Antique Brothers - Hot Shit (Really Coastal CS)

Figured I'd keep right on cruising here with a reviewed representative each from a number of packages I've gotten in the last few days. Obviously more to come from all camps, but I figured I'd cover the grounds more broadly in this first batch.

Here's the second release from Really Coastal, which was actually sent to me months ago but the tape was ripped so I had to wait for this second copy to get around to it. Opting for a bigger serving than the first Lateral Hyetography cassingle this time, the label pro-dubs this c44 by folky duo and real life siblings Antique Brothers, which consists of Cyrus and Ged Gengras alongside guest appearances by my fellow Hudson Valley resident and Night Goat head Jeremy Kelly, Seth Kasselman, Caitlyn C. Mitchell and, on the flip side, Kyle Clements and Kelly again. Both "hot" and "shit" sides exhibit some nicely psychedelicized folk ramblings that focuses on sinking deeper into a cosmic stew than maintaining harmonic continuity, a nice and organic change of pace from a lot of those folks doing a similar thing.

The first side opens with a loping little number, banjo and guitar intermingling above an increasingly mobile and distorted back-beat featuring some feedback moves and thudding, drum circle and tambourine rhythms. It's a nice hazy vibe that doesn't lean too heavily on a fireside aesthetic. Instead it sinks into odd rhythmic scrambles and a less than quaint sonic palette. Slips right alongside some of that brothers of the Occult Sisterhood stuff as it builds and dismisses its grooves. Nice little journey that's not afraid to let itself get lost and found over and over.

Second side, or "shit" side in this case, is not quite as shitesque as I had thought considering the title. If the first side was "hot" in its grooviness though, I guess the second is "shit" in its relatively colder atmospheres. This is less shitty than it is downright chilly though, with thick organ chords backed by guitar picking and an overall brittle weight that builds into a nice and gloomy slide down sad mountain. Lots of space here, and everything is infused with a more electric and constrained attitude. Less a jam than an atmospheric exploration really, and quite nice. Seems these bros are everywhere right now--just released something on Not Not Fun if I recall...--and it's easy to see why people are so enamored. Really interesting and well conceived stuff. More on the way from Really Coastal soon!