Rarity: Brand new solo radiation from Mike Connelly of Wolf Eyes, Hair Police et al on Mike Bernstein of Double Leopards' imprint. Looped conveyor belts of tiny metal tracks are punctured by rattlesnake tones and steel blades of stumpy Morse code while fleets of black, tattooed helicopters come to a sticky halt in clouds of thick, flashing boo. Comes with a great full-colour printed cover by Maya Miller of Double Leopards and bonus sticker. Edition circa 200.

2012 solo album from Mike Connelly of Wolf Eyes, Birth Refusal et al’s solo project: Connelly has been on a comparative roll recently, with recent Gods Of Tundra releases seeing him push out into a more focussed and low-key exploration of post-Noise basement hypnotics. Dawn Undefeated continues the trend with a series of minimal works for synthesizer and guitar possessed of an almost classical arc and grace. Connelly has definitely been listening to a lot of Hermann Nitsch’s organ and harmonium drone works of late, as there’s a similarly degraded cosmic/devotional edge to his playing here alongside aspects of Conrad Schnitzler’s more gothic work, as on Gelb, for instance. Some of the brokedown piano work. has the dusty bedroom feel of early Richard Youngs but its bracketed throughout by distant thundercracks of electronics and grainy nightmare tones that touch on American slasher movie themes as much as pastoral English minimalism. Either way, this is another giant step for Connelly and a major solo work. 

New wretchedly destroyed primitive rock ascension from Robert Beatty of Hair Police/Eyes And Arms Of Smoke and collaborator Walter Carson. One of the most repeat-killing Heavy Tapes blats to date, with full colour artwork by Maya Miller of Double Leopards and the usual classy HT production job.

Limited edition of 500 copies LP from Hair Police, with beautiful art sleeves assembled from hand-cut recycled paper and featuring a silkscreened B-side. Recorded while the group were trapped in a hotel room in Ohio during one of the worst snowstorms in history, this is classic bass-driven entropic noise/rock that occupies the same kind of low-end oblivion as early Neubauten, Skip Spence’s Oar etc while moving deeper into territory previously mapped by the less overtly aggressive tracks on Certainty Of Swarms. Recommended.

Edition of 177 copies on Spencer Yeh of Burning Star Core’s own label documenting two live performances from this group that features Sara O’Keefe (Handicapper Horns/Eyes & Arms Of Smoke) and Trevor Tremaine (Hair Police/Burning Star Core/Death Unit et al). The sound is primitive, laid-back/stoned free jazz and electronics, with O’Keefe blowing brief halos of folk tone that Tremaine echoes and mutates via subtle shots of electricity while the two of em raise revenant vocal tones high above the din. One of the nicest reconciliations of free/folk in a while. Packaged in individually unique screened/sprayed sleeves. Already sold out at source.

Edition of 80 copies in card boxes with paste-on wraparound full-colour sleeves. The Cove is Mike Connelly of Wolf Eyes/Hair Police in combative electro-acoustic/Industrial ritual mode. Clattering metal and unidentified tectonics conjure the claustrophobic sound of early CCCC and the Akita/Null duets, all played with a wild free music abandon.

Excellent fucked-up distorto recording of this Lexington-area super group featuring members of Hair Police, Cadaver In Drag, Warmer Milks, Walter Carson and Kraken Fury playing pummelling Swans-style doomy hardcore illuminated by confused coils of spaghetti electronics and fronted by a vocalist who gargles black microphones like he’s choking on carrots. Massively fucked lumber-punk style, like if the NZ scene hadda spawned a sloth rock behemoth that only released cheap tapes via Expressway. More please! Recommended. 

“Connelly & Oldzone Refusal Unit: Two complete gigs from the mid summer tour with Uneven Universe, Evenings & Hive Mind. All acoustic, no amps, no electricity, nothing. Horrible scrape, empty litter containers with glass, bottle caps, metal, reeds, acoustic clutter supreme. One set from Gabe's killer Toledo Den of Death, the other from the amazing GOOD STYLE shop in Madison. Killer tour, ended in the woods jammin THE CHIEFTANS x 2 45s on 3rpm. Summer simmer acoustic. Racket to rocket to uncharted ear trails. Color Covers.” – John Olson.

Compilation featuring unreleased tracks from Connelly & The Machines, Body Morph, Hive Mind, Dog Lady and Drainolith: “So the other day, me and my lab buddy supreme Scott were knee f'in deep in trying to find out if a huge craggly motor was delta or wye three phase connected, and needless to say, was NOT having luck. It was a one of them RAW bologna built motors that has wire numbers, but its pointless cause its all on its own weirdo system. Whatever. So as usual, we shot the shit.
"What’s up this weekend man?"
"Not much, got a killer afternoon gig at the spot on Sunday...."
"What’s a gig?"
"Ah.... I’m having some of my weirdo friends over to make ah.... music...."
"You make music?"
"Sure"
"Would you ever play a 'gig' for the troops?"
"We should get black to that motor...I think I know the lead wires now..."
"Well, I can’t come over, I gotta fix my tires on my hunting jeep, but you know what would rule Olson?"
"What’s that?"
"If you would press that jammer on wax, mix all the tracks together into one inzane mess and sent it to Smith out west to press...."
"Man, you might be on to something"
"Make it one long one-sider with a lock groove, I mean shit...that’s how I remember gigs anyway.... and just use a flyer for the cover!!!"
"My man!!!"
So I took Scott's advice. Took the killer matinee jam, got out the scalpel, mixed everything together seamless inzane style, book ended it with an EVIL Hive Mind loop and boosh!!!! Pressed gig memory!!!! So it's just like a gig, except you don’t have KNOX MITCHELL's dad dropping you off or Collino spilling brews everywhere or your secret recipe INZANE CHILLI remains burning up in the bottoms of an empty crock pot. Oddly, not a peep of crew-audience noise to be found. Dog Lady played acoustic string scrape, Dan Body jammed reed universe from the uneven side (and then BLASTED Disclose and Firmeza 10 in the jamm room), Drainolith is my main man Alex K from Montreal and kept it uber real with amazing synth scramble, live from yep, THE BASEMENT. Greh said he did a cover of THE SHINING but I’ve never seen that mini-series. Dead Machines and Connelly jammed magical pixie flutes, infected metal scrape and vocals from an eerie afternoon lagoon. Like an endless gig, ...you gotta SIT THRU THE WHOLE THING...in one inzane memory blurr surpreme.... Record ends with an EVIL Hive Mind lock groover, endless...party. ... forever.... Was a blast, more of this style to come. And BYOB!!! There are three party stores right in the hood, duh!!! 2pm SHARP!!!> Edition of 100 in handmade recycled sleeves, numbered.” – John Olson.

Debut full-length album, recorded over five years, for Robert Beatty of Hair Police’s solo project: inchoate cut-up vocals and fucked-up beats give Persuasive Barrier a dark, Throbbing Gristle/Psychic TV/Coil vibe and the electronics have a heady ‘automating’ appeal. The drones are microtone thick and have a devotional aspect to them that comes over like some of the more gothic Krautrock but it’s all cut up with a deeply illogic style, jump-cutting from transcendent tone ascensions to minimal beats and deconstructed speech that gives it the feel of an hallucinatory travelogue through surreal, imaginary landscapes. Think Minimal Man re-worked by Steven Stapleton w/Pan Sonic and you’re still nowhere close.