30 Nov 2020

Rocket Probes – November 2020 Playlist

Urdog – Ice on Water
(Psyched out, wah infested first track to be revealed from this incredible bands up-and-coming retrospective compilation)
Urdog

Pharaoh Overlord – 6
(This magnificent album has finally been unleashed and it is has barely left the stereo since it first landed into our inbox – it is a banger!)
Pharaoh Overlord

Kooba Tercu – Proto Tekno Remixed
(Includes remixes by GNOD's Nagra Branca and Shit & Shine)
Kooba Tercu

Various – Baba Yaga's Hut Compilation 2020
(Exclusive tracks by Petbrick, Kooba Tercu, Flowers Must Die and many other great artists)
Baba Yaga's Hut

Anthroprophh – German Oak
(Great new album by the mighty Anthroprophh)
Anthroprophh

Julius Gabriel – Eyes In Orbits
(Sonic immersions by Paisiel man)
Julius Gabriel

Afterwardness – Afterwardness
(Nice repetitions)
Afterwardness

Richard Pinhas - Quentin Compson
(New Drones))))
Richard Pinhas

Hey Colossus – Dances/Curses
(Great new album by HC full of ear-worms)
Hey Colossus 

Chico Hamilton – Abdullah And Abraham
(Nice bit of cosmic jazz grooves courtesy of Cherrystones)
Chico Hamilton

Nina Simone – Blackbird
(Killer track from Miss Simone)
Nina Simone 

Dorcha – Honey Badger
(Great collection of eclectic sounds on the ever great Box records)
Dorcha

Philwit & Pegasus - Elephant Song
(A weird sounding Can and Beatles mash-up)
Philwit & Pegasus

The Revolutionaries – Kunta Kinte (dub plate mix)
(Heavy sounds)
The Revolutionaries

Ece Canlı - Animancia
(Nice folked repetitions from great album on Lovers and Lollipops)
Ece Canlı

Quakers – II The Next Wave
(Smokin')
Quakers

Necrot – Mortal
(Centrum certified death metal)
Necrot

Zia Mohiuddin Dagar – Dhrupad - Raga Pancham Kosh / Malkauns
(Raga immersions)
Zia Mohiuddin Dagar

Nest Egg – Dislocation
(Good album of noisey motorik grooves)
Nest Egg

Gazelle Twin – & NYX - Fire Leap
(Wicker Man vibes)
Gazelle Twin

High Tide – Futilist's Lament
(Classic psyched rock from '69) 
High Tide

X_X – No Nonsense
(Anthroprophhh's Gareth Turner threw the light on this slice of art punk from 1980 for us)
X_X

Sign-up to our 'updated monthly' Rocket Probes Spotify Playlist here:


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Pop Matters reviews Pharaoh Overlord's '6'


They say:

Rocket Recordings has become the home of much of this generation's psychedelia. And psychedelia of all kinds, be it the elusive anthemic electronica of Teeth of the Sea, the extreme noise injections of Gum Takes Tooth, or the minimal improvisations of Paisiel, an abundance of extraordinary releases have come through the label. It is now the turn of Finnish psychedelic aficionados Pharaoh Overlord to step into the fold, unleashing the latest entry in a prolific discography with 6.

For Pharaoh Overlord, maximum impact is achieved when worlds collide. In the case of 6 , the focus is split between a melodic electronic edge and an extreme, metallic vocal rendition. The soothing waves of synthesizers and the catchy basslines of "Path Eternal'' crush on top of the processed vocals creating havoc when they meet. Yet, these seemingly dancehall rhythms have a most disturbing underbelly, one that becomes more apparent as 6 unfolds. "Arms of the Butcher" crafts an intricate ambiance filled with sonic illusions and mind-melting distractions...

Read the rest here: Pop Matters

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XS Noize interviews Aaron Turner about the PHARAOH OVERLORD album


They say:

Recently released “6” became one of the most unusual records for both Pharaoh Overlord – Finnish electronic duo and Aaron Turner, who’d collaborated with Tomi Leppänen Jussi Lehtisalo as their featured vocalist on the record. Dan Volohov asked Aaron Turner, the founder of ISIS\SUMAC\One Man Glood\Hydra Head Records to share his opinion of the tracks on “6” and explain their meaning to him.

Path Eternal
Regarding the birth of new beings, the inborn innocence and love of all. Also, regarding the possibility for rebirth for those of us who have been bruised by life (everyone), in need of healing (also everyone), and for enacting the ritual of rebirth (for those that are willing to undergo the process). Inspiration for this one derived from Killing Joke and Beherit amongst others.

Arms of the Butcher
There is a surplus of angry energy I’ve accumulated in my life. Unable to process it by healthy means in my younger years I’ve needed to find other pathways for it as an adult. So instead of becoming a serial killer or venting my rage at my undeserving family, I’ve found active and productive ways of redirecting that energy. I have not listened to much industrial music in my life, but my vocals here were my interpretation of what might transpire within that musical realm...

Read the rest here: XS Noize

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Norman Records announce exclusive Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals vinyl


Norman Records have announced an exclusive Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals vinyl. 

The Blackened Blood (half black/half red) edition is a limited edition of 300 and can be bought from here: Normans

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Buzz Magazine reviews Pharaoh Overlord's '6'


They say:

When two genres collide, the result can often be catastrophic… but this is not the case with the sixth album from Finland’s Pharaoh Overlord [pictured], a duo of Jussi Lehtisalo and Tomi Leppanen (both also of fellow experimental Finns Circle) joined by American metal vocalist Aaron Turner. Its apt title conceals unlikely hybrids: this is Jean-Michel Jarre meets Slipknot, or Tangerine Dream meets In Flames, or Earthstar meets Lamb Of God with a touch of ATB.

Yet as much as 6 echoes the past, it sits firmly in the present. The music is hypnotic, the vocals are psychotic but somehow rather than jarring or startling the listener, they blend. Almost. Written at the start of the pandemic, 6 offers a lyrical response to separation and isolation but the sound is surprisingly uplifting. I couldn’t decipher most of the words but could easily listen to this multi-layered offering to the god of Krautrock on repeat for the beat alone.

Read the piece here: Buzz Mag

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Four Rocket albums in The Quietus's Albums of The Year


Nice to see four Rocket albums in The Quietus's Albums of The Year...

Sex Swing – Type II
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals
Shit And Shine - Malibu Liquor Store
Pharaoh Overlord – 6

All feature in a great list...and massive congratulations to Hey Colossus for getting the prestigious Number 1 slot!

See the full list here: The Quietus

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27 Nov 2020

J. Zunz mixtape and interview for Clot Magazine


It reads:

Mixtape 23 sees Mexican artist Lorena Quintanilla crafting a selection of tunes to warm the late November afternoons.

Originally from Guadalajara (México), the artist made a name for herself as one-half of Lorelle Meets The Obsolete, a duo responsible for some of the most sonically adventurous psych experimentalism of recent times with a reputation for exceptional live shows.

Now relocated in the less hectic city of Ensenada in Baja California, Quintanilla has reinvented herself into J. Zunz, a new solo project where she explores similar atmospherics but marking a distance with what she had been doing with the obsolete. J.Zunz is the result of a metamorphic process whereby the minimal is rendered maximal and the personal fused with the political.

The initial vision for the J. Zunz project was for Lorena to strip her approach down to the basics. She remembers reading a biography of John Cage, where the author was referring to the influence of Buddhism and meditation, and modern artists like Sonia Delaunay, Lucio Fontana, Julio Le Parc, Duchamp, futurism… that detonated something inside her and sparked a myriad of ideas.

Earlier in August J. Zunz published her second album, Hibiscus (Rocket Recordings), which takes the name one of the most popular flowers in her native Mexico. The album marks a move on sonically from earlier comfort zones in her work, into minimal electronics, hypnotic repetition and compelling trance states, arriving at a soundworld in which cyclical synth patterns, eerie ambient textures and cathartic vocal exhortations...

Read the rest here: Clot

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Pharaoh Overlord's majestic new album '6' is released today


"Boldly unearthing the missing link between disco and death metal.
" The Quietus

"Exhilarating." The Wire

"Something unique and vibrant happening here." 8.5/10 The Prog Mind

"An eternally memorable electronic marvel." Backseat Mafia


The wait is finally over, today sees the release of Pharaoh Overlord's incredible album '6'. 

Sadly due to Covid complications the vinyl is 'still' delayed, but we should be receiving copies next week hopefully. The CD's are in stock and will be shipping out on Monday but if you can't wait you can listen to the album in full now via all streaming sites.

Buy the CD or preorder ltd LP here: Bandcamp


'6' by Pharaoh Overlord is a cataclysmic clash with bewitching results. The band’s current duo of Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo first channelled their love of krautrock-damaged monomania into synth-driven motorik soundscapes on 2019’s ‘5’ yet this new exploration is a step way beyond, into a chilly and captivating electronic panorama. Beholden to the melodies and textures of Kraftwerk yet also the cinematic austerity of EBM and the effervescent pulse of classic Italo-disco, it’s further abetted by fierce and corrosive vocals from longtime collaborator and Sumac/Isis/Old Man Gloom seer Aaron Turner, which stand atop these futuristic serenades not unlike the fevered delivery of a dystopian hellfire preacher.

Like a brightly underlit disco dancefloor flashing out a warning of danger, the alchemical force of '6' is equal parts hedonistic rapture and dark revelation.

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25 Nov 2020

The Prog Mind reviews Pharaoh Overlord


They say:

There have been surprisingly few notable electronic releases this year.  I’ve really liked only a handful, so I was eager to jump into the new Pharaoh Overlord album when I saw the promo arrive.  The new album is called “6” and releases on November 27th through Rocket Recordings.

Pharaoh Overlord comes to us from Finland.  The band is officially made up of Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo right now, but longtime friend Aaron Turner provides vocals on this album.  In fact, according to the bio in their promo kit, Aaron was originally only meant to be on a couple tracks, but he loved the sound so much that he wrote lyrics for the entire album and is featured on every track.

The band, for the last couple albums, has been carving their own niche in electronic music.  With a rock vibe and catchy rhythms, the band is more in the vein of Kraftwerk than, say, Tangerine Dream.  Their songs feel like songs, not atmospheric soundscapes.  Yet, the band has their own sound.  That sound is one of bold electronic loops, effervescent melodies floating in a thick soup of fervor, and layers upon layers of grand ideas.  Many times, those ideas are wild contrasts, pitting fleeting beauty up against raw textures.  This is achieved primarily through Aaron’s “corrosive” harsh vox that help define the album as a whole.  In the midst of reeling and grooving rhythms, his bark manages to make my neck hairs stand on end...

Read the rest of the 8.5/10 review here: The Prog Mind 

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24 Nov 2020

Listen to Pharaoh Overlord compiled playlist


Pharaoh Overlord have compiled an eclectic Spotify playlist of 'UK bands' for you to enjoy:


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The Quietus interviews Pharaoh Overlord about majestic new album '6'


It reads:

Pharaoh Overlord’s new album is a bizarre and brilliant thing, a record of pure energy that smashes ugly, guttural vocals (courtesy of frequent collaborator Aaron Turner of Sumac, Isis and Old Man Gloom) with a dollop of Italo-disco shimmer and relentless psych-industrial EBM thumps. It’s the second LP in a row the project’s released with just Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo at their core, and a sonic expansion on last year’s supercharged krautrock opus 5. Where that album saw the two musicians, who also play in constantly-evolving Finnish greats Circle, take their cues from early Kraftwerk (evidenced by its distinctly Ralf Und Florian album cover), 6 takes that gravity and adds a potent dose of sunny American gloss.

“When we realised that together we look like Steve Jobs and Jerry Garcia, we threw in influences from the West Coast, the enthusiasm of the early Apple Computer and the Grateful Dead. Our aim was to make ‘joyful noise’ with the minimum equipment,” Leppänen tells tQ via email. In its over-the-topness, Pharaoh Overlord has always been a project with which they can dive headfirst and unabashed into music’s more exuberant climes, from their early work’s indulgent stoner-rock pomp, to 2011’s hair metal LP Out Of The Darkness for which they added an umlaut to their name. Their first to be released on Rocket, 6 feels special even among this wild discography, one of the finest they’ve ever put out whether with Pharaoh Overlord, Circle, or anything else...

Read the rest here: The Quietus

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23 Nov 2020

efsyn.gr interviews Kooba Tercu


It reads:

What is it like for an artist to release new music and try to create in these suffocating conditions? Kooba Tercu give us their own interpretation.

Rushing from Athens, Crete and London, Kooba Tercu took the difficult step of making not one, but two releases during the era of pandemics and lockdowns. 

In the conversation we had on the occasion of the release of "Proto Tekno", but also of "Proto Tekno (Remixed)" (listen to all their music HERE ) it was fatal that the coronavirus and the effects of the crisis we are experiencing have a dominant position.

But we did not stop there. Kooba Tercu tells us about their demanding but accessible compositions, about the place they want the listener to have in their music world, but also about their own quests through engaging in art.

We meet in a strange situation. So what is the "experience" of releasing an album in lockdown? Were there any thoughts of postponing the traffic? And what is the reception so far from audiences and critics?

The process of releasing an album in the middle of a lockdown is ungrateful and torturous, mainly because you can not support it with concerts and related tours. Now traffic, tours and online promotion are all aspects necessary to be able to have an impact on our work. But the worst part was the lack of playing live and sharing experiences with the listeners...

Read the rest here: efsyn.gr

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Backseat Mafia reviews Pharaoh Overlord's '6'


They say:

THE FINNISH group Pharoah Overlord have made a welcome return with an expanded iteration of their previous era, amplifying the krautrock-influenced soundscapes established in 2019’s 5, joined by Sumac and Old Man Gloom’s Aaron Turner.

Here, Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo’s Kraftwerk-influenced, ravaging electronica melds with Aaron Turner’s harsh vocals for a futuristic attack of monomania-based jams. The vocal grit and cadence are an unexpected but sumptuous placement in these hellish soundscapes, a deeper bash into the panoramic and desolate dystopia of Pharaoh Overlord.

In its jam stylings and ever-present, pounding surge, 6 is coherent and cohesive, each track like an increasingly horrific horror movie scene. But for all its density, melodicism pervades.

Single “Path Eternal” shows off the band’s individual wielding of Kraftwerk-style murmurations. Melodic bleeps and synth arcs an ecstatic contrast to the guttural vocals; an overwhelming presence while still used unpredictably. Said vocals are, in fact, the most welcome addition to 6.

A longtime collaborator of the band, Turner’s melodic yet visceral vocal/lyrical style was originally intended for just a few tracks, but Tomi and Jussi were so awed that he ended up writing lyrics for the entire album...

Read the rest here: Backseat Mafia

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The Quietus reviews Pharaoh Overlords '6'


They say:

A fixture of the Finnish rock underground, Pharaoh Overlord have long made music of great interest and depth that warrants being taken seriously, while presenting it to the world in a way that risks discouraging just that (for some, at least). The lineup of Pharaoh Overlord has rarely been fixed since they began about two decades ago, but it’s tied pretty closely to that of Circle, who by virtue of existing first – and having a larger (indeed vast) discography – are generally considered the ‘main’ band to Pharaoh Overlord’s ‘side project’. Not how they’d prefer to see it, I’d wager.

Both groups have run the gamut of styles from Krautrock to heavy metal, jazz to prog, crisscrossing in an often camp and injokey way. And while sometimes using reference points from the recognised musical mainstream, they have rarely – if ever – sounded like it. This latest Pharaoh Overlord album probably comes closer to doing that than any other. Its five songs are mostly (perhaps entirely) guitar-free – sequenced rhythms and gleaming keyboard melodies cribbing from cosmic disco, Italo, synthpop and the more proto-techno sorts of the 1970s German set, then topped off by extreme metal vocals which will likely prove divisive even to those familiar with the source...

Read the rest here: The Quietus

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20 Nov 2020

NEOLYD reviews Paisiel's 'Unconscious Death Wishes'


They say:

It is said that almost every dream is a picture puzzle, with the central question "Where is death?" This is not only an interesting topic in psychoanalysis, but probably also a guiding principle set to music by Paisiel , who created a 39-minute experimental composition with "Unconscious Death Wishes".

The Porto-based Duo Paisiel, founded in 2014, consists of the Portuguese drummer João Pais Filip and the German saxophonist Julius Gabriel. Two full-time and above all thoroughbred musicians from different genres and disciplines. Her new work hits stores on November 20th and promises a non-stop wandering through paralyzing worlds. "Unconscious Death Wishes" is her way of evoking "landscapes, shapes, colors, proportions and movements" in Julius' words.

It's amazing how quickly a subconscious can get caught in the web of Paisiel's latest record. Subtle and gentle falling into a trance-like undertow, still wandering after other thoughts and yet paralyzed by the delicate, refined intoxication. And with the blink of an eye you realize that you are already in the middle of Paisiel's created acoustic exile...

Read the rest here: NEOLYD

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Now Idzie Od Morza reviews Deafbrick


They say:

Last year Igor Cavalera, founder of the legendary Sepultura, debuted with his new project Petbrick. Now, though, he crossed paths with one of the best bands from the country, Deafkids, about whose amazing album MetaprogramaçãoI wrote in 2019. Petbrick combines industrial sounds with synthesiser walls of sound, and Deafkids explore the boundaries between punk and avant-garde. A combination of these elements yields a mighty set of compositions built based on mighty-sounding guitar walls, indigenous percussion instruments, and artificial parts of synthesisers and beats. The sonic landscape is buzzing with guitar noise that keeps accumulating. Take the two-minute “Força Bruta”, where minced guitars follow Cavalera’s beats at breakneck speed. Deafkids are a great match here with their post-hardcore aesthetics. “The Menace of the Dark Polar Night” offers a calmer, powerful counterpoint, where futurist electronics, deformed in the second part of the track, come to the fore. “Máquina Obsessivo-Compulsiva” and “O Antropoceno” focus on the drums, there’s also room for a hypertextual reference to the traditions of the genre, when the quintet reinterprets Discharge’s “Free Speech For The Dumb”. And this is all locked in the trance hurricane in the form of two incarnations of “Primeval”. A very intense, yet captivating album.

Read the rest here: Now Idzie Od Morza

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The Heavy Chronicles reviews Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals


They say:

Don’t ask me why, but I always had a thing for albums kicking off with a strong and well thought-out solo drum beat, like on “Era Vulgaris” from Queens Of The Stone Age or Them Crooked Vultures’ self-titled. If it’s well-executed, the album instantly gets my vote. So obviously, when one of my favorite bands of the past few years decides to it a try, I exult. And it looks like Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs have decided to please me with the opener for “Viscerals”.

Past this yummy intro, we find with “Reducer” all the elements that Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs (no, I will not shorten their band name) built their hype and fame on. We find those riffs that take their cue equally from sludge, grunge and stoner without ever being too melodic, dissonant or metal-infused. We also find surreal vocals drowned in reverb and delay with an old post-punk esthetism (hello Fugazi !). We can also count on psychedelic guitars leads and a doom bridge to wrap it all up.

Everything that makes the Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs sound is there: a mix of psychedelic sludge rock with a hint of stoner, doom and post-punk. Talking about a niche genre, right? If you struggle to imagine what it’s all about, think about the Melvins on shrooms or an adventurous and spontaneous Alice in Chains. Or the other way around, imagine a violent version of Magma or a stripped down Hawkwind. Another key element in Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs‘ music: the rhythm changes, breaks and other joyful ways to play with asymmetrical time signatures. No intend to sound like a “math-anything” band here, but rather a will to surprise and vary without ever altering the overall sound or lose the listener...

Read the rest here: The Heavy Chronicles

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Paisiel album 'Unconscious Death Wishes' out now


"An escape from/ and reflection of/ our own reality."

"The pair become locked in a dizzying tempest of swirling, slashing phrases and knotted beats." 

“A driving force that unites past, present and future.” 

“To pierce the psychedelic barrier and scar the psyche beyond repair.” 

“Paisiel push the boundaries of sound in all the right ways."


Today sees the release of Paisiels second album  'Unconscious Death Wishes' - you can pick it up on ltd edition red/black colour-in-colour vinyl here: Bandcamp

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Porto-based duo Paisiel comprise Portuguese drummer João Pais Filipe and German saxophonist Julius Gabriel. Both full-time musicians across several genres and disciplines, with Rocket  having just released a collaborative album between João and Salford hit squad Gnod titled ‘Faca De Fogo’, the vibe Paisiel achieve across their second album ‘Unconscious Death Wishes’ sounds specific, singular and ultimately unique.

‘Unconscious Death Wishes’ is a single 39-minute piece recorded using improvisation based around composed structures, or what the drummer calls “instant composition”. Beginning quietly and mournfully, an array of percussion, avant-electro synths (think Cabaret Voltaire or Muslimgauze) and expansive sax swiftly takes hold. At times, this could be a late 60s proto-Krautrock cafeteria jam, early 70s New York loft jazz happening or Brazilian street party from whichever decade takes your fancy.

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18 Nov 2020

New video revealed for Autotelia track 'Thinking Makes It So'


"Parallels the blissful drift of Cluster’s ‘II’, the overheated ampstacks of prime Spacemen 3 or the becalmed modernism of Eno."

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We are delighted to share the guitar-scorched heat-haze track 'Thinking Makes It So', the last video from the amazing Autotelia album 'I' that was released a few months ago.

After the initial sad news of Tom's passing we held off sharing this video but it feel's a good time to get it out there for you to all engage back in Tom's & Demian's music again.

The video is super 8 footage of London and landscapes filmed by Julian Hand & fed through Antonio Curcetti's video synthesiser, watch it above.

Demian had this to say about the track:
"This track evokes a lot of memories for me as I believe it’s from the first session that Tom and I recorded properly. “Thinking Makes It So” was recorded in a rehearsal room in Stoke Newington called Audio Underground, back in 2009, at wall-shaking volume using an Ampeg 8x10 and a fender Twin both cranked to the max.

It was recorded in one take and then many years later, when we got around to revisiting some of our earlier sessions, a few guitar overdubs were added at the end. Listening back it’s a reminder of how easy it was to lock in together and it was kind of surprising that we didn't mess it up, as I seem to remember us laughing afterwards about it with ringing ears. The title was one of Tom’s when we had to come up with some track names last year, and is an apt one given the ethos of the project to not have an end in sight and not over-produce anything as Autotelia and just to create for the sake of creating, and simply to be in the moment.."

Also grab the last copies available here:


Thanks for all your support on this, Tom would be very happy that people immersed themselves fully into this project.

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Bucket List reviews Deafbrick


They say:

Is it the English language or humans in general who are lazy? I mean, I know I sure am, but being an only English speaker, I question if it’s a human laziness thing or just my language who says, “we combined two things but fuck thinking up a new word for it, we’ll just combine the words for each as well.” Terms like mockumentary, Kimye, stranglewank… you get the idea. This same shortcut is exactly what has been done for the name DEAFBRICK, the collaborative effort between Brazil’s DEAFKIDS and London duo PETBRICK. Although the name may be a lazy slap-together of both parties, the album clearly has more creativity put into it.

For some background, PETBRICK features founding Sepultura and Cavalera Conspiracy drummer Iggor Cavalera and electronic music producer Wayne Adams while DEAFKIDS is a relatively young act that has received very high acclaim for experimentation in raw punk, D-beat, and polyrhythmic percussion and the album was provided to me with the genre as noise synth. However, my first impressions of the album were more liken to hearing AKA Psalm 69 by Ministry for the first time, if it was somehow mixed with Sepultura’s Roots...

Read the rest here: Bucket List

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17 Nov 2020

Listen to Paisiel's new album 'Unconscious Death Wishes' in full via Cvlt Nation


You can listen to Paisiel's incredible new album 'Unconscious Death Wishes' in full ahead of Friday's release exclusively via the great Cvlt Nation.

Stream in full here: Cvlt Nation

And preorder the  'Unconscious Death Wishes' on ltd edition colour vinyl here: Bandcamp

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16 Nov 2020

Ailbhe Máiréad interviews J Zunz


Listen above to Ailbhe Máiréad interview J. Zunz about her fantastic album Hibiscus on her Reprezent show.

You can buy Hibiscus on ltd edition blue vinyl here: Bandcamp

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Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Bingo returns for Xmas special


During this summers Supersonic Festival's 'Sofasonic' Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs held a very special online Bingo event – and the lovely folks at Supersonic have had the great idea to have a special Xmas edition!

From the band:

Bingo is back.

19th of December, Matt and Adam will be hosting another Zoom based charity Bingo game via @supersonicfest and this time, it’s festive.

Tickets: https://bit.ly/SS_pigsbingoxmas

All money raised is going to @TrussellTrust and there are prizes to be won. Let’s Rock.

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13 Nov 2020

Gås is released today


Today sees the release of the debut single by 
Gås.

It was supposed to be released a few weeks ago, but due to Covid related congestion at the manufacturers the vinyl has been delayed but those that were preordered via Bandcamp are being mailed out today. But, sadly the quantity we received from the plant feel very short, so all the copies that were going to the record shops will be delayed even further. But these are being pressed soon so we hope they will be in shops before Christmas.Sorry about that, but these things are out of our hands, we appreciate your patience though!

The Gås 7 can be heard in full here:

Bandcamp   Spotify

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Press release:

Introducing Gås...

A new band from Sweden and this, their debut release is the limited edition single simply called Gås.

The Swedish word ‘Gås’ has two known meanings - one is ‘goose’, the Mythical mighty animal and the other is street slang for ‘smoking weed’. Though there may now be a third new meaning, and that would be ‘heavy and loud’.

The 7”starts with Epitaph, a 4 minute + track, rammed full of incredible ‘Rocket trademark’ fuzz-wah immersions from twin lead guitars. The early 70s rock inspired vibe is reminiscent of classic Black Sabbath and Blue Cheer but also has a ‘commune-dwelling’ sound of the German bands from that same era. Acts like Amon Duul ll and Agitation Free spring to mind – as well as their Swedish contemporaries Arbete & Fritids, International Harvester and Rävjunk.

The B-side ‘The North Wind Blew South’ is, in fact, a cover version, originally by the British band Philamore Lincoln, who made one album in 1970. Gås move the intimate, string driven pop song into a fuzz filled sing-along anthem with its feet firmly set in the Swedish psych scene.

Gås are a perfect addition to the list of mind altering Swedish bands that are already on the Rocket roster. So if you have GOAT, Hills, Flowers Must Die, Och, Centrum and Josefin Öhrn + The Liberation records in your collection, then this 7” is for you. 

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11 Nov 2020

The Sleeping Shamen reviews Pharaoh Overlord's '6'


They say:

Pori, Finland’s Pharaoh Overlord is a side-project of Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo of experimental rock band Circle which started life back in 2000. This latest album is their first on Rocket Recordings, home to Pigs x 7, Gnod, Kooba Tercu and Sex Swing so sees the band in fine company. 6 is the band’s follow-up to 2019’s 5 which was something of a radical departure and a step towards electronica and synth/disco in strong contrast to their earlier stoner/psych roots.

The album cover features a menacing and one presumes poisonous snake. Snakes tend to have a hard rock and heavy metal heritage featuring on Motörhead’s Snake Bite Love, Metallica’s Black Album and er, Whitesnake’s Lovehunter. The depiction of the snake on 6 however is something you would be more inclined to find on a John Dwyer related album packed full of his usual brand of psych garage-punk. Moreover, I feel this symbolizes something more intelligent and progressive, as opposed to resorting to daft rock clichés that you may have gotten from those aforementioned bands (Whitesnake in particular)...

Read the rest here: The Sleeping Shamen

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Pharaoh Overlord share dazzling new video for forthcoming album opener 'Path Eternal'

Finnish visionaries Pharaoh Overlord deliver a vibrant video for the new single "Path Eternal" from their sixth record (released 27 November), reimagining electronic music for the future. 

The album opener sets its stall out in style, marrying Moroder and Mayhem with a hint of the apocalypse manifesto of Skinny Puppy lurking in the middle distance - created by Rocket's own Johnny O, watch and listen above:

'6' is being released on ltd LP and CD via the Rocket shop link below or available via your local record shop.

Rocket Bandcamp

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The rest of the album continues in a similar vein, richly coherent yet startling even for the unpredictable world of this band, arriving like a series of otherworldly epiphanies. 6 sees the band's current duo of Tomi Leppänen and Jussi Lehtisalo joining forces with longtime collaborator and Sumac/Old Man Gloom seer Aaron Turner, who's fierce and corrosive vocals stand atop these futuristic serenades not unlike the fevered delivery of a dystopian hellfire preacher.

Pharaoh Overlord explores a chilly and captivating electronic panorama, beholden to the melodies and textures of Kraftwerk yet also the cinematic austerity of EBM and the effervescent pulse of classic Italo-pop. Together, they are finding a way forward amidst the modern cataclysms that surround - channelling negative experience into a positive change.

True to form, like a brightly underlit disco dancefloor flashing out a warning of danger, the alchemical force of 6 is equal parts hedonistic rapture and dark revelation.

Let him who have understanding reckon the number of the beat, for it is a human number. Its number is 6.



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10 Nov 2020

Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs celebrate inclusion in Rough Trade's 'Top 10 Albums Of The Year' with exclusive vinyl release of 'Off Cuts'


We are excited to reveal that Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs latest album 'Viscerals' has been placed in Rough Trade's 'Top 10 Albums Of The Year' at number 7!

To celebrate this inclusion the band have pressed-up a Rough Trade exclusive ltd edition vinyl copy of 'Off Cuts' – an album that contains previously 'unreleased on vinyl' versions of tracks taken from all three Pigs albums and recorded in studios across the UK. ‘Off Cuts’ presents rawer, more immediate, more intense versions of the songs you all know and love. This is an essential listen for all Pigs fans and all fans of heavy, fuzzed rock!

The album is pressed on stunning purple and black splattered vinyl, and is limited to just 1,000 copies exclusively available via Rough Trade shops.

Buy here: Rough Trade




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6 Nov 2020

Kooba Tercu release 'Proto Tekno' remix album


Centred around the creative hubs of Athens, Crete and London, Kooba Tercu's 2020’s ‘Proto Tekno’ album existed at a psychic intersection between the ruins of crumbling infrastructure and an intimidating future dystopia. A potent and pulverising collection of incendiary jams fuelled by the modern age, yet transcended with vicious style. Equal parts groove-driven mantra, red blooded freakout, and experimental onslaught; this is the sound of a fearless band raging against the dying light.

Fast forward to late 2020 & the world feels like it has changed, so during the first wave of COVID-19, Kooba Tercu reached out to artists with a similar sense of kinship they admired l and asked them to freely re-interpret the songs from 'Proto Tekno' into the album 'Proto Tekno (Remixed)'. 

Rocket artist and remix master Shit & Shine and Marlene from GNOD under her Negra Branca moniker join Turbo Teeth, Echo Canyon, Mr. Clarinet, Kostadis and De Santis as remixers on this collaborative album.

Koob Tercu's disparate influences on the original tracks now coalesce even more vividly into an invigorating and intimidatingly confident assault on the senses. It’s a weapon of psychic defence just as much as a love letter to the three ‘R’s of repetition, repetition and repetition.

The remix album is available on ltd edition tape, digital + and special bundles from today, so take advantage of Bandcamp Friday and get yourselves the album: Bandcamp

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Buy Baba Yaga's Hut compilation


Petbrick, Kooba Tercu, Flowers Must Die, and Teeth of the Sea's Mike Bourne join a host of other incredible artists on this very special compilation album compiled by Baba Yaga's Hut.

They say:

This is the Baba Yaga's Hut 2020 compilation.

A 46 track mixture of some of our favourite bands who have kindly donated songs for it.

It's a mixture of totally unreleased exclusives, some album tracks and a couple of unreleased live tracks.

As you can imagine 2020 has been an extremely challenging year for us and the money from this compilation will be vital to keeping us going for the future.

This compilation will be on sale for one month from Nov 6th to Dec 5th. Pick it up while you can!

Buy now from here: Bandcamp

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Celebrating 'Bandcamp Friday' for November



Today is another 'Bandcamp Friday'!!

So as always, today is a great time to buy some Rocket albums and shirts - some releases we wanna bring to your attention are:

Urdog – Long Shadows: 2003-2006
Ltd edition Ice Black splatter vinyl compilation

Hills – Frid
Ltd edition repress on Fire Splatter vinyl with gatefold sleeve

Kooba Tercu – Proto Tekno Remixed
New digital release out today, featuring reworks Shit & Shine and Negra Branca

Pharaoh Overlord – 6
Immensely epic album '6' on 'Snake Bite' Yellow vinyl edition

Paisiel – Unconscious Death Wish LP
Stunning second album, td Red/Black 'colour-in-colour' vinyl

Anthroprophh – Toilet Circuit EP
Repress on yellow vinyl due to speed of first pressing sold out – expected to go the same way

GOAT – Commune LP and Tshirts
Special ltd 'Silver edition' reissue on silver/blue swirl vinyl and new artwork – plus lack reprint of the classic black Goat T-shirts

Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals and Tshirts
Latest album Viscerals on colour vinyl plus ltd edition 'Let's Rock' and 'King of Cowards' Tshirts

GNOD – Tshirts
Ltd edition 'Just Say No' and Trepanation shirts available

J. Zunz – Hibiscus LP
Ltd Blue/White swirl vinyl

Autotelia – I LP
Ltd 'Weird Green' striped vinyl

Sex Swing – Type II LP
On Ltd edition swirl vinyl

+ there are loads of other great albums, shirts and posters to pick up from the Rocket or individual bands Bandcamp stores:

Bandcamp

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5 Nov 2020

Rocket to release retrospective vinyl compilation by US band 'Urdog'


For the uninitiated Urdog were a three piece from Providence USA that released music between 2003-2006.

They were a band who were talked about amongst the then current Myspace-Psych, New Weird America and Freak Folk scenes of the time – alongside bands like Oneida, Espers, Sunburned Hand of Man, Wooden Wand etc etc

We at Rocket are huge fans of Urdog's music so we are thrilled to be able to share with you a ‘first time on vinyl/digital’ compilation of their music culled from their releases within their three year existence. 

'Long Shadows: 203-2006' is released on 06 March, listen to the track 'Ice on Water' exclusively here via Psychedelic Baby Magazine:

Listen to 'Ice on Water'

You can preorder the Ltd LP on 'Ice Black' vinyl via here from tomorrow as part of the latest Bandcamp Friday:

Rocket Bandcamp

There is also a ltd edition 'Gold' vinyl version that will be available in all good record shops.

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Press Release:

“The rumours are true; Providence, Rhode Island is permeated with a mysterious energy”. 
So says Dave Lifrieri guitarist and vocalist of Urdog. 

“It might have something to do with the swamp gas chimneys that keep downtown from blowing up, or the proximity to the ocean, but every now and then a thick fog enters the city and breeds with the people who call this transient world home. Around the turn of the century many musicians and artists found themselves infected by Providence. Some of us focused this energy, learned to live with the ghosts and tell their story.”

It’s a story chronicled on Long Shadows, the new Urdog retrospective on Rocket Recordings - the work of a mercurial band whose music may have been summoned from fog and ghosts, yet possesses considerable staying power beyond their brief time on the planet.

“We were influenced by the horror of late-capitalism in general every day” says drummer and vocalist Erin Rosenthal, who first met Dave whilst ‘bouncing on a couch like two 5 year olds’ at a Flying Luttenbachers show. “This glued and glues us together, also love of bicycles, french fries and faerie folk. Big influences for me were Robert Wyatt, Incredible String Band, Dagmar Krause, but especially This Heat, Riot Grrrl and 90’s hardcore”

From such disparate inspiration came psychically heavy jams and wild improvisational voyages from this triumvirate which chart an instinctive and wild journey, drawing the interplanetary dots between early ‘70s freak-flag-waving transgressions and the folk-tinged frontiers of the early 21st century US underground. Mantric repetition, ceremonial ambience and fuzz/wah tinged blowouts take equal prominence in this dreamlike realm. 

This compendium marks something of a fresh step into the retrospective for Rocket Recordings, whose Chris Reeder and John O’Carroll were introduced to the band in the early ‘00s through Steve Krakow of Plastic Crimewave Sound and via the fabled Aquarius Records new release list. Revisiting the two full-length Urdog CDs in lockdown and realising that none of this material had been released on vinyl, the label took a chance on a 15-year-old email address and were pleasantly surprised when organist and vocalist Jeff Knoch replied.

“Something that kind of stands out in retrospect is that, relatively speaking, Urdog existed for a rather short period of time—just three years” says Jeff, describing the utilitarian methods of the band “I think we all favoured immediacy and directness over belaboured production and refinement. If you let certain shortcomings, or inabilities or even a lack of the “appropriate” tools inhibit you, you’ll never get anything done” True to this uncompromising ethos, the band had effectively run its course by 2006, with Jeff moving to the desert, Dave starting a record store, and Erin studying plant medicine, after one final hurrah at the celebrated psych fest Terrastock in their home town.

Yet the transcendental nature of their music meant it wasn’t so easily forgotten - “Over the years since then, where I have been asked to DJ at festivals I’ve played ‘Ice On Water’ and am more or less guaranteed to get at least one person coming up to me asking ‘what is this?’” notes Chris Reeder - indeed, to bask in this track, ‘DMZ’ or ‘Eyelid Of Moon’ is to set foot into an audial patch of land equally nurtured by the drone ’n’ klang of Amon Düül II and the cultish hallucinations of Sunburned Hand Of The Man, replete with both an earthiness of approach and a powerful celestial intensity.

We used our intuitive connection to let three distinct voices be heard” reflects Dave. “There was no foundation; they supported each other. Once that is achieved, a vibe develops. Getting into the space of a song is something you can’t notate. We had the keys, but getting to the door was the trick. Some nights we got all the way through the roof to the stars.”



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3 Nov 2020

Hills announce special 'Frid' repress on two colour vinyl variants and new gatefold sleeve


One of the finest psych bands to come out of Sweden, 'Hills' have announced a special ltd edition repress of their third and last studio album 'Frid'. The repress will be available on 'Fire Splatter' vinyl (200 copies) via the Rocket's Bandcamp and on 'Blue' vinyl (400 copies) via your local record shop. 

Preorder 'Fire Splatter' from this Friday as part of this months Bandcamp Friday: Rocket Bandcamp

Hills are part of a rich scene from Sweden which also including friends and Rocket Recordings label mates Goat, Josefin Öhrn + The Liberation, Flowers Must Die, Och etc . This collection form the new chapter in a tradition of Swedish psychedelia that found its origins in late-'60s and early 70's freakouts and mind-melts by the likes of Baby Grandmothers and Älgarnas Trädgōrd - not to mention the unholy trinity of Pärson Sound, International Harvester and Träd Gräs och Stenar - before being developed by the likes of The Spacious Mind and Dungen in the last two decades. These inspirations make their mark on 'Frid' by journeying inward, via mantric repetition and hip-shaking pulsations as on the ten-minute monolith, ' Och Solen Sankte Sig Rod', yet they can also lurch into the unknown via the fuzz/wah odysseys of the aptly monikered 'National Drone' and the ceremonial exhortations of the closing 'Death Will Find A Way.'

Frid has been out of print for several years now, so this gives fans and the curious the chance to immerse themselves in this wonderful and classic album.


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Post lockdown (hopefully) Teeth of the Sea / The Utopia Strong show announced


Baba Yaga's Hut has announced a post lockdown Teeth of the Sea / The Utopia Strong show at The Clapham Grand on 8 December. 
All seated, distanced, Covid friendly, just after (hopefully) this imminent 4 week lock down. We are keeping everything crossed this will happen!

Tickets can be bought here: Dice

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2 Nov 2020

Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs reschedule album launch tour


Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs album launch tour is now scheduled to begin in November 2021. Sadly because of availability the band weren’t able to reschedule every single show they had, so for any cities that have fallen off this run (Liverpool, Sheffield, Leicester) they will endeavour to get to you as soon as able too. Refunds for these shows will be automatically issued.

For all those with tickets for the rescheduled dates, they remain valid. The band can’t wait to see you and wish it could be sooner but this is the earliest they are able to make it work. If you can’t make the date, refunds are available from point of purchase but fingers crossed you can!

Dates:
Fri 12 Nov 2021 Norwich The Waterfront
Sat 13 Nov 2021 Swansea Sin City
Wed 17 Nov 2021 Belfast The Belfast Empire Music Hall
Thu 18 Nov 2021 Limerick Dolan's (upstairs)
Fri 19 Nov 2021 Cork The Kino
Sat 20 Nov 2021 Dublin Whelan’s
Tue 23 Nov 2021 Manchester Albert Hall
Wed 24 Nov 2021 Bristol SWX
Thu 25 Nov 2021 Birmingham The Mill
Sat 27 Nov 2021 Brighton Concorde 2
Mon 29 Nov 2021 Southampton Engine Rooms
Tue 30 Nov 2021 London Electric Ballroom
Wed 01 Dec 2021 London Electric Ballroom
Thu 02 Dec 2021 Leeds Stylus
Weds 09 Dec 2021 Nottingham Rock City
Thu 09 Dec 2021 Edinburgh Summerhall
Fri 10 Dec 2021 Glasgow St Luke’s
Sat 11 Dec 2021 Aberdeen The Lemon Tree
Fri 17 Dec 2021 Newcastle The Cluny
Sat 18 Dec 2021 Newcastle The Cluny

Tickets and merch: Pigsx7.com

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