Hidden Shoal News

New Hypnotic Pop Magic from The Caseworker – Free Download

Hidden Shoal Recordings is excited to announce the release of the new freely downloadable single ‘Sea Years’ by garage-dreampop trio The Caseworker, taken from their acclaimed 2011 album Letters From The Coast.

‘Sea Years’ is the follow-up to first single ‘National Runner’, showcasing another side to the band’s trademark guitar surge. The song’s insistent motorik beat, levitating guitar jangle and Eimer Devlin’s gorgeous airy vocals create a very special blend of dreamy, hypnotic pop minimalism. Light as a feather yet crammed full of gutsy guitar sounds, ‘Sea Years’ is another earworm from The Caseworker. The track is lifted from the band’s third album Letters From The Coast, which sees The Caseworker continue to deliver their own unique sonic magic. The album has the feel of a shoegazing Velvet Underground reared by the Flying Nun label, creating an enigmatic intimacy and atmosphere, which the band wrap around immaculately crafted pop songs like smoke. Perfectly intoxicating.

“a mellow, blissed out sequence of West Coast guitar pop, one that references Green On Red and Teenage Fanclub as much as it does the more abrasive Sonic Youth and monochromatic Velvet Underground whom The Caseworker acknowledge as influences… as much resonance and melodic energy as any of the bands and musicians whose work The Caseworker draw their influence from, and it succeeds fully as a complete album…. Anyone whose album collection is incomplete without Ocean Rain, Grand Prix and Park Life will find an equally prominent space in it for this twelve track masterpiece.” –  Delusions Of Adequacy

“The Caseworker extract darkness from inside whispery, ambient pop… completely enraptured and awesomely dazed”Rolling Stone

Download ‘Sea Years’ for free from the Hidden Shoal Store and if you haven’t yet been educated in the ways of The Caseworker’s brilliant Letters From The Coast you can stream the whole thing here.

Scott Solter "One River" Review Round Up

A busy end to 2011 and a sweet but small break over the xmas period means that we have a number of end of year reviews and the like we need to pass on. The first of these catch ups is for Scott Solter’s sublime re-issue of One River which generated much deserved love last year. Amongst the previously reported reviews the album also scooped glowing write-ups in Blog Critics,   Textura and Cyclic Defrost.

Stream the album in full and buy it on CD or digital at the Hidden Shoal Store.

City of Satellites "Remixed" No. 4 on the WRAS Charts

City of Satellites wonderful remix album of late last year is still doing great things in the US college radio charts. Last weeks WRAS CMJ charts saw the album grab the number 4 spot amongst some fine company. The albumk features remixes by such wonderful artists as Manual (Jonas Munk), Syntaks, Tim Koch, Jatun, M-13, Tin Manzano and Slow Dancing Society.

If you’ve not had the pleasure of wrapping your ears around Remixed yet then head to the Hidden Shoal Store and preview the album in full.

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City of Satellites – ‘Skeletons (Manual Remix)’

Kramies Review in PopMatters

More love for Kramies wonderful new EP The European, this time via a lovely review in PopMatters. Check out the glowing words here.

The European is available now as a limited edition CD postcard as well as all digital formats.

Kramies Charting at Soma FM

Kramies beautiful track ‘Antiquarian Days’ is sitting at number 8 in the Soma FM top 30 track by spins chart and number 3 on the Top 30 tracks by Listeners (on demand). Sweet!

‘Antiquarian Days’ is lifted off Kramies gorgeous EP The European which is available now as a limited edition CD postcard as well as all digital formats.

Markus Mehr "In" Released

Hidden Shoal Recordings is proud to announce the release of new album In by German experimental ambient artist Markus Mehr, the first of a triptych that also includes the forthcoming releases On and Off, all released over the next 12 months.

Markus Mehr follows up his stunning debut album Lava with three new releases. In is the first part of the triptych, comprising two monumental tracks, ‘Komo’ and ‘Ostinato’, each of which clocks in at around 25 minutes, circling around and building upon hypnotic instrumental motifs. ‘Komo’ gradually emerges from silence, its distant, filtered throb reluctantly revealing its source material – a heartbreaking string part whose emotional impact intensifies as the loop clarifies. ‘Ostinato’ is an altogether darker, gnarlier experience, its string loops chewed into distorted knots which are highlighted by treated guitars and crafted electronics.

“In this blissful wanderlust Mehr succeeds in spades creating a completely engrossing, engaging and all together reliable album full of the most powerful ambient-drone tracks this year.”Tome to the Weather Machine on Lava

“They’re ‘big’ compositions, the sheer scale of the sonic work is rather awe inspiring, but they never sound antagonistic or uncomfortable… it sounds like the ebb and flow of space itself – individual snippets of a grand, repeating, organic process that keeps the universe in balance…”
No Ripcord on Lava

In is  available for purchase  now in digital format and for CD pre-order. The CD version of the album comes as a limited edition two panel CD cardboard sleeve of 100 numbered units with artwork by Stuart Medley. Head to the Hidden Shoal Store for all availability details and read a full press release here.


Markus Mehr – In (excerpt)