Kashiwa Daisuke - LIVE @ 電刃

Ed Gein - Bad Luck

Latest 2011 release from Ed Gein.
The drummer dropped vox but their trading vocal-ricochet is maintained between the guitarist/bassist, making for a pounding but discernible assault from the Intro to the concluding calling-out of "Wasted Life".
The album clocks fast around 25 minutes, but in all that grinding the gears blast smoothly.

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Elekidz - Elekidz's Plasma Horoscope [EP]

Check 1-2-3

Two song EP from Japan's punk/rock Elekidz.
2011 successor to their only prior full-length 'Elevator Action' (2008). They win me over with their unique transitions/enduring and punchy female vocals, even if my initial impression was something of a corn-blender anime intro/outro. It's a quick go, but worth re-visiting.

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The Log.Os - λόγος

One lovely Nikko Gray passed this on to me:
New (free) project from Ken Barrientos (aka KenBts.) – producer/engineer/sound-designer for Blu's 'NoYork!', Bilal's 'Levels', Shafiq Husayn's 'En' A-Free-Ka', SA-RA, & J*DaVeY.
Vocals by Nikko Gray & Iman Omari.
*features vocal appearances by Bilal and TY$ (of Ty & Kory)
*features bonus remix of "Levels" by Bilal.

Cool chilldown material, only thing missing is the kaleidoscope.
Nice ethereal blend of beat/soul/electronic.

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Dead Elephant - Thanatology

Dead Elephant are a doom/post-hardcore/noise trio from Italy.
Drawing influences from artists like Unsane, Cherubs, Jesus Lizard, Ash Ra Tempel and Neurosis, the trio established themselves with their 2005 debut 'Sing the Separation' -- landing them gigs with bands like Lair of the Minotaur and Zu (whose saxophonist contributed to their 2007 album 'Lowest Shared Descent').

Their latest 2011 release is entitled 'Thanatology', and in their words:
'In this order of things life sometimes is cruel. Sometimes we feel caught in a strange trap. The events appear to us as a dark spiral and our destiny is get lost in it. There, it’s very difficult to understand what is right and what is wrong. There, something must burn and you must accept to lose it. From the consciousness that some things must die in order to change is born Thanatology...
Musically the core of the album is represented by the meeting between the Dead Elephant music approach and the funeral march of South Italy.'

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Riddlore? - The West Wing

Riddlore? is an underground producer/MC/DJ active since 1983. I checked him out after some affiliation with Aceyalone, leading me to his latest 2011 output, 'The West Wing'. The album is Riddlore's? fourth solo full-length, his first release since his self-titled in 2003.

Hoping 'The West Wing' gets some love -- tight production and really unorthodox styles throughout.
Has definitely made me try to track down his previous material.

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13ghosts - Garland of Bottle Flies

Latest release from Alabama-Man(s) 13ghosts. Features a reworked version of "I Have Brought Fire" from their initial EP 'We Are The Sun' (the song that got me hooked in the first place). All in all some great storytelling and consistency in twang-tinge rock; a handful of my favorites stretching past the five minute mark like "Dr. Bill".

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AFTA-1 - Live At The Loft

#14 AFTA1 "HeyeLAND" Ft. Nikko Gray from LIVE AT THE LOFT on Vimeo.

[VA] Another Kind of Death/adrift/Moksha/Moho - Waterloo Split

Underhill Records

Four bands from Spain, including the thunder-scarring adrift. 'Waterloo' was released in 2006 on Underhill Records, who oddly enough put out the speckled and opposite sounds of Lukestar.
Another Kind of Death plays the cores of metal/math -- better the spasm of the latter. For the former there might be some expected chug and glug, but at least four dudes don't break into harmonious dentdowns. They do a good job though of balancing scramz/sangs.
The adrift portion of the EP is what lured me in; the three songs don't disappoint, especially with the crushing "Ramses". The song seems in constant bend on a bone roller coaster, getting shot at by clowns in hot air balloons that are the descendants of druids. The lyrics will probably confirm this. Either way, it's savage as fawk -- the proverbial middle-meat of their tracks.
The Moksha material is more sludgy/punchrawk, which led me to their more impressive 2008 full-length. Moho closes the EP, as sort of a conglomerate of the three bands before them. Probably the sludge-heaviness aligns most similarly to Moksha, but the vocals are more doom and gloom.
Overall a pretty powerful glass of jagged-juice, with adrift bringing the most flavor.

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yodaka

yodaka were a Japanese post-rock band consisting of Kashiwa Daisuke (Guitar/Programming), Nema Takeshi (Guitar/Synth), Takimoto Nozomu (Bass) and Yamamoto Hironobu (Drums).
This collection of five songs is the only material around (couldn't find a tracklisting or release info), and what it lacks in audio quality it makes up for in...audio quality.
Pretty cool stuff -- Daisuke's programming edge helps give it a unique feel for post-rock.
Def recommend looking into his latest piano-only release too.

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