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  • Trouble in Mind
Chicago's Trouble in Mind Records has given the new track, "Between the Buttons," from Swiss two-piece Klaus Johann Grobe five Soundcloud tags: pop, Krautrock, synth, alternative, and psychedelic (tags help users figure out what genres they're going to get when they play a "sound" on the streaming service).

As a fan of those genres, I had a feeling I would like this song, and I do. A lot. Though Sevi Landolt (organ, synths) and Daniel Bachmann (drums) sing in German, there's a Japanese vibe to their vocals, which aligns them with Can who combined their Teutonic roots with the Japanese influence of singer Damo Suzuki. Granted, it probably wasn't intentional, but I like the effect... even if no one else can hear it but me.

I have no idea as to what's going on in the photo below, which adorns their debut album cover, but I have a pretty straightforward philosophy when it comes to things like that, i.e. I'm all for people having fun without hurting anyone in the process—regardless as to what that "fun" entails (my favorite band leader is a furry). In this case, an over-sized rubber ball generates big smiles. You certainly can't say these folks are hard to please. Reminds me of my cat and rubber bands.

Trouble in Mind releases Im Sinne der Zeit ("In the Sense of Time" or thereabouts) on April 29. Other TM artists worth investigating include Jacco Gardner, Espectrostatic, the Limiñanas, Morgan Delt, and Doug Tuttle.