Six Records CMM Wants You To Know

Animal Youth "Animal" LP (Weyrd Son Records)

Animal Youth were formed in Brussels in 2016 from the ashes of the group Siamese Queens. Their debut album "Animal" is a vibrant one that mixes elements of post punk and shoegaze familiarity with crushing delivery and fantastic song arrangements full of blissful underlying melodies. Opening number "Darkest Place" is a high energy barn burner while "Rainy Day" and "Eat You Alive" come off like The Pixies doing covers of "Pornography" era Cure. The infectious rhythm of "Feeling" has all the makings of an 80's new wave pop anthem as it's stunning bass line and desolate guitar work blend perfectly with it's moody yet comforting vocal delivery while the rugged romp of "Love You When You're Dead" rounds things out in fine form. Overall "Animal" is an incredible display of mesmerizing post punk brilliance. The band will be playing a round of shows in support of the album including a spot on the Weyrd Son Records Festival this weekend in Brussels which also features performances from Drab Majesty and Soft Kill.

Chuck Berry "Lady B. Goode" Single (Dualtone)

Here's another track from "Chuck" the final album from the true king of rock n roll CHUCK BERRY!!! Berry referred to the song as a “spiritual sequel” to his classic “Johnny B. Goode.”. The album features Berry's regular backing group The Blueberry Hill Band which includes Robert Lohr on piano, Jimmy Marsala on bass and drummer Keith Robinson plus guest appearances by Charles Berry Jr., Tom Morello and Gary Clarke Jr. "Chuck" will be available on June 9th coutesy of Dulatone Records.

Jeff Tweedy "Laminated Cat" Single (dB PM Records)

Jeff Tweedy is set to release a new solo acoustic album, "Together At Last". The record is a collection of remakes of classic songs by Wilco and his various side projects. "Laminated Cat" was originally release by Loose Fur, a project that also featured Jim O'Rourke and Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche. This stripped down heartfelt version is pretty damn inspiring as Tweedy's signature voice sounds as amazing as ever. "Together At Last" is set to be released on June 23rd courtesy of dB PM Records.

Nick Cave & Warren Ellis "War Machine"-War Machine Original Soundtrack (Lakeshore Records)

War Machine, a new Netflix original movie starring Brad Pitt, Tilda Swinton, Topher Grace and others also includes a beautiful soundtrack scored by non other than Nick Cave and his longtime Badseeds band mate Warren Ellis. “Together we made a score that was both light and dark, propulsive and meditative at the same time. Reflecting on putting together the score Cave and Ellis stated, "We developed a kind of ‘spiritual electronics’ that captured both the melancholy and the terrible absurdity of the Afghan war,” “It was a great pleasure to work with David Michôd, who is not only an extraordinary filmmaker but a musician too. Our favorite score!”. War Machine is out today and the soundtrack is available courtesy of Lakeshore Records.

Night Things "Reasons" Single (theofficeofnightthings.com)

Los Angeles based musician Zach Shields met vocalist Maize LaRue when he was part of Dead Man's Bones with Ryan Gosling. The two started playing covers together and eventually formed their own group Night Things. The duo's brand new single "Reasons" is a delightful dose of indie pop beauty highlighted by LaRue's dynamic voice. It's rich production and compelling arrangement give a solid nod to classic 80's pop, as layers of liquid like synths and an uplifting rhythm make it the perfect track for spring. Be sure to check out this track as well as their other recent single "Cost Of The Summer" and stay tuned for the bands debut album due out this coming Fall.

Roger Waters "The Last Refugee" Single (roger-waters.com)

Pink Floyd mastermind Roger Waters has returned with "Is This The Life We Really Want" his first studio album in nearly 25 years. "The Last Refugee" the albums latest single features Waters one of a kind vocal delivery alongside a sea of cosmic sounds led by an ominous piano and steady stream of fluttering percussion. The album was recorded between 2010 and 2017 with producer Nigel Godrich and also features vocals from Holly Laessig and Jessica Wolfe from the band Lucius."Is This The Life We Really Want" is set for release next Friday June 2nd.

"Five For Friday" with Italian singer songwriter Davide Moscato

Davide Moscato is a singer songwriter based in Catanzaro, Italy. His latest album "Mental Maze" (www.seahorserecordings.com) is an incredible collection of passionate heart felt songs that blends a classic singer songwriter style with an experimental touch that is second to none. Davide shares some of his favorite songs in this weeks edition of "Five For Friday" but first enjoy the exquisite experimental sounds of his song "Signals".

Tim Buckley : Starsailor

This is the song I think of when i want to listen to a voice and experimental music. Tim Buckley entrusts himself to improvisation for this entire album. This song is the title track and the words are a poem from Beckett while the vocal line is a foolhardy exercise for voice. Sixteen vocals overdubbed, in an ocean of shouts, whispers,moans and groans. A unique experimental song in the world, with a voice from an unknown place.

Area : Gioia e rivoluzione

Area were a really great Italian band, with the guest star of another experimental voice. Demetrio Stratos. It's impossible to forget this man. An expert in diplophony, triplophony and flautophony, ( 2-3 sounds emitted simultaneously with the voice) he used his voice as an instrument. The players are great musicians too coming from the jazz world. The song celebrates the power of imagination, which transforms a machine gun into a double bass, exploding thoughts instead of bullets. It’s a hymn to freedom, in a bloody political period in Italy.

Pink Floyd : The Great gig in the sky

From their classic album, "Dark Side Of The Moon", "The Great Gig In The Sky" is a masterpiece to me. It is due to the harmonic piano progression that i love to hear. It sounds like a soul-gospel track. The cinematic and expressive piano mixed with the amazing theatrical voice of Clare Torry is both unique and masterful.

Deep Purple : Child in time

I love “In Rock “, it's one of the first rock albums I heard when I was a child, and this song is a wonderful progressive rock piece. Ian Gillan's voice has a unique and shocking vocal style and in this song his voice is perfect. It's quiet but rocking, strong but sweet. The guitar is a blade around your throat, whereas the lyrics have mysterious but inspired verses. The final part is an excellent blast of hard rock that's so difficult to play on stage.

King Crimson : In the court of the Crimson King

From the first album by this magic band. An opera that is truly unique.The song is surreal with some enchanting atmospheres. The mellotron is insistent and the chorus is obsessive and throbbing while the flute in the middle part is evocative. Fripp and Lake are musicians with great technical skills and were very innovative while Lake's voice is totally clean and reassures the listener, taking his hand in the court of the king,among a witch,a queen, a funeral,piper and other strange characters. Progressive Rock lived an unforgettable moment with this song and with this album too. No one can forget this band.

Lucid Dreamtime - An Interview with Ricky Turner Of Howling Cloud

Brisbane, Australia musician Ricky Turner makes his unique brand of music under the name Howling Cloud. His latest E.P. "Lucid Dreamtime" is available now as a limited edition cassette from Custom Made Music. You can pick up a copy at custommademusicva.com or howlingcloud.bandcamp.com Ricky took the time to discuss the music that influenced him early on, movie soundtracks and the recording process of the E.P. Enjoy the interview below and have a listen to his tracks "Acid Rain" and "Deadman Dreaming".

CMM-What's the first music you remember hearing as a child and what artist made the biggest impression on you?

Ricky-It must be hearing my dad blasting AC/DC in the car heading to the coast on weekends. It was hot, fast, and loud - seeds were definitely planted there. But I think it was hearing the likes of Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin from my parents collection that really gave me the music bug.

CMM-When did you start making music of your own and what was the first instrument you learned to play?

Ricky-First started with acoustic guitar in my early teens I think. Pretty early on I was getting more enjoyment from playing around improvising tunes than I was learning songs or getting lessons, so really i've been making my own music ever since then. I'll pick up most things pretty quickly and have a play but i'm generally satisfied with that, a 'jack of all trades' I guess.

CMM-Did you play in a lot of bands growing up?

Ricky-There was pretty much always a group of friends who I was jamming and playing songs with, but nothing serious.

CMM-When did you start making music as Howling Cloud?

Ricky-About 5 years ago. I started spending a lot of time taking instruments with me on bush walks, playing in different spaces, making field recordings, etc. So the project was born out of those experiences.

CMM-Your latest release "Lucid Dreamtime" is an eclectic collection of experimental psychedelic sounds. What was the writing and recording process for it like?

Ricky-As mentioned above, playing and recording in the bush was the foundation of the project but the process itself varied a fair bit. Some songs are based on riffs that came to me in certain places then recorded back in the studio, sometime i'd set up drones and try to 'tune in' to the surrounding sounds then play along, or watch a tree sway and try to mimic it's movement musically...basically the whole ritual turned into a bit of a personal journey for me, and so in the end some of the music is written to try and help the album convey that.

CMM-Any particular gear you used on it.

Ricky-Nothing particularly special, just a good variety, with a healthy dose of effects of coarse. Apart from guitars I used various hand percussion instruments, singing bowls, didgeridoo, dan moi, and flute to name a few.

CMM-What direction do you see the next Howling Cloud recordings moving in and what do you have planned for a follow up release?

Ricky-I have a few recordings already that will probably end up on the next release but at this stage i'm still unsure when that'll be done. It's a fairly slow moving beast so far and will probably continue to be that way. I'm also busy with my electronic side project at the moment, so I daresay the next Howling Cloud album will likely be more synth heavy.

CMM-If you could do a movie score for a film by any director who would it be and why?

Ricky- I love Alejandro Jodorowski's films, they're very surreal and there's heaps of room for various styles of music to be sown together, so I'd have a lot of fun with that. Jim Jarmusch's "Dead Man" would be a film id love to do, except that Neil Young already did the perfect soundtrack!

CMM-How about a collaboration with any other musical artist?

Ricky-Maybe Dylan Carlson from Earth, I just feel like I really "get" his musical style, so patient and spacious.

CMM-What are you long term goals as far as the music of Howling Cloud? Do you consider it a lifelong project?

Ricky-It's hard to say much in regards to the long term/lifelong status of Howling Cloud. I've always taken a "go with the flow" approach so I'm usually just dealing with the present moment with little attachment to end results or goals. For now I'd like to finish the next album and focus on some ideas I have for sound-art installations, and see where things go from there. But I'm always open to whatever comes my way, so who knows, maybe an 8-piece live show world tour one day?

"Five For Friday" with Chicago fuzz rock trio She Rides Tigers

SHE RIDES TIGERS is a raucous three-piece rock band from Chicago that is crafting dangerous rock&roll music, both raw and visceral, on the verge of crumbling beneath its sonic weight. Consisting of Joe O’Leary (guitar, vocals), James Scott (bass, vocals) and Matt McGuire (drums), The band delivers their own brand of fuzzed-out psychedelic rock and Americana with the devil-may-care attitude and melodic tendencies of Britpop. Their debut E.P. "Standing On The Edge" comes out June 20th. The band shares some of their favorite songs in this weeks edition of "Five For Friday" but first check out the video for their latest single "Roll With It"

The Smiths "How Soon Is Now"

Joe-I begrudgingly accept nowadays that I love this song and always have, though I wouldn't have admitted it when I was 16 and way into the punk rock scene. The song is both saddening and sexy at the same time, with some of the most brilliantly expressive guitar playing I've ever heard. Johnny Marr will always be one of my very top guitar heroes because he knows exactly how to balance pure artistic expression with absolute service to the song. It's his voice. Morrissey kills it on vocals of course, but Johnny does an amazing version of this song all on his own these days with his current band.

Funkadelic "Super Stupid"

Joe-This sounds like a party. The huge, fuzzed-out funky guitar riff leads the charge and kind of sets the mood for this freak show of a song. The beat is super groovy yet huge. I can never get enough of this song and put it on anytime I get the chance to play DJ at a party. The singing is soulful and wild, and everything is kind of delightfully sloppy throughout. There's just something untamed and slightly dangerous to this sweaty unapologetic song that embodies everything rock&roll is about.

Barkmarket "Visible Cow"

James-This is the first Barkmarket song that I was exposed to. Upon a friend's recommendation, I found a copy of the album L Ron and put it on in the car. From the first chord sliding around the twangy acoustic guitar and Dave Sardy's scratchy, pitch imperfect delivery, I was hooked and cranked the stereo. When the rest of the band kicked - in way too loud, it should be noted - I'm quite sure a speaker blew. My mind blew. All of the right buttons were being pushed and my teenage rage took over again. "Visible Cow" opened my eyes to embracing the slop, scratch, click, and bang in music, and I've never quite recovered from that first listen.

Burning Airlines "Outside The Aviary"

J. Robbins has been my musical compass for about 25 years now. This song perfectly balances the elements what I think make him such an important musician and songwriter. Punk rock roots, pop melodies, aggressive deliveries, a ridiculously tight rhythm section, and that bass tone. Oh, that bass tone. I'll be chasing that tone for the rest of my life. I'll buy anything that J. Robbins touches.

Pink Floyd "Waiting For The Worms"

Matt-This is probably the single song I can point to that made me want to be in a band. Its also cool we get to put up a video link because the visuals for this song are just as important to me as the song itself. I remember going to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with my parents on summer vacation as a kid and seeing this portion of The Wall in an exhibit. The image of the marching hammers was so earth shattering to me at the time. The song itself is bizarre and dark and unlike anything I'd heard before. I come back to this song a lot.

Six Records CMM Wants You To Know

Deer Leader "Know Everything, Know Everyone​/​Last Act Of A Desperate Man" Digital Single (deerleader.bandcamp.com)

Huge walls of reverberating guitars and thunderous drums create astonishing sounds throughout "Know Everything, Know Everyone" which is the debut single from Glasgow's Deer Leader. The chiming notes that echo throughout the droning melodies are quite captivating, moving at a great pace that builds up to maximum volume. "Last Act Of A Desperate Man" is a much more riff oriented track building back and forth between multiple guitar themes and multiple moods. The piano parts of the last couple of minutes give way to a dying haunting noise almost like a portal to another dimension.

Erinome "Fracture" Single (erinome.bandcamp.com)

Incredible tones fill this eight minute soundscape of experimental beauty. The nuances that channel through this recording as it progresses are astonishing as some sounds are just slightly changing as they grow and grow around you. This is best enjoyed on head phones or on a home stereo with large speakers so one can fully take in the dynamics of the piece. One of the best ambient projects I've heard in some time. Highly recommended.

Fracture (OFFICIAL VIDEO) from Erinome on Vimeo.

Friendlier Bear "Arise Jack Russell" E.P. (friendlierbear.bandcamp.com)

I love these uplifting electronic songs. "Arise Jack Russell" has such positive movement. The songs have an "anything is possible" type feeling to them. "O Great Gorecky" is fast paced and sounds like the first ray of sunlight on an early weekend morning. "It Is Not Silent" is much more ambient and experimental in the vein of Eno or Philip Glass. "Rockets" has a nice 80's snyth pop feel while "Room And Borders" may be the most experimental track of the five. This record is a breath of fresh air and a great introduction to what should be a promising batch of releases to come from this Central Pennsylvania upstart.

High Climbers S/T E.P. (highclimbers.bandcamp.com)

Folk based yet atmospheric. Catchy but bleak. High Climbers present three excellent songs on their S/T debut E.P. The record kicks off with "Little" which is the most straight forward track of the three. The smokey style vocals and laid back feel really appeal to me. "Never Cut You Down" is a bit more experimental and has some really nice guitar hooks while "Flicker" has a darker feel to it with more somber vocals and a slower pace but with an underlying feel of hope. Overall a very enjoyable record. Looking forward to hearing where this U.K. duo goes from here.

Partikel S/T E.P. (partikel.bandcamp.com)

Impressive release from this Swedish sonic psychedelic foursome. These guys certainly wear their influences on their sleeves so if your a fan of The Stooges, The Doors and early Pink Floyd this band is for you. Opening track "Up On The Cross" is a guitar driven barn burner packed with fuzz and a swinging beat perfect for a Friday night cruise about town. "Tiden Rinner" is a more spaced out number that has that "Waiting For The Sun" type vibe. The pounding beat of "To Get Away From You" is nothing short of infectious and the sitar like drones playing along with it only enhance things more. "One Of Us Cannot Be Me" feels like a song straight out of Easy Rider. An excellent spin on some classic tones that leave me wanting more.

Tin Fingers "Rooms On Rooms" E.P. (tinfingers.bandcamp.com)

Belgium's Tin Fingers debut E.P. "Rooms On Rooms" is a refreshing mix of hypnotic dream folk and psychedelic pop. Pulsing layers of comforting synths start off the soothing sounds on opening track "Wheel Arch" which sets you up for "The Night Before" which has a bit of a Roxy Music like flair to it but with more of a tropical type vibe going on. "Towns Of Silence" is a catchy number that reminds me of Chutes Too Narrow" era Shins. The songs move at a nice steady pace flowing together really well. From top to bottom this is a very well put together debut.