Missed Albums: Tan Cologne, Little Mazarn and Black Watch

Last week had some solid record released, all of which have made it onto our site in some single or another, but, I was wrapped up in paid employment options on Friday, so I missed out on these. But, there’s never a bad time to check in on great music.

Tan Cologne – Unknown Beyond (Labrador)

This is definitely a record to sit with. The New Mexico duo create these cavernous pop songs, playing with the negative space between ringing notes and offering shadowy excursions into, well, the unknown beyond. Everything on the album feels like its own life force, its own vibration. Here’s the album closer.

Little Mazarn – Mustang Island (Dear Life Records)

While the Austin bunch is known for their traditional folk leanings, this new album illustrates a new lightness, accompanied by the slightest step into modernity. Little electronic flourishes come to life, such as on “Dark Pleasure of Endless Doing,” which might be one of my favorite tunes of the year.

The Black Watch – For All the World (Atom Records)

If you treasure a prolific songwriter, let me introduce you to John Andrew Fredrick. As the lead songwriter of the Black Watch, he’s been pushing out records at an astonishing pace, though he chose to double down by crafting a double LP this go round. I love the approach, as you get heavier punches on tunes like “Surely You Rally,” but you also get some deeper arrangements in the pop realm like “Achilles Past.” If my days were filled with time, I’d do a track by track breakdown, but by then, John would likely already have another LP ready.