RELEASE THE BATS! 2008
NTHNTHSTHSTH LP (ANTONY MILTON & UTON COLLABORATION)
Finland and New Zealand meets again on this second collaborative album from Uton and Antony Milton (first one released as a limited CDR on Celebrate Psi Phenomenon back in 2004). A perfect clash of two beautiful worlds over 2 sidelong journeys divided into 5 shorter segments intersecting with each other. Field recordings, layers of majestic droning sounds, buried voices, percussion... Recorded in Linnavuori and Wellington from 2005 to 2007. Full colour artwork by both Jani Hirvonen and Antony Milton and liner notes by Jon Dale. (RTB35)
WARMER MILKS - LET YOUR FRIENDS IN CD
Let Your Friends In is another chapter in the more brash, aggressive side of Warmer Milks catalog. Leaning more towards skate punk and black metal, the group touched on intensities left behind from nerd critically acclaimed Radish On Light (Troubleman Unlimited 2006) but with a more street rock cum vomitorium feel. The flipside to the first track is a spook gang romper, drumless yet still punching the walls with a force no other rock can manage. The "Let Your Friends In" sessions went down in Shelbyville, Kentuckee at Rove Studios home to engineer Paul Oldham (Speed To Roam, Bonnie Prince Billy Band, ex-Broadcast Choir and Royal Trux) where various members present during the "Soft Walks" sessions (coming March 2008, Animal Disguise) took time to record this scorcher. Featuring usual WM attendees Michael Turner and Greg Backus the two lengthy cuts on "Let Your Friends In" also boasts the addition of Shawn David McMillen (Austin, TX solo artist, Iron Kite member and former member of Ash Castles) on guitar and Paul O. on dead wah guitar. Where the group has flirted with heavy rock in the past, it is easy to say that group now owns heavy rock. (RTB33)
TAR... FEATHERS 7"
2 new songs from Swedens finest! A special brand of melodic lo-fi quirkiness that comes out like the bastard son of Beat Happening and mid 80's The Cure. Pure brilliance from the start to the end. On this recording Tar... Feathers consists of Marcus Nyke and Simon Stålhamre. (RTB32)
ALTAR OF FLIES/SEWER ELECTION LP
Two of the best acts currently dwelling in the depths of the Swedish underground scene. Sewer Election should be well-known by now, previous releases includes a split 12" with Incapacitants, cds on Troniks and Chondritic Sound and the amazing Killing-tapes. Altar Of Flies has created quite a buzz over the last year with a huge amount of very limited tape/cd-r releases. On this split LP, Sewer Election contributes with the nasty Rotten Corpse. A crude and disgusting piece. Monotonous, freezing coldness. Altar Of Flies continues with his dark and eerie forest rumblings. Buried claustrophobic lo-fi insanity straight from hell. Heavy outbursts of feedback. Could've been outtakes from an old Dario Argento soundtrack. Mean-spirited ugliness from both bands. (RTB31)
THE SHAMELESS KISS OF VANITY III TAPE
More than 4 years in the making, RTB can finally unleash the last part of the trilogy started with RTB1 back in early 2002! A The Cure tribute with 8 bands covering the classic 1982 album Pornography from start to end: Swann Danger, Turn Pale, Cut City, La Quiete, The Je Ne Sais Quoi, Sixteens, A Trillion Barnacle Lapse and Chromatics. With most tracks recorded back in 2004, this compilation showcases the magic of the early years of RTB better than a regular label sampler ever could. The tape format adds blistering rawness to all the tracks, expect crude lo-fi coldness and low-key package aesthetics. Pro-duplicated tapes and a one time pressing of only 250 copies... Note: Unforunately the sound on the tape turned out kind of weird (tape hiss x 1000) so a CDR will be included with all copies. As a bonus, the CDR has some tracks from The Shameless Kiss Of Vanity I and II!
SHEPHERDS - LOCO HILLS CD
Loco Hills, the debut fullength from these Brooklyn bush babies,is the sound of a rolling southwestern road trip. It is the sound of unknown terrain, and appropriately Loco Hills finds Shepherds entering full band territory for the first time. A fully realized jam document, toying at times with structure, Shepherds never lose sight of the "drop everything and make music" mentality that makes them so exciting. Swirling strings, tape manipulations. Bongos and wah, fire and bone. This is our music. Members from Meneguar, Woods and The Vanishing Voice. (RTB29)
MENEGUAR - STRANGERS IN OUR HOUSE LP
Hot on the heels of the critically acclaimed debut, "I Was Born At Night", Meneguar are taking their sound to the next level, incorporating more solid song structures and intricate melodies. "The band's sound pits rabid guitars playing off each other with the intensity of a knife fight, always-effective group singing, swaying bass lines, and drums that roll more often than a soccer mom in a Chevy Tahoe...it would fit perfectly at some hipster deejay night, a road trip, a barbecue - it would even make a great soundtrack to wash your car to...This is movie-montage music" - prefixmag.com. (RTB28)
POCAHAUNTED/ORPHAN FAIRYTALE 7"
One track each from Pocahaunted (California) and Orphan Fairytale (Belgium). Pocahaunted has been real busy the last year: opening for Sonic Youth, several collaborations with Robedoor, tape/cd-r releases on Not Not Fun, Arbor, Fuck It Tapes etc, split LPs with Christina Carter and Mythical Beast... and yeah, we could go on forever (and mention the 2 new vinyl albums on Arbor and Woodsist that are being released at the same time as this 7"...)! Here Amanda and Bethany gives us Warpaint, another dubbed-out and almost heavy lo-fi anthem with that always so special and unique Pocahaunted vibe. The discography of Orphan Fairytale, the solo moniker of Eva Van Deuren, mainly consists of very limited tape and cd-r releases so far, with the only previous vinyl output being an amazing collaboration LP with Mudboy. Live actions includes a performance at No Fun Fest 2007 and a set that took place inside of a container. Here she continues with her haunting and always captivating and melodic keyboard hymns. Made By Mermaids is a trip in the ocean gone bad. Limited to 500 copies. Full colour labels, yellow big-hole sleeves with design and screenprint (in glowing red) by RTB-sidekick HLG. (RTB27)
Also available: The Skull Defekts - Skkull CD (last copies!), The Holy Kiss - Shot Love On A Back Line CD, Förmögenhet 7", Suis La Lune LP, Dove Yellow Swans - Live During War Crimes 2 CD (last copies!), Honeyhander CDEP, The Holy Kiss 7", Swann Danger 10".
Upcoming stuff 2008: The Skull Defekts - The Drone Drug CD, Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words - Lost In Reflections LP + 7", Tar... Feathers - Time Of Death: Always O' Clock LP + CD, Glass Candy/Chromatics 7", Tsukimono - Time Canvas LP + CD-R.
