Aural Delights 388

Night Operations	–	Pull The Trigger	–	Single
Blokeacola	–	I Change My Mind	–	Blokeacola
Flat Worms	–	Ripper One	–	Antartica
The Dream Syndicate	–	Apropos of Nothing	–	The Universe Inside
The Room In The Wood	–	Dragonfly	–	We’re the Martians, now
Blaney	–	Evolution	–	Single
Dave Graney & Clare Moore	–	My Schtick Weighs A Ton	–	Hashish and Liquor
Document	–	Pity	–	A Camera Wanders All Night
Dr Israel	–	Equal Rights	–	In Dub
Peter Hammill	–	Meanwhile My Mother	–	Not Yet Not Now
Psychic Lemon	–	Jam 2	–	Studio Jams Volume 1
Blokeacola	–	Age of Cement	–	Blokeacola
The Lighthouse Keepers		Torture Road	–	Lipsnipegroin
Flat Worms	–	Condo Colony	–	Antartica
Peter Hammill	–	What Lies Ahead	–	Not Yet Not Now
The Dream Syndicate	–	The Slowest Rendition	–	The Universe Inside
The Room In The Wood	–	Halloween Lies	–	We’re the Martians, now
Blaney	–	Othello	–	Single
Dave Graney & Clare Moore	–	Out of Where?	–	Hashish and Liquor
Dr Israel	–	Dub Out Tonight	–	In Dub
Flat Worms	–	Signals	–	Antartica
Gaffa Ghandi	–	Ancient Dominator	–	Artificial Disgust
Lord Fowl	–	Glorious Babylon	–	Glorious Babylon
Rob Luft	–	Berlin	–	Life is the Dancer
Blokeacola	–	Heavy Fruit	–	Blokeacola
Space Museum		The Long Weekend	–	Unreleased

NOTES

1. Night Operations –  a new single and the follow up to 2018’s Advantage album. There’s a new album on the way which I have not heard yet but if this single is anything to go by it should be good. Mike Powell blending pop smarts with indie electronica.
2. Blokeacola – eponymous album, mysterious shadowy figure who does not want to reveal his identity. Sounds a bit like Jump for Neon.
3. Flat Worms – as previously mentioned one for the top list at year end
4. The Dream Syndicate – remarkable album blending many genres into something rather special
5. The Room In The Wood – difficult second album thing dealt with easily. Singles are being released from this. Paul Cavanagh turns up on a couple of Moongoose EPs coming out in June via German Shepherd.
6. Blaney – Ed’s been quiet for a while but has come back with a couple of excellent singles which are rather special and very different from his previous work.
7. Dave Graney & Clare Moore – the journey through the back catalogue continues with a couple of classics from a remarkable double album.
8. Document – the trouble with Manchester is that there is a new “big thing” every week which tends to lead the dedicated audiophile somewhat jaded by excess hype and promises of something new. Emperor’s New Clothes etc. This however bucks that trend and is a great band and whilst they are being marketed strongly the praise is justified. They can play their instruments and aren’t being pushed as something they aren’t/
9. Dr Israel – a dub artist from Brooklyn/New York City. For him, dub music — originally rooted in 1960s Jamaican reggae culture — is the starting point to explore a universe of sounds, including hardcore punk, rock, hip-hop, ambient, electronics, reggae, drum and bass. A global melting pot of a wild variety of musical styles. Douglas Bennett, aka Dr. Israel (Jamaicans gave him his artist name when he lived for a while in a Niyabinghi community and became a Rastafari) discovered what he calls “non-traditional” reggae while playing guitar in punk rock bands in his native Philadelphia.
10. Peter Hammill – getting to the end of CD7 of the Not Yet Not Now Box and Peter continues to mine his extensive back catalogue. I saw him on the tour where a lot of this material was recorded and whilst the acoustics in the Stoller Hall were excellent it missed some of the charm/close to the audience feel of the smaller theatre at The Lowry.
11. Psychic Lemon – been playing these guys for a few years now. They are fine exponents of a style of music that can get overworked – a lengthy jam from a freebie on Bandcamp.
12. The Lighthouse Keepers – Australian country and indie pop band formed in 1981 and who toured the UK with The Triffids in 1985.  They have had several reunions over the years with the last siting being in 2012.
13. Gaffa Ghandi – Formed in Dresden, Germany in the hot summer of 2011 from the remains of the seminal crossover/funk band Busted Cherry the  followed their inner calls and gravitated in a somewhat dadaistic approach towards off-kilter stoner rock, quivering psychedelic, instrumental rap metal in a prog-rock-like haze.
14. Lord Fowl – Lord Fowl took shape in New Haven, CT, in the summer of 2007 with one goal: write songs like those they grew up hearing. Songs that drive you. Songs that come alive. Songs that rock. With Glorious Babylon, their third LP and second on Small Stone Records, Lord Fowl refuse to compromise this high standard, bringing forth the energy of their dynamic stage presence and dual lead vocals, as the song-craft of singer/guitarists Vechel Jaynes and Mike Pellegrino reaches its next level of progression.
15. Rob Luft – new star in the British Jazz firmament who creates music so diverse that it can end up on this show.
16. Space Museum – more noodling from the eastern edge of Monton village.