"together you start // together // you start // together you start..."
The artful burning darkness of "Unite the Worms" by Golden Toad, the latest experimental solo project of London's Al Brown (former co-founder of Japanese Television / video artist for Idles, Lambrini Girls, Unkle, Deap Vally), has a magnetic pull, an ever growing haunting grasp that drags you straight into it's dark tunnel or doorway. As the tensions build I felt like a perfect description for this sound would be sonic doom scrolling. Now don't get me wrong, I love what Brown is doing here and the fact that he created this all by himself has gotten me giddy. As a multi-instrumentalist I would love to do this once again but instead I don't manifest, it's complicated.
I saw The Surfer, a a 2024 Australian psychological thriller film directed by Lorcan Finnegan, written by Thomas Martin, and starring Nicolas Cage AND this song would have been absolutely perfect during some of the scenes when Cage in nearly losing his mind as the stifling Aussie heat turns his brain to batter. I have been hearing songs in terms of film for a long time now, a natural transition for someone who watches a lot of movies.
One thing that I particularly love about "Unite the Worms" is that it begins in a sparse alternative way and sounds upbeat until the bass begins which ratchets the sound downward, then the warbled almost spy caper turned askew surfy guitar begins it's jagged assault and other sounds invade including back of a warehouse vocals (that are difficult to make up) you know that this isn't Kansas (or London) anymore. Once the piercing synths stabs begin droning in different ways the brain batter tensions are in full swing.
This is the fifth single and title track of Golden Toads upcoming debut album released via Tip Top Recordings. Produced by Chris Smith Mastered by Ed Woods dropping on or around December 5th of this year (2025).
LINER NOTES (excerpted / bracketed:)
[Over the summer of 2024, multi-instrumentalist Brown locked himself away in a garage studio in Kent, surrounded by prized roses, picket fences, fluttering Union Jacks, and wooden crosses. This seclusion resulted in debut album ‘Unite The Worms’, fusing electronic, krautrock and psych to create something truly mesmerizing.]
[‘Unite The Worms’ was produced by Chris Smith, who has previously worked with Hot Chip, Billy Childish and Kikagaku Moyo, and Four Tet championed electronic producer, Callum ASA. It’s released by cult underground label, Tip Top Recordings (Japanese Television, Jim Wallis, Mandrake Handshake, Pearl & The Oysters), run by Ben Rimmer and David Warn. Proving once again that they are always ahead of the curve.]
-Robb Donker Curtius
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THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM
https://linktr.ee/goldentoadhq
https://www.instagram.com/golden_toad_hq/
The debut album from Al Brown's Golden Toad solo project on highly limited (250) magenta-coloured vinyl LP
An experimental amphibious amorphation, Golden Toad is the new solo project of Al Brown: former co-founder of Japanese Television, and video artist for Idles, Lambrini Girls, Unkle & Deap Vally. Over the summer of 2024, multi-instrumentalist Brown locked himself away in a garage studio in Kent, surrounded by prized roses, picket fences, fluttering Union Jacks, and wooden crosses. This seclusion resulted in debut album ‘Unite The Worms’, fusing electronic, krautrock and psych to create something truly mesmerising. Released as a single today, the chuggy electronic drones/screams of album opener ‘Get Out’ relate escaping an abusive relationship to choose life and independence.
With musical cues including, but not limited to, CAN, Silver Apples, Jon Hopkins, Four Tet, King Krule, and The Amazing Snakeheads. ‘Unite The Worms’ was produced by Chris Smith, who has previously worked with Hot Chip, Billy Childish and Kikagaku Moyo, and Four Tet championed electronic producer, Callum ASA. It’s released by cult underground label, Tip Top Recordings (Japanese Television, Jim Wallis, Mandrake Handshake, Pearl & The Oysters), run by Ben Rimmer and David Warn. Proving once again that they are always ahead of the curve.
With musical cues including, but not limited to, CAN, Silver Apples, Jon Hopkins, Four Tet, King Krule, and The Amazing Snakeheads. ‘Unite The Worms’ was produced by Chris Smith, who has previously worked with Hot Chip, Billy Childish and Kikagaku Moyo, and Four Tet championed electronic producer, Callum ASA. It’s released by cult underground label, Tip Top Recordings (Japanese Television, Jim Wallis, Mandrake Handshake, Pearl & The Oysters), run by Ben Rimmer and David Warn. Proving once again that they are always ahead of the curve.
Golden Toad, alternative rock, sludge, doom pop, post rock, art rock, psychedelic, post punk, gothic, songwriter / multi-instrumentalist Al Brown, Japanese Television, debut album "Unite the Worms", title track, filmic,
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