The Five music thing yet again (and again) for whatever it still might be worth. Five? Five more? Do we need to do it again? A new editorial yet maybe? Is there a rhyme? Is there a reason? Was there ever? What do reasons make? Again and again and again (and again). Five more, same as last time (and the time before) five (or six or maybe seven) more musical things and yeah, we did say all this last week and the weeks before and blah blah blah while the whole world window and no, we never do and the proof of the pudding is in that proof reading. When we started this thing, oh never mind, it doesn’t matter and like we asked last time, does anyone bother reading the editorial? Does anyone ever actually look down the rabbit hole or is it all just method acting? Cut to the chase, we could just cut ‘n paste the editorial from the last time, there’s loads of music further down the page, well five or so pieces of music that have come our way in the last few days and cut to the damn chase, who needs an editorial? Anyone see my contact lens?  Who needs any of this? Who needs it, who needs it, Cynical who? Same what every day? Here’s your five for today

Five (or maybe six) recommended musical things then, in no particular order…

1: Psychic Graveyard – Now I know we featured a track or two in the run up to the release of the latest Psychic Graveyard album but did we actually make some noise once the excellent album had actually seen the light of day and all the tracks had been posted on Bandcamp page so you cut to the chase and listen for yourself rather than have to read our fractured words? A note about the (pink) vinyl now being available just landed in the Organ in box which kind of reminded us we probably hadn’t written a review and well it is a couple of months now and blah blah blahdy blah, more slapdashness from the broken lands of Organ, probably something to do with an obsession with creepy internet videos and who’s wearing the masks? That and other familiar stories. What happened here? This was not an accident

“Psychic Graveyard return with ‘Veins Feel Strange’, their second album for Deathbomb Arc. Throbbing electronics, heavy percussion, and vocals like a riddle winding their around everything – but not a guitar in sight. Former members of Arab on Radar, Some Girls, All Leather, Chinese Stars and more come together to curse the land once again. Catch them on tour with METZ in Spring 2022”.

I say it was something to do with someone spitting on the fax machine, do like the way Psychic Graveyard throb, it is an electronic throb, a menacing electronic throb, and I believe him. There is a menace, a locked on sinister mechanical menace, a relentless forward movement, I find it addictive, attractive, how do I look? Hey, better late than never and it did come out this Autumn so we’re not that late and what do I taste like? They’re like an evil Devo, I like the idea of a band that sound like an evil Devo. More detail via Bandcamp or Deathbomb Arc and may the death you wanted be the one you wanted, best write the New York Times about it or our failure to tell you or whatever you might have on your mind.  

2: Silverbacks – Dublin art-rock quintet Silverbacks have just shared “Rolodex City”, the latest track to be taken from their upcoming new album Archive Material which is set for release on January 21st 2022 and via Full Time Hobby, more details here should you feel the need for more details.

“Rolodex City is about a property mogul who has fallen on very hard times during a period where technology has changed the way his business and people work. Similar to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid getting caught out by the trains, bicycles and an increasingly small world, Mr Rolodex is running out of options. He visits a town in a barren landscape with the hope of flipping a bit of land, posing as whatever character the people there will trust – Rolodex City.

These things just flow in, day adter day, hour after hour, music, press relerases, label sending the same press release they sent two days ago “in case you missed it”

3: Shooting Daggers, in their own words are “a thrilling and visceral amalgam of hardcore punk, riot girrl and metalcore. They describe themselves as a feminist punk/queercore band who cite their influences as bands like Gouge Away, G.L.O.S.S, Turnstile and Gel. Quite frankly whoever they’re influenced by, Shooting Daggers’ no holds barred sound and approach is all their own, and really knocked us sideways when we heard it. As it will you. This first single is a full on statement of intent, musically not just content to career from A to Z, but with enough twists and turns to take you on a short but thrilling journey. It is without doubt proper punk rock, shit kicking UKHC shorn of vacuous posturing, and possessing a message, an attitude and ’in yer face’ excitement in spades”. Well obviously not their own words, someone else’s but they did choose tp quote them on their Bandcamp page so that will do for us.

The no messing London band have jsut been added to the Twelve Year Chaos Theory thing we wre on about a few days ago, hang on, let’s do the cut’n paste thing – “12 Years of Chaos all-dayer, Saturday 26th February 2022 at The Black Heart! Massive thanks and reverberations to Bismuth, Maud the moth and Alice Karveli for joining us” “Us” are Chaos Theory, go ask them about it

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4: Gustaf have been championed rather a lot over the past year around here, we’ve feature Design before, they’ve just let loose a rather tasty Beck remix. The New York new wave band have also just done an interview with Beck from the legendary Interview nagazine (Andy Warhol’s creation), seems they’re his favourite new band. I remember when Beck was our favourite new things for those Warholian 15 minutes, still get that demo tape he sent in kicking around here somewhere, oh how it all comes around again. Gustaf have just announced some UK dates for late Spring of next year, including one on our street, I like it when a band we like plays a gig that’s a five minute walk away, Moth Club (co-headline with the excellent Kills Birds), Hackney, East London, 9th May if you must know, there’s a whole UK tour but hey, who wants to think that far ahead right now?

5: Mario Batkovic‘s new album Intospectio has just come out, the critically acclaimed Swiss solo accordion player released this track as a single and rather good looking video a couple of weeks back, did we mention this already?

“Mixing classical and contemporary sound, Batkovic seeks to explore the sonic possibilities of the accordion, without effects or loops, rather through a mutualist symbiotic relationship between man and instrument. Challenging, hypnotic and grandiose; Batkovic’s symphonic vision is unique and he has received widespread critical acclaim, including Rolling Stone magazine who voted his self-titled debut album in the Top 10 ‘Best Avant Albums of 2017’.

Featuring Clive Deamer (Radiohead/Portishead/Robert Plant/Roni Size) and former BEAK> member Matthew Williams aka MXLX, ‘REPERTIO’ has an uneasy, tense energy that underlies the composition. Batkovic’s skittish accordion collides with Deamer’s shuffling drum patterns and MXLX’s robust synths, resulting in an immersive frenzy of sound. “At the beginning almost classically presumptuous, the piece finds its players. It changes, transforms, becomes wilder and all this without losing its core content. The piece was created in Bristol Invada Studio and the meeting with Clive Deamer and Matt Williams was a successful start for wild anarchistic, dissonant and yet harmonious work. I personally found the work more than amusing. It was an insane musical encounter on another planet,” says Batkovic.

‘Repertio was recorded in pre-Covid times with Mario at the Invada Studio in Bristol, that feels a long time ago now as I’m sure it does everyone else trying to emerge from the pandemic. Geoff and Mario both invited me to collaborate with him after his performance at Islington Assembly Hall earlier that year. I really like Mario’s album, it’s an imposing gothic latin edifice that would assuage the most discerning contemporary vampire. It’s also an honour to share Introspectio alongside Mario’s more extraordinary fellow collaborators Colin Stetson and James Holden,” adds Deamer.

Batkovic is an aesthete, typified in the quality of his writing and arrangements. Challenging, experimental and always hypnotising, his music crosses conventional borders. As a composer, producer and performer, he combines various musical disciplines, taking the accordion to new levels.

New album ‘INTROSPECTIO’ is a self-questioning, self-examination of society and the meaning of sound. Featuring collaborations with electronic sorcerer James Holden and former BEAK> member Matthew Williams aka MXLX, in addition to drummer Clive Deamer (Radiohead/Portishead/Robert Plant/Roni Size), saxophonist Colin Stetson and concert choir Cantus Domus, Batkovic questions the place of sound, clichés and prejudices, taking the listener on a journey through infinite universes of sound”

Actually you can hear the whole album and indeed order it if you so wish to via Bandcamp, I like the way it tingles, it sounds fresh, it sounds refreshing….

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And while we’re here

SkinGraft Records tell us “the new Cheer-Accident album “Here Comes The Sunset” has been at the pressing plant since early July (LOL) – and it is due to be pressed shortly. We’re anticipating an early 2022 release date. After that ,we have….” More on whatever SkinGraft have when they have it…

Meanwhile, this week’s radio show went like this and we rather like this Rob Gould version of Van Der Graaf Generator’s Man Erg

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