#r.e. seraphin

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: R.E. Seraphin

Whether kicking out raucous, throaty garage jams with Impediments a decade ago, or exploring power-poppier terrain with Talkies and more recently under his own initials, Ray Seraphin tells his stories in the radiance just above the fuzz. Sung low and hoarse, his lyrics blink in and out of reality, propelled by the instruments’ lively buzz and echo. Ruptured by an explosive guitar lead here or punctuated by a tidy, melodic bass riff there, this music doesn’t sit still. It’s familiar but captivating, a potent rock and roll fusion of lo-fi attitude and sweeping hit-record moves. Alex Johnson called his latest release, Fool’s Mate, “dynamic and buoyant… a bright, powerful album with lurid desperation creeping in from the edges.”

Here are 10 of Seraphin’s formative records, books, and movies:

Outrageous Cherry — Out There in the Dark

When I was 17, my bandmate’s partner loaned this CD to me and I held onto it for a number of years before she was able to pry it back. I loved the pairing of Matthew Smith’s arch wordplay and Larry Ray’s mercurial guitar work. They are one of the classic vocalist-guitarist duos to me — up there with Bowie-Ronson, Ferry-Manzanera, Rollins-Ginn. All of their albums are great. Not to sound trite but they really should be better known!

Ralph Bakshi — Wizards

When I was fired from my first job at Arinell’s Pizza, the manager gave me a 1/2 pint of Ancient Age, a CD copy of Butthole Surfers’ Independent Worm Saloon, and a VHS copy of Wizards as my severance package. He proceeded to drink the whiskey with me (at 9am) but, mercifully, stopped short of insisting we watch Wizards together. The film is lifted into classic status by Bakshi’s signature crude and wild animation style despite a fairly ho-hum future-fantasy plot. Still visually arresting.

John Barth — The End of the Road

I was an English literature major in college and, because I fancied myself a Serious Person, I read a lot of books I didn’t understand in my extracurricular time. I’ve read a few of John Barth’s more celebrated, metaphysical works but this early, "realistic" story is the one that stuck with me. There’s a bleakness and ugliness to the book that feels really transgressive — albeit not in an edgy, cornball way. Plus, as someone who probably suffers from some form of executive dysfunction, I somewhat relate to the protagonist Jake’s crisis of self.

The Real Kids — Outta Place

Over the years, my music has largely been referred to as power pop. I chafe against the term a little bit but can't say I’m entirely allergic to it. The Real Kids likely represent my first real interest in the genre. Their self-titled album is their best, most complete work; however, I more frequently listen to their New Rose-era.

Flamin’ Groovies — “Whiskey Woman”

Growing up, the Flamin’ Groovies were the consummate rock group. They represented band-ness to me in a way few others did. In my mind, it’s The Replacements, NRBQ, The Faces, maybe Cheap Trick, and the Flamin’ Groovies. Their early records have this cartoonish, shambolic post-Stones vibe I love — the Roy Loney effect. That said, I was drawn to this somewhat atypical ballad sung by their guitarist, Cyril Jordan. I think this is the song that made me realize you could end a song with something other than a double chorus.

Tommy James — “Ball and Chain”

My record collection did and does consist almost entirely of dollar bin records. I bought this record on a whim at a garage sale and became enamored of James’ weird, Christian bubblegum world. The fuzz guitar (maybe played by Tommy himself?) on this song is absolutely psychotic. Big fan.

Kirsty MacColl — “They Don't Know”

I discovered Stiff Records through a CD box set my mom owned. Initially, I was lured by the rockin’ entries in their catalog: Nick Lowe, Wreckless Eric, Larry Wallis, The Damned, et al. I also adored Rachel Sweet and Kirsty MacColl, though. A perfect song that contains the most affecting use of the word "baby" in the history of pop music.

Thee Headcoatees — Girlsville

I vaguely remember being stoned at a friend’s house when I was 16 and getting introduced to this Headcoatees album. I nicked a riff for one of my first songs, "Pig Out," which I licensed to a vegan pork rind company 10 years later. To this day, I don’t know what song I ripped off and it may not have even been by Thee Headcoatees. But Thee Headcoatees are cool, so here you go!

Flannery O’Connor — Wise Blood

I attribute my interest in American fiction writing to Flannery O’Connor. The atmosphere in her stories is so suffocating and anxiety-inducing — in a good way. I think reading this was the first time I understood the emotional impact great writing can have. I have a slight preference for her short stories now but, keeping in the spirit of this list, Wise Blood was my first, most enduring exposure to her work.

Zero Boys — Vicious Circle

I grew up in Berkeley, home of the Gilman St. Project, and I think a lot of my peers in high school expected me to be into hardcore. The Zero Boys are probably the one the clicked with me the most. They were melodic and seemed still tethered to rock n’ roll. Could be because they cited The Dictators as an influence. I was wearing a Vicious Circle t-shirt the first time I was dumped but I don't hold that against them.

#dusted magazine #listed #r.e. seraphin #outrageous cherry #ralph bakshi #john barth #the real kids #flamin’ groovies #tommy james #kirsty maccoll #thee headcoatees #flannery o’connor #zero boys

[bandcampsnoop]

2/21/24.

I was listening to the excellent new LP from False Tracks today and it made me think of this long lost LP from Oakland-based band Lenz. Lenz was active in the early 2010s - well before the Bay Area blew up as the musical mecca it is now considered.

As I was listening to Lenz and loving it's Television influenced sound, I realized that R.E. Seraphin was a member of the band. Seraphin popped up recently due to the fact that he is releasing a new LP via UK label Safe Suburban Home. Seraphin states that he is influenced by Green on Red - and I can see that somewhat hidden in the music of Lenz.

"Way To End A Day" was released by Oakland music store/label 1-2-3-4 Go Records. They had an excellent single on Sacramento label S-S Records.

#Lenz #Oakland #California #1-2-3-4 Go Records #R.E. Seraphin #False Tracks #Television #Green on Red #S-S Records #Safe Suburban Home #Bandcamp

[thehappywun]

Another share from about a fortnight ago, @ The Little Hill Lounge in El Cerrito, a great spot to hang out and watch bands. A group I haven’t seen enough gracing our eardrums and who ended their set with the majestic Sinead tune “Jump In The River".

And guess who gets a shout out after the first track AND NO ONE ELSE, ha ha.

#R.E. Seraphin #vallejo #power pop #indie #little hill lounge #sinead o'connor #jump in the river

[daggerzine]

My 10 current favorite songs!

Savak- up with the sun

Good Looks- if it's gone

Love Child- wait and see

Lunchbox- dinner for two

Bloodstains- public hanging

The Infinites- guilty man

Mary Timony- the guest

R.E. Seraphin- bound

The BVs- i can't stand the rain

Seasonal Falls- used to be fun

#Youtube

[reconprate]

R.E. Seraphin

R.E. Seraphin “Clock Without Hands” Fool’s Mate (03-22-2024) New album from the Bay Area artist.  

View On WordPress

#Youtube

[noloveforned]

no love for ned air on wlur at the top of the hour. it already feels like summer here in lexington so there are a bunch of songs with summer in the title this week. tune in or check out last week's show below!

no love for ned on wlur – june 3rd, 2022 from 8-10pm

artist // track // album // label herman düne // new jersey cross concrete // mash concrete metal mushroom // shrimper twenty-two degree halo // ripple // garden bed // sleeper girls // lust for life // album // true panther sounds helpful people // you don't have to know where to go // broken blossom threats ep // burundi cloud pin ups // frontwards // lee marvin // midsummer madness mary lou lord // some jingle jangle morning // she'd be a diamond // fire mj lenderman // hangover game // boat songs // dear life kills birds // offside // married // royal mountain onetwothree // oh boy // onetwothree // kill rock stars long odds // mostly roses // fine thread ep // (self-released) warren zevon // bad karma // sentimental hygiene // virgin timeshare // time out // yellow ep // osborne again local tourist // colors // other ways of living // lovers weekend simon joyner // caroline's got a secret // songs from a stolen guitar // grapefruit markus acher // you danced // like a plane ep // moone amanda whiting // temptation // lost in abstraction // jazzman shabaka hutchings // ital is vital // afrikan culture // impulse! luke stewart // patrice lumumba // 'assassinations' for free-jazz quintet // catalytic sound carlos niño and friends // peace four // live at commend, nyc cassette // rvng intl sam gendel and antonia cytrynowicz // wondering, waiting // live a little // psychic hotline james wavey // beach comber // snowy beach // dandy boy azar lawrence // shadow dancing // shadow dancing // tidal waves seduction // two to make it right // nothing matters without love // a&m yves jarvis // enemy // the zug // anti sofi royer // baby // cult survivor // stones throw partner look // speed limit // by the book // trouble in mind r.e. seraphin // stuck in reno // swingshift ep // mt. st. mtn. the ocean party // quarter life crisis // split // spunk quivers // when it breaks // golden doubt // ba da bing! bmx bandits // disco girl // c-86 // glass modern

#wlur #radio shows

[theshadowonthewall1]

Listen to the Playmoss playlist: Couldn't have been anybody but you - an indie music mixtape by shadowonthewall by shadowonthewall ► LISTEN UV - Happy Place (JMC Cover) Free Ice Cream - Holland 1986 fryturama - Me congelo Teen Idle - Sometimes Gaarden - I Am Tired shiny happy records - The Bunbury - Evil Knievel Cindy - Falcon Heavy R.E. Seraphin - Today Will Be Kind Lady Sometimes Records - [single] La Naissance • Night Doves The Radio Dept. - You're Lookin' at My Guy Remington super 60 - Still near Fort Not - Jennie Brown The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers Bryony Williams - I Can Be gladie - is that why you're here Soft Set - Never Die Shiny Times - So Alone Idi Et Amin - Japanese Sugar The Asteroid No.4 - The After Glow Cave People - Guilt

#indie #alternative #love #melancholic #shoegaze #college radio #jangle pop #Post-punk #tweepop #c86 #listen to #now playing #new music #powerpop #dreampop #shiny happy records #Happy Spendy #THE BETHS #airhockey #fred fredburguer #Kidsmoke #mascara ashes #The Radio Dept. #Remin

[dustedmagazine]

R.E. Seraphin — Fool’s Mate (Take A Turn/Safe Suburban Home)

R.E. Seraphin said of his new album, Fool’s Mate, that “on the surface, they are love songs but there's a suggestion of something more ominous.” To set aside the ominous for a moment, you can get a lot out of the surface alone. It’s an immediate, intricate record that satisfies with or without a deep listen. Take, for instance, the streaming “Lips Like Sugar” grandeur on “Virtue Of Being Wrong,” the warbling bass and sunny trumpets on “Argument Stand,�� or the shaggy, shimmering guitar solo on “Fall.” The band displays a sure-handed coherence and magnetism developed and then recorded live – with the exception of piano overdubs. The result is a set of dynamic, buoyant tracks that snap together a wide enough rock and roll tent to encompass Tom Petty, The Clean and a dash of Mark Lanegan Band, among others. Taken as a whole, Fool’s Mate is also reminiscent of Wilco’s Summerteeth, another bright, powerful album with lurid desperation creeping in from the edges.

Seraphin’s voice holds the center, bending lines into hooks. It’s a quality he shares with great power pop annunciators like Michael Stipe and Matthew Sweet, though, as a vocalist, he more so evokes the melodic hush of The Clientele’s Alasdair MacLean, Lloyd Cole’s breathy deadpan or, at times, the muted viciousness of The Jesus & Mary Chain’s Jim Reid. Like Yo La Tengo’s Georgia Hubley, too, Seraphin wrings a great deal of energy and melancholic drama out of his stage whisper. In contrast to the mix of 2022’s more blown-out Swingshift EP, Seraphin’s voice is given a great deal of room on Fool’s Mate. For all the robust buzz of music around him, here Seraphin’s lightly-fuzzed words always stand out. And it’s in both what he says and how that we return to the ominous something underlying everything.

It’s put most succinctly on “Clock Without Hands” (not a Nancy Griffith cover): “The sun is big and bright but the clouds keep on rolling in” —  just one example of a preoccupation with a gathering storm. If that observation is a good working hypothesis for how the stories on Fool’s Mate are likely to unfold, then it’s the album’s more macabre lyrics that provide the most convincing evidence of how innocent tips into sinister. On the pleading “End Of The Start,” Seraphin twists and abrades familiar moments of pop song romance to grotesque and captivating effect. Rather than get lost in someone’s eyes, the narrator’s love has “a smile [they] really want to eat” and skin that isn’t just perfect, a la Cole, but “glistening” and, further, glistening with a “dew” they “wanna feel.” Consuming, somatic details like these, conveyed by Seraphin’s earnest, stricken delivery, leap up through the album’s gleaming surface to show the human weirdness wriggling underneath, and hint at trouble to come. The brief, sparkling “Bound,” an album highlight, works against type from another direction. Rather than strain against entrapment, the line “no matter what you do to me/I will not be bound” sounds, coming from Seraphin, arch, flirtatious even, a protest that is itself bound to submit, and happily, given the interplay between the song’s characters. Here, for once, the foreboding is stalked by the joyful.

The album closes with a cover of Sinéad O’Connor’s “Jump In The River.” It trades some of the ragged, gleeful openness of the original for a focus and a steady rhythm, driven by a melodic bassline, that foreground the lyrics and, in doing so, create a different kind of intensity. You get the same sense of abandon to a bad idea that O’Connor delivers but from, perhaps, a more calculating place. In Seraphin’s hands, it feels somehow more intimate. Less a fight you’re overhearing than a conversation, or relationship, you might want to get out of. Put another way, “on the surface, [it’s a love song] but there's a suggestion of something more ominous.” In discussing the conception of Fool’s Mate, Seraphin also noted that the “sense of corporeality [was] intended to unsettle the listener.” As a coda, “Jump In The River” completes that welcome intention and bolsters what came before — it’s not hard to imagine “like the times we did it so hard/there was blood on the wall” being a line of Seraphin’s own — and works just as well as an introduction as Fool’s Mate starts over, pulling you back in.

Alex Johnson

#r.e. seraphin #fool's mate #take a turn #safe surburban home #alex johnson #albumreview #dusted magazine #rock #pop #garage rock

[dustedmagazine]

Dust, Volume 8, Number 6

The Orange Dots

As spring makes its way into summer, the Dusted crew digs in with our monthly collection of short reviews that hits on jazz reed outings, noise-encrusted drone, fuzzed out songs, blown-out garagey rock and abstracted music for film with plenty of stops in between. Contributors this time through include Tim Clarke, Justin Cober-Lake, Bryon Hayes, Mason Jones, Jennifer Kelly, Bill Meyer, Michael Rosenstein and Jonathan Shaw. Now on to Summer!

Zoh Amba — O Life, O Light Vol. 1 (577 Records)

O Life, O Light Vol. 1 by Zoh Amba featuring William Parker and Francisco Mela

Not every 21-year-old saxophonist can say that John Zorn put out their first album and William Parker plays on their second. Zoh Amba is off to a hell of a start, but it’s fair to ask, what’s going on besides a case of heavy company? On the strength of the music on O Life, O Light Vol. 1, the tenor saxophonist from Kingsport, TN has her free jazz fundamentals in order. Her broad vibrato and importuning melodies recall Albert Ayler and she stands her ground while William Parker and Francisco Mela make it move around her. If that sounds like a statement of what she thinks is right rather than what new ideas she has conceived, well, let’s see what she comes up with when she’s 22. Time is on her side.

Bill Meyer

Andrew Anderson — Vagrancies (Elevator Bath)

Vagrancies by Andrew Anderson

Between the heat and the cost of living, Austin, TX gives a body good reasons not to leave the house. Andrew Anderson has put his time behind closed doors to good use by magnifying and warping the sounds of a piano, electronics, distant wildlife and his pal Thor Harris’ piano string harp into audio environments optimally designed for wandering. Are you walking streets after dark? Taking up residence on the dial in between a couple radio stations? Putting your ear so close to your happy cat’s belly that you are picking up transmissions of dreams about birds they wish they’d eaten? Maybe you are, or maybe Vagrancies just makes you think that’s what’s happening.

Bill Meyer

Asher & Jordan — Foliage (Crash Symbols)

Foliage by Asher & Jordan

Foliage is an enticing alloy crafted by Airick Asher Woodhead, who records as Doldrums, and Jordan Christoff, half of cosmic new age unit PJS. Each artist brings their own signature flair to the party, yet as a unit the duo produces something unique. Theirs is a visceral, noise-encrusted drone that constantly searches to reveal its ever-evolving contours. Scything sawtooth waves and short, spiky loops carve their way through layers of dreamy synth ambience. Woodhead’s chosen moniker calls to mind a certain act from the 1990s that recorded for both the Kranky and VHF labels. This nicely packaged cassette displays elements associated with both imprints: imagine Stars of the Lid collaborating with Matthew Bower, covering Tangerine Dream. Woodhead and Christoff pride themselves on live recording, with no overdubs or computers involved. Pursuits this daring can lead either to happy accidents or to a muddled miasma. With Foliage, it’s the former, likely due to this pair’s long-standing partnership in sound.

Bryon Hayes

Ballister — Chrysopoeia (Not Two)

Chrysopoeia by Ballister

Ballister redefines refinement on refinement on Chrysopoeia, the trio’s tenth recording. Recorded in concert at Alchemia, an establishment in Krakow, Poland that’s hosted the combo many times since saxophonist Dave Rempis, cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love first convened in 2009, it makes a virtue of familiarity. The knowledge of one another’s moves that comes from improvising complete concerts, night after night and tour after tour, results in music that feels unerringly right at the same time that it makes the listener stop and ask — what the fuck was that? Sometimes the question is inspired by some unearthly sound, or a ratcheting of tension beyond the point where the wrench ought to shatter, or a sudden moment of restraint within the full-on barrage. Or maybe it’s asked after the CD’s 51 minutes have passed, when you’re wondering what just went down. Or maybe it’s when you take the long view and consider that these guys sound as committed and exciting as they did a decade ago. But the question is always asked appreciatively. Ballister has done it again.

Bill Meyer

Kevin Drumm — !!! (JMY)

!!! by Kevin Drumm

You might not see Kevin Drumm playing concerts, not notice labels releasing new LPs of his music, but that doesn’t mean he’s unproductive. If you head over to his Bandcamp page and subscribe, you’ll enjoy a steady flow of new music, ready for you to stream or download. “!” and “!!” were first released there in August 2020, but JMY proprietor Brent Gutzeit (also of TV Pow) has brought them into the physical world, albeit as a humble CDR. Both tracks last over twenty minutes and they offer contrasting immersive experiences. The first is a big blast of noise, which feels grating and monolithic until you give it your undivided attention. Then, it differentiates into a maelstrom of not-quite-identifiable sonic detritus, an audio equivalent to the dense mess that a planet might dissolve into after the monitoring galactic cops accidentally bump the Annihilate button while reaching for the cosmic snack box’s last donut. The second is quieter, but no less quizzical. It appears to be a mix of field recordings that have been woven together like memories in an unbounded reverie.

Bill Meyer

Alexandra Grimal — refuge (Relative Pitch Records)

refuge by Alexandra Grimal

Somehow, Swiss musician Alexandra Grimal has escaped my notice up to now. This solo soprano saxophone release, recorded in the double helix staircase in the castle of Chambord, France during a residency she spent there changes all that. Working with the natural resonance of the open, central edifice, Grimal’s eight pieces, ranging from two to 16 minutes long, utilize sonorous snaking themes that hang and twist back on themselves like the circuitous setting where they were recorded. Grimal utilizes a full tone colored by multiphonics, letting notes hang, filled out by the relatively short decay of the warm reverberations of the space. Grimal lets each piece develop slowly, never rushing notes or ideas, letting densities and volume ebb and flow. Take “château,” where sections drop to a near whisper and then ultimately build to long quavering tones that mount in surging waves. On “martinets,” short notes are placed with sharp attack against silence melding seamlessly in to “vent,” which weaves a songlike line with an abstract lyricism. That sense of songlike structure appears again with “escalier,” which builds from angular, melodic kernels that slowly accrue with a birdsong-like delicacy. A look at Grimal’s site reveals that she’s about to drop a recording of songs with electronics composed during the same residency at Chambord while working on a composition for four voices. Clearly, she’s a on a roll and worth keeping an eye on.

Michael Rosenstein

Bill Harris — Blinking Glue (Amalgam)

Blinking Glue by Bill Harris

If you attend free jazz concerts and multi-disciplinary performances in Chicago in recent times, you are likely to have shared space with Bill Harris. Sometimes he’s the guy at the drum kit, powering music made with Jake Wark, Matt Piet, Ishmael Ali, or the total improv trio of Harris, Jim Baker and Brandon Lopez (full disclosure — I wrote liner notes for that group’s forthcoming album, Dura). Other times, he’s recording the concert. On Blinking Glue, his skill sets of percussionist, sound capturer, and electronic tone manipulator converge. The 24-minute-long recording documents Harris alone, the day after Boxing Day 2021, but don’t call it a drum solo; Harris is a one-man band. The first sounds are scything feedback sweeps whose serrated edges would make many guitarists envious. But since the feedback comes not from a guitar, but from parts of Harris’ kit, it is integrated into the harsh punctuations and rushing, rhythmic forays of his drumming. If you are a fan of physical media, be aware that the compact disc, like many Amalgam releases, is a CDR; be further informed that the disc’s sleeve, which reproduces illustrations taken from a report on the condition of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor, is a thing of beauty.

Bill Meyer

Interior Geometry — Tore Through the Sky (Self-Release)

TORE THROUGH THE SKY by interior geometry

Jared Sparkes piles the fuzz onto his tuneful songs, hedging in bright, positive melodies with thickets of discordant guitar sound. Your natural inclination is to bring in the Guided by Voices comparisons, but tunes like “What Have You Done?” have more of Superchunk’s detuned vulnerability than Pollard’s teenaged kicks, and “Wet Swans Go On & On” echoes and hisses like a Pink Reason outtake or maybe a tune by the Quietus. This latest missive from Michigan’s burgeoning indie pop/punk scene bears the imprint of Fred Thomas’ influence; he produced and plays bass on two tracks. Mary Fraser of the Ypsilanti band Child Sleep sings soft, nearly twee vocals on “Tender Terrible,” musing that “you are something tender…in a terrible world.” But it’s mostly Sparkes, cranking up the noise to veil but never entirely obscure the sweetness of his songs. Buy the physical copy and you’ll get a spiral notebook full of sketches by Detroit-based artist Grace Millard, as well as photos and lyrics.

Jennifer Kelly

Masayo Koketsu — FUKIYA (Relative Pitch Records)

FUKIYA by Masayo Koketsu

Starting out with a burred surge, alto saxophonist Masayo Koketsu makes it clear that she understands the notion of tension and release. For the ensuing 46 minutes, she mines that command with an entrancing solo that draws on the vocabulary of free jazz, Japanese folk tunes, skronk overblowing and a canny balance of intensity and silence. That sense of balance defines the entire release. She embraces sections of brawny vigor, punching out squawking yelps imbued with harsh overblown multiphonics then drops to stark silence. Fifteen minutes in, she introduces a sliding theme that evokes the breathy phrasing of a shakuhachi folk theme and then decomposes it into skirling flutters which build to raw lamentations. The solo swells with a raucous astringency which carries through with chafed yawps and dark, abraded, mournful musings. But Koketsu’s underlying sense of pacing and structure hold this all together. She ties these discrete events together with resolute control and a clear sense of the trajectory of the piece, wending her way to a doleful conclusion. It is no mean feat to pull off an extended solo outing. With FUKIYA, Koketsu establishes that she is more than up to the task.

Michael Rosenstein

Bennie Maupin & Adam Rudolph — Symphonic Tone Poem for Brother Yusef (Strut)

Symphonic Tone Poem for Brother Yusef by Bennie Maupin & Adam Rudolph

Adam Rudolph played percussion alongside the great reedist Yusuf Lateef for much of his career, accompanying him in a spiritual/musical journey that touched on Eastern and African traditions as much as American jazz from 1988 until Lateef’s death in 2013. Much more than a drummer, he composed alongside Lateef on landmark albums including The World at Peace and Beyond the Sky. To celebrate Lateef’s 100th birthday, Rudolph joined with another celebrated jazz woodwindist, Bennie Maupin, to compose this tribute. Maupin is best known for his work on Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew, but like Lateef, he is a man of wide interests and skills.

Across these five movements, the two men traverse a varied, magical realist terrain, constructed from saxophone, electronics, voice and percussion. The first movement shimmers with latent energies, heated scrawls of saxophone across murmuring backgrounds of electronic tone, insistent rhythms of hand drums and tonal percussion sketching a time-path through primordial mists. The second blows a plaintive flute over humid silence, scattering xylophone notes like jewels in its wake; a steady pulse of drums, the crash of gongs, the glow of electronic keyboards, the intermittent shouts of one of the players join in an inscrutable sort of dance. Movement three wavers like a heat mirage, while number four rattles and mutters like a techno track. There is an intuitive give and take between the two players but also an ecstatic release, as mindfulness gives way to Zen-like no mind. Wonderful stuff.

Jennifer Kelly

Anthony Moore — Flying Doesn’t Help (Drag City)

Flying Doesn't Help by Anthony Moore

Having reissued 1976’s Out in 2020, Drag City continues their campaign to introduce twenty-first-century listeners to the wonders of Anthony Moore. Perhaps best known as a member of Slapp Happy and Henry Cow, Moore also released music under his own name, which has its own specific and addictive flavor. Broadly speaking, this remastered edition of 1979’s Flying Doesn’t Help belongs among the overlapping circles of a Venn diagram that includes art-rock, glam and post-punk. Though his albums flew under the radar at the time, they sit proudly alongside obvious reference points such as early Roxy Music, Eno’s Here Come the Warm Jets and Berlin-era Bowie. Opener “Judy Get Down” is an absolute cracker, crammed to the gills with sing-along hooks, while the remainder of the first side has plenty more fizzing pop gems and sneering choruses. However, Moore doesn’t let you forget his experimental credentials. “Ready Ready” opens with a glorious lattice of overlapping sheet-metal guitar waves, then its main riff is underpinned by what sounds like the pulse of a car alarm. The intimidating wall of noise that kicks off “War” goes some way towards evoking the horrors of its title. And the closing instrumental “Twilight (Uxbridge Rd)” is an uneasy send-off, pairing warbling synths with distant, eerie saxophone squeals.

Tim Clarke

Kyle Motl / Patrick Shiroishi — Apparitions (Notice)

Apparitions by Kyle Motl/Patrick Shiroishi

Who witnesses the ghostly visions referenced in this tape’s title? Might it be Patrick Shiroishi, a man of several saxophones, or double bassist Kyle Motl? Or might they be hoping to induce you, dear listener, to perceive things that type no weight on the scale? Neither player is the kind of guy who is inclined to be confined by mandates of instrumental or stylistic expectations, and both invest the music they make with a meaning beyond the undeniable impact of the raw scrapes, explosive snaps, coarse multiphonics and intricately twisted lines that they play. Since the specter that moves through walls can still stop your heart, perhaps they want to be apparitions, not see them. There is something undeniably eerie about these improvisations. Wear your garlic cloves, and keep your ears unstopped; there’s nothing going on here that you want to miss.

Bill Meyer

Nihil Nihil Nihil — Things Fall Apart As They Shall (Caligari Records)

Things Fall Apart As They Shall by NIHIL NIHIL NIHIL

That looks like a whole lot of nihilism — but what you get on Things Fall Apart As They Shall is a whole lot of death rock, heavy on the metal, partial to some post-punk. The spirit of Ian Curtis is being conjured by the unnamed vocalist (the interwebs are pretty short on info about the band), but it’s clearly schtick. Curtis came by his stilted, performative singing style honestly, as a byproduct of his anxieties and dread. Nihil Nihil Nihil do their best to summon dread and the four tunes (three originals and a cover of a Chameleons song) on this EP have a promisingly morbid sensibility. Mid-to-downtempo bummer rhythms, gits with some growl and gritty drama dominate. This reviewer responds especially well to “Further Inwards,” in which the band lets its goth thang strut. You can just about smell the mascara sizzling and it works. Just how morose, pessimistic and pissed these dudes really are remains to be seen. A full-length release would be revealing, if the world doesn’t beat them to the punch and completely fall apart. This EP isn’t quite the soundtrack for an event that doom-struck, but you can sure shake your butt to “Dance the End” while reading about the latest awfulness from Nigeria or Palestine or Ukraine. Now that’s some nihilism.

Jonathan Shaw

The Orange Dots — Nautic Girl (self-released)

Nautic Girl by The Orange Dots

This Norwegian duo present six tracks of blown-out garagey rock, with a variety of approaches making for an enjoyable ride. Tore Ljøkelsøy and Thomas Bergsten kick things off with a blast of grunge, then “Oh Lord Can You Show The Way” closes out with a gentle vocal duet. The guitar tone, buzzing and breaking apart into distortion, has an echoey, West Coast psych feel to it, while the drums fill the crevices with splashes, fills and rolls. The tick-tock drums and southern blues guitar of “Change Will Come” move from atmospheric jam into full-on heavy fuzz intensity. Amidst the distorted chaos, their intermittent dual-voiced vocals, simply chanting the title, work quite well. “Lost A Dream” alternates heavily blasted guitar and frenetic pounding drums with brief pauses for peaceful, reverbed vocals, then “Born Again” offers a break, with its quietly plucked guitar, gentle drums and airy vocals, slowly growing more tangled. After the fun instrumental jam “Duo For Mallets & Guitar,” with what seems to be xylophone and inner-space guitar noisings, the duo close out with a simple and visceral chugging rock tune. The wonderfully-named “Woke Up Dead With Nothing To Do” locomotives along nicely, with a break in the middle filled with tape delay overdrive and multi-limbed drum flailing. In its final minute the song returns to its opening chug and finishes with a strong MC5 vibe. Nicely done.

Mason Jones

R.E. Seraphin — Swingshift EP (Dandyboy/Mt. St. Mtn/Safe Suburban Homes)

"Swingshift" by R.E. Seraphin

Five originals and two covers from the Bay Area fuzz master, R.E. Seraphin thread the needle between twee pop and the melodic garage rock roar. Last time around, reviewing the Tiny Shapes disc in 2020, I likened one of his songs to “a summer radio megahit heard from several rooms away, bittersweet and slipping away even as it plays.” A year later, his tunes are similarly soft and scratchy, like a Jesus & Mary Chain song put on late at night, softly, so that you can barely hear it. So, while “Playing House” thumps and blares in an instrumental backing redolent of Exploding Hearts, its verse and chorus are murmured in your ear. Jangly “Stuck in Reno” mines the all-weather rock ’n roll topic of being out of place (in this case, in Nevada) but at a nostalgic low simmer, as if this disastrous road trip were already softened by time and memory. The two covers near the end demonstrate Seraphin’s excellent taste and bifurcated interests. “I’ll Be Around,” from the Wipers, gives him a chance to show off some lovely, driving bass and mine the power of a simple, urgent chorus. The Television Personalities “This Time There’s No Happy Ending” explores the poppier, trippier side of Seraphin’s aesthetic. If you like lo-fi pop of the Bay Area (Reds, Pinks and Purples, Umbrellas) or even New Zealand variety, check out Seraphin.

Jennifer Kelly

Paul Slavens — Alphabet Girls, Vol. II (State Fair)

Paul Slavens makes no sense. He's had some solo releases and played in some interesting Denton, TX-area indie bands. He's also been a radio host and a voice actor, though he admits to being “not too impressed” with his own vocals (maybe Fullmetal Alchemist doesn't prepare you for singing). His latest endeavor finishes a project first started over a decade ago. He now releases Alphabet Girls, Vol. II, completing a series of songs inspired by 26 abecedarian women's names. The songs provide a vehicle for the breadths of Slavens’ influences. Listeners who know him only has a member of the Travoltas or the Baptist Generals might be surprised by the jazz and stage influences.

Slavens sees himself more of a composer than a traditional songwriter and moments on the album tie in more to jazz or even cinematic scores (given a time machine, he could write for an early Bond movie). Scott Walker makes for a reasonable touchpoint, as does some of Tom Waits’ career, although Slavens’ voice is unlike either of theirs and his mania comes across more happily. “Ophelia” gives a tongue-in-cheek talk with the Hamlet character, its zaniness heightened by following the lovely “Naomi” and preceding the theatrical “Priscilla.” “Queenie” adds some bebop to the mix. The whole record precedes like this, gleefully skipping around, mixing playfulness and classiness, all developing Slavens’ strange ideas and strong compositions.

Justin Cober-Lake

Squirrel Flower — Planet EP (Polyvinyl)

Planet EP by Squirrel Flower

Squirrel Flower’s Ella Williams constructed Planet EP out of leftovers from her second, environmentally focused LP, Planet (i). Minimally produced, sparsely instrumented, these seven tracks showcase the lovely fragility of Williams’ voice, often twined around itself in translucent harmonies and agilely supported by flurries and bursts of acoustic guitar. The artist continues to make a distinctive space for herself in the crowded singer-songwriter space, breathing delicate life into knotty sentiments and leaning into the sheer beauty of her melodies. But while Planet (i) considered global, environmental catastrophe, Planet EP is far more personal, centered on the unsatisfactory dynamics of uneven love. “Open Wound” pokes at the underpinnings of a romantic relationship, the narrator seeking support and understanding, her lover unresponsive. The song builds in overlapping layers of meaning and tone, overdubbed voices swelling then fading as Williams intones “I won’t do it, I won’t do it” and a siren wails. “Your Love Is a Disaster” traverses similar emotional terrain, its plaintive request, “take me dancing,” evidently falling on unhearing ears. The Bjork cover, “Unravel,” is an unassuming triumph, Williams’ voice high and pure and echoing, making the choruses both vast and introverted. Heartbreak rarely sounds so spectrally pretty.

Jennifer Kelly

Teddy and the Rough Riders — Teddy and the Rough Riders (Appalachia Record Co.)

Teddy and the Rough Riders probably wouldn’t do so well at San Juan Hill. At least not in battle, but maybe their music would go over okay. The group doesn’t quite fit in anywhere, which means they fit in everywhere. With their self-titled debut album, the group shows its comfort blending related styles into a cohesive album. The country sound runs throughout the disc, but the band turns from 1968 San Francisco to 1972 Nashville to more modern Southern rock and country-folk with aplomb. Margo Price’s production (and a guest vocal spot) helps organize everything but never hinders the fun. Luke Schneider’s pedal steel adds plenty of flavor (even as he keeps his experimental side in check), but the songs each bring their own character. The use of the past peaks with cowboy closer “Hey, Richard,” a tribute to the mythology of Little Richard, a thought of the ghosts of both rock ‘n’ roll and country. The group might acknowledge its forebears, but it doesn't linger on these ghosts. Utilizing the best of a broadly considered country-rock aesthetic, Teddy and the Rough Riders make music more permanent than a poltergeist and more potent than pastiche, but still plenty playful.

Justin Cober-Lake

Terminal Nation / Kruelty — The Ruination of Imperialism (20 Buck Spin)

The Ruination Of Imperialism by Terminal Nation / Kruelty

With this downtuned, densely crunching and death-driven split, Terminal Nation and Kruelty seem to be militating for the accolade of heaviest record of the year. Regular listening may find you listing floor-ward, weighed down by the riffs’ irresistible gravitational pull. Terminal Nation’s side of the split is the real monster, a Boss pedal manifesto of lefty vituperation and revolutionary zeal. You usually encounter that sort of ethos on the punkier end of heavy music’s continuum, but Terminal Nation is pissed and convincing about it. Two-thirds of the way through “Curators of Brutality,” vocalist Stan Liszewski repeatedly hollers, “We have the numbers!” That’s direct action he’s demanding, folks. On the flip, Japanese hardcore freaks Kruelty do their characteristic thing: long, piledriving, midtempo beatdowns, with death metal-inspired growls aplenty. Both of their tracks are quite good. But it’s hard to match Terminal Nation’s energy and passionate political fury, which is serious stuff to shout about in Little Rock, Arkansas. Somehow, Liszewski’s vocals ride the top of Dalton Rail’s and Tommy Robinson’s amp abuse. He snarls, “There must be retribution / Before redistribution.” Right on, brother.

Jonathan Shaw

Rafael Toral — Music For Film (Noise Precision)

Music for Film by Rafael Toral

There’s no way that Rafael Toral, a rigorous student as well as a skilled shaper of evocative sound, is unaware of Brian Eno’s Music For Films. So, what gives with the absent S? The meaning turns out to be literal; this DL-only recording, which is available from Toral’s Bandcamp page, comprises music he recorded for a short film, Pedro Cabaleira’s By Flávio. If you caught it at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival, you could let me know how the music worked in that context. But it stands quite well on its own; so well that one wonders why it’s only being released in such an ephemeral format. This is Toral’s first recording in a couple decades to put the guitar first, and if you have a hankering for his 1990s work using that instrument, and especially Sound Mind Sound Body, then it’s time for you to pop the cork on that special bottle you’ve been saving. The long, unfurling tones are very much in the spirit of that recording, although years of experience in fundamentally dissimilar musical contexts ensure that this is not simply a matter of picking up where he left off. These days, Toral’s music is, like a lot of us, a bit roughed up, with gritty, ground-down textures pushing through the fluorescent glow. Rumor has it that there’s a new, proper album on the horizon; if this is an advance trailer, then the finished feature might be quite something.

Bill Meyer

#dusted magazine #dust #zoh amba #andrew anderson #asher & jordan #ballister #kevin drumm #alexandra grimal #bill harris #interior geometry #masayo koketsu #bennie maupin #adam rudolph #anthony moore #kyle motl #patrick shiroishi #nihil nihil nihil #the orange dots #r.e. seraphin #paul slavens #squirrel flower #teddy and the rough riders #terminal nation #kruelty #rafael toral #tim clarke #justin cober-lake #bryon hayes #mason jones #jennifer kelly

[thehappywun]

#youtube #live #indie #pandemic livestream #r.e. seraphin #red museum

[bandcampsnoop]

5/23/23.

I took a deep dive into the catalogue of Safe Suburban Homes Records (York, England) after listening to a split cassette by Walk Home Drunk and Comité balnéaire. The cassette is being co-released by Hidden Bay Records and Safe Suburban Homes. I'd only mentioned Safe Suburban Homes once...nearly a year ago when discussing the cassette release of R.E. Seraphin's 2nd album.

There's very few vinyl releases on this label, but the first release - a single by The Velts - is not only on vinyl, but it's just really strong. The band apparently has much more music (including a digital release in October 2022) that just "Rollercoaster" and "Rattle The Cage" on their own Bandcamp page. Surprisingly, they are from Malta - we've never posted about a Maltese band.

The two songs on the single recall the work of MGMT ("Congratulations" era), The Cure and Terror of the Deep.

#The Velts #Malta #Safe Suburban Homes Records #R.E. Seraphin #Walk Home Drunk #Comité balnéaire #Terror of the Deep #The Cure #Hidden Bay Records #MGMT

[bandcampsnoop]

6/18/20.

Well, I finally got COVID. Not fun, but with my original vacinnation and a booster, not the worst. It has given me time (between naps) to do two things: (1) Watch every monologue from Ricky Gervais' Golden Globe hosting...highly recommended, and (2) Listen to a lot of music.

We initially posted about R.E. Seraphin (Vallejo, California) a couple years ago, and now comes this EP out on Tear Jerk Records, Dandy Boy Records, Safe Suburban Homes and the venerable Mt. St. Mtn. I still think that Seraphin must love Game Theory and Let's Active. Now, I would add late 1980s Replacements. The Bandcamp page also mentions that Seraphin was influenced by Miracle Legion.

For those that don't know, Vallejo is pretty much midway between San Francisco and Sacramento.

#R.E. Seraphin #Vallejo #California #Ricky Gervais #Dandy Boy Records #Mt. St. Mtn. #Safe Suburban Homes #Game Theory #Let's Active #The Replacements #Miracle Legion #Tear Jerk Records

[daggerzine]

R.E. Seraphin- Fool’s Mate (Safe Suburban Home Records/Take a Turn Records)

Whoa, I  had just reviewed one of the singles from this LP a week or two ago and wasn’t expecting the LP for like another month or something  (it’s always  little surprising when it appears sooner than expected).

Seraphin has been on the Bay Area scene for a few years……maybe close to a decade and has put out some very fine indie rock/pop records. He’s got a full band here, not that I can name any of ‘em, but I know they’ve done time in some righteous combos (and not doing time in San Quentin, hardy har).

Right from the first cut,  “End of the Start,” the band digs its heels in and cuts a deep groove, while the swaying “Argument Stand” coulda been a hit on either AM or FM radio (take your pick) back in the day.  The next cut, #3, “Expendable Man” has some cool, buzzy guitars and a solid drum beat with a nice ol’ hook (also, don't miss the terrific “Clock Without Hands”).

I’m not gonna call Seraphin the 2020's version of David Gates or anything (not yet), but that wouldn’t be a bad place to be either. He’s smart enough to give Randy Newman a run for his money and I think I’ve name-dropped enough this review so give Fool’s Mate a listen or 10.

www.reseraphin.bandcamp.com

www.safesuburbanhomerecords.bandcamp.com

www.takeaturn.bandcamp.com

[reconprate]

R.E. Seraphin

R.E. Seraphin “Expendable Man” Fool’s Mate (03-22-2024) From the Bay Area, this is Seraphin’s second album.  Includes guitarist Joel Cusumano (Sob Stories, Body Double), drummer Daniel Pearce (Al Harper, Reds, Pinks, & Purples), bass player Josh Miller (Chime School, Extra Classic), and keyboardist Luke Robbins.

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#Youtube

[reconprate]

R.E. Seraphin

R.E. Seraphin “Bound” Fool’s Mate (03-22-2024) First single off the Bay Area artist’s second album.  

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#Youtube

[daggerzine]

R.E. Seraphin- “Bound” single (Take A Turn/ Safe Suburban Home Records)

I think the last time I checked in with this Bay  Area musician was his ultra-fine Swingshift EP from 2022 (and the Tiny Shapes LP that Mt St Mtn released in 2020). So it’s been a coupla years, but Mr. Seraphin hasn’t lost a step.

This new single has a nice dreamy effect to it with a nicely strummed guitar (with some nice lead guitar work in the middle), Seraphin’s just-above-a-whisper vocals (love the lyrics- “No matter what you do to me, I will not be bound…"), and a steady beat. It’s a fantastic song that I’ve played numerous times this week.

I’m looking forward to his next full-length, which will be here in April, and I sure hope he drops a few more singles between now and then.

www.reseraphin.bandcamp.com

www.takeaturn.bandcamp.com

www.safesuburbanhomerecords.bandcamp.com