As The Beatles once sang, it’s been a long, cold, lonely winter. Spring finally arrives today, and children will celebrate by attempting to balance eggs upright. With the equinox comes the first major release date of the season, with dozens of instrumental and experimental albums dropping in the same 24-hour period. While we’ve enjoyed having much of this music to ourselves for months, we’re even happier that fans around the world will be able to hear it. Even in areas where the frost is hanging on, this music offers a hint of warmth and a promise of better days. The flowers will bloom; the grass will grow; the birds will return and the earth will rejoice. We hope you’ve enjoyed our week-long Spring Music Preview, which has featured nearly as many releases as there are days in a year!
Ellington, South Carolina was once a busy, thriving community, until the Savannah River Plant started to spew radioactive materials into the environment. Magic Tuber Stringband offers an ode to the area that also serves as an indictment and a warning, making Heavy Water one of the season’s crucial releases (Thrill Jockey, May 22). Cinematic post-rockers We Stood Like Kings return with Pinocchio, but set all expectations aside; their heavier-than-ever approach unearths the dark side of the fable, leaving any whimsy behind. (Kapitän Platte, April 10). Also returning: The Doomed Bird of Providence, with a concept album inspired by the convict adventure novel For the Term of His Natural. The nautical theme of Meteoric Heralds of Disaster mirrors the narrative, and the band – to our pure delight – has returned to the fully instrumental (March 20).
Here’s a wild one: a triple-LP that comes with an audiobook and a second book of illustrations (which depends on which physical edition one orders). Un Sequestro Lungo 10.000 Anni is an ambitious, multi-genre project, the soundtrack to a dystopian future. Blak Saagan enlists guest vocalists for the first time, but the story is the key (Maple Death, May 8). City of the Sun travels around the world on Under the Moon, completing a round trip of celestial bodies. Their brand of post-rock embraces desert rock, spaghetti western and flamenco groove, sometimes within the same song. The album cover lends itself well to the cinematic tone (Nettwerk, April 24). In similar fashion, Red Largo tells a story on Hotel Neuf, traveling from Texas to the Middle East, revealing the mysteries of the hotel and its occupants one track at a time (Madame Vega’s Boudoir, March 20). Unwed Sailor has one of the warmest sounds in post-rock. High Remembrance continues this comfortable journey, prefaced by the single West Coast Prism (Current Taste, May 8).
Post-rockers 52 Commercial Road present their best unreleased material on Rescue Attempts and Other Wayside Spectacles (Collected Recordings 2009-2015), reminding listeners of just how long they’ve been around. Lead single “Undelivered” hints at the theme, while the vocals bleed a bit of Thom Yorke (May 1). worriedaboutsatan introduces No Knock No Doorbell the old school way, with a single that includes a b-side and a remix. The artist apologizes for not pressing the single on a CD5″, but the download is free, which makes up for it (This Is It Forever, March 27). El Ten Eleven proves it’s never too late to expand one’s palette, adding piano and strings to Nowhere Faster, resulting in an even fuller sound. The unusual title “Björk’s Alarm Clock” was initially hurled at the band as an insult, but it sounds like a compliment to us (Joyful Noise, April 10).
We know that “supergroup” is a word; how about “super duo?” Emil Amos & Steve Moore (Grails and Zombi) team up for Zone Blue, which blends the best of their respective disciplines. There’s spookiness here, along with a psychedelic flair; and while the album references blue film scores, its camera has a wider angle. Furthering the cinematic connection, the album even contains a sequel to a track from Zone Black (Bent Window/Drifter’s Symphony, March 27). But Zone Blue is not the only blue album out this season; Hey Elbow‘s FLOCK is a blue album on blue vinyl, an extended track featuring a wide variety of timbres that tumble slowly, creating a masterful suite. The initial sessions were conceived for three musicians, three dancers and a set designer; we’re excited to experience the live show (Adrian Recordings, March 20). Repetita Iuvant introduces 3+2 with the ten minute Harenaria, a sprawling post-rock piece with metal undertones (Argonauta, April 10).
Americana meets komische on Baltimore, as North Carolina’s Tacoma Park honors Maryland. The tracks are packed with texture and given room to breathe, although we’d love to have heard the original 20-minute version of “Paris.” On the other hand, that’s what concerts are for (Centripetal Force, April 24). The self-titled album from Setting creates an inter-generational synthesis of timbres, as banjo and zither mingle with synthesizer and tape. Like the classic Sinners scene, the music conjures images of settlers playing around a campfire as well as dancers in a modern nightclub (Thrill Jockey, April 24). Banjo drone is the very epitome of a micro-genre, owned by Johnny Bell. Mountain States expands banjo music from its Appalachian associations into the Rockies, in the same way as Bell expands the expectations of folk (Ramble/Centripetal Force, May 8). Chevreuil operates on the other end of the spectrum, with a sound far more sparse. Nevertheless, the duo rocks, as proven on Tartarus, the lead single from the upcoming Stadium (Computer Students™, April 24). 21-year-old Conor Moore shares a young take on primitive music. The guitarist plays with patience and emotion, and already sounds like a veteran. Chamber Music is released April 3 on Hollow Gesture. Animal Collective’s Croz Boyce / Avey Tare team up for a self-titled, folkish, surprisingly accessible instrumental album on Domino, preceded by a slow-moving underwater video for Hanging Out With a Blueberry Pop that should put people in a summer mindset (May 8).
There’s a little bit of everything in Nagløed‘s new album, which makes sense as the album is titled, Everything Is In Everything Else. The Ghent trio is occasionally ambient, a touch vocal, often improvisational, frequently groovy and ultimately rocking, especially on the back half of “Anima” (Icarus, March 20). We appreciate the name of Brussels octet I’m Not Done Cooking, led by Lara Humbert, and Jouvenet makes a fine appetizer for the full meal. A mix of jazz, modern composition and post-rock, Tome One: The Beauty and the Queen is released March 27. Jazz, prog and post-rock combine on Masker‘s Peril, which follows in the steps of other great Montreal bands by commenting on the human condition. An amusing caveat accompanies the release, as the band “didn’t want to delay the release any longer for fear of missing the moment.” Wouldn’t it be great to imagine an end to the current crisis and malaise? (Oudwijn, May 1). Berlin’s Conic Rose is best described as a jazz-rock band, even though they are sometimes electronic; an instrumental band, although sometimes they sing. wedding presents a wide array of tempos and timbres, and is all the better as a result (April 17). société étrange‘s Heat is moody and slow-paced; the trio calls it “instrumental pop,” but we can’t imagine a vocalist attempting to sing over it (Carton, March 27).
Persian tradition meets contemporary production on Rituals of the Last Dawn, a showcase for Iranian musician Saba Alizadeh. As a master of the spike fiddle kamancheh, Alizadeh is primed to introduce Eastern sounds to the West, and open their ears in a brand new way (Karlrecords, March 20). Radwan Ghazi Moumneh and Frédéric D. Oberland team up for Eternal Life No End, pairing Arabic song with traditional instruments such as the buzuk and rababa with swirling textures and rapid-fire percussion. The Arabic translation of the title, A dark, cursed night, like the seekers themselves, brings out the socio-political aspects of the release (Constellation, April 3).
Bonnie Kramer + Thurston Moore collaborate on They Came Like Swallows – Seven Requiems for the Children of Gaza, an immersive set that serves as a prayer for the victims of genocide (Silver Current, May 1). Possibly this season’s only rubub album, Sareban‘s Echoes in the Weave is more than a solo venture; guest stars contribute turns on morchang, tabla, dohola, tombak, dayere, and daf, creating an exuberant sound (Worlds Within Worlds, May 8). Charif Megarbane, Ali match Jakarta and Lebanon on Tirakat, a groovy, psychedelic excursion that should spark spontaneous dancing around the world (Habibi Funk, March 27).
Looking on the cover like he’s stepping out of winter, BEAK> bassist Billy Fuller offers a danceable slice of krautrock. By mastering multiple instruments on Fragments, the artist proves that he’s more than we might have assumed (Invada, April 3). Chessie + Contriva also like to dance; billed as a “love letter between two bands,” Black Jacket blends the indie sensibility of classic Morr Music with the youthful energy of new wave. Multiple track titles reference colors, creating a pleasant synaesthesia (Watusi, April 10). THE HORIZON SPIRALS / THE HORIZON VIRAL is a raucous split from OOIOO / LIGHTNING BOLT, whose capital letters say it all. The music is abrasive, upfront and unapologetic, a blast of punk-electronic energy (Thrill Jockey, April 24).
Richard Allen
a closer listen 