Love Tempo #12
Hello! I’m Rory O’Callaghan, and welcome to Love Tempo, a monthly newsletter that collects my thoughts and findings from the world of independent and electronic music. If you enjoy what you find, please consider subscribing by using the button below.
Hot Off The Press
Five new releases you should wrap your ears around this month…
Back in the 1970’s, it wasn’t uncommon for an unsigned musician to pay for the pressing of a promotional single themselves. These so called ‘private presses’ were essentially their musical business cards—handed out to local radio DJs, A&R men or even just friends and relatives of the artist. Often appearing on 45 and in typically limited numbers, many never made it far from the pressing plant and thus ended up discarded, chucked into dollar bins or hoarded by specialist collectors.
In recent years, private presses have become the focus of increased archival work by reissue labels looking to re-contextualise lost gems, usually in the form of a compilation. Forager Records’ debut Belong to the Wind does exactly this, presenting ten cuts of dusty loner-folk from scarcely known artists across the US. The collection actually landed in early May, but I found it a few weeks ago and was instantly charmed by it’s jangly, psychedelic sound. The production value of these songs is quite varied: from grainy DIY takes to fuller, more polished recordings. Yet taken as a whole, the compilation has a transportive quality: conjuring images of nomadic song-peddlers, dingy liquor holes and the vast emptiness of the American West.
Extra Soul Perception is a London-based record label and collective which aims to connect independent, soul-minded artists operating in the UK and abroad. Last year they released New Tangents In Kampala, London & Nairobi Vol. 1—a collaborative EP that featured a standout track from promising newcomer Lynda Dawn. ‘Roses’ has now received a standalone 7” release, backed by a remix from LA producer XL Middleton.
With an unmistakably retro feel, it’s boogie of the wooziest kind. A dry snare keeps time, but otherwise this gooey track is in no hurry to move along. It’s lethargic tempo allows Dawn to croon sensuously, asking sweet questions of an unnamed lover. Airy and tactile, her vocals are deftly multi-tracked, swirling over a synthesised bassline that sounds like it’s been dipped in treacle. On the flip, XL Middleton’s remix adds some welcome bounce, the addition of whining G-funk leads giving his version a distinctly West Coast flavour.
Murlo is a producer and visual artist based in Manchester. He’s been active for around a decade now, first making a splash with colourful dance tracks that hovered somewhere between UK funky, bashment and instrumental grime. In recent years, his output has become increasingly conceptual, culminating in 2019’s Dolos—a sprawling project that included an album, short film and 36-page graphic novel.
Unearth is Murlo’s first release in nearly a year, arriving as a three-track EP alongside a series of beautifully rendered animations. These visuals depict a dystopian forest colony, populated by ‘luddities’ who forage for cordyceps—a rare fungus that grows on the back of insects. When I first saw the artwork, I was immediately reminded of video-games, of which Murlo is noted fan. The music here would seem to reflect this too, exhibiting the same same abrupt changes and saccharine melodies that characterise the soundtracks of classic RPGs.
‘Wasp’ and ‘Spider’ zig-zag with frantic energy, but the EP’s strongest track is also its most serene. ‘Grasshopper’ opens the record on a dreamy plane of quivering strings and airy flute, amongst which a soft bassline plods cautiously. After minute or so, a sudden cymbal crash breaks the surface, signalling a chorus of ethereal vocals to flood the mix. It’s a strange and inviting moment, like opening a trapdoor to another realm.
Marking her first solo release of the year, the producer and modular synthesist JakoJako returns to the Berghain-affiliated imprint Leisure System. Primarily concerning herself with the relationship between colour and sound (specifically, the push and pull between light and dark) she presents four cuts of expressive, experimental electronics.
Opening the record, ‘Vivardis’ is a particularly luminous slice of techno. It rides a squiggly acid line over the course of six minutes, twisting and contorting into a series of neon shapes. ‘Eos’ and the beautifully sombre ‘Sublividus’ follow in a more relaxed fashion, their milder temperaments allowing the producer’s fluid synth work to come to the fore.
‘Ochros’, the record’s quietest and prettiest track, is reserved for last. Here, JakoJako allows a single melody to scale gently up and down, its notes flickering like fireflies in the darkness. Speaking earlier this year, she revealed “I have musical dreams, where I hear the most beautiful melodies my brain can imagine”. On Lux, these dreams come to life.
With its atmospheric sensibility, the work of Manchester’s experimental duo Celestial resembles ambient music: It’s soothing, largely uneventful and able to convey emotion in similarly broad strokes. But where ambient music tends to drift by amorphously, the pair’s spellbinding debut provides a little more to latch onto.
Largely, this is down to a delicate acoustic guitar, which leads throughout this six-track set. The instrument is most impactful on “Cinnamon Snowflake” where its notes are drenched in reverb and then left unaccompanied, echoing out into the ether. Elsewhere, the guitar plays duet with a series of gliding synthesisers, finally yielding to them on the quietly foreboding ‘At The River’s Edge’.
In an apparent stylistic choice, Celestial decided to record onto reels of tape, opting against the digital clarity afforded by more modern techniques. Consequently, the telltale hiss of their chosen medium can be heard faintly in the background. It gives these songs a coating of nostalgic dust, like a box of childhood memories left in the attic, slowly fading over time.
Live Report: Peach b2b Shanti Celeste
With the lifting of lockdown restrictions, July saw the widespread return of concerts, clubs and festivals across the country. This month’s Live Report will be the first of a new, semi-regular feature for Love Tempo, where I’ll be reviewing these events moving forward. First up…
Signal is a club hidden beneath Holland Street in Sheffield’s busy city centre. Able to cram about three hundred people into its long, rectangular basement, it’s one of the city’s newest venues—opening its doors less than two months prior to the first lockdown. A few weeks ago, I was there to catch an all night session from Shanti Celeste and Peach on the first Friday following the relaxing of most lockdown restrictions across the UK.
Unlike some venues, Signal had chosen not to enforce a “negative test for entry” policy, instead encouraging the event’s attendees to test ahead via their social media platforms. Even so, I couldn’t help feeling a little apprehensive as I descended its winding staircase not long after doors opened. As a steady stream of party-goers trickled into the basement, I sensed I wasn’t alone—a palpable mix of nerves and excitement filled the room as people tentatively became reacquainted with their first club environment in sixteen long months.
Perhaps anticipating this, Shanti and Peach opted against any sort of slow build. Playing one track in turn, the two DJs (who are good friends and regular parters behind the decks) set the tone from the off with some punchy four-to-the-floor fare. Continuing in this vein for much of the next three hours, they bounced giddily inside the raised booth, laying down tracky but classy house and techno interrupted with the occasional left turn. The vocoder-tinged italo of Nostromo Dept’s ‘Evolution’ was a highlight early on, as was Floating Points’ ‘Coorabell’, its sparkling arpeggios providing a welcome moment of reprieve amongst an onslaught of pummelling kick drums.
Things began to loosen up around 3AM, by which point the party was in full swing. Although the club was only about two thirds full, any previous reservations the dance-floor possessed had seemingly evaporated—now a sloppy, thronged mass of convulsing bodies. In a nod to Sheffield's bassline heritage, Shanti dropped T2’s enduring classic ‘Heartbroken’ to a rapturous reception from the crowd. When she pulled it up for the inevitable rewind, I looked around to a sea of faces grinning from ear-to-ear. It felt like a watershed moment. As I wandered out into the early morning gloom, I couldn’t help but re-live it, warmed by a realisation that clubbing was back—hopefully for good.
That’s all for this edition of Love Tempo, thanks for taking the time.
As always, a Spotify playlist featuring a selection of the music featured in this issue can be found here. A handy list of purchase links can be also found in this month’s Buy Music Club rundown.
Please feel free to get in touch via lovetemponews@gmail.com.
If you haven’t already, you can subscribe to the newsletter via the button below…
Catch you next time!
Rory