Kranky US Vinyl & CDs

Review: Cited by Pitchfork as one of the best shoegaze albums of all time, the self-titled debut LP from Brooklyn's Lawrence Chandler and Martha Schwendener (better known as Bowery Electric) marked a significant turning point in mid-90s indie rock, as several acts began to approach the genre with much more brazen experimentation and a sonic disregard for accessibility. Fusing elements of trip-hop, ambient soundscapes, harsh drone and walls of impenetrable fuzz, into a muted seance of deceptively inviting yet hypnotic post-rock, this long overdue reissue serves to refill a vacant spot on many an avid collector's shelf, whilst hopefully educating newcomers to an outfit as pioneering as Slowdive and overlooked as Codeine. If you're a studious observer of the Numero Group output and you've yet to encounter Bowery Electric, you could run the risk of having your shoegaze card revoked.

Review: Scott Morgan's latest immersive ambient deep dive as Loscil has its origins in a three-minute composition performed by a 22-piece orchestra from Budapest. Morgan pressed this recording to vinyl, then scratched and sampled it within an inch of its life. Each of these samples was then used (and abused) in a variety of ways, before being shaped into a suite of brand-new tracks. The process certainly worked, because Clara is simply superb: a collection of alternately melancholic, gently uplifting and becalmed soundscapes whose simmering orchestral origins are only noticeable if you know the back story. It's a stunning set all told and a genuinely involving and immersive ambient excursion.