Imaad Wasif

With thanks to my fully blown Tee Pee obsession i was lead to this amazing fello'. I've come to trust the label on music without hesitating or need for further research. Such is the case with the latest Imaad Wasif album. Hardly comparable to any other on the label roster at this moment, Imaad Wasif is more straight-forward rock with dashes of folk.. and the occasional acid-rock freakout (this is Tee Pee after all.)

Blown away as i was with 'The Voidist', i decided to check out his previous 2 albums - each very different from the other. The self titled was a suprise to me, with it's dark and folky atmosphere conjuring up images of Elliott Smith's sparse and haunting compositions. It's good stuff and if anything it displays the versatility of this promising musician. So i pushed forward and checked out his second album, 'Strange Hexes', backed by his band 'Two Part Beast'. Another right turn taken, this one was flat out rockin'. Thick and loud guitar tones painted all over bring to mind the sounds of a modern day Crazy Horse, if there were such a thing. It's rough, it's loud, it's rusty, it's sloppy, and it's totally fucking awesome. These songs could (and do) work very well in an acoustic setting as well, which is just a testament to the music i guess.

Which brings me to the latest release, 'The Voidist', released on Tee Pee Records earlier this month - This is most probably his strongest release to date. It's a really solid medium point balancing out the two previous albums, with some of his best quieter moments, as well as some of his rockiest. It's a great, great album and one of my favourites of the year.

Even though i dropped a few big names, just try give it a spin without being overly comparative. It's good stuff i think. Will be tracking him in the future. Enjoy.

Imaad Wasif - Imaad Wasif [2005]
Try It - Buy It

Imaad Wasif - Strange Hexes [2008]
Try It - Buy It

Imaad Wasif - The Voidist [2009]
Try It - Buy It

Assemble Head in Sleepy Sun! cont.

Try It - Myspace

Try It - Buy It - Myspace

A week or so ago i mentioned the September tour Sleepy Sun & Assemble Head are about to set off on. Figured what better way to fire some of you up who might be deciding to go, than with these sweet live recordings from each band. I can't see either of them stepping foot over here in my native Australia any time soon, so sadly i gotta make do with this for now.

The Assemble Head here is an unofficial recording of their set at Roadburn last year. The quality sounds great, as they work through material spreading from all 3 albums. I quickly dodged up this horrible cover, using a photograph taken from the performance and a shitty res image of their band logo (feel free to dispose of it at your own will). These guys rock!

The Sleepy Sun iTunes Exclusive recording is most excellent. It has only been available from the iTunes store so i got myself a copy. They work through some 'Embrace' material, extended and even adding a new song ('Mating Season') to the end of 'New Age'. If you need a reason to get this, it's their amazing cover of Fleetwood's 'The Chain'. The harmonica used towards the end of 'White Dove' here sounds so much more powerful than on record, really really cool!

Enjoy. Go see them if you can!

Ancestors - Of Sound Mind [2009] [Review]

Over the last few months I have briefly conversed with band guitarist Justin Maranga through blog comments and the odd email with regards to the band's first release, and this, their sophomore release - due out October the 6th on Tee Pee Records. Judging from his opinion and my own excitement, i had huge expectations for this record. I was lucky enough to score a full preview the other night.

I really enjoyed 'Neptune' last year. It was so different from everything else i'd heard at the time. I came into this one expecting to be surprised and certainly was. For starters the riffs are just as gigantic as Neptune, but we knew they would be! This time around they have tightened it all up.. adding and including all different sounds, dimensions and themes to keep it fresh. Structure wise, there are 4 monster tracks - each clocking in at around 15 minutes give or take - and a series of short and contrasting interludes.

The opening track 'From Nothing' is the shortest on the album and is filled with all kinds of bizarre fidgety sounds, as if the band were preparing to deliver the collective wallop you know is on it's way. It leads into the doomy beginning of 'Mother Animal', which after 3 minutes of slow thunder turns into a short funky desert-like groove you can't help but smile and nod along with. The song builds and builds with momentum. You think you're at the peak of it and bam! Things eventually simmer down as the vocals re-appear, returning us to the stable gravity pull we know - if only for a moment! The bass and percussion keep it driving slow and doomy throughout, while the mesmerizing guitar and haunting organ paint all over the open canvas.

'Not The Last Return' is the first of two short and great piano pieces, letting your ears adjust. You can be sure another ass-kicking is waiting for you in a few moments. 'Bounty of Age' is currently streaming on the Tee Pee site, check it. The bluesy guitar playing in the middle parts is absolutely breath taking. It actually kinda reminds me of something from Neil Young's 'On the Beach' album, one of my favourites. Again the organ is just pushing the entire thing along from the background, it seems to be a common theme throughout the record and works very well. 'A Friend' is a new and interesting dimension to the band, making use of electronics and synthesizers, sounding like a lost part to Jean Michel Jarre's 'Oxygene'.

It leads in to arguably the greatest song the band has created to date, 'The Trial'. The moment i heard the guitar come in i was amazed, the tones are just so damn powerful and majestic. This is clearly Justin's time to shine and he does as it slowly burns along. It's truly incredibly how these guys can turn the most sonically beautiful sound into such an evil, menacing beast. Such is the case as the song dips down into uncharted darkness, at which point Sera Timms of label-mates Black Math Horseman enters. I've been obsessed with their own album since it's release, and needless to say the Ancestors setting suits her to a tee! Never mind the fact i can't understand a word she says, she possesses one of the most distraught and powerful voices i have heard in a damn long while. She seems to be buried a little low in the mix, granted she still sounds great.. perhaps just a little quiet. I'm sure this was the sound they were going for though, and therefor is but only a minor quibble.

'Challenging', much like 'Not The Last Return' sees the return of the lonely piano as it's chord patterns pulsate throughout the quieter track - this time accompanied by some lovely acoustic guitar playing, which was a pleasant surprise. It serves as a great intro to stylistically, the most straight-forward of the longer pieces. Consider it the melodic ending to the insane trip, the rockin' journey back to our home planet! It moves quick, stays just long enough and kicks a great portion of ass before slowly coming to a close. This really sounds like all that 70's hard rock influence just gushing out. An outstanding closing to an outstanding album.

You can really tell the production has been amped up a few notches here. I absolutely love the keys spread all over this album, the bluesy guitar solo's are very tasty as well. Every track was firing on all cylinders, but if i had to I'd say 'The Trial' definitely blew me away the most. It's not very often you get that stunned in amazement feeling that this song left me with. Running in at just over an hour usually pushes it for me, but i still didn't want this one to end. I can tell i'll be revisiting it over and over again.

Be sure to pick this one up when it drops. Album of the year material for sure.

Tee Pee Records
Ancestors Myspace

Titan - A Raining Sun of Light & Love, For You & You & You [2007]

So we now have the incredible NASA astronomy images (seen below) to kill some time, now all we need is a suiting soundtrack to explore the cosmos! This excellent Tee Pee release will do the job just fine. I'll just put this right on out there for you. If you're a fan of the big-time, grandiose, space rock epics.. the extended track lengths, big ass bass, big ass riffs and one hell of an atmosphere then A Raining Sun of Light & Love.. is for you, & you, and yes.. even you! However if by some off chance this ain't your kinda thing.. drop it and walk away now. Come to think of it, what the f*** are you even doing here?

Serious, we're talking the big-time space rock influences here. Hawkwind obviously come to mind first, perhaps even mixed with a little bit of krautrocker's Can. The pounding bass and guitar is reminiscent of some of the desert scene stuff, which is certainly a plus! The production is a little bit murky throughout which might limit repeated listens.. but i guess it's just another one of those ass-kicking, brain-melting records you throw on at that perfect moment.

Another solid Tee Pee gem. These guys have been quiet for a few years now.. heres hoping some new material surfaces sooner rather than later.

Try It - Buy It - Myspace

Assemble Head in Sleepy Sun!

Two of the finest bands to emerge from the 21st century San Francisco psychedelic renaissance—Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound and Sleepy Sun—will join forces this September for a three-week, coast-to-coast freakout. The tour, which officially kicks off in Providence, Rhode Island on September 17, will cover 17 dates in New England, Canada, and the Midwest before winding up October 4 in Portland, Oregon. Both bands will also play dates in New York City in the days leading up to the tour kickoff.

The cross-country caravan unites the two bands in performance for the first time outside of California. But they have already joined forces for several epic throwdowns in Northern California—including an upcoming July 31 Big Sur date with Dead Meadow—and worked together in the studio, with Bret Constantino and Evan Reiss of Sleepy Sun lending harmony vocals on the latest Assemble Head release When Sweet Sleep Returned. Heaven knows what mayhem will unfold on this road ramble.

Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound’s third LP—and second on Tee Pee Records—When Sweet Sleep Returned, has garnered its share of raves. And the new album finds the band moving outward from its foundation as a garage-and-Floyd-inflected heavy psych combo into sunnier, celestial, and soulful territory that conjures ghosts of Spiritualized and the Byrds while serving up molten slabs of wrecking ball, White Light scuzz n’ roll. And in performance, the band ranges from high-energy fuzz thuggery to delicate reveries peppered with flute, 12-string guitar, and boy-girl harmonies.

Tee Pee Records
Sleepy Sun - Embrace
Assemble Head - When Sweet Sleep Returned

The Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - When Sweet Sleep Returned [2009]

And it's finally here! Let me tell you, i was really amped to hear this for the first time and it certainly didn't dissapoint! It couldn't have come at a better time also, as i am going away over the Australian Easter weekend (April 10-13) and will give it plenty of time to sink in while i'm relaxing on the beautiful Lake Tinaroo.

If you're looking to compare it to 'Ekranoplan', you will first notice that it generally seems to be a whole lot more relaxed and spacey. Dare i say, it's "groovier". However don't let that fool you, there is still a whole lot of jam going on. This slight change in direction only adds to the awesome palette of sound that is The Assemble Head!

Right from the opening "Two Stage Rocket" you are smacked in the face with a deliciously funkified riff, starting things off on the best of notes. If you checked out that 'Sleepy Sun' album you will be interested to know that they actually add vocals on "Two Birds" here, and it is nothing short of spectacular. The entire record just breezes through unknowingly and beautifully. If i had to pinpoint a few highlights in particular i would mention "The Slumbering Ones" for it's powerfully ethereal vocal harmonies, "By The Rippling Green" for it's amazing guitar work and violin appearance. As well as the rocking "Clive & The Lyre", which is the most like anything on the previous album.

Just another fine addition to the ever-increasing Tee Pee Records catalogue. As i said, i'll be away for a few days but will be back to post soon enough. Feel free to support the label and pick up some of these killer albums i have touched on: Online Tee Pee Store

Try It - Buy It - Myspace

Witch - Witch [2006]

The group Witch was born from a marriage of apparently contradictory influences. J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. renown and his long time friend Dave Sweetapple were interested in forming a hard rock band. They found willing and able conspirators in Kyle Thomas and Asa Irons, members New England avant-folk outfit Feathers. On their eponymous debut album, this line-up mounts a mighty sonic tumult that harkens back to classic heavy metal sound of early 70's outfits while still sounding modern in it's assault.

In Witch, Mascis returns to his first love, drums, playing with an unbridled passion that recalls his work with Deep Wound, his early 80's hardcore band. Meanwhile, Kyle sings and writes the group's supernatural-oriented lyrics, exploring the juxtapositions between age and youth, the paradox of meeting yourself, and the dilemma of falling asleep on a mountaintop and waking up a hundred years year. Asa weaves a dense texture of rhythm and lead guitar lines that ebb and flow over the basic monolithic, trundling riff-rock song structure. Dave adds additional weight to Witch's sound with massive, crunching bass lines, returning this his instrument of choice when he played in Newfoundland punk bands back in the early 80s.

Witch headed into the studio and recorded their debut album for Tee Pee Records with engineer John Agnello, immediately following an extensive Dinosaur Jr. reunion tour this past Summer. Agnello had already recorded Dinosaur Jr., J Mascis + The Fog, Early Man, Son Volt and Screaming Trees to name a few.

Link: http://sharebee.com/0ffc91a4

Weird Owl - Ever The Silver Cord Be Loosed [2009]

Weird Owl is a Brooklyn band that resides in the heaviness inherent in the convergence of imagination, poetry and sound. First formed in 2004 and through its odd mutations involving changes in approach and personnel, Weird Owl has arrived at the present day in its most solid and powerful formation yet. Weird Owl has crafted a sonic mindscape inspired by legendary acts such as the 13th Floor Elevators and Crazy Horse that states its relevance to modern-day masters Black Mountain, Dead Meadow and the Black Angels.

In its first release for Tee Pee Records, entitled Ever the Silver Cord Be Loosed, Weird Owl has gathered together a tour de force of its peculiar craft--hypnotic slithering guitar lines, the strange breathiness of cosmic synths, a dash of the punishing heaviness of the riff--all contained within phantasmagoric song structures and expressed with the language of a true visionary experience.

Link: http://sharebee.com/d4ad3211

Graveyard - Graveyard [2008]

One listen to the self-titled debut from Sweden's Graveyard and you swear that this thing was recorded in 1971. Psychedelic, often times bluesy yet heavy guitar riffs, enchanting atmosphere, swirling drum patterns, and hazy vocals, all permeate this wildly seductive hard rock album. Think Cream, Black Sabbath, Blue Cheer, The Doors, Pentagram, Grand Funk Railroad, or newer acts like Witchcraft, Gentleman's Pistols, and Danzig.

Produced by Don Ahlsterberg, who did a fantastic job of really honing in on a classic vibe here, Graveyard just drips with psychedelic menace from start to finish, and everything from the guitar riffs to the vocals is so retro 70's that you gotta love it.

The people of tomorroooow, are the children of todaaaay! Obvious, and awesome.

Link: http://sharebee.com/4fe96e8c

Ancestors - Neptune With Fire [2008]

What better way to rattle off some Tee Pee with Ancestors' debut album 'Neptune With Fire'. These guys came out of nowhere and eventually started making noise after signing with the label. However it seems it wasn't until they started gigging with the heavyweight label-mates (Earthless, Witch etc.) that they suddenly exploded. Take the magic of that delicious 70's spacey psyche sound, throw in some mammoth 90's stoner/doom riffage, ala Kyuss. Add in some Gilmour solo work (circa 'Atom Heart Mother') and wrap it all up with some superb modern day production.

The album consists of just two songs-- "Orcus' Avarice" is over 16 minutes, the title track is more than 20-- and both serve as launching pads for extended jams. It's the kind of lumbering meganess that easily turns on a dime. So by the time the drums have reeled in, and the guitars ascend into outer-space, it's hard to recall the tumult that came only moments before. Ancestors, able to do more than whip up a simple fervor, spend just enough time inspecting the same guitar scale and a slippery blues bassline that gradually builds to climax.

Their debut LP, Neptune With Fire — a conceptual, two track record with a title track that tells of a metaphorical character and his cosmic, psychological ordeal through war, celebration, remorse and revelation — was released in August 2008. Artwork for the record was delivered by psychedelic visionary Arik Roper, the artist behind such record covers as Sleep's Dopesmoker, and Earth's The Bee Made Honey in the Lion's Skull.

Can't wait to see what these guys do next.

Link: http://sharebee.com/5ac39e20

Tee Pee Week!

We are down to about a week before The Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound release their highly anticipated sophomore album 'When Sweet Sleep Returned'. Although i have every intention of buying it, i find myself searching for an advanced leak almost every few hours.. with no results whatsoever. I know the review copy is floating around, maybe they have done an extra special job keeping it under wraps? Or maybe they still are just so criminally unknown that nobody gives a shit.

Either way, i have been trying to fill the void with all already-existing material on The Assemble Head's record label, Tee Pee Records. Needless to say, it's all fantastic. Thus, I thought i would spend this entire week only posting Tee Pee and Tee Pee associated bands for you folks. At the end of this time the new Assemble Head should drop, i will dance, and i'll pop it up here for you!

Now, where to begin..

http://www.teepeerecords.com/
http://www.myspace.com/teepeerecord

Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound, Fuck Yeah!

Over the last few weeks, and even more so the last few nights, i have found myself itching for The Assemble Head's new record due to drop on the 7th of April. I absolutely adore this band, and to keep everyone at bay (including myself) i thought i would post this amazing video of the guys working out a few sections from 'Ekranoplan'. Check the song switch at 2:10ish.



Wheres the leak at?

The Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound - Ekranoplan [2007]

Anyone interested in the retro/heavy rock releases from the awesome Tee Pee record label (Earthless, Ancestors, Witch, Graveyard, Titan) should get their hands on this little scorcher as soon as possible! With roots clearly in the psychedelic rock scene and influences such as Pink Floyd, Crazy Horse, Sabbath, Iron Butterfly, The 13th Floor Elevators & Blue Cheer, The Assemble Head is a band that might have better fit in the music scene in 60s.

This major label debut successfully merges the styles of some of the mentioned bands above into one ass-kicking experience. "Mosquito Lantern" for instance, is built around an Iron Butterfly-ish hard rock riff while "A Bourbon for Rudy" is even more blues-based, and bleeds straight out of the brighter "The Corner Zombies". In contrast comes the darker "Occult Roots" a song that slips right into Sabbath's satanic realms, while the blistering "D Brown" boasts Hendrixs-esque guitars early in, but swiftly settles into a delicious Creamy jam!

As with such groups as Comets on Fire or Dead Meadow, the individual elements of the Assemble Head's onslaught are less important than the music's overall cumulative wallop. It’s the kind of music that asks you to just sit back and let it all wash over you. Highly recommended stuff, god bless Tee Pee!

Link: http://sharebee.com/6aea7335