-{:(.SINGLES.):}- Gener, Very Proper Dragonflies, Cousin Silas, Cosmonauts Day, Naomi Wachira

Band / Artist: Gener, Very Proper Dragonflies, Cousin Silas,  Cosmonauts Day, Naomi Wachira
Year: 2004, 2015, 2017
Genre: Folk Reggae, New Wave, Post-Punk, Post-Rock, Drone, Ambient, Dream Pop, Pop Rock, Prog Metal

My Review:

Gener - Les dones (Al Pagoda Remix)
This is pure ear candy. It has a great retro sound with a beautiful melody over it. So pleasing. This Spanish netlabel seems to always have good stuff.

Very Proper Dragonflies - Swingin' Single
This one is really cute too, with that older feminine-ish new wave sound that once was, and I sort of miss. If the first track isn't really doing it for you, you need to give the second track a shot, its really really good. Like, next VDay mixtape good.

Naomi Wachira - Beautifully Human
Now for some folk reggae, in all of its calmer, and "everything is gonna be alright" glory. I am going to need to dig further into her music.

Cousin Silas - Quiet Afternoons
And now to a really long relaxing ambient post-rockish drone of soft pads and melodies unfurling at the speed that flowers bloom, to get you into a nice soft meditative state.

Cosmonauts Day - It Got Them
And finishing the whole thing out, and bringing you back up for the day ahead, here is a nice prog-metal, post-rock jam out with just enough creepy to make it really fun.

Majorka - Self Titled

Band / Artist: Majorka
Year: 2014
Genre: Lo-fi, Indie, Post-Rock, Dark Psychedelic

My Review:
I stumbled across this album while lurking on forums, and listened through it for hours. Majorka is Chris Petry “Petry”on Guitar, Bass, Synth, Vocals, and some Mastering, and Blake Hill “Vulgaris” Vulgaris on Drums and Mastering. I didn't know they were in Beaufort SC, but I'm sad that I never met them while I was in Savannah.

So this is how they describe themselves. 

Majorka is a dark psychedelic band from Beaufort, South Carolina, made up with atmospheric tones and deep lyrics.

I have been loving this album, it was humble and melodic. If I'm gonna try to describe it, I'd say it is reminiscent of the softer parts of the latest 2 Tool albums, as well as a bit of the acoustic, folk sound that I've shared in things like Connor Bird's album, Where Winter Hides. Its a creative mix, and I wholly support you supporting them if you like this, by going to their website a chipping them a buck or two, or buying the physical signed cd.

You can see their website here.

Alright, well I hope you enjoy this as much as I have.

Majorka - Self-Titled

Kaninchen - Broke up

Year: 2013
Genre: Field Recordings, Spoken Word., Post-Rock, Acoustic

My Review:
This one showed up in my email inbox quite a while ago. I promised to share it, and now, I'm going to keep my word. Hopefully better late than never.

An unusual album to get sent in an email. It feels like one part sound pieces and field recording, one part acoustic pieces that I might call sadcore, and one part spoken word. It's about failing relationships, and the feelings of those moments of breakup. I like how some of the field recordings tie into the music, and how the differences in style really bring out the point they were driving at emotionally.

I can definitely say that there has been a theme of sadder stuff on my playlist for a while, and I've picked this one up a few times. I hope you check it out, and thanks to the band for sharing it. If you guys want to do an interview with some more work, drop me a line.

 Kaninchen - Broke up

Moya - Honey Demo

Band / Artist: Moya
Year: 2007
Genre: Ambient, Experimental, Post-Rock, Classical

My Review:
You like Post-rock? Then have some. You like Classical? Then enjoy them both, at once. Here is their album description, which is as succinct as you need.

"Mozart + Mono, Chopin + Clann Zu, Dvorak + Do Make Say Think, Grieg + Godspeed You! Black Emperor = Moya"

Vasil Maronau makes the music, or made it, and released this at about 21 years old. He had a Google+ page with nothing on it other than the cover photo from this album. https://plus.google.com/106084273066833271369/posts
He also has a blank facebook page, and an empty twitter account. Not sure about much more on this album. It was enjoyable, but I don't know why he doesn't keep social if he made all these accounts.

You read Russian? I CAN'T, but if you can, then check out their website. http://www.moyaband.com/

Either way, if you enjoy the sound of a classical and post rock album, then you should enjoy this.

Moya - Honey Demo

Líam - MMIX

Band / Artist: Líam
Year: 2012
Genre: Experimental, Ambient, Post-rock, Shoegaze

My Review:
I asked a while back for some friends to do a couple reviews of music that they really enjoyed. I've decided that now might be an interesting time to start going through them. Starting out is a review from a close friend of mine whose a synesthetic. Here is her review.

Tagged as “Experimental, ambient, post-rock, shoegaze” on Bandcamp, MMIX by the German band Líam manages to hit all of those points beautifully. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the album since I had never heard the band before, but I was in a post-rock kind of mood and it made me feel like a junkie getting my fix.  Due to the synesthesia, I’m going to have to describe this music mostly in visuals because that’s the easiest way for me to verbalize it.

MMIX oscillates between hard, guitar-diven rock and softer ambient and experimental sounds. The softer music I would describe as pleochroic, stealing the gemologists’ term for a color change that occurs with a shift of light. It’s a little like focusing a camera; overall, the music looks a certain colour and texture, muted greys, soft greens and blues and the occasional lavender, with the smoky nature that only post-rock seems to do well. However, as I focus my ear on a particular instrument, the focus shifts and music changes from a veiled scene to a brilliant shade of orange or blue, with staccato textures I ignored on the highest level. These colours appear against the mist of the greater view, but at a much higher altitude.

In their more vibrant moments, Líam achieves a coherence of purpose among it’s individual sounds, with slightly varying hues moving together and forming a concrete directional movement. Much like watching a turbid spray of water twisting and advancing in minimal gravity, but lit from within with coloured light. In these moments the background, the outer edge of the music, my peripheral musical vision, is not black as it is in most songs, but a deep red or orange still within the visible spectrum.

When Líam returns from their ignition they tend to do so in a void, with focused execution that allows an individual sound to vibrate and move as a lit wavelength, moving in impossible trajectories but always reshaping to an original form. The beautiful lifts and drops of Líam’s music make it easy to simply close your eyes and listen only, doing nothing but appreciating the soundscapes this band is able to produce.

 Well I think that definitely does this justice. I hope you enjoy, and Thank you Ned for sharing some good post rock.

Líam - MMIX

Deadfile - Applied Oneironautics

Band / Artist: Deadfile
Year: 2012
Genre: Post-Rock, Film Score, Instrumental

My Review:
Hey. Are you a dreamer?

I'm back with another Deadfile album. Another sadcore, softy album, filled with keys, violins,and many an analogue wondermaker. This one catches me more than the first one I posted here, with more clarified compositions and melodies.

If I could say one thing about their music, it'd be that I wish there were more lyrical parts. That is pretty much a minimal issue with this album, as it plays with a striking similarity to certain types of film score, as well as reminding me of some old piano compositions i've heard in the past. The sampling layers in really well for most tracks, and I feel like I'd keep this over the first one I posted.

Give it an hour of your time. It was worth it for me.

Deadfile - Applied Oneironautics

Deadfile - Deadfile

Band / Artist: Deadfile
Year:2012
Genre: Post-rock, Blues, Mashup, Neo-Classical, Dark Jazz

My Review:
I'm not a big fan of post rock. I was sort of a few times, but I've never been able to really embrace it. In my quests I have found many things bordering on the post rock genre that I do enjoy, and this is one that I would definitely consider as having a shot of being in that list.

This album is a rich mix of Neo-Classical, Dark Jazz, Post-Rock, and a strange mashup of Blues tracks into the first couple songs. It's slow, building mournful music with enough of the post-rock flavor to keep it interesting, but not enough that it turned me away.

So in summary, if you like post rock, and like violins and cellos, then you'll really enjoy giving this a chance.

Deadfile - Deadfile

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, No More Cocaine, Blob

Bands / Artists: The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, No More Cocaine, Blob
Years: 2011, 2012, 2007
Genre: Dark Jazz, Dark Ambient, Jazz, Post-Rock

Overview:
Today is all about the Dark Jazz. Very little of this would fall closely to traditional jazz, be it the soulful or the modernist types. I'm sure someone out there would love to lecture me about the name and requirements of jazz, especially in all of its nuances. Jazz aficionados get their panties in a bunch way too easy. ANYHOW. It's a great choice for your front porch while handing out candy, or if you just wanted something as background music for a slightly nefarious candlelight dinner. Anyone pulling a “Hannibal” out there?

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble

Some subdued creepy that plays out nicely over 9 tracks. They create a very interesting feeling, bringing references to a wide variety of music in history, including moments of “Gloomy Sunday”, most popularly covered by Billie Holiday long ago. There aren’t as many creepy dark moments in this as their name would have you believe, but it is still a very good album, probably my favorite for the day.

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble - Live - I Forsee the Dark Ahead, If I Stay 



No More Cocaine

This is a band comprised of the members of King Fear & The Court of Wolves. They decided to take the music that fits a certain attitude and move it under a pseudonym. Here's an excerpt describing the project.

“No More Cocaine incorporates shamelessly many different influences ranging from Dark Jazz and Dark Ambient in to the IDM and Trip-Hop. If it's dark and laid back, it's probably somewhere in the list of influences. Primarily sounds like Dark Ambient with Dark Jazz overtones.”

This is like a darker, slower, and far less jazz oriented than the first post of the day. Still one of the most ominous album covers I could hope for.

No More Cocaine - Midnight EP


Blob

This is very modern psych-jazz. I could imagine it being used for some weird David Lynch scene in a movie, or for an acid trip scene a-la Easy Rider. It isn't as consistently dark as the others seem to be, but it is FAR more faithful to the jazz moniker, and still has some seriously ominous moments throughout. If someone were to make a haunted lounge/cocktail bar, this would sound awesome for it.

If you are a real jazz lover, then this is the perfect Halloween album for you.

Blob - Halloween

Miscellaniac: Preservation Week 2012 Mix

Band / Artist: Wooden Shjips, Edward Avis and Howard R Garis, Spencer Owen, Oneida, Kreamy 'Lectric Santa, Scott Joplin, Boss Hog, Valentina Vuksic, Karpov Not Kasparov, The Paperhead, R. Stevie Moore, Newagehillbilly, Big Blood, Vermillion Sands, Roger McGuinn, Giraffe, Spade Cooley & the Western Swing Dance Gang Feat. Tex Williams, Sophie Tucker, Isidore Soucy
Year: 2012
Genre: Psych-Rock, Old-Time / Historic, Pop, Lo-fi, Indie-Rock, Krautrock, Post-Rock, Experimental, Punk, Glitch, Folk, International

My Review:
From recently digitized archive records. its a really nice little mixtape of old vaudeville, jazz, punk, rock, experimental, and hymnal sounds. I won't lie, some of these tracks aren't good, and they kill the flow of the mix. Either way, the tracks that are good, are worth enough to merit downloading this one.

Miscellaniac: Preservation Week 2012 Mix