Music: Ancient Ocean "I" tape album

Ancient Ocean (a.k.a. John Bohannon) used to live in Nashville, first Murfreesboro, so forgive a little interest on the part of MTV.E.

But

Very

Very little happens on this tape.

Wide tones. The idea is to hear the timbre-point in the well-blended guitars and synths. Listen to it move. It dances between the wide tones. Sometimes slowly, sometimes more skipping.

Then heavily delayed folk vortex, but there's always a reassuring sound, a mother breathing the main chords somewhere in the mix. Leave the mother, I say!

The effect pedals give JB's guitar this weird removed sound, like the "acoustic tones" were ineffectually rendered by digital modeling guitar programs. So, well-removed there...

It's a pretty good tape in general. Order from Sonic Meditations.

Music: Trophy Wife EP

Not to mention there isn't a single damn word printed on this thing other than the band's name. I know some of these got inserts, but not mine, I've no clue what those inserts said.

Roughly four songs of strangled-sounding instruments and floating-sort-of-ghostly Pretty vocals. It's extremely affecting. I like it a lot.

I know there is a song about ambiguous rape. One of them has "Somebody jizzed in the/ light socket" repeated quite a bit. But the crass lyrics are masked by Sarah Cozort's dark yet effervescent voice. It creeps into your headspace; it's at once arousing and ominous and surrounded by the buzzing no-wavey din the other girls create. Really Gothic-ass stuff.

Newer material by the band is predicted to be more New Wave-y, but this EP transcends immediate genres, and really doesn't sound that much like Sonic Youth, a major influence.

Pick it up from Private Leisure.
Trophy Wife have broken up, but we'll be sure to review their forthcoming EP which you should also pick up from Private Leisure, a pretty good label.  Highly Recomended!

Music: Leslie Keffer "Give it Up" / "Dormant Torment" 12" single

First, I like side 2 better. Better beat I think, but I don't know if I lean more hip-hop than house?

Second this thing is like pretty expensive. It's on Ecstatic Peace.

I think the live rock-drums on side 1 don't sound that good. Would rather hear LK's cheap drum machines or a taped beat-loop. But the vocal loop is pretty immediately-fetching. Distorted bass synth pierces ocassionally. Add ping ponging samples, etc.

Side 2 is just fucking wonderful. Teched-out stomp. Digital drones over post-tribal synchopation on the drum machine. Unicorn Hard-on provides some addition "squelching". Synths like whales chirping. It's a really great record, and I dig the 12" single format.

Front cover features cool abstract-style acrylic painting of like LK's name and the title getting turned into bones? All other art is cats and LK sex-eyeing the cellphone cam.

Recomended!

Music: Malkauns "Electric / Sunshine" single

Really vintage kind of "heart on sleeve, but my heart is an expensive piece of analog gear."

I've given this record quite a few spins and mostly dig it. Some killer bass lines and psyched-out zone-in's feel good outside of their precedents. Precedents tend to be the key feature here though. For me, groovy psyched out vintage acoustics sound cool, but let's face it, are vintage. I don't blame anyone for sounding like something, but you got to then acknowledge the lineage. Skipping several generations breeds pastiche. More pastiche.

As Nashville music goes though, first-rate. Bought this at Grimey's for 5.99. Screenprinted cardboard sleeve. Recomended!