For
those of you who didn’t know, 27th Sept 2014 was officially Cassette
Store day. Essentially a similar initiative as Record Store day, to support
independent music retailers, part of the appeal is limited re-releases or one
off specials. One such exclusive was the
release of Phantom Glue’s early ‘Angels of Meth’ demo on cassette via Negative
Fun Records.
Dating
back to 2006, when the band was known as Angels of Meth, for all intents and
purposes, Phantom Glue is Angels of Meth. The band was formed by Matt Oates and
has existed in various states since the mid ‘00s.
According
to Negative Fun, Phantom Glue was known as Angels of Meth through the course of
the recording of their debut full length, the Phantom Glue S/T record. Indeed,
it wasn't until after the recording process was completed for this record that
the band decided to change the name, to what we now know as Phantom Glue. Now I am not ashamed to express my love for
this band, indeed last year I rated their latest record ‘War of Light Cones’ my
no.1 record of 2013. Their unique blend
of sludge and noise rock puts them in a category of one, indeed it is not just
their music that appeals, the signature artwork of Matt Oakes is also totally
unique and fits brilliantly with their music.
It is no wonder that they’re part of the thriving Boston
Despite
the fairly dramatic difference in sound from this 1st demo to Phantom Glue's
2013 release ‘A War Of Light Cones’ (and the soon to exist 3rd full length) the
essence of the band; the creative process, aesthetic and lyrical concepts
remain the same. Of course, the early demo has a long lasting appeal, because
it is a permanent reminder of the ingredients of what would go on to be
‘Phantom Glue’.
Phantom
Glue’s relationship with renowned producer/ Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou is
presented on this demo tape and they have recorded with him on each future release,
‘Phantom Glue’ on Teenage Disco Blood Bath Records and more recently ‘War of
Light Cones’ on Black Market Activities.
This demo has never existed in a physical format until now, and further
illustrates the dramatic development and shift in sound from release to
release. For that reason, I’m personally stoked to have the chance to host the
exclusive full stream of the demo below.
In
other Phantom Glue news, the band is gearing up to record their 3rd full
length, again at God
City
Bassist
Nick Wolf's band The Proselyte released their new record which you can read
here. The record was released on Gypsy
Blood records, the label set up by Stavros from The Atlas Moth's. These two bands are also touring together in
October.
Phantom
Glue guitarist Mike Gowell is playing alongside Doomrider's guitarist Chris
Pupecki and former Doomrider's drummer Chris Bevalaqua in the new project
called Wormwood. It is scheduled to be
released on CD via Patac Records, vinyl on Magic Bullet Records and cassette
via Negative Fun Records. You can also
read our review here.
You
can pick up a copy of the Angels of Meth demo here.
Do yourself a favour and check out their other releases too.
For
more information
twitter
- http://twitter.com/Negative_Fun
facebook
- http://www.facebook.com/NegativeFunRecords
web
- http://negativefun.com
bandcamp
- http://negativefunrecords.bandcamp.com/
