Discomfiture Atlas, by microwaves

Discomfiture Atlas

by microwaves

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Discomfiture Atlas cassette

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Discomfiture Atlas LP (Pink/ blue vinyl)

Of innumerable bands that traffic in dissonance, the musick of Pittsburgh, PA’s Microwaves shears clean and hot as an oxy-lance through the defenses of even the most cynical noise rock aficionado. In this iteration of the band, which has been in existence now for 20 years, core members John Roman (drums, vocals) and David Kuzy (guitar, vocals) round themselves out with 2006 alum bassist/vocalist Adam MacGregor on one side (“Pyroclast”), and founding bassist/vocalist Steve Moore (Film composer and member of Zombi, Lovelock, Miracle, and more) on the other (“Plasma”). Over the years, Microwaves continues to pick up the loose ends left by Voivod, MX-80, Snakefinger, and some of their own Pittsburgh-area “math-rock” contemporaries, twisting them into a Gordian knot that at once rages and confounds.

Microwaves’ newest LP, Discomfiture Atlas, is being released by Three One G Records on October 14th. This album features guest appearances by Eric Paul (Arab on Radar, Doomsday Student, Psychic Graveyard), Sarah Quintero (Spotlights), Rebecca Burchette (Exosus), and Todd Rittman (Dead Rider). Discomfiture Atlas will be available through Three One G Records on limited edition of 300 color vinyl, 200 black vinyl, and 50 cassettes, as well as digitally.

Who among us doesn’t long for a “do-over” of our wreck of recent history? Maybe it’s that attitude that accounts for the ascendancy of multiverses, parallel dimensions, the “Berenstain/Berenstein” debate, etc., in public imagination. Whatever the reason, contemplating other planes of existence is no longer exclusive to the hard sci-fi wonk set. Apropos of all the above, Microwaves manifests their own twin realities over the two sides of Discomfiture Atlas, its second album on San Diego’s vaunted Three One G records. Though distinct, both sides of the album, “Pyrocast” and “Plasma,” salt the band’s terse alloy of thrash metal, no-wave, brutal prog, noise-rock, and math rock with a hint of pop brevity, if not the melody to match.

Even at a curmudgeonly 20 years of age, (both versions of) Microwaves lean into the new material with the desperate enthusiasm of a 50-something peeling out in a midlife-crisis Corvette. Roman delivers his usual cyborg clatter, careening through odd meters and deconstructing rock drumming according to plans laid out by Beefheart and Devo. MacGregor complements with tortuous lines that invoke eastern melodic ideas at times, though they seethe with distortion and gurgle queasily through analog filtering. His vocal palette has widened to include an unhinged/unschooled falsetto and a Teutonic metal shriek, used to great effect on “Hammerspace” alongside Kuzy’s wavering, town-crier bark. Kuzy executes his trademark spindly atonalities with a draftsman’s precision, alternately ratcheting through all of the first-wave thrash-metal riffs he probably ever wanted to hear. Moore’s performances on side “Plasma” present a tighter and more reeled-in quality, focused on timbre and monolithic repetition over the flash of the past. In an all-time first for Microwaves, the standout “Your Dumb Guts” finds Moore serving up a vocal melody with stunning earworm potential.

Includes unlimited streaming of Discomfiture Atlas via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. ... more

ships out within 10 days

edition of 200 5 remaining

Purchasable with gift card

$22.99 USD or more

1.	The Last Planet 02:37	buy track
2.	Regular Magic 01:29	buy track
3.	Landline 01:45	buy track
4.	Clinical Horizon 01:22	buy track
5.	Flagship Product 02:00	buy track
6.	Hammerspace 02:16	buy track
7.	New Strategies 04:12	buy track
8.	New Sharp Sticks 02:47	buy track
9.	Your Dumb Guts 02:34 video	buy track
10.	Omega Quandary 01:47	buy track
11.	Smart Case 01:22	buy track
12.	Discomfiture System 01:29	buy track
13.	Technical Gibberish 01:55	buy track
14.	Stench of Earth 02:30	buy track

about

BUY VINYL HERE: threeoneg.com/archive/vinyl/discomfiture-atlas-lp

Of innumerable bands that traffic in dissonance, the musick of Pittsburgh, PA’s Microwaves shears clean and hot as an oxy-lance through the defenses of even the most cynical noise rock aficionado. In this iteration of the band, which has been in existence now for 20 years, core members John Roman (drums, vocals) and David Kuzy (guitar, vocals) round themselves out with 2006 alum bassist/vocalist Adam MacGregor on one side (“Pyroclast”), and founding bassist/vocalist Steve Moore (Film composer and member of Zombi, Lovelock, Miracle, and more) on the other (“Plasma”). Over the years, Microwaves continues to pick up the loose ends left by Voivod, MX-80, Snakefinger, and some of their own Pittsburgh-area “math-rock” contemporaries, twisting them into a Gordian knot that at once rages and confounds.

Microwaves’ newest LP, Discomfiture Atlas, features guest appearances by Eric Paul (Arab on Radar, Doomsday Student, Psychic Graveyard), Sarah Quintero (Spotlights), Rebecca Burchette (Exosus), and Todd Rittman (Dead Rider). Discomfiture Atlas will be available through Three One G Records on limited edition of 200 color vinyl, 300 black vinyl, and 50 cassettes, as well as digitally.

Who among us doesn’t long for a “do-over” of our wreck of recent history? Maybe it’s that attitude that accounts for the ascendancy of multiverses, parallel dimensions, the “Berenstain/Berenstein” debate, etc., in public imagination. Whatever the reason, contemplating other planes of existence is no longer exclusive to the hard sci-fi wonk set. Apropos of all the above, Microwaves manifests their own twin realities over the two sides of Discomfiture Atlas, its second album on San Diego’s vaunted Three One G records. Though distinct, both sides of the album, “Pyrocast” and “Plasma,” salt the band’s terse alloy of thrash metal, no-wave, brutal prog, noise-rock, and math rock with a hint of pop brevity, if not the melody to match.

Even at a curmudgeonly 20 years of age, (both versions of) Microwaves lean into the new material with the desperate enthusiasm of a 50-something peeling out in a midlife-crisis Corvette. Roman delivers his usual cyborg clatter, careening through odd meters and deconstructing rock drumming according to plans laid out by Beefheart and Devo. MacGregor complements with tortuous lines that invoke eastern melodic ideas at times, though they seethe with distortion and gurgle queasily through analog filtering. His vocal palette has widened to include an unhinged/unschooled falsetto and a Teutonic metal shriek, used to great effect on “Hammerspace” alongside Kuzy’s wavering, town-crier bark. Kuzy executes his trademark spindly atonalities with a draftsman’s precision, alternately ratcheting through all of the first-wave thrash-metal riffs he probably ever wanted to hear. Moore’s performances on side “Plasma” present a tighter and more reeled-in quality, focused on timbre and monolithic repetition over the flash of the past. In an all-time first for Microwaves, the standout “Your Dumb Guts” finds Moore serving up a vocal melody with stunning earworm potential.

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released October 14, 2022

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microwaves Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Of innumerable bands that traffic in dissonance, the musick of Pittsburgh, PA’s Microwaves shears clean and hot as an oxy- lance through the defenses of even the most cynical noise rock aficionado. The trio plies a no-wave/prog-thrash scree that evokes the doings of today’s renegade wetware punks who shove glass-sheathed RFID chips and rare-earth magnets into fresh incisions. ... more

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