glazed-over

Last night's My Castle of Quiet was, with a few exceptions, an expression in larger chunks—big, fat slices of sound, that reap the horizon and challenge pop attention-spans.

And though Circuit des Yeux's gorgeous set was technically speaking a collection of songs (those themselves assembled of even smaller song sections), I know for sure that this nuanced, human music will live on in my memory as a complete vision, as the melodies and lyrical phrasings waft in & out of my head over the years, probably forever. I really cannot praise the artistry and subtlety of this session enough, while the sounds remain firmly stood in an arena of attainability and "earthiness," very gettable to anyone who would listen. It's the rare artist that can truly present themselves bare (in song as in music videos), and last night we got a 25-min. window into a rare and humble gift. Thanks to Lily @ Thrill Jockey for making the live set happen; more details, and promotional videos for the new Circuit des Yeux album, In Plain Speech, here.

Haley Fohr quite simply writes great songs, the kind of songs that glide over taste and genre barriers into some universal shared experience. Circuit des Yeux's fans will notice how this live performance has its own unique character and arrangements, set apart from recorded/released versions of these songs, making this session a stand-alone musical event, which is, most often, what we DJs *wink-wink* want from our musical visitations (as opposed to a "straight read.") Ultimately, this performance doesn't even sound like a "radio set," and gives more like an "album."

A few lumps of praise heaped upon our special guests in the moment; many more to come, I imagine, as listeners investigate the program archive (linked to the picture above), and the Circuit des Yeux session's eventual posting to our Free Music Archive. Huge thanks to Haley and Ryan, and to live-sound engineer Jean Paul Gautreaux—it all came off swimmingly.

Listeners also praised: the mammoth album side from the doubly mammoth No Closure, by Scott Miller / Lee Camfield / Merzbow, released on LP by Dead Section Records in Denmark | the staggeringly good "Lost Causes," from the flawless new LP, Perfect World, by Uniform ...other, personal highs, apart from last night's powerfully resonant live set, included: a crushingly "on" tape side from Pregnant Spore (JML) | Tony Tears vinyl issue on Universal Consciousness | more Volkmort | Clocked Out LP on At War With False Noise | Night cs on Vanguard Productions | an unreleased, Kraut-monolith from Death Factory.

Taking a break next week; Bill Mac will be filling in.

My Castle of Quiet returns in two weeks, invigorated, most likely with a belly full of metal.