This week in New Music: a playlist by British composer Max Richter (above), the shoegaze revival finds play date companions Honeyrude and singer-songwriter John Murry casually releases one of the most devastating albums of the year.
Max Richter – Behind the Counter
British composer Max Richter is probably best known for the soundtrack to HBO series The Leftovers and the track “On the Nature of Daylight,” one of those instrumentals you don't know that you know and couldn't possibly name.
A busy man, Richter is also responsible for Sleep, an eight-hour recording made with neuroscientist David Eagleman that is literally an “invitation to dream.”
Richter has teamed up with Rough Trade for the label's Behind the Counter series to curate a CD/vinyl compilation of soundbites, compositions, mixes and odds-and-ends that includes Mogwai, Philip Glass, Bach, Aphex Twin, Lets Eat Grandma and of course Richter himself.
On the collection, Richter has this to say:
“I made this playlist as a way to shine a light on some of the connections between music that I love. Everyone listens in their own way, through the lens of their biography and culture, and I wanted to show, while making this compilation, just how and why these very disparate musical worlds might belong together, at least to me.”
You can order the CD and album here, follow the playlist on Spotify, listen to Richter discussing the compilation via Soundcloud or hear “On the Nature of Daylight” below.
Honeyrude – “Flowers”
The shoegaze revival seems to be continuing apace and while the Ride, Slowdive and other genre originators both imitate and innovate, newcomers like Honeyrude seem content to blindly copy.
That's the way with shoegaze, dreampop and EMO because bands like Cocteau Twins set down essentially a pattern that is hard to make your own.
So bad if you can't stand it, so good if you want an ever increasing output by youngsters who go out of their way to ape bands like Lush in every way.
And on that happy conveyer belt we have Honeyrude, a Texas quartet with a debut album out next month and an eye focused clearly on 1995.
Have a listen to “Flowers” and “The Color Blue” below.
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John Murry – A Short History of Decay
This one has been on repeat for over a week now and it's stunning, frankly.
Murry is currently based in Ireland and originally from Mississippi.
On this his third album of intensely personal songs, Murry has the deadpan dread of Nick Cave coupled with the forlorn cries of Leonard Cohen.
