Grandmother - Grandmother

Now streaming and available for free download on bandcamp.

Pure Westralian doom metal.

GRANDMOTHER

Flesh Lite - Demo

New scum decaying out of Winnipeg, Manitoba with a member of recently deceased Sex Basement. Demo brings you four tracks of dirty noisy punk straight from a broken mans suicide note. Think the Jesus Lizard doused in Bleach.

We only have a handful of these so you can contact me at countorus@hotmail.com if you are interested in obtaining a copy.

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Bedroom Suite - Untitled

Loops, sketches and field recordings courtesy of B.P. (Gashkadin). Lonely desperate drones here for you by C. Bridges (Balcony View). Just in time for the holiday season, it's time to put this on by the fire when the power goes out then you can sit and sink into your chair as you feel nothing. The tape is now available at brother Canadian label Male Activity. Grab a copy.

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God Destroyer - III

Third release (obviously) from this New Zealand ambient/drone project. Two tracks, coming in at just over 20 minutes. The first, 'Ghosts', gradually builds in intensity over its 13 minute length, constantly adding texture and noise to its already warm and bass-y drone. It's arguably the best song they've recorded thus far.'Iñupiat' closes the EP with a gentle comedown, displaying an excellent grasp of minimalist composition. As an overall record, III is by far the most polished and conceptually 'complete' release by God Destroyer. You can download it from Zeronoize. The God Destroyer Untitled compilation tape is still in the works, and will be available here on Slays for Days Records very soon.

God Destroyer - S/T

God Destroyer is from New Zealand. I personally have not been to Australia's smaller neighbour (yet) but I've heard good things. For such a small country with a tiny population, I'm always surprised at how good underground music is over there. There are several death metal bands who've recently gained international limelight, and the last year or so I've uncovered a burdgeoning hardcore/PV scene with more filth than most can handle. Nowadays when I associate a style of music with NZ, I think of crackling tapes and lo-fi aesthetic.

Now to be sure, I'm not complaining in the least. While I'm positive every style of music exists in NZ and I simply haven't heard about it yet, God Destroyer is a surprise for me, as well as being completely expected. Given the different bands and styles I commonly associate with NZ, God Destroyer is very far removed. But then given the placid atmosphere and scenery that we all know NZ to be famous for, God Destroyer is incredibly fitting as a musical accompaniment to the country’s environment.

When I received the self-titled album, the tag of ambient didn’t dissuade my thoughts that this would be something a little noise oriented, something a little fucked up. This is not the case. God Destroyer is reminiscent of some earlier Aidan Baker, displaying gentle, flowing tones that pulsate through your own warped visions of nostalgia. There is something genuinely haunting about this type of drone music – while it can often be very alienating, it at the same time breeds a greater appreciation of isolation.

There are four lengthy tracks on this demo, all which follow a similar template. It’s pointless to go into specifics here – this is minimalist ambient music. However, when it does break the mold of minimalism and reaches into the expanses of drone, when the pulsations are loud and the musical surrounds are filled with a soothing buzz, God Destroyer is at its best. These weightier passages are juxtaposed with the minimalist quietness of other passages, further emphasising their intensity.

As far as I know (and can tell) this is a DIY recording, so listeners only familiar with the later works of bigger artists such as Baker or Tim Hecker should not expect crystal clear production. In my opinion the somewhat fuzzy exterior to this album gives it a sense of reality, making it all the more authentic and organic. But that’s just me though. The demo is free to download, and you’re all encouraged to do so.

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The Dada Tapes

From the outset, Perth, Western Australia's music scene seems sparse and uninviting, even to people who live here, but with enough dedication one will uncover a thriving and genuine underground, in a plethora of different styles and genres.

Perth has two main centres, being Perth (the CBD) and Fremantle, a port town. In terms of record stores, Fremantle has two well known ones (Mills and Junction Records), as well as a couple of second-hand stores. The city has a few more, such as 78 Records (shit) and a few new ones I'm unfamiliar with, but the best of the bunch is easily Dada Records, a nondescript store front with a huge collection of different types of stuff. As I've found out, the store is quite involved with many of the city's 'experimental' bands, and has released a tape of various live recordings from a collection of Perth bands.

The artists I'm familiar with on the compilation (Royal Vomit, Mental Powers, Gilbert Fawn etc.) all provide a really great song each, but there really isn't anything remotely bad here. The songs range from soft folk/ambient to more outlandish and noisy experimentation, as well as more rock-oriented ones (as well as a hip-hop track). The comp is entrancing from beginning to end, and highly recommended.

Thanks to Reel Muzak for posting the link up. The tape was limited to 200 copies and is probably long sold out, so this rip is all latecomers such as myself have to go with.

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Balcony View - Balcony View

What happens when a trickster binges on ambient, drone and folk music and is then given a guitar and an instrument mic ? - Balcony View, that's who. Some of you may remember Trickster, a contributor on this fine blog in its formative stage, but unfortunately this fine specimen had to leave us, and actually became a real person, going to college and not really posting on the internet. Balcony view is proof that he's still Trickster deep down inside.

To quote the musician himself, 'everything's done using guitar and vox, recorded through an instrument mic i hooked up to my laptop, no synthesized shit'. This is pure ambient music, closely following the footsteps of one of S4D's favourites, Aidan Baker. Gentle ebb and flow on tracks like 'Skyscraper' are positioned alongside folky songs such as 'Cold Wind'. As Aidan Baker would put it, this is 'drone-folk' of the Scalpel variety.

The two long songs, 'Skyscraper' and 'The Coming Storm (And Its Aftermath)' are simply epic, with a wall of ambience enveloping the listener. What I love most about this as an ambient album is that it often strays from the generic ambient template. Listening to 'The Coming Storm...', one cannot miss the very bluesy guitar solo towards the end. It's something completely unexpected but sounds fucking great.

Ambient music is easy to make but it's difficult to make properly. Balcony View is easy to listen to and revels in its simplicity, but one can tell that thought and care has gone into its composition and arrangement. Trickster never leaves anything up to chance. Highly recommended.

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