Back catalogue: Post Rock/Experimental

Review: To call Invito Al Cielo an experimental album kind of undersells just how experimental it is. It also suggests, to the uninitiated, that there's an album here in some shape or form. Of course, the definition of an album is open to some debate - does it need to have a certain number of songs on there? Or is it more about overall run time? Here we have two tracks running upwards of 20minutes (one touching on 30) and a bridge movement at a still-pretty-long six minutes, so take from that what you will. What's really important, though, is the contents. Sonic Youth had already established themselves among the loudest in rock 'n' roll, but also the most adventurous and explorative musically speaking. This outing marked the third in a series of releases on their own SYR imprint, a platform used to push the envelope even further. Masters at noise and walls of sound, much of what's here is proof of just how far you can take drone and refrain with subtle differentiations.

Review: La Perversita is something of a seminal French underground record first released back in 1979 but still sounds way ahead of its time today. It's a concept record and collage of found sounds, guitars and synths that was designed to "sublimate sexual perversion." It comes from Jacques Pasquier who was the founder of S.C.O.P.A./Invisible Records and a key part of the alternative scene that was rife in Paris in the 70s with producer Hector Zazou amongst other creative talents and outsiders. This remastered reissue comes with extensive liner notes from people in and around the project at the time.

Review: UK based musical collective Jilk have made a name for themselves as specialists of a particular type of understated electronica. Some, including their own members, have compared it to the sound of a haunted bedroom, which kind of makes sense. It's intimate, there's a deeply humanistic and acoustic bent to the work, and so much tangible atmosphere you can sense the spirits surrounding each arrangement.
Syrup House is no exception to the rule, but we do find the gang bringing elements of analogue house to the fore, and merging this to great effect with dream pop and tender instrumentation. Deep, immersive music that is at once playful yet thoughtful, reflective but forward thinking, and - at times - surprisingly dance floor ('128 Rushes', for example). A quiet epic, for want of phrasing that feels a little less cliched.

Review: Just Mustard's second album is her first for Partisan Records. It is a coherent but widescreen exploration across 10 tracks that all add up to a great whole. Her magic vocals, scything guitars and brooding rock drums all make for intense and scintillant listening. Tracks like 'Seed' roll up and down on lumpy drums with gauzy guitar textures, while there is a more ethereal sound to 'Early' which floats up amongst the stars. 'In Shade' has a catchy post punk rhythm and 'Sore' is dense and caustic shoegaze style rock that drags you with it into a world of questions.