Octant are Tassy Zimmerman, Matthew Steinke, and an automated acoustic drum machine called the AD3, which looks like the kind of drum a one-man band would use only it has a motor instead of a man powering it. The result is a broken android new wave thing that kinda makes me nostalgic for the simple days of the Cold War.
Swirlies
Yes, I admit, I can be quite obsessive. Case in point: Sambassadeur‘s song “Whatever Season.” I’ve got it looping in its own playlist in MP3 player. But this obsessive behavior is nothing new, as 3hive’s own Sam can testify. Back when he and I shared a room in college I went thru a Swirlies phase. Swirlies are still alive and kicking, thanks to main man Damon Tutunjian. In their prime, no one could make a racket as beautifully as them Swirlies. Now please pardon me while I load my entire Swirlies collection onto my MP3 player.
Solex
Arena Rock’s now clocking in at five entries here at 3hive. After conquering the East Coast, ARRCO honcho, Greg Glover moved out to Portland and is making plenty of noise at one of the finer stations in the country, KNRK. Greg’s quite the go-getter and to my delight he went-and-got Solex, aka Elizabeth Esselink, and put out her 2004 release, The Laughing Stock of Indie Rock. Esselink makes the tastiest pop around, a pleasing mix of PJ Harvey-type guitar riffs, loops and samples a la Soul Coughing, with the sweet vocals of someone like Claire Grogan from the ’80s band Altered Images. For the already initiated be sure to check out the new EP: Solex + M.A.E. In the Fishtank.
The Raging Family
Here’s a brief recap of The Raging Family’s bio: raised and home-schooled by bohemians in Upstate New York; lived in Eugene, Oregon until driven from their house by local authorities because of noise and behavior complaints; settled down in an enclave somewhere in the hills outside of town to focus on music and art. If you ask me it all sounds a little cultish, and at the risk of becoming Sharon Tate to their Manson Clan, I’m gonna throw my support behind The Raging Family’s latest “concept” album. Black Holes is ostensibly a journey through space and time, but how they get us there is through an eclectic collection of styles ranging from the knob-twisting and wax-scratching exploits of Land of the Loops and Prefuse 73, the found-sound rebelliousness of Negativland, the electro-clash abandon of Meat Beat Manifesto, the jazz exploration of Miles Davis and Sun Ra Arkestra, and even the psychedelic guitar masturbation of Carlos Santana’s Illuminations period. It’s a whole lot of styles to wrap your noodle around, but luckily the band has posted the entire album on their website for us to take it all in (the links below are just some highlights), and there are other entire albums there fully linked for the taking — but beware, the money you save on music today may go to pay for the cult deprogrammer you’ll need tomorrow.
Invincible Overlord
As a kid I always had trouble convincing my parents that the members of the Dead Kennedys were talented musicians, that they chose to play the music they did, sing the songs they sang (“Kill The Poor” or “Let’s Lynch the Lanlord”) to make a statement. They wouldn’t have it. Although today, after suffering through four sons with similar tastes in music, they get it. Invincible Overlord proves my point. Many popular musicians are (gasp) actual musicians. This is the moonlighting project from a member of a band that will remain unnamed here. I’ll leave that for you to discover. These songs are an old school take on a new school style. Instrumentation over samples. Like Four Tet unplugged or Prefuse 73 pre-digital cut and paste. Invincible Overlord concentrate on the I and the M in IDM.
Subtle
I just scratched the post I wrote about Subtle when, upon doing a bit of research on the band, discovered that they were in a car accident while on tour in February, and their synth/sample player, Dax Pierson broke his neck and is going through massive rehabilitation. He received $2,000 from insurance and the wheelchair he needs alone costs $30K. So you can imagine the situation he’s in. A career as a touring musician doesn’t offer much in the way of insurance or stability.
His friends have set up a recovery fund to assist Dax in his healing and recovery. I made a donation, and it would be amazing if some of our readers could do the same. Check the site for all the info and for upcoming benefit shows. If you’re not able to support financially, download the tunes, enjoy, and send good vibes in Dax’s direction.
Quantazelle
I remember the 1984 Olympics here in Los Angeles. At least one of the bike races snaked around my friend Donald’s neighborhood in Laguna Hills. We went. Our view was a section of straightaway; it was as exciting as watching ice melt. When I was living in Salt Lake City, a couple of real nice fellows bribed the IOC into bringing the games to town. I set 2002 as my goal to leave Utah, a chance to move home and to avoid the hoopla that was sure to follow. I met my goal three years early… All of this as a preamble to say that “Braking (Hushed)” sounds like it could be the Olympic theme song if mankind is ever transformed into robots. That, or a really great remake of the Tron arcade game soundtrack. Speaking of arcade games, I swear there’s a Marble Madness sample in “Stereofoam.” I hope Quantazelle enjoys arcade games as much as I imagine she does.
Album
Sean’s not the only one talking about South by Southwest. The New York Times — one of the hippest, most progressive indie-friendly rags out there — mentioned Album in its coverage of SXSW. What a score! On the Monterrey (Mexico) band’s website, everything they’ve ever recorded is available in MP3 form, and a lot of it is wildly fresh and inventive. The sampling below starts with a suggested listening sequence supplied by the band, as well as a few more selected tracks that aren’t half bad either. Enjoy!
Below the Sea
If you’re looking for bright, pretty, upbeat ambient sounds, choose song #1, “Let It Happen.” If you’re looking for dark, pretty, slow ambient sounds, choose song #2, “Accord Final.” If you’re looking for more of the ambient sounds mentioned above, choose from the substantial discography of Quebec trio Below the Sea.
RX
Brilliant and hilarious speech mash-ups of George W. Bush set to classic melodies. These are gonna make your day. Six more tracks are available on The Party Party site. I have DJ Longbeard to thank for turning me onto this stuff. I’m privileged to be on the air at KUCI right before his show Synchronicity. It’s chock full o’ fun like this…dig in.