Johnny de Courcy
Bad Teeth
Green Burrito Tapes

Not long ago, teenage dirtbag Johnny de Courcy parted ways with his brothers in the Canadian stoner/doom band Black Wizard, citing a dissociation with the band and its music. You see, Johnny, underneath all that greasy hair and through all that pot smoke, is a bit of dandy, and while the follies of indiscriminate youth were best experienced through heavy electric noise, it’s now his inner Ziggy Stardust that yearns to be free. Johnny’s heart, no doubt saturated with chemical fumes inhaled at his print shop hideaway, bursts with foppish psych-pop, and the five songs on this acoustic EP move about as though Syd Barrett is dancing a jewelry box ballerina all the way to Mars. It’s an incredible turnabout, but one that suits Johnny like a fresh string of pearls, and the sweet sounding truth of his weird and whimsical ways are beautifully inspirational.

Bad Teeth has been released on cassette, but if that’s too strange a format for you to get back into, go listen to it and download it for free right here!

Braveyoung
We Are Lonely Animals
The End

Braveyoung used to be known as Giant, and as such they carried a rawer, sludgier tune. Giant was a post-rock band, mind you, but of the heavy, dense variety. Braveyoung is still a post-rock band, but have traded in the atmospheric loudness for an emotional wash of somber movements. We Are Lonely Animals, the North Carolina band’s full-length debut, is even similarly removed from 2009′s two-song EP, Bloom, which still contained traces of Giant’s fuzzy muscle, and is laid out as a yearning whisper of dulcet emptiness. Like a study in solitary existence, We Are Lonely Animals employs every critical nuance — slow strings, delicate piano, chilling chord progressions — to create a cascade of elegant, beautiful, and haunting moments that will numb your soul, all of it accompanied by the desolate parlance of such titles as “And No Two Walked Together,” “Our Teeth Are Falling Out,” and “The Weight of Loss is Whole.” I’m reminded of Ulver or No-Man, or even Agalloch’s White EP in some instances, but those are my bearded roots showing. For the more discerning post-rock lover, Braveyoung will probably call to mind Mogwai or Explosions in the Sky, especially on the album’s longest and most devastating track, “The Light Narrows.” Either way, it’s some magnificent mood music.

Listen to “Dark Days, Including After Midnight” from We Are Lonely Animals!

J Mascis
Several Shades of Why
Sub Pop

You know, if I’m not careful, this blog is gonna go soft in a hurry, what with all the acoustic/indie stuff I’ve been reviewing lately, and I’d be especially concerned if Several Shades of Why had been released by anyone other than J Mascis, but it’s because this is a J Mascis release that it’s suitable consumption for such a hairy hole as this. From his look to his sound, the man has been iconic (and laconic) for nearly 30 years, and now that he’s abandoned the comfort of one of his myriad bands (Dinosaur Jr., Witch, Sweet Apple, etc.) and chosen to try his hand at a delicately beautiful sound, we should pay attention. Several Shades of Why is, for all intents and purposes, J’s first solo studio record (Martin + Me was live covers, then there were those records with his Friends and The Fog), although he was helped out by such notable musicians as Kurt Vile, Sophie Trudeau (A Silver Mount Zion), Kurt Fedora, Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene), Ben Bridwell (Band of Horses), Pall Jenkins (Black Heart Procession), and others. That roll call is probably too nerdy and hip for most, but trust me when I tell you that the songs are all J, his strained, alternative voice callously caressing the deep n’ dark melodies to create a collusion of dopey vagueness and intimate intricacies with every breath and chord. Simply put, it’s signature J done quieter than normal, where the nondescript titles (“Not Enough,” “Is it Done,” “Can I,” etc.) reveal very little and the easy ambiguity hides nothing at all.

Listen to “Where Are You” from Several Shades of Why!