Donovan Quinn & The 13th Month

While the Donaldson half of Skygreen Leopards explores his inner new wave hero with The Art Museums, Donovan continues to strip back the Leopards' psych-folk to its bare essentials on his latest album with the 13th Month. Your Wicked Man picks up just where Quinn left off with the first DQ & 13 album; rooted in a world-weary, tattered songwriting that's streaked with gray clouds and late fall wood smoke. There's a classic country charm in the songwriting and production that balances nicely with the late 60's folksinger lilt that constantly hangs in Quinn's voice. This counterbalance gives the album weight without dragging it down into booze soaked singer-songwriter territory. Instead it taps all the right ennui buttons, constantly breaking your heart while warming your soul at the same time. Glad to see that Soft Abuse is straying more and more into the vinyl territory all the time with this one seeing a wax release in addition to the CD on Shrimper. Now if only I can find a way to convince them to reissue that vital Flying Canyon album on vinyl all would be right with the world.

Download:
[MP3] Donovan Quinn & the 13th Month - Mom's House
[MP3] Donovan Quinn & the 13th Month - Red Corona

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

	Various Artists – Cloud Cuckooland Another great compilation from the lost ranks of time via Finders Keepers/B-Muisic. This time the label focuses their magnifying glass on the lesser known side of the German rock market from the ranks of Eckart Rahn's KuckKuck Records.
Spanning a wide range of styles the label put out music that fit nicely into the overflowing German prog scenes along with soundtrack music from Fassbinder films and some exploratory early electronic music. Some of the best seem to fall into that earliest category fleshing out your Krautrock stable with a few new gems, though the Moog wizardry of Sam Spence also makes an excellent inclusion. As usual B-Music has packed this release with detailed exploits of both label and artists that paint a well rounded picture of Rahn's lifelong dedication to experimentation and his roster. Download: [MP3] Sonny Hennig - 1000 Tips zum Überleben [MP3] Deuter - Dur Turm Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Herbcraft

The inaugural release on Jeremy Earl's Woodsist subsidiary Hello Sunshine (we can only assume named for one of the greatest songs of the 70's) travels deeper down the psych rabbit hole than the majority of its parent label's release ever dared. This gives us great hope that the new label will become an avenue for the weirder leanings of the Woodsist family. Spearheaded by Cursillistas' Matt Lajoie, Herbcraft's Discovers the Bitter Waters of Agartha is a dark and tangled journey revolving around the purported center of the Earth explorations of Admiral Richard Byrd. The album is such a perfect homage to 70's concept albums that were it not for the tell-tale Jeremy Earl artwork on the label this could be beat up and tossed into a dollar bin only to fool the most ardent crate digger. The album travels its tale as Admiral Byrd meets with subterranean dwellers of the Ariani, moving from scorched rockers to deep echoing chant, only to end with a condemnation of Man and their love for power via atomic weapons. Pure psychedelic indulgence in the greatest of terms and a great extension of Lajoie's work in Cursillistas.

Download:
[MP3] Herbcraft - Road to Agartha

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Raven Sings the Blues at Northside Festival

Don't forget that Raven's Northside showcase is tonight. Doors will open at 5:30 and all sets will start promptly at 6,7 and 8. A great triple bill of music from Sore Eros, Viernes and NY's own White Hills. Be sure to stop by and say hi!

Download:
[MP3] Sore Eros - Shook Life
[MP3] Viernes - Sinister Love
[MP3] White Hills - Dead

Hell Yes has been on a tear with their first string of releases, hitting all sorts of RSTB faves from The Fresh & Onlys and Crocodiles to Gary War and now Vermillion Sands. Damn these overseas record labels and their devastating affect on my income!

	Vermillion Sands – Something Wrong 7" Just as much fun as the recently release 12" on Sacred Bones, this one tears through two slices of Italo-country with the A-Side keeping things upbeat, all scattershot drums and uninhibited twang. The flip takes
things down a sultrier road once travelled by Nancy Sinatra. A humid air hangs over the track that feels like mid-August in the South. Impressive that such southern gothic can be brought about by a band of Italians an ocean away. Download: [MP3] Vermillion Sands - Something Wrong Support the artist. Buy it HERE (EU) HERE (US)

Guanaco

My attention to Blackest Rainbow has been lax and the label snuck out with a whole new batch of great records, chief among which is Guanaco's debut album Sky Burials. The album bears much of a debt to Ben Chasney and Rick Tomlinson's school of psych as filtered through an ornate tapestry of fingerpicked guitar. Calm rivulets of notes cascade over ominous graying drones in ways that feel familiar but still harrowing on a gut level. Dread rises up out of the distance only to be abated ever so slightly by the road worn pick of fingers through nylon strings. Though not his first endeavor (Lex Panayi also plays with Beggin' Your Pardon Miss Joan), this is an excellent debut under the Guanaco moniker and a welcome addition to the currently unfulfilled burnt folk landscape; as Tomlinson's amped up the fury and Chasney hasn't released anything this year. As usual Blackest Rainbow keeps things limited (300 copies) with paste on covers so pick one up quick or be left behind in the settling dust.

Download:
[MP3] Guanaco - Sky Burial

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Seems like the half-way point is upon us and I suppose that necessitates reflection. It doesn't seem like half a year's gone by already but maybe that's a good sign of music making the time go by quicker. Lots of new RSTB faves and plenty from our past haunts making the cut here. These definitely spent the most time on the turntable and in the headphones.

Albums

Nice Face // Immer Etwas
Magic Lantern // Platoon
Emeralds // Does It Look Like I'm Here?
White Hills // White Hills
Hanoi Janes // Year of Panic
Forest Swords // Dagger Paths
Dead Luke // American Haircut
Wild Nothing // Gemini
Yellow Swans // Going Places
Woods // At Echo Lake
Moon Duo // Escape
Woven Bones // In and Out and Back Again
L.A. Vampires / Psychic Reality // Split LP

Singles/EPs

The Fresh & Onlys - Vanishing Cream (from Plastic Spoons 7")
Jacuzzi Boys - Bricks or Coconuts (from Mex Summer 7")
Flight - Ghosts (from Plastic Spoons 7")
Wet Illustrated - Born Stoked (from Corvette City 7")
The Liminanas - I'm Dead (from HoZac 7")
The Soft Moon - Breathe the Fire (from Captured Tracks 7")
Zola Jesus - I Can't Stand (from Stridulum EP)
Sun Araw - Live Mind (from Not Not Fun 7")
The Mantles - Cascades (from Mexican Summer 12")
Puerto Rico Flowers - Lets Make Friends (from Fan Death 12")

	Los Saicos – Saicos Los Saicos hold the distinction of once being the most popular band in Peru. The band swept through with a gritty take on British invasion in 1965 and parlayed this success from the radio waves to the airwaves (the band had their own TV
show for a brief period of time). Oddly enough though this type of popularity would usually suggest a palatability like that of their Brit counterparts but the best comparison for Los Saicos is the wild cave stomp of The Sonics, unhinged and raw. Los Saicos had a very similar aesthetic and upon disbanding the band's mysterious disappearance was shrouded in mystery and rumor (turns out they were just tired of playing). Several compilations have attempted to round up their wealth of singles, all of which are rife with bombast and youthful exuberance. A necessary collection if there ever was one and for the once sons of Lima, a welcome recognition to a world that may have long forgotten them. Download: [MP3] Los Saicos - Demolicion [MP3] Los Saicos - Camisa de Fuerza Support the artist. Buy it: HERE (new version is under the name Demolicion! the Complete Recordings

Messages

NY drone signifiers Messages finally release a full length embryonic journey courtesy of De Stijl records. It seems like way too long since we received their epic 7" from The Social Registry's singles series and now After Before comes along to answer the call of the lonesome cave inhabiter with a resounding OM and some sun swaddled guitar that's easy on the consciousness. The record is an absorbing bit of tone and throb that creeps along with a steady heartbeat of percussion edging it ever closer to the void. Smoke wisps of guitar encircle an evolving tone that constantly reaches higher into the atmosphere while the band plunges ever on into a darkness that would balk those of lesser fortitude. Many noodle and pretend that drone can reach depths like this but its always refreshing to hear those who embrace it with the proper skills.

Download:
[MP3] Messages - Ukelin

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Douchemaster's always onto the best and brightest in the garage market and this single's no exception. A side project from TJ of Cococoma that amps up the doo-wop and brings the fun in a big way.

The Half Rats – For the Sake of Love 7" Though not marked as such this could easily have been a double A-side. The first track picks up the janglier, more straightforward 60's garage. Reveling in the harmonies that marked all great bands of the era its

not so much homage as it is just reverent attention to detail. For me ,however, its the flip that really steals the show here. Relegated to b-side but somehow rolling a cool intro into some serious doo-wop moves and straight guitar twang that makes it an absolute stunner of a single. Honestly, though Cococoma is loved around these parts, the hope that The Half Rats will continue well beyond this mere single is overwhelming. Definitely a fun romp and a great slice of garage any day. Download: [MP3] The Half Rats - The Girl Support the artist. Buy it HERE

The Mantles

San Francisco's The Mantles return in short order with an EP for the ever deepening cult of awesome that is Mexican Summer. The EP picks up easily where their Siltbreeze album left off. The jangles that permeated the debut have been dampened a bit but they've begun to deepen their joyous ride through the past, with this record leaning heavier on their Velvets impulses than ever before and pulling it off in a style that most VU reverent lack. Lets not get crazy though, The Mantles haven't totally shed the sunshine streak of their California roots for New York aloofness just yet. Though darker waters run through the EP there's still plenty of SanFran sun caked on top making this a bittersweet gem that boils and cools in equal measure. Absolutely every bit as necessary as their album.

Download:
[MP3] the Mantles - Cascades

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Flottante Tension D'eclipse - 10 Years of SDZ Records

Based on personal experience I can say for certain that putting together a decent compilation is no easy task. Even after all the tracks finally make their way to your awaiting hands there's the daunting aspect of sequence and artwork, but SDZ in their 10 years wisdom have put together an excellent showcase of the label's past and present - in a sweet silkscreen no less. Went into this one thinking that the familiar names (Cheveu, The Electric Bunnies, The Rebel, Daily Void) would come up clear winners and ended up more than pleasantly surprised by those gems that remained unknown to these ears. Some excellent bits of garage flotsam and dirt caked grime in the form of Feeling of Love (who also have an excellent LP out on Killshaman) plus Toddi Wellman, Braindamage, and Pierre and Bastien have excellent offerings to bring to the table. Oh and for good measure, Posadzki Project wins for best track title with the Liz Lemonesque "I Want Go To Your Brain" (sic). Definitely a good primer on some undersung French ranks and a frighteningly good flow for a compilation that spans a decade of music. A recommended pick up for 2010 and some new names to watch out for in the future.

Download:
[MP3] Feeling of Love - Dissolve Me

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE (EU) HERE (US)

Expo 70

RSTB readers should be no strangers to the Midwestern drone storm of Expo 70. Justin Wright, on this release with and without Matt Hill, lays down four serious excursions into the velvet night. Venomous fog rises around a constant throb of bass tones only to be cut down slowly by neon black swaths of guitar that somehow glimmer as much as they absorb the light around them. E70 along with some of their counterparts in the newly rising analog synth communities have perfected the art of mind expanding ebb and flow; inspiring a listening experience that pulls drone out of the background and into the full on focus of an hours drop out into oblivion. As essential as any of Wright's releases to date, despite only being offered in CD format.

Download:
[MP3] Expo 70 - Metensomatosis

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

	Jeff Simmons – Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up Simmons was best known for his connection to the Zappa contingent, playing with the Mothers for a stint and issuing both this album and an earlier, more instrumental one for Zappa's Straight Records. There are
certainly elements here that tie Simmons work to that of his more famous compatriot, not least the fact that Zappa lends his fretwork to this album, but Simmons also establishes himself in his own right as a songwriter. Tongues often placed firmly in cheek as much as guitars are placed center stage, its an easy bet for Zappa/Beefheart lovers but the album also picks up a hint of its 70's heyday arena rock as well. It's excessive, which again wasn't outside the realms of the Mothers' family, but its also aiming for more appeal than would often be reached for from that contingent. Hell considering that Straight also released The GTO's this is downright soothing. Simmons' solo career never quite found its legs and he also left the Mothers during 200 Hotels. Quiet for years he resurfaced in the late 2000's with a new record. This, however, stands as his greatest solo work and a great puzzle piece in the Zappa clan. Download: [MP3] Jeff Simmons - I'm in the Music Business [MP3] Jeff Simmons - Wonderful Wino Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

RSTB @ Northside Fest

We've been finishing up the details of this all day but it seems that all is set and ready to go for RSTB's showcase at Northside in NYC. Our showcase will be on Saturday, June 26th in the back room at Public Assembly. Doors will open at 5:30 and bands will start at 6. We'll have a great triple bill of music from Sore Eros, Viernes and NY's own White Hills. Be sure to stop by and say hi and with our sweet midday/evening time slot it's a good stopgap between those afternoon shows and nighttime parties. You've got nothing to lose!

Download:
[MP3] Sore Eros - Shook Life
[MP3] Viernes - Sinister Love
[MP3] White Hills - Dead

Dunes

Dunes crawl out of the darkened pop past of an 80's hangover, shake off the dust and do a slow sway to the kind of heartbreak that sent teenagers to locked bedrooms mixed with the mournful howls that kept them there. They know their femme pop secrets and use them well, crafting a sultry smolder with just enough jangle to nod a head or two and just enough noise to keep things interesting. No surprise that such alchemists should show up on the barometer of current indie folklore, Mexican Summer. The band's debut is a silken in all the right places and rough in the rest, having no need for studio sheen but keeping the vocals pleading to the last honeyed drop. This one's limited as with all MexSum releases so get those paws on it quick if you're keen or watch out for an upcoming 7" on Art Fag.

Download:
[MP3] Dunes - Handle

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Gnod / White Hills

Two of psych's most ardent warriors team up for their first (official) collaboration and the world shakes on its hinges just a bit. With Gnod representing the British tradition and White Hills picking up the US baton, this collaboration couldn't be better matched and has in fact happened before on the limited CD-r release Drop Out I Barreling like a Krautrock juggernaut Drop Out II sees both bands mesh their psychic views together to form one concise psychedelic wavelength. Encompassing the insistent throb of Neu disciples throughout the course of several long pieces and interlacing interludes that caress the Cluster highway, the album moves fluidly from pulsating visions to placid moments with ease. There are many that hope to attain the true torch of Space Rock and while a few other contenders grace the same plateau, these two are certainly top rung. To have them lay down arms and take up common cause is simply too much of a good thing. Won't stick around long though, this sucker's limited to 1,000 copies and sure to sell out.

Download:
[MP3] Gnod / White Hills - Drop Out

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Though we've already posted the video, having the single in our hands makes it even more fun and the need to share it bumps the singles post up a few days. Schedules be damned! Definitely a new one that we'll keep our eyes on and as previously mentioned, limited to 300 so grab one now!

Wet Illustrated – Born Stoked b/w Flying 7" This single is full of hooks and fraught with jangle, bursting with the wild rays of the California sun and absolutely topping our lists of things that we can't stop listening to right now. The A-side is a propulsive bit

of steam and scrap that hangs on toned guitar thump and an exuberance that wouldn't be out of place at the most carefree of beach parties. Its jangles get instantly lodged in the brain but never come across too candy coated so as to allow you to OD on pop. The flip is, if possible, more insistent with the acoustic bounce. All in all this one's winding its way to the top of our singles list for the year. Download: [MP3] Wet Illustrated - Born Stoked Support the artist. Buy it HERE

Wet Illustrated

As you know its pretty rare around here that we post videos on the front page but somtimes things just catch us unaware and leave us smiling. This video is from Wet Illustrated's recently issued 7" Born Stoked b/w Flying and it's been completely jammed in our heads since we first watched it. "Born Stoked" was recorded by The Fresh & Only's Tim Cohen and you can just feel the California sun streaming off the every minute of it. Enjoy!

Pick up Wet Illustrated's debut 7" HERE

Jack Rose with D. Charles Speer & the Helix

The four songs that spread across this collaborative EP serve as instant reminder of what the world lost when Jack Rose died this year. A consummate player in his own right, Rose was also a master collaborator, as his work with the Black Twig Pickers has shown in the past and this endeavor is no less striking. Recorded while Rose was on tour with the Speer and the Helix, the EP is an unusual bit of electric playing from the master of acoustic form. The tracks were recorded live with no overdubs and the energy from the studio leaps onto tape, a unique quality that Jack held and that he obviously translated to those around him. Both artists are masters of bridging the present with far-gone feelings of rambling barroom exuberance and wearied country soul and rarely has this magic been captured better than here. From the opening bars of "Prison Song" delivered with Schuford's dark Cash drawl to the unfettered refrains of "In The Pines" its plain to see that something special took place in the studio and luckily enough someone was their to document it. The true tragedy remains in knowing that such promising beginnings will now never be replicated. But try not to dwell on what might've been and let these four reminders lick a few wounds.

Download:
[MP3] Jack Rose with D. Charles Speer & the Helix - In The Pines

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

	Sotiris Komatsioulis – San Ton Anemo Unknown to many, Greece underwent its own psychedelic era and though bands like Poll may be more well known in the reissue circle there are still some great gems to be found. Sotiris
Komatsioulis is one such overlooked part of that generations history. This recently release collection culls together his fuzz laden early single along with a few unreleased tracks and some English language recordings laid down in the UK later in his career when he was auditioning for Columbia. Sporting a nice dose of fuzz and huge Hammond overtones, the album has a bit of a loungey vibe, especially in Sotiris' vocals, but it still remains a vital 60's edge that instantly pulls at the decade's most distinguishable styles. Occasionally coming close to the feel of Turkish psych but with less of scale variations, this is a must for collectors of psych from the outer rims of the genre. Download: [MP3] Sotiris Komatsioulis - Isvoli Apo Ton Ari [MP3] Sotiris Komatsioulis - Oi Romandiki Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Master Musicians of Bukake

MMOB follow swiftly on the dark cloud that Totem left echoing over the psychedelic landscape with Totem 2 another shrouded, ritualistic album of death cult blues and sacrificial splendor. The band has swelled to seven members, now engulfing local Istanbul musicians as well as those from Earth, Asva, Burning Witch and more. The vibes feel both grand in the cinematic sense and closely personal as if a quick and furtive glance has been stolen into a coven's den that you were never meant to see. All masters of the psychedelic in their own rights, the combined force of this collective only further serves to dig them deeper into the dark recesses they normally operate in. First 300 copies from Important are on red vinyl so its worth grabbing one quickly.

Download:
[MP3] Master Musicians of Bukake - The Heresy of Origen

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Parisian label Plastic Spoons has just churned out a whole great crop of 7"s including two from RSTB faves Flight and The Fresh & Onlys. As usual these two singles powerhouses don't disappoint in the short format and both come through with killer tracks to fill out these 7's

	Flight – Ghosts 7" Once again Mississipi's finest turn on the distortion and crank the fuzz way beyond reasonable levels to craft the stomper of an A-side, "Ghosts". The tracks pummels through speakers with ease, filling your skull with enough greasy fuzz residue to last for
weeks. Naturally this only makes us want to pop the stylus back to the front and play it again each time. The flip is taken a slower clip, creeping out of the dank shadows and crawling across the grass in a wounded evil sprawl. An unexpected turn but nonetheless welcome from the one man fuzz factory. Download: [MP3] Flight - Ghosts Support the artist. Buy it HERE
	The Fresh & Onlys – Vanishing Cream 7" Keeping track of Fresh & Onlys singles is beginning to be a full-time job in and of itself but each time we track one down it seems well worth it. The band tears through the A-side with a chugging beat that gives way
to a slight guitar twang that reeks of engine exhaust and California rays viewed through the drop topped blur of convertible speed. A true garage classic in the best respects of the genre and honestly one of the band's best singles. As with the Flight 7", they slow the pace on the B-side, this time with a sultry jangle and dusk tinged country soul. Throw in some cover art from CapTracks/Blank Dogs' Mike Sniper and this is one you shouldn't sleep on. Download: [MP3] The Fresh & Onlys - Vanishing Cream Support the artist. Buy it HERE

Acid Eater

We haven't heard a chunk of fuzz this vile since, well, since the last time Yamazaki Maso and crew got together and spat out an Acid Eater record. This time around the Japanese noise freaks tackle a few covers by Crime, The Miracle Workers and a couple others; but as each and every track is coated in a thick debris of distortion fallout that is very much the band's trademark its hard to tell that these were ever anything but Acid Eater songs from the get go. Spiraling out of control through galaxies of organ grind and guitar grease fueled by the energy of a supernova on the verge of collapse, Acid Eater isn't for the faint of heart. Only those who can fully appreciate biker psych as seen through the flames of Kamikaze soul need step to this precipice. Black Fuzz on Wheels may be the most truthful title heard round these parts in some time.

Download:
[MP3] Acid Eater - Get Down
[MP3] Acid Eater - Searching for Love

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

Party Platter

Florida's Dying culls together a super-sized smorgasbord of garage luminaries for a compilation that celebrates a time when the latest dance craze changed by the week. Plenty of RSTB archive fodder on this one including Nobunny, Hunx and The Yolks all crammed together in a blur of feet and hands in motion. Straight to the point - this album is a party starter full of garage grind and organ swells. There's no shortage of garage comps both new and old but its hard to find them this solid. The only short coming might be that the compilation is a little dude heavy with only one solid female-fronter in the bunch (no Okmoniks, really? They'd fit right in here) but I suppose its a male heavy genre of late. Ladies get out there and balance this equation quick so the next installment gets its fix!

Download:
[MP3] Nobunny - Hocus Pocus
[MP3] The Yolks - Shim Shang

Support the artist. Buy it: HERE

	The Moles – Untune the Sky With a glut of 60's, 70's and 80's reissues it only seems natural that the mining of lost 90's classics should begin and this now twice reissued album by Australian band the Moles is a prime example of buried gems amongst the angst.
The band was largely the outpouring of Richard Davies but also included Hamish Kilgour among their ranks. They came to some attention touring the states with Guided by Voices but didn't quite catch on as was too often the case with bands hitting the Bats/Clean/Chills vibe in the states. After this solid first album, a few EPs and a transitory second album that began as a jumping off point for Davies' solo career they disbanded but thanks to the diligent work of Flydaddy (who reissued it in 2000) and now Kill Shaman who've put it back on LP, this classic live again. Definitely a record to check into for Flying Nun fans. Download: [MP3] The Moles - Bury Me Happy [MP3] The Moles - Europe By Car Support the artist. Buy it: HERE