It’s been a helluva past few years and I’m glad to finally share a glimpse of what’s coming ahead. This is “Night Crawling,” featuring a video by Mickey Miles.
There was this period around mid-late 70s when David Bowie and I would run into each other in New York city. There was plenty of talk about getting some work done but of course we’d end up running the streets, sometimes until we couldn’t keep a thought in our heads, let alone actually get a song together! One night we managed to meet up for a benefit concert where I taught him a viola part so we could perform together. When I wrote “Night Crawling,” it was a reflective moment of particular times.
That kind of NYC that held art in its grip, strong enough to keep it safe and dangerous enough to keep it interesting. I always figured we’d have another go at the two of us recording together, this time without the interference of being perpetually off our heads! The thing about creating music is the ability to divine a thought or feeling even when reality says it’s a logical impossibility.
John Cale presents “Night Crawling,” his first new music since 2020 when he released the single, “Lazy Day,” and a taste of much more to come from Cale. He wrote “Night Crawling” with a nod to ’70s NYC pre-disco, recalling times when he and David Bowie would traverse the city at night.
There’s a peculiar power to Caution’s driving, art-y dream pop. From the bluesy shoegaze romp of “Red Rose” to lo-fi electro ripper “Hand That Looks Like Mine,” Caution delight with sticky pop melodies and a deluge of sonic scuff marks. Songs are bathed in blinking fuzz, hypnagogic reverb, and cool charm, and the duo’s shared lead vocals take things to the next level. NoraButton’s wispy voice floats through the air like dandelion seeds, and Cash Langdon’s voice brings an endearing coziness—but melt the two together, and you get wonderfully pillow harmonies.
The band’s debut album, “Arcola”, evokes Chapterhouse’s synth-y shoegaze and The Jesus and Mary Chain’s timeless noise-pop, showing off their keen ear for texture and dynamics.
Caution has a new music video for “Volatile”! Spliced together from footage of their Spring tour, the video captures the spirit of being on the road: gas stations, long drives, standing around, friends, cats, the occasional show.
And for all its focus on nailing pop hooks and building interesting sound worlds, they’re also skilled wielders of bold, steamy guitars—the confident bombast of ”Swerve” is just good dumb fun and the duel between the central chiming riff and meaty fuzz on “Calendar of Waiting Stress” is an explosive sensory experience.
Not much is known about the young Dutch band A fungus, though they seem to derive from the same Amsterdam guitar scene that spawned groups such as Personal Trainer, Global Charming and Canshaker Pi and centers around a studio called Erik’s House.
Their song writing ability and math-y post-hardcore chops, however, are quite clear. On their self-released debut album “It Already Does That”, they evoke the wide-ranging experimental tendencies of recent British bands like black midi and Caroline—folding in the math-y tempo shifts of the former and the spidery slow-core and post-rock of the latter—plus various ‘90s indie rock, emo and post-hardcore bands. Ideas may be flowing 100 miles a minute on this record, but this band does a convincing job of balancing their penchant for stop-starts and intricate guitar work with delicate, rewarding hooks.
“It Already Does That” is the work of a band who’s seemingly delighted by the thought of throwing listeners off their scent, with disintegrating guitar lines at the centre of everything they do, but their sensitive vocals are what really drives this album home. The taut vocals of “Health” that mirror its rollicking guitars are positively invigorating, and the tender vocals of “Mark’s Bag” are surprisingly singalong-worthy for an album this mercurial. That quiet noise rock. A loud timbre but a quiet volume. Everything is noise but so delicate too.
The Topshelf Records 2021-2022 Label Sampler! Free or PWYW with all proceeds going to National Network of Abortion funds.
This is the culmination of a year’s worth of work with and for artists that we’re so fortunate, excited, and thankful to be affiliated with. It’s been the most surreal of years, but has also been one of the strongest in terms of musical output that our label has ever had. Ty for supporting independent music!
released July 29th, 2022
Thank you to: Cool Original, Mal Devisa, supernowhere, Gulfer, Olivia Kaplan, Weatherday, Zenizen, Sweet Pill, Thanya Iyer, Bellows, Really From, Lunarette, Ratboys, Record Setter, Gregory Uhlmann, Elephant Gym, A Great Big Pile of Leaves, & Mid-Air Thief
Greta Kline has spent a few years living with her family and writing a mere 100 songs, turning her empathy anywhere from the navel to the moon, rendering it all warm, close and reflexively humorous. In music, everyone loves a teen sensation, but Kline has never been more fascinating than now, a decade into being one of the most prolific songwriters of her generation.
Meanwhile Frankie Cosmos, a rare, dwindling democratic entity called a band, had been on pandemic hiatus with no idea if they’d continue. In the openness of that uncertainty they met up, planning to hang out and play music together for the first time in nearly 500 days. There, whittling down the multitude of music to work with, they created “Inner World Peace”, a collection of Greta’s songs changed and sculpted by their time together. While Kline’s musical taste at the time was leaning toward aughts indie rock she’d loved as a teenager, keyboardist Lauren Martin and drummer Luke Pyenson cite “droning, meditation, repetition, clarity and intentionality,” as well as “‘70s folk and pop” as a reference for how they approached their parts. Bassist/guitarist Alex Bailey says that at the time he referred to it as their “ambient” or “psych” album. Somewhere between those textural elements and Kline’s penchant for concise pop, “Inner World Peace” finds its balance.
Instant centerpiece “One Year Stand” is a small snowglobe of intimacy recalling the softest moments of Yo La Tengo’s And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out. Lifted by Martin’s drones on Hammond organ and synthesizer, it could be played on repeat in a loop.
I like to think it’s obvious how Greta’s vocals were recorded: late at night as we all sat by in low light, transfixed as she sings “I’m not worried about the / rest of my life / because you are here today / I go back in time / I’m a cast iron.” The voices of Kline and Martin, who have sung together since middle school, blend seamlessly.
The first order of business upon setting up camp in Brooklyn’s Figure 8 studios was to project giant colourful slides the band had made for each track. Co-producing with Nate Mendelsohn, my Shitty Hits Recording partner, we aimed for FC’s aesthetic idiosyncrasies to shine. The mood board for “Magnetic Personality” has a neon green and black checkerboard, a screen capture of the game Street Fighter with “K.O.” in fat red letters, and a cover of Mad Magazine that says “Spy Vs. Spy! The Top Secret Files.” On tracks like “F.O.O.F.” (Freak Out On Friday), “Fragments” and “Aftershook,” the group are at their most psychedelic and playful, interjecting fuzz solos, bits of percussion, and other sonically adventurous ear candy. An internal logic strengthens everything, and in their proggiest moments, Frankie Cosmos are simply a one-take band who don’t miss. When on “Inner World Peace” they sound wildly, freshly different, it may just be that they’re coming deeper into their own.
Throughout the album there are plays on the notion of feeling seen or invisible, as in “Magnetic Personality” when Kline sings “ask me how I am and I won’t really say,” or in “One Year Stand” when she says “maybe I’m asking myself.” Kline emphasizes that this was her first group of songs in years that weren’t written while on tour, but rather with ample time on her hands. She reflects on past selves in “Abigail”
(“that version of myself I don’t want back”) and “Wayne” (“Like in first grade / I went by Wayne / I always had / another name”). If we’re alone, what becomes of the things we see? As in “Fruit Stand,” Kline asks “If it’s raining and I can’t feel it, is it raining?”
“Inner World Peace” excels in passing on the emotions it holds. When in the towering “Empty Head” Kline sings of wanting to let thoughts slide away, her voice is buoyed on a bed of synths and harmonium as tranquility abounds. When her thoughts become hurried and full of desire, so does the band, and she leaps from word to word as if unable to contain them all. As a group, they carry it all deftly, and with constant regard for Kline’s point of view.
Says Greta, “To me, the album is about perception. It’s about the question of “who am I?” and whether or not the answer matters. It’s about quantum time, the possibilities of invisible worlds. The album is about finding myself floating in a new context. A teenager again, living with my parents. An adult, choosing to live with my family in an act of love. Time propelled us forward, aged us, and also froze. If you don’t leave the house, who are you to the world? Can you take the person you discover there out with you?”
On “Nowhere LA” – LA as in Louisiana not Los Angeles, Why Bonnie‘s lead singer Blair Howerton uses a broken down car on an isolated road to describe a stalled relationship: “I know I walk fast, but my heart moves so slow.”
Blair offers: “Inspired by a true story of breaking down in the middle of nowhere Louisiana with an ex, this song is about looking at a relationship in the rear view mirror. Once you’re further away from a place, you can see it all more clearly and with a bit more understanding.”
“Why Bonnie: 90 In November” Though they’ve been rehearsing for this moment for some time, releasing EPs that skew towards indie pop since 2018, Why Bonnie appear fully formed on their debut album “90 in November“. Out via Austin-based Keeled Scales, their warm, twangy brand of indie rock feels right at home with that of their label-mates Sun June, Good Looks and Katy Kirby. The label’s recent, glorious run has seen them uplifting a unique rock scene that captures the simultaneously grounded, yet majestic nature of their home state—“90 in November” is just the latest entry. Why Bonnie’s named influences are acts like Sheryl Crow, The Replacements and Townes Van Zandt. With inspiration taken from all sides of rock music, it’s easy to see how they seamlessly straddle the lines between several genres themselves. They make indie rock, sure, but there’s an undeniable current of country music in there, as well as some nods to pop songwriting in their hooky, melodic execution. These disparate influences also bolster their music with a sense of familiarity.
“Nowhere, LA” is the final single before the August 19th album release and follows “Sailor Mouth,” “HotCar,“90 in November,” and “Galveston.”
The Kinks have announced a sprawling box set celebrating the 50th anniversaries of 1971’s “Muswell Hillbillies” and 1972’s “Everybody’s in Show-Biz – Everybody’s a Star”.
The deluxe box set – which will arrive on September 9th features newly remastered versions of both albums on both vinyl and CD, as well as 11 new remixes courtesy of co-founder Ray Davies. An accompanying Blu-ray features a previously unseen, digitally restored 1971 home movie. Further bonus material includes a 52-page deluxe hardcover book, a Kinks metal badge, glossy photo prints of the band and a “London Roots” map highlighting historical Kinks-related locations.
Released in November 1971, “Muswell Hillbillies” was the band’s first album with their new label, RCA Records. The LP was heavily influenced by Ray and Dave Davies’ London upbringing, with the brothers delving into various facets of working-class life for inspiration.
Though “Muswell Hillbillies” was a commercial failure upon release, its place among Kinks fans has continued to grow over the years. In retrospect, many regard it as a turning point for the group, leading them to more ambitious and personal material.
“Muswell Hillbillies” is one of my favourite and collectable Kink’s albums,” Dave Davies noted in a press release. “It’s a bit of a backstory to the Davies family and the characters involved.”
“Now with a new record company and a new image, I could bring some of the old wild western spirit into my music,” recalled Ray Davies. “These albums capture the the re-emergence of the Kinks as a touring band.”
“Everybody’s in Show-Biz” was part studio album, part live record. The studio material examined Hollywood and the American obsession with fame. Meanwhile, the live material, captured during two nights at New York’s Carnegie Hall, featured the Kinks performing many of their “Muswell Hillbillies” songs in concert, along with several favourites.
The Muswell Hillbillies/Everybody’s In Show-Biz deluxe box set can be pre-ordered now, with several variations available. 6LP – Packaged inside a newly designed two-part box, this deluxe set includes re-mastered audio from the original Muswell Hillbillies and Everybody’s In Show-Biz sources. Pressed on 6 colour vinyl and 4 CDs. A bonus heavy weight black vinyl of 11 new Ray Davies Remixes. A Blu-Ray video of ‘Ray Davies 1971 Home Movie’. Also included in the release is a ‘London Roots Map’ of all the Kinks landmarks, x6 glossy photos, a Kinks Pin-Badge and 52pp hardback book including rare and unseen band photos and quotes.
The Kinks ‘Muswell Hillbillies’ & ‘Everybody’s In Show-Biz’ 50th anniversary release is available as a deluxe, expanded, remastered re-issues box set, LPs, CDs and digital.
Melbourne-based psych outfit The Baudelaires are set to release their sophomore album “TiLT” on Friday, September 2nd, 2022. Recorded in Venice, Italy and in their hometown of Melbourne, “TiLT” is set to be released through Cheersquad in Australia/New Zealand, Kozmik Artifactz in Europe and LittleCloud Records in the US.
Following on from their acclaimed debut album “Musk Hill” (which followed the EP “Be a Baudelaire”), the band, which takes its name from the decadent 19th century poet Charles Baudelaire, embarked on two European tours sharing the stage with psych rock heavyweights Dungen, Wand, Frankie and the Witch Fingers and The Zombies on festival bills such as GetMad! Festival in Madrid and Mayday Mumbo Festival in Barcelona.
Before the world shut down, The Baudelaires were invited to both Sydney and Melbourne Psych Festivals and toured the east coast of Australia with Italian legends New Candys, as well as playing two very special regional Victoria shows with New York’s Mystery Lights.
The Baudelaires hypnotic contact high psych-rock sounds combine rich analogue fuzz and reverb drenched licks with an occasional single-minded motorik drive.
The group has been compared to other modern-day dandies like the Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Warlocks, The Black Angels and Thee Oh Sees as well as earlier custodians like Spaceman 3 and The Jesus and Mary Chain, and originators like Texan psych pioneers The Thirteenth Floor Elevators and The Red Crayola and the trance-inducing whips and furs clamour of Plastic Exploding Inevitable-era Velvet Underground and like-minded ‘60s New York radical minimalists The Godz.
With their debut album, Texas-to-New-York transplants Why Bonnie offer a dreamy, thoughtfully composed work filled with picturesque moments of a life in motion. The shared singles take us all over, from “Galveston” to “Nowhere, LA,” in which lead singer Blair Howerton croons about a relationship that’s stalled like a car on the Louisiana pavement.While the album may be called “90 In November”, this summer-soaked set will provide plenty of apt listening time in August.
“90 in November”, the first full-length LP from Texas quintet Why Bonnie, crashes into existence with a squeal of feedback and a burst of distorted guitar. It’s a dynamic introduction to a more raw-edged indie sound from a band who have matured from bedroom dream pop into a sophisticated rock act, their evolving sound a reflection of the journey undertaken by songwriter Blair Howerton on this vividly rendered collection of songs.
As much a product of songwriter Howerton’s love for the intimate song writing of fellow Texans Townes Van Zandt and Blaze Foley as it is her affection for the alt-rock of the Lemonheads and the Replacements, the eccentric pop of Sparklehorse, and “definitely Sheryl Crow, “90 in November” is a meditation on the pains and pleasures of nostalgia and a lesson in learning how to look back at the people, places, and experiences that have shaped us, with room for both unvarnished honesty and rose-tinted melancholy. “90 in November” is about “coming to terms with your past to accept all of the sweet and all of the bitter,” says Howerton.
Already in the midst of a major life change, Howerton’s feeling of being between worlds was compounded when quarantine hit and she found herself, like so many others, stuck in her apartment—about as far away from the wide-open spaces of Texas as one can possibly get. It was in this environment that she began to write songs parsing out the complicated, mixed emotions associated with building a new home while attempting to make sense of the one she had left behind.
As a result, “90 in November” is a trip through Howerton’s inner world, but it’s also a road trip through Texas. Often it is both at once. The songs are full of poetic, cinematic lyrics that flash like colourful scenes glimpsed from the window of a car as it barrels along an interstate highway cutting through the Lone Star State, each one a road stop revealing a different facet of Howerton’s experience.
New single out now from Why Bonnie’s debut album “90 in November” – out 8/19 on Keeled Scales Recordings.
