hey let's have a Peaking Lights thread
936 was one of my favorite records of 2011
on first listen the new one "Lucifer" is sounding super chill
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
love the new album cover too. very krautrock.
full album stream:http://soundcloud.com/weirdworldrecordco/sets/peaking-lights-lucifer
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
really feeling this - came to 936 way late, think i prefer it to the new one
― kanye kardashian (lex pretend), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
seems like the new one tilts a bit more toward burbling/bubbling/twinkling electronic textures, where 936 was mainly about big basslines and more explicit dub sounding stuff
I'm liking it though
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
I thought the last one was pretty decent, but I'm disappointed that the awesome cover doesn't seem to be translating to a much heavier krautrock vibe on the new one - at least not judging from the tracks I've heard.
― heated debate over derpy hooves (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:49 (1 year ago) Permalink
def. not heavy but not all krautrock is heavy. it's more on the ambient electronic side.
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:52 (1 year ago) Permalink
I guess I didn't really mean "heavy", just that the two tracks I've heard didn't really read very krautrock at all.
― heated debate over derpy hooves (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 20:53 (1 year ago) Permalink
DUDES
peaking lights lady is the lady from NUMBERS
― the late great, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:05 (1 year ago) Permalink
i don't know, this one might be even closer to straight dub than the last one, at least in terms of the rhythms & parts. it definitely has some big basslines. sounds great but kinda makes me want to listen to 936.
xp
― 40oz of tears (Jordan), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:08 (1 year ago) Permalink
they used to live a couple blocks away from me but i didn't really know it until they moved away. and i had dinner with some folks the other night who had a phone pic of PL playing in their garage, w/the baby in a sling.
― 40oz of tears (Jordan), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:13 (1 year ago) Permalink
DUDE, I did not know that.
Numbers were kinda irritating, they seemed like something I should like but I sold the one record of theirs I bought (the one with the yellow cover)
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:16 (1 year ago) Permalink
heh, that's how i felt about the entirety of the tigerbeat scene and the extended idm/glitch electropunk axis
i had a roommate and coworker (still coworker) who is a pretty white-bready dude from wisconsin, very cool but also kind of a norm if that makes sense. and i was all CHECK OUT THIS RAD BAND FROM WISCONSIN!!!!! and he was like UHHHHHHH and i feel dumb now because i should've realized they are hipster transplants from SF
― the late great, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
love the new album cover too. very krautrock
krautrock w/ a spritz of chillwave
― the late great, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
for some reason I thought Peaking Lights lived up in Seattle / Portland thereabouts, didn't know they're in Madison
I'm seeing them at Woodsist Fest in August. them and Pierced Arrows are the bands I'm most stoked about on the bill.
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
not in madison anymore, moved to l.a. iirc
― 40oz of tears (Jordan), Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:40 (1 year ago) Permalink
haha well, there ya have it
― dmr, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 21:41 (1 year ago) Permalink
perhaps you are thinking of mexican summer labelmates and fellow tripster power couple honey owens & adam forkner?
― the late great, Wednesday, 13 June 2012 22:04 (1 year ago) Permalink
i've had the bassline from 'midnight in the valley of shadows' in my head for the last couple days
― 40oz of tears (Jordan), Thursday, 14 June 2012 19:21 (1 year ago) Permalink
i have not heard peaking lights as far as i know but i will continue to hold the bias i have against them because i confuse them with pretty lights
― they loooovin the crut (The Reverend), Friday, 15 June 2012 02:41 (1 year ago) Permalink
also from wisconsin iirc?
non-peaking-lights-digging roommate was a big pretty lights fan.
― the late great, Friday, 15 June 2012 05:16 (1 year ago) Permalink
It was my FAVORITE record of 2011. full stop
― polyphonic, Friday, 15 June 2012 05:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
pretty lights are def not from wisconsin, and are much worse. but i'm pretty sure that even the kids who love pretty lights don't listen to the records, they just go to the shows.
― 40oz of tears (Jordan), Friday, 15 June 2012 13:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
Peaking Lights dude's solo stuff as Faceplant mines a Zuckerzeit vibe. At least, it does on the split 12" with Bitchin Bajas.
― Trip Maker, Friday, 15 June 2012 13:59 (1 year ago) Permalink
― they loooovin the crut (The Reverend), Thursday, June 14, 2012 10:41 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
don't think you'd like them
― carly rae (flopson), Friday, 15 June 2012 19:22 (1 year ago) Permalink
i liked 936, had a nice bullwackies vibe to it
― am0n, Friday, 15 June 2012 19:48 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah, 936 was amazing. i didn't really hear it until it landed on a bunch of year end lists (including ilx's?). i dig the mixes they put out occasionally, too.
― Mad God 40/40 (Z S), Friday, 15 June 2012 19:50 (1 year ago) Permalink
i love how the first keyboard tone in "Live Love" = the startup noise for macs
― Mad God 40/40 (Z S), Friday, 15 June 2012 20:13 (1 year ago) Permalink
Listening to 936 just made me realise how completely my musical tastes have changed over the past 5 years. Like, 5 years ago, I would have been all over this record, I would have thought it was perfect. But now it's just strangely unsatisfying and I'm not sure exactly why.
― a cake made of all their eyes (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Friday, 15 June 2012 20:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
Bitchin Bajas
― If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be An Airport, Friday, 15 June 2012 20:50 (1 year ago) Permalink
Huh? I love this record. What do you mean? These tunes are stuck in my head for days, makes me want to iie on the grass in the park and drink prosecco all afternoon.
― MikoMcha, Friday, 15 June 2012 22:11 (1 year ago) Permalink
Loved '936' and am loving this new one, too. Damn is it sounding perfect on a hott Friday afternoon...
― alpine static, Friday, 15 June 2012 22:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
936 was great great great. Took me a while to get into it, but once it clicked, I loved it.
Out of curiosity, Lex: I remember you not taking to the whole echo-ey productioin on 936 back when first encountering it in the EOY threads. Has your opinion changed about that?
― robert mcnamara in reverse (loves laboured breathing), Saturday, 16 June 2012 02:06 (1 year ago) Permalink
i'm kinda w white chocolate on 936. nice sounds and vibes, always enjoy it when it's on, but it doesn't inspire much devotion or excitement in me. tunes don't stick in my head - nothing does, really. prefer the scruffier early stuff, tbh. still looking fwd to the new one.
― contenderizer, Saturday, 16 June 2012 03:54 (1 year ago) Permalink
lex?
nm, i see, couple days back
― contenderizer, Saturday, 16 June 2012 03:55 (1 year ago) Permalink
I think it's just me that's in the wrong headspace. I put it on and I just kept wishing that the songs were over so I could go and listen to something else. I think it might be the roughness and the indie-ness that is bothering me. But that might also be down to me being stuck in a weird obsessive groove where I only want to listen to one kind of music at the moment. And this just sounds like a dub-flavoured pot noodle compared to what my ears are craving. I should probably give it another chance when I've got out of this obsessive streak.
― a cake made of all their eyes (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Saturday, 16 June 2012 06:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
Lol it def is a dub-flavored pot noodle. Like I said, it didn't click right away for me. I had to listen to Belong and La Big Vic (and get some headphones) before I could fully appreciate it.
― robert mcnamara in reverse (loves laboured breathing), Saturday, 16 June 2012 12:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
I've not been able to really get into 936 either. Might give it another go ahead of the new one but I know what you mean about strangely unsatisfying.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:05 (1 year ago) Permalink
Hmm. I should investigate all this, it seems to be bringing together a lot of different ILX tribes.
― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:27 (1 year ago) Permalink
I must say I'm intrigued too.
― Sick Mouthy (Scik Mouthy), Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:29 (1 year ago) Permalink
If I'm gonna listen to Dub flavoured pot noodle, I'm gonna listen to someone like Rhythm & Sound or King Midas Sound which are probably the equivalent of those 59p fake pot noodle they sell in dodgy cornershops which actually taste ~amazing~ and really much better than actual Pot Noodle?
― a cheesecake made of all their eyes (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:36 (1 year ago) Permalink
Yeah I tried to listen to 936 again and got bored about four songs in. I really like the aesthetic they're trying to go for but there's an unresolved tension between 'hazy sunshine' and 'dark smokey room' that doesn't quite work for me. There's a kind of pale indie drone kid approach to it as well, neither the basslines nor the tunes really hold my attention.
Will still give the new one a go though.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:52 (1 year ago) Permalink
See, 5 years ago "pale indie drone kid" was totally my aesthetic, and now I feel the shame of an ex smoker about it. :-/
Also a Dub record without adequate bass is like a pot noodle without salt. You have left out the single most important ingredient.
― a cheesecake made of all their eyes (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Saturday, 16 June 2012 14:57 (1 year ago) Permalink
Bassline for "All the Sun That Shines" is great.
― robert mcnamara in reverse (loves laboured breathing), Saturday, 16 June 2012 15:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
Don't see either of these Peaking Lights albums as being straight dub, so the lack of bass isn't an issue.
― Position Position, Saturday, 16 June 2012 15:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
But the dubbiness is the thing that sets them apart from god knows how many other bands, in terms of making them interesting. Otherwise they'd just be x collection of chillwave signifiers all over again.
― Matt DC, Saturday, 16 June 2012 15:56 (1 year ago) Permalink
Interesting as a prospect I mean, unfortunately I'm not that interested in the music I've heard but I'm hearing enough there to want to keep trying.
yeah, i'm not a huge fan, but accusing 936 of being bad or fake dub misses the point. it's got some dub influence, but it isn't "dub music" per se (no more so than all those dub-influenced UK postpunk outfits). "indie drone" sounds pejorative but is fairly accurate. cousin to sun araw and emeralds. chillwave if we must.
― contenderizer, Saturday, 16 June 2012 15:57 (1 year ago) Permalink
It's not that it's fake dub or bad dub, it is just not dub.
I have finally, after 30 years or whatever, just reached the point where I've kinda listened to all the indie-drone I need in this lifetime.
I'm not criticising ppl who do like it! I'm just slightly disappointed I have no interest in this kind of music any more.
It's not you, Peaking Lights, it's me. Sorry. Bye.
― a cheesecake made of all their eyes (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Saturday, 16 June 2012 16:43 (1 year ago) Permalink
Somehow this got me thinking earlier of David J and his Bauhaus basslines; one reason why the band (and Love and Rockets for that matter) works is precisely because he was such a dub freak and wasn't trying to adapt it to a sound, instead it was the bedrock of a sound. (See also in a parallel place/context John Taylor indulging his inner Bernard Edwards.)
― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 16 June 2012 16:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
my first listen gives me the feeling that it may be better than '936'. the problem is still the fact that dunnis' deadpan-sweet vocals are way too upfront, leaving most of their tracks in a grey area between the dubby/pysch excursions and "pop" friendliness that really doesn't draw me into total immersion (or something like that...).
that's why in that indecision i prefer something like 'LO-HI' or 'Cosmic Tides' to the singalong of 'Love Live' (those kinda songs that veer too close to high places territory), if only because it takes the focus away from the vocals - like they're not trying too hard to find a song among the jam-like feel, leaving it to the sonic elements to take center stage.
then again, my favourite thing from them is still 'two songs for ceremony', so it must be my problem.
― rusty_allen, Thursday, 21 June 2012 11:49 (11 months ago) Permalink
Adoring Lucifer, more than 936 even I think. So airy!
― Tim F, Sunday, 24 June 2012 11:06 (11 months ago) Permalink
this record is a lot more complete than the other one, more groovy and deeper, but i can imagine listening to it a lot more too. really enjoying it.
LO HI is really good.
― Know how Roo feel (LocalGarda), Wednesday, 18 July 2012 21:08 (11 months ago) Permalink
it's great for summer. I like it a lot.
^^^ this is pretty much where I'm at
― dmr, Wednesday, 18 July 2012 21:16 (11 months ago) Permalink
top tracks for me are Dream Beat and Beautiful Son
― dmr, Wednesday, 18 July 2012 21:18 (11 months ago) Permalink
Yah this is still really great for me. I get cock chirea's Insides comparison too now - the melodies on Lucifer are so bright yet frail, not in the sense of being weak, but in the sense of being cast so delicately, like glistening spiderwebs.
― Tim F, Thursday, 19 July 2012 00:25 (11 months ago) Permalink
love this.
― jed_, Thursday, 19 July 2012 00:52 (11 months ago) Permalink
One Dove meets Velvet Underground uptown.
― henry s, Thursday, 19 July 2012 00:58 (11 months ago) Permalink
still love these albums. their live show, not so much. just not enough going on onstage. almost all of the music is on tape and the guy does some dubby fx on it while the woman sings but it wasn't really much to watch. their set did build some momentum as it went along through sheer low-end bass rattle but I dunno. not that great.
― dmr, Wednesday, 8 August 2012 17:42 (10 months ago) Permalink
really liking this new album, kind of a tropical Broadcast vibe, to give a very shallow first impression. Something about the dubbiness of the first one was a bit oppressive over the course of the album, but this is a lot more spacious while also having a very distinct atmosphere.
― tubular, mondo, gnabry (Merdeyeux), Friday, 14 September 2012 17:48 (9 months ago) Permalink
by 'first one' I inaccurately mean 936, I haven't heard the stuff before that.
― tubular, mondo, gnabry (Merdeyeux), Friday, 14 September 2012 17:51 (9 months ago) Permalink
http://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/15184/1/peaking-lights-lucifer-in-dub
Lucifer in Dub is streaming here now, I'm really liking it so far.
― o_o, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 18:39 (6 months ago) Permalink
I have difficulty parsing this music as dub in any way. I find the tag hugely confusing. Just sounds like 4ad on a boom box. Just cos the midrange gets turned down on the bassline doesn't automatically make it dub.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 22:24 (6 months ago) Permalink
echo, delay, note choices, rhythmic structure? i mean it's not joe gibbs but pretty clearly & heavily influenced by classic dub.
― have a sandwich or ice cream sandwich (Jordan), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 22:30 (6 months ago) Permalink
I really can't get into peaking lights
― puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 22:31 (6 months ago) Permalink
Like many in this thread I like the description of Peaking Lights more than the result.
No I still don't hear it. The rhythms are not dubby. The echoes are not dubby. They're just rhythms and echoes like in any modern music. For me, dub is as much about the groove as the sonic signfiers - the skipping, forward motion and the way the way the bass wraps around the beat; the syncopation and emphasis on the offbeat. These rhythms are played in a very straight beat-oriented style same as rock and techno. The echoes are just shoegazey washes of reverb as opposed to 3/4 delays. This sounds like the Cocteaus with a more prominent bassline and lower production standards. It's not that I don't like it - it's nice enough in its way. And of course you can take elements of a style (like dub) and alter it to fit a different aesthetic or style. But when people talk about Peaking Lights in this 'oh they're like dub mixed with Ze records and post-rock' this is not what I am expecting at all.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 22:48 (6 months ago) Permalink
^uh sorry, iPhone
The rhythms are not dubby.
Yes they are.
The echoes are not dubby
Dub doesn't have to be anything and doesn't have to be the thing you wanted or expected it to be, thankfully. It can be a shoegazy album with effects (not that i think this record is merely that). Saying that it sounds more like the Cocteaus than like a dub album does make me wonder if you have ears though.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 22:59 (6 months ago) Permalink
What? But that's like saying you don't have to be able to sit in a chair for it to be a chair. If I played you a Blur song and told you it was techno and then you said it wasn't techno, by this rationale I could say 'techno doesn't have to be the thing you want it to be'.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:02 (6 months ago) Permalink
dl i think you're being overly prescriptive, something can be dubby or dub-influenced without having much in the way of roots reggae signifiers. that said i think PL have plenty in the way of roots reggae signifiers (organ chords and percussion on the upbeats a lot of the time, 8th note heavy reggae-ish basslines, etc)
― have a sandwich or ice cream sandwich (Jordan), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:05 (6 months ago) Permalink
not sure if you (DL) are saying this after listening to the stream of the new one but it has a few tracks where the rhythms get fucked about w/ and are way less 'straight' than on Lucifer
― an area the size of Jimmy Wales (DJ Mencap), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:05 (6 months ago) Permalink
well DL Dunis is merely putting this out as a dubbier version of her recent record which is what this is. You're judging it against a claim that she hasn't even made for it.
FWIW i find it a bit exhausting to listen to although a couple of the incarnations seem better, on first listen, than the straight versions.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:11 (6 months ago) Permalink
Jordan otm. I wouldn't ever call Peaking Lights "dub", but I would definitely say that they are heavily influenced by dub and that is made pretty obvious by the music.
― HAPPY BDAY TOOTS (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:11 (6 months ago) Permalink
I don't see how Peaking Lights' use of the word "dub" is in any way more controversial than a billion artists before them - early Seefeel strikes me as being a good point of comparison in this regard.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:16 (6 months ago) Permalink
I'm listening to this now, Live Love as it happens, and seriously, these rhythms are no more dubby than anything else with a drum machine track and a bassline on it. In fact the beats land in a very grid-like way. I just don't see how this has any more of a dub influence than anything else with the odd phaser or echo effect thrown in. I don't think the note choices are particularly of classic dub, and besides the basslines are played really quite fast. If there's any sort of West Indian influence it would be something like early-mid '90s Bim Sherman type stuff which is more digital dancehall. Cosmic Tides, now yeah I guess the bassline is kind of dubby. But shit, it's a very plain and staid impression of dub. I can't help feeling it misses much of the point. But that's my opinion I guess.I'll grant you the cocteau's comparison is tenuous though - it's more to do with the use of drum machines and dreamy female vox.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:18 (6 months ago) Permalink
Fwiw I'm talking about lucifer
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:19 (6 months ago) Permalink
That was a few xposts.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:21 (6 months ago) Permalink
936 was much more overtly dub influenced so if you've heard that one first it's easier to hear the bits of it that are still there in Lucifer
― dmr, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:22 (6 months ago) Permalink
check out the new one linked above (the, uh, dub versions) or 936
― have a sandwich or ice cream sandwich (Jordan), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:23 (6 months ago) Permalink
seefeel use the dub to achieve a kind of stasis, though. this seems a bit manic but that's a fairly typical form of dub too. it's actually fairly close to the mad professor's take on protection but without the production chops imo. this is a bit headachy for me.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:24 (6 months ago) Permalink
but "no protection" is too.
a bit headachy, i mean.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:25 (6 months ago) Permalink
Dunis is merely putting this out as a dubbier version of her recent record which is what this is
according to the press bumph the dub edits were Coyes' work - not sure if she had any further involvement
― an area the size of Jimmy Wales (DJ Mencap), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:28 (6 months ago) Permalink
Xpost Well... I guess it's hard to separate dub signifiers from reggae signifiers anyway(for me at least). I always found dubstep to be a ponderous term because, despite the deep basslines an echoes, I couldn't really equate it with dub as far as my view of it went, if you see what I mean. As I say, dub for me in it's most vital sense is as much about the ebb and flow and 'feel' as it is about the rumbling bass and echoes because the latter two elements are pretty much ubiquitous throughout contemporary music anyway.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:29 (6 months ago) Permalink
I def wanna check out the dub versions of these.
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:30 (6 months ago) Permalink
see i think what you like is actually reggae
― have a sandwich or ice cream sandwich (Jordan), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:31 (6 months ago) Permalink
Never a truer word said ;-)
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:34 (6 months ago) Permalink
But i can hear the dub influence in, for example Primal Scream's Vanishing Point and a lot of Andrew Weatherall's work, and little of that has much to do with reggae on an explicit level
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:38 (6 months ago) Permalink
fwiw i don't like peaking lights as much as i think i could and the poor (imo) production values are the barrier. even in those podcasts she put out, 6 hours of mixes (i use the word loosely) some amazing track selections but woeful sequencing & jarring segues. that was obviously what she was going for though, for some reason.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:38 (6 months ago) Permalink
The word "dub" was also used in the 1980s for instrumental versions of vocal club tracks. A lot of these "dubs" weren't really all that "dubby".
― brimstead, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:43 (6 months ago) Permalink
it's 'he' that does all those mixes iirc
― have a sandwich or ice cream sandwich (Jordan), Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:44 (6 months ago) Permalink
ah ok.
― jed_, Tuesday, 4 December 2012 23:46 (6 months ago) Permalink
lol dog latin how do you feel about the term 'dub techno'?
― akadarbarijava (psychgawsple), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 02:28 (6 months ago) Permalink
confused because it means different things to different people. are we talking, like, Basic Channel or Dreadzone or what?
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 10:56 (6 months ago) Permalink
usually people mean dreadzone, when they talk about dub techno yes.
who are basic channel, btw?
― Heterocyclic ring ring (LocalGarda), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 11:01 (6 months ago) Permalink
how'd you get to be so smart, ronan?
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 11:17 (6 months ago) Permalink
http://rateyourmusic.com/genre/Dub+Techno/
― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 11:27 (6 months ago) Permalink
more like dreadfulzone amirite
― Albert Crampus (NickB), Wednesday, 5 December 2012 11:28 (6 months ago) Permalink
this is great! i didn't realize it was mastered by sonic boom before, but that makes a lot of sense.
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Wednesday, 9 January 2013 15:46 (5 months ago) Permalink
finally checked out Lucifer In Dub. not really any reason to listen to it instead of just putting on Lucifer imo.
― dmr, Monday, 14 January 2013 21:55 (5 months ago) Permalink