ON THE BEACH: Athens-adjacent artist Jake Chisenhall (Floral Portrait, Delorean Gray) has let slip his first release under his proper name. The five-song release is titled Be Steel, My Heart. From the first saxophone blast of opening song “Flowers Of Inez,” it’s tempting to categorize this as adult contemporary, but that temptation only lasts a few seconds. Once it’s passed, listeners will notice a distinct Beach Boys influence from vocal melodies to instrumentation and arrangement. This is clearly present on bossa nova-tinged “Beachfront Bossa” (featuring Rose Hotel), but most clearly pronounced in “Boys For The Summer.” The record’s mixing and mastering duties were pretty evenly split between Chisenhall at Blossom Sounds and Jesse Mangum at The Glow Studio, but everything here fits together so well that no difference is noticeable. The nearly Spaghetti Westernisms of closing instrumental “One for Mr. Byrd (ft. Paul Guy Stevens)” wraps this up neatly. Find it at jakechisenhall.bandcamp.com.
I NEED THAT RECORD: The Secret Record Swap returns to Athentic Brewing Saturday, Sept. 20. The event runs from 12–5 p.m., but if you pay $5 you can enter early at 11 a.m. For the unfamiliar, the Secret Record Swap is a semi-quarterly event that hosts record dealers of many stripes and has become a go-to event for record enthusiasts. But it’s not just records, as vendors also deal in DVDs, posters, books and other associated music and pop culture media. For more information, please see facebook.com/secretrecordswap.
UP FOR THE DOWNLOAD: Before he was a producer and writer for National Public Radio, Lars Gotrich ran the flourishing, yet humble, Thor’s Rubber Hammer label here in Athens. During these years, roughly 2006–2011, I covered his releases extensively and regularly. Now, in a move designed to benefit Long Beach, CA artist and engineer Chris Schlarb, Gotrich is selling the entire label’s discography—25 releases in all—for a mere $12. Even though most of these names are long buried in the annals of Athens music history, some of you may remember The Elephant 666 Orchestra, Gay Africa, Long Legged Woman, Chartreuse, Better People and others available through this offer. Some of these most likely didn’t even cost twelve bucks to record. In any case, if you wanna grab ‘em and add to your digital curio cabinet, please see thorsrubberhammer.bandcamp.com.
THE AIR OVER HERE: You remember that phenomenon of the late 1990s/early 2000s when it seemed like every band had undertaken a personal challenge to insert as many notes as possible into every single song? Well, Exit Row has managed to distill these lessons learned from the Dismemberment Plan, Farquet and others into a new album, Ill At Ease. But not only that, it’s like all these plus Mark E. Smith (The Fall) on vocals. None of which should be taken as a warning, but as awareness. The band does well with its mid-2000s indie stuff (e.g. “Hesitater,” “Fugue State” and the tuneful “Mythology”). I dunno, man, this kind of stuff has always been so difficult for me to grab onto. However, if you’re in the market for musical calisthenics that Exit Row’s previous releases merely hinted at, then head to exit-row.bandcamp.com, and if this is your bag, then follow along at instagram.com/exit.row.
NEIGHBORS TO THE NORTH: Cloud Recordings has just released the stellar collaborative project Isthmus, which is a meeting of talents between John Kiran Fernandes and Montreal’s Jardin botanique, whose member Kate Bundy was Fernandes’ neighbor and artistic compatriot back in 2011. She joined up with fellow member Jean-Guillaume Bastien after her move to Montreal, originally attempting this collaboration through the postal service. But lost tapes led to working digitally, and this two-piece release features Fernandes laying overdubs on the Canadian pair’s original compositions. These two tracks span just about 46 minutes and are populated by deeply melodic drones with Fernandes’ clarinet accompanying them throughout. Personally, I feel more of an emotional reaction to the second one than the first, but your mileage may vary. You’ll be able to catch them live when this collaboration plays Bolo Bolo (160 Winston Dr.) Thursday, Sept. 18. Also on the bill are Madeline Polites (Immaterial Possession) and Wolfli. Doors are at 7 p.m., and music starts at 8 p.m. Find the record at cloudrecordings.bandcamp.com, and for more information, please see cloudrecordings.com.
SHIPPING AND RECEIVING: Primordial Void has dipped its toes into the world of distribution, and its doors are now open for anyone seeking such an arrangement. The goal of this expansion is to highlight “both new and old classics that are difficult or impossible to find in any other U.S. stores.” The label has already had one in-stock item completely sell out, which is pretty sweet for a new distro. Artists and labels interested in setting up a distribution arrangement with Primordial Void should contact the label via [email protected]. I would advise, though, to at least give a cursory listen through the label’s catalog so you know what the aesthetic environment is. You can do that at primordialvoid.bandcamp.com.
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