toundra - IV

toundra is one of a few fantastic instrumental bands that found their way into my heart. pelican, terraformer, clouds taste satanic or bongripper are constant returning guests on my turntable. toundra even was the first instrumental band i have bought some vinyl of. the band from madrid, spain released four records by now with the fifth coming this spring. i have the first three full lengths but the fourth, aptly called "IV", eluded me. the first pressing was put forth by superball music which is a division of century media.

the label produced a first pressing for the release in 2015 with a limited run of 200 copies on clear green vinyl. those sold out quickly and are now highly sought after collectibles. once a copy sold for round about one hundred euros on discogs. way too much for me. fortunately superball music liscenced the rights for a vinyl re-press to german d.i.y. label alerta antifascista. they came up with a new pressing to commemorate the upcoming new full length, i believe. if the new album is going to be as near as good as "IV", it will be an absolute smasher.

i was actually not in the know about this new pressing. luckily discogs has this certain feed on the dashboard page. the interested reader learns about new releases which does also include re-pressings and re-issues. via this link i was informed about the new "IV" edition and i didn't hesitate to order a copy from the labels own mailorder doomrock. this alerta antifascista version looks sharp, to say the least. valuable matte cardboard for the cover sleeve, a lovely etching on the d-side (which was difficult to photograph) and very nice dual clear green with green splatter vinyl. 300 copies made. alerta antifascista. 2017.

toundra - s/t

so here we are with latest toundra addition to the collection. their first and self-titled album, often referred to as I. this madrid based band knows how to pull off a damn good instrumental record and they even did so at the very beginning of their creative work. the band formed in 2007 out of the remains of an to me unknown spanish hardcore band called nacen de las cenizas.

for their new band, now called toundra, they left out vocals completely and stepped in line with genre heavy hitters like pelican or mogwai. although they can easily keep pace with aforementioned bands, they never gained the attention of those. maybe a bigger label could help them to better promotion. but probably they want it this way, doing this as a free time activity without the responsibility of making a living of the band.

if they keep cranking out such lovely records, i am fine with either way. i missed them playing live at the beginning of the year. hope i can alter that situation in due time. i scored this copy at discogs from a seller from france. this edition on white vinyl is out of 525 copies. check the tunes here. the album was put to vinyl in a collaboration of numerous labels. four in number. astoria records. devil child records. parade records. dias de juventud records. 2008.

toundra - III

i already posted about toundra's second album, aptly entitled 'II'. but before i ordered that record, i got aware of this spanish instrumental band through this album right here. i stumbled across this copy of 'III' while looking through per koro's discogs offerings. the cover looked really cool and i just wanted to check what was behind it. i do this quite often, listening to bands because i like cover artworks. sometimes it fails and sometimes it works out.

after i listened to 'cielo negro' i knew this would work out. even though i think that 'II' is a bit nicer, because of the geographical concept to the music, 'III' is such a strong record. so fine balanced between the atmospheric parts and the more forceful parts that a missing of lyrics isn't even an issue. that band should really get more attention.

checking the pressing information at discogs i am a little puzzled as to what version i hold in hands. not one colour way seems to fit my opaque blue with white and black marble vinyl platter. per koro sold it with a 'limited to 100' description. well, i am inclined to accept this assumption. anyone knows the real deal? apart from that the whole artwork together with the back cover looks stunning. love the semi-transparent insert. aloud music. 2012.

toundra - II

i'm walking on unexplored ground with this record right here. i thought i was never a fan of instrumental music. i mean, i do enjoy instrumental songs on records, but usually those are meant to give one a little break and to prepare for more face melting hardcore or metal insanity. i never imagined i could stand a whole album full of non lyrical music. though, toundra album covers crossed my path with persistence in the past and as i was browsing through per koro's discogs offerings, i ran into another lovely looking cover art.

actually it was the cover for their 'III' record, which will be featured here in due time, but it was the spark that ignited my interest for this madrid based band. i checked some tunes on their bandcamp and found myself really enjoying it. they manage to keep the listener tuned with the right arcs of suspense at the right time. real good stuff! now i wanted a physical copy. on my search i came across a small german d.i.y. label called narshardaa records from north germany.

they re-released in collaboration with some other small labels toundra's second album, aptly called 'II'. i really like the concept behind the music. every song represents a specific region, city, island or river of our mother earth and reflects the bands feelings toward these geographical landmarks. very sophistically worked out. i really dig it. the 2010 release is already in its fourth pressing now coming in white and purple vinyl. it's my first record with different rpm's. side a cut at 33rpm and the following cut at 45rpm. 200 made and still available. narshardaa records. 2014.