10 Albums To Check Out This Bandcamp Friday

It’s the first Bandcamp Friday of 2024. That means an absolute avalanche of fascinating releases to sift through. Worry not, we’ve been filtering and sorting all day in search of gems to share.

This month, we’ve got breakbeats aplenty. We’ve got more bagpipes than one might expect. We’ve got some unexpected ambient from Ital Tek. We’ve got dancefloor ammo from Homemade Weapons. We’ve got blissful, blissed-out shoegaze home recordings from Windy & Carl. We’ve even got audio archaeology with some rare excavated vinyl of early Tarab recordings from Beirut courtesy of Canary Records.

Without further ado, here are 10 albums worth checking out this Bandcamp Friday!

10 Albums for Bandcamp Friday, February 2024

Body Habitat – Calla Lily (L.I.E.S. Recordings)

Trancy industrial beats with a NewAge glow on this cassette from Body Habitat, an offshoot of the German Army project. Like Muslimgauze writing songs about the Mojave Desert.

Cyclop Toad – Wigs

New one on Portland’s Heterodox Records from recent transplant Cyclop Toad. Wigs is a paradise of artful breakbeats and sci-fi ambiance. Read our full review of Cyclop Toad here.

Ital Tek – Death By A Thousand Cuts (Just Isn’t Music)

Ital Tek returns with an EP of mostly gorgeous beatless ambient with just enough moody beats to keep things interesting. Music for light cycles.

Ron Morelli – Rhythm Master Volume 1 (L.I.E.S. Recordings)

Six tracks of raw-as-fuck beat sculptures from the L.I.E.S. Recordings labelhead. Lean, mean, stripped-down Techno, heavy on rhythm, light on humanity, dosed and radioactive with psychedelic sci-fi effects. Pressed on blood red vinyl.

Muslimgauze – Kashmiri Queens

Interesting late-era Muslimgauze document finds Jones in a more focused zone, letting the trancy Arabic beats play out rather than the cut-and-paste Middle Eastern dub he favored so much at the end of his life. Repress on green vinyl.

NEKPΩN IAXEΣ – Cosmogony

NEKPΩN IAXEΣ is an experimental dark ambient compilation featuring Andrew Liles on electronics and Sakis Tolis of Rotting Christ doing spoken word. Like a ritual taking place around an old Commodore 64 in a seaside cave in Greece. Beautifully chilling.

Nicky VA – Dron (Far Out Cassette Club)

More bagpipes. A live recording of far out drones on Far Out Cassette Club, featuring an eclectic lineup of bagpipes, cello, and drums. Unique.

VA – Tarab Vocal Art in Beirut, 1908​-​23 (Canary Records)

Tarab means “enchantment.” It’s a vocal style of Arabic music meant to mesmerize the audience with its warm, spellbinding vocal melodies. Canary Records continues their world-class sonic archaeology with these ultra-rare archival recordings compiled from very early vinyl.

Weaponry – Disarm.1 (Disarm Series)

Sprawling collection of militant jungle and drum ‘n bass from Homemade Weapons and collaborators. Steely, stripped-down dancefloor ammo, sleek and polished as Swiss machining. Not to be missed.

Windy & Carl – Unreleased Home Recordings 1992 – 1995

Windy & Carl have more imagination and creativity in one 4-track demo than many bands have in their entire career. Here you have an opportunity to hear some of the duo’s cassette sketches from their earliest days. It’s an absolute treasure chest of dreamy drones and trance rock from some of the best in the game.