7.10.20: Steep Gloss
7.8.20 by Ryan Masteller
Tabs Out | Skyminds – Shapes & Traces
Skyminds – Shapes & Traces
7.8.20 by Ryan Masteller
I’m SOOO glad Michael “Selaroda” Henning and Sean “Ashan/Channelers” Conrad are still working together as Skyminds. Their first, self-titled tape on auasca was a droney delight, but the duo has outdone themselves here on “Shapes & Traces,” the inaugural release of Berkeley-based Internal Rhythm. Wanna know a secret? “Shapes & Traces” is also available on a format called “Compact Disc.” I know, right?
But since tapes are making a comeback, I’m only discussing the music that appears on the cassette release (even though it’s identical, presumably, to the CD version). Did I mention that there’s been some “outdoing of selves,” or something along those lines? I sure did. Skyminds has sharpened their freak-folk aesthetics and pressed their compositional chops to the next level. Falling somewhere between early Pink Floyd and Espers (or thereabouts), the duo folds in gently played stringed instruments and synthesizers and percussion to create layers of minimal psychedelia. It’s not out of the question for their tunes to warm like an ember somewhere in your chest, lodged behind your sternum, and gradually grow in glowing warmth until you feel their universal power reach your fingertips and beyond, radiating outward in shimmering positive vibes.
That’s what happened to me, anyway.
No surprise, then, that “Shapes & Traces” causes the inner to become the outer in a shining example of collective empathy, a feel-good excursion that makes others feel good as you make yourself feel good. See? This is the ever-expanding cycle. Hewing close to vibes like these is a centering act, very much like the gist of all those Zen-like albums Conrad releases over there at Inner Islands. And even though this isn’t one of them, it’s as kindred-spirit as it gets.
So give this one an order, why don’tcha? Out in an edition of 100 from Internal Rhythm.
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Tabs Out | The Tuesday Night Machines – Acid Tape
The Tuesday Night Machines – Acid Tape
7.6.20 by Matty McPherson
Since I’m not getting anywhere close to Germany in this economy, I have to live out my acid house fantasies with The Tuesday Night Machines’ bluntly titled Acid Tape. A funny lil’ feller, TTNM was on quite the tear last year, making the rounds with a series of consistently shifting tapes that dabbled in drone, ambience, and natural sounds as longform playgrounds to explore the almighty power of modular synthesizers and sidrax organs. In a better economy, he’d be on the front cover of Ambient Monthly! But TTNM is craftier than pigeonholing himself into the ambient market and I’ve got the scoop-he’s pivoting to dance! Perhaps the tip-off came with TTNM’s meta-beat tape for Strategic Tape Reserve or the crunch of Super Dolomiti Crunch, but that’s only a sample of le’ Acid Tape. Armed with just two Cyclone Analogic TT-303 Bass Bots and a TT-606 Drum Drone, TTNM ventures into the fried crevices of acid house.
This is an estate that oozes futurism in neon green. The sound is focused upon a minimal, obsessive regiment comprised only of warped n’ giddy high-hats, laseresque bass wobbles, and on one track a good ‘ol fashion modular synth. Yet, TTNM’s DIY-mindset sees through the limits of that mindset, maintaining a lo-fi state of bliss. One like “Death Valley” might start with a simplistic beat before the regiment makes a sudden swap or a bass wobble uproots any stability, leading to greater speed and excitement. Others like “Un Dimanche à la Campagne” uphold a slow n’ steady BPM that is ready made for a beat tape, even though the wobbly yelps of a 303 are the real vocals. Acid Tape lets abstractions take over this regimented sound, turning what could have been a series of pleasant experiments into another rapid-fire ten track odyssey.
Does it lend itself to the dancefloor? Of all calibers including (but not limited to) analog boombox, mental mindset, and philosophical otherworldliness. Would it be wise to place it in my skateboard chase frenzy video? If you video has the budget, “Sloppy Accident” is the cut. Should TTNM be remixing all those DFA 7” from the “Great Dance Punk Frenzy of 2k3”? That’s just my headcanon.
Edition of 20 from TTNM’s personal bandcamp, complete with ACID sticker!
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