Plutonic Rainbows

Bleep Records:

People change, but some bands never do. In the case of Future Islands, they have come back with a new album entitled, The Far Field.

A meaty streak of Born in the USA-era Springsteen cuts through singles like ‘Ran’ and ‘Cave’ as well as obvious nods to Depeche Mode and other 80s synth-pop greats. The addition of a live drummer (Michael Lowry, who initially joined the band for that now-legendary ‘Seasons’ performance) brings a groove and swing that the band has sometimes previously lacked, and one is pleasantly surprised to find Debbie Harry guesting on ‘Shadows’.

There is also a vinyl edition.

Gore-Tex City is the latest from the Swedish producer. A record of dark ambient and gothic techno.

This is the third release in the series and maybe the most inventive. Given the variation on this title, it will be interesting to see where the series goes next.

If like me, you've had your Amazon pre-order cancelled, you'll be pleased to know that the publisher has resubmitted the book here. The release date is now June 1st. The book also seems to have climbed in price.

Avatar Press:

Due to overwhelming demand, we offer one final printing of the Providence Act 1 Hardcover! Alan Moore’s quintessential horror series has set the standard for a terrifying reinvention of the works of H.P. Lovecraft. It is being universally hailed as one of Moore’s most realized works in which the master scribe has controlled every iota of the story, art, and presentation. The result has been a masterpiece like no other and a true must-have addition to his essential works in the field. We present a collected Providence Act 1 Hard Cover edition that contains Providence issues #1-4, and all the back matter, in this one-time printing of the edition. There will be Act 2 and Act 3 Hardcovers in the coming months, also limited to single production runs. This will not be kept in print any further and this is the final opportunity to get a hardcover edition of the first chapter of Alan Moore’s horror masterpiece .

Act 1 is available here.

New book due on 26th September 2017.

In a future so real and near it might be now, something happens when women go to sleep; they become shrouded in a cocoon-like gauze. If they are awakened, if the gauze wrapping their bodies is disturbed or violated, the women become feral and spectacularly violent; and while they sleep they go to another place...

The men of our world are abandoned, left to their increasingly primal devices. One woman, however, the mysterious Evie, is immune to the blessing or curse of the sleeping disease. Is Evie a medical anomaly to be studied? Or is she a demon who must be slain?

Set in a small Appalachian town whose primary employer is a women's prison, Sleeping Beauties is a wildly provocative, gloriously absorbing father/son collaboration between Stephen King and Owen King.

Pre-order here.

Without doubt this is perhaps my most anticipated album of the year. The last release from Bola was back in 2007. There is no news right now except for SKAM having posted a tweet regarding the release date of May 5th.

Update: It's now 26th May.

Pre-orders are open now for the vinyl edition. No idea if this will get a CD release too but I imagine there will be digital downloads in some form, probably Bandcamp.

Clark's new album, Death Peak for Warp Records is a thunderous progression of drums and keyboards, with sweeping grandeur and oddly uplifting melodies. It's one of his best in some time and a stark contrast to his 2013 album, Iradelphic. It feels like a work of clever programming and yet it never feels like the work of machines. For Clark fans, this will be an instant buy. For everyone else, it's a good place to start.

Their first new album in ten years, released on the Berlin-based System Leisure label. The style harkens back a little to the 1980s output from Peter Mergener and Michael Weisser and their band, Software. Some tracks heavily remind me of Software Visions from 1988. Dopplereffekt have created an intriguing blend of sounds that you will want to return to again and again.