tryst haunt series - spring - l'animaux tryst recordings – 3 x 7" - 24$
LTH 707: visitations & big blood's "'lectric 'lashes"
in the true spirit of the occasion, southern maine's outerworldly psych-folk beacons visitations and big blood decide to forgo the concept of the "split" release and instead launch forth into a mindbending collaborative effort. the bands are not new to performing together: they've toured together and have even backed each other up under various names. but this release marks the first physical release by their combined forces, and, unbelievably enough, is big blood's first vinyl release ever. the ease with which the bands complement each other is astounding - five clear voices reaching together to guide the record through a buzz-guitar singalong, a breathless pastoral folk tune, a chugging nightmare rock-dirge, and a sweetly-lighthearted vocal exercise. this 33rpm 7" record contains four tracks in a 14-minute official runtime, but will play forever if you let it. in addition, the record comes with a bonus cd-r of tracks from the late-night jam session that pre-dated the recording sessions for the 7", as well as the four tracks from the 7" itself in digital form. a one-of-a-kind package, with each record sleeve offset printed with the bands' artwork in dark blue ink on colorful, individually hand-painted sheets of heavy art paper. embossed, hand-numbered limited edition of 300 record/cd-r sets.
LTH 708: prisma & drona parva's "best buds" 7"
the two spectral ladies of prisma mark their debut release with this 7" split with drona parva. prisma has been performing the quietest shows in and around portland for a couple years now, mixing softly echoing vocals with flute drones, only the gentlest plucking of various stringed instruments, and the occasional analog noise rumble. their a-side track resonates with beautiful restraint and delicacy; the stunning debut all of us entranced by their live show have hoped for. on the b-side, drona parva--the long-running solo project of time-lag records' nemo bidstrup--turns in a blissed-out muti-tracked free-flowing guitar composition. trance-inducing acoustic plucks and strums eventually give way to shimmering waves of fuzz guitar until the whole thing becomes impossibly beautiful. the minimal packaging for the record complements the gentle touch of the recordings held within: the 45rpm 7" record is a custom, slightly-marbled avocado green color with a yellow-green mandala-design center-label. the record is held in a semi-transparent vellum sleeve that has been hand-punched on the corners, giving a soft mask to the striking colors on the record itself, and hand-numbered to 300.
LTH 709: the north sea's "nikolette (reborn)" b/w corsican paintbrush's "under storm skies"
anyone familiar with the extensive north sea discography is aware of brad rose's keen ability to mix it up between eastern-tinged folk instrumentals and more straightforward strummers, which usually feature rose's classic low-in-the-mix mumble-drunk vocals and charmingly loose playing. "nikolette (reborn)" finds him revising a beautiful, quivering folk song from 2007's baby blue bones cd (mymwly) with the more-confident-than-ever vocals now at the forefront, and an army of acoustic strings and hand percussion backing this boxtop prophet's hymn. corsican paintbrush's contribution follows suit, foregrounding eden hemming rose's soft, lilting vocal melody and some rhythm-keeping strums while keeping a lush, hazy swell of drones and cave-echo vocals as the backdrop. equally ethereal and dusty, like 4AD dream-pop marred by dirt under fingernails and ash from the campfire turning cheeks black. black 7" vinyl record has a hand-stamped center label, and comes packaged in a textured black art paper sleeve with flower petal inclusions, with line-drawings and stamped titles in white ink, and an embossed screenprinted insert featuring liner notes and a topographic street map of tulsa. limited edition hand-numbered to 300.
-lt
\
tryst haunt series - winter - l'animaux tryst recordings – 3 x 7" - 22$
LTH 704: bird microphone's "memory songs ep"
bird microphone follows up last year's paper mines split with cursillistas with this collection of original songs and appalachian child ballads. fitting six songs onto this 45rpm 7" record, bird mic. mixes her trademark dulcimer plucks and cut-up bell percussion clacks with a new focus on voice. love songs that aren't afraid to expose the dissonance; traditionals on the a-side, originals on the b. preview here. black 7" vinyl record with center labels hand-stamped on the A and hand-drawn/colored on the B-side, held in a heavy off-white cotton paper sleeve, with double-vision two-color screenprinted covers and an offset-printed back. hand-numbered to 300, and embossed.
LTH 705: white light's "saraswati" b/w barry burst's "rabies"
ian paige's white light project turns in a graceful, drony and jangly piece of classic lo-fi psych-pop, with a subtle galloping rhythm track keeping the good vibes in line. swirls of phasing synth quietly sneak up on the sweet vocals and lead guitars until all ride off on the figurative elephant in the sky. meanwhile, perennial favorite barry burst crashes that elephant back to the earth dirt and kicks up a party that could only be described as bollywood on acid. tablas and a host of handclaps provide the rhythmic thrust, while eastern strings and a chorus of singers (a multi-tracked barry) parade the blissfully gone love-fest through town. black 7" vinyl record with hand-stamped center labels held in a tri-fold die-cut chipboard sleeve, letterpressed and screenprinted in a multicolor design, with screenprinted chipboard insert. hand-numbered to 300.
LTH 706: the red f's "fingers" b/w sarah ramey's "magic" & "jane"
here we have a couple names new to the l'animaux tryst family, but no doubt familiar to those in the southern-maine know, here presented in split-single form as the official solo debut for both artists. the red f is the solo project of phantom buffalo guitarist tim burns, and there are shadows of his group's gentle and sweetly skewed indie-pop on "fingers". but pared down to just a voice, a creaky acoustic guitar, and the reverbed ghosts in the room, burns turns out one of the most affecting folk ballads we've heard in some time. on the b-side, sarah ramey (lead vocals and guitar for seekonk) presents two similarly pared-down tracks of acoustic strings and double-tracked vocals. the incredible intimacy with which she delivers each half-whispered word and melody alludes to warmth like the crackle of a woodfire on the coldest night. black 7" vinyl record with hand-stamped center labels, held in a heavy white cotton paper sleeve, with offset-printed art with watercolor washes applied by tim burns' hand. hand-numbered to 300 and embossed.
-lt
robert stillman's horses - three early maine films - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr & dvdr - 12$
in which nostalgia is gleaned from the parlour and the ocean; the fairground and the midnight air, in the form of moving postcards and one-man piano rags. using just two hands and two feet to play electric piano, a complete drumkit, nylon-stringed guitar, and tape fragments as though he were a full whiskey-soaked turn-of-the-20th-century band, robert stillman's music is transportive and transformative in any setting, but perhaps most effective as presented here: as the thoughtful soundtrack to archival silent documentary film footage of early 1900's maine loggers, fishermen, and lobstermen. the films and musical accompaniment are suspenseful, reverent, and playful - stillman's score perfectly matching the documentation of maine worklives with a veritable documentary of the american parlour sound.
cd
01 - 08. logging in maine
09. trout fishing, rangeley lakes
10. glorious (drawing a lobster pot)
11. fox n me
12. dmp chorale
dvd
01. logging in maine
02. trout fishing, rangeley lakes
03. drawing a lobster pot
-lt
tassel - tassel - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr - 7$
in which the inevitable question is posed: shoegaze or stargaze? tassel, a one-man psychedelic fuzz-pop machine, drops seven acid-damaged tracks in just under sixteen minutes, and by the end we're all thinking "more, please." swirls of guitar fuzz, classic lo-fi production, and reverb-washed vocals. majestic rockers mixed with mellow, ambient mood pieces. cut-n-paste found sounds tucked in with mounds of echo; this is music equally befitting both the starship and yr first luv buzz trip down a lamplit highway.
-lt
jazz angel's - silent death - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr - 7$
in which noise abounds, melody and beauty are found incidentally, and visceral sounds reach for visceral ears. of the four words in the above heading, only the second and fourth are truly evoked from this disc, silence being the hardest to come by. with guitar tracks that are saturated in feedback 'n distortion and arhythmic spoken-word vocals over a bedrock of pulsing drones and beats, this album will put the fear in you like a good ital. horror flick. dense noise-rock orchestrations that are minimal yet overflowing. dirt and soul in a grimey oasis of fuzz.
limited to 40
- past -
rough ride of crafts - streamliner - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr -10$sold out
in which RRoC's main man handpicks twelve of the best bedroom tones to have come from his 4-track in the past few years, presenting an accomplished whole assembled from the various, consistently impressive individual parts. stylistically floating between lo-fi folk strummers, mantra chants, and warm drones, streamliner's beautiful double-tracked poem vox hit a perfect balance between haunting closeness and warm invitation. blanketed in close-mic'ed analog warmth, these songs are like blowing the dust off your favorite songwriter's shoebox demo tape collection; singular, immediate, private and timeless.
-lt
lightning strikes lightning - turn myself into the ocean (special art edition) - l'animaux tryst recordings – 2x3"cdr -15$sold out
two 3" cd-rs: white-top mini-cd-rs, title handwritten with white ink.
packaging: each cd-r is held in its own hand-cut brown cardstock pouch, machine-sewn up two sides, with mixed media (paper and dried flowers) collage on one side and a hand-cut linoleum stamp of the tracklist on the other side. these sleeves are held within a larger, hand-sewn leather pouch, with faded and pasted photo cover art attached to the front.
edition: limited, 25 copies.
(this is the same music as the standard-edition cdr, just spread over two 3"cdrs with a bit diff. packaging)
-lt
bad bus #1 & 3(caucus) - l'animaux tryst recordings – 2xcass (special art edition) -9$sold out
two 40-minute cassettes: black cassettes, with hand-written titles in white ink.
packaging: discarded library book, pages carved-out by hand to form a case for the two cassettes (see below), with hand-written title in white paint on cover and binding.
edition: limited, 15 copies.
bad bus #1 & 3(caucus) - l'animaux tryst recordings – 2xcass -6$sold out
two 40-minute cassettes: black cassettes, with hand-written titles in white ink.
packaging: cardboard folded and glued to create a sliding-case for the cassettes, with sewn patchwork fabric inclusions, hand-drawn and hand-written liner notes on the outside.
edition: limited, 20 copies.
in which an all-star cast of maine crazies collaborate on wine-soaked, late-night improvisations. #1 is a haunted-house fantasy, with scrapes and reeds joining tin cans, spare metal parts, and decimated piano keys to create some abstract scariness. one long, 40-minute, unedited take, split on two sides of the cassette. ghosts and spirits just finding their voices, trying to spook the hell out of your basement folk band. conduits indeed. #3 (caucus) was recorded shortly after these spectres discovered a drum kit and no-wave music. tribal drums drive the session, with horn blasts, shards of guitar, voice-box shredding and group chants, glockenspiel, and the ever-present dulcimer creating what at times resembles a tom waits acid trip. stomp if you dare; just don't wake the woodcock. live in basement, no overdubs, ever.
two 40-minute cassettes: black cassettes, with hand-written titles in white ink.
packaging: discarded library book, pages carved-out by hand to form a case for the two cassettes (see below), with hand-written title in white paint on cover and binding.
edition: limited, 15 copies.
two 40-minute cassettes: black cassettes, with hand-written titles in white ink.
packaging: cardboard folded and glued to create a sliding-case for the cassettes, with sewn patchwork fabric inclusions, hand-drawn and hand-written liner notes on the outside.
edition: limited, 20 copies.
-lt
lightning strikes lightning - turn myself into the ocean - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr – 10$ sold out
in which the ghosts in your attic, after leafing through your boxes of can and nnck albums, decide to pick up your broken instruments and make their own music. songs overflow with more sonic ingredients than the recorded medium can hold; guitar overdrive spilling all over banjo riffs, exponential layers of wordless vocals smothering the pristine marxophone, and rumbling percussion dousing the fattest basslines. all is permeated by a warm layer of cathedral reverb and cavern echo, pointing out the space in even the most dense and cluttered compositions. 11 tracks, 40 minutes, and over a year in the making.
l'animaux
various - if a tree falls in the forest, can we record it? - l'animaux tryst recordings – cass – 6$ sold out
in which eleven of maine's most compelling outsider artists of music create blips, cuts, shrieks, and sludge over two sides of a 45-minute cassette, and announce to the world a scene you never knew existed. the tree falls on everything from id m theft able's speak-n-spell-n-unhuman-voice symphony to drona parva's warm electric guitar improvisations and everything thereabouts and in between. we've got crank sturgeon's uniquely fucked dada, bird microphone's bell voice cuts and pastes, pine tree state mind control and rattle of polar bear teeth's combat noise drones, visitations' chants n' strums, aphelion shelter and cursillistas' building-everything echo-swells and loops, bad bus' haunted basement tapes and scrapes, and nancy scott's scratchy manipulated folk-band strums. a definitive document of maine's contemporary avant/experimental/noise scene.
barry burst - gora - l'animaux tryst recordings – 3" cdr – 8$ sold out
5" -sold out
in which portland's psych-rock hero takes a pilgrimage to the metaphysical india of his mind and emerges with some of the most beautifully melodic sitar-and-flute-led acid folk tunes this side of satanic majesties. raga, jazz, folk, and psychedelic rock all inform these four glorious tracks, with plenty of heady instrumental drone jams to balance out the hooks. a document of a cold winter--despite tiger claws that tear bodies to reverent ribbons--with every countless instrument played and recorded by the man himself.
3"cdr: white-top cdr
packaging: handmade indian straw paper turned into a tri-fold envelope, watercolored with xerox transfer on the front, hand-written tracklist and title on the back, hand-numbered 1-35. held closed by a small piece of tan velcro and bound with a very thin piece of orange thread.
insert: a one-of-a-kind cropped polaroid photograph taken by barry burst, hand-numbered 1-35. disc is held in a hand-drawn vinyl pouch, adhered to the middle square.
edition: limited, 35 copies.
5" cdr: hand-titled white-top cdr
packaging: handmade indian straw paper, watercolored with xerox transfer on the front, hand-written tracklist and title on the back, hand-numbered 1-40.
insert: a one-of-a-kind polaroid photograph taken by barry burst, hand-numbered 1-40.
edition: limited, 40 copies.
l'animaux
kelly nesbitt - beaks that could smile - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr -10$ sold out
in which the dust settled on the antique photo album is blown, revealing all manner and layers of americana therein. kelly nesbitt has been known around town for years as a performance artist and folksinger with one ear in the frontier gothic folk/country ballad tradition and the other in a delightfully skewed avant-garde psychedelic realm, and on this album--her official debut--the two sides harmonize on a dusty spacetrip to places both hauntingly familiar and invitingly alien. it's a stunningly humble, graceful lo-fi world where a kazoo solo is a fine replacement for a guitar solo, and where perfectly-left answering machine messages deserve just as much appreciation as perfectly-delivered gospel-voiced folk songs.
-lt
tempera - 4.7.06 4.13.06 - l'animaux tryst recordings – cass –6$ sold out
in which pastoral acoustic instruments fraternize with primal drums and aetherial mantra-vocals to create some mind-blowing improvised sonic excursions. therein two extended organic jams see the band on a folkier wavelength than their more recent recordings and live shows suggest, sounding as one might expect them to operate amidst a power-outage. the first side consists of acoustic guitar strum, looped echo vocals and banshee yelps, bells, and subtle percussion, creating a sparse woodland wonderland. the bee side finds the band working in a more dense magnetic field, echoes of voices and guitars trapped in a chain of effects pedals, with incessant beats breaking through the ambience.
-l'animaux
cursillistas' / bird microphones - paper mines - l'animaux tryst recordings -
2x3"cdr - - 12$ sold out
cassette - - 7$ sold out
in which two solo entities combine forces on a haunting of american roots music, finding threads and strings through americana, sacred harps, and murder ballads; weaving them in the loom of experimental psychedelia. in her debut release, bird microphone uses one half of the album to create an entrancing mix of concrete sound and cut n' paste manipulation, as improvised plucked dulcimer strings give way to feedback squeals and hypnotic voices, and bells and floorboards awaken the appalachian spirits to give their wooden hands a feather plectrum. for the bee, cursillistas presents a side-long prolonged abstract narrative of murder, death, spirit haunts, and crows in the garden. a fill-in-the-blanks andersen folktale told through echo-loops, fuzz guitar, ghost-vocals, and reverbed drums.
- l'animaux tryst
white light's - for your leaves - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr – 8$ sold out
in which the bedroom and the aether mix in a tuneful headtrip through folk psychedelia. originally released (and out-of-print) as a debut cdr when the band was called certain numbers, now almost completely re-worked with new sonic trances and our favorite tunes still intact. the album begins with four songs of sublime lo-fi folk, accented with subtle and unique instrumentation and electronic tones. then, for a moment, it takes a side-road that wormholes into the cosmos for an extended section of warm electronic instrumentals, with machines and controlled feedback fraternizing with thumb-piano, snippets of conversation, and other acoustic sounds. all is pulled back to earth with the final track, featuring a guitar strum, percussion, and melodic confessions to bring this wayfaring ship home.
- l'animaux tryst
cursillistas' - les biches - l'animaux tryst recordings – cass – 6$ sold out
cursillistas' - les biches - l'animaux tryst recordings – cdr –9$ out of stock
in which--that is to say, therein--cursillistas performs five songs of varying lengths and degrees, all vaguely within the realm of psychedelic lo-fi folk rumbles, but with more electricity than ever before. the a-side begins with an epic build, layers upon layers of electric guitars, vocals, distorted percussion, indian flute, horns and feedback drones, which drops out at its most intense to reveal the quiet echoing guitar strum and broken-microphone vocals of the gentle "dirt.palm.line". the bee side features rudimentary use of a nine-note toy xylophone throughout, beginning with an experiment relying solely on the xylophone itself to create its dense toy tone trance. the langley schools celebration sounds of "bag of feathers" follows, with amateur-choir vocal layers claiming pre-eminence over the trumpet call. the album closes with more layered vocals and a focus on xylophone and reverse guitar, gently leading the raft of sea tones to the coastline of does.
-l'animaux
cassette
26-min. cassette: hand-painted and hand-stamped white cassette.
packaging: clear plastic case covered with dirt and a white feather.
insert: hand-written and hand-lettered a-z on semi-transparent paper, with gold flower design.
edition: limited, 26 copies (a-z).
-l'animaux
3"cdr
: hand-painted white cd face and hand-stamped black lettering.
packaging: hand-drawn ink and hand-painted front on brown bag paper. back is homemade white paper (with brown paper and plant materials mixed in), hand-painted, hand-stamped, and hand-drawn, numbered 1-40. the two sides are hand-sewn together with thread, closing with a simple thread-and-button mechanism.
insert: hand-written liner notes, hand-numbered 1-40 on semi-transparent paper, with gold flower design.
edition: limited, 40 copies.
tryst haunt series - l'animaux tryst recordings – 3 x 7" -22$sold out
. 
. 
cursillistas - bad bus / tempera - lightning strike lightning
cursillistas' "taste teeth" b/w "you float, no evens"
cursillistas contributes two exclusive tracks to the series in this 45 rpm 7". "taste teeth" crackles along with a melodic mini-choir of vocals and plucked strings, building to the outro with electric guitar noise, multiplying vocal loops, whistles, and toy xylophone. the b-side builds from a monastic chant, while percussion and whisps of guitar scatter form around. sparse and haunting. hand-stamped black 7" vinyl record held in a heavy cotton art paper sleeve, with offset-printed cover art and titles hand-written with India ink and stylus. hand-numbered to 300, embossed for authenticity.
lightning strike lightning's "the moon" b/w "no you won't"
"the moon" kicks off lsl's vinyl debut with some synth squelch/drum liftoff, until the trademark banjo and extremely-distorted guitar interplay begins the melodic tapestry, joined by four voices around one microphone. "no you won't" was one of the earliest lsl tracks, recorded in an era before murk and caves. a clean electric guitar, bass, and banjo create the foundation upon which a nonchalant female lead vocal spooks some warnings punctuated by fluttering flute leads. as freaky as these folks come. hand-stamped (from hand-carved linoleum stamp) black 7" vinyl record held in a chipboard sleeve, with a full-color photo pasted to the front and an in-house screenprinted front and back design. hand-stamped numbered to 300.
bad bus' "the field" b/w tempera's "2222222222"
marking the vinyl debut of a couple of so maine's favorite improvisational psych outfits, this split 33rpm 7" runs amok with some murky kraut-leaning grooves. bad bus' side builds from loose tom drumming and echoey vocal moans into a locked-in bassline stomper. tempera's track buzzes its way through lo-fi live loops, beats backing aetherial vocals, a complete electro mindgroove. hand-stamped black 7" vinyl record held in a hand-ripped, machine-stitched patchwork record sleeve. hand-numbered to 300
-lt