It's weird to think about now, but Daniel Bachman, then known as Sacred Harp, put out some of his earliest material on Mirror Universe Tapes, a small label that was also responsible for some of Washed Out's earliest releases. Listening to Bachman's music now, which is acoustic, instrumental, masterfully made and completely gorgeous, it's interesting to think about the two artist's different trajectories. One dude went on to provide the theme song for a TV show and get massively popular, the other kept on doing what he was doing, retreating further into his guitar. (Guess which is which!) But Bachman's music is inherently niche, not in how it sounds—anyone can put this on and enjoy it—but in how it's so steeped it is in Jack Rose-esque "primitive guitar." There's a whole, massive world of this stuff out there, and while it's worth delving deep into the established figures like Rose or John Fahey or Sandy Bull, the fact that a younger generation is picking up on this tradition is exciting. With Bachman sitting alongside labels like Vin Du Select Qualitite, there's certainly plenty of new stuff to check out. Bachman's latest, Seven Pines is out now on Tompkins Square.
Stream: Daniel Bachman, "Copperhead" (via NPR)
Stream: Daniel Bachman, "Seven Pines" (via Pitchfork)