OPM: Pop Goes the Weirdo

Jay Tholen – New Active Object

A wild ride thru indie pop, Plunderphonics, jazz and outsider art, via the medium of an ancient sample set from forgotten game-creation software. Crafted primarily from samples extracted from obscure ‘90s-era games-making programs, with some live instrumentation added to flesh things out, the end results are bizarre and bewildering, in a very enticing way. 

Samples are chopped, mangled, spliced and stuttered across these tracks, usually creating the skeleton of the tune but occasionally pulling back to act as a decorative element. Indie pop friendly vocals (a little like Grandaddy, maybe a touch of Panda Bear) top the songs off, and there’s a whole conceptual theme, steeped in those samples’ origin point, that ties it all together. And if the vocals don’t click? No sweat, there are instrumental versions of all the songs as well. (You can also find this artist’s music at his website, JayTholen.net)

(Listened to the entire album)

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RX1F – “Arctic Circle”

Heartfelt, emotive electronic pop song with tight production and an inviting sound. This definitely isn’t following any modern trend or style in pop, but it’s not terribly retro either – it’s synth pop, and it’s well connected to that style’s rich and varied history, but it’s not trying to ape anyone or recreate the past. 

It feels steeped in a dance music tradition – elements of it seem to come from trance and dubstep, tho it has little in common with either – but it isn’t dance music itself. M83 or Empire of the Sun might be comparable acts, but again, don’t go in thinking it sounds like those so much as it shares a similar possibility space. Style aside, it’s a sexy, slinky little tune that’s easy to like.

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pyramid observer – midnight library

A gentle, dreamlike set of ambient vapor and subdued, melancholic soundscapes. It’s lo-fi, fuzzy and communicates the character of a late-night public-access show on a channel that barely comes in, but as music. The sound sources are hard to pin down – are those guitars (and if so does that make this shoegaze)?

Was that electric piano under that fizz of distortion and reverb? Is this warped timbre a voice of some kind? The whole effect is deliciously disorienting, reminiscent of the unsettling hypnagogic state right before you sleep or wake. This isn’t just mood music; it’s mood-altering music. Use responsibly.

(Listened to the entire album)

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RYA! – “Cursing Creek”

An absolute journey of a track that starts off with some banjo-led folk and makes its way thru jazz, prog and more before it’s all over. Split into four seamless movements, each with its own character, it’s almost a mini EP crammed into one 8 minute tune. Led by acoustic instrumentation with a bit of synth here and there to sweeten things up (and help push into the jazz/prog sections) and, as far as I can tell, played live, the performances and production are both immaculate. 

For me, the third movement, “Dance of the Sucker Blood Fairy,” is the best, with its layers of jazz, funk and prog elements all twisted together in a beautiful tapestry of harmony, rhythm, melody and vibe. That said, there’s not a dull moment to be found anwyhere, so jump in and enjoy.

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Umbranaut – Soul

A moody, atmospheric dive into a deep, stripped down cousin to classic kosmiche. Compared to those classic records, the music here is more propulsive, not as lush, and somehow truer to the cold emptiness of actual space. 

Each track is an exercise in showing exactly how less is more – a few percussion sounds make up the beat; that plus a few washes of synth and a couple of repeating motifs are all you get in most of these. And somehow, that’s enough.

(Listened to the entire album)

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Need a little more music? I’ve just released my new album, The Mechanics of Mysticism, and I’d appreciate it if you took a minute to check it out! It’s my finest work to date and a true representation of my aesthetics and capabilities as a musician. Plus, it’s real weird, just trippy as hell. I hope you like it.