Hydra Head Records is liquidating awesome stuff (as well as office furniture and anything hanging on the walls) at its LA headquarters this Sunday for its “Super-Power-Yard Sale.”
Melodic post-hardcore heavyweight Helms Alee is looking for your help. The former Hydra Head standout is planning to self-release (via its ROLF NESLUND label) its next album, Sleepwalking Sailors, and has taken to Kickstarter to judge demand.
So watch the band’s ridiculous pitch video (which highlights six years of Helms Alee goofiness) and then head over to Kickstarter to get in on the pre-sale. BUY THE ALBUM!
Jodis: Black Curtain (Hydra Head, 10/2/13)
“Silent Temple”
With its second album of dense and melodic noise-scapes, Jodis — the long-distance collaboration between Isis’s Aaron Turner (vocals, effects) and Khanate’s James Plotkin (guitar, effects) and Tim Wyskida (drums) — drives home the idea that what you don’t hear is just as important as what you do.
Nearly devoid of traditional percussion and song structure, Jodis is as “normal” as it gets for Plotkin, whose myriad musical endeavors also have included the sonically similar Lotus Eaters (with Turner) and the pioneering art doom of Khanate. For Turner, however, Black Curtain and its sibling Secret House represent a distinct turn away from what fans of Isis might expect.
“We wanted to take a minimal approach to all the instrumentation,” Turner says. “Space, breath, and atmosphere were always the focal points.”
Last month ALARM presented its 50 favorite albums of 2012, an eclectic, rock-heavy selection of discs that were in steady rotation in our downtown-Chicago premises. Now, to give some love to tunes that were left out, we have our 50 (+5) favorite songs of last year — singles, B-sides, EP standouts, soundtrack cuts, and more.
As part of its Hydra Health Rehabilitation Project, Hydra Head Records has debuted an awesome, very limited T-shirt and print from artist Andrew Cox.
Though no longer releasing new music, Hydra Head Records needs your help to keep its exceptional catalog in print. Throw down some cash for limited-edition swag and more.
Another year, another torrential downpour of albums across our desks. As always, we encountered way too much amazing music, from Meshuggah to The Mars Volta, Converge, Killer Mike, P.O.S, and many more.
After relaunching for free this summer on the iPad, ALARM Magazine is back in print with more awesome shit. We’re psyched to have the mighty Soundgarden on the cover of our Nov/Dec issue, which includes interviews with and stories on Converge, Refused, Melvins, Dirty Projectors, Bloc Party, P.O.S, Squarepusher, Fang Island, and more.
Jodis: Black Curtain (Hydra Head, 10/2/12)
Three years ago, Aaron Turner of Isis (and many, many other bands) and James Plotkin and Tim Wyskida of Khanate (and many, many other bands) formed a haunting, melodic, ambient project called Jodis.
Each already had quite a résumé for elongated, swirling, textured pieces, particularly of the dark variety, whether from projects like Old Man Gloom, House of Low Culture, or solo material. Jodis was different, though, and now the three experimentalists are issuing a second album together with a renewed focus on slow-building melody.
Three years ago, Aaron Turner of Isis and James Plotkin and Tim Wyskida of Khanate formed a haunting, melodic, ambient project called Jodis. Now the three have returned with an even greater emphasis on melody.
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.
Rejoice, lovers of sludge and noise. It was announced today via Facebook that Old Man Gloom, comprised of members of Converge, Isis, Cave In, and Zozobra, will release a brand-new album titled NO on June 26. The album will be released on member Aaron Turner’s label, Hydra Head, marking the first material that the band has released since the coveted Christmas in 2004.