The Noise Has Ended

Photo of Eric by Frank Rothenberg.

The debut Black Dice full-length, Beaches and Canyons, is out this month, and it is a full-on psychedelic mindfuck of epic proportions. Which may surprise some, since Black Dice are still known for those aggro powerviolence 30-second bursts of pain they gave up months ago.

Beaches and Canyons (DFA) is aptly named because it sounds geographical and topographical — stunning vistas, bubbly streams, and craggy peaks. It also sounds like out-of-control androids having a psilocybin-driven drum circle. In other words, it is beautiful and truly expansive as well as challenging and new.

It’s important to prepare the world for this record. So, to prove to you that the boys of BD aren’t a gang of mom-raping crackheads and are actually stoner, intelligent, super-friendly avant-garde musicians of the highest order, we asked each of them to list a few of their favorite things. Then we randomly deleted some.

As compiled by

Aaron’s Top Ten of Summer 2002

1. Ft. Tilden recreation area & beach—Far Rockaway 2. Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner)—favorite movie of the summer so far 4. Wolf Eyes—live 6. Big Youth—Dread Locks Dread LP 7. LaMonte Young’s Dreamhouse in Lower Manhattan 9. The Goodbye People—novel by Gavin Lambert 10. Mexico Magic—restaurant across from Shrine Records on 9th St.

Bjorn’s Top Ten

2. Crystal Voyage—hippy surf film by George Greenough 4. Forcefield—first two tapes Hive Guise and Pulse Parka 5. Avey Tare, Panda Bear, Geologist, and The Deacon—Campfire Songs, live and recorded 6. American Tapes (improvisational music record label) 9. Rejoice—Shanks-run used clothing and record store on Orchard Street 10. Maryanne Amacher (composer, performer, and multimedia artist)

Hisham’s Places That Rule The School

1. Hyere, France: Played there for The Aquaplaning Festival. Killer town in the south of France, beautiful people, our hotel was right next to the ocean, DJ sets on the beach with speakers in the water, played with Closer Musik from Germany and Trans Am from Chicago. Broke the bass-drum head in the middle of our set, almost shit my pants … 3. Los Apson – Tokyo, Japan: Great little record store in Shinjuku where all the avant records you pretend to know about exist. Hard-to-find stuff in a really well-organized pint-sized location. 5. Shirakiya—Tokyo: I always go to this cheap chain food/drink joint when I am back in Tokyo with my peeps. You can find them all over Japan, but you are guaranteed to be drunk or full if you go because drinks are cheap and so is the food.

Eric’s Top Ten

1. My cat, Charmander 2. Digitech PDS 1002 3. Sonia Pottinger (legendary Jamaican producer) 4. Safe, legitimate apartments in safe neighborhoods 7. Big Deal & Rejoice stores 8. Possession—film by Zulawski 9. Benji Cossa