Stack №244: Aug 16, 2019

Stack was handpicked by Blanck Mass, the solo project of Scotland-based musician Benjamin John Power (one half of Fuck Buttons). Animated Violence Mild, his latest collection of "searing, apocalyptic dance music," per Stereogum, arrives today on Sacred Bones.

Five good tracks
A featured album
A long mix
A good music read

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Aug 16, 2019

Drab Majesty - Ellipsis

Posted by 5 sites • On Bandcamp • Also on: Spotify • Apple Music

Wickedd Childd Follow “Photo by Nedda Afsari Mysterious, and often mystifying, LA-based darkwave duo Drab Majesty turns the mirror…” on Jul 21st →

Released last month via Dais Records, the third LP from Los Angeles-based dark synth-pop project Drab Majesty "brings to fruition their impeccable mix of sharp new wave sounds, traditional storytelling, and out of this world, sci-fi aesthetics, says Destroy//Exist.

Elysia Crampton - Oscollo

Posted by 1 site • On SoundCloud • Also on: Spotify • Apple Music

stereogum Follow “Last month, electronic musician Elysia Crampton announced a new self-titled album, her fourth full-length in as…” on Apr 13th, 2018 →

Electronic musician Elysia Crampton has used her work to explore themes of trans identity within Aymaran culture. This swaying, percussive track, from her 2018 album on Break World Records, is "a gorgeous to-and-fro that sounds like grains of sand dropping through an hourglass," says Stereogum.

SOPHIE - Is It Cold In The Water?

Posted by 3 sites • On SoundCloud • Also on: Spotify • Apple Music

Highclouds Follow “SOPHIE‘s debut album “OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES” is out now on Transgressive and [PIAS]. Even…” on Jun 26th, 2018 →

Blanck Mass selects a standout from experimental producer SOPHIE's critically-acclaimed, Grammy-nominated album OIL OF EVERY PEARL’s UN-INSIDES. The two have shared several festival bills over the years, including Hype Machine's at SXSW in 2016.

Rashad Becker - Dances VII

Posted by 1 site • On SoundCloud • Also on: Apple Music

Tiny Mix Tapes Follow “Rashad Becker Traditional Music of Notional Species Vol. II [PAN; 2016] Rating: 4.5/5 “…yes, I had…” on Feb 9th, 2017 →

PAN-signed German artist Rashad Becker is known for his record mastering skills as well as his own explorations in mapping sound with "unrivaled attention to synthesized detail," says Tiny Mix Tapes. "Each synthetic component as visible as an instrument in a chamber ensemble."

The Lowest Form - Dread Future

Posted by 1 site • On Bandcamp • Also on: Spotify • Apple Music

12XU Follow “Auf ihrem zweiten Album haut uns die londoner Band ein weiteres mal einen dreckigen Bastard aus…” on Dec 15th, 2016 →

The influence of hardcore is evident in the loudest, scream-backed sequences of Blanck Mass's music. UK band The Lowest Form are among the field's finest practitioners, wielding elements of discordant punk and textured noise.

FEATURED ALBUM

Maria Usbeck - Amor Anciano

Posted by 8 sites • On Bandcamp • Also on: Spotify

Sawdust and Gin Follow “Maria Usbeck just released Envejeciendo this past week, the follow-up to her 2016 debut. It churns…” yesterday →

Envejeciendo, from Ecuador-born, Brooklyn-based synth-pop artist Maria Usbeck.

GOOD MIX

To complete the Blanck Mass takeover, here's a throwback his 2015 Fader Mix. "This is a little more of a departure from the usual type of mix I tend to do. It's a little less fractured, perhaps. More 'club friendly.' So perhaps that's what the listener would be doing. Dancing. Or driving. Probably not reading a book."

GOOD READ

Damon Krukowski discusses the deep history of humans and music with Gary Tomlinson, author of A Million Years of Music, in Lapham’s Quarterly:

"Music gets cast in the middle of human symbol systems but in and of itself has no symbolic array. This is why music seems so abstract."

Thanks for listening!

—Dave & Team Hype Machine