Ty Segall : Emotional Mugger

A collective “where does he find the time” is gasped it seems every time a Ty Segall record comes out. ‘Emotional Mugger’ clocks in at his 10^th solo record so we should be used to it by now, right?  But let’s face it this kind of output in 8 years alongside various other projects is astounding.  ‘Emotional Mugger’ shifts things yet again into a new domain by manipulating homemade recordings and reshapping the glam in rock'n' roll.   

American detritus, love, soup, diversions, candy and late night drives all appear in Segall's lyrics - delivered in a voice with two personalities; the high and softly spoken type versus the low growls emanating from a different beast entirely.  You can expect the psychedelic, blown out guitars that Segall is known for handling so brilliantly, solos that will take you to another dimension and delicious pop hooks.  Whistling and handclaps makes ‘Emotional Mugger’ especially tangible, stand out track for me 'W.U.O.T.W.S', collaging fractured recordings into a motley mesh of details morphed together - driving the experimentation aspect of this album to the brink.   The rate at which Segall is breaking new ground is enough to make anyone’s head spin, and it’s no wonder there’s so much buzz around the album coming out this Friday through Drag City.   Ty Segall filters through the currents of sludge and electrified glitter to tease out new ideas on every release and ‘Emotional Mugger’ is no exception.  It’s streaming right now on NPR if you're interested in a taster...

Elisa Ambrogio : The Immoralist

Elisa Ambrogio’s debut solo release is a boundary free record remaining in-step with the spontaneous compositional approach you might know from her work as guitar muscle of Magik Markers, whilst incorporating childhood favourites The Poni-Tales, Dixie Cups and Tiffany into 10 new songs with the assistance of Jason Robert Quever.  Sure, it’s poppier than you’ve ever heard Ambrogio before, what also comes to the fore is a penchant for folk amongst some of the places the dowsing rod navigated to...  

Right from when the album gets going with ‘Superstitious’ it suggests themes from Andre Gide's book 'The Immoralist'; desire, nature, beauty, death.  “I don’t believe in ghosts, I don’t believe in thirteen, I don’t throw the tarot, I don’t follow a strategy, but I get superstitious when it comes to you and me” muses Ambrogio in this dreamy ode.  Reverberated vocals, drum machines, strings and guitar builds a lush tone underpinning the whole album.  ‘The Immoralist’ really hits its stride on ‘Stopped Clocks’; a whirling haze of wired guitar, spooked keys and amphetamine beats spiral away until the song plaintively stops dead in its tracks.  'Arkansas’ rounds things off with a sombre refrain hollowed by piano and cello arrangements.  “Sold down the river, He had his pride, A grace in trying, to fight the tide”, it just feels like this track is marking someone who swung and missed but remembering the fact that at least they tried and that made it/them count.  It's this weighty poignancy and immense positivity which are focal to the draw of Ambrogio's new songs. 

I’ll avoid the broken mirrors, cracks in the pavement and walking under ladders if it sweetens the odds of getting more releases like 'The Immoralist' any time soon, great record, out on Drag City.

Magik Markers : Surrender To The Fantasy

'Surrender To The Fantasy' is the new LP from noise-wave crew Magik Markers.  These nine new recordings feature a fresh line up comprised of: Elisa Ambrogio, Pete Nolan and John Shaw.  Joining the band in basements, J Mascis' attic, Pete's "old music room" and a practice space in Brooklyn were Aaron Mullan and Justin Pizzoflerrato, who captured Magik Markers most compelling work to date.  'Surrender To The Fantasy' focuses on familiar tools: guitars, keys, drums and bass, to refine the savage live approach used on earlier albums.  The record melts American rock swagger, psychedelia, folk and visceral noise together in a way that challenges what the band have done before.  This is fittingly shown on "Acts Of Desperation", with Ambrogio taking over drums whilst Nolan bliss-es out on guitar alongside a bluesy harmonica breezing through the track.  "Bonfire" kicks things up a gear invoking mayhem and destruction in a way that completely turns 'punk' on its head.  Songs tie in to places significant to the band like "Crabs" (Hartford, Connecticut) and "American Sphinx Face" (Holy Oke, Massachusetts) for example.  "American Sphinx Face" utilizes distorted/fuzzed/Wah-ed out guitar to needle notes throughout, apace with improvised beats anchored by Shaw's mesmerizing bass line.  'Surrender To The Fantasy' reveals curious twists and turns the more you spend time with it so don't be surprised to find it calling you back for repeated listens.  Magik Markers continue to tread through the underside of American ritual and rock 'n' roll with their usual zeal on 'Surrender To The Fantasy' whilst hitting a new stride as they go. 

Purling Hiss : Water On Mars

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Purling Hiss began, as bedroom recordings of Mike Polizze until a tour with Kurt Vile a few years ago propelled the project into a full band in its own right.   The Philadelphia power trio are; Mike Polizze (Birds of Maya), Kiel Everett and Mike Sneeringer.   Together they play out a turbo-guitar, gulping bass and fiery rhythms.  To date Purling Hiss has four albums, an EP and split 12” with Puffy Areolas, all of which has seen Polizze at the core of the songwriting.   This new album for Drag City ‘Water On Mars’ to my ears at least, sounds like all three members constructed the album together as these ten songs build on the big psych-rock sound Purling Hiss is known for with some new ideas thrown into the mix.  ‘Water On Mars’ channels the kind of fuzzed out approach and saccharine melodies you’d expect from Dinosaur Jr and brilliant tangents of 60s psych.  Opener "Lolita" steamrolls in with chewy, sanguine tinged guitars, rumbling bass, forthright rhythms apace with Polizze's gravelly voice layered with screeching distortion.  "Mercury Retrograde" follows immediately taking things down a gear, filtering out abrasive noise and smoothing over vocals allowing a melody heavy bass to come through alongside roaming guitars.   It's the play on hard/soft, loud/quiet, pop melodies/dissonant noise that best describes the album as Purling Hiss finds the perfect balance between these opposites - just listen to eventide-esque "She Calms Me Down" next to freaked out "Face Down" to see what I mean!  'Water On Mars' feels like a game changer for Purling Hiss where they don't just think outside the indie-rock box, they smash it and build a new box. On tour soon in the UK for Fuzz Box at The Dome in May - not to be missed!

Ty Segall 'Twins'

Ty Segall knocks another one out of the park with his latest album that came out at the tail end of last year, 'Twins' on Drag City. Albums leading up to this, 'Melted' and 'Goodbye Bread', had a ballad focus adding a new dimension to the garage rock approach Segall has become so well known for. Not only that, but moved the goal posts as to what garage rock can achieve. Just as we were immersed in these strung-out, sun-drenched numbers on Record Store Day 2012 Segall released an album with White Fence which saw the return of his hair-raising rock roots. 'Twins' picks up where this record leaves off and sure, Ty Segall has released a garage rock record before, but what sets him apart from his peers is he always keeping things innovative and exuberant.

"Thank God For The Sinners" and "Inside Your Heart" shows the sludgy, ballad-centric songs are fresh in mind as they ooze with sizzling guitars and that laid-back nature indicative of west-coasters. This doesn't last long though as Segall kicks things up a gear with manic numbers like "You're The Doctor". Highlight for me though is "Would You Be My Love", it just hits all the pop, rock, garage pleasure centres and gives on every listen - one of my favourite Segall songs period. 'Twins' offers head scratcher moments too by closing on folk track "Gold On The Shore" featuring layers acoustic guitar, vocals and bass.  There's not many artists around where you can say two albums and some four singles in a year doesn't seem like enough - can't wait to see what Segall has up his sleeve for 2013. 

UK copies here 

US copies here

Freakapuss/Sic Alps split 7"

New split single out on Drag City features Freakapuss (Zarjaz formerly of Tronics) and Sic Alps.  Freakapuss designs a cosmic opus about golden elephants, crazy experiments and jeweled rock pools in track "Here Today Here Tomorrow".   This side of the single plays out feel good rock 'n' roll guitar alongside bongos, with cerebral teasing lyrics adding a psychedelic twist to the track.  Elements from the verse are depicted in Unica Zurn-esque drawings on an eye grabbing sleeve, a fitting image for Freakapuss' first vinyl release.  Regarding the reverse side Sic Alps offer up "New Trawgs III" featuring sun-kissed guitars, hand percussion and strung out vocals.  "New Trawgs III" follows on nicely from "Here Today Here Tomorrow" in its rock swagger and stripped down approach.  The cohesiveness of this release shows Freakapuss and Sic Alps a perfect pairing for a split single, well worth grabbing a copy.

UK copies here
US copies here

Ty Segall & White Fence 'Hair'

Psycho rock troubadour Ty Segall combines forces with fellow West Coast artist White Fence for a very special release on Drag City. Since releasing solo material in 2008 Ty Segall already has a prolific output that has gone from strength to strength following rock music down it's many avenues and alley ways. White Fence is fronted by Tim Presley who is making waves with his ethereal psychedelic folk on a sold out record for Woodsist at present. The duo bring you 'Hair', a meeting of freakish folk making folk freaky with gallivanting guitars, somersaulting keys and jarring rhythms running with the pulse of rock today whilst channeling sounds of the 60s.

Roused by "Time" the album opens with a mantric "1,2,3,4", giving off stoner vibes with hypno-harmonies, strung out strings and layers of fuzz drifting in and out of focus. One thing that stood out on this record is how rhythms curiously chop and change, pushing and pulling you all over the place and while you may feel out of control listening, Segall and Presley are very much in control when playing. This is best shown on "Scissor People", playing out frenetic beats alongside unaffected vocals and joyfully feral guitars flexing every rock and psych muscle at breakneck pace before abruptly buckling. Clocking in at around the 30 minute mark these eight tracks hit all the rock, pop, folk and psych pleasure centres whilst leaving you wanting more. This is a fantastic collaboration between two people fully testing the limits and taking rock 'n' roll further into the unknown.

Copies of 'Hair' at Drag City Norman Records

Ty Segall 'Goodbye Bread'

It was only a year ago that Ty Segall brought 'Melted' (Goner) to us. Steering away from his earlier ballistic sound Segall ground his songs down to strangled psychedelic garage rock that topped many end of year lists in 2010. To kick off summer 2011, the San Fran-pyscho troubadour is back with new album 'Goodbye Bread' (Drag City) and Segall's has once again knocked one out of the park.

These 10 strung out numbers feature sinewy guitars, ramshackle rhythms and lethargic yet sanguine tinged vocals creating 35 minutes of unglued swampy garage rock, delivered with an explosive sound you'd expect from TRex or The Troggs and finesse of 60s psychedelia. Ty Segall plays around with the structure of the songs throughout 'Goodbye Bread' and manipulates distortion and feedback heating things up then cooling them off, check out "My Head Explodes" to see what I mean! Another highlight is "I Am With You" which opens with chiming guitars morphing into frenzied rhythms, feverish distortion and unhinged vocals, before collapsing into a blazing solo. For those who weren't already initiated 'Melted' turned heads, and my only gripe with that record is it felt like the 30 minutes lasted longer. 'Goodbye Bread' is the opposite, there's something about the way Ty Segall plays with the arrangements that propels the album, for me at least. 'Goodbye Bread' is a great opportunity to pick up on Ty Segall if you haven't had the chance yet, as it feels like this album is building to something even bigger and better for what he puts out next.

Listen! 'I Am With You'

Ty Segall 'Goodbye Bread' UK
Ty Segall 'Goodbye Bread' US

Sic Alps 'Napa Asylum'

Listening to Sic Alps last album 'U.S EZ' (2008, Siltbreeze) it's easy to see why they wound up opening for bands like Pavement and Sonic Youth last year. Sic Alps' exuberance for slacker sounds and eschewing 'studio magic' has put them on the map as a psyched-out-garage-folk-watchimacallit-band favourite. With a new album Mike Donovan and Matt Hartman are joined by a new band member Noel Harmonson (Comets of Fire). Their latest offering 'Napa Asylum' on Drag City sees the band grow without losing their primitive aesthetic. Drenched in all the distortion and reverb you can handle they concentrate on a fuller rock sound, it wouldn't be a surprise if the amplified recording style on 'Napa Asylum' attracts new music fiends to the group. Perhaps it's just me but, some songs bring Syd Barrett to mind and others wouldn't sound totally out of place on Ty Segall's 'Melted' record. Highlights on 'Napa Aslyum' are, 'Low Kid' and 'Zeppo Epp'. The weather's rubbish out right now and I can't think of a better record to spend a night in with.


Read full review of Napa Asylum - Sic Alps on Boomkat.com ©

Death 'Spiritual Mental Physical'

Following it's original release in 1975 on Columbia, Death's universally loved 'For the World to See' was rescued by Drag City in 2009. But, this album only had seven tracks on it. When the band were initially picked up by Columbia they began to record however, the label implored the brothers to change their name to something commercially pleasing. When the group refused Columbia withdrew their support during the recording process hence why only seven songs made it to 'For the World to See'.

Detroit's Proto Punk trio survived by members Bobby and Dannis Hackney still had amo left in the Death cannon, and here it is. 'Spiritual Mental Physical' compiles 10 songs taken from original reel to reel recordings made between 1974 and 1976. What won't be surprising is it's rock and roll down to the core (you expected anything less?) and every inch as gritty as their studio recorded album. These newly unearthed songs gives the listener a sense of being a fly on the wall during the recording process. You can hear the band screwing around, trying out ideas and just plugging in to belt out some jams. Building on the seven songs we are familiar with 'Spiritual Mental Physical' helps to further shape what we understand about the band Death and their sound.

Drag City calls this release a 'victory lap' for Death, and I can't think of a better way to put it. With liner notes by Bobby Hackney describing the songs this is for any and all Death fans.


Read full review of Spiritual / Mental / Physical - DEATH on Boomkat.com ©