Rare is it that you see formats outside the standard compact disc or even cherished wax vinyl. But cassettes seem to be popping up more and more as a cool retro item. With vinyl’s popularity, it seems this is the only place to go – reel to reel is out for obvious reasons, as is the 8-track. So that leaves cassette, a vestige in the vintage, a gleam of retro hope. Which brings us to today and Hometapes.

In 2009, Hometapes aptly demonstrated that they are a force to be reckoned with and a label to keep an eye on. They packed the year with great releases, some of which are likely to appear on my best of 2009 list, slated to go live late next week. To celebrate the holidays, they’ve done two things worth noting. First is Eight Days Of Christmas, which features Christmas tunes from eight Hometapes bands. Second is a Holiday sampler, which arrived in the form of a cassette …

Photographer Tim Lytvinenko joined and documented Megafaun as they toured across the states in support of their latest release, Gather, Form & Fly, out now on Hometapes. The result is a collection of experiences from the road in what they dub “part-documentary, part-sense memory.” No surprise, Lytvinenko puts this collection of shots to the music of Megafaun’s epic almost instrumental track “Impressions Of The Past”. It’s the best of the road, the fun and the fans, the antics and the hilarity of it all.

The transformation undergone by Bear In Heaven between their outstanding Home-Tapes debut, Red Bloom Of The Boom, and their sophomore release Beast Rest Forth Mouth, is, quite literally, breathtaking. Red Bloom debuted Bear In Heaven’s experimental rock with a sound that was, for the most part, entirely their own. Sure, there were traces of influence that in my opinion sided pretty heavily toward artists like Animal Collective, but it was also fairly unparalleled in its style of experimentation.

Harmony and melody aren’t exactly two terms one would associate with Bear In Heaven, at least from the standpoint of their debut LP, Red Bloom Of The Boom. But they work quite well here, for the first single off their upcoming sophomore release Beast Rest Forth Mouth, “Wholehearted Mess”. This new sound represents virtually a complete change for Bear In Heaven.

Written by Ben Meyercord.
Pattern is Movement’s new album, All Together is good. Definitely above average. Enough that I have songs stuck in my head. Enough that I looked up their tour schedule to see if they are playing anywhere near me (they aren’t). Enough that I looked up their back catalog and plan on acquiring some it.

Yesterday was the drop date for All Tiny Creatures‘ Segni, a 12″ EP featuring four tracks of immense instrumental awesomeness. The EP opens with an epic, the 17 minute title track “Segni”, and is followed by three songs that do not equate to that time allotment by more than a minute-thirty.

“Meet And Greet”, off Slaraffenland’s upcoming debut LP We’re On Your Side, follows precisely the direction in which they embarked on last year’s EP Sunshine with tracks like “I’m A Machine” and “The Trick”. Slaraffenland continues to shovel out intricately orchestrated experimental pop melodies. “Meet And Greet” proves this band’s signature is quickly becoming hand claps and stomps featured at unique intervals and horn heavy instrumentation, fronted by ornate multi-part vocals that converge and spread into complex harmonies instantaneously.

You rarely hear the words avant-garde associated with pop music. Yet the eclectic and sometimes ear-wrenching sub-genre can be found in all corners of music, but perhaps most notably in jazz through classic artists like Ornette Coleman. In some ways avant-garde is simply a pretentious way of saying experimental. But the definition of the term is merely a push of the boundaries away from the norm. That, then, brings up the question what is the norm?

Megafaun (MySpace) was originally birthed from the remnants of DeYarmond Edison and released Bury The Square in 2007. Gather, Form & Fly is the follow-up to that widely-hailed album, and it warrants all the hype one can give. The band consists of Joe Westerlund and brothers Phil and Brad Cook. The main Edison absentee is Justin Vernon, who now goes by Bon Iver. Despite Iver’s greatness, there’s a lot to be said about these three — the music they create, in my opinion, is just as great …