2018 was the year I discovered Holodeck Records. Their sampler Holodeck Vision One pretty much blew my mind, opening my ears to cats like Jake Schrock, Michael C. Sharp, Automelodi, Future Museums, Single Lash, Dallas Acid, Troller, and so many more.
Another artist I discovered on that 2018 compilation was Thousand Foot Whale Claw. TFWC offered up psychedelic music with a sheen. Minimalist electronic with the air of 70s experimental escapism. Their track “There Is A Garden” was a deep dive into ambient and Komische vibes and I was hooked. Later that summer Thousand Foot Whale Claw released the album Black Hole Party, which went on to be one of my favorite albums that year. The production was exquisite, offering up almost Alan Parsons-like eloquence while still soaking their electronics in a heady brine made of LSD, infinite light, and Texas “Big Sky” vastness.
Made up of musicians Neil Lord, Adam Jones, Justin Goers, and Zac Roesch, Thousand Foot Whale Claw is steeped in the Austin/Holodeck scene with ties to bands as diverse as Single Lash, Troller, S U R V I V E, and Future Museums. Today Thousand Foot Whale Claw and Holodeck Records present to us a brand new single, the uplifting and transcendent “The Garden from Above”, the band’s first new music since 2018’s Black Hole Party.
This song sounds and feels like Thousand Foot Whale Claw, but there’s more emphasis on light and uplift. The dark corridors of Black Hole Party have been lit by the optimistic vibes here. There’s the slinky bass and percussion that are the TFWC calling card, as is the dream-like keys and guitar. But there’s something very earthbound and organic here. We’re not floating in space this time around. Nope, this time we’re sinking into the golden shores of some galactic coast, staring at the drowning sun as the horizon catches fire.
It’s sparse, subtle, and quietly hypnotic.
Listen below, then head over to Holodeck Records and grab “The Garden from Above” later today.
Complex Distractions 