Ingenious musical recluse Jim O’Rourke is sifting through artefacts like this powerful live recording by Osorezan, his improvising trio who threw down at a Tokyo hotel in 2005. The first of what promises to be an interesting “Old Timing” reissue series for O’Rourke fans, Mimidokodesuka was a Japanese-only release featuring the guitarist working with contrabassist Darin Gray and drummer Chris Corsanao. This first set from their residency possesses an edge, with each player feeding off the other yet also frenetically walloping their surroundings with sound. Between Corsano’s inspired, precise attack, Gray’s lush foundational tones and O’Rourke’s unholy guitar assault, Osorezan are on fire. The build-up and dynamic shifts in “Form of a Collapse if a Collapse Should Occur” leads to cacophonous sheets of energy in “All We Know So Far,” which itself glides in on rolling thunder. By “In Addition,” the sonic respites merely clot the adrenalin rush of three monster players going off with exhilarating results. (Drag City)
Arc -
Arkhangelsk 4257
Aidan Baker’s Nadja have been receiving more and more attention for their incredible fusion of metal, ambience and experimentation. Between his solo work and his doom-y Nadja project, Baker’s racked up well over 20 recordings in the last year. ARC, though, have been relatively less active. The “r”
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Let Nature Square 2643
Philly’s Shot x Shot quartet delivered a striking debut a couple years back with their self-titled disc for High Two. Recorded in a hugely reverberant church, it showed the quartet reworking gritty free-bop into grandly overarching soundscapes. Their newest disc has more conventional acoustics but
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Arty For the Ages
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Scott Pilgrim may be targeting today's 20-something hipster, but the videogame-inspired book-turned-movie-turned-videogame franchise is embedded with references to creator Bryan Lee O'Malley's late '80s and early '90s youth.
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Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs - God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t 2272
As reticent as he can be, Ray LaMontagne has established himself over his previous three albums as one of the most compelling singer-songwriters in the world today. His country-tinged soul is often compared to Van Morrison's classic early work, something (as was the case with Morrison) that can be...
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Aidan Baker’s Nadja have been receiving more and more attention for their incredible fusion of metal, ambience and experimentation. Between his solo work and his doom-y Nadja project, Baker’s racked up well over 20 recordings in the last year. ARC, though, have been relatively less active. The “r”
...
Philly’s Shot x Shot quartet delivered a striking debut a couple years back with their self-titled disc for High Two. Recorded in a hugely reverberant church, it showed the quartet reworking gritty free-bop into grandly overarching soundscapes. Their newest disc has more conventional acoustics but
...
There's been a longstanding debate over whether or not videogames can be art, but even infamous critic Roger Ebert admitted: "That a game can aspire to artistic importance as a visual experience, I accept."...
Scott Pilgrim may be targeting today's 20-something hipster, but the videogame-inspired book-turned-movie-turned-videogame franchise is embedded with references to creator Bryan Lee O'Malley's late '80s and early '90s youth.
As reticent as he can be, Ray LaMontagne has established himself over his previous three albums as one of the most compelling singer-songwriters in the world today. His country-tinged soul is often compared to Van Morrison's classic early work, something (as was the case with Morrison) that can be...
