Werewolf Diskdrive "Werewolf Diskdrive"
Look, the more you know about Werewolf Diskdrive, the more you are gonna love Werewolf Diskdrive. His origin is steeped in mystery (though you can learn more about it at http://werewolfdiskdrive.bigcartel.com/faq). But suffice it to say, Werewolf Diskdrive is a consciousness living in a disk drive at a store called Werewolf Diskdrive that recorded an album called Werewolf Diskdrive (with more than a little help from Eric Elbogen, of the now defunct band Say Hi). Most of the songs are about food or obsolete technology, and are a little bit rap, a little bit lo-fi pop, and a lot of fun. Imagine if Brother JT recorded a hip-hop album, and you are approaching the strange, strange world of Werewolf Diskdrive. Check out the ode to the basest of human desires, “Hamburgers & Hotdogs.”
Godspeed You! Black Emperor "Luciferian Towers (Constellation)"
It’s not easy to be a political, revolutionary band while also being an instrumental post-rock orchestra. Somehow, Godspeed You! Black Emperor have figured out how to do just that with their latest, Luciferian Towers (Constellation). Full of their “most melodic and powerfully positive-sounding music to date” (Pitchfork) LT also includes political screeds via liner notes and press releases demanding “An end to foreign invasions. An end to borders. The total dismantling of the prison-industrial complex. Healthcare, housing, food and water acknowledged as an inalienable human right.” Not an easy trick to be hauntingly beautiful and mad as hell, is it? Well GY!BE certainly pull it off here on their latest majestic, atmospheric release. Check out the first single from the album, the sprawling “Undoing A Luciferian Towers.”
Colleen "A flame my love, a frequency (Thrill Jockey)"
Ever since Colleen started adding vocals to her music starting with her fourth album, it’s been nearly impossible to predict what she has up her French sleeves when word is released that a new album is forthcoming. A flame my love, a frequency (Thrill Jockey–and the lack of capitalization is her stylistic choice as well) finds Colleen at her most baroque sounding, but sounding Baroque via a Critter and Guitar synth run through a Moog delay (hey, if it ain’t Baroque, don’t fix it! Hiyooo!). Unique synth tones bubbling up and sounding somewhere between ‘70s documentary music a lá Jürgen Müller’s Science of the Sea and Wendy Carlos, mixed with Colleen’s hushed vocals. The whole thing is a heady rush of forward facing nostalgia. Check out the dizzying “Winter dawn” (again, capitalization (or lack thereof) is her stylistic choice. I don’t make the news, I just report it).
Destroyer "ken (Merge)"
When Dan Bejar learned that the title of the English ballad “The Wild Ones” was originally “Ken” (as in the scottish “ken” meaning “know”) he knew he had to steal that title for his next album. Thus Destroyer’s ken (Merge) was born. Produced by Josh Wells of Black Mountain, who has also been Destroyer’s drummer since 2012, ken was not recorded as a live band like the last album, though all the members appear on the record. This is a far more synth-y than Poison Season was, with a bit of a chilly “late Thatcher-era” production flair to it. Look, it’s the new Destroyer album, you know your gonna love it. Check out the Suede-ish single “Tinseltown Swimming in Blood.”