It’s hard to believe that Moon Glyph put out their Regolith Vol. 1 compilation two and a half years ago. At that point, the record was only the label’s 10th release; the discography has now reached over 47 titles of various formats. When Regolith saw the light of day, it showcased many bands in the Twin Cities which were terribly overlooked: Velvet Davenport, Skoal Kodiak, Leisure Birds and Dante & The Lobster were among the list. It served as an important turning point in Twin Cities musicology, archiving the community’s rich psychedelic and experimental music of the aughts.

Leave it to Steve Rosborough, the owner of Moon Glyph, to give us another compilation and blow it all out of the water: this time it’s free, it’s a double disc, it contains familiar names, a ton of relative unknowns and it’s called Opal. There’s a new Brute Heart track on there: "Sonambulist" appears on their live score for The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari which will see a cassette release on the label. It’s also probably an ode to Chris Riemenschneider’s Star Tribune article in advance of their orchestration at the Walker. There’s new Velvet Davenport as well; remember when that band was being hailed by now-defunct Altered Zones as "prophetic paisley pop" and nothing short of "astonishing?" Food Pyramid also contributes another cut, substantiating their endless creative energy.

Side two of Opal is a much more instrumental and minimal affair. Million Brazilians unleashes a 10 1/2 minute screechy fit that sounds like past Dan Deacon tour mates Teeth Mountain have had some kind of demon offspring. Others like closer Future Shuttle recall Squarepusher’s "Tommib," used so effectively in Sofia Coppola’s Lost In Translation.

This is trance-inducing music which shines a rare spotlight on often overlooked talent as far away from the mainstream as possible. While based out of Oakland now, Moon Glyph still has major ties to the Midwest, and will be remembered as one of the better and more adventurous labels to spring up in the state in recent memory. So it’s very cool to see Rosborough still doing his thing and advocating strongly for a niche that doesn’t get the kudos it deserves.

You can download Opal Vol. I & II for free at Moon Glyph's website — over two hours and 26 songs spanning a "diverse psychedelic gamut" that's been stewing since the label started.

Stream Brute Heart's "Sonambulist"

Tracklisting:

Opal Vol.I
1. Tara King th – “Hidden Jack”
2. The New Lines – “The Fishtown Mathematician”
3. Velvet Davenport – “Dark”
4. Halasan Bazar – “Everybody Dies”
5. Non-Travellin’ Band – “A Midnight Ride”
6. Brute Heart – “Sonambulist”
7. Samantha Glass – “Shifting Worlds”
8. The Garment District – “When Raven Claws the Sky”
9. Magic Castles – “Sky Sounds”
10. Clipd Beaks – “This Is Dusk”
11. FWY! – “Savage Heat”
12. Wume – Untitled
13. Deep Earth – “It Stands Our Mother”
14. Muscle Drum – “At Will / At Fault”
15. Food Pyramid – “Birthday Money”

Opal Vol.II
1. Treasure Hunt – “Skinny Parrot”
2. Matthewdavid & Diva – “Diva’s Thumb Piano”
3. Deep Magic – Untitled
4. M. Sage – “Illusory Promenade”
5. Zomes – “Metacenter”
6. Meadowlands – “MTTam”
7. Beyond – “The Commune”
8. Angel Eyes – “B/M/E”
9. Beat Detectives – “One Speck”
10. Million Brazilians – “Dyngia Nomad”
11. Future Shuttle – “The Silver Line”