Hidden Shoal News
“Glitch before Kitsch” MixTape by Markus Mehr
A beautiful sister mix to Markus Mehr‘s previous Kitsch before Glitch mixtape. This time around Mehr takes us from David Sylvian to Thomas Köner to Aphex Twin to The Beatles and beyond. Let’s hand it over to the man himself to explain,
“This is the ‘sister’ to my previous mixtape, Kitsch Before Glitch – but they’re not identical twins. This mix is the complete opposite of the last. It’s music that has attracted me and moved me over the last six or seven months.
It starts with David Sylvian’s ‘Darkest Dreaming’, a beautiful miniature I rediscovered last summer when I was finishing the album Binary Rooms. I played it in the morning, before I started working, for an A/B mix comparison, during the breaks, and again at the end of the day. I am addicted to this song. It makes me remember my taxi driver days, when I would record one song onto tape over and over again (such as ‘Heartbeat’ by Sakamoto/Sylvian, ‘Don’t Want To Know If You Are Lonely’ by Hüsker Dü, or ‘Someone To Pull The Trigger’ by Matthew Sweet), then listen on repeat the whole night through.
After this intro you’ll hear a lot of outstanding music released in 2014, previously unreleased music, tracks from colleagues and with colleagues, and some hard-to-find electronic classics of the early ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s. And it ends with The Beatles’… by accident. If you’ve been listening to the whole tape, you are definitely also a ‘Fool On The Hill’ – a very nice one.”
– Markus Mehr
“Glitch before Kitsch” by Markus Mehr by Hidden Shoal on Mixcloud
Kramies ‘The Fate That Never Favored Us’ – New Single!
Ahead of his forthcoming French tour, dream-pop troubadour Kramies has dropped another gorgeous track produced by Jason Lytle (Grandaddy). ‘The Fate That Never Favored Us’ is a lilting, swaying cosmic waltz, delicately built around melancholy acoustic guitar and eerie synths, through which Kramies weaves his languid vocals. As with so much of his music, Kramies delivers soundtracks to moments rather than mere songs. The track is available for free download via Kramies Bandcamp.
The French will have the chance to have their moments soundtracked as Kramies lands in April to play some shows and tape some performances. The full list of dates is detailed below, but special mention must be made of his big show at the Grand Theatre in Angers on April 8th supporting the wonderful French outfit A Singer Must Die, who will be backed a chamber orchestra. Cool right?
Here’s a list of the shows and sessions:
April 7th – Showcase at the FNAC record store, Angers
April 7th – Indiemusic Session (studio only and published online)
April 8th – Grand Theatre, Angers
April 10th – The Jokers Pub, Angers
April 11th – Le Cargo session in Paris (studio only and published online)
April 11th – Froggy’s Delight session in Paris (studio only and published online)
April 11th – PopNews Session (studio only and published online)
REW Signs to Hidden Shoal
We’re very excited to announce a new member to the Hidden Shoal family in the form of Ryan E. Weber (aka REW<<). We’ve had the pleasure of sitting with Weber’s forthcoming second album as REW<<, Olive Skinned, Silver Tongued Sirens Sing Swan Songs (released on 16th July 2015), for some time now and we can tell you it’s an absolute beauty. The eclectic songcraft of REW<< is refracted through the lens of a laptop, conveying the open-endedness, excitement, and disconnection of post-modern living while maintaining the immediacy of pop. From the grand to the intimate, REW<<’s many shades blend beautifully within the one canvas thanks to Weber’s skilled hand. His compositional dexterity manages to invest the dreaminess with a sense of drama.
Weber, who originally hails from the Western shores of Lake Michigan, has previously played in bands including Camden, The Promise Ring and Decibully, and is one half of dream-pop duo Eric & Magill. Working on Eric & Magill releases while living in both Kenya and the Republic of Armenia, Weber collaborated over the internet with a host of notable contemporary indie artists, including members of Shearwater, The Dirty Projectors, Owen, Volcano Choir and The Delgados. In 2014 he released his acclaimed debut solo album as REW<<, Departeures. His new album Olive Skinned, Silver Tongued Sirens Sing Swan Songs is his debut for Hidden Shoal.
The October Solution ‘1984’ – First Single from “Axis Swim Scar”
Hidden Shoal is excited to announce the release of ‘1984’, the first cut from Axis Swim Scar, the debut album by dream-pop architects The October Solution (Drew Sullivan of Slow Dancing Society and City of Satellites, and Jarrod Manuel of City of Satellites). While steeped in ’80s nostalgia, their music moves beyond familiar tropes to stand as defiantly futuristic and progressive, no better exemplified than on single ‘1984’, which draws upon the sweeping grandeur of Disintegration-era Cure. Axis Swim Scar resonates with soaring guitars, ethereal vocals, and deftly woven pop melodies, melding the incandescent ambient sounds of Slow Dancing Society within the propulsive songcraft of City of Satellites.
The October Solution originally formed as EO in 2011, releasing two EPs, Breathe Your Air and Somewhere Human, before changing their name to The October Solution in 2013. While the duo operate at opposite ends of the globe – with Jarrod Manuel based in Adelaide, Australia and Drew Sullivan based in Spokane, USA – this independent collaboration was born at a City of Satellites production meet-up in the US, where the pair bonded over their shared love of ’80s and ’90s pop music and shoegaze.
‘1984’ is available now as a free download and stream. Axis Swim Scar will see official release on the 14th of April.
Featured Track – HC-B ‘Hot Afternoon in The Bull’s Square’
It’s hard to believe Sicilian quintet HC-B released their masterpiece Soundcheck for a Missing Movie back in 2009. Those who thought this was the last great sonic document from the band will be pleased to know it’s not and that we have some exciting news on what’s to come from HC-B in 2015 (soon!). So what better time to reflect on one of the centerpieces of Soundcheck for a Missing Movie, ‘Hot Afternoon in The Bull’s Square’. Now I had planned to wax lyrical about this song as it excites me every time I listen to it, but then I stumbled on a quote from the awesome US college radio station WRUV that summed up everything I wanted to say,
“Quality Instrumental Post-Rock with a fierce emotion that will blast your face off for its entirety… The songs blend together to form a tsunami of shredding guitars, loud violins, free horns, booming basses and hammering drums… One of the greatest of its genre.” – WRUV
Now listen and hear why every word of that quote is spot on.
Chloe March vs. Markus Mehr – “To Set The River On Fire” EP
Hidden Shoal is excited to announce the new EP To Set The River On Fire, the first in an ongoing “versus” remix series which sees two Hidden Shoal artists remix each other’s music. We have a cracker to start things off – English dream-pop artist Chloë March takes on a track from the latest album by German experimentalist Markus Mehr – and vice versa.
Listening to ‘Buoy (Chloë March Remix)’ feels like watching Chloë March creep tentatively into Markus Mehr’s shadowy soundworld, casting her radiant voice around the room like torchlight. While on ‘Ember (Markus Mehr Remix)’, the original’s beautifully simple arrangement for voice and piano is trapped within a hall of industrial-sized mirrors, anxiously roving around in search of escape. Each remix complements the other, masterfully re-interpreting the source material while inviting fresh listens to the original. The EP consists of the two remixes as well as the original tracks and is available as a free download via BandCamp as well as a full EP stream on SoundCloud. All songs are also available for licensing via Hidden Shoal.
Antonymes Guest Mix at Headphone Commute
The ridiculously talented Ian Hazeldine (aka Antonymes) has produced a stunning mixtape for Headphone Commute entitled The Spaces Between Seconds. Let’s hand it over to the man himself to explain,
“When Headphone Commute asked me to produce a mix I was truly honoured. I wanted to deliver something very different to any mix I’d done before. I’d been listening to a lot of jazz and wanted it to be a focus. The starting point was Jimmy Scott’s astonishing vocal on “Sycamore Tree”. For this reason it sits in the exact centre of the mix. I’ve included pieces by long admired artists and dear friends. Music is a special, powerful thing. I’ve been on magical, spiritual journey since my first musical awakening in 1967. Listen, appreciate and enjoy. This mix is dedicated to my dearly missed mother. “ – Antonymes
Check out the mix below and listen to the entire Antonymes catalogue here.
Antonymes – The Spaces Between Seconds by Headphone Commute on Mixcloud
“Wealth” – Mixtape by Kryshe
On the latest Hidden Shoal mixtape, German ambient artist Kryshe picked tracks from cherished albums he owns on vinyl. The mix traces a line from ’70s German kosmische through to Talk Talk’s majestic ‘Wealth’, taking in instrumental touchstones such as Klaus Schulze, Olafur Arnalds and A Winged Victory For The Sullen along the way. In moving between cosmic synthesized soundscapes and the intimate tones of strings and piano, Kryshe explores the myriad influences that have shaped his own exquisitely subtle and detailed ambient work.
Kryshe is the live and studio-based ambient project of German musician Christian Grothe. Grothe’s music often evolves from live improvisation sessions, incorporating sound-manipulation software such as max/msp to develop a richly layered yet spacious sound. Grothe is also a member of the improvisational trio Unland, featuring ambient artist Jonas Meyer and clarinetist Shabnam Pavaresh. His releases to date are the Dreamland and In Between EPs, and the full-length release Growing. Listen to Kryshe’s music and learn more about the artist here.
Battlestations Sign to Hidden Shoal
Hidden Shoal is extremely excited to announce the signing of Belgium-based project Battlestations. All four Battlestations releases join the Hidden Shoal catalogue and are available for licensing (film, TV, games, compilations), plus a new album currently being worked on will also be released through Hidden Shoal.
Battlestations interweave the subtle with the dramatic, the intimate with the cinematic, the introverted with the bombastic. Across their eclectic and atmospheric instrumental rock, industrial ambience is counterbalanced by beautiful piano melodies, eerie samples and lyrical guitar lines. The result is incredibly evocative music, complex in both its narratives and textural composition. Hidden Shoal fans will also know Reivilo Enoignor from Battlestations as one half of the duo Involved, who released their stunning debut album Revolving Maze last year.
Listen to and purchase Battlestations’ music here and be sure to contact us with any licensing enquiries.
Mobile Moments 3.0 (featuring PERTH Soundtrack)
Check out the first short film installment for the wonderful film portraiture series Mobile Moments 3.0 featuring a soundtrack by Hidden Shoal’s PERTH. The project is presented by The Blue Room Theatre Summer Nights as a part of Fringe World 2015.
Created by Sarah Nelson, the project was conceived in 2011 for an artist residency with DADAA Inc. and was developed over a month working with youth from the Derby and Mowunjum communities in the Kimberely, Western Australia. In 2012 the project was presented as a part of the inaugural Proximity Festival, which offered not only a starkly contrasting environment as a backdrop for the films, but also a paying adult audience to the experience. The project returns for The Blue Room Theatre Summer Nights program for Fringe World 2015. Mobile Moments 3.0 will merge these extremes and play with the possibilities of chance encounters across the city. Searching the streets and approaching participants only when a moment reveals itself, the artist is out there to connect and capture with a diverse cross section of the Perth community.
MOBILE MOMENTS 3.1 from ROAD on Vimeo.