Dağtaş – Yediveren
There’s no use pretending that none of it happened. Rock music, and then pop, hip-hop or Western styles of music that were, first, massively popular at home, and then were spread abroad over decades and decades. Nearly everyone knows what they sound like.
And that’s the biggest part of the problem. Pop-rock music has started to resemble one of those Netflix movies where you know who is going to get killed and who did it from the very first scenes in the movie. The surprises are gone!
Yet, there’s so much music all over the world that is waiting to be discovered. There are so many cultures that are centuries old, not like rock n’ roll, merely a few decades. And, Dağtaş is the latest Anatolian rock star to want to shed light on some of those.
In fact, Dağtaş is determined to show that experimental, powerful psychedelic-rock of the variety that most rock listeners are familiar with has more in common with Anatolian music than you can imagine. “Yediveren” feels mysterious, exotic and packs a punch. It’s the latest in a wave of adventurous, inspired Turkish groups blending folklore and modern pop-rock in a very interesting way.
Mint Condish – Rat Utopia
In a world overrun by moral degenerates, the only sensible thing to do about it is find ways to ride it all out or to become more deranged than all of your peers. And one of these strategies is much easier to implement than the other.
In order not engage with the world, you’d have to either be born inside of a cult, voluntarily join one as an adult, or become terribly rich by some massive stroke of luck. And, I’m sorry to tell you, the world’s deemed that it has all the rich people it can handle.
Fortunately, if you’re living in one of the Western countries that favour rock n’ roll and the lifestyle that goes with it, a giant collection of mind-altering activities is available to debase you to the point where you can finally, truly earn the respect of your peers.
If you’re living in the home nation of rock n’ roll, the U.S. of A., at the moment, turning on your television isn’t an option anymore. Mint Condish is inspired by disaster books turned blockbusters, experiments about societal collapse and by the news that the songwriter is trying to avoid. “Rat Utopia” is a fantastic song and a stroll through the dying stages of a glittering, filthy empire. Put this on a poster, and you could get the songwriter elected into office.
