sweets

There's one last candied-coated bit of communique to share before the year runs out that's sweet enough to send you into sugar shock - the next DZ release is scheduled to debut on January 21 and features 18 home-brewed cuts from Winston Salem, NC. 

In 2013 The Sweets conjured the gods of grit to graft a slew of sick rips we've dubbed the "Greatest Hits". Side A showcases tenacious tracks hot enough to set the garage aflame. Side B subdues the fire to a slow burning ember mound sound enough to settle down and unwind by, complete with gruesome campfire stories*.

*Number of stories limited to one per tape.

Earlier this week, the folks over at Tympanogram were kind enough to debut "I Didn't Ask For Your Permission To Date Your Sister", the freely available "scuffed-up pop gem" found above. Impose also shared some love for the label, nominating DYVNZMBR2 as one of its favorite cassette compilations of 2013. "This listens like an unguided tour of some of my favorite artists and tracks from last year." There's more gaseously good news bubbling up soon so keep your radar online.

powder

Just as you thought things were wound down for the winter freeze, a few more acorns fall from the tree.

It Is Rain In My Face. further elevated his diverse repertoire of sounds with a new collection of songs on the "Bumrush Day EP",



Ghostandthesong snuck out the new track "Signs" (featuring Lindsey Motlow) behind your back,



and Chris Rehm released the third cassette in his Monthly Tape Series, an assortment of styles put together for the various works by his filmmaker friend Derek Beck.



A little closer to home, all four DZ tapes from this year were given superlative honors with placements on the "Best Tapes of 2013" from the folks at Myspace and Tabs Out. The recognition is certainly appreciated, y'all - see you next year.

flashback framer

With 2013 all but wrapped up, you may be thirsty for some new DZ goods, but for now I'm going to continue keeping things close to the chest. One thing I will say is that 2014 is already shaping up to be a good year for the label. With three releases lined up for early next year and a few more beyond that, you'd be wise to keep your eyes and ears peeled for what's coming down the pipeline.

For now, I invite you bask in the glory that is the newest full-length release from It Is Rain In My Face., the project of Mat Jones who last year unleashed his self-titled debut with DZ. "The Framer" is a masterful work featuring "stripped-down, rustic, and soaked in whiskey...his twangiest territory yet." The new album is out now on cassette from Chill Mega Chill and is limited to 25 copies, so be sure to pick up your copy before they're all gone.

Other DZ artists are also staying busy in their respective corners of the world. Across the pond in Berlin, Ghostandthesong recently put out another succulent single "Stuck", accompanied by an equally juicy video by Hypertrashwonderland.



Back home in the states, Chris Rehm, half of the mind-bending New Orleans duo Caddywhompus, has been putting a lot of heart into his new Monthly Tape Series. The project showcases his latest and greatest aural experiments dubbed with love. Take a listen to the latest entry below.



Until next time... stay sound and keep curious. ✌

it rains

DZ alum It Is Rain In My Face. has his sophomore full-length all but finished and Mat has bestowed upon the masses a sneak peak for our listening pleasure. Debuted earlier this week on Ad Hoc, "Raise Your Hands, Raise The Dead" is a stellar track, "brought to life with coiled riffs and frenetic yet melodic chanting," that will surely help you warm up to winter's glacial numbing with its hypnotically soothing resonance. "The Framer" will be available from Chill Mega Chill, who has been on fire with recent releases from friends of the label Born Gold and Orca Life. Check out the single below and look out for the new album dropping November 19.

reverse labatomy

The next DZ live event is coming up on October 12, and this time around features three relentlessly explosive acts from Murderland in Two Inch Astronaut, Hive Bent, and Scott Russell. This will most assuredly be a bitchin' loud time. Come out to the Dougout to catch these three hard acts and enjoy the crisp autumn evening with some friends and brews. Limited edition glow-in-the-dark screenprints have been specially concocted for the occasion by Mike O'Brien at Red Table Press and will be on sale at the show in addition to other gnarly band merch. Click the image below for more details about the show.

In other upcoming concert news, Birkwin Jersey will be supporting Small Black for their show on October 8 at Sticky Mike's in Brighton. Click here for the scoop.

Lastly, I've got some new It Is Rain In My Face. goodies to share with you. Mat's been working hard recently in preparations for an upcoming LP on Chill Mega Chill, but has still managed to put together some other new material in the meantime. Stream and purchase his new Untitled EP below:

new leaf

It's with both great pleasure and sadness that I announce that all physical merch has sold out. While working through the doldrums here at HQ, I want to take this moment to thank each and every fan out there for supporting the label and helping it grow steadily one album at a time. As a show of appreciation, I'm offering up a 25% discount on all digital downloads through Halloween by using the code "tom_nook" in the shop. There are a couple of things in the works for the near future, but I'd like to encourage any musician(s) interested in potentially working on releasing something with DZ TAPES to submit their content for consideration via email. So take some time to enjoy the ensuing arboreal metamorphosis, stay tuned for more event news and cassette previews to come, and check out the Seabright's recent work with the folks over at Love Our Records:

Cassette Store Day

Today is the first ever Cassette Store Day, and while the debate remains open as to whether this will be good or bad for the format and the industry, I'm finding it hard to contain my excitement. Stores from around the world will be releasing exclusive tapes from favorites like Deerhunter, Spectrals, Animal Collective, Teen Suicide, Gold Panda, and many others.

To celebrate, all downloads and merch in the DZ store will be marked off 20% this weekend by using the code "CSD" at checkout. And when your eyeballs have a free moment, take a look at these quick reads discussing some of the pros and cons of this new musical holiday.

I also want to thank the dudes at Tabs Out and Ad Hoc for the kind words on DYVNZMBR2, saying it "runs the gamut of electronic music, from glitched-out beats to feedback-laden buzzsaw drones and lo-fi downtempo hazers. It’s like a huge sandwich that’s too big to get your mouth around so you gotta take it home and cut it up cause you and I both know if you even try it, that shit's falling out of the bread and landing in your lap."

Coming and Going

Within the past few weeks, the distro has been raided heavily and has practically sold out of almost every tape in store. In fact, the new Seabright tape was one of Bandcamp's top-selling cassettes of this past week! Thanks to everyone who's made a purchase for your love and support, you all are wind beneath this project's wings and I send my heartfelt appreciation to each and every one of you all around the world. 

With things moving at a slightly faster pace, I'm working hard to get the next few projects in production and I've got the ball rolling with a few other artists in hopes of building on top of what has become the most successful year of DZ TAPES thus far. Stay tuned for more updates on these future releases coming soon!

In live event news, here at the Dougout we quietly put on an acoustic show last week which featured friends old and new, so I wanted to let you in on the fun by checking out some pictures from the event below. Much love goes out to Infinity Crush, Meridian, Morgan Spaner, Ryan Ford, Alex Tebeleff, and Sunset Theme for putting on fantastic performances, and a big thanks as well to everyone who bought merch, donated, and came out to the show last week.

Infinity Crush

Meridian

Morgan Spaner

Ryan Ford (courtesy of Geoff)

Sunset Theme (courtesy of Geoff)

Seabright in the summer sun

While Justin Morales has been revamping his Seabright set around northern California this summer, DZ10 has just started to make the rounds on cassette decks around the world. All orders are now up to date, and the pastel pink beauties should soon be arriving to all you great tape-heads across the globe. Thanks for all the support and enjoy cranking this one up with the top down during this wonderful warm weather.

Check out some of the nice things folks have been saying about the new album below, and tune in to Justin's radio show "The Mystic Brewery Radio Show" on San Jose's KSCU every Saturday night from 8-10pm PST.

"Tomorrow is a woozy shuffle through refracted sunrays, VHS tapes of soaring seagulls and lakeside imaginings, perpetual sunsets and eyelids at half-mast. Seabright seems intent on wash[ing] his sonic palette in shimmering pastels, a swathe of echoed reminisces and liberal doses of liberation." - Sonic Masala 

"a distinctly sunny brand of shoegaze pop" - The Bay Bridged 

"an interesting fusion of chillwave, shoegaze and beach-pop....Tomorrow is easily one of his most accessible albums to date, a truly eclectic sound" - SanJose.com

Our label friend Pregnant has been making fan-inspired songs for the past few months and just put this little number up for me. If you want Daniel to make a song about you, you can buy one here.

DeeZ TAPES

DZ TAPES is proud to bring to you a new addition to your summer cassette rotation. Seabright's new album "Tomorrow" was released digitally earlier this month, but tapes are now available and will be shipping soon! To celebrate, Justin will be taking to the stage with Silent Pictures in San Jose and everybody from the Bay Area is going to be there, so check out the show at The Blank Club this Saturday.

Across the pond, Birkwin Jersey and friend J Biscuits have teamed up on a new Split EP now freely available. The two have also joined forces with Vienna on her project Partpanda and released a slow glitched-out funk single "Way Back When", the video of which can be seen below:

friday night fun

Come out this Friday, July 19 for another boisterous show at the Dougout, featuring three terrific out-of-town talents and one local band who's really making a name for themselves. Check out the lineup below and click here for more details.

♯ Adelyn Rose (Eau Claire, WI)
♯♯ Cult & Leper (Boston, MA)
♯♯♯ Film Strip (Cleveland, OH)
♯♯♯♯ Two Inch Astronaut (Silver Spring, MD)

Tomorrow Comes Today

It's been a long time coming but the latest DZ TAPES full-length release is out now, showcasing San Jose producer Justin Morales, better known as Seabright. "Tomorrow" features Justin conjuring up a blend of psychedelic pop music for digital dreams by fusing flourishing laptop production with multi-layered live analog manipulation. Many of the tracks are built on a foundation of layered guitars, looped vocals and harmonized synthesizers, then melded together with a collection of samples and noise to construct a brisk and revitalizing soundtrack for a serene summer day surfing circuits both inside and outside.

The album was premiered yesterday on Decoder and is now available for download. A limited run of 50 cassettes will start shipping later this month and can be ordered here.

"The shoegaze-pop jams of San Jose dreamer Justin Morales are just perfect for the mid-summer blues, when it’s almost too hot to go outside but much too pretty to stay inside. With 'Tomorrow' on the horizon we can slip into a cool, refreshing sound that turns sweat to lemonade and stings the eyes slightly before quenching the tongue." - Decoder

 

One more shout out goes to our friends at Ad Hoc for their write-up of the music video for It Is Rain In My Face.'s "Duck In A Row", which they say "offers a visual exploration of the rhythms and ambience dictated by the song, using rhythmic editing and a color palette lush with green. Delving into both artistic manipulation of perspective and our physical manipulation of the world-- or in this case, of snow-- the video is a cerebral backdrop for Jones' experimental pop."

reels in motion

All orders of DZ09 have been shipped, thanks to everyone as always for your patience as I run back and forth to and from the post office every day on my lunch break. Catch a preview picture of these beauties below:

In some more offbeat news, apparently Myspace still exists, and they just released a list of their 25 Best Cassettes of 2013, two of which just happen to be from our catalogue. Pool Holograph (#6) and Birkwin Jersey (#19) were both featured, alongside some sweet tapes put out by friends at Bridgetown Records, Night People, Crash Symbols, Holy Page, Burger Records, Moon Glyph, Orchid Tapes, Chill Mega Chill, Bird Tapes, Orange Milk and others. Thanks to Kristen for the kind write-ups.

narwhalmilk

The DYVNZMBR2 mixtape has at long last been released to the wild. The compilation contains 21 tracks, each uniquely voltaic and illustrative, from DZ homies near and far, spanning from east to west across the entirety of this new weird America that I call home, to the outskirts of distant mother Russia's electrowasteland, and a freckling of spots spaced out in between.

Available as a free stream and download below, the mixtape is also (naturally) available on cassette as part of a limited edition release of 50 professionally dubbed C75s housed in bumblebee-yellow shells. At the time of this posting, almost half of these tapes have already been spoken for, but you can still visit the shop to claim one for yourself.



We've also got something new to whet your appetite for ocular entertainment from DZ favorite It Is Rain In My Face., who has been busy this year having just recently released his new Languish In The Evening EP and is currently on tour with Tom Kitty Oliver to promote the release of their joint project Pressed And's latest release Stone Candles on Mush Records. Now we revist one of the singles from his self-titled full-length debut, "Duck In A Row", with a new video directed by Tobias Stretch. Check out the chilling scene below, and grab one of the last few copies of DZ06 at the shop if you're looking for something to keep you cool this summer.


"Duck In A Row" - It Is Rain In My Face. from Mat Jones.

Tomorrow's Harvest

Happy Boards Of Canada Day, Earthlings.

The eerily enigmatic electronic duo's first full-length release since 2005, "Tomorrow's Harvest", is out today on Warp Records, and it was well worth the wait. Check out the video for "Reach For The Dead" below:



In DZ news, the DYVNZMBR2 mixtape will be out one week from today, so to celebrate, here's a second set of tracks for your listening pleasure:

misplaced lobe

Production on DZ09 is in its final stages, and after a few months of setbacks I'm happy to announce the release of the second DZ mixtape. Featuring over 20 tracks from various artists from the independent international DZ community, DYVNZMBR2 will be available in limited numbers starting mid-June. As with its predecessor, the mix covers a vast variety of experimental electronica that's sure to take your primary auditory cortex on rollercoaster ride. Check out some sample tracks below and stay tuned for more information coming soon.

Earlier this month at DZ HQ, we were lucky enough to host a handful of talented artists from the local area join us at the Dougout for an early evening showcase. The performances were are beautiful, and I'd like to thank everyone who came out for their support. 

Peals enveloped the audience with blissful, meditative layers of gentle guitars, quiet keys and other abstract sonic tools to create a cerebral concoction of auditory intimacy. The band performed a collection of cuts from their newly released LP "Walking Field", currently available from Thrill Jockey. The duo was joined by fellow Baltimore acts Romantic States and Amanda Schmidt, both sharing their own distinctly delicate minimalist oscillations, and Princess Reason from College Park's Tricot Records, who helped round out the group with their unique blend of sentimental pop.

Peals (courtesy of Nano)

"pinnacle of peals"

Peals (courtesy of Charity)

Princess Reason (courtesy of Nano)

post...er...

Mr. Sean Berg has done it again. Check out the awesome screen print this man has concocted for the upcoming show at the Dougout featuring Peals, Romantic States, Princess Reason and Amanda Schmidt. As always, a limited number of posters will be available at the show, and you can pick one up for FREE with the purchase of any band merchandise. For more details on the show, click the image below to be taken to the event page.

Angular Peals

Birkwin Jersey released a new video today for "Angular Danson" featuring some mesmerizing visuals. Check it out below, and if you've been waiting to pick up a copy of "Between The Weather And The Sea", there's no better time than the present! Check out the Shop to pick up one of the last remaining copies.



DZ TAPES is hosting its next atmospheric audio showcase on May 19. If you're in the Washington DC area, feel free to stop on by for a low-key Sunday night slow-burner featuring some up-and-coming organic electronica from Baltimore and one act from College Park's cassette champions at Tricot Records. Click the flyer below for more information at the event page.

Acts include:

∞ PEALS (members of Future Islands and Double Dagger) create warm, textural, organic instrumental music and will be celebrating the release of their debut LP “Walking Field”, out May 14 on prolific Thrill Jockey

∞∞ ROMANTIC STATES play weird, skeletal folk pop, and are coming back to the Dougout to share some mellow cuts from the “Vessels of Devils” LP, self-released this past March.

∞∞∞ PRINCESS REASON is an intimate lo-fi indie pop project from College Park and will be playing humble new tracks including ones from the “Always Pretty” EP featured on Tricot Records.

∞∞∞∞ AMANDA SCHMIDT plays a peaceful mix of keys and pedals, but her enigmatic recordings remain buried on the moon's deepest crater.

  

like lava

While from afar things may appear to be moving at a snail's pace, there are quite a few fun projects lined up for the near future at DZ HQ. So to help share the excitement for summer, there is now a temporary discount being offered on every physical purchase and digital download over at the Shop. To take advantage of this, simply use promo code "laroche25" at checkout to receive 25% off all orders until May 5.

The next DZ release is in it's final trimester of before birth. San Jose producer Seabright has been working his alchemy to fuse molten gems for the upcoming cassette "Tomorrow". Check out these preview tracks for a sneak peak:

In other news, the most recent showcase at the Dougout went off without a hitch late last month. Thanks to all the artists and fans for coming out to explore some untraversed aural soundscapes.

Lost Trail (courtesy of Charity)

Prism House (courtesy of Charity)

One more update out of Chicago, where Pool Holograph have been hard at work recording their next full-length release "Montage". The band has been kind enough to share a preview with us; watch them perform "Necking" in their practice space below:



Lastly, I'd like to thank Ian from Cactus Mouth / Chill Mega Chill for the profile piece he put together for DZ TAPES over at PORTALS. Interested parties can scope out the article here. More updates will be coming soon, so stay sound and keep curious.

electronica in north east

DZ TAPES is holding its next live event this coming Friday, March 29th. As always, all non-jerks in the DC area are more than welcome to come out for some fun. As goes for most shows at the Dougout, the event will be donation-based and BYOB, so join us for a Good Friday-night of experimental electronics. Limited edition screen-printed posters by Sean Berg (seen below) will be available for purchase, or for free with any purchase of band merchandise. Things will start off with a mellow blend of drone, and will then get progressively livelier with each set to help raise your instincts to peak levels throughout the night. Check out the bands below and head over to the event page for further details.

☣ PRISM HOUSE

☣ ☣ MELT MELT MELT

☣ ☣ ☣ PRIME MERIDIAN

☣ ☣ ☣ ☣ LOST TRAIL

In other news, the Shop has been updated to open things up for international orders. The shipping prices are pretty ridiculous with the USPS being caught between a rock and a hard place, but the orders continue to come in from abroad, so I'm happy that the new rates haven't fully discouraged everyone.

Let's Stay Up All Night

Birkwin Jersey just released a new video for "Let's Stay Up All Night", produced by Novi Films. Thanks to Dummy Mag for the premiere! Check it out below:

Up(2)date

The latest releases for Pool Holograph and Birkwin Jersey have both received some very nice accolades from the folks at Ad Hoc, The FADER, I Found Music, Neighborhood Tapes, Obscure Sound, Portals, and This Is Fake DIY, and Weed Temple.

This past month has been much busier than expected at DZ HQ, but things are finally getting caught up to where they should be. All orders have been shipped out, my thanks go out to everyone for your patience. Being the only one running the show here, things can bottleneck fairly quickly if there's even a slight delay, so I appreciate you all bearing with me. The tapes all look and sound really good, so if you haven't ordered yours yet there's no better time than the present!

In other news, two additional releases are currently in the works and should be ready for release in the spring! Stay tuned for further details. :)

ZOMBEARadio49

download or stream / subscribe on itunes

POOL HOLOGRAPH "spring detox"
NATIVE AMERICA "winedrunk potluck"
FRUSTRATION "i can't forget you"
MAC DEMARCO "robson girl"
ADAM LEMPEL AND THE HEARTBEATS "teardrops in the rain"
DUR-DUR BAND "dooyo"
FILARDO "i don't getcha' kid"
SECRET TEENS "hot wine"
TERROR BIRD "do you remember?"
MESSY SPARKLES "savannah"
PARTPANDA "sunlight"
BUSY BUSY "cold feet"
RULES "i'm patient"
JAMES BLAKE "retrograde"
PRESSED AND "i belong"
LAY BAC "feel u again"
LOCAL NEWS "local weather"
BIRKWIN JERSEY "wave like we're famous"
PILL FRIENDS "demon chills"
THEE OH SEES "minotaur"
KURT VILE "wakin on a pretty day"

DZ08 preview on The FADER

The next full-length release from Brighton producer Graeme Coop, or BIRKWIN JERSEY, is set to hit the streets next week as a co-release between DZ TAPES and Absent Fever, and The FADER was kind enough to post a preview of one of the many standout tracks, "We Don't Go To Dances" featuring Vienna. The pair make up two-thirds of Partpanda. 

"On “We Don’t Go To Dances,” there’s a clear comfort between the two, found in the nonchalance in Vienna’s weathered talk-sing, like she’s recording from an old couch next to an old friend to whom she’s got nothing to prove." - The FADER

Limited Edition of 100

Cassette ships within the US for $9

Pagaul

The lovely crew over at Portals has been kind enough to premiere a brand new video for "Pagaul", the lead track from the It Is Rain In My Face. self-titled release. Check out the video below, and in case you missed it, head over to bandcamp for a full album stream. Limited number of tapes are still left in the shop, get it before it's gone!


IT IS RAIN IN MY FACE: PAGAUL from oodalalee films on Vimeo.

"The video takes all the rustic, country vocals and slick Nintendo beats on a nice, brisk jog around the block, which leads to a run-in with a very strange woman. Never in a million years does the lovely jogger in red think this hideous stranger would possess her heart with a mysterious stone, leaving her dreams trapped in a hazy, rainbow-bright purgatory." - Diamond Atlus / Portals

DZ07

POOL HOLOGRAPH is Chicago post-punk garage pop sound melded with sinister summer melodies and balefully breezy guitar riffs that conjure the sunshine through cracks in the sky on even the grayest winter days. DZ TAPES is proud to present a limited run of the band's self-titled EP, shipping January 29th. 

Limited Edition of 50

Cassette ships within the US for $7

In more somber news, due to the upcoming hike in USPS fares for international shipping, the cost of postage alone to send a single tape internationally after January 27th is going up to $9.45. Sadly, orders on single cassettes will now be limited to the confines of our nation's borders. For those of you outside of the United States who are interested in bulk orders, feel free send me an email and I'll be happy to work something out.

loud in northeast

DZ TAPES kicked off the new year with a monstrously loud show featuring some outstanding performances from Weekends, Teen Mom, The Plums, Cult & Leper and Cowboy Band. The party raged into the early morning thanks to the killer music and cool crowd, and it proved to be the most colossal gig at the Dougout to date. Thanks to everyone who came out to party, anyone who bought merch or made a donation, and of course to all the bands for rocking their hearts out. Stay tuned for upcoming concerts, and check out the photos below for a recap of the fun that went down this past weekend:

Weekends (courtesy of Charity)

Weekends (courtesy of Adam)

 Teen Mom (courtesy of Charity)

The Plums (courtesy of Charity)

Cult & Leper (courtesy of Charity)

Cowboy Band (courtesy of Charity)

rippin' fuzz at the dougout

Everything is looking up in 2013, and to kick things off, DZ TAPES is hosting another live event at the Dougout featuring some very talented acts from the East Coast. Anyone in Washington, DC area should stop by to get loud and help us set the night ablaze!


ϟ Weekends
ϟ ϟ Teen Mom
ϟ ϟ ϟ The Plums
ϟ ϟ ϟ ϟ Cult & Leper
ϟ ϟ ϟ ϟ ϟ Cowboy Band

As with the last show, a limited supply of screen printed posters will be available for free with any purchase of band merch while supplies last, courtesy of Mr. Badass Sean Berg. Check out the event info and RSVP by clicking the poster below: