New streaming releases...
We're getting into the release-heavy portion of the year, so I thought I'd do a quick roundup of additional releases and sounds that have perked my interest. Let's do it...
Linea Aspera LP II
As covered in my previous post about them, Linea Aspera is an excellent UK-based darkwave act that consists of Zoè Zanias's stirring, emotionally-raw vocals and Ryan Ambridge's cyberotic synth work. Initially only active from 2011-2013, the duo reunited in 2019 and have now released Linea Aspera LP II, eight tracks of dancy, moody-yet-optimistic elegance. It's a fine addition to their discography. Have a listen:
The Return of Jeremiah Sand
So this might be the most delightfully weird pandemic side project for an actor. The label Sacred Bones -- responsible for John Carpenter's recent releases and some excellent re-releases of synth master Mort Garson -- has announced a new, standalone album from Jeremiah Sand, the fictional folk singer and cult leader from Panos Cosmatos's 2018 psychedelic revenge film Mandy. Linus Roache's performance as the villain was one of the highlights of the movie, and he's definitely back in this forthcoming, eight-track release Lift it Down.
There was a promotional release back in 2018 from the fictional Sand, Amulet of the Weeping Maze, and it was quite good -- especially when consumed within the context of the film. The first track off Lift it Down is even better. Message from the Mountains feels like an even more refined vision of folk weirdness -- and Roache again nails a melodic, slightly-creepy vocal styling that brings to mind both Tool's Maynard James Keenan and The Rocky Horror Picture Show's Richard O'Brian. Have a listen:
The label is promoting this one entirely as if Sand is real, and it's apparently "a stand-alone release separate from Mandy." I have a lot of questions about how this came together. Is this a Roache-driven project? Is Panos behind it? Some combination of the two? I also wonder if there was simply more music planned for the original 2018 film promotion and it either wasn't finished or wasn't recorded until the pandemic provided a gap in everyone's filmmaking schedules. However it came together, I'm in.
The Knife - Live at Terminal 5
Can you believe The Knife has been around since 1999? Granted, the Sweedish Dreijer siblings haven't recorded as The Knife since 2014, but they've both remained active -- with Karin Dreijer's Fever Ray solo act especially delivering. I haven't listened to Olof's work as much, but I hear good things about it as well.
Still, it's been 20 years since their 2000 single release Afraid of You, so the Knife has released some additional recordings on streaming services to celebrate, including Live at Terminal 5, originally released in 2017, but unavailable on streaming platforms till now. It's a terrific, high-energy performance of tracks from all their major releases and I've been enjoying it quite a bit. They've remained in regular rotation for me all these years, so it's great to have some different takes on the same material to dive into. Have a listen:
You can of course follow everything Knife-related at their website -- and check out Fever Ray's music as well. You won't regret it.
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