BIG JAR OF MAYO

 

It was the turn of the decade and depending on where we were (geographically and/or spiritually) most of us were at some stage of managing a pandemic reality. Especially in retrospect, that period changed so many things about how we re/act and interact, how we exist, how we develop, how we create. It crushed some people (and some peoples) socially, but there were little rays of light that kept poking holes in the shrouds so many were living under. And it's in that spirit that I present the second cassingle from BIG JAR OF MAYO - this mysterious bunch of punks from (or probably not from) Nowhere, Wyoming started a ton of bands and a label called Deluxe Bias and started dropping outside freak punk tapes out of the sky and we ate them like candy. The energy that made NWI so appealing to so many seasoned '00s punks had been reborn in the Great North American Void while so many of us just wondered what was going to happen tomorrow instead of making something happen today. "Shit City" b/w "Another Ripoff" from 2021. Three minutes that were part of a larger (and greater) catalog that reminded us to live. 

SHIT CITY b/w ANOTHER RIPOFF

GRAND INVINCIBLE

 

More low-key genius from the EONS / SICK collaboration GRAND INVINCIBLE. Every beat is an earworm, every verse sounds like it was organically grown in the grooves of the dank basement funk records - it's effortless. Contraband Altars presents as an outtakes collection (whether that's reality or not? I have no idea...) with a B-side focused on DJ EONS ONE instrumentals, but literally everything these two touch is worth your attention. Perfect sunny Saturday swilling sounds. 

CONTRABAND ALTARS

PARTY JAMS 91

 

The name says it all. 

PARTY JAMS 91

The only question is whether or not you want to party.
Do you?

SCARLET WOMAN

 

Continuing on a theme (almost) this live ritual from SCARLET WOMAN lands like a black metal summoning interrupted by psychedelics and noise. Captured in København in 2009, a half hour of mystery and patience groans like your aching body...and then there was nothing. 

SCARLET WOMAN

A:S:

 

A:S: is a likely extension of ANCIENT SUPREMACY with help from Saevum from ABHOR and their noise is a murky, brooding black metal constantly struggling to restrain the urge to unleash. The tension created by their slow to midtempo pace is undeniable, just as the determined resistance to fidelity (and/or replication quality control standards) puts the listener on edge, searching for the dark melodies that are hidden in the mist. Sometimes A:S come off as pedestrian instead of primitive, but it appears to be a part of their (brilliant) plan...now if someone can snag me a copy of Messa Prima, the predecessor to Necrovento? I'll owe you a coffee and or bloodletting. Until then, listen to the vocals creak in "Antica Supremazia" and welcome to the dark realm. 

NECROVENTO

KEITH JARRETT

 

These sounds land somewhere between (and fluctuate in and between) introspective jazz, new age ambiance and epic orchestral soundtrack movements. You can put it on and get lost, then leave (mentally or physically) for a time....and when you return it will still be there. Even more interesting is that it might still be there after the listen is complete. I'm still not entirely sure how I feel, but please proceed. 

INVOCATIONS // THE MOTH AND THE FLAME

DISSÖLVE

 

Nostalgia is a frequent visitor to these pages; I suppose it comes with the territory when you're posting old(er) sounds and documents alongside newer versions, the comparisons provide context and the nostalgia is inevitable. We can't live in it though. We can't live in what used to be or what we used to have or what we used to be a part of. We can, however, use those lived experiences as a starting point for new ones. Somehow this wisdom relates to DISSÖLVE's debut release Oathbreaker and how I feel as I listen to twelve blasts of furious hardcore from Indonesia. This could have been a band I heard twenty (five?) years ago...ballistic crust tinged with DBeat and fastcore fronted by throat searing vocals from Sleepy...and those words should be all the motivation you need. The band's sound is embodied by "Unforgiveness," which lands near the middle of the track listing - the fasts are faster here, the vocals will raise the hairs on your arm and then after a breath or anticipation, DISSÖLVE the fiercest breakdown outro imaginable. But it's the whole damn thing and not just one track, it's blast after relentless blast for a solid half hour, and it's awesome. This tape from 2024 makes me feel alive and makes me feel like I have lived...which is putting that nostalgia to good use.

OATHBREAKER