Tracklisting:

1. Red Coat – Adeline Hotel (Interview)
   2. S.O.B. – Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
   3. Daughter of the Sea – House of Wolves (Interview)
   4. Monarchy – Table People
   5. Ruin – Doomking
   6. Lonely Boy – Titus Andronicus
   7. New York Hardcore – talons’
   8. Roar of Nothingness – Sun Organ
   9. Slow Dark Water – Furnsss
   10. You Are Arrived (But You’ve Been Cheated) – The Spirit of the Beehive
   11. It Was Gone – Orchid Mantis
   12. Big Sis – SALES
   13. No Comprende – Low
   14. The Washing Machine – SPORTS
   15. Shark? – Shark? (Everything Is Teeth by Evie Wyld and Joe Sumner)
   16. Christmas in Milwaukee – Advance Base
   17. Only Friend – Valley Maker
   18. My Track ’92 – Pet Cemetery
   19. Dusk; Falling Asleep, Know That You Are Loved – Sabbatical Wilderness
   20. Theremin Demonstration – Leon Theremin (Us Conductors by Sean Michaels)
   21. The Lemon’s Cousin – Boy Scouts
   22. Audrey Horne – Teen Love
   23. Mia – Spencer Radcliffe
   24. Return To The Moon – EL VY
   25. Bug – Alex G
   26. Wild Hearts – Kodiak Deathbeds
   27. Waves – Abby Gundersen
   28. UR = UO – No Touching
   29. Sparrow & Stone – Eva Foote
   30. What Can Be Taken – ÒOR

The post August Roundup – A Mixtape appeared first on Various Small Flames.

“The main aim of the [EP] was to address society’s forward-thinking nature, to help the listener forget about what’s coming next and focus on what they have right now – something which she refers to as “the never-ending struggle to remain in the present”

Now, Gundersen is back with a full-length album, Aurora, this time incorporating  what the press release calls

“The press forward that exists in spite of (or perhaps even because of) the cycle. It is the change that comes with the breaking of dawn”

You can hear one track right now, the elegaic ‘Waves’, which opens with snowflake-delicate piano before the introduction of strings, which at first appear mournful, but soon reveal themselves to be much more than that, as complex and stirring and beautiful as life itself.

Aurora will be released on the 1st September, and you can pre-order it now from Bandcamp. The artwork is by MaryGrace Wolnski.

Cover photo by Nate Embry

The post Abby Gundersen announces new album appeared first on Various Small Flames.

The album opens with ‘Poor Man’s Son’ (which will probably be familiar if you’ve ever been lucky enough to see Noah Gundersen perform live), a sort of gospel folk song which begins in an a cappella style very reminiscent of age-old traditional folk music (more O’ Brother Where Art Thou? than Inside Llewyn Davies). It’s very simple, but also very effective, carried on the strength of the vocal harmonies and, just as importantly, the periods of silence in between. It becomes a little more rousing towards its close and sets up the rest of the album perfectly.

‘Boathouse’ is a classic folk-rock tune, chronicling the story of lost love in the Mississippi mud. The title track has a catchy chorus and represents perhaps Noah Gundersen’s most obvious chance at commercial success (or it would if he were concerned about any of that), while ‘Poison Vine’ is a different beast entirely, a hushed and intimate folk song, more akin to the work of someone like J. Tillman.

Gundersen has reportedly declined several offers from major labels, turning down presumably valuable contracts, preferring instead to remain the master of his own artistic output. This decision is summed up rather nicely in a repeated line in ‘Poor Man’s Son’, where he sings:

“I don’t need no gold or silver
I only need a few new things.
I will buy pearls for my lover
And a brand new set of guitar strings”

The album ends with ‘Time Moves Quickly’, a mournful piece of piano music written and played by Abby (and rather confusingly shares a name with her recent EP), supported by half whispered vocals from Noah. It’s a sombre end to the album, but one which certainly has beauty, a fitting end then.

You can buy Ledges now via Noah Gundersen’s website, and via Dine Alone Records.

The post Noah Gundersen – Ledges appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Miss last month’s edition? Listen to our January round-up.

February Mix from Wake The Deaf on 8tracks Radio.

The post February 2014 Roundup – A Mixtape appeared first on Various Small Flames.

The product of this inspiration was released early last month, a solo EP entitled Time Moves Quickly. The record is a departure from the Pacific Northwest folk revival (and therefore from what we’ve come to expect from the Gundersen family), instead offering five beautifully arranged tracks of piano, violin and cello. Gundersen says that the main aim of the record was to address society’s forward-thinking nature, to help the listener forget about what’s coming next and focus on what they have right now – something which she refers to as “the never-ending struggle to remain in the present”.

My current favourite track is ‘Farewell Summer’, which ends with (what sounds like) an old recording of The Public Garden, a poem by Robert Lowell. Have a listen below.

You can buy the EP over at Abby’s Bandcamp page.

The post Abby Gundersen – Time Moves Quickly appeared first on Various Small Flames.