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CEREMONY

The Joy Hotel

Ceremony

    Newly signed to SO Recordings and with a debut album proper in hand, The Joy Hotel have become a word-of-mouth success story in the Scottish DIY scene, and have since taken their live show across the UK and Europe, playing festivals including Hidden Door, Doune the Rabbit Hole, Connect, TRNSMT, Twisterella, Latitude, Sound City and The Great Escape.

    The band spent eleven days at Rockfield, the legendary studio in Monmouth, Wales, recording live-to-tape. When they left, they had a sound. It is often contradictory, in that it combines the songwriting sensibilities of pop and country with arrangements reminiscent of the psychedelic scene of the 60s, six-part vocal harmonies with elements of noise rock, beautiful balladry with a sense of humour, and a cinematic quality. The result of those eleven days is debut album 'Ceremony', a record that searches for the profound in the seemingly routine, and reaches out with arms wide open to wring celebration out of each moment.


    TRACK LISTING

    1. I Decline
    2. Forever Tender Blue
    3. First Joy
    4. Jeremiah
    5. Black Balloon
    6. Rapid Eye Movement
    7. Old Man's Eyes
    8. While You're Young
    9. No Use
    10. Twenty Three (A Comedy) - Part 1
    11. Twenty Three (A Comedy) - Part 2
    12. Killing Time
    13. Small Mercy

    John Dwyer + Heather Lockie, Thomas Dolas, Kyp Malone, Andres Renteria, Brad Caulkins & Archie Carey

    Ritual / Habit / Ceremony

      The band is John Dwyer (synths, vocals), Heather Lockie (viola), Thomas Dolas (synths), Andres Renteria (hand percussion), Brad Caulkins (tenor saxophone), Kyp Malone (synths) and Archie Carey (bassoon). The singers are YoshimiO (Boredoms, OOIOO), Albert Wolski (EXEK), Gracie Jackson (GracieHorse), Ciriza (Artist Extraordinaire), Kyp Malone (Bent Arcana, TV On The Radio, Rain Machine etc.), Brigid Dawson (Thee Oh Sees, The Mothers Network), AZITA (Scissor Girls, Bride of NONO, AZITA).

      For fans of Steve Roach, Eno, Syrinx, Howard Shore, Current 93, Terry Riley, Tangerine Dream and a proper sage scrub.

      “An experiment in symphonic improvisation paired with synthesizerscapes. Strings, reeds, synths and hand percussion all blend sweetly into an odd landscape indeed. The final touch was to bring aboard some singers I have loved over the years. I’m so pleased they were all willing to participate and I’m very tickled by the plane we navigate. Once YoshimiO agreed to be on board I knew we were going to be OK. Recorded and mixed at my home studio (Stu-Stu-Studio in Los Angeles) and remotely, this one was a slow burn to see the light of day. And here it is in its final crystal form. Celebrating the spaces between ritual, habit and ceremony. And all the parallels between. The line is blurred. This is occult adjacent strain of sound. At home in daily ritual, contemplation and meditation.” - John Dwyer.

      TRACK LISTING

      1. What Do (YoshimiO)
      2. Ruths Mouth (Albert Wolski)
      3. For Those Who Don’t Get Anything (Gracie Jackson)
      4. Memory Mirror Floweth Over (Ciriza)
      5. Sound The Unknown (Kyp Malone)
      6. Azazel (Brigid Dawson)
      7. Debris In The Sky (Azita)

      The Cult

      Ceremony - 2023 Reissue

        Beggars Arkive will release a vinyl reissue of THE CULT’S fifth album Ceremony on August 11th. Two editions will be available. Blue/Red vinyl and black vinyl will be available everywhere. Originally released in 1991, The follow up to the massive Sonic Temple marked a turning point in the band’s sound and style and it was their first without longtime bassist Jamie Stewart. The album was a commercial success, reaching No. 25 on the Billboard chart and it remains a fan favorite and an important album in The Cult’s discography. The Cult continued to develop their sound on this album, and it is heavily influenced by Native American culture. Ceremony is a testament to their ability to evolve and adapt while staying true to their roots and it’s songs are about spirituality, love and rebellion. It includes the singles “Wild Hearted Son” and “Heart Of Soul”.

        TRACK LISTING

        1. Ceremony
        2. Wild Hearted Son
        3. Earth Mofo
        4. White
        5. If
        6. Full Tilt
        7. Heart Of Soul
        8. Bangkok Rain
        9. Indian
        10. Sweet Salvation
        11. Wonderland

        Tiny Ruins

        Ceremony

          A rare blend of eloquent lyrical craft and explorative musicianship, the songs of Tiny Ruins are etched into the memories of crowds and critics worldwide.

          Traversing influences that cross genre and era, the artistry of Hollie Fullbrook and her band spans delicate folk, lustrous dream pop and ebullient psychedelia. Building on the sparse arrangements and a novelist's eye for detailcultivated over the past several years, the group's greatly anticipated fourth album is out on Marathon Artists and Courtney Barnett's label Milk! Records.

          Where the third album Olympic Girls was suffused with loss and existential emptiness, with fourth album Ceremony, Hollie Fullbrook's evolution as Tiny Ruins has reached an apex of power, as she's become a deft bandleader of incredible musicians. Ceremony has many moods, ranging from intense minimalist 'Diving & Soaring' that evokes a classic folk vibe through to the heavier Neil-Young & Crazy Horse inspired 'Dorothy Bay', boppy danceable 'In Light of Everything', and the hooky, uplifting 'Dogs Dreaming'. Noodly 70s electric guitars, eclectic percussion and prominent bass make it their most listenable and accessible album to date. The songs are all of a theme - exploring the coastal shores of the Manukau Harbour and working through a psychological 'shellscape', while tending toward a joyful / hopeful take on the passing of time.

          Ceremony is Hollie's highest achievement, an album about confronting confusion, loss, dislocation and ultimately, realising the beauty of life's unpredictable paths.

          TRACK LISTING

          1. Dogs Dreaming
          2. Daylight Savings
          3. Diving & Soaring
          4. In Light Of Everything
          5. Out Of Phase
          6. Dorothy Bay
          7. Seafoam Green
          8. Earthly Things
          9. Dear Annie
          10. Sounds Like
          11. The Crab
          12. Waterbaby

          Islandman are a musical trio from Istanbul and "Godless Ceremony" is their third album, released via our much treasured friends at Music For Dreams. Alligance with the label is bound to signify a degree of horizontal leaning, and across the double album Islandman explore slow-mo Balearic chug, eastern melodies, downtempo house, expansive horizons and sun scorched air. An incendiary, uplifting and psychedelic slew of music drawn from a world of make-believe, rooted in Anatolia and rich with exotic beauty.

          These 13 tracks are awash with acid drenched electronic motifs and stuttering electronic drum machine syncopations. The group effortlessly sail the globe, dropping into the tropics of Ecuador ("Amarnos Ahora"), to Mali visiting North African desert blues masters Tamikrest ("Tarhamanine Assinegh") and North India ("Drums Of Colca") whilst never forgetting the music and poetry from the band's spiritual home, Anatolia ("Kara Toprak"). In "Godless Ceremony" we are withdrawn from time and place, delivered to a fantasy zone, dreamt up in the sea, gazing at the stars. It's a musical storyboard, that whilst conceived in Istanbul by producer, singer and multi instrumentalist Tolga Böyük, journeys to far off places, real and imagined. Hindustani tablas, Tibetan flutes, flamenco guitars, Anatolian Saz and Balinese (Bhasa) vocals all mesh within a concept (and coping mechanism) that contemplates daily routine as beautiful and meditative and as Tolga has appreciated over a testing two years i

          The core members of Islandman are multi-instrumentalist & producer, Tolga Böyük and Eralp Güven (percussion) and Erdem Başer (guitars). Islandman have become known for their live performances, as anyone who has witnessed their live streams from Istanbul for the London Jazz Festival and Boiler Room can attest to.

          Islandman simply avoids boundaries and "Godless Ceremony" is ultimately their most open-minded work to date. The subtleties and deft electronic touches bewilder and their clear appreciation of music on a global level is an education for us all.

          STAFF COMMENTS

          Barry says: Godless Ceremony sits perfectly in-between the dancefloor and the beach, with tropical rhythms and airy ambience beautifully twisting around a solid core of deep-house percussion and euphoric vocal melodies. Perfectly measured and beautifully rich.

          TRACK LISTING

          A1 Kara Toprak
          A2 Sattva
          A3 Aku Membawa - Radio Edit
          A4 Sad Walk
          B1 Tarhamanine Assinegh Feat. Tamikreast
          B2 Drums Of Colca
          B3 Istanbul Lockdown
          C1 Amarnos Ahora
          C2 Godless Ceremony
          C3 Eros Dosco Bossa
          D1 Dere Boyu Kavaklar
          D2 Self Hypnosis
          D3 Gaze Into An Abyss

          Ceremony

          In The Spirit World Now

            Ceremony make their Relapse Records debut with their highly ambitious new album, 'In the Spirit World Now'! The album sees Ceremony at the height of their creative output, as the always-evolving Rohnert Park quintet take various influences from post punk and rock to create one of the summer's most compelling and infectious records. "In the Spirit World Now" is full of layered sonic fury and anxiety, each song building up to a point and then descending down through a militant, catchy hook. “Turn Away the Bad Thing” sets the tone, guitars climbing around the driving bass line, as Ross Farrar sings, “It’s getting harder for me to be alright/Eyes adjusting to the dark/The momentum of all these last resorts built inside of me.” Songs like “Presaging the End” and “Calming Water” feel romantic and distressed, while “Further I Was” and “Years of Love” are driven by Farrar’s rebellious energy as he repeats the hook with a deadpan realness. “Years of love can be forgotten/In the hatred of a day.” But the true stand-out is the title track, “In the Spirit World Now”, a haunting pop gem with a sticky chorus and lead synth riff that plants itself in your head as Farrar chants the track’s name over and over like a mantra. “In the Spirit World Now" is a sort of nebulous and ectoplasmic place where things may not be quite what they seem,” he says. “It means sh*t is about to get weird.” The album marks a milestone for this Northern California punk outfit who have stayed true to themselves as songwriters throughout massive sonic growth throughout their storied career.

            STAFF COMMENTS

            Barry says: From the fractured art-punk aesthetic of Wire or even bits of Sonic Youth, through wide-spanning cinematic shoegaze majesty and grungy snarling anthems, Ceremony have crafted a brilliantly varied and thoroughly enthralling collection of snappy punk anthems mixed with a huge variety of influences.

            TRACK LISTING

            1. Turn Away The Bad Thing
            2. In The Spirit World Now
            3. Further I Was
            4. /
            5. Presaging The End
            6. Say Goodbye To Them
            7. We Can Be Free
            8. //
            9. Years Of Love
            10. Never Gonna Die Now
            11. I Want More
            12. From Another Age
            13. ///
            14. Calming Water

            Pia Fraus

            Field Ceremony

              Pia Fraus are releasing their first full-length album in almost a decade. Field Ceremony is a triumphant return for the band, bringing back their signature dreampop sounds alongside fresh takes on pop structures. From the beautifully composed pop delicacies of ‘No Filters Needed’ to the almost slowcore dreaminess of ‘Don’t Tell Me How’ to the explosive pop of ‘Sugar High of the Year’, Pia Fraus bring to the table a dreampop brightness tinged with the more somber elements of life. Fans will be pleased with the results and new listeners will be in for a treat as they encounter this long awaited new work from the dreampop masters.

              Sunflower Bean

              Human Ceremony

              Sunflower Bean find magic within friction. The New York trio’s full-length debut album, Human Ceremony [Fat Possum Records], emerges at the intersection of dreamy modern psychedelica and urgent fuzzed-out bliss. That push-and-pull colours the aural tapestry of these three musicians—Jacob Faber [drums], Julia Cumming [vocals/bass], and Nick Kivlen [vocals/guitars].

              “Everything comes from a conflicting interest,” affirms Nick. “We love dream pop, but we also really love rock ‘n’ roll. It’s those two spectrums.”

              “You’re allowed to obsess over Black Sabbath as well as The Cure,” adds Julia. “It’d be boring if everything was just one way or the other.”

              That diversity defined the group’s approach since Nick and Jacob started jamming back in high school. They would hole up in Jacob’s Long Island basement for hours on end, channelling this vast cadre of influences. Julia’s addition would only expand that creative palette further in 2013. Through constant gigging around New York, Sunflower Bean sprouted into a sonic enigma, boasting a fiery musical call-and-response that serves as a centrepiece, giving the music what Jacob refers to as a “lyrical aspect” between the guitars, drums, and bass.

              They transferred this multi-headed energy into their 2015 Independent EP, Show Me Your Seven Secrets. At the same time, this distinct alchemy enchanted ever-growing audiences live. By the time, they entered the studio for Human Ceremony, Sunflower Bean had a lively aural cauldron from which to draw.

              They took the summer of 2015 off and retreated to Jacob’s basement to write together. Taking the ideas out of the basement, they hit a Brooklyn studio with producer Matt Molnar [Friends] and tracked eleven tunes in just seven days. Whereas the EP was recorded after Sunflower Bean played 100 shows in one year, Human Ceremony showed the band’s studio side with richer soundscapes, overdubs, and music that had yet to be debuted live.

              On the lead track “Easier Said,” Julia’s delicate vocals glide over a lilting clean guitar that spirals off into a vibrant hum.

              Sunflower Bean’s spell is cast on Human Ceremony.

              “When you’re in a band, you always dream about the first record,” Julia concludes. “It’s that moment where you explore everything that’s been inspiring you.”

              TRACK LISTING

              1. Human Ceremony
              2. Come On
              3. 2013
              4. Easier Said
              5. This Kinda Feeling
              6. I Was Home
              7. Creation Myth
              8. Wall Watcher
              9. I Want You To Give Me Enough Time
              10. Oh, I Just Don't Know
              11. Space Exploration Disaster

              Breakup albums mark a turning point for a band: the moment when their sound completely changes and reaches a new level of emotional clarity. All that heartbreak and malaise condensed into any single record often makes for a defining piece of work, no matter the genre. The best records explore the nooks and crannies of sadness, learning it inside and out - celebrating it.

              Ceremony's fifth studio album, The L-Shaped Man, uses singer Ross Farrar's recent breakup as a platform to explore loneliness and emotional weariness, but it is by no means a purely sad album. Rather than look inward, Farrar uses his experience to write about what it means to go through something heavy and come out the other side a different person.

              In order to tell Farrar's story, Ceremony have almost completely stripped back the propulsive hardcore of their previous records, turning every angry outburst into simmering despair. "We've always tried to be minimalists in writing, even if it's loud or fast or abrasive," says lead guitarist Anthony Anzaldo. "It's really intense when I hear it. Not in a way where you turn everything up to ten. Things are so bare, you're holding this one note for so long and you don't now where it's going-to me, that's intensity." That intensity is apparent on "Exit Fears," the first full song on the record. It meticulously pairs Justin Davis' loping bassline, which pulls the track along, with Anzaldo's icy, minimal guitar work. It brings to mind some alternate version of Joy Division that hasn't quite lost all hope. It gets close to exploding, but instead plays the shadows, never quite rising above a nervous simmer.

              "A lot of the content has to do with loss, and specifically the loss of someone who you care deeply about," Farrar says. "There is no way for you to go through something like this artistically and not have really strong emotions of loss and pain. There's not really any way to hide that." Farrar, for his part, is singing with a new kind of intensity, his baritone swooping and retreating from stressed angst to unsettling near-mutter as he sings, "You told your friends you were fine/ you thought you were fine too..." and later, "nothing is ever fine/ nothing ever feels right/ you have to tell yourself you tried." It's the first of many lyrically direct moments, and it should be hard to listen to, but Ceremony have so effortlessly nailed the sound of sadness that it feels great to live inside for awhile.

              The sound is abetted by producer John Reis, who honed his sound in seminal bands like Rocket from the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, and Hot Snakes. Much of the gravelly aggression he experimented with in those bands is present on The L-Shaped Man.

              There's a story behind the title too. "I was speaking to our driver Stephen while on tour," Farrar says. "We were talking about men in general and what shape they are...their body type. I said, 'I guess men are in the shape of an L. The torso is straight. Vertical. And then you have the little feet at the end.' There's this painter named Leslie Lerner who was living in San Francisco in the '70s and '80s and made these beautiful paintings. He died on my 21st birthday. A lot of the record is about the similarities in our ideas. In what we're trying to make. Things that have to do with love and losing love."

              TRACK LISTING

              1. Hibernation
              2. Exit Fears
              3. Bleeder
              4. Your Life In France
              5. Your Life In America
              6. The Separation
              7. The Pattern
              8. Root Of The World
              9. The Party
              10. The Bridge
              11. The Understanding

              No Ceremony ///

              No Ceremony ///

                After building up huge excitement all over the internet, winning fans at specialist and daytime radio, and touring with the likes of Crystal Fighters, Friends and New Build, it’s fair to say that the release of the debut album by NO CEREMONY///, on their own NOC/// label, is eagerly awaited by many.

                A gorgeous, haunting, collection of the most exquisite pop songs with melodies that will lodge firmly in your head for days.


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