Grouper
The Man Who Died in His Boat
Kranky (2013)
The Man Who Died in His Boat (released February 2013) is a collection of songs by Grouper, a.k.a. Liz Harris, one-woman ambient/noise/folk/dream-pop impresario of Portland, Oregon. Harris has been active since 2005, the year of her first full-length release, and projects since then have included numerous collaborations, EPs, splits, etc. on multiple labels. Her latest work (from Kranky Records) is, interestingly, not exactly new, but has been mined from recordings dating back to 2008, which saw the release of her highly acclaimed album Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill.The Man Who Died… opens with a short “instrumental” segment of ambiguous, creepy noise. These short vignettes are interspersed between the album’s longer tracks, which makes for a welcome break or dividing point, as it’s often difficult to differentiate between one song and another. This clearly conscious choice serves to make the record an experience to be immersed in, fascinated with, and haunted by afterward. Most vocals are so laden with effects/drenched in reverb as to make actual lyrics indecipherable. This doesn’t seem to really matter; it’s more about Harris’ delicate, damaging voice and beautifully simple melody lines. Many tracks feature hymnal layers of vocals and subtle, spare harmonies. Also front-and-center … Read more
Feral King
Self Titled
Last Anthem (2012)
Feral Kings' self-titled EP comes from a couple of guys that know how to do what they're doing and do … Read more
Off With Their Heads
Home
Epitaph (2013)
Maybe it’s because I caught Off With Their Heads live recently and maybe it’s because on Home, their third official … Read more
Henryspenncer
Saturn
Bookmaker (2013)
After enjoying the light, acoustic stylings of Seabuckthorn, I started checking out Bookmaker records for some similarly oriented artists. That's … Read more
