Beastwars: s/t (9/11/12)
Hailing from New Zealand, stoner-sludge outfit Beastwars has been making music that’s as much an assault on the senses as an assault on nature, borne and bred out of isolation at the bottom of the earth. Without regard for classification, these dudes are playing heavy tunes for heavy times, contributing to a musical landscape built around social and political commentary.
Hot on the heels of his Iradelphic full-length in April, electronic maestro Clark is back at it with the Fantasm Planes EP, a six-track offering due 9/4/12 from Warp. On it, Clark debuts three brand-new cuts and three new takes on tracks from Iradelphic, the latter coming as a pseudo-recreation of his recent live setup.
The title track, heard below, is a progressive, classically tinged tune that is propelled by a throbbing, syncopated pulse and, later, a steady dance-floor beat.
Jesca Hoop: The House That Jack Built (Bella Union, 6/26/12)
“Born To”
Northern California-born signer/songwriter Jesca Hoop (a current resident of Manchester, England) has made quite the impression on people in high places. Garnering endorsements from the likes of Elbow’s Guy Garvey, Peter Gabriel, and Tom Waits (for whom she used to nanny, and who has described her music as being “like going swimming in a lake at night”), Hoop has established herself as well-crafted songstress who relies on her strong voice and pop sensibilities to impel her songs forward. But the support from her tried-and-true forebears isn’t unfounded; on her new album, The House That Jack Built, Hoop disinters the raw talent and musical vision to back up all the hype surrounding her.
A Place to Bury Strangers: Worship (Dead Oceans, 6/26/12)
“You are the One”
A Place to Bury Strangers: “You are the One”
Now on its third full-length album, A Place to Bury Strangers — previously called “the loudest band in New York” — remains fastened to its style, offering a modern take on European noise rock, post-punk, and shoegaze of the 1980s.
With Worship, the band’s core attributes still define it, emphasized by buzz-saw guitars, blistering feedback, Oliver Ackermann’s airy vocals, and a special dichotomy between noise and melody. But these 11 tracks, following the slightly poppier (but equally loud) Onwards to the Wall EP of February, might best capture the inherent tension in that balance.
Old Man Gloom: NO (Hydra Head, 6/26/12)
“Common Species”
Old Man Gloom: “Common Species”
Let it be known that 2012 has been a great year for reunions in the music industry. We all know about the names of the past coming together again for live performances, but few end up writing new material or actually functioning as a band. Enter Old Man Gloom: an all-star noise-sludge lineup that has moved in mystery since the end of the 1990s. Now, following a few recent live shows of its own, the Boston-based four-piece has released NO, its first recorded effort in eight years.
Castratii: Eora (Time No Place, 6/26/12)
“Kingdom”
Borne out of Australia’s Blue Mountains in 2007, dream-pop duo Castratii forged for itself an aesthetic shrouded in hazy, haunting wonder. For three years, visual artists Beauvais Cassidy and Jonathan Wilson crafted textured soundscapes of doom and gloom that, combined with ambient and shoegaze undertones, seemed to reflect the expansive wilderness that surrounded them. Yet in 2010, the addition of The Duke Spirit’s Leila Moss and her ethereal vocals only enhanced the group’s already complex and haunting sound.