MP3// Indian Wells: Wimbledon 1980

   
Topical music is a rarity here at Music Dissection, but with Wimbledon well underway it seems only right that we reminisce on what many consider to be the greatest tennis match of all time. The Borg-McEnroe tie-break in the fourth game of the 1980 final lasted twenty minutes and saw thirty-four points played. To offer comparison, a typical game often results in no more than ten contested points. It was a match that remains to this day one of the most famous in tennis history, and Indian Wells does it every justice. With commentator recording layered over every tangible hit of the ball and every fierce grunt of exertion, it's an incredible track that immortalises the match in sound. Snippets of cheers swell with the tension and the sheer will-power of Björn Borg and John McEnroe. Hear it above and find more at the SoundCloud here!

EP// Saitam: West - East

   
Ambient electronica is a genre I'm incredibly fond of. More often than not however, a sense of place is traded in for surrealism. Synth passages become winding, transcending endearment and making otherwise well-embedded samples appear lost and disconnected. This alien abstraction is appealing, offering us ethereal or frightening soundscapes, voices from the past lingering and echoing around the cavernous oblivion that is the imagination. Portugal's Saitam takes a different approach. World music is utilised, hand-claps and horns painting an inherently more recognisable picture. Taking the fourth track 'Rebellion', we find ourselves upon a busy road. Cars speed past, leading you to sweet melodies and the comfort of an evening breeze. The traffic is muffled, maintaining that surrealism but layering it upon the structure and monotony of reality. You can visualise hands clapping and water dripping. Walking under a road, vibrations shudder. Faster, tribal drums emerge, uneasy and repetitive and beautiful. The vocals Saitam records on other tracks is affected and gothic-styled, oriental shakers and the solace of grand temples perfectly balanced by symphonic builds and dreamy climaxes. Saitam takes classical ambient techniques and moulds them around physical sounds rather than synthetic ones. Real drums instead of computer-generated beats. It's this grounding in the absolute that makes 'West - East' great. Authenticity verses surrealism reveals the beauty of the everyday, changing your perception rather than offering a different view! Stream 'Encounters', then go download the whole EP from the Bandcamp here!

MP3// Grizzly Bear: Sleeping Ute

Back in 2006 Brooklyn quartet Grizzly Bear dropped 'Yellow House', a naturally experimental record that danced complex and ambitious steps across the band's debut. Surreal and slow and emotional, Grizzly Bear threw plenty of sounds together. The unnerving folk sensibilities of Comus were sprinkled over an impressive symphony of acoustics and lush production. Dead Can Dance-esque gloom fleeted through the ten tracks, tying them together with threads of soft-rock sincerity. Three years later and 'Veckatimest' spread a layer of accessible (but far less complex) veneer across their sound, resulting in an album that lacked any replayability, for me at least. 'Sleeping Ute' is the latest single from Grizzly Bear, heralding the release of the band's fourth album on September 18th. Thankfully there's much to love. The combination of electric and acoustic sounds works well, bubbly synths playing off classic guitar lines and drums of a thundery persuasion. Daniel Rossen's lead singing holds a captivating bluesy tone, his guitar-plucked outro calming the track to an uneasy simmer. It's a belter of a song, rediscovering the complexities that I loved from 'Yellow House'! Stream it up above and then pre-order Grizzly Bear's new album from iTunes.

MP3// Wild Nothing: Shadow

Wild Nothing is a wonderful name. Loaded with whimsy and reminiscent of long summer days, Jack Tatum's brand of dreamy pop-rock fulfils every expectation. His is a genre bandied about perhaps a little too often, but the sound the musicians involved produce is far from ordinary. Evocative of bands like The Radio Dept, mellow strings and surreal drums offset Tatum's weary and heartfelt vocal delivery. Lyrically and sonically 'Shadow' stuns, paving the way for Wild Nothing's second LP 'Nocturne', out August 28th!

PREMIERE// Frid: Serving Time feat. Ellsie

First off, this is the first video Music Dissection has had the honour to premiere, and it accompanies an absolutely fantastic number. Taken from Frid's EP of the same name, which dropped back in November, 'Serving Time' features Ellsie and hits with an impressive emotional punch. Filmed almost entirely in grayscale, the odd bit of colour emphasises the retrospective nature of the lyricism. A brilliantly low and despairing piano melody is layered over a harrowing, claustrophobic throb, the beat perfectly balancing the composition. Frid's thought process evolves with the track, tears and suits and monotony leading to angry revelation. At his lyrical best, we see a real man with real problems come close to breaking point. Ellsie's contribution is incorporated perfectly into the video, her blonde hair a surreal highlight amongst the shadows, her soft singing offsetting Frid's verses with captivating charm. An outstanding song and a magnificent film accompaniment, we look forward to more of both from Wenlock Music and Wenlock TV! Stream the video above, find the whole EP here and then read my interview with Frid himself over here!

ALBUM// Lunova Labs: [shhht_13]

[Shhht_13] is four tracks, produced by the prolific Lunova Labs and published under interesting Belgium project Silenced, which has been aiding underground electronic artists for more than half a decade. The thirteenth net-release from the collective, [shhht_13] is a fascinating and experimental listen, inspired by transcendentalism, a philosophical movement devoted to intellectual independence and the merits of both man and nature. Lunova Labs matches synthesisers and vocal samples with field recordings and stunning ambient vistas, pairing man and nature and giving substance to the conceptual. 'paradise (to be) regained' is pure sampled bliss, the swell of the sea and distant trains vibrating across a gravelly shore. Seagulls cry and a mysterious voice ushers in water drips and ethereal echoes. Woodland is the following story's setting, sparse piano notes playing gleefully with nymphs and birds alike. Minimalism is key to these songs really working, on both an aesthetic and emotional level. On 'night & moonlight', a track that starts relatively abrasive, we see industrial repetition give way to a haunting classical piano. A beautiful sample on the final number relays some complex theorem, but again we descend into almost mesmerising and subtly despondent synth-work. [shhht_13] is simply brilliant. Described as 'future garage', I can only hope the concept catches on! Grab it for free over here and then visit Silenced here!