Cynarae - s/t

This lot get compared to Systral, Unruh, Morser, The Swarm and Left For Dead. And that's a pretty fair comparison too. There'll be a handful of people who see that (like me) whose interest is piqued.

For everyone else we're talking blistering metallic hardcore punk stuff. Recent comparisons might be the more straight ahead Drainland stuff or that new Torch Runner album.

Definitely a cut above that post-Cursed thing where everything sounds dead samey.

10 Reasons Why Itunes Is Crap

10 Reasons I Don't Buy From Itunes

1. They don't sell FLAC.
Kevin points out the many reasons why FLAC is vastly superior to mp3 in this post - http://spoonfuloftar.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/why-flac-format.html

2. Because I'm buying independent or DIY music.
I buy my vinyl from someone with a box of records at a punk gig in the back room of a pub. Either that or a proper independent record shop. I'd steadfastly refuse to go to somewhere like HMV. Why would I want to buy my digital records from the equivalent of Tescos.

3. Apple are a bunch of tax dodging bastards.
They use every dirty trick in the book to pay only a peppercorn tax rate in any country they operate in. You might argue that it's 'legal'. It's not. The methods are just not explicitly illegal. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/29/business/apples-tax-strategy-aims-at-low-tax-states-and-nations.html

4. I'm just not a fan of Apple products.
Shiny and overexpensive and just frustrating to use. I just don't like the walled garden appraoch. Also, the itunes program has given me nothing but grief.

5. Bands and labels have to pay for their stuff to go on itunes.
Could you imagine a shop demanding to be paid to stock your records? That's up front by the way. Not just taking a cut of each sale (which is fine). No, you actually have to pay to be put on itunes in the first place.

6. DRM
Yeah, I know they don't do DRM anymore but they used to. And the stench remains. They're very much not on the side of the music fan. Which brings me on to the next point.

7. You don't own the music you buy
This one is almost incomprehensible. You don't actually own the music you buy from itunes.

"Part of the problem is that with digital content, one doesn’t have the same rights as with print books and CDs. Customers own a license to use the digital files — but they don’t actually own them.

Apple (US:AAPL) and Amazon.com (US:AMZN) grant “nontransferable” rights to use content, so if you buy the complete works of the Beatles on iTunes, you cannot give the “White Album” to your son and “Abbey Road” to your daughter.

According to Amazon’s terms of use, “You do not acquire any ownership rights in the software or music content.” Apple limits the use of digital files to Apple devices used by the account holder."

Read more about that here - http://articles.marketwatch.com/2012-08-23/finance/33336852_1_digital-content-digital-files-apple-and-amazon

8. They almost have a monopoly
It almost seems like people don't realise there's other options. OK, it doesn't help that loads of independent labels use it as they're default option for selling digital. But, the fact is, there are far better options such as Bandcamp or Boomkat or whatever.

9. It's expensive
You want me to pay the same price as a CD for a digital version that's worse quality? Erm, no.

10. Fuck itunes
Just fuck it. Everything about it. Just fuck it. Itunes is just pure unadulterated bullshit. I've tried to focus on specific things but the fact is that there isn't a single good thing about itunes. Not one. Itunes stinks to high heaven. It's the very antithesis of independent music.


And yes, I know these ten points have ended with just irrational ranting but that's irrelevant. What labels and bands should understand is that I will never, ever, ever, ever in a million trillion years buy anything through itunes. And I know that goes for lots of other people too.

There are independent options so use them. Obviously I'd like to see more independent options become available but for the moment any option is better than itunes.

Old Apparatus - Realise

AVAILABLE FROM BOOMKAT HERE - http://boomkat.com/downloads/564011-old-apparatus-realise-ep

Creepy and dusty electronic music. Maybe a bit like Burial. Definitely not d*b s**p though. All a bit odd.

The Boomkat write up explains it reasonably well:-

The second EP salvo on the Old Apparatus collective's recently minted Sullen Tone label, and it's quality all the way, this time credited as the solo work (more or less) of LTO . 'Chicago' ain't no acid house jam, rather it's a grave little number propelled by maudlin piano arpeggios and chopped-up steppers' drums - if you've been digging Four Tet and Burial's recent gear, you'll dig this, it has a similar balance of melodic drama and dancefloor fire. 'Found' and the more subdued 'Realise' nod to second generation IDM and Warp Records, numerous acoustic and electronic elements woven into expansive, beautifully textured tapestries, at once contributing to and buffeted by compellingly abstract, unpredictable rhythms. The scuttling, crepuscular electro of 'Holding' provides the highlight for us: it has a truly sinister edge to it, with hints of the more low-slung among AFX's Analord productions, and even some well-turned noir-jazz flourishes a la Photek.

More than worth the £2.95 it costs to buy the FLAC.

Night Birds - The Other Side Of Darkness

Night Birds were probably the best punk band I saw last year. Completely off the hook. Singer crawling through the crowd's legs. Guitar and bass players running around everywhere. Actually, yeah, it was the guitarist going through people's legs now I think of it. His rather fetching white Gluey Porch Treatments t shirt ended up a a brown, soggy, torn mess.

Of course, if someone likes the Melvins you can generally trust them musically.

And punk bands that aren't completely and utterly myopic musically are also a good bet.

Night Birds hit the spot musically as well. Surf punk is the best description. Surf-y guitar lines mixed up with some of that post-Observers snotty tuneful punk rock. Some super catchy tunes. And they sound like they're going a million miles an hour and about to fall apart at any second (but actually being mid-paced and far from being an all blur - they just have that feel if you see what I mean).

Before State Icons got asked to play the Brighton date on their tour I'd never heard of them. Found an illicit download and ended up playing it on repeat for a few weeks. Still gets plenty of spins. I might even go so far as to say they might be the best current punk band. Obviously, my opinion on that position changes frequently but they're always up there. Honestly, highest possible recommendation to check them out.

That brings me to the nit-picky bit of this review. You can buy the whole album digitally. And that's great. That's kind of the whole point of this blog. Making stuff available to buy digitally in a DIY manner is awesome.

However, you can only stream two songs. You can't even stream the song I reckon is the best one. The total headshot tune that'd instantly make you fall in love with the band. That'd be Neon Gray if you're interested. Doesn't seem to be on youtube either. Guess you'll have to find a dodgy mediafire link or fire up soulseek. I'd definitely recommend it. And fuck it, no-one has got the LP for sale in the UK anymore. I want repeat my rant about the stupidity of the limited nature of vinyl records. Especially as they've got it up for sale digitally. But it's a bit daft that I'm sat here screaming at you to check them out because you'll definitely love them but for some reason you can't listen to it properly. I can understand why people do it because someone might rip the stream and bung it up elsewhere on the internet for free. But that's already happened. It's already out there. And I'm telling people to go out and find those dodgy rips so they can listen to it. Instead, they could listen to it easily and they'd be a great big button saying BUY in their browser.

Plus, virtually no one buys music on spec anymore. They only buy stuff they've already heard. I know I do. Bought enough crap records in my time that I really don't feel the need to buy records I haven't already heard anymore. To the labels that complain about that because no one buys your records I'll paraphrase Dead Kennedys (who Night Birds get compared to quite often), maybe you put out one too many lousy records.

Night Birds is far from being a lousy record. Genuinely a fucking great record. Night Birds need to damn well make another record and come back over here and tour again.

UPDATE: Grave Mistake records mentioned in the comments that they've got the whole thing up to stream on their bandcamp here - Grave Mistake records bandcamp



There's the whole album to stream so now you can listen to Neon Gray and fall in love straight away.

Put Grave Mistake up in the recommended labels in the sidebar as they've got all their stuff up for streaming and download. Genuine DIY punk labels are well worth supporting so get on it.

Nick Frater - Throw Money

Some people might look at that name and think I'm engaging in shameless nepotism. You'd be right.

It is very good though. Well produced progressive 70s powerpop sounds. Steely Dan, The Raspberries, Todd Rundgren and all that jazz. Ben Folds Five isn't too far off either. Intricate piano melodies & harmonies to full on bombastic pomposity, fuzzy guitar solos, bits of synth. All good stuff.

Bosse De Nage - III

This is another album I've been playing the shit out of for a couple of months with a naughty internet copy. Glad Profound Lore have put it up on bandcamp as the FLAC version sounds so much better.

Bosse De Nage often get described as something like Slint gone black metal. And that's a fair description. If that means nothing to you and you've never heard a record called Spiderland then you probably need to get your priorities sorted. You need to hear it.

If you like Slint and black metal, though, you're probably turning your nose up at the idea. Perhaps the image of Vice-reading schmucks with ironic moustaches and no socks has entered your mind. Don't worry, this isn't false. This contains a member of Slough Feg and they're very much old, grizzly proper metal.

It's possibly not 'black metal' in the strictest sense but who cares about that? Not me.

I'm honestly struggling to describe it accurately. Every phrase I come up with just makes it sound like one of those bloody awful Isis clones.

It's bloody brilliant though and that's all I can say.

Oblivionation - demo

If you liked hardcore punk then you'll know the name OUT COLD. You'll know that they were one of the best of the 90s/noughties. Straight, no frills hardcore punk. Great stuff.

Some of them are back together and have formed a new band called Oblivionation. It pretty much sounds exactly like you want it to.

Dawnbringer - Into The Lair Of The Sun God

This is heavy metal. As in heavy fucking metal. As in false don't entry on pain of being burned and died.

Not only is it heavy fucking metal it's heavy fucking metal on Profound Lore. What else needs saying?

Synek - Paradiba EP

Get yourself some cold, minimal Polish noise. It's all quite atmospheric and well thought out. There's clattering and giant wooshes of scrawl but is still kind of ambient.

I quite like the label's brief manifesto:-

RANO

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Producing limited edition recordings of unique music from around the world. Our goal is to be sought after, not saturated. The items we create will never be mass produced.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇

Good things come in small quantities!

Nice they're doing it both ways. A short run (20) of well packaged, nicely done cassettes but also for FLAC download. Shows a confidence and belief in the sound. That they've actually put effort and thought into it. Y'know, not just something tossed out in ten minutes on Fag Tapes.

Iron Lung - Saboteur 7"

I'm going to take a wild guess that none of you were in the first 112 people to turn up at the Prank Records Festival recently and so therefore don't own this 7". 10 years ago you would have read about this 7" in a copy of Short Fast and Loud 6 months to a year later and with no way of actually hearing it. So yeah, great that it's up for free download.

As you might imagine it's a bit of a throwaway affair. But this is Iron Lung we're talking. It still towers above the likes of Apathetic Ronald McDonald.

Apparently there's a new LP coming sometime soon so this will do for the moment.