Another Basement Tapes alumnus, Wiita was actually the first person to take the trip to the basement. His music is minimalistic in a sense… mostly just guitars and few other sounds on each track. Mandala is different and accessible at the same time. Comparisons to other bands are hard to make, but many of his influences are also familiar. You can find out more info, including where to get copies of the music, by listening to the podcast.
And How might sound familiar to you if you listen to the Basement Tapes podcast. And How’s first album, Endless Winter, was featured in the basement in July. The dreamy alternative songs featured on the podcast can now be downloaded for free at the And How Bandcamp page. Fans of the bands we cover in DTL will love the music of And How. Of course, you probably heard Endless Winter on the podcast. What is the deal with this other album? Toothy Like a Saw is a new recording from And How. To my ears, the same swirling, dreamy alternative rock is turned up a few notches. The guitars seem a bit more out front, but that is a good thing. Toothy just takes the sound from Endless Winter to the next level. Also available for free, make sure you don’t miss it.
This is probably one of my favorite releases this year. Wovenhand masterfully combines a dark, gothic Americana sound with a whole host of world music influences. I love world music, but I tend to hate the half-baked attempts most American rock musicians make. Wovenhand fully embraces the diverse cultures that they weave into each song. The Middle Eastern elements are especially haunting… a perfect mix for this kind of music. For the two people that don’t know this, the driving force behind Wovenhand is David Eugene Edwards, formerly of 16 Horsepower fame. Edwards has a talent for writing incredibly dark but spiritual lyrics. As a fan of vinyl, I had to get the record version. It is beautiful to see the artwork this size (and it comes with a high quality digital download). Personal favorite songs are hard to name. “The Threshingfloor” is frantic and mesmerizing at the same...
I first decided to check out this ep when I read Doug Van Pelt of HM magazine raving about it. At the time it was offered as a free download. One really catchy, well-written download at that. The sound is kind of a gritty garage rock vibe with punk influences throughout (especially The Ramones in places). “Photographs” slows things down just a bit with a melodic turn, while still fitting in with the overall sound and adding some texture that you don’t find on the average punk album.
Electromeo was originally released in 2000 with 2 songs being recorded in Athens in the fall of that year, and the other 2 songs being recorded in England in the spring of 2000. This EP has always been one of my favorites that the band did together. Originally there were only 1000 copies of this gem made, but fortunately for the fans Bill has re-released this one as a download with a new track that finds itself saddled well amongst the other songs. The four songs that were already here are ‘Your Bright Future,” “Hat in Hand,” “Weight of Glory” and “Half Mast.” These are all favorite tracks of mine for different reasons. “Your Bright Future” is reminiscent to me of the Locket Full of Moonlight/ Summershine/ Perfumed Letter sounds of brit-pop psychedelic swirl and is one of the most underrated Vigilante’s tracks that I can think of. The...
When you speak of classic Christian albums that inspired countless other albums that followed, Branded is usually at the top of the list. The honesty and emotion on display in this album was pretty rare for this era of Christian music. I actually didn’t first hear this album until 1994, 8 years after it was first released. The sound was definitely dated, new wave pogo punk, but it was still catchy enough that I loved it despite not really being into that style of music anymore. Over the years Branded has been re-issued on CD as part of various box sets and collections, but never as a stand-alone album. Now it has with a few bonus tracks and updated cover art. Personally, I would have liked to have seen the complete You and I demos as bonus tracks, but maybe that will still happen someday. Overall this is a...
Picking a favorite Bill Mallonee album is like trying to pick which kid you like better. Actually it might be even harder than that. Mallonee’s staggering output is equaled only by the quality of what he releases. Kid Heart is the 11th WPA Volume that Bill has finished and released. The WPA’s are an ongoing series that Bill releases in a download only format and are basically EP’s of 4 to 6 songs that the listener can download and see what Bill is up to at that point in time. He also culls the tracks that are his favorite to give them the full studio treatment at a later date. These are full band releases with Bill and Muriah playing all the instruments, guitars, drums, bass, keyboards, harmonica and the accordion at times. This latest installment, Kid Heart, is in my opinion the best to date. I probably say...
Ever wonder what Rob Zombie would sound like if he got saved? Well, other than probably ripping a hole in the space-time continuum, he would probably sound almost just like Mind Of The Sick. While I am not a huge Rob Zombie fan, I do like to occasionally dive into the heavy industrial goth horror metal genre. MotS has that look and sound down. Songs about zombies, monsters, and freaks are filled with direct spiritual lessons and testimonies. There is nothing questionable about the lyrics here – this is straight-out evangelism. Nothing too cheesy, but those that don’t like preaching set to music might not be able to connect with this. I enjoy it myself, especially since the music is catchy and makes me want to move. Occasionally the lyrics feel a bit forced to make a point and still fit in the musical structure of the song, but no...
Old school punk rock. For free. What more do you need to know? You can also buy these songs on vinyl. False Idle avoids anything “pop” and goes for the throat with four songs that will have you shouting along and pumping your fists. There is just enough grit around the edges to make this feel authentic… but not so much that it feels sloppy.
I’m a late comer to this album. Any fan of Jyro Xhan needs to get this. Download only as far as I know, came out in 2007. What you have here is a fuller, slowed down Fold Zandura, add in some Radiohead influenced ambiance, and the droning guitar of “Loveless” era My Bloody Valentine, and it’s some really amazing stuff. I think this is Jyro’s best release to date, great lyrics as always, good layered vocals too. 6 solid songs, each as good as the next. I guess they “split up” in 2009 while recording a full length, but are said to reform under a different band name. Would love to hear more.
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