Thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign, the latest LP from Los Angeles' Lou Breed will be getting the vinyl treatment sometime later this year. I was blown away when Jeremy sent me the link to these tracks months ago and was excited to see where the record would lead. These are some perfectly crafted tunes, and I hope the LP continues to reach the larger audience it deserves. Dive into a modern American classic and stay tuned for more info on the vinyl release over at Lou Breed's Facebook page.
The first vinyl release from Philly's Harsh Vibes. I was looking forward to hearing more after coming across their cassette from a few years back, and their latest full-length certainly doesn't disappoint. Heavy kraut/shoegaze/stoner jams. Light one up and take the ride. Out now on Dirty Pillows.
Welcome to the 9th (and hopefully not the last) OngakuBaka Top 10 albums of the year list. Before we jump right in to our picks, we’ll explain the guidelines for the selection process.
1. These records are in no particular order.
2. No live records, “Best of” collections, box sets, or re-issues. The albums chosen had to be material released in 2015.
3. This is a collaborative effort between the two of us, and if we didn’t agree that an album deserved to make the cut, it didn’t make the list.
4. There are plenty of full-lengths we never got a chance to listen to, forgot about, or never had time to fully digest, so don't freak out if you don't see your personal favorite in our list.
5. Ongakubaka Records releases are not eligible despite being some of our absolute favorite and most-listened-to records of 2015.
With that said, here are our honorable mentions for 2015:
Jamaican Queens - Downers
Czarface - Every Hero Needs a Villian
The Icarus Line - All Things Under Heaven
Thee Oh Sees - Mutilator Defeated At Last
Fuzz - II
Dead Sea Apes - Spectral Domain
Ancient Ocean - Blood Moon
Minami Deutsch - s/t
The Myrrors - Arena Negra
And now, without further ado, our top 10 records of 2015:
Thrilled to announce that next up on our humble little label is the stellar debut album from British psych-folk artist Hollow Hand!
Hollow Hand is a group based in London. The music is recorded at home in various low budget studios and at ‘Cosmic Ocean’, the band’s rehearsal space (essentially a glorified shed at the bottom of a garden). After gathering the talents and limited equipment of 4 like-minded friends, the band were able to record their first music; the ‘Ancestral Lands’ album. The band’s songwriter Max explains: “We listen to lots of different music but I would say that these songs and productions are influenced by the music I was listening to whilst writing; electric folk and records of the late 60s/early 70s (the first two Steeleye Span records, Fairport Convention, Iain Matthews, Gene Clark etc), married perhaps with a little progressive rock. I produced this music myself and have become fascinated by the sounds and atmospheres which bands are able to create with their records, something which catches your ear the moment the track begins.”
We completely fell in love with these gorgeous tunes on first listen, and we think you will too. If you're looking to fill the void left behind by Fleet Foxes, or are a fan of the 1970's British folk scene, this is the album for you. Limited to 100 copies, the crystal clear cassettes are available to pre-order over at our bandcamp and will be shipping out January 8th!
Excited to bring to you the debut EP from Nashville's Fuzz Ghost! Ty Segall/Wavves-style fuzzy beach time vibes on a killer light blue tape. Digital (only $4) is available right now and tapes will be shipping out 11/20! Grab a copy ASAP before all the other skater kids get hip to it.
Badass female-led garage jams out of Geneva, Switzerland. Impossible to not fall in love with this one. 6 track 12" maxi single available through Six Tonnes De Chair Records. Cassette version courtesy of Burger Records/Gnar Tapes.
Solid split release from two psych bands out of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, North America, Earth. Catchy British Invasion-inspired tracks to help carry your summer vibes through the fall weather. Grab a name-your-price download or a limited edition cassette via bandcamp.
It's Halloween! Actually, I'm not very excited about it at all this year, but this record helped get me in the mood. A fun lo-fi throwback record that sounds like it could have come out of the Elephant Six Collective and would be great any time of the year. Download the whole thing for $1.
Super digging these tunes from Meatbodies/Ducktails offshoot, Walter. Get ready to fall in love, Ty Segall fans. In fact, they'll be hitting the road with FUZZ in November. Grab a digital download through bandcamp and stay tuned for the cassette release through Burger Records.
Australia's The Dunes recorded a pretty amazing live set at The Soundlounge earlier this year, properly mixed it, and are sharing it as a name-your-price download via bandcamp. Excellent dark and billowing female-fronted psych. Get on it.
