bdphones - Turning Off (Love Songs) [2012]

Okay, so this tape dropped onto the web a couple months ago and I've been continuously meaning (and subsequently forgetting) to post it. For those of you who haven't read my previous Bedphones post (just click the link already), the now-named bdphones plays some rather beautiful pop songs that are hard to pin down stylistically. It's not that the music jumps around a lot; it's more like you can hear that the guy has a lot of original ideas and cool influences that he channels into these very unique, gorgeously-produced, hypnotic folk ballads augmented by synthesized guitar, mandolins, electronic rhythms, and vocals that arrive on your ear's doorstep with a haunting melancholy. I honestly can't recommend this enough, so if you trust anything I ever say about music, dear reader, do yourself a favor and snatch this release. Damaged outsider pop jams, these are, in the best way possible.

Turning Off was released digitally (fo' free) back in May but it doesn't appear to be available yet physically. In the meantime, you can acquire all manner of quality DIY wares from SSF Tapes, who puts out bdphones' music.

bdphones bandcamp
bdphones soundcloud
SSF Tapes bigcartel

Faust - Something Dirty [2011]

I don't know that I need to make any introduction here ... with Faust you kind of know what you're going to get, even when you don't. They've been in the experimental game for some four decades now, and all the recent stuff I've heard from them has been top-shelf. When I listen to Faust, I mostly go for the textures rather than songs -- though they have no lack of great songwriting -- because they are master producers, repurposing all manner of sounds for musical utility. Anyway this disc is a good'n, sounds great as usual.

Something Dirty sounds pretty great as a continuous piece (and fairly well-pissed-off much of the way, too), but the 13 songs are undeniably different from each other. And that's all I'll say; nobody should have to convince you to listen to Faust.

Buy Something Dirty at Bureau B's Faust page
It's so much better when you're gone

MaoTzu - Doodles [2011]

Here is a sweet submission from Chicago. It's another one-man avant-pop project, this one by a certain Jamarcus Drake, and it's pretty crazy. Supposedly created by turning on some TV show and making music while the show is muted, the songs are meant to be partially formed by the subconscious inspiration provided by the shows' images. Or something. It doesn't really need any backstory to be appreciated -- this album's worth hearing on its own merits. The different songs all have pretty different moods, and the music ranges from weird ambience to fully-structured pop (but still kinda weird) songs. There seem to be quite a few instruments one here, all played by Mr. Drake.

The fifth song, 'The Good Ol' Jay Turser, Back in Action,' sounds like Future Days-era Can, which I've really not heard a lot of people steal from very often. Some other sounds I can hear in various parts of the album are Pavement and Sonic Youth-isms, but there is too much originality throughout (jazz breaks, unexpected vocal harmonies, drum solos, boogie piano, beatboxing, wildly optimistic-sounding guitar melodies, etc.) to dismiss this as derivative or something. I dunno, hearing this will give you a better idea than I can provide in words. Best heard in sequence, all in one go.

This album (as well as two other releases) are available for free on MaoTzu's bandcamp.

Don't take lyrics for the truth, I'm probably just sad and high

Bedphones - The Exchange CS [2011]

This tremendously ear-pleasing cassette came out on SSF Tapes (+tumblr blogspot) about eight months ago. It's sofa-king good. Bedphones is a one-man avant-pop project from the periphery of Chicagoland (namely, Crystal Lake, Illinois). The sound is pretty eclectic, with acoustic guitars, 'lectric beats, ethereal vocals, mandolins, and keyboard-ish stuff coming together to make a really comfy grey-day listen. (Not that it sounds 'grey' or bland, mind you, but rather it is something to keep your mind awake on that sort of day -- and we get plenty of those during Midwestern winters/springs/autumns). I've been spinning this pretty frequently since I got it in the mail, and it's one of those albums that just kind of feels good to listen to. Relaxing, engaging, and original. I can't speak from experience, but this tape would probably go great with opiates (*not endorsing the use of opiates).

Bedphones will have a new release in the near future, also on SSF, so keep your eyes/ears/nose/tongue/skin/kinesthetic sensors open!

I should also take a second to once again plug the SSF Tapes label, where you can find cheap-as-free tape releases by Acidic Tree, Gunther, and WEYE. In addition to that, there are a bunch of great zines there that are worth buying/trading for and reading/passing around to all your friends. Get into it or pose, dawg.

Buy a tape, or get a free FLAC copy
wet my lips to dissolve her lysergic kiss