ALTERED GEE has been receiving tons of love recently from folks like Foxy Digitalis (a perfect 10/10: "Really, you’re going to want everything you can get after having a small taste of “European Gees,” so the tape is essential. For whatever reason, this just seems to hit a sweet spot in the ears. This is one of those albums you’ll want to put on repeat and then make all your friends listen."), Cassette Gods (Favorite Tapes of 2011: "What a great surprise. This is a 19 year old kid making extreme chillout R&B/electro that completely tops every synth and drum machine album released this year."), and even local blog/zine Dispatch (Jakob Battick's Top 5 of 2011: "It’s like witnessing some self-taught keyboard virtuoso perform his own bizarre misinterpretation of The Chronic, while messed up on all sorts of supplements, and it’s just beautiful. You can listen to it over and over and over (and over) again but still be fascinated, and that’s the reason it takes my #1 spot.").

So it's no real surprise that the cassette we pressed a few months ago is now sold out. The last remaining copies are available locally (Portland, ME) at Moody Lords and Strange Maine, and worldwide via DNT Records. 

Also down to just a couple copies each of Planets Around the Sun's WE O WE and Jared Fairfield's Mysteries.

We're gettin close on the Cursillistas Observe Ember Weeks LP release, expect an update by the end of the month.

All orders that were placed during our holidaze sabbatical will ship this week; thank you for your patience! Thanks everyone for a killer 2011!

2006-2011: FIVE YEARS OF BRAIN OFFERINGS

TWO NEW LIMITED ANALOG RELEASES
[brainshadows 7", oracle offering cs]

  

Well, here we are folks... five years.

In early-December 2006 we announced the first-ever L'animaux Tryst release, and since then, we've had the privilege to bring to light some of the most far-out esoteric music being quietly recorded in and around Portland, Maine. We can't thank you enough for all the support throughout the years; suffice it to say we wouldn't still be here without the continued enthusiasm of you all, near and far.

Earlier this summer we quietly celebrated the 5-year anniversary of the release of Cursillistas' Thrush Chimes in the Field Haunt on Time-Lag Records; this was the CD-R that put the gears in motion for the L'animaux micro-label enterprise in the first place. The entire album is streaming online for free for the next few months, with the option to buy lossless audio download of the whole thing for $5.

In other news, we are working on finally revamping the entire dot-com website - the first update in over two years, during which the site had lapsed into total obsolescence. What you see over there now is an interim solution until we launch something all-new in 2012. It's a very necessary update; thank you all for your patience while the site got so bad we nearly abandoned it completely a few times.

We've been hustlin, tryin to get the Cursillistas Observe Ember Weeks limited edition LP ready before the end of the year, but it looks like it'll be delayed until January or February. All the records have arrived but we're waiting on the 4-layer silkscreened covers. Pre-orders will ship as soon as they're ready, and we've set the new tentative release date at January 31, 2012.

For now, we are excited to announce two new limited edition releases to close out the year:

LTFR-714-MONO: BRAINSHADOWS: "WILD CHERRY" b/w "RIPE"

FORMAT: 7" [45 RPM]   //   EDITION: 200   //   RELEASED: 12.01.11   //   $5.50 + shipping

BRAINSHADOWS is the new hard-pop duo of M.Lajoie & D.Aquarius, exploring a love of trash cinema, echo-chamber mono 45s, pulp sci-fi paperbacks, adults-only comix, Detroitrock, and Rockers. This debut 7” smothers space-echo pop with the psychedelic technicolor grit and grime of a Bakshi / Corman urban sewer. Wah'ed synths and fuzz guitars lift up heavy basslines and off-kit percussion, with nice & ruff soft-focus vocals appearing like phantoms, all produced in engulfing heavy MONO. A-side "Wild Cherry" brings home some tuff teenage motorcycle love-in vibrations; an intravenous alternate soundtrack to a Beyond the Valley of the Dolls party scene. On the flip, "Ripe" is genuine lovers rock dub-pop, with plenty of wah and hazed & hushed come-ons: an abstracted ode to the magick of early Keith Hudson and Horace Andy sides.” Recycled black vinyl 45rpm 7" held in a pro-printed full-color sleeve. Limited to 200.
_________________________________

LTFR 034: ORACLE OFFERING: HOWL'S ANGELS

FORMAT: CS [c40]   //   EDITION: 50   //   RELEASED: 12.01.11   //   SOLD OUT

Following last year’s soft-focus stunner Beyond Aquaria on the Cabin Floor Esoterica label, Oracle Offering serves up a full-length cassette steeped in the audio nexus of supernatural horror and Gnostic pagan ritual. An altar built in honor of tape-hiss, vedic synth meditation, and full-moon white witchcraft receives a visitation from a gnarly half-human gang with a taste for female flesh. Lurking behind the sympathetic string reverberation, airy synth atmospheres, and cool-breath choral incantation is the heavy hand here to crash the party: engines rattle, howls are emitted, the coven shrieks, a far-off church bell chimes. A fully-formed VHS [oc]cult classic with all the dialogue removed, this cassette is the last thing you want to meet at the end of a dark alley; a nightmare treasure in the basement of an abandoned cabin in the woods. Recorded, mixed, and dubbed in a 100% analog process from start to finish. Hand-labeled opaque lavender cassettes with full-color pro-printed double-sided j-card, held in a green-tinted case.  Limited to 50.

_________________________________________

These new titles--as well as all currently-in-print L'animaux-and-related releases--are now available at the new L'animaux Storefront.

Anybody who pre-ordered the Brainshadows 7" and would like to add the Oracle Offering tape to their order, please contact lanimaux @ gmail.com as soon as possible to combine shipping. Any questions, just send an email and we'll get it sorted out.

As is our usual practice, all shipments will cease between December 11th and January 1st. Any orders placed during that time will ship immediately on January 2nd, 2012.

Many thanks, as always, to all of you far and wide! 2011 was a great comeback year for L'animaux, and we still have a handful of copies available for many of the releases (Concord Ballet Orchestra Players, Planets Around the Sun, Altered Gee, Pete Fosco) so head on over to the new storefront and catch up on what you might've missed out on.

See ya in 2012...

☮MLJ

Lightning strike Lightning's Creepy Power art edition cassette is now sold out. As such the "any 3 tapes" special has been transformed into a three-tape package of the remaining new releases (Pete Fosco, Planets Around the Sun, Altered Gee) for just $13 + shipping. Order now at the storefront. 

Orders have begun shipping; any orders placed prior to September 27th will be shipped out by the end of the week.

Thanks everyone! 

TONY CLIFTON'S RANCH = DUB PALACE OF SIN
FOUR NEW LIMITED CASSETTES
[pete fosco, planets around the sun, altered gee, lightning strike lightning]
+ TWO NEW VINYL PRE-ORDERS
[cursillistas,  brainshadows]

Been awhile, friends... been kept busy on the Herbcraft tip, had a great summer in support of Ashram to the Stars LP, thanks to everyone who helped set up gigs or stump'd for the record...

Breakin' the L'animaux silence here with four brand-new limited-edition tapes, home-dubbed, hand-assembled, etc. These are mostly ready to go except that we're waitin on the inserts to come back from the print shoppe... so we're taking orders now and they should be ready to ship in about a week.

In the longer-run, we've got two new vinyl projects at the pressing plant, which will be released in late-October. They are both extremely limited editions of around 200 copies, so we're starting to take pre-orders now for folks who want to reserve a copy. All pre-orders taken will be for a discounted price up until release day, and for a limited time we're offering a special combo deal: just $17 + shipping for both the upcoming Cursillistas 12" LP and Brainshadows 7" single. Scroll furthur for more info...

And... get your feet wet with the new L'animaux Tryst podcast, "Way Far Out", available for stream and free download. 10 tracks from the past, present, and future...  

L'animaux Tryst's 33rd Congressional Report vol.2: "Way Far Out" by L'animaux Tryst

With love,

MLJ

NEW RELEASES:

LTFR 028: PETE FOSCO: VACATIONLANDED
FORMAT: CS [c43]   //   EDITION: 75   //   RELEASED: 09.13.11   //   $5.00 + shipping

While electric guitar mangler / vibe-generator Pete Fosco may call Kentucky home, he is nonetheless a man smitten with Maine. After a trip up the coast to Acadia and Belfast last summer (which included a show with MV & EE and Herbcraft at the now-sadly-defunt Roots & Tendrils), Fosco was so inspired that when he returned home he sat down in front of some warm tubes, strapp’d on a six-string, and let rip on some true Vacationland meditations. What we’ve got here are four extended improvisations/compositions for solo electric guitar, with Fosco bending, growling, coaxing, and summoning tones with fingers, slides, and other mystery implements. The sounds evoke dusty winds streaking across the Desert of Maine, Northern Lights shimmering from atop Cadillac Mountain, and vertiginous views from Pemetic. Sometimes sparse (Fosco is a master at the pregnant pause), sometimes as swirling and dense as a January blizzard, the soundtrack Fosco creates is a heavy homage to the dark mystery and latent wonder of exploration in the Maine wilds.

Black shell cassettes with hand-painted and typed labels, held in polybox with full-color, pro-printed insert on vellum, enclosed in a piece of a vintage map of Maine. Limited to 75.

________________________________

LTFR 031: PLANETS AROUND THE SUN: WE O WE
FORMAT: CS [c43]   //   EDITION: 75   //   RELEASED: 09.13.11   //   SOLD OUT

Ditching the domestic life for a stint of wild-abandon nomad drift, Planets Around the Sun departed from Maine in July to unplug and roll on down the line… WE O WE is their parting gift to the musical community that launched them into new orbits. Drawing from every era of the band’s career and pointing forward to new phases, it is a carefully crafted full-length mixtape of past trysts and future haunts. From the opening acousto-electro instrumental shimmer we move to a stretched-out heavy drone-folk version of the classic White Light side “Saraswati”, here completely re-figured with the addition of guest baritone guitar and cello from local duo South China. The Ian Paige solo excursion “Agnes” follows, with drones and steel strings lulling raga moves into your atmosphere; once the tablas and electric guitar hits, you’re halfway between Demolition Derby and Country Stash, truly a vapor to be savored and returned to often. The B-side hits with “We Owe”, a possession-ceremony standard with netherworld vocal chants circling around watery bass wobbles and wah’ed synth stabs. This flows into “May Day” and its extended doom-dub treatment “Version”, moving from Velvety melodic guitar-scorched psych to a half-tempo high-stepping astral-funk groove. But enough about the past. Planets point to their present/future with the closing track, a cracked lo-fi country-folk tune that serves as their on-the-road calling card. Sure to be a counterculture hit in 22nd-Century America.

Hand-written (in white paint) cassettes held in a case with full-color pro-printed art, featuring a reproduction of a totally psychedelic needlepoint by Paige’s grandmother. Limited to 75.

______________________________________

LTFR 032: ALTERED GEE: EUROPEAN GEES
FORMAT: CS [c69]   //   EDITION: 75   //   RELEASED: 09.13.11   //   SOLD OUT

It may be counter-intuitive to think of “G-funk instrumentals” as a possible product of an icy and blizzed-out Maine winter, but holed up at the House of Hits (aka Hit Factory) in Winter 2011 with an array of analog synths (SEIL OR 400 for the highs, Moog Taurus II for the lows) and hip-hop golden-age drum machines (E-mu SP-1200, Drumulator, and Korg DDD-1), Key Jr. Dee Jay and Slouch formed Altered Gee amid a thick cloud of purple smoke and didn’t stop making hits til the tape ran out. Recorded entirely on 8-track cassette(!), the deep-grooved trunk-rattlers on European Gees ride that line between suave Euro electro-futurism and dank, dirty, post-Zapp R&B boogie and G-funk, all stretched out, heavy-lidded and dazed. Weightless, pitch-shifting, portamentoed synth lines arc over and around each other, anchored by heavy-bounce syrupy-thick bass and Slouch’s ace reverbed-out kick’n’clap beats. This is dance music with runtimes long enough (in the case of “Magnum Opus”, 15+minutes of synth-funk ecstasy) to get lost in the transcendence of the groove. The song titles say it all: “Dowsed”, “Funky Airs”, “I Wanna Lay You Down And Feel You Up”… this is some sexy, fonky shit, ideal for sittin low in your Coupe de Ville and gettin scandalous in some sweaty bedsheets.

69-minute white cassettes with individually-chrome-painted and typewriter-engraved labels, held in a case with full-color pro-printed j-card designed by the band. Limited to 75.

Check out the preview on their Bandcamp page.

_______________________________________

LTFR 033: LIGHTNING STRIKE LIGHTNING: CREEPY POWER
FORMAT: CS [c40]   //   ART EDITION: 33   //   RELEASED: 09.13.11   //   SOLD OUT

Way back in 2008, The Wire magazine named Lightning strike Lightning’s “The Moon” 7” single as one of the top 10 of the year, while Foxy Digitalis’ Brad Rose remarked that they were “quickly becoming one of my favorite bands” while naming it the Best 7” of the Year. So what’s been going on since then? Public silence; private Creepy Power. After four long years of hermetic writing, recording, re-recording, editing, mixing, re-mixing, and so on, LsL finally emerges once again with their second full-length, the follow up to their 2007 disc Turn Myself Into The Ocean. Many of the original ingredients remain (worldless female haunt-vox, busted mini-amp guitar growls, tom-violating rhythm tracks, banjo ruffs) but are in service to arrangements that are both tighter and more expansive. Moments of breathless spectral visitation bloom alongside forest-folk recitations, bell loops drawn out to time-bending drone, heavy dirge remembrance, and general free-form folkery. While the murk of of the previous recordings has been dialed back a bit on Creepy Power, the gossamer echo chamber that remains—combined with the slightly-higher-fidelity—makes for a smoother ride and headier drift; this is one to get lost in.

SPECIAL ONE-TIME-ONLY ART EDITION: Clear cassettes with in-house screen-printed labels, held in a case with double-sided reversible pro-printed j-card, each with a one-of-a-kind Land camera photograph taken by band member S.Turley with tracklisting handwritten on back, held in a sewn fabric sleeve. Limited to 33.

_____________________________________________________________ NEW VINYL PRE-ORDERS

LTFR 1204:
CURSILLISTAS OBSERVE EMBER WEEKS 12" LP

PRE-ORDER SPECIAL: $14
Long-delayed "lost" Cursillistas album, begun recording in January 2007 (post-Les Biches; pre-Wasp Stings) and originally conceived of as the proper follow-up to the more song-based Thrush Chimes CD-R from 2006. After two-and-a-half years of writing and recording, the album was abandoned, only to be completely remixed, remastered, and re-sequenced from heaps of cassettes and zip disks in 2010-11. Many songs were previously only available on tour-only CD-Rs & tapes in demo form - this is the only proper release of the mostly-unheard "studio versions" of this material, which made up much of Cursillistas' live set between 2007 and 2009. Pressed onto deluxe 150-gram black vinyl and housed in a heavy cotton stock art paper sleeve, with five-layer silkscreen print and two-sided insert. Limited to 225 copies. 

 

LTFR 714:
BRAINSHADOWS "WILD CHERRY b/w RIPE" 7"
Debut single from this new "hard pop" duo of D. Aquarius and M. Lajoie, which smothers Spector-era space-echo pop in the psychedelic technicolor grit and grime of a Bakshi / Corman urban sewer. Wah'ed synths and fuzz guitars lift up heavy basslines and off-kit percussion, with nice & ruff soft-focus vocals appearing like phantoms, all produced in engulfing heavy MONO. A-side "Wild Cherry" brings home some tuff teenage motorcycle love-in vibrations; an intravenous alternate soundtrack to a Beyond the Valley of the Dolls party scene. On the flip, "Ripe" is genuine lovers rock dub-pop, with plenty of wah and hazed & hushed come-ons: an abstracted ode to the magick of early Keith Hudson and Horace Andy sides. Recycled black vinyl 45rpm 7" held in a pro-printed full-color sleeve. Limited to 200 copies.

PLANETS AROUND THE SUN: TOWER CS and WHITE LIGHT & CURSILLISTAS: TRAVEL LIGHT CS now SOLD OUT.
Eclipse Mailorder (USA), Tomentosa (USA), and Norman Records (UK) will have copies available in the coming weeks.

Only two copies left of the Concord Ballet Orchestra Players 2xCS art edition as of Thursday afternoon. Email lanimaux@gmail.com to grab one before they're gone!

Thanks everyone for the orders! They'll start hitting the mail on Monday.

MLJ

L'ANIMAUX HQ = ICE PLANET HOTH

THREE NEW LIMITED CASSETTES

[planets around the sun, concord ballet orchestra players, white light & cursillistas]

With the ever-present danger of being permanently snowed-in, it's a fairly typical January  here in Maine... And while actual windows-down road-trip days seem pretty far off at the moment, we can at least offer a variety of new soundtracks to your favorite metaphorical/metaphysical trip of choice...

Deep waters beneath the floe:

LTFR 026: PLANETS AROUND THE SUN: TOWER

FORMAT: CS [C-32]  //  EDITION: 45  //  RELEASED: 01.25.11  //  SOLD OUT

WITH AN OUT-OF-PRINT DEBUT CASSETTE [GOLD, DIGITALIS LTD.] UNDER THEIR ASTEROID BELT (AND A DOUBLE-LP WAITING IN THE WINGS), PLANETS AROUND THE SUN EMERGE FROM THEIR PSYCHIC SABBATICAL TO PRESENT THE TOWER CASSETTE. SELECTED FROM NEARLY THREE YEARS OF DOCUMENTED EXPERIMENTATION, THESE FOUR TRACKS PLAY LIKE RADIO TRANSMISSIONS FROM EXTENDED TRIPS INTO A STARLESS VOID, RETURNING WITH THE MESSAGE THAT PSYCHEDELIA ISN'T ALL PAISLEY AND PEPPERMINT SWIRL. THE CURIOUS PSILOCYBIN-NAVIGATING OPENER WINDS INTO THE RITUAL DOOM-MARCH OF LONG-TIME LIVE STAPLE "SLOW HORSE", HERE CAPTURED IN ALL ITS BLOWN-OUT LIVE-FI GLORY. A TAPE-FLIP REVEALS EVEN DARKER ROADS AHEAD: WAILING ECSTATICS PULLED SUBTERRANEAN, SURFACING FOR AIR  TO THE OBEAHICALLY-WARPED INNER-GROOVES OF A POSSESSED BLACK ARK DUBPLATE. THE TAPE RUNS OUT ON AN ORGAN-AND-WAH-PEDAL-STOMPING FREE-PSYCH JAM, AMBIENTLY RECORDED AMONGST THE BLIPS AND WHIRS OF THE SPACE VESSEL'S ELECTRONICS RUNNING ON ZERO-GRAVITY AUTOPILOT. A MIXTAPE FOR YOUR NEXT TRIP ALONG INNERSPACE HIGHWAYS, TOWER IS STRICTLY LIMITED TO 45 HAND-NUMBERED HOME-DUBBED BLACK FOIL CASSETTES, PACKAGED IN FULL-COLOR PRO-PRINTED HEAVY STOCK J-CARDS IN NORELCO CASE.  

---------------------------------------------------------------

LTFR 027: CONCORD BALLET ORCHESTRA PLAYERS: FIRST ANNUAL NORTH FALMOUTH ORGAN SLAUGHTER
FORMAT: 2xCS [CHROME C-49 & C-55]  //  EDITION: 75  //  RELEASED: 01.25.11  //  PRICE: $8.00 + SHIPPING

AFTER BEARING WITNESS TO A COUPLE MIND-BLOWING LIVE SETS BY THESE PSYCHEDELIC TRUTH-SEEKERS, WE ARE COMPLETE CONVERTS TO CONCORD BALLET ORCHESTRA PLAYERS' CAUSE AND ARE PROUD TO BRING THEIR EPIC ANALOG DEBUT DOUBLE-CASSETTE AUDIO-TOME FANFOS TO THE PHYSICAL REALM. CONCORD BALLET GATHERS TOGETHER A CREW OF THE BOSTON-AREA'S FINEST KRAUT-WORSHIPERS, SPACE-ROCK PSYCHONAUTS, AND IN-THE-MOMENT FREE-IMPROV EXPERIMENTALISTS ONTO A SINGLE SPRAWLING STAGE, RESULTING IN A WIDE VARIETY OF HEADY CINEMASCOPE-WORTHY JAMS. DOCUMENTING CBOP RELATIVELY EARLY IN ITS EXISTENCE, FANFOS SUGGESTS A PARTICULARLY WIDE-OPEN CANVAS AND TECHNICOLOR PALETTE OF POSSIBILITIES (GHOSTLY THEREMIN, FLUTE, CASIO BANKS, ELECTRIC GUITAR DIVINATIONS, GROOVING BASSLINES AND EDGE-OF-SEAT DRUMS), LEADING THE LISTENER DOWN PRISMATICALLY-VARIED PATHS AS THE BAND NAVIGATES THRU THE PERPETUALLY-MANIFESTING "NOW". RANGING FROM BRIEF MYSTERIOUS VIGNETTES  TO MAJESTIC SIDE-LONG MINDSCAPES, THESE TRACKS WERE RECORDED WITH A FLY-ON-THE-WALL LIVE QUALITY THAT DOESN'T OMIT TRIPPED FIRE ALARMS,  OFF-MIC SNEEZES, OR STUMBLES, ALL OF WHICH REVEAL CONCORD BALLET TO BE DEVOUT BELIEVERS IN AUTHENTIC IMPROVISATION AND PSYCHEDELIA. EXPERTLY MASTERED BY GREG DAVIS AND PRO-DUPED ONTO PREMIUM CHROME TAPE, FANFOS IS LIMITED TO 75 COPIES AND PACKAGED "AUDIO-BOOK STYLE" IN A WHITE VINYL FOLDER, WITH PRO-PRINTED FULL-COLOR COVER ART.  ALSO INCLUDES A DOWNLOAD CODE FOR A COMPLEMENTARY DIGITAL COPY, FOR EASIER TRACK-BY-TRACK PARSING OF THIS MASSIVE MISSIVE.

[LIMITED ART EDITION ALSO AVAILABLE - SEE BELOW]

LTFR 027AE: CONCORD BALLET ORCHESTRA PLAYERS: FIRST ANNUAL NORTH FALMOUTH ORGAN SLAUGHTER ART EDITION

FORMAT: 2xCS [C-49 & C-55]  //  EDITION: 25  //  RELEASED: 01.25.11  //  PRICE: $10.00 + SHIPPING

SAME ALBUM AS ABOVE, BUT ALSO INCLUDES FIVE HAND-NUMBERED ART INSERTS: A FILMSTRIP-STYLE COLLECTION OF 24 PHOTOS FROM THE TITULAR "ORGAN SLAUGHTER" ON A COLD BEACH IN NORTH FALMOUTH, MAINE, FULL-COLOR PRO-PRINTED ONTO TEXTURED ART PAPER. HAND NUMBERED LIMITED EDITION OF 25 COPIES. DUE TO EXTREMELY LIMITED NUMBER OF COPIES AVAILABLE, PLEASE EMAIL LANIMAUX@GMAIL.COM TO ORDER THE ART EDITION.

-------------------------------------------------

LTFR 1203CS: WHITE LIGHT & CURSILLISTAS: TRAVEL LIGHT
FORMAT: CS [CHROME C-40]  //  EDITION: 45  //  RELEASED: 01.25.11  //  SOLD OUT

ORIGINALLY PRESSED AS AN EXTREMELY-LIMITED (150 COPIES) TOUR-ONLY VINYL SPLIT 12" BACK IN JUNE 2009 AND LONG OUT-OF-PRINT, TRAVEL LIGHT MADE A BRIEF RETURN TO CIRCULATION LAST MONTH TO COMMEMORATE A SINGLE WHITE LIGHT REUNION SHOW IN PORTLAND, ME. IT REMAINS A DOCUMENT OF TWO OF L'ANIMAUX'S ORIGINAL FLAGSHIP BANDS DEEP WITHIN TRANSITORY PHASES THAT HAVE--FOR THE MOMENT--FOUND SOME RESOLUTION IN THE REALMS OF PLANETS AROUND THE SUN, HERBCRAFT, AND ENDLESS CAVERNS. HOME-DUBBED NEEDLE-DROP BOOTLEG-STYLE DIRECT FROM THE ORIGINAL VINYL PRESSING, TRAVEL LIGHT IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE FIRST TIME TO THE WORLD AT LARGE IN THIS SMALL LIMITED CHROME CASSETTE EDITION.

"[White Light's "We Do True"] somehow manages to capture everything that was great about the golden age of American underground rock: noisy guitars, great melodies, and effortless, disaffected cool. ... Ian Paige is a hell of a songwriter and “We Do True” is one of the best songs I’ve heard this year." - FOXY DIGITALIS

"On "Crutches" [Cursillistas] invoke the spirits of Hapshash or Quintessence, Bells and chants echoing over spacey backing... Centrepiece of side A is "That Great Stone", a glorious example of modern Psychedelia, drifting, spacious and very special, the track containing an ambience that is hard to pin down but beautiful to experience, the guitar flourishes adding depth to the piece. Following on, the music descends into a deep-rooted drone as "Rewa Dokpa" re-wires your soul, the music as cleansing as a mountain spring, just lie back and soak it up. Having recovered sufficiently to turn the disc over, White Light immediately re-align the senses with their particular brand of Psychedelia, the Hapshash vibe in full effect again as "The Root Of All Evil" guides us into their world. On "Five Horses" a mellow bass groove ushers us into a smoky woodland grove, Guitar, Banjo and Percussion weaving together to create a silken tapestry of wonder, possibly my favourite track on the LP." - TERRASCOPE

---------------------------------------

In addition to these new titles, we still have a few copies left of Jared Fairfield's Mysteries cassette, the Gorman Trio / Sacred Basil split cassette, and Endless Caverns' Magi Hymnal cassette... grab them from the storefront before they're gone... and as always, out-of-print titles can be purchased via Tomentosa and Eclipse mailorders.

We'll also have copies of the brand-new Endless Caverns cassette Sensei Deprivation Tape on Existential Cloth Recordings by the end of the week... feel free to place an order now at the online store.


If you're interested in keeping up with L'animaux, consider joining the mailing list (email lanimaux [at] gmail.com) or Facebook group.

Keep warm, till next time,
MLJ 

LTFR 024 - TEMPERA // ENDLESS CAVERNS ESTRANGED MANE split cassette is now sold-out.

Also sold out of all copies of the HERBCRAFT PAPERS cassette on F.I.T.
Down to the last few copies of everything else... Tomentosa and Eclipse will have copies available soon in their distros.

All domestic and most overseas orders have now shipped; the few international orders left will ship next week [Nov 30].
M☮L

L'ANIMAUX DRINKS THE MOON  //  THREE NEW LIMITED CASSETTES
[tempera, endless caverns, jared fairfield, gorman trio, sacred basil]

Wheels are turning and machines are purring once again at the L'animaux Tryst HQ, a gentle wave of activity not seen around these parts in a little while. Deep fall hibernation vibes are keeping the tea kettle on, mukluks on at all hours, and hi-fis glowing warmth in every room as we dub, draw, fold, cut, paste, repeat....

For now, some new limited edition tapes to feast yer ears on ... preview many tracks via the 33RD CONGRESSIONAL REPORT #1 podcast, available for download & streaming now @ Foxy Digitalis.

Everything can be ordered in an automated fashion from our new L'ANIMAUX STOREFRONT, or as always you can feel free to simply email your order to lanimaux [at] gmail [dot] com.

L'ANIMAUX TRYST FALL CATALOG 2010

NEW FEATURED ITEMS:

---------------------------------------

LTFR 023: GORMAN TRIO  //  SACRED BASIL: UNTITLED SPLIT
FORMAT: CS [C-25]   //   EDITION: 60   //   RELEASED: 11.09.10   //   SOLD OUT
DOCUMENTING THE FIRST OF SEVERAL LIVE COLLABORATIONS BETWEEN SONIC AMBASSADORS FROM GORMAN [J. SPENCER], CURSILLISTAS [M.LAJOIE], & WHITE LIGHT [I. PAIGE] DURING THEIR WEEK-LONG US TOUR IN 2009, "EXALTED (MOST HIGH)" WAS COVERTLY PERFORMED IN THE BASEMENT OF THE CLINIC [BLOOMINGTON, IN] WHILE THE PROSPECTIVE AUDIENCE WAS STILL PORCH-BOUND. THICK TONE-DRONES FOR THE THICK MIDWEST SUMMER EVENING AIR; FREE-DRIFT NOTES FOR THE RECREATIONAL HIGHS OF THOSE "HIT THE ROAD" DAYS. THE FLIP-SIDE IS A PREVIOUSLY-UNRELEASED SNIP FROM THE SACRED BASIL SESSION THAT BIRTH'D THE DAY OF SIX BILLION CASSETTE [CABIN FLOOR ESOTERICA #7], AN OPEN-FIELD / FREE-RANGE JAM OF RECIFEIAN ACOUSTIC STRINGS, BELLS, PRE-LANGUAGE VOX, AND CREAKING FLOORBOARDS. UNSELFCONSCIOUS HOOTS CAPTURED LIVE AT NEW WYRD 33. HAND-LABELED SAPPHIRE-FOIL TAPES PACKAGED IN AN ART PAPER J-CARD SLEEVE, WITH 60 COMPLETELY UNIQUE INDIVIDUALLY HAND-DRAWN/WRITTEN AND COLLAGED COVERS, HAND-NUMBERED TO 60.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

LTFR 024: TEMPERA  //  ENDLESS CAVERNS: ESTRANGED MANE
FORMAT: CS [C-40]   //   EDITION: 45   //   RELEASED: 11.09.10   //   SOLD OUT
TWO IMPROVISATIONAL PORTLAND ACTS PAY TRIBUTE TO A FAVORITE SPOT IN THE LOCAL UNDERGROUND SCENE: STRANGE MAINE. THIS USED RECORD/TAPE/BOOK/CURIO SHOP BY DAY TAKES ON THE OCCASIONAL TRANSFORMATION INTO THE MOST FREEWHEELING VENUE IN TOWN, AND IS THE SITE OF SOME OF THE GREATEST LIVE SETS WE AT THE L'ANIMAUX CAMP HAVE EVER WITNESSED. ON THIS TAPE, TEMPERA DROPS THEIR FIRST NEW RELEASE SINCE 2009'S STELLAR SELF-TITLED 12"; THIS 19-MINUTE SESSION WAS RECORDED LIVE IN MAY 2010 AND WAS PERFORMED USING JUST TWO MICROPHONES AND MORE DELAY/ECHO/LOOP PEDALS THAN BAND MEMBERS. THE RESULT IS OF AN ENVIABLE SUBTLETY, THE SOURCE WHISPERS AND WHISTLES BENT TO UNIMAGINABLE ANGLES AND LENGTHS UNTIL ONLY SPECTERS REMAIN. ENDLESS CAVERNS' CONTRIBUTION FINDS WHISPS OF CRACKLY ELECTRIC GUITAR LEADS MINGLING WITH DUB-INSPIRED BASS, VOCALS, AND PERCUSSION, ALL STRETCHED OUT IN A HALLUCINATORY TIME-ZONE WHERE EACH TWEAK IN THE CHAIN ADDS A NEW LAYER OF HAZE TO YOUR ALREADY-CLOUDY VISION. HAND-LABELED OPAQUE BLOOD-RED TAPES IN NORELCO CASE, WITH PRO-PRINTED FULL-COLOR "WINDHAM HILL-THEMED" J-CARDS HAND-NUMBERED TO 45.

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LTFR 025: JARED FAIRFIELD: MYSTERIES
FORMAT: CS [C-29]   //   EDITION: 75   //   RELEASED: 11.09.10   //   SOLD OUT
AS HUMBLE-YET-IMPRESSIVE IN VISION AND EXECUTION AS ANY CLASSIC UNDERGROUND ALBUM SHOULD BE, THIS OUT-OF-NOWHERE EP FROM RURAL MAINE'S JARED FAIRFIELD IS SO ON-POINT THAT ONCE IT CROSSED OUR PATH WE KNEW IT HAD TO FIND A HOME ON L'ANIMAUX TRYST. WORKING A FOUR-WAY CROSSROADS OF PAGAN UR-FOLK, AQUARIAN PSYCH-POP, CONTEMPORARY UNDERGROUND, AND FUTURE SOUNDS, FAIRFIELD MOVES HIS REMARKABLE VOICE THRU TIMELESS TUNE AFTER TIMELESS TUNE, FAINT VAPOUR TRAILS OF PAST SKEWED-POP CLASSICS ON THE PERIPHERY. ALONG THE WAY, THAT VOICE IS JOINED BY DEFT GUITAR FINGERPICKING, AUTOHARP STRUMS, DRONE/PURE SOUND, A RICH TAPESTRY OF PERCUSSION, AND EVEN ONE SABBATH-WORTHY FUZZ BASS BREAKDOWN, ALL COMPOSED AND ARRANGED WITH QUIET CONFIDENCE AND WARM FIDELITY. THE TITLE TRACK IS ONE OF THE BEST SINGLES WE'VE HEARD ALL YEAR, AND ONCE YOU'VE MOVED PAST THAT PARTICULAR EARWORM, REPEAT SPINS REVEAL NEW DEEP VISIONS LIKE EACH QUARTER-TURN OF A KALEIDOSCOPE. HAND-LABELED WHITE TAPES IN AN OVERSIZED, PRO-PRINTED FULL-COLOR TEXTURED ART PAPER SLEEVE, TIED CLOSED WITH WOOL YARN, HAND-NUMBERED TO 75.Jared Fairfield- 'Mysteries' 

In addition to these new limited magnetic-tape offerings, the online shop has a few distro items that L'animaux-related bands [HERBCRAFT, CURSILLISTAS, ENDLESS CAVERNS] have released on other fine labels [Digitalis, Cabin Floor Esoterica, Hello Sunshine, Fuck-It Tapes], as well as older items that are still in print.

For a more transparent rambling experience, check in with the new 33RD CONGRESSIONAL REPORT Tumblr, where we're regularly posting new, forthcoming, and unreleased tracks, mixtapes, videos, oddities, upcoming events, etc. in 12pt. Rockwell [where available].


ENJOY THE EARTH'S BOUNTY  //  HORN OF PLENTY  //  CORNUCOPIA
M J L J☮

...as this particular site drifts into "archival" mode real quick...

...and with the official dot.com gathering moss and weeds...

a couple new sites for increasingly-relevant L'animaux Tryst-and-related updates:

L'animaux Tryst's 33rd Congressional Report

[posts include new and old recordings from members of the L'animaux family and beyond, mixtapes/podcasts, previews of upcoming albums, videos, "happenings" (live events), and redirects of note -- generally updated a couple times a week or more]

L'animaux Storefront

[this is where you can buy things from us via Paypal buttons]

next batch of new releases due in a couple weeks!

the dual tape deck has been ablur making some real-time clones thruout September & October for the following:

LTFR 023: GORMAN TRIO  //  SACRED BASIL - untitled split-CS [c25; ed. 60]

LTFR 024: TEMPERA  //  ENDLESS CAVERNS - ESTRANGED MANE split-CS [c40; ed. 45]

LTFR 025: JARED FAIRFIELD - MYSTERIES CS [c29; ed. 75]

look for a digital c45 mixtape of tracks from these albums along with tracks from other upcoming releases by PLANETS AROUND THE SUN, CURSILLISTAS, LIGHTNING STRIKE LIGHTNING, BAD BUS, and field recordings captured in and around the 33rd Congressional Offices thruout 2010.

pre-orders and preview podcast next week!

L'animaux Tryst Presents: Field Recording #01:
Winter Solstice, December 20, 2009
HFS Annex, Biddeford, Maine, USA

"Wondrous Love", performed by Tempera, Tin Ceilings, Hersey State, and the congregation.
Planets Around The Sun's hands extend
in honor and acceptance
of the sun's shortest day.
Lit candles and rung bells
Evoke the prayers of every denomination
All-One
in compassion and love and communion.

This, the environment
in which Tempera
with thirty fingers on one piano
feet on depressed sustain,
evoke notes and overtones
refracting and melding into
opaque & transparent sound.

Commandment IV:
"Allow each vibration to complete its own cycle without interference"

Emily Dix-Thomas (Hersey State) bows
horsehair on metal strings
and something emerges
Older than all of us--
a hymn--
Randy Illian (Tin Ceilings) & Corinna Marshall (Tempera)
lead the congregation
in a praise
of "Wondrous Love"

This is Field Recording #01. 


Download "Wondrous Love"


In this field recording: Tempera
Tin Ceilings
Emily Dix-Thomas / Hersey State
Planets Around The Sun 

Further documentation of this event:
Hilly Town
HFS Annex

Next installment: Field Recording #02: "Casiodrone"

Friends,

L'animaux Tryst is back.

This winter:

"Field Recordings" online series.

Planets Around The Sun cassette.

Tempera cassette.

Bad Bus - "Too Bright (#5)" cassette.

Lightning strike Lightning.

Earthcraft. 

In the meantime, 

sun is just

tempera | 

 

Thanks for your orders, everyone... Looks like the Cursillistas / White Light Travel Light LP is totally sold-out at this point. Eclipse Records and Time-Lag might still have copies, and a few are going to Tomentosa soon. Good luck! LTFR

L'animaux Update, 8.21.09: new Cursillistas; White Light & The American Drone Band Hey everyone, quick announcement that the Pre-Order period for Cursillistas' Les Biches and Tempera's Tempera LPs & CDs are officially over... all pre-orders have been or will ship as of this evening. For anyone who missed out on the pre-order, or if you were just saving your pennies till the records were ready to ship, now's the time! They're disappearing fast! LTFR 1201: Cursillistas' Les Biches (co-released with Time-Lag Records) 12" 180gram black vinyl LP, held in a letterpressed art paper jacket with silkscreened interior, photo-corner-mounted vellum insert sheet, includes a pro-pressed CD version of the album (with minimalist alternate packaging), and held closed with a hand-sewn button & clasp enclosure. Very limited edition of 300 - only a few copies left! $17 + shipping - click here to order and for more info. CD version alone: Exact-duplicated LP artwork, offset-printed onto art paper (same as LP), with a three-panel fold-over design with soft spine, pro-pressed CD and offset-printed vellum insert. $10 + shipping - click here to order. LTFR 1202: Tempera's Tempera 12" crystal clear vinyl LP, held in in-house silkscreened double-sided fold-out poster-style sleeve, includes pro-pressed CD version of the album (with bonus track!) that is packaged with exclusive art full-color printed on art paper sleeve. Strictly limited to 300 copies. $15 + shipping - click here to order and for more info. US customers, order both and for a limited time get FREE shipping via Media Mail. Canada and Worldwide, email first for a shipping quote on combined shipping. Now, a few special items... since these are so limited, please email first for availability before sending payment: LTFR 1203: Cursillistas & White Light's Travel Light Ultra-limited split-12" from our tour, featuring 20 minutes apiece of all-new and exclusive material from Cursillistas and White Light. Lightweight, black 12" vinyl LP held in art paper half-sleeve, with gold & maroon mandala cover art two-color silkscreened on the front side and a back-flap with liner notes offset-printed in maroon. Super limited to 150 copies; only a very few left. $14 + shipping. LTH 713: Cursillistas' Peace Pipers cassette (c-45) I know a couple months back I said these would be exclusive to the Tryst Haunt subscribers, but thanks to a print shop that gave us a bunch of extra sleeves, combined with the fact that some folks haven't taken advantage of the free tape swap option, there are a few extras kicking around that should be in your hands. Exclusive jams that add up to a prequel or addendum to the Joint Chiefs LP out on Digitalis later this year (see below for more info on that). 45 minutes of headspace dustbowl jams that are a perfect complement to your zoned-out summer heatwave evenings. Limited to 100 copies on transparent sapphire-blue tapes, wrapped in a full-color printed textured art paper sleeve, held together with a piece of golden yarn; few left. $6 + shipping. LTFR 020: White Light & The American Drone Band's 4.14.79 Dark, dank, blissed and pissed jams from a Portland all-star cast. Members of White Light, Tempera, Cursillistas, Visitations, Computer At Sea, Planets Around The Sun and many more congregating under the full moon for a good ole fashioned howlin'. Vocal moans, analog synth tones, dueling Crazy Horse-style guitar leads, and a crazy wasted drum circle. All in good fun, of course. Tracing a line from Amon Duul I to Sun Ra to the new weird hypnogogic, this is a celebration of "the now drone" ... this is an exploration of "the dub" ... this is the story of "the drum" ... Stay in the rhythm. Two extended improvised pieces, pro-recorded by Pete Nanortes and lovingly pieced together by your emcee, Ian Paige. 28 minute mini-album, on white-top CD-R, with pro-printed CD insert sleeve on textured art paper, limited to 100 unnumbered copies. $6 + shipping. And one more item to mention, which is, Cursillistas' Joint Chiefs LP is now up for pre-order from Digitalis Recordings. Limited to 200 copies total, with a great exclusive pre-order bonus (Headband Tapes bonus cassette, pin designed by Cursillistas, and an early mp3 download of the album way before the release) it would be wise to reserve your copy now. $19 US, $22 Canada, $30 Worldwide for the special edition, so get to it! You can also preview tracks from the album at that site and at Cursillistas' Myspace.