it lying in a hospital bed following surgeries. It's that kind of mix. There's a second one, that's just as beautiful but darker, more ominous. No Soundcloud link, but you can still download at Truants. There's a section in that one that moves from Wagon Christ and Bola through to Stewart Copeland and more Jean-Michel Jarre, and it's easily the most heartbreakingly beautiful sequences I've ever heard. Not to big it up too much or owt.
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Melt away my friends, melt away.
All the best,
Aidan