Giles Corey

Giles Corey is a project created by Dan Barrett, a Connecticut musician who is also known for another project of his, Have A Nice Life. This particular project, Giles Corey, has been active since 2011 with the release of a self-titled album. It's garnered nothing but acclaim over the years, and for good reason. It's difficult to figure out a place to begin in describing this album (and all his work, for that matter). For one, and this is going to sound incredibly pretentious, but Barrett creates more than music, he crafts an experience. The atmospheres he creates are lonely, desolate, and most of all, engaging. From the artwork, to the book that accompanies this album, Giles Corey is a project that requires one's full immersion in. There is a clear, personal emotional intensity here, which simultaneously explores Barrett's own psyche, while also creating something for any listener to relate and indulge in. This kind of music is for the lowest points in life, and in exploring the darkest recesses of the mind, somehow a light at the end of the tunnel is found. Or something like that. Though though certainly are philosophical and emotional elements in his work, to quickly speak on the music alone here, it's absolutely fantastic. These atmospheres created with just an acoustic guitar, layers of breathy vocals, light percussion, and some background orchestral swelling reflects the depressive nature of this music alone, without even having to explore the book or lyrical accompaniments. Just by listening, this album still takes the listener on a conceptual journey through a person's depression and brink of suicide. I honestly can't recommend this enough.

What's essential here is the self-titled album, which also includes a booklet only included if you buy it on Bandcamp (which I highly recommend doing, but I've provided just the musical portion of it here). The follow-up Deconstructionist is technically not an album, but is described as a "philosophical tool". Again, I recommend reading more into it on Bandcamp, which also includes another booklet in its download. Hinterkaifeck is a fairly straight-forward EP, and Live in the Middle of Nowhere a fairly straight-forward live album (he even does some Have A Nice Life songs). Enjoy.

Giles Corey (2011)

1. The Haunting Presence

2. Blackest Bile

3. Grave Filled With Books

4. Empty Churches

5. I'm Going To Do It

6. Spectral Bride

7. Nobody's Ever Going To Want Me

8. A Sleeping Heart

9. Buried Above Ground

Deconstructionist (2012)

1. Awake Now

2. Infinite Death

3. Epsilon

Hinterkaifeck (2013)

1. Winter's House

2. Guilt Is My Boyfriend

3. Wounded Wolf

Live in the Middle of Nowhere (2013)

1. Blackest Bile

2. Grave Filled With Books

3. Guilt Is My Boyfriend

4. The Icon And The Axe

5. Deep, Deep

6. Earthmover

7. Wounded Wolf

8. Spectral Bride

Bandcamp

Keaton Henson

"You're my best friend, and I'll love you 'til one of us dies"

Gentle, delicate, beautiful. Heartbreaking. Keaton Henson is a solitary man from London, England, and he is an artist in every possible use of the term. Visual, literary, musical, genius. However, as astounding as his entire body of work is, it's his music that is the focal point here. Keaton soundtracks feelings of isolation, loneliness, loss, and longing. He details events in his own life, covering everything from his own anxieties to failing relationships. His topics may not be all that optimistic, but in these sorrowful songs, one can find comfort in realising that they are not alone in their feelings, even in loneliness itself. He conveys his lyrics in his hushed, quivering voice. It sounds like a child shivering under their covers during a storm, but with the pain known only to a man who has lived too much. And the result is emotionally astounding. His musical backing is usually just his guitar, which is usually fairly simple, but with such elegantly raw tones. The chords, dynamics, and overall tone is truly the sound of a guitar while it "gently weeps". He makes beautiful use of vibrato and fingerpicking patterns, with unconventional chord structures and tunings. This description sounds very folk-y, which to an extent, it is. But very somber, modern, and unique to him. Other instruments are used frequently to expand upon his skeletal haunting sound, which turn his songs into quiet, melancholic tunes into orchestrated sadness in swelling motions, crashing into the listener. Listening to Keaton, a layer of skin is taken off, and it's almost as if the vulnerability he displays in parallelled in you, as you feel yourself open up to your own feelings and the connection you make with his. This is a stunning musical experience, and one I highly suggest you try. Enjoy everything below, and hopefully find solace in knowing you are not the only one that relates to this.

Metaphors (2011)

1. Metaphors

2. Judging Books By Their Covers

Don't Be Afraid (2011)

1. Don't Be Afraid

Dear (2011)

1. Prologue

2. You Don't Know How Lucky You Are

3. Charon

4. Oliver Dalston Browning

5. Sarah Minor

6. Small Hands

7. Flesh And Bone

8. Nests

9. Not That You'd Even Notice

10.  Party Song

The Lucky EP (2012)

1. You Don't Know How Lucky You Are

2. To Your Health

3. Mary Celeste

4. Maps (Yeah Yeah Yeahs cover)

B-Sides And Rarities (2012)

1. Strawbear

2. All Things Must Pass

3. Sophie

4. Maps (Yeah Yeah Yeahs cover)

5. You Were Always On My Mind

Birthdays (Deluxe Edition) (2013)

1. Teach Me

2. 10am Gare du Nord

3. You

4. Lying To You

5. The Best Today

6. Don't Swim

7. Kronos

8. Beekeeper

9. Sweetheart, What Have You Done To Us?

10. In The Morning

11. Milk Teeth

12. If I Don't Have To

13. On The News

Sand (2014)

1. Sand

Romantic Works (2014)

1. Preface

2. Elevator Song

3. Healah Dancing

4. Field

5. Josella

6. Petrichor

7. Earnestly Yours

8. Nearly Curtains

9. Emissary

Website

Told Slant

Another for Mary.

Told Slant are a four-piece band from Brooklyn, New York. Their one album, Still Water, is absolutely beautiful. The band captures feelings of sadness and alienation in such stunning ways. Musically, they sound like a mix of Modest Mouse, I Hate Myself, and Teen Suicide. But they craft songs that are certainly have their own artistic merit. With lyrics that delve very deeply into the internal and external issues of Felix Walworth, the listener is caught with awe of their own feelings and situations being parallelled so intensely. The cracked croon and drawl of his voice only heightens this pain. It is the perfect audio accompaniment to thoughts involving personal, gender, and existential crises. The entire listening experience is very "intense". This catches one of guard, because nothing about this is in your face. Rather, the looming presence of sorrow and depression that is laden here is what sedates you. Still Water is an album to be experienced, and is highly recommend to check out. It goes beyond the "indie", "emo", any tag like that. It is a solitary work of art, reflecting the solitary mood of these songs. And it is ok to cry along. Enjoy.

Still Water (2012)

1. Parking Lots

2. Algae Bloom

3. In San Francisco

4. Lack

5. Heart Sinks

6. Ohio Snow Falls

7. Sleep In

8. I am Not

9. Pine Tree Lines

10. I'm Real

The Epoch Is Now Volume 2 (2013)

3. Sweater

Going By (2016)

1. I Don't

2. Green Nail Polish

3. Tall Cans Hold Hands

4. High Dirge

5. Eggs In A Basket

6. Low Hymnal

7. Tsunami

8. Delicate

9. Sweater

10. Wappingers Creek

11. Cannon Ball

Bandcamp

Facebook

Carissa's Wierd

This marks the 200th post here on Sophie's Floorboard, so thank you so much for all the support! I hope you've all found something to enjoy and continue to spread word about on here! Here's a band that I am so happy that gets requested so much, because they are easily one of my favourites.

It's winter. All that's in sight is the blurry white of the snow, and the dead branches reaching from the trees like limbs of other lost souls. In the distance, a shadowy cabin emerges, an isolated relic in this wasteland of ice and cold. Stepping inside, there isn't much more warmth, but the stillness does provide a sense of shelter from the torment outdoors. The layers of dust collected on old bookshelves and kitchen counters cover them like grey bed sheets. The floorboards moan and creak, like the sad whispers of Mat Brooke, both missing ones that were once there. The walls echo back with the voice of Jenn Ghetto, the ghostly accompaniment in harmonious tranquility and despair. From the dead winter of the forest, the drawn-out note of a violin, the soft plink of a piano key, the gentle tap of a drum, the intimate strum of a guitar slowly start to grow. And soon your head is in your hands, missing the only thing you've ever loved, now lost.

This is Carissa's Wierd, somber music for those questionably sober. Like the cabin in the woods, the band's history has been somewhat lost. Virtually no information is known about their time as an actual band, except that they were from Seattle, Washington, and existed from 1996-2003. Prior to the band, founding members Mat Brooke, Jenn Ghetto, and Ben Bridwell were all from Tucson, before moving to Olympia, Washington, and eventually ending up in Seattle. In 2010, they reunited to put out a retrospective album of "best of" material, as well as play a single reunion show. In 2011, the band played two reunion shows, as well as a put out a new EP, Tucson.

The first Carissa's Wierd album, Ugly But Honest, was put out on Bridwell's label Brown Records in 1999. It featured songs the band had been working on from 1996-1999, most of which are fairly stripped down and lo-fi in their sound. Featuring lots of reverb and distant vocals, as well as the distinctive melancholic guitar arpeggios, it is enough to drown the spirits in sorrow alone. Production value increased on their next release, You Should Be At Home Here in 2001, also on Brown Records. The songs become more expansive, with more length and exploration as the band become tighter as a group. This is an absolutely amazing with some stunning standout songs ("All Apologies And Smiles, Yours Truly, Ugly Valentine", The Color That Your Eyes Changed With The Color Of Your Hair", "Brooke Daniels' Tiny Broken Finger", "The Part About The Vine Thats Growing Through The Window And Reaching Towards My Bed"). The follow-up to this was their seminal album Songs About Leaving. This is easily one of my favourite albums ever, their most highly regarded, and overall the soundtrack to sadness. Each song is dripping with mourning and loss, and they weigh heavy on the listener, curled up in the fetal position. The production work is astounding, featuring the array of instrumentation seamlessly blending together, the harmonies are top-notch here, and the production work is an even bigger step up, since they worked with with Sad Robot Records (Bridwell temporarily shut down Brown Records). Unfortunately, this was also their swan song, since they broke up a little while after. The next release of theirs, Scrap Book, featured rare and unreleased songs from the band, some alternative versions of songs, and a handful covers by some very noteworthy names (The Smiths, Joy Division, John Frusciante, Leonard Cohen). 2004's I Before E featured three songs never released before (also some of their best), which were "Phantom Fireworks", "Die", and "Blue Champagne Glass". The remainder of the album is a live recording from their last show, which features songs from all three of their albums. For many years, the band was inactive. 2010 brought the compilation They'll Only Miss You When You Leave: Songs 1996-2003, which is a great introduction to them and contains some of their best work. They put it out on Hardly Art, a subsidiary label of Sub Pop. Their reunion in 2011 brought the two-track EP Tucson, which was newly recorded material.

Besides the beautiful music this band crafted that has too often gone overlooked, they are best known for their line-up of musicians who would go on to work on many notable projects. Their first drummer, who also joined them for their reunion shows, Robin Peringer, was a a touring guitarist with Modest Mouse for a while. Singer/guitarist Jenn Ghetto has been active with her solo project S both during and after Carissa's Wierd. I highly suggest checking out S, their sound is very similar to Carissa's Wierd. Singer/guitarist Mat Brooke has also been active in his own band, Grand Archives. Drummer Sera Cahoone has put out a few solo records with Sub Pop and collaborated with numerous musicians.The most notable project formed post-Carissa's Wierd was none other than the brilliant Band of Horses, who achieved a level of commercial success Carissa's Wierd never came close to. Band of Horses is the brainchild of Ben Bridwell, who was more or less a background figure in Carissa's Wierd, oddly enough. He began on drums and switched to bass in Carissa's Wierd, but took guitar, vocal, and songwriting duties on in Band Of Horses. On their first album, Everything All The Time, both Mat Brooke and Sera Cahoone are both members of the band, with Bridwell fronting them this time. Robin Peringer also worked with Band Of Horses on occasion later in their career.

So, please appreciate one of the most overlooked and underrated bands in indie rock history. This band means a lot to me, and I'm sure they do to a lot of people who they've reached with their music. Very few bands actually have the power to impact the lives of people, and Carissa's Wierd are definitely one of them. Their entire career was so consistent with awe-inspiring output (if recorded depression can be considered awe-inspiring). So I really encourage checking this band out, and if you head over to the Hardly Art website, you can get a really good deal on all their records, which I definitely suggest you look into. Enjoy.

Ugly But Honest: 1996-1999 (1999)

1. Heather Rhodes

2. Drunk w/The Only Saints I Know

3. Lazy Eyelids

4. To Be There Now

5. One Night Stand

6. Sitting In The Smoking Lounge Of An Airport With A Broken Heart

7. Blankets Stare

8. Fluorescent Lights

9. A Bathtile Green

10. Some Days Are Better Than Others

11. Alphabet On The Manhole

You Should Be At Home Here (2001)

1. Brooke Daniels' Tiny Broken Finger

2. The Color That Your Eyes Changed With The Color Of Your Hair

3. Halfway Spoken Heart That Feels Comfort In Everything Until It Disappears And Then Its Gone

4. A Loose Hair Falls Into A Glass Of Water Without Ice

5. Fear Not My Friend For Tonight We Ride

6. Blessed Arms That Hold You Tight, Freezing Cold And Alone

7. All Apologies And Smiles, Yours Truly, Ugly Valentine

8. The Ghost Of A Dead Hummingbird Flying Around The Room

9. The Part About The Vine Thats Growing Through The Window And Reaching Towards My Bed

10. You Should Be At Home Here

Songs About Leaving (2002)

1. You Should Be Hated Here

2. Silently Leaving the Room

3. So You Wanna Be A Superhero

4. September Come Take This Heart Away

5. Ignorant Piece Of Shit

6. The Piano Song

7. They'll Only Miss You When You Leave

8. A New Holiday (November 16th)

9. Farewell to All These Rotten Teeth

10. Sofisticated Fuck Princess Please Leave Me Alone

11. Low Budget Slow Motion Soundtrack Song For The Leaving Scene

12. (March 19th 1983) It Was Probably Green

Scrap Book (2003)

1. Sympathy Bush

2. Figure It Out

3. Sharin' A Hole

4. Unfaileable

5. Asleep (The Smiths cover)

6. Chelsea Hotel (Leonard Cohen cover)

7. Sympathy Bush Remix

8. Gauze (Red Red Meat cover)

9. Isolation (Joy Divison cover)

10. Curtains (John Frusciante cover)

11. Ugly Valentine

12. Heather Rhodes Remix

I Before E (2004)

1. Phantom Fireworks

2. Die

3. Blue Champagne Glass

4. Heather Rhodes

5. One Night Stand

6. Drunk With The Only Saints I Know

7. Brooke Daniels' Tiny Broken Finger

8. Bathtile Green

9. September

10. Ignorant

11. Blankets Stare

12. Fluorescent Light

They'll Only Miss You When You Leave: Songs 1996-2003 (2010)

1. Low Budget Slow Motion Soundtrack Song for the Leaving Scene

2. Die

3. The Color That Your Eyes Changed With the Color of Your Hair

4. One Night Stand

5. You Should Be Hated Here

6. Drunk With the Only Saints I Know

7. Phantom Fireworks

8. So You Wanna Be a Superhero

9. Brooke Daniels' Tiny Broken Fingers

10. Ignorant Piece of Shit

11. Blessed Arms That Hold You Tight, Freezing Cold and Alone

12. Blue Champagne Glass

13. September Come Take This Heart Away

14. All Apologies and Smiles, Yours Truely, Ugly Valentine

15. Sympathy Bush

16. They'll Only Miss You When You Leave

17. Sharin' a Hole (Bonus Track)

Tucson (2011)

1. Tucson

2. Meredith & Iris

Hardly Art

Website

Crywank

Crywank is the god of sad songs. Crywank (James Clayton) is from Manchester (I think), and has been crywanking since 2009. To date, he's put out three albums and a handful of demos.

Crywank is one of a kind. Truly unique. There's a fair bit of folk-punk influence (from the likes of Andrew Jackson Jihad and Paul Baribeau) and a hint of The Smiths, but neither is really defining. Crywank began as the result of the end of a relationship Mr. Clayton was in. This spawned the songs on his first album (though some also appear on a demo prior to it), James Is Going To Die Soon. This is the audio embodiment of the morning after a break-up: hungover, empty, and in deep contemplation. But still more than that. I don't know what I'm saying anymore. New direction. Whether or not James knew how to play guitar before this is irrelevant. He's banging the shit out of an out-of-tune, cheap-as-hell acoustic guitar, and barely forming coherent chords half the time. Instead, he's hitting a ton of muted strings while trying to play a few notes (though he does let the occasional clear chord slip out, especially during quieter parts) while playing what sounds like some folk-y strumming patterns, if the person playing them has no idea how to play. And all of this is beautiful. And of course, the vocals. They can go from strained and screamed to sung and remorseful, and anywhere in between. His vocal skills are not that much better than his guitar skills, yet they work. It all works, and is coated in an air of introspection. This is due in part to the lyrics, some of the best beautiful ever. They are not laced with fancy wordings or elaborate descriptions and observations. They do not consist of flowery language or impeccable flow. They don't need to. They're as blunt as can be, and are absolutely piercing to the mind, body, heart, and soul. It's like having all your insides laid out in front of you. So revealing, and sadly relatable.

He posted I Daren't Call This Stoner on his blog last year (2011) with this captioned: "Me Ric and Tom got high and recorded some songs together a while back. I’ve finally split them apart and uploaded them. This isn’t a new album so sorry if this gets your hopes up, it’s literally just me pretty blazed singing some covers and a couple of new songs and talking inbetween some tracks. There’s spaces between the tracks which there shouldn’t be as some run into each other and the recording quality is pretty poor but you may enjoy it. We originally intended to release the whole recording with the larger conversations between tracks but a lot of it ended up not making sense unless you know us… and it’s pretty lame at points as well!"

Narcissist On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown is Crywank's second album (not counting the demo). It was released in 2012. On this album, it's clear that James' technical skills have increased profoundly (though they still are far from perfect). However, that does not take away from the magic of Crywank. This album is still heart shattering, but in a different way. For one, it's more somber. It's not as aggressive in terms of playing (there's more fingerpicking and light strumming than string bashing) and singing (he actual sings as opposed to howling). The lyrics do not focus on a specific topic, but rather a more broad one, and that is the self. Lyrically, the immediate "open wound" thing going on on his previous album has shifted to the long-term dwelling on the things being discussed, providing a different perspective, one that's very introspective. I suppose. I'm not really sure why I'm attempt to analyse and provide descriptions of his stuff. Nobody reads this anyway, right? And this stuff is amazing, what more needs to be said? Download away.

The Tour Demos 2013 info taken from his Bandcamp: These are the tour demos for the January Crywank tour. They are also the first recordings with Crywanks new member Dan 'The Snail' Watson. It features songs from the upcoming third album and new recordings of older songs with percussion. All money from this release will go towards future tours in 2013 and recording the new album :)

Demo (2010)

1. Welcome To Castle Irwell

2. Harvey Milk Shit On The Table

3. Thomas Saunders Gang Chant

4. Zains, Cam4, Wah-Wah And Sirens

5. Welcome To Castle Irwell (Live To Curious & Drunk Neighbours)

James Is Going To Die Soon (2010)

1. Welcome To Castle Irwell

2. You Won't Meet A Girl Sat In Your Room Listening To Music (But Some Songs Can Still Give You Butterflies)

3. Pope Alexander

4. 18

5. Hikkomori

6. An Intimate Message

7. Late Night People Watching

8. Harvey Milk Shit On The Table

9. Zains, Cam4, Wah-Wah And Sirens

10. Thomas Saunders Gang Chant

I Daren't Call This Stoner (2011)

1. Welcome To Castle Eughggughghgughg

2. Talking 1

3. I Dance To Trance In Garbage Pants (Daggermouth)

4. Talking 2

5. Thomas Saunders Lloyd Weber

6. Talking 3

7. Youreyeah (Title Fight)

8. Little Creepy

9. Ms Jackson (Outkast)

10. Talking 4

11. Break Stuff (Limp Bizkit)

12. Talking 5

13. Graph Paper (Algorhythms)

14. Talking 6

15. Not The Story So Far

16. Talking 7

17. The Story So Far (New Found Glory)

Narcissist On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown (2012)

1. Blink

2. Now I'm Sad (Boo Hoo)

3. Little Creepy

4. Thomas Saunders Lloyd Weber

5. Care Not For Your Clubnights

6. Nostril Tampon
7. The Only Way I Could Save Myself Now Is If I Start Firebombing

8. Chuck & Buck, Suck & Fuck!

9. It's OK, I Wouldn't Remember Me Either

10. Deep Down I'm Really Kirk Van Houten

11. You Couldn't Teach Me Integrity

Tour Demos 2013 (2013)
1. Waste/I Am A Familiar Creak In Your Floorboards
2. Only Everyone Can Judge Me
3. An Intimate Message
4. Chuck & Buck, Suck & Fuck!
5. GB Eating GB While Listening To GB
6. Hikkomori
7. Memento Mori
8. I'm A Cliché
9. Pope Alexander
10. Notches
11. Privately Owned Spiral Galaxy

Tomorrow Is Nearly Yesterday And Everyday Is Stupid (2013)

1. Memento Mori

2. Song For A Guilty Sadist

3. If I Were You I'd Be Throwing Up

4. Notches

5. Crywank Are Posers

6. Obsessive Muso With No Friends

7. “Who is Thomas Saunders and why is he significant in your writings?”

8. Only Everyone Can Judge Me

9. GB Eating GB Whilst Listening To GB

10. Deep Down I'm American Werewolf

11. Waste

12. I am A Familiar Creak In Your Floorboards

13. Do You Have PPE For Self-Esteem?

14. This Song Title Was Too Long (So Now It's Shorter)

15. Leech Boy

16. I Am Shit

17. I'm A Cliché

18. Just A Snail

Shameless Valentines Money Grab (2014)

1. Love

2. Nostril Tampon

3. We Don't Practice

4. Olivers Theme

5. Paperclip

6. Coffee and Blunts

Embarrassing Early Recordings (2014)

1. I Am A Familiar Creek In Your Floorboards

2. Is That Crazy Enough For Ya'? Want Me To Take A Shit On The Floor?

3. I Don't Know About What Happened... (Because Once You Start Writing It All Becomes Fiction)

4. Welcome To Castle Irwell (Demo)

5. Zains, Cam4, Wah-Wah and Sirens (Demo)

6. Pope Alexander (Demo)

7. Lepidopterophobia

8. Hikikomori (Demo)

9. 18 (Demo)

10. Thomas Saunders Gangchant (Demo)

11. Blur

12. I Am A Familiar Creak In Your Floorboard (Demo)

13. Drunk & Lonely On A Sofabed

14. Thomas Saunders Lloyd Webber (Demo)

15. Coffee & Blunts (Demo)

16. Lepidopterophobia (Demo)

Don't Piss On Me, I'm Already Dead (2016)

1. Forlorn Leghorn

2. Squeezing The Damp Tea Towel To Its Final Drips

3. There All Is Aching

4. I Am In Great Pain, Please Help Me

5. Love

6. A Deer Mistaking Candles For Headlights

7. Me Me Me (Boo Hoo)

8. Hate

9. Your Own Worst Enemy Critic

10. Self(ish)

11. Baby Self-Absorbed

12. Falling Down A Hole

Egg on face. Foot in mouth. Wriggling Wriggling Wriggling. (2017)

1. A Soreness So Familiar It Soon Becomes Unquestioned

2. Part 2: Electric Boogaloo

3. When You Eat Yourself, First Start With Your Head Up Your Arse

4. Woodchuck

5. Who Am I???1

6. Everything Is Getting Very Snake 2

7. Colm Hindsight

8. A Phony in a World of Holden Caulfields

9. (Onion) Garden Fart (Onion)

10. Tin Foil Hat Crew At The Student House Party

11. Chomsky-Honk

12. Goku Is Cool

13. Don't Forget To Like Share and Subscribe

14. I Think I’m Dying and I’m Doing Nothing About It

15. Anti-capitalism Is A Great Marketing Technique

16. Thoughts on Self-Described DIY Bands Engaging With A Profit-Based Print Media

17. An Academics Lament On Barbie

18. Fuck You Dan

19. Fuck You James

20. Pr8y Boi

21. Life Is Life and That’s So Deep

22. Roll-on Deoderant

23. Story of the Lizard and the Sock

Note: You can grab the cassette from Mount Seldom Records here

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