Tons of new releases that I picked up this week!
- Godspeed You Black Emperor!, Luciferian Towers
- METZ, Strange Peace
- The Du-Rites, Greasy Listening
- Wolves in the Throne Room, Thrice Woven
- Moses Sumney, Aromanticism
I think that's it? Sometimes I get confused about what releases when, because I pre-order things when I hear about them. I haven't had a chance to listen to them all yet, but that Du-Rites record is tight, and the Moses Sumney record is fantastic. Meanwhile, it's all rock of various stripes today.
Steel Pole Bath Tub, "Speakerphone"
Noise rock band out of Bozeman, Montana, Steel Pole Bath Tub used found sounds and samples to liven up their particular brand of racket. This is from an EP, Some Cocktail Suggestions, released between their best album (The Miracle of Sound In Motion) and their, um, major label debut. Folks, the 90s were weird. I suppose in a world with the Butthole Surfers signed to a major label, anything really was possible.
Silkworm, "it's too bad..."
This song comes from Developer, the last record Silkworm made for Matador before switching to Touch & Go for their remaining records. I usually think of this as their weakest album other than their debut record, although it's still a good record. It sounds like a million bucks, but the songs just aren't as strong as on the albums surrounding it in their discography.
The Pixies, "Isla de Encanta"
Another song from Come On Pilgrim, this is another irresistible slice of manic rock.
The Apples in Stereo, "Signal In The Sky (Let's Go)"
This is from Let's Go, an EP released around the time of their best album, The Discovery of a World Inside the Moone.
Jesu, "Farewell (Alternative Version)"
Justin Broadrick would have enough of a legacy just as one of the originators of grindcore with Napalm Death, where he started out as guitarist and "singer". But he then went on to found Godflesh, a benchmark band that combined industrial with metal in ways that are still inspiring people. He went from there to Jesu, a band that is much more contemplative than either of those bands.
Now, I was never that big into Godflesh, and I basically skipped Jesu. But I did end up with one EP (Why Are We Not Perfect) as part of a mystery grab bag from Hydra Head Records, which is where this song comes from. But I'm afraid I can't tell you that much more about the band.