Headboggle Polyphonic Demo (Ratskin Records) Over a 20+ year career, San Francisco's Derek Gedalecia has released over 100 varied experimental forays into music, releasing eccentric entries on label catalogs such as NNA Tapes with 2007's Unsounds and Domo Live (a self-split EP and live recording) and Hausu Mountain with 2016's In Dual Mono (a cassette consisting of a single [...]
Synthia Slimez Descent to Glacial Sphere (Grimalkin Records) Synthia Slimez is the solo project of Richmond, Virginia's Kosmo Powers, a trans and non-binary synthwave artist (who is also one half of Aesthetic Barrier) as well as contortionist and make-up artist. Described as "the manifestation of oppression and violence faced as Trans individuals who are fucking [...]
C.W. Franz s/t (Not on Label) Today, we're lucky to premiere the debut self-titled album from Chicago singer-songwriter C.W. Franz. Leading a rotating cast of more than 40 contributors, C.W. Franz crafts deceptively lonely and intimate chamber folk reminiscent of the work of Mark Kozelek, characterized largely by a massive yet tastefully implemented selection of [...]
Sonny and the Sunsets Hairdressers From Heaven (Rocks In Your Head Records) First impressions are hard. No matter who you are or what you do, that introduction, that opening mission statement, faces the tall task of initially being the full summary of you in a person's mind. Hairdressers From Heaven is the first release on Sonny [...]
Petridisch Hit Rendition (Grimalkin Records / Fish Prints) A dream collaboration for those in the know, Hit Rendition sees experimental music wizard Thor Maillet aka Petridisch (who also runs Fish Prints) team up with one of the cassette world's best new labels in Grimalkin Records. The result is, unsurprisingly, forward-thinking and quite peculiar. Hit Rendition is something close [...]
Graham Hunt Leaving Silver City (Forged Artifacts) 25 years ago, the music of Graham Hunt would've been utterly inescapable, not that you'd be complaining. The first solo album by the Midnight Reruns front-man represents a student of power pop's storied history fully ascending to mastery, capturing the pure magic of its greatest era with its [...]
community college comco (Disposable America) community college's comco is an album all about the blanks, the missing pieces. Something of a Horse Jumper of Love switcheroo, John Maragaris takes the lead here, while Horse Jumper front-man Dimitri Giannopoulos takes over the bass and John's brother Dan takes over the kit in lieu of Jamie. Maragaris' lyrics and [...]
William Austin Clay ...Oops! (Peach Bloom) While Counterzine was introduced to the decidedly off-kilter world of William Austin Clay via the inclusion of standout track "Flip" on Peach Bloom's Lonestar: A Texas Friends and Family Compilation, he's hardly a new face. Notably formerly of Denton's Blessin', Clay has since embarked on a solo project which started off within the [...]
IMAGES s/t (Painted Blonde) Madison, Wisconsin might not be the first place you'd think of when discussing garage pop of the sun-baked variety, but on her debut EP, IMAGES delivers just that with a set of four songs perfect for road-tripping through the Sun Belt. IMAGES' largely plots her course with her guitar work, which [...]
ll nøthing ll Higeki (Houdini Mansions) Originally released digitally late 2018, the mad doctors over at Houdini Mansions have taken ll nøthing ll's Higeki EP and shocked new life into the project, with cassette (see above) and minidisc releases, all-new original artwork, and four remixes courtesy of desert sand feels warm at night, Bakmahn, Tupperwave, and S\/\/4Nk [...]
