09/07/16

NOTICE: UPDATES WILL COME WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT

Bo En - Pale Machine

Release Date: September 6th, 2013

Genre: Glitch Pop/Future Bass

Price: FREE

For Fans Of: Savant, The Unicorns, Porter Robinson

Recommended Tracks: Miss You, Be Okay, Friend, Winter Valentine, Pale Machine, My Time

Pale Machine is an odd release by an even weirder artist. Eccentric composition that blends styles and genres of various flavors, vocals that shift languages whenever it feels like it, and incredibly morbid lyrics dressed up as cute. This is all done with the utmost skill and fun, however. Bo En's production is quick and well punctuated with smooth percussion work and cute music box inspired keys, slick saw synths, elements of breakcore, and finally some very tasetful strings. Its all over the place sound wise, but the design is solid and concise enough to make it work out in Bo En's favor. Well worth the browse. 

STREAM HERE - Don't forget to support Bo En by throwing a few coins his way!

Chris Farren - Can't Die

Release Date: September 2nd, 2016

Genre: Alternative Rock/Dream Pop

Price: $9.99

For Fans Of: Jeff Rosenstock, Asobi Seksu, Antarctigo Vespucci

Recommended Tracks: Human Being, Say U Want me, Still Beating, Flowers, Everything's My Fault, Until I Can See The Light

Chris Farren's debut album marks the official first chapter in his solo career. Can't Die is an excellent pop rock record that encapsulates elements of dreamy beach vibes, and slick electric guitar work, that much like his work on Antarctigo Vespucci, is choked full of clever and intriguing sound design quirks that make it worth a dedicated listen. Whilst maintaining a sense of a connected, linear sound, this album finds solace in exploring many different styles, which helps give it a nice fluidity that tightly snaps onto the various plethora of vocal effects that Chris holds in reserve. A fun listen, this is a debut worth the price of admission. 

STREAM HERE

Noname - Telefone

Release Date: July 31st, 2016

Genre: Hip Hop
Price: FREE

For Fans Of: Little Simz

Recommended Tracks: Yesterday, Sunny Duet, All I Need, Freedom, Bye Bye Baby

FULL REVIEW HERE

Structured as a "conversation", Telefone perfectly captures the elegance of youth, naivety, and romance that has long since been absent from the 2016 hip hop line up. Telefone is a record that carries romance and positivity with a grounded and down to earth look through the eyes of an open ended conversation. Never going too far to break believability and betraying the concept, nor being too elementary to be boring; Noname finds a perfect balance that undoubtedly makes her work and the individual she presents as attention grabbers worth every second of conversation.

STREAM HERE - Don't forget to support Noname by throwing a few coins her way!

Chinese Football - Chinese Football

Release Date: September 12th, 2015

Genre: Indie Rock/Math Rock

Price: $10.00

For Fans Of: This Town Needs Guns, Chon, Local Natives

Recommended Tracks: Hah, these are all Chinese, no thanks formatting errors.

Recently, Mike Kinsella has announced that a new American Football record is slated for release later this year. To celebrate, here is Chinese Football. Chinese Football is such a pretty and delicate record. It flows with such an extreme level of care, as if each tone was delicately handcrafted. Vocals soothe the soul and move like butter, and performance is absolutely stellar, always managing to avoid falling into cliche with a consistent tone of zen. And avoiding the pitfall of devolving into pure guitar wankery, too. Even if the language barrier here is strong, what rings even stronger is a master craft worth your every second. 

STREAM HERE

Hangman's Chair - Hope///Dope///Rope

Release Date: July 25th, 2012

Genre: Stoner/Doom Metal

Price: €6.99 ($7.86)

For Fans Of: Alice in Chains, Anthemea, Sleep

Recommended Tracks: The Saddest Call, Open Veins, December, Alley's End, HOPE//DOPE//ROPE

The crown jewel of Hangman's Chair is without a doubt their vocalist. With a voice that can flow as smooth as butter, but carry a very impactful growl, it complements the heavy, crunchy, and melodic instrumental work for a truly perfect metal record of an unmatched caliber. Doubly interesting for the record is the narrative, which blends in themes of social downfall and religion, further cementing the incredible impact of this record. As vague as description may be, DO NOT miss out on this one. 

STREAM HERE

Week 011 - 9/04/2016

Week 011 (sure) - Trying a ten a week format, because I've found it hard to write two separate entries a week either because of outside forces or lacking motivation. Yeah. 

Emptyself - Emptyself

Release Date: May 27th, 2005
Genre: Downtempo/Acoustic
Price: $7.00
For Fans Of: A Perfect Circle
Recommended Tracks: None Except You, Open Landscape, Doll Faced Vulture, Forget Me Please,  24 Waves
Emptyself's debut record is somewhere between the standard for electroacoustic records and heavy leaning inspiration from the works of Maynard in both presentation and vocal delivery. The result is an incredibly solid effort with soft, comforting vocals moving cautiously through cold, sparse production that has an overly mechanical feel to reflect the thematics of 'emptiness' the record conveys. An excellent listen with comforting ballads and beautiful interludes, this is one of the many you won't want to miss.
Stream Here

Le Matos - Join Us

Release Date: May 16th, 2013
Genre: Synthwave/Techno
Price: $10.00
For Fans Of: Carpenter Brut
Recommended Tracks: King's Filth, Interceptor, Montrose, Molly, The Stuff, Sarah
Le Matos' Join Us LP is a little different from many records that fall under the 'synthwave' tag. Here, the duo don't play the synthwave genre to its typical formality and find ground between genre fusion with the mixture of club-heavy techno production serving as a base for the synthwave elements to have a more progressive nature to their sound. This surprisingly results in a refreshing sound for the genre that knows how to reserve both elements to create groove-heavy, atmosphere thick, and straight up entertaining compositions.
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Yugen Blakrok - Return of the Astro​-​Goth

Release Date: October 21st, 2013
Genre: Rap
Price: $9.00
For Fans Of: Kool Keith, Nas
Recommended Tracks: Beastleague, House of Ravens, Secrets of the Path, Neo.Vader, LeftRightHand, Constellations
Yugen Blakrok's Return of the Astro-Goth is an excellent record that finds roots in underground hip hop scene of the 90s and early 2000s while maintaining a sense of modern footing. Production is absolute bliss with a mixture of organic instrumentals backing a reserved lounge-y feel that serves as a great backdrop for Yugen's performance, who's deep vocals and larger-than-earth lyricism gives her an authoritative, strong aura that further cements the quality of this album as a real diamond in the rough.
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Runaway Brother - Mother

Realease Date: March 32st, 2015
Genre: Indie Rock
Price: $5.00
For Fans Of: Brand New, The Hotelier, The Front Bottoms
Recommended Tracks: Moth, Hummingbird, Catch, 
Mother is one of those indie rock, emo-y records that are so vibrant and lively with shout vocals and bouncy guitar lines that you can't help but wonder if anyone is actually happy or horribly depressed because the lyricism completely suggests otherwise. But I guess thats a lesser concern, as this is another finely tuned slice of shout-along emo music that you're having too much fun with the remember that life is terrible.
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No Sir - The Future Is Bright

Release Date: August 13th, 2013
Genre: Hardcore
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: N/A
Recommended Tracks: The Future is Bright, The Crowd, CALIFORNIA, I Doubt You'll Ever Swing Again, I Pushed Back Violently, Bad Vibes, Momma I'm A Good Boy
Yeah this record is pretty pumping. Hardcore/punk that uses vocal distortion and loud mixing to further pump out that anti-authority "set stuff on fire" attitude and it works pretty darn well for this record. Compsoition is heavy and fun and despite the loud mixing every instrument is still distinct enough to have a stake in the overall forray which only further shows that this album is far more competent than contemporaries. If you're angry and pissed off, then let this album be the soundtrack to the destruction of your room.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support No Sir by throwing a few coins their way or sharing with friends!

Young Fathers - Dead

Release Date: February 14th, 2014
Genre: Soul/Hip-Hop
Price: $10.00
For Fans Of: Massive Attack
Recommended Tracks: Now Way, Low, War, Get Up, Dip, Hangman, I've Arrived
Young Fathers are awesome. A combination of soul, hip-hop, and heavy electronic elements all three come together for an absolutely beautiful and tense record that hits with a reserved sophistication that saves its massive punches for just a few rare tracks, but absolutely devastate when all hands are on deck. Such as closing track I've Arrived that pounds with a blaring alarm synth and loud bangs of the drum to the tune of baritone rapping and luscious "soul" vocals. Other tracks experiment dance-y style beats and pleasing soul/rap hybrid presentation that makes this record absolutely incredible.
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yourboyfriendsucks! - Episode 01

Release Date: May 6th, 2016
Genre: Dream Pop
Price: $6.00
For Fans Of: The Cranberries, Asobi Seksu, A Sunny Day in Glasgow, Hop Along
Recommended Tracks: Just Like Honey, DIU x3, Stay/Stayaway, 波兰首都是上海, All Your Secrets
Rude band name aside, as I bet many of your boyfriends are great people, Episode 01 is an absolutely outstanding debut that has unfortunately found itself falling under the radar this year. This record is an up-beat dream pop release (that still lends itself to slower, sad songs mind you) that has some consistently great composition. Its songwriting blends slow interludes with warm, comforting fuzzy leads and an absolutely groovy bassline through each track. Meanwhile the group's vocalist has absolutely beautiful vocals that find footing on the softer crooning of The Cranberries. Don't miss out on this one, its absolutely killer.
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Hop Along - Get Disowned

Release Date: May 5th, 2012
Genre: Alternative
Price: $10.00
For Fans Of: The Cranberries
Recommended Tracks: Some Grace, Tibetan Pop Stars, Diamond Mine, No Good Al Joad, Laments, Trouble Found Me, Young and Happy!, Get Disowned
Hop Along have always been a favorite of mine. My biggest draw to them being vocalist Frances Quinlan, who's rough and gruff vocal approach lends to some absolutely stunning performances in their work. And you see this no better than on debut record Get Disowned, one that I'm sure many are familiar with, but is one that demands recognition regardless. With a soundscape that jumps between alternative rock, indie pop, very minor infractions of dream pop, and acoustic jamming; the band balances all of these elements and strike gold with an absolutely powerful and emotive record that gets a blend of fun composition and powerful, introspective lyrics that stick long after the album's runtime fades out. If for whatever reason you haven't heard this yet, then drop what you're doing and get on it as soon as possible.
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Marietta - Summer Death

Release Date: October 21st, 2013
Genre: Emo (of the Midwest variety)
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Hightide Hotel
Recommended Tracks: ...So They left Me at a Gas Station, Cinco De Mayo Shit Show, Deck Wine, Ever Is A Long Time, Datoonie Is Big
Many say that this record is the best of the midwest emo scene of the broader umbrella that is 'emo revival'. And are those people correct? I don't know. I don't really listen to much music in the emo revival scene. Is this a pretty good record though? Yeah, it IS pretty great. What makes this record stand out are the majority instrumental leads that make up most of the albums run time. While nothing complex, they're always nice and warm, bringing comfort as an appetizer before delivering the "meat" of the record that would be the sadder, "yelling" delivery of the vocal tracks and lyrics. The overall tone of this record makes it a perfect one for late night browsing.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Marietta by throwing a few coins their way or sharing with friends!

Week 010 - 7/26/2016

Tiny Moving Parts - Celebrate

Release Date: May 20th, 2016
Genre: Pop Punk/Emo
Price: £6 ($7.90)
For Fans Of: Snowing, Brave, Dads
Recommended Tracks: Common Cold, Stay Warm, Breathe Deep, Minnesota
Tiny Moving Parts are that one 'emo' band that blends technicality and pop into some odd homunculus of 'shout along' tracks that stay in the membrane for days on end. Even when exploring depression and anxiety and all the like-wise thematics, you can't really help but tap a foot and shout a few lines alongside the quick moving instruments and energetic production. As odd as that may be. Arguably the most fun 'depression' record of the year.
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Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Faster

Release Date: October 13th, 2009
Genre: Alternative/Indie Pop
Price: $7.00
For Fans Of: Laura Stevenson, The Dodos, Andrew Bird, Of Montreal
Recommended Tracks: Cool Yourself, When We Swarm, Good Bye Good Luck, Oh No, Burn You Up, Easy
Thao and The Get Down Stay Down have explored many different styles since their formation a decade ago. On this particular record, they've taken the fun indie pop path and the result is a well played record that puts complexity in the backseat for soft, layered pop music that excites and emphasizes quality over quantity.
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FLANCH - FLANCH

Release Date: Feburary 9th, 2016
Genre: Experimental Hip Hop
Price: $3.00
For Fans Of: Arca, Clarence Clarity, Young Fathers
Recommended Tracks: Graace, Pretty Girl, Ble$$ings, Purgatory4u, Hal0, Gloat
Without a doubt the weirdest record I've heard all year. Take the production of pre-2012 Arca and throw it through a hip-hop filter sprinkled with semi-subtle lyricism of vacant faith. The result is FLANCH. Glitchy production and vocals that find itself thrown through vocoders and pitch shifting filters, the production here is surprisingly on point. Finding room for variety and cohesion from the seemingly random, and chaotic soundscape. However, its fitting, finding room to encapsulate the feelings of having a large aspect of your life, that being the religious upbringing, suddenly become absent from your mindset. And just like FLANCH say, "For the rest of you, just known FLANCH is putting out some hot tracks."
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Super BorgBoy - Kill Alpha Male

Release Date: June 17th, 2016
Genre: Electronic/Synthwave
Price: $6.00
For Fans Of: Perturbator
Recommended Tracks: M-City Morning Star, Conflict At Cafe Do Rei, Gatekeeper's Network, Two Codes Combine, Escape From Western Tower
Sent in by the man behind Super BorgBoy himself, this little collection of lightly synthwave flavored electronica is an excellent, relaxing electronic record that emphasizes warm melodies and pleasing samples to paint a futuristic city landscape. This record utilizes the best suited synthwork to be extremely pleasing and exciting and there really isn't much more to ask for. Enjoy it!
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elephantelephone - Sam's Bedroom

Release Date: December 3rd, 2010
Genre: Folk/Singer-Songwriter Stuff
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Jeff Rosenstock
Recommended Tracks: Going Home, I Should Have Known, On The Radio, Stephanie, She Said She Fell
Quirky folksy pop music that carries a lot of charm with the mostly straight-forward nature of a guy playing a guitar. The soundscape is accompanied with the reserved inclusion of harmonicas, piano, and saxophones that give the tracks of this record some well included life and fun. Add that with some incredibly catchy hooks and morbid lyrics and you get an aptly hilarious, heartfelt, and downright exciting record from a sadly obscure act.
Stream Here 

Week 009 - 07/20/2016

Week 009 - Sure its still week nine. I sincerely apologize for the lack of updates, computer issues generally bogged down my ability to continue this blog. But for the most part that hurdle is out of the way so updates should return to a consistent Monday/Friday schedule. Enjoy this selection, some of my favorites are on here. 

Jack O' the Clock - All My Friends

Release Date: March 15th, 2013

Genre: Avant Folk/Prog Folk

Price: $9.00

For Fans Of: Gentle Giant, Peter Gabriel

Recommended Tracks: All My Friends Are Dead, A Lot Of People Are Dead Wrong, The Pilot, Disaster, Old Friends In A Hole, All My Friends Are In My Head

I relate to the title track of this record, as all my friends ARE dead. Life is lonely. All My Friends is a modern folk record mixed with various 70s prog rock bands. The end product is an interesting concept album that is chocked full of a full string assemble that mix classical elements and contemporary southern influence with the technical work of the aforementioned 70s prog rock bands. An incredibly compelling record, this one is easily worth the price of admission and a quick browse from anyone remotely interested in the progressive rock genre. 

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Son Lux - Stranger Forms

Release Date: June 17th, 2016
Genre: Electronic/Folk
Price: $7.00
For Fans Of: Sufjan Stevens
Recommended Tracks: You Don't Own Me, Redone, We Are The One, Breathe
Son Lux' newest release is a collection or re-recordings of his previous LP, Bones. Each of the tracks featured here have been completely reconstructed with a massive overhaul in lyrics, sound design, and instrumentals. What you get is an excellent record that has enough dynamics to stand out as an individual release as opposed to a novel extension of it's predecessor. All I can say is that "You Don't Own Me" is a jam and a half with the sexy trumpet assemble added into the mix. Give it a look if you're unfamiliar with Son Lux' work.
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verydeadly - Courteous Spector

Release Date: July 1st, 2016

Genre: Art Pop

Price: $6.66

For Fans Of: Thom Yorke, Peter Silberman, Sufjan Stevens

Recommended Tracks: Patchwork, Courteous Spector, To Those Little Eyes, The Lucky, Back Again?, To Death, Wink Blink Flutter Bat

verydeadly's latest release is a dreamy, heavenly pop record that shares an incredibly disturbing resemblance to Thom Yorke's vocal work. On this record, guitars and "sparkly" keys litter the soundscape with a intricate mannerism and elegancy that suits the softly sung, heavily drawn out vocal work of the project's vocalist. Incredibly pleasing and beautiful for the ears, this record is a piece of ear candy everyone should check out. 

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Igorrr - Hallelujah

Release Date: December 21st, 2012
Genre: Breakcore/Metal
Price: €9 ($9.91 USD)
For Fans Of: Ruby My Dear
Recommended Tracks: Tout Petit Moineau, Absolute Psalm, Lullaby For a Fat Jellyfish, Corpus Tristis, Infinite Loops
Oh Igorrr, how does one describe thee? Insane? Chaotic? Nonsensical cob salad of every genre and sound you can think of? I don't know if anyone calls this record a "cob salad" per se, but it's an apt description of what Hallelujah is. An insane, absolute "anything-goes" project that blends passages of opera with percussion heavy breakcore and metal. Though to further extend the insanity, screams, devastating drum blasts, and... chicken noises... are thrown in the mix to let everyone know that Igorrr isn't playing around. This record is such a beautiful storm of chaos that you can't keep your eyes away from the scatterbrained display Igorrr puts on, and with a keen knack for masterful production, it makes this record an absolute must.
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Corey Palmer - Love Trade

Release Date: Janurary 27th, 2015
Genre: Indie Pop
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Broken Bells
Recommended Tracks: Records, Slow Reactor, It's All You Know, All the Signs, Get Real
Corey Palmer's debut EP is an interesting collection of tracks with an even more interesting sound design. An indie pop record with heavy electronica elements, this EP offers quite an interesting variety sonically with percussion, pianos, and synths being textured in such a heavenly matter. Corey Palmer's soft vocals also provide an equally interesting addition to the albums overall sound. Hard to adequately describe, but give "Records" a quick listen and see what I mean. This is without doubt a promising project.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Corey Palmer by throwing a few coins his way or sharing with friends! A little free music keeps the world spinning. <3

Week 009 - 06/28/16

Unexpect - Fables of the Sleepless Empire

Release Date: May 31st, 2011
Genre: Progressive Rock/Metal Fusion
Price: $8.99 CAD ($6.99)
For Fans Of: Haken, Diabolical Masquerade, Sigh, Mr. Bungle, Stolen Babies, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Diablo Swing Orchestra, Nightwish
Recommended Tracks: Unsolved Ideas of a Distorted Guest, Words, Orange Vigilantes, Mechanical Phoenix, Unfed Pendulum, Silence this Parasite, When The Joyful Dead Are Dancing
HOT. DAMN. This record is such a beast that I'm surprised that this band isn't bigger in the metal community than it already is. With influences and genres that are nigh impossible to place (that recommended artist tab is all over the place) and a soundscape that does just about whatever the hell it wants, one has to ask "how can it balance so many different things at once?" The answer? Doing whatever the hell it wants and being bad ass at it, thats how. Two vocalists, a female vocalist with a very sophisticated operatic edge and quite the hard hitting scream and a backing vocalist is just the first on the plate. From there you have a groove bass that carries quite a catch thanks to a dominate place in the mix, violinists who give the album a dramatic flair of tension, keyboards, spoken word passages, jazz, swing, metal, hardcore, progressive rock, just... man. Give the first track a listen and if it doesn't blow your mind then you get your money back guaranteed.
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Low Low Low La La La Love Love Lova - last

Release Date: February 16th, 2015
Genre: Noise Pop/Indie Rock/Lo-Fi
Price: £5 ($6.68)
For Fans Of: Sparklehorse, Simon and Garfunkel, Of Montreal, My Bloody Valentine
Recommended Tracks: Goodbyes, Burrow, Harvesting, A World in Ruin, A Shadow of a Doubt, What You Wanted Most, Bedroom Window, last
The final record from Low La Love carries that dreadful sense of melancholy knowing your adventure is at its end. Unlike most farewell albums, that focus time and energy by shoving how sad it is that your favorite band is breaking up or reflecting on "the good times we've had" this band expresses such feelings in a far more refined output through song. The harsh noise that layers instrumental backing stabs like a stubborn child refusing to let go and the overall tone of the album, while sounding like it leans towards a more... up-beat pop record, it instead rings with a very slow, depressed feel. It articulates complex feelings of "letting go" in a way that simply can't be captured in words. It makes for a soundscape that is interesting and beautiful, an ooze of passion that feels like this band is utterly destroyed by having to say goodbye. And even if you haven't heard of them until just now, it makes you feel a bit sad too.
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Direct Hit! - Wasted Mine

Release Date: June 24th, 2016

Genre: Pop Punk/Hardcore

Price: $10.00

For Fans Of: Bomb The Music Industry!, Blink 182, Masked Intruder

Recommended Tracks: Artificial Confidence, Paid in Brains, Promised Land, Was It The Acid?, Another Dimension, Villain Alcoholic, Do the Sick
Direct Hit's latest LP is one half easy-going summer fun and one half hard hitting satire on drug culture and even the pop punk genre in of itself. With the album lending itself to elements of hardcore through very tasteful sections of harsh vocals and instrumentation that finds room to fill in the blanks atmospherically with horns and organs for an extra slice of energy. Lyrically the album holds no qualms with getting in the nitty-gritty of drug abuse and its relation to the music culture, which makes it an interesting album for anyone looking for something more beyond competent production. 

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Shahmen - Enter the Circle (Deluxe)

Release Date: May 31st, 2015
Genre: Rap/Horrorcore
Price: €15 ($16.61)
For Fans Of: Billy Woods
Recommended Tracks: Dirt, No Slippin', Mice, Luck, Story, Whales, Strangers
Shahmen's flavor of "horrocore" is unlike any other artist in that particular neck of the woods. Here, Shahmen incoporate organic, tribal instrumentation and choir vocals to create an air of sinister unnerving that goes hand in hand with the authorative, overpowering vocals that tinge the soundscape with an evil energy. It all comes together to make an outstanding, creepy album.
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Instead of Flowers - Their Loss is Something to Remember

Release Date: August 21st, 2015
Genre: Alternative Rock/Punk
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: A Perfect Circle
Recommended Tracks: Stained Palm, The Light Inside, Childhood Games, Romance is Dead, I Believe You, God Frowns
Instead of Flowers' debut record is a curious mixture of alt rock and various shades of hardcore punk that does far more than what either of those genre descriptors could give credit for. Atmosphere is where this record excels at, with the combination of thick, fuzzy atmosphere and a vocal effect that has a hollow ring to it; the both combine for a dark and mysterious tone that lends its self towards an excellent mixture of dreamy and melodic sections and harder hitting sorta-punk/sorta-not leads that are all the more intriguing when they come out of the shell as some kind of weird, twisted cry of a man lost deep in the unknown... intentional or not. A great record all around, and a rather under-appreciated one at that, Their Loss is Something to Remember is a promising debut well worth keeping an eye on.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Instead of Flowers by throwing a few coins their way or sharing with friends!

Week 008 - 6/20/16

The Antlers - In The Attic of the Universe

Release Date: March 31st, 2007

Genre: Folk

Price: $6.99

For Fans Of: Bon Iver

Recommended Tracks: In The Attic, On The Roof, Shh, The Universe Is Going to Catch You, In The Snow, Stairs To The Attic

Peter Silberman's sophomore effort (before The Antlers became a band) is an empty, atmospheric record that mills with a childlike curiosity. Sparse instrumentation and spacey synths mixed in with slight flavoring of field recordings give a tight feeling of isolation while Silberman give a haunting performance with his hard hitting vocals and lyrics centering around themes of loneliness. A great record for a late night browse.

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The Life and Times - Tragic Boogie

Release Date: April 14th, 2009

Genre: Space Rock/Alt Rock

Price: $10.00

For Fans Of: Shiner, Failure, Swervedriver, Hum

Recommended Tracks: Que Sera Sera, Let It Eat, Old Souls, Dull Knives, Pain Don't Hurt, Tragic Boogie, The Politics of Driving, Catching Crumbs

A slept on record if there has ever been one. The Life and Times are a band that are hard to place sonically. They have a mixture of grunge, space rock, alt rock, amongst other genres that are very well interlaced with one another for a rather unique sound. Their music also moves so beautifully smooth that it doesn't take long to get lost in the night-filled landscape of their sound. Don't miss out on these guys, they're incredible. 

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Funeral Advantage - Body Is Dead

Release Date: August 28th, 2015

Genre: Dream pop

Price: $8.00

For Fans Of: LSD and the Search for God

Recommended Tracks: Equine, Sisters, Back to Sleep, That's That, Cemetery Kiss, You Sat Alone, Body Is Dead

Male/Female shoegaze-y dream pop fun times. Though I guess fun isn't a good descriptor, because on the contrary this is quite a sad album. "Emo" music that blends in the shoegaze/dream pop elements for an odd caricature of lifeless energy. However that may work. Its an endearing record with some incredibly attention to composition to make even the tiniest of changes in the overall sound come across all the mightier.

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SirensCeol - The Method to the Madness

Release Date: March 27th, 2014

Genre: Electro

Price: $10.00

For Fans Of: Au5

Recommended Tracks: The Glitch Waltz, Adventure Time, Feel Alright, The Devil's Swing, Russian Roulette, Slippin, My Story, All You Are, Memories, Starlight Lullaby, A Heart Without A Home

My goodness the texturing on this album is incredible. High energy electronic dance music that has some of the most satisfying and crunchy sounding synths of any electronic album I heard. Burke's dynamic sound work and ability to cross genres makes for an excellent collection of bangers and slower songs for those needing more "emotional" moments.

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Agate Tunnel - And Yet...

Release Date: August 26th, 2015

Genre: Acoustic

Price: FREE

For Fans Of: Elliott Smith, Bright Eyes

Recommended Tracks: Tremuous, Oregon, I stare At Walls, Oceantype

And Yet... is a curious little EP, mostly because I can't recall where I found it. What you expect to be your typical stab at bedroom folk sad times instead is an endearing, well produced EP that takes the emotional aspect of it's music quite seriously for an excellently tasteful EP with amazing male/female vocal chemistry. Not to mention when songs such as Mothing explode with large, fuzzy instrumental crescendos. 

Stream Here - Don't forget to support Agate Tunnel by throwing a few coins his way or sharing with friends! <3

Week 008 - 06/16/16

Week 008 - Sorry for the lack of updates this week, to compensate enjoy some extra free albums. Next post will be on Saturday, hopefully. 

Moddi - Set the House On Fire

Release Date: March 6th, 2016
Genre: Folk
Price: 100 NOK ($11.89)
For Fans Of: Ane Brun, Passenger, Bright Eyes, Sufjan Stevens
Recommended Tracks: House by the Sea, Let the Spider Run Alive, Soon you'll be somebody else!, For An Unborn, Run to the Water, One Minute More, Northern Line

Moddi is one of those artists who has that special "thing" to them that propels them above and beyond contemporaries in the genre. Here, Moddi stabs with a reserved punch of energy with his softly stated vocal melodies that slide with pure elegance and finds volume with the harsh, raspy raise of his voice. Instrumentally the album is both quiet, yet busy, with a consistent acoustic guitar base, along comes solemn percussion, pianos, accordions, and various other instruments to give the album a distinctive personality. Don't miss out on this one!
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Foreign Fields - Anywhere but Where I Am

Release Date: April 23rd, 2012
Genre: Electronic/Folk/Ambient
Price: $7.99
For Fans Of: Bon Iver, The Sky Life, Sufjan Stevens
Recommended Tracks: Taller, Mountaintop, Where The Willow Tree Died, A Difficult Year, Keep Us In Mind, Pillars, Perfect Home
Foreign Fields' debut album is undoubtedly one of the best of the folk genre. The album carries a heavy, hush-hush attitude. Softly shown with delicate vocal melodies and often seen with the instrumental backing, that often seems to move with an unnatural, mechanical feel. Perhaps to reflect the lyrical content of the record, which often explores themes of being 'out of place' with the crowd. A blink in the fold that really shouldn't be there. Delicately composed and effectively memorable, this is a record worth listening to.
Stream Here

Aidan Baker - Wound Culture

Release Date: June 1st, 2002
Genre: Slowcore/Ambient
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Tim Hecker
Recommended Tracks: K, Merge, Untitled 1/2, Wound Culture
There aren't many artists with such an accomplished discography as Aidan Baker. A member of over 10 projects and collectives and over 130 releases under his belt, Aidan Baker has seen the ropes of a many variety of styles and genres. Wound Culture, one of the first released under his name, is a slowcore album that lends itself to elements of ambient noise and orchestral exercising. The album has some pretty complex instrumental work going on despite what many would call minimalistic songwriting. With very intricate sound design splitting hairs with the slowly moving guitar work and the background noise that contributes to the blue, gloomy feel of the overall album. If you're feeling down or need something quiet for the night, let this album be your companion!
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Aidan Baker by throwing some coins his way or by sharing with friends! <3

Rabbit Junk - Consolidate

Release Date: May 18th, 2016
Genre: Hardclash
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Mindless Self Indulgence
Recommended Tracks: Dig Dug has a Posse, BEAST, Locked, Fffriends, Invasion, Broken Highways, Precipice, IDONTGIVEAFUCK
A compilation of Rabbit Junk's three newest EPs, plus a few bonus treats! Rabbit Junk continue to keep the energy going with psychotic genre clashing to the tune of hardcore, metal, hip hop, and electronica in a full on blast of punk fury.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Rabbit Junk by throwing some coins their way or by sharing with friends! <3

SAFE - Stay Down (Non Bandcamp)

Release Date: December 13th, 2015
Genre: Hip Hop
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: The Weeknd
Recommended Tracks: Eternity, Back 2, Way Out, Feel, Siri, Honest
SAFE's debut mixtape captures that dark, empty essence of the high life that made The Weeknd's original mixtape trilogy so endearing. Stay Down carries an incredibly dark undertone with lyrics that level between your typical party going fare and downright paranoia. Its what makes Stay Down interesting, I suppose. Behind the mask of having the time of your life, there's a very depressing, dark undertone that suffocates the listener with a level of self awareness lost in the glitzy barrage of seductive synths and stabbing high hats. Akin to the original Weeknd trilogy, this is one of those tapes that demonstrate an incredibly smart deconstruction of "party tapes".
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Week 007 - 6/12/16

Week 007 - Sorry for the delay on this post! Fell a bit under the weather and couldn't find the energy to type this up all the way through. Do enjoy, as this week has some of my favorite records on it. 

Les Friction - Les Friction 

Release Date: January 24th, 2012
Genre: Rock Opera
Price: $9.99
For Fans Of: Two Steps From Hell, Queen, Muse, E.S. Posthumus
Recommended Tracks: Louder Than Words, Torture, Here Comes the Reign, World On Fire, Sunday, Come Back to Me
A collaboration between composers Helmut Vonlichten (of E.S. Posthumus fame), Nihl Finch, and vocalist Paint; Les Friction was a loosely intertwined cyber punk concept album that combined vocal elements to rock and orchestral music for one of the most sonically epic soundscapes of all time. From the layered vocal harmonies of the opening track to the loud, moving cheers and drum beats of the closing track, this album is an expansive exploration of various electronica and industrial concepts on a rock opera base. Paint's vocals are loud and soaring, with a strain that shakes the earth with the roar of thunder and instrumentally the album pounds with authoritative drum beats and cinematic wall of sound buzz that gets the hype going strong. An absolute epic of a record, prepare to be blown away by this little project.
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Sleep Party People - Floating

Release Date: June 2nd, 2014
Genre: Dream Pop/Trip Hop
Price: £6 ($8.55)
For Fans Of: Bon Iver, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Massive Attack, Panda Bear, Radiohead
Recommended Tracks: Change In time, Floating Blood of Mine, In Another World, Death is the Future, I See The Sun/I See The Moon, Only A Shadow
Possibly one of the most unique projects to come from the new age shoegaze/dream pop scene, Sleep Party People is a project with a sound and inspiration that is difficult to place. The vocals are hazy and slightly disorted, giving a very abrupt contrast to the often warm and spacey style of the hazy instrumental backing. The album can be seen driving down warm sonic venues and take sudden, terrifying turns into glitchy, disturbing, and broken sinister undertones that peel away the uncomfortable happiness of the vile charade. Unqiue in every sense of the word, Floating is a record that you don't want to miss out on.
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We Never Learned To Live - Silently, I Them Them Skyward

Release Date: June 22nd, 2015
Genre: Post-Hardcore
Price: £6.99 ($9.96)
For Fans Of: Deadpoets, The Tidal Sleep, Acres, Refused, Sound of Animals Fighting
Recommended Tracks: Shadows In Hibernation, Vesalius, Fragmented Footnotes, You Will Sleep Now, Tasting Paralysis
A surprisingly unknown post-hardcore outfit, We Never Learned To Live have a massive wall-of-sound approach to hardcore music that makes their often emotive and intricate sound design an incredibly endearing listening experience. Theres a hinging feeling of dread through this record, an often suffocating, meaning presence that gives volume to the album's desolate, cathartic soundscape. Vocally the album rings with a softly sung, harshly screamed volume that only further drives the timid off-settledness of the album's overall tone. A rather finely-tuned and masterly mixed record, Silently, I Threw Them Skyward is exactly the hardcore record you are looking for on a bad day.
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Florida Snow - Florida Snow

Release Date: December 27th, 2008
Genre: Prog Rock/Folk/Slowcore
Price: €5 ($5.63)
For Fans Of: A Perfect Circle, Porcupine Tree, Dead Letter Circus
Recommended Tracks: Laid To Waste, Dialogue of Reflections, Paper Hearts, November Let the Sun Go, Close to Home
Information on Florida Snow is sparse, unfortunately. Vocally in line with Maynard's work on the early days of prog rock supergroup A Perfect Circle and instrumentally a sound design rather unique to the group. This hybrid of prog rock and folk is a often cold beast of a record that keeps its warm energy in reserve for the few moments where the band maximizes their large, genre blending mixture of rock crescendos to amazing measures. The album also has a sophisticated mixture of simplicity and layered, tight knit "high brow" design that doesn't get too overwhelming or too lacking for a listener looking for an hour or so to kill. A great, obscure record worth the look at.
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Moth Equals - One Tusk

Release Date: January 1st, 2016
Genre: Trip Hop
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: XXYYXX, Lost Soul Refuge, Proleter
Recommended Tracks: Cordiform, Aim To Get Caught, Jeunesse, The Heavens Opened and Closed, If It Keeps on Raining, Kami
Another unique act in the trip hop scene, Moth Equals has a very interesting, almost lo-fi flair to his eccentric mixture of Bollywood-esque trip hop and neo-classical downtempo flavoring. Samples are quiet, with a intriguing analogue fuzz that doesn't protrude on the overall mix of each track. Synths wobble and bounce in tune to catchy percussion that snaps in marching lines of hi-hats that hook like earworms. Meanwhile, elements of organic instrumentation give the album a warm, natural feel that fits the entire picture together like a beautiful, vivid puzzle. An interesting trip hop record that keeps overall design sparse and simple, One Tusk will keep any fan of trip hop or downtempo music entertained the whole way through.
Stream Here - Don't forget to support Moth Equals by throwing some money his way or sharing with your friends! <3

Week 007 - 06/06/16

Week 007: I'm rather proud of this compilation. Be sure to check each of these records out!

Flatsound. - I Clung To You, Hoping We'd Both Drown

Release Date: March 10th, 2011
Genre: Lo-Fi/Slowcore
Price: $7.00
For Fans Of: Carissa's Wierd, Teen Suicide, Elvis Depressedly, Ricky Eat Acid, Low, Bright Eyes
Recommended Tracks: Old Lumina, I'm Broken But I'll Try It, Live Up, I Lost Control, Meow Meow Meow, The Cowardly Lion, 47 Fights, I'm Broken, The One Who Gave Up
This record is simply pathetic. Not in a bad way, however. But more like the uncomfortable, depressing feeling of watching a man on the brink of a complete mental breakdown in the distance. Unable to help while watching the slow derailment into madness. Either its through chaotic, electronic production or the sluggish pluck of guitar strings; or the softly stated, broken vocals of the project's vocalist. The constant jump of lyrical themes from experiencing lost, manufactured love to watching family members medically deteriorate are alarming, to say the least. However, its the completely compromising brokenness of this record that makes it so beautiful, so unforgettable. Without a doubt, this record stands as a genre essential thanks to the disturbing nightmare that is We'd Both Drown.
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Diane Birch - N O U S

Release Date: Janurary 31st, 2016
Genre: Pop
Price: $5.00
For Fans Of: Sarah McLachlan, Tracy Chapman, Kate Earl, Norah Jones
Recommended Tracks: How Long, Kings of Queens, Stand Under My Love, Walk On Water
One of the classiest releases for the year, Diane Birch's transformation from her earlier work to N O U S is absolutely impressive. With jazzier, band-filled production on How Long, stuffed full with late-night club ballads; to bleaker heartbreakers like Woman. Diane's presentation on this record is awe-inspiring from sound alone, though even more impressive is the fact all of it was solely produced and performed by Diane herself; which is quite the feat of its own. Quite a reserved and amazing record this one is.
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Aidan Knight - Each Other

Release Date: January 22nd, 2016
Genre: Chamber Pop
Price: $10.00 CAD ($7.71)
For Fans Of: Car Seat Headrest, City & Colour, Matthew Good, The Arp, 
Recommended Tracks: All Clear, Funeral Singers, St. Christiana, You Are Not Here
Aidan Knight's latest EP is an incredibly sweet piece of chamber pop/rock that is perfect for the late night rainy weather spin. With a very simple instrumental approach and empty atmosphere, there is plenty of room for the small doses of synths and guitars to reverberate between Knight's softly sung baritone. Nothing more to say besides it being an outstanding, jazzy, folksy rock record.
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Show Me A Dinosaur - Show Me A Dinosaur

Release Date: March 8th, 2016
Genre: Blackgaze/Post-Rock
Price: Free (Name Your Price)
For Fans Of: Deafheaven, Ghost Bath, We Lost The Sea, Mono
Recommended Tracks: Vjuga, Ochag, Lights, Gone
One of the latest in the ever growing blackgaze trend, and quite surprisingly one of the best. What I adore about Show Me A Dinosaur aside from their ridiculous band name is how focused and intricate their sound design and music direction is in comparison to bigger name groups in the genre. On tracks like Lights the post-rock interludes blend beautifully in with the blasts and overbearing wall-of-sounds and are far more tasteful than what the genre usually provides. The album is just a nice, warm, and quite captivating metal record well worth your time, especially if you're one of the many doubting the existence of the genre at the moment.
Stream Here - Don't forget to throw some love at Show Me A Dinosaur by donating a couple bucks or sharing with friends! <3

The Phonies - A Mellow Extinction

Release Date: June 5th, 2016
Genre: Ambient/Industrial
Price: Free (Name Your Price)
For Fans Of: Mind.In.A.Box, Skinny Puppy, David Bowie, Brian Eno
Recommended Tracks: Divining Weapon, A Special Little Void, Ache, Casualty, 10 Years Asleep, Argument, A Mellow Extinction
"Each and every time I get around to making a musical project, it serves as a perfect snapshot of my mental state at the time", writes project mastermind Erik Smith. A Mellow Extinction, the debut record under The Phonies sounds exactly as the title implies. A slow moving, grueling descent into the deep end of existence. From the calming pluck of guitars strings in the intro being abruptly pulled away with the loud blare of sirens, this album moves about in a beautifully timid matter. Reserved in presentation, the record explores the sparseness of industrial ambience with heavenly bass lines and captivating electronic buzz through dominant instrumental suites with low-bearing vocal tracks that illustrate the vague depravity of emotion contextualized through the runtime. Dark, cold, and beautiful A Mellow Extinction is a breath-taking electronic record worth your consideration.
Stream Here - Don't forget to throw some love at Phonies way by donating a couple bucks or sharing with friends! <3

Week 006 - 06/04/16

Latterman - Turn Up The Punk, We'll Be Singing

Release Date: December 82th, 2005
Genre: Punk/Pop Rock
Price: $1.00
For Fans Of: Iron Chic, Lawrence Arms, RVIR
Recommended Tracks: He's A Good Sposato, There's Never A Reason Not To Party, Too Many Emo Days, King Tough Is My New Idol, For Someone So Easy Going (You Sure Do Wear Pants A Lot)
STRAIGHT EDGE YEAH. Lattermen were a Long Beach four piece punk band who understood how to make cynicism and self-rants fun and engaging for the average listener. Angry vocals and incredibly infectious guitar leads and riffs give this album an absolutely insane element of fun with the more agressive side of vocal performance. Genuine song writing that doesn't wallow in melodramatics is also an absolute plus. Have some fun!
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Ruby My Dear - Form

Release Date: October 21st, 2013
Genre: Breakcore
Price: €9.50 ($10.80)
For Fans Of: Venetian Snares, Xanopticon, Otto, Astrix
Recommended Tracks: Spleen, Carradine Suicide, Annwyvn, Focus On Sanity, Oct Chrystal, Embruns
Breakcore is unfortunately a genre that receives a lot of hate thanks to the weakest acts of the genre receiving the most attention on both YouTube and Bandcamp through mixes. Instead of naming particular artists however, here is a musician who excels quite elegantly at the chaotic mess that is breakcore. Ruby My Dear mixes the break-neck pace of percussion and finds insane methods to infuse jazzy-grooves with desolate, orchestral arrangements to give the record a definitive edge in personality. Elements of glitch and IDM also find their way in the mix for a peculiar, abrasive aesthetic.
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Dalek - Asphalt for Eden

Release Date: April 22nd, 2016
Genre: Industrial Hip Hop
Price: $7.99 CAD ($6.17)
For Fans Of: Cannibal Ox, Techno Animal, cLOUDDEAD
Recommended Tracks: Shattered, Guaranteed Struggle, Masked Laughter, 6bB, Control, It Just Is
My favorite rap record of 2016 (so far) Dalek's return sees them signed to prestigious metal label Profound Lore with an incredibly tasteful (and topical) record that touches the surface of American social issues in a beautiful, poetically vague manner. Its MCD himself who says "I spit cryptic" in Masked Laughter, and cryptic is what this record is. The hypnotic, industrial production moves with an extreme air of intrigue in a fuzzy, slightly corrupted sound. Its incredibly beautiful, being reserved in dark ambient fuzz. Lyrically, the album nods to relevant social issues such as the Black Lives Matter movement without ever explicitly taking a side or pushing an agenda, which makes the album approachable for anyone. With all elements considered, Asphalt for Eden is simply put an absolutely glowing record. And with all the hip hop records being praised this year, the fact this particular album has fallen off the grid is absolutely criminal.
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Brand New - Leaked Demos 2006

Release Date: January 13th, 2016
Genre: Rock
Price: $7.99
For Fans Of: Thursday
Recommended Tracks: Good Man, 1996, Missing You, Nobody Moves, Fork and Knife
The legendary Fight Off Your Demons, a series of demos leaked by an acquaintance of frontman Jesse Lacey, has been a crown jewel for music fans for a decade due to the elusiveness of "what could've been" if they had not been scrapped for what would become The Devil and God. Of course, the demos we had were unmastered, low quality, and quite ugly... until now. Leaked Demos 2006 is the original leaked demos remastered and revamped for those who for years have been hoarding the fuzzy MP3s for years. This record was far more positive than what replaced it, with poppier elements in tracks like Fork and Knife and Missing You and lyric matter was far less daunting. If you are a fan of Brand New, then this record is an essential purchase.
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The Arrogant Sons of Bitches - Three Cheers for Disappointment

Release Date: January 13th, 2006
Genre: Ska Punk
Price: FREE
For Fans Of: Bomb the Music Industry!, Big D and the Kids Table, Kudrow
Recommended Tracks: Three Cheers (Tracks 1-3), Kill the President, Rocketrocketrocketship, 1-800-ALARM-ME, Disappointment at the Taco Bell, Have Fun Rotting By Yourself, Last on my List
I've been singing praise for Jeff Rosenstock and his many projects for a long time now, the man is quite simply the epitome of nonchalant depression fueled songwriting gone fun. Of course, his greatest project was without doubt this one right here. Three Cheers is an absolute beast of a ska punk record, quite possibly the best of the entire ska umbrella. Unlike other bands of its nature, who all play within a very controlled 'between-the-lines' environment, this record goes absolutely off the rails in a hot mess. Unrestrained wind sections thrash around just as much as the crazy technical percussion and punk leaning guitar leads without any care for formality. Jeff screams and sings his heart out in the furious storm for an absolutely unforgettable hour of ska punk perfection.
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