Grapefruit Reissue. See also: The Garbage & The Flowers - The Deep Niche
Am I calling this dead stock? Somehow there's still copies kicking around of these two incredible examples of Southern Hemisphere artrock reissued by Grapefruit in 2016, each telling its own story of DIY self-determination and singular vision. Bill Direen's Builders' project were (are?) a prolific outfit, in one form or another, though Beatin' Hearts is perhaps closest to being the definitive statement, a melodic, lop-sided exploration of romantic misanthropy that unsettles and warms in equal measure. And a debut album too! Imagine! A vital component in an NZ underground arsenal not short on them. And if romance is what you crave, than the Garbage and the Flowers are in hand to sate your desires. Deep Niche is notable for documenting the sounds the band made before their cultishly-adored debut, and captures a group in effortless first flow, reaching around their influences (the Velvets at their most withdrawn; the second generation of wide-eyed bands that followed them ala Galaxie 500, Opal et al; 70s British folk) and shaping their own mystic properties. There's fewer albums I've listened to more intently these past few years than Deep Niche, fewer songs still than 'St Michael of the Angels' and '29 Years' that i've yet to truly get to the bottom of, ultimately unknowable divinations cast in the foggy glow of lo-fi hiss and secret language. Incredible stuff. Essential barely covers it. If you've not explored already, now you've the easy option to correct your course.
