Tag Archives: alternative

Anti-Spectacular – I Am This Flesh (Self-Released)

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Label Description: Alex Hood: bass, vocals
Colin Norman: drums, percussion

Nicole L. Spence: engineering (track 1, 4)
Apollo Saraga: engineering (track 2)
Melody Pearson: engineering (track 2)
John Castillo: engineering (track 3)
Colin Norman: engineering
Benjamin Byck: mixing
Adhil Azhar Bhatty: mastering

All songs written by Alex Hood and Colin Norman

Lyrics by Alex Hoo

N NAO – Nouveaux Langages – Volume I (Mothland)

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Label Description: L’auteure-compositrice-interprète de pop expérimentale montréalaise N NAO, alias Naomie de Lorimier fait appel à une pléthore d’artistes – Lou-Adriane Cassidy, Helena Deland, Das Beat, Ben Shemie (Suuns), Regularfantasy, Sea Oleena, Bénédicte, ainsi que son fidèle collaborateur Charles Marsolais-Ricard alias Charlin – sur Nouveaux Langages (17 juillet 2026 via Mothland), un nouvel album-double comprenant des collaborations, des remixes, ainsi que des démos inédits de son album nommé sur la longue liste du Prix de Musique Polaris 2025, Nouveau Langage. Ce dernier alliait avec brio chanson en français minimale et ambiante, transe aux boucles vocales et accroches mélodiques répétées, le tout paré de textes relationnels, de récits éco-féministes et de réflexions métaphysiques; l’artiste mettant en musique la « puissance de la douceur » sous le signe du feu.

À l’instar de son prédécesseur, Nouveaux Langages puise à même les timbres enregistrés sur bandes magnétiques, les arrangements mêlés d’instruments électroniques (synthétiseurs, boîtes à rythme, modules d’effets) et acoustiques à cordes (harpe, guitares, piano) où nichent aussi cloches, échantillonnage, soundscaping et field recordings, arborant lui aussi des sonorités oniriques et éthérées. Pour le Volume I de ce nouvel ouvrage, N NAO revisite avec qui elle collabore des souvenirs façonnés à deux, s’inspirant de ces genèses impromptues pour guider le processus créatif. Le Volume II, lui, fait vœu de la dévoiler dans toute sa vulnérabilité, se déclinant en une série de pièces-phares enregistrées sur un 4-pistes lors d’une résidence au Couvent des Petites Franciscaines de Marie à Baie-Saint-Paul au printemps 2023.

Montréal experimental pop singer-songwriter N NAO a.k.a. Naomie de Lorimier calls upon a plethora of artists—Lou-Adriane Cassidy, Helena Deland, Das Beat, Ben Shemie (Suuns), Regularfantasy, Sea Oleena, Bénédicte, as well as her longtime collaborator Charles Marsolais-Ricard a.k.a. Charlin—on Nouveaux Langages (July 17th, 2026 via Mothland), a new double-album featuring collaborations, remixes, as well as unreleased demos from her Polaris Music Prize long-listed album, Nouveau Langage. Her 2025 release skillfully combined minimal and ambient French-language song with a trance of vocal loops and repeated melodic hooks, all adorned with relational lyrics, eco-feminist narratives, and metaphysical reflections; the artist setting to music the “power of gentleness” under the sign of fire.

Like its predecessor, Nouveaux Langages draws from dreamlike and ethereal sounds recorded onto reel-to-reel tape via arrangements mixing electronic instruments (synthesizers, drum machines, effects modules) and acoustic string instruments (harp, guitars, piano), which also house bells, sampling, soundscaping, and field recordings. For Volume I of this new work, N NAO revisits memories shaped together with her collaborators, drawing inspiration from these impromptu beginnings to guide the creative process. Volume II, on the other hand, vows to unveil her in all her vulnerability, taking the form of a series of unreleased origin pieces recorded on a 4-track during a residency at Couvent des Petites Franciscaines de Marie in Baie-Saint-Paul in the Spring of 2023.

Volume I

  1. Déjà (feat. Sea Oleena)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Naomie de Lorimier
Voix, guitare acoustique et échantillonneur: Naomie de Lorimier
Voix et synthétiseurs modulaires: Charlotte Loseth
Harpe: Coralie Gauthier
Guitare acoustique: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard, Naomie de Lorimier et Charlotte Loseth
Mixage: Naomie de Lorimier
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Nouveau Langage (Charlin Remix)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Voix, piano, orgue, synthétiseur et échantillonneur: Naomie de Lorimier
Guitare acoustique, échantillonneur, batterie et programmation: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et programmation: Samuel Gougoux
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard et Naomie de Lorimier
Mixage: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Fleuron (feat. Helena Deland)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Helena Deland
Paroles additionnelles: Helena Deland
Voix: Naomie de Lorimier
Guitare électrique et voix: Helena Deland
Guitare acoustique, basse et batterie: Patrick Holland
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard et Patrick Holland
Mixage: Patrick Holland
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Echo (Ben Shemie Remix)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Ben Shemie
Voix, échantillonneur et cloches: Naomie de Lorimier
Synthétiseur, échantillonneur, voix, batterie et programmation: Ben Shemie
Guitare synthétiseur: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et programmation: Samuel Gougoux
Programmation: Simone Provencher
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard
Mixage: Ben Shemie
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Corps (feat. Lou-Adriane Cassidy)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Naomie de Lorimier
Voix, synthétiseur, échantillonneur, batterie et programmation: Naomie de Lorimier
Voix, batterie et programmation: Lou-Adriane Cassidy
Basse: Alexandre Martel
Synthétiseur et échantillonneur: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et programmation: Samuel Gougoux
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard, Lou-Adriane Cassidy, Naomie de Lorimier et Alexandre Martel
Mixage: Naomie de Lorimier
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Pleine Lune (Das Beat Remix)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Das Beat
Paroles additionnelles: Paulina Mertl
Voix: Naomie de Lorimier et Paulina Mertl
Synthétiseur et programmation: Alexander Cowan
Guitare électrique, synthétiseur et échantillonneur: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et programmation: Samuel Gougoux
Programmation: Simone Provencher et Jean-Bruno Pinard
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard
Mixage: Alexander Cowan
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Destin (RegularFantasy Remix)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Olivia Meek
Voix, synthétiseur, batterie et programmation: Naomie de Lorimier
Synthétiseur, batterie et programmation: Olivia Meek
Harpe: Rosalie Gauthier
Guitare acoustique: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et programmation: Samuel Gougoux
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard
Mixage: Olivia Meek
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

  1. Château d’eau (Bénédicte Remix)

Paroles et musique: Naomie de Lorimier
Réalisation: Maxime Gordon
Voix et synthétiseur: Naomie de Lorimier
Synthétiseur et programmation: Maxime Gordon
Harpe: Rosalie Gauthier
Synthétiseur: Jon Nellen
Synthétiseur: Charles Marsolais-Ricard
Batterie et percussion: Samuel Gougoux
Prise de son: Jean-Bruno Pinard
Mixage: Maxime Gordon
Matriçage: Francis Ledoux

MOTH046-DE

The Durutti Column – Renascent (London Records Ltd)

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Label Description: ‘Renascent’ marks the long-awaited return of legendary Manchester outfit The Durutti Column, their first new studio album in over fifteen years, produced by Keir Stewart.
Around the guitar work of Vini Reilly, the album plays between sonic atmospherics and structure: warm ambient washes, piano, beats and guest vocal turns by a new generation (Caoilfhionn Rose on “ Agonistes” and Lucas Elliot on CD bonus track “All they See is Fire ).

2026, The Durutti Column under exclusive licence(sic) to London Records

The Chills – Brave Words (Expanded And Remastered) [Fire Records]

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Label Description: The Chills reveal legendary debut Brave Words (Expanded and Remastered) will be released on double LP including a disc of unheard extras out 13th October on Fire Records. Remixed and remastered under the supervision of Martin Phillipps, this special release will feature brand new reimagined artwork by Martin.

The Chills have long been recognized as one of New Zealand’s most influential bands, Brave Words is a shining example of their unique sound and has been praised as a masterpiece by critics and fans alike.

“This is what a living legend looks and sounds like” Rolling Stone

Michael Boezi – No Love Songs, Vol. 2

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Label Description: These songs invite progressive, collectivist, and non-confrontational reflection as an antidote to the years of programming and propaganda we all endure. Let’s help each other UNLEARN. Let’s afford each other the space to grow. //

SONG SUMMARY:
01. Knocks – Finding the energy to take positive action
02. I Gotta Go – How life goes on amid daily horrors
03. Temperature Drop – How no one’s coming to save us
04. Last Song – How AI art & music will change us
05. Read Me Out – Turning the page on the Boomer’s world
06. Nothing Left – Silence will speak on your behalf if you don’t
07. Doing Any Good – How advocating for change is depleting
08. Fever – How to develop empathy for the victims of disinformation
09. The Recidivist – How old habits and ideas imprison us
10. Graveyard of Good Intentions – We’re fighting the wrong battle
11. Cheap Seats – How to deal with the “Billionaire Problem”
12. Wipe Right Out – How you won’t listen to me anyway

We are waking up one by one. The algorithms will try to keep us apart because this is what those in power fear the most – that we learn from each other’s experiences. //

This is why art is so important. Stories and narratives are the only way to create positive change. So we come together around art. And conversation. And solidarity. And big ideas. //

Positive change is a collective effort. Individualism is our common enemy. //

PRAISE:
“My pick for this week is the just released ‘No Love Songs Volume 2.’ Singer/songwriter/guitarist Michael Boezi and a bunch of fine musicians bring us a great collection of songs about the unfortunate state of the world.

Despite the subject matter, which is presented through great lyrics and excellent instrumentation, the album is not depressing, because it’s a perfect example of how art is essential in hard times, of how we can work through chaos by using our creativity.”

— Aaron Smith (source: BlueSky)

CREDITS:
Lyrics and music by Michael Boezi

PERFORMERS:
Michael Boezi: Voice, guitars on all songs
Dave Brophy: Drums & percussion on all songs
Joe McMahon: Bass guitar on all songs
Andrew Stern: Lead guitar on 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Andrew Stern: 12-string guitar on 8, 9
Andrew Stern: Slide guitar on 12
Britt Connors: Backing vocals on 3, 6, 8
James Rohr: Wurlitzer on 3, piano on 6
Andy Santospago: Pedal steel guitar on 1, lap steel on 4
Aaron DeGraff: Backing vocals on 9
Dave Brophy: Backing vocals on 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12
Peter Fernandez: Rhodes on 1, 2, 9
Peter Fernandez: Organ on 1, 2, 5, 8, 9
Peter Fernandez: Synth & other keyboards on 1, 5
Andrew Stern: Triangle on 2
Dave Brophy: Organ on 7

PRODUCTION:
Recorded at Studio Solitaire in Somerville, MA
All songs engineered by Dave Brophy
Backing vocals engineered by Mike Connors on 3, 6, 8

Arranged by Michael Boezi and Dave Brophy
Produced by Michael Boezi and Dave Brophy
Mixed and mastered by Dave Brophy
Cover photograph by Michael Boezi
Cover design by Michael Boezi

Cover image:
Title: [Emma Gillingham Bostwick, half-length portrait of a woman, three-quarters to left, facing three-quarters to right]
Artist: Mathew B. Brady
Date: Between 1851 and 1860
Source: Library of Congress
Underlying Rights: Public Domain Worldwide

℗&© 2025 Control Mouse Media, LLC
Published by Control Mouse Media, LLC, Boston, MA. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable copyright laws. UPC: 057829394049

Publisher IPI: 1126697538 (ASCAP)
Michael Boezi IPI: 1126697636 (ASCAP)

Irata – Human (Small Stone Records)

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Label Description: Since its 2007 genesis at the hands of founding members Jon Case and Jason Ward, Irata has mutated relentlessly. Through four previous records, the band has never sat idly in any specific style, while maintaining a signature mesmerizing, grinding pulse between bass and drums that permeates an enigmatic vision of heavy rock. After releasing ‘Tower’ in 2019 as a four-piece, Irata is once again a trio, and continues to push forward into new sonic territories.

On ‘Human,’ the band is building on the structures that have created some of its enduring favorites — namely, thundering bass riffs, hypnotic drums, and grandiose choruses. They do not sacrifice expression for refinement, but manage to have it both ways. Their progression is evident in the patience with which “Altar” leads off, a melodic confidence that overarches the eight included songs, and the atmospheres in pieces like “Slipped” (see “pulse…” above) and the expansive finale “Daystar,” but none of ‘Human’ is so overblown as to give up its organically dynamic nature.

And perhaps in an era marked by the advent of machine-made art, ‘Human’ can be as much a statement of purpose as a declaration of self. In any case, with this collection of songs, Irata’s focus on vocal melody and intricate riffing distinguish them from a crowded underground sphere. The record moves as two sides of one image, opening with reflections of a final chapter, and closing with reflections of a new beginning through transformation; a story being told as it’s lived. What could be more human than that?

‘Human’ was recorded with longtime friends Hunter Allen and Adam Joyce of The Bronzed Chorus at Amplified Acres in Liberty, NC, and mixed by J. Robbins at The Magpie Cage in Baltimore, MD.

RIYL: Jane’s Addiction, The Smashing Pumpkins, King Buffalo, Helmet, Shiner, SHUN, All Them Witches 

Irata is:
Jason Ward: drums, keys, vox
Jon Case: bass, vox
Owen Burd: vox, guitar, keys

Recording engineered by Hunter Allen with assistance from Adam Joyce at Amplified Acres in Liberty, NC.
Additional production at The 68 Sound in Greensboro, NC.
Mixed by J. Robbins at the Magpie Cage in Baltimore, MD.
Mastered by Dan Coutant at Sun Room Audio in New Windsor, NY.
All music written by Irata.
Lyrics by Owen Burd except “Seeds” by Jon Case.
Produced by Irata with Hunter Allen and Adam Joyce.
Artwork by Will Hackley.
Layout by Stacie Shands.

Published by Small Stone Records (ASCAP) / SH Small Stone Music (BMI)

Anna von Hausswolff – ICONOCLASTS (Year0001)

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Label Description:

1st Issue CD available via shop.year0001.com

credits

released October 31, 2025

Released by YEAR0001
A&R Oskar Ekman

‘ICONOCLASTS’
Written by Anna von Hausswolff
Produced by Anna von Hausswolff & Filip Leyman
Tracks 1, 5, 8-9 Written with Otis Sandsjö
Tracks 5, 8-9 Written with Filip Leyman
Tracks 5, 9 Written with David Sabel
Track 10 Written with Abul Mogard

Vocals on Tracks 2-7, 9-11 by Anna von Hausswolff
Vocals on Track 4 by Iggy Pop
Vocals on Track 7 by Ethel Cain
Vocals on Track 11 by Maria Von Hausswolff

Church Organ on Tracks 1-9, 11-12 by Anna von Hausswolff

Guitar on Tracks 6, 9 by Anna von Hausswolff
Guitar on Tracks 3-4, 9 by Filip Leyman
Guitar on Tracks 2-3, 5-6, 9 by Joel Fabiansson
Acoustic Guitar on Track 4 by Karl Vento
Bass Guitar on Tracks 2-3, 5-6, 9 by David Sabel

Drums & Percussion on Tracks 2-5, 7, 9, 11 by Filip Leyman
Drums on Tracks 3, 6 by Love Meyerson

Synthesizer on Tracks 1-9, 11-12 by Filip Leyman

Saxophone on Tracks 1-3, 5-9, 11 by Otis Sandsjö
Clarinet on Tracks 3,5,7,9,11 by Otis Sandsjö

Strings on Track 4 Performed & Arranged by Samuel Runsteen

String Ensemble on Tracks 3, 5, 7, 9, 11
Violins by Jenny Jonsson, Alexander Chojecki, Annie Svedund, Charlotta Grahn-Wetter
Viola by Märta Eriksson
Cello by Lisa Reuter
Double Bass by Viktor Reuter
With String Arrangements by Martin Schaub
Track 9 Arranged with Anna von Hausswolff

Woodwinds on Tracks 1, 3, 5, 8 Arranged by Anna von Hausswolff & Otis Sandsjö
Woodwinds on Tracks 7, 11 Arranged by Anna von Hausswolff

Electronics on Track 10 by Abul Mogard

Recorded at Leyman Studio, Svenska Grammofonstudion, Candy Bomber, Annedal Church, Örgryte New Church & Vinberg Church
Engineered by Filip Leyman, Oskar Lindberg, Ingo Krauss
Mixed by Sven Johansson (Tracks 1-9, 11), Filip Leyman (Tracks 1, 12) & Abul Mogard (Track 10)
Mastered by Magnus Lindberg

Creative Direction by André Jofré
Art Direction by Victor Svedberg
Photography by Evalena von Hausswolff
Artwork by Lotta Antonsson

Cate Le Bon – Michelangelo Dying (Mexican Summer)

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Label Description: Its creation led by pure emotion, Cate Le Bon’s seventh record Michelangelo Dying usurped the album she thought she was making. The product of all- consuming heartache, her feelings overrode her reluctance to write an album about love, and in the process became a kind of exorcism. What emerges is a wonderfully iridescent attempt to photograph a wound before it closes up but which in doing so, picks at it too.

Musically, there is a continuation and expansion of a sound a machine with a heart that has taken shape over her last two records (2019s Reward and 2022s Pompeii) as Le Bon has increasingly taken control of the playing and producing herself. As guitars and saxophones are pushed through pedals and percussion and voices are fed through filters, an iridescent, green and silky sound emerges, with flashes of the artistic singularities of David Bowie, Nico, John McGeoch and Laurie Anderson surfacing and disappearing below the waterline throughout.

What were left with is an ever-changing, continuous entity, a kind of song cycle. Each iteration reflects and progresses the last, each one a shard of the same broken mirror shifting, glinting, concealing and revealing, depending on how it is turned in the light. There are ultimately, Cate asserts, No revelations. No conclusions. There is no reason. There is repetition and chaos. I eventually allowed myself a vacant mind to experience it without resistance and without searching for a revelation or order to any of it.

An exercise in the viscerality(sic) of life, of love, of humanity for both listener and artist, Michelangelo Dying knows what it is to hold, to be held, and to be exquisitely, profoundly alone. “The characters are interchangeable” concludes Cate, “but at the end of it all, its me meeting myself.”