Notes From The Record Room: Isabel Pine, TAGABOW, OOIOO/Lightning Bolt, Alan Vega
Record Room: Sunday, 1/25
I’m currently hunkered down and warm thanks to fully-bled radiators and a recent oil delivery, stinging barbs of sleet tapping against the windows and icing up the significant accumulation of snow that fell this morning. My back will hate me later as I try and remove it from my walkway. For now, we’re talking music.
January’s first playlist is shaping up to be pretty long, quite possibly longer than any 90-minute mix I would’ve curated, recorded, and distributed to friends back in the beforetimes (y’know, in the 1990s). Here are some standouts from this week:
Isabel Pine
Fables
kranky
Releases: 2/20/26
Artist Isabel Pine is releasing her first full-length LP, Fables, in February via kranky.
Preceding the album’s release are two singles, “Wolves” and “A Flickering Light,” both tracks offering varied approaches to Pine’s attachment to the snow-blanketed landscape of British Columbia, which serves as both muse and place of residence. Composed and performed entirely by Pine and recorded outside of a remote cabin in the BC region, the ambient backdrop conducted by the environment brings a glorious quality to Pine’s instruments, the timbre and swells from every drag of the bow(s) in “Wolves” producing near-ensemble-level depth, while the slowly immersive “A Flickering Light” evokes vastness and awakening.
Fables is currently available for pre-order via kranky.
Links:
Isabel Pine — Bandcamp / Instagram
kranky Records — Official / Bandcamp / Instagram
Links, knowledge, and sounds were handed over courtesy of Rarely Unable:
Fables is the first widely distributed release for Isabel Pine after a series of self released EPs and singles on Bandcamp. Her label debut album arrives via kranky on 20th February.
She studied classical music on viola from the age of 3 through into college, where she was on a path to be a performer in a large ensemble, but eventually left after feeling frustrated and limited in a world that did not provide much of an outlet for individual creativity. But the doors of perception really opened when she moved to British Columbia and was exposed to the raw beauty of the wilderness there.
She began recording at home using a basic audio setup along with a cello, viola, violin and double bass, and spent time making field recordings of natural sounds in BC. Her next idea was to actually move into nature to record, curious as to …
“…how it would sound if I recorded outside entirely, with the natural reverb and sounds of the environment in the recording from the very beginning. The rustling of the leaves or a raven’s beating wings were as integral to the music as whatever I played.”
Fables is a mix of pieces that were recorded in the fall of 2024, in a small, remote cabin and outside, primarily using stringed instruments. The result is a series of stunning vignettes, meditations patiently unfurling like gentle waves, slowly advancing and retreating.
They Are Gutting a Body of Water
LOTTO
ATO / Julia’s War
Released: 10/17/25
Regretfully, Philly-based distortion-gazers They Are Gutting a Body of Water got past me last year, having released the album LOTTO in late October. Thanks to the this performance, TAGABOW is now on my ever-expanding lists of bands to check out.
NTS Radio recently unveiled a live video session TAGABOW had recorded with them, the band finding stable enough ground to perform in a Philly junkyard amidst the activity of heavy machinery and the further destruction of already-wrecked and abandoned automobiles. The band’s three-song session clocks in a little shy of 10 minutes and provides ample showcase of their sound, which combines the chugging sensitivity of Duster with the alt-rock dial-up of Hum.
Links:
TAGABOW — Official / Bandcamp / Instagram
ATO Records — Official
Julia’s War Records — Official / Bandcamp
Links, knowledge, and sounds were handed over courtesy of Pitch Perfect PR:
Last fall, They Are Gutting a Body of Water released LOTTO via Julia’s War x Smoking Room x ATO Records. It was one of the best albums of 2025, praised by the likes of The New York Times, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, The Ringer, Stereogum, Associated Press and more, and leading to sold-out shows all over the country. Today, they announce a spring east coast tour and present a live session recorded for NTS Radio.
The live session was taped at active junkyard near the band’s hometown of Philadelphia, aligning perfectly with the raw and unfiltered sound that has grown TAGABOW into a force in the underground music scene. The roar of an engine, a crush of steel and shattering glass provide a visual foil to the soaring guitars and waves of distortion across LOTTO. Junkyards hold a mirror up to a seldom seen part of America - hard working, rough-around-the-edges and unapologetic, like TAGABOW’s music itself.
OOIOO / Lightning Bolt
THE HORIZON SPIRALS /
THE HORIZON VIRAL split 12”
Thrill Jockey Records
Releases: 4/26/26
Very excited for this one:
The YoshimiO-led OOIOO and havoc-raising duo Lightning Bolt are c0-releasing a split 12” in April via Thrill Jockey. The OOIOO side is titled The Horizon Sprils and The Lightning Bolt side is titled The Horizon Viral. As preview to the album, Lightning Bolt’s “Cloud Core” has surfaced online, a busy mix of choppy percussion and serrated bass tone as ceaseless and immediate as the emission from a nicked femoral. I look forward to hearing some of the OOIOO material if or when it’s made available.
The Horizon Sprils/The Horizon Viral is scheduled to release on 4/26/26 as a metallic silver variant via Thrill Jockey Records and is available for pre-order. (I secured mine today.)
— Photo credits: OOIOO by Takashi Homma and Lightning Bolt by Scott Alario —
Links:
OOIOO — Official / Bandcamp / Instagram
Lightning Bolt — Official
Thrill Jockey — Official / Bandcamp
Links, knowledge, and sounds were handed over courtesy of Thrill Jockey:
Two legendary, singular bands in their own right, Japan's OOIOO and Providence, Rhode Island's Lightning Bolt, have announced a split LP THE HORIZON SPIRALS / THE HORIZON VIRAL, out Apr. 24th. Along with the album's announcement, Lightning Bolt have shared the track "CLOUD CORE," a dizzying piece of pummeling breakneck percussion and timeless riffing that showcases how relentless the duo’s energy remains. OOIOO have also announced a rare show at Open Melody Festival in Los Angeles on April 4th – more dates forthcoming.
Lightning Bolt drummer/vocalist Brian Chippendale explains their approach to the track and their side of the LP:
“OOIOO set the tone with THE HORIZON SPIRAL but we didn’t really roll with the spiral theme. We’re more Viral than Spiral though they both can dump you in a rabbit hole and we definitely like rabbit holes.”
OOIOO and Lightning Bolt are both bands whose music is wholly unique and whose creators’ influence would be impossible to overstate. YoshimiO, OOIOO’s founder and bandleader, has been a guiding force in uncompromising art across the continuum of rock and improvised music for four decades, from her work in UFO or Die to BOREDOMS to SAICOBAB and beyond. OOIOO serves as a core outlet for melding freeform experimentalism with hypnotic rock pulses, defying boundaries with her acrobatic voice, electronics, trumpet and gamelan. Lightning Bolt’s Brian Chippendale and Brian Gibson have remained unparalleled in their ability to transmute frenetic whirls of percussion, gargantuan fuzz and dizzying melody into monolithic vistas. THE HORIZON SPIRALS / THE HORIZON VIRAL is a split that captures the parallels in ethos between these two ensembles, their sense of gleeful abandon and freight train momentum, in inspiring detail.
THE HORIZON SPIRALS, composed of OOIOO’s gamelan-infused sagas “THE HORIZON” and “Gamel BE SURE TO SPIRAL” demonstrates the boundless scope of OOIOO’s music. YoshimiO explains a core contrast between these pieces and 2014’s Gamel lays in the physical materials used:
“Back then in Bali, bronze-keyed gamelan were mainstream, and GAMEL uses bronze. THE HORIZON SPIRALS' gamelan is iron. Black-painted iron. This time, incorporating Koheysai's iron sound (iron gamelan) allowed us to see OOIOO's songs spiraling upward with greater lightness. The iron gamelan infiltrated OOIOO's sparkling elements, grounding that sound within the audible range as a new wave sound. It also blends exceptionally well with Mishina's cymbals.”
Lightning Bolt’s THE HORIZON VIRAL evokes the limitlessness of their improvisations and distills through more sophisticated home recording techniques. THE HORIZON VIRAL reignites the flame of their storied home recordings, capturing the duo unfiltered and on their home turf and bolstered from bassist Brian Gibson’s experiences composing and recording for his acclaimed games Thrasher and Thumper.
Alan Vega
Alan Vega Deluxe Edition / Alan Vega / Collision Drive
Sacred Bones Records
Released: 1/23/26
For a few years now I’ve been sporadically covering (and collecting) album releases from Sacred Bones’s Vega Vault Project, at this point a years-long endeavor whose aim is to unearth the sizable collection of material recorded by punk and electronic music pioneer Alan Vega. This project continues to be helmed by Vega’s wife and collaborator, Liz Lamere.
An incendiary presence as part of the unprecedented act known as Suicide, for which he shared violent crowd reactions with partner Martin Rev, Vega’s fingerprints can be found smeared on an innumerable quantity of albums from any number of punk, electronic, and avant-garde acts that have followed in his wake, his influence not up for dispute. This year will mark ten years since Vega’s passing, so it’s fitting that a three-album batch of Vault releases should emerge, notably two reissued solo albums and an expanded edition of his first self-titled album.
Alan Vega (originally released in 1980) and Collision Drive (following in 1981) are now available to stream online, but I’ll emphasize that any punk-, noise-, or electronic-centered record library should include these works in addition to the first Suicide album. Sacred Bones is issuing these albums in multiple variants and formats, including 8-track.
From Stereo Sanctity:
Alan Vega—
Sacred Bones Exclusive Variant - 8 track, Silver & Magenta Galaxy vinyl
Rough Trade Exclusive - Silver & Magenta Half/Half vinyl (SOLD OUT)
Indie Retail Variant - Magenta vinyl
Standard blackAlan Vega Deluxe Edition—
Sacred Bones Exclusive Variant - Magenta w/ Black Splatter
Indie Retail Variant - Ice blue
CDCollision Drive—
Sacred Bones Exclusive Variant - 8 track, Silver & Red Galaxy vinyl
Rough Trade Exclusive - Silver & Red Half/Half vinyl (SOLD OUT)
Indie Retail Variant - Red
Standard black
CD
Links:
Alan Vega — Official / Bandcamp
Sacred Bones Records — Official / Bandcamp
Links, knowledge, and sounds were handed over courtesy of Stereo Sanctity:
The Vega Vault Project and Sacred Bones Records continue to uncover Alan Vega’s robust collection of work left behind by the influential visual artist, musician and poet. Today for the first time ever, Vega’s highly influential 1980 debut self-titled solo album, in addition to its follow up, Collision Drive are available across streaming platforms. Remastered from the original tapes, the two albums have been faithfully re-released by Sacred Bones Records, preserving the raw intensity of Vega’s original recordings while making them newly accessible to listeners worldwide.
The Vega Vault Project and Sacred Bones have meticulously assembled these packages and the series also offers a companion piece Alan Vega Deluxe Edition which is also available today as a limited deluxe double LP and includes unheard demos, unseen photos and new artwork. All three albums contain unseen photos and new album artwork (including Vega's original track sheets from his 1978 Suicide / The Clash Tour Notebook).
Alan Vega Deluxe Edition's previously unheard demos were discovered by The Vega Vault Project's Liz Lamere and Jared Artaud. The tapes were then transferred by engineer Ted Young and mastered by Josh Bonati. The demos offer a rare glimpse into Vega’s creative process behind his cult classic. All three albums feature new album artwork designed by Artaud and Michael Handis, exclusive to these pressings. The companion piece sheds new light on Vega’s process and vision during this pivotal era, making it a must-have for collectors and longtime fans.
Alan Vega was released in 1980 at the same period Suicide released their second album, Suicide: Alan Vega and Martin Rev. Vega wanted to dig deeper into the roots of his own sonic identity, fuelled by rockabilly, early rock n roll, and his enduring love for Elvis Presley. Filling the gaps between recording with Suicide, and fleshing out the songs he was writing on his own, Vega committed to producing his own songs and started performing solo shows live to develop his sound.
At the time, Vega met Phil Hawk, a young Texan artist who had tracked him down at a party at the Drawing Center in New York, after seeing him perform with a boombox at Max’s Kansas City. Vega was immediately struck by Hawk’s look, and described him as a “blonde Elvis” and was intrigued by his raw, intuitive playing style. Vega had been experimenting with sound and tape manipulation for years but needed a guitar player. Vega instantly saw the potential that could match the vision he had for a stripped down, minimal is maximal rock n roll record.
As with his visual art, Vega layered sound in a minimalist, dynamic and intentional way. Vega deconstructed the drums. He recorded each drum part individually combining electronic and acoustic sounds played live. He directed Hawk on specific guitar riffs he wanted to hear until he got the sound he was looking for. Vega arranged and produced all the music himself. The result was a fiercely singular album built from raw materials and deeply rooted in Vega’s artistic vision.
Alan Vega includes the timeless anthem “Jukebox Babe” with its jiving rhythm and minimalist swagger. “Kung Foo Cowboy” takes on a southern twist, strongly leaning into the blues, while the golden pop shine of “Ice Drummer” rings in melodic yet plaintive vocals, marching drums and a tasteful harmonica solo.
Watch the new video for "Ice Drummer" directed by Douglas Hart: https://youtu.be/2nxCodtSows
Vega’s debut set off a ripple effect in New York’s music scene, carving a unique place in the underground canon from the 80s on. Mark Ronson, Jim Jarmusch, LCD Soundsystem, Trent Reznor, Bruce Springsteen, The Flaming Lips, Billy Idol and countless others have cited Vega and his solo work as an influence on their sound.
In 1981 Vega followed his debut with Collision Drive which was recorded within the same year and in the same NYC studio as his self-titled. The album expands Vega’s palette with a grittier, more layered, and unfiltered energy. Here his lyrics channel universal themes deeply rooted in his fascination with street life, science fiction, politics, comics, love and the mysteries of the universe. It’s a record that pulses with feeling and rebellion, displaying the full spectrum of human experience and Vega’s evolving vision.
“Alan was a master of minimalism who never stopped reinventing himself,” says Jared Artaud, co-producer and creative director of The Vega Vault Project. “His first two solo albums were the result of a clear, uncompromising vision, executed in a way that broke from expectations. Alan embraced risk and experimentation, tapping into his rock ’n’ roll roots and reintroducing the guitar into his music, built around simple, driving rock ’n’ roll rhythms. He chose to produce the albums himself, without the involvement of his frequent collaborator Ric Ocasek, who had initially wanted to produce Vega’s solo records. Alan followed his own vision and set out to capture the sounds he was hearing in his head. Moving away from Suicide’s signature sound, he made a deliberate shift toward something distinctly different: stripped-down rock ’n’ roll. The lyrical genius and unparalleled vocal style remained fully intact, but sonically he was moving in a different galaxy, while staying completely true to himself. Then a year later he said fck it and got a hard rock band to back him up for Collision Drive.”
“Alan’s music thrived on interpretation. He believed the meaning of his songs belonged to the listener. His lyrics painted emotional and conceptual landscapes but he resisted explaining them. He always wanted the listener to bring their own experiences, imaginations, and emotions into what listening to his music and words meant to them, and ultimately that openness is part of its power,” recalls Vega's longtime collaborator, wife and The Vega Vault Project leader and co-producer, Liz Lamere.
From the fiery political fury of “Viet Vet” to the proto punk mantra of “Ghost Rider,” Collision Drive pulses with tension, urgency, and uncompromising vision. The phrase “more more more, more for the poor” hits in full force on “Outlaw,” a classic Vega cry for justice, survival, and human spirit that is said to have inspired Billy Idol’s iconic “more more more” in “Rebel Yell.”
Alan Vega and Collision Drive are declarations of artistic independence and freedom from one of New York’s most influential and uncompromising artists. Vega was relentlessly innovative, continuously paving new ground. These updated editions recapture his raw, electrifying work as the two remain cult cornerstones of outsider rock and a touchstone in the evolution of art-punk and experimental pop.
Sincerely,
Letters From A Tapehead
