Agitated

April March / Kelley Stoltz

April March Sings Kelley Stoltz

Agitated

Four special tracks recorded by April March and Kelley Stoltz, whereby April sings Kelley Stoltz songs in French and also in English. Mixed and mastered by Warren DeFever at Third Man. Pressed on red vinyl. April March: "I was in Nashville with Olivia Jean on a little break from shooting our 'Allons Y' video at Third Man. I got in her car and she cranked up her playlist. Out jumped 'Double Exposure'. I went bananas right there in the passenger seat. 'Kelley Stokes!', she smiled wide. It reminded me of something I'd heard in a dream. I went around singing songs from Double Exposure for a few weeks zeroing in on 'Are You My Love' and 'Your Face'. I thought to myself cover-wise there's nothing to add here, they're perfect as is but maybe some French versions would be a kick so I asked for an intro. A few months later I was in San Francisco kicking out the Bonne Mamans with Kelley in his studio. Lucky me and thanks to Agitated Records lucky you too. Kelley Stoltz: “Like almost everyone in the world I was dazzled by April March's take on 'Chick Habit' back in the late 90s. It was such an up feeling and joyful sound in the music and vocals. At odds with the manly wails and bleak outlooks that were standard song fare of those days. You can develop a crush on the voice in your speakers, you know! I did anyway. I was...

V/a

Crawling The Walls

Agitated

A cheap price compilation CD of rare, unreleased, forthcoming, and brilliant tracks from the UK's Agitated Label (and some friends). Like a massive bag of pick-and-mix for your next party. Features cuts from Straight Arrows, Kelley Stoltz, Carlton Melton, oldboy, Headland, Laurel Canyon, Catatonic Suns, Last of Easy Riders, Icarus Line, Blamers, and many more. Bonus CD is a collection of “Radio Shows” by Agitated pals The Hawk and KBCD radio! Edition of 500.

Blamers, The

Class Living

Agitated

Sydney rock outfit The Blamers are a modern band—two modern men, two modern women—with a revolutionary bent. Utilizing the latest cutting-edge stereophonic technology, the group—fueled by an obsession with early garage greats—are at the fore of a sonic campaign to simplify rock back to its basic proto-punk form. With hooky riffs and a healthy dose of tambourine, the group are preparing to release their debut album early-2024 after a string of singles. The Blamers have shared the stage with Aussie heavy hitters The Chats, Bad Dreems, Pist idiots and blistered clubs around Australia with their no bullshit, beer-soaked sound. It’s a wonder that a band like The Blamers hasn’t come earlier! If you like the hard ass style of '60s punk with the wit of The B52’s, here it is. With a new attention on the band, The Blamers have been busy recording their newest offering Class Living, a 10 track album full of nuggets on Agitated Records. Pressed on limited red vinyl.

Catatonic Suns

s/t

Agitated

Brand new album from young Allentown, PA three-piece Catatonic Suns. Their first for Agitated Records. Catatonic Suns comprises eight songs (seven originals, and an Original Sins cover) and has blown Agitated's collective minds. Their previous album was an incredible melding of big-sounding US/UK underground sounds, but this album has taken that fire further. The band have developed more of a hi-fidelity psychedelic rock with a shoegazery shimmer akin to the late '80s / early '90s Pacific Northwest sound in cahoots with the UK sound of early '90s Creation / 4AD. For fans of Screaming Trees, Nirvana, The Verve (early), Slowdive, Ride, Alice In Chains. Songs that soar, these new recordings verge on the epic.

Motorpsycho

Rock Bottom / Silver Dollar

Agitated

Norwegian legends Motorpsycho pay tribute to a couple of British Hard ROCK classics from 1974. Namely one of the staples of their current live set, UFO’s “Rockbottom” and a stellar version of Nazereth’s “Silver Dollar Forger.” Wrapped in a tongue in cheek cover that riffs on the originals, this single is a long time goal of Motorpsycho fans Agitated Records. Initially conceived to coincide with their June UK tour dates, but as they didn’t end up happening, here we are with a delicious slice of rock action to keep you going!! As you might expect, Motorpsycho have perfected their take on these two songs from 1974. Recorded and mixed by Jo Ranheim at Øra Studio, December 2022. Mastered at Audio Virus Lab by Helge Sten. 33 RPM.

Oldboy

Byfleet Dancehall, Vol. 1

Agitated

"There’s absolutely nothing wrong with pop music. For Byfleet outfit Oldboy, they’re happy to admit they’re pushers of pop, but with the caveat that it’s “nasty pop music“. Starting out as a noisy get together between friends Max Coon and Chris Summers in an industrial estate rehearsal room back in 2019, an additional friend – Ryan Caine – was recruited for racket-making purposes in Oldboy and the band ultimately put out their debut album, ‘Bloody‘, in April of last year. Recorded with man of the people Jonah Falco at the North London Total Refreshment Centre studio in three days, it was mixed in a matter of hours down in the basement of Rough Trade West. As somewhat of an early Christmas gift, the trio are gracing us with new material – an EP by the name of ‘Byfleet Dancehall Vol. 1‘, out digitally via Agitated Records on December 1st 2023 – and we’ve got an exclusive first stream of it below! It’s definitely “nasty pop music” alright, a collection of fuzzy, hooky earworms, tailor made for shuffling feet and having a bop in the pit. With shades of Hot Snakes and Aussie lot CIVIC in the mix, vocals sound on occasion like Andrew Falkous or Joe Casey. As all EPs should, it ends in a burst of head-wrecking noise.”—BirthdayCakeForBreakfast

Carlton Melton

Turn To Earth

Agitated

Northern California psychedelic sorcerers Carlton Melton are brain surfers, mind trippers—“psychlists,” if you prefer. The band will take your head for a ride, occasionally rushing at superluminal speeds through a wormhole or gliding softly on a gentle breeze in a leafy glade. Sometimes your brain needs to rage, and sometimes it needs to repose. For a decade and a half, the band has yo-yo’ed, almost schizophrenically, between these two modes: walloping space jams with furious guitar solos in one hemisphere of the brain and ethereal, feather-light splashdowns in the other. Not to mention a track here and there that builds from the latter into the former. But with two new releases in 2023, the band has evolved. Whether psych rock or ambient trance, their sound remains driving, organic, and flowing. With the addition of Anthony Taibi (White Manna, DDT), however, the group’s metal freak-outs are Hawkwindier and their droning kraut trances are Spacemen 3-er. In January, the quartet released the playfully spacey Resemble Ensemble, recorded in Taibi’s home studio 3D Light. October now sees the band Turn To Earth, a work with scents of Autumn, a season of death and transition. The cover art evokes a vine-covered, electric crucifix. The sound is, well, earthy but also gritty and striving towards change. The album was recorded in Fall 2022 and now harvested in Fall 2023. Phil Becker (Terry Gross, Pins Of Light) contributed drums and percussion to a few tracks on Turn To Earth, recording the album at El Studio in...

Laurel Canyon

s/t

Agitated

Strap yourself in people, we have here the debut full length from Philly’s Laurel Canyon; after some online EP releases, and a (now) sold out 7” with Savage Pencil, Agitated Records is excited to announce the release of their self-titled album! Guitars are drenched in an Asheton worshipping haze and pummel, melded alongside a Velvets chug and mid-to-late '80s Pacific Northwest guttural / primal howl—this is American primitive music at its most powerful. Pigeonholers beware, this album takes its cues from all the most potent place—Funhouse, Loaded, Green River, early Sub Pop, all providing valid reference points. In amongst this over-amped harmonious murk are 10 visceral and catchy pop songs practically screaming for attention, the core members of Serg, Nick, and Dylan have created a beast of a record. Some tracks were recorded with Steve Albini, some with Bryce Goggin and all were mastered by Howie Weinberg. The band played 40 chaotic shows in 2022 alone from New York City to Los Angeles, where they opened for Agent Orange and Strawberry Alarm Clock on two separate occasions at the Whisky a Go Go. Recommended to fans of: The Stooges, Green River, Screaming Trees, Tad, Fluid, The Velvet Underground, Mudhoney, The Birthday Party

Carlton Melton

Resemble Ensemble

Agitated

Carlton Melton, from Northern California, are now a practicing four-piece in the arts of melted-minds psychedelia. With the added kraut-oomph and sike-flutter of fellow Californian Anthony Taibi (whom you may know as being a member of White Manna, and also DDT with Andy) Rich Millman, Andy Duvall, and Clint Golden have now embellished the Carlton Melton sound. Pushing forward as a quartet, the band recorded Resemble Ensemble in July 2021 at Anthony’s home studio, 3D Light in Freshwater, CA. Anthony did all the recording and mixing. The Melton Magick Karpet settled, and our favorite contemporary sikedelic warlods plugged in, amped up and let it flow—and flow it does—from the krautrock fuelled pszych-raga of "Prescribed Skies," the fluid dronescape of "Elsewhere" that welcomes you into its arms with a warming tone, almost a missing Spacemen 3 demo at the feast here. "So The Story Grows" has the drone scraping through a murk of dazzling feedback and pummel, with the fuller sounding Melton giving the genre a proper wobble, hold on to your brains people. "High Alert"—whas this? Synth and guitar interplay jambusting, this is the Melton wigging out and almost interweaving 70s high table rock with some odd and downright perverse synthfunkpunk rhythms. Get weird or get wired—or both. Easily done here.. Closing out the album with "Route Thirteen" is the road trip home. They’ve been, they’ve massaged and mangled your synapses, plug in the satnav and take the higher-route home, if you get our drift.

Dion

s/t

Agitated

***DION LUNADON's (of A Place To Bury Strangers / The D4) debut solo album from 2018 finally gets a repress. The album was recorded over a three-month period in Brooklyn, NY and features Robi Gonzalez (APTBS) on drums and Blaze Bateh from Bambara on select tracks including "Fire." "With 'Fire' I wanted wild and heavy guitars with heavy sentiment in the first vocal line to match. Something that grabs you and demands attention. Not background music," Lunadon explains of the track. The album also features mixing by Chris Woodhouse (Mayyors, Ty Segall, The Intelligence, Thee Oh Sees) on select tracks including "Com/Broke." From cutting his teeth back home in New Zealand as a member of The D4 to his current role as bassist of Brooklyn-based A Place to Bury Strangers, Dion Lunadon has played in some form of a rock & roll band his entire life. During a short break in touring with APTBS, Lunadon had a rush of inspiration in the form of a Dion Lunadon creative spasm—a neurotic impulse to make a batch of songs and do it right then and right there. What resulted is quite a jump away from his work in APTBS and draws more influence from bands like Toy Love and The Gun Club, as well as New Zealand unknowns such as Gestalt and Supercar. Edition of 500 copies on transparent red vinyl.

Oldboy

Bloody

Agitated

The debut album from pre-grunge crunch merchants Oldboy. Oldboy formed as a past-time—like golf or knitting—between old friends with a love of having a loud good time. Created by Max and Chris in an industrial estate rehearsal room back in 2019, get-togethers were few and far between but something was popping—it felt like fun. Since then, practices were again few and far between but after recruiting an old friend, Ryan, on bass (they didn't want to be a two piece—Lightning Bolt have that covered) they decided to try a little bit harder and as the world went into reverse they somehow wrote what you have here—their debut album Bloody. Recorded at the Total Refreshment Centre in three days with Jonah Falco (Fucked Up, Chubby And The Gang, The Chisel) and then mixed in three hours in the basement of Rough Trade West you get exactly where Oldboy are at. It's fast and relentless. It swings in places. It's super raw and the sound of three people having a high ol' time. Mucho influenced by the prime / premiere cuts of the late 80s / early 90s Chicago / US noise, as once released by Touch and Go, Amphetamine Reptile and Sub Pop. Pummeled home with a British post punk thWACK. It’s pop music, it’s just nasty pop music. For fans of: Tar, Shellac, Precious Wax Droppings, Helmet, Scratch Acid, Tad.... Play loud—and often.

Stoltz, Kelley

The Stylist

Agitated

The Stylist, Kelley Stoltz’s seventeenth album finds him following up the Third Man Records reissue of his 2001 Antique Glow with a collection of ten new songs. The album was recorded early in 2021, and has been languishing in the vinyl pressing log jam ever since—luckily Stoltz writes timeless songs, the kind that might’ve appeared on the fringes of the late ’60s or mid-’80s. Acoustic guitars, synthesizers, drum machines and strong melodies abound. As with his other classic records Below The Branches, Double Exposure and Ah! (etc), Stoltz plays most of the instruments himself and records in his home studio in San Francisco. Kelley says, “I chose the title The Stylist because musically I guess that’s what I am... because of the way I write, at my leisure over a period of months at home, I kinda flit around between styles. It’s all in the pop-rock vein, but there’s usually a wide range of sounds and inspiration from song to song. It sort of fits together in a mix tape kind of way, rather than an exploration of one particular mood. That’s always been the case with my albums.” Thankfully, after twenty-three years the beat goes on... and no matter what style Stoltz chooses, The Stylist is another platter of tuneful delight in the impressive catalog of one of the great songwriters of the time.

Carlton Melton

Out To Sea (Dark At Night Edition)

Agitated

Reissue of the long out of print Carlton Melton classic from 2013 with new deluxe packaging. Out to Sea sees the band expand the psychedelia and free outrock sound of their previous output to its furthest horizons. Huge rhythms, outta space riffage, sparkling synths, pastoral passages, searing shards of molten guitar, smothered ambience and gentle guitar-picking all flow together into waves of sound to lap at the shores of your senses. Housed in new screen printed "DARK NIGHT" jackets. Includes print of original front cover. White vinyl sides A/B - blue vInyl Sides C/D.

Bored!

Back For More

Agitated

"12 tracks of the best bits by Australian Underground Legends BORED!. Geelong's most raucous guitar led rock action destroyers, whom started a whole scene back in 1987, 12 tracks picked by a long term fan/friend of the band as a tribute to Dave Thomas, leader of Bored! who passed away in early 2020. Dave Thomas from Bored! is widely regarded as a legendary riff master, a 'scene' definer; many of the second (third?) wave of garage rock and roll noise from 1996 onwards owe many a debt, and a riff or two. All monies raised from this release to be passed to his surviving family. Its loud, and it rocks.. join in!" 800 copies printed on Neon Magenta vinyl,

Stoltz, Kelley

Ah! (etc)

Agitated

“I was guzzling wine at my favorite bar in San Francisco, the Rite Spot, and the entertainment that night was some local opera singers singing along with a big video screen showing a collage of various operatic moments with subtitles. One particular subtitle, ‘Ah! (etc)’ made me laugh, I thought it was a perfect description of life—the joy of existence against the etcetera of it all, the struggle. With a heavy head of rosé it seemed like ecstatic poetry! I scribbled it on a napkin and thought it might make a good title for something” And so the mystery behind the title of Kelley Stoltz’s new record is solved. Less of a mystery is the quality contained therein: after twelve releases and a several more under pseudonyms, Stoltz is the word for “one-man-band-home-recording-pop-songs of idiosyncratic character.” A quick follow up to his more power pop and pub rock LP only Hard Feelings offering in the summer, Ah! (etc) finds Stoltz returning to his sweet spot, writing songs that never were, but should have been in the ’60s and ’80s.  As with other releases, Stoltz makes virtually every noise on the album which was written and recorded in 2019 at his Electric Duck Studio in San Francisco. A few friends popped in to play along: Stoltz former bandmate, Echo & the Bunnymen’s Will Sergeant adds electric guitar to “The Quiet Ones” a sort of Scott Walker lyrical take on strangers and neighbors. Karina Denike formerly of Dance Hall Crashers adds...

Carlton Melton

Where This Leads

Agitated

"Nestled deep in the forests of Mendocino County in Northern California, huddled under the protective shade of towering redwoods and within earshot of frothy waves crashing against the Pacific coastline, squats a geodesic dome that has served as crucible for the experimental genius of Carlton Melton. Nature and Man operate under different logics. But here, Carlton Melton wholly entrusts this idyllic environment with the task of inspiring and guiding their musical improvisations.   The Dome has been the ideal setting to facilitate their creativity. Without forcing a specific dynamic or theme, the band inhabits its womb-like confines to improvise, explore, dream. Their music draws on psychedelia, stoner metal, krautrock, and ambient atmospherics to convey, above all else, a mood.   A prickly guitar melody will float lazily, a wall of dissonant feedback will resolve into a hypnotic drone, or a colossal riff will exhume the soul of Jimi Hendrix. One hears Hawkwind or Spacemen 3 jamming with Pink Floyd at Pompeii.   Indeed, Carlton Melton have one foot in the ancient world and one tentacle in deep space. They are both the pack of proto-humans drumming with femurs in Kubrick’s 2001 and the film’s inscrutable monolith hinting at the universe’s mysteries. The “Stoned Ape” theory holds that early hominids ingested psychedelic mushrooms that provided an evolutionary boost to their brains, helping them blossom into Homo Sapiens. Imagine such cavemen trippin’ balls, their nightmarish visions sending them into feverish bouts of rage and then gentle moments of introspection....

Kings Of The Fucking Sea

In Concert

Agitated

The Kings Of The Fucking Sea are Sara Nelson (bass), Poni Silver (drums), and Chet Weise (guitar,vocals). All three members have toured and released records with critically acclaimed bands such as The Little Killers, The Ettes, and Immortal Lee Country Killers, respectively. The group’s first record, In Concert, was recorded live on a tascam reel-to-reel in a Nashville screen printing shop called Soft Junk. About the group’s sound, Walter Scott Award-winning author of The Gallows Pole and The Offing Benjamin Myers said: “Kings Of The Fucking Sea make me want to mask-up, topple statues, carve Iggy’s face in Mount Rushmore, storm the White House and paint it black. Their noise hits on a visceral level and will scorch the edges of your very DNA. If MC5 and Black Sabbath had a baby it would be a biological miracle, and they would call it Kings Of The Fucking Sea.” Troubled times need troubling music: here it is, a live soundtrack to a crumbling empire. Totally righteous.

Headland

What Rough Beast

Agitated

Headland is a collective of Australian musicians that compose, record and perform soundtrack music for surf films in various forms. The group leader is Murray Paterson, an old surfer himself, who in between wrangling two red-headed boys, finds time here and there to record bits and pieces of guitar-based music. Mostly he heads to Nashuaville where his longtime colleague from a previous life in arts education, Les Dorahy, has set up a small recording studio in the old Booyong General Store, situated in the Byron Bay Hinterland. Whenever friends visit their part of the world, they drop past and join in.  Most of the music remains instrumental but this new album is a collection of songs. One of Murray’s comrades from his days with Tex Perkins and The Dark Horses is Joel Silbersher. Joel has been a longtime Headland collaborator—playing bass and guitar—but while recording material for the new album, vocal melodies kept finding their way into Murray’s instrumentals. Soon there seemed enough of a coherent lyrical theme to build an album around. There’s still enough of the spacious Australian land and seascapes to satisfy fans of the previous Headland albums, journeys through a sonic architecture centered around the motion of the ocean and it’s meeting with the coastline. But a narrative of loss and longing sits on the surface here: Silbersher’s voicing is an emotive thread that breaches at all the right times. There are references to the likes of Alex Chilton, Nick Drake and Daniel Lanois but...

Straight Arrows

21st Century / Cyberbully

Agitated

In a world LOUSY with B-grade garage bands and wannabe punk rockers, Straight Arrows are back to show us all how it’s done! Side A features '21st Century'—a Straight Arrows-esque psychedelic punk/ near breakbeat report on the 21st Century from their LATEST LP On Top, while side B features 'Cyberbully,' a version of the A side reworked by Owen and legendary Sydney DJ and crate digger DJ Soup. Slowed down and ripe for the UK festival scene, guv'na!

Straight Arrows

On Top!

Agitated

New album from Sydney’s fuzzed out, psychedelic punk quartet STRAIGHT ARROWS.Overflowing with unbridled energy, you’d be forgiven for thinking On Top was the band’s debut album, but the third record for the Sydney quartet sounds as vital and as exciting as ever. Having spent years touring their incendiary live show around Australia and the world, Straight Arrows have honed their fresh, reverb-laden, fuzzed out, psychedelic punk sound into pointed perfection with On Top. From the frantic buzzsaw of “Nothing To Me”, to the break-beat groove of “21st Century”, to the tender outsider folk of “Dead Weight”, to the mind-melting psych-out that is “Buried Again”, this is the sound of a band that isn’t short on ideas and isn’t afraid to push the envelope of what people expect a Straight Arrows record to be.“Nothing's more boring than a bunch of the same guitar bullshit over and over again. We’ve taken the guitar bullshit, made it occasionally a little faster, and sometimes even a little slower too,” says vocalist, guitarist and chief songwriter Owen Penglis with a cheeky grin.Clearly he and his bandmates have cast a wider sonic net this time around, largely influenced by Penglis’ love of crate digging and his vast musical knowledge of the detritus of pop culture’s past. “Over the writing of this thing I was listening to a lot of 60s and 70s private press LPs from the USA, weird bubblegum, private press 45s from Australia, and a whole heap of 60s Jamaican rocksteady singles. Al (Grigg...

Last Of The Easy Riders

Unto The Earth

Agitated

From high in the Rocky Mountains, Last Of The Easy Riders descend with Unto The Earth, its new psych-infused country-rock long-player. While the Easy Riders’ first outing, a self-titled EP from 2016, exhibited the band’s kaleidoscope of trippy guitar sounds and production techniques, this debut full length unveils the band’s earnest songwriting chops and knack for genuine Bakersfield-Sound country. The band certainly didn’t abandon its lysergic-leanings, however: note the mind-warping title track, which also serves as the lead single. With no shortage of jangly guitars, piano and pedal steel, this album no doubt echoes Clarence White-era Byrds, but it doesn’t stray far from the band’s Southwestern-rock ’n’ roll roots. “Almost all the lyrics are intended to paint vivid pictures, and give listeners a sense of place,” says the band’s co-founder Christopher Minarik (guitar / backing vocals). “Certain songs and lyrics really lay it on the line and say exactly how the songwriter felt, or what they were going through. It’s the most personal and honest songwriting I’ve ever done.”  Rounding out the lineup is bassist / vocalist Dan Duggan, guitarist Bradley Grear and drummer Mitch Mitchum. Recorded in March 2017 in Lansing, Michigan by producer / songwriter George Szegedy (who also offered up his own song for the disc, the twangy-and-wistful “It Won’t Be Long), and after five months of mixing and fine-tuning, the Last of the Easy Riders were ready to ride.

Carlton Melton

Mind Minerals

Agitated

This is the new Carlton Melton album, the first full length release since 2015’s widely-lauded Out To Sea, itself a languid drifting of drones and psychedically-enhanced riffmongering. Admittedly, there has been some long EP releases since: Hidden Lights in 2017 (featuring the immeasurable drone-sike-float on “Rememory”) and Aground in 2016 (a companion, the Desert Island weather beaten psych-flow follow up to Out To Sea). Now its time to soak up Mind Minerals. This album finds the band in fine fettle: all the songs were recorded and engineered at El Studio in San Francisco by Phil Manley over two days (except “Untimely”), with the studio suiting them—a logical progression from previous weekend recordings out at the Dome. Under Manly’s watchful ear / eye, the band have created a futurescape soundtrack, a 3001 Space Odyssey. The drums are more pounding and direct than ever, the constantly re-assuring bass creates a helping hand of propulsion through the clouds of static and shards of electrifying guitar dazzling the horizon. Synths help soothe the sharp edges and lull one into an out of body experience, while the orchestrated calamitous scree brings one back. This is a breathless, yet deep breathing album. The core trio of Andy Duvall (drums/guitar), Clint Golden (bass guitar), and Rich Millman ( guitar/synth) have some alchemical bond that’s helped them create a post –rock / psychedelic / freeform organic slab of American Primitivism / space drift, unashamed head-music from the melting pot of Northern California. Five decades ago this album would...

Carlton Melton

Hidden Lights

Agitated

San Francisco trip-makers supreme Carlton Melton return with a new twenty-five minute-plus three-track 12- inch EP for Agitated Records, their first release since the widely received double-album Out To Sea in 2015 and accompanying 2016 RSD Aground 12-inch. Hidden Lights is the first missive from recent recordings undertaken once again at El Studio with the watchful engineering and collaborative help of Phil Manley (Trans AM / Lifecoach / Fucking Champs), who throws in slinky guitar moves that help make the Carlton Melton Magick Karpet soar. John McBain (Evil Acidhead / Monster Magnet / Wellwater Conspiracy) also guests on guitar, and once again has mastered their sike-adelic-drone to perfection. Take a trip to the hidden lights, immerse yourself…

Silbersher, Joel

No Teeth

Agitated

***A long time in the making, this “solo” offering from Melbourne underground / outsider rock legend or indeed mainstream collaborator and sideman, Joel Silbersher (HOSS, GOD, HEADLAND, DARK HORSES, TENDRILS, GREASY LENS mainman) cranks up the hiss and crackle with three absolute classics, an original and two cover versions—all displaying Joel’s idiosyncratic take on the blues, or folk, or indeed soul music. For it is that which burst forth on this essential 45—almost a Beefheartian guttural (from the gutter, and indeed the gut…) growling from Silbersher makes these songs his, and ultimately yours. Featuring assorted members of the Drones (Liddiard / Noga) on various instrumentation, theA-side, “No Teeth” is a Silbersher original, it sparks and spits with huge wit and snarl, making a mess / meal out of the blues—a true visceral outburst! On the B-side, there’s two covers—a take on Bill Withers’ "I Don’t Want You On My Mind," which emboldens the smooth soul with a vitriolic preaching of good, common sense—and then The Holy Modal Rounders' "Half a Mind—an urgent and exuberant take to put it mildly!! There's only 500 of these being made, don’t be a dope and miss out!

White Dog

Sydney Limits

Agitated

After their crushing debut 7" released in 2015, which saw lead single No Good get a full rotation to cult Sydney radio station FBi Radio and saw them join the stage with the likes of The Buzzcocks, Die! Die! Die!, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and The Meanies amongst others, White Dog return with their debut album, Sydney Limits. Recorded in one day by Wade Keighran (The Scare, Wolf & Cub) and mastered by Nick Franklin (MAKING, Unity Floors, No Art), this is an album that follows the template of all great punk records—just shy of half an hour, but loaded with 16 tracks of intense, unrelenting punk. Much like the city it was bred in, White Dog make music that has been pushed to the brink, but refuses to die. Taking cues from Black Flag, Cosmic Psychos, Venom P. Stinger and Sick Things, early US Crossover Hardcore a la COC / DRI, Sydney Limits explodes with deranged energy, seething with an anger that can only come from the forced nihilism of Sydney living. A cesspit of high costs and low value. Lose the bullshit, replace it with White Dog.

Miss Destiny

Miss Destiny

Agitated

Miss Destiny are a band from Melbourne, Australia who play music that’s reminiscent of a mythical time when guitar music’s material of choice was transitioning from denim to leather. Post-hippie, pre-punk era rock ‘n’ roll meets the origins of New Wave of British Heavy Metal, with a glimmer of Sunset Strip feel-good excess. While this could sound like another careful curation of rawks past, and eggheads could argue about the relevancy of rock music in 2016, there’s a life and spirit in this band beyond the typical genre curations that often render rock music one dimensional. Their self titled debut album will be released by R.I.P. Society Records / Agitated in October 2016 and was recorded across a couple of hot summer days in 2015. The all-female lineup on the recording was Harriet Hudson (Circle Pit, Ratsak, Southern Comfort), Harriet Stewart (Sleepless Nights, School of Radiant Living), Annie Llewellyn (Grotto, The Angel & Baby Chain) and Emily Jans (Straightjacket Nation, Bloody Hammer). This record extends on the “muscle and bite” (Evan Minsker, Pitchfork) of their debut 7” on Hozac Records, with a startling leap in the departments of power, precision and overall toughness. No doubt this has to do with powerhouse Emily joining behind the kit, who recorded both this and the forthcoming Straightjacket Nation record while very pregnant! Find another example of this in punk/hardcore/rock ‘n’ roll history, I dare ya. The track “Killers” focuses on the horrendous effects of domestic violence, it’s Miss Destiny’s reaction to the number...

Last Of The Easy Riders

S/t

Agitated

While Last of the Easy Riders formed last summer in Denver, the band of sonic nomads each converged high in the Rocky Mountains individually from various parts of the country. Even with dissimilar backgrounds, each of the musicians shared one common vision: to create cosmic rock ‘n’ roll. The outcome is the band’s naturally formulated blend of raw Midwestern treble and passionate deepsouth rhythm and bass. That acoustic integrity shines bright on the group’s gutsy self-titled debut EP on Agitated Records. Much like their iconic heroes in bygone country rock outfits like The Byrds and The Band, each member contributes song credits to the new disc. The band comprises guitarist/vocalist, Christopher Minarik, Mitch Mitchum (drums, vocals), Daniel Duggan (bass, vocals) and guitarist, Bradley T Grear.  The earthy, inspired track list projects the tranquility of the outdoors, or perhaps hazily driving through Joshua Tree National Park with the windows down, while a CCR cassette warmly hums in the background. It’s an honest, but optimistic batch of original tunes. And even though this freshly pressed EP was recorded earlier this year in a remote cabin in Rollinsville, Colorado – the production and arrangements throwback to the golden days of ‘60s American music – back when Buck Owens still ruled Bakersfield and Gram Parsons still had a chance. A full album is due in 2017! 500 copies only on orange/white swirl vinyl, comes with a download card.

Icarus Line

All Things Under Heaven

Agitated

***THE ICARUS LINE's third full-length release for Agitated (their eigth album in total), following on from their imperious return to the fray in 2013 with the much lauded release of Slave Vows, followed up by its companion album release Avowed Slavery in 2014. Recorded and arranged live as a group in Cardamone's studio, Valley Recording Company in Burbank. The album features a guest appearance from legendary outsider artist Joe Coleman who helped coin the album title. Also appearing is Bad Seed / Grinderman/ Dirty Three band leader Warren Ellis who helped pen the track "Bedlam Blue" with Cardamone.   All Things Under Heaven packs the kind of swagger, raunch & ascent that would make Iggy Stooge and Sun Ra proud parents. It is a record that expands the vocabulary of what rock music can be without sacrificing the critical spirit that makes it Rock N Roll. The Icarus Line have summoned up the demons from the past, paid their homage and taken the sound in an entirely new direction; because this band are never ones to be caught on their knees. The album is a sprawling sonic landscape that has a timeless quality about it as it traverses between low valleys, towering skyscrapers and all the dirty alleyways that connect them. It's a record that's as sprawling as the city of Los Angeles to which The Icarus Line have always called home. It's a fuck you to the bite size society that has become music consumption. Life is bigger...

Green Bananas, The

The Ape / Green Banana

Agitated

Australian oddball punks Straight Arrows bring forth a brand new greasy side-project dancefloor workout, direct from the zoo. Not since “The Monkey” and “The Gorilla” has there been such a primitive routine that has electrified the club this thoroughly! Drop it on the turntable, and hit the floor. Then flip it over, and work out over the instrumental. A guaranteed hit!

Royal Sitars, The

Eloise / Distant And Vague

Agitated

Australia's runaway success Royal Headache are responsible for records that have resonated worldwide, and what more proof of this than a sitar instrumental tribute to two of their biggest hits, "Eloise" and "Distant and Vague"? All performed by an anonymous, masked, groovin' Australian combo! Agitated managed to track these sitar slingers down, and could not put their groove down. Limited edition of 350 copies packaged in black disco bags.

Carlton Melton

Aground

Agitated

Following up 2015’s well-received opus Out to Sea, Carlton Melton runs Aground—five slabs of magick-karpet-wreck’d psychedelic morass. The raft has beached and you have to get your ears on and wander the deserted shores of this desolate isle. Aim for the high ground, build a fire, look to the horizons and let it all flow.  Recorded and engineered by Phil Manly at Lucky Cat Studios, these tracks were from the same sessions that spawned Out to Sea; there’s a natural cohesion that makes the trip worth taking. Aground was mastered at 45 RPM and pressed on green vinyl in a limited edition of 600 copies.

Spacin'

Total Freedom

Agitated

Long-overdue long-form platter from Philadelphia’s Spacin’, the low-key torchbearers of both John Sinclair’s bold program and the fuzzy truth that less is often more (much more) as demonstrated by Lou’s time with Morrison & Tucker & Cale. On Total Freedom, guitarist & vocalist Jason Killinger blazes the path, lead guitarist Paul Sukeena & bassist Sean Hamilton vamp on economical electric chugs while drummer Eva Killinger reprises in her role as thee undisputed master of basement motorik. As a handsomely illustrated insert attests, the whole thing is punctuated by flourishes from some of most celebrated talents of this town’s percolating stew. Blast it soon or remain condemned to a billion years probation.

Cereal Killer

No Life 'til Cereal

Agitated

4 track debut stomper of high energry riff smashing punk rock from that hotbed of now, Geelong / Victoria…yes, Australian spuzz at high volume… featuring members of Ausmuteants, ORB, Living Eyes and Wet Blankets. Like a blender was used on some early thrash metal, US hardcore sludge, and KBD compilations… play loud, play often. Smash your speakers. 250 copies only for the Northern Hemisphere.   "Their new track “No Life Til Cereal” taken from an upcoming 7” to be released through Anti Fade / Agitated clocks in at just over a minute but is as rowdy and rough with a nasty Flipper-like ‘ha, ha, ha’ in the chorus. Though it may not sound like it, the band are influenced as much by Wu-Tang’s 36 Chambers as they are the Goner records catalogue."—Noisey

Sunset Strip, The

Stone Lazy

Agitated

Having recorded / released several well received albums for Au Go Go in the mid to late 1980s/early 1990s, including the much revered "Move Right In" opus, once referred to as “..a minor masterpiece of multi-layered guitar riffs and dark, acid-blues / avant-sludge rock… it remains one of the most underrated independent albums ever issued in Australia…”. They recorded / released two incredible CDEPs, "Scrape It Out" and "Nothing Lost Nothing Gained" (both over 30 minutes long) for the Dogmeat label (for whom this album was to be released, but they sadly folded before it could happen, thus languishing in vaults since). This is an incredible snapshot of musical work from a verdent period in Melbourne / Geelong recording history. So, now in 2015 and Brown and fellow Strip guitarist Andy Turner have assembled the pieces and issued it on vinyl LP / CD. Drawn from a number of sessions, recorded between 1993-1995 by original band members Andy Turner and Warwick Brown with Mike Glenn / Paul Ryan and featuring guests Tim Hemensley, Joel Silbersher, and Charlie Owen.  The Sunset Strip emerged out of the vibrant 80s Australian indie music scene with very different slant to the Detroit sound that was predominant. Mining a seam of guitar-heavy music that stretched from The Byrds to Buffalo Springfield to Crazy Horse to Dinosaur Jr and beyond, the band was critically but never commercially successful and fell apart in 1995. This is guitar music at it's broadest—from maelstrom to melody.Prepare to be...

Carlton Melton

Out To Sea

Agitated

The voyage is long, the voyage is joyous. Out to Sea is the most focused of all Carlton Melton’s recordings to date. Leaving their geodesic dome behind, they hitched their magick karpet to San Francisco’s El Studio for a fried weekend in July 2014 with The Fucking Champs / Trans Am’s Phil Manley at the production helm (and occasionally contributing to the furor—Manley plays guitar on “Similarities” and synth on “Peaking Duck”). Out to Sea sees Carlton Melton expand the psychedelia and free outrock sound of their previous output to its furthest horizons. Huge rhythms, outta space riffage, sparkling synths, pastoral passages, searing shards of molten guitar, smothered ambience and gentle guitar-picking all flow together into waves of sound to lap at the shores of your senses. We’re gonna need a bigger boat.  “Radiant” —Mojo  “Intense, sweet, headnodding psych” —Uncut

Evil Acidhead

In The Name Of All That Is Unholy

Agitated

Originally released in the late 1980s on cassette only, In the Name of All That Is Unholy is the long overdue reissue of the sole album by Evil Acidhead (a.k.a John McBain of Monster Magnet and Wellwater Conspiracy fame).  Fully remastered from the original recordings by McBain himself, In the Name of All That Is Unholy is a jarring mind-expansion of the third eye kind. It’s by no means a whimsy gaze—the album takes your psyche and smashes it into smithereens. The limited analog edition comes on two colored-vinyl platters and includes both an eye-searing poster and a CD copy of the album.

Hits

Loose Cannons / Big Black Car

Agitated

***Agitated's favorite album that they didn’t release in 2014 was the amazing bulldozer of Australian rock and roll driven by HITS. Hikikomori was released in Australia and France, Agitated asked to do a single, a proper old fashioned 7" single. Hits obliged, and the track "Loose Cannons" (from the album) was chosen as the A-side, with the unreleased studio version of "Big Black Car." Both songs recorded with Radio Birdman / New Christs' ROB YOUNGER at the desk. "Loose Cannons" kicks out your speaker dust with a sound that can only be from Australia, loud guitars, riffs a-plenty, hi energy rock and roll with killer vocals. and then there's "Big Black Cars" on the flip, a previously released live version blew peoples' ears off—this studio version is even more proof that rock and roll action from Australia is superior to all.

Living Eyes, The

Living Large

Agitated

***Geelong delinquents THE LIVING EYES will unleash a new, 10-track slab of stompers, Living Large via Agitated Records. The Living Eyes are BILLY GARDNER (who, not only runs the esteemed Geelong record label Antifade, but also plays in AUSMUTEANTS and WET BLANKETS amongst others…) on vocals and guitar, MITCH CAMPLEMAN on guitar / vocals, bassist DAYLE HERBERT and drummer NICHOLAS HILL. Their second full-length, Living Large, was recorded in a day-and-a-half by (Straight Arrows’ front man) OWEN PENGLIS in his (new) Sydney hideout, Goliath Professional Recording Studio. The tapes were then driven back down the Hume highway and finished off in a couple of West Geelong bedrooms before being sent off to Australia’s mixing master, MIKEY YOUNG. Taking their cues from the likes of The Easybeats, The Hoodoo Gurus, The Saints and The Hard Ons, The Living Eyes stand true to the vitriolic punk brash and sharp garage crunch of their self-titled debut (2013, Antifade Records) whilst crafting some DAMN SWEET power-pop hooks. The Living Eyes are Living Large with feral wallaby beat to make you pick up your feet and a shake you just can’t shake! For Fans Of: Jay Reatard, Citadel Records, The Kinks, Waterfront Records, The Ramones, In The Red Records, High Voltage AC /DC.

Night Flights

Night Flights, Vol.1

Agitated

Tripping the Light fantastic courtesy of Night Flights, a new San Franciscan take on the path taken by the likes of Schultze / Tangerine Dream / Cluster / Eno and other doyens of the space-synth-riff float. Night Flights is a recording project of lo-fi, ambient, synth-driven, soundscapes. Consisting of members of the band Carlton Melton and Mastered by John McBain, Night Flights is a collection of sounds prepared 'for headphones only'. It is very much influenced in spirit by the 1980's late night television series 'Night Flights'. Rich Millman - synth and guitar; Andy Duvall - galaga-guitar on 'alpha jerk'.  Recorded and mixed by Rich Millman, Mastered by John McBain at Taylor Street Studios. Art by Kaveh Soofi Its not like this hasn’t been done before, but Agitated hasn’t released anything so chilled and spatial… and after the year we've had, this 40 minhutes from Night Fligths de-bugs the sytstem and sets our mind straight! This is the ideal comedown record for the concerted psychedelicist. Freak on my flotation tank flag wavers.

Feral Ohms

Super Ape / The Snake

Agitated

***Feral Ohms' second release. Blisterin' caveman-psych featuring members of Comets on Fire, Drunk Horse, and Nudity. This is Some seriously amped up wildness that might just take out your speakers! Putting the OOOOOMPFCRASHWOOOOOOSH back into the whimsical Psych scene.. “Super Ape” is a new Ethan Miller jam, and “The Snake” is FO's take on a Pink Fairies' classic.