Today' Hotness: Eros And The Eschaton, Ghost Orchard, Landing

>> Inspired dream-pop concern Eros And The Eschaton's second LP, due later this summer, is heralded by the surprisingly brash and altogether thrilling preview rocker "Rxx." After a bright, uptempo introduction, the song deftly shifts into a spiky, punky verse featuring an arresting vocal by co-founder Kate Perdoni, whose delivery ranges from delightfully bratty to pensive as she mythologizes a restless life on the road and the band's conception (at the climax she erupts "I started this band from a traffic jam when I was trying to find my way back to Canada!"). Formerly based in North Carolina but now operating out of Colorado Springs, Colo., Ms. Perdoni and partner Adam Hawkins now count among their number drummer Alex Koshak, bassist Ryan Spradlin and keyboard player Mitch Macura. The quintet's forthcoming album Weight Of Matter is said to be strongly influenced by Neil Young & Crazy Horse, but if "Rxx" takes a cue from Mr. Young's wide-ranging career, it would have to be Young's weird, new wave and experimental pop phase (he was a proponent of and sometime collaborator with DEVO, our older readers might recall). Even that feels a stretch, though, and it really makes no difference, as "Rxx" is so potent a single that it needs no RIYLs to prop it up. While the subdued dream-pop of songs like "You Know I Do" and "Don't Look So Sad" from Eros And The Eschaton's early day feels remote here, the big dynamic drumming, anthemic synth lines, spindly guitars and rich feedback in "Rxx" make for a very potent sound that presents exciting opportunities for the band. Bar/None releases Weight Of Matter Aug. 19 on vinyl and CD and pre-orders are being taken for the set right here. The band celebrates the record with two shows at the end of August in Colorado Springs and Denver and also performs in Denver this Saturday; all dates available at press time are listed below. Stream "Rxx" via the Soundcloud embed below. In related news, Weehawken, NJ-based Bar/None this past March celebrated its 30th anniversary, a very notable achievement indeed, and there are retrospective blog posts and a link to a label comp that are definitely worth checking out right here.

06.25 -- Denver, CO -- Westword Music Festival
07.30 -- Denver, CO -- Underground Music Fest
08.05 -- Colorado Springs, CO -- Fine Arts Center
08.26 -- Colorado Springs, CO -- Flux Capacitor (Record Release Show)
08.27 -- Denver, CO -- Larimer Lounge (Record Release Show)



>> Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Ghost Orchard's latest set, Bliss, is a veiled and smothered bedroom dream-pop wonder that has already soundtracked many a late night to devastating and lonely effect. Led by Sam Hall, the project enlarges the scope of similarly bleary solo work of artists like Astrobrite, Atlas Sound and the recently reviewed Flout for an adventure in woozy, driving sound design, not to mention yearning and youthful lo-fi contemplation. Short and sweet songs like "Seperate" and "Sorry" pair distant percussion to textured and tasteful guitar chords for a contemporary take on the "hypnagogic pop" genre which came to the fore with rise of Ariel Pink and other deconstructed songsmiths. Mr. Hall's mid-range vocals serve as another yawning instrument more than a direct lead, but his pleasant tones nonetheless complement the auditory universe he contrives. Loveless-styled instrumental segues bookend "I Saw You Floating," "Sleepover" and "Wisher," and these run into other pieces, adding to the intimate, toy-instrument song-cycle vibe conjured here effectively. While this style of music has been tackled by many, Hall's inoffensive and rounded mid-heavy production and original instrumentation prestidigitate a boyish wonder that circulates through much of Bliss' 13 songs, making the collection an ideal choice for lazy, searching summer evenings. Take this moment to act decisively, however, as Orchid Tapes' recent second pressing of 100 cassettes is likely to disappear as quickly as this piece can be read. Do it: grab Bliss now on tape or as a digital download right here, lest you have to wait for round three. -- Edward Charlton



>> While the name of Connecticut-based drone-rock four Landing has registered on this reviewer's radar in years past -- perhaps due to its prior association with labels as esteemed as K and Geographic North -- its music had eluded our ears until the recent lead-up to its latest album, Third Sight. That collection hit racks earlier this month on CD and green vinyl LP via El Paraiso Records, but indeed the band's legacy stretches back almost two full decades to 1998. Third Sight is a four-song platter of head music characterized by a psychedelic and ambient narcotic lull, one akin to those conjured by legendary hitmakers Spacemen 3, Stars of the Lid and The Warlocks. Landing achieves this through the use of pristine and full production, as well as a distinct, major-key howl. The collection, recorded as part of El Paraiso's Impetus series, aims for the tranquil yet hallucinogenic side of Landing's sound with protracted, ruminative songs and serious pedal work. The lead preview track "Delusion Sound/Third Site" (split into two tunes on Spotify) presents soft, delayed vocals that intertwine within a drift of synthesizer patches and slow-burning feedback. "Facing South" highlights spewing, long-timed drone pedals and bongo-esque percussion to establish a meditative, instrumental trance, while closer "Morning Sun" aims for middle ground between the two, before female vocals pour a little bit of light into the composition. Much of Third Sight comes across as tempered experimentation and improvisational, but the focus with which Landing tackles its craft makes for a compelling album that, we'll speculate, likely sounds massive on vinyl, the manner of consumption this music seems clearly intended for. Order Third Sight here or check out Landing’s impressive and substantial body of work at their Bandcamp page. -- Edward Charlton

Review: Eros And The Eschaton | Home Address For Civil War

Here's a thing that is true: a lot of dream pop is not dream-like; as beautiful and as subdued as certain of it may be, the descriptor often acknowledges an aspiration, not an actuality. There are, however, bands that can jack right into a dream-state from the first note and navigate an entire set with admirable agency, building emerald cities of sound and then tearing them down like Leonardo DiCaprio in "Inception." Which brings us to the rising North Carolina dream-pop concern Eros And The Eschaton, whose debut full-length Home Address For Civil War is due Tuesday from Bar/None. The music on the collection grafts sweet, somnolent melodies to compositions that thrive on a balance of coarse shoegaze textures, palpable ambience and engaging pop intentions. Gently shot through the dreaminess and noise is a unifying pop sensibility that makes the record a satisfying and especially remarkable debut.

Eros And The Eschaton, as we wrote here in June, is Adam Hawkins and Kate Perdoni, although the band is augmented with additional players for shows. The principals met performing in Omaha, cemented their coupledom at some point thereafter, had a child, formed the band in 2012, and then settled in Greensboro. Perhaps the dreaminess of Home Address For Civil War is a result of the pair trying to do a band and raise a small kid at the same time (the record commences with a baby's cry before launching into the endlessly ascending "20 Different Days"). Or perhaps we are just projecting our own exhaustion. But within and throughout their patient, brilliant (and brilliantly mixed) set, Mr. Hawkins and Ms. Perdoni layer wavering organ, guitars, heavily reverbed percussion and murmured vocals to create tracks that are paradoxically as loud as they are intimate. The fixating charmer "You Know I Do" is as much a pastiche of feedback and ambient noise as it is a simple, crushingly poignant affirmation of love. At the beginning of "Over And Over," the pair's chanting of the title sounds like a confession, like an exchange of secrets. Closer "Trust Me I Know" opens with a gently pulse of organ and reverbed, looped guitar,  then slowly decays into a soft, swirling mist that dissipates gently over the span of more than five minutes.

Just releasing this latter song would constitute a triumph, but the record offers a lot more. There's Yo La Tengo-flavored pop candy like "Lately (I've Been Wondering)" and percussive cacophony to be found in "Terence McKenna," a song that recalls the noisier moments in the catalog of dreamy contemporaries Big Deal. Indie rock fans will find there's a lot of Yo La Tengo flavor to Home Address, facilitated in part by the similar approach to vocals taken by Hawkins and Ira Kaplan. That assessment is not meant to limit listeners' ideas of what Eros And The Eschaton is, but rather a signifier of the vast potential Hawkins and Perdoni are sitting on, potential that could enable Eros And The Eschaton to become as smart, incredibly nimble and widely varied act as the legendary New Jersey trio. Home Address For Civil War, we hope, is only a beginning. After playing a hometown festival date late this month, the band leaves home for most of September, when it will perform a series of mid-Atlantic and midwest dates to support the release of the record. Fans can also expect to see a music video soon, as details of a shoot were posted to the band's blog here. Two pre-release singles are available to stream below; pre-order Home Address For Civil War right here.

Eros And The Eschaton: Interwebs | Bandcamp | Facebook | Soundcloud | Tumblr





08/23 -- Greensboro, NC -- The Greenbean
09/05 -- Raleigh, NC -- Slim's
09/10 -- Washington, DC -- The Sunshine District
09/11 -- Baltimore, MD -- Club K
09/12 -- Philadelphia, PA -- PhilaMOCA
09/13 -- New York, NY -- Piano's
09/16 -- Beloit, WI -- The Music House
09/17 -- Chicago, IL -- Big Forever
09/20 -- Minneapolis, MN -- Sound Gallery
09/21 -- Omaha, NE -- Slowdown
09/22 -- Omaha, NE -- DP Muller Studio
09/23 -- Omaha, NE -- Phenom Blues House
09/24 -- Kansas City, MO -- Record Bar
09/25 -- Lincoln, NE -- Vega
09/26 -- Ames, IA -- Maximum

Today's Hotness: Eros And The Eschaton, Amity Beach, Weekend



>> [Photo Credit: Lemon Photography] Late last year a friendly label rep turned us on to the Eros And The Eschaton, a North Carolina-based couple making serene dream pop presented in some charming video clips like this arresting one for "You Know I Do," and this one for "Lately (I've Been Wondering"). Fast-forward to earlier this month and, lo and behold, it was announced that the duo -- Kate Perdoni and Adam Hawkins, who met in Omaha but settled in Greensboro when their van broke down in the central Carolina city -- have now signed to the above-referenced label. And so Eros And The Eschaton's full-length debut Home Address For Civil War will be issued by Bar/None Aug. 13. The bigger surprise is the huge, bold sound of the record's preview single "Heaven Inside." A calm center remains, in the form of the duo's airy vocal harmonies, but the remarkably dense musical accompaniment eschews the subdued sound of the band's self-released, 2012 singles and instead throbs with energy while a vast wall of melodic guitar and white-out percussion smear across the fore of the stereo field. The result is one of the most stirring shoegaze tracks of 2013, just the kind of thing Clicky Clicky is always on the look-out for. Eros And The Eschaton are supporting the 10-track release with a substantial tour in September including an appearance at the annual Hopscotch confabulation in Raleigh, but as of yet there is no date for the duo's live return to the Boston area (its area debut was at Precinct in late spring). To whet your appetite for the release, we've embedded the thriller "Heaven Inside" for your listening pleasure below; pre-order Home Address For Civil War from Bar/None right here.



>> It's been a surprisingly long time since we were last rocked by the fresh-faced indie pop of Amity Beach, whose late 2011 digital single knocked our socks off. The Ontario-based quintet returned at long last this month with pop gold in the form of a new digital single, "Sunday Nights To Infinity" b/w "Avalanches." The pair of songs, released via Bandcamp June 10, are taken from the act's planned debut long-player Bonfire Etiquette. Both tunes are driven by bright, tight guitars. Fizzing tempos push melodies across deft arrangements in a manner that recalls the remarkable pop of veteran Delaware indie pop heroes Spinto Band. "Sunday Nights To Infinity" overflows with lyrics bursting with romantic optimism and nostalgia underscored by tinkling piano embellishments. "Avalanches" runs with a similarly irresistible formula, but is notable for bright horns bolstering the soaring chorus. We can't find a release date for Bonfire Etiquette, and it would be a shame if it were not released in time for the set to be a go-to summer jam that this intoxicating single suggests it will be. Then again, that slightest of bites of nostalgia and loss in "Sunday Nights To Infinity" and "Avalanches" may be even more potent once summer begins to fade. Stream both tunes via the embed below, and keep an eye on Clicky Clicky for news about Bonfire Etiquette.



>>So maybe you live under a rock, or just have a terrible memory, and so you aren't aware of the excellent second preview single from Weekend's forthcoming long-player, a song called "It's Alright." Well, we've embedded it below along with the new album's killer lead track "Mirror," because you need to be up-to-speed on the latest, greatest thing from Slumberland, a label that has been just on fire these last couple of years. "It's Alright" is taken from Weekend's Jinx, which will be issued July 23, and the tune in its earliest moments sounds like a brilliant The Cure outtake circa 1983's "The Walk" 12". However, it is fronter Shaun Durkan's booming but gentle vocals, the song's Keith Levene-styled guitar playing and a big swinging beat that dominate the tune. Pre-order Jinx from Slumberland now on 45RPM, colored-media double 12" or CD. The now Brooklyn-based post-punk foursome play at Church in Boston Oct. 23, and you can bet that's gonna sell out faster than you can say, well, just about anything.