#Living Hour

[iamthecrime]

#central heat exchange #living hour #tulips at my bedside #music

[dustedmagazine]

Tim Clarke’s 2022: Light at the end of the tunnel?

The Smile photo by Alex Lake

I don’t want to curse anyone by saying it out loud, but could 2022 be the turning point after a truly horrendous couple of years? For me, the very fact that two-fifths of Radiohead put out an excellent album already makes this year notable. However, I was also lucky enough to get great new albums by favorites Big Thief, Dry Cleaning, and Aldous Harding. Plus, this year I’ve seen more live music than the previous two years combined. Here’s to 2023 continuing this upward trajectory of more great music, both recorded and live.

1. The Smile — A Light For Attracting Attention (XL)

Any Radiohead-related project is guaranteed to pique my interest, but one involving Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood? Having said that, even I was surprised at just how good A Light For Attracting Attention turned out. Veering from spectral balladry to twitchy post-punk, there’s not only variety here, but also a satisfying narrative arc, some great playing from all three members, plus the exciting prospect of another Smile album in the near future.

2. Big Thief — Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You (4AD)

Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You by Big Thief

After giving us two albums in 2019, Big Thief returned with a double album of surprising diversity and consistently high quality. At its best (“Little Things,” “Sparrow,” “Simulation Swarm”), DNWMIBIY feels like Big Thief could go anywhere from here, and if the rumors are true, there are as many more songs on the cutting-room floor as made it onto this 20-track monster. Here’s to another Big Thief album in 2023.

 3. Dry Cleaning — Stumpwork (4AD)

Dry Cleaning’s second album in two years catches this inimitable London band on a roll. There’s enough musical evolution from last year’s New Long Leg to ensure this isn’t just more of the same, though Florence Shaw’s lyrics and delivery are as funny as ever. Plus, Tom Dowse continues to be one of the most inventive and tuneful electric guitarists of recent years.

 4. Black Country, New Road — Ants from Up There (Ninja Tune)

Ants From Up There by Black Country, New Road

Much like Bowie passing away soon after the release of Blackstar, Isaac Wood leaving Black Country, New Road soon after the release of Ants from Up There is the kind of artistic move that feels preordained. This is a massive, ridiculous, intricate, and deeply moving album, and one that I doubt the remaining members of the band will top in Wood’s absence.

5. Stephen Becker — A Calm That Shifts (NNA Tapes)

Apparently, Stephen Becker worked on his solo debut for years between playing in countless other bands — and you can hear it. A Calm That Shifts is the kind of debut that spotlights a talent who has been quietly working in the margins of other people’s music for a long time, refining his craft. This is the kind of expansive folk-pop that has the songs, subtlety, and depth to slowly win you over.

 6. billy woods — Aethiopes (Backwoodz Studioz)

Aethiopes by billy woods

It’s rare I listen to hip-hop at all, let alone hear an album that blows me away, but getting billy woods’ Aethiopes in the Mid-Year Exchange was a revelation. I haven’t been this excited about a hip-hop album since Cannibal Ox’s The Cold Vein, way back in 2001. On Aethiopes, woods paints vivid pictures of urban desolation, set to producer Preservation’s woozy patchwork of old blues and jazz samples.

7. Aldous Harding — Warm Chris (4AD)

It’s hard to know how to take Aldous Harding’s shapeshifting vocal persona. On Warm Chris she’s more playful yet more seriously committed than ever to all the roles in her songwriting, making for some deliciously disorientating pop music. Perhaps not as consistent as her last full-length, Designer, but certainly as charming.

 8. Living Hour — Someday is Today (Next Door)

Though it includes my favorite song of the year in “Feelings Meeting,” Living Hour’s third album has plenty of other great songs. “Feelings Meeting” stands out as a thrilling shoegaze masterstroke, while most of the rest of the record is the kind of narcotized dream-pop Beach House do so well.

 9. Daniel Rossen — You Belong There (Warp)

You Belong There by Daniel Rossen

God knows when we’ll next get another Grizzly Bear record. Until then, Daniel Rossen’s solo debut will more than suffice. On You Belong There, his guitar playing is immaculate, and he doesn’t spare any indulgence on the arrangements either, layering instruments liberally across these stridently morose compositions.

10. Skullcrusher — Quiet the Room (Secretly Canadian)

Quiet the Room by Skullcrusher

It’s been a long time since I’ve heard an album playing in a record store full stop, let alone one that’s prompted me to ask at the desk what’s playing on the turntable. So it was with Skullcrusher. It immediately reminded me of Grouper, but less shy and less smothered in hazy melancholy. Quiet the Room is still a deeply introverted record, but one whose sounds are unafraid to shine, mainly thanks to Big Thief producer Andrew Sarlo’s sterling job at the desk. 

Another excellent ten (in alphabetical order):

Oren Ambarchi / Johan Berthling / Andreas Werliin — Ghosted (Drag City)

Ellen Arkbro & Johan Graden — I get along without you very well (Thrill Jockey)

Disassembler — A Wave From A Shore (Western Vinyl)

Goon — Hour of Green Evening (Demode)

Gwenno — Tresor (Heavenly)

Horse Lords — Comradely Objects (RVNG Intl.)

Cate Le Bon — Pompeii (Mexican Summer)

Market — The Consistent Brutal Bullshit Gong (Western Vinyl)

Shearwater — The Great Awakening (Polyborus)

Winged Wheel — No Island (12XU)

Tim Clarke

#dusted magazine #yearend 2022 #tim clarke #the smile #big thief #dry cleaning #black country new road #stephen becker #billy woods #aldous harding #living hour #daniel rossen #skullcrusher

[chaospanics]

#living hour #2022

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

#yeehaw #1k #5k #10k #posts that got cursed. blasted. im making these tag updates after... 19 hours? #also i have been told it should say speech loss bc nonverbal specifically refers to the permanent state. did not know that! #unfortunately i fear it is so far past containment that even if i edited it now it would do very little. but noted for future reference #edit 2: nvm enough ppl have come to rb it from me directly that i changed the wording a bit. hopefully this makes sense #also. in case anyone is curious. though i doubt anyone who is commenting these things will check the original tags #1) my friend did not do this on purpose in any way. it was not intended to distract me or to hit on me. im a lesbian hes a gay man. cmon now #he felt very bad about it afterwards. i thought it was hilarious but it was very embarrassed and apologetic #2) “why didn't he use 🫵🏼?” didn't exist yet. “why didn't he use 🆗?” dunno! we'd been using a lot of hand emojis. 👌🏼 is an ok sign #like it makes sense. it was just a silly mixup. also No i did not invent 👉🏼👌🏼 as a gesture meaning sex. do you live under a rock #3) nonspeaking episodes are a recurring thing in my life and have been since i was born. this is not a quirky one-time thing #it is a pervasive issue that is very frustrating to both myself and the people i am trying to communicate with. in which trying to speak is #extremely distressing and causes very genuine anguish. this post is not me making light of it it's just a funny thing that happened once #it's no different than if i post about a funny thing that happened in conjunction w a physical disability. it's just me talking abt my life #i don't mind character tags tho. those can be entertaining. i don't know what any of you are talking about #Except the ppl who have said this is pego/ryu or wang/xian. those people i understand and respect #if you use it as a writing prompt that's fine but send it to me. i want to see it #aaaand i think that's it. everyday im tempted to turn off rbs on it. it hasn't even been a week

[perfectlyripeclementine]

calling my lover "mine" but not in the way that my toothbrush or notebook are mine, mine in the way my neighborhood is mine, and also everybody else's, "mine" like mine to tend to, mine to care for, mine to love. "mine" not like possession but devotion.

#nonbinary love #nblnb yearning #nb4nb #nblnb #wholesomeposting #yearning hours #ive been thinking about how some languages dont have a possessive tense #so you dont say “i have a thing” but rather “a thing is by me” #and like im not usually one for psycho linguistics and like critical thoughts etc etc etc #but i really like the framework of responsibility/commitment rather than ownership #i think about this mostly in terms of ecology #and relation to land #but i also love it as it applies to language shared between lovers #like i LOVE calling them mine or for them to call me theirs #but i'm also nonmonog and that was kinda weird to square for a while #and it clicked one time when i was talking about my neighborhood and i was like well #when i say my neighborhood or my city it's understood i'm not taking it away from anybody else #its understood i just mean the city where i live #so why cant we apply the same to lovers? #mine in the way i want to show up for you again and again #ok #done now

[sliime]

#a classic #Living Hour #Inide #Alternative #Canadian music #Youtube

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

woke up and someone spilled vanilla extract all over my dash, so as punishment you strange little beasties are getting all the VANILLA FACTS i know:

vanilla is the 2nd most expensive spice in the world (2nd to saffron)

which is why more than 99% of what we call "vanilla extract" is actually vanillin (vanilla's dominant flavor compound) and is not extracted from real vanilla.

luckily, even professionals struggle to tell the difference when it comes to things like baked goods. but there is a distinct difference in non-heat treated products like vanilla ice cream. real vanilla has a more complex, individualized flavor profile.

why is vanilla so expensive? because it is a ridiculously delicate & demanding crop. complete primadonna.

vanilla beans come from vanilla orchids. these crazy flowers bloom for A SINGLE DAY and have to be HAND-POLLINATED in a process that is exhausting, delicate, and requires specialist knowledge passed down over generations.

then, if you're lucky, you get vanilla beans.

which then require months of further specialized treatment.

the entire process takes about a year and can go wrong at any stage

vanilla has been cultivated for over 800 years (possibly much longer). the first known cultivators are the Totonac, an indigenous people of Mexico.

the Aztecs used it as a sweetener to balance out the bitter taste of cocoa. it was popular in a drink called xocolatl--the precursor to modern hot chocolate!

it is only pollinated by a very specific orchid bee!!!

which is why no fruit could be grown outside of Mexico until the 1800s

Edmond Albius, born into slavery, invented the pollination method we still use today--launching a global industry when he was just 12 years old.

today, the majority of the world's vanilla is grown in Madagascar

if you want real vanilla, read the labels carefully--it's harder to find than you think!

in conclusion, those tiny black specks you see in fancy vanilla ice cream? those are vanilla bean seeds! itty bitty orchid seeds!!! they are delicious and also a PRISSY BITCH!

(src)

#Vanilla Extract #i open the tumblr app and immediately my nostrils are invaded by the overwhelming stench of vanilla #also if you want real vanilla extract at a discount: check out stores like HomeGoods TJMaxx Marshalls etc #the foodstuffs section tends to have fancy nonperishables for much cheaper than upscale grocery stores #you can get things like saffron truffles fancy oils at surprising prices #still expensive but like. 50% cheaper #or just shoplift if that's your thing i won't tell you how to live your life #did i just spend an hour writing this? yes. why did i do that? i don't KNOW

[refugeed-kim]

YES YES I NEED THIS SIGN IN EVERY SINGLE PARK PLEASE

This is my daily struggle, I had so many arguments with people with off-leash dogs (in a mandatory leash area!!!). Thanks to this behavior I'm struggling with Kim being anxious/aggressive with other females as she often gets involved in unpleased interactions with free females while on leash. And every single time that I ask for the dog to be at least recalled, I'm being called names and insulted of course.

Also 9 out of 10 their dog isn't really that friendly at all.

#dogblr #dog #dog training #petblr #the most unpleasant part of owning a dog is having to deal with awful dog owners... #the richer the neighbourhood the worst are the owners #but of course the only park that isn't a hour-long drive from home it's full of this kind of people #I want to live in a city where there is enough space to actually walk without meeting anyone if we don't feel like it

[metaphortunes]

#living hour #the ophelias #it's just a nice song #Bandcamp #good music

[aturnoftheearth]

WE’RE GETTING AN EXTRA HOUR OF DESTIEL LETS GOOOO

#if u live somewhere that doesn’t observe daylight saving time don’t worry we’re still gonna have an extra hour of destiel

[suiheisen]

j… jesus oppa ;____;

#ashsksjsks jesus k-idol era… and when he does his comeback stage…..??? #i just want you to know the last thing i saw before my plane took off was an “i’m going to jesus cafe” message from my grandma #and the first thing i saw when i landed fifteen hours later yesterday was 130+ unread messages on kakaotalk #and i opened it and most of it was cutesy photos my grandma had sent me of her and white jesus #also: she is not even christian…. her friends were like wanna come and she was just like WHY NOT? #also… if you’re interested… in japan there’s a manga called 聖☆おにいさん (translated as ‘saint young men’) #which focuses on the lives of roomates jesus and buddha #(also there are fancomics based on this… including. of course. jesus/judas) #christmas

[dustedmagazine]

Living Hour — Someday is Today (Next Door)

Photo by Meghan Marshall

Someday is Today by Living Hour

Canadian dream-pop quartet Living Hour have become a force to be reckoned with on their third album, Someday is Today. The band’s prior releases, though lovely, felt a little reluctant and liable to get lost in the shuffle. Right from Someday is Today’s first single, “Feelings Meeting,” a collaboration with Jay Som, Living Hour have found a new way to express themselves that’s more confident and emotionally stirring. Kitted out with colossal shoegaze textures and a couple of sets of truly gorgeous chord changes, “Feelings Meeting” sits proudly among the finest songs to be released in 2022. This sense of scope and grandeur is also found on second single “No Body,” but the tempo is slower, the atmosphere more spacious and subdued. Together they comprise an impressive introduction to Living Hour 3.0.

Though it’s initially disappointing to find there’s nothing else on Someday is Today that quite matches those first two singles, there’s still plenty here to enjoy. Opener “Hold Me in Your Mind” is a dead ringer for prime Beach House, its reedy organ tones and patient chord changes immediately transportive. “Lemons and Gin” deftly combines slowcore aesthetics and country guitar flourishes into a subtly intoxicating brew. “December Forever” is one of the album’s catchiest tunes, peppered with addictive rhythmic details. And “Curve” rounds out the album’s first half with squally guitars and a climax in which the song’s fabric seems to be dissolving. 

Though “No Body” and instrumental “Memory Express” close out the album with elegance and finesse, a run of tunes in the album’s second half struggle a little to sustain the listener’s attention. On “Hump,” Sam Sarty sings in a lower register that doesn’t sit particularly well with her airy vocal range. “Miss Miss Miss” mischievously appropriates what sounds like the drum machine pattern from Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing,” before building into the nagging but slightly baffling refrain of “Waiting in line in the bathroom.” And though “Exploding Rain” is a pleasant, wistful tune, it feels lacking in atmospheric heft compared to the album’s more compelling productions. 

Despite its uneven presentation, Someday is Today is a beautiful, evocative record, whose charms invite and reward repeat listens. It’ll be interesting to hear where Living Hour head next. 

Tim Clarke

#living hour #someday is today #next door #tim clarke #albumreview #dusted magazine

[hamable]

I’m thinking about Mahito’s great great uncle maintaining and preserving a peaceful and beautiful thing in a way that to an outside observer looks tedious and unimportant, hoping to pass the duty off to a successor but ultimately he cannot find one and dies with it.

I’m thinking about the specificity of the blocks being made and handled with care, not with malice or ill intent.

I’m thinking about Hayao Miyazaki, a bastion of beautiful 2d hand drawn animation who refuses to retire.

I’m thinking about a world where animation is so rarely made with love over profit and efficiency.

I’m thinking about how, though the old man didn’t see it, the next generation still hangs onto a piece of that beautiful, tedious thing and takes it with them because it feels important.

I’m thinking about Mahito being told he should forget, but no. He shouldn’t.

#the boy and the heron #the boy and the heron spoilers #tbath #how do you live #hayao miyazaki #studio ghibli #I love seeing a film that I can’t quite process right away and then hours later my brain is like DING DING DING PROCESSED! #fully crying actual tears right now I’m Not Okay #I hope he knows how much he means to so many people

[egophiliac]

this is basically what happened, right?

(these guys are very lucky that everyone at NRC 1) has the combined intelligence of a sack of bricks, and 2) is easily distracted by shiny things.)

#art #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland spoilers #stage in playful land #stage in playfulland #these two are SO sleazy and i am utterly delighted by them #can't wait to find out their tragic backstory in approximately 3-4 weeks! #fortunately i have like a month to figure out how the heck to draw their hair (spoiler: i will never figure it out) #also. god. i love it whenever leona accidentally reveals his Mom Side. #he doesn't care about any of this but he WILL be tagging along to make sure no one else gets into trouble #once again he has to be the Responsible Adult and he hates it. the whimsical hat weighs heavy upon his head. #anyway this is me so excuse me while i now talk about diasomnia for three hours #but lilia being all 'kids gotta have some adventure in their lives!' is hilarious #specifically because you know silver would NEVER. #100% silver not only never snuck out but he always went to bed on time AND brushed his teeth AND flossed even when nobody made him. #lilia: aww but you should be enjoying your youth! >:c #silver: i am. i enjoy being respectful and disciplined and honoring you as my father. #lilia: #lilia: maybe i'm TOO good at raising kids #you know i was going to say none of his kids would be involved in this but i actually think malleus definitely would #he would not see it as a moral quandry though. he would just be excited to be invited along. #(the only reason he isn't there is because he was busy admiring a termite-infested beam somewhere and yuu didn't get a chance to ask him) #i mean MAYBE if lilia as his single authority figure told him no then he would have some reservations #but lilia's the one who's screaming HELL YEAH LET'S SNEAK OUT AND DEFY AUTHORITY while dabbing so moot point there #sebek would never and he would rat on everyone else. unless malleus is going in which case he's already there. #and i guess if everyone else is going silver probably would too #but he'd. y'know. feel conflicted about it.

[haejjoon]

4.1 archon quest act 4 got me fucked up ohm hg ooodg

#wriothesley #wriothesley genshin #genshin impact #genshin fanart #genshin #my art #his wooow~ lives rent free in my head #its been 12 hours since i first listened to it #its not going away #send help #this is not a joke

[redhead-radiohead]

Currently obsessed with regional band Living Hour since seeing them live on Wednesday night, they 100% deserve more recognition than they have. Anyway go listen to this song:

Also concert pic just for fun!

#they are so so good guys #living hour