17-year-old Spencer Bassett, a clearly talented guitarist and songwriter has released three EPs under the moniker Flicker Rate. Released in April 2018, Skylight EP is a non-stop showcase of clean jangly guitar work.
From the outset, my mind went to the musical DNA shared by bands like This Town Needs Guns and Long Island Sound. There is an almost jovial quality to the guitar parts as the melodies bounce along, in the same way that the pizzicato strings convey a similar emotion in Holiday for Strings by David Rose and his Orchestra (1942).
The musicianship is excellent with the production keeping the listeners focus where it should be. Elements fade in and out of focus thanks to the mix and that fills the void where one usually is expectant of vocals, but in this instance, the instrumentation does an excellent of carrying the songs. The songs, well paced, are over before the ideas become stale. In fact, the whole EP is over before you know it.
Well worth listening to if you like the instrumental math rock style or are in the mood for some light and cheery relaxation music.
Last year I spent two weeks on the road with Ranges, touring across America with them as they promoted their latest record, climaxing with the inaugural dunk!USA festival in Vermont. They teamed up with a few other acts along the way, playing multiple dates with: Tides of Man, Vexes, This Patch of Sky and Man Mountain.
I’ll forgive you if you weren’t familiar with Man Mountain before now. It is hard to maintain a presence with only four recorded songs out (The 2013 EP, To Call Each Thing By Its Right Name, and 2015 single “To Be Made As New’). I have a feeling that this début album, Infinity Mirror (Spartan Records) will change this, and earn Man Mountain deserved awareness within the scene.
As I mentioned, I’ve spent a bit of time with the band. Man Mountain shared a four dates with Ranges on tour, and we all hung out over dunk!festival weekend, so I came to befriend them all. I remember standing outside a venue one night after the show, and Bryan shared with me about how Lowercase Noises influenced him to start playing ambient guitar music, which led to him joining the band. It’s a big effort because he needs to travel a long way to attend band practice, but is totally worth it because his friends in the band are awesome. And he totally has a point – they’re all genuine, down-to-earth guys who all share a love for the film Face/Off. Plus Mike has one of the greatest beards I’ve ever laid eyes on – who wouldn’t want to be in a band with a man that facially talented?
And their music is great too. Their playing casts a hypnotic spell. There are certainly a few videos floating around of me dancing along to the music, caught up in the immense magnitude of it all. It’s a shame that Man Mountain didn’t actually play dunk!fest, but they are more deserving of a slot on that festival than many of the bands who did play.
I love the DIY ethos that many American bands work by, the way that they create things for themselves. When Man Mountain played they would use flood lamps with foot switches to give visual oomph to the climactic passages of their music. It’s such a simple idea, and about as budget as it comes when you think of dynamic lighting rigs, but it packed such a punch. I can’t listen to their music without visualising that searing yellow beam.
Something that stands out for me on this release is how well recorded it is. Mike Kalajian (Circa Survive, Prawn, Moving Mountains) mastered the album, and did an excellent job. By the sound of it, the recording process was somewhat experimental too, with the guys really taking their time to nail the sound. Things sound clear, crisp and articulate. I wish I had a copy of their vinyl record to hear the album in its full glory, but tell you what, it still sounds darn good just through middle-of-the-road headphones.
Jacob Goins just kills it on the drums. I already share a bond with him over our mutual love for Into It. Over It., but after hearing his playing on this record my opinion of him has skyrocketed. He showcases so much finesse and technical ability with taste. He’s not a hard-hitter, nor does he demand your attention, but he plays damn well, albeit subtly. The open/close hi-hat in lead single “Memory Trace” makes me think of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” – hard to pull off so precisely. And the excellent polyrhythmic intro of “Elysian” could just as easily lead into a Karnivool song.
Unlike your traditional model of lead guitar playing intricate melodies and rhythm guitar just filling in the rest with chord progressions, Mike and Bryan take turns playing dominantly. Like alternating sine waves, the two almost volley off each other. One will swell up as the other retreats, just for the opposite to happen soon after.
This music doesn’t attract many hyperboles. It’s middle of the spectrum – not especially fast, heavy, calm… But it is good. Nothing extreme – just done really well. Delicate and dynamic, with plenty to pay attention to.
Man Mountain’s music is reflective of the personalities within the band. At first unassuming and pleasant, and once you dig deeper you find quality gold inside. Understated, remarkable, and brilliantly crafted and recorded, Man Mountain’s début album Infinity Mirror is worth paying attention to. Listen with headphones on for the full immersive experience.
Infinity Mirror releasesMarch 16th on Spartan Records. The 300 vinyl pressings have already sold out, but the record is still available on CD or digital download.
Man Mountain have also remastered their two previous releases, available for “Name Your Own Price” via Spartan Records or their Bandcamp page.
Man Mountain are
Mike Reaume – Guitar
Bryan Cowles – Guitar
David Reaume – Bass
Jacob Goins – Drums
Hailing from Warsaw, Poland, Those Who Dream By Day have just released Glad To Be…. Following on from their début EP last year, the quartet have created an album of infectious music full of life and energy. Drawing from post-rock, indie and math-rock influences, the lively blend feels vivacious and upbeat.
Glad To Be… is a concept album, the concept being about the emotions associated with the friendships within the band. And it could be argued that every post-rock release is a concept album about emotions, and that most bands write about their own experiences – which include being in a band – but when I listen to these songs it makes sense.
Lead single “53°58’N 20°82’E (BIPOLAR PARADISE)” [what a mouthful!] is the only track to feature singing (although one other features samples). Tranquil clinking sounds on a karimba [thumb piano] cast a calming spell, snare rolls bring momentum, and the rest of the band adds ambience.
I don’t want to risk pigeonholing this album by describing it too much. I’ll put it this way: it features everything I want from a post-rock release. Heavy moments that make me cry out with joy while sporting a wide grin. Tender, heartfelt passages rich in emotion. Interesting instruments that sit outside of your standard guitar/bass/drums lineup. Great musicianship that invites you to raise the volume just so you can hear certain aspects more clearly.
This is not safe music. It is not boring or clichéd. This is stand-out stuff. These folk can play, and they let you know it.
I have no hesitation recommending Glad To Be… It’s solid release that meets all expectations. They have it on Bandcamp for name-your-price, but this is an album worth paying for. Those Who Dream By Day were voted as one of the best new acts of 2017 in an Arctic Drones readers poll. Give their latest record a listen and find out why.
That first guitar lick will tell you everything you need to know about The Amblers, a blues rock duo hailing from Johannesburg.
It’s a lazy, crunchy riff, freshly graduated from the school of Angus Young. But there’s something more to it too, like if AC/DC grew up in the American South.
The blues rock influences are evident too – you have your Rolling Stones, White Stripes, and Royal Blood. Dirty blues rock, y’know? These all tie in to give that dangerous edge. Sure, the riffs and beats follow a formula of sorts, but there are unpredictable elements that only emerge for a bar here or there. If you listen closely you can also hear some nice clean playing underneath the layers of distortion. These parts are heard to pick out, but would certainly be welcome more prominently in the mix.
Fuzzy and raw, the opening track reeks of cool. Resplendent with laid back riffs, rocking solos, sloshy drum cymbals – these guys know what’s up.
The title track is the one to get your toe tapping. Similar to the first song, with a faster riff, and more of a four of the floor stomping feel than the stop start vibe of the first track.
The song “Tired”, on the other hand, is slower and balladesque. The distinctive guitar remains, but organ is dominant during this track. Organ with so much vibrato I picture the underwater scene from Pinnochio. You know when cartoons speak underwater and their voice ripples and undulates as they talk? Another neat addition is crisp piano notes playing on the beat, clinking to accent where you’d sometime expect the drummer to play the bell of the ride cymbal, or a cowbell.
Drummer Jason Hinch shows off most of his chops during the last track, “Keep Me Screamin’”. The verses follow the vocal line – guitar line alternating delivery of Sometimes. The cleaner guitar tone feels welcome after three tracks of intense fuzz, but still retains the same energy.
For a duo, these guys sure pack a punch. Intimate listening reveals layer upon layer of subtle details that drown under the intense distortion. In fact, I can’t figure out how they would possibly pull these songs off live. Fuzzy, filthy and fleshed out, The Amblers will have you rocking out more than you’d expect possible from just two guys. They’re currently in the studio working on a new album, and that is something that excites me very much.
Floating In Space sets sail upon the solar winds with the new release Dreamland.
Carl Sagan’s Pale Blue Dot is a significant picture. Taken by the Voyager 1 from a record distance of 3.7 billion miles, it shows Earth as nothing more than a tiny speck in an endless blanket of space. It puts things into perspective. Earth is such a microscopic part of the greater expanse. I understand man’s obsession with discovering what’s out there, but sometimes we miss the forest for the trees. There’s plenty of wonder and beauty right here on Earth. Perhaps we should cast our eyes more inward?
I often ponder the beauty that is the impossibility of me. Around 14 billion years ago there was nothing. Imagine that. Nothing. How do you even wrap your head around nothingness? We’re virtually incapable of truly understanding such a terrifying thought. Then, inexplicably, there was something. Depending upon your belief structure an event occurred and the Universe was birthed. At least in reductive terms. What exactly triggered this “big bang” has been the question hounding our existence since time memorial. In all honesty, I don’t even think this question is relevant. What’s relevant is that after the first second of this “bang” the size of the universe was expanding at such a rate that even the math can’t fully do it justice.
Fast forward 14 billion years and you have us. From all the chaos and violence this planet has seen from its planetesimal stage up until now you get, impossibly, you and I. This almost feels laughable. After the first second of creation had things been off or different by even the most minuscule amount, none of this would be. You’re a blessing…an absurd, inconceivable blessing.
Credit: Yera Espinosa
The earth heaved and groaned for millennia. At some point in time during all the anarchy of creation events began transpiring that would eventually lead to the birth of a single thread. This thread would whirl, loop and flutter through the winds of time and stop somewhere in Spain. The story of the songwriter and multi-instrumentalist behind Floating In Space, Ruben Caballero, began 14 billion years ago. He’s another infeasible creation of an event too far back for any of us to really, fully discern. The odds that you even share a space in time with him are astronomically beyond your scope of understanding. But space and time have a different story to tell. Here you are. And here is Floating In Space. You both share the same blink of an eye in time. Let us rejoice at the absurdity that bites at the edges of possibility.
On the 2016 debut “The Edge of the Light”, we were introduced to just a small portion of what Floating In Space was capable of. It was a superbly tranquil journey through Caballero’s experiences and feelings as he viewed his life as if they were but mere sequences in a larger movie. “The Edge of the Light” was to showcase the potential of the band. The sophomore effort, “Dreamland”, is the realization of that potential.
“Dreamland” is a 12 song effort released by proverbial indie powerhouse Deep Elm and co-produced by its owner/founder John Szuch. Floating In Space’s new release expands upon the piano driven cinematic motif. Every song is brilliantly structured and realized. There isn’t a track on the record you won’t find yourself humming along with after just a few listens. “Dreamland” is a purpose driven record. Every note has a purpose. Every angelically choir-like vocal cadence is well measured. I can’t help but feel that Floating In Space set out to create an album that deigns to set fire to every butterfly in our stomach.
What is it that you think we’re all searching for? Even when it appears we have everything in life we could ever possibly dream of having, still we search. We search to fill the voids. Voids as far reaching and depth-less as space. “Dreamland” is about letting go. Stop searching. You have everything you could ever hope to have in a million lifetimes right here in front of you. This is an album about recognizing the beauty you see before you instead of tearing at the remaining threads of your soul to find what it is you think you’re looking for.
Floating In Space is a gifted artist. A band not afraid of baring its soul. You can hear love and inspiration come through in every flourish of the guitar and syncopated beat of the drum. But the real beauty of “Dreamland” is that the band isn’t afraid of letting you in. Of sharing that grey area between dreaming and fearing. Between utter solitude and warm fellowship. We tend to drive distance between ourselves and our fellow man. Distances measured in time. “Dreamland” closes that gap and makes us believe that we’re going to be OK. Floating In Space dares you to dream again, but asks that you appreciate what it is that you already have.
Fans of labelmates Lights&Motion , U137 and Inward Oceans will feel right at home with “Dreamland”. It’s truly uplifting and enlightened songwriting. Floating In Space fits in so beautifully with the Deep Elm musical aesthetic. This is a relationship forged in the fires of the big bang. “Dreamland” is, from the opening notes to the last, filled with so many astoundingly gorgeous frames of optimistic grace that your heart is fit to burst.
If you find yourself adrift searching aimlessly for that next fix to fill whatever void it is in your life that haunts you, an album like “Dreamland” could aid in reminding you what it is that makes all of this so damn worth it. Mathematically speaking you shouldn’t even exist.
