Little Kingdoms is a young band that makes me feel younger than I am. Their clever, complex guitar interplay dances between speakers. Their light, expressive, glitchy percussion lies somewhere between a slap happy drum machine and a slap happy teenager. Their voices sing along like kids having a good time. All the trademarks are there for being another derivative direct descendent of the Cap’n Jazz tradition. But theirs is something that’s special. This is happy music. This is music that’s in the enthusiastic Kinsella-twinkle aesthetic that I happen to love. They’re original enough. It’s nothing groundbreaking but it puts a smile on my face and that’s all that really matters.

-Brian S

It’s rare that, in our age of internet ubiquity, one should find an artist whose music is genuinely hard to find in any format. For me, these facts really only enhance my enjoyment of what little I’ve heard of Active Child, the fuzzy synthy choraly reverby harpy solo project by this guy Pat Grossi. There’s only two songs on here, and listening to them will send me scouring the internet to see if his full  length album is available for download or purchase or something again. Active Child’s music is so far exclusively released on cassette, a format that certainly meshes well with the hazy, reverby synth textures fogging up the background of the two tracks, “She Was a Vision” and “Voice of an Old Friend”. Grossi’s soft and open voice sounds alternatively angelic and soulful here, from his sighing delivery of “I came home to an empty house” to the floating falsetto of “don’t go” as the smorgasbord of retro synthesizers erupts into the chorus on “Vision”.
It’s no accident that all of Grossi’s work with Active Child seems to be paired with similarly hazy and idyllic artwork- the soft golden glow present in the cover of the single permeates both songs on this release, and only makes me look forward to full-length “Sun Rooms” more.

~Julian

Producer/DJ/Percussion Lab founder Praveen has turned out these two mixes over the past few months showcasing some of the best in sophisticated bass-centric electronica making the rounds these days. While I don’t know if I’m entirely sold on the ‘lovestep’ moniker, I do agree on something to differentiate these darker, more thoughtful exercises from the blown-out wider world of dubstep. These mixes feature tracks and artists (including big names like Martyn, Joy Orbison, Floating Points and Untold) who utilize subsonic frequencies and dub/2step influenced rhythms to invoke specific images and emotions rather than just destroy your speakers. Of course, that’s not to say that you couldn’t find these songs at your local club; they just succesfully ride the line between head-nodding, ass-shaking, and admirable electronic musicianship.

Tracklistings and download links for both mixes are below

Lovestep Mix vol. 1 >> Download

Pangaea – Memories
Burial – You Hurt Me
TRG – Broken Heart (Martyn Remix)
Untold – Dante
DFRNT – Tripped (Synkro Mix)
Synkro – Inhale
Sines – Memories Are Here
DFRNT – Tripped (Ital Tek Remix)
FaltyDL – Party
Joy Orbison – J. Doe
Sepalcure – Deep City Insects
Floating Points – K&G Beat

Lovestep Mix vol. 2 >> Download

Synkro – My Own World
Pangaea – Because of You
2562 – Lost
Martyn – Friedrichstrasse
Joy Orbison – The Shrew Would Have Cushioned the Blow
South East Soul – Lust
Deadboy – U Cheated
Sepalcure – Love Pressure
Joy Orbison – So Derobe
Mala – Alicia
Roof Light – In Your Hands
Wax / Shed – Dub Shed / STP Remix
Sepalcure – Down
Raffertie – 7th Dimension
Cosmin TRG – Since Last Night
Peter Hadar – Full Time Lover / Machinedrum Remix
Floating Points – For You

- Brian B.

The newest track from one of my favorite artists Caribou takes him yet another step in a great direction.  Andorra was one of the best albums of the 2000s in my opinion, and this progression lives up to that high standard.  The 60’s inspired dream-scapes created on Andorra give way to a funkier baseline with the signature Caribou depth and attention to detail.

>> Download (requires e-mail)

- Dave

- Brian B.

I’m beginning to think that split EPs are one of the best ways to digest instrumental and post-rock music. The low track count (such as two or three songs to a side) forces each band to push as much as they can into each song, and the presence of two artists where normally there are one makes more a slightly more expansive experience than a typical full-length.

Never having heard anything from either The American Dollar or Arms and Sleepers before, From the Inland Sea acted as my introduction to both- I didn’t really know what to expect outside of some potentially noodly instrumental music. The American Dollar’s half (my favorite of the two) is a slight but welcome divergence from the oft-tread avenues of post-rock, ‘Landing’ starting out with a contemplative (though familiar) synth pad + piano motif bristling with glitchy drum machine sounds before bursting into full view with a bitchin’ drumbeat that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Lymbyc Systym record. TAD then quickly slathers on the reverby tremolo guitar, but instead of trying to shred your face with overly-enthusiastic bombast, they let the tones yawn across the mix, producing something that simultaneously makes you want to do a heart head bob while feeling like staring at the sky in winter.
The songs on this first half are crisp, clean and tight- only once going past the four minute mark- yet still feel adventurous and dream-like. The synthesizer and guitar tradeoff that opens ‘Where We Are’ sounds almost poppy and exuberant, especially after the solmen and processional-sounding end to the previous track. The band manages to make music that sounds bright, clean and clear, but still capable of at any momoent evanescing into an atmospheric icy fog with all the ponderous piano lines you could want.

Arms and Sleepers’ half is a great deal less melodic than the first, eschewing the narrative feeling of TAD’s half for a more opaque, groove and layer-focused progression. First track ‘The Catcher Elsewhere’ begins with a piano motif that is quickly undercut by a swaying drum and piano accompaniment, letting the hemiola rhythm of the piano slowly drift in and out of time with the rest of the song as we are gradually introduced to building long tones and more instruments pushing for prevalence in the mix- another hemiola in the vibraphone, some good old-fashioned post-rock clean guitar squigglies, all tumbling and turning and shifting in and out of view.

As I alluded to before, one of the release’s greatest strengths is its nature as a split: the juxtaposition of these two bands’ different takes on electronics-heavy instrumental post-rock decisively eradicates the monotony that always threatens to destroy music such as this. They’re both painting with the same brushes, and at times the same colors, but the results  are never quite the same.

Buy

Standout Tracks: “Landing”, “Where We Are”

~Julian

I learned in the 1st grade not to judge a book by its cover. But it’s a good thing they never mentioned albums, because this one hits the nail right on the head. Kiln, a duo from Michigan (which seems to be a hotspot for off the beaten path ambient music), certainly lay down some of the most interesting tracks from any state. Their pastiche of textured beats and shifting, uneasy sound makes for probably the most sonically stimulating release within the context of downtempo. Kiln isn’t so much chillout as chillout-there, their meditations rising and falling and never quite coming to a climax. On the surface it’s uneasy and pulls you in, once you get used to it you find the calming beauty in their craft. The fuzzy synth of The Colorfreak being a prime example; listening to it you get the feeling that it should explode, clear up, warm and burst into a triumphant hook. Yet it doesn’t, which only succeeds in strengthening the music. It’s a technique a lot of electronic and drone artists try and fail at. Here Kiln shows it in a good light, while not perfect. For how long they’ve been around, I feel like they’re on the verge of doing something amazing. For now, enjoy this pleasant piece of warped, textured, warm, dusty sound (kind of like that cover).

buy

-Brian S

For Fans Of: birthdays.

- Brian B.

Portland duo Yellow Swans have been one of the guiding lights of the noise scene over the past decade, gracefully plucking beautifully marred fragments of noise from the surrounding radioactive fallout better than just about anyone without the last name Hecker. They announced their break-up in 2009, and Going Places is their final transmission. Yellow Swans’ sound has always explored something more delicate and sophisticated than their blown-out sound would initially belies, and they come close as ever to perfecting it on here. Desolate and blistering, yet with a distinct astral quality as well, almost like the sound of the white hot dust cloud left behind by a collapsing red giant. For me, Yellow Swans represent the small, fragile, yet undeniable sense of sentimentality for what has been lost within every process of destruction. Deep stuff.

For Fans Of: Burning Star Core, Mouthus, Prurient, Wolf Eyes

Buy

- Brian B.

Musicians, music writers and music enthusiasts tend to take themselves very seriously.  Music is serious business and damn it you will respect that.  I will admit that I refer to myself as a “music blogger” any chance I get.  Generally this seriousness is a good thing.  Just think of the bands that don’t take themselves seriously, and you end up with bands like Barenaked Ladies and Smash Mouth, so keep an open mind when I tell you that Whisper Signal do not take themselves too seriously.   Their ebullience is evident in their live shows via frontman Erik Adkins and his rapport with his band-mates on stage as well as their self proclaimed “Light Rock” sound.

This is not a knock on their craft.  Musically and lyrically there is a great attention to detail and each song feels like it has a purpose.  The opening track “Escape Artist” starts with fairly bare piano chords and light drumming accompanying Adkins’ mellow vocals.  Light bass then enters the mix, followed one by one by different layered parts that seem to sneak up to a sonic high point…before disappearing just as you notice them.

There are a few moments on the album that fall short.  Some of the vocals are overly ambitious and sometimes Adkins struggles to rise to the challenge.  Overall though the high-aim pays off throughout.  The second half is in my opinion the strongest section of the record.  The last three tracks, Silent Valentine, Comaglow and Slow Enemies are simply dynamite, and really feature the strong guitar work of lead guitarist Daniel Holmes, who’s talents seem wasted when he is simply providing texture and layering earlier.

Overall the album is a solid first effort for a band still developing and shaping their sound.  New members and a renewed commitment to playing live will only help Whisper Signal, and hopefully will not turn their personalities into something different than they are now…because we all know that music is serious business.

Myspace

- Dave

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