Shock Mountain » drone

Aidan Baker – Liminoid/Lifeforms

maxmellman — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:05:41 +0000

The latest from the hyper-prolific Aidan Baker, the man behind drone metal titans Nadja. Fitting with the rest of the solo material I’ve heard from him, this album is far more ambient than his work with Nadja, favoring peaceful guitarwork over the distorted, noisy guitars of his other projects. This album consists of two pieces, the four-part Liminoid and the 30 minute Lifeforms. Liminoid is a brooding drone, reminscent of Grails (minus the post-rock cliches), eventually building up to a free-jazz freakout leading into a Swans-like climax. Lifeforms, like most of his solo work, is reminiscent of being at sea, this time conveying the feeling of sinking and floating to the surface again, all in the middle of a black abyss of sea. And yes, I’m aware that this is horrifically written but it was St. Patrick’s Day when I wrote this so fuck you.

MySpace

Buy

-Max

Pillars and Tongues – Lay of Pilgrim Park

maxmellman — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:28:28 +0000

These Chicago freak-folkies have created, in my opinion, one of the more interesting albums I’ve heard so far this year. With a sound that flutters between freak-folk, classical and drone, Pillars and Tongues have opened for Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy. This album reminds me at times of Dead Can Dance, Dirty Three and Nick Cave making beautiful, vocal drone music. I think what makes these guys so striking is how they create really full songs using just vocals and a few classical instruments. This is definitely worth checking out, I can see it ending up on my year-end list, despite saying that all time about everything.

MySpace

Buy

-Max

Richard Skelton – Landings

maxmellman — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:34:41 +0000

Richard Skelton is an artist out of the UK making some really interesting drone music. Rather than the synth-y explorations we have come to love from Emeralds and Oneohtrix Point Never, Richard Skelton takes a more classical approach to his drone, placing him closer to Stars of the Lid and Black To Comm. Quivering, squeeking violins create a desolate and haunting atmosphere without making it too dark. This is definitely some interesting drone music, though my only complaint is that this album is a little bit too long.

MySpace

Buy

-Max

The Angelic Process

James — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 23:51:26 +0000

The Angelic Process was a dark ambient band from Macon, Georgia, formed by married musicians going under the pseudonyms of K. Angylus and M. Dragonfly. The band was initially formed in 1999, but remained largely unknown until the 2006 repressing of Coma Waering. Kris was the primary songwriter who fervently recorded to create a respectable discography for the band. Unfortunately, he was involved in a car crash in 2007, which severely injured his hand. When it became clear that he could no longer play music professionally in any fashion, he reportedly took his own life. However, the band’s legacy lives on through it’s devoted cult following. Being that there are five releases here, I encourage you to start with Weighing Souls With Sand as a jumping off point. This band plays music incredibly loudly and it’s easy to draw comparisons with bands such as Have a Nice Life and Nadja. Enjoy.

…And Your Blood Is Full Of Honey (2006)

Coma Waering (2006)

Sigh EP (2006)

We All Die Laughing (2006)

Weighing Souls With Sand (2007)

Myspace/Buy

- James

Ben Frost – Theory of Machines

maxmellman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:40:29 +0000

Ben Frost is a 28 year old experimental musician from Australia pushing the boundaries of ambient and drone music. Mixing those two genres with hints of noise, black metal and minimalism, Frost has created a dynamic sound which leaps from glitchy electronic drones to earth-shattering walls of guitar noise. Boomkat has described this album as “the future of electronic music” and Wire Magazine has compared him to Steve Reich, Phillip Glass and Michael Gira (of Swans) all in one sentence. Moments on this album are reminiscent of the aforementioned artists as well as Tim Hecker, Fennesz and Have A Nice Life.

MySpace

Buy

-Max

Sun Araw

James — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:34:27 +0000

Since 2007, Cameron Stallones has been crafting elaborate psychedelic drone compositions under the pseudonym Sun Araw. His music is often described as having it’s own essence or aura. Truly, this is an artist who’s work emotes a sense of spirituality and tranquility. It took me far too long to get into this and I’m kicking myself for it now. Located here is everything he has put out to date with the exception of Geneva Hits, which hasn’t yet surface online.

The Phynx (2007)

Boat Trip (2008)

Beach Head (2008)

Predator Vision Split LP (2009)

Leaves Like These (2009)

Heavy Deeds (2009)

In Orbit (2009)

Myspace

Buy his stuff from Not Not Fun

- James

Nadja/A Storm of Light – Primitive North

McKenna — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:55:24 +0000

This has been out for a while now, and knowing the blogosphere’s obsission (with good cause) with Nadja, you’ve probably seen it around a fair amount of times. If you don’t have it yet, I highly recommend you pick it up now. For a while, Nadja have been power hitters in the world of drone and sludge, and A Storm of Light have been up-and-comers in the scene, riding on the support of groups such as Battle of Mice, Red Sparowes, and Neurosis. Creepy cult drone/doom combine to form one of the most beautiful and powerful releases of 2009. Plus, the packing on this release is absolutely gorgeous. I urge you to drop the $20, especially because Robotic Empire is one of the best/my favorite labels out there.

Nadja’s MySpace

A Storm of Light’s MySpace

Buy

-McKenna

Nahvalr – Nahvalr

McKenna — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:13:39 +0000

Going in a totally different direction than pretty much everything I’ve posted as of yet, Nahvalr is described as “the world’s first open-sourced black metal project” and fronted by members of Have A Nice Life. While no two bands on Nahvalr’s label, Enemies List Home Recordings, sound similar, one trait they all share is lo-fi, independent sensibilities paired with masterful execution. Nahvalr is no exception. The creation of a drone/black metal album created almost entirely out of samples sent to the band and mixed together sounded like an absolutely absurd idea to me when I first heard it, and to be honest, if I didn’t have my heart set on being an Enemies List completest, I probably wouldn’t have bought it.

In all honestly, I’m not the biggest fan of drone/black metal, but I feel like this album is a must-have for any serious fan. The album itself opens with one of the more terrifying samples in music, and listening to it in the dark with headphones on for the first time scarred me for life. Most of the rest of the album is under a thick layer of fuzz that obscures any clear definitions of song structure and places most of the emphasis on the repetition that highlights the drone aspects of the album. Basically, this album is blackened black metal covered under a thick layer of black icing/fuzz that creates a black cake of everything I’ve ever expected from a black metal album.

MySpace

Buy

-McKenna

Emeralds – Emeralds

James — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:42:26 +0000

I’m definitely a couple of weeks late on posting this and Brian already did an excellent write-up, but I would be remiss if I didn’t expose more people to the new Emeralds album. Emeralds recorded this album last fall, right here in Cleveland. The four track album by the experimental/drone artists was released by Wagon on vinyl format. There were only 1000 copies pressed in varying colors. At this point, it is all but sold out. I was lucky enough to pick up an emerald green copy for only $11 at My Minds Eye, but Bent Crayon still seems to have a few copies in stock. In any event, Emeralds delivers (surprise) on their self-titled with just the right amount of straying from their style. Prepare for hypnotic and surreal drone music made by one of the best up and coming bands in the scene.

- James

OM – God Is Good

maxmellman — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 17:55:55 +0000

This new OM album leaked a few days ago, but I haven’t seen it posted, partially because I don’t follow many blogs posting doom drone and whatnot, but decided to post to give some more heaviness to the people who actually download our stuff. Anyway, OM is a doom metal/drone band rising from the ashes of stoner metal legends Sleep, only to the play with a more drone- and Middle Eastern-influenced sound. After one listen so far, I don’t really know how I would rank this against their other albums, they are all so consistent and this one seems to follow that pattern perfectly. Perfect for those times when your drone needs a little boost or when your metal needs to take a meditative turn or just for when you’re smoking hookah. With this album, OM also switched labels: from metal heavyweights Southern Lord to Drag City, home to many pysch and folk acts. For those of you in New York, OM is playing with Six Organs of Admittance and Lichens on October 13 at the Bowery Ballroom.

MySpace

THIS ALBUM IS TO BE RELEASED SEPTEMBER 29, 2009 ON DRAG CITY RECORDS GO BUY THIS THEN

-Max

Earth

maxmellman — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:58:03 +0000

Earth: what a band. Pioneers of the whole “doom/drone” style, Earth seems to be overlooked by one of their most devoted followers: Greg Anderson and Stephen O’Malley of Sunn O))). Much like their more-recognizable followers, Earth craft mammoth drones with skyscrapers of earthquake guitars, all played at a painstakingly slow pace. Since their 1990 formation, Earth has altered their sound, keeping them at the forefront of a genre they helped create. Initially crafting deafeningly dense walls of muddy guitar drones, Earth took their music in a new direction with the album Hex; or Printing in the Infernal Method, which drew influence from country music, Cormac McCarthy and William Blake. That sound was continued with their latest album, 2008’s The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Skull, which added a heavy psychedelic sound to the mix as well. If you enjoy these, be sure to check out the live album Sunn Amps and Smashed Guitars, which includes a track featuring Kurt Cobain, a fan of the band and friend to frontman Dylan Carlson. Sure, I know Earth isn’t for everyone, but for those willing to dabble will certainly find an interesting listen from a band with plenty of depth to their consistent catalog.

Earth 2: Special Low-Frequency Edition

Phase 3: Thrones and Dominions

Pentastar: In The Style of Demons

Hex; Or Printing in the Infernal Method

The Bees Made Honey In The Lion’s Skull

MySpace

-Max

Gregg Kowalsky – Tape Chants

James — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:16:40 +0000

Oakland resident Gregg Kowalsky is back with his second album on Kranky. Gregg claims that after composing music on his computer for 5 years, he felt ‘limited by the unlimited possibilities of digital production’. In order to be musically reborn, he decided to take a completely different approach to his ambient compositions. The man began experimenting with “tape loops, cassette players and recorders, analog synths, sine oscillators, mixer feedback, contact mics and various acoustic sound sources”. After two years of learning how to create these sounds, he started playing them live. He handed out some boom-boxes and tapes and walked through the crowd turning levels up and down. The shows themselves were a sound experiment because everyone was hearing a slightly different version of the song. However, he was not the first person to do this. If you have ever seen the movie Fearless Freaks, a documentary about The Flaming Lips, you would know that this idea has been around for years. Even so, Gregg’s ambition is astounding. It’s really inspiring when you see a talented musician actively try to become more talented by trying new things instead of just honing down an already present sound. What’s so great about this album is that even though the man is new to this form of technology, he comes off like a master of the craft.

Myspace

Buy

- James

Master Musicians of Bukkake – Totem One

maxmellman — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:35:41 +0000

First things first: yes, that is the name of this band and no, it is no a soundtrack to some new pornographic film. Instead, this is the second album from Seattle-based collective, which features members/collaborators of Sun City Girls, Earth, Sunn O))), Secret Chiefs 3 and Grails. This albu, definitely comes across as a clusterfuck of the styles of the mentioned acts, mixing psych-rock, drone and tribal world music, this sounds like the peyote-fueled ragas of a scuzzy desert cult searching for water and the Fountain of Youth. Seriously, if you are a fan of psychedelic rock, drone or anything with a tribal atmosphere, this very well may be your album of the year.

MySpace

Buy

-Max

Nadja – When I See The Sun Always Shines On TV

whomadecookies — Sat, 02 May 2009 23:45:26 +0000

The latest from drone/doom outfit Nadja completely blew me away. While I’m not a huge fan of the drone-y doom groups, I really enjoy Nadja for some reason and this latest release solidifies my enjoyment. An album of covers, drawing from songs by My Bloody Valentine, Swans, Elliott Smith, Slayer, The Cure, A-Ha, as well as a handful of others, this album draws all its source material out, turning each track into a shoegazing, atmospheric drone track, while still retaining a trace of the original. I’ll admit that I was nervous upon the start of the first track (My Bloody Valentine’s “Only Shallow”), worried that the Canadian duo would butcher one of my favorites, but I ended up being incredibly pleased at the result. While the diversity in the track selection might initially suggest a “joke” record, the quality of each song proves that Nadja is serious business.

MySpace

Buy

Also, before you leave, take a second to check out the new blog from my friend Audrey, Thunder Jolt! Not only does she have impeccable taste, but she has already shared a ton of great music with me, so I know you’re all in for a treat. Thanks yall!

-Max