È ormai chiaro quanto l’irruzione della pandemia abbia determinato un punto di svolta nelle nostre vite e non manca giorno in cui questo non venga ribadito. Sono innumerevoli le attività bloccate – in molti casi definitivamente affossate – e rimandate a data incerta. Soffermandoci all’ambito musicale basti pensare a tutti i concerti annullati e ai dischi posticipati per questioni operative e logistiche. Allo stesso modo lo stravolgimento vissuto – e probabilmente non ancora superato – ha inciso in modo determinante su tanta produzione artistica in riferimento alle tematiche affrontate, permeandone le atmosfere risultanti.
Field School is the new solo project of Charles Bert, who made his mark in Math and Physics Club, the Seattle indie pop combo that set the bar for sugar rush melodies and chiming guitar perfection. After three Eps made available on Bandcamp, Field School’s debut LP When Summer Comes will be out on November 18th on Bobo Integral and Small Craft Advisory. When Summer Comes is a self-made tableau of vivid guitars, eclair-rich vocals, and proactive wondering. It is a treasury of reflections on happiness and loss, and how, like seasons, they pass and return.
Scarabocchio appunti camuffati da traballanti ragionamenti intorno al nono album in studio degli Suede, che esce in questi giorni e, nell’accavallarsi di idee e ricordi, mi torna in mente un diabolico quanto inconfutabile sillogismo. Lo lessi per caso anni fa, a margine del glorioso ritorno discografico dei Londinesi, quel Bloodsports che nel 2013 ne riaccese, contro ogni più roseo pronostico, l’astro tuttora fiammeggiante. La formula del sillogismo recita così, testualmente: “La decadenza a un certo punto dovrebbe decadere. Con la decadenza è scacco matto. Se vai avanti a cantarla non era vera decadenza. Se decade era vera decadenza, ma non c’è più e non devi esserci più tu.”
Rapt is the alias of Jacob Ware, a musician based in London, England. After 8 years of involvement in the extreme metal scene and co-founding the death metal band Enslavement, Rapt is an exploration of his other musical passions. Spanning folk, slowcore, classical and ambient music, the moniker’s name is intended to be fluid and loose, allowing the project to explore a range of genres. The blog Tome to the Weather Machine succinctly described Rapt as ‘Categorically Autumnal Music’. Rapt’s last album None Of This Will Matter sold out of two tape presses and a limited edition vinyl run, gaining positive reviews from critics and fans. Rapt new album Wayward Faith is out now on ZTapes.
Acclaimed Glasgow band The Orchids made sophisticated pop music right back in the early 1990s for cult independent label Sarah Records. Formed in 1987, the five-piece recorded a string of singles as well as three excellent albums, Lyceum (1989), Unholy Soul (1991) and Striving For the Lazy Perfection (1994). Their songs were as emotionally pure as anything else on that label, but they were always a step ahead of their peers in terms of song arrangements and musical ambition. With a casual, unpretentious air they made writing perfect pop songs seem easy, almost accidental, and several great releases followed. The Orchids gained a passionate following. From Glasgow, and proudly Scottish, the band shares a musical lineage with other great groups from that city, from Aztec Camera to Orange Juice, Lloyd Cole to Teenage Fanclub. All bands that specialize in song-writing that can tell big stories through small fragments, that can make the ordinary extraordinary. The band split in 1995 at the height of their powers. Most of their records were produced by Ian Carmichael of One Dove. They reformed in 2004, and have since released three more albums: Good to be a Stranger (2007), The Lost Star (2010), Beatitude#9 (2014). Produced once again by Ian Carmichael, who has helped the band create a perfectly-crafted masterpiece, Dreaming Kind is their new album, eight years after their previous one, and it’s out now on Skep Wax Records, the label run by Rob Pursey and Amelia Fletcher.
Indie Sunset in Rome 