Tuna Laguna - Ripples and Swells

Another one of the best of 2007, so far.
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Guano Recordings, 2007
Standout tracks: 1, 3, 7, 9
Genre: upbeat post-rock
From: Norway
LIYL: Jaga Jazzist, Samuel Jackson 5, Rosolina Mar
Website: tunalaguna.com
Purchase: cdon.com
Review: Silent Ballet

Blandbladen - I Grevens Tid

Awesome psychedelic music, very upbeat. Included is their 4 track self-released album, plus an outtake track and 2 live tracks.
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Self-released, 2002
Standout track: #2, one of my favorite songs ever. I could listen to it all day long.
Genre: psychedelic/space rock, instrumental prog
From: Malmö/Tiveden, Sweden
LIYL: Ozric Tentacles, Gong, Hawkwind, Hidria Spacefolk
Website: www.blandbladen.tk
Myspace: www.myspace.com/blandbladen
Purchase: Re-release planned later this spring through Transubstans label. New album to be recorded soon!

Hidria Spacefolk - Balansia

Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Silence, 2004
Standout tracks: 1, 2(especially), 5
Genre: psychedelic/space rock, instrumental prog (they call their style Astrobeat)
From: Finland
LIYL: Ozric Tentacles, Gong, Hawkwind, Blandbladen
Website: www.hidriaspacefolk.st
Myspace: myspace.com/hidriaspacefolk
Purchase: synphonic

Windham Hell - Reflective Depth Imbibe

Windham Hell was an underground band in practically every sense of the word, a band who did things on its own terms with no regard to mass appeal. Theirs was one of those have-to-hear-it-for-yourself styles, blending classically influence guitars, extensive ambient/atmospheric effects, intense riffing, and sparse death vocals (really, the band was mostly instrumental), an original and intriguing style (though at times uneven) that lent itself to much experimentalism.
RIP: Eric Friesen (guitarist), June 30, 2006.
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Moribund Records, 1999
Standout tracks: Cold Grantic Bliss + Alpinia
Genre: industrial death metal with wanktastic guitar shredding(?)
From: Washington
Myspace: myspace.com/windhamhell
Website: Unofficial Windham Hell Page
Purchase: moribund

World's End Girlfriend - Hurtbreak Wonderland

"Katsuhiko Maeda returns after the highly successful collaboration with Mono to deliver his fifth album, Hurtbreak Wonderland. World's End Girlfriend continues to blur genre boundaries as digital post-rock is met with experimental modes of modern rock. Countless schools of thought are drawn upon, including everything from neo-classical to avant-garde, and they are balanced perfectly in a heroic juggling act. It is exactly this magnificent display of excellence and sophistication that has made Maeda such a captivating artist in the past, and Hurtbreak Wonderland doesn't disappoint." - Silent Ballet
Download: divShare
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Human Highway Records, 2007
Genre: classical, electronica, glitch, post-rock
Website: @noble-label.net
Purchase: Human Highway Records (japan)

Exploding Star Orchestra - We Are All From Somewhere Else

"Led by composer/cornet player Rob Mazruker (Chicago Underground Duo/Trio/Quartet, Isotope 217) this 14-piece free-jazz ensemble has produced a genre-bending gem of an album, walking the fine line between being recognizably in the tradition of free-jazz orchestration and full blown experimentalism." - Silent ballet
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Thrill Jockey, 2007
From: Chicago
LIYL: Coltrane, Natsumen, Triosk, Steve Reich
Website: robmazurek.com or myspace
Purchase: thrilljockey.com
Review: Silent Ballet

Esbjörn Svensson Trio - Strange Place for Snow

Toeing a surprisingly fine line between acoustic-jazz accessibility and electronic-music ingenuity, E.S.T. (Esbjörn Svensson Trio) is a forward-thinking Swedish trio that adds subtle, dark ambient texture (and then some) to the traditional piano-trio format. As with the group's first Columbia release, Somewhere Else Before, there is a nice mix of well-constructed tunes with catchy, often-lilting melodies. The band is at its best when playing slow, contemplative ballads ("Serenade for the Renegade" is a highlight) that have the same kind of romantic leanings as pianist Bill Evans, yet the three occasionally pick up momentum on tunes like "Behind the Yashmak," without ever abandoning the song's lyricism. The trio also does other things to keep it fresh: they bring in some simple folk music balladry, add some classical music complexity, and even touch on the creeping influence of electro rock à la Radiohead. Strange Place for Snow should add a lot of new American voices to the deafening roar that surrounds this band in Europe. --Tad Hendrickson (amazon)
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Sony, 2002
From: Sweden
LIYL: Thelonious Monk, Triosk, Charles Mingus, Bill Evans
Website: www.est-music.com
Purchase: amazon

Koop - Waltz for Koop

Download: mediafire (128k)
Label/Date: Superstudio, 2002
Genre: electronic jazz, acid jazz, swing, trip-hop, lounge
From: Sweden
Website: dieselmusic.se/koop or myspace
Purchase: amazon

Auto!Automatic!! - Another Round...

Download "Another Round Won’t Get Us Down": mediafire(.m4a)
Label/Date: Aestheticized, 2006
Genre: upbeat instumental/math-rock, some electronica mixed in.
From: Tampa, Florida
LIYL: Don Cabellero, Pele, Te, Hella, Slint
Website: autoautomatic.net
Purchase: merchline.com
Review: silent ballet

Ninja Academy - bra'ka dOm

Download: mediafire
Label/Date: Self-Released, 2005
Genre: Instrumental rock with kung fu sounds, bass/drum duo
From: Los Angeles
LIYL: Death from Above 1979, Lightning Bolt, Hella, Big Business
Website: www.ninjaacademy.com
Purchase: on their website
Review: silent ballet
Video: Your Kung Fu Sucks!

Grails - Burning Off Impurities

Brilliant cd! One of the best of the year so far.
Download: divShare
Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Temporary Residence Ltd. 2007
Standout tracks: 3, 5, 6, 7!, 8
Genre: psychedelic, krautrock, middle-eastern
From: Portland, Oregon
LIYL: Ghost, Bardo Pond, Faust, Gong, Ash Ra Tempel, Ravi Shankar
Website: www.grailsongs.com
Purchase: Unreleased, no confirmed date, late April-May 2007

SUMA - Let The Churches Burn

Download: megaupload
Label/Date: Speakerphone Records, 2006
Standout tracks: 1, 5, 7
Genre: Psychedelic Doom
From: Sweden
LIYL: Electric Wizard, Yob, Boris, Ufomammut
Website: /suma
Purchase: kozmik-artifactz.com
Purchase: conspiracy records
Review: monolith.gr

Theta Naught

Theta Naught with Alex Caldiero - Sound Weave

Theta Naught’s third independent release, Sound Weave, is in collaboration with poet and word-shaker Alex Caldiero. As with previous releases, this album was recorded completely live and improvisational. The first disc is with Alex and can be a difficult listen trying to get used to his weird style of ranting. The second disc is Theta Naught's regular great sound without vocals.
Download: Disc 1 (megaupload)
Download: Disc 2 (megaupload)
Label/Date: Differential Records, 2006
Standout tracks:
Genre: post-rock, improv/spoken-word
From: Salt Lake City, Utah
LIYL: Tulsa Drone, Blueneck, GYBE!, Grails
Website: thetanaught.org
Purchase: cd baby
Review: silent ballet

Theta Naught - Abacus

Their best release. Second album, 2004.
Download: megaupload
Purchase: cd baby (out of stock)

Tulsa Drone - Songs from a Mean Season

Full album removed by request of the band.
TULSA DRONE's "Songs From A Mean Season" will soon be released on CD, available on The Perpetual Motion Machine and Dry County Records in late April 2007.

For more info and music, visit:
myspace.com/tulsadrone
myspace.com/theperpetualmotionmachine
www.theperpetualmotionmachine.com

Check out "Risk Guitar" from their new album: megaupload
From: Virginia
LIYL: Blueneck, Ennio Morricone, Red Sparowes, Calexico, Six Parts Seven
Website: www.tulsadrone.com
Review: silent ballet
Buy debut cd No Wake here.

"What’s interesting about Tulsa Drone is the mood of their music and their choice of instrumentation. Using little more than a bass hammer dulcimer, wiry guitars, and crashing drums, they manage to elevate what would otherwise be fairly standard post-rock songs into a unique, cinematic realm of music that few other bands could touch. It’s music that’s both as dry and scorching as a desert, and as lonely and mysterious as a wintry forest at night. There’s certainly something sinister going on here, and the amount of tension is incredible. - Richie DeMaria (review for opuszine.com)

Turing Machine - Zwei

Download: mediafire
Label/Date: Frenchkiss Records, 2004
Genre: intense instrumental rock
From: New York
LIYL: Maserati (same drummer), Circle, Monkey3, Faust, Neu!
Website: turingmachinemusic.com
Buy: frenchkissrecords