cinco años

Funny how fast the time flies when you're having fun. Almost five years ago our first release came out, and now it's time to take a moment to look back and celebrate...

Saturday, July 9 at Hole In The Sky DC

DZ TAPES 5 year anniversary ft.

Big Hush, Wildhoney, Swings, Mal Devisa, Leapling, Two Inch Astronaut, Dove Lady, and Nox

(click flyer to RSVP or visit tiny.cc/dz5yr)

Special shout-out to everyone who's helped things progress to this point, and special thanks to Mike from Red Table Press for the absolutely gorgeous 5-layer glow-in-the-dark silkscreen poster design above - prints are limited to a small run of 10 and will only be available at the show, which will also be featuring a visual retrospective of photos and posters by Chris Suspect, Michael Andrade, Alex Schelldorf, LA Johnson, Sean Berg, JD Deardourff, and more.

~

Elsewhere in the DZ universe, Half Waif has kicked off their full national tour with Pinegrove (full list of shows can be found here) and is somehow still able to put out some quality content for the music community near and far. Just take the following examples:

- A dazzling new track exclusively appearing on the "afterthoughts" mixtape by minikin, a benefit for We Make Noise, an organization that makes music accessible for underprivileged youth in Brooklyn.



- A contribution to the "Forever Beautiful" compilation, serving to benefit the victims of the Pulse shooting as part of the OneOrlando Fund as a symbol of solidarity as the city rebuilds.


- A solo performance of "Overthrown" by Nandi captured on video by Chiu Productions.

Meanwhile, our old friend Adam Torres is gearing up for the release of his upcoming full-length album on Fat Possum Records, and has dropped two new singles recently. Check out "Outlands" on NPR's All Songs Considered and "High Lonesome" below, premiered by Stereogum:



We've also restocked both Big Hush releases by request, with second pressings available in limited quantities in the merch store:

Lastly, those of you in Tokyo can look forward to seeing some of our latest releases available to touch and feel with your hands and ears at Tape School. Many thanks to Gejio and the kind folks there for their continued support of our little operation and many others just like it~

drive

DZ15 is on its way down I-95 courtesy of Baltimore duo Romantic States, who continue their minimalist approach to writing and recording, while integrating dynamic shifts not explored in earlier work. The result is a collection of raw, sparse, and skeletal lo-fi rock songs that are sincere, vulnerable, and haunting. Jim and Ilenia's newest works have been compiled for release on a self-titled album out February 6 and the band will be touring the East Coast throughout the month.

Special thanks to Spanish magazine Shook Down for their kind words about the album and for premiering "Back Pain" on their site. Look out for an interview with the band in the next physical copy of their magazine, and check out the track below for your first sneak peak at DZ15:

"9 canciones honestas, cristalinas y eso, minimalistas, una propuesta de corazón lo-fi que desprende honestidad, la misma que habían desfilado en algunos de sus trabajos anteriores" - Shook Down

"Romantic States are a minimalist experimental rock band from Baltimore, emphasizing rhythm and melody over instrumental complexity. Their sound is spectral, with live drums and drum machines combined to provide a back beat for reverby guitars and washed out, dream-like vocals in their own version of deconstructed pop/rock songs." - The Modern Folk Music Of America

Tapes are available for pre-order in the merch store, along with a limited number of older cassettes unearthed during my move, including releases by Wavepool Abortion, Ghostandthesong / Chris Rehm, Terror Bird, Adam Torres, Pool Holograph, and Birkwin Jersey, plus one last copy of DYVNZMBR2.

Additionally, Tape School in Tokyo is now stocking some more recent releases - Big Hush, Hazey Jane, Easily Suede, The Sweets, and Seabright all safely made the trip across the globe.

Stay tuned for more updates on DZ15, including new tracks and event info, coming very soon...