here’s a youtube upload with lyrics btw:
5 Likes
performed at HOPE conference! the venue was a bit of a shitshow and i played with no monitors in a room off to the side where exhibitors were doing their thing so it was a weird show to actually play but when i listened to the recording it sounded good so onto the internet it goes
i enjoyed starting a bit slower, been listening to a lot of sama abdulhadi mixes and enjoying things in 128-132bpm land for a bit
4 Likes
whoa what, how did that even work
edit: just started listening and this is GRIMY i love it
hi thanks! i generally have enough of an idea about how my set sounds overall (because my practice sessions are at home with my own speakers/headphones) and there’s nothing during the performance that requires super strict timing so i can generally get by with no monitors if needed, although it really does help ME get into the performance if i can hear myself
i usually bring headphones to make this easier but this time i forgot them 
1 Like
basking in the very fm-like rave aesthetic of the sound palette rn, reminds me a bit of some of the techno-leaning tracks on kamishimo records, with the purposefully limited instrumentation and rough around the edges sound design. particularly enjoy how the distortion is tastefully handled as well. v cool live set, one of the most interesting things i’ve heard done with the m8 so far i think
2 Likes
Comes out Wednesday!
4 Likes
this is out now~! we play a show tonight for the release, i’m anxious but excited
edit: my friend Marshall wrote this as a blurb for the (tiny) label’s email blast, love it
Dear Friends and Liebe Luftmenschen,
I’m very happy to announce the release of the Dusk EP by Elle, a follow up to last year’s Dawn. The EP is available for purchase on Bandcamp – as all true heads know – and streaming with the usual suspects. A physical release compiling both the Dawn and Dusk EPs is forthcoming.
For listeners in Atlanta, Elle is playing a show TONIGHT, Aug. 7, at 529.
It occurs to me that some of you might be new to this list, so for those who don’t know, let me first explain that Luftmensch Records is a vanishingly small record label run out of my increasingly diaper-filled Brooklyn apartment. I mostly put out records by my friends, by myself, or by my friends and myself. It’s not a traditional label in that all the money from purchases of Luftmensch releases goes straight to the artists; I’m in it for the joy of the thing and for the opportunity to wrestle with email templates.
And with that out of the way, let’s talk about Elle. Last year’s Dawn EP was produced with psychedelic flair by Graham Ulicny (Reptar, The Faint) and had a sunny Laurel Canyon-vibe – hints of the Zombies, of George Harrison’s solo records, of Joni Mitchell waitin’ for that car on the hill.
Dusk arrives with an expanded sonic palette and more down-to-earth production courtesy of Graham Tavel (Mirror Mirror Recording). The band that backed Elle on Dawn returns: Andrew McFarlane on drums, Parks Miller on bass, Gokul Parasuram on guitar. They are joined by Jacob Chisenhall on pedal steel, Tyler Jundt on trumpet and sax, Kamille Pryce on backup vocals, and Jonathan Richter, playing classical guitar on bossa nova-style standout “Saturdays and Nights.” When I listen to the EP I hear the effortless-seeming melodic richness of some of the best '90s pop - Elliott Smith, Belle and Sebastian, Mutations-era Beck. The arrangements are lush and enveloping, like a humid summer night.
Reading a biography of Nilsson recently, I learned that when his first album came out RCA spent a fortune on a promotional blitz and tried to market Harry as “the True One.” Here’s a line I liked from one press packet: “The subject of a big promotion, Nilsson is phasing in as sign of the times listening.” What a pitch! Here’s what I’ll say to you, loyal listeners: if Luftmensch Records has a Nilsson, it’s Elle. If I could rent a billboard proclaiming them the True One, I would. Sign of the times listening indeed.
Dusk is available for purchase on Bandcamp and streaming all over.
Upcoming shows:
- 8/7 - 529 - Atlanta, GA
- 9/11 - 529 - Atlanta, GA
Elle
Dusk EP
- Doubt
- Saturdays and Nights
- Unwritten Rule
- Can We Go On
- Final
- It Wasn’t That Long Ago
xoxo,
Marshall Y
Luftmensch Records“Songs build little rooms in time”
7 Likes
okay so closing the loop on this, it was pretty rough! based on some of the rules/guidelines they sent out beforehand (i.e. no showboating, give other players space, stick to the original, etc.) I assumed it was attracting some real hitters, but I think for ~half the people there it was their first time playing with others or in public. the whole vibe was like, relentlessly positive and supportive, which I find a little uncomfortable for reasons probably worth interrogating at another time. I mean, it’s fine for them, I just hate ever feeling like I’m being humored. that said, I’d do it again, but the next one conflicts with a show where I’m filling in with another sad girl indie singer songwriter type. or like, they don’t have a normal bassist, I’m not filling in for anyone per se, but I’m not “in” the band either. these distinctions are very important.
elsewhere, we’re in the middle of recording an album for the usual sad girl indie singer songwriter type I play with. the studio is absurdly well equipped, the room sounds great, I assume it’s costing and arm and a leg but everything about the sessions feels a little loosey goosey in terms of planning. I’m not paying for it, so not my problem, but it is a little jarring to work w someone who has the kind of ease & optimism that I associate with a life of things always working out for them. reminds me a lot of people I grew up around! anyway, we did the major tracking for 8 songs in two evenings, got roughs back for half of them and she now wants to redo one, taking it in a different direction. since it’ll probably never see the light of day, here’s the one on the chopping block.
I think we sound pretty good! I’m definitely overdoing it a little.
6 Likes
i enjoy your low end stylings, very melodic and energetic, lots of interesting harmonic ideas
i really enjoy the “overdoing” it since the rest of the tune is pretty sparse, kinda wish for a lean-in with the percussion matching your energy here
3 Likes
ty!! I think there’s meant to be another guitar part filling in the upper register with more ambient stuff but at this point 
2 Likes
are you bass or guitar on this? i think the bass is good especially!
i think the drums are lagging behind/not fully in sync with the bass in several spots. think they’re trying to be a little too adventurous with the brush drumming and it just feels like it’s lagging/not quite there in places. honestly they probably need to pull back some of the rolls and stuff and make it tighter, cuz it really saps the energy from the track not having the drums enough in sync with the bass.
this is also definitely something that needs at least one more layer of guitar, if not a keyboard because nothing else going on is really dynamic enough to take that space. the mixing is in kind of an odd place between being too reverbed to feel like a dry and off the cuff performance, but not nearly textured enough to really feel spacious. but i’m also generally just not a fan of this singing style because it’s so common and doesn’t draw any attention to itself so that doesn’t help. it reminds me of some of the more jazzy/adult contemp songwriter songs my older brother has written, which are among my least favorite of his (like this one, tho i will say the keyboards at least help fill out the texture in his tracks more). like i said the bass is good though!
1 Like
ty this is all very helpful feedback! I wouldn’t make too much of the mix though, this is basically straight to the board w some vocal reverb and nothing else done to it yet. I’m on bass, and that’s about the extent of my engagement in the project, like I offer advice but it’s not really my show to run. and I totally agree w you about the brush work, I’m almost wondering if they used bass and drums from two different takes. much to consider…
2 Likes
put out a new meauxdal EP today:
4 Likes
Lily went out to drink with a friend of ours, and I was invited too but I was feeling too down to want to drink especially in a crowded bar, so I stayed home and made some guitar recordings in an effort to lift my own spirits. I think these are my two favorites.
When I’m on my meds again I might try making some backing tracks to play to with my various softsynths. As it is it’s really hard for me to focus on any kind of fiddly composition activity, but I can still improvise on guitar as easily as always. This instrument has been a perennially important part of my life I think partially because of that.
I kind of wonder if there should be some sort of “musical diary” thread for stuff that’s just part of your daily process or the like, or like work-in-progress etc., since this thread seems to be more kind of focused on finished release type stuff, and I know I for one generate a lot of material that I’m not sure of yet that way at least in the moment, but I think material like that can be fun to share and talk about in its own way and I’m sure other people here generate their own material like that as well…I need to go to bed but maybe I’ll start one later on (of course if someone else is raring to obviously they’re welcome).
5 Likes
I like your instrument sounds and harmonic sensibilities ^^
1 Like
2 Likes
the castlevania vibes on ysilcan are so sick, especially the way the chord syncs with that upward sliding trill sound e.g. 1:38
here’s something i’ve sat on too long:
4 Likes
epilepsy warning on this! be aware before you click
4 Likes
love those chords!
CANIAS HAVING A LISTENING PARTY FOR THEIR NEW ALBUM IN LIKE 10 MINUTES GO GO GO
3 Likes