In 2022, with 20 years and a strong collection of masterful, acclaimed albums to their name, Irish post-rock maestros GOD IS AN ASTRONAUT come full circle with their live studio output, The Beginning Of The End. Recorded at Windmill Lane Recording Studio in Dublin, Ireland on October 3, 2021, the album features modern transformations of all of the songs from their debut album, 2002’s The End Of The Beginning, encompassing each track’s evolutionary changes throughout the band’s years of live performances while allowing the original melodies and songwriting to shine through.
Stage classics such as "From Dust to the Beyond" and "Route 666" can be heard in a new light, with clear, transformative variations originally heard during the band’s captivating live performances now incorporated. Plus, in addition to these live expansions, technical advances have been applied to each track. Originally limited to just a keyboard sequencer and an Akai S3000 sampler on The End Of The Beginning, 20 years later on The Beginning Of The End, the band seizes the opportunity to breathe new life into these live versions, allowing them to bring more feeling, experience and expression to the music and songs. In addition to audible advancements in musicality, the release of The Beginning Of The End could not be more relevant than in these current dark times. War themes are strikingly evident on tracks such as the aforementioned "From Dust to the Beyond", as well as "The End of the Beginning" – named after a quote credited to Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the WWII era. Influenced by the chaos and futility of war, these themes are also reflected on the album’s cover, created by the band in collaboration with returning artist David Rooney. Featuring a war-torn concert hall and a piano, the art is a defiant message reflecting that the power of music transcends war and time.
GOD IS AN ASTRONAUT’s upcoming release, The Beginning Of The End, provides a sonic snapshot of the evolution of the Irish post-rock band over two decades. Made enthralling and memorable with live momentum, The Beginning Of The End belongs in every well-curated post-rock record collection!

Breaking from the strange monotony and abnormal norms that took hold during two years of pandemic life, Hammock returns with "Love in the Void", an album that looks to the future, seizes the present, and unabashedly relishes the experiences and bonds that bring meaning to our days. Known for crafting orchestral works of stirring cinematic ambience, on "Love in the Void" the Nashville-based duo of Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson bring guitar-forward, heart-pounding urgency to songs that shout through and shatter the static of complacency.
Since forming as Hammock in 2003, Byrd and Thompson have released 11 critically-acclaimed albums, and are renowned for their unique talent for bringing inexpressible emotion to life. The Covid-19 pandemic followed closely after one of Hammock’s career-defining works, the Mysterium, Universalis, and Silencia trilogy that chronicled the incomprehensible loss of Byrd’s 20-year-old nephew. At their homes and apart, Byrd and Thompson then recorded Elsewhere, an album of shimmering ambience that channeled alienated longing and displacement into avenues that gave way to worlds and possibilities yet realized.
Shaken awake and needing to break free of frustrations and longings, "Love in the Void" pulses with an unbridled spirit for action and experience and a burning desire for connection. Across songs that hammer home the keenly felt emotions of life’s highs and lows, Byrd and Thompson crest soaring crescendos awash in reverb and delve to keenly felt moments of quiet introspection, with unflinching lyrics on tracks like “Undoing” and “Denial of Endings'' that weigh choices made and circumstances that can’t be changed. Lush and dramatic string orchestration from Matt Kidd (Slow Meadow) and emphatic drumming from Jake Finch heighten the stakes in play, and Christine Byrd’s (Lumenette) ethereal vocals leave mysteries lingering in the haze.
"Love in the Void" is Hammock’s loudest album to date, embracing daring and vulnerability with palpable vitality at its core. Wide-eyed and looking forward, "Love in the Void" moves into an unknown future without fear. -Wyatt Marshall

Hammock’s latest single, co-written by Lumenette (Christine Byrd), beautifully blends crystalline lead guitar textures with subtle ambient drone, creating a soothing foundation for the ethereal tones of Lumenette’s vocals.
“All Around My Head”, the debut album from Lumenette, will release on August 12, 2022, with its first single available June 17th.
Hammock will release its next full-length album later this year.
lumenette.bandcamp.com
lyrics
Every drop of rain
Wants to drown me
Every falling star
Tries to burn me
This is how I feel
I’m a sensory explosion
Is any of this real?
I’m a sensory explosion
Is any of it real?
Is this real?
credits
released June 3, 2022
Mixed by Julian Kindred at Nonsuch Park Studio, London, England
Mastered by Emre Ramazanoglu at Hoxa HQ, London, England
Lyrics, Vocals: Lumenette (Christine Byrd)
Drums: Jake Finch
Co-Produced by Chad Howat, Marc Byrd, Christine Byrd, Andrew Thompson
Photo by Takeshi Suga
license
all rights reserved

On June 6 of 2006 (06.06.06), THIS WILL DESTROY YOU and Magic Bullet Records unassumingly issued a 6-song compact disc out into the world called “Young Mountain.” Originally recorded as a demo/document to commemorate 4 guys’ college band, the scope never centered around the notion of the music being commercially released, as most of the band members intended to move on to more traditional careers after school. Magic Bullet ended up doing quite a bit of convincing (something along the lines of “let’s just do a small run and have you do some dates with a label band this summer… just for fun"). The initial pressing was a mere 1000 copies, just enough to have something to sell at the merch table on the inaugural tour with labelmates SPARROWS SWARM AND SING, via retail stores, and the label’s mailorder.
What happened from there can only be described as a true overnight sensation, thanks in part to not only how quickly their live reputation garnered word of mouth, but the power of a new video streaming site known as YouTube, wherein fans around the world could view and share professionally-shot, multi-camera footage of the band performing at The Paradox Theatre in Seattle on August 5, 2006 via the social networking platforms of the time. Emergency represses of the CD’s (and later, LP’s) became the norm while everyone involved tried to get a grip on just how much growing demand was truly out there with each passing week.
To wrap up 2016, the band and label have chosen to commemorate the 10 year mark via a series of live shows wherein the band will perform “Young Mountain” (in its entirety) back to back with a full performance of 2008’s “S/T” album. For a limited time, fans will also be able to purchase special, limited copies of the recording on CD and LP with the bonus track “Sleep,” a previously-unheard song recorded during the tracking of the album. Digital and streaming will also be made available in perpetuity.

The Shadows is the new album from Leeds-based six-piece Tomorrow We Sail. Building on their debut release For Those Who Caught the Sun in Flight (Gizeh, 2014) over the course of three years, this new work combines perfectly the soaring atmospherics, gorgeously intertwined vocal harmonies and dramatic shifts in tone and dynamics that have come to characterise Tomorrow We Sail’s sound. Yet, there is a new sense of urgency here. Very much an album of its time, The Shadows draws upon the same sense of connection to both past and present that defined its precursor but features storytelling that’s even more defiant and deeply personal.
Like its predecessor, the record features seven songs but from the chiming guitars of opening track Side By Side it is clear that the stately pace of For Those Who Caught the Sun in Flight has made way for a far more dynamic and driving energy; perhaps best captured in the righteous anger of The Ghost of John Maynard Keynes. Tomorrow We Sail still invoke a keen sense of measured grace in their songwriting - from the sweeping, elegiac title track, through to the sparse, restrained, yet haunting beauty of Winifred and To Sleep. Urgent, yet assured, The Shadows demands your attention.

‘No Feeling is Final’ was born from a place of weary exasperation. From the knowledge that we’re living in a world hurtling towards self-destruction. We watch as forests burn and seas rise. As the worst tendencies of humanity are championed by those in power; rage, fear, greed and apathy. We see every injustice, every conflict, every catastrophe flash up on our screens. We stay complacent and consume to forget our complicity in the structures and systems that sustain that behaviour. As the world teeters on the edge of disaster, we sigh and keep scrolling, the uneasy feeling in our stomachs eating away at us a little more each day.releases November 19, 2021

Order on vinyl (ships December/January)l: lnk.to/maybeshewill

Seeking overlooked beauty and prizing reflection in a distracted world, Hammock creates cinematic music for the road less traveled. In stirring works of shimmering post-rock ambience that swell with hope and melancholic nostalgia, the Nashville-based duo of Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson immerse listeners in living visions of moments long past, animating life’s fond remembrances and scarring losses with gentle lens-flare harmonics, heart-surging neoclassical drama, and pensive silence. A direct challenge to the passive existence of modern life, where everything can be experienced but precious little is felt, Hammock demands, and richly rewards, patience and contemplation.
One of Hammock’s career defining works, the Mysterium, Universalis, and Silencia trilogy came to a close in 2019. The first chapter, Mysterium, was written following the death of Byrd’s 20-year-old nephew and dealt with incomprehensible, shattering loss. Difficult understanding came on Universalis, and an altered reality understood through quiet reflection took hold on Silencia. Emerging from the silence, a period that brought with it the global pandemic of Covid-19 that has kept loved ones apart, conscripted months upon months of isolation, and roused directionless longing for escape, Hammock presents Elsewhere. Recorded by Byrd and Thompson at their homes, apart and with minimal equipment, Elsewhere serves as a gateway to another place, materializes feelings of separation and loss without closure, and calls listeners back to live their lives – not spend them longing to be something or somewhere else. - Wyatt Marshall

For a quarter-century, the Canadian chamber ensemble has made hold music for awaiting a revolution. Suddenly, on their seventh album, they sound hopeful it could come.

**EP+6 is the original digital (and CD) release of the 3 90s EPs which is already available.
**e.p.x 3 is the brand new triple-vinyl set being released on Nov 26th 2021 and contains exactly the same recordings.
Twenty-five years since Mogwai’s inception, three EPs that capture critical points in the early development of the group are now brought together in a lavish triple-vinyl package from Chemikal Underground in the run up to Christmas under the title e.p. x 3.
Each EP was originally released in limited numbers between 1997 and 1999 and quickly sold out. Although already packaged as the CD and download compilation album EP+6, this is the first time 4 Satin, No Education = No Future (Fuck the Curfew) and E.P. have been available on vinyl since the initial pressings.
This year has seen the release of Mogwai’s 10th studio album, As the Love Continues, on their own Rock Action imprint. The LP earned the group their first UK No1 album, reached the US Billboard Albums top 10, was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and has been shortlisted for the 2021 Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) award.
Although recorded more than two decades prior to these achievements, the songs within Mogwai: e.p. x 3 contain much of the spirit and scope that have nourished the group’s prolonged success.
“I’m incredibly proud of these EPs,” says guitarist and singer Stuart Braithwaite. “I think they’re interesting as we were experimenting with so many things back then. A lot of what we tried out on those records are things that went on to define us."

冰岛著名后摇乐团Sigur Ros(意为胜利的玫瑰)即将在五月份推出他们的第六张录音室大碟《Valtari》，Sigur Ros乐队上一张专辑还是2008年夏天推出的《Mee Sue í Eyrum Vie Spilum Endalaust》。
从2008年推出上张专辑之后，Sigur Ros乐队一直没有创作新作品，几位成员开始分头行动，主唱Jonsi录制了自己的第一张个人唱片《Go》，与此同时，乐队的键盘手Kjartan也录制了一张未发行的作品《Credo》。去年年底，Sigur Ros乐队在伦敦的演出现场曾被发行成为一套CD+DVD的现场专辑《Inni》。
这张《Valtari》将在5月29日正式发行，整张唱片由Sigur Ros乐队主唱Jonsi和混音师阿莱克斯-索梅尔斯(Alex Somers)一同制作，专辑中一共收录了八首歌曲，每一首歌的音乐风格都不一样。本张专辑整体的结构不像Sigur Ros以往的专辑那么统一，这主要是因为歌曲的录音时间跨越太长，其中有些歌最早是2005年录制的。
对于十分期待本张专辑的乐迷来说，现在就可以登陆Sigur Ros乐队的官方网站试听新专辑《Valtari》中的首支单曲《Ekki Mukk》。1994年，Sigur Ros乐队组建于冰岛的Reykjavík，乐队名字的含义是“胜利玫瑰”。从成立以来的近20年中，Sigur Ros已经发行了五张正式唱片，都得到了乐迷很高的评价。
专辑名翻成英文为steamroller，也就是压路机的意思，贝斯手Georg Holm解释这是种能碾压过你的音乐。不过小羽我停下来之后，更多的是感受到，又做了一场梦，很舒服。

The band's final album, originally released in 1991 on Polydor. It was promptly deleted three months after it's release due to wrangling with the record company. Now available on the band's own label Pond Life. Standard jewel case.

文雀全新EP《庙雨连珠》今日发布 | 全国巡演10月26日准时启程
成军十年之际，文雀带来了2018最新EP《庙雨连珠》，这是继《迷路记》之后他们带给乐迷的又一充满如诗景象的惊喜之作。
相比前者——因爱生迷所显露的偏执、浓烈与炽热，此番新作则更显沉淀后的细腻柔和。五首作品，如同五篇构思精巧的短篇故事，丝丝入扣，妙“语”连珠；亦如屋檐青瓦下的如丝细雨，抚平你的躁郁与不安，重回阔别已久的静谧之境。
故事中有《春分》时节的美妙图景，以轻灵的吉他音色开篇，浅斟低唱，娓娓道来，如同春日里轻柔拂面的和风细雨；密集的鼓点则一如倒春寒、沙尘和阴雨的裹挟。所幸一切都终归晴朗，结尾处的合唱荡开一派明媚生机，仿佛拍拍翅膀，你就能够离开那座瑟缩在寒冷北方平原上的水泥丛林，飞回记忆深处的早春之境。
也有《浮生若梦》般的沉谧想象——当你身处太空俯瞰，地球就像是悬浮于阳光中的一粒尘埃。在文雀编织的绮丽梦境中，你的思绪从混沌一步步走向明朗，直至被倾泻而下的旋律一击而中，迎接湮灭前最后的崩世光景。爆裂的鼓声从失真吉他砌成的音墙内倾泻而出，在你的内心无限存续。
所以，即使是渺小尘埃上的孤独个体，更要有《一个人的快乐》。只要音乐响起，你就好像站在了星球的中心。在繁星之下漫游，感受明亮的吉他音色自由来回，慵懒而闲散，寥寥几笔，勾勒出文雀自由豁达的世界观。
既如此，那就告别冗长赘述，《我长话短说》。没有长篇大论的情绪铺垫，而是以考究的音色勾勒出一条婉转曲折的线索……乐曲收尾处戛然而止，寂静中似有余音袅袅，恰如短篇小说结尾一句出人意料的反转——“长话短说”，文雀用音乐做到了。
故事渐入尾声，相信你也发现，没有什么烦恼是听一首文雀解决不了的，如果有，那就《Double》。这首旧作以不插电的形式被乐队重新编配，双吉他在演奏时相互缠绕攀爬，无限靠近，巴扬的加入使作品在原本辽远的声景旷野之下，更添了一抹细腻与悠扬的色彩。
值得一提的是，此次EP的封面来自青年艺术家谢钗的系列画作《7.23》，7.23是声音中的波长，印度教所指“宇宙之音”。该系列包含 森罗万象 | 无常 | 性空 | 缘起 | 无明 五组，以佛家、道家术语命名。每组均有相应的释义及联系，谢钗以抽象的方式抓住无常的瞬间，展示了世间不可捉摸的因果关系。
跟随文雀在现实与梦境的交叠中来回穿梭，捕捉《庙雨连珠》的清澈声场与广阔意象。他们还将继续保持飞行的姿态，开启又一轮全国多城巡演。成军十载，文雀精巧的羽翼上沾满生活的沙砾，始终在低空飞行中俯瞰着真实的世界景观。聆听他们的啼鸣，你终将从世界的隐蔽处开掘出属于自己的宝藏。

新作《我长话短说》沿袭了文雀一直以来明朗开阔的调性，构架缜密，细节丰盈，整首作品如同一部短篇小说，妙“语”连珠，意趣盎然。
开篇的方言人声采样奠定了作品的谐趣基调，“长话短说”，那就用音乐取代语言，用乐句展开叙事。没有长篇大论的情绪铺垫，或者大动态的骤起骤停，而是以考究的音色勾勒出一条婉转曲折的线索，并以轻巧灵动的身姿辗转腾挪——“絮语”不停你来我往，“高谈阔论”偶露峥嵘，而沉默的间隙则有微妙的气氛流动。
极富变化的鼓点穿针引线，从容往来于舒适的律动和疾风骤雨式的密集倾泻，掌控着全曲的情绪起伏。乐曲收尾处戛然而止，寂静中似有余音袅袅，恰如短篇小说结尾一句出人意料的反转——“长话短说”，文雀用音乐做到了。
《我长话短说》是文雀签约摩登天空后推出的首支单曲，随后他们即将发行全新EP并开启全国多城巡演。成军十载，文雀精巧的羽翼上沾满生活的沙砾，始终在低空飞行中俯瞰着真实的世界景观。聆听他们的啼鸣，你终将从世界的隐蔽处开掘出属于自己的宝藏。

Leonardo DiCaprio制片的纪录片Before the Flood原声带

在相继释出两首单曲后，文雀乐队终于推出了全新专辑《儿戏》，将这一年多来的思考与沉淀浇筑成型。
与《迷路记》中因爱生迷的偏执情绪和《廟雨連珠》里精巧虚幻的美妙景致不同，此番新作引入更为宏观与深邃的命题。站在岁月的河流之中向前回溯，文雀以沉稳细腻的笔触诠释了对于生活与时间的理解。
《伏》是对生命光景最直白的描述。清亮的吉他和贝斯重现了三伏天里的明朗和葱郁，和平里中街的林荫小路、不知疲倦鸣叫着的知了，毫无修饰的滑弦让画面变得清晰和真实。然而，急促而来的鼓点却又刻画出一片忙碌的景象。盛夏里无人乘凉，来往奔波的脚步更接近于生活的本质。
如果《伏》中尚存一丝轻松的空隙，《儿戏》则以持续、紧密的节奏直入主题。穿梭在时光中回望童年，那时的儿戏虽有时伴着落寞与失意，却都只是记忆中的一块拼图，不足为虑。也只有与童年长久的告别后才发现，有时候，如果把生活看作儿戏，不过度纠结与在意，便能以轻松的姿态继续走下去。
这份释然一直延续到《回不去了》。一改以往的明亮开篇，低沉的吉他预示着一个注定难以平静的夜晚，像一个被裹挟的人在拉扯中寻找一条出路。经历平缓后再次抵达高昂，曾经的落叶、笑容、生命和一切经不住时光的事物，在顷刻间崩灭，只留下渺小清醒的自我。既然都回不去了，那就不回去了。
现实中的思绪化为来去无影的缥缈梦境，而《落梦池》便是承载这无边感受与梦幻的池塘。清亮的吉他与温润的贝斯遥相呼应，文雀以经典的后摇叙事，在落寞中制造出一丝旖旎的甜蜜，在理性中温存一份感性，成为孤寂的人倦怠之时停留的庇护所。
此次归来的文雀，似乎多了几分冷静与理智，但专辑最后一曲《希望像星光一样闪烁》却更多展露出乐队深沉与复杂的一面。开篇轻柔的吉他与婉转的小号交织缠绕，在遥远的星际发出回响，一如黑夜中燃起的希望；而尾部沉静与炽烈交错出的矛盾之美，则打破了自身以往统一、明净的后摇语法，与首次加入的小号一起，为整张专辑赋予了绕梁不绝的余味，也留给乐迷更多期待。
「儿戏」一词，看似戏谑，实则是文雀乐队以其淡然和真诚，与生活达成的一次和解。

魔怪是一個於1995年於蘇格蘭格拉斯哥成立的後搖滾樂團。