Nirosta Steel - MY SKYSCRAPER - glittering lost treasure dance pop, arthur russell-adjacent, needs its own thread

out of nowhere a "lost treasure" kind of release and one of the brightest i've ever heard. weightless queer joy as fgti and ivy point out on the arthur russell thread. i think this release and mr. steel deserve their own thread.

https://ulyssa.bandcamp.com/album/my-skyscraper

Adore this - there's a delightful August-Darnell-but-sloppy vibe running through this.

I love the casual asides and improv quips sprinkled throughout, when I listen again I will note some faves

this EP is really great too:

https://buddhistarmy.bandcamp.com/album/foxy-pup

and this collection of 80s/90s tracks
https://buddhistarmy.bandcamp.com/album/dry-ice

Truly exceptional. Lots of mystery/intrigue/courage I find missing from much left field pop at the moment. 100% addicted.

Real dereliction of duty that Pitchfork hasn’t reviewed this yet.

A 40 min version of this record would be truly tip top.

So smitten with this totally weird and beautiful record

when I listen again I will note some faves

- wacky falsetto on "YHEMA" and the line "you have eaten my sister" lol wtf

- "you think you're so funky, I can smell you from here"

- "I got news for you, you're not that cool.... well maybe"

- "we got a million DJs, young and sporty guys"

I also wanna note that Peter Zummo's trombone is absolutely exquisite on these tracks

great interview with joshua minsoo kim

https://toneglow.substack.com/p/tone-glow-231-nirosta-steel

thanks

The other big influence was Al Green, his album Belle (1977). It was produced in his home, and he’s playing acoustic guitar on that and it’s the most amazing guitar playing.

OK I gotta hear this

Love this album.

I was expecting the Russell similarities production/arrangement wise, but the resemblance in vocal approach can be truly startling at times.

I expected the usual suspects here.

I like this album a lot.

YHEMA is still slaying me. The growly fake Muppet voice doing call and response vocals!

we got the Isley Brothers on the CD player (young giiiiiirls)
we got Marvin Gaye on the CD player (woo!)
we got George Jones on the CD player (ahhhhhhh)

yessss

Oh my god, 'Yhema'. Incredible.

it really is, that's the one that gets stuck in my head

A 40 min version of this record would be truly tip top.

― mr.raffles

Yes, agreed. If you trim the fat and cut down to 12-ish tracks instead of 17 it becomes perfect.

"my name is night" is like, impossibly sexy. cot damn

Yes, agreed. If you trim the fat and cut down to 12-ish tracks instead of 17 it becomes perfect.

― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Monday, July 13, 2026 2:29 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

sounds like youre more a fan of sequencing and curation

some of this is utterly brilliant and some of this is a bore, which has also generally been my experience with arthur russell

NYC look who is DJing on the two nights:

Nirosta Steel returns to NYC for two nights only this September, Pleasure Systems opens one. buy your tickets https://t.co/UNuFQXIaJ4 pic.twitter.com/siXvLYhDlR

— Clarke (@pleasuresystems) July 15, 2026

i wanted to go but instantly sold out ofc

The Tonearm with the business:

https://www.thetonearm.com/i-still-miss-someone-the-boys-of-nirosta-steel/

Cool to learn that he (like Jim Jarmusch and Lucy Sante) was a student of Kenneth Koch.

great interview!

get ur new date 9/12 tix now, just copped mine

sold out :((

Show up and say you're the handpicked opening act. (You needn't say whose hand, though of course it's ours.)

when he sings "if you could see the world in your eyes / you'd never cry again" i realize it's one of the best songs i've heard