What's New? : 24 January 2022

Hi, friend.  Thank you for being here.  What's new? is something we started to get some quick thoughts out about music we had recently listened to.  As we became more aware of ourselves and became even more split, it became too difficult to try and continue.  We never stopped checking out music of course, as it is the most important thing that presently exists.  It has been brought to Andy's attention that I still have a lot to say about music and that perhaps it would be beneficial to start things up again.  It would be impossible at this point to run down all of the things we have checked out and have been deeply into during the interim, but if you look through the archives of the column, I don't think it would be any surprise to hear that it's been a little bit of everything.  As such, we will be going through the past year or so of acquisitions over the next little while.  So, on we move.  Please excuse the interruption.  Time, as a smarter man than myself once said, makes fools of us all.

Going to look at some New Americana today.

William Tyler — New Vanitas (2020)
Bandcamp YouTube Spotify

It's hard to know what to say about an album like this.  It is definitely better as a whole and feels absolutely like the individual songs form to make the complete piece.  In more recent times, WT went for a larger, decidedly Technicolor presentation of his tunes.  But, on this surprise release, he goes back to a more stripped down, one-man approach that recalls Behold the Spirit or Deseret Canyon.  It was released in the final weeks of a brutal 2020 summer and it's hard to think of it as anything other than an album created by the COVID-19 pandemic.  It's meditative and stirring, lo-fi and often hauntingly beautiful.  More than one of the song titles makes reference to an afterlife of some sort and it doesn't strike Andy as anything except a very melancholy record overall.  Definitely recalls some of the most resonating sounds of WT's biggest influences, but also manages to incorporate the Krautrock accents of his more recent work.  Very singular vibe throughout; the sound of a guy sitting alone and just playing while trying to sort out some rather difficult thoughts.  Extremely comforting music, in that sense.  Junior called it one of the parts of "the soundtrack to the beautiful apocalypse" and Andy finds that a pretty good summary.  Where it succeeds is in its hope.  Initially released as a digital-only album, it was "reissued" about six months later on vinyl for Record Store Day.  Key track: "Four Corners"

Six Organs of Admittance / William Tyler — Parallelogram (2015) 
Bandcamp Spotify

Part of the Three Lobed label's Parallelogram series, this finds WT sharing a 12" with sympathetic fellow traveler Ben Chasny.  I've always enjoyed the Six Organs stuff I've heard in passing, and his sidelong multi-movement lo-fi dronescape "Lsha" is no different.  It's a good indicator of what he does, as far as I know, but it doesn't really get me excited to check out more.  WT's side of the record is taken up by two of his vintage longform multi-layered pick sessions.  Feels like he was purposely going for a "trippier" sound with these two tunes and I have to say that it all sits extremely well as extra material for when Andy just can't get enough of Impossible Truth.  "No Marigolds in the Promised Land" gets a little more intense towards the end, while "Southern Living" paints a very bright picture of a lifestyle that feels simultaneously ancient and futuristic.  Extremely nice while it's playing and one for the completists who just have to have more.  Key track: "Southern Living"

William Tyler + Marisa Anderson — Lost Futures (2021)
Bandcamp Spotify YouTube

Another pandemicwave creation, this finds WT teaming up for a proper collaboration with Pacific Northwesterner Marisa Anderson and the results are just about as eerily pretty as New Vanitas.  There seems to be a bit more tension at work in these songs when compared with that album and I have to wonder just how much has passed me by in Marisa Anderson's previous catalogue (this is our introduction to their music).  This definitely feels like the soundtrack to something intense and unlike anything WT has laid down in the past — how much of that is MA's personality coming through?  The songs all have a very defined theme and progress accordingly; not a whole lot of meditating on moods (except for the noise drone "Something Will Come", which is probably the one track I'd toss out).  For WT, it's a very unique move and a completely unseen one.  However, again: this could be the standard for MA.  Whatever the case, it's good, very satisfying, and is bookended by two of WT's best tunes thus far.  Makes me interested to see what will happen next.  Key tracks: a fully fleshed out revive of "News About Heaven" (originally appearing on New Vanitas) and "Haunted by Water", as genuine a Grateful Dead pastiche as they come I'd say 

William Tyler + Luke Schneider — Understand (2021)
Bandcamp Spotify YouTube

And one more collaborative effort from WT, this time with fellow Tennessean Luke Schneider.  This one was released as a limited cassette (okay, sure- insert "lol" emoji) on the experimental Los Angeles-based label Leaving Records.    The music is easily the most cosmic and starbound WT has yet been associated with and it finds him sitting down at the keyboard for a few turns, while LS adds wonderfully atmospheric pedal steel and banjo accents.  Although only four songs and clocking in at a too-brief 24 minutes, this is (as of this writing) the most recent material WT has recorded and it is about as promising as I would imagine it could get at this juncture.  The pandemic has done us all in and this is the kind of music you put on your headphones, turn all the way up, and just fuck off for a walk to.  Heck, there's even an update of WT's now-classic "Highway Anxiety" that completely bubbles over with good vibes (it's appropriately retitled "No Trouble" here).  Proof that the darkest times need the most beautiful soundtracks.  Am perhaps setting myself up for disappointment, but I do hope this isn't a one-off collaboration.  Probably my favorite thing he's done since Lost Colony.  Can WT miss?  Key track: "No Trouble"; I mean dang, that's a tune

Sam Prekop — Comma (2020)
Bandcamp Spotify YouTube 

Sam Prekop seems to have entered a later phase where he just does whatever, whenever, and however he feels like.  After the unsurprisingly strong Any Day, the Sea and Cake has been on hold for some years now; their releases were slowing down significantly anyway.  Sam's own albums have been strictly modular synth-based ever since Old Punch Card just flew in from nowhere over a decade ago (I'm old).  Check in on him via social media these days and he's taking his beautifully idiosyncratic photographs or wading through a spaghetti pile of patch cables and showing off his found sounds from his arsenal of synth gear.  Comma continues along the more accessible path first hinted at on The Republic and I have to say: besides his first solo album, this is probably his best work under his own name.  It sounds nothing like the Sea and Cake and is totally instrumental.  If I had to liken it to something, it very much reminds Andy of the pleasantly weird mid-70s albums by Cluster or maybe the famous 5 EP by Slowdive.  Where Sam's synth stuff has been more on the reflective, fully ambient side of things in the past, Comma focuses a lot more of its energy on drum tracks and proper rhythms.  When that four-to-the-floor stomp finally lands on the opener "Park Line" it feels like a wholly natural and totally rewarding progression from where he last left off.  It's extremely pleasant music and I often think of it as the kind of music I hear in my best dreams.  His creative spirit and drive to just continue making some of the damned prettiest music around are truly something to behold, especially in these times.  Key tracks: "September Remember", "Summer Places", and the closer "Above Our Heads" which sounds like the epic end credits theme to a lost Nintendo 64 game 

~~~~A SHORT INTERLUDE~~~~
Sam was busy over the past year.  In addition to Comma and its little brother discussed below, he also released the digital-only twenty-five minute track "Spelling", via the Australian Longform Editions label: Bandcamp Spotify YouTube.  It's a bit of a departure, as it's just one long vamp with a lot of doodling.  Still no less pleasant than anything else he's done recently.
~~~~BACK TO THE PROGRAM~~~~

Sam Prekop — In Away (2021)
Bandcamp

A digital-only release everywhere except Japan, this CD version features an extra track not available elsewhere (mine also came with a glossy postcard print of the cover art; okay Andy is done gloating about my cool CD now☺).  Recorded immediately after Comma was released, there aren't any drastic stylistic turns away from that material, so it sits very nicely as a related companion piece.  Both records back-to-back run just over an hour, so that's how I find myself listening to this stuff most of the time.  That said, I definitely prefer the three closing tracks (one of which is the Japan exclusive "Sunset"; okay that's the last of my gloating, I promise☺).  All three are easily highlights of Sam's synth material so far and some of his most soothing songs to date.  Wonderful music.  Endlessly enjoyable.  Key tracks: "Community Place", "So Many", and "Sunset"  

We'll try to be a bit more frequent about these going forward.  Thank you.💙

What's New?: 8.1.2015

Grab bag! Been a while, let's get to it!

HB Barnum — The Golden Boy Instrumental Album (1965)

Nothing here too beat-y, but good listening nonetheless, as it's the cream of the LA session crop and HB arranging those big wonderful crescendos. Not as all out funky as HB would get in a few years time, it's actually more at home in the easy listening side of things. The ballads are where it's at, mostly.  Produced by David Axelrod, of course.  Key tracks: it's all of one piece, but check out 'I Want to be With You' and get reminded of your grandparents 50th wedding anniversary party.

William Tyler — Deseret Canyon (2008/reissued 2015)

First released under the name the Paper Hats in Germany only, Merge decided to reissue this album —which can now be properly assigned as William Tyler's solo debut— this past Record Store Day. Super nice package, complete with a gatefold cover. It kicks off with the thirteen minute opus 'Man of Oran', which is an awesome statement of purpose. Just to prove he's not dicking around, track two is the tuneful twelve minute, twelve string jangler 'Parliament of Birds.' The middle section of the album is occupied by more concise pieces and one psychedelic sound collage.  It's all very Fahey-esque.  Another epic to end the album and it's quite likely Will's most resonating tune, pre-Impossible Truth.  Wonderful to finally have it physically.  Key tracks: the long ones!

Fine Steps — Boy's Co. (2012)

A Sacramento and San Francisco pop underground supergroup, of sorts, Fine Steps play modern jangle like nobody's business.  'Dig Me In' nails the Smiths so perfectly, I can't believe this didn't catch on.  'Course, the dummies only pressed like 500 or some ridiculous thing.  Finishing up the opening one-two combo punch is 'The Heat' and that's a darned great start.  Things never really waver from there and, as far as jangle pop goes, these dudes have tunes for days.  Check out the stuff on Bandcamp (highlights conspicuously missing though) and then go check out 'Patty Smith Hearst' for the most resonating Echo and the Bunnymen song you've never heard until right now.  Top gear, all the way.  Just wish they had put out more stuff.  Key tracks: 'Dig Me In', 'The Heat' and 'Pardon Me'

Crisis Arm — Rend (2014)

Hemet, California newgazers (that's "new shoegaze" for the uninitiated).  They play shoegaze in the most faithful of ways, so when I say that, 'Resemblance' shouldn't come as the shock that it no doubt will.  There's a lot of bands that can rightfully claim to be influenced by Slowdive and the Valentines and the like, but there's noticeably few who actually do such a thing justice like Crisis Arm does.  I mean, when I say this is a shoegaze album, it doesn't get much more satisfying for fans of the stuff than the gargantuan highlight 'Stray.'  Their whole catalogue is on the Spotify, but it would behoove you to check out their Bandcamp for tons of extras.  Just now catching up to this, otherwise it would definitely have made my best of 2014 picks.  Key tracks: 'Stray', 'Resemblance' and the beautifully woozy closer 'Sunder'

Gary McFarland — Today (1969)

Easy pop on Gary's Skye label.  Mostly covers, some of them quite bizarre.  Things begin with a winningly whispery, indeed almost folky rendition of the Beatles' 'Because.'  Onward to the goofy spoken word variation of Leonard Cohen's 'Suzanne.'  Elsewhere there's bossa bachelor pad scatstrumental covers of Stevie Wonder, more Beatles and a couple Brazilian standards that you'd swear he'd already done before this album: 'The Shadow of Your Smile' and 'Desafinado.'  The two originals (the guitarist Sam Brown feature 'Shadows are Falling' and 'Sambras de Saudade') are excellent, though not really jazz at all — which makes sense, as Gary had moved on from any pretense of being a jazz player by this point anyway.  It all ends with a fantastic version of 'Berimbau.'  Ron Carter and Hubert Laws guest among the supporting cast of excellent musicians.  Not a total winner —and Gary has much better albums in this vein— but a must if you're a fan.  It's on Spotify if you're curious.  Key tracks: 'Because', 'Shadows are Falling' and 'Sambras de Saudade'

Matching Mole — Matching Mole's Little Red Record (1972)

Released the same calendar year as the band's self-titled debut, it gets even further out than that record.  Just have a listen to 'Marchides' and you'll get a very good picture of where this album is headed, as the first three minutes is all scorching doodly chaos.  Some fantastic rhodes piano work in the middle section, though. There's a concept at work here and sometimes, like on 'Gloria Gloom', it threatens to overtake the actual music.  I prefer the instrumentals much more over the vocal tunes, as they really find the band exploring some interesting territory.  This is the standard one disc edition of the album; there is an expanded two disc version that appends an entire live set, which I'm sure is worthwhile if you like the album (which I do).  Key tracks: 'Marchides' and the closing trip 'Smoke Signal'

Kenny Barron — Sunset to Dawn (1973)

And some nice, spiritual jazz to finish things out.  I was interested in this because it has one of my all time favorite sampled bits in the first minute or so of the album; I can finally cross it off my want list.  Kenny plays rhodes on about half the album and he sounds really great doing so, really getting funky at certain points, but mostly he finds these deeply introspective and happy chords on the instrument; the sort of which made me love the sound of it in the first place.  Overall, a darn good record by an underrated pianist.  Listen on Spotify.  Key tracks: the bookends 'Sunset' and 'Dawn'

If you're wondering where I've been or are worried that I don't have stuff to talk about, wonder no longer and worry not because there's this to get to. . .

We'll get there soon enough!

~Austin

What's New?: 7.8.2013

Some very brilliant stuff here. . .

Neil Young — Trans (1982)

Yes, Neil's infamous "new wave" album. Once an embarrassment, I can now hear it as a musician pushing forward and challenging himself just for the sake of not staying still creatively. Although, beginning with the standard Neil Young fare of 'Little Thing Called Love' does feel a bit misleading. The next four tracks find Neil aping Kraftwerk as much as anyone else did in the early 80's and masking his voice with a vocoder. And, at the time, it sure would have surprised me had I been there that, actually, the best tracks are the ones where Neil doesn't try to just tread water. 'Transformer Man' received a new lease when Neil tackled an acoustic version for his Unplugged album about a decade later.  'Computer Age' is the other really good synth-pop tune here that has rightly been reassessed in a more positive light.  The synth redux of 'Mr. Soul' is pretty bad, but, like I said, at least he was trying something else.  The album ends with one of Neil's most idiosyncratic masterpieces.  'Like an Inca' is absolutely mammoth in scope and executed pretty damn well, to boot.  If it were billed to Neil and Crazy Horse and were on any other album besides this one, with eight minutes and one of the most rewarding chord changes in Neil's entire repertoire, it would have a much bigger reputation than it ended up with.  To give an idea of how important the song is: Neil revived it for his own audio autobiography just a couple years ago.  Yeah, that one makes it all worthwhile.  Easily.

William Tyler — Behold the Spirit (2010)

An incredible record from an incredible musician.  This one is just sheer mood.  Like, the whole thing just feels like a symphony.  Yeah, it's got separate parts and everything, but it's really just one big piece to behold.  William Tyler is a very inspiring guitarist who has longstanding roots in two long running Americana bands and who has finally come to the spotlight in recent years.  Comparisons to John Fahey, Will Ackerman and Leo Kottke are imminent, as Will does not sing at all.  There's twang, sure.  There's a big impressionistic emotional aspect to the music as well.  But, I dunno, there's a different quality to what he's doing here.  Instead, he just plays these glorious one man walls of fingerpicked sound; sometimes on an electric, a bit more delay and echo than your average folkie.  Just wonderfully warm and heartfelt tunes.  Then, he'll just go straight wacky psychedelic like on 'To The Finland Station.'  Just something unique and sparkling about this guy.  He released an album before this one in 2008 under the name the Paper Hats and it's really good too — but sorry, kiddos, it was a German-only release.  It's on Amazon MP3 for cheap and Spotify (for free, of course).

William Tyler — Impossible Truth (2013)

One from earlier this year that I missed until now. Easily my pick for so far album of the year. Still sparse and mostly just Will, but he is joined by some backing musicians this time around. Just have a listen to the first track.  An incredibly tuneful rollercoaster that rivals even the best work of his influences, its scope is only matched by its emotion.  The whole album just feels like the most beautiful manifesto: the output of someone whose full potential has been fulfilled for the first time, and yet, who also seems to be just now entering a creative renaissance.  Dreamy, seemingly bottomless near drones like 'Cadillac Desert' would have been album highlights in the past, but are now things that play like an easy intermission.  Album closer 'The World Set Free' is gorgeous.  And with slow burning development, it takes many side trips into any number of musical caves and crevices of influence.  But, perhaps most importantly (to me anyway), in the final third of the tune, with the addition of a drum set, woodwinds, a string quartet and some straight up distorted guitar dissonance, it's as close to David Axelrod's scope as contemporary music has been for at least a few years.  Whoo boy, what a find.

Brian Eno — Music for Films (1978)

A varied and emotional album of small pieces.  Seriously, this thing is a single record, but there's eighteen tracks in total!  Some of the tracks with a full band backing actually remind me of early Cocteau Twins, if you can imagine that.  There's a really "spacey" vibe to this music and I don't just mean the silence between the notes.  When I hear something like 'Alternative 3' or 'From the Same Hill' I get images of nebulae and elliptical galaxies in mind.  Sigur Rós has obviously learned a lot from the 'Sparrowfall' series that closes out side one of the album.  But Brian had obviously learned a lot from his time in Germany a couple years previous.  Things go in cycles, after all.  Very emotive stuff, in any case.  And the relatively accessible melodies combined with the shorter length of the pieces makes this one arguably Eno's finest work that I've yet encountered.

Nic Jones — Penguin Eggs (1980)

Truly a wonderful, but bittersweet work from a musician that seemed to be on the cusp of something even better.  This has one of the single greatest side one/track one's of all time with Nic's absolutely ace arrangement and performance of 'Canadee-I-O.'  A stunner on any level of evaluation, it's probably the definitive version of the tune.  The rest of the album is all traditional tunes as well, and the focus remains Nic's seemingly supernatural guitar playing.  A tune like 'Courting is a Pleasure' just appears to be a pleasant song of a broken heart on the surface, but Nic's accompanying himself on guitar makes the song a lot fuller than it initially may appear to be.  There's some tunes with accordion like 'The Drowned Lovers' and 'Barrack Street' that are so jaunty and bouncing, they sound nearly like sea shanties (in a good way).  The solo instrumental 'Planxty Davis' is generally the sort of gorgeous thing you're in for here, though.  Nic was injured not too long after this album and it left him unable to play for many years.  At least this album got made.

Jimmy Woods Sextet — Conflict (1963)

A rare (and odd) sideman appearance from Andrew Hill drew me to this one.  The alto player that led this session (not to be confused with the similarly named, yet equally as overlooked, bassist) was apparently a well-respected composer among his peers and this was one of only two sessions that he led before deciding that that was enough of that.  Not only does Andrew Hill play on this one, Elvin Jones is at the kit and even tenor demigod Harold Land is present.  I swear, if this one were on one of the east coast labels, instead of the long-ignored west coast-based Contemporary label, it would be considered right there with all the classics on Blue Note and Prestige.  Have a listen to the title track and see for yourself.  The whole record, perhaps because of Andrew Hill's presence (or so I'd assume?), has a similar "in-but-slightly-out" sound.  This version has three bonus tracks that are alternate takes of tunes on the proper album, but hearing this band is an absolute pleasure, regardless of the tunes they're riffing on.  A one hundred percent stone cold classic.  Whoo boy, it's a firecracker of a session.

Jon Hassell — Power Spot (1986)

Truly, it would not seem a just world if Jon Hassell didn't have at least one album released on the ECM label. I'm just surprised it took this long into his career for it to happen.  This album is probably the thing most similar in overall sound to his Fourth World album since that album, six years previous to this one.  It's a very hard thing to review a Jon Hassell album and do it justice, simply because nothing else sounds like the music he creates.  Dreamy washes of sound and percussive ramblings are the order of the day for the base on which Jon builds his towers of blurted out blocks from his heavily treated trumpet.  It's a completely and strangely beautiful album and a defining moment, in both Jon's and ECM's respective catalogues.  Top stuff.

~Austin