This episode is heavy on melody. That is why I have used the term “pretty” to describe it a couple of places.

The name is less obtuse than usual. Episode 81 and 3x3x3x3 is 81. Three to the fourth power or three hypercubed. Hypercube being a geometric term dealing with the 4th dimension, and there you have your weekly dose of four dimensional geometry.

The intro is new. I plan to use this same voice over every time from here on out and make a new loop for under it each week.

I originally was going to play the opening Apparat track last episode. He didn't get back in touch with me and the email to Shitkatapult was never responded to so I took the song out of the last episode. As I was rendering show 80, however, Shitkatapult responded so here is the track. I have heard a few releases by Apparat, the Ellen Allein collaboration and the live EP Berlin, Montreal, Tel Aviv (which I played a track from back in my renegade days). This latest CD is different though. It has that whole M83/fuzzed out melody sound on a lot of tracks. It is a really great CD and a step forward in his sound in my opinion.

In June 1996, I had been doing the show for about a year. I was just playing what I wanted, not getting any sort of clearance. Adam of White Rainbow emailed me though to thank me for playing a track of his. It was the first time an artist I had played had contacted me. He was nice and grateful I had played his stuff, but it got me wondering if the next artist or label who found their track in my show would be as accommodating. So I started getting permission to play things. White Rainbow has any releases and they are all really good. The new CD Prism of Eternal Now is on one of the best labels going, Kranky, and is my favorite CD by WR. I have a couple of his CDs, including the 6CD set. This one however just hits on all cylinders in my eyes. His podcast seems like it is going to be really good too. There is a bit of one of his live sets posted as the latest episode.

Venetian Snares always hits the sweet spot with me. Mr. Funk's wildly diverging styles that all have their base in his hyper breakbeat deconstructions never fail to entertain. This track is from the new EP Pink and Green. I hope to find the 10” he just did of dub remixes of Black Sabbath.

I have played the Octopus Project before. The CD they did with Black Moth Super Rainbow is one of my favorite releases of 2006. This is the first CD of theirs that I have picked up (I got it from eMusic actually) and I love their style. A great combination between the standard rock band format with a liberal use of electronic noise sculpting, their secret weapon is their ear for melody. Peek-a-Boo has been enthusiastic about me playing OP, so maybe I will get off my butt and do an interview.

I first heard about this piece from Vital Weekly. It was hard to find, but worth the search. Catlin is a New Zealand musician that plays treated guitar. From what I have read he generates most of these sounds very organically with very little post production wizardry. I love the great ambience he generates here.

I love the first Beirut CD and the EP Lon Gisland is good too. I was really looking forward to this CD. This particular track really reminds me of the music in Godfather II called the "Death of Don Fannucci". Horns in this very plodding squeezebox rhythm. I wish he would do an instrumental CD, as I love his arrangements, but if you are the least bit a fan of this style of “old world” music.

Machinefabriek released a business card CD last year and this project is that track farmed out to a variety of remixers. I love the subtle hand Rutger has with his sounds and what the remixers do with the source material is fantastic and diverse.

Health is a great band. Their CD is noisy and chaotic as hell. They are playing in Birmingham in a few weeks and have a reputation as an equally chaotic live show. I love it when bands take the traditional rock instrumentation and knock it on butt.

I play a lot of post-rock bands and Mono is one of my favorites. They have a grand sense of melody and arrangement that is rarely seen this side of GYBE! This new release collects their sometimes hard to find CDs into one disc. This epic and grandiose title track is worth the price of the CD alone.

A couple of months ago I came across an Angelic Process CD in a used bin. The CD itself was in a DVD box and the music was this great combination of My Bloody Valentine sonic washes and the precision of a great metal stomp. This track is from their latest CD. Weighing Souls with Sand kills, pure and simple. When I contacted Profound Lore about playing this track, he told me they had broken up. That is really too bad, I would have loved to see this live.

I have heard about this record (I say CD in the podcast, but it is vinyl) for a long time. This mysterious Japanese krautrock(sorta) band called Moolah and their single(?) album are sort of legendary among collectors of bizarre music. I have heard that this was being reissued onto CD, but I have yet to see it. I got my copy via less than legitimate means and would love to get hold of a nice CD pressing.

I don't know much about Godheadscope but this went on my list of things to purchase when I read about it at Aquarius. It is just a few long tracks, but there is a great feel to them. Droney but not boring. He was a little apprehensive (I felt) about podcast play, but told me to go ahead. Go add him on MySpace and tell him where you heard him.

Once again I hope you guys enjoyed listening as much as I enjoyed making it.

I'm still digesting this episode, but wanted to say Angelic Process was a good find. A buddy of mine only listens to the metal spectrum of music. He was complaining just the other day that he needed new music (still trying to get him into SR, he's heard it in my car and asked about it). I sent him the link to the Profound Lore site. He really liked Angelic Process. I haven't listened to everything else there, but some interesting bands for sure. Had you heard of them before when you found it in the used bin or did you just take a chance?

I liked the tune you played off of House of Apples and Eyeballs so much, I bought the album. Come to find out BMSR just played in Boulder, but I missed the show due to tainted Chinese food. I'll have to check out Octopus Project's new album as well. I really enjoyed that track.

The Angelic Process was a name I had in my "To look for" list. I had seen it somewhere and had made the note next to it "Metal My Bloody Valentine", which isn't a really bad description for it. I was really hoping to see them live, especially since they are in my part of the country. According to their MySpace, one of the main members has a rather incapacitating hand injury, so it's over.

That new Octopus Project CD is really really great. I have listened the hell out of it for the last week. I really love this video of them playing live I posted over on the Tumblr Blog.

Hey Spartacus, your podcast sucked! Nah I'm just kidding. I quite liked ep.81, rather mellow and cruisy this time round.

My only criticism, was that ukulele/trumpet/Mexican mariachi piece... bit too "in here" (as opposed to "out there") for my liking. I think a couple of guys played that song in a cafe in Tijuana, cost me 3 American dollars...

Other than that, loved it. Time to recommend SRH to all my friends. (Shouldn't take long... can't imagine why ;)

Cheers,
o.

Yeah the Beirut piece was sort of the oddball piece this time around. I like the new CD, but I can see why people think it is too traditional. As much as I like Beirut, I wish they were a bit more..... envelope pushing. Sometimes a little too authentic sounding. Maybe Steve Stapleton of NWW should remix their next CD.