UFO – UFO 2: Flying – One Hour Space Rock

Yo dudes. So I know this post might be going a bit out of the loop of where we’ve been lately, but I just can’t stop listening to this stuff in the car (oh yeah – I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned this here – if you haven’t noticed, I get most of my listening done while driving around town delivering pizza in my lovely car). This album is by a band called UFO from England, and they’re actually still active today. I think I first came across this stuff in my Facebook news feed one day when a guy from the Tequila Sunrise record store in Philadelphia was posting videos to their music. This looks like it was their second full-length album, and it came out back in 1971 (the same year as my favorite Pink Floyd album “Meddle”. Hopefully I get around to posting that up here some day). This just goes to show all the great psychedelic records that were coming out around that time period, and this album goes a hell of a long way to prove that statement.

This LP is five tracks long, with the final track “Flying” nearly reaching a half-hour in length. Altogether the album clocks in at just about an hours worth of time, as promised by the title. They also promise space rock, and they’re certainly not joking around. This album is psychedelic-space rock at it’s finest, coming from possibly the best time period for this style of music, so if you haven’t heard any of this stuff yet, stick around and listen to the songs at the end of the post. Unfortunately for us, there seems to be absolutely no chance of us snagging this LP for ourselves without spending a nice chunk of money, but hey, I’m sure it would be worth it. If I ever come across one you can be sure I’m going to buy it. I think it’s time you stop listening to me – check out these invigorating, electrified, guitar heavy jams right below. Try starting with “Silver Bird”. Shortly after you’ll fall in love.

Silver Bird –

Prince Kajuku –

My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Space Rock, Alternative
UFO 2: Flying – One Hour Space Rock: Tracklist:
1.) Silver Bird
2.) Star Storm
3.) Prince Kajuku
4.) The Coming of Prince Kajuku
5.) Flying

UFO on Wikipedia
Definitely can’t buy this one, long OOP – yr best bet is eBay
Find more info. on this record right here – I ❤ Discogs.

Woven Bones – I’ve Gotta Get 7″

Got something today that I feel like some of you may already be familiar with. Their name would be WOVEN BONES, hailing from the seemingly endless population of bands coming from Austin, Texas, and I’ve got their brand new 7″ from Hardly Art to share today.

But hold on, if you haven’t heard of Woven Bones just yet, let me give you a quick fill-in. Since their inception (not sure when that was, sometime in 2007?) these guys have had quite a nice handful of different releases from different labels, even splitting their debut 7″ record with our friends the Jacuzzi Boys. Alongside of that one they’ve had another single from Needle Recs, two other 7-inchers from HoZac and Sweet Rot, an EP from Zoo Music, and last but certainly not least would be their full-length LP, also coming from the HoZac imprint. So hopefully you’re all caught up now on Woven Bones. I also didn’t realize that these guys already had a full-length out there…this sounds like it’s a MUST have. Will check it out.

Now that you’re up to speed on the Woven Bones, let’s talk about their new 7″. It comes from the Hardly Art label (who I have been giving quite a lot of love lately…stay tuned on that) and it comes pressed in an edition of 1,000 copies, with 500 on translucent red wax and the remaining 500 on black wax. In the description on the band’s Hardly Art page, they give us some exciting news that they will be releasing a full-length LP with Hardly Art sometime in 2011. Definitely would be lying if I said I wasn’t psyched for that one. It’ll come soon enough, and hopefully it’s jam-packed with these raunchy, murky sounding tracks that this 7″ has to offer.

A-side “I’ve Gotta Get” features an infectious, ground-shaking guitar riff that’s bound to wrench your soul, and if this one doesn’t keep you coming back for multiple listens, maybe you’re checking the wrong blog. These guys do the whole garage/noise/psych rock thing quite well, and it shows with this song. Flip on over to the B-side for a more poppy sounding track that’s still buried under layers and layers of dirt and trash that you gotta find your way through before it all makes sense. There’s a nasty guitar solo worked into the noisy-psych-pop mix about halfway through the song, so please check out the two songs from the 7″ below. Trust me when I say you’ll be reeeeally glad you did.

PS – Don’t forget to follow me on my new Twitter and Tumblr accounts!!

I’ve Gotta Get –

Hey Kid –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Garage Rock, Noise, Psychedelic
I’ve Gotta Get 7″: Tracklist:
1.) I’ve Gotta Get
2.) Hey Kid

BUY the 7″ from Insound – Only 1,000 pressed!
BUY all other Woven Bones releases that Insound has to offer!
Woven Bones – Official Website
Woven Bones on Myspace
Woven Bones on Facebook

Weed – DC Hope EP

I was surfing around the web yesterday to find something new to post up, and I came across something that’s slightly different from everything else we’ve been listening to lately. It came from one of my favorite blogs Shoegazer Alive, and I think what originally caught my eye was that retro looking artwork you can see to the left, not to mention the name of the band – WEED. Yeah, Weed, but you could also call him Willy “Flip” Anderson, who happens to be main man behind the music. This is his first official release, and also the first release from the label putting it out, Moongadget.

Mr. Anderson creates these severely bent, lo-fi “bedrock” jams that are increasingly fuzzy and mangled, and each one brings you to a place on a hazy Summer afternoon where there wasn’t much else to do but hang out in your bedroom and make some music. Parts of the songs sound electronic, while other parts sound more instrumental, but either way there are definitely some nods to the chillwave sound (like the trippy track “Run to Cranes”) that’s been storming the web. While this stuff does chillwave justice, I still hope in the long run that the fad is starting to die down a bit, because it’s beginning to show up everywhere. Like my G-mail inbox.

I have two songs to share with you guys from the EP – the loose, easy going, bass-bumping jam “W.G.A.” and the twisted, gritty lo-fi madness of “Might as Well” which has enough fuzz to make your head explode, but at the same time it’s bound to make you smile. One last thing: this stuff WILL grow on you. But that’s all for today! Lots of new stuff coming in lately…stay tuned…

Might as Well –

W.G.A. –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Electronic, Psychedelic
DC Hope EP: Tracklist:
1.) Quilt
2.) Might as Well
3.) Cody Girl
4.) Run to Cranes
5.) W.G.A.

Weed on Myspace
BUY the EP on cassette – a limited edition of 50!
Weed – Moongadget Artist Page

Son Drop – Deep in the Underbark

Yo guys. I’m really stoked on this album we have today – it’s called “Deep in the Underbark” by SON DROP. Son Drop is the moniker of James Duke, the mastermind behind the music, but he employs a band to play with him for live shows. This appears to be the first Son Drop release out there, and its packed to the brim with folky-pop jams with a sound that’s bound to remind you of a breezy, sunny Spring season without a cloud in the sky and a worry in the world. There’s also a bit of a psychedelic tinge worked in to the sound, but no matter what these songs would go great while driving to the beach with your windows down and the wind blowing all around you. Sometimes they remind me of Alex Bleeker & the Freaks, but that’s basically their sound in a nutshell. Breezy, sunny and Spring time – I think you get the idea.

One song that falls more into the psychedelic boat would probably be “The Sails Will Fill Out”. About halfway through the song just pops off into a sudden guitar solo, and Duke tears it up and melts our faces with a hell of a lick that continues on until the end of the song. Powerful stuff right there. Later into the album comes another one that leans a bit more towards the psychedelic side, and it’s called “Crystal Ball”. Duke again wows us with some magnificent lead guitar work that’s sure to force you to play this song at least one more time, and there’s even some brass worked in at the end of the song which adds a nice touch. But these aren’t the only kinds of songs you’re going to come across.

For example, “Fields of Corn” sounds nothing like the ones I just mentioned, and if there’s any song that’s going to feel the Spring season, it’s probably this one. I’m not sure if that’s a flute or what you can hear in there, but it really helps get that feeling across. If you like that one you’ll probably like the song “Molasses” too, but seriously, all of this stuff is great and just highly enjoyable (Way Up, Romulus is An Owl). Anything that can bring you back to Spring time get’s an thumbs up in my book. Do yourself a favor and listen below! You can even download the whole album!

Molasses –

Crystal Ball –

Way Up –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Pop, Folk Rock
Deep in the Underbark: Tracklist:
1.) Fields of Corn
2.) Salt Trucks
3.) Sunshine
4.) Go Leafs Go!
5.) Molasses
6.) The Sails Will Fill Out
7.) Shotgun Shell
8.) Way Up
9.) Rimulus Is an Owl
10.) Crystall Ball
11.) A Lamp in the Window

DOWNLOAD the album right here completely for free!!
Son Drop on Myspace
Son Drop on Last.fm

JEFF the Brotherhood – Mellow Out 7″

YO. I hate when this happens, man. I’m late to the game once again on another awesome band, and this time I really feel like I’ve been missing out. After listening to this 7″ all I could think about was what their full-length “Heavy Days” sounds like. And by now you’ve probably already figured out that today’s band is JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD. But if “Heavy Days” is anything like this 7″, then I’m gonna be alllllll over that stuff as soon as I get my hands on it.

So this 7″ was put out by Suicide Squeeze Records in a hand-numbered edition of 750, and if it’s anything like other JEFF releases, this thing is bound to sell out. The coolest part is that 250 of them were pressed on glow in the dark vinyl, just in case you’re ever in the mood to spin your records in the dark…but moving on.

This gem features two JEFF songs, one of them being brand new and the other coming from their LP “Heavy Days”. The new song is called “Mellow Out”, and it’s absolutely fantastic. Jake Orrall sings about keeping his records on a shelf because he cares about his health, but I can’t seem to find a connection between records on shelves and the well-being of a person. Either way this song is going to reel you in pretty quickly with it’s invigorating, electrified guitar psych-outs that pop up in the little breaks and the careful, frantic drumming of brother Jamin Orrall. The two complement each other almost perfectly in the music, playing together at the right speeds and switching things up at the proper moments. That brotherly chemistry is definitely noticeable in their sound, as these guys both know how to hit that mark. Check out “Mellow Out” right below – you’ll be glad you did.

Mellow Out –

My Rating: 9/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Grunge, Punk
Mellow Out 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Mellow Out
2.) Heavy Days

BUY the 7″ @ Insound! – It’s only $4.40!
JEFF the Brotherhood on Myspace

No Joy – No Summer 7″

I was having a difficult time finding any solid information on this band, but then I found this, which gives us a little more insight than we had before. According to Best Coast it’s two hot blonde girls just shredding away, and it sounds pretty accurate going by the music – the only problem is we don’t know who the girls are. But what we do know is that this is their first 7″ record, and it’s unexpectedly awesome.

The 7″ begins on a song called “No Summer”, and if you ask me that’s quite a depressing name for a song, because everybody deserves a summer. Heavy, atmospheric guitars rule the mix as one of the “hot blondes” sings amongst the swirling, moody haze, and they’re led by an energetic drummer who changes up the beat to keep things moving right along. Flipping over to the B-side gets you into another mess of heavy guitar and crashing drums. It’s called “No Joy”, and the scuzzy guitars that introduce it continue to grow and grow, giving this song a huge, ever-growing sound that doesn’t stop until the song finally comes to an end. The drums follow along in the madness and destroy everything in their path while anybody who is watching is sure to have their jaw drop. The song changes pace about halfway through, but they don’t lose that momentum for a second.

That’s all the music from the 7″, and unfortunately for us I don’t know of any other No Joy songs besides these two. But either way, lets hope that these shreddin’ hot blondes continue to serve up their raw, high-energy, face-melting psych rock until we can’t handle it any longer – although I don’t think that’s going to happen. They’ve got some shows coming up in Brooklyn according to their Myspace, and I’m telling you this because they seem like one of those bands you have to experience in a live setting.

No Joy –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Post-Punk, Dream Pop, Ethereal
No Summer 7″: Tracklist:
1.) No Summer
2.) No Joy

You can buy the 7″ @ Insound! – It’s only $4.77!
No Joy on Myspace
Listen to the 7″ on the No Joy Bandcamp page

Son of Rams – Untitled LP

A little over a month ago a brand new band began making waves and hitting everybody’s inbox with words about their debut 7″. You might remember them as Family Trees.

There’s a dude who makes up 1/3 of Family Trees, and his name is Joseph Pruitt. Believe it or not, Mr. Pruitt has a solo-project when he’s not concentrating on Family Trees, and the name of the band is SON OF RAMS. He’s pretty much the only member of the band, taking the position on just about every instrument you can hear in the music. And if you’re expecting this to be somewhere in the same vein as Family Trees, then you’re sadly mistaken! He ditches that lazy, summery sound you hear in Family Trees and goes with his own blend of intoxicating guitar-driven weirdo-psych-rock that’s just fantastic. Each song features Pruitt shrieking and carrying on at excessive volumes, along side of some nasty lead-guitar work. No exaggeration either – just about every last song has a bad ass lead guitar hook (In Kind, This Wisdom, No Concept/No Logic, Spanish Mansions, The Veteran: James Page, Flying Tigers) or some crazy ass chicken-scratch solo (A Second Season, Ancients), and that’s about all it takes to get you to play the songs over and over again.

Since you guys have the ability to stream each song from the album (you can even download it all at once), I’m not going to go too in depth with any descriptions. Instead I’ll just say that the sooner you guys get into this stuff, the quicker you’ll be becoming addicted to all the unpredictable guitar madness that’s waiting for you around every corner of the album. If you don’t want to waste time downloading anything, just check out the few songs I’ve uploaded below. I’d recommend starting with “In Kind”. It’s a welcoming start to the album, as it almost comes off as a type of anthem when the lead guitar comes in during the second half.

In Kind –

No Concept/ No Logic –

Ancients –

Flying Tigers –

My Rating: 8/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Psychedelic, Rock, Experimental
Untitled LP: Tracklist:
1.) In Kind
2.) This Wisdom
3.) No Concept/ No Logic
4.) A Second Season
5.) Ancients
6.) Spanish Mansions
7.) 7th Wonder
8.) The Veteran: James Page
9.) Flying Tigers
10.) Masters
11.) Claude Monet

DOWNLOAD the Untitled LP for FREE!!!
Stream/Download each song from the LP right here!
Son of Rams on Last.fm

Pure Ecstasy/ Sleep ∞ Over – Split 7″

By now I feel like most of you guys are already familiar with PURE ECSTASY. We’ve covered a handful of their 7″ records, and I’ve got another one here for you guys today. The only difference from the other two would be that this one is split with another band called SLEEP ∞ OVER. Sleep Over is a fairly new band led by Stefanie Franciotti, and some of you are probably already familiar with her. She’s the singer in her other band called the Silver Pines, and now she’s got a new band to share with the world. This appears to be the first Sleep Over release to be put out on vinyl, so if you’re interested you can buy a copy of it from Light Lodge.

The 7″ features one brand new song from each band, with one song on each side of the record. It’s starts off on the A-side with a track called “Dream Over” from Pure Ecstasy, and if you’ve already listened to Pure Ecstasy before this, then you’re going to be pretty psyched. Immediately from the start you’re thrown in the middle of familiar Pure Ecstasy territory, and Nate Grace is right there to greet us with his breezy vocals. He howls and woo’s over the grainy guitars throughout the song while lazy drums and buzzy bass lines hold down the slow rhythm – the perfect formula for a Pure Ecstasy song.

Now it’s time to flip over to the B-side, which is a song called “Your World is Night” by Sleep Over, and it’s a bit different from what we just heard. For the entire length of the song, these trippy, head spinning sound effects dominate everything, giving this song the feeling that you’re stuck in an endless dreamy-daze. Lots of echoing and obscure sounds, but I definitely think this stuff takes some getting used too. Chances are this song will have to grow on you a bit before you decide if you like it or not. With that being said, this stuff is also a bit far off from the Silver Pines, but that doesn’t mean you won’t like it!

My Rating: 7/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Dream Pop, Psychedelic, Witch House
Split 7″: Tracklist:
1.) Dream Over
2.) Your World is Night

Dream Over –

Your World is Night –

BUY the 7″ directly from Light Lodge
You can buy the sold out Voices 7″ too – Get it at insound!
Pure Ecstasy on Myspace
Sleep ∞ Over on Myspace
Check out other stuff from Pure Ecstasy – Easy 7″ – Voices 7″
Check out the Silver Pines while you’re at it too

Spiritualized – Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space

Back in May I was browsing around the internet to snag up some new vinyl, and in the process I came across this fantastic website based out of California. It’s called Aural Exploits, and they’ve got a TON of music you can buy, and they’ll ship it all directly to your front door. Well it just so happened that when I was surfing their store back in May, they were accepting pre-orders for the reissue of the timeless epic “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space” by Spiritualized on vinyl – on beautiful, 180 gram vinyl to be exact. So obviously I wasn’t about to pass this opportunity up – a chance to own such a fantastic album on two pieces of gorgeous vinyl is basically why I wake up in the morning. So almost two months went by (because the label had to delay the records) before it received it in the mail, but it just came in this past Tuesday and I couldn’t have been more psyched. I realize that there isn’t much left to say about an album of this caliber, or about an album that came out over 10 years ago, but I certainly think this record deserves a spot here on the Styrofoam Drone, let alone all your record shelves and CD players. Ladies and gentlemen, let’s get floating…in space.

There’s a sticker that came on the front of the vinyl, and it reads “A psychedelic gospel album full of confessional songs about heartbreak and drug abuse; a flat out masterpiece” – I don’t think I could have described the record any better myself, but I’m still going to give it a shot. Here we go: It all begins with the self-titled song, and it’s basically like an introduction for the entire album. Of course this marks the start of the record, but if you’re asking me, things don’t really kick off until track two, “Come Together”. With the quick roll of the tom-tom and a quivering sound effect, “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space” takes off, and there’s really no looking back after that. And it really does sound like a “take off” type of start, ya know? Suddenly you’re thrown into the world of Jason Pierce, and it doesn’t let up for 70 minutes until the jazzy/crazy epic final track “Cop Shot Cop…”.

While listening, you’ll come across endless highlights and just about every traditional instrument music has to offer. Some tracks that definitely stand out would be “I Think I’m in Love” with Pierces question and answer vocals, and “Electricity” with it’s ability to pulse through your veins and make you drive crazy-fast if you’re listening in a car. The song turns into this huge wall of sound by the time you reach the end, and chances are you’re going to want to play it over and over again. Then there’s other tracks that are noisy, instrumentals that are sure to make your head spin – like “The Individual” which is totally dominated by brass instruments, or “No God Only Religion”, which is just a sprawling mess. You even get tracks that could bring a small tear to your eye, like the moving “Broken Heart”. But no matter what you’re into or what you like to hear, chances are Jason Pierce did it somewhere on this record, which is why this slab of wax has been praised for so many years since it’s initial release back in 1997. I’m going to leave you guys with two songs from the record, and if you’ve never heard anything from Spiritualized yet, I suggest you make that your goal for today.

Come Together –

Electricity –

My Rating: 10/10
Genre/ Tags: Psychedelic, Space Rock, Shoegaze
Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space: Tracklist:
1.) Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space
2.) Come Together
3.) I Think I’m in Love
4.) All of My Thoughts
5.) Stay With Me
6.) Electricity
7.) Home of the Brave
8.) The Individual
9.) Broken Heart
10.) No God Only Religion
11.) Cool Waves
12.) Cop Shoot Cop…

Spiritualized – Official Website!
Spiritualized on Myspace!
BUY the album from Aural Exploits – It’s on back order now…

Dead Luke – American Haircut

Hey guys. So as some of you may know, last week was definitely a Jacuzzi Boys kind of week. When it was all said and done, I went over to Florida’s Dying to pick up their wonderful “No Seasons” LP. In doing so, I came across something else that they have that I thought I’d like to give a listen. The name of the band is DEAD LUKE, and the release I’m speaking of is called “American Haircut”. They have the LP for a ridiculously cheap price of $10 over at Florida’s Dying, and I think what sealed the deal for me was the awesome little description of the record – “No sun in these parts, just dead vegetation and an iced over ground where a ghostly voice repeats over and over ‘You know you’re bringing me down.'” After reading a description like that, I was beyond curious what Dead Luke was all about, so here I am today.

“American Haircut” definitely isn’t your normal batch of songs, but that’s probably why you went out of your way to check this dude out, right? Most of the time on the record, you’ll find yourself immersed in these dark, ambient tracks with endless layers of reverb, and at times it almost feels like you’re listening to the music from an underwater point-of-view (or in this case, point-of-listening), and at times it can be quite haunting – for example, the song “Sunrise”. But don’t get me wrong, not every song is creepy or haunting like that. There’s a bunch of other songs from the record with a much more inviting sound, such as “God Bless the Midwest, God Roast the East”, or “Lil’ Red Riding Hood”, which could probably be the most accessible song from the album. Except for “Trapped in Lust”, “Lil’ Red Riding Hood” might be the only track with a noticeable acoustic guitar right from the get-go. And it’s also got a broken keyboard solo throughout the song that’s pretty sweet.

One highlight from “American Haircut” would have to be track two, titled “Dreaming Pt. 3”. The song starts out with these dizzying sound effects, and then moments later everything else joins in. The simple, buzzy bass line guides you through the song and keeps everything running smoothly while all sorts of crazy shit takes place – howling vocals, heavy guitars, pretty much anything you think you hear. As you listen you’ll notice the song gets extremely intense as it builds up into more and more with every passing second – just hang in there. Up next would be track three, “Luke is Not Dead”, and it’s immediately different from the last song. This one gets its point across much quicker as the song starts up right away, and then all the sudden things change up during the second minute, and you’re left with just a woozy sounding acoustic guitar. Definitely didn’t see that coming. Another track from the record that’s certainly worth your time is the final track, “The Best Drug I’ve Ever Done.” And what a perfect name for a song that sounds like it does! This is yet another ridiculously drowned out tune, but it’s got a somewhat inviting sound once you get into it. Little bursts of reverb come out throughout the song, and it’s just a deliciously awesome mess of darkness and noise that’s bound to make your head spin. I think that’s all for today guys, but please check out these few songs below – you won’t be sorry!

Dreaming Pt. 3 –

Lil’ Red Riding Hood –

The Best Drug I’ve Ever Done –

My Rating: 7.5/10
Genre/ Tags: Lo-Fi, Slowcore, Psychedelic, Noise Rock
American Haircut: Tracklist:
1.) Trapped in Lust
2.) Dreaming Pt. 3
3.) Luke is Not Dead
4.) Sunrise
5.) You’re Bringing Me Down
6.) God Bless the Midwest, God Roast the East
7.) Acid Forest
8.) Lil’ Red Riding Hood
9.) The Best Drug I’ve Ever Done

Dead Luke on Myspace – Not much to see…
BUY “American Haircut” directly from Florida’s Dying
BUY all available Dead Luke releases here at Insound
Dead Luke discography list from Discogs.com