Fall Music Preview - Rock, Post-Rock, Folk & Jazz

A Closer Listen

This is the largest preview we’ve ever run, listing over 300 instrumental and experimental albums scheduled from September-November.  We challenge you to find a larger preview anywhere.  Our iPods are filled and our reviewers’ eyes are lighting up.  Now it’s time to share what we’ve been hearing!

Once again, we’ll be running one column a day, each representing a different genre.  For the first time, dark ambient and drone receives its own post.  Also for the first time, we’ll have ten picks instead of five.  There’s just way too much music to be stingy about it!  As you peruse and shop, we invite you to brew a pot of tea or coffee (or crack open an early pumpkin beer) and get ready to enjoy this early taste of autumn!

We begin with post-rock,  As we reported earlier this year (and as Echoes & Dust later confirmed), 2019 has been a banner year for the genre.  We credit the continued popularity of post-rock festivals such as ArcTangent, Dunk! and Post!, the hard efforts of labels such as A Thousand Arms, and the attractive vinyl options.

Rich’s Pick:  We Lost the Sea ~ Triumph & Disaster (Bird’s Robe / Translation Loss / Dunk! / Holy Roar, October 1) 2015’s Departure Songs was an instant stunner, a literary masterpiece with more on its mind than music.  Triumph & Disaster follows suit, imagining a mother and son on the last day of earth after an environmental apocalypse.  The quarter-hour “Towers” provides all the introduction most fans will need.  Instrumental concept albums are hard to pull off, but the band adds one short coda in the form of “Mother’s Hymn,” and breaks the listener’s heart with only a few words.  We suspect we’ll still be talking about this Australian sextet at the end of the year ~ if we last that long.

We first received word of new autumn albums from Ranges and The Shaking Sensations via A Thousand Arms’ compilation Open Language. Now both are nearing release.  Ranges’ Babel is an instrumental retelling of the Genesis story, containing collapse and calamity, with impossible-to-avoid connotations for the current political climate (Dunk! / A Thousand Arms / Bird’s Robe/ LeRock, September 30).  Copenhagen’s The Shaking Sensations return after six years with a second drummer, renewed energy and a sense of purpose.  How Are We to Fight the Blight? is out October 4 on Pelagic, preceded by two powerhouse singles.  UK band Codes in the Clouds has been gone for even longer, but their self-titled comeback album should reengage their fans while serving as an introduction to those not old enough to remember them (Hobbledehoy, October 11).  Reaching back even further, legendary band Fly Pan Am has been quiet since 2004, so long that many Google searches still list them in the past tense. C’est ça is their welcome return, packed with shoegaze timbres, rampant grooves and a sprinkling of vocals (Constellation, September 20).

One of the season’s gentlest post-rock releases comes from Alaskan Tapes, whose style borders on ambience.  Brushed drums and French horn make Views From Sixteen Stories one of the primary highlights of the album that shares its name.  Inspired by Chuck Palahniuk’s novel Survivor, the track ~ and the album surrounding it ~ reflect calm in the middle of chaos, a slow dance on a sinking ship (AT Recordings, September 19).  Frode Haltli launches the sound of the accordion into the 21st century on Border Woods, offering an alluring marriage of folk and post-rock, pensive and percussive.  The quartet also showcases Sweden’s national instrument, the nyckelharpa (Hubro, September 13).  New York quartet Wide Waters is set to release its first EP; Among the Pines is out October 4, preceded by And Into the Forest I Go, To Lose My Mind and Find My Soul, a pure post-rock title!

Gizeh Records has been on a tear lately, and founder Richard Knox resurrects his A-Sun Amissa guise to offer a fusion of post-rock and drone, with special guest appearances on clarinet and lap steel.  For Burdened and Bright Light fights through the darkness on September 13.  Oiseaux-Tempête returns with the Eastern inflections of From Somewhere Invisible, aided by violin from Jessica Moss, with an expanded use of vocals from G.W. Sok (Sub Rosa, October 18).  Traveling further into ethnic vibes we find Sam Shalabi’s Land of Kush, whose Sand Enigma contains Arabic vocals, psychedelica and a series of long, fevered excursions (Constellation, November 8).

Improvised post-rock may be a rare breed, but Sydney trio Holopeak makes it sound easy.  Their debut album Summit Over is surprisingly accessible given its genesis (Earshift, September 20).  Greek band Once Upon a Winter decorates its post-rock with piano, cello and violin; Pain and other pleasures looks dark, but the liner notes are light.  Even if the vinyl is blood red, the tone is cathartic (Snow Wave, September 27). Tides from Nebula is now a trio, which they admit “made them work harder” to produce a tighter sound.  The word “epic” is found twice in the press release, and the two lead tracks are powerful entries to the lean, mean sounds of From Voodoo To Zen (Long Branch Records, September 20).  The sax is the secret weapon of Dead Neanderthals, put to good use on Ghosts, which is comprised of two side-long tracks.  Its long builds lead to extensive payoffs (Utech, September 13).  The same principle holds true for Pergélisol / Chorémanie from Spelterini; a rehearsal take can be heard here (Kythibong, September 20).  Halma uses mining as a metaphor for the cavernous music of The Ground, while Action & Tension & Space presents a more pensive approach on the oxymoronic Explosive Meditations, both out October 4 on Kapitän Platte. Noorvik uses nature imagery in their video for Floating, from Omission; the extremes of crumbling glaciers and time-lapse clouds are perfectly suited to their sound (Tonzonen, October 4).

Prog/komische energizes the self-titled album from music veterans The Utopia Strong, who arrived at their synthesized sound via Teeth of the Sea.  The vinyl edition looks like a baby blue fried egg, which is also a non-sensical way to describe the music.  Look for it September 13 on Rocket Recordings.  A 15-minute prog track is a great way to raise funds on Kickstarter, and The Kompressor Experiment‘s Monolith is a predecessor to the fall album 2001, inspired by the movie of the same name (November).  Psych/prog rockers Nazca Space Fox resurface with Pi, which includes a heavy dose of improvisation (Tonzonen, September 27).  Prog meets post-metal on The Greatest Burden, from Ghosts of Glaciers, yet another band to share the name of the melting resource.  The cover looks a lot less sinister than its predecessor,  but the music is just as dark (Translation Loss, September 27).  Dysrhythmia‘s album Twin Stalkers is not for the lighthearted, though it may be for the nostalgic; their brand of metal prog hearkens back to the 90s (Translation Loss, October 4).  More post-metal prog can be found on Sons of Alpha Centauri‘s Buried Memories, which includes an extensive guest appearance by JK Broadrick, as well as a host of remixes (October).  Prog-rock improvisation can be heard on the jamming Anthropocosmic Nest, from happy trio The Messthetics (Dischord, September 6).  Considering the players involved, we’re guessing The Discovered, Not the Discoverer is going to be pretty loud; the release unites Keiji Haino, Merzbow and Balazs Pandi and includes four tracks, each occupying a side of vinyl (RareNoise, September 27).

Hochzeitkapelle offers modern cumbia music on the danceworthy If I Think of Love, preceded by the catchy single Sonido Amazonico (gutfeeling, September 13).  Adventures on the Floating Island is an expression of mutated lounge music, featuring plenty of brass, courtesy of Monster Rally (Gold Robot, September 20).  Free jazz and psychedelic rock provide the backdrop for HausLive 1: Sunwatchers at Cafe Mustache.  This is a non-stop jam session, and if you weren’t there in April you can experience it now at home ~ just BYOB (Hausu Mountain, September 6).  Judging from lead single Signals in the Dust, Portico Quartet‘s Memory Streams is slightly more rock than jazz, but sounds exuberant either way (Gondwana, October 4).  Is it rock, punk or a smorgasbord?  The guests on the new Battles album include Tune-Yards, Jon Anderson (Yes, that Jon Anderson) and Prairie WWWW, and by the sound of the first single, Juice B Crypts is going to be wild (WARP, October 18).

Do you like Thurston Moore?  We mean, really like Thurston Moore?  The guitarist is preparing a 3-disc boxed set containing pieces inspired by Alice Coltrane and Sun Ra, involving a dozen electric guitarists.  Spirit Counsel is out September 21, courtesy of The Daydream Library Series.  Legendary guitarist Bill Orcutt returns to the blues on Odds Against Tomorrow, his harried image in the cover photograph intimating that he’s entered his late Johnny Cash period.  He may look old, but he still has a lot of life left in him (Palillalia, October 11).  Rolf Hansen records under his own name for the first time on Elektrisk Guitar, a more subdued affair that recalls the artist’s background in folk and jazz (Karaoke Kalk, September 27).  Warm instrumental folk decorates the rooms of Little Common Twist, from the American primitive guitar and drums duo Charles Rumback & Ryley Walker ~ just in time for Thanksgiving (Thrill Jockey, November 8)!  Fires Were Shot offers a brand of bucolic, sun-soaked rock that borders on the psilocybin.  Fallen is released November 1, preceded by the trippy “Yemen” video (Holodeck).  And rock cellist Jo Quail is releasing an expanded version of last year’s Exsolve, including an all-new Side D (AdderStone, October 4).

Talkin’ All That Jazz

A triple horn attack is at the heart of John Yao’s Triceratops, which adds bass and drums to create a loving link to Duke Ellington.  Three Parts As One is out October 18 on See Tao.  “Saxophonist of the moment” Binker Golding leads an energetic, foot-tapping quartet on Abstractions of Reality Past & Incredible Feathers, due September 27 on Gearbox.  Jazz fusion and a keen sense of rhythm can be heard on the lively Kamaloka, the lead single from Ghost Rhythms‘ Live at Yoshiwara, out October 4 on Cuneiform.  On the same day, the label will release Old New, from Tomeka Reid Quartet, led by female avant cellist Tomeka Reid and introduced by the title track’s catchy percussive timbres.  Groovy jazz-rock can be heard on Q, a colorful set from Krokofant w/Storløkken & Håker Flaten (Rune Grammofon, September 27).

Aaron Novik’s Rotterdam is the second of five EPs that form an expanded version of summer album The Fellow Curves of the Planispheres.  Expect surprises; the timbres of the second are completely different from those of the first.  Collect ’em all, trade with your friends (September 20)!  Shigeto and friends have a blast creating the “re-wired” tracks of Versions, a sax-led groover on Ghostly International (September 20). The Ghent label Sdban Ultra has three releases on the fall schedule: acoustic-electric piano trio De Beren Gieren offer exploratory jazz on the playfully fun Broensgebuzze EP (September 13); John Ghost showcases blended genres on Airships Are Organisms; and Compro Oro contributes a sense of community through Afrobeat and skittered jazz-pop on Suburban Exotica (Autumn).  As soon as the needle drops on Phosphene, one wants to dance; the nine-member Wanubalé filters jazz through neo-soul and funk (Agago, September 27).  A 2011 concert is preserved on The East End, with saxophonist Bill Evans teaming with a pair of grooves artists to produce a (little) big band sound (Jazzline, September 27).  And Worlds Collide on the new album from Michael Janisch, whose band of musicians team up to reflect the ways in which cultures – musical, and by extension, political – can blend instead of clash, a wonderful encouragement (Whirlwind, September 6).

Richard Allen

A Closer Listen

A Closer Listen

So far, 2021 has been an incredible year for rock. We’ve already seen some heavy hitters return with memorable albums; GY!BE, Mogwai, Fly Pan Am and Bell Orchestre were all featured on our pages earlier this year.  This fall, they will be joined by Anoice, MONO, Explosions in the Sky, Jerusalem in My Heart and many more.  Even without ArcTanGent and other festivals, the scene’s musicians have remained vibrant and hopeful.  But the beauty of the music scene is that we never know where and when the Next Big Band will appear, and the fall slate contains some serious contenders.  In December we expect veterans and newcomers to be vying for inclusion on our year-end lists, and it would be easy to come up with ten from the fall list alone. Let the battle begin!

Rich’s Pick #1:  MONO ~ Pilgrimage of the Soul (Temporary Residence Ltd., September 17) MONO really cares about their fans.  Earlier this year, the band released the double disc Beyond the Past ~ Live in London with the Platinum Anniversary Orchestra, a reminder of the joy of concerts in a stretch when none were held.  A few months earlier, they delighted fans with a surprise holiday single.  This fall, they return with the immersive Pilgrimage of the Soul, an album even louder and faster than its predecessors.  Credit the incorporation of electronics and the desire to provide light to a darkened world.

Rich’s Pick #2:  Jerusalem in My Heart, Qalaq (Constellation, October 8) As global turmoil continues to rise, Jerusalem In My Heart‘s music grows even more relevant. Qalaq decries the situation in the Middle East, and incorporate different collaborators on almost every track.  Lucretia Dalt, Oiseau-Tempête, Tim Hecker and many more join an already dynamic collective, which now includes a visual angle as well.  A limited number of box sets are available, which include film reels and a hand-stitched book (preliminary image above).

Rock, Post-Rock and Related Genres

Anoice continues to dance on the borders of post-rock and modern composition.  The Hidden Forest is no exception: 17 songs for 17 paintings, available in a special edition that features art cards from Naoko Okada and a forest photograph from the band.  The connection to nature is a reminder of one of life’s constants, a gift that helped many people through the pandemic (Ricco, September 17).  Explosions in the Sky returns with an album well-suited to their name and location.  Big Bend (An Original Soundtrack for Public Television) is the score for a PBS documentary on animals in the Texas desert. (Temporary Residence, October 1).  Wander‘s Home was the earliest autumn announcement we received, and by now we’ve been enjoying the three exclusive bonus tracks for over half a year.  Considering the fact that all of these tracks are stunners, we’re more than juiced for the full release.  The band members may finally have exited their teenaged years, but their youthful exuberance is still on display (September 1).

By incorporating both brass and strings, SEIMS raises the excitement to stadium levels; now if only they could play a stadium!  FOUR contains both instrumental and vocal tracks, but we’re already enamored by the driving force of lead single “Elegance Over Confidence” (Bird’s Robe, October 22).  Heavy post-rockers Driving Slow Motion return with Adrift:Abyss, expanding the vision of their debut album.  The moniker is a perfect descriptor, as the music is heavy, but seldom swift; a light ambient coating will help drivers stay under the speed limit (Post. Recordings, September 17).  In contrast, the energy of Shy, Low‘s Snake Behind the Sun is a byproduct of a looming pandemic; the band rushed to finish the album before the lockdowns began, resulting in an added sense of spontaneity (Pelagic, October 8).  If you’re looking for a lot of post-rock gathered in one place, we recommend the newest installment of A Cheery Wave From Stranded Youngsters.  Volume X is released on September 24 as a pay-what-you-want download and includes tracks from Glacier, Baulta, Pillars, BRUIT ≤ and more.

In Solastagia EitherWay‘s Morii EP draws on genres ranging from shoegaze to metal, as evidenced on lead single Opia.  It’s another example of a solo artist who sounds like a band (September 17).  The melodic post-rockers Transmission Zero explore worlds unknown on Bridges, the cover a taste of the album’s cinematic nature (September 24).  Post-metal trio Glasgow Coma Scale returns after five years with Sirens, a heavy, sci-fi-influenced set ~ and when you see the opening image of the video, you’ll know why we put it next to Transmission Zero (Tonzonen, September 17).  The lockdown lathes of Buried Treasure were “snuck out during the pandemic and sold out in minutes,” so it’s a good thing they are being collected, along with a variety of new and upcoming tracks from the label’s diverse roster, on Octocorallia.  A 20-page booklet of alternative covers accompanies the release, but it’s hard to top that octopus (October 1).  A harsh metallic fog descends on Variát, ironic given the fact that the album is titled I Can See Everything From Here. The album splits the difference between drone and metal, and is meant for adventurous fans (Prostir, September 10).  In a similar genre-splitting vein, DROTT presents Orcus, dedicated to the underworld’s “punisher of broken oaths,” melding progressive rock and punishing metal (By Norse Music, September 24).

Closet Disco Queen & The Flying Raclettes’ Omelette de Fromage was inspired by a Dexter’s Laboratory episode and incorporates rock, surf rock, metal and more.  It’s available in multiple vinyl colors, one that looks like cheese and has a hole in it, which is just what we expect from a Swiss label (Hummus, September 3).  Another fun one and free download comes from Chafouin, whose Toufoulcan rocks and rolls, with touches of surf rock, occasional vocals and a title that we really like:  “Post post rock” (September 15)!  Retro-minded rockers may be interested in Black 7‘s Look Inside, which draws from the 80s and 90s heyday.  Classic rock will never die! (October 8).

De Beren Gieren‘s delayed Less Is Endless will finally see the light of day on September 10.  The polyrhythmic first single “A Funny Discovery” first appeared a year ago, but then COVID crashed the party.  Fortunately, the collective ages well (Sdban Records).  Overrider‘s music is fast and furious, akin to 65dos but with few quiet bits. kill -9 yr idols is an EP of previously unreleased material, so powerful it’s sent us on a mission to play all their prior releases (September 3).  It’s post-rock!  It’s jazz!  It’s electronic! Proving the power of collaboration, the disparate São Paulo Underground and Tupperwear find common ground on the Saturno Magico EP, albeit on an alien planet (Keroxen, September 17, art pictured right).

Komishe band Ashtray Navigations (can we call them komischeners?) resurfaces on Blue Tapes with the psychedelic vibes of Before You Play This, continuing an astonishing run of “180 or so releases since 1994” (September 24).  Krautrock can be heard on Pas Musique‘s Amateur Radio, which contains one of fall’s best titles (“Don Cheadle Superhero”) and a Faust cover featuring a daughter of one of the original Faust members (Alrealon Musique, October 1).  Drommon offers mystic psych-folk on Smote, an album whose very existence seems smothered in smoke (Rocket Recordings, October 1).  Primitive futurists Pelt present two long tracks on Resistance Reticence, incorporating harmonium, banjo, bowls and bells.  The live album uses raga, psych and trance to weave a hypnotizing spell (Three Lobed Recordings, October 29).  Beats and shimmer are the hallmarks of Shavua Tov, the shamanistic solo debut from Red Axes’ Nic Arizona (Malku Tuti, September 3).

Roots and rock join forces on Lamplighter; Gerycz/Powers/Rolin may have been improvising, but the music sounds composed.  A warm tone permeates the set, underlining the power of friendship and collaboration (American Dreams, September 3).  Butter City Poster Boys present Your Guide to Love, a romantic-minded, slow churned set on Somewherecold (September 24).  A Flora & Fauna supergroup of sorts, Virke is comprised of Billie Lindahl, Rickard Jäverling and Henrik von Euler. The reflective Hovsjö 80 is inspired by an old photograph and imagines coming of age in an area outside of 80s Stockholm (September 9).

Jazz, Folk and World

The excellent four-part seasonal series from Jusell, Prymek, Sage, Shiroishi just concluded in August, the final disc selling out in a day.  Fortunately, Cached Media has announced plans for a box set, with details arriving in November (just in time for Christmas, we hope!).  Each set scores a different season, blending jazz and rock, a collaborative pandemic exercise that paid huge dividends.  Krokofant w/Storløkken & Håker Flaten‘s Fifth is another jazz-rock explosion, a jubilant teaming of efforts on Rune Grammofon.  On the same day, the label is set to release Sex Magick Wizards‘ energetic, freewheeling Your Bliss My Joy (September 10).

We receive so many traditional Norwegian electronic mouth harp albums that it’s hard to tell them apart.  Just kidding!  There’s only one.  Those interested in an old sound made new are directed to the self-titled album from Naaljos Ljom, whose music stands out in a crowded field (Motvind, September 3).  The oud is the secret weapon of Theodore’s Wild Ride, whose diverse, self-titled album straddles the worlds of folk, rock and modern composition.  The trio includes members of Snowdrops and Oiseaux-Tempête, and their blended skills produce a set that is simultaneously contemplative and enthralling (Consouling Sounds, October 1).  Maurice Louca collaborates with Lebanese improvisational group “A” Trio on the mesmerizing Saet El Hazz (The Luck Hour), the tonal expansion responsible for the feeling of an all-night groove session (Sub Rosa/Northern Spy, September 24).  Guy Buttery teams with Mohd. Amjad Khan (tabla) & Mudassir Khan (sarangi) on One Morning in Gurgaon, a vibrant album that teems with life (September 10).

Those who enjoyed SPAZA! will likely love On Our Own Clock, a cross-continental collaboration that unfolded over the course of COVID.  A mix of vocal and instrumental pieces, the album is informed by South African and Senegalese rhythms and includes three interludes titled “How to Make Music During a Pandemic.”  A film and fanzine form other facets of the project (Mushroom Hour Half Hour and Total Refreshment Centre, September 3).  Miles Davis influenced groove and funk populate the space jazz of Lucid Lucia (formerly known as BRZZVLL).  Stuck in the Well is the first single from their self-titled EP, which also sports some of the season’s best cover art (Sdban Ultra, October 8).  Run Logan Run bursts with sax and drum energy, jamming with the joy of those set free from quarantine.  For a Brief Moment, We Could Smell the Flowers is released September 17 on Worm Discs.

This concludes our Fall Music Preview, but here’s the kicker: these are only the albums we learned about before the end of August.  Hundreds more are yet to be announced in the instrumental realm alone.  As always, we’ll keep our ears on everything that comes in and curate what we hear as we give a precious percentage a closer listen.  Thank you for reading and listening!

Richard Allen

A Closer Listen

The new season has arrived, along with new hopes, new ventures and new music!  Over the course of the week, we’ll be listing over 400 new albums on these pages, including a far more even genre distribution than we’ve seen in years.  Everybody’s getting in on the action!  Musicians are connecting with fans in person, finally touring (and hopefully making some money doing so).  Live venues are buzzing with pent-up energy, shared between artists and fans.  Now here’s the first taste of what fall has to offer!

Note: our jazz releases are divided between two posts.  Melodic and more accessible jazz releases are found here, while the more abstract and improvised albums will be listed in our Experimental post on Thursday.

Folk and Acoustic

The peacefulness of Marisa Anderson‘s Still, Here was hard-won; the folk guitarist remains centered even in the midst of upheaval.  On one track, sirens blare outside her window as she records, yet steadfast she remains.  By the end, she’s ready to waltz, inviting others to rise as well (Thrill Jockey, September 23).  Also on Thrill Jockey, Tortoise’s Douglas Andrew McCombs introduces an album with a beautifully coifed dog and a Google and memory-resistant title. VMAK

Six and twelve-string guitarist Matthew J. Rolin is used to working with others, but Passing is purely a solo endeavor.  Cascades of strings create an acoustic trance that is occasionally backed by electric drones (American Dreams, October 14). The title primitiv refers not only to Julien Tassin‘s mode of guitar, but the history of primitive man.  The guitarist imagines the origins and early downfall of the species, while honoring its playful side (Ramble Records, September 30).  Building on last year’s No Such Thing As Free Will, nylon guitarist Deniz Cuylan offers expanded vistas on Rings of Juniper.  Strings and woodwinds stretch his sound like tree rings, each addition enhancing the sonic palette (Hush Hush Records, October 14).  Similarly engrained in nature is Webb Crawford‘s Joiners, which refers not to societies, but the craft of joinery, in which wooden pieces are connected without glue or screws.  Each track is named for a historical reference to the craft, while one can almost hear the wood in the guitar – except when it turns electric (Tripticks Tapes, September 2).

The first time Lake Mary recorded a track titled “Slow Grass,” it was eight minutes long.  Now working with Patrick Shirioshi, the artist has quintupled the length over the course of two sides.  The sad title comes from the life of an immobile dog, able only to stare at the grass, unable to run.  Love runs through these grooves (Whited Sepulchre, September 23).  Sonic auteur The Phonometrician returns with the dark folk of Cóiste Bodhar, inspired by the Celtic legend of the Death Coach.  The release date ~ ten days before Halloween ~ seems perfectly timed.  Alder & Ash contributes cello to one of the tracks (Lost Tribe Sound).  Wickerbird‘s The Sea Weaver will follow on November 11: vocal, yet sublime, with gorgeously restrained backdrops.

Jazz Tales

Wendolins Monocle tells the tale of a man who finds a magical monocle that can stop time (not included in purchase).  The Owls trio (piano, bass, drums) uses the monocle as a musical lens to play with concepts of time.  Inside the larger tale are stories within stories, a playful labyrinth (Intersections, September 18). Bassist Clark Sommers leads a quintet on Intertwine, recording as Clark Sommers Lens.  The moods range from thoughtful to playful, confident throughout (Outside In Music, September 16).  Trumpeter Takuya Kuroda leads a funky ensemble on the often-danceable Midnight Crisp, whose cover art may look lonely, but only because everybody else is already at the club (First Word, October 21).

We love when a concept is carried through to the presentation.  Sam Gendel‘s blueblue is available on dark blue, light blue and marbled blue vinyl, or blue pouch-dyed cassette.  The tracks ~ composed on guitar but played on saxophone ~ each refer to a pattern of sashiko (Japanese embroidery).  And of course there’s no escaping the blueness of the music, accompanied by playful kit work (Leaving Records, October 14).  Splitting the difference between jazz and modern composition, Windisch Quartet (alto sax, piano, upright bass, drums) offers a set of rainy day vibes on Meander.  In the video for “Dichte,” one of the participants even starts to dance (fun in the church, September 9).  Gentiane MG leads her trio on Walls Made of Glass, leaning toward modern composition with a confident approach and enveloping sound (TPRRecords, September 23).

The Danish duo Svaneborg Kardyb plays a calm brand of accessible, homespun jazz, with copious amounts of trumpet and even some electronics.  Over Tape is released November 4 on Gondwana Records.  On the same label, Gondwana Orchestra album Chip Wickham reunites with friends for Cloud 10, showcasing his penchant for sax-saturated jazz noir.  The sextet sounds as light and airy as an extra upper level of stratosphere (September 9).  As for darkjazz, one can’t much darker than the cover art for Deus é Cego!  Joel Fausto & Illusion Orchestra‘s set is a bit calmer than Mac Eparwa’s image, but still inhabits the depths of night (Slowdriver, October 16).

Hindi jazz finds a new outlet on the self-titled Scaring the Mice for Revenge, the quartet’s sitar-and-sax combo a not-so secret weapon.  We feel confident stating that no actual mice were harmed during the recording process (Prohibited, September 9).  Jazz, dub and electronics meet on the self-titled debut album from Stellar Legions, comprised of all-star members from other bands.  The cosmic journey apparent on the cover carries throughout the music (October 21).  Whether one calls it space funk, cosmic jazz or freestyle groove; Ever-Changing Light is a fitting title for the work of Lucid Lucia.  Those who enjoy the work of Herbie Hancock will be especially well-served (Sdban, October 7).

Trombonist Curha has constructed an especially perky album in III, calling on space pop, retro funk and a host of collaborators.  Even the cover is fun (Chant, September 2).  Sun Ra-style electric jazz fills the vinyl grooves of Solar Eclipse, from Clear Path Ensemble.  The variety is appealing, and the band blazes its own path as well (Soundway, September 9).  Pop, bop, jazz and low-slung funk make Education & Recreation a pleasantly retro experience.  The album represents a further coalescence of Surprise Chef‘s sound (Big Crown Records, October 14).

With two saxophones, two synthesizers and two drum kits, Basher creates an atmosphere of freeform fun.  Track titles such as “Primetime A Go-Go,” “Claptrack Clawback” and “Carnival 2019,” imply that Doubles will be a treat (Sinking City, September 30).  Snarky Puppy (no relation to Skinny Puppy) has at times contained up to 25 members, most of whom are present on Empire Central, which combines rock and jazz with a smidgen of funk.  Trinity is just the foretaste of a full meal (Groundup Music, September 30).

Rock, Post-Rock, Prog and World

Guitar duo Rivers of Glass wrote By the Light of Burning Bridges as a tribute to a Norwegian island known for setting its bridges on fire to repel invaders.  The music is a slow smolder that occasionally bursts into flames (Somewherecold, September 9).  We love the cover of Elkhorn‘s Distance (pictured left).  The psychedelic folk band alternately jams, grooves and rocks (Feeding Tube, September 16).  Hermanos Gutiérrez pays tribute to Ennio Morricone on El Bueno Y El Malo, whose title track sounds like a lost classic (Easy Eye Sound, October 28).  Nine-piece ensemble Condor Gruppe also has a soft spot for spaghetti westerns, as well as for vampire films and Moondog.  This makes Gulliver as intriguing as the hero’s travels, a new experience around every sonic corner (Sdban Ultra, September 23).

Bill Orcutt may have written Music for Four Guitars, but he plays them all.  This electric album comes with an 84-page score for those interested in experimenting at home; for most, the pleasure of letting the music wash over them will be enough (September 2).  Another entry in the vast solo electric guitar field comes from Sweden’s Jon Lipscomb, whose Conscious Without Function is released on Relative Pitch Records on September 16.  Motorik rock is represented by Moving Statues on the Town and Country EP, with two musicians playing an astonishing amount of instruments (Rusted Rail, September 2).

Tabla, violin, guitar and banjo make a flavorful combination on only elephants know her name, exuding a jazz-inflected, world music vibe.  So Long Seven also employs a guest Hindustani vocalist on one of the tracks (September 30).  The Observatory and Koichi Shimizu combine forces on the heavily percussive Demon State, which includes gamelan, gong and jegogan.  A concept EP with a literary-historical bent, the set also incorporates a speech given at the Bandung Conference in 1955 (Midnight Shift, September 23).  Billed as “avant world,” Odd Person‘s Myths of the Crystal Plateau is a tribal excursion into the deep jungle, listening for drums while trying to avoid spears (Nonlocal Research, September 7).

New on the post-rock circuit is Salt Pig, though post-rock is all the way down at #12 on the tag list of The Chalk Circle.  Jazz is also a strong influence, the two establishing their best symmetry on the 11-minute opener and 12-minute closer (Utility Tapes, September 16).  Kiss My Emoji Ring also offers a blend of post-rock and jazz, highlighted by upcoming holiday favorite “Mission to Find a Christmas Tree on Mars.”  I Work in Communications may be the only duo whose name is also a pick-up line! (tier.debut, September 30).  Random Forest (which includes The Echelon Effect) has returned with a new EP of peaceful post-rock; the four-track Ascension is released September 9.

Jason Blake‘s The Compromise Rationale is an experiment in cinematic prog, played on the 12-string Warr guitar, the middle album of a trilogy (Wayfarer, September 23). Saloon Bizarre laces instrumental rock with a bit of prog on Apocalydia, a treat for head-bangers missing the classic sound (September 22). Spelterini offer a single thirty-three minute track on Paréidolie, building to a pounding krautrock center before tumbling into drone (Kythibong, October 4).  Horse Lords is jamming up a storm on “Mess Mend,” the first single from Comradely Objects, due November 4 and showcased below (RVNG).

One of the more recognizable names on the post-rock release schedule is My Education, staying strong after all these years.  EMKA is a concept album that addresses the period between World War II and the Cold War; with all that’s going on these days, might such an album be received as nostalgic? (Somewherecold, September 20).  Star Guided Vessel (great name for a band!) offers a thoughtful collection of post-rock pieces on Tethered/Severed, drifting along beneath the canopy of constellations (Somewherecold, September 23).

Swiss post-rock quartet glaston has been unveiling their upcoming album I Am Whole single-by-single, which is pretty clever considering the album’s name! (A Thousand Arms/dunk! records, November 11).  Powerful trio Girih frequenty expands, with guest appearances on the violin and cello.  Ikigai hits the airwaves on October 14 (dunk! records/A Thousand Arms).  The more melancholic indignu reflects on the pandemic over the course of adeus (farewell).  The strings and chants add a deeper dimension to their mourning (dunk! records/A Thousand Arms, November 4).   Exxasens has always injected a palpable amount of sci-fi into their compositions, and Le-Voyage is no exception.  Like the Apple TV show For All Mankind, the album travels to the moon, then Mars, then beyond (September 3).

The name COLLISIONS may be new, but the players are not, including Tom Hodge (Floex) and Ciaran Morahan (Codes in the Clouds).  Joined by drummer Ollie Howell, they offer a brand of post-rock that draws equally from the fields of modern composition and electronics.  Their self-titled album is released September 9 on Naive/Believe.  Under the Reefs Orchestra has been releasing singles all year while building to the full unveiling of Sakurajima on September 16.  The sax is reminiscent of The Comet Is Coming, who also has a new album this fall (Capitane Records).  The same holds true on Zenith, the first single and title track from Poly-Math‘s upcoming set; could saxophone be the instrument of the season? (Nice Weather for Airstrikes, November 18).

Gold Lamé is a duo that sounds like a band.  GOING is an exuberant set of catchy instrumental alt-rock, betraying the friends’ pedigree in indie bands.  Sometimes there are handclaps, other times banjo, with the mood upbeat throughout (October 7).  The Gematria duo injects a bit more prog, as Gematria II: The Spindle of Necessity pays tribute to classic guitar legends while injecting a modern tint (Nefarious Industries, September 23).

Red Level Music

Part drone, part doom, Mathias Delplanque‘s Ô Seuil is balanced by a healthy injection of Middle Eastern and Asian influences, including gongs and cymbals: heavy in structure, but lighter in tone (Ici D’ailleurs/Mind Travels, September 23).  Anchored by two bassists, Ghost:Whale offers a brand of stoner doom that wrenches the organs from their pockets and the bones from their sockets.  The hard and rumbling EchoOne is out September 17 on Bitume.  Phil Maggi bursts with transcendent emotion on The Encrimsoned, inspired by Henry Corbin and Sufism.  There are vocals among the instrumentals, but it’s to be expected, as Maggi was once the lead singer of Ultraphallus (Sub Rosa, September 20).  No digital release?  Who would do such a thing?  The answer is Titan to Tachyons, which includes members of Mr. Bungle and John Zorn’s band.  But one can still hear one live track from Vonals being played here (Tzadik September 16).  We’re quite fond of the string quartet on the anti will, the first single from Behind Closed Doors‘ debut album Caged in Helixes.  When the sound leaps to post-metal, the listener is instantly enthralled (My Redemption, October 28).

Featuring titles such as “That “regularity” of yours, can you throw it further than me? And I don’t mean “discarding” it,” Into this juvenile apocalypse our golden blood to pour let us never will clearly be a challenging listen.  We’d expect no less from Kaiji Haino & SUMAC, who make a crazy racket but offset the noise with a nice yellow t-shirt.  We began this preview with Marisa Anderson, and traveled to the other end of the musical spectrum.  The irony: both are on the same label (Thrill Jockey, October 7).

Richard Allen