All these albums are still very much in stock, and you can click those titles to head over to the BEM webstore, where you can buy copies, or, in most cases, stream the whole album for free! We'll also be including a sample track from each album to give you a taste right here on The Trunk.
Without further ado, let's get down to business!
I had no idea what to think when I first heard this album. I'm still not completely sure what to think even now.
The unique, unpredictable wit of Orange Clocks is probably better experienced than explained. The music is a heady psychedelic blend that evokes the vintage TV to which the album pays homage, and the narration is by turns unsettling and hysterical. That first listen to Tope's Sphere 2 was one of the strangest half hours of my adult life, and I think that's a better pitch than anything else I could say about it.
Well, except telling you all that Tope's sidekick is called Chode. That might sway you.
If there's one BEM artist we can rely upon to make us think and sing along at the same time, it's Tom Slatter. Happy People is a concentrated burst of lyrical bitterness that brings new voices into the mix alongside Tom's own, telling a compelling tale of a dark, paranoid world not so very different from our own. More of a conceptual whole than his previous work, it's a story in and of itself, of which this preview track here is just a single chapter.
It's also catchier than an album with this much depth seemingly has any right to be. We here at Elephant Towers were humming lines from this record for months after the first play, and it still gets played, even from a music library as crowded as ours. Not only does he tell great stories, Tom writes bloody incredible tunes too, and combining the two is a recipe for genius.
In their own words, Big Hogg make "electric music for the mind and body". Paying homage to the Canterbury scene with a series of intriguing modern twists, Gargoyles delivers on that promise with a twisting, almost hypnotic series of songs. Laid-back, but never soporific, it's a perfect album for relaxed Sunday mornings (maybe even the one you're currently having!), and for any time when you just want to lose yourself in a tune.
Between carefree whimsy and subtle foreboding, there are many steps to this journey, but somehow none of them feel jarring or out of place. This album closed up a very busy March in admirable fashion, and, just like Happy People, it still gets plenty of play over here.
3rd February: Flightless
Note: Music, though good, will not induce brain geysers. Hopefully.
Our first album of 2017 was a reissue, taking us almost three decades into the past to revisit and remaster original recordings dating back to 1988. Rog Patterson describes Flightless as an example of his "characteristic bleating on the subject of human stupidity", and it's telling of both the songs and the society surrounding them that the former feel even more relevant now.
In the tradition of the "heavy wood" genre brought to light by Rog's old band Twice Bitten, stripped-back, strings-only instrumentation accompanies Rog's melodious yet biting vocals. Flightless may be older than certain members of the BEM staff, but it has undoubtedly stood the test of time.
In the tradition of the "heavy wood" genre brought to light by Rog's old band Twice Bitten, stripped-back, strings-only instrumentation accompanies Rog's melodious yet biting vocals. Flightless may be older than certain members of the BEM staff, but it has undoubtedly stood the test of time.
3rd March: Tope's Sphere 2
That big planet looks a bit like those plastic flying saucers you put in the laundry.
I had no idea what to think when I first heard this album. I'm still not completely sure what to think even now.
The unique, unpredictable wit of Orange Clocks is probably better experienced than explained. The music is a heady psychedelic blend that evokes the vintage TV to which the album pays homage, and the narration is by turns unsettling and hysterical. That first listen to Tope's Sphere 2 was one of the strangest half hours of my adult life, and I think that's a better pitch than anything else I could say about it.
Well, except telling you all that Tope's sidekick is called Chode. That might sway you.
17th March: Happy People
Apparently, if I mess up a press release, I'm going to get put in one of these.
If there's one BEM artist we can rely upon to make us think and sing along at the same time, it's Tom Slatter. Happy People is a concentrated burst of lyrical bitterness that brings new voices into the mix alongside Tom's own, telling a compelling tale of a dark, paranoid world not so very different from our own. More of a conceptual whole than his previous work, it's a story in and of itself, of which this preview track here is just a single chapter.
It's also catchier than an album with this much depth seemingly has any right to be. We here at Elephant Towers were humming lines from this record for months after the first play, and it still gets played, even from a music library as crowded as ours. Not only does he tell great stories, Tom writes bloody incredible tunes too, and combining the two is a recipe for genius.
31st March: Gargoyles
Jessica never cared much for family reunions.
In their own words, Big Hogg make "electric music for the mind and body". Paying homage to the Canterbury scene with a series of intriguing modern twists, Gargoyles delivers on that promise with a twisting, almost hypnotic series of songs. Laid-back, but never soporific, it's a perfect album for relaxed Sunday mornings (maybe even the one you're currently having!), and for any time when you just want to lose yourself in a tune.
Between carefree whimsy and subtle foreboding, there are many steps to this journey, but somehow none of them feel jarring or out of place. This album closed up a very busy March in admirable fashion, and, just like Happy People, it still gets plenty of play over here.
Status Update
Murder and Parliament is out this coming Friday! If you've not preordered yet, we highly recommend that you do so now so you get the goods as soon as possible.
Masquerade 2 is just around the corner - if you liked the sound of Big Hogg or Tom Slatter in today's feature, both acts will be playing there, so grab your tickets and prepare for a great day's music, "plus masks, madness and pre-Christmas revelry". Fancy!
Masquerade 2 is just around the corner - if you liked the sound of Big Hogg or Tom Slatter in today's feature, both acts will be playing there, so grab your tickets and prepare for a great day's music, "plus masks, madness and pre-Christmas revelry". Fancy!
Review Roundup
Progarchives Special Collaborator (what an ominous title) Kev Rowland has published his review of Fukushima Surfer Boys, and concluded that "those who have more discerning tastes will find much here to enjoy". Oooooh.
And, while it's not strictly a review, Simon Godfrey showed up on Future Feature this week to talk about his experience with Valdez and the production of This. Simon says some words, and we think they're well worth a listen.
We've got nine whole months left to get through, so join us again next week for part two of our retrospective!
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