News

In addition to his day job transforming pop music with music, as well as his collaborations with others over the past few decades, did you know that Jim O’Rourke has been contracted for several dozen film scores over the years?

Sure he has! It makes sense too – his abilities as an improviser, composer and producer allow him to interpret cinematic moments with a unique understanding for the construction of moments, and how they work. What doesn’t make sense is how Hands That... (read more)

The Fucking Champs' contribution to music was no less than Total Music™: energetic and virtuosic, with intricate work from guitars and drums (not to mention SYNTHS!) thrilling to all the senses. The forthcoming reissue of III reminds the listener (that's us) how the Champs blended the best elements of countless genres into their singularly unique and exciting sound.

The third transmission to draw the listener (that's you) into the orbit of III is "Flawless Victory"...yes! An homage to Mortal Kombat, as flawless... (read more)

Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker bring their sizzling duo program back to the stage for the first time in 5 long years! Continuing down the path of their initial psych-folk-blues-raga tandem, MacKay and Walker brew further explorations in a live setting this July at three select performances.

Their 2017 collaborative album, SpiderBeetleBee, radiates forth with equal parts austerity and whimsy, featuring both MacKay and Walker’s acoustics in rambling conversation, picking through intricate passages as though they were exchanges, thoughts and afterthoughts.

Pushing the boundaries... (read more)

The sound of Suarasama is the sound of people engaged in a deeply spiritual, constantly moving recital in open space. Soulful essence and shining spirit float effervescently across Timeline, continuing the legacy of the late Irwansyah Harahap and sending North Sumatran traditional music, and its relationship to other traditional sounds of the world, across the planet.

The song “Timeline” itself addresses the history of musical lutes around the world as a means of debuting Irwansyah's custom-made lute, the "saz-guitar". This 10-string instrument combines the design... (read more)

Shorty’s Ark, the collaborative effort between Will Oldham and graphic artist Lori Damiano, is now available! Based on the song by Oldham and musician Matt Sweeney from their Superwolves LP, this hardcover book for young readers draws inspiration from the story of Noah—showcasing a wild variety of species to inform and engage an equal variety of young minds with the diversity that can be found around this great planet of ours. Colorfully illustrating as many creatures and their places as possible, Shorty’s Ark... (read more)

Western Cum is Cory Hanson's third full-length solo release (or, if you prefer, emission) drawn from a wide range of influences and sounds. You can't just call it cosmic country though - what about the gritty guitar rock strewn all about the place? You can't just call it psych-folk/psych-rock/psych/ugh/whew neither – ‘cos what about that damnable post-prog that Cory finds favor with and room for, everywhere he goes to rock, from Wand to beyond? It's ALL that – and what's more, it's growing all the... (read more)

The Forest in Me is here, and it's a deep, and sometimes dark ride! Every time Xylouris White make music, whether live or on record, it's a head-spinning display of absolute cohesion via a drums and strings duo, combining compositions with improvisations in a manner that always provides a different assembly for the assembled listener. Take The Forest In Me - it is another side of the world from the previous Xylouris White record, The Sisypheans. Of course it is, you say - it's... (read more)

After 30 years behind the kit, Hawksworth is Matt Espy’s first solo album: an album of drums in duet with birdsong. He's chopped and scattered their calls into the organic space in which Matt’s meditations on a life in music creates fresh music, commenting on the nature of music itself.

The second sample from his creative world is "Dexlark", with the sounds of classic lark song in unison with Matt’s rhythmic riff, their fluttering energies entwining and winding into a compulsive drum circle/fugue. The... (read more)

Just as the spring encourages renewal, warmth and light to our environment, so do Bitchin Bajas. On their latest, Bajascillators, we find them pollinating the aural landscape with extra-buoyant, rhythmic pulses and shimmering new analog synth tones, stimulating a flowering growth. This heightened sonic palate translates live as a truly transformative experience for all in attendance. For the people in the select cities below, this experience and all its potential is imminent - Bitchin Bajas embark on their first European tour of 2023... (read more)

Extended guitar hero Oren Ambarchi returns with a new video and a new slew of tour dates!

Ambarchi, known for his deeply textured soundscapes, explores the boundaries between minimalism and maximalism, melody and noise to create an immersive and mesmerizing experience. With Shebang, Ambarchi achieved a dense ensemble sound that was carefully composed while drawing on the free flow of improvisation, with individual voices momentarily coming to the fore and subtle changes in harmony and texture.
 

... (read more)