Dec 27 : "bINAURAL bEATS (recorded/mixed/mastered practice)" - 185668232 (Philly)

New Sounds / Freshly Written & Recently Released (2013)

Philly Sounds!

TRANSIT TUNES

I walked into the show at Vox Populi late, and Philly sound outfit "185668232" was playing "Broad Street Subway", a work that draws on background sounds of the sub into a sound performance piece. (Alas, it is not yet mounted any place as a recording).

My friend, Iam S. Mick, is the mastermind behind 185668232. In fact, 185668232 is his social security number!

Iam is embarking on an ambitious SEPTA series that revolve around various background sounds specific to the respective travel modes or lines. The project is in its early stages and "Broad Street Subway" was one of the first he's performed for the public.

I've told him that the 15 trolley would be a good candidate for his series. Lots of sounds including some interesting loud and sometimes rowdy riders. ... So Iam is going to supply me with a recorder to go out and record some of the action on the 15. I hope I can time it right; some of the exchanges I've heard on the 15 are priceless! :)

Back to Iam's recent show. I had missed several of his shows due to my work schedule, so tried to make it to this Friday show, but, having a changed work schedule again, didn't make it to near the end.

185668232 played other new work besides the sub song, "$0.00 (fullsoundscape...)" was one of them. this piece is interesting in the way it incorporates ringtones into the body of the piece.

Another recent track, from the Summer, actually, is "bINAURAL bEATS (recorded/mixed/mastered practice)", which is featured right here on my blog page:

185668232 doesn't have any shows coming up in the next week, so you'll have to visit on line; here is the click ::: 185668232 on Bandcamp (CLICK HERE)

p.s.... Make my attempt at recording worth the effort. If you see me on the 15, start acting all crazy. Your rants will be immortalized on Bandcamp. haha.lol

p.p.s. ... Here is the click to the original interview I did with Iam two years ago. "185668232 - The Interview" (CLICK HERE) We first met when we did the interview, but have become friends since.

Dec 25 : "Christmas Colors" - Airiel (Chicago)

shoegaze at Christmas

Merry Christmas. This is "Christmas Colors" by Airiel ...

To visit Airiel's page, here is the click ::: Airiel (CLICK HERE)

Dec 24 : "Silent Night" - Stellarscope (Philly)

(shoegaze at Christmas)

Merry Christmas. Here's a video of "Silent Night" by Philly band Stellarscope.

To visit Stellarscope's page, here is the click ::: Stellarscope on Facebook (CLICK HERE)

Dec 22 : "Relapse" - Twin Wave (Brooklyn)

New Music / Freshly Written & Recently Released (Dec 3)

And headlining at Glasslands that night was Brooklyn band "Twin Wave" whom I've written about before. Prior to the show they had had a couple songs posted on their page and, of those two, "Relapse" was one that got a lot of buzz. I wrote about "Relapse" when I first heard of the band.

The band has a new ep out. It was officially and technically released on "December 3rd". They headlined and were last to play at Glasslands on the evening of December 2nd, so, by the time they got on stage and announced the ep, it became technically Decmeber 3rd.

The band played a variety of songs in their eclectic style, but saved "Relapse" for last. When they started to play it, the crowd went wild. Here is is again

Twin Wave doesn't have any upcoming shows listed on their page, but here's a chance to listen to all the tracks on the new ep ::: Twin Wave On Soundcloud (CLICK HERE)

Dec 05 : "Normal Man" - Desert Stars (Brooklyn)

New Music / Freshly Written & Recently Released (July 2013)

I stopped by Glasslands on a recent evening after work and saw a good show put on by Brooklyn band "Desert Stars". Was it shoegaze? Was it psych? Was it pop? Maybe it was a blend somewhere of all three. There aren't that many people out there doing this type of sound.

And the band also has five members, which is also a little unusual. Here is an excerpt from the band's page that tells the background story.

Desert Stars is a 5-piece band from Brooklyn, New York formed October 2008. Built on the creative output of classically-trained violinist Janelle Best, the band dispatches its own brand of shoe-gaze psych-pop with intricately-layered instrumentation, lush harmonies and atmospheric guitar topped by Best’s dreamy tenor. The effect is reminiscent of the album we only wish Phil Spector had produced for The Jesus and Mary Chain: infectiously melodic, pop-eccentric, and deliciously lo-fi.

The band’s origins weren’t particularly auspicious: front-woman Best was going through a major life change and came across a keyboard in the trash. Locking herself in her room for three months, she started composing what would become Desert Stars’ first songs. Friends, many with minimal musical background, came over and, compelled by the material, began to play.

Three years later, Best’s outfit has evolved to include Gregg Giuffre, Eric Altesleben, Ricardo Dengler, and Melanie Moser.

The band has come out with a new album. "Habit Shackles" was released just this past July. Here is a sample of a track from the album. This is "Normal Man" :::

If you'd like to hear more of their sounds, here is the click ::: Desert Stars (CLICK HERE)