OPM: More Mystery Less History

Ten and Tracer – Caramel Bother

A gorgeous and transporting set of woozy ambient psychedelia, perfect for getting lost in. Watery melodies stack over shifting harmonic structures, shepherded by subtle sound design and masterful production. An absolute minimum of rhythmic elements are present, yet the tracks always move forward toward some hazy conclusion. 

And yet, like a desert mirage, that destination always seems to flicker and disappear, right as you reach it, leaving you suspended in a liminal psychic space, searching the next track for resolution. The result is an album that seems to hold you in stasis while propelling you forward – a nice trick, for sure – thus keeping things fascinating throughout. Recommended.

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Tori Thom – Dissolves Corporeality

Folky electro-cabaret art pop with distinctive vocals and oddball arrangements. Loping, at times angular rhythms and up-close, almost uncomfortably intimate vocals swirl around each other and make unusual pop shapes. The sounds and instrumentation aren’t particularly wild – mostly standard instruments, and even the synth sounds are pretty classic – but they sure are deployed in some weird ways!

Intriguing stuff, and I’m told that the two songs currently on offer – the title track, and “Paper Doll” – are just the beginning of what’s to come, with more tracks to be added regularly until it’s a full album. 

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Passenger Pigeon – Another New Low

A fascinating and hypnotic set of looping, shifting, mutating multitracked/live-looped guitar compositions. A little too rhythmic and purposeful to be ambient, not brooding or crescendo-focused enough to be post rock, but certainly existing in a space adjacent to both. 

Some of these pieces wouldn’t sound out of place as interstitials between full-on rockers on a late-period Sonic Youth album; at other times I am reminded of early Feelies tunes. Regardless of points of reference, these pieces are smartly constructed, musically interesting, and sonically engaging. 

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C. Circo – “Summit” (2025 Mix)

High-energy hardcore techno that’s utterly relentless. From the moment it opens to the final climax, this is all one big build, starting intense and heading toward insane. Forget catching your breath, you better hope you can just stay on your feet! 

Percussion forward, as is necessary at these tempos to keep things discrete, with enough complementary synth work to keep it from being strictly a DJ tools record, this is one for when you need to push hard and aren’t necessarily afraid of breaking things. 

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Darkwolf – Selected Tracks

Raw, rough, and ready electro-industrial that occasionally dips into something like lo-fi post rock. It’s an interesting blend of genres, and along with some cool sound design it makes for some consistently intriguing pieces. 

That’s further aided by some unusual twists and turns in the composition – things do not always go where you’re expecting. It gives the proceedings just enough of an experimental edge to keep you on your toes, but never slips into navel-gazing extremes. Unique and worth a listen.

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