Sponging Off Digital Leather

I haven't had anything up for the weekend for the past few weeks, despite best intentions, but I couldn't resist. An overlooked album of late last year, this "latest" favourite by Omaha avante-garage rockers Digital Leather, Sponge, is an absolute blast. Shawn Foree's outfit have always dug into the lowest fidelity nether regions of music, procuring some filthy rocking tunes as a result, yet Sponge is a culmination of a seismic shift in their approach which has slowly come through over their last few releases. The stronger influence of synth to the mix has mellowed out these songs, so though rather there being a focus on balls to the wall batshit crazy garage rock, we see more cohesion and depth. And in my opinion, with such an approach Digital Leather has created its most consistently fun album to date. There are still some great rollicking tracks such as 'Deliver', but on tracks like 'Thrill Is Gone' or 'Chakras' what is offered is something more akin to early Guided By Voices if played on a Casio in a dumpster. There isn't much substance here, but that is the point. Its a fun album that jumps around a lot, yet strangely offering Digital Leather the direction in which they need to travel next.


Crash Symbols put Sponge lovely out on cassette, yet it is now sold out. However you can grab it digitally here.

Digital Leather - Thrill Is Gone
Digital Leather - Deliver

Deceptive TANK All About Nostalgic Slack And Minds On One Track

Bands choosing simplistic monikers to disappear in a Google camouflage is a double edged sword. On the one hand it means you aren't pandering to the man. Yet for those genuinely interested in finding more, it's a massive flipping of the bird. Brooklyn band TANK certainly stay under the radar, but this is an absolute shame as their six-track self-titled EP is pretty killer, and deserves to be picked up by all and sundry.

Let's start off with 'Assorted Reactors.' TANK cast their Pavement pogs into the ring from the get go. Yet there are other connections here that Im sure these dudes didn't even see coming. Second track 'One Track Mind' reminds me so much about the jangly guitar pop of underrated 90s Aussie heroes Gaslight Radio (or any number of Aussie bands from the mid to late 90s) as well as some of those Flying Nun gurus that it spins me into a nostalgic whirl everytime I hear it. There are GBV vibes throughout this EP too - Robert Pollard's essence runs deep on a track like 'Donna', that's for sure. It's loud yet incredibly melodic, just as the slacker gods proclaim it should be. Pick it up for free over here.

TANK - Assorted Reactors
TANK - One Track Mind

Bearded Spaceships From Boston Guided By Voices No Longer...

Last week I gave out a taster from the new Guided By Voices record. I also stated in that post about an interview where fellow Columbus, Ohio band Times New Viking felt that they may have to call it a day as they were "growing up". Well, if that GBV incumbent LP isn't enough to shake the youngsters out of their doldrums, they should look to Robert Pollard's other projects, one of which is Boston Spaceships. They put out an album a month or so ago, Let It Beard, a simple play at the Beatles album. If people doubt the validity of elder statesmen rocking out to original tunes, Let It Beard should cast those aspersions into the fire where they belong. This trio have put out some fine releases in their time, and although this ambitious 2LP affair doesn't always hit the bullseye, the quality ratio is substantially high, and Pollard kills.


Sadly this is said to be the final release, so if you like what you hear (and you bloody well should!) get to buying the back catalogue. Start here, then in my opinion take on Planets Are Blasted first - but they are all ace.

Boston Spaceships - Blind 20-20
Boston Spaceships - Tourist UFO
Boston Spaceships - Let It Beard

Thos Voices Will Guide Us To The Very End

I saw Times New Viking play earlier this year in what was one of the best shows of 2011. However one thing they mentioned struck me as a little...well, sad, although I understand the idea. The band mentioned that now that they are in their thirties, they feel a bit silly from time to time creating noise and thrashing about, and are considering their options for the future. The Columbus Ohio trio are fantastic, and self-confessed Guided By Voices fanatics (no less due to the hometown connections), so I hope they look to Robert Pollard to see how it can be that they make it work.

Guided By Voices go from strength to strength, and have just released the below track off the forthcoming Let's Go Eat The Factory LP (featuring the classic line-up that includes Tobin Sprout - and he's writing songs again!). Pollard has also released an awesome album with side project Boston Spaceships which will be here very shortly. These guys have been around much longer than TNV, and are still finding ways of being inimitably awesome. Hopefully some of that Columbus mojo will rub off on them...

Let's Go Eat The Factory will be out New Year's Day - what a way to bring in a bleary-eyed 2012! Actually, maybe the world cannot handle this record - this is what the Mayans warned us about! Ah well. In that case, I guess there is no hurry in keeping TNV together...

Tracklist below (the amount and brevity of tracks also heralds TNV - come on guys, stay on for the good of humanity!!!)

Laundry And Lasers
The Head
Doughnut For A Snowman
Spiderfighter
Hang Mr. Kite
God Loves Us
The Unsinkable Fats Domino
Who Invented The Sun
The Big Hat And Toy Show
Imperial Racehorsing
How I Met My Mother
Waves
My Europa
Chocolate Boy
The Things That Never Need
Either Nelson
Cyclone Utilities (Remember Your Birthday)
Old Bones
Go Rolling Home
The Room Taking Shape
We Won't Apologize For The Human Race

Guided By Voices - The Unsinkable Fats Domino

The Fall And Rise Of The Capstan Shafts' Kind Empire

Dean Wells sent me an email about a month ago, one I neglected to do anything about until about four days previously. I was rooting around the emails, trying to do some serious culling of old messages, when I stumbled over it. I wondered why Id left it behind. When I opened it up, all it had was a Bandcamp link to a band called The Capstan Shafts - no other kind of conversational devices or salutations at all. Now usually I toss these - there are too many things going on than just having something thrown at me without the decency of even the smallest amount of info - but I was itchy with procrastination, so I gave it a shot.


Kind Empires has a killer opener in 'Degenerate Era Sweetheaert', and it goes from there. Wells has a voice not far removed from revered Aussie troubadour Paul Kelly, if he was doing Guided By Voices and Thermals covers. It doesn't always work, but Kind Empires is a worthy listen just for the opening track, and there are other songs of its calibre littered throughout. Furthermore, it seems Wells is rather prolific, with a vast array of releases under his belt - I think that by fishing through the back catalogue you could muster up a pretty decent retrospective of an artist that is unfortunately flying too far under the radar.

Capstan Shafts - Degenerate Era Sweetheart
Capstan Shafts - Like Theme From "Arthouse Floozy"