Notable Newer Releases #2

Nomo - Nu Tones - New Tones (Ubiquity 2006)


One Second Bridge - Everywhere - One Second Bridge (Buro 2006)


The Brown Party - Three Plus Four Equals Fun - The Brown Party (self-released 2006)


Nomo – New Tones / Ubiquity

Much like early Antibalas records, Nomo’s eponymous debut was an infectious tribute to Fela’s afro-beat and soul-jazz, but it lacked individualism and would always be described as a tribute. For their second go around, composer/arranger/saxophonist Elliot Bergman (Saturday Looks Good to Me) and producer Warren Defever (His Name is Alive, Flashpapr) progress their sound tenfold, seemingly absorbing everything that was wonderful about late 60s, early-to-mid 70s music and deriving their own individual sound from it. As AMG so perfectly puts it, the 12+ member band ‘suggest Fela playing with Alice Coltrane and Roy Ayers in the JB’s.’ An obvious new influence since the self-titled is the inclusion of the makeshift electro-acoustic instruments popularized by Konono Nº1 and the Congotronics series, adding yet another element of worldly influence so important to their sound. With nasty polyrhythms, blaring horns, spluttering thumb piano riffs, deep bass grooves, funky guitars and Bergman’s Coltrane-inspired tenor solos, Nomo is without a doubt the most exciting, most nostalgic, most forward-thinking, most fucking amazing band of this decade.


One Second Bridge – One Second Bridge / Buro

One Second Bridge’s eponymous debut is made for nighttime. Scratch that… One Second Bridge’s eponymous debut is made for a downpour at 3am during the dreary month of May when your luck is down and you catch yourself solemnly staring out the window for signs of hope. The collaborative efforts of Vicente Garcia Landa of Mexico City and Matias Bieniaszewski of Buenos Aires reach back to the early days of shoegaze, when artists venturing into the infant genre experimented with grand melody-drenched soundscapes that decayed into the background as quickly as they appeared. Recorded during improvised late-night sessions, the relocated Barcelona residents have managed to create an immensely poignant and moving album of shoegaze, electronica, pop and light psychedelia that will surely be overlooked by most everyone, but become an obsession for a lucky few.


The Brown Party – The Brown Party / Self-Released

This is good. This is very good. How this Chicago 4-piece is not signed is pretty baffling; with all the great local labels, how has none of them taken notice? With a DIY attitude (they design, print and package all of their own releases and promos) and undeniable pop sensibilities, The Brown Party fuse a Stereolab-inspired sound with falsetto voices and ample percussion. Taking cues from 60s pop, psychedelia, jazz, Krautrock and worldly rhythms, they layer keyboards, percussion, guitar and an assortment of other instruments (from sitar to glockenspiel) into pulsing jams of rhythmic avant-pop. Think a less schizophrenic Of Montreal with a love of Fela-inspired keyboard hooks, harmonic layering and Krautrock experimentation.