2020 release by two singularly and sonically recognizable masters of lush beauty and minimalism respectively, Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd. Another Flower was recorded at Robin's home studio in France in 2013 and was held unreleased, until now. Another flower follows Robin and Harold's previous work together Bordeaux (2011), matched set After the Night Falls and Before the Day Breaks (2007) and Mysterious Skin (2004) and of course The Moon and the Melodies (1986).
Sonic wizard Robin Guthrie (ex-Cocteau Twins) and vocalist Siobhan de Mare (ex-Mono) made up the hazy dream pop of Violet Indiana. Shortly after de Mare was relieved of her Mono duties, she received a phone call from Guthrie, asking her if she'd like to work with him. Unfamiliar with Guthrie's cult status, she asked her sister about him and decided to take him up on the offer. In late 2000, the duo released the Choke EP on Bella Union, the label run by Guthrie and former Cocteau mate Simon Raymonde. Retaining some of Guthrie's trademark characteristics and combining them with de Mare's lazy, confident delivery, the Choke EP established them convincingly enough as something removed from Guthrie's prior band – a tricky thing indeed. 2001's full-length Roulette improved on the promising debut. A singles collection, Casino, followed in early 2002. Russian Doll was the proper follow-up to Roulette, released in June of 2004.
A group whose distinctly ethereal and gossamer sound virtually defined the enigmatic image of the record label 4AD, Cocteau Twins were founded in Grangemouth, Scotland, in 1979. Taking their name from an obscure song from fellow Scots Simple Minds, the Cocteaus were originally formed by guitarist Robin Guthrie and bassist Will Heggie and later rounded out by Guthrie's girlfriend Elizabeth Fraser, an utterly unique performer whose swooping, operatic vocals relied less on any recognizable language than on the subjective sounds and textures of verbalized emotions.
The debut album by John Foxx And The Maths will be released by Metamatic Records on 21st March, 2011. Interplay is a collaboration between John Foxx and electronic composer and synthesizer collector, Benge (Ben Edwards). He's best known for his 2008 album, Twenty Systems which was described by Brian Eno as 'a brilliant contribution to the archaeology of electronic music.' The album will initially be available as a Deluxe Digipack limited to 1500 copies, designed by Jonathan Barnbrook whose previous work includes David Bowie's Heathen and Reality albums. Moody and atmospheric, but also full of songs that are actually more pop than avant garde, Interplay pulls various strands of electronic music together from early 80s electro to 70s Krautrock, even flashes of Cabaret Voltaire and Foxx s first band, Ultravox!
L.A. musician Eddie Ruscha’s new synth-music project draws on Balearic beat and ambient pop for a concise, easygoing listen.
Limited edition of 1500 copies. Housed in a white cardboard box, containing another black velvet box and all albums and the EP, re-mastered on hybrid stereo SACD in vinyl replica sleeves. SACD mastered at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab…
Ben Curtis' desertion of Secret Machines and the breakup of On!Air!Library! was justified by this group's first single, a sky-gliding confection that modernized the sighing, swirling, private dancefloor sides of Medicine, Seefeel, and My Bloody Valentine. Included as the finale on Alpinisms, the debut album from Curtis and O!A!L!'s singing Deheza twins, "My Cabal" has the feel of a bonus track; the later recordings that precede it, despite remaining squarely within the domain of late-'80s/early-'90s dream pop in terms of inspiration, are relatively individualist, going well beyond the lucid psychedelia and discreet flickers of Afro-beat and contemporary pop. What pushes these songs past mere worship involves cunning collisions of robust rhythm, caressing noise, and heavenly melody, with each element equally crucial. Good shoegaze/dream pop bands mastered one of them; the most exceptional of the heap, like this group, had all three down. The most striking example here is "Wired for Light," seemingly spawned by Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Peek-A-Boo" and M/A/R/R/S' "Anitina," full of clacking percussion that rattles the ribs, Middle Eastern accents, gale-force atmospherics, and layered vocals that could be casting a spell.