Resisting Capitalism for Fun by Laura-Marie

Resisting Capitalism for Fun

Life shouldn’t be a struggle & neither should resisting capitalism! Laura-Marie talks about being anarchist, living in community, and gives dozens of meaningful methods for dealing with capitalism. Her writing comes from lived experience and reading this zine is like reading a hope-full letter from an insightful friend. We are all immersed in this broken system called capitalism – isn’t it time for something better? 

Personal statement: I’m a terrible capitalist and have never felt comfortable with the corporate economic system that turns us into commodities and products. Capitalism has been responsible for depersonalization, objectification, rampant consumerism, and the de-valuing of human relationships in general. So this is a timely and much needed zine as we seem to be living in a system that values “wealth” and “profit” above everything else, even our mother earth. Resistance is not futile.

Glean Zine

Nicki’s zine delves into some issues that are near and dear to my heart – hunger in an abundant society and what we can do about it. Glean Zine presents an easy to (pun alert - sorry!) digest introduction to food recovery. We live in a culture that wastes more food than it consumes yet people are starving for nutrition (and genuine affection). This is a problem that is easily solved if we have the desire to solve it. Even in my own neighborhood, I see fruit trees with delicious fruit that is never picked to share. The next time you are at a supermarket & see all that “perfect” produce please remember: Many people are in need of a meal today. Our perfection is killing us.

https://www.antiquatedfuture.com/zines/glean-zine/

aric - Forward Posture of the Head at Rest

Short & sweet indie excursions just right for the commute to work. Experimental and folky at the same time with gorgeous vocals on some songs & dreamy instrumentals on others. Perfect for sunlit dappled days. There is an old cliche that one should "leave them wanting more". I'm curious as to how aric's music will evolve from here.

https://aricsmejkal.bandcamp.com/album/forward-posture-of-the-head-at-rest

wio - Brilliant Brummagems - Unread #244

Another homegrown mystery surfacing through the cassette ionosphere ... some musicians set themselves a song per day challenge but here we have a song per 15 minute work ethic. Brilliant Brummagems is like a collage of your favorite sounds compressed into the time/space continuum. Each piece makes delirious sense & creativity abounds in every drone & note. Brilliant Brummages is meant to be experienced as a whole: listen through then flip the tape over and hit play again. A Shut Mouth Catches No Flies is a perfect closer: an Einstein-inspired folk dirge for the scientific (anti)social media generation where narcissism is louder than bombs.

https://unreadrecords.bandcamp.com/album/unread-244

Mud Pie Sun: New Swing Mood Things / Two At Noon

Where to begin a review with a release that is this monumental? First released in May 1992, this cassette reflects both those times, the times before, and the times now. Contemplative yet astute lyrics, hazy folk shambles, one can almost visualize the psychedelic haze hovering over the recordings proceedings. The cumulative effect of these original songs is nothing less than stunning - every song lives within its own impeccable universe. Two cover songs are included as well (one by the Silly Pillows and one by the Jacobites). Musically I would rate Mud Pie Sun right up there with my favorite bands that recorded for Independent Project Records back in that era - just more acoustic / jangle oriented. If the DIY / indie ethic brings you joy, don't miss this.

Andy Rench - As Long As It's Today

Finally a new cassette review!

We here at Why The Tapes Play love real music created for and by real people. What attracted me initially about Andy Rench's self released debut is the cover aesthetics - what appears to be a photograph of a suburban home circa mid 20th century washed in cranberry tones.  I thought: the music contained herein must be something special. And I was right. 

As Long As It's Today is musically adventurous, steeped in folk and DIY traditions, yet transcendent. The songs seem to be about time and distance and freedom; they feel tethered to the scorched desert earth from some dreamlike timespace. This is truly lo-fi nocturnal music in the best sense: hazy, moonlit, wistful and hopeful. Inventive guitar licks & not too much technical trickery. Certainly my favorite cassette release of 2019 thusfar. 

https://andyrench.bandcamp.com/album/as-long-as-its-today

Brockbeats - Easy Listening

It is no secret that ye olde DJ Frederick tremendously enjoys library and production music. Combing though new releases, this cassette caught my ear on Bandcamp & less than two weeks later was in my mailbox here in NH all the way from Japan. Easy Listening conjures aural visions of daze gone by: 1960's AM radio, black & white television, wordless choral groups, smoky late night jazz. It is one part easy listening, one part hip-hop beats, one part soundtrack for a forgotten, grainy film. Completely music to my ears - this is not nostalgia, this is music distilled through the decades to this present moment.


https://brockbeats.bandcamp.com/album/easy-listening

Tremolo Ghosts / CaRTeR - Joy

Twinkly guitar acoustic noodling segues into atmospheric experimentations: we strain our ears to hear the stations through cloudy static. These pieces feel organic and improvised, and bring to the mind's eye the ephemeral nature of shortwave transmissions. One moment there is sound, perhaps a distant church bell, perhaps a seagull's cry wheeling over the water. Another artistic leap forward for one of my personal favorite musicians, Tremolo Ghosts.

https://tremologhosts.bandcamp.com/album/joy

Mutual Benefit - I Saw The Sea

Hearkening back to 2011, Mutual Benefit's I Saw The Sea greets you with shimmering tones for open ears. We've turned the corner into a new decade of a not-so-new century, weary of pop music and ready to establish new sonic territory. I Saw The Sea is that territory: hushed blue ambiance, sparkling bells, a sense of being at home with banjo twang & a longing heart.

Mutual Benefit present us with jewel from the ocean waves. Cassettes of this ethereal release seem to be sold out, however free downloads remain.

https://mutualbenefit.bandcamp.com/album/i-saw-the-sea

Black Eagle Child - Six Lugubrious Airs

The title of Black Eagle Child's recent cassette on Geology Records is a misnomer. There are eight, not six, musical pieces (airs?) presented here and they are anything but lugubrious. Michael Jantz breaks out banjos, accordions, percussion and waves of acoustic and electric guitar, weaving folky melodies into space jams. The end result is dense in moments and meandering in others, resulting in a psychedelic & joyous journey into the airs. Or clouds. Or dark desert highways.

https://geologyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/six-lugubrious-airs-2

Nick Keeling - Coffee Music

Reviewing is not really my "thing" but I write this blog to call attention to zines, music, and projects that I feel are worthy of exploration. Nick Keeling is a musician who captures the spirit of improvisation within melodic structures via acoustic piano and tape manipulation mixed with field recordings. It's like this music is absorbed into the very DNA of creativity - giving voice to specific times & places, forgotten railroads, rusting avenues, closed steel mills. All of Nick's tapes are brilliant and his music is gorgeous.

Coffee Music is comprised of six dream-like compositions and every note resonates. Soothing and authentic. Make my coffee with some french vanilla, please, and hit "play". 

 https://nickkeeling.bandcamp.com/album/coffee-music

Medline - Solstice

Oh my stars ... those three words could comprise this entire review. To elaborate: it is no secret that Ye Olde DJ is enamored of library music - the jazz / funk / easy tempo / experimental world that inhabits our consciousness just off screen; music made from both necessity and utility, much of it made by session artists who wrote and recorded dozens of tracks every month. Medline has crafted a loving homage to library music, covering eight standout compositions, all of which I am familiar with from original recordings. What Medline lacks in experimentation here, it blooms with integrity, presenting these eight tunes seamlessly with clarifying beauty. The selections are phenomenal: the title theme from Savage Planet; Pete Moore's slinky Shady Blues; Arawak's wonderful Accadde a Bali. Solstice is  a standout cassette (also released on vinyl). Don't snooze on this one.

https://mybags.bandcamp.com/album/solstice

Corduroy EP

Baltimore indie pop band Corduroy released this new EP of six songs early in 2019 and it is the antidote for winter blues & entropy. These tunes harken back to an earlier era of home recording & artisan jangle pop - they have built a solid homestead on the foundation of Sarah Records (or insert your favorite indie label here). The tunes alternate between laid back ballads & high energy songs, just the right mix of melancholy and energy. Welcome the new year with a new musical friend. Corduroy feels snug and warm.

https://corduroyyy.bandcamp.com/album/corduroy-ep

Foliage // Andrew Younker: The Split Cassette

This is the real deal - shimmering shoegaze guitar, scintillating keyboards, melodic echo from the left hemisphere of your consciousness. Beautiful songwriting, craft honed from a bygone age, perhaps the previous century. Timeless and current, six pieces for your autumnal wintry summerish commute. All too brief, like all things ephemeral and gorgeous.


Side A:
Forever - (Manuel Joseph Walker) 
Be Transparent - (Manuel Joseph Walker) 
Nervous To Exist Around You - (Cover by Manuel Joseph Walker, 
Written by Andrew Younker) 

Side B:
Thankful - (Andrew Younker) 
Unhook The Stars - (Andrew Younker) 
Value - (Cover by Andrew Younker, Written by Manuel Joseph Walker) 

https://ztapes.bandcamp.com/album/foliage-andrew-younker-the-split

Fog Lake / Euphoria Again split cassette

Fog Lake is the perfect name for this hazy band -whispery vocals that rise through clouds of memory, tunes that weaves moonlight and autumn into its melodies. There's lo-fi production, chiming guitars, pianos half submerged in water. Brilliant A side from Fog Lake , but the "split" side from Euphoria Again was so pedestrian that I fast forwarded through most of it. 

https://foglake.bandcamp.com/album/fog-lake-euphoria-again

Mandala Eyes - Road Memory (digital release)

...and now for a rare digital release on this cassette (and sometimes zine) review blog. The music of Mandala Eyes has been mesmerizing me for a few years now: homegrown, heartfelt, real to the point of aching and ecstasy. Road Memory is a trip through the musical consciousness of Alex, who writes "as 2018 ends and i find myself living in my home state again for the first time in 4 years, i was combing through the debris and found these old demos, intended to be played on the road. i reflected on the thousands of miles and versions of self i've driven through in these last few nomadic years, and thought of how i currently struggle with navigating life. i drew from those memories of significant travels and on-the-way times for texture and inspiration, when i polished the best of the tunes into a finished listenable state. now those memories are sounds, and i hope they help soundtrack the possibilities and changes of our future trip". 

Road Memory is a soundtrack for the highway of the mind, all winter, wind & angled light. 


https://mandalaeyes.com/album/road-memory

Alternate Skies - Pacific Forecast

This could be the ultimate nerd / geek soundtrack. During the 1980's, I spent WAY TOO MUCH TIME obsessing over weather and watching the then newly launched Weather Channel on cable TV. And yeah - somewhere deep in the nether-regions of my brain, the innocuous instrumental tunes that accompanied forecasts took up residence. And now they're back in cassette form. Is this music nostalgia? Or is it the perfect soundtrack to our hectic, plugged-in lives? Five stars from ye olde DJ.

https://alternateskies.bandcamp.com/album/pacific-forecast