Knives, the Planet Mu sub-label run by Kuedo and Joe Shakespeare, is very aptly named. It just is. Though it sounds like a cheap jab (which, yes maybe it is) so much of the music is sharp in many senses. Starting with Jlin’s dimension-shattering debut, the label’s music is consistently intelligent and unblunted. Every release (many of which we’ve reviewed) falls into those categories.
And, behold! Yet another does the same with this upcoming LP from Los Angeles’s Nicholas Zhu, a.k.a. bod [包家巷].
Limpid Fear [清澈恐惧] is comprised of multiple arrangements cut and spliced (knife joke??) into a “mixtape,” with two discreet sides and otherwise no boundaries between the musical ligaments. It arrives on the label on August 17 as a limited-edition cassette.
Below you can stream a segment of the record — a braggadocios display of Zhu’s fluency with digital textures and futuristic sample treatment. The label writes that these tracks not only highlight Zhu’s contemporary songwriting, but draw influence from the instrumentation of their Chinese heritage as well. It’s full-bodied and immersive, leaving very little on the cutting room floor. (Am I nudging hard enough?)
The cassette is packaged with a double sided risograph print, which features original calligraphy by Jade Novarino and artwork by Tea Stražičić that triggers my distinct phobia of medusozoa. You can pre-order the tape or digital album now via Bandcamp. How about the edge on that segment, huh? Really just cuts you to the core!
Limpid Fear [清澈恐惧] tracklisting:
01. Side A
02. Side B