It’s been more than a year since the premiere of OLD TIME GOSPEL HOUR‘s debut record “Congregation”, but as we just discovered it, we are wound up with the excitement and plenty of surprises it brings to the table. The Vienna based trio retains and transmutes their influences and passes it through their werid filter, resulting in a wonderfully bracing, forward-thinking melting pot. They just released an aptly original music video and we took the chance to ask them about their influences and a couple recent and less recent records that may or may not have influenced their musical exploits. See the result below.
Daughters – You Won’t Get What You Want:
This is probably one of the best comeback records of the last decade. Since their last record on which they mixed their signature math-core sound with no-wave elements reminiscent of early birthday party, they have cranked everything that made their music work in the first place up to eleven. Not only is the songwriting on this thing terrifyingly good and the production extremely well done, the album has also, despite being brutal and noisy most of the time, a generally enjoyable flow to it. Whenever I find myself listening to songs like “satan in the wait” or “Iess sex” I often end up listening to the rest of the record afterwards. It’s just so damn good.
Mare – Mare:
Mare are a band that we have already had the pleasure of sharing the stage with. They sound exactly like a jazz-influenced post-metal band should sound like and they are super lovely dudes on top of that. Their music feels both subtle and dangerous at the same time which they manage to capture with their energetic live shows perfectly. If you are into bands like Kayo Dot or Cult of Luna and haven’t heard about these guys, what are you waiting for?
Ryuichi Sakamoto – Async
Sakamoto should need no introduction at this point. This recent record is such a great collection of sounds and the ideas present throughout it come together to form a cohesive whole that I have yet to find the words for. Apparently this record was originally envisioned as a soundtrack for a fictive Tarkovsky movie and while listening to it you get a similar feeling of timelessness that you’d get while watching stalker or solaris.
Talk Talk – Spirit of Eden:
Talk Talk where certainly one of the most adventurous bands of their time. This record is considered by many to be their magnum opus and anyone listening to it will certainly in one way or another come to understand why. The record feels more like a coherent whole than a collection of singular songs and it has such a unique atmosphere with the music feeling both freely improvised and incredibly well arranged and structured at the same time. Listening to it will certainly change your listening habits but it’s a change that I would recommend to anyone who is into avantgarde pop or experimental music in general.
Sons of Kemet – Your Queen is a Reptile:
This British group plays a refreshingly old-school kind of jazz that may bring up memories of West African brass bands or even artists like Sun Ra. They manage to do so, however, while simultaneosly sounding fresh, radical and extremely well focused. On this record they combine those elements with extremely catchy hooks and a generally punishing groove that perfectly captures the lyrical themes of the record. The lyrics involve important themes on social inequality and identity which I would love to see more artists in this genre dare to adress.
Thantifaxath – Sacred White Noise:
Probably one of the most well written Black Metal records of the last decade. Thantifaxath manage to walk the thin line between writting extremely complex music while still being accessible and somewhat catchy. This is one of those rare instances of a record that lures you in with its hooks only to immediately surprise you with an oppressive atmosphere that only let’s loose once you have submitted to it’s dark and nihilistic themes, an experience that even after almost five years still feels as fresh and liberating as on the first listen.
