Benoît Pioulard is the project of Thomas Meluch, whose latest release, Lasted, mixes a dark, dreamy side of pop with one more experimental. “Shouting Distance” sides on the former, with more playful vocal and instrumental melodies. This is where Meluch shines, and it shows in the video for the song. “Shouting Distance” may just be footage of young kids skateboarding, but the film that’s used and the lighting give it a very cool retro feel. You can’t place it in time, but nor can you do the same with Benoît Pioulard. Meluch is mysterious like that; it’s a trait that makes his music really quite good.

Lasted can be found on Kranky Records.

Download: “RTO” by Benoit Pioulard

Brutal insanity might be less dark than Black Earth by Implodes. Blending drone with hints of fuzz and immense, everlasting soundscapes, Implodes’ new album is a mysterious, intriguing work of art. It’s one thing to listen to Black Earth through speakers – it only gets better when imbibed through headphones. And I’d place a fair bet on it being something astonishing to take in live.

“White Window”, oddly enough, would seem to fit in the soundtrack of Gaspar Noé’s epic psychedelic masterpiece Enter The Void. But wouldn’t necessarily consider Implodes to be psychedelic; in a way it has traits conducive to the genre, but its scope is far beyond being so limited. Noise. Experimental. Drone. They all fit, but, again, are too limiting. The soundscapes have the ability to encompass universes, stretch beyond the limits once thought capable.

It’s rare for a band to go from calming to terrifying in the space of a millisecond, but Implodes achieves this again and again on Black Earth. “Screech Owl” and “Oxblood” both start out on a pleasant note and ultimately come to dominate with dark, swirling, fuzzed out guitars that drone hauntingly from some unknown location, masked by blackness.

The most notable, however, are “Marker” and “Meadowslands”. These two feature vocals drowned in echoing reverb backed by colossal guitars and the occasional erratic fuzzed-out guitar freak out. But even their mellow tunes hold substantial weight. “Song for Fucking Damon II (Trap Door)” and closing track “Hands On The Rail” have laid back vocals and lighter melodies despite the intense volume. What never fails to astound is Implodes’ experimental ability, and it shines through here (although I feel a bit odd associating the word “shine” with this band).

Put on headphones, crank up Black Earth, close your eyes and watch the nightmare that your subconscious produces on the backs of your eyelids. It will be terrifying and brilliant. Just be sure to hold your sanity close. Very impressive.

Look for Black Earth later this month on Kranky Records.

Download: “Marker” by Implodes

Kranky Records [CD, 2011]

1. Open The Door
2. Marker
3. White Window
4. Screech Owl
5. Oxblood
6. Meadowslands
7. Wendy
8. Experimental Report
9. Song for Fucking Damon II (Trap Door)
10. Down Time
11. Hands On The Rail

Ambient soul is how Nudge describes their music on MySpace; an odd combination initially difficult to comprehend. But add two additional descriptors, experimental and shoegaze, and one can begin to piece together the eccentric music Nudge makes. Their latest, As Good As Gone, capitalizes on all four defining terms in songs like the epically smooth “Two Hands” and the trippy “Burns Blue”.

As one would expect from ambient music, tracks like “Aurolac” and “Tito” are soothing, with melodic guitars, minimal but eclectic percussion, and consistent soulful beats. “Burns Blue” adds indecipherable vocals, laid out upon a drone-ridden backdrop of subtle, atmospheric guitar. These are sounds that alter perceptions and distort realities, painting obscure pictures in the subconscious.

While several of the more recent Kranky Records releases lean toward early German Electronic influences, I don’t hear as strong an influence of that here — Greg Davis and Gregg Kowalsky had inklings of Klaus Schulze. Yet these songs are, in their own right, reminiscent of that era, and they maintain a certain modern affinity that both Kranky and early electronic music has aligned itself with — Nudge creates music well ahead of its time.

Nudge: Two Hands [mp3]

Nudge: Burns Blue [mp3]

Kranky Records [CD, 2009]

1. Harmo
2. Two Hands
3. Verdantique
4. Aurolac
5. Tito
6. Burns Blue
7. Dawn Comes Light

OK, so a quick one here, especially since there aren’t any tracks cleared for posting. Kranky is set to release the new LP by Greg Davis, and while this is my introduction to the artist and the man, I can easily say I am intrigued. Davis’ tunes are of a highly minimalist nature; on Mutually Arising, Davis channels early minimalist German electronica a la Klaus Schulze.

Again, Mutually Arising will be released July 20 on Kranky. And while no tracks are cleared to post, due to the fact that the album only has two extremely long songs, two eight-minute excerpts from Mutually Arising can be heard on the Greg Davis MySpace Page.

Kranky is known for putting out great releases that edge toward the avant-garde and the drone-heavy by artists like Deerhunter and Windy & Carl. Their latest release, Tape Chants by Gregg Kowalsky, fits the mold perfectly. In support of Tape Chants, Kowalsky will head out on the road to roam the states and avoid the Pacific Northwest.

No, he’s not really avoiding the PNW, but he does begin in the mid-west and head east. The tour kicks into gear tomorrow and coincides with the June 8 release of Tape Chants. It all begins in Chicago and wraps up twelve days later in Brooklyn.

So, if you live anywhere between those two spots, mark your calendar and check out the relaxing dissonant drone so immanent in Kowalsky’s tunes. If you live in an area without a Gregg Kowalsky show, visit Kranky Records and pick up a copy of Tape Chants for your fix. Like I said, Tape Chants is out tomorrow.

Gregg Kowalsky: Vi-Vii [mp3]

Windy & Carl dawned on the radar for many with last year’s subdued masterpiece Songs For The Broken Hearted, but what probably came as a surprise to many first-time listeners — myself included — was that this mellow, shoegaze duo already had a pretty impressive library of released material under their belt.

Their songs are filled with soft drones and tonal, airy vocals. To call it calming or relaxing would be an understatement, but it’s anything but sleepy. While Songs For The Broken Hearted hit last year via Kranky Records (of Deerhunter fame), you can catch this dynamic artist on the road this month.

Here are the dates for the PNW plus San Francisco:

05.23: Sunset Tavern in Seattle
05.24: Holocene in Portland
05.27: Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco

Windy & Carl: My Love [mp3]