It's Mumblecore, and it's back!

Actually, mumblecore refers to American indie films whose 'indieness' is mostly a matter of featuring bearded slackers mumbling into their facial fuzz, as opposed to clean-shaven white-toothed Hollywood stars. 


However, I have a huge soft spot for the equivalent in music, and it seems to be the trend of the year: Bon Iver, Deerhoof, Megafauna and co all seem to be taking The Band's hirsute template and stripping out the showmanship. I've long been a devotee of the bands this lot have followed: Will Oldham (Palace, Palace Music, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy), Bill Callahan (aka Smog and (Smog)) and Low (Mormon drug slowcore), so I'm hugely pleased that Callahan and Low have new albums (Apocalypse and C'Mon) out next month, and I can spend spring feeling melancholic. 


I also love this line from Callahan's books, Letters to Emma Bowlcut:

 "I'm not mild-mannered, but you may want to bring a book."

Here's a taster - one of Callahan's most accessible tracks from last year's Eid Ma Clack Shaw, his catchily claustrophobic 'No Dancing' and Low's 'Words'.












And if you like that but think it's all a bit pretty, try some Slint. Mmm… mathrock