#cutsdeep

CUTS DEEP:

ALBUM TRACKS THAT DESERVE THEIR PLACE IN THE LIGHT….

PREOCCUPATIONS

“SOLACE”

JAGJAGUWAR

“SOLACE” is a back-half highlight off of PREOCCUPATION’s highlight filled new album titled ‘New Material.’

The Calgary based group, consisting of Matthew Flegel (bass/vox), Scott Munro (synths/guitar), Daniel Christiansen (guitars), & Mike Wallace (percussion) further their standing as one of this era’s finest destruction units, as evidenced throughout their third LP. For an album that finds Preoccupations charting new territory, this Side-B standout finds them flexing those well worn robotic goth muscles.

“Solace” packs a punch thematically and musically, by drawing on what the quartet do well GD well, without simply rehashing their prior achievements. Propulsive and dancey, the group remind you that they can settle in a groove unlike anyone else around while still having the acumen to leave you chin scratching & contemplating lines like: “Dancing in a graveyard of ambition, Resurrecting everybody’s desires & visions.”

Those alien guitars, driving rhythm, & wordsmith prose coupled with Flegel’s coarse delivery is all one really needs…..

CUTS DEEP:

Album cuts that deserve their place in the light….

“Regrettable Touch” is the gazey second track on Shojo Winter’s ‘Darkest Chances’ EP.

The Hemet, Ca based trio of Patrick Capinding (vox/guitar/synth), Eris Bautista (bass), and Kevin McVey (drums) channel classic shoegaze ran through a blown out Blank Dogs filter, with “Regrettable Touch” being a prime showcase. Swirling guitars lead the way, adorned with sporadic synth squeals, a heavy yet airy low-end, and mood appropriate vocals that drone in the best of ways. 

There’s a raw and endearing quality to what Shojo Winter create, one that pulls from staring down at a plethora of influences (and pedals). 

Press play and dial in on the regret….

Shojo Winter’s ‘Darkest Chances’ EP is out now via their Bandcamp:

CUTS DEEP:

ALBUM TRACKS THAT DESERVE THEIR PLACE IN THE LIGHT…..

SHYTALK

“A NEW LIGHT”

SELF-RELEASED

Somewhere between Morrissey’s “Seasick Yet Still Docked,” The Church’s “Under the Milky Way Tonight,” and Smashing Pumpkins’ “Disarm” sits the romantic goth bummer known as “A NEW LIGHT.”

The Boston based SHYTALK, the brain child of House of Harm’s Cooper Leardi, side-steps the darkwave in favor of some tender goth balladry across the mini-sprawl that is “A New Light.” The very notion of Shytalk is born out of a laissez-faire approach, capturing a first-take type vibe where Leardi allows his muse to roam free.

The first thing I thought of upon hearing the few first few bars of “A New Light” is “holy shit, this sounds like The Church,” which is NEVER a bad thing. Acoustic strums lead the way, as “A New Light”is pure romance Goth with minimal yet thunderous percussion and choice basslines making for a deliciously dizzying listen....

SHYTALK’s latest EP ‘Failure Trial’ is out now:

Cuts Deep:

Album cuts that deserve their place in the light....

“Roses & Lies” is the tasty counterpoint and B-Side to Poison Point’s new 7″ single ‘Imaginary Veil’.

Timothée Gainet’s Lyon based project brings some serious electro goth on this not to be overlooked B-Side. Hard hitting and dance floor ready, “Roses & Lies” is the type of darkwave indebted art you’d expect to find in a dank and moisture dripped European club. Gurgling synths give way to a crisp beat, allowing Gainet’s echoed vocal to rule over the dance floor fog.

Dance, dance, dance.....

CUTS DEEP:

ALBUM TRACKS THAT DESERVE THEIR PLACE IN THE LIGHT….

BAMBARA

“BACKYARD”

WHARF CAT

“BACKYARD” is the penultimate track on BAMBARA’s tremendous new LP titled ‘Shadow On Everything.’ 

The Brooklyn based trio of Reid Bateh (vocals, guitar), William Brookshire (bass), & Blaze Bateh (drums) know a thing or two when it comes to the darker sides of life & they sure as hell know how to pen a noir-drenched ballad as evidenced on the lurching “Backyard.” 

I cannot stress enough how much this band, this album, & this song has moved me in the past few months despite the fact that this here blog has been on that Bambara train for years now. The trio have found a way to further impress their ardent following by taking what they’re good at & doubling down while flexing their moody might. Call it the right place at the right time, but I’ll just call it fucking good! 

“Backyard” is a waltzy & devastating ballad that finds Bateh dueting with the uber talented Lyzi Wakefield who adds a feminine, yet no-less-deadly, touch to the macho proceedings. Each traded barb & echoed coo lacerates, then comes back to rub salt in the wound before washing it off with alcohol. There’s a fleeting desperation in the twangy 4 plus minutes that make up the doomed “Backyard,” and we’re all better off having witnessed the bloodletting....

Bambara’s latest & greatest LP ‘Shadow On Everything’ is out now via Wharf Cat