In case you missed it: fresh signals incoming from California. [outer veil] is an emergent San Francisco-based record label, headed by SutroFM’s co-curator, Oso Feo, alongside Sutro residents kk. Shucko and fallen matter. Psychedelic, terrestrial, and unbound by genre, [outer veil] appeared on the scene at the end of May, surfacing with Innerlink [01]. The compilation features twelve artists, each uniquely tied to the Bay Area.
Wildly differing in rhythm and genre, the tracks on Innerlink are connected by an evocative through-line, sharing a particular earthy moodiness and curiosity throughout. Like seagulls playing in the shorebreak; Innerlink dives into lush, subterranean explorations before soaring back up, jetstreaming into open sky.
"A haven glows in the understory, a pool thrums beneath the foliage. Harboured on the water’s brim, unseen organisms enter a cyclical, catabolic dance. In this sunless refuge, they feast on death and emanate light. Come, look: life remakes itself from its detritus."
Innerlink opens with jmo corleone’s Post Life Screw. Hazy and somnambulant, it’s the sound of something stirring into awareness, more resurrection than awakening. The haze sharpens itself into Yerba Buena, a twisted, buzzy offering from Shai FM; skies darkening as wind picks up across open terrain. From there, we find ourselves face-to-face with fallen matter, who gives us Ionize — a left-field, characteristically unpredictable ear-freakment. Disembodied voices flicker in and out as mangled breaks burst into space, freewheeling momentarily before being pinned down by deep, grounding sub frequencies.
Oso Feo emerges from the darkness with Stone Cold as amphibian textures groove and splash their way around the pond; electro for fireflies, frog-song rearranged into impish nocturne. SPF 50 & aka-Sol are next, with Klank; a hypnotic tension-builder whose acidic lasso undulates patiently against a minimal, precise backbone. Scotia follows with Girl of the Year: Edie Sedgwick reminisces over acerbic techno, her voice melting and echoing across thumping, insistent kick drums.
Only Now’s Plane and Shatter strikes through as a hyper-speed cyber-batida; breaking apart and winding back together in a flurry of pulsing hand drums, textural cuts, and ethereal voices. Next up: San Huan’s Pitch, an 85 bpm stepper punctuated with what can only be described as a freaky little lead, plucking and twanging into a frenzied, pitch-bent whirlwind.
The compilation is drawing to a close, and one can feel kk. Shucko preparing to land the spacecraft with A Rolling Stone Gathers No Gloss. Glimmering into position, the air fills with lush plucks, sparkles, and swells. Buck Wilson’s Squisher is an exercise in contrast, with a heavy, driving rhythm balancing out warm synths and light, footworky elements. RAVEN closes out the VA with ALBEDO DUB, a gentle, chilled-out goodbye; sine waves pulsing sweetly in tandem with delicate, tinkling percussion.
With that, the veil drops down until its next transmission, and we’re left looking forward to witnessing what [outer veil] does next.
"Under the veil, we unearth a morphology in which the new germinates from the old, in shrouded conditions hospitable to peculiarity and intrigue. Equal parts terrestrial and cybernetic, this first volume showcases a breadth of creations emerging from the North American club ecosystem.
After the long shelter, comes Spring."
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