Hidden Shoal News
Antonymes CD & Digital Sale
Time to fill in the missing blanks of your Antonymes discography people! There is a CD & Digital sale on now across his entire catalogue over at Bandcamp. There is limited CD stock for a number of releases so it’s first come, first served.
In case you missed other recent Antonymes news, his entire back catalogue recently joined the Hidden Shoal publishing catalogue for film, tv and other licensing. His track ‘301210’ was also recently included in Spotify’s official “Most Beautiful Songs In The World” playlist which also featured artists such as Camera Obscura, Fennesz, Goldfrapp, Bon Iver, Talk Talk, A Winged Victory For The Sullen.
New Slow Dancing Society EP – “The Dusk Recital”
Hidden Shoal is excited to announce the release of the new EP The Dusk Recital by US ambient artist Slow Dancing Society. The Dusk Recital was borne out of the sessions for Slow Dancing Society’s beautiful last album The Cogent Sea and is, in part, an instrumental homage to the mainstream dream-pop of the 90s. Cavernous drums, minimal guitar licks a la Roxy Music, and smooth saxophone lines feature prominently across these six tracks, all enveloped in the unmistakable Slow Dancing Society sound and feel. This is Drew Sullivan at his most playful, offering us a glimpse into some of the guilty pleasures he acknowledges as influences, while also delivering a deliciously smooth and immersive listening experience.
“a strong sense of connection to and continuity from the previous Slow Dancing Society releases yet also offers subtle modifications in the project’s enticing sound. That he’s been able to effect such a change in such an organic manner on this latest effort suggests there’s still room for other advances in the future, too” – Textura on The Cogent Sea
Stream and purchase the digital only EP at Bandcamp and check out the Slow Dancing Society discography, music videos and more here.
Todd Tobias “Impossible Cities” European Launch Party
The wonderful Tiny Room Records are presenting the European release party for Todd Tobias‘s brilliant new album Impossible Cities. The night includes a screening of Todd’s wildly surreal full length experimental feature film I Razor. If you are anywhere in or near the Netherlands this weekend then you know what to do! Check out all the details here.
If you’ve not yet had the pleasure of strapping your ears onto Impossible Cities and its companion EP Impossible Cities 2 then head to Todd’s artist profile to hear and read more.
Puppets, Drugs & Guns – A New Music Video from Brother Earth
We’re excited to present the third single taken from Brother Earth‘s latest album Positive Haywires. In contrast to some of the darker moments on Positive Haywires , ‘Sunny Side of the Street’ sees Brother Earth in decidedly upbeat mode. The accompanying playful music video, created by Natalie Van Den Dungen and band members Steve Five and Todd Tobias, features puppetry, guns and drugs, all set against a Brooklyn backdrop. A colourful Jim Henson-style character hits the pavement in high spirits, only to rub up against some cantankerous New Yorkers intent on souring his vibe. What’s not to like?!
Brother Earth brings together the formidable talents of multi-instrumentalist Todd Tobias (Circus Devils) and vocalist Steve Five (The Library is on Fire). On their debut album for Hidden Shoal Positive Haywires, which features singles ‘Out Like A Lion’ and ‘City of Gold’, their shadowy, kaleidoscopic music vacillates between brooding textural pieces and exuberant rock-and-roll at the drop of a hat, chasing the ghosts of pop music past into a hall of cracked mirrors. The album’s wonderfully elastic aesthetics shift from dark and broken to sunny and playful in a matter of songs, while maintaining their own warped and beautiful logic.
Check out the video below, stream the single at SoundCloud and buy the album at Bandcamp (CD + Digital + Limited Edition Cassette).
Kryshe’s Debut EP Joins the Hidden Shoal Publishing Catalogue
Before his new mini-album In Between, and his previous album Growing, Christian Grothe, aka Kryshe, released his debut EP Dreamland in 2012. We’re excited to now have the two beautiful pieces that comprise Dreamland join our publishing and licensing catalogue. In contrast to the free-flowing and layered compositions of Growing and In Between, this debut release from Kryshe presents a much more grounded and densely woven sonic tableau. This two-piece set showcases Grothe’s ability to bring his delicate and affecting songcraft to new and varied musical environs.
The EP, along with In Between and Growing, are available via Kryshe’s Bandcamp with all tracks available for licensing (master & sync cleared). Don’t hesitate to contact us with any licensing enquiries.
Makee’s Debut Self-Titled EP Out Now
We’re excited to announce the official release of the brilliant debut self-titled EP by Perth-based artist Makee. You can grab the EP on CD and in digital formats here and read more about the artist here.
Makee’s bright-eyed, beat-driven tracks, as danceable as they are atmospheric, build to create a thoroughly rewarding sonic whole. His debut self-titled EP, self-described as “looped samples of atmospheric nostalgia”, stretches luxuriously across seemingly disparate genres. The fog-laden disco of ‘Bail’ is shot through with a beatific vibe; ‘Stez’ surges relentlessly on motorik rhythms; ‘Tone’ burns with ecstatic, sun-blind intensity; ‘Wake’ is infused with Caribou-esque psychedelia; and finale ‘Bord’ takes a leap into the void with the fervour of prime kosmische that’s been mollified by shoegaze.
“For one thing, the detached retro unleashed from the looped up mind of Makee will hypnotise you in double quick time with the post Eurodisco sensibilities of “Bail” easily rendering your ears spellbound even if you’ve never been to Frankfurt. “ – BluesBunny
Markus Mehr + Stefanie Sixt Featured in Venice International Video Art Exhibition
The wonderful experimental video work ‘Duck Became Swan’ by Stefanie Sixt (visuals) and Markus Mehr (sound) has been selected as part of the Venice International video art, experimental dance and performance festival. The work will screen in Venice in the “Hidden Rooms” program in November (19th-21st).
In further Markus Mehr news, the artist has also had a new work selected as part of the David Tudor Memorial 4’33” Competition. His work sits alongside a number of wonderful artists including the inimitable Phil Niblock! The works will be exhibited at Galerie Mario Mazzoli (Berlin – 16+21 November) and the Ear Up! Gallery (New York – 16 November).
Antonymes Featured on Spotify’s “Most Beautiful Songs In The World”
Spotify recently published its official “Most Beautiful Songs In The World” playlist which featured artists such as Camera Obscura, Fennesz, Goldfrapp, Bon Iver, Talk Talk, A Winged Victory For The Sullen and also our very own Antonymes with his gorgeous track ‘301210’. The song, along with the rest of the stunning Antonymes back catalogue was recently added to to the Hidden Shoal publishing and licensing catalogue.
Chloe March’s “Nights Bright Days” + Free EP Now Available
Hidden Shoal’s re-release of the breathtakingly beautiful Nights Bright Days by Chloë March has finally landed. To co-incide with the re-release the companion digital EP Under The Day, which features six previously un-released tracks, is available for free download. Head to Chloë’s Bandcamp to buy the album on CD and digital formats and get your free copy of Under The Day.
Although often compared to singular artists such as Nina Simone, Beth Gibbons and Elizabeth Fraser, Chloë March follows her own unique path, writing, engineering and producing from her studio in south-east England. Inhabiting musical territory somewhere between art song and folk, dream-pop and electronica, the ambient and the cinematic, March embraces all these influences on Nights Bright Days to create poetic, emotionally charged and atmospheric songs and soundworlds.
“a luminous voice, a smoky alto that unfurls like a plume of cigarette smoke, its velvety tone a sensual narcotic… it’s hard not to think of the mythological sirens who used their hypnotic voices to lure sailors ashore” – textura
Four years in the making and originally self-released in 2013, Nights Bright Days is a cycle of songs as dreams, imbued with imagery of darkness and light, night and day. The album embraces elements of jazz, classical, folk and dream-pop, and features guest musicians on bass clarinet, soprano sax, French horn and guitar. Nights Bright Days features single ‘Winter Deep’, a shimmering waltz that opens the album with weightless grace.
Elisa Luu’s “Enchanting Gaze” Mini-Album Out Now!
We’re excited to announce the release of the stunning new mini-album Enchanting Gaze by Italian ambient electronica artist Elisa Luu. The album is available on CD and Digital through La bel netlabel in collaboration with Hidden Shoal via La bel’s Bandcamp. Don’t forget to grab the free download of the first single ‘Shebeen’ here.
On Enchanting Gaze, Elisa Luu’s shimmering tones and deftly handled rhythms are manipulated into breathtaking new shapes. On tracks such as ‘Bro’, expansive synths paint wondrous starscapes, while the gritty ‘B.P.M.’ chases beats and growing drones through dark city streets. Enchanting Gaze manages to beautifully balance its cosmic/terrestrial duality throughout its six tracks, making it a wonderful progression in the Elisa Luu discography.
“You could make a film or a slideshow of your life or your art to go with it and no matter what, this soundscape would pull your story toward cool, disciplined discoveries. 9/10” – SSG
Hidden Shoal MixTape
