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After a few years of deep USA underground dwelling and touring documented by a series of hard to find cult collected cassette releases, Angels in America began to surface a bit more with their excellent debut LP on Ehse Records. Recent tours saw them on the road with Mark Lord and Weyes Bluhd fitting touring mates who share much in common with Angels dark atmospheric industrial din and fuzzy science fiction synth explorations. Taking up residence across Eastern North American cities such as Baltimore, New York and Montreal, Angels are a bit hard to pin down in identity, aesthetics and location. As we type this they embark on their first European tour with a performance at the renowned Kraak Festival. Angels seem to take on variety of influences merging them all into their own distinct smear not overly representative of anything particular in terms of genre. Perhaps the easiest comparison is to the originators of their own unclassified sound which in term became its own genre...TG. In their own way Angels carry on the kind of amorphous, androgynous, but distinct sound that is hard to find so deep into history. Art by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

N.213 is Nic Hughes from Vancouver B.C. and the long running band Shearing Pinx. Nic's interest in post punk and no wave continue here but where as Shearing Pinx songs can sometimes develop into long form droning epics N.213 gets more to the point with shorter and more direct punked out jams reminiscent of a more hard edged almost industrial take on The Fall, Mars, and Swell Maps. Included are a Sonic Youth and Fall cover delivered with an appropriate force distinct to N.213. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Xiao Hong Yu Xiao Xiao Hong (Little Red Small Little Red) comprised of Zhao Cong and Zhu Wenbo are from the blossoming Beijing underground scene that fostered fellow Night-People band Hot and Cold that is focused around labels like Pangbianr, and Rose Mansion that is just starting to seep into the N. American underground consciousness perhaps due to Dirty Beaches and Hot and Cold's connection to the scene or Noisey's recent profile of some of the bands such as Soviet Pop etc. Wenbo is a prime mover of the younger generation of experimental musicians in Beijing and hosts a weekly noise night called "Zoomin". Black Sheep first appeared as a self released CD by the band but NP felt it necessary to reissue it for a bigger audience. Musically in debt to no wave, cold wave, kraut rock and industrial gestures Xiao Hong's noisy textures remind us a good deal of killer Japanese Vanity Record band Tolerance, Throbbing Gristle, Peace Trials era Kites and even fellow NP band Angels in America. The begining of a hopefully prolific relationship between the Beijing Underground and Night-People. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Tyvek don't need much introduction, Detroit area art punk garage rockers, who have a bunch of killer prior material on labels like Siltbreeze, Subpop, M'Ladys, X, Whats Your Rupture etc. Absolutely killer stuff here on this delux arted out vinyl reissue of a limited tour cassette.

Lantern return with a 2nd tape release for Night-People this time in the form of a reissue of a tour only cassette called Burned Youth that highlights the bands evolution over the course of 2009-2011. Despite being a bit of a retrospective Burned Youth feels very whole, considered and complete. The fidelity of the recordings are actually a bit more hi-fi overall then the recent NP tape "Stranger I Come/Stranger I Leave". The destroyed pysched out proto punk (Stooges/Denudes) inspired squall of that release isn't really present on this more archival material. At the point of these recordings Lantern seemed to be approaching things from a more Texas/Delta blues and "Their Satanic Majesties" era Stones influence with a good bit of Texas Garage Psych thrown in the mix ala the Elevators and "Parable of Arable" Red Krayola. This is really good catchy fun music regardless and feels like its own take on classic rock n" roll aesthetics. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

One of the most original and exciting statements ever issued on Night-People Cellophane Spill must be heard, because it defies expectation and description.

Ela Orleans and Alex Zhang Hungtai (Dirty Beaches) are long time friends, artistic allies, and adventurous spirits who have both spent lives traveling between different cities, countries, and continents. Through their individual travels and life direction changes both have remained steadfast and dedicated to their own unique visions of musical outlet. The commonalities represented in Double Feature resound in a sense of space and time, a cinematic view of nostalgia. This is not a nostalgia that is trying to re-create the past but an art that seeks to use the presence and power of history to create more content in the present. Ela's lush baroque pop fitted against Alex's electric drifter blues creates for an eclectic but united pairing that serves as a good representation of their long standing creative dialogue and there correspondence as friends. Night People.

Lab Coast from Calgary came to our attention by our friends at Eggy and Scotch tapes who put out killer Lab Coast cassette releases in 2011. Lab Coast have that sort of breezy layered subtle guitar pop sound that's easy to like. Invoking a bit of unpretentious retro sound reminiscent in the catalogs of labels like Slumberland and Sarah. Lab Coast keep it really catchy in that loose but tight way good bands of this variety hit on just right. The flip finds them getting a bit more far out and showing some of their more experimental impulses and pedigree that is subtly at play in all of their songs. They ride out on the B side more psyched out almost in the long form weirdo mood of a band like Strapping Fieldhands or Thinking Fellers. Good stuff just right for spring time just around the corner. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Another killer offering from Factums here with a bit of new territory staked out by the band. Strange almost world music sound zones are explored in parallel to a dark synth punk aesthetic that fluctuates between druggie rhythm machine punkers and droney sound worlds.

The debut LP from Vancouver’s Terror Bird. A master piece of heartfelt, haunted, ethereal pop music that has layers of dark ambience constantly breaking into shinny spaces of hopeful abandon.

This tape is a soundtrack for the 12 Dark Noons film which was a sort of collaboration filmed last summer in Australia between Future Primitive Films in the directors seat with assistance by NOTV, Sacred Bones and Night-People. A bit different than NOTV’s other material having more in common with the Blood Sessions era of the bands material then the newer full band sound.

It's really rare to stumble onto a band or music with no prior connecting points to mutual friends, another label, a live show, a recommendation, a demo, but thus is the high point yield of living at least part of the life in cyber space and its possibility for randomness. It is there that we discovered the rich and impressive body of work present and future that is Atlanta's Featureless Ghost. Seeing a live video of a radio performance of their song Scanproof was a revelation of what could still be done in the contemporary saturated music environment with synth and electronic pop music. Not wearing any genre classifications or influences distinctly on their sleeves, but creating a rich connection to what came before (think Chris and Cosey, OMD etc) Featureless Ghost couple Matt Weiner (also records as Twins) and Elise Tippins are as critical as they are prolific bringing distinct song craft into composition while being very much a live band. With rich dual vocal sections, hi-fi home recording and mixing, Featureless Ghost is just getting started. An LP on NP is already in the works as well and we couldn't have more confidence in the possibilities and present creative momentum of this band. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Mole House is a band from Melbourne Australia that is fronted by Carla Dal Forno in collaboration with other members Michael Zulicki (Mad Nanna), and Pat Breen (White Woods). With prior recent releases on Alberts Basement, Goaty and the new killer NYC label Quemada this band is just getting going but is starting to make some buzz. Evoking some classic lofi outsider Aussie arty indie strum, Mole House speaks a bit to the 80's/90's New Zealand Scene especially the Expressway label. Think of greats like Roy Montgomery, Dadamah, Nocturnal Projections, Scorched Earth Policy and you would be on the right track. A totally killer highlight of some of the greatness coming out of the Aussie underground. Art by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Horsebladder is Elaine Kahn, musician, poet, and generally rad lady. The singing really stands out on this tape and mixes well with the minimal and dramatic synth pop aesthetic. Tape manipulations and subtle loops that sit behind the central compositions create an atmosphere of introspective and intimate listening

Yves/Son/Ace is a solo outlet from the Factums/Love Tan camp out of Seattle. Less an experiment in synth noise and drone then the"Cold Showers" Night-People cassette, Parade of Thoughts/Can't Sleep evokes a sort of deconstructed synth pop aesthetic. Druggy, hushed vocals float over vintage rhythm machines, synth noise goop, and lost world music radio tones.

Night-People presents a very fine split LP by little know Australian bands, Melbourne's Peak Twins and Scott & Charlene's Wedding who have recently relocated to NYC. This is a co-release with Aussie label Bed Room Suck our friends out of Brisbane and is the first in a string of co-released splits representing some of Australia's best bands highlighting the distinct artistic atmopshere and friendships that have made Australian underground music so vibrant right now. Melbourne duo Peak Twins (who share members with Kitchen's Floor, Bitch Prefect, Terrible Truths etc) ride the jams and compose their music with utmost attention to well played pop hooks, somber sublte psychedlics, and a general downer dissposition that never gets to heavy but lets the light shine through onto the 60's psych pop flavored jangle and shamble of their great songs. Scott and Charlene's Wedding (who share members with Panel of Judges) have a distinct punky jangly guitar pop aesthetic going that is distinctly Aussie and south hemipshere in its sound. They are good mates with rising indie rockers Twerps and have some shared influences but where Twerps keep it a bit more chill and mopey Scott and Charlene's let the angst and grit stick out more. Perfect tunes for dreamy summertime days. Night People.

Prime split LP from Iowa City's Wet Hair and Naked on the Vague from Sydney Australia. Both bands have a slew of releases on a host of good labels but this might be the best offering from both yet. The release feels cohesive despite being a split long player with the similarities in aesthetic ideas and sounds of the two groups being taken into consideration.

The situation in which I stumbled onto New Zealand band Terror of the Deep is so specific that its about impossible for this release to not feel special for Night-People. Being on tour in Australia is a bit of dream come true but spending some time crashing with our friends from the Twerps in Melbourne was a bit extra special. During that time specifically while driving around the city with our friend Pat (drummer of the Twerps) on the hunt for good Pho dives we first heard Terror of the Deep on a cassette put out on Aussie label Hideotic. I quickly went through the right channels to score my own copy and totally fell in love with Terror of the Deep's bright, lush, upbeat but a bit melancholy NZ guitar pop. Washes of flange or phaser, organ drone etc. cruised over a few songs in just the perfect way to give it weirdo tinge, coupled with great lyrics and a distinct NZ croon it was an instant classic in my mind. Just the right amount of psyched out garagey indie pop done in classic NZ fashion but not trying to make good on any past scene glory, Terror of the Deep is just doing their own thing and its great. So glad to put this out for others to hear outside the Southern Hemisphere. Artwork by Shawn Reed. Night People Records.

Brattleboro VT prolific song writing duo Blanche Blanche Blanche's second Night-People release shines even more then their excellent first cassette effort. Wink With Both Eyes is a distinct statement in the contemporary underground music environment. It is a distilled, unified, collection of songs compiled from the hundreds of songs BBB has created in the last couple of years. To add extra flavor to their weirdo synth pop songs on Wink With Both Eyes, BBB enlisted many of their Brattleboro music friends including shredders like King Tuff, Chris Weisman, and Graham Brooks. Band members Sarah Smith and Zach Phillips didn't use any computers, samplers, drum machines or sequencers when they created Wink With Both Eyes sticking to their own unique processes of song craft. Retained from prior releases is the urgent jazzy retro synth feel, catchy monotone vocals and minimalist post punk references. BBB is a distinct creative team and this LP is there definitive statement thus far. Keep your eyes open for upcoming releases by BBB from our friends over at Feeding Tube Records and La Station Radar. Night People.