Impala Eardrums: A Radium Sampler

For fifteen years, Table of the Elements has been the preeminent source of avant audio, championing minimal, improvised and outsider music. Now, as its influence radiates outward, the label presents Radium, its "rock" imprint, showcased here with Impala Eardrums: A Radium Sampler. While minimalist legend Rhys Chatham leads the way with a delightful unreleased piece from his mid-80s archives, most of the other contributors are younger folks, from a new generation of performers. It's a diverse bunch, ranging from the raw Americana of Megafaun and Jonathan Kane, to the humid, pulsating krautrock of Ateleia and the spectral songcraft of Paul Duncan. Neptune serves up its version of home-forged proto-clangor, while Collections of Colonies of Bees and School of Seven Bells pour forth in glistening, shimmering waves. Together, these eight tracks, all previously unreleased, have one thing in common; a resolute will to march headlong into the untamed brambles and briar patches of 21st-century sound.