Vol. 6 Episode 10

The Incubus EP, Trust Fall (Side A) has been delayed until May 12^th. The guys in the group did a little twitter blaming each other for the delay.

SXSW is happening at the moment so most places are totally on hold as they are down in Texas making an appearance. This means there isn’t much in the music news for the rest of the world.

Here we go...

Echo Lake - Era

This is the second release from Echo Lake. It was released at the beginning of March 2015. This time Slumberland Records did not take part in the release from this group. I wish they had but I am sure they have their reasons. The album was released on CD and vinyl. There was a special CD version with a bonus disc that included some demos, a couple of instrumentals and a couple hard to find singles that were released between these two albums. I am currently trying to contact No Pain In Pop to find out more about this bonus disc CD version. I did get a copy of the album on vinyl though. The album as a whole is short on tracks but not short on time. There are only seven tracks but the album clocks out at about 45 minutes. This means that some of these tracks are six plus minutes and the last track is over ten minutes long. This is an album that demands that the listener listen to the whole record. I don’t think that this is a “headphones” album though. It doesn’t command the left right feel that I think other “headphone” albums do. I think that the album is beautiful and even more so in an open room setting.

There were no official singles released form the album but there are a couple of  high points on the album. The first song I want to talk about is called Waves. It is a paced rocker that will drive you on an emotional wave of love, excitement and at the same time a lack there of. It has a great beat but the vocals seem to keep the song tempered down. This is sort of like the excitement of love and the time that is life for me. I really like this song and will be listening to it more in the future.

The other song that has been talked about is Dröm. The song has an incredibly long build before the full band kicks in. That build is done with a distorted guitar that slowly fades in on the same chord. It takes about a third of the song. Once the song comes in fully though it is mind blowing shoegaze at its near best with distorted bass and beautiful guitars with reverb and echo all over them. The guitars remind me of a cotton candy sun set with hard edges to the clouds. The vocals only add to the effect with their own reverb, echo and even layers. The vocals are also high pitched and airy. The track reminds me of something Lush may have put out. This is for sure a favorite from the album.

The Ar-Kaics – Always The Same/Let Me In

This is a non-album single, like most singles released from the group are. It was released only in the UK on March 16^th from Market Square Records.  I preordered a copy and, because I live in the US, it took about a week to get here. The record came with a numbered postcard with a slightly fuzzy picture of the band on it. The release was limited to 300 copies. If you are interested in this release, Windian Records did get a few copies for sale here in the US at a slightly higher price because of overseas shipping but they were so limited that they only offered the release through their email. Market Square may still have copies though. The single came in a 7” plastic sleeve with a plane brown paper 7” sleeve too. There was also a sticker from Market Square Records.

They have billed it as a double A side record. The A side of the record is Always The Same. It is a hard hitting slow burn track. The drumming reminds me of Meg Whites’ style but the rest of the music that this song has to offer is still that awesome 60’s vocal and music style. I don’t know how they do it but it is a smash. I think it has something to do with the equipment they are using let alone their own style of writing.

The second track on this release is Let Me In. It has a slower feel but is actually about the same. The drums are a little smoother with this one. The guitars have this cool vibey effect on them that give off this cold feeling. This is built on with the vocals, as the lead singer sings, “It gets cold, the colder it gets” in perfect clarity multiple times through the song. There is also a cool sort of solo from the lead guitar that is vibey and built on feedback. It is totally original sounding. At least I have never heard anything like it before. There is a difference between feedback to be loud and feed back to be musical. They hit the musical part and it sounds amazing in the song.

Rosetta/Restorations – Rosetta/Restorations

This is the first release from Restorations. It was put out in 2010 and it actually completes my Restorations collection up to date. There were 420 pressed on black vinyl and 200 pressed on clear vinyl. I was lucky enough to get a copy on clear at a reasonable price. The plastic sleeve that the record comes in has a sticker that lists both of the bands names. The back has the track names printed on the exterior paper jacket though. There is also an insert that has the lyrics for both tracks. It is a 45 RPM record although it is not listed on the printed materials anywhere. When did companies start taking that off anyway? Moving on…

The A side is from Rosetta. They are a heavy metal group mainly. This track, So Warm A Solitude, is more on the experimental side though. The song is a slow burn that has the lead vocals mashed in with the music. I don’t have a problem with this but there is also a part of me that wants to hear what he is saying as he sounds so painful and emotional, at least that is what is seems like from what I can hear of him singing anyway. This is a great song though and the song is so dreamy and atmospheric it just works. I have had dreams were there is music happening in the background and this is what it sounds like sometimes. Not this song in particular but like this style. No, when I wake up the radio is not playing. The only problem with the song is that it is twelve plus minutes long. If your not ready for the length of the song it can be a problem, i.e. never hear the end of the song because it is so long and it may get skipped half way through the song.

The B side is from Restorations. The song is called F#. This was from when they were listing their songs with next to no meaning for fans. This song is a bit heavier than most of the songs that the group has put out. This doesn’t make the song bad though. It is kind of a loud soft loud kind of a track. It is a good rock song that also follows the slow burn style. The quiet parts are sweet and the loud parts are intense with Jon’s lyrics staying on top of it all. There are extra vocals that come through on the loud parts from the other members of the band that add so much to the song. The layered guitars are a fantastic addition to the song and the group makes sure that every instrument is heard and has its own piece of the song. It is a great track and I am glad I found a copy.

 

That is all for now...