Tabs Out

cassette podcast focusing on noise & experimental sounds
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Tabs Out | Life Education – New Earth Assembly

Life Education – New Earth Assembly

3.8.19 by Tony Lien

The cover art for Life Education’s “New Earth Assembly” boasts a Bob Ross-style pastoral landscape which is further accented by what seems to be THE biggest, happiest tree reaching up into the stratosphere in the far-off distance. Could this be meant to represent a larger-than-life dream of a beautiful (and possibly human-less) world in the not-so-far-off future? Maybe I’m looking into it too much. All I know is that these days — especially after getting lost in the Twitter feed or network news reports — I tend towards rooting for nature and its eventual retaking of the Earth.

I don’t necessarily get that particular vibe when listening to “New Earth Assembly” though. Instead, I’m exposed to a plethora of emotions that stand in strangely harmonic juxtaposition to each other. Peaceful yet melancholic. Safe in the present moment but aware of an impending storm in the visible distance. An otherworldly vastness that feels all too familiar in our own society’s ecological/sociological climate. Overall there’s a mysterious and inquisitive quality to the compositions that invite both forward thinking and thoughtful retrospection.

Genre-wise, “New Earth Assembly” exists in numerous realms. Mainly, the subdued nature of its percussive elements place it somewhat in the ambient downtempo IDM camp — while the hovering, ever-shifting crispness of its digital synth passages hint at the hyperreal nu-world sound exploited by the likes of those such as HCMJ or [D A T A B U R S T]. This blending of similar yet respectively distinctive sub-genres creates a lush environment for these compositions to thrive and grow.

The standout track — to me — is the official album closer (not counting the bonus tracks, of course — which include an outtake version of this same track) “Pale Heart”. Throughout its nine minute tenure, Life Education manages to incorporate shimmering acoustic guitar with mesmerizing, fluctuating synth work in such a way that the composition itself feels alive — like a network of vines slowly overtaking an ornate stone structure that sits alone in a valley in some nameless countryside expanse.

This tape is one of three equally rad albums available in bundle form on the Katuktu Collective Bandcamp page. As of writing this, there are only two bundles left — so if I were you I’d make like a tree and grab one of them a-SAP.

Man, sorry about that. Instant apology.

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Tabs Out | Asher Graieg-Morrison – Hereditatem Pt. II

Asher Graieg-Morrison – Hereditatem Pt. II

3.5.19 by Ryan Masteller

“The ‘Hereditatem’ series is a reflection on the physical and immaterial influences of a country upon a person,” which I was going to totally deep-dive into until I realized that Asher Graieg-Morrison is from Sydney, Australia, and not the United States like me. But it can’t be all that different – Australia’s got some pretty shady history, and we’re dealing the hell with ours. So maybe let’s call it an exploration of the entirety of the Global North and its subdivisions (countries) and their influence on their own populations. Yeah, let’s view it through that lens.

There’s nothing like cold-ass instrumental (for the most part) post-rock to illuminate the utter wrongness of political machinations. Compositions weigh heavy on their composers’ hearts, which in turn burden equally frustrated listeners with a moral imperative to act: you have received your marching orders, now go. Certainly this emanates more from the GY!BE camp than anywhere else, but that’s the rap that post-rock gets, fairly or not, and Asher Graieg-Morrison treats that rap like a birthright. This isn’t to say that heavy-handedness is unnecessary or even unpleasant. Quite the opposite – we all need a good swift kick in the pants every once in a while, and now’s as good a time as any.

“Hereditatem Pt. II” shares many similarities with some of the electronic-tinged post-rock of mid-aughts netlabels, most specifically Lost Children, a favorite of mine back in the day. Sweeping instrumentals, each with its own manifesto of sorts, fill the tape, such as this for opening track “Quick!”: “Everything is so QUICK! Speed, agility, wealth. Things to accomplish. Binge-resting, bargain-hunting.” One can almost TASTE the cynicism leavening these thoughts, cynicism that is not misplaced. Then there’s this missive, which I almost mistook for a funny Tabs Out tweet for a second, at least until I got about halfway through it: “Why do we make BROKEN/SYSTEMS? Please limit yourself. Be subject to the other. Go without. Create systems that bring life.”

Not without good reason do these tracks follow a melancholy path, with trip-hop/shoegaze rhythms undercutting the dense sheets of synthesizer and/or guitar feedback (depending on what the heck Graieg-Morrison is doing in that studio of his). Everything serves to drench the tunes in maximum dismay, and we are made better by being called out ourselves to start somewhere – be aware of our surroundings, maybe? Treat each other a little nicer? Yep, that’s a GREAT place to start.

“Hereditatem Pt. II” is available now – RIGHT NOW – from Flag Day Recordings.