Saturday, September 8, 2012

The Janitors - Head Honcho EP [2012]


If you dug the last Janitors post, well, here's some more. The infamous Stökpsych purveyors kick out the jams once again with this new EP, recorded in the first half of 2012. As with their previous release, you get some well-executed, sinister-sounding psych rock. The Janitors have been called a shoegazey Nick Cave-esque animal, and I don't think that's too far off the mark. The  melodies have a pernicious sort of vibe, and the vocals are low enough and mean enough to warrant the comparison. As I have said before, some bands just channel all the right vibes and make good psyched-out rock music, and the Janitors are one of those bands.

The centerpiece on this EP is the twelve-minute darkjam "A-bow," which combines ominous acoustic riffs with heavy psychedelic fuzz and stooge-rhythms to create the perfect atmosphere for your next freekout or come-down. I don't know a whole lot about the Swedish music scene these days (or any other days for that matter) but as far as I can tell, the Janitors are group worthy of your attention if you're in Stockholm. See them play so I can jam vicariously through you, you lucky Swedes.


A best-of collection of Janitors material is slated to hit the vinyl/physical world in November, but for now you can hear the Head Honcho EP at the Janitors' bandcamp page.


Also, in the meantime, check out the Al Lover remix of "Death Song," from the Worker Drone Queen EP.

The Janitors will be playing the first annual Stockholm Psych Fest on September 22nd, and will be supporting the Ravonettes in Stockholm on October 25th.

Janitors website
You better run

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

XAXAXA - Siromašni i Bogati [2012]


Nothing like a new submission to knock me out of the bullshit-stress-induced apathy and malaise that has kept me from updating this space. Writing about bands is certainly a welcome break from reading about nanoscopic interactions of hydrated clay particles, but I digress.

XAXAXA (pronounced HAHAHA, for those of you who don't recognize Cyrillic characters) hail from Skopje, Macedonia and contain member(s?) of the wonderful Bernays Propaganda, whom I have unconscionably neglected to feature here (to be rectified soon). The sounds, by their own admission, resemble the likes of Dag Nasty, Hüskers, Wipers, Rites of Spring etc., with some early Fugazi thrown in. Beyond these influences XAXAXA supplies a healthy dose of power pop hooks and political frustrations both personal and external. I can see myself spinning this stuff repeatedly, though I'm only on my first listen through as I write this.

Siromašni i Bogati will be released in physical formats by Junk Cola on September 8th. You can preorder it on CD or LP at Moonlee Trade Center.


On Friday, September 7th XAXAXA embarks on a European tour, so if you're on that continent in the next couple of months, check the dates below:

07 Sep (Fri) @ CUBE, Kumanovo/Mkd* xaxaxa only!
08 Sep (Sat) @ FEST, Belgrade/Srb
09 Sep (Sun) @ ATTACK, Zagreb/Cro
11 Sep (Tue) @ GROMKA, Ljubljana/Slo
12 Sep (Wed) @ PEKARNA, Maribor/Slo
13 Sep (Thu) @ SUB, Graz/Aut
14 Sep (Fri) @ tba,Viena/Aut
15 Sep (Sat) @ BOOGIE, Trencin/Svk
16 Sep (Sun) @ BORO, Brno/Cze
18 Sep (Tue) @ CAFÉ NA PUL CESTY, Prague/Cze
19 Sep (Wed) @ SZABAD AS A,Budapest/Hun
20 Sep (Thu) @ HAFFENKLANG, Hamburg/Ger
21 Sep (Fri) @ CONNI, Dresden/Ger
22 Sep (Sat) @ ZORO fest, Leipzig/Ger* Siz only!
23 Sep (Sun) @ Koma F, Berlin/Ger
25 Sep (Tue) @ BLACK FLECK, Potsdam/Ger
27 Sep (Thu) @ Glockenbachwerkstatt, Munich/Ger
28 Sep (Fri) @ DESERT,Lausane/Swiss
29 Sep (Sat) @ tba/Swiss
30 Sep (Sun) @ tba/Swiss
02 Oct (Tue) @ L’ AQUIL, Casematte/Ita
03 Oct (Wed) @ Rietti /Ita
04 Oct (Thu) @ MKC, Koper/Slo
05 Oct (Fri) @ Metelkova, Ljubljana/Slo* xaxaxa only!
06 Oct (Sat) @ CK 13, Novi Sad/Srb

XAXAXA bandcamp
XAXAXA page on Moonlee
Napravizaedno