Steve Khan • Rob Mounsey - Local Color (1987)

Great collaboration between guitarist Steve Khan, who I discovered years ago when I bought his album Arrows based solely on its artwork, and keyboardist/synth-guy Rob Mounsey, who I don't think I've listened to outside of this record. Khan's jazz background certainly shines through, but the dated synths and drum sequencers make Local Color feel predominantly like a new age record.

Track listing:

1. Tafiya

2. The Blue Rose

3. I See a Long Journey

4. Gondolas

5. Intruder

6. The Hunt

7. Mahana

Keep on loving while your love is strong

Keep on loving 'til your love is gone away

Also listen to:

Mark Isham - Vapor Drawings (1983)

Barry Cleveland - Voluntary Dreaming (1990)

François-Eudes Chanfrault - À l'intérieur (Inside) (2008)

I've been known to refer to Inside as the scariest movie I've ever seen, with the caveat that my viewing experience was very much enhanced by context. After finally giving it a rewatch a couple weeks back, the jury may be out, but I'm not retracting my statement. I can say for sure that it is insanely brutal. 

Also, the soundtrack's great. Very subtle and minimal. Dark synths, serrated drones, pulsing rhythms, elegiac chamber pieces. There's an extended dialogue-free sequence near the end of the movie where a bunch of terrible things happen without any dialogue, and it's soundtracked entirely by a two-chord synth figure. It's sick as fuck. Go watch it if you can find it -- I torrented it.

Track listing:

1. Arctic Love

2. Memories, Part I, II, & III

3. Dark Beats

4. Discovery

4. Low/High

5. Memories (Redux)

6. Memories (Final)

7. Square Pads for an Eternal Dawn

Open the door, Sarah.

More scary shit:

Jay Chattaway - Maniac (1982)

Mark Korven - The Witch (2016)

Ludicra - Hollow Psalms (2002)

Got a request for this classic, which has apparently become hard to come by in this dead space we once called the blogosphere. Progressive black metal with a DIY punk heart. Still a fucking phenomenal record. Also worth mentioning: their drummer, Aesop Dekker, ran Cosmic Hearse, which more than any other blog inspired me to start this one. Relatedly, I started at a 9-to-5 recently -- still can't believe I landed what's essentially my ideal position after just about a month of looking in earnest -- so don't expect a resurgence of activity on here anytime soon.

Track listing:

1. Tomorrow Held in Scorn

2. Hollow Promise

3. The Final Lamentation

4. Userpent

5. Heaped Upon Impassive Floors

6. Damn the Night

7. Tragaedia

8. Awake to Grey

A bog of dirt which bears your name

You should also listen to:

Inure - Inure (Rough Mixes) (2003)

Teen Cthulhu - Teen Cthulhu (2003)