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Fripp and Eno. Simon and Garfunkel. Belle and Sebastian. All imprecisely perfect duos pitting creative force against steadfast chemistry, with cohesion radiating from every sound. Bill MacKay and Katinka Kleijn operate in this rarefied air, with a goal in mind - taking the music, elevating the changes through levels of controlled chaos, letting it spread out and breathe through them with a clear, path beyond: to symmetry, and the peak! 

One of the most stunning examples of this process can be found on Bill... (read more)

It's been three weeks since Alasdair Roberts released The Fiery Margin - if you haven't taken the time to listen to this "profoundly moving" album (The Guardian's words, not ours!), what's with you? Locate your inner moth and and succumb to the flame, matey! Ali's music is soulful and deep, steeped in tradition, literature and scripture, even - with words immemorial dating back from this world all the way to the olde one. How better to help us understand the new-world weirdness in which we're... (read more)

Face it, the last ten years or so have been a BLUR - so much shit going down, good and bad - and a lot of music too. It doesn't look like its gonna get any easier for ANYBODY to get their bearing, so Ty Segall and Sea Note have gotten together a special box to help you reorient your head, no matter where you are!
 
This one's for the freak, the fan, the head. Pig Man Lives is a stack of... (read more)

The king of rock, pop, teenage dreams, psych, the new wave and and future genres yet to be defined, Tim Presley is gearing up for sum shows in the East Coast, Chicago and then keeping Austin weird in November! Hot on the heels of I Have To Feed Larry's Hawk, this succinct jaunt will be the first opportunity to see/hear Tim Presley's White Fence in the U.S. following the release of IHTFLH, which is a big fucking deal. Playing cuts old and new and... (read more)

Circuit des Yeux is an expandable and contractible organism. Haley Fohr's grip on her own musical reality is steadfast and true, thus a round of solo CdY dates in Europe is upon us! Things have the potential for getting weirdest for any performer when they travel to Eastern Europe, so what better way for this to start than at the mouth of the River Daugava, in Riga, Latvia, where its wild combination of medieval-meets-art nouveau architecture will surely be an exciting backrop for CdY... (read more)

Xylouris White is a collaboration of both epic and intimate proportions. Greek lute player Giorgos Xylouris and Dirty Three drummer Jim White reach across musical languages, sonic cultures and geographic boundaries to create a sound that goes beyond conventional songwriting, all while exploring the minutia of musical collaboration between their two febrile minds. On The Sisypheans, Giorgos and Jim display their natural chemistry and sensual dynamics on the second single, "Black Sea."

Georgos relates the Greek traditional tale of exile to a... (read more)

Wake up and smell the rose-scented pop revolution! With one foot firmly tapping in the future, Sean O'Hagan's Radum Calls, Radum Calls obviously features his inimitable songwriting sensibilities, but also incorporates influence from a new generation of talent Sean's been working with as producer and arranger the last few years while overseeing The High Llamas. All this energy - and songs derived from world history, ambition, and humour - makes for irresistible ear candy that moves from delicious flavour to delicious flavour as... (read more)

The chemistry between Bill MacKay and Katinka Kleijn radiates like a beam of light throughout STIR. The compositions unfurl like explorations into the unknown, only to be pulled back to earth with a commanding presence. The latest single, "No One Here Is A Stranger," is a concept unhindered by the conceptual, a free expression which still maintains a beautiful through-line to its organization. Both MacKay and Kleijn direct their instruments with a fluid precision, waxing and waning with only their instincts as... (read more)

The Silence have just released Metaphysical Feedback, their newest exploration of progressive music that totally rocks! With psychedelic elements, jazz tangents, and classic rock excursions, Metaphysical Feedback is an absolute must listen for anyone with an ear towards timeless music. Masaki Batoh's group may call themselves The Silence but these sounds are meant to be played loud - not just on record but live, too! In fact, The Silence have shows coming up in Japan just next week - in Tokyo and Osaka... (read more)

Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest is the triumphant and gentle return to form for clever crooner, Bill Callahan! Steeped in sentimentality, dripping to the depths with anecdote and advice, and reflective on life and death, it's a uniquely steadying record for these unstable times. And it ain't all serious business, either - Callahan slings one-liners for laughs with unusual ease! Unsurprisingly, all of this translates to the stage with the greatest of ease, and with the first round of US-touring under his belt, Bill... (read more)