You know, despite looming threats of war, potentially even threats of nuclear war, we’ve managed to stay somewhat positive. Actually, that’s not true – we’ve just got dissociation down to a science at this point and we can use it to focus on what we can change instead of the things we can’t. It’s a work in progress but hey, self-help is always a work in progress if you’re doing it right. Right?
Also, it can be pretty hard to want to work on yourself in the face of fascism, oligarchy, genocide, war profiteering and the like. As we watch nightmares of punk rock become a reality on a global scale, it feels like people in power are doing away with any sense of pretense that they’re interested in doing the right thing. We genuinely can’t help but wonder if it was ever there in the first place. Have evil people always been in power? Has that always been the goal? Where does the buck actually stop, and why does the buck matter so much if they’re already incomprehensibly rich?
We don’t have an answer. But we do have an absolute banger of a Tuesday Music Dump for you today, with We Contain Multitudes, Cloutchaser, Trouble in Paradise and dozens more. It’s worth noting that these dumps normally really rejuvenate us and make us feel more in touch with what’s happening in the scene, and this one’s no different, but it also felt extra special – everything here comes across well above average and worth more than one listen. In fact, this just might be our first “no skips” Tuesday Music Dump ever. But let’s not waste any more time. Whatever you guys are doing out there to survive and write music… keep up the good fight.
It’s working.
Cloutchaser – “1, 2, Fuck”
The wild and crazy NC duo show less mercy than ever before when crafting math rock beyond comprehension, and we can’t wait to hear the whole EP July 25th, which includes a Hella cover. Ballsy, and completely appropriate.
We Contain Multitudes – Minako
The impeccable debut from math rock’s royal supergroup (Don Caballero‘s Jon Fine, Bitch Magnet‘s Orestes Morfin, and Smallgang‘s Simon Kobayashi) was always going to be great, but people will likely be surprised by the dedication on display. Each of Minako‘s songs are entirely distinct, from towers of feedback worship to 70’s prog walks, but they glow together, not unlike the massive red orb on the record’s cover.
Little Plastic Dinosaurs – Hatchling
Boston’s latest emo act is an easy sell with confident, distinct vocals and soaring tunes abounding, but there’s an Alien Boy level attention to structure and detail. Math rock and emo lifers, you won’t want to sleep on this.
Magnolia Noir – Le meilleur des mondes
This angular tower of riffs out of Quebec feels distinctly progressive, but also supremely focused. It’s spiraling without being sprawling, allowing something really unique to unfurl beneath whatever expectations one might have.
Little Hand Feet – S/T
This babbling and brazen clash of post-punk and math rock actually works on a number of levels not unlike post-Floral darlings Fake Pollocks, but with a dash of shame thrown in to spice things up.
Will Ashby – Beyond the Horizon
In a sequel to his already pretty sweet and sultry Infinite Horizons, Ashby is back with even wilder sounds on Beyond the Horizon, and not just on the guitar – there’s a lot of production surprises here as well, and all of them are welcome.
MURKY – Memento Vivere
We found ourselves instantly Y2K-maxing once this wildly detailed electro math rock odyssey was underway, and even if you don’t know what that means, it’s okay. Just know this mixes the best of Trust Fund Ozu and Charlie XCX, but also appeals to fans of Adebisi Shank.
Kendall Miles – Selva
Unexpected and refreshing – somewhere between lo-fi, Brainfeeder beats, jazz, and math rock is this utterly pacifying cut from Kendall Miles. Seriously, try worrying about nuclear apocalypse while listening to this. That’s right. You can’t.
Airplay – Bottomless
We know what you’re thinking, but no – that isn’t the cover of a nu-metal or Y2K record you’ve never seen before. It’s the cover of a math rock record you’ve never seen before.
Precious Little Life – Kirby Cola // Joppa Fallston
Don’t tell anyone but we’re secretly obsessed with this Irish pop rock band called Ash, and it’s really rare that math rock makes us think of anywhere near that amount of harmonic glory, but what the band does here on Kirby and Joppa is downright anthemic.
mICROgOBLET – nanoarchitecture
This is one of the coolest things we’ve heard this year, blending lo-fi production with visceral punk and brainy pedalboard breakdowns.
Trouble in Paradise – Benign
If David Gilmour wrote math rock, he would definitely drop something like this at some point. Benign is progressive, dreamy, and complicated, and if you’re down to take a somewhat long and winding vintage road, you’ll be rewarded many times over.
Eaters Digest – Charcuterie
Even within a few seconds of hearing the vocals on this record, we were like, “hmm, something something Don Forgetti.” Then we saw a member of that band was in this one, and it all clicked – weirdos for post-punk, this one’s for you.
D. French – Letting dreams fade one form process at a time
This loopy, gorgeous fever dream was totally unexpected, and sounds like something Teebs or Flying Lotus would create if they were trying to produce songs for a Mogwai record.
Jeff Ubetcha – Better Than This
Being that it’s distinctly 5th-wave emo, sometimes it’s hard to say whether this one is more of a call back to things like Clever Girl or football, etc., but either way we’re not complaining.
Kids of the Cinema – S/T
This self-titled debut from Columbus emo group packs way more punch than you might expect from an act so young, already giving shades of Rolo Tomassi and Great Grandpa.
Ethereal Recurrence – renaivé
Tap-happy math rock a la standards and Coral Zero by way of Indonesia sounds great enough on paper, but renaivé presents a lot of unexpected elements, so we’d say it’s even greater through speakers.
Bluedive – Everything You Ever Wanted
This 5th-wave emo meets pop-punk explosion of angst might not take us back to the very beginning of the genre, but they do remind us of some of it’s best and brightest like Taking Back Sunday and Jimmy Eat World.
5PM Morning – Barrel Aged
As this mainly acoustic math rock and midwest jam fest is pretty complex, but also grounded in the style of Sithu Aye or Plini so there’s lots of textures and flavors present just beneath the surface.
Mike Vennart – 4 Post-Rock Wank-offs For Cash
The mind behind Oceansize didn’t just drop a pretty little EP, he gave it the exactly perfect name when you consider how it came to be. Shameless in a way, but also, still fun.
ECHOES LIKE DUST –SQUASH
If there’s one record on this list that’s better than it has any right to be, it’s SQUASH. If you’re like us and love Viagara Boys but have yet to appreciate IDLES, this subtly furious post-punk opus fills the gap with unadulterated class.
Freak Motel – Human Codec
This one takes us back to the best of Battles with it’s bold, imaginative sound, but it also takes us back to the futuristic jungle sounds of Tim Wright’s Wipeout soundtracks… so yeah, we’re all in on this one.
MONCHMONCH – MARTEMORTE
Perhaps one of the most entertaining of today’s entire dump is this utter madhouse. It’s desiccated, disassembled, and downright destroyed at times in the production, but underneath are smart-as-hell post punk songs with tons of changeups and vocals that make you feel like a willing hostage.
gubbe – TVÅ
This one has more of a storytelling angle to it that brings to mind both Mr. Bungle and Fat Randy, but with a bog-friendly dankness all it’s own.
Hell Stuff – Garbage Day
Guttural, gut-punching riffage that borders on brutal slam at times, but always reels back to show an appreciation for odd times signatures and sludge-y guitar stabs. Very heavy, but very fun and interesting.
Nadar de Noche – Extrañamente
This epic safari through lunar forests of prog, post-rock, and vibe-y pop sounds has a level of depth we simply weren’t ready for. The record might be a little long for some, but we promise it’s worth it.
WthAura – Keep Going
Philadelphia’s wildly prolific future-math maestro wthAura nailed it with the latest EP, creating something distinctly fresh that also calls back to a parallel past.
Beluga – Fruta Natural Del Mundo Virtual
This spiky, gooey, ferro-fluid mixture of Polyphia and Ando San style guitar playing is worth looking into if you’re a fan of either act. This one’s a little meaner than expected, and we like it.
Baliene – II
First of all, that’s just an album cover for the ages, let’s not overlook that. But Baliene also cuts something fresh when it comes to hypnotic, looping prog that zigs and zags to unexpected places.
Snow Melts in April – S/T
This sparkling take on college dorm room flavored emo has more going for it than meets the eye / ear, marrying the best of Glocca Morra and Minus the Bear to create something memorable and infinitely repeatable.
Seppuku Survivor – EP2
Somewhere between the classical observations of BTBAM and the long-winded prog of King Crimson, you’ll find the exotic sounds of instrumental impresario Seppuku Survivor.
Strontzo – Laszlo Kebab
Listen, we’ll be kebab… er, frank: some of you will hate this. But many of you will instantly start doing bobbing your head and gyrating strangely to Strontzo once you get the hang of it.
Ok Boomer / No Trucks Over 75 Hundred Pounds – Split EP
Peruvian emo-violence with hints of math rock and post-hardcore? And two for the price of one? Say no more – Ok Boomer’s half reminded us of a metallic joliette, and No Trucks… reminds us of Senza and Chris Collin’ screamo / emo-violence project As Living Arrows, but all of this takes place in under 15 minutes.
eyesplice / beareab – Split EP
Eyesplice and beareab put out a violent, raw, and radical EP that defies categorization, save for the fact that both acts seem bent on destroying 5th-wave emo in entirely different ways. But ultimately the split sticks the landing, making for a cohesive yet discombobulating thriller that leaves the listener with questions, yet also a sense that there are no easy answers.
LACITTÀDOLENTE – in a world full of nails I have got nothing but my hands
Probably the heaviest thing on today’s list, but also one of the most interesting. Combining bits of Car Bomb, Botch, and Sikth, LACITTÀDOLENTE concoct a hyper-spicy blend of ambitious mathcore we can’t get enough of.
Chaotic Neutral – Shallows of Faith
This dark and noisy post-prog situation out of Vancouver is hard to describe, but instantly transfixing with its mix of theatric vocals and thrash-y, heavily effected guitars.
Greet Death – Die in Love
The Flint, MI shoegazers just put out what might be a modern classic thanks to ghostly, whimsical composition and hyper-detailed production courtesy of Nick Diener aka Oneder Effects aka frontman of The Swellers.
Tropical Fuck Storm – Fairyland Codex
The typically bizarre but always brilliant outfit does it yet again with their new album, but their commitment to its fantastic theme is an achievement unto itself. It feels like a complete concept, and it it’s a perfect match for their progressive, psychedelic ways.
MSPAINT – No Seperation
We were beyond intrigued with MSPAINT’s first record, but we were also exhausted by it to the point it took us a very long time to digest it. Perhaps too long. On the band’s new record, they’re a little less abrasive, but just as progressive and challenging, making for an uncanny brutalism that hits with more immediacy and emotional depth than it’s predecessor.
Planning for Burial – It’s Closeness, It’s Easy
This indescribable monument of a record can be described many ways – blackgaze, shoegaze, post-metal, post-rock, ambient… but in a word, it’s cathartic. It’s the sound of immense release while also being extremely meditative, and really all we can say is that if you’re the kind of person that finds themselves looking for special and difficult to describe music, It’s Closeness, It’s Easy easily qualifies and is bound to impress.
Deadguy – Near-Death Travel Services
Not so dead anymore, the legendary chaotic metalcore band returns with a highly unstable LP, and we mean that in the best way possible as the songs explode and cast orchestrated debris, quickly reminding us how they became such a cult classic in the first place.
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