Review: Burning Alms | In Sequence

From drifting pastoral reveries to dense, open-tuned experimentalism, from patient expositive ambient passages to thundering verses, the dazzling feat of In Sequence is that it succeeds at being all indie rock things to all indie rock people. Even with a spirited experimental bent shot through the entire collection, Burning Alms' melodies, textures and dynamics on its debut long-player are fiercely engaging. This is no great surprise: Burning Alms principals John Biggs and Thomas Whitfield have made compelling music together for more than a decade, and few bands releasing debuts build from such a formidable foundation. Which is another reason why In Sequence is a terrific whole-album experience, one that is cinematic, mysterious and thrilling (and often all three in one song, such as the Branca-styled tour de force "Night Climates").

Long-time fans of the pair's music will find the collection wholly satisfying, and new fans -- whose sentiments are uncolored by the estimable back catalogs underpinning the new set -- will likely wonder where the hell these guys came from all of a sudden. And we suppose that is the optimist's edge of the double-edged sword of being massively underrated: the more one toils away from the sucking white-hot static of the hype-cycle, the more likely one is able to blow away listeners when one comes around with the goods. It has been a long road for Mssrs. Biggs and Whitfield, from early days in legendary Birmingham post-punk act Distophia to, more recently, the ludicrously slept-on Calories. That In Sequence is the duo's best shot at breaking through (at least since Northern Ireland/London-based Smalltown America released Calories' titanic debut Adventuring) is perhaps bittersweet, because as captivating and strong as this new record is, it is not so foreign from the recent work of Calories, not unrecognizably descended from Distophia.

It has been a bit of a parlour game here at Clicky Clicky HQ, figuring out what is going on with all of the various Distophia-descended bands, and what distinguishes them, particularly given the fact that certain of the bands have, at least at times, contained the very same members while performing under different names. Of that cohort, Burning Alms' music is dustier, more meditative, addresses more abstract lyrical themes, and only occasionally shimmers in the way of certain Calories songs (such as the epic closer to Calories III, "Tropics"). We suppose Burning Alms must be defined by the absence of the songwriting contributions of Calories bassist Pete Dixon, who keeps busy with Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam and recently played his first solo show in seven years, but how that absence manifests itself sonically is unclear. Perhaps one characteristic attribute is Burning Alms' aforementioned meditative dimension, apparently inspired by Mr. Biggs' interest in American literature and existential thinkers, although such conjecture is almost immediately dispelled by the crushing 5/4 opening of the blistering "The Aperture Colonised," the high-octane whirl of the single "Matadors," or the shuddering rage of "Forest Clearing." Perhaps in the music of Burning Alms there is a more restless pursuit of experimentation, as in the free-form title track to In Sequence, a minimalist pastiche of ambient (amp?) noise, taped voice interaction and skeletal guitar noodling. Whatsoever its determinant je ne sais quoi, no listener will come away from listening to In Sequence feeling like something is missing. Indeed, what ultimately makes Burning Alms' debut such a resounding success is its ability to balance myriad sounds and styles in such a way as to evoke a singularly rich musical identity.

Smalltown America released In Sequence Monday. The set is available as a vinyl LP, compact disc and digital download, all of which can be purchased through the label right here. Stream the entire record via the Spotify embed below.

Burning Alms: Bandcamp | Facebook | Internerds | Soundcloud



Related Coverage:
Today's Hotness: Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, Goodbye Childhood
Today's Hotness: Burning Alms
Today's Hotness: Burning Alms
All This Stuff Happening With Calories And Its Offshoots Makes Our Head Hurt 'Cause It's A Lot Of Things All At Once, Like This Awesome New Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam Record
Today's Hotness: Burning Alms

Today's Hotness: Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, Goodbye Childhood, R.M. Hendrix

>> For those of you who didn't see us trumpet its existence over on the Fakebooks yesterday, the video above is for the lead track from a tremendous new EP from Birmingham, England-based noise-pop luminaries Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam. We introduced you to the then-trio last fall, when it self-released a cracking self-titled full-length debut. Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam is comprised by former Calories and Distophia guy Peter Dixon, and chaps named Andrew Bullock, Ralph Morton and, more recently, David Bentall. The new EP, which as far as we can tell carries no title and no hard release date, touts five characteristically concise, desperate and tuneful rockers and picks up right where Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam left off. That's not the most insightful analysis, but when a band -- or really, a cohort of men that configures itself in ever-increasing combinations (more on that below) -- does so many things right so consistently, the work needn't always be labored over. "Auto," the song featured in the video above, is briskly paced, urgent and repetitive ("auto" is short for "automation," after all), bludgeoning the refrain "in auto" repeatedly at the end of the second minute just prior to a tearing lead guitar line. The tune presents an electrifying amalgamation of punk bombast confronting Teutonic minimalism and efficiency, and there is perhaps a larger point to be made about its mechanistic rhythm, the themes of alienation and boredom in the video, and how that relates to Marx's ideas about how industrial machinery alienates the worker (see, for example, something like "As a result of machinery, displaced workers are not so quickly compensated by employment in other industries but are forced into an expanding labor-market at a disadvantage and available for greater capitalist exploitation without the ability to procure the means of subsistence for survival.") But it also just rocks, as does the blazing, 106-second follow-up "Castles And Kings." Indeed, there is nary a loose thread or dropped stitch in any of the EP's five songs. The EP is available for pre-order here in two bundles. The first is limited to 50 orders, and includes 7" vinyl, CD, A3 poster, t-shirt and instant download for £10; the second offers only the 7" and CD for £6. We suspect the former iteration is already sold out, but try your luck, what the hell, right? Like sound but hate pictures? You can stream "Auto" via the Soundcloud embed below.



>> If you clicked the second hyperlink above and revisited our initial coverage of Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, you are familiar with our being overwhelmed by the many projects that have descended from the late, great Distophia and its most successful offspring, Calories. Fortunately, and not surprisingly, all of these related acts make excellent music. Yet one more new project was revealed last month, when Burning Alms/Calories doods Andrew Bullock and Thomas Mark Whitfield unveiled Goodbye Childhood. The duo bowed the project with a self-titled, downloadable EP in late April. The music is reserved and spare, lacing together canned beats, acoustic guitars, murmured vocals and atmospheric synths,into a curious yet enticing product that at least superficially calls to mind Elliot Smith and The Notwist. The delicate and waltz-timed meditation "Lock Up Your Son" may be the most affecting of the short set, with gentle lyrics and pretty acoustic guitar meandering first into a stiffening drone, then a crackling rhythm track. A new band and EP were not what we had been expecting from Mssrs. Bullock and Whitfield. The pair's Burning Alms has had a full-length titled In Sequence waiting in the wings to be unveiled for about six months, we reported here and here in February and December respectively. Is that LP still in the offing, or has it been subsumed within the catalogue/repertoire of Goodbye Childhood? We really have no idea. But confusion is certainly nothing new when it comes to the supernumerous spawn of Distophia. We can only wait and see, and while you do so, take a listen to the entire Goodbye Childhood EP via the embed below.



>> Wade in deep with us, indie rock fans, deep into the new collection from Boston-based graphic designer and music DIY-er R.M. Hendrix. Mr. Hendrix's new full-length Urban Turks Country Jerks carries 11 tunes and captures in its broad embrace classic shoegaze and Britpop sounds. Heretofore, the cuts "Wasted Summer" and "In This Daydream" from the collection have been designated as singles from same, and there are very nice video clips for them here and here respectively. But it is at the far end of the collection where we find two tunes that, in our humble opinion, cry out for single treatment; hear us out. Were we to don our A&R cap -- which we do enjoy doing now and again -- we'd advise releasing a vinyl 7" with the terrific, buoyant strummer "Those Were Dark Days" on the A-side, and the instrospective coldwave dreamer "Frost Heaves" on the flip. The former song is a very pleasant reminder of the late-career classic "Stormy Weather" from Echo And The Bunnymen, and succeeds on the strength of Hendrix's even vocal, big guitars in the chorus and a bouncing beat. The latter tune is a perfect foil, desolate and icy, the cool side of our proposed aural McDLT. Fortunately all of Urban Turks Country Jerks is available to stream on Soundcloud, and so you can weigh the merits of our imaginary single via the embeds below, or click this link to hear the whole shooting match. Urban Turks Country Jerks was released April 28 by Dallas-based Moon Sounds Records on CD or as a digital download. We previously wrote about Hendrix's Pink Skin EP here in 2012. Hendrix, formerly of indie rockers Flannery, has been producing music for almost two decades at this point -- at least one song at his web site dates back to 1996. Peruse his entire catalog right here.

Today's Hotness: Screaming Maldini, Burning Alms, Palehound

>> The curious hints that popped up this past week did little to prepare us for the massive return of Sheffield, England-based ultrapop savants Screaming Maldini, whose new, Afropop-tinged tune "Soweto" is as strong a single as the sextet has ever released. The chorus is so uplifting and potent that it completely absconds with the second half of "Soweto," elevating without pause on the strength of the thumping 7/4 tempo and the jaw-dropping vocal arrangements and harmonies. Singer Gina Walters is at her most formidable and enchanting in the song's final moments, playing off the singing of Maldini mastermind Nick Cox to turn in a performance that tops even her singing on the last great Maldini single, 2012's "Summer Somewhere." The visual promotion of the single, we should note, is rather enticing, suggesting some sort of espionage or archeological theme. While no full-length has been announced, the single art labels "Soweto" as "3/12," which we'd venture means three of 12 of something, yeah? A photo on the Screaming Maldini Facebook appears to be a bill of lading of some sort from "The Maldini Institute," with the subhead "Miscellaneum Of Wonders." Could the latter be the title of a forthcoming collection? We shall keep our fingers crossed. Screaming Maldini is set to embark on a small strand of UK house shows in February. Its self-titled debut LP was issued a year ago by HipHipHip in France and we reviewed it right here. Stream "Soweto," and then stream it again and again, via the Bandcamp embed below.



>> Birmingham, England noise-pop luminaries Burning Alms Friday released to the wilds of the Interzizzles a second taster from its long-awaited debut full-length, In Sequence. The bracing brace of songs, "So Unreal" b/w "The Pastoral," highlight the opposing forces that pull at Burning Alms' songwriting, as "So Unreal" bashes and pops through 150 or so thrilling seconds of Swervedriver-styled guitars and punching percusion, while the acoustic ballad "The Pastoral" embraces its titular adjective, establishing a gentle, waltz-timed reverie with more subdued vocals and quiet dynamics during an even more brief 100 seconds. The tunes -- which the band describes as being part of a two-track EP, despite the fact that there is nothing "extended play" here -- are available as a paid digital download or stream via Bandcamp and Soundcloud. Within and without the context of the band and its related projects (Calories and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam), "So Unreal" and "The Pastoral" are compelling listening, and make us all the more eager to hear In Sequence. In December we wrote here about "Matadors," the blunt and aggressive first single from the pending collection. No specific release date or other information about In Sequence has been proferred by the band (which, as we've previously reported, consists of John Robert Biggs and Thomas Whitfield with former Sunset Cinema Club guy and recording-engineer-to-the-stars Dom James), although the trio maintains it will be issued in 2014. This Facebook status indicates a release is moving one step closer, as the set is presently being mastered. Watch a video for "So Unreal" right here, and stream or download both tunes via the Bandcamp embed below.



>> We're as surprised as you to find that we haven't yet turned our attention to young indie rock concern Palehound. The act began as the vehicle for the music of one Ellen Kempner, a sorta protégé of Speedy Ortiz's Sadie Dupuis (Kempner = Eminem, Sadie = Dre). For her initial release, Palehound's entirely charming Bent Nail EP issued by Exploding In Sound in October, Ms. Kempner was abetted by the label's de facto in-house production due of Julian Fader and Carlos Hernandez. Palehound's whole deal snowballed all fall, with the addition of three new players (say hello to Mssrs. Lombardi, Kupperberg and Scherer on bass, drums and guitar, respectively) and the blogosphere spheorizing about what made this wonderful little band and songs like "Pet Carrot" and "I Get Clean" tick. Come now this four-piece iteration of the presently Yonkers-based Palehound, who issue via EIS Feb. 25 the Kitchen 7", the band's first recordings as, well, a band. The top side of the platter touts the tune "Holiest," with "Pay No Mind" on the flip. "Holiest," as we blurbed on Facebook, is a swaying gem with a terrific cascading hook that showcases well the new four-piece configuration of the hotly tipped band. Palehound plays a smattering of dates in New York and Philadelphia this month before embarking on their first U.S. tour, during which the 'hound makes the obligatory pilgrimage to Mecca. Sorry, not Mecca, Austin, they'll go to Austin for the annual SXSW music confabulation. We can expect another 7" after the release of Kitchen, at least according to this CMJ interview from November. But let us live not in the future, but in the now, a point in your life in which if you have enough time to read these words, you certainly have the time to click the button on the embed below and stream "Holiest." It's a fine rock song that we believe you will like.

Today's Hotness: Burning Alms, Markus Guentner

>> It feels like a conspiracy. Whenever any one of the three bands that make up the Birmingham, England cohort of Calories, Burning Alms and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam does something, it increasingly has become the case that one or both of the other bands follows suit, and in doing so overwhelm hapless music bloggers the world over. Or at least us. And so it was last month we were minding our business one morning when Burning Alms floated a new track, the bludgeoning anthem "Matadors," out into the digital ether. The very next morning Calories dropped a bomb, announcing that it had released for free to the Internerds its hotly anticipated third long-player, III. We've finally caught our breath three weeks later, enough anyway to tell you about "Matadors" (we'll leave a discussion of III for next week). The song charges out of the gate with a bright, open chord that drones into the greedy embrace of a galloping rhythm section. A second chord is momentarily applied at the end of each verse, and then the sprint is on again. In lieu of a chorus, Burning Alms -- which is apparently presently composed of 3/4 of Calories, namely Thomas Mark Whitfield, John Robert Biggs, and uber-producer/former Sunset Cinema Club guy Dom James -- offers only scraping, discordant guitars. It's an exciting exercise despite its minimal approach to melody; instead pace, energy and tension take center stage. If there is an irony here, it's that of the three interrelated rock acts mentioned supra, Burning Alms has heretofore provided the most quiet music (although all of the older tracks have been scrubbed from the Internet), and the most reserved Internet presence (which is an achievement in itself, given that Calories and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam do very little to promote themselves). With Calories' III and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam's self-titled full-length now out, it would seem the next to drop has to be from Burning Alms. Given how exciting "Matadors" is, we have very high expectations for the full-length, which has apparently was a year in the making and is called In Sequence. Mixing of the album was to have been completed Nov. 30, and we're told the album is done and the band intends to tour to support it in 2014, so now we just wait. Stream "Matadors" via the Bandcamp embed below, and click through to download the track for free. As an aside, we're dying to know why Burning Alms tagged "Matadors" with the word Pennsylvania on Bandcamp... as that is our home state... and they are from England. Always intriguing, these guys.


>> We’re becoming increasingly familiar with the Brooklyn- and Ann Arbor-based electronic label Moodgadget, as their well-curated roster and releases continue to match our tastes well. The label's latest digital release features German ambient artist Markus Guentner, who we have somehow managed to not write about in more than five years. Mr. Guentner's new collection is titled Shadows Of The City, and it is a stirring and introspective set populated by endless, synth-toned skies. While most of the compositions follow a similar route, layering harmony after harmony over several simple chords, each one stimulates a different mood. A highlight of the set, "Ashes," adheres to the drone formula with a steady, unwavering series of icy harmonies that slowly churn and cascade over one another in a peaceful meditation. The full and resonant production leverages well Guentner's facility with blending tones and frequencies, so that circular melodies and rhythms emerge from the gaping expanses that initially confront the listener. As on the title track, Guentner adds a steady drum pulse that tethers the tune to some Euro-house roots -- further abetting the sound of train tracks and swooping flange-synth that glide through the song. Shadows Of The City is best experienced in a single sitting; its 48 minutes are the perfect length for a morning jog, reading break, or headphone experience, with just the right amount of digital, electronic precision and intelligent ambient composing. Purchase the album on iTunes, here. -- Edward Charlton

All This Stuff Happening With Calories And Its Offshoots Makes Our Head Hurt 'Cause It's A Lot Of Things All At Once, Like This Awesome New Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam Record

The men behind Calories seem to have decided that, like the protagonists at the climax of "Ghostbusters," now may be the appropriate time to cross the streams. There was a time when the criminally unsung Birmingham, England-based noise-pop foursome appeared content to have a go at taking projects in turn. But at the moment four related entities are issuing new music, prepping new releases or, in the case of the completely mega but long defunct rock band Distophia, ramping up for a reunion show. All the moving parts and machinations have tempted us to create diagram of all the various band members and where they fit, but, you know, then we didn't, so we're hoping this round-up will suffice to go beyond these earlier blog posts (1, 2) to clarify who is doing what (frankly, it makes our head ache, and we wish we had a UK correspondent to deal with this, *makes "call me" hand motion*).

Here is where we stand today. There was a band called Distophia, they made all of these awesome songs (1, 2, 3, 4 and so on),and then suddenly about six years ago there was not a band called Distophia. Thereafter Pete Dixon, John Biggs and Tom Whitfield from that band formed Calories, which thankfully still exists. Sometime in the past year the then-still-a-trio decided they did not rule hard enough, so they added producer extraordinaire Dominique James on bass and Mr. Dixon moved to guitar. Along parallel tracks, there has been other action in recent years, namely the establishment of two side projects. First, Mr. Dixon has created a bass-free, noisy wonder called Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam with gentlemen who are called Andrew Bullock and Ralph Morton. Meanwhile, Mssrs. Biggs, Whitfield and James launched a new project of their own, the more moody Burning Alms.

OK, that's the who, here's the what. Calories announced late last month its third long-player is on the way. While no release date or label has been disclosed, the quartet has released to the wilds of the Interpants the strikingly ethereal preview track "Mausoleum." Calories has for some time been drifting from blunt, brief and anthemic post-punk toward a more billowing, spaced-out sound, as evidenced by the looser proceedings of its tremendous sophomore set released in 2010, Basic Nature [review]. But the dream-like "Mausoleum" -- which is pushed along by a high guitar riff we swear appears somewhere in the Modest Mouse oeuvre -- is an exciting step further into more spectral and indefinite spaces; a video for the new song is posted atop this item. "Mausoleum" is not the first new music we've heard from Calories this year: attentive readers will recall the band issued the EP DMT in January.

But wait! There's more. Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam at long last today issued its tremendous, self-titled, debut long-player. The collection -- recorded live to tape at Birmingham's Highbury Studio -- is filled with 11 bracing and noisy guitar pop songs that make a very strong argument against tagging the three-piece as a side project to anything. The sparkling preview track "Ibiza Rocks" -- which moves at a brisk pace, fist-banging through verses to gently pulsing choruses -- made its way online over the summer, and is not too far afield from the big, anthemic guitar music of Calories. Indeed, to a certain extent we feel that Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, of all of the aforementioned projects including Calories itself, is the one that most resembles the band that made the forthright belters of the first Calories full-length, Adventuring [review]. Just take a listen to the cracking opening triptych of "Sea Chanty," "Orange Grove" and "Sooooooo." Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam is crammed with very strong tracks, from which we have a hard time identifying favorites, although the echoing ballad "Teeth" distinguishes itself, perhaps because it is the first major downshift the collection executes. A very small number of physical copies of Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam will be available at the band's next show, in a bundle that includes one of two shirt concepts, but the majority of us will just have to live with the fact that we're not going to get our mitts on one of those. Fortunately, the record is available as a pay-what-you-like download which you can access via the embed below.



Not to be outdone, a brief note atop the Burning Alms Facebook page promises the band's debut LP will be released this year. Your move, Burning Alms! As if all this activity was not enough activity from which to infer an extreme state of activeness, it was announced last month that Distophia will perform a one-off reunion show Nov. 16 in Birmingham. Could this lead to an official release of the legendary "lost" Distophia record Beat Dysxlexia? Cross all those fingers. Then download the SFL record and take the rest of the day off, that was a lot for you to read on a Monday.

Today's Hotness: The Cherry Wave, Calories

>> It will rapidly become a distant fading memory to some, but there was an entire universe of excellent contemporary shoegaze happening prior to last night's shock midnight release of My Bloody Valentine's mbv. Indeed, notable Glaswegian noise-pop upstarts The Cherry Wave returned Jan. 24 with its second EP of uncompromising shoegaze chaos. The quintet's new, four-song set is titled Blush, and it is both more focused (somewhat ironically, given the quote you are about to read) and more punishing than its formidable predecessor. The band recently told GlasGoWest "[w]e wanted it to sound like what it feels like when you've been up for 24 hours and you think you're hearing things and seeing things, but you’re not really sure whether you have or whether it's the comedown and lack of sleep. We wanted to it to sound like an audio version of that feeling, 6am, sun rising, fuzzy headed, heavy eyelids." The highlight of the EP is the closer "Cave/Wave," a tune driven by crushed drums and spectral vocals that somehow is able to steadily ratchet up the cacaphony straight across the song's nearly four minutes. It's the sort of song that makes you wonder whether the band is ever able to play more than one song live, as its beauty and mayhem suggest an aural self-immolation. The Cherry Wave's self-titled debut EP was released last summer and our own Edward Charlton reviewed it right here. In the intervening months The Cherry Wave was released on cassette and the band added a third guitarist to help fatten its already considerable auditory morass; the band's final show as a four-piece is Feb. 15. Blush is available as a pay-what-you-like download via Bandcamp; you can stream the entire thing below.



>> Well, there was some delay, but it was definitely worth the wait: Birmingham, England-based indie-punk heroes Calories last week issued its eagerly anticipated EP DMT, which we first wrote about here in November. The surprisingly textured, catchy-as-hell lead track is one with which you should all be familiar by now; perhaps you've even seen Calories' skewed but entertaining video for the tune as well. Well, on the EP "DMT" is joined by three additional numbers: the weightier, fuzzed-up chant "Every Day Is A School Day," the nervous and cinematic instrumental "Flickers From The Ochre House" and the hypnotic ballad "Fragments Of Cities (Acoustic)." Brevity, energy and a cracking melodic sense continue to be hallmarks of the Calories sound, but the band is still able to build admirable exposition into the songs. The final minute of "Every Day Is A School Day" features a menacing build-up of buzz-saw guitars that blow past the rhythm section and hang in space for a number of seconds. The final haunting track, "Fragments Of Cities (Acoustic)," is perhaps the strongest of the lot, wherein the band deftly arranges gentle acoustic guitar and organ and voice. We remain quite hopeful about Calories' planned third full-length. When the band issued the freebie "Summer's Not" in October it was billed as a non-album track to whet the whistles for the next record from the quartet, which now counts among its number renowned engineer and former Sunset Cinema Club chap Dominique James. Since then, of course, no long-player has emerged. Fortunately, a Facebook post from the band last week states "the album will 100% come out on vinyl," a good sign that indeed an album is still in the offing. We recently wrote about two relatively new Calories side projects, Burning Alms and Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, right here, and we'll try to keep tabs on all the action as we can keep up with it. For now, stream the excellent DMT below; if cassettes are your thing, word is that Stourbridge-based Carnage Club Collective will be doing a limited cassette run at some future date. Calories play London Feb. 10.

Today's Hotness: Pile, Calories, Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam

>> We've been meaning to circle back to our recent feature in The Phoenix on Pile, the Boston indie rock quartet whose formidable LP Dripping was released late last month. As the band plays a hotly anticipated tour homecoming show Wednesday night with now-band Metz and Northampton-based leading lights Speedy Ortiz, we figured there's no time like the present. Our conversation with Pile founder and fronter Rick Maguire was both long and interesting. He hand-rolled and smoked cigarettes, we drank some beers, we talked about music, it was delightful. One of the many things we didn't have the space to hammer in our Phoenix piece that we found remarkable was Mr. Maguire's understandable yet surprising lack of familiarity with acts from the late '80s and earlier '90s that Pile sounds like. Sure, he knows Jesus Lizard, Polvo and the like exist. He's even heard some of their records a bit. But Maguire said he wasn't conversant in their music. And then he said (well, we're paraphrasing) what we thought was a particularly smart thing: he said at this point he didn't WANT to know those bands' music well, he wouldn't want to be influenced one way or the other by hearing them at this point. We like that, that independent thinking, that drive to be pure. You can stream Dripping via the Bandcamp embed below; buy it from Exploding In Sound Records right here. It's a great record, dark, drop-tuned, regular outbreaks of mayhem, melody, aggression. The show tomorrow night is going to be awesome. Hit the Facebook event page here for details and to proclaim your faith.



>> Birmingham, England-based indie punk quartet Calories have revealed more about what they are doing these days, and how they are doing it, dispelling some of our questions about the recent revelation of Burning Alms yet adding new questions. So, for starters, Calories announced it will issue sometime around Dec. 1 a new EP titled "DMT," and there is an ace video for the strikingly effervescent tune right here. According to the band, the video had 1,000 views in just five days, which is none too shabby. As you can hear from watching the zany, "Benny Hill"-esque clip, "DMT" has a lighter touch that Calories' heretofore characteristic dense, blunt and forceful attack. Indeed, "DMT" is downright jangly. What else? Well, a Facebook status from the band refers to not one, but two new side projects. There's Burning Alms, which we already wrote about here last month, which is referred to as Thomas Whitfield and John Biggs'. But there is also a new bass-less project being helmed by Calories bassist Pete Dixon called Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam, who is joined by two chaps Andrew Bullock and Ralph Morton. Sunshine Frisbee Laserbeam has apparently been busy making rock and rock videos as well, as evidenced by this recent video for the very great tune "Halloween." So chew on that, why don't you? No word yet on what formats Calories' "DMT" will be available on or what label will release it, but we'll keep up our vigil and bring word about the EP when we can. In the meantime, how about streaming Calories most recent, and quite excellent, full length Basic Nature via the embed below?

Today's Hotness: Lilys, Popstrangers, Burning Alms

>> Lilys is a Clicky Clicky All-Time Top Five Band, so we get very worked up when the nomadic act, led by chameleonic mastermind Kurt Heasley, gets around to releasing new music. And finally, after almost seven years, we've got some: here comes Lilys' meandering pop masterpiece "Well Traveled Is Protest," one side of a split single being released by Virginia's Speakertree Records Nov. 13. You may recall Speakertree as the outfit that released White Laces' excellent full-length debut Moves this past summer [review here]. "Well Traveled Is Protest" opens with a simple ascending acoustic guitar, not surprising as the most recent Lilys live appearances have just featured Mr. Heasley and an acoustic guitar. The song, however, quickly starts adding layers -- a chunky beat, solemn organ tones, backing vocals, backwards guitar lines, something that sounds like marimba, lyrical imagery that is both concrete and fractal at the same time. It's an arresting pop creation of the highest order, the sort of thing you'd expect Syd Barrett could have created if he had had his head a little more together. Sonically the tune rests comfortably within the canon of the band's mid- and late-period work, somewhere between, say, the completely insane sole major label record The Three-Way and the stoned slackness of Precollections. Here's hoping the single is a harbinger of much more new Lilys music to come, as Heasley's works are all treasures. Pre-orders for "Well Traveled Is Protest" b/w "Comb My Hair," a tune by Brooklyn's Big Troubles, are being taken at Speakertree's blog right here, so click over and buy right after you click play on the embed below of the Lilys tune.



>> We'll say it again: there’s just something about New Zealand and Australian-bred guitar pop that is so well-conceived and realized we suspect some secret magic must be at work. Or, perhaps, it's a unique regional psyche that accounts for the antipodeans' rich heritage of deft, twee hooks and scraggly guitar anthems? Regardless, the highly regarded label label Flying Nun has been doing their illustrious thing for more than three decades now, and one of its previous signees, Popstrangers, are poised to extend the legacy with the Feb. 26, 2013 release of the appropriately titled Antipodes, via Carpark. Based on the preview track "Heaven," Carpark's Todd Hyman (who Clicky Clicky will forever insist on referring to as "former Wendyfix drummer") is about to release a brilliant record. "Heaven" launches with a treble-kicking blast of unidentifiable electric noise, and then dives into chunky power pop palm-muting. Fronter Joel Flyger’s soft, emotion-laden vocals slink in and out of the verses' swing. Then comes a grand slam of a chorus, in which Mr. Flyger compellingly loops the first part of each line. It’s a dreamy, pleasingly disorienting moment, one that recalls American space cadets All Natural Lemon And Lime Flavors and its nasally melodic approach. "Heaven" is a certified psych-pop hit that plays up Popstrangers' Kiwi roots. The trio enjoyed a successful run of appearances at this month's CMJ New Music Seminar in New York, and we look forward to a chance to see them should they make it up to Boston the next time they hit The States. Keep an eye here for pre-order info. "Heaven" is embedded below, clear your schedule because it is all you'll want to listen to for days. -- Edward Charlton



>> Birmingham, England-based indie punk giants Calories are not exactly publicity hounds, despite making a couple of our favorite records of the last five years or so [this one, this one]. Our recollection is the band's last full-length, 2010's excellent Basic Nature, was promoted almost entirely with cryptic tumblr posts. So it should be little surprise that a new side project, apparently comprised of Calories guitarist and vocalist John Biggs and drummer Tom Whitfield, surfaced about two weeks ago with no announcement whatsoever. The project is called Burning Alms, and a Google search tells us little beyond the fact that the name is probably a reference to the 2004 Papa M singles and b-sides compilation Hole Of Burning Alms. Confusing the matter further is the fact that a message posted to a Facebook event page for Burning Alms' only second-ever gig states that "Burning Alms are now now 3/3 of Calories EXCITING!!!" Burning Alms made its live debut a week ago; its second show was Tuesday. The timing of all of this is curious, as Calories just last month came out of hibernation to issue into the inter-ether the barn-burning new track "Summer's Not." So what the hell is going on? Why do we have two bands with the same dudes in them each making awesome music, when we could just have one band containing the same dudes making awesome music. We don't know! But there are two excellent Burning Alms songs available now at Soundcloud, and we are especially taken with the most recent, a ballad titled "Run Straight On The Asphalt." Dig it below.