The Franciscan Hobbies

The Franciscan Hobbies are Loren Chasse, Rob Reger, Glenn Donaldson, Greg Bianchini, Christine Boepple, Kerry McLaughlin, Jason Honea, Buffy Vice Slick, Allan Horrocks, Donovan Quinn, Bryan De Roo, Cole Palme, Dylan Brock, and Jesse Edwards.

Their recordings are pretty neat. Very imaginative and entertaining listening. It sounds almost as if the recordings created themselves.

A quote from Pandit Pran Nath adorns an insert

“Walls are stuck… oustide- ideas fly in all directions”

Satan Crystals

The Happy Burial

Apprehension Of Reality

-kevin-

Nellie Nguyen – Oak Tree

Nellie Nguyen’s Oak Tree is one of the most affecting folk songs I’ve heard all year and its arrival comes as quite a tease because this is the only recorded material she has thus far. Keep an ear out here on Naturalismo for more of her gently penned tunes. In the meantime, I highly recommend going to youtube and watching the HD version of this, because the aureate nature of the clip is somewhat lost in this low-res small version.

Thanks to David Luraschi

 

Devin

Juana

John Fahey – Juana

press play or download

-kevin-

New Javelin // Andy Cabic Vetiver Remix

First up is a new Javelin spun super mix showcasing a slew of new mined/sampled tracks courtesy of who knows where. Increasingly liking much of everything these two guys are doing. I listened to the last 2/3rds of their Andea Ocean Mixtape again three times today, it really picks up around 10 mins in and is highlighted by some of the more interesting range in music I’ve heard in awhile. Refreshing to say the least.. The new mix World MIDI classics is similarly great and makes for a great listen.

Javelin - Andea Ocean Mixtape

Javelin - World MIDI Classics Vol 2

//////////////////////^\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

(c) Alissa Anderson

Next up is a new Vetiver remix by Neighbors, Andy Cabics side project. I was excited to see this today as yesterday his Neighbors remix of “Been So Long” came on for the first time in awhile an sounded just as fresh. This new remix can be found on the upcoming More of This 12-inch, out 11/30 on Bella Union.

Vetiver - More of This (Neighbors Remix)

Devin

Velvet Davenport ft. Ariel Pink and Gary War – Get Out

Some pretty awesome forces combining on this new single slated for release on an upcoming 7″ to be put out by SHDWPLY. Makes me anticipate that upcoming Ariel Pink full length that much more. Get Out combines Ariel Pinks insatiable knack for melody with Velvet Davenports shambling Barrett tinged psych percussion and guitar. Keep an eye out for the A-side Run.

Velvet Davenport ft. Ariel Pink and Gary War – Get Out

Previously:

Velvet Davenport – Lemon

Ariel Pink – Phantasthma

SHDWPLY.

Ronnie Hawkins and The Hawks

Ronnie Hawkins and The Hawks – Southern Love

Alright, one last Halloweened out jam before tonight. I was going to wait until I put out the Autumn mix in a few weeks to serve up this track but it just seems too appropriate to dj tonight not to. This spooky grooved out rockin’ jam comes by way of a one Ronnie Hawkins being backed by none other than THE BAND, a few months before they left their Hawks backing moniker in 1964. This has to be one of my favorite songs, hope you enjoy..have a good Halloween.

Devin

Greg Weeks of Espers: The Naturalismo Interview

This is a first here on naturalismo: the first time we’ve interviewed the same band, or at least a representative from the same band, twice. If you don’t remember, we interviewed Espers many moons ago — but loving Espers as much as we do, there was a eerie compulsion to track then down once again to see what has transpired since their last release and to get a little perspective on their freshly-minted LP, III.

~~~

Naturalismo: It’s been about three years since your last release, II. As a six-piece band, each with solo/side projects, what was the inspiration to rejoin under the Espers banner once more?

Greg Weeks: Well, it wasn’t really a rejoin scenerio. Espers never stopped being, nor sat quietly in the wake of other projects, the band just operated in its own deliberate, slow pace. Which leads us to now.

N: What about this band is special, not necessarily more or less, as compared to other projects?

GW: That’s kind of a weird question to answer. Whenever you get a group of musicians together something new and different comes of it. Under certain circumstances, with the right people, that “something” is, for whatever reason, special. That’s what we have with Espers.

N: How was the writing and recording process different for III than for the previous record?

GW: Mmmm …. it really wasn’t all that much different. Its more like we all changed, so the process felt different, even though it was roughly the same.

N: As I just mentioned, each member of Espers has many creative outlets outside the band. Over the last three years, how have your individual pursuits changed your outlook on the creation of new Espers music, and how is your own creative evolution reflected on the new record?

GW: Man, I dunno. The more years spent as a musician the more beat down one feels. At least that’s how I feel. The better I get at the craft aspect of music making the less time or energy I have for it. Espers III reflects a lot of that, I think. I hear in it fatigue as much as I do growth and renewed energy.

N: Espers III, though an entirely new vision from II, remains loyal to the band’s unique blend of psychedelic and folk-inspired sounds. What do you think originally drew you to this sonic palette, and what about it continues to pique your imagination and hold your interest?

GW: Its us. And we don’t change much in that regard. We like now what we liked then and we’ll likely continue liking what we like now. None of us are caught in the trap that the original progenitors of this music found themselves in, being forced to tailor their sound to fit the next hot trend, like disco, or synth pop. We could continue on like this forever, or stop tomorrow, and we’d likely be coming from the same relative place. If we shifted taste or direction in any significant manner as individuals we’d likely find another venue for the expression of those musical ideas.

N: As the first decade of the 21st century draws near to a close, what are your thoughts on the evolution of the decade’s popular independent music?

GW: I see no evidence of evolution, just a fast disintegration of the previous support system. This system was a mirage to begin with in some ways, but it at least allowed for some degree of reward for effort and stick-to-it-ness. And it definitely kept some of the chaff out of the wheat pile. Now there are no checks, just one open gaping maw; a musical free for all.

N: Why do you think Espers and other like-minded artists, if only for a few years, tapped into the popular/critical zeitgeist of independent music in the mid-2000’s?

GW: I don’t think we did. The endless problem with niche music fans (and bands) is that they think what they support is a part of popular culture. When a band sells less than 1000 copies, and (if you live in a big city) there are easily that many residents on your block, you aren’t reaching even an infinitesimal portion of the culture.

N: Are there any touring plans in the works to support the release of III?

GW: Yes.

N: In a time where synths, loops, midi-keyboards, and macbooks dominate the typical independent music stage, what role do you think “organic music” — define as you please — will play in the independent music landscape of the coming decade?

GW: It will continue to find its way because we are all human, not cyborg.

~~~

Espers III is available now on Drag City. Check here for tour dates and song previews!

=tyler=

John Fahey: The Great Santa Barbara Oil Slick

The Great Santa Barbara Oil Slick

Live at the Matrix, San Francisco, California, 1968/1969

1. Introduction
2. When the Springtime Comes Again
3. Joe Kirby Blues
4. Requiem for Mississippi John Hurt
5. When the Catfish is in Bloom
6. Fahey Blows His Nose
7. Intro to “Lion” / Challenges to Quitting Cigarettes
8. Lion
9. Dance of the Inhabitants of The Palace of King Philip XIV of Spain
10. View East From the B&O Railroad Viaduct and the Riggs Road Intersection
11. On the Sunny Side of the Ocean
12. The Great Santa Barbara Oil Slick
13. In Christ There is No East or West
14. Announcement
15. The Death of the Clayton Peacock
16. The Revolt of the Dyke Brigade
17. Magruder Park

This album’s first 14 tracks were recorded on February 14, 1968. The last three tracks are from a reel dated February 20, but the year is not notated. It’s the earliest live Fahey album available.

-kevin-

Einstuerzende Neubauten – The Garden

Einstuerzende Neubauten’s The Garden is a hauntingly  melodic and palpitating slice of minimalistic and dark ambient avant-garde. Seems pretty appropriate to throw on right before you enter your maize maze this weekend.

 

Devin

Mountain Man

Pretty much every next thing I hear these three girls do is that much better than the previous. Evoking the spirit of some nearly forgotten gospel hymns from the twenties, Mountain Man are crafting in my opinion some of the most intriguing pre-war-folk-whateverwhathaveyou to grace these ears in quite some time. These girls are just pure sincerity…

Back to the roots, etc.

Devin

Trawlerman’s Song

Vashti Bunyan – Trawlerman’s Song

press play or download

-kevin-

Matias Aguayo – Rollerskate

 

Cat made of grated ginger; chase her across town. Flit over fences, dive under gates, climb up ivy, slip into open windows. Steal silver necklaces, little diamonds, whole satchels full of catnip. We give lovers tiny kisses as they lay in their beds, breath rising & falling, then me and my cat of grated ginger leap onto widowsill and out, skimming the clothesline, gleaming in the white sun. Slide down eaves onto an Almost skateboard with Bones Swiss bearings, Venture trucks, four Ricta All-Stars. And oh, me and the kitty-cat glide. Via STGP

Matias Aguayo – Rollerskate

Devin

Walk On

Neil Young – Walk On

press play or download

-kevin-

Surf City – Autumn

Surf City really arrive with the release of their newest single Autumn…a slice of late 70’s New Zealand tinged psychedelic rock.

Surf City – Autumn

Empty The Sun

 

-kevin-

Emerald Triangle

Photo by Alissa Anderson

The Emerald Triangle Tour 2009 is a special line-up featuring Farmer Dave Scher, Andy Cabic of Vetiver, Jonathan Rice and Jonathan Wilson!  The tour starts November 1st and surely is one not to miss.
Tour Dates:

Nov 1 2009 8:00P	EMERALD TRIANGLE / Soho	Santa Barbara, California
Nov 2 2009 8:00P	EMERALD TRIANGLE / Independent	San Francisco, California
Nov 4 2009 8:00P	EMERALD TRIANGLE / Nevada Theatre	Nevada City, California
Nov 7 2009 8:00P	EMERALD TRIANGLE / Caspar Inn	Mendocino, California

New Stuff from Snock

Michael Hurley’s newest album, Ida Con Snock, is now out on Gnomonsong.

Although I am biased in favor of Mr. Hurley, I feel that it is amongst his best work, as was 2007’s Ancestral Swamp.

In other news, Mississippi Records has reissued Parsnip Snips, a collection of Hurley outtakes from 1965-1972 which were formerly only available as an extremely limited German pressing.

{{ Buy All Three Here }}

Wildegeeses from Ida Con Snock

Hoot Owls from Parsnip Snips

-kevin-

switzerland

Not trying to turn the blog into “Tyler’s vacation slideshow” or something, but I was recently in Switzerland and saw/heard/smelled some authentic naturalismo.

Nancy Lesh: Dhrupad on the Cello

{{ Dhrupad On The Cello }}

-kevin-

Ducktails // Julianna Barwick

These are two of the best videos I’ve seen in months, for two of the more intriguing singles of the year. First up is a clip of Ducktails performing Beach Point Pleasant, a song that appeared on the Loop de Loop mix awhile back and has now evolved to a point that feels even more sonically organic than it did before.

Next up is Julianna Barwick’s ethereal Sunlight Heaven. Ray Concepcioñ’s chromo-gossamer processing of the clip are a close visual translation of the song.

Thanks to Chocolate Bobka

Devin