New/FREE Caretaker album..!

The Caretaker - Extra Patience (After Sebald)

More "Haunted Ballroom" gatherings from the world's "most recent" Ambient guru Leyland Kirby AKA The Caretaker ..better hurry though, it's free for a limited time only.

REVIEW: Lovesliescrushing - Girl Echo Suns Veils

8 out of 10

Find it here.

It's been a while since I've had a chance to review anything. I do apologize for not staying on top of things (I've been a bit busy). One album in particular that I've been meaning to "shed some light on" is Lovesliescrushing newest-ish offering "Girl Echo SunsVeils", which is a collection of unused/rare/lost b-sides from LLC's "never ceases to amaze me" collection of terrific aqueous sound waves. Hardcore fans probably already scooped up the limited edition/hand-made wooden box that comes with a bonus disc of even more rarities. For anyone else who didn't snatch it up quick enough there is a digital copy via iTunes available now and a possible "un-limited edition" physical copy coming out in August 2010 via Projekt.

"Girl Echo Suns Veils" was one of those "projects" that kept getting pushed back year after year, a lot of work, time & probably stress went into the making of the album. Lucky for us fans, the wait is FINALLY over and we all have another chance to soak in some more ear bliss. With Lovesliescrushing you tend to always know what you're about to get into, but you never know how hard it's going to hit you when it does. Scott Cortez has a way with making the most unimaginable sounds come out of a guitar while Melissa Arpin's voice is more angelic than the word "angelic" itself. On "Girl Echo SunsVeils" the duo have once again stunned my ears with palpitating sounds that leave a calming sensation in my ears during the days that follow. The songs are "b-sides" so there is somewhat of a different sound/feel here. To explain; when I listen to LLC I get the sense of being overwhelmed by an underwater current filled with fantastical unseen lifeforms, with "Girl Echo.." I get the sense of floating just above said current. The liquidized environments engulf my every sense as usual. However, this time the sounds coming out have a "dryer/less surreal" sense to them. I get the feeling, even though it's apparently there, there are fewer distortion pedals used on some of these tracks. Basically, on "Girl Echo.." Scott Cortez has a way of making his signature distortions sound slightly more natural and loose. Maybe you will experience something entirely different when you listen to this, but that's whats special about Lovesliescrushing. Your emotions determine the music. LLC can be just as soul crushing as they are therapeutic. Every sound, every texture, every note, everything that you hear on a Lovesliescrushing album is important. You cannot absorb them all at once, you can take them as a whole, and you will forever experience a new sonic adventure with every listen.

The only thing disappointing about this band is the fact that they aren't immortal. I don't ever want this music to stop. "Girl Echo Suns Veils" is no exception to that rule either. Fans of pastoral guitar sounds with dreamy female vocals and/or LLC will love this. The album feels a little more "raw" and, if possible, more "droney", but on par with the rest of their catalogue. Recommended (most definitely). Oh, also LLC just re-released 2007's (EIC's #6 album of that year) "Chorus", make sure to get that too!

Standout Tracks: Better to take in as a whole, but if you like to skip around; Wallflower (Original Version), Seahorse (this song has the mistake of ending too soon), Blurskin (yummm), Sugarglow, Aviatrix (more please?), Kittenmother

(aww, that's soo sweet! EIC ♥'s you too LLC)

Pre-order the new BSS and get a FREE b-sides album..

From Broken Social Scene:

I know that some bands write their songs, rehearse them and then record them. Not Broken Social Scene. In recording Forgiveness Rock Record we did it our usual way: swimming in chaos and making it up as we go along. We started by loosely sketching out 30 songs in my garage, driving to Chicago, recording 20 of those, and then writing 20 more. The point was to never stop working. Whenever we got exhausted or overwhelmed we would take a breath, pick up our instruments and jam purely ‘for spirit purposes’. It was musical-therapy of sorts. Part of what kept the ideas flowing was Soma’s smaller, second studio where we could test out new ideas and experiment with overdubs. While John worked in the main room, this B-Room quickly became our musical kitchen where we cooked up soups of sound without the pressures time and money.

One evening, as a kind of exercise in spontaneity, Kevin, Brendan and I each took turns writing and recording minute-long “songs” with minimal overdubs just to see what would happen. We kept saying to John “we’re making you an EP!” It was a sort of first-thought-best-thought approach to music making. Within a few hours we had six lovely little soundscapes, one of which ended up being the closing song on Forgiveness Rock Record, ‘Me & My Hand’, and the rest became the beginnings of Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights.

As we continued to work on Forgiveness the B-room became more and more important as both a musical and social outlet - there are a lot of us in Broken Social Scene and it’s hard for us to sit on our hands – so naturally Ohad, Sam and Sebastian each recorded a song in the same spontaneous way. ‘Song For Dee’, the only traditional “song” on Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights, Brendan, Kevin and I recorded when we found out that our good friend Wayne’s dog died and we wanted to cheer him up.

All of the songs on Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights were recorded in Soma’s B-Room while Forgiveness Rock Record was being made. What these songs have in common is that they were all written in a spirit of playfulness and fearlessness where we could throw our discrimination to the wind and let the judges and critics take the night off. This tiny B-Room sanctuary fomented a very positive frame of mind, ultimately leading to one of the most enjoyable album-making experiences we’ve ever had. We hope you enjoy listening to these songs as much as we enjoyed recording them.

"Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights"
Tracklisting
1. New Instructions
2. Sudden Foot Loss
3. Shabba Lights
4. Song For Dee
5. Eling's Haus
6. Professor Sambo
7. Never Felt Alive
8. Paperweight Room
9. Turbo Mouse
10. Far Out

Pre-order here. Did you ever watch any of the promo videos?

New(ish) Lusine album on the way..

Lusine "Lucky Numbers" comes out March 16th via Ghostly.

"Lucky Numbers" collects all of Jeff McIlwain's work as Lusine from various singles and b-sides... Never sad to add another Lusine album to my collection.

Oh! While I'm on this Ghostly rant of mine, have you checked out Birds & Souls yet??

New(ish) Doves album on the way..

Doves "The Places Between: The Best of.." comes out April 6th via Astralwerks.

Here's the tracklisting:

CD1 (The Best Of):
1. There Goes the Fear
2. Black and White Town
3. Snowden
4. Here It Comes
5. Words
6. Kingdom of Rust
7. Sea Song
8. Pounding
9. 10:03

10. Catch the Sun
11. Jetstream
12. The Man Who Told Everything (Summer Version)
13. Andalucía
14. Caught by the River
15. The Cedar Room

CD2 (Rarities, B-sides, and alternate versions):
1. Blue Water
2. Eleven Miles Out
3. Rise
4. Darker
5. Push Me On
6. Willow's Song (Bury Version)
7. Valley
8. Northenden
9. M62 Song
10. Drifter
11. Friday's Dust (Capitol Tower Session)
12. Almost Forgot Myself (Demo)
13. Your Shadow Lay Across My Life
14. The Last Son
15. The Sulphur Man
16. At the Tower (Instrumental Edit)
17. Reprise
18. Ambition
19. Firesuite (Noise Version)

DVD (music videos):
1. The Cedar Room
2. Sea Song
3. Here It Comes
4. Catch the Sun
5. The Man Who Told Everything
6. There Goes the Fear
7. Pounding
8. Caught by the River
9. Black and White Town (Director's Cut)
10. Snowden (Live Edit)
11. Sky Starts Falling
12. Kingdom of Rust
13. Winter Hill

So generally I think "Best Of's.." are a waste of money, but the B-sides and music videos make this album worthy of any hardcore Doves fan's collection..