Destination Qualité is the newest trip from the premiere French math rockers, Pneu. Still just two dudes, Pneu take on math rock in 2015 with high-octane energy and unmerciful noise. The result not only makes you dizzy but also pumps you up all at once. If you have not checked out Pneu yet and are a fan of math rock, you must listen to this right now! It's differently the bands most polished but still intriguing release to date.
The 8th track "Hinges" features guest vocals provided by Peter Simonelli of the California Post-punk band, Enablers.
Some solid solo math stuff from Nnamdi Ogbonnaya of Illinois. When Ogbonnaya is not doing solo stuff or swag/meme-rapping he has been known to drum, do vocals or even play bass for The Para-Medics, Water Houses, Pisces at The Animal Fair, Nervous Passenger. He's even been in My Dads, Itto, and was the mastermind behind Richard Def & the Mos Pryors.
Lucas Brode is a guitarist/composer from New York who has also played bass and many other instruments for cool New York bands such as Jerkagram and Hannibal Montana. Brode's completely solo release, prixvyou is filled with amazing guitar work ranging from math rock to jazz and worldly music. Very minimal but still quite interesting to listen to not only as a student of music.
Lucas Brode also makes meditation music which can be found on his bandcamp as well as prixvyou above.
100 Onces are a two dude math rock a la pre-vocals Tera Melos, Piglet, Giraffes? Giraffes!, and other rad mostly instrumental math rock superstars that we've come to love. With that being said, you should already love 100 Onces.
I was looking through the archives and noticed that I haven't talked about these folks on here yet. I also noticed that this blog is like three years old now. That's pretty nuts!
Get acquainted with 100 Onces and celebrate the three year existence of being nostalgic for things that haven't happened, right now!
Ittō play real basement hardcore, you know, as opposed to that fake stuff. This is their first album. Get to know this album and then check these spazzers out on the new 4-way dance coming out entitled The Sound of Young America. The split will include three other bands that aren't tied down to just being another "contemporary" hardcore or screamo band - Capacities, Innards, and Calculator.
Bird-influenced math rock from Ontario. An Ode to... is a follow-up to Dore Mear Beon's 2012 self-titled EP which included a very cool song that sampled the Richard Linklater film, Waking Life. Dore Mear Beon is definitely for fans of Time Columns, Enemies, Zefs Chasing Cara, The Bulletproof Tiger, as well as other one-person math rock acts.
When an album starts with an emotional Jason Segel as Eric from Undeclared sample, you know that you at least have to give this a try. It's definitely something you'll regret that you never put on a mixtape for your ex-girlfriend in high school.
This is Free Throw's second release, entitled, Lavender Town, yes just like that town in Pokemon Red that drove you into a deep depression as a child. The album's pretty much right where their self titled left off except instead of Boy Meets World samples we get Undeclared samples. That being said, this is a hell of a growing up album by a growing up band. You might think you are done growing up, but that's not the case... no one ever grows up.
Free Throw recently signed to Count Your Lucky Stars and Lavender Town is now physically available for pre-order with some new artwork and either choice of black or piss yellow vinyl. Check it out!
Hannibal Montana are a cleverly named instrumental math rock band from New York. Off the ways, dim-lit room filling the atmosphere with spiraling guitars, and structure kicked out the door is the best way I can describe the sounds Hannibal Montana make. Very reminiscent of Zefs Chasing Cara, Battles, Time Columns, Antarctic, and The Bulletproof Tiger.
Slint are back if you may or may not have heard and they return baring gifts as the new documentary about how awesome they are was made in their honor of awesomeness. If are around the Portland, Maine area tonight at 7:30, you should definitely stop by the Space Gallery on Congress Street and check out the documentary followed by a Q & A with the filmmaker, Lance Bangs. I was pretty bummed that I couldn't make it to this event, until Slint also announced a reunion tour starting the day I get out from finals. It's not too often that I get to leave Maine for a sweet show, but that's what is happening May 29th when I go down to Boston to these guys play the awesomeness out of their instruments live and in concert.
Believe it or not before there was Russian Circles, there was this band. At first listen one would think these guys would be a Don Caballero project, especially from looking at the obscure song titles, but as it turns out this was the math rock band that Mike Sullivan and Colin DeKuiper of RC were in before taking on a somewhat different and much more metal whack at instrumental music. This is Dakota/Dakota.
Before disbanding in 2004, Dakota/Dakota had released their debut album, Shoot In The Dark out into the underground music world. The album is very reminiscent of Caballero, Piglet, Cinemechanica, and Volta Do Mar music of the early 00's, but without ever sounding too much like a clone of any of those bands in particular. From what it seems, Dakota/Dakota were just playing around with instruments and making them do some pretty off-tempo and cool sounding nonsense and eventually one day someone said, "the hell with this, let's stop fucking with the melody". Thus, Russian Circles was born. I can't say I blame them if any bit of this is true or if I'm completely off, but these folks from Chicago (not Dakota) could produce quite a melody before turning the corner and going off in the opposite direction again.
Along with Shoot In The Dark, Dakota/Dakota released a 7" of the first song on SITD with two b-sides, some loose tracks from a Redline Distribution Sampler in '04, and a split with Riddle in Steel (which was the band Dave Turncrantz drummed for before Russina Circles). All of the material that Dakota/Dakota have since been put on this album, Shoot In The Dark + and even includes a never before released D/D track.
Another complete miss from last year, this is Sleeping People's two-song 12incher, NOTRUF. Sleeping People were one of the first instrumental math rock bands I ever discovered and therefore will forever be in my books as one of the best in the math rock game. While this is only a little taste of what Sleeping People from San Diego have to offer, I think NOTRUF provides the perfect opportunity to get into these guys.
Some straight-up no filter hardcore punk rock from Boston, Mass. Some of the coolest sounding hardcore I have ever laid my ears on. I'm really digging this stuff especially the track, "Perfectionist (Perfectionism)" as it features a sample of J. Robert Oppenheimer on the first atomic bomb where he quotes a line from the Hindu Scripture, Bhagavad Gita: "Now I have become death, the destroyer of worlds". Even if the other parts of the song weren't top notch, I would still listen to it just for that sample. Luckily, Lovechild is top notch.
Sometimes there's releases I miss and than there's some that I really miss. This is one of those releases that I completely miss for a whole year of its existence. Well, it's here now and sounds just like what I remember Father Figure sounding like: emotional, messy, screechy, and down-right depressing.
Father Figure grows on you if you let it, like a cold that you really don't want to deal with right now but it makes you sound so much cooler now that you have it.
Innards meets Two Knights (and their side project Flesh Born).
Bearcubbin'! are a loop happy math rock band from Portland, Oregon. This album in particular bares (or show I say bears?) a slight resembling sound to that of post hardcore band, These Arms are Snakes. This is no coincidence as this album, Get Your Heavies Out was the bands' effort at making a something sound like bands such as These Arms are Snakes and Young Widow.
Bearcubbin' also have a new album called Girls With Fun Haircuts out now! I'll probably be writing up something for that album once I get a good chance to. From what I have heard so far, everyone should check it out!
In honor of the first day of spring, albeit rainy spring, I present to you a band that will be sure to keep you going through these rainy day before the real sunshine takes over and we have summer for a month.
This is, or was, K.C. Milian, a short-lived Italian screamo/post rock that mostly falls under the instrumental side of things, although there are a couple songs in their catalog that include vocals, but are really only used to complement the music. Speaking of their catalog, this is all of it; this album features everything, I'm pretty sure, that K.C. Milian ever released.
This band reminds me so much of the bands that I first got into when I started to read blogs and listen to music online. I think that even if you aren't a fan of screamo/emo but are a fan of things like American Football, twinkly stuff, and early math rock noodling, one can easily find comfort in K.C. Milian's material. Maybe K.C. Milian will even get someone to seek out other "screamo" bands in the same vein as this. Maybe not and that's fine; just as long as this stuff is getting listens, I'm happy.
The album includes music from their Season // Repeat EP, their self-titled EP, "A Cusak movie" from their split with another Italian band, La Quiete, and three previously unreleased numbers.
Similar acts/sounds: La Quiete, The Khayembii Communique, American Football, Ghosts and Vodka, I Would Set Myself on Fire For You, Saeita, Rumah Sakit, Men As Trees, and just K.C. Milian.
Solids from Montreal, Canada are just two dudes playing fuzzy music. It's a cross between emo fuzz and grungy garage rock fuzz. Like the kind of fuzz that you'd find being crafted in the basement at your local punk house. It's not too complicated to understand or get into either, it's just guitar and drums, a guy singing stuff you don't understand but you know it's in English, and it makes you wish you had a beer in your hand.
Krill is a band that actually did come to my local punk house. I didn't know it at the time, but once and a while these cool Boston bands I always rave about come up and play. Anyways though, if you like Modest Mouse, oddball vocals, or just some fun indie rock, Krill is a band you should check out.
The title to this EP, to the best of my knowledge, is a nod to another great Boston local band, Pile. Those guys also have a really cool 7incher you listen to on their Bandcamp.
In 2005, a little band called Piglet released one of the greatest math rock gems of all-time, entitled, Lava Land. The album is a must-have if you are a fan of math rock with only gripe about it: we never got to hear more by them due to their break up. But here we are in 2014, where not only do we now have the live EP that has circled around the internet on Bandcamp, but we also have this little gem featuring 4 previously unreleased tracks.
With the likelihood of this band never getting back together, this is definitely the next best thing.
NFT looks back at things from before its time: the year 2006.
Don Caballero - World Class Listening Problem (2006)
It's no American Don, but Don Caballero's 2006 release, World Class Listening Problem is still a listening experience that apologizes to no one. Five years removed from American Don and only one member of the original lineup left (Mr. Don Cab himself, Damon Che), World Class Listening Problem was bound to be different.
One of the biggest differences about World Class Listening Problem was that it was released by Relapse records, a predominately metal record label. Despite the new label, Don Cab did not turn into mathcore, but they did however get heavier than ever before; not heavy to a point of it sounding too progressive or cheesy, but heavy to point where it is a bit more riff-y than just twinkly guitars over incredible drumming. There's nothing wrong with being 'twinkly', I love me some twinkle daddy music, but it's cool to hear what something would sound like with a little more beef to it. That's what's different about World Class Listening Problem: it is beefy.
Once you bulk up your music though, you do lose a little flexibility. I think that's what makes this release a little less of an essential. Without that lightness to it that early Don Cab albums have, WCLP seems to be stuck in the mud almost instead of just flowing naturally. Of course, this minor flaw that's more about taste than anything else could also be due in part by the lack of guitarist Ian Williams, who was off doing his thing in Battles by this time.
Still, World Class Listening Problem is something different, and that's what I like about it. You get to hear a deeper side of Don Caballero and you can still enjoy it. As my Personal Development teacher would say: it's a win/win situation.
Highlights: "Mmmmm Acting, I Love Me Some Good Acting", "I Agree.....No!.....I Disagree", Railroad Cancellation" (Featured on Sons of Anarchy apparently), and "Savage Composition".
Similar acts/sounds: Battles, Bellini, Stress & Storm, Pneu, Dysrhythmia, Piglet, Hella, Giraffes? Giraffes!, Tera Melos, and other straight-up instrumental "math rock" bands.
Ultra Gown is Zefs Chasing Cara's latest release. It's a little more on the electronic side of math rock but it's noodly nevertheless. I can't say I'm a big fan of Zefs' stuff with the vocals, so this is easily my favorite release by these guys.
If I haven't already said that Boston is on fire right now in the music department, I'M SAYING IT RIGHT NOW; BOSTON IS ON FIRE IN ALL CAPS. I love you Maine, but man am I jonesing to see some Boston music right now. Anyways, Idiot Genes play some of that good ol' garage punk rock that kids have and will always be craving. Gotta have it.
Thought the album artwork would be pretty appropriate for Presidents' Day.
Jerkagram, a band I threw up here during Monday's very first weeks, have a new album of experimental instrumental and almost modern-day non-German krautrock music. There's also some singing in it, too. Check it out:
My friend, Sean Martin, known by many as "John Coffee", is a freelance film guy. He's been making films of all sorts since I've known him and I've known him for pretty long. His most recent project (that I know of at least) is called Handful of Romance, a humorous sock puppet induced short that took second place at the 'Local Love Muscle Film Festival' this weekend at the Space Gallery in Portland. If you like sock puppets, bros being bros, making out, or just some good old fashion awkward humor, I think you'll get a real kick out of this video. Apparently if there's enough views it will be on the front page of Funny or Die, the website you can currently view the video at, which is pretty cool stuff!
A little something-something from the indie pop dudes in the Baltimore area. This 3 song EP of sorts features two B-sides along with Dung Kid's single, "Grenville, Pt. 1" from their first release, Oh How it Hurts; a song that easily made my top 10 songs list last year.
If you haven't already heard about these guys, you are hearing them right now. Literally, listen to these guys right now!
Big Ups from New York are blowing up with their new album, Eighteen Hours of Static and for good reason (listen). Before they were killing it with a Fugazi meets Melvins post punk sound, they were baby punk rockers in a big city. Some people might just wanna skip to their new stuff and call it good, but I like their old stuff, too. I don't know, maybe you'll like it as well.
Where's My Friends are a Portland, Maine brewed instrumental three piece featuring members of the late math rock band, The Waldos, and the always impressive, Butcher Boy. While Where's My Friends are not as heavy as The Waldos stuff (not that The Waldos were off the walls), it's still moving, a bit free flowing, but moving nevertheless.
Mylets is a one-man math rock excursion by Henry Kohen. Using the power of loop pedals and a super catchy vocal arsenal, Mylets is a simple meets complex listening experience. A must for any fan of Tera Melos, Girlfriends, Boyfrndz, Monster Machismo, or Adebisi Shank.
I was surprised to see that Time is a Machine did not receive much attention after the large praise that Wooden Heart got a few years back. Still, Time is a Machine is not far behind where Wooden Heart left off and will certainly hold up in time for when people really start listening again.
2013 was definitely The World is...'s biggest year to date. From the raise of the shitty "mememo" terms to someone behind Buzzfeed figuring out there's still a genre called emo and it doesn't suck, The World is... seemed to be the front runners of a cool new thing. They have a really long ridiculous name and just as ridiculous lineup, why wouldn't they be the stars of the next "emo revival" generation? Hell, maybe next year The World is... will be on SNL!
Whenever, If Ever really is a solid album though whether you wanna believe the hype or not.
Serengeti's alter ego, Kenny Dennis returned this year with a bang when the Chicago native dropped his LP on the world. K.D.'s repetitive and sometimes incoherent rap style puts me in a hypnotic trance that makes me want to watch old NBA games and play Sonic on my aunt's Sega Genesis.
Favorite track: "Directions"
Along with Kenny Dennis's LP, Serengeti also released Saal, C.A.B. (a follow-up to C.A.R.), a single featuring a b-side about "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, and his Yoome project's (along with Renee Louise Carafice and Tony Trimm) June album.
Russian Circles just being Russian Circles. The groovy post metal lords even throw in a little number featuring vocal duties by Chelsea Wolfe which resembles a True Widow track that never was.
Favorite track: "Memorial (Ft. Chelsea Wolfe)" and "Lebaron" (for the more traditional RC experience)
Foxing - An Albatross
Toasted Plastic - June Highs
A Great Big Pile of Leaves - You're Always On My Mind
Phantom Glue - A War of Light Cones
One Hundred Year Ocean - Where Were You While We Were Getting High?
Rosetta - Anaesthete
The Reptilian - Low Health
Leveret - Infinity
Just some solid math rock about farm animals, Foo Fighters, and the number 15. A follow-up to their debut, Christ Grenades from all the way back in 2007.
Greef is Pete from Portland, ME's favorite folk nightmare, Butcher Boy. Greef is also the name of this analog exploitation of fuzzy lo-fi. The best way to describe it really is to say it's less like a musical experience and more like a listening experience...
...Like finding a cassette on the side of the road that still works even with its tape ripped out.
Heccra ain't your average mom and pop screamo band. It ain't your average emo-because-Buzzfeed-told-me-it-was band either. Never would I have thought of calling a genre of music "mutilated" until I first heard Heccra's distorted and all-out exploded post-hardcore music, but that's what I would call Heccra.
None of what I just wrote right there might make any sense. If it did... you listened to The Last Weekend of Summer. If not... listen to The Last Weekend of Summer.
At the beginning of the year, James "Crywank" Clayton released these demos for his January tour. The tour may be over but the demos are still really nice, including some solid rerecordings, and all the cash brought in from the demo goes to more touring and more music recording. Also, this demo features the new member providing percussion to the Crywank sound, Dan "The Snail" Watson.
Irish instrumental math rock outfit, Wiltz have recently decided to call it quits. It's always a shame to check up on a band you haven't heard in a while and discover they are done making music together.
At least they left us with good music.
You can pick up Wiltz's last album, entitled, Sea Dog over on their bandcamp or from Little League Records - who have been releasing all sorts of unique music from bands left and right as of late.
Langosta is a hell of a lot of fun math rock 'n' roll band from Connecticut. Super Nature is the name of this EP and also the name the band formerly called themselves. Super Nature is the name originally used by Salt-N-Pepa as well.
Fearless Leader is a Seattle based math rock meets post hardcore band that mixes twinkly technical-sounding instrumentation with intricate shouting/spoken word. The result is a mess.
The Sarcastic Dharma Society AKA Mat Vuksinich is back with new music and he's not alone!
I'm really glad to see and hear that this band is back and wish them the very best of luck. Mat has a very interesting voice and it's really cool to hear what he can do with a band behind him. I'm not gonna gush but damn this is some of my favorite indie music.
You can also watch the video of Mat and his now four piece band play their five song set from the Laughing Horse in Portland, Oregon, here.
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