Retrograde Tapes

rgt #08: Nodolby - Untitled

2012-02-06T11:04:00.007-08:00

rgt #08: Nodolby - Untitled C40

Italian sound-shredder Nodolby contributes 40 minutes of frantic circuit bent cut-edits & gurgling synth jitter. Never still and never settled, the A side rewards the close listener with ever-changing texture sheets draped over cold drones that gnaw through frontal lobes like an injection of synthetic termites hungry for your cortex. The B side breathes considerably heavier after their feast, a dimming, emotionally somber piece that continually sinks deeper into a bleak, dark world until the light has fully faded.

High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided J-cards. Limited to 50.

Nodolby - Untitled preview by Retrograde Tapes

Buy.

rgt #07: Parashi - Silenus

2012-02-06T11:04:00.006-08:00

rgt #07: Parashi - Silenus C27

   At my first listen of Mike Griffin’s work I sat perplexed, really scratching my head over what I had just heard, wondering what the hell I’d just experienced. Even after countless listens later, more often than not I still don’t have much more than the slightest clue yet the mystery just makes the listening experience better. On Silenus, Parashi maintains that captivating mystery by employing the services of a beat merchant hell-bent on summoning some sort of lurching beast, then sits on the altar paranoid & afraid to leave the comfort of its confines after it materializes. A truly discomforting pair of recordings, even for those already familiar with his ominous & often hostile sound world.

High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided J-cards. Limited to 50.

Parashi - Silenus preview by Retrograde Tapes

Buy.

rgt #06: Abusive Consumer - Crumbling Portals

2012-02-06T11:04:00.005-08:00

rgt #06: Abusive Consumer - Crumbling Portals C28

    J Morales’s latest exploration of aural space brings a thirty-minute trip of evolving musique concrète vignettes & sound art sourced from a multitude of origins including prepared guitar, synth, field recordings, generated sounds, and various what-have-you seamlessly woven together to create an all-encompassing state of frigid sonic decay. By combining the influence of mid-20th century sound adventurers with modern compositional methods, Crumbling Portals creates an immersive experience in spatial & textural listening, not unlike wandering through miles of underground caves.

High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided J-cards. Limited to 50.

Abusive Consumer - Crumbling Portals preview by Retrograde Tapes

Buy.

rgt #05: Giant Claw - Mortal Earth/Morbid Earth

2011-06-29T19:10:00.002-07:00

rgt #05: Giant Claw - Mortal Earth/Morbid Earth C27

Giant Claw is admittedly a hard sound to define. Incredibly atmospheric, yet too involved to simply label as ambient or mere synth jams. Prog elements weave in & out of synth vectors & arpeggiation, but with a light-heartedness devoid of over-showmanship or tacky kitsch. Bright, often dramatic, and always lush, each side finds Giant Claw’s captivating world unfold in almost orchestral arrangements uncaring of where they’re headed while defying any sort of neat categorization like a shimmering sound vessel shot off as a treat for anyone lucky enough to find it.

High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided folding J-cards. Limited to 50.

Giant Claw - Mortal Earth/Morbid Earth preview by Retrograde Tapes

-Sold Out-

Try Tomentosa for copies.

==================================================================
Review:
· Dumpster Diving blog
· Weed Temple

rgt #04: Kraken Mare - Kraken Mare

2011-06-29T19:10:00.001-07:00

rgt #04: Kraken Mare - Kraken Mare C18

“Kraken Mare is an appropriate descriptor for this music -- it evokes a vague, almost gothic darkness, something stirring beneath the surface, perpetually brooding. There is something rustic and worn about these feedback and synth drones, where electronic screeches stand in for wailing choirs and violent pedal outbursts replace a forgotten string section. It's as if the instrumentation that could have populated these tracks caked with rust over time, leaving only a bleak, abandoned metallic landscape for our listening pleasure." - Keith Rankin of Giant Claw

High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided folding J-cards. Limited to 50.

Kraken Mare - Kraken Mare preview by Retrograde Tapes

Buy

============================================================
Review:
· Dumpster Diving blog
· Weed Temple

rgt #03: M. Akers - The Elders Of New Detroit

2011-06-29T19:10:00.000-07:00

rgt #03: M. Akers - The Elders Of New Detroit C20

    Black limousines silently roll into view as dope-slinging shit bags congregate at the docks, poised to pull off the biggest scag deal in Detroit. Everything is going as planned until the shipment barge from Windsor is suspiciously late and the inside guy at the police station is not responding. Gunshots break out from all directions as the Detroit 5-0 suddenly storm onto the scene. Que Matt Akers’s synth grooves to bust in on top of the hailing bullets & gratuitous explosions as we root for a scrappy detective who manages to lay waste to every crooked fucker there & clean up the Motor City, once and for all.
    Sure to please fans of Carpenter, Tangerine Dream, & b-movie action flicks, Akers’s latest finds him further widening his range, utilizing an expanding library of sound & texture, and honing his overall soundtrack craft to a fine point. Homage is undoubtedly paid to dusty thrift store VHS scores but more significantly these tracks stand memorably on their own, kicking ass with machismo swagger much like the heroes of the movies they evoke.
    High bias type II chrome tapes with full-color, double-sided folding J-cards. Limited to 50.

The Elders Of New Detroit Preview by Matt Akers

-Sold Out-

Try Tomentosa for copies.

============================================================
Review:
· TMT Cerberus
·Dumpster Diving blog
·Weed Temple

going ons

2011-04-06T11:41:00.000-07:00

· Synth wizard Matthew Akers will be contributing a c20 to Retrograde, tentatively entitled, "The Elders Of New Detroit."

Akers creates killer soundtracks to dusty 80s vhs tapes never made. From Akers, regarding his excellent cdr, "The Future Barbarians:"

"Think of it as the score to JOE D'AMATO directing an ALIEN rip-off flick starring AL CLIVER and GEORGE EASTMAN. 4 tracks (at 23 minutes) of JOHN CARPENTER, FABIO FRIZZI, TANGERINE DREAM inspired synthesizer driven tunes."

Looting The Armory by Matt Akers

Paypal him $4/$6/$8 @ slowery_brazil at yahoo dot com for a copy.

· Progress has slowed to a crawl on the Explosive Joseph tape, but will eventually surface. Eventually. Some drunk mules just won't budge.

· Slabs of noise are coming together for rgt #04.

rgt #01: Den - Bronze Fog

2011-03-17T11:33:00.000-07:00

rgt #01: Den - Bronze Fog C24

8 tracks of routine interplanetary violence ruptured from drums, bass, and various forms of synth damage & harnessed pedal signals. Noise rock for noise heads, Den offers shrill electronic abrasion, yet trades the formless distortion pedal army for structured heft, lifeless landscapes, Black Sabbath, and Jupiter. Nuclear winter jams for seedy space dives.

Pro dubbed & imprinted high bias type II chrome tapes. Full-color, double-sided folding J-cards with art by Jacob van Loon. Limited to 100.

Saint Of Killers by Den.
http://soundcloud.com/noise-den/saint-of-killers

Bronze Fog excerpt by Den.
http://soundcloud.com/noise-den/bronze-fog-excerpt

Head to the store to order.

==================================================================
Review:
· Uaxuctum
· Weed Temple
· Foxy D

incidental birth

2011-02-16T13:24:00.000-08:00

rgt #01: Den's first release is off for dubbing. Eight tracks of Chicago noise-rock-noise.

Things are coming together for rgt #02; an offering from basement loser-rock band, Explosive Joseph.

More soon.