Loopsel – s/t 7” (Mammas Mysteriska Jukebox)

There are some fascinating experimental sounds coming out of Sweden these days, and Loopsel is one of the names you should investigate immediately. It’s folk and pop at its core but heard through an abstract patchwork of interesting effects and subtle noises. I immediately thought of His Name is Alive’s early 4AD releases, especially Home is in Your Head, on the vocal/guitar opener, but you never know what’s coming next. “Vad vill du?” is a minimalist blues slide piece, while “Utebli” could be a Penguin Cafe Orchestra demo. This band has some of the more stunning artwork around. I need a full gatefold LP of this stuff.

ESP Summer – Here 7” lathe (Onkonomiyaki)

Speaking of His Name is Alive, back in 1995 HNIA’s Warren Defever collaborated with Pale Saints frontman Ian Masters on a project and album called ESP Summer. It is a masterpiece of finger-picked guitar and piano pieces with Masters’ trademark soaring vocals in top form. The folk-ish songs were decorated with subtle sounds and Defever’s playful mixing tricks. The duo is back sort of in 2020 with this gorgeous little EP of just the abstract bits: field recordings, piano, backward drones, and loops. Like the original album, this EP is a peaceful garden for your ears. Apparently it was made into lathe-cut records by Masters himself, now living in Japan, long sold-out, but you can hear it all on Bandcamp.

Roachclip – Discovery Park (All Gone)

Here’s an old All Gone Records ‘classic’ from 2013 that finally showed up on Bandcamp. Roachclip evolved into The Bibs who made one of my favorite Soft Abuse label LPs ever. Roachclip is pretty similar to The Bibs lo-fi VU worship. I’m guessing they have worn copies of The Fall’s Dragnet and Red Krayola’s The Parable of Arable Land that they roll their joints on, fantastic primal art-rock from this under-appreciated crew.