STNNNG

Aggressively angular guitars mixed with spoken word vocals and shouting are always a recipe for success in my book. Clearly there is a deep love with Fugazi going on as well but I'd say its harder to find bands that aren't influenced by them so no points will be deducted.  There is also a liberal sprinkling of mathy structures but certainly not enough to be overbearing. At times I'd say they remind me if Slint was angrier and played faster, all in all a high compliment.  Not for everyone but a great redux of some classic 90's alternative indie rock with an edge

 Dignified Sissy
Fake Fake
The Smoke of My Will

PS. The cover art for Dignified Sissy is awesomely representative of how they sound

James Blake

Dudeman James Blake from the UK has been gaining all kinds of recognition as of late. Apparently he put out a few EPs in late 2010, and has just now released his debut solo album. A songwriter/ engineer/ producer with a nice voice and some slick synths, I just stumbled onto him the other day and have been listening to The Wilhelm Scream over and over. Here's a great live version:



And one more, a music video for Limit To Your Love, a cover of Feists song from his debut album.

Damiera - M(us)ic

There is a glut of post-hardcore groups (that's an understatement). It makes it hard to know what can be worth your time.  Damiera has gone through many line-ups in its life span, but M(us)ic era Damiera was really something special. I had the pleasure of seeing them twice during this time and its a shame they have all split to other ventures. M(us)ic is a great slap of very mathy post-hardcore with High pitched vocals. All of the songs on this album are their own beasts. As it stood they took their obvious influences and compounded them into this excellent release. please enjoy as it still is a high point of the genre.


M(us)ic

The King of Limbs

Last sunday night, after the grammys, Radiohead announced that they would be releasing a new album on saturday, and then decided to release it a day early. You can pick it up here for some cashola depending on how you like it. Thom Yorke decided to do some strange dancing to entice you.

The King of Limbs (2011)   

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble

Born out of the group composing for old silent movies, The name truly says it all if your looking for a reference. Moody and complex without being too overbearing in the best way possible, please check this out. 


Here Be Dragons

Who's Your Favorite Son, God?

This is what happens when Math Rock tells itself to go "fuck off". It's a highly coordinated ramshackle attack on the cohesion of what you would come to expect from gentlemen such as this.The music does tend to break the hazy clouds and pound out some honest to god crystal clear licks. However this is not the point at all. Promise there isn't really anything like it out there.

Out of Body Diva (2008)

One Song To Rule Them All: Matthew Ryan and Hammock - Like New Years Day (Edit)

Amazing Post-Rock band Hammock

 +

Amazing Singer-Songwriter Matthew Ryan

Fucking Tight

 Like New Years Day (Edit)

Hey! Tonal

Comprised of members from a handful of current and past math rock groups (maps and atlases, zzzz's, storm and stress, sweep the leg johnny)  Hey! tonal marks a less organic take on the genre, employing carefully programmed drums and samples. It is a bit free-jazzy using horns and structure wise as well. Really strong for members whose groups sound nothing like this.

Hey! Tonal

Zu - Carboniferous

This is an amazing amalgamation of so many genres. Hailing from Rome, Italy there is no doubt in my mind that whatever you could call this....Zu is the greatest at it. To effectively compile every style that is twisted by this trio you would have to include.

Jazz
Free-Jazz
Rock
Metal
No-Wave
Math
Punk
Noise
Experimental

phew...

It should be noted that this is the groups 14th release and shows with its laser focus. Fans of any of the above mentioned flim-flam please check it. 

Carboniferous

Appy Polly Logic

From the Burbs of Philly.
Four Piece
Jazz-Rock Funk Experimental
Saxophone as prominent instrument

Its fresh. Its crisp. Intentions that pay off!

BOOM!

Saying Hi

Your punishment Ninko for not posting music is to identify this character. You may utilize google if need be.

Mouse On The Keys

Piano Driven Jazz Math

As Metaghost will certainly attest to, Mouse on the Keys is some seriously amazing stuff. I cant think of another progressive jazz group that employs math elements that is really this fun and knows how to man handle a groove. The drummer for this group needs to give lessons to some of the other math rock groups, possibly start some sort of out reach program. I'm shamefully unfamiliar with these guys former group "Nine Days Wonder" but I'd be willing to bet its pretty straight amazing as well. Thank you Japan once again for sending us auditory delights.

mouse on the keys

an anxious object   (Track 2, Spectres Des Mouse, has possibly the single tightest drum lick of your life)

Monsoon Bassoon

psych-rock w/math elements

I don't really think psychedelic rock is a fair tag for this. Active in the mid to late 90's Monsoon Bassoon flits about in their own universe. Not exactly what I'd call a math rock band but they do exhibit occational time changes. Odd tunings and complex rhythms are more what you run into here. Guitars chug energetically through chorus's getting a tad bit stale after a few songs. In all fairness this is highly influenced by prog-rock of the 70's and more contemporary independent groups of the 90's. Its some good stuff and a nice hidden gem 

monsoon bassoon 

metaghostin' Vol. 2 - In Reality Is Reality Reality?

In Reality Is Reality Reality? - 56'40''
---
1 - "Start" (Mew / No More Stories... B-Side / 2009)

I didn't have an especially high opinion of Mew prior to No More Stories..., and much of their earlier material still grates on my nerves a good deal, but No More Stories... was definitely one of my favorite albums of 2009. (At least I think it was 2009.) This B-side is much less dense than most of that album, being mostly vocals and piano, but it does a great job of condensing the bizarre childlike melancholy that pervades No More Stories... into such a simple song.

2 - "October All Over" (Unwound / Leaves Turn Inside You / 2001)

There are a great many reasons to love this band, this album, this song, but I mostly just want to talk a little about the immaculate production. Entirely self-produced, they managed to really indulge in what a studio can offer without going overboard as many overwrought double-LP tend to be. It has a density to it, a great low-frequency heft, and yet never sacrifices clarity of each instrument carefully arranged within the stereo field. Even the cliché reverse guitar solo rips, searing the flesh off all your faces.

3 - "Visions" (Stevie Wonder / Innervisions / 1973)

Being mostly a dude who grew up on hard rock, cock rock, schlock rock, and other bullshit older brothers listen, I was never exposed to what Stevie Wonder was really about until college. Some times you feel dumb and sometimes you feel fucking retarded. Hearing Innervisions was one of those moments, but damn it felt good. In the words of MF Doom, "quite buttery".

4 - "Green Typewriters III" (Olivia Tremor Control / Dusk at Cubist Castle / 1996)

This album is just jammed with some of the dopest minute-long pop songs.

5 - "Lobster in Cleavage Probe (Suite)" (Hatfield & the North / S/T / 1974)

In local parlance, Hatfield & the North were the absolute sluttiest of the Canterbury bands. Yeah, yeah, dudes were instrumental beasts, but they were just laying down the most hilarious soft-jazz licks and singing about taking baths and eating candy bars. They have a choir to back up their Rhodes cheez and some guy going buckwild on the Big Muff bass. It's just thoroughly outrageous, Prog progenitors takin' the piss and having fun.

6 - "Don't Cry for Me" (The Zombies / Odessey & Oracle / 1968)

Sick harmonies, brah.

7 - "Heaven and Weak" (Maudlin of the Well / Bath / 2001)

What's the name of the story that's referenced in the lyrics? I feel like I knew it once, because there was a girl I knew who made a piece of claymation about it. Probably a Greek Myth or just a thing that doesn't exist.

8 - "The Great Below" (NIN / The Fragile (Left) / 1999)

Why is it that stoner kids are still getting high to Dark Side of the Moon when they could be getting all introspective and tripped out to this?

9 - "Virtually" (Soft Machine / Fourth / 1974)

Hugh Hopper (RIP) is easily one of my favorite bassists of all time and if you're into electric bass within a Jazz or Fusion context, you owe it yourself to go out and pickup this record.

Tangled Thoughts of Leaving - Tiny Fragments

         Jazz-core Math-core Manti-core

Australian *Jazzcore? YES PLEASE. These guys can be brutal as anything yet easily tone it down at a moments notice. Ridiculous technical skill showcased here with varying styles being represented.  Its really nice to see the piano also brought so much to the front of the pack and not cowering in the background. Call it what you will this is some amazing music.

*jazz cross bred with **grindcore.

**metal that incorporates down tuned guitars, fast tempo's and ***blast beats.

***an extremely fast  sixteenth note figure played on the drums

Tiny Fragments

Natsumen

First off would like to thank Metaghost for getting me into these guys years ago. There are really only a couple things you need to realize about Natsumen. They describe themselves as a "Japanese Progressive HardCore JAZZ Aggressive Improvisation ROCK band" and really I'd be hard pressed to argue with such a tagging.  This stuff is gold with noisy abrasive guitars, intricate drumming and soaring horns. Maybe think Broken Social Scene with some balls minus vocals. Awesome Sauce

Natsumen

Animals as Leaders

Avant Tech. Metal

At the moment mostly a vehicle for 8 stringed guitarist Tosin Abasi, Animals as Leaders lives in a world that embraces left field metal. However they do now have a full band, this release is mostly the brain child of Abasi. Tosin's riff work is extremely varied in its approach and really makes these songs something special. I felt like after yesterdays post both Exivious and Animals as Leaders (while maybe not in songwriting) have a heavy reliance on Jazz. Animal's uses fairly unique chord progressions which opens the drums and bass up for some interesting interplay. YES

Animals as Leaders

Exivious

Fusion Metal (weather channel metal)

Highly Tech. yet also very chilled and flowing, the wonderful fusion metal band Exivious is made up of members of the also amazing Cynic. Complex song structures and instrumentation abounds. The balance of Jazz and Metal is actually surprisingly equal. While having heard this you'd have thought they always belonged together. Extremely amazing.

Exivious   

Antarctic

Instrumental Post Rock Salad with a Balsamic Math Vinaigrette

Another member of the Hello Sir Records clan. While they share general qualities in common with Cinemechanica they employ much less punk aggression. Certainly not as angular as any of those groups either. A calmer more focused unit that likes to draw out their songs into twists and turns one might not expect. Lots of ideas we don't normally get a chance to hear (2:00 "Your Ships are Googlin Pretty Hard") I hear tell they are cooking up a new batch of cookies, color me excited. 

Antarctic
 __________________________________________________________________

As far as "home improvements" My friend and trusted advisory officer "metaghost" has offered to lend his mix tape mastery to our fine establishment. Everyone should check out Vol.1 "Akachashu". My thoughts on it forth coming.


-Acerola Bank

metaghostin' Vol. 1 - "Akachashu"

Akachashu - 47'20"
---
1 - "彩-SAI-" (ACIDMAN / Equal / 2004)

ACIDMAN is one of the various Japanese rock groups dabbling in elements of what is generally considered Post-Rock, elongated compositions that emphasize texture and atmosphere over traditional pop structures. Like many of their Japanese contemporaries, they're technically proficient to an extreme, easily obscuring the fact that they're a three-piece. They can be somewhat dull, as the songs all end up sounding very similar to one another, but that one song they write time and time again has its place. They also get bonus points for being a Japanese group that primarily sings in Japanese, rather than ramshackle Engrish.

2 - "Shikaku Maru Ten" (CAN / Tago Mago B-Side / 1971)

I know the proprietor of this here blog is not the greatest fan of these Krautrock legends, but it's hard to deny the undeniable groove monster that was Jaki Liebezeit. He killed every track like a trap-kit assassin. As with most songs from their golden era with Damo Suzuki, they set up a pulse and just ride out into the sunset, all while Damo jabbers about whateverthefuck. I think this one is something about his favorite shapes.

3 - "Terra" (Caetano Veloso / Muito / 1978)

I don't really know anything about the man, nor do I know much about Brazilian music in general, but I love this song.

4 - "We're Strangers Now" (Happy Body Slow Brain / Dreams of Water / 2010)

Recent years have brought a rebirth in the use of unvarnished 80's synth patches, presumably because they can be paired so effortlessly with auto-tuned vocals. Here we have some dudes, two of whom used to mine mopey teenage pussy while touring with Taking Back Sunday, freaking some chunky pop-rock over Moog washes and sick sick sick drumming. Lesson learned: everything's better with some sick sick sick drumming.

5 - "Hilo" (Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra / Security / 2007)

New-school Afrobeat gurus who recently took their shit to Broadway in order bring the sound of Fela Kuti to the masses. Though that Afrobeat sound is obviously present, they keep it modern by letting the songs maintain some semblance of pop structures with vocal hooks and a more concise approach.

6 - "Low-Concept, High Maintenance" (Grüvis Malt / Backout Smiling / 2000)

One of my all-time favorite bands, managing to evolve out of the stifling musical culture of late 90's frat-rock and rap-metal, of which their first full-length has a number of similarities to. At some point they were approached by Sony and recorded a 3-song EP of material that would later appear on "...With the Spirit of a Traffic Jam" in slightly different form. The vocal cadence here still carries an air of their origins as heirs to the throne of 311, but the band had started to move away from the PBR party sound and embrace their talents (and weirdness) to flex on DnB rhythms, distorted metal licks, and dissonant brass harmonies.

7 - "Guider Tells of Silent Airborne Machine" (Henry Cow / Henry Cow Box / 197X)

By the sound of it, this was a loose composition from the Unrest-era, as the outro uses some piano motifs from "Half Awake, Half Asleep". Even at their most free they maintain this strange vibe that keeps me locked in. Not their best work by any means, but an interesting piece by a unique group.

8 - "Andy Warhol" (David Bowie / Hunky Dory / 1971)

I've always wondered if he actually recorded this in one take as the intro seems to be suggesting. A great song on a great album.

9 - "A Bao A Qu" (Boris / Mabuta no Ura / 2005)

Wrap it up, B! Fuzzed out trashy anthems, Boris does it best. Blow out yr speakers!