Happening Again #34
Bangers, beats, and hip hop
Hello!
I blinked and it was March. This issue is delayed because I was faffing too much about what exactly to include in Final Thoughts this time. The solution, apparently, was to scrap the lot and shove it into next issue. So they’ll be a longer one of them next time (it’s not like there’s shortage of insane happenings occurring the moment).
Yes, I have listened to Lady Gaga’s new album. No, I’m not entirely sure what I think, but I know I don’t dislike it.
Anyway. Here’s what I’ve been spinning recently…
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Factory Floor
BETWEEN YOU
Phantasy Sound
What a welcome return this is. Originally formed in 2005, the current iteration of Factory Floor (the dynamic duo of Gabriel Gurnsey and Nik Colk) have been crafting beats since 2010. Now signed to Erol Alkan’s Phantasy Sound imprint, ‘Between You’ is their first single since 2018, and it’s a banger in every sense. With Colk on synths and Gurnsey on percussion (with some help in the studio from touring member Joe Ward and New Order’s Stephen Morris), ‘Between You’ captures that crisp, DIY essence: chunky electronics, an unrelenting drum beat, and some sinister breathy vocal interjections for good measure. There’s also an extended cut to boot. Perfect for a warehouse party.
Doechii
ALLIGATOR BITES NEVER HEAL
Top Dawg
A few issues ago in Happening Again #32 I sang the praises of Doechii, rapper and hip hop artist who made waves at this year’s Grammys. A well-deserved win that followed with the release of her single ‘Nosebleeds’, that she also performed at the awards show. ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’ is her third mixtape, released in August last year. As the official state reptile of Doechii’s native Florida, the alligator will deploy a “death roll” to neutralise its prey. Those who have survived alligator attacks often do because they fight back, hence the name of the mixtape: “I am nobody’s prey,” said has said. “I was born to be a predator.” Once again I can’t get enough of Doechii’s flow and delivery; listening to ‘Alligator Bites…’ is like riding a particularly exciting rollercoaster. It’s one that you really have to listen to in full, but if I had to pick, ‘Bullfrog’, ‘Boiled Peanuts’, ‘Hide N Seek’, and ‘Death Roll’ are my go-tos.
Snapped Ankles
RAOUL
The Leaf Label
Ghillie suit-wearing self-described “forest people” - the London synth rock four-piece otherwise known as Snapped Ankles - have graced us with a new single, and what a stonker it is. Taken from their upcoming album ‘Hard Times Furious Dancing’, ‘Raoul’ is a heady yowl, buzzing with thick synthlines, propulsive krautrock rhythms, and lyrics that decry the utter insanity that is the world we currently live in. There’s a certain horror to the track as though the instruments themselves are desperately trying to escape from something they’re not quite sure of (although ghillie suits are fairly terrifying). A great start to their new LP.
Bog Summoner
THE CUBE OF UNKNOWING
Library Of The Occult
There are many ways to get me to pay attention to your record. But two of them are right here: call yourself “The Cube Of Unknowing” and then name your album “Bog Summoner”. I simply must know what’s going on. The latest release from Tom McDowell’s Library Of The Occult imprint sees composer and sound artist Francis Heery summon us to the arcane realm of the Irish Midlands. Like someone grappling with an ancient spell, Heery weaves kosmische electronics, motorik rhythms, and a sinister sense of the otherworldly into this sonic punch of Berlin School and psych-rock. The kaleidoscopic ‘Horned Beasts Of Ui Maine’ sequences bubbling percussion among whorls of thorny electronic synthesis; ‘Tumulus’ pairs gentle bird song with an eerie drone that morphs into panicked, discordant stabs, like someone desperately trying to break through the barriers between dimensions; and ‘A Sighting’ glistens with latticed textures and rhythms, as though a sorcerer invoked the very essence of a bog to sing for them. This is like if Edgar Froese dabbled in black magic, and is another gold star for the Library Of The Occult.
The Midnight
LOVE IS AN OCEAN
Ultra
I’m sure there’s a new Midnight album on the way. You can almost feel it in the air. And if ‘Love Is An Ocean’ is anything to go by, we’re in for a treat. The latest single from Los Angeles-based synthwave band The Midnight harkens back to their earlier sound, and reminds me of something you’d find on their ‘Endless Summer’ LP. ‘Love Is An Ocean’ combines Lyle’s sentimental lyricism (that thankfully doesn’t extend into the saccharine) with deft dance-edged electronica. The sax solo mid-song is also a joy, and is now seemingly a staple of The Midnight. If this is indicative of the direction of a prospective sixth studio album, then we’ve got a lot to look forward to.
That’s it for this time. As always you can find my ramblings elsewhere in both print and online in Electronic Sound. I am going to tentatively dip into the world of microblogging again, so follow me on Bluesky if that’s your sort of thing.