Grails: Black Tar Prophecies Vol. 4, 5 & 6
Deltron 3030: Event II
Sons of the Morning: Speak Soon Vol. 1
Melt-Banana: Fetch
Oneohtrix Point Never: R Plus Seven
Cutting-edge electronic artist Guillermo Scott Herren (a.k.a. Prefuse 73) has announced a collaborative new record label, named Yellow Year, with photographer Angel Ceballos, a similarly prolific man with a lens.
Atmospheric and bass-heavy as always, Atlanta’s Cloudeater has a new standalone single that shows off the band’s slower side. Its video, meanwhile, is a kaleidoscopic fever dream set to blurred visions of woodlands, geometric patterns, and intense close-ups.
Cloudeater: Always on the Way digital single (3/4/13)
Rooted more in feel and atmosphere than riffs or technicality, Atlanta’s Cloudeater achieves a moody, beat-driven blend that leans on vocal hooks, bass grooves, and head-nodding drums.
In advance of a brand-new EP that’s mixed and produced by Prefuse 73, the band is releasing the standalone single “Always on the Way,” and we have the ominous, visually glitchy video for you. Head here to download the audio for free.
Cloudeater: Sun and Sidearm reissue (9/11/12)
“This Place”
First released last September, Cloudeater’s Sun and Sidearm was a moody, melodic debut LP that blended rock, pop, and electronics to spacy and sexy results. The highly textured seven-song release called upon many timbres, but it leaned on worming bass lines and cooing vocals to set the tone.
Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.
Ford & Lopatin: Channel Pressure (Software / Mexican Summer, 6/7/11)
Ford & Lopatin: “World of Regret”
[audio:https://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Ford__Lopatin_World_of_Regret.mp3|titles=Ford & Lopatin: “World of Regret”]Hajduch: Ford & Lopatin (formerly Games) is comprised of Daniel Lopatin (a.k.a. Oneohtrix Point Never) and Joel Ford (from indie/’80s-pastiche band Tigercity). Their music together is a jittery, looped amalgam of trashy ’80s vibes. Riffs and vocals are recorded, deconstructed, down-sampled, and smashed back together. Their previous output as Games was a hypnotic series of tightly looped samples from synth-pop hits that never existed.
Channel Pressure takes the conceit a step further, adding occasional lyrics and the nebulous idea of a concept album. If you toned down the funk (and the length) of the poppier songs from Daft Punk‘s Discovery, and made them a bit more spastic, you’d approach the sound of Channel Pressure.
Morrow: To me, it sounds like Prefuse 73 twisting around the Miami Vice theme. The ’80s synth sounds and fake drum hits are out of control. Between those elements, the airy pop vocals, and the deep, bouncy bass, Channel Pressure has enough nostalgia to unleash a torrent of endorphins for anyone born before 1988. (Entertainingly, one song is titled “Too Much MIDI (Please Forgive Me).”)
But there’s enough of a modern and experimental twist (hence the slightly stretched Prefuse comparison), and that prevents it from being strict homage.
On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.
Epstein: Prefuse 73 / Jaytram / Epstein (Asthmatic Kitty, 12/14/10)
Jaytram: “You Know They Out”
[audio:https://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/04.-You-Know-They-Out-Jaytram.mp3|titles=Jaytram: ‘You Know They Out”]Though Roberto Lange’s year has been busier than usual, the multitasking musician (also known as Helado Negro) has found the time to pack in another release before the year is over. Well, kind of. The back catalog of Epstein, Lange’s longtime electronic project, has received a complete cut-and-paste overhaul by beat conductor Prefuse 73 and drummer Jaytram (of Yeasayer), making for a record aptly titled Prefuse 73 / Jaytram / Epstein.
It is a fitting year-end release for the NYC-based artist and producer, who, in 2010 alone, released a new Epstein full-length, a new Helado Negro EP, worked on a number of remixes, and saw Asthmatic Kitty reissue four Epstein records that were never released outside of Japan until now. The re-releases spawned not so much a remix album but an absolute dismantling and revision of his obscure recordings. The albums, recorded with Miami-based Beta Bodega label, serve as a wealthy groove print for Prefuse and Jaytram, who respectively split the duties.
As the weather stops being oppressive in the Northern Hemisphere, a number of potentially great albums from countless genres are on the way. Here’s a list of ten that have us excited, including efforts from Isis, MF Doom, Coalesce, Prefuse 73, Mr. Lif, and more.
