Sewers 'Tour Cassette 1'

A band name after my own heart.  Australia's Sewers began as a duo for their 2008 demo CD and are currently four piece; Shan Corrigan, Alex Griffin, Joshua Watson and Daniel Decsi.   'Tour Cassette 1' is the follow up to the demo material, recorded by Josh Watson in Woodland on their home turf, Brisbane.  Nine songs are said to have been made and five of those you'll find on this tape with a full length album rumored to be in the works for this year.  Sure, Sewers share an affinity with feedtime, Lubricated Goat and King Snake Roost but they bring new blood, and guts, to a well loved genre.  Bottom feeder lifestyles are described with cacophonous guitars, insubordinate-snotty vocals and forthright rhythms sounded out through swampy distortion.  "Grease My Chain" brilliantly depicts the tone of these five songs through its genuine sense of apathy. "Sinkhole/Bitches' Fuck Off" takes on a Country Teasers track that doesn't challenge what has come before but gives a nod to influences on their songwriting, and to my ears at least captures the same air of frustration as the original.  The troupe began selling this self released tape at shows which are limited to 50 copies but are now available to order through Vacant Valley as well.  It's also worth mentioning their track "Lineage" (not on this tape) also appeared on Negative Guest List compilation 'Wings Over Gabba' - if there was ever a stronger seal of approval I'd like to hear it...

Grouper A I A 'Alien Observer/Dream Loss'

From the outside looking in is Grouper's isolated viewpoint, delving in the abyss and teetering on the brink of this world and the next. Liz Harris was encouraged to perform and learn instruments as a child whilst being raised in a sect named The Group, living in the Sonora Mountains in North California. "We were isolated from the rest of the world, in that we only hung out with each other. I didn't meet anyone from outside the commune until I was 11 when I first went to public school...We were taught that our world was separate." (The Wire, 334). Children were moved in between families within The Group rarely spending time with their genetic relatives, but also had free reign in the countryside near the sea. It's clear to see how these early experiences impacted Harris' approach to art and is able to summon an unparalleled sense of disconnect in otherworldly voids she creates. 'Alien Observer' and 'Dream Loss' similarly to earlier work, embody the sense of being disengaged. Songs creep in and wash over you like an ethereal breeze or wave with the help of her set-to-whisper singing. Electronic effects react to and echo ambient natural surroundings creating a plain allowing Harris to venture inwards and externalize the limbo she exists in. One of the most captivating female artists around today and worth every bit of your time, Mississippi Records is said to have some.

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