WHITE HILLS: http://www.myspace.com/whitehills
Latest blast of modern space psych drone rock from these East Coast spacelords, an ultra limited (only 1000 copies) 12”, part of Thrill Jockey’s new subscription series, which means these will probably be gone in a flash. Which is too bad, cuz this is one of the best White Hills jams yet, thankfully, only two of these tracks are exclusive, one is a new version of a track from Heads On Fire, remixed by Julian Cope’s drummer, one is a track from the upcoming full length, but two of them are ONLY available here (and the remixed version of “Oceans Of Sound” from Heads On Fire is different enough to make it essentially a new track) so pretty much a must own for the space rock psych drone obsessives out there, which is most likely most of you. The A side begins with “Dead” which will be on the band’s upcoming full length, and it’s a doozy, fuzzy, druggy, a little bit lo-fi, looped and hypnotic, with dreamy soft singing, beneath billowing clouds of distorted guitars, all hazy and super space rocky, definitely channeling the spirits of Loop and Spacemen 3, definitely has us chomping at the bit for the new album. The second track is the remixed “Oceans Of Sound” and is a cool processed guitarscape, swirled FX wrapped around a stuttery tremolo guitar, like a drugged out space rock “How Soon Is Now?”, fragmented riffs careen through streaks of buzz and hum, building to a total space pop climax that definitely had us thinking Spiritualized or Teenage Filmstars. Flip it over, and “Another Coming” explodes out of the speakers, a grinding thick viscous dronescape, very reminiscent of Expo 70, that sort of krautdronespacedrift, with dense looped guitars, stretched out into a churning blur, the whole thing wreathed in hazy effects. The second track, “Red Sun”, is all skeletal and dubbed out, almost funky sounding, with minimal guitar, but again loads of effects, thick throbbing bass, and creepy sampled voices. Super rad. And SUPER LIMITED. ONLY 1000 COPIES, and most likely sold out any minute, we got a whole bunch, but that doesn’t mean we won’t blow through these. Gorgeous jackets too, matte black with spot UV gloss lettering, and a fancy full color pasted on art card front cover. Aquarius Records
A real contender for psych-rock single of the year, this 7” finds two of today’s foremost acts in the field (White Hills and Acid Mothers Temple & The Cosmic Inferno) taking on classic Hawkwind material. ‘Brainstorm’ is ravaged by AMT, who thrash out in fine style with an expanded arsenal of swooping oscillators and spooky theremin-style pitchshifting. It’s an absolute riot, but White Hills prove themselves to be more than a match, tearing ‘Be Yourself’ a new one (to coin a phrase) laying on the fuzz by the barrow-load, cutting through the fudge with some class-A shred and all-round soloing majesty. Oof… Bookmat
Heads On Fire throws down grungy distorted layers of sludge that relentlessly churn along. It’s neither subtle nor pretty, but god damn it rocks. They take the space rock template and inject it with a battered fucked-up New York punk spirit. Drowned In Sound
White Hills is turning out to be quite the surprise of the year. After killing earlier in the year with Glitter Glamour Atrocity and releasing a comparable tour CD, the band has fired back again with the UK release of Heads on Fire. The latest release is just as much of a pummeling psych juggernaut as the rest; merging the Hawkwind style space jams with a tight groove of blistery guitars and trembling bass. The band are waving the Space Rock banner high and proud which has already garnered them support from legends in the field such as Julian Cope, for whom they’ve opened in the UK. The latest album, despite the relentless output this year shows no trace of being leftovers, but instead another album full of thick plumes of ash and turbulent waves of cosmic radiation. The band thrive in making the calm moments exceedingly liquid while still having a knack for fierce waves of noise ridden psych that leaves the space behind and burns like the earth’s core. Given the band’s current direction I fully expect to see great things from them in the future. Raven Sings The Blues
‘Heads on Fire’ left me completely satiated, having taken me places I’d never expected to go. It’s wonderful to discover a band who so wholeheartedly embrace the past without ever letting it constrain their vision for the future. I look forward to hearing more. Nine Hertz
Their previous release,Glitter Glamour Atrocity, found the band experimenting around with a number of different styles from ambient to Krautrock to Spacemen 3 influenced rock, but on their latest outing, White Hills jettisons the experiments to totally consume themselves in balls to the wall, and yep, “heads on fire” total space rock. It’s something like Hawkwind on steroids, with pounding drums and throbbing, catchy bass lines, whooshing space synths, barely heard mantra-like vocals, and of course, oodles and oodles of heavy, crushing, effects-laden guitars. Aural Innovations
Space Rock fans should waste no time getting this album (HEADS ON FIRE). Farflung fans will LOVE this, as will anyone who digs the balls out space metallic jams of early Hawkwind. And solid production has helped White Hills create a MASSIVE sound that will knock you about like some cosmic sledgehammer. Highest recommendation. Roadburn
If you’re going to play this kind of gritty garage-bred psychedelia, it stands to reason you should lay it on thick, but maximalism takes on a whole new meaning in White Hills’ “Glitter Glamour Atrocity”. Among its key ingredients: motorik-mined grooves, cool bass drone, raw-wire monotone riffery, liberally-applied space noises, the lupine hiss of overzealous wah-wah pedals, and sampled radio broadcasts of 9/11 prognosticators and finger-waggers. All of that over feedback squalls and the barest traces of threatening, spitting vocals—and that’s just a part of this eight-minute freakout. It should have been 45 minutes longer. I can’t think of a single excess they’ve left out, nor one they should have. Pitchfork
PONTIAK: http://www.myspace.com/pontiak
”... one of the most ambitious and iconoclastic rock records of the year ... And that’s the real charm of Maker. Even when Pontiak are demolishing, abbreviating, or stretching structures, they maintain an allegiance to song. “Heat Pleasure” might be 94 seconds of cymbal splatter and feedback rolling into one wide wave, but it adheres with direction and purpose. ... Pontiak, then, find ways to satisfy both castes—the musical purists and progressives—even as they play songs that seem designed for one or the other.” Pitchfork
“Maker jumps confidently between retro-psych (à la Dead Meadow) and sledgehammer riffage (à la Shellac); there are moments of piercing dissonance (“Wax Worship,” “Headless Conference”) and stoner-rock bliss (the epic 13-minute title track). And throughout it all, the Carney boys never back off from the pummeling intensity afforded by these intimate live recordings. Pontiak cuts to the quick.” Xlr8tr
“Although Pontiak’s music carries a rural, rustic vibe, Maker’s stylistic range is impressively broad, blending disparate elements into a rather cohesive whole. “Aestival” recalls late-period Earth (at their fastest), with its ringing chords, consistent ride cymbal ping, and narcotic haze. ... Indeed, Pontiak display a great amount of restraint and maturity on Maker, but they’re most successful and exciting when combining their more avant-garde tendencies with their love of classic southern rock, as heard in the multiple segments of album standout “Wax Worship.” Tiny Mix Tapes
“It’s beyond refreshing to hear guitars unfurl and growl the way do in Pontiak’s perfect soundscaping. The digital age has birthed too many wankers, but this Virginia-based riff pusher is having none of it, even though the band usually records mostly live and in one or two takes. Led by Van, Jennings and Lain Carney, three brothers from the Blue Ridge Mountains, Pontiak delivers powerful anthems that worm their way into your lobes and lay beautiful, noisy eggs.” Wired Magazine
“The disc’s title track pretty much encapsulates the entire album’s ethos into a single 13 minute track, getting in bass heavy sludge, dissonant guitar noise, jazzy improvisation, and pure stoner rock all together in a way that makes sense. ... For a young band, Pontiak definitely has their proverbial shit together when it comes to sound and style.” Brainwashed
”...delivers nuanced amplifier worship in excelsis.” MOJO
“A glorious record, with a deeply warm and almighty delivery.” Rocka Rolla
“Pontiak’s organic approach comes as a breath of fresh air. ... An elongated power surge.” Wire
“Pontiak’s ominous, primal sound is captured in Maker with raw mostly-live takes and impressive ingenuity. The three farm-raised Carney brothers (Van, Jennings, and Lain) have an intuitive, communal way of playing together, creating a dark, growling, psychedelic sound that is eerily inforced by choral vocals and the droning, dwindling hum of intentionally dying amps.” Other Music
“Maker stomps about like some kind of heaving beast that your eyes can’t quite get a fix on. There is a quivering in the air, a heat haze. You could call Pontiak a defiant band, drawing a line in the sand for anyone who travelled across the desert with the amiable vibrations of Sun on Sun, their previous full length. Maker makes an ascent into the hills and forests beyond that line, into mountainous terrain.” Strange Glue
“Comparisons don’t come easy, but if you remember the expansive, psychedelic stylings of post-grunge troupe Truly, cross breed them with the last couple of Bad Seeds albums and the heavy, droning dirge of the God Machine. That should put you somewhere in the ball park. ... Heavy without being metal, experimental without falling to bits and original without being inaccessible, this is a special band, perhaps in part due to the fact that it is composed of three brothers and therefore a great deal of jamming time has been possible. It’s still growing on me, but I know “Maker” isn’t going to be freed from my CD drive for a while yet.” Subba Cultcha
“Never repetitive, the album offers many faces, as in “aestival” the group marries the dark side of Nick Cave and the poetry of Bill Callahan putting in the delicate acoustic ballad sounds ecstatic and furious that seem to leave the pages of rock Pink Floyd. ... All that “Sun On Sun” promised is translated into reality in this excellent new chapter of one of the best American band in recent years.” Onda Rock
”... it’s clear that Pontiak diverge from their psych-rock contemporaries in their ability to drape volume-dealing trippiness atop tightly wound aggression. Classic rock bangs up against free-noise chaos, homespun folkiness is rendered hostile by maxed-out reverb and fuzz, and, by teh [sic] time the epic title track closes out the disc, a thorough brain-scrubbing has been delivered alongside a brutal ass-whupping.” Blurt Magazine
“After listening to Pontiak’s third Thrill Jockey release, Maker, for the fourth time through, one thing is abundantly clear; this is not tea sipping music. ... Many tracks on the record were recorded in one, live take, and this all inclusive style is kicking me hard where it counts right now.” Citizen Dick
“The stuttering “Laywayed,” the noisy bursts of “Heat Pleasure,” and the hyper-manic clusters of guitar and drums in “Headless Conference” come together like pop fodder fitted with deep, dark grooves and warrior crooning.” Creative Loafing Atlanta
MUGSTAR: http://www.myspace.com/mugstar
Mugstar are the sound of 10,000 suns exploding, pulsing with repetitive beauty, pounding like a supersonic mantra with shades of Sonic Youth, Neu!, Oneida and Pink Floyd.
Mugstar’s new album is released on Important Records in March 2010.
