Independent Record Label | Est. 2009
Wilmington, North Carolina

 
 

EVENT CALENDAR

Saturday, August 31, 2024

Shelby Smoak: Dancing





[Repost from Here Comes the Flood; by Hans Werksman, August 21, 2024]

Indie rocker Shelby Smoak is in a post-punk mood on his new single "Dancing", with pleading vocals carefully draped over repetitive guitar motifs and off-kilter drums. He wrote it for his wife, reminiscing about holding her tight on the dance floor without a care in the world. Busting a move on this particular track will be a challenge for most, but as an 80s inspired love song it can stand on its own.

"Dancing" is released via Fort Lowell Records.
» shelbysmoak.com

Friday, August 30, 2024

OUT NOW: Fuzz Jaxx & CoolOutSessions + Tercel [Digital Singles]







The Digital Singles from each of the artists — Fuzz Jaxx & CoolOutSessions "Welcome to Hip-Hop" and Tercel "L.O.L. (Lap of Luxury)" — featured on Volume IV of our This Water is Life series are available now everywhere!  

Fans of A Tribe Called Quest, Black Thought, Common, Del, Dilla, GangStarr, J Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Little Brother, Method Man, MindsOne, Nas, Ras Kas, Redman, and Souls of Mischief will enjoy "Welcome to Hip-Hop" by Fuzz Jaxx & CoolOutSessionswhile fans of Archers of Loaf, Broken Social Scene, Built to Spill, Horsegirl, Japandroids, JEFF the Brotherhood, Pavement, Pissed Jeans, Sebadoh, Ty Segall, Sleater-Kinney, Sonic Youth, Superchunk, The Thermals, and Yuck will enjoy "L​.​O​.​L. (Lap of Luxury)" by Tercel.

Thursday, August 29, 2024

New album: Forest Fallows || Palisades



[Repost from Add to Wantlist; by Niek, August 9, 2024]

Decade-long musical partnership between Mike Barnett and Alex Morton pays dividends on latest LP

Tucson-based bedroom recording project Forest Fallows, comprised of Mike Barnett and Alex Morton, release their sophomore album Palisades today. They’ve enlisted the expertise of John McEntire (known for his work with Stereolab, Tortoise, and Modest Mouse) to produce the record.

The synergy of the decade-long musical partnership between Barnett and Morton sure is palpable in this collection of songs, and I am enjoying it a lot. I believe the press release is spot on by highlighting that the new album is “a blend of the production and style of the 60’s and 70’s with the quirks of 90’s indie and post rock.” It’s a warm sound that is far from dull, a sound that is familiar yet full of surprising touches and sidesteps.

The relaxed nature combined with the creative genius, multi-instrumentalism and stylistic variation makes Palisades the kind of record that’s perfect for early morning listening. It may as well lighten up your daily commute or provide the soundtrack to your daily strolls. Palisades is a subtle and lush record, and it is out now on vinyl at Fort Lowell Records.

Monday, August 26, 2024

Al Foul 'Come Back a Dog' [Final Album] — Pre-Order Vinyl Record Now





When Al Foul left this world in the twilight hours of May 25, 2022, he roared like a lion. His arms were stick-straight, precisely parallel to his body, fists clenched and holding a posture not unlike a daredevil diver heading feet first into some sort of otherworldly, aquatic abyss.

It was a frightening, beautiful, and fully fitting exit for a man and musician who had already been described as a living legend long before he was diagnosed with the laryngeal cancer that took his life.

Over his 50 years on this mortal coil, Alan Lewis Curtis overcame a bleakly violent, impoverished childhood in Hyde Park, Boston and went on to live a richly adventurous, extraordinary life, primarily under his stage name, Al Foul.

After forays into punk rock, mostly with his Tucson-based band Al Foul and The Shakes, he settled into a solo configuration, occasionally augmented with various players from Tucson and always with his reputation for charming showmanship and ribald humor intact. The joyous mayhem of his delivery made his performances memorable and eventually underground iconic.

He toured Europe for decades and gained a particularly devoted following in France and Germany where his shows took on a more Lynchian quality with the input of his touring partner, DJ Laurent Allinger ( a.k.a. “The French Tourist”), who added surreal samples and textures that echoed Foul’s chosen Southwest home. Whether he was playing biker festivals in tiny villages or sharing larger stages with King Khan and The Shrines or The BellRays, Al was always utterly unforgettable.

During the pandemic, Foul was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer and was cared for by his wife, KXCI DJ Hannah Levin, until his death in 2022. Al’s battle and their love story was chronicled by local PBS station AZPM and in 2024 the resulting documentary “Al & Hannah” won the Edward R. Murrow award for Best News Documentary.

Come Back a Dog is Al Foul's final album [Release Date: October 11, 2024], a combination of originals and covers that were fan favorite staples of his live sets. From the starkly prophetic title track and his gleeful take on the Muscle Shoals’ staple “Six Days on the Road” to the neo-noir spin on the American traditional murder ballad “Frankie & Johnny” and the haunting atmospherics of “Darker Shade of Blue”, Foul sketches a gritty-yet-compassionate portrait of raw Americana that could sit comfortably on a shelf between a Raymond Carver anthology and a Tom Waits’ boxed set.

Sunday, August 25, 2024

Shelby Smoak – “Dancing”





[Repost from The Alternative; by Ryleigh Wann, August 19, 2024]

Shelby Smoak’s “Dancing” is intimate and tender—the instruments are simplistic and ride the wave of a steady bassline, while the lyrics are just as sweet as they are confident beside rhythmic chords. It builds into a heartfelt ballad and when I listen to it, it sounds like the opening track to a road trip movie—one where I’m going after my girl who got away, and I’ll get to see her again, eventually.

Saturday, August 24, 2024

New album: Naïm Amor || Stories



[Repost from Add to Wantlist; by Dennis, July 26, 2024]

Master guitarist's soundtrack without a film

“I want the listener to be traveling through their imagination, I hope they will feel moved by the melodies and the textures, and would get to the end of the album and feel a bit nostalgic that it’s the end, like a really good movie.” French-born/Arizona-based musician Gabriel Naïm Amor is back with Stories, his twelfth LP since the mid 2000’s, an alternative pop/rock soundtrack without a film. The six instrumentals and three vocal songs make two things clear: we are dealing with a master guitarist here, and everything is in service of creating a certain mood that evokes cinematic images and feelings. It takes a few listens, but then you would almost start a crowdfunding campaign to have your thoughts made into footage to go with the music.

Stories, recorded in one marathon session by Jim Waters, is out now digitally and on vinyl LP through Fort Lowell Records. Featuring Naïm Amor (guitar, violin, vocals), Ben Nisbet (guitar, violin), Thøger Lund (bass) and Casey Hadland (drums).

Friday, August 23, 2024

OUT NOW: Al Foul "Down Hill" [Digital Single]





The first single "Down Hill" from Al Foul's (1971-2022) final album Come Back a Dog — a combination of originals and covers that sketch a gritty-yet-compassionate portrait of raw Americana — is available now on all digital music platforms.  

For fans of Hasil Adkins, Bloodshot Bill, Johnny Burnette, Johnny Cash, Raymond Carver, Nick Cave, Eddie Cochran, The Cramps, Dave Dudley, Elvis, Charlie Feathers, Howe Gelb, Earl Green, PJ Harvey, Richard Hawley, Trini Lopez, Carl Perkins, Reverend Horton Heat, Dex Romweber, Nick Shoulders, Jon Spencer, Mark Sultan, Kip Tyler, Gene Vincent, Tom Waits, Link Wray.

Monday, August 19, 2024

Naïm Amor Has ‘Stories’ to Tell with His “The Start Over” Music Video [Premiere]



[Repost from V13; by Aaron Willschick, August 12, 2024]

As Naïm Amor shows us on his latest album, words are not a prerequisite for stories. He shows you why on his new single “The Start Over” and his new album Stories out now via Fort Lowell Records. Today marks the debut of the official music video for “The Start Over,” a hard-driving, colourful performance video that shows you just how good Amor is at the guitar. You see many close-up shots of his masterful playing, and while there are some lyrics, the guitar does most of the talking in this song.

For a guitar-based, mostly instrumental song, Amor shows you how it’s done, keeping things rocking throughout. The song never lets up, with a guitar sound reminiscent of an old Western film. You might even liken it to the iconic theme of Quentin Tarantino’s legendary film Pulp Fiction.

Explaining “The Start Over” and elaborating on the album, Amor tells us:

“The album Stories is an expression of not only a musical one but also one following a concept. The concept consists of displaying my interest towards diversity in music through different stories. These stories are rendered hopefully using one voice in a consistent homogenous style. ‘The Start Over’ song in particular is a story evocative of a great American freedom imagery, a guy that has nothing to lose anymore and only has the move forward for himself. Other songs are instrumentals, the title itself will be the only clue to direct the listener’s imagination.”

Stories is Naïm Amor’s twelfth record he has released since the mid-2000s. Born and raised in Paris and now residing in Arizona, he had time to finetune this record, maybe more than he liked when the pandemic lockdowns arrived. He emerged with a finished album featuring six instrumentals and three tracks with vocals. On the surface, Stories may not seem like an appropriate name for an album featuring two-thirds instrumentals, but when you dive deeper into the concept, it makes perfect sense.

For his latest album, Amor wanted to take a cinematic approach to songwriting. Within the songs is a story for everyone to discover and interpret in their way. Each track is meant to evoke images and feelings with the listener the one left to guide those feelings. The narrative of a human voice is unnecessary when you have songs like these. The tones, combination of instruments, and arrangements are intricate and complex. Each song can stand alone in its own right, but they work best as a group. It would suit Amor quite well if you buckled up your imagination for a ride, where textures and melodies will do all of the talking.

Saturday, August 17, 2024

Forest Fallows: Palisades





[Repost from Here Comes the Flood; by Hans Werksman, August 9, 2024]

Mike Barnett and Alex Morton have an uncanny knack for creating purring psych-pop melodies. Palisades, the new album by their Forest Fallows project, is a collection of carefully crafted tracks with surprisingly off-kilter rhythms, creating a playful game of tension and release.

The album flows like a brook making its way through forests and meadows, speeding up and slowing down where boulders and smaller rocks are slowly smoothed over. Shout out to producer John McEntire (Stereolab, Tortoise, Modest Mouse) who made the transition of a lo-fi labour of love sound to a richer, multi-layered approach, an easy one. Forest Fallows will still be an underground act after this release, but they have casts their nets a bit further and came back with the spoils to keep them going.

Palisades is released via Fort Lowell Records (Coke bottle translucent vinyl, digital).

Tracks:
  1. Better Each
  2. Reservations
  3. Clams Casino
  4. Saturday Rose
  5. Ain't Gonna Last
  6. Just Another Day at the Ace Lounge
  7. Hotel Radisson
  8. In Light
  9. Another World
  10. Palisades (ft. John McEntire)

Friday, August 16, 2024

OUT NOW: Shelby Smoak "Dancing" [Digital Single]





Shelby Smoak’s “Dancing” is an intimate, heartfelt affair. Whisper-crooned lyrics ride atop a simple, heartbeat bass line; delayed guitars; and scattershot drumming. Two years in the making and three recorded but unreleased versions eventually led to this one. Tracked in Smoak’s Carolina Beach, NC garage and mixed in Adam Smith’s Nashville studio, this final version captures the upbeat and honest delivery Smoak sought for the song. Dedicated to his wife, and the first song written exclusively for her, Smoak turned away from the dark, brooding lyrics of his past to channel something more positive and focused.

For fans of Arcade Fire, The Chameleons, The Church, Cola, Echo & The Bunnymen, Film School, Flyying Colours, Interpol, Ist Ist, Joy Division, Lauds, Modern English, The National, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, Stray Fossa, Thus Love, U2, and Sharon Van Etten.

"Dancing" by Shelby Smoak is out now on all digital music platforms.

Sunday, August 11, 2024

Tercel - "Holiday"





[Repost from If It's Too Loud; by Ken Sears, July 31, 2024]

If you listened to college radio religiously in the 90's, you're going to adore the latest from Tercel. Hailing from the Cape Fear area of North Carolina, the band's released "Holiday" last week, and it sounds like that song you always played on your radio show but just can't remember who it is by. It has all of the interesting quirk and pure indie rock oddness from a band like Archers of Loaf with the harmony and melody of Apples in Stereo. Tercel even throws in some country and surf guitar somewhat unexpectedly, but delightfully. Hearing a song like "Holiday" is a pure joy.

You can listen to "Holiday" below. The single is out now via Fort Lowell Records. For more on Tercel, check out the band on Instagram.

Friday, August 9, 2024

OUT NOW: Forest Fallows 'Palisades' [Sophomore LP]





Forest Fallows, the bedroom recording project of Mike Barnett and Alex Morton, has teamed up with John McEntire (Stereolab, Tortoise, Modest Mouse) to produce their sophomore album Palisades, a mellow, vintage-esque indie record. Based in Tucson AZ, their sound is a blend of the production and style of the 60's and 70's with the quirks of 90's indie and post rock. Their influences range widely from pop outliers Steely Dan and Gerry Rafferty to underground visionaries Tortoise and Michael Nau.

Palisades, their second LP, is a step forward in production from their first with a cleaner overall sound thanks to improved home recording techniques and the adept mixing of John McEntire. The album is characterized by vocal harmonies lush with spring reverb lacing through a clockwork of acoustic guitars and a closet full of various percussion and noise makers. While stylistically the songs vary from one to the other, Palisades maintains a familiar cohesion, with the last song opening into a vast instrumental piece featuring McEntire on drums. The lyrical content of the album includes reflections on past relationships as in the opening track "Better Each", while other tracks read like colorful dreams and visions, as in "Saturday Rose" and "In Light". As a whole, the album is light and upbeat but not overly sweet.

Forest Fallows is a passion project of two like minds who have lived and worked closely together for more than ten years. Through their constant back and forth of ideas and music they've developed a shared aesthetic. Palisades reflects where their diverse musical tastes have arrived, reaching for something new in the music of the past and the future.

Forest Fallows Palisades is now available everywhere.

Friday, August 2, 2024

Single Review – Holiday by Tercel





[Repost from Janglepophub; by Darrin Lee, July 24, 2024]

Following the success of Tercel’s first Tiny Towns debut single in May 2024, the Wilmington, North Carolina quartet (seen above) has returned with a second Holiday single that pierces your innermost being WITH IT’S JANGLY INTENSITY.

Commencing with a jangled riff that has a Lost Ships or the Radio Field early 90s type of clarity, the first vocal drop consumes the sound with a gloriously manic Garbage meets The Cure off-kilter vocal mania and a musical aesthetic that juxtaposes the jangly indie-rock/post punk aesthetic of RGV and DIIV with the jangle rock/punk edges of The Wends and Ryan Allen and his Extra Arms dynamism.

I am not sure whether the release of these two singles so close to each other signals a full-length release is coming soon… I can only hope!

Tuesday, July 30, 2024

Happy 50th Birthday to Tracy Shedd!

Tracy Shedd; photo by John Ciambriello

Friday, July 26, 2024

OUT NOW: Naïm Amor 'Stories' [12inch LP]





Like many musicians worldwide, Naïm Amor was working on the tracks for a new album when Covid hit and sent the recording and live music worlds into hibernation. And also like many, when he emerged he did with a finished record ready to be released into a music-hungry world.

For Stories, his twelfth record since the mid 2000’s, the Parisian born and raised, long time Arizona resident Amor has crafted six instrumentals and three vocal numbers. While Stories may perhaps seem like an offbeat title for a record with several instrumental tracks, it’s also indicates what’s within; it’s raison d’etre is a cinematic approach to music making, one crafted to evoke images and feelings, unlock corners of known and unknown worlds, and yes, to tell stories; with or without the narrative of a human voice. Amor says “I called it Stories because, like a lot of what I do, the tracks have a film soundtrack quality. The album has a unity of tones, instrumentation, arrangements, while each song has a ‘stand alone potential.’ He also says “I want the listener to be traveling through their imagination, I hope they will feel moved by the melodies and the textures, and would get to the end of the album and feel a bit nostalgic that it’s the end, like a really good movie.” Virtually any of the tracks on Stories could, in fact, be soundtrack material.

The songs on Stories all reflect the sophistication and gift for expansive, memorable melodies that Amor has always brought to his work, whether it’s pop, jazz, lounge, as a solo singer/songwriter, rock & roll or even rockabilly. He says “This one incarnates my desire to play with a band in a more rock & roll format.” The opener, “Amorsonic,” glides by with a sweet/salty mix of guitars that are both clean and slightly dissonant. “Abusive Chaos” wraps snaky guitars around a jazz lounge groove; “Freeway Race” has the forward motion befitting its title; and “September Escapade” sounds like it should be played while driving a fast sports car down a winding road in Monaco. “Home” is meditative and lovely, “The Last Dance” drops smoldering guitars over a cocktail lounge groove, while “The Start Over,” and “Tucson Safari” rattle with more heavy guitars. The closer “Santa Rita Park West” sends the listener off on a gently rolling cloud, as the credits roll.

On Stories, Amor is joined by three long-time collaborators from his adopted city of Tucson, AZ: rhythm guitar and string player Ben Nisbet, bass player Thøger Lund and drummer Casey Hadland. It was recorded in one marathon session by the legendary producer/engineer/studio owner Jim Waters at his Waterworks Studio in Tucson. Waters also mixed the album, with some overdubs and string arrangements added on in Amor’s own studio. The sound is clean, warm and immediate, with a live in the studio feel, and lots of room for Amor’s outstanding guitar playing to shine on every track.

Naïm Amor Stories is available now everywhere.

Friday, July 19, 2024

OUT NOW: Tercel "Holiday" [Digital Single]





Hailing from The Cape Fear region of North Carolina, the Tercel sound carries reverence for its homeland. The lyricism of Robin and Savannah Wood pull from the beliefs of climate activism, societal collapse, and the ennui of existence in the modern world. But Tercel is fun. Tercel is joyous. These are heavy words, lightly thrown. Wall-of-noise guitars in alternate tunings, the give-and-take singing between the vocalists, Chris Vinopal’s pedal steel in all its brightness, Taylor Salvetti’s driving drum beats to accent the changes: Tercel knows the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. And in this, we are all smothered in the green glow of existence. Go outside. Enjoy the light.

Recorded and produced by Jerry Kee of Duck-Kee Studios in Mebane, North Carolina (Archers of Loaf, Polvo, Superchunk), "Holiday" is the second single to be released by Tercel, and is available now on all digital music platforms.

Wednesday, July 17, 2024

La Cerca 'Western Tour' July - August 2024

  • Sat July 20 - Denver CO -  Skylark Lounge
  • Sun July 21 - Moab UT - 86 House  
  • Mon July 22 - Reno NV - Lo Bar Social
  • Wed July 24 - Pacifica CA - Winter’s Tavern
  • Thu July 25 - Oakland CA - Golden Bull 
  • Fri July 26 - Eureka CA - Siren Song
  • Sat July 27 - Seattle WA -  Central Saloon
  • Sun July 28 - Olympia WA -  Three Magnets, 3pm   
  • Sun July 28 - Portland OR - The Twilight  
  • Wed July 31 - Sacramento  CA - Cafe Colonial
  • Thu August 1 - Nevada City CA - The Fern
  • Fri August 2 - Carson City NV - Tap Shack
  • Sat August 3 - Tucson AZ - Wooden Tooth Downtown

Friday, July 12, 2024

OUT NOW: Forest Fallows "In Light" [Digital Single]





The fourth and final single "In Light" from Forest Fallow's sophomore album Palisades is available now on all digital music platforms. Enjoy!  —— For fans of Animal Collective, Ariel Pink, Atlas Sound, The American Analog Set, Beach Boys, Broadcast, Mac DeMarco, Destroyer, Drugdealer, Ducktails, Esquivel, Goth Babe, Richard Hawley, JPW, Lauds, The Ocean Blue, Peel Dream Magazine, The Radio Dept., Radiohead, Real Estate, The Sea & Cake, Stereolab, Sugar Candy Mountain, The Sundays, Kurt Vile, Yo La Tengo, Wild Nothing, and Woods.

Friday, July 5, 2024

Naïm Amor: September Escapade





[Repost from Here Comes the Flood; by Hans Werksman, July 1, 2024]

French guitarist and violinist Naïm Amor has the final single from his forthcoming new album Stories. September Escapade is like a slowly unfolding flower, showing off its colours one by one to create an aural spectacle that needs to revisited time and again to fully appreciate all the intricacies. It has a late 60s Nouvelle Vague soundtrack vibe, spiced up with a bit of noise, a dash of post-rock and Tex Mex.

Stories will be released on vinyl by Fort Lowell Records (vinyl, digital). The album is available for pre-order here. Release date: July 26th.

» naimamor.net

HCTF review of Amorsonic.

Wednesday, July 3, 2024

ALBUM: Blab School-Blab School

[Repost from Small Albums; June 26, 2024]

North Carolina's Blab School has one of the coolest band names in the world, and a sound to go along with it. There's a music descriptor trope that I hate, and that is the concept of "windows down on a summer day" sound. Blab School is 100% the antithesis of this sound and mindset. Play, "I Hate the Summer" and feel the bad vibes rise.

Blab School works in a certainty of heaviness without a tipping point. It stays on the shores of oceans full of red-eyed creatures and furious fangs, but who gets bit? And who just gets startled?

From the start, the darkness in the chord changes and the sickness in Ryan Seagrist's snarling delivery of lyrics, there's no room for a window to even be cracked. The smoke is staying inside. Elizabeth Killian shares lead vocal duties with a carelessness like screaming into a broken mirror and already having an answer you don't want to have to hear anyways.

The tumbling guitar lead of "Scrolls," or the absolute punishing of "Never Enough" keep a continual dirge of days that can't be differentiated from night. It's just all bleak and sounds amazing.

All the way through to the closer with the most appropriate title of this bummer-fest "(Don't Forget To) Give Up," Blab School leads in like a storm cloud and multiplies through the album into a crushing galaxy.

It's music to listen to when the sun devours space or vice versa.