Look, we know we throw a lot of new music at you. We also know that not everyone who comes to this site has the time to be as involved with or informed about the local scene as maybe they’d like to be. So for those casual readers who either can’t or have no interest in keeping up with the parade of artists we try to cover, who may not know the difference between Bitter and Biters, we have created our TRIPLE THREAT feature. The premise is simple: Our writers will put their heads together and come up with three tracks that grabbed our attention over the past week. Then we tell you why the songs are great and worth listening to. That’s it. Maybe some weeks we’ll have a guest commentator come in and share their favorites, but the format will always remain the same: three songs, some words, and we out. Enjoy.
HAINT – “Probably Human”
From the EP, |)r/|][|\|
It’s always fun to gauge the room when Stone Irvin boots up a Haint set. Not everyone quite understands the rewired logic that flows between her kinky drum machine and off-kilter guitar, at least not at first blush. As is often the case with the subtler arts, the general public needs a good loud anthem to rally behind, something to fall on bended knees to, someone to look up to. And in every instance that I’ve watched Irvin, she usually seals the hex over the crowd with “Probably Human.” Even on Adult Swim’s Bloodfeast, where the site’s chat room usually draws out the worst from the internet trolls, that was the moment when you could see their petty heads explode with sensory overload. With Haint, Irvin seizes the demonic presence that her enemies might try to impose on her; “Probably Human” validates and exorcises that essence at once, and drowns all doubt with the all-consuming fuzz pedal. I always wonder if any feels as cleansed as I do, or as overwhelmed in catharsis. At any rate, now that this one’s on tape, surely Irvin will enlighten more crowds ’round town soon. – Lee Adcock
More Info
Web: haintatl.com
Bandcamp: haintatl.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @haintatl
Instagram: @haintatl
SoundCloud: @haintatl
Orchid Mantis – “It Was Gone”
From the Track & Field Records Summer Compilation Vol. 2
In the year of our lord 2015, Orchid Mantis, the solo project of singer-songwriter Thomas Howard, released an enchanting single entitled “It Was Gone,” a track that has not yet fulfilled its prophecy. As we become immersed within its luminous soundscape, we’re invited to drift into another level of consciousness. This lucid dream begins in the rain, where the bass is murky and the glistening synths drip from the sky. Somewhere in-between, a lo-fi mystical mist hovers in the air. Then nature and Orchid Mantis join forces to manifest the weirdest weather phenomenon: the sun, in the form of a bright guitar riff, shines through the rain. By now we’re drenched and have entered yet another level of consciousness, which leads us to realize that a raindrop has become a form of percussion, echoing consistently. Howard orchestrates a universe of sound in which electronic instruments and sounds can emulate—even metamorphose into—elements of nature. Given the divine nature of this single, it’s safe to say the stars are aligned in its favor when it comes to the prophetic title. All prophecies aside, though, “It Was Gone” is a single worth traveling back in time for. – Sophia Rubin
More Info
Bandcamp: orchid-mantis.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @latesummersun
SoundCloud: @orchid_mantis
Twitter: @latesummersun
Tumblr: late-summersun.tumblr.com
Gregorio Franco – “Subterranean Caverns”
From the LP, GoldenEye 007: A Tribute
This isn’t the first time that local synth wizard Gregorio Franco has re-imagined a video game soundtrack, but unlike his two-volume collection of Mega Man X tunes, his new GoldenEye 007 cover album is a claustrophobic speed run of pulsing synths and tense rhythms. For the most part Franco sticks to the script of Grant Kirkhope’s original soundtrack, explaining, “This is not a remix album. This is a carefully curated and selected rewrite and reimagining of my favorite music from the GoldenEye 007 soundtrack.”
There might not be any drastic alterations, but Franco’s crescendos are grander, and his beats hit harder. Nothing tops the lo-fi simplicity of originals like “Facility,” but these versions are lovingly crafted with an eye for the overarching themes of the 1997 classic. On “Subterranean Caverns,” Franco ratchets up the sense of gloom and foreboding. His take is slower than original, and the pacing almost communicates a sense of mourning. But don’t let the creeping melodies lull you into complacency or the guards will come with the auto shotguns—and Trevelyan will escape. – Russell Rockwell
More Info
Bandcamp: gregoriofranco.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @gregoriofranco85
Instagram: @gregoriofrancomusic
SoundCloud: @gregoriofranco
Twitter: @gregorioxfranco