Spotlight

Spotlight: DJ LOKASH

Spotlight: DJ LOKASH
Loukas/LOKASH and I (Rick) go a little ways back – him following (not like a tag-along, just in sequence) me as both a music director and Program Director at WNHU while attending the University of New Haven.  He still holds down a radio spot with the same name (Bassment Beats), but now on WESU (not coincidentally where I work part time weekday mornings).  He’s always been completely legit and what you might refer to as the real deal.  A Hip-Hop DJ, but not in simplest terms.  He’s got a diverse palate.  Worldly even.  He’s been seen supporting names like Sketch the Cataclysm (Antfarm Affiliates), Mizery Crew (Cardboard City), YC the Cynic (RDAC), Seme Rock (HiCru), Left Field Rhythms, Bisco Smith (Embedded/Ivee), and Blitz the Ambassador (EmbassyMVMT).
You might also know the name DJ LOKASH from DJ’ing in-store at past Redscroll events or from this past Record Store Day when we had him do a mix for us (CD included in the goodie-bag).  If you missed it it’s still available to download on his site here.
He’s currently involved in a contest to get on a show BET is doing (Master of the Mix).
The contest voting has now ended.
Interview time (Redscroll Questions in bold. LOKASH answers follow.)

 [LOKASH]

What introduced you to DJ’ing and then what lead all the way up to teaching at the Scratch Academy?  

I’m pretty sure the television was my first introduction to the DJ as a young kid. But my first exposure to vinyl was my father. When I was an infant I used to tear up his record collection and make a mess and scratch them up and stuff. Based on the records I ruined I had developed pretty good taste in-utero. I probably would have been ill back then if I had motor skills. From that it was just pause tapes for friends and then into collecting punk/HC/metal 7”s. I didn’t actually have access to turntables and a mixer until long after that when I was living in Queens. It was there that I started playing out and I didn’t start dealing with Scratch until after that in 2004 after living out on the West Coast for a while.
What cool experiences has that also lead to?
Um. There have been a bunch. I guess the first one that comes to mind is The Campus Invasion Tour with Muse. Overall any time the crowd and the vibes are good it’s a cool experience. Especially if you’re being properly compensated and leave feeling satisfied. I really try to connect with the crowd without having to be in their ear on a mic. 
[LOKASH & Common]

Meet any heroes?  Have any fun stories about any of that?

Yeah, a few actually. I met Paul Mooney backstage at an awards event at BB Kings that I was performing at with Blitz the Ambassador, and ended up in a crazy conversation about history and culture with MC Supernatural and Abiyodun from the Last Poets. He put me on to a movie called Good Bye Uncle Tom which is a very sobering film from a few decades back about the history of slavery. I highly recommend it.

How has your interest grown from the beginning of your DJ career?   I know you have more of a diverse approach these days – trying to bring in more than just hip-hop to your sets/the crowd.

Well I’ve always had very eclectic tastes in music and I think trying to really express that has become my mission. I love hip-hop and I do a lot with hip-hop, but I think it’s important to really draw everybody in to whatever vibe you’re trying to create, and it’s hard to try and figure out what songs you can weave together that will hold everybody’s interest while staying true to your own preferences and ideals. I think also more than ever the world is coming together and I really want to touch every single person in the world with music. Creating my own music that does that will be the next big hurdle to overcome.
[Rockin’ the RSR 2009 Shirt]

You’ve also been skating since a kid – has that ever worked against you in hip-hop?  Do people group you with the old backpackers?  I know that isn’t really a stigma right now, but it was for a second.  I know you also have a skating cameo in a Blitz video so it’s worked for you at times, right?

Yeah a bit, I know I used to skate around with one (backpack) for years. So… yeah, ha. I think ever since more corporate money started flooding into the sport over the past decade, it has changed the way it’s perceived. It’s not the same counter-culture that it used to be in a lot of ways. But it’s cool that it’s growing. I think in a lot of ways I get lumped into that backpacker group because of the music I generally play on my radio show, Bassment Beats. It also happens that a lot of those artists are supported by, or come from the skateboarding community as well. I’m hoping to be able to have more of a presence in some of the events and other things going on in the skateboard community. And just counter-culture in general. Some of my favorite gigs have been roller derby bouts just because of the diversity of music I get to play.
How has growing up in CT and living both there and in NYC directed you or influenced you?  The Third Unheard?
Well I definitely got exposed to a different cross sections of life at a younger age than I might have otherwise. Both of my parents are from the Bronx so there’s always been family in the city, but also being up in CT, it’s just a different vibe and a different way of life in a lot of ways. I think I have a certain appreciation for both that other people might not have. But all of the elements of hip-hop (graff, mc’ing, dj’ing, breaking, knowledge) combined with the skateboarding & the hardcore scenes all had a huge influence growing up as did the communities that fostered them. So in addition to all of the things that came out of NYC, you had people like Stezo, Egon, Dooley-O, Bel, Cycle, Donney Barley, Tony DaSilva, Rick Pelletier (RIP), Jasta 14, 76% Uncertain, Wide Awake, added to that list of influences when I was a kid.
When you first started traveling did that open your eyes to any stark regional differences that lead to any revelations (or even long after you first started now that you’re a world traveler)?  How does SxSW compare to playing in say Pereira or Bogotá?
Absolutely. Just moving from Queens to the Bay Area for a while was crazy. I mean talk about an area that is heavily steeped in it’s own regional culture. It was very eye opening for sure since that was the first time having to navigate a scene that wasn’t mine and wasn’t really trying to hear East Coast music like that. But yeah, it’s a whole different story when you’re abroad, especially if you’re not comfortable with the language. At that point you just have to do what you do and get the people to ride with you whether they want to or not. That’s when you realize that music is truly universal when you can take a big room full of strangers and get all of them to let their wall down for a little while to expand their mind and have a good time. 
Thanks to LOKASH for the time and definitely check out all his links and keep an ear and and eye out for him playing records on your radio, computer or live p.a. in your area.  Take a second and vote for him in that competition too.  I hesitated to use those banners with the big name advertising, but let’s just think about the ultimate goal here.  CT on top!
Music Review, Reviews, Update

1st Of July 2011 Update & Reviews

3 Comments
1st Of July 2011 Update of New and Key Restocked Items
at Redscroll Records
JULY 4th (MONDAY) WE WILL BE CLOSED. Fun blog post coming about that Saturday morning (all queued up).
LPs & 12″s
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Adam & The Ants “The Decca Demos & More (Unofficial)”
Alberich “Psychology Of Love”
Amorphis “The Karelian Isthmus”
Barem “After The Storm”
Bee Mask “Elegy For Beach Friday”
Big D And The Kids Table “For The Damned, The Dumb & The Delirious (+ D/L)”
Birthday Party, The With Lydia Lunch “Welcome To The Car Smash… (Unofficial)”
Boys Next Door “Door, Door “
Boys Next Door “The Lost & Brave Exhibitions Of The Boys Next Door 1977-1979 (Unofficial)”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. “It’s A Corporate World (Debut Album)”
Exhumed “All Guts No Glory (Ltd. Ed. Colored Vinyl)”
Gay For ohnny Depp “What Doesn’t Kill You, Eventually Kills You (+ D/L)”
Goldberg, Sam “Having Had Forgot”
Jaar, Nicolas “Pepe Bradock & Dave Aju Remixes”
Krauss, Alison & Union Station “Paper Airplane (180 Gram + D/L)”
Kreng “Grimoire”
LA Vampires / Ital “Streetwise”
Lussuria “Ghost Entanglement”
Memory Tapes “Player Piano (+ D/L)”
National, The “Cherry Tree (+ D/L)”
Origin “Entity”
Otis, Shuggie “In Session”
Outer Space “Outer Space”
Panda Bear “S”urfers RMX (TECHNO PIC Single Sided 12″)”
Radiohead “Little By Little” (NOT AVAILABLE UNTIL 7-5-11 – Tuesday)
Ramones “Rocket To Russia (180 Gram)”
Roedelius, Hans-Joachim “Wie Das Wispere Des Windes… Like The Whispering Of The Wind….”
Siouxsie And The Banshees “Songs From The Void (Unofficial)”
Smiths, The “The Old Guard BBC Tapes Volume Two”
Stillbirth “Toward Sailor”
Temporal Marauder “Makes You Feel”
Tombs “Path Of Totality”
Tshetsha Boys “Snidyi”
Various Artists “The Funky 16 Corners “
Vomaseve, Tiyiselani “Votswelani”
Hip-Hop LPs
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Atmosphere “God Loves Ugly (2xLP Reissue)”
Beneficence “Sidewalk Science”
Damu The Fudgemunk “How It Should Sound Volume 1 & 2”
Dr. Dre “The Chronic (Digitally Remastered)”
Heltah Skeltah “D.I.R.T. (Da Incredible Rap Team)”
J Rawls “The Hip-Hop Affect (+ D/L W/ Instrumentals)”
KRS-One & Buckshot “Survival Skills”
Left, The “Gas Mask (2xLP + D/L)”
Pharoahe Monch “W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)(+ D/L)”
Rock, Pete / Smif-N-Wessun “Monumental (SWPR)”
Slum Village “Fan-Tas-Tic Vol. 1 (Jay Dee Production) (+ Bonus 7″)”
Smif N Wessun “The Album”
Electronic 12″s + LPs
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Beltran, John “The Best Of John Beltran: Ambient Selections 1995-2011”
Carte Blanche “White Man On The Moon (+ D/L)”
DOP “After Party”
Justice “Civilization (+ Poster + D/L)”
LV Ft. Josh Idehen “38EP”
Samiyam “Sam Baker’s Album (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)”
Tiger & Woods “Gin Nation”
Wandler “La Petite”
Wolfram (Featuring Haddaway) “A Thing Called Love”
10″s
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Brian Jonestown Massacre “Iluminomi”
7″s
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Against Me “Russian Spies” (Black Vinyl – Still Possibly Getting Blue Ones, But Not Yet)
The Mars Volta “A Plague Upon Your Hissing Corpse (/300)”
Off! “First Four EPs” (Back In!)
Pit Er Pat / Icy Demons
CDs
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Aidan Baker “Still Life”
Bringers Of Disease “Gospel Of Pestilence”
Crone “Endless Midnight”
DJ Shadow “Endtroducing”
John Maus “We Must…”
MZ.412 “Domine…”
MZ.412 “Infernal Affairs”
Serpent Throne “White Summer – Black Winter” (Back In)
Tiger & Woods “Through…”
Cassette Tape
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Stephen O’Malley “Romeo” (EMEGO017C)
DVD
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Invasion Of Thunderbolt Pagoda (Ira Cohen)
Joy Division: Substance 1978-1988
Slices Issue 2-11 (FREE)
Reviews
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Light Asylum In Tension EP 12″
 (Mexican Summer)
If you haven’t heard by now, there is a full darkwave resurgense happening (and coldwave and minimal wave and blah blah blah wave etc.). I’m not going to pull any punches here. I pretty much enjoy it all on some level. That is my favorable prejudice. Some of it I go back to less and realize it’s a poor copy. Some keeps me coming back for more. I have listened to this Light Asylum EP of four songs about four dozen times in the past two days (perhaps a bit of hyperbole there, perhaps). Shannon Funchess has a voice on par with Andrew Eldritch, Peter Murphy and Dave Gahan (yea, I completely believe all of that). Listen and understand. “Dark Allies” is clearly the stand out track (I’ll post the video for it below) and one of the tracks has the “True Faith” (New Order) beat and all of it keeps me coming back for more. The horse naying samples in the first track are ridiculous in theory, but in practice work real well and do not come off hokey like a Revolting Cocks gimmick (though there is a place for that from time to time). Embrace the darkness (take a fluorescent light-stick).
[Reviewer: Rick]
Ultrabunny Volume Merchants / Unsafe At Any Age LP
 (TPOS Records)
I saw these CT locals open for An Albatross at the Heirloom Arts Theatre back in 2008. They play wild improvisational rock with elements of jazz, psychedelia and noise. This record begins with moody, otherworldly feedback waves, eventually merging into dissonant guitar-and-bass zephyrs that are reminiscent of 1980s experimental rock, such as early Sonic Youth and Boredoms. About midway through the second side, some freaky, cartoonishly high-pitched vocals kick in, breaking down into maniacal chipmunk laughter on “Hot War.” Basically, what I’m trying to say is that this record is really something else. The tracks build from basic elements (traditional drum patterns and guitar/bass chords) to create layers and evolve into a moody, almost post-apocalyptic atmosphere. The mixing and mastering job is impressive as well, considering this album’s content is from six different live performances in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey.
[Reviewer: Mark]
Woods Sun And Shade LP/CD
 (Woodsist Records)
One of the most “summery” albums I’ve ever heard, Brooklyn-based Woods’ Sun And Shade combines catchy, sunshine-tinged folk music with the inventive, nostalgic sound of lo-fi indie rock. I don’t want to sound cheesy, but this album is perfect background music for walking through the sunny and shady parts of the woods. I imagine tracks like the highly uplifting opener “Pushing Onlys” are the audio equivalent of what aging hippies see in their minds; fuzzy, dream-like memories of spending seemingly endless days dancing carefree in nature. However, “sunshine pop” is not a proper term to define this album as a whole, since they explore more subdued feelings as well, such as the intimately morose, acoustic “Wouldn’t Waste.” The analog sound is perfect for the acoustic guitar, drums, and a host of more “experimental” sounds. Plus, the lower fidelity certainly adds warmth without overdoing it. Woods certainly aren’t afraid to experiment; “Out Of The Eye” is backed with a long, shimmering mechanical hum that’s remini scent of krautrock, and “Sol Y Sambra” is the most freestyle sounding, like a nature walk intended for self-reflection.
[Reviewer: Mark]
Music Review, Reviews, Update

24th Of June 2011 Update & Reviews

24th of June 2011 Update of New and Key Restocked Items
at Redscroll Records
LPs & 12″s
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All Time Low    “Dirty Work”
Ambarchi, Oren / O’Rourke, Jim    “Indeed”
Animals As Leaders    “Animals As Leaders (180 Gram 2LP)”
Arctic Monkeys    “Suck It And See (180 Gram + D/L)”
August Burns Red    “Leveler (+ D/L)”
Civil Wars, The    “Barton Hollow (+ D/L)”
Cramps, The    “Smell Of Female”
Death Hymn Number 9    “Smokestack Fright (+ D/L)”
Der Blutharsch    “Werkschau 1997:2010”
Flat Duo Jets    “Red Tango”
Follow Through    “Taking It Back”
Go Sailor    “Go Sailor (1996 Discography + D/L)”
Gold Bears    “Are You Falling In Love? (+ D/L)”
Handsome Furs    “Sound Kapital (Ltd. Ed. Colored Vinyl + D/L)”
Harvey, PJ    “4-Track Demos (+ D/L)”
Herbrcraft    “Ashram To The Stars”
Holy Ghost!    “Wait & See”
Hudson, Jeff & Jane    “Flesh (Expanded) 1981-1983 (2LP Discography)”
Ikebe    “Shakedown (+ D/L)”
Jonsi    “Go Out EP”
KXP    “KXP”
Light Asylum    “In Tension E.P. (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)”
Maus, John    “We Must Become The Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves (Ltd. Ed. Hand Numbered 180 Gram + D/L)”
Orthodox    “Ba’al (180 Gram)”
PG. 99 (Page Ninetynine)    “Document #8”
Purling Hiss    “Lounge Lizards (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)”
Queens Of The Stone Age    “Queens Of The Stone Age (Gatefold Re-Issue)”
Segall, Ty    “Goodbye Bread”
Servile Sect    “TRVTH”
Set Your Goals    “Burning At Both Ends (+ CD)”
Shabazz Palaces    “Black Up (+ D/L)”
Skull Snaps    “Snapped”
Sleigh Bells    “Treats (Deluxe 180 Gram Gatefold + Notebook)”
Smaldone, Micah Blue    “The Red River”
Teeth of the Sea    “Hypnoticon”
Unknown Mortal Orchestra    “Unknown Mortal Orchestra”
Valentine, Matt “MV”    “What I Became”
Various Artists    “Kitsune Maison Compilation 11”
Various Artists    “London Is The Place For Me: Trinidadian Calypso In London, 1950-1956”
Various Artists    “London Is The Place For Me 4: African Dreams And The Piccadilly High Life”
Various Artists    “8 Bit! Rude Boy: Dub Reggae Chipmusic”
White Lies    “White Lies (180 Gram + D/L)”
Wolfe, Chelsea    “The Grime And The Glow”
Hip-Hop 12″s & LPs
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13 & God    “Own Your Ghost (+ D/L)”
C-Rayz Walz    “Chorus Rhyme: Parallel Thought”
DJ Signify    “Of Cities (Ft. Aesop Rock, Matt Kelly, Blockhead)”
Grouch, The    “Show You The World EP”
Hail Mary Mallon (Aesop Rock, Rob Sonic, DJ Big Wiz)    “Are You Gonna Eat That (2LP + D/L)”
Jay-Z    “Reasonable Doubt (1st Album)”
Kool Keith    “Lost Masters Volume 2 (2LP)”
Midnight Eez, The    “The Midnight Eez”
Rammelzee Vs K.Rob    “Beat Bop”
West, Kanye    “Late Registration”
Electronic 12″s
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2562    “Fever”
6Blocc    “I Dubs Vol 1 EP”
6Blocc    “I Dubs Vol 2 EP”
6Blocc    “I Dubs Vol 4 EP”
Actress    “Ghosts Have A Heaven”
Addison Groove    “It’s Got Me”
Altered Natives    “No Mortgage EP”
Aphex Twin    “Windowlicker”
Aphex Twin    “Come To Daddy”
Azari & III    “Hungry For The Power (Remixes)”
Blake, James    “CMYK EP”
Blake, James    “$ (Lil Wayne, Destiny’s Child)”
Bo Marley    “Bo Marley Vs Disrupt”
Bok Bok    “Southside EP”
Carlos Y Gaby    “LA 5 Of 10: GB (Gifted & Blessed) 10″”
Ceephax Acid Crew    “The Unstoppable Phax Machine”
Clams Casino    “Rainforest”
Cubic Zirconia / Bok Bok & Cubic Zirconia    “Hoes Come Out At Night (Ikonika Remix) / Reclash (Give It To Me)”
Daedelus / Teebs    “LA 6 Of 10 10″”
Daft Punk    “Around The World (2009 Disco Re-Edit)”
Daft Punk    “Television Rules (Deadhaus Mix)”
Dave Angel    “Panther Chizawa”
Deadbeat    “Drawn And Quartered”
Egyptrixx    “Bible Eyes (2LP)”
Funckarma    “Smizm EP”
Girl Unit    “IRL”
Girl Unit    “Wut”
Hall, Kyle / Manuel Gonzales    “NSNT PRJCT (Nu School N1994 Techno)”
Illum Sphere    “Incoming EP”
J-Wow (Buraka Som Sistema)    “O Dedo”
Kingdom    “That Mystic”
Kingdom / Girl Unit / Kindom    “Ride It Every Time / Fogs”
Krystal Klear    “Tried For Your Love”
Lawler, Steve    “Kalimba”
Lone    “Cluster Dreams”
Lukid    “Boxing Club / Blind Spot”
Martyn / Mike Slott    “Collabs Series”
Model 500    “Ofi / Huesca”
Murderbot, Chrissy    “Women’s Studies (+ D/L)”
NastyNasty    “No Names”
Pearson Sound    “Pearson Sound”
Punks Jump Up    “Blockhead”
Robotnick, Alexander    “The Dark Side Of The Spoon”
Robotnick, Alexander    “Obsession”
Sade    “Motor City Detroit Soul Mixes”
SBTRKT      “SBTRKT”
Scuba    “Love For You (Ft. Lisa Shaw)”
Sebastian    “Total (2LP+CD)”
Slackk    “Slackk – Theme EP”
Solvent    “Think Like Us (No CD)”
Solvent    “Latch, Fasten, Secure”
Speedy J    “EDLX Tool”
Tayo Meets Acid Rockers    “Vampayas”
Tiga    “Beep Beep Beep”
Tokimonsa / Mike Gao    “LA 8 Of 10 10″”
Tokimonsta    “Midnight Menu”
Untold    “Stereo Freeze / Mass Dreams Of The Future”
Various Artists    “In Order To Dance: Remix Sampler Vol. 1”
Venetian Snares    “Cubist Reggae”
Wireman / Actress / Be    “M7 “
10″s
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Clash, The    “Black Market Clash (Ltd. Ed.)”
7″s
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Beirut “East Harlem”
Zomby “A Devil Lay Here”
CDs
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Alcest “Le Secret”
Anti-G “Presents Kenje’sz Beatsz”
Autopsy “Macabre Eternal”
Hail Mary Mallon (Aesop Rock, Rob Sonic, DJ Big Wiz)    “Are You Gonna Eat That”
Murderbot, Chrissy “Women’s Studies”
My Dying Bride “Evinta”
Nurse With Wound “Who Can I Turn To Stereo”
Planks “Darkest Grays”
SBTRKT “SBRTKT”
Tombs “Paths Of Totality”
Various Artists “Cherrystone’s Rocks”
DVDs
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Dead Can Dance “Toward The Within”
Reviews
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Battles Gloss Drop CD/LP
 
(Warp Records)

Not many albums can be considered both experimental and accessible, but Gloss
Drop deserves that distinction. It may be tough to imagine that Battles would
maintain their unique sound after guitarist/vocalist Tyondai Braxton’s 2010
departure, but this album shows that the remaining members have successfully
carved out their niche. Describing the music is a true challenge, but I think it
instantly connected with me because it reminds me of video game music; catchy
melodies that remain infectious after extended periods of listening, backed with
instrumentation that freely thrives outside conventional “pop” songwriting. All
three members have truly intense, complex musical talent, and the four tracks
with guest vocals are very unique. Standouts include the uninhibited, irresistible
and sweetly speckled “Ice Cream” (featuring Chilean artist Matias Aguayo) and the
invigoratingly epic “My Machines” (Gary Numan.)

[Reviewer: Mark]
Matthew Cooper Some Days Are Better Than Others LP
(Temporary Resistance Ltd.)

Better known by his stage name Eluvium, Cooper has composed a rich, iridescent
ambient score for the titular film by fellow Portlander Matt McCormick. The subject
matter of Some Days Are Better Than Others is “strangers whose lives occasionally
intersect as they navigate their way through the struggles of personal attachment
and disconnection,” according to the label’s site. As Cooper watched the film, he
was inspired by the theme of our “out with the old, in with the new” society, so he
chose to use damaged instruments as a means of demonstrating their abandoned
potential. The resulting music does not sound “broken” at all, but rather beautiful
and meaningful. Since his specialty is crafting an ambient atmosphere, he uses
several electronic instruments. An organ/synthesizer particularly stands out, along
with strings in several tracks. Listening to this score is like a spending a day for an
introspective analysis of one’s own life – a sobering method of finding solace.

[Reviewer: Mark]
Wolves Simulation. Transparency. Alienation 10″
(Coalition Records)

We’ve had copies of this featured at the front of the store for a while, but people seem to not notice.  That sucks ’cause it’s good! Wolves was oneo fthe bands to crawl out of Orchid’s rotting corpse.  These dudes play the jazzy version of screamo peppered with audio clips over feedback to get you rev’d up. PLAY IT LOUD! Comes with a download. FFO: Off Minor, Neil Perry, Forstella Ford
[Reviewer: Josh]

UNDERGROUND MUSIC & CULTURE