Tuesday, April 28, 2015 0 Engineers

Streaming: Caves Of Steel - Revisioned


Band: Caves Of Steel
Album: Revisioned
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Parallax
02. Dunning-Kruger
03. Silver Bullet
04. Heart Leaping Forward
05. Transverse
06. Codeine
07. The Kentucky Derby
08. What Happens to You Here Is Forever
Streaming

Caves Of Steel is a post-rock band from Oslo, Norway, exploring the range of instrumental of rock together since 2007. They’ve shared the stage with bands like Rumble in Rhodos, Scott Kelly (from Neurosis), Spurv, SVK and Fleur de Lis, and done their own headlining tour through China.

They amazed us with their previous album "Troposphere​/​Magnetosphere" and they took up where they left off, with "Revisioned". It’s their third release, engineered and mixed by Endre Njøs from Kollwitz.

Facebook
Twitter
Bandcamp
Sunday, April 26, 2015 0 Engineers

Album: We Are Oceans - Woodsmoke


Band: We Are Oceans
Album: Woodsmoke
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Stonewall
02. Dead Winds
03. Pressed Flowers
04. Solstice
Download

We Are Oceans are an instrumental post-rock/metal band from Hanson, Massachusetts.

Official Site
Facebook
Bandcamp
0 Engineers

The Inquisition: 052.Tyler Etters & The Northern Information Movement

1. How did you came up with the name of the band? 

I've been releasing photocopied communiques under the 'Northern Information' name for almost a decade now. It was based on the idea that one-way immutable communications can actually be more effective than bi or omni-directional (via the internet, for example), that in their isolation more meaning must be interpolated by the receiver, and more subjective importance can be placed on it. Northern Information specializes in this sort of thing. Since everywhere is 'north' of some other place, the name is ridiculously vague. The name brings up more questions than it answers. Where is 'Northern'? Presumably Northern Illinois. But why is the information there coming to me? Is music itself the information? Or...? It is absurd in its self-indulgence and I love it for that. So then, sometime in 2010 I founded a (doomed) post-rock band with David Kvistad, Adam Moore and Matthew Marx. That incarnation of the project never took off, but 'The Northern Information Movement' is the name we agreed on. It was attractive because it vaguely sounded like a rebellion or cult while retaining some austere sense of scientific authority. A few years later when I was writing music under my own name, I realized that 'Tyler Etters' doesn't leave much room for other musicians to contribute and play anything other than a subordinate roles in the project. I didn't want that. The band is mutable sure, and I'm the main force behind it, but I wanted to be able to go on bills as something other than 'Tyler Etters'. I asked the band for their blessing to use our old name and 'Tyler Etters & The Northern Information Movement' was born.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

My best work starts with a discrete piece of inspiration. A dream. An experience. A place. A word or phrase. I've kept journals almost my entire life and drain everything out of my head into them, partially for mental health and partially to create this psychic compost that I can go back and harvest for ideas. Rainbow Table was inspired by hacking. Four Mile Crib was inspired by the place in Chicago. Secret Symmetries of Oakwood Hills was inspired by one of the subdivisions I grew up in. Sonically, I used to be more concerned with structures and melody as foundational components of the song. Lately though I tend to start with timbres and samples and then build up various components and events around them. 

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

Some of my earliest memories of music come from my father. Midnight Boulevard by Dancing Fantasy was the soundtrack to my early childhood. In grade school my uncle Timm Etters introduced me to Hip Hop. He was deeply immersed in the breakdancing, DJing & graffiti scene in the 80s. He really took me under his wing and showed me stuff like DJ Shadow, Afrika Bambaataa and David Lynch's "Dune" soundtrack when I was young and impressionable. Around the same time I was just getting into file sharing services like Limewire and Soulseek. It is from these that I discovered Constellation Records. David Firth's Salad Fingers is solely responsible for my Boards of Canada and Aphex Twin problems. Then I was in a metal band for a while and really got into that scene for a while. I'm really just an opportunist when it comes to music. I listen to whatever gives me 'that feeling' until one day it just doesn't. I actually don't listen to as much music at home as you might expect. When I do, it is a lot of drone and ambient, but when I'm home I'm usually either reading books or writing music. Lately, Adam and I have been getting a lot of inspiration from musicians like Träd, Gräs, Och Stenar, Parson Sound, John Carpenter, and Brad Fiedel. 

4. Which is the one album you can't live without? 

'All Systems Are Ghosts (Remnant)' by Sanchez Is Driven By Demons. Its actually a remix album and the band asks not to 'take it too seriously' but, "sorry guys!" it is just a fantastic album and I've based a lot of my aesthetics off of it. Actually, it is the key inspiration for the entire #shadow_fi thing I've been doing. Fun fact: I discovered the band because they were knighted on Godspeed's MySpace top eight. 

5. What's the first record you've ever bought? 

I can't remember. Something embarrassing I'm sure. Probably either a Trance Party album or some bad 90s pop. CD-Rs from my uncle and my cassette recordings rap and dance music off the radio predate any music purchase. If you're talking about actual vinyl records (in the states 'record' and 'album' are mostly synonymous) it was Lateralus by Tool. 

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

Brian Eno on a Music For Airports 40 Year Anniversary tour. 

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to? 

Absolutely. Try as I might to do the IRL/grassroots/word-of-mouth thing, the internet has broadcast my music far faster and to far stranger places and people than I ever could. Endless Field Studios plays a big part in that. Brazil was one of the first places outside of the states where I discovered that others were listening to my music. To be fair it wasn't just my music, it was work I wrote with Paul Petrosyan in the Ix project. 

8. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify? 

The jury is out. I was an early adopter of Bandcamp and streaming services, but I don't know. I don't know what role music ought to play in our lives anymore and why it is inexorably linked to capitalism. On the one hand music itself is completely commoditized 'background noise' to many of our daily activities. Technology has democratized music production to the point where DAWs are 'throw ins' on operating systems. Anyone can make music, and because of Bandcamp and streaming services, anyone can publish music. This is great because I believe music is a human birthright, a type of communion. But on the other hand it sucks because everyone is yelling at the top of their lungs 'listen to me listen to me!'. It makes it hard to A.) find the good ones and B.) muster up the energy to add your voice to the collective popularity contest. 

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years? 

Hopefully even more obscure than we are now. I believe it is the duty of artists to sort of scrape the edges of the human experience and return with their findings. Other people can then relate to those findings and find meaning in them. Music has saved my life from both ends: it gives me a purpose and it reminds me that others have similar struggles and fears as I do. There aren't enough people staring down the existential abyss and coming back with their thoughts and feelings anymore. For this reason, the internet frustrates me with its superficial 'news' and click bait; musicians selling their souls to get likes. I hope my music can somehow circumvent that part of the game. I'm interested in deep connections with the few, rather than passing connections with the masses. Come to our shows. Talk to us. Let's collaborate on something, you know? 

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

The medium is the message. The artwork is a crucial signifier to what you're about to get yourself into. Your question made me think of a horrible Kafka-esque future where there is no album artwork and musicians are identified by their primary keys: "Now Playing Song 5738149 from Album 8194729874 by Artist 198371498" with a QR for an album cover. Yuck. Give me hand drawn artwork! Give me something human! Give me something I can visually associate with the music! 

11. What is you favorite album cover? 

Preemptive Strike by DJ Shadow. It is also one of my favorite albums.

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

Two things: our need to reject the ephemerality of the internet and because it is possibly the only medium that can survive a global EMP event. Have you ever read about the solar storm of 2012? Scary stuff... I do miss minidisks, though. 

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band? 

On February 27th 2015 we played Swing State for the last time. This is the venue where most Endless Field Studios artists had their first shows. The place is closed down now, so it was a big emotional event for all of us at EFS. A lot of special things happened that night and we hope to release all the video and audio in some format or another soon. It was our first time performing Northern Information material with analog gear and no laptops. It marks a new age for the project - the closing of one door, the opening of another.

More info:
Official Site
Facebook
Bandcamp
Saturday, April 25, 2015 0 Engineers

Video: This Patch Of Sky - Time Destroys Everything, But Our Foundation Remains


Friday, April 24, 2015 0 Engineers

Album: Adolf Plays The Jazz - Tinder


Band: Adolf Plays The Jazz
Album: Tinder
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015







Tracklist
01. Woven Cloud
02. Care
03. -
04. Tendency To Fall
05. Panik
06. Natural Born Manic
07. -
08. Words
09. Collapse
Download

Adolf Plays The Jazz have nothing to do whatsoever with politics and fascism especially. 

In essence, the band is formed in 2002, even though the first song under the name Adolf Plays The Jazz created in 1998 (it's "Frank Zappa needs haircut", which was later included in the Muzzle the birds EP).  Adolf Plays The Jazz have never had a specific line-up. Anyone who has been involved in their releases and activities in any way is considered a member of the band. Of course it's not about a collective of any sort. The terms post-rock and shoegaze might be the most appropriate to describe their music, but Adolf Plays The Jazz are influenced by everything they listen to, read or see...

Official Site
Facebook
Twitter
Bandcamp
0 Engineers

EP: Pothamus - Demo


Band: Pothamus
Album: Demo EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Nāga
02. Suture
03. Bi'r Tawīl
Download

Pothamus is an alternative/post-rock band from Mechelen, Belgium.

Facebook
Soundcloud
Bandcamp
Tuesday, April 21, 2015 0 Engineers

Video: My Sleeping Karma - Prithvi


0 Engineers

Album: Irreversible - Irreversible


Band: Irreversible
Album: Irreversible
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Dead Law
02. Undertow
03. Language Of Paralysis
04. Absent Help
05. -1/12
06. Mandatory Death
07. Armistice
08. Fade
09. Stele Of Revealing
Download

Irreversible is an atmospheric, post-metal, sludge band from Atlanta, Georgia.

In its final incarnation, Irreversible releases its terminal self-titled album. As a kind of "summary work," this 45-minute recording recapitulates the best of Irreversible, pulling influence from each previous release. Longtime friend Kevin Bolen was brought in as second guitarist, incorporating his knowledge of the bands dynamics to help bring closure to the project. Tracked, mixed and mastered by the original bassist CJ Ridings, with some production help from the band, the songs are 100% DIY while sounding nothing like a DIY production. As Irreversible lays to rest its ten-year musical career – obscure, resilient, and unfamed – this album is a beautiful eulogy and appropriate tombstone for the seven albums and ten members that helped give the Atlanta metal scene an unprecedented psychedelic influence.

Facebook
Bandcamp
Merch
Monday, April 20, 2015 0 Engineers

EP: Obe - Exit Planet Crust


Band: Obe
Album: Exit Planet Crust EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015







Tracklist
01. Velociriffter
02. El Diablo
03. Leo Slayer

Obe is an instrumental math/post-rock band from London, UK.

Official Site
Sunday, April 19, 2015 0 Engineers

Band: He Heard Footsteps


Band: He Heard Footsteps
Album: Scholars And Thieves
Label: Self Released
Year: 2013








Tracklist
01. Scholars And Thieves
02. House/Home
03. The Overview Effect


Band: He Heard Footsteps
Album: Tomorrow Without You
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Lasiandra (Single)
Download

He Heard Footsteps is an instrumental post-rock quartet from Providence, Rhode Island.
For fans of  This Will Destroy You, Explosions in the Sky, Caspian.

Official Site
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Bandcamp
Saturday, April 18, 2015 0 Engineers

Video: Monnik - Living room performance in Gent


Thursday, April 16, 2015 0 Engineers

Video: Gates - Low


Wednesday, April 15, 2015 1 Engineers

Video: Caspian - Quovis / Further Up / Further In (Live at the Larcom)



"Quovis / Further Up / Further In" from Caspian's Live At The Larcom Blu-ray, a career spanning concert film recorded live at Caspian's 10th anniversary concert on October 18, 2014 in their home town of Beverly, MA.
0 Engineers

Album: The OO-Ray - Empty Orchestra


Band: The OO-Ray
Album: Empty Orchestra
Label: Lifelike Family
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Barriers
02. Our Wasted Summer
03. Hindsight
04. Normals
05. Vapours
06. Crush Point
07. Black Midi
08. Summits
09. Hunting Song

The OO-Ray is the alias of Ted Laderas, an improvisatory and experimental cellist from Portland, OR. A systems biologist by day, he extends his experimental attitude to exploring the outer possibilities of the cello, often distorting, looping, or pitchshifting his instrument beyond recognizability into waves of reverberation and extended drones. Inspired by the gauzy textures of My Bloody Valentine, he call his style “shoegazer cello” or “chamber drone”. His music explores the realms of electroacoustic, shoegazer, and ambient.

Thursday, April 09, 2015 0 Engineers

The Inquisition: 051.Blueneck

1. How did you came up with the name of the band?

Duncan: We’ve given so many bullshit answers to this question that I forget if we have ever said the real reason… basically it’s a reference to a medical condition in my neck, head and skull. I have an extra set of veins/blood vessels – it gives my neck a slightly blue tinge…and so at school, the kids used to tease me by calling me ‘blueneck’.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it?

Duncan: I tend to demo all ideas with a the main instruments and a basic programmed drum section and then send over to Ben and Rich to see if they have ideas to add to it. Usually Rich will come up with something exciting which I can then take into the studio, start work on properly with Mat Sampson (our producer) , then Rich and Ben come on in and we all get the job finished. simple as that.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home?

Rich: Today I’m listening to the new Carlos Cipa record, Flaming Lips (The Terror) and Talk Talk (Laughing Stock). If you can combine an interesting musical arrangement with melody and some lyrics that feel like they are about something heartfelt, then I’m happy.  As for influences, I suppose it’s hard to pin them down - all sorts of rock, folk, alt-country, metal, electronica, soundtrack, prog and post rock. Although I guess my formative years are the 80s and 90s.
 
Duncan: Like Rich, I'm heavily influenced by the period I grew up in. SO Depeche Mode, Howard Jones and especially Tears For Fears. In latter years I tend to be influenced by a vast array of different artists from different genres. The main thing that each will have in common would be a strong melodic presence.

4. Which is the one album you can't live without?

Rich: Copper Blue by Sugar. I’m listening to it right now (thanks for reminding me) and it’s consistently been my favourite record since I heard it for the first time in 1992. It’s just a perfect blast of melody, power and emotion and it never, ever fails to energise me.

Duncan: Theres so many albums that I love and listen to over and over. Kid A, Nevermind, Wowee Zowee, …the list could be endless…I guess if I HAD to choose then it’d be between Smashing Pumpkin’s Siamese Dream or Tears For Fears ‘Songs From The Big Chair’. Siamese Dream is just gut wrenchingly heartbreaking whereas I think that Songs From The Big Chair is a vastly underrated record just because of the era that it was released.

5. What's the first record you've ever bought?

Duncan: INXS – Kick. I actually bought this again recently on vinyl …mainly for nostalgic reasons, but I was really surprised to discover that this is still an amazing album…the production on it is amazing – and I'm not ashamed to admit even had a slight influence on some of the production techniques on King Nine.

Rich:  That’s a difficult one. I know the first single that I owned – that was ‘Wherever I Lay My Hat That’s My Home’ by Paul Young. I got it free with a pair of school shoes.  As for my first album, I think it was Madonna’s ‘Like a Virgin’. I remember playing it on my ghetto blaster, swinging on a swing and drinking orangeade. I was a pretty cool kid!

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with?

Rich: AC/DC. Not sure how their crowd would react (or ours, come to think about it) but I’d be having fun. 

Duncan: I'd probably also pick a band that we wouldn’t necessarily fit with music wise. But I think it would be a lot of fun to hang out with The Foo Fighters…they seem like such nice , down to earth guys. Me and Rich have both been watching their documentary series that is currently airing..they come across as really good guys…. So yeah..I’d pick them….or One Direction.

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

Rich: Without that internet word of mouth we probably would never have had the level of exposure and support we’ve ended up receiving. When we check Twitter and YouTube it’s crazy how the music (particularly our song ‘Lilitu’) is spreading virally and getting a reaction in places – for example - like Japan, China, South America or Iran.  I find it hard to get my head around it, for sure. We feel hugely privileged and lucky to have received this level of attention and interest, but sometimes it doesn’t feel real. That’s why playing live can be so important – you get somewhat of a sense of that connection.

Duncan: Like Rich says, without blogs and filesharing, Blueneck would never have got the audience that we currently have now…we’d still be playing our home town…well…we’d have given up more likely. We’ve been lucky..that's for sure.

8. Do you support the idea of bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like spotify?

Rich: Bandcamp is fine – we get to have a direct relationship with the people who like our music. With streaming services like Spotify I’m really quite torn. Firstly, I’m a Spotify subscriber and you can’t deny what a great service it is to a fan. I’ve found, enjoyed and shared so much music I never would have heard in other circumstances. On the other hand, I’m very aware of how little money is going to the artists as a result. Sure, I suppose the argument is that for those bands the business model needs to change – they need to adapt to try and recoup money via touring, merch etc instead. The way I justify it to myself is if I find an album I love on Spotify then I buy it on vinyl. But people, and I include myself in this, have to realise that without some form of money heading back to the bands then those bands will fall apart. So I guess there’s a responsibility on the bands to try and find ways of funding themselves that offer a good deal to their fans, and for the fans to fund what they love.

Duncan: Artists get so little money from Spotify its unbelievable…i'm not sure that fans realise just how little the artist gets. Like Rich says, we just have to hope that if someone REALLY likes what they hear then they may support the band by buying the physical release or going to see them live…but I think it’s a low percentage. Spotify certainly isn’t going to contribute to the longevity of bands such as Blueneck.
Bandcamp on the other hand is amazing….the complete opposite of Spotify to some extent. We get so much more support from bandcamp listeners than the likes of Spotify….its basically like a really cool online community that want to help out the bands they love . It’s a brilliant site and I’d recommend any band to use it.

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Rich: Still making music, but probably slightly more tired looking.  

Duncan: 5 years is a long time..I've no idea. We have no real plans at this point…which is kinda the first time that that’s happened with Blueneck for quite some time.  Its kinda nice.

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era?

Rich: It is for us, although I’m not sure if that’s a relic of our upbringing or something that’s a universal fact these days. We love the process of creating the album art – it’s another way to express yourself artistically, and that process is even more gratifying when you have someone as talented as Lasse Hoille (who worked with us for the King Nine photography) to help.

11. What is your favorite album cover?

Rich: Ah man, that’s a headscratcher.  It’s impossible to choose. So I’ll just say the one I saw this morning that made me laugh – ‘The Best of Lightning Hopkins’. He looks like such a badass on that album cover, even though it’s just a photo on a cheaply-made (probably digital-only) cover.


Duncan: I always used to draw the cover for Def Leppard’s Hysteria when I was in artclass at school…it’s the first album cover that springs to mind…so maybe I’ll go with that….Or possibly Wish You Were Here….nah…lets go with Def Leppard. I trust you are going to put a photo of that cover next to this article?

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format?

Rich: I think it's for a number of reasons. A part of my slightly cynical mind says there’s bound to be a hipster element to it… It’s a trend like any other and vinyl’s popularity will flux up and down as the years pass. However, saying that I think the move to digital formats has provoked an opposite reaction from the fans – often fans are collectors and want to “own” the album and physically store it as part of a collection. It brings a different perspective to the owning and playing of music which is so much more pleasurable. I guess that’s how I feel about it, and certainly I don’t feel a Blueneck album is completed until I hold the finished vinyl in my hands.

Duncan: Vinyl is simply a much more enjoyable listening experience all round. From being able to hold the artwork in your head, to the process of getting up and turning the side over….you have to actually sit there and listen, as opposed to being distracted by the world around you (if you're listening to digital files whilst walking around a city for example).I think its just ….hmm…more romantic.?!?!

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band?

Rich: The one that immediately springs to mind is when a drunken insane German kickboxing soldier did the splits at the front of the stage at a Frankfurt shows. We were too scared to ask him to stop. The band we were supporting were kind enough to phone the police… After we played. Nice.

Duncan: Ha ha….I remember that he walked in during our soundcheck, and I looked over towards the stage and could see that Rich was very uncomfortable talking to this huge (obviously drunk) guy…I walked over and could hear that this guy was demanding that he be allowed to play Rich’s guitar… Rich politely tried to decline , which only enraged the soldier – who proceeded to tell us that his muscles were made of ice (?!)…. He calmed down…but then later got worse during our show. As Rich says, he was doing the splits in front of us and also shouting at us that we were ‘shitesters’ and that we are not welcome back to Frankfurt ever again. We’ve actually never been back to Frankfurt. Which is a coincidence. :)

More info:
Facebook
Twitter
Bandcamp
Merch
0 Engineers

EP: Monnik - Vondeling


Band: Monnik
Album: Vondeling EP
Label: Consouling Sounds
Year: 2015
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Tracklist
01. Vondeling
02. Het Vlakke Land
 
Monnik (Monk) is a very apt moniker for this Belgian based experimental one-man band. Monnik wants to explore the boundaries of spiritual isolation, making his musical drones almost ascetic meditations. Layer upon layer of sounds and textures try to evoke an almost shamanistic - if not religious - atmosphere, in order to captivate the audience in an introspective hold.
 
After having crafted his musical explorations for years, and having them tested on numerous live occasions, the time is finally right to officially release his debut album. Vondeling (Foundling) comprises of 2 long tracks, and ranges from subtle and vulnerable ambient pieces to harsher droning sounds. These dynamics are hinting at his fascination for, on the one hand, shamanistic and tribalistic traditions and, on the other hand, the uncompromising and relentless walls of noise of the no-wave scene. 
 
This debut album is a remarkably mature output of a very promising one-man soundscaper.
 
For fans of Syndrome.
 
Wednesday, April 08, 2015 0 Engineers

EP: Tiny Fractures - Perfect Moments


Band: Tiny Fractures
Album: Perfect Moments EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Inward
02. Not Preserved
03. Except In Memory

Tiny Fractures is a post-hardcore band from Boston, USA. Four people who write unfortunate pieces of music.

Tuesday, April 07, 2015 0 Engineers

The Inquisition: 050.Ø L T E N


1.How did you came up with the name of the band? 

Chris: Just a joke, we thought about a big dark city and we add Ø to have a Nordic touch 

2.Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

Chris: It's just a mix of that, but I often have a lot of guitar and Moog riffs. Then we work and try to build something. Each musician gives his personal touch, and we try a lot of solutions. Sometimes we can make a new track in one month or for certain tracks we need few months ... 

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

Chris: A lot of influences. We love some bands like Bongripper , Russian Circles, Neurosis , Mogwaï, Sunn O)))... At home I listen to a lot of different bands and musical styles, from the most extreme bands like Converge, Terra Tenebrosa, The Swans to a simple and good folk album like Rue Royale or electro music like Boards Of Canada. I think when music is good, we listen to it , no matter what style it is. 

4. Which is the one album you can't live without? 

Chris: Cult of Luna - The Beyond and Music Has The Right To children - Boards of Canada. 

5. What's the first record you've ever bought? 

Chris: Seriously, Live After Death by Iron maiden and Oxygen by Jean-Michel Jarre. I was ten years old. 

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

Chris: Bongripper. 

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to? 

Chris: Definitely yes, but I think without the good work of our labels Hummus Records & Division Records our music would never be out of Switzerland. I was really surprised when some people of Greece and Russia send me an e-mail to congratulate about our first EP. 

8. Do you support the idea of bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify? 

Chris: Yes , I think it's a great support for some little bands like ours. 

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years? 

Chris: At the same place, working on new tracks or a new album, with some new gear like pedals, amp, old synth and we would still be as stupid as we are. 

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

Chris: Oh yes , I think it is a good proof of the quality you get inside your download. If a musician gives a beautiful artwork for iTunes, I think that means he makes music with his guts and wants everything to be perfect. 

11. What is you favorite album cover? 

Chris: Swans - The Seer

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

Chris: Because you get a beautiful object in your hands. So when you listen to a vinyl at home first you are happy because you open a beautiful object, second you take the time to listen to the music, then nothing around you is really important .... 

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band?

Chris: One of our gigs is especially a good story. We had to play a festival. 100 meters away from the place we broke a wheel of our van. The stage was on an old truck and we could access only by a ladder (Imagine when we had to move our 4x12 boxes). Finally the amp of our bassist burnt on stage during our show...

After releasing their amazing EP in 2013, Ø L T E N released yesterday their first album "Mode".

More info:
Official Site
Facebook
Bandcamp
Merch
Saturday, April 04, 2015 0 Engineers

EP: All These Fallen Trees - This Is Where We Are


Band: All These Fallen Trees
Album: This Is Where We Are
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Tracklist
01. Lil´ Timmy Goes To The Dentist
02. Following Cresto River
03. Jurassic Perch
04. I Won A Race Once, But In The End, It Was All Just A Dream
05. Codename Buffalo

All These Fallen Trees is a post-rock band from Madrid, formed by Carlos Bringas and Hector Lopez (guitars), Fernando Caruncho (bass) and Alberto Monteagudo (drums).

Thursday, April 02, 2015 1 Engineers

The Inquisition: 049.Labirinto


1. How did you came up with the name of the band?

It was thanks to a joke by a friend who came to one of our first band rehearsals 10 years ago. He thought our sound was full of edges, curves and nothing conventional, as if lost in a labyrinth as we played. We liked the comparison, and so it stayed as the name of the band.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it?

Overall, the songs come from my own ideas (Erick) as I play alone with my guitar, and afterwards I bring them to the band, where the composition is brought together and developed. Sometimes the songs come from rehearsals, jamming together with the percussion as well.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home?

We listen to a lot of things; soundtracks, metal, post rock/metal, shoegaze bands, electronic and experimental music, hardcore, progressive, post punk and classical music. 

4. Which is the one album you can't live without?

Only one? Can I mention several? haha ... F#A#oo - Godspeed You!Black Emperor, Through Silver in Blood - Neurosis, Mezcal Head - Swervedriver, Just for a Day - Slowdive, Repeater – Fugazi, Empros - Russian Circles... 

5. What's the first record you've ever bought?

Erick: The smiths -The smiths (1984) 
Muriel: Nirvana - Bleach
Felipe: Guns 'n Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Ricardo: Ministry - Psalm69
Luis: Nirvana - Incesticide 

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with?

Oh, two bands we deeply admire: Godspeed You! Black Emperor or Neurosis. 

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

Most definitely! It didn’t just help the music reach many countries, but also right here in Brazil, which is a huge country, full of different regions. Something we thought suprising was the Palestine singer who liked Labirinto, and talked to us. Another place I never thought we’d have fans is in Indonesia, which has a pretty strong post rock/metal scene going on. 

8. Do you support the idea of bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like spotify?

We do. And the majority of the people who download and pay for downloads come from outside of Brazil. Unfortunately, in our country, this isn’t a habit that listeners support. 

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Wow! Honestly we’d like to continue playing around the world at festivals, sharing the stage with great bands and being able to make music that can still sensitize and touch people. 

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era?

For us it’s important, almost as much as the actual audio. We aren’t about making music just for making music. We look to relate it to many diverse cultural activities, like visual arts, cinema, literature, amongst others. 

11. What is you favorite album cover?

There are a lot of amazing cover artworks, but I think I’d say “Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath”.

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format?

The rebirth of the vinyl and grown of record culture, I believe it’s due to various factors; the hipster style trend, nostalgia, sonority, graphic arts, the ritual of listening to music... We don’t have a favorite media, we’ve already released three of our albums in vinyl and many as CDs. 

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band?

We’ve been through a lot, so it’s really hard to indicate one. I can say that there were three important shows that meant a lot to us, as a band, and as a person: our first show in Europe at the Dunk!Festival (Belgium) in 2013, at a very nice festival that started to happen last year here in Brazil called Overload Fest, and at Casa del Popolo, in Canada, where we played in 2012.

Labirinto will start a european tour next month along with thisquietarmy. Both projects will be celebrating their 10 years of activity with a 3-week joint tour revolving around invitations to Dunk! Festival in Belgium and whoneedslyrics?! Festival in Slovakia.

May 08 - TBA
May 09 - Mainz, Germany @ Baron (w/ Zero Absolu)
May 10 - Rochefort, Belgium @ Congoland (Jemelle/Namur)
May 11 - Amsterdam, Netherlands @ The Cave
May 12 - Hamburg, Germany @ MS Stubnitz
May 13 - Oberhausen, Germany @ Druckluft ^ (w/ Jakob)
May 15 - Zottegem, Belgium @ Dunk! Festival *
May 16 - Zottegem, Belgium @ Dunk! Festival ^
May 17 - Ghent, Belgium @ Kinky Star ^
May 18 - Paris, France @ L'Espace B
May 19 - Geneva, Switzerland @ La Gravière
May 20 - Chambéry, France @ Le Brin de Zinc
May 21 - Bulle, Switzerland @ Ebullition
May 22 - Winterthur, Switzerland @ Gaswerk (w/ Amenra)
May 23 - Innsbruck, Austria @ PMK (w/ Lis Er Stille, Mary-Ann Kiefer)
May 24 - Bologna, Italy @ Freakout Club
May 25 - TBA
May 26 - Ljubljana, Slovenia @ Channel Zero
May 27 - Maribor, Slovenia @ Gustaf Pekarna
May 28 - Budapest, Hungary @ Dürer Kert
May 29 - Bratislava, Slovakia @ whoneedslyrics?! Festival
May 30 - Prague, Czech Republic @ Klub 007 Strahov
May 31 - Berlin, Germany @ Tiefgrund (hall) (w/ Hypnodrone Ensemble)

* only THISQUIETARMY
^ only LABIRINTO


Wednesday, April 01, 2015 2 Engineers

Video: Sugar Factory - Chamber Music


Also check

 
;