Tonight’s my last show for 4 weeks – off to Europe for a month, so my next UFog is Sunday the 29th of July. You’ll be in capable hands in the meantime and I’ll keep you updated!
Follow me on twitter in the meantime if you want to know what I’m doing, what record stores I’m visiting, and no doubt what we’re eating along the way :)

Meanwhile, have a DJ mix. Over an hour of hand-selected tunes to pleasure your ears and provoke your thoughts and make your brain cells dance. Thanks to Martin Peralta of Tooths for making me do it!

LISTEN AGAIN to tonight’s anyway why’n’cha! The usual ways – link at bottom, podcast, stream on demand.

Glen Johnson’s collective Piano Magic have been around since the mid’90s, making instrumental indie, electronica, pastoral folk, and so on… Their new album is released on Johnson’s sterling label Second Language, which has released a range of post-classical, neo-folk, and ‘tronic music over the last few years in their beautiful limited editions. Members from various related acts appear on Life Has Not Finished With Me Yet, but the main focus seems to be a kind of ’80s post-punk feel, which is strangely appropriate given that Piano Magic was initially modeled on This Mortal Coil.
I also played some favourites from a decade or so ago — two tracks from the release that got me into them, a remix 12″ on one of the most exciting labels in the late-’90s/early ’00s, Morr Music, and a bewitchingly stark track from the 2002 album on 4AD.

“Regret” follows us with Fiona Apple, who you may be thinking is a bit too “pop” for UFog, but I think she fits the bill in so many ways, and anyway I’ve been obsessed with her new album this past week or two. At root she’s a songwriter, and one of the reasons her music works so well is that it weds bitingly honest, personal lyrics with searingly honest delivery, and absolutely perfect music (to me). The piano-led songs are supported by shambling home-made percussion loops (or not loops, apparently), double bass, found sounds and sometimes layered vocals, and some of the most cutting phrases to appear in a song of any genre in ages. This may surprise you if you remember the publicity around her first album, released as a teenager (and plenty cutting itself), or the more mainstream-produced sound of her second album (the one with the unimaginably long title, far longer than the two lines of poetry adorning the new one). But I can’t praise this stuff enough (and I don’t need to, since everybody else is doing the same).

The orchestral pop of “Extraordinary Machine” reminded me of Jherek Bischoff‘s orchestrations on his recent Composed album, so I played the ever-charming Mr David Byrne‘s contribution.

As offthesky, Jason Corder has been making mostly-ambient electronic & acoustic works for some years. Kinder Scout is his trio with Home Normal‘s Ian Hawgood and cellist Danny Norbury. Their very pastoral sounds turn even more ambient, but strangely gripping and beautiful when further processed by Corder. Recommended.

We’re mostly used to hearing drone from Dag Rosenqvist, aka Jasper TX. In de la Mancha he and Jerker Lund make expansive shoegaze, and their new album The End* of Music is easily their best. Catch, even!

Speaking of dronesters, Machinefabriek is back to his reliably extensive schedule of releases, with two this month — a solo album of processed sounds and a live collaboration with Singaporean artist One Man Nation. Nice to hear outbursts of drum machines among the exquisitely produced sounds.

Still in ambient territory, we join Kevin Purdy on his new album Illumination, with the beautifully disquieting closing track, featuring the unmistakeable voice of Amanda Stewart. Fantastic.

And with more pretty ambient sounds, we hear from New Zealand-based Stray Theories‘ Micah Templeton-Wolfe, originally from Sydney — and then head down south to Canberra for another take from Shoeb Ahmad‘s newie, which I’ve been spruiking the heck out of of late…

It’s pretty awesome that the Strain of Origin II compilation from Feral Media & Lofly which I played last week on the show is FBi’s album of the week this week! Heaps of great Sydney & Brisbane (mainly) acts remixing each other. Tonight we have Brisbane’s Anonymeye doing lovely things to an unreleased (I think) track by Sydney’s AFXJIM, and then a pretty hilarious breakcore remix of Sydney electropunk kid Simo Soo by that Blue Mountains reprobate Comatone.
And in between, another Severed Heads cover, this time by analogue fetishists Winduptoys.

Sticking in Sydney, we have some intriguing sounds from young artist Shisd, combining indie & post-r’n’b sounds with dark ambient drones. Scissor Lock contributes one of the remixes on the Charcoal 26th May single out now, with the full EP out soon on Wood & Wire.

Austrian trio Trapist have a new album out, their first in 8 years, exploring again mystery-laden worlds of postrock, electronic and improv. It’s fitting that their middle album was on Thrill Jockey, and they now find a comfortable home with Staubgold. They can be challenging listening at times, but they’re all venerable musicians for good reason.

Finally, a track from Zelienople‘s new album, initially (as is Type‘s rather irritating wont) vinyl only and now out digitally. The promo as usual hypes up the Talk Talk comparisons, which I can’t help think are overplayed. Zelienople do have the understated grace of Talk Talk, but stick to a narrower palette on the whole. Still, it’s contemplative music, low-key music deserving of close listening.

Piano Magic – Judas [Second Language]
Piano Magic – The Canadian Brought Us Snow (Opiate Remix) [Morr Music]
Piano Magic – Postal [4AD]
Piano Magic – There’s No Need For Us To Be Alone (Decomposed and Recomposed by Ensemble) [Morr Music]
Piano Magic – Lost Antiphony [Second Language]
Fiona Apple – Regret [Epic]
Fiona Apple – tymps (the sick in the head song) [Epic]
Fiona Apple – extraordinary machine [Epic]
Fiona Apple – Valentine [Epic]
Jherek Bischoff – Eyes (feat. David Byrne) [Leaf]
offthesky vs kinder scout – silence story [Home Normal]
de la Mancha – Golden Bells / Ursa Minor [Karaoke Kalk]
offthesky vs kinder scout – faded faces in vanishing voices [Home Normal]
Machinefabriek – Vijf [Nuun/Bandcamp]
One Man Nation & Machinefabriek – Live [Machinefabriek/Bandcamp]
Kevin Purdy – Cloud Shadows On Hill [Soft Records]
Stray Theories – A Distant Light [available from Bandcamp]
Shoeb Ahmad – robertson quay [Mystery Plays Records]
AFXJIM – Time to Turn the Record Over (Anonymeye remix) [Feral Media/Lofly] {free download from Bandcamp!}
Winduptoys – Ottoman [Clan Analogue]
Simo Soo – Shannyn Sossamon vs KISS Army (Comatone Remix) [Feral Media/Lofly] {free download from Bandcamp!}
Mr Maps – Nice Flights (Mystery Flights by Mystery Twin) [Feral Media/Lofly] {free download from Bandcamp!}
Shisd – Charcoal 26th May (Scissor Lock remix) [available from Bandcamp]
Shisd – Pale Ghost [Wood & Wire]
Shisd – Without You Walking [Wood & Wire]
Trapist – The Gun That’s Hanging On The Kitchen Wall [Staubgold]
Trapist – Mine Was The Shoulder You Cried On That Day [hatOLOGY]
Trapist – observations took place [Thrill Jockey]
Zelienople – Island Machine [Type]

Listen again — ~ 154MB

A very krautrocking good day to you.
Can‘s Lost Tapes 3CD boxset of unreleased music dominates tonight’s procedings, but there’s lots of other sounds too…
LISTEN AGAIN on demand at the FBi website, or via podcast/download right here.

Two tracks open tonight’s show from Russia’s Oceania, from an excellent EP of dubstep/bass music with a pop edge.
The second track I played, the last on the EP, moves into almost-drum’n’bass regions, and that brings us to our next selection.

In 1997, Mute released a 2CD set called Sacrilege, featuring remixes of the legendary krautrock group Can in various contemporary electronic styles. I didn’t really know Can at that stage, but I loved my drum’n’bass and experimental electronica, and that was here in spades. I’m well acquainted with Can’s legacy now, but I still have a fondness for these remixes, however of-their-time they are. A Guy Called Gerald here delivers a track which could hardly be accused of containing any references to Can’s original, but is a storming piece of beat-choppery whatever.

So, Can. There’s not much need for me to introduce them — one of the most important groups in the legacy of “krautrock”, a genre name redolent of anti-German bigotry, but strangely embraced by its proponents (on the whole, I think). Can’s influence can be felt across punk & post-punk, electronica, postrock, ambient music and so much more. For me, Jaki Lebezeit’s propulsive funk-influenced drumming is the core to their best tracks, some of which are heard tonight — along with the adventurous analogue sampling, and the stream-of-consciousness lyrics from their two main vocalists. We heard some previously unreleased gems with both Malcolm Mooney and Damo Suzuki tonight from The Lost Tapes boxset, including a 12 minute soundtrack excerpt which is a sort of extended jam on the brilliant “Vitamin C”.
And at the end, Mute’s Daniel Miller and Gareth Jones appear as Sunroof, to remix another legendary track, “Oh Yeah”, once again taking it into the drum’n’bass realm, albeit with a lot more of the original track intact.

Sydney’s Kevin Purdy has certainly ingested a lot of krautrock in his time, and some of his earlier albums, along with his duo Tooth with Sir Robbo. His new album is his take on ambient music, but isn’t lacking in beats and experimentation either. Hopefully next week I’ll play a longer, freakier track!

We heard a couple more takes from Shoeb Ahmad‘s newie, Watch/Illuminate, which was launched at London’s Cafe OTO earlier this week. I can’t recommend the album enough.

Also appearing at that show, launching their own new album, was Leverton Fox, featuring Sam Britton of Icarus along with live drums and trumpet. Improv meets electronics, with some very beguiling sounds.

Oneohtrix Point Never has a new EP out shortly of remixes and collaborations from his Replica album. Mostly short and sweet, they include Matmos and Surgeon, plus two vocal renditions of his tracks. Roger Robinson of King Midas Sound drops his characteristic vocals over “Replica”, with OPNon the subtle edits. Meanwhile Richard Youngs, of all people, turns “Nassau” into a howling, distorted mess. Quite disturbing, really :)

Two Australian labels, Sydney’s Feral Media & Brisbane’s lofly, have teamed up for their second remix compilation, Strain of Origin II. As with the previous volume, it pits artists from the two cities “against” each other, but in a “team” fashion, so the same artists don’t actually remix each other. Very fine from my first quick listen, and it’s a free download from Bandcamp!

Launched this weekend in Sydney was Clan Analogue‘s tribute to Severed Heads, entitled Headspace. It’s strange to hear covers of and artist with such an iconic sound, but there sure are a lot of catchy tunes in Tom Ellard (& co)’s catalogue. We heard two Sydney artists, Kazumichi Grime and Aeriae, doing very distinctive but still recognizable takes — plus I had to play something by Severed Heads from my favourite late-’80s-to-early-’90s period.

After an epic special on Amon Tobin a couple of weeks back, I’ve been shying away from playing too much more, although there’s a plethora of great material. Tonight I had Julia Kent‘s cover of “Surge” as my excuse, and I played a couple of very beautiful multi-tracked cello pieces from her as well.

Next up, a little special I’ve been meaning to play for a while on Japanaese electronica artist Geskia!, including a remix from the always brilliant Bracken. Crunchy beats and ambient textures.

Ending with one more cut from Shoeb’s album, preceded by one short track from the new glitchy opus from Markus Mehr — definitely recommended, more from it next week.

Oceania – Mantra [7even Recordings]
Oceania – Forest [7even Recordings]
Can – Tango Whiskeyman (A Guy Called Gerald Mix) [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Spoon [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Millionenspiel [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Dead Pigeon Suite [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Your Friendly Neighbourhood Whore [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Oh Yeah [Spoon/Mute]
Can – Oh Yeah (Sunroof Mix) [Spoon/Mute]
Kevin Purdy – Mountains Dreaming [Soft Records]
Shoeb Ahmad – the orchids [Mystery Plays Records]
Leverton Fox – Le Tombeau de Monsieur Whippy [Not Applicable]
Oneohtrix Point Never feat. Roger Robinson – Replica (OPN Edit) [Software]
Oneohtrix Point Never – Nassau (Richard Youngs Remix) [Software]
Ambrose Chapel – A Small Return To Big Nothing (Underlapper Remix) [Feral Media/lofly] {free download from Bandcamp!}
aheadphonehome – Think Music (AFXJIM remix) [Feral Media/lofly] {free download from Bandcamp!}
Kazumichi Grime – Petrol [Clan Analogue]
Aeriae – Snuck [Clan Analogue]
Severed Heads – Golden Height/I’m Your Antidote [Volition, now available direct thru Sevcom]
Amon Tobin – Dustmen Suspense [Ninja Tune]
Amon Tobin – Surge (Cover by Julia Kent) [Ninja Tune]
Julia Kent – Overlook [available from Bandcamp]
Julia Kent – Tempelhof [Important Records]
Geskia! – Sour Leaf [Home Normal]
Geskia! – Inside Out Night [flau]
Geskia! – Second Coming (Bracken Remix) [flau]
hopeless local marching band – the old man chokes up with tears, thinking he will be saved soon (geskia! remix) [Symbolic Interaction]
Geskia! – Requiem For Genome (aus remix) [Home Normal]
Geskia! – Answer Song [Home Normal]
Markus Mehr – I’m Gonna Make You Love Me [Hidden Shoal]
Shoeb Ahmad – this is how you fall apart [Mystery Plays Records]

Listen again — ~ 159MB

Stu Buchanan is away, so I get to play in his new weird Aussie garden!
No podcast, but you can stream on demand from the FBi New Weird Australia page!

Cock and Swan – Stash (Part Timer remix) [Lost Tribe Sound]
Vieo Abiungo – why dogs mimic sirens (part timer remix) [Lost Tribe Sound]
y0t0 – Uriarra Crossing Mirror Condensation (Downliners Sekt remix) [fac-ture]
Shoeb Ahmad – the orchids [Mystery Plays Records]
Shisd – Charcoal 26th May (Scissor Lock remix) [available from Bandcamp]
Shisd – Without You Walking [Wood & Wire]
Kevin Purdy – Mountains Dreaming [Soft Records]
Karoshi – Blood In The Rain [available from Bandcamp]
Dro Carey – Foes, Gallons n Fathoms [free download from his Tumblr]
Peon – Io (feat. Lloyd Swanton) [Wood & Wire]
Derek Piotr – Colossus [bitsquare.net]
Kazumichi Grime – Petrol [Clan Analogue]
Severed Heads – First Steps [Volition, now available direct thru Sevcom]
Lux Voltaire – Pilot In Hell [Clan Analogue]
Montano – Dollar Kilo [available from Bandcamp]
Montano – Billowing [available from Bandcamp]
Kate Carr – La piscine naturelle [Flaming Pines]
Shoeb Ahmad – falling fast [Mystery Plays Records]

Late start rainy night! Had the second of my gigs at the Rocks Popup and zoomed in, to start about 15-20 minutes late. Featuring the best in new electronic and folktronic sounds, and some epic heavy riffage near the start.
LISTEN AGAIN via the link at the bottom, podcast, or stream on demand from FBi.

Having gotten hold of another of his albums, Airs of the Ear, I thought I’d start once again with the amazing Richard Youngs. I think this might be one of his very best albums, and “Fire Horse Rising” is classic Youngs – traditional English-sounding song, but with psychedelic electric squiggles over its long tail end.

Next up, the awesomely intense live version of Swans‘ “Sex God Sex”, with the massive bassline, massive drums and intense Michael Gira vocal. This is from the tour that took them to Australia last year, now released on a stunning 2CD set called We Rose From Your Bed With The Sun In Our Head. The new studio album (also 2CD!) later this year can’t fail to be immense.

Speaking of immense, we now hear all 18 or so minutes of Jesu‘s “Sundown” from the Sundown/Sunrise EP, which I somehow missed in 2007. Heavy riffs and shoegazey vocals/electronics, as is his usual approach with Jesu. Just lovely.

I’ve been spruiking Shoeb Ahmad‘s new album for a few weeks now, and I’m not about to stop. It’s out Monday week, June 18th. Premier Aussie indietronica, indie, drone, well, whatever you want to call it, just great songs and textures, guitars with drum machines and crazy string samples and pianos and low-key vocals. Dig it.

Great to have a new release from Melbourne duo Peon. Two percussionists take up digital and analogue effects and synths along with their usual instruments, and this time they’re produced by the fabulous Lloyd Swanton, bass player in The Necks, who also joins them on the double bass for a couple of numbers. Released by Wood & Wire, the new label from Stu Buchanan/New Weird Australia. That man never rests, I tell ya.

Collarbones have a new single out in anticipation of their new album. Fuller bass — altogether pretty hefty production, and meanwhile Marcus’s vocals are getting more impassioned in their r’n’b influence.

Dubstep label 7even Recordings have a new EP from Russian producer Oceania, a warm pop approach, with vocals from someone credited as “N” on a couple of tracks. It’s a great listen from start to finish, definitely recommended.

Also in this sort-of Bass region of genres, we have Howse, on the fêted (see what I did there) Tri-Angle label with some very nice bass-friendly beats, and then we have RYAT, on Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder. Sadly even these days, female artists are few and far between in the electronic world, which is surely a reflection of the environment rather than the female artists themselves — in any case, this is an excellent album of wonky experimental electronic beats and processing. The second track I played is a beatless exploration of layered, eventually processed vocals.

Memory Drawings is the long-awaited new project from Richard Adams of Hood and The Declining Winter, along with hammered dulcimer player Joel Hanson and Declining Winter member Sarah Kemp on violin. Richard’s brother Chris aka Bracken contributes a remix, and leaves us desparate for more new material – hopefully a new album on Anticon later this year! And The Rachels’ Rachel Grimes contributes piano plus a remix as well, while fellow mellow post-classical folks Dakota Suite also appear on remix duties. A star-studded release with beautiful packaging from Second Language Music.

The strings remain with a couple of tracks courtesy of wonderful English duo Geese. One of their characteristic remixes to start with, of Plaid‘s collaboration with composer/pianist Will Dutta, and then a solo (I think unreleased) live piece. You can download the remix via the link in the playlist. Awesome string arrangements drawing from electronic music.

Then we go on to two fabulous artists on the Lost Tribe Sound label. Vieo Abiungo, who I did a fascinating interview with last year, has a new album out with a DVD by film-maker Pete Munro, which was funded by a Kickstarter campaign. And a limited-edition version of the Cock and Swan has equally lavish packaging, a gorgeous hardcover book with colour-printed artwork, fake-woodboard “wallpaper” and one of those rubbery buttons to plug the CD onto. The music’s equally brilliant — Vieo’s usual world-inspired percussion and acoustic instruments, unfettered melodies and all. And Cock and Swan apparently used to be a whole lot more electronic, but here turn to acoustic instruments, ramshackle percussion and homely vocals, recalling Broadcast but really all their own. I can’t recommend either of these albums enough.
And we also had our Melbourne friend and Lost Tribe Sound artist Part Timer on a minimal but crunchy remix tip.

Before one more appearance from Shoeb, we have a delightful track from the new EP by Kate Carr, head of the Flaming Pines label. It’s a homage to New Caledonia, and features burbling water presumably recorded on the island, along with subtle drones. She’s doing some amazing work with the label creating and curating site-specific sounds and musical performances meeting field recordings, and her own EP is a perfect example of that art.

Richard Youngs – Fire Horse Rising [Jagjaguwar]
Swans – Sex God Sex (live, 2011) [Young God]
Jesu – sundown [Aurora Borealis] {now available direct from Bandcamp}
Peon – Io (feat. Lloyd Swanton) [Wood & Wire]
Shoeb Ahmad – this is how you fall apart [Mystery Plays Records]
Collarbones – Missing [Two Bright Lakes]
Oceania feat. N – You Live In Me [7even Recordings]
Howse – Fete [Tri-Angle]
RYAT – Owl [Brainfeeder]
RYAT – Totem [Brainfeeder]
Howse – VBS [Tri-Angle]
Oceania – Mantra [7even Recordings]
Memory Drawings – The Canal’s Drowning Black (Bracken remix) [Second Language]
Memory Drawings and Rachel Grimes – The Canal’s Drowning Black [Second Language]
Memory Drawings – There Come Days to the Hills (Dakota Suite remix) [Second Language]
Plaid and Will Dutta – Distance (Geese remix) [Just Music] {free download from Soundcloud}
Geese – Spool (live) [unreleased?]
Cock and Swan – Stash (Part Timer remix) [Lost Tribe Sound]
Cock and Swan – Stash [Lost Tribe Sound]
vieo abiungo – while the others sleep (cock and swan – etherise remix) [Lost Tribe Sound]
Vieo Abiungo – rejoice the blind coincidence [Lost Tribe Sound]
Cock and Swan – Tectonic Plates [Lost Tribe Sound]
Kate Carr – La piscine naturelle [Flaming Pines]
Shoeb Ahmad – the orchids [Mystery Plays Records]

Listen again — ~ 142MB