corsican paintbrush - under bent limbs - digitalis - cd -12$

Tulsa, Oklahoma is probably one place you would not expect to find a bouzouki or a person who can play one. But thankfully for the spirit of international culture, husband and wife team Brad and Eden Rose live in that very city. They make music under many names (most notably the North Sea but also Wax Ghost, Golden Oaks, and Agilvsga), and with many friends (from Michael Donnelly of Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood to Robert Horton (as Eastern Fox Squirrels)), but Corsican Paintbrush is purely their creation, their musical offspring. Combining lush instrumentation with clattering percussion and ramshackle beats, Corsican Paintbrush creates a new world of sound out of old world technology.

Fresh from a sold-out lathe-cut record split with Italy's prolific space-artists My Cat is An Alien, and following up two beautiful CD-r releases on Foxglove and Musicyourmindwillloveyou, Corsican Paintbrush has focused their considerable talents and energies into a "proper" CD release.

Swerving feverishly between what could easily be chopped up Native American rhythms, sampled Celtic melodies, and space-age funk played on trash heaps, the music of Corsican Paintbrush is actually all of this and none of it. "Aquarian Hymns" is nine tracks of gorgeously recorded acoustic grace; marked with periodic bursts of lysergic freak-outs, from the sharpened slide guitar strings and tired voice of "Break Through These Branches" to the heavy accordion and woodwind drones of the closing track "Aquarius". The true masterpiece of the release is the expansive and slow-developing "Carbon Revival", taking its sweet time (over fifteen minutes) to uncoil its scaly form and sink its dripping fangs into your mind.

Corsican Paintbrush paints an engrossing picture of a folk music never before encountered, and it does so with broad and yet delicate swaths of color and texture. Just don't call this sound New Age or Ethnic Folk, it digs deeper and broader than that, sounding at times like a piece from the richly diverse Sublime Frequencies collection, and at other times like a death march across the desert, carried on the back of the Sunburned Hand of the Man.

alphabets - pow sound - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

what an absolute revelation. alphabets is the brainchild of denver savant, colin ward and his first ever tape, "pow sound," is the bedroom dance party of your dreams. total synth overload and excess like somebody stole all the jewels hollywood has to offer and hid them in ward's keyboard. cut & paste pop bliss that is heavy on the heavy beats. seriously, the beats and the hooks are the stars here. you can't help but get sucked in and shake your ass. days later, the songs will be stuck in your head, you'll be humming the shower... from here on out, it's over. don't fight it. give in. enjoy. it's over.
-digitalis

drekka - œancestral cave sequence - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

back when i started digitalis in 2003, bluesanct was one of the labels i admired most.  michael anderson's catalog  had no boundaries, but always traversed in interesting fare.  at the top of the mountain is his solo wares as drekka.  "ancestral cave sequence" is one of his most cryptic efforts yet. 

crackling folk textures and bent strings shine out from the reverb-laden soundscape mazes.  vocals and violin escape the murk with their melancholic melodies fighting off the static to cement themselves in your mind.  electronics get washed in but the strings are never far off.  everything here feels so delicate, so fragile.  "ancestral cave sequence" is a ghostly orchestra leading you away, serenading you into the gloaming.  anderson has really unlocked something stunning.  edition of 80, pro-dubbed w/ silver-on-clearblue imprinting.
-digitalis

bugskull - communication - digitalis recordings - lp - 15$

Flashback to 1997 and in the world of underground droning weirdness, Bugskull were heavyweight champions. The revolving cast of characters always centered around Sean Byrne. He concocted buckets full of syrupy delights that encompassed everything from electronica, post-rock, dub, noise and endless pop hooks. Byrne was joined by multi-instrumentalist Brendan Bell and percussionist James Yu throughout the latter half of the '90s, taking Bugskull from bedroom wonder to full-blown magic carpet band. Bugskull released records and singles on some of the great experimental labels of the day such as Road Cone, Scratch, and Shrimper. I can safely say that as I was discovering experimental music during my mid & late teens, Bugskull were one of my all-time favorite bands.

The last album Byrne released was in 2002, "The Big White Cloud," which followed-up the acclaimed "Distracted Snowflake" duology. During the late '90s, Byrne recorded a third album that extended the themes of the "Snowflake" records. Due to label issues and disputes, this third album never came out until now, almost ten years later. "Communication" is the bookend to the hypnotic reverie created by "Distracted Snowflake" volumes 1 & 2. With layers of organ and synth floating like cotton candy on top of dub and hip-hop infused beats, Byrne is in top form.

"Communication" isn't so much a lost album as it is confirmation of a legacy and declaration of intent. Bugskull is back. From the tribal beach vibes of "High Steppin' II" right down to the drenched bones of the droning, black river sonics of "Subterranean Life," this album brings everything that made Bugskull so great and concentrates it on two sides of vinyl. Upbeat, fast-moving synth lines bob and move in minimal electronic waves while violins moan on "Squeaky Bagpipe." The title track is an exercise in restraint as Byrne uses turntables and molasses-paced guitars to the listener into a false sense of serenity, only to be drowned in opiates and put to bed by "Pondlife." Whether he's created simple, deceptive trips with sparse, but effective rhythmic cues or is just wallowing in the aural beauty of sine tones and synth drones, Byrne doesn't ever let up.

For those who have been as big of fans I have through the years, you probably never thought another Bugskull album would show up on the horizon. I know I didn't. But after seven years of waiting for something fresh, it's all worth it in the end to start the journey from scratch.

Vinyl only and limited to 300 copies
-digitalis

elm - nemcatacoa - digitalis recordings - cd - 14$

For my money, Barn Owl is the best new band to emerge in the last five years.  Their trajectory has been meteoric, progressing musically and conceptually in leaps and bounds.  I've been thrilled to be there from the beginning, watching and listening in awe as the duo of Jon Porras and Evan Caminiti have carved out an impressive niche of their own.  Heavy doses of guitar savagery and tribal essence have them firmly planted at the top of the mountain.  So it makes sense to deconstruct the duo and present each as a solo entity, soaring on their own.

Elm is the name of Porras' solo creations.  His music retains the megasonics of Barn Owl, but finds his tutelage deep in the heart of the desert.  "Nemcatacoa" is a lonesome, epic journey.  Named after one of the deities of his Colombian heritage, his latest full-length (and first large-scale solo release) feels huge and endless.  Walls of guitars shatter beneath the weight of the booming percussion blasts that find their way from the caves into the light.  An acoustic guitar is mournfully plucked, the beginning of a procession of the dead.  "Nemcatacoa" is an album begging for somebody, anybody to find and embrace.

Porras is a master artist.  The instrumentation at work here is even more impressive when you consider it's played by a lone soul.  Guitars, Rhodes, Harmonium, Trumpet and more echo through the caverns of the ancient Earth.  Even though this album is dark and at times bleak, it never overpowers.  Traversing similar aural planes as Sunn O))) and Earth, Porras is staking a claim all his own. As his voice wails over blankets of guitars, he never loses sight of the golden life ahead.  Incredible.
-digitalis

evan caminiti - psychic mud shrine - digitalis recordings - cd - 14$

For my money, Barn Owl is the best new band to emerge in the last five years.  Their trajectory has been meteoric, progressing musically and conceptually in leaps and bounds.  I've been thrilled to be there from the beginning, watching and listening in awe as the duo of Jon Porras and Evan Caminiti have carved out an impressive niche of their own.  Heavy doses of guitar savagery and tribal essence have them firmly planted at the top of the mountain.  So it makes sense to deconstruct the duo and present each as a solo entity, soaring on their own.

In a perfect world, Evan Caminiti would be a guitar god worshipped by hordes of spike-wearing metalheads.  Seriously.  Caminiti's newest solo offering (and first large-scale release) is a big, smoldering mass of guitar sacrifices.  We're deep down in the hollows now.  "Psychic Mud Shrine" is epic in every way.  Thick, massive walls of lava-flow guitars bow down at an altar of excess.  Caminiti creates jagged drones like no other.  Distorted guitars sound simultaneously tortured and energized like it's unsure if this hell on earth brings pleasure or pain.  It's just so fucking massive.  With titles like "Melting Temple/Plumes of Babylon," you know what direction this is heading and it's a train you don't want to miss.

"Psychic Mud Shrine" is a powerful statement from an artist coming into his own.  Over the course of four sprawling masterpieces, you'll be entranced and exalted.  This album rings out from the deep valleys carved straight to the fucking core.
-digitalis

golden cup - kaleidopea - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

sometimes, persistence really pays off in the end. jooklo-contributor luca massolin worked for ages on putting together a release for digitalis and just when it seemed like it might not come together, this absolute gem turned up. "kaleidopea" is as accomplished as golden cup has ever been. chattering walls of synth debris find the perfect balance between foreign and familiar leading you down diamond paths. just when it feels like everything is closing in around you, massolin breaks out the guitar and you're in a different place entirely.things really cook as the inimitable sachiko adds her voice to the mix. again, it's all in the balance.

on the flipside, hypnotic synth underpinnings are the perfect canvas for massolin's delay-strewn guitar and sachiko's incredible voice. as the synth repeats over and over it leaves plenty of room for the guitar and voice to interact and suck you under. it's disjointed enough to keep you from totally drifting away, each off-kilter moment snapping you back to reality, but overall the effect is pretty goddamn mesmerising. eventually we all settle down and get lost in the waves. unbelievable.edition of 80, pro-dubbed. gold-on-red silkscreened covers.
-digitalis

bigger insides - hunter gathering - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

it's definitely time to throw a party and bigger insides is your guest dj for the night. we first met chris thorne many moons ago when he appeared on "gold leaf branches" (as snake oil) and then reconnected recently as his new band, tan dollar, and new solo project (THIS) were spreading their collective wings. so what's the skinny?

minimal beats and insanely catchy casios and synths battling it out in a neon pit of doom. except there's really not any doom, but sun-specked skies and silver streams. as it hops along, you feel as though you're being whisked away on a hot air balloon ride toward the pink horizon. thorne's ability to create songs that are full of pop hooks yet disjointed and feel as though they could fall apart at any second is a gift. bigger insides: ready to throw down. edition of 70, pro-dubbed.
-digitalis

goatfooted / hunting rituals - split - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

canada splits the atom sideways with two mega sides from two opposites from ontario. they couldn't be more different, but they complement each other quite unexpectedly.

goatfooted are drowning underground in reverberating caves. this duo of sarah good and josh st. denis will bring you down. melodic guitar lines are the lantern light at the end of a long, winding passage. coming out of nowhere like a cataclysmic collapse are good's vocals. she's the siren leading you to the rocks. beautiful, lilting and up to no good, you won't resist and will gladly die begging for more.

what works so well about this split is that hunting rituals aka r. hunter aka scott johnson is happy to show you what that demise sounds like. as your insides are ripped by saws of electronic mayhem, your ears explode under the sudden depressurization. it's horrid and gnarly and totally fucking excellent. bring it all home, canda.edition of 35, red-flowered gems.
-digitalis

keith fullerton whitman - taking away - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

laiha - solar warden - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

black molasses flows downhill, slow as fuck and consuming everything in its path. laiha busts out his guitar and wields it heavy-handed, blowing out speakers and walls as fast as he can. distorted saws are crushed by atonality. "solar warden" will massage your ears until they bleed. can't ask for much more than that really, can you? hellfire. edition of 40.
-digitalis

 

 

lakes - monument of nests - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

i'm honestly surprised that lakes AKA sean bailey isn't more of a household name. through the years, he's put out some killer damage on his inverted crux label and his own projects (paeces, lamp puffer w/ peaking lights' aaron coyes, wasted truth, etc). well, "monument of nests" is one of his best and we're damn pleased to make it available again. originally self-released in a micro edition, it's now hear to stay. disjointed, deconstructed pop songs that lean heavy on primitive, almost tribal rhythms and ramshackle instrumentation. acoustic guitars sound like they've been overblown to smithereens. makeshift electronics find their way through the fog, splattering everything in waves of analog fuzz. all the while, bailey's deep, monotone vocals spell the end for anyone who moves to close. punk in spirit, fucked in sound. edition of 70, clear as day.
-digitalis

pink priest - east camden - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

pink priest sheds his summer skin and heads home for another kick at the can. "east camden" is drenched in sepia-toned nostalgia like your favorite childhood blanket, held together by the flimsiest thread. keyboards bathe in rivers of fuzz with buried melodies reaching out from their dirt beds. put the industrial revolution to sleep, folks, and sing the night away.

"east camden" picks up where his previous digitalis effort left off. it's a familiar path trekked with new intentions and hopes. everything here is gasping for one last breath. edition of 80, pro-dubbed. art by danielle nemet. 
-digitalis

plankton wat - our solar beings - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

all love to the master, dewmah has arrived. dewey mahood is probably best known these days as being the non-bindeman third of portland's fuzz kings, eternal tapestry. but when he's not burning down houses, he moonlights as the inimitable plankton wat. fractured folk-infused meanderings with warm strings and organic dressing. mahood's vocals are the ideal accompaniment to these bright, understated anthems. minimal percussion and mbira pick up where the vocals leave off, finding a balance with the acoustic haze.

it's been a great year for plankton wat (check his DNT lp!) and eternal tapestry, and "our solar beings" is another vital feather in his discography. edtion of 80, golden red suns.
-digitalis

seht - hrry - digitalis recordings - lp + 3" - 18$

Since Digitalis first planted its roots over six years ago, few artists have been as integral to and representative of the label as New Zealand's drone king, seht. We've released three of his albums and he's appeared on multiple compilations and collaborations. seht has always been the work of one Stephen Clover. He comes from a long line of great Kiwis like The Dead C and Birchville Cat Motel, but has always blazed along similar trails as giants such as Tony Conrad, Eno, and Olivier Messiaen. That being said, none of it prepared us for the leap forward he took on his first ever vinyl release, "HRRY."

While some artists struggle to make music that is wholly avante-garde and still approachable and listenable, Clover avoids those pitfulls masterfully. "HRRY" is in exercise in the use of crackling electronics, minimal beats, computer manipulation and solid-state drones. Each track slowly progresses as they build off each other and form a sprawling conglomeration of tones. It's as if you're stuck in a post-apocalyptic dreamworld where industrial giants are fighting back against the warm, relentless elegance of nature. Even though the arsenal Clover is using is as unnatural as it gets, the music on "HRRY" displays such an innate organicness that it's almost confusing. From the computerized voice of "ERKK" to the throbbing beat of "SPFT," it's as though he's gone so far into the mechanical, man-made world that he's come all the way to the other side.

"HRRY" is a dark album that is glazed with a sense of hope. Echoes of the ghosts of Basinski ride through these ambient rivers, trying to find new forms of electronic music. It's music for the second coming... of what? An era where all the rotting buildings and shades of grey breathe new life into the elemental ashes of fallen empires.|
-digitalis

sundog peacehouse - brosound - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

the first time i heard this trio i was absolutely smitten. sundog peacehouse are chris mucci, sal farina and austin redwood and will soon be taking over their native pittsburgh by lulling everyone into a codeine coma. shimmering walls of heavily-processed vocals, guitars and samples ease you down into emerald green pools of total bliss. pure waves of spiralling sonics drench you and hold you close. there is something so unbelievably comforting about this music that it's impossible to get away from, impossible to ignore. having shared bills with caboladies (past) and bardo pond (future), you get any idea where these soaring aural dreams are going to take you. sundog peacehouse are stunning, simply put. don't wait around for the surf to break you out, just stay sunkissed and in love. edition of 70, fuschia waves to the stars.
-digitalis

pulse emitter - opressive nature - digitalis recordings - cd - 12$

I've been a fan of Daryl Groetsch AKA Pulse Emitter's synthetic concoctions for years now. Hailing from the hotbed of Portland, Oregon, his work is almost unparalleled when it comes to modular synthesizer excursions. "Oppressive Nature" is a 40 minute journey into cities that will soon be lost and overrun to the wilderness. The thematic idea behind the album is nature's inevitable reclamation of the concrete jungles we've constructed and amassed.

Where Groetsch truly succeeds on "Oppressive Nature" is creating such an organic landscape with his synth. His work here is highly focused and dialed-in. Through the static and electronic waves something warm and almost triumphant emerges. Heavy saw waves weave a chaotic mass of urban debris, smoothed over by the sine waves of time. Barriers fade away as they consumed by sonic vines that find their way into all these aural cracks. The result is oddly beautiful in an almost post-apocalyptic way.

Nature always wins.
-digitalis

the green blossoms - whiskey leaves - digitalis recordings - cd & 3" cdr - 16$

It was important we get this out in the heart of summer because "Whiskey Leaves" its familiar melodies and breezy instrumentation are the perfect accompaniment to your hot, humid nights. The duo of Aiko Koa and Anthony Guerra first made their presence known on a micro-edition CDR from New Zealand's Pseudoarcana. "Whiskey Leaves," though, is a different beast entirely. While on the surface these compositions feel simple, once you dig a little deeper you realize the care put into each song. This is intimate music.

Guerra sets the pace with layers of makeshift percussion and guitar. Koga also plays ukelele, but it's her voice that is the real focal point of the album. Soft and restrained, even when you can't understand her words (some of the lyrics are in Japanese), you are hooked from the get-go. Hours later, you find yourself humming her melodies whilte her ghostly incantations are stuck in the back of your mind. This is fractured pop perfection. "Whiskey Leaves" will be a welcome addition to fans of Tujiko Noriko, Tenniscoats and the like. Beautiful.

Limited to 500 copies.
-digitalis

super minerals - multitudes - digitalis recordings - cd - 12$

There are a lot of good times happening in SoCal these days and the Stunned Records/Magic Lantern crew is responsible for a whole hell of a lot of it. Well, Super Minerals are an important cog in that machine and this duo's intentions are blaring loud and clear on their first proper CD, "Multitudes." This duo of Phil French and William Giachhi may rip it up when they're moonlighting in Magic Lantern, but here they are burning it all down slow.

This is an album full of zoned-out drones that smolder and sink deep down into the mud. Synths wallow in the sun-dried ruins while guitar & bass write new epochs with shards of sonic debris. Fried whispers drift in the analog breeze slipping in and fading out before you even realize they're there. Late night whirrs and gentle skeletal purrs make a home in these aural prisms, never quite letting the blood boil. But Super Minerals will guide you as you meander through the rain-soaked city streets, never quite leading you back home.

Limited to 500 copies in gatefold jackets. Special edition includes limited live cassette with full-color j-card - limited to 100 & sold-out at label.
-digitalis

joe montana - shifting spaces - digitalis recordings - cass -7$

peter friel changes things up again and again, keeping us all on our toes while he looks for the flea flicker from the heavens. miles of green grass stretches toward the synthetic horizon. everything is fuzzy like a dream and all you can do is ride these pads to through the golden skies. limited to 75 copies.
-digitalis

pink priest - cat tails // at the mouth of swollen summer - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

-arkansas fuzzmaster finds subtle melodies and buries them under miles of diamonds & dirt, singing like a lost dog on the trail-
-digitalis

meditations - precipice - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

with a name like meditations, you'd probably assume something with a spritual bend would be coming up the tubes. but no worries - these sprawlers are looking to take you deep down into the muddy depths. this trio absolutely kills it on "precipice." blown-out, brooding synths pummel your senses left and right while vocals from hell taunt you into taking the fall. this is one dark fucking ride, a cut-up masterful mess. specks of light try to escape in the form of distant, bright melodies but they're quickly destroyed by the impending hellacious mess. awesome. edition of 65, pro-dubbed purple monsters.
-digitalis

black to comm - charlemagne & pippin" - digitalis recordings - cd - 13$

Marc Richter's new Black to Comm offering "Charlemagne & Pippin" churns out a slowly, methodically building single-tone battleship, that somehow manages to become more powerful, hopeful, and grandiose as it oscillates. Richter's characteristic organ noise is rounded off beautifully with various electronics, bells, metal percussion, toys, water, and violins, provided by band members Renate Nikolaus and Ulf Schütte ,which grow around the central note yet slowly move to the center themselves. The Bursting electronics, white noise, and buzzes become more frequent and attempt to overpower the mighty organ.

Together, these three musicians bring about a musical pairing that suits the title. A pairing of power and play, father and son, age and youth. Its probably best to turn the lights off and the speakers up for this meditative 35 minute slab of drone excellence.
-digitalis

black eagle child & goodwillies - bamboo airships - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

it's pretty common knowledge that here at digitalis hq we love (FUCKING LOVE) collaborations, postal and otherwise. so when the black eagle child himself approached me with the idea of this release, jaws dropped and praises were sung. once the master showed up, every expectation and preconception was put to pasture and blown to outerspace. what an absolute beast.

black eagle child weaves a devastating web of guitar exploration here, opening the proceedings with simple chord progressions that long for death. tim goodwillie brings it up a notch with equally biting organ drones. the combination is stunning x10. you will ache. and you will love it. and when it folds in on itself and becomes a summer jamboree mixed with keyboard fuzz and hypnobeats, the sweetness reaches new heights. scorched earth guitar workouts find their way into the mix and find themselves engulfed in a psychedelic swash of tribal debris. just fucking wow. incredible art by tim goodwillie. edition of 80, pro-dubbed napalm tapes.
-digitalis

charlatan - destinations - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

the rise (or fall) of charlatan continues on an upward arc of synth excess. tonal bliss, minimal shifts, arpeggios to the sky. oklahoma confined. incredible art by hoy-joy. edition of 70, pro-dubbed aqua dreams.
-digitalis

disguises - aeolian hookers - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

let the insanity begin! these beasts from toronto follow-up their mind-melting LP from last year, "post-mortem depression," with absolute avalanche of hell. jagged guitar swirls get the beat down from a pommel horse of drum bombs. screams escape from the abyss only to be sucked back under by crawling basslines. and then the guitars come at you again and again and again. there's no avoiding this minefield - you're gonna lose a leg.

this is clusterfuck city folks and disguises are your tour guides. these jagged excursions will cut your face open and make you want to apologize for bleeding all over the brand new carpet. edition of 80, pro-dubbed with broken golden fairy art and smeared labels.
-digitalis

cyquoia - age of aquarians - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

from the washed-out minds of housecraft head honcho jefry astin and his floridian partner-in-crime evan galbicka comes a late farewell to the tropics before treks to the mountainous north. cyquoia have much in common with their housecraft brethren like tricorn & queue and xiphiidae, yet this duo has it's own trail to the flourescent pink sea mapped out in gold.

these blissful drones feel as though they're being drowned in a summer storm. astin & galbicka barely keep their heads above water, but with every breath drawn they churn out an endless flow of synthetic guitar waves. the sound just rolls over you in waves. who needs gold at the end of a rainbow anyway? edition of 80, pro-dubbed on lilac tapes, gold labels.
-digitalis

early tunnels - aerial caves - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

what a swamp this sucker is. throw the body over the side and get the fuck back to shore because there's some serious action about to go down after dusk. early tunnels is the ohio duo of jon lorenz (wasteland jazz unit, etc) and pete fosco (pete fosco, etc) bringing down the blitzkrieg through a mess of electric fences and barbed wire. "aerieal caves" is a gnarly excursion through minefield guitar syndrome, waltzing electronics, and firebrand horns that are guaranteed to peel paint and manufacture all kinds of dissonance with the neighbors. lorenz & fosco don't fuck around. they concoct a steaming cocktail that sounds so foreign you'd swear everything they were playing was from another planet. total kong. edition of 70, pro-dubbed and scrubbed.
-digitalis

ester poland - hippi,kanuuna ja kiinan torni - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

man, finland... it never stops does it? it really never does. just when you think the terrain has been scoured and every last pore drained til the last drop, something new comes along with such star-searching bombast that you get knocked square on your ass all over again. ester poland are the latest in a long line of impeccable sound sculptors out of finland, but this screeching duo are riding their own astral baby well into the new millenium.
-digitalis

young boys/ fm face- split - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

oh this little gem of mine, spit & shine spit & shine. young boys and fm.face are two newborn projects hailing from opposite coasts, but when they join forces on this tape it's to melt your face off. young boys kick it on first with thick reverb post-punk spirit and stonewalled vocals belting it out, these five songs are covered in new york slime. these songs are bleak but laced with something sweet that keeps you coming back for more and more.

fm.face is like the rascally younger brother who is out to show how he can really fuck shit up in a royally awesome way. these songs are punked-out wastelands. angular guitar lines repeat to infinity on top of overblown drum machines while fm.face just absolutely fucking belts it out. look out below. edition of 100, half on black, half on white, pro-dubbed pounds.
-digitalis

metal rouge - republican trees - digitalis recordings - lp -18$

The duo of Helga Fassonaki and Andrew Scott has quietly become a force in the world of darkside improvisation. Over the years, their sound has evolved like amoebas from the ooze, growing and expanding into something otherworldly. Walls of guitar sherds blast through blackened holes in the cosmic continuum searching out another eye to gouge or another heart to pierce. This is metallic bliss pushed to eleven.

Where "Republican Trees" hits it stride is when the lines between beautiful and abrasive get smudged. Scott's guitar playing becomes a torrent of aural hell blowing fuses from here to his native Auckland. Fassonaki takes this in stride and the two push each other back and forth finding a natural rhythm that simultaneously enchants and disturbs. By the time Helga starts wailing on the final track of the album you've been rocked from your foundation, left to flounder alone in the muck. You can't really ask for more than that, can you?
-digitalis

ossining - s/t - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ossining was always in the cards. this is the collaboration between yours truly (the north sea) and kevin danchisko (sovetskaya gone). synth excess, volume 1. pro-one vs. juno. journey through black sand beaches and white heaven. etc etc. mad men. all the fucking way.edition of 70, pro-dubbed crystal blue.
-digitalis

generals & such - quixote - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

this is a first for digitalis & friends... this baby is produced from a painted score. yep, painted scores. how fucking cool is that? well, based on the results from this trio of californians: christian kiefer, timothy rowan, & erik werner - it's pretty damn cool. here's a little background... generals & such, this is what they do. they play painted/graphic scores. this one is produced by werner (don't know if they all are) and this one is a 15 ft painting based on the first eight chapters of don quixote. i feel like i don't need to say anything else because that is simply incredible.

but i won't taunt you... what do you get with a 15 ft painted score? scattershot percussion anchoring acoustic & electric guitars making skronks and waves. werner's acoustic playing at times reminds me of akiyama. rowan offsets this frenetic playing with calm and cool reverb-drenched spirals. it's an awesome contrast. the music progresses and unfolds slowly. kiefer's drumming guides the trio through the valleys and deserts, avoiding pitfalls unless necessary. the whole thing just feels monumental. tape is 73 minutes long, but each side is exactly the same. so it's basically a 1-sided c38, but i hate tapes with a blank side. pro-dubbed to boot. edition of 65.
-digitalis

body morph - travel keys - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

dan dlugosielski's body morph project has been scorching ear drums all over the world for the past few years. fuzzed-out and stretched-to-oblivion electronics spit their way into a black cauldron. scuzz reeds scatter like buckshot, painting everything in town a solid shade of red. in the static, beats emerge to plug the holes where water is pouring in. i dunno if this is a nightmare or a wet dream or what, but i can tell you it sounds oh so fucking good. screamers for the masses. edition of 75, pro-dubbed orange treats.
-digitalis

tonal wasteland - desolate - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

it's not time to do the walk of shame, not yet anyway. tonal wasteland is as apt a description of the sonics on this tape as i can think of. hollowed-out synth excursions blast saws & sines through endless pipes turning the whole thing into a spinning echo chamber. australian jammer, ben lynch, knows what he's doing (and he's an arsenal fan to boot, so can you really go wrong here?). as bleak as these soundscapes are, lynch manages to work in a bit of brightness and warmth just to throw the balance into a tailspin. you don't know if you're coming or going, but if you want to suck on a synth pipe, this is your bag. edition of 40, various color tapes.
-digitalis

space dive - twenty-first century sport - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

once again i struggle to yammer on about my own projects, so i'll keep this short and sweet and let the sound samples speak for themselves. story is, even as the north sea shifted focus, i was still writing songs here & there on the old guitar. but in those manifestations, they weren't doing much for me. what to do? rework the songs for synthesizer, listen to a lot of bauhaus and suicide, and see what happens. so there you go. SPACE DIVE. edition of 100, pro-dubbed high-bias blue moons.
-digitalis

 

john davis - vines go roaming - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

this one has been a long-time coming and only i am to blame for the slowness in which it has FINALLY appeared. but patience is a virtue and all that biz, so just be happy its here now because SF-drone king john davis has crafted an absolute doozy.

"vines go roaming" features two immense, side-long pieces. davis takes simple ingredients and puts them through god only knows only to have something beautiful and stunning float out the other side. side a features guitar, field recordings and electronics where side b is simply accordian and electronics. it's stripped bare before b he makes it whole again. the subtle shifts in tone radiate through the air expanding toward the heavens on a cloud of molasses. this is epic music. edition of 90, pro-dubbed and houses in hand-stamped 'pillow boxes.'
-digitalis

social junk - born into it - digitalis recordings - cd & cass - 18$

Social Junk have blasted through walls, east & west, over the past few years cranking out some serious sparklers along the way. Now after dropping a megaslice of deliciousness on Not Not Fun last year, this duo follow it up with a journey through the mother earth canal. "Born Into It" stretches across the lands with thudding percussion and hypno synth excursions. Waves of swirling vocals from both Heather Young and Noah Anthony. You may have just been born, but stretch those wings baby because it's time to fucking fly.

There's no going back once you take the first plunge on "Born Into It." Immediately, through no fault of your own, you'll be drawn in and tied down. At times it feels like Young & Anthony are scouring the lands, taking in whatever technological progress they can find and chewing it up and spitting it out into a gloriously dissonant pile. This is music for the next wave; music to find your way back to the sun. Social Junk are soaring like never before and "Born Into It" is their latest testament to a new world.
-digitalis

 

the shitty listener - constant stranger - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

the shitty listener is the current nom de plume of jewelled antler acolyte, jason honea. "constant stranger" collects recent & past excursions, a sort of best of if you will. many of these songs were on criminally limited (we're talking 30 or less, babies) tapes/CDRs, so now you can suckle on them for the first time. disjointed folk strums with whimsical vocals - it doesn't get much better. honea tackes it a capella on occasion only to singe the hairs on the back of your neck. it's such a beautiful, disjointed mess. edition of 90, pro-dubbed on a clear day.
-digitalis

ajilvsga / sean mccann - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / pete swanson - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / the unholy warlock - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / uton - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / super minerals - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / hairmaiden of the totem robe - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

ajilvsga / andrew coltrane - skull bundle - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

The procession was timed so that she would be left alone on the scaffold at the moment the morning star rose. When the morning star appeared, two men came from the east with flaming brands and touched her lightly in the arm pits and groins. Four other men then touched her with war clubs. The man who had captured her then ran forward with the bow from the Skull bundle and a sacred arrow and shot her through the heart while another man struck her on the head with the war club from the Morning Star bundle. The officiating priest then opened her breast with a flint knife and smeared his face with the blood while her captor caught the falling blood on dried meat. All the male members of the tribe then pressed forward and shot arrows into the body. They then circled the scaffold four times and dispersed
-digitalis

pummeler - s/t - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

i don't know if there's a more aptly named project around than denmark's pummeler. mikkel dunkerley is bounding around down in the murkiest depths. this stuff feels like it's been stripped bare by vultures, the bones left to freeze in the scandinavian air. distant metallic pings call you to your grave. these are heavy, black masses you can't avoid without being swalloed whole.

dunkerley's use of varying textures is exceptional. his work is minimal yet enthralling. each piece, no matter how long or short, feels like an expansive wasteland of sound. listen once, you hear one thing, listen again and it's something else entirely. it's time you rolled it all downhill. 60 copies, pro-dubbed & erupted.
-digitalis

vega stereo - festival 3000 - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

vega stereo is another side to the story that is alexey AKA analog concept. once again, this comes straight from russia with a bullet. vega stereo is a duo with his wife, nastya. this one is just as synthed-out as the analog concept double, but you're in for a whole different ride. laced with minimalist beats and vague, nu-age stylings like a bed of golden feathers, vega stereo is going to whisk you away. it's obvious these cats grew up on detroit techno and hypnotic ambient waves. beautiful stuff from the rough & tumble. edition of 70 pro-dubbed pirate style.
-digitalis

andrew coltrane - dmt shadow - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

coltrane weaves another mess on top of the rotting remains of last night's leftovers. "DMT shadow" is a drill straight to your frontal lobe. entirely blown out with axxe, ring mod, & delay, AC is on digging tunnels to china and spewing up molten lava and space dust like it's going out of style fast. a total headfuck. edition of 75 copies, pro-dubbed with dirt & spice.
-digitalis

north sea / current amnesia - split - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

car commercials' david sutton takes it to the streets on his side of this megawatt splithour. "delusions of the triangle" is a journey through the underbelly, seedy & poignant, like a lost prayer to magic mountain. hypnodrones galore. sutton bends and twists aural shards into glasslike works of art. i want to keep on livin' in his world.

the north sea is shimmering like a sunken stone, drowning in a torrent of silver piss. voices and chimes blown apart in an epic battle to be king of nothing at all. underwritten with a wall of synth dreams and other churns. edition 80, pro-dubbed with the four horsemen of the apocalypse.
-digitalis

the old rig - trembling static sky - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

lost under a blanket of overgrown weeds and fallen branches is the remains of the old rig. this duo of patrack singleton and frank baugh (sparkling wide pressure - lp upcoming on digi) create organic webs of sonic detritus and sew its roots into the fertile, tennessee soil. black as night and sullen under a metric ton of fuzz, "trembling static sky" has washed out all the glitz and glam and taken these stellar drones into their mossy core. utilizing a variety of field recordings, these pieces are like a warm, flowing river of molasses.

epic in scope and persistence, add the old rig to the list of growing concerns in tennessee. baugh & singleton are in it to win it. incredible artwork by bob vore. edition of 65, pro-dubbed and ready to go. pics & audio: http://www.digitalisindustries.com/ltd49.html
-digitalis

christopher riggs - live in michigan - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

christopher riggs is 1/2 of the soulcrushing duo, trauma (w/ graveyards' ben hall), but has been cranking out mounds of cryptic debris in his own right for years. "live in michigan" documents one of his rare live performances, recorded in december of 2008. riggs turns his guitar into a sonic chainsaw, dismembering strings and notes with the precision of a blind surgeon. this is not a safe environment and soon you'll feel your bones cracking under the pressure. good stuff. limited to 60 copies, smeared & beered.
-digitalis

ajilvsga / blue sabbath black fiji- split - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

it's 4 am, it's time to sober up and there's no black coffee to be found. cold shower? not an option either. so what's left? blue sabbath black fiji and their mind-warp shotgun electronics and percussive blasts. your girlfriend might be passed out on some other dude's house, but don't worry about it, this mix of raging electronics, sludge guitars and soft, sweet crooning will make it all okay.
ajilvsga? we'll keep drinking blackened mud until the cows come home. limited to 85 copies, handstamped zoo-in-suits theme.
-digitalis

keijo - just enough - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

a new greeting from an old friend. we're pretty damn excited to have keijo back on the books charting new courses through the stars. more finnish blues from the wise master himself. shambolic to the core, each note bellowing sweet nothings into hearts & minds, looking for a warm, cozy corner to ball up in and sleep the frosty, frigid night way. this is exorcism, baby, all the way home. limited to 50 copies.
-digitalis

fletcher pratt - mind gunk vol. 14 - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

when you've got 13 previous installments of a series under your belt, you obviously know what you're doing. fletcher pratt's "mind gunk" series is definitely no exception. as with previous beasts, vol. 14 is an epic maze of tape collage, synth sprigs, acoustic skronk and general analog chaos. it's all over the map and you're likely to lose your head along the way, but isn't a little fun always worth the risk? limited to 40 copies with random covers.
-digitalis

 

the north sea - total football - digitalis recordings - cass - 12$

my love for football (soccer, for us yanks) is probably fairly apparent to most, and that love is borne out of watching the genius that was the greatest generation of dutch footballers in their sparkling orange.  i knew i eventually wanted to do something in tribute, and what the hell - two tapes of synthed-out goodness for van basten, gullit, rijkaard, and koeman (and also cruyff, who can never be ignored).  so here it is, total football once more.  limited to 80 copies.
-digitalis

katchmare - soft cavern - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

katchmare is the solo moniker of nick hoffman who runs the excellent scissor death label up in illinois.  "soft cavern" is a dense listen and perfect for the oncoming bitter cold that winter brings.  using little more than guitar and microsynth, hoffman laces the hanging branches with burned-out silver streamers and acid-soaked confetti.  there's something about "soft cavern" that is simultaneously disorienting but familiar.  you're sure you've been here, but you can't quite figure out when.

there's a vague, sinister undercurrent that flows through the cavern walls, but it's constantly kept in check by hoffman's able, delicate touch.  these drones are entangled in each other, like a sonic spiderweb of bliss.  limited to 50 copies
-digitalis

mortuus auris & the black hand - s/t - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

this uk outfit plumbs the depths on their self-titled debut offering, searching for the caustic mud that makes things tick.  mortuus auris & the black hand are an analog for the demons trapped beneath the seas, whispering sweet missives to a disenchanted world of black.  casios and synths intermingle with field recordings and god knows what else in an effort to block out the sun.

these three efforts take hold immediately, whirring their way into your bones.  mortuus auris hold their own against stifling winds, blasting out of the gates and into a sonic crevice.  bleeps and bloops pulse like an electronic heartbeat waiting to be put out of its misery, hopeful that what awaits on the other side is bathed in liquid silver.  limited to 50 copies, forensic-style cassette labels
-digitalis

of - rocks will open / morphological echo - digitalis recordings - cd & cass - 18$

Special Edition limited to 100 copies and includes exclusive cassette, "Morphological Echo."

Loren Chasse is responsible for a whole host of vital albums. He was a founding member of the Jewelled Antler label and has sparked so many great moments from the likes of Thuja, The Blithe Sons, Softwar, and of course his main solo guise, Of. For years this project has evolved into something of absolute magical grandeur.

"Rocks Will Open" is the latest opus in Chasse's catalog. The music on this album is as organic as it gets. Each tone, each sound feels like it has been culled directly from the Earth's crust. Gentle drones arc toward the hazy sunlight, flickering like distant birds sailing out over the sea. Between the ghostly echoes rises a cacacphony of plucked strings dancing toward oblivion. Loren Chasse's vision is perfectly expressed on "Rocks Will Open."
-digitalis

 sovetskaya gone - s/t - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

look out los angeles, there's a new boss in town. sovetskaya gone traces its russian roots back through the dark ages and into oblivion. the brainchild of tonal mad man kevin danchisko, this epic analog shot is a call out to the masses: lay down or bring it. using various concoctions of analog synth and a pedal array, danchisko crafts something with a sharp edge that still finds its feet stuck in the mud of underlying, cryptic melodies. it's a beautiful, treacherous thing.

sovetskaya gone is indeed gone. zoned out and droned out into the carbon cracks of the salt-encrusted california streets. these jams are sunbaked and caked in bliss, searching the telescopic night for the last remnants of skylab. danchisko's music is steeped in modern exploration with a nod to '70s academia and a harsh dose of whiskey-addled psychedelia, and somewhere in that mess you'll find yourself totally fucking gone too. limited to 60 copies, watercolored covers.
-digitalis

tarentel - live edits: italy/switzerland - digitalis recordings - cd - 13$

over the course of numerous dates in italy, tarentel (a trio on this tour of jefre cantu-ledesma, danny grody, & jim redd) improvised every set they played with often stunning results. this is not your grandfather's tarentel. "live edits: italy/switzerland" is full of pounding tribal drums and walls of mixer feedback, floating guitar trips and walls of noise. this is a whole new world scattered across burned-out pages; a place to hide and get lost in for ages. these pieces are a tug-of-war between beauty and tension. tarentel rarely sound better than this.

this is the second in a series of ongoing "live" releases from tarentel, though they are, as the band says, "live" in the same spirit that werner herzog makes "documentaries."
-digitalis

soundpressings - s/t - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

oklahoma turned out to be crimson red this year, but for those of us living here, we know that this place is a fucking hole of an enigma. case-in-point: soundpressings. this newly unearthed oklahoman gem came out of nowhere to blow our brains into piles of swiss cheese. the inimitable danny mitchell comes to us from out west in norman (via nathan young's stomping grounds in tahlequah). soundpressings, though, is all over the map.

hearing soundpressings is like wandering into a mountain of lost & found tapes from a million different sources, all playing at once. mitchell crafts these collages together in an original and addictive way, finding sweet, ghosted-out drones in the midst of a sheet of noise or a plodding, electronic rhythm. once you enter his domain, you never know where exactly you'll end up. oklahoma's not dead yet
-digitalis

 

andrew coltrane - synth tapes vol. 5 - digitalis recordings - cass -7$

i wish i could remember the first stack of bones from michigan superscuz andrew coltrane, but in the past year or so i've been buried under such an epic pile of a.c. fuzz that it'd be near-impossible to figure out where it all began. point is, he is a machine who never sleeps, never eats, i dunno... he just keeps going like his life depends on it. from junkyard electronics to heaps of rotten metal and there and back again, coltrane's always got new tricks up his sleeve.

"synth tapes vol. 5" is exactly what it says it is - the fifth volume in an ongoing exploration of analog sound constructed with only, you guessed it: synths and tapes. the sounds on here are looped and stretched and dragged into pits of black mud. underneath the drowning, though, lives the vaguest and most unexpected hints of melodies and hooks, just enough to fool you and suck you in. next thing you know, you're tarred and feathered and dreaming of your next root canal. fucken genius.
-digitalis

tetuzi akiyama + kevin corcoran + christian kiefer - low cloud means death - digitalis recordings - cdr & 3"cdr - 16$

For years I've counted Tetuzi Akiyama as one of my absolute favorite guitarists. He's been cranking out great records for ages, honing his style and skill in every possible way. Add in Christian Kiefer, who has also put out a string of magnificent releases, and a talented drummer/percussionist in Kevin Corcoran (who has appeared on releases on Weird Forest and played in Antennas Erupt!) and you've got a recipe for something magical.

"Low Cloud Means Death" is a series of sea-inspired improvisations that are fighting a continual battle with the silence between each note. This is sparse music at its finest. Minimal notes float in the air as Corcoran lays a web of various percussion beneath the organic layer Akiyama and Kiefer weave. The instrumentation is varied - Akiyama sticks to acoustic guitar while Kiefer splits time on accordian, piano, and other vices. What the trio produces ends up coming off like an all-improvised Morton Feldman or something of the like.

This is a journey on salt-encrusted waves, traipsing through empty spaces in search of whatever aural mystery can be found. It goes something like this: Thump. Quiet again. Twang thump. Quiet. Quiet. Still quiet. Distant blap. And let me tell you, it is one fantastic voyage.

Limited to 500 copies. Artwork by Eden Hemming Rose.

Special edition limited to 100 copies includes bonus 3" CDR, "The Old Language," featuring a live performance by the trio. Hand-stamped covers.
-digitalis

yek koo - psychic atonement for land deaths - digitalis recordings - cdr -8$

metal rouge has emerged as los angeles' best kept secret in 2008, but they're luckily getting some air underneath those silver wings. yek koo is another side of that same coin, though. this solo project from helga fassonaki, who is half of metal rouge, shimmers under the weight of leaded gold. "psychic atonement for land deaths" is an excursion through the shadowhills, built on a foundation of lapsteel and head-swirling vocals. it is boundless.

on this album, fassonaki pushes new boundaries. with hints of the trails traveled by the likes of heather leigh-murray and fursaxa creeping in from the peripheral, yek koo deconstructs these flowing drones into flecks of silver and gold. these are serious times and this is serious stuff for all that ails you. limited to 81 copies.
-digitalis

gryn brvs/siblings of plasma - split - digitalis recordings - cass -7$

this one comes from the UK with all sorts of dangling gold and buckets of skronk. fresh off their chocolate monk CDR, gryn brvs continue to be at odds with themselves, creating a cacaphonous sprawl that totally works, even though it seems like it shouldn't. harshly picked acoustic guitars rattle on above waves of ramshackle, junkyard percussion. it's like the percussion is trying to destroy the melody laid down by the guitars. it's fucken great. this sidelong meltdown squirms along for days, lulling you into a state of total abandon.

siblings of plasma share members and membranes with gryn brvs, but their modus is down a different rabbit hole. walls of cello squalor mourning the end of days, wailing like the death knell of god only knows. these tracks are bathed in organic, hypnotic ruin. once s.o.p. gets their claws in, you are done. 75 copies w/ spraypainted wrap around sleeves.
-digitalis

la otracina - gardens of blackness- digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

pretty stoked to finally be dropping a bomb from la otracina, one of my absolute faves from the past few years. these brooklynites know how to bring in it in all forms from all directions. "gardens of blackness" is everything you'd hope it was: heady dark drones that flirt with the world of metal more than ever. drummer/vocalist adam kriney let's go on the a-side, hollering and wailing like tomorrow's nothing but a distant dream.

other times you end up dredging up some serious murk from the bottom of the pool. hints of tape collage come out of nowhere and eventually it mellows out for a pretty even high. it's cohesive and all over the map all at the same time, definitely showcasing their new direction since their last record on holy mountain.
-digitalis

the polyps - isla & emma - digitalis limited - cass - 7$

when i first heard the polyps i was immediately drawn in. this solo/sideproject from raf spielman of the golden hours is perfect, disjointed bedroom pop. over the course of more than a dozen songs spielman weaves a basket of hooks that you will find yourself humming until dawn. mostly written on guitar, the accompaniment of melodica, ramshackle percussion, and of course spielman's distinct voice bring these songs to life.

"isla & emma" is a short and deliciously sweet journey. while many of us anxiously await the next installment of the golden hours, this is just the sugarfix needed to get you through. so simple, so good. limited to 95 copies in handpainted sleeves and handpainted wraparound covers, each one different.
-digitalis

sarah's charity - fear of sound - digitalis limited - cass - 7$

denmark's sarah's charity has been cranking out some serious walls of sound over the past few years. churning black guitars that get sucked into the bottomless depths of ice-cold oceans. each track builds on the previous, leaving your ears white hot and begging for more. there's so much distortion that it feels like the tape can't even hold it all in.

the best way to experience "fear of sound" is head-on. crank the volume up as loud as you can, pour it in and make your ears bleed. eventually you'll be absorbed and drift away on a cloud of burnt dust. good fucken times. limited to 87 copies with full-color sleeves designed by peter friel.
-digitalis

fossils - gone with the sun- digitalis limited - cass - 7$

the spit and shine of the great white north are being thrown into the woodchipper and spewed out as a steaming, glorious mess by hamilton's own mad scientist, david payne aka fossils. these bones are damaged. "gone with the sun" is another chapter in a neverending string of limited tapes, cdrs, and lps that seem to be building toward world domination. with hints of guitar skronk and teases of sax bombs creeping up behind the demolished drones, "gone with the sun" is as much gone as it was never there in the first place.

payne scrapes below the bottom of the barrell to find the best sludge for your ears. dig it out, box it up, and splurge until you're gorged. fossils is forever. limited to 44 copies.
-digitalis

uton - we're only in it for the spirit - digitalis recordings - special edition cd + cdr - 17$

For the past five plus years, Uton has been one of the most consistent projects to come out of the snowy confines of his native Finland. His output has been constant, but the quality is always great. His drones have always been underscored with a sense of melody and a keen utilization of the space where the music was created. These songs are not icy or glacial, though, like one might think. Uton’s uncanny ability to inject an inviting sense of warmth and spirit. "We’re Only in it for the Spirit" is ghost music; barely there and out-of-sight in the blink of an eye.

The man responsible for these masked-spirit journeys is Tampere native, Jani Hirvonen. He's collaborated with the likes of Jan Anderzén (Kemialliset Ystävät, etc), Bridget Hayden (Vibracathedral Orchestra), & Anla Courtis (Reynols) among others. When it comes to enchanted, sprawling drones, Hirvonent is a true Rennaissance man. He is joined by Vapaa's J.P. Koho on all tracks, who complements Hirvonen's delicacy with subtle hints of chaos.

"We're Only in it for the Spirit" continues to trek through new worlds of sound, polishing off the once-rough edges of Uton's sound into something that acts as a beacon in the void. Dark, brooding drones for guitar and electronics flicker and fade like a distant, stellar horizon. Hirvonen is a master craftsman, and Koho is his perfect foil. The two play off each other's every move and produce an end result that rivals anything Uton has released previously. "We're Only in it for the Spirit" is a magickal piece of work.

Limited to 500 copies with artwork designed by James Livingston of Black Horizons.
Special edition limited to 75 handnumbered copies 
-digitalis

ensemble economique - at the foot of nameless roads - digitalis recordings - special edition cd + cdr - 17$

By now, just about everyone is familiar with the mighty Starving Weirdos and their otherworldly junkyard drones. Last year the world was introduced to another band of mystics from the Weirdos camp called RV Paintings. One of the constant threads from both of those bands is the inimitable Brian Pyle. Ensemble Economique is Pyle’s debut foray into the solo forest. "At the Foot of Nameless Roads" is a masterpiece of an album, filled to the brim with cacophonous melodies, meditative auditory chants, & hypnotic shambolic rhythms. If you love the Weirdos, you will be all over this.

"At the Foot of Nameless Roads" is one hell of a first statement. Pyle has concocted an absolute gem. This is dense music that begs for deeper inspection. Each space, each note carefully chosen and etched into glass. Ensemble Economqiue is music for the darkest nights, the pinkest mornings, and everything in between. This is vivid, haunting music that leaves a trail of gold in its wake.

Limited to 500 copies. Artwork by Tarentel's Jefre Cantu-Ledesma.
Special edition limited to 100 copies 
-digitalis

 

valerio cosi - heavy electronic pacific rock - digitalis recordings - special edition cd + cdr - 17$

Valerio Cosi may be young at only 22, but his talent is undeniable. He may be mostly known for his exquisite saxophone playing, but this Italian wunderkind doesn’t stop there. Cosi composes strings of magic using all sorts of instrumentation and production tricks. "Heavy Electronic Pacific Rock" marks the first CD release in Cosi’s ever-expanding discography, and he saved the best for this, his most widely-available release to date.

"Heavy Electronic Pacific Rock" is a monster. Clocking in at nearly an hour in length, this kraut-infused ride takes Cosi's modus operandi of juxtaposing multitudes of ideas that generally seem at odds and pushes it to its outer limits. Using techniques and ideas often found in contemporary free-jazz, but blurring them and whitewashing them with buckets of noise and Eastern-inspired rhythms, it is clear Valerio is on a mission. His music is the spaced-out reincarnations of the ghosts of giants. It is an arsenal of unique sonic phrasings built to bend your mind.

This is Valerio Cosi at his peak as a performer, young as he is. "Heavy Electronic Pacific Rock" is his finest hour, his opus.
Limited to 500 copies.
Special edition limited to 100 copies
-digitalis

muura - black & gold butterflies - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

matt earle is one hell of a magic man. from new south wales in the land of oz, earle has unleashed his own country on his fabulous breakdance the dawn label. there's an endless stream of releases from his various projects (xnobbqx, sun of the seventh sister, muura, the minerals, et al). it never gets old and it never, ever ends.

so, as my obsession with earle's output grew and grew, i had to bring him over an ocean to the land of digitalis. with that i offer the first of numerous bdtd-related releases, this from his main solo guise, muura. "black & gold butterflies" is the bones of the blues. deconstructed and reassembled with spackle and duct tape. each fractured note hangs on by a thread, clinging to a mirage of junkyard dreams. limited to 50 handnumbered copies on yellow tapes
-digitalis

kenji siratori - trinity sky - digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

everyone's favorite japanese cyberpunk brings his walls of tortured noise to the world of digitalis. "trinity sky" is perhaps a softer affair the usual, though the screeching blasts will certainly punch you in the face in the end. siratori's works are dark. they move slow like congealed blood and sound like a machine's last dying breaths. "trinity sky" rushes over you like a buzzsaw, splitting you gently in two.

siratori's music is harsh and heavy at times, but trying to figure out what, exactly, is going on inside these spewing electric bubbles is half the fun and most of the battle. each of these side-long pieces is a clusterfuck of noise, pain, & absolute chaos, told in a way only siratori can. limited to 66 handnumbered copies.
-digitalis

n.213 - vexation- digitalis recordings - cass - 7$

n.213 is the godchild of the inimitable nic hughes. most are probably more familiar with the band he plays guitar & sings for: shearing pinx. but his solo digs never disappoint. jolting bursts of electronic mayhem laced with pcp-inflected vocal incantations make "vexaction" a hypnotic & catchy carnival ride. blitzkrieged pop elements even make an appearance, but these short & noisy bones are nothing but the sweetest candy for the noiseniks in all of us. the weapons used range from drum machines, keyboards, reel-to-reels, & guitars to shakers, bells, trumpets, pedals, and more. it's a virtuoso circus of all that is juicy.

"vexation" is one of hughes' most impressive outings yet and will etch itself in your brain and crack it from the inside out. sexy. check out the n.213 myspace for some jams. limited to 50 handnumbered copies with painted & silkscreened covers.
-digitalis

jeremy kelly - s/t - digitalis recordings - special edition cd + cdr - 17$

I first met Jeremy Kelly at Bottled Smoke back in May and subsequently got to know him via email over the summer. Simply put, he's an incredible artist and musician. There's a few things you should know... first, he's an effects-building wizard. He makes a lot of his own stuff, giving his music unique sounds and textures. Also, he's one hell of a guitar player with one hell of a nice guitar. Third, his circuit-bending wizardry also lends its hand to his mighty Doepfer modular synth, which has its tendrils weaved all throughout his debut CD. So keeping all these things in mind, we're extremely excited to be offering up Jeremy's first proper CD release.

This self-titled effort is a cohesive conglomeration of a dizzying array of styles, recorded beautifully by Ged Gengras (Antique Brothers) with help from Grant Capes ((VxPxC)) out in Los Angeles. Gengras even joins in on saz at one point, concocting a hypnotic Middle-Eastern jam that feels baked in the scorching desert sand. Add in some blues-infused acoustic ragas that throw a nod to Ben Chasny's Six Organs of Admittance and glazed walls of analog noise, and you're somewhere in the ballpark of this album. It's all over the place, but never too far from the path Kelly has laid down for himself. This is some serious magic.
Special edition limited to 75 handnumbered copies
-digitalis

chriss sutherland - me in a field - digitalis recordings - cd - 12$

Many people might not be directly familiar with the name Chriss Sutherland, but most know Cerberus Shoal, of which Sutherland is a founding member. "Me in a 'Field'" marks his solo debut and shows why Cerberus Shoal is so revered. He's also a current member of Fire on Fire, who will release their debut on Michael Gira's Young God label. But here, Sutherland presents simple, wonderfully crafted songs in their barest form, but backed by the same heart that has made his previous efforts so great.

This collection of songs has been brewing for years, but finally found its way into the light after Sutherland returned from an extended stay in Spain and urging from his friend and compatriant, James Toth AKA Wooden Wand. All of the songs are built around the combination of guitar and voice, though some are enhanced with piano, banjo, etc. Simplicity is often a lost artform in-and-of itself, but this is where Sutherland strives. Listening to him belt out his almost-perfect lyrics reminds me that even though the singer/songwriter realm is overpopulated and generally tired, when it's done right it can be magnificent.

"Me in a 'Field'" is such a welcome entry into the genre that it goes down smooth and sweet. Lyrically, Sutherland is a wizard. His songs are universal. When he sings about those close and important to him, they become the listener's friends and family too. It's music that will appeal to many audiences and cuts across boundaries. At its heart it may be folk music, but Sutherland's offering something that's freer and more exciting.
-digitalis

mudboy - hungry ghosts! these songs are doors - digitalis recordings - enhanced cd - 12$

Mudboy dares you to find a suitable label for his warped sonic missives. But find one way to trap him and he changes direction and weasels out under the cracks in the wall. This is music for those who like to skit the line between light and dark, because believe Mudboy himself when he says that this record is all about the dark arts. His spells and incantations are the perfect guide through this analog labyrinth. "Hungry Ghosts" is at times hypnotic, dabbling in psychedelia, but is also disorientating like a house of mirrors. The circuit bent organ and arsenal of pedals does Mudboy well and will keep you guessing for as long as you're willing to give it a go. This album is a grower, but after a few listens you'll find yourself completely hooked.

On "Hungry Ghosts," the listener is given glimpses into a whole host of new worlds. Each song is like a diorama; intricate, detailed, and totally 3-D. You'll find yourself wandering aimlessly through this mess of devilish sonic missives only to realize that once it ends, not only are you lost, but completely entranced and calm. This is meditative music for the agitated soul. Like poltergeists that haunt belfries and spires, Mudboy is never in one place for too long.

This is the CD version of the recent LP on Not Not Fun. This enhanced CD contains the same music as well as a short video by Mudboy, "Othern Lights." The disc is packaged in lasercut & slightly burned cardstock sleeves with matching insert. It's similar to the LP, only more intricate.
-digitalis

steven r smith - owl - digitalis recordings - cd - 12$

Steven R. Smith's name has become more commonplace over the last half-decade, and that's a very good thing. From his monumental works as Hala Strana to being a prominent contributor to many Jewelled Antler projects, his sound is distinct.

This is the first brand new solo album from Steven R. Smith since last year's epic "The Anchorite." Few artists can boast the impressive discography Smith does, full of far more hits than misses. And with "Owl," he shows that he's still got new tricks up his sleeve. On here, you'll find some of the things you expect with a new Steven R. Smith record: sprase, angular walls of his trademark guitar playing with embellishments from an array of acoustic instrumention. But there's a new twist here: vocals. Yep, vocals. Smith unleashes his voice on "Owl" and does so in such an impressive fashion that it leaves me asking what took so long?

"Owl" is full of desolate, but hopeful aural landscapes. There's a tinge of regret and longing in his voice when he belts out the words, "This is the world we know..." And in those six words, Smith sums up what "Owl" brings to the table. There is something recognizable about this terrain; the paint is just worn down enough to expose the raw wood underneath. But carefully placed in each corner, in each nook is something new that breathes new life into the familiar.

This is a bold step for someone who has already accomplished a great deal, and leaves us listeners without a clue as to what will happen next. This is magic, indeed.
-digitalis

stone baby - used illusions/lost objects - foxglove - cdr -7$

stone baby hail from upstate new york and have seen their broken wares peddled by such fine junk salespeoples as carbon records, house of alchemy, and phantom limb. well this duo has brought their fractured droning blues to foxglove and the results couldn't be better. what's most impressive about stone baby is that even though there's only two people creating all these sounds, these songs are fucken dense. we're talking black holes and white dwarves and shit here. or is red dwarves? pulsars? you'd never know i got an A in astronomy. but stone baby keep throwing new things at you with every listen. it's a wild ride up to rochester, but i hear the food is amazing. 100 copies
-digitalis

turner cody - buds of may - digitalis arts and crafts - cd -12$

‘Buds of May’ was originally self-released on cdr back in 2004 but has now been lovingly re-mastered and re-packaged by Digitalis so those of you who didn’t manage to track down the original issue will finally get to hear this exemplary work. Turner Cody may not yet be a name familiar to many, but thanks to extensive touring of the US and Europe he is causing quite a stir on the underground. Indeed the Herman Dune bassist was spotted by none other than Wooden Wand himself James Toth (who has recently signed to the Nonesuch imprint) who proceeded to bag a full LP for his own Mad Monk imprint. With this buzz around him it comes as perfect timing that Digitalis launch ‘Buds of May’, an album which in many ways is Cody’s most complete and most accessible.

Taking influence from the world of classic singer songwriters, from Bob Dylan to Townes Van Zandt with maybe a little of Will Oldham thrown in for good measure, Cody proceeds over the course of the epic ‘Buds of May’ to vocalize his own views on life. He is firstly a storyteller, and in a world where mainstream lyrical content is more banal than it has ever been, Cody comes as a breath of fresh air. Simply produced with guitar and bass underpinning the tracks, it is Cody’s distinctive singing voice which carries each piece as he creates distinctive melodies that stay with you for some time after the record has reached a close. Right now with artists such as Jose Gonzales haunting the mainstream airwaves it seems almost impossible not to stumble across new singer-songwriters whenever you flick through the racks of a high street store, but what Turner Cody offers is a unique voice in a crowd of copyists. Cody is at once cynical and hopeful and should offer an antidote to a tired, apathetic world. Unforgettable music
-digitalis

john clyde-evans - apetal thunderfall - digitalis - cd -12$

It's been a monumental year for John Clyde-Evans. He recently returned from a year living in the Punjab region of India, and after a slew of releases under his Sikh name of Tirath Singh Nirmala, he's back to the good ol' JCE. That's not all that's changed, though. His latest opus, "apetal thunderfall," spins off into a new web of cacaphony, leaving behind the pastoral anthems of yesteryear and taking aim at a more abrasive ways to leave behind the rust.

"apetal thunderfall" was recorded entirely during JCE's stay in Jalandhar in 2007 using found software and audio sources. The resulting recordings feel almost primitive. Evans uses his uncanny ability to blend and mix multitudes of tones into sprawling thickets of sound. It is hard to call this music drone, but at the same time there is a continous flow to these three pieces that works in a similar way. Over the course of 43 minutes, this music etches itself into your skull, drilling itself in deep without drawing blood. Divided into three tracks, "apetal thunderfall" is more a singular entity than a collection of works.

This album is cathartic, both musically and as a vehicle for JCE himself. But make no mistake, this is not spiritaul music with mystic over/undertones. Simply, it is the new aural vision from one person made while living in India for a year. It is abrasive yet beautiful, and harkens back to a time and place when things were far less complicated.
-digitalis

thousands - overflow'd & gush'd out - foxglove - cdr -7$

when the curtain opens on the lone figure at the head of the stage as he blows his harmonica, hoping to conjure spirits from the layers of dust on the floor. wailing vocals light the balconies and waft their way toward the smoky heavens of the lushly decorated ceiling. thousands is the sister of the mighty (VxPxC), but this extended family vision is a much larger beast. on "overflow'd & gush'd out," thousands are six. disjointed melodies reclaim the horizon from fractured guitar lines and sporadic drum blasts. thousands move like a machine across the landscape, sucking up everything in their path, inviting it all in to join in their revolt. rebelling against what? that's not all that important when it sounds so damn good.
-digitalis

altar of flies - flying over- foxglove - cdr -7$

altar of flies hails from the snowy world of mjölby, sweden. this moniker of mattias gustafsson (not to be confused with the broken face's mats gustafsson, or the saxophonist of the same name), and throughout "trapped under watter," this swede swims in metallic waves of ecstatic drones. gustaffson concocts washes of noise and feedback and bends them into shape, stretching the limits of each stolen note. this music is as thick like syrup, and just as fucken sweet.

cahier - jour ouvrable ii - digitalis - cdr - 7$

finland's marko neumann aka cahier returns with his second blast of warm air straight from the arctic. lilting drones that are conjured from a variety of sources, some electronic, some acoustic, dance like magical lights just out of reach, but close enough to feel. this sequel to cahier's first foxglove offering puts the puzzle pieces in place so that the listener can hear the full scope of his range. the short bursts are like chance meetings in the street; like a place of refuge from the cold. cahier's latest continues neumann's quest to touch the sun.

vxpxc - porchmass - digitalis - cd -12$

In the past two years, (VxPxC) has grown from a Golden State oddity to a Los Angeles institution. The trio of Grant Capes, Tim Goodwillie, and Justin McInteer have churned out an entire catalog of blissed-out improvisations that range from the organic and melodic to overblown chaos. There's never a dirth of new ideas flowing out of their collective minds, and on "Porchmass," their first proper CD release after a slew of CDRs and cassettes, they push the envelope into a whole new realm.

warmth - leave you wet brain in the hot sun - digitalis - cd -12$

Warmth has undergrone plastic surgery since this album was originally released as a criminally limited CDR on Belgium's best scuzz label, Audiobot. Back then Warmth was known as Roxanne Jean Polise. The name may have changed, but the sounds are still the same dense electronic forest fog that set Michigan-native Steev Thompson's music apart from most of his compatriots. "Leave Your Wet Brain in the Hot Sun" is Warmth's finest hour. It's his hypnotic, marrow-sucking opus.

chaob - s/t - foxglove - cdr - 8$

this supergroup of sorts recorded this, their first album, in october of 2005 in portland, oregon. consisting of mike tamburo, matt mcdowell, and world's honey owens and adam forkner. the results are monolithic. two sprawling jams that illuminate the night sky with their own vivid lightshow. these massive drones are dense and subtle, with each hypnotic change commanding the listener's full attention. on their own, each of these artists are major league talents, but put them in a room together and they're a different monster. just one listen to chaob and you'll feel the electricity in the air.
-digitalis





cahier - jour ouvrable ii - foxglove - cdr - 8$

finland's marko neumann aka cahier returns with his second blast of warm air straight from the arctic. lilting drones that are conjured from a variety of sources, some electronic, some acoustic, dance like magical lights just out of reach, but close enough to feel. this sequel to cahier's first foxglove offering puts the puzzle pieces in place so that the listener can hear the full scope of his range. the short bursts are like chance meetings in the street; like a place of refuge from the cold. cahier's latest continues neumann's quest to touch the sun
-digitalis

keijo - flying over- digitalis - cd -12$

The godfather of the Finnish Underground is back with his most complete album to date. Keijo Virtanen's far-reaching hands can be felt throughout the Nordic peninsula from his home in Jyväskylä. While he often performs in numerous groups such as The Free Players and Kheta Hotem, it is in his solo work that he is most accomplished. Virtanen is not just a talented and prolific musician, but also and artist and published author. His inspiration and creativity know no bounds. At 54 years-old, Virtanen still rides his motorcycle all over the country and shows no signs of letting up.

V irtanen finally took his show on the road this past autumn, touring with members of Uton and Vapaa throughout Northern Europe. He also released two CDs on the much heralded Last Visible Dog imprint. "Flying Over" is the culmination of a landmark year for this troubadour. These nine tracks run the gambit of all of Keijo's talents, from the rattling blues transgressions of "On the Edge," to the throatsinging-laced organic drone of "Late Night Here & Far Away," and completed with the harmonium-laced " Virtanen's range is pure magic.

While the bulk of "Flying Over" is entirely Virtanen's creation, he is joined by two of his closest collaborators on two tracks: Sami Virtanen and Jussi Karsikas, two extremely talented Finns in their own right. Whatever the moment calls for, though, Virtanen fills the void and the empty space with exactly what is needed. He is a wizard of sound and a seemingly endless well of magnificent music. It shouldn't be surprising for someone who makes their home at the center of the universe.
-digitalis

tirath singh nirmala - bluster, cragg, & awe -digitalis - cd - 12$

Not too long ago, John Clyde-Evans made a huge splash with his phenomenal solo LP on England's Fisheye imprint. He also performed as an collaborator with the seminal UK group, Hood. After taking a seven year hiatus and committing to the path of Sikhism, he returned as Tirath Singh Nirmala. His continually unfolding backstory is interesting enough, but it's his music where the real magic and mystery stretch their silver wings.

Nirmala returned to making music after his close friend and collaborator, Vibracathedral Orchestra's Neil Campbell, gave him some free software and set him on his way. Nirmala responded with nearly a dozen self-released, highly limited CDRs. The releases were filled to the brim with Eastern-influenced, transcendental drones and uplifting spiritual sound explorations. His manipulation of sine waves and use of obscure Asian instruments creates a wholly original and unique sound. As on his solo LP as John Clyde-Evans, Nirmala's ability to concoct sprawling, majestic drones using such simple terms is unmatched.

"Bluster, Cragg, & Awe," Nirmala's first non-CDR release, is the perfect beginning. It collects the best tracks from those now impossible-to-find releases and adds two new songs and one collaborative piece with Scottish guitar guru, Richard Youngs. It is a journey that lasts less than an hour, but contains a lifetime of aural experience, wrapped into one, shimmering golden package. Oh yes, Tirath Singh Nirmala has returned.
-foxglove/digitalis

bjerga/iverson - the sea is near you can taste the salt in the air - foxglove - cdr - 7$

 

eternal tapestry - seas of silk - digitalis limited - cass - 7$ sold out

the boys are back in town, oh yes. back down to a threesome on "seas of silk," the bindeman bros. and dewey mahood have everything turned up to 11. thick slabs of dual psychedelic guitars crush the bones laid down by the bindeman #1, tearing off hunks of flesh at a time. heavy burners with a heavy dose of sprawl.

just like jed bindeman's alter-ego group, heavy winged, once these concussion bombs hit you, there's only so much you can do to keep it all in check. but unlike the winged, instead of blowing your skull to bits, you'll just want to shake that ass. limited to 100 copies.
-digitalis

 

- -

 

 

ORDERING