Tag Archives: baths

2014, EP, songs, Soundcloud

New Release: Baths – “Ocean Death”

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I’ve been a fan of Baths since the debut “Cerulean” was released in the summer of 2010. It didn’t really grab me at first, but I think that it really served as my gateway into electronic music in a lot of ways. I would always try to listen to Boards of Canada and Aphex Twin and other stuff and not really understand it, but when “Cerulean” came around it was really the first full album of electronic music that I could really connect with.

So, I think that, of course, there is some sort of sentimental value hearing this new track, but it’s pretty much undeniably good. “Ocean Death” is the name of the new EP that just came out last week, and is the name of the opening track, heard above. It’s darker in tone than anything on “Cerulean,” and pretty straight forward in comparison.

The opening track is pretty much a 3 part form with the outer parts taking the bulk of the track, and a brief contrasting middle section that drops everything only to build the structure back up again. The latter presentation of the original material features a bit of a development, which is probably a good thing because the first minute or so of the track has a tendency to feel like it is just sort of sitting there, and it just needs to move.

Nice thick bass timbres and a straightforward, moderate tempo dance beat accompany the opening of the song with a fairly static vocal that approaches from behind a perspective shifting harmonic progression. It’s pretty simple as far as songs go, but still effective in creating a darker mood, and captures the breathy, subtle scratchiness of some of the tracks on “Cerulean.”

Baths is currently on tour across the US. Check the tour dates below. “Ocean Death” is currently available as a download from iTunes.

North American Tour Dates w/ Young Fathers & P. Morris:

04/24/2014
The Space – Hamden, CT

04/25/2014
The Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY

04/27/2014
Port City Music Hall – Portland, ME

04/30/2014
Bones Gate Fraternity – Hanover, NH

05/01/2014
S.A.T – Montreal, CA

05/02/2014
Ritual – Ottawa, CA

05/03/2014
Horseshoe Tavern – Toronto, CA

05/04/2014
Magic Stick – Detroit, MI

05/05/2014
Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids, MI

05/08/2014
The Vogue – Indianapolis, IN

05/09/2014
Concord Music Hall – Chicago, IL

05/10/2014
Triple Rock Social Club – Minneapolis, MN

05/11/2014
The Aquarium – Fargo, ND

05/13/2014
The Starlite – Edmonton, CA

05/14/2014
Commonwealth Bar & Stage – Calgary, CA

05/15/2014
Fortune Sound Club – Vancouver, CA

05/16/2014
Neumo’s Crystal Ball – Seattle, WA

05/17/2014
Rotture – Portland, OR

05/18/2014
WOW Hall – Eugene, OR

05/21/2014
The Independent – San Francisco, CA

05/22/2014
Cellar Door – Visalia, CA

05/23/2014
Constellation Room – Santa Ana, CA

05/24/2014
Casbah – San Diego, CA

2014, albums, music, songs

New release: Illum Sphere – “Ghosts Of Then And Now”

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First of all Bleep’s website makes it ridiculously difficult to listen to anything at all. You can listen to each track in pieces because after the 30 second sample is up you have to slide the player over to the next 30 seconds etc. etc. I mean, I can understand why they do it, but I would be happier being able to hear one entire song than having to mess with the player to hear detached pieces of a track.

Thankfully Ninja Tune, the label that released “Ghosts of Then and Now,” was kind enough to upload some of the tracks to Youtube.

Anyway, the reason that I head over to Bleep regularly is, well they send me their newsletter, and I’ve been listening to a lot of Autechre lately and it has given way to a new fascination with electronic music and it’s where you can get Autechre’s albums. So, I’ve been looking for similar artists to broaden my horizons.

Listening to Illum Sphere (as much as I can anyway), with the ultra thick bass and synth that buzzes through most of the tracks, it reminded me in some ways to Baths’ “Cerulean” album from a few years back.  But there’s also hints at proto-IDM like Kraftwere, which I hear heaps of in “Sleeprunner.” The kraut-rock, motorik sound has an undeniable influence throughout the track with its heavily cyclical and repetitive synth line, though it  takes a gradual turn toward the end.

The album has been out for a few weeks now, and it’s a really interesting listen, worth checking out. From the motorik synths of “Sleeprunner” to the Wurlitzer sound of the titular track, there is a lot to grab onto. I wouldn’t quite say that it’s similar to Boards of Canada, but it’s definitely closer to their output than it is to anything Autechre has done. Check out “Sleeprunner” (above) and “Ghosts of Then and Now.” (below) The album can be ordered from Bleep on CD, 2xLP, or various downloads, as well as on iTunes. And if you head to Bleep, you too can have fun trying to use the audio player. Hours of enjoyment. Test your skill.