New Sounds 02/04/2022

DC's "New Sounds" post comes a day early this week, as we're anticipating a high amount of internet traffic tomorrow - the first Bandcamp Friday of the year. We figure that by promoting these new albums on a Thursday evening, we're getting a tiny lil jump on the crowd. Below, read about six releases we're super excited to hear this weekend (plus two bonus albums), and be sure to click on those Bandcamp links too, especially tomorrow.

Cate Le Bon - Pompeii (Mexican Summer) - Hey Devin Shaffer: it's finally here! For the past 10+ years, Cate Le Bon has released some of the most interesting left-field pop music - curious melodies delivered in her uniquely angular style. On Pompeii, Le Bon plays most of the instruments and recorded the songs alone, rendering her purest vision. And Treeforters: Built to Spill is playing Are You with Me Now? every night on their current tour. Let's hope that set carries through March.

M.H.H. - Cassiope: Protection Songs For Guitar (Home & Garden) - If you're stoked that your Garden Portal cassettes are finally arriving in the mail, here's another label for you to follow. Minneapolis-based Home & Garden is releasing Matthew Himes' new album this Friday - a collection of cosmic folk landscapes, each shimmering construction rooted in "elemental flora and deities of antiquity." As the title suggests, the album is meant to bestow some protection on the listener during these tough days.

Nate Scheible - Fairfax (Warm Winters Ltd.) - Apparently this album isn't technically new, but rather got the remastering treatment from Lawrence English, and the re-release treatment by Warm Winters. I (Nathan) had never heard it before, so really, it's new to me. And I think it's amazing. The words across Fairfax come from a found tape, the anonymous narrator unveiling a deeply emotional story track-by-track. The album's arc is strengthened by Scheible's instrumental embellishments - strings, vibraphone, decayed tape - a perfect backing soundtrack to what amounts to a very moving listen.

Swoop and Cross - Les Fauves (Piano and Coffee Records) - It's been a while since we've featured a Piano and Coffee release, and this one is a gem. Swoop and Cross, the Norwegian composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist offers up his second full-length - a sweeping postclassical album inspired by fauvism. Across Les Fauves, you'll hear over-saturated, layered compositions, both noisy and beautiful.

Steve Roden - stars of ice (Room40) - Jeez, are we going to feature a Room40 release every week? Do they ever slow down? Here, sound artist Steve Roden builds a 30-minute collage by weaving together a Chinese Christmas carol, an old recording of a song called "Snow," and "various other objects and instruments." The preview clip is intriguing, and we're looking forward to hearing the entire piece this Friday.

катя егорова и егор клочихин - закуток ↬ якутск (North Eurasia Found Tapes) - Since our Russian isn't so great, we literally copy/pasted the liner notes from Bandcamp into Google Translate to learn anything about this mysterious album, just released by North Eurasia Found Tapes. We believe it's a collaboration between Foresteppe and another artist we'd love to give credit to, who worked together to gift us this sonic postcard of Yakutsk, a remote Siberian port city. Taking in the sounds of faraway places is always so magical.

Bonus music: I first learned about Foresteppe a few years back when reading an online interview of lilien rosarian, who shouted out the Russian sound artist. I proceeded to fall in love with Foresteppe's Diafilms, which you should absolutely listen to, but also wish to give credit to that original lr release, a day in bel bruit. It's an album already quite popular in certain experimental music circles, and one of our favorites. A modern masterpiece, really. So beautiful. So creepy, too. Give it a listen if you haven't already.