30 JUNE 09
CDs:
+Ace Hood - Ruthless CD (We The Best)
New release from the Florida rapper features guest appearances from Jasmine Sullivan, The Dream, Ludacris, Rick Ross, Birdman and more.
+Bjork - Voltaic CD/CD+DVD/2xCD+2xDVD Nonesuch)
Voltaic is a remarkable, multi-media document of what happened after Volta was completed -- a journey of a different sort as the ever-evolving singer assembled her live band, made a collection of typically amazing videos and one-step-ahead remixes, and toured the world. She recorded the Voltaic live CD in one take at Olympic Studio in London. It's a stunning performance, featuring cutting-edge computer technology, an old-school horn section and a female, flag-toting Icelandic choir. Deluxe version includes the Voltiac live CD plus a DVD featuring 21 songs performed on the Volta tour. Super deluxe 2xCD+2xDVD version features live recordings, remixes, videos and much more.
+Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath 2xCD/2xLP (Sanctuary)
Digitally remastered and expanded edition includes a bonus disc containing nine previously unreleased tracks.
+Carcass - Wake Up And Smell The Carcass CD+DVD (Earache)
17 rarities from different eras of the band's career, including five extras from the Swansong period, Radio One Session tracks and rare EP cuts. The accompanying DVD contains two complete live sets taking in 17 classics from the period 1989-1992. The DVD also comes with the band's five promo videos.
+Cult Of Luna - Eternal Kingdom Redux CD+DVD (Earache)
Special Redux Edition includes a DVD featuring over and hour and a half of their set in London in July 2008.
+Matt Duke - Acoustic Kingdom Underground CDEP (Rykodisc)
Singer/songwriter Matt Duke released the full-length Kingdom Underground in September 2008. It contained a thoroughly engaging collection of intelligent, literate folk-based pop songs that exude a unique playfulness while tackling some often-weighty topics. Acoustic Kingdom Underground is the companion piece to Kingdom Underground, and showcases more intimate performances of the album’s standout tracks.
+Guru Guru - Tango Fango CD (Revisited Records)
Remastered digipak reissue includes new liner notes.
+Levon Helm - Electric Dirt CD/LP (Vanguard)
Electric Dirt again finds Levon steeped in tradition in his connection to the land and those who live by it, but this record goes deeper and wider, incorporating gospel, blues and soul elements in a bracing collection of originals and carefully chosen outside songs.
+Jefferson Airplane - Jefferson Airplane: The Woodstock Experience 2xCD (Sony Legacy)
Lavishly packaged double disc set combines Jefferson Airplane’s 1969 album Volunteers with their entire Woodstock performance.
+Jeremih - Jeremih CD (Def Jam)
Growing up on Chicago's infamous Southside is the 21 year-old behind the nationwide hit “Birthday Sex.” He is a singer, songwriter, producer, and musician able to play multiple instruments including the saxophone, percussion, keys and quads.
+Janis Joplin - Janis Joplin: The Woodstock Experience 2xCD (Sony Legacy)
Lavishly packaged double disc set combines Joplin’s 1969 album I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama with her complete Woodstock performance.
+Killing Joke - Gathering 2008 Part 1 2xCD (Candlelight)
+Killing Joke - Gathering 2008 Part 2 2xCD (Candlelight)
+Killing Joke - Gathering 2008 4xCD (Candlelight)
The Gathering 2008 saw the original Killing Joke line up play live in London at two historic sold out concerts for the first time since 1982. Available as two separate double disc volumes, or as a limited edition collector’s box set.
+Cledus T. Judd - Polyrically Uncorrect CD (Koch)
The country funnyman is back with his first new project in four years.
+Killswitch Engage - Killswitch Engage CD/CD+DVD (Roadrunner)
Brand new album. Special edition CD+DVD contains four bonus tracks and a 30-minute “behind the scenes” documentary and deluxe packaging.
+David Lynch - David Lynch Presents Fox Bat Strategy: A Tribute To Dave Jaurequi CDEP (David Lynch Music)
A long-time pet project of film director David Lynch. Fox Bat Strategy features a cast of musicians who began collaborating with Lynch surrounding the filming of Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The same line-up of players appeared on Fire Walk With Me's two roadhouse cuts: ''The Pink Room'' and ''Blue Frank'' (as well as made cameos in the film itself). In 1994, these same musicians, with an invitation from Lynch, re-entered the studio for experimental collaboration. What emerged were these six tracks. For nearly fifteen years these songs have remained unreleased and unheard, slow cooking in the ether of time, all the while retaining a uniquely modern sensibility. This release is a tribute to the album's late singer and guitarist Dave Jaurequi, who passed away suddenly in 2006.
+Albert King With Stevie Ray Vaughan - In Session CD (Stax)
Deluxe reissue of the famed in-concert 1983 jam session -- the only known recording of Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan performing together.
+Moby - Wait For Me CD/LP+MP3 (Mute)
Wait For Me is a radical departure from Moby's recent albums. Liberated from the pressures of trying to please himself at the same time as the industry, Moby decided to forego the expensive studios, state-of-the-art equipment, big name guest artists, and phalanxes of graphic designers and image consultants that have characterized some of his previous albums. "There's something so relaxing about doing everything yourself, and not trying to second-guess the market," Moby says. "It's nice to try to do things for the right reasons -- just make a record because you want to make a record."
+Obituary - Darkest Day CD (Candlelight)
New album from the veteran death metal band.
+Santana - Santana: The Woodstock Experience 2xCD (Sony Legacy)
Lavishly packaged double disc set combines Santana’s self-titled 1969 album with his complete Woodstock performance.
+Sly & The Family Stone - Stand! 2xCD (Sony Legacy)
Lavishly packaged double disc set combines Sly & The Family Stone’s 1969 album Stand! with their complete Woodstock performance.
+Suicide Silence - No Time To Bleed CD/CD+DVD/LP (Century Media)
Sophomore album from the American deathcore metal band. Limited CD+DVD “Maximum Bloodshed” box set edition includes a bonus track (“Misleading Milligrams”), a bonus DVD featuring behind the scenes footage, a poster and collector cards.
+Tanya Tucker - My Turn CD (Time/Life)
On her new album, Tanya Tucker takes classic country songs originally recorded by male country
legends and turns the tables, giving classics by George Jones, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty and Eddy Arnold a powerful spin from a woman's point of view. Guest artists include The Grascals, Jim Lauderdale and bluegrass stars Rhonda and Darrin Vincent, with producer Anderson playing guitar on every track.
+Twisted Sister - Stay Hungry 2xCD (Atlantic)
Rhino's 25th Anniversary Edition combines the newly remastered, nine-track album with an additional disc featuring 15 previously unreleased outtakes and demos from the original sessions plus a new track.
+Various Artists - Reggae Gold 2009 CD+DVD (VP)
An assortment of top artists and hits including Estelle featuring Sean Paul on the international smash “Come Over,” as well as tracks by Beres Hammond, Tarrus Riley, Queen Ifrica, T.O.K. and Serani's massive radio hit, “No Games.”
+Wilco - Wilco (The Album) CD/2xLP+CD (Nonesuch)
Wilco’s seventh album combines the intimacy of its previous studio disc, Sky Blue Sky, with the experimentation of A Ghost Is Born in a set that boasts strong melodies and gorgeous, often unabashedly pop arrangements.
+Willie Isz - Georgiavania CD/LP (Lex)
Acclaimed producer, lyricist and singer Jneiro Jarel teams up with Goodie Mob’s Khujo Goodie.
+Johnny Winter - The Woodstock Experience 2xCD (Sony Legacy)
Lavishly packaged double disc set combines Winter’s self-titled 1969 album with his complete Woodstock performance.
+Johnny Winter - Live Bootleg Series Vol. 5 CD (Friday Music)
For the fifth volume in the acclaimed Live Bootleg Series, Johnny digs back into his archives for some very super rare performances “Lights Out,” “Rock And Roll Hoochie Coo,” “You Keep Sayin' That You're Leavin'” and others.
+Wu-Tang - Chamber Music CD (Koch)
Chamber Music's throwback sound features a combination of live instrumentation and new RZA beats shaped in a classic old-school soul type of vibe, reminiscent of the group's classic 36 Chambers sound but with a completely updated, modern twist. Includes newly recorded verses from every key member of the group, plus affiliates Cappadonna, Killah Priest, Street Life and more.
DVDs:
+Ted Nugent - Motor City Mayhem DVD/CD (Eaglerock)
July 4, 2008 was a landmark night at the DTE Energy Music Centre in the 41-year touring career of Detroit's own Ted Nugent, as he performed his 6,000th show to a raucous hometown crowd of 20,000 plus fans. Also available as a separate audio CD.
+RiP! A Remix Manifesto - DVD (Disinformation)
In RiP! A Remix Manifesto, Web activist and filmmaker Brett Gaylor explores issues of copyright in the information age, mashing up the media landscape of the 20th century and shattering the wall between users and producers. The film’s central protagonist is mash-up phenom Girl Talk. But is Girl Talk a paragon of people power or the Pied Piper of piracy? Creative Commons founder Lawrence Lessig, Brazil’s Minister Of Culture Gilberto Gil, and pop culture critic Cory Doctorow are also along for the ride.
+Rob Thomas - Something To Be Tour: Live At Red Rocks DVD (E1 Entertainment)
Featuring the multi-platinum recording artist performing 18 hits from his solo career and Matchbox Twenty, this incredible set also includes a special acoustic arrangement of “Smooth” and a cover of the David Bowie classic “Let’s Dance.”
Vinyl:
+Dead Weather - Hang You From The Heavens 7” (Third Man)
B-side is a cover of Gary Numan’s “Are Friends Electric?”
+Pete Yorn - Back & Fourth LP (Columbia)
Now available on vinyl.
23 JUNE 09
CDs:
+Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso UFO - Dark Side Of The Black Moon: What Planet Are We On? CD/2xLP (Important)
More proggy psych from Acid Mothers Temple -- mixes Pink Floyd with fuzzy wah guitars and cosmic sounds. Double LP includes an exclusive bonus D-side track.
+Alexisonfire - Old Crows / Young Card CD (Vagrant)
Alexisonfire’s first album in three years. Old Crows / Young Card is filled with anger, beauty, and pop.
+Amazing Baby - Rewild CD/LP+MP3 (Artist First)
Rewild is a collection of songs self-produced with limitless imagination. Their brand of catchy, intelligent indie rock/pop made waves at this year’s SXSW. HQ-180 vinyl includes an MP3 download and bonus track.
+Astra - The Weirding CD (Metal Blade)
San Diego’s cosmic masters are riding at the forefront of the new wave of psychedelic prog.
+The Bats - The Guilty Office CD (Hidden Agenda)
For their seventh studio album, The Bats continue to refine and develop their own idiosyncratic path, whilst also adding fresh sparkle and new ideas.
+Bergraven - Till Makabert Vasen CD (Hydra Head)
On Till Makabert Vasen, Par perfected his already unique rendering of Nordic chants and vehement growls.
+Bibio - Ambivalence Avenue CD/2xLP (Warp)
Focusing on location recording using cassettes, a half-broken sampler, dictaphones, and experimental ways of affecting sounds, Bibio has crafted a unequalled style that is as subtle as it is powerful.
+Bird Names - Sing The Browns CD (Upset The Rhythm)
Psyche-pop troupe's fifth album. A moody pop album scribbled in loose, intuitive musicianship, kissed with love and friendship. Folk in its frankness, privacy and melancholy; psychedelic in its conjuring the displacement of drug experience; pop in its melody, stickiness and demand of obsessive listening.
+Birds Of Avalon - Uncanny Valley CD (Volcom)
Their second full-length. Raleigh, NC's Birds Of Avalon have toured with Raconteurs, The Flaming Lips, Ted Leo And The Pharmacists, The F**king Champs, Big Business, Oneida, Mudhoney, Valient Thorr, Destroyer, Federation X, The Hold Steady, and Drunk Horse, to name a few.
+Black Meteoric Star - Black Meteoric Star CD (DFA)
The latest project by longtime DFA alumni Gavin Russom is inspired by equal parts Euro-disco, wonky early electronic body music from America's Midwest, and a fascination with the outer reaches of global psychedelic rock.
+Tom Brosseau - Posthumous Success CD (Fatcat)
His third full-length for Fatcat marks a huge stylistic shift from the spare, acoustic arrangements of his previous releases. A buoyant, well-crafted, and sprawlingly lovely album. ''Brosseau combines Buckley's swoony delicacy with Nick Drake's restraint, in the service of a singular songwriting voice.'' -- NPR
+Kendel Carson - Alright Dynamite CD (Train Wreck)
Kendel Carson returns with an explosive new album. The 24 year-old singer/fiddler burst onto the scene in 2007 with the widely acclaimed Rearview Mirror Tears which hit the Top 10 on the Americana Chart.
+Richard Cheese - Viva La Vodka CD (Coverage)
America's loudest lounge singer performs swingin' Vegas versions of rock, rap, and Top 40 hits, ''swankifying'' contemporary songs into traditional pop vocal standards.
+Cliks - Dirty Kings CD (Tommy Boy)
Toronto's Cliks have dredged the emotional mire of a hectic past two years to create this, their second record.
+Codes In The Clouds - Paper Canyon CD (Erased Tapes)
Debut full-length release from the cinematic post-rock pop quintet.
+Darkest Hour - Eternal Return CD (Victory)
Epic and furious metal written by metal-heads for metal-heads.
+Dead Prez & DJ Green Lantern - Pulse Of The People CD (Invasion)
Stic.man and M-1, the revolutionary duo that comprise Dead Prez, combine forces with DJ Green Lantern for Pulse Of The People.
+Dear Hunter - Act III: Life And Death CD (Triple Crown)
Set in a WWI era, Act III: Life And Death documents the metamorphosis of a fictional central character as he makes the transition from innocence to impurity.
+Deer Tick - Born On Flag Day CD/LP+MP3 (Partisan)
Unlike War Elephant, Born On Flag Day features the three new members of Deer Tick that principal songwriter John J. McCauley III recruited to form the current incarnation, and reflects a natural evolution from a singular vision of one songwriter to something greater.
+Def Leppard - Adrenalize 2xCD (Island/Mercury)
Remastered deluxe edition includes a bonus disc with rare, live, acoustic and demo versions.
+Def Leppard - Pyromania 2xCD (Island/Mercury)
Remastered deluxe edition includes a bonus disc of a previously unreleased show from the L.A. Forum in '83.
+Dial - Dial CDEP (Robotic Empire)
This austere New Zealand outfit successfully channels the darkest corners of the AmRep catalog, the raw ferocity of classic hardcore, the off-time kilter of math-rock, and the concept that music can actually be dangerous.
+Dinosaur Jr. - Farm CD/2xCD2xLP+MP3 (Jagjaguwar)
Their fifth full-length with the original lineup. At times wholly ‘70s guitar-epic, at times perfect for sitting by a babbling brook with Joni and Neil, Farm encompasses Dinosaur Jr.'s signature palette, soaring and distorted guitar, unshakable hooks, and honey-rich melodies. Deluxe 2xCD version features a bonus disc containing four non-album tracks. Double LP comes in beautiful litho-wrapped gatefold jackets and includes MP3 download.
+Dogr - In Korean Wilds And Villages CD (Sonig)
The debut album by Dogr, a young New-York-based conceptual artist/instrumentalist/vocalist. Dogr explores unheard musical ideas and conducts webbed experiments, not only for the sake of discovering and exploiting a great art, but to speak in a clear and beautiful language, accurate in its contraction and original in its musical quality. Produced by Mouse On Mars’ Andi Toma.
+Dream Theater - Black Clouds & Silver Linings CD/3xCD/LP (Roadrunner)
Black Clouds & Silver Linings -- produced by band members Mike Portnoy and John Petrucci, who also serve as the group's main lyricists -- offers a vibrant manifestation of the world-class musicianship, vivid lyrical scenarios and ambitious, multi-leveled compositions that have established Dream Theater as a uniquely compelling creative force. Special Edition version adds a second CD containing six cover songs, as well as a third CD of instrumental mixes of the entire Black Clouds & Silver Linings album.
+Envy/Jesu - Split CD (Hydra Head)
Over 37 minutes of newly recorded music from two forward-looking bands who are entering a new phase. Envy's three songs are even more diverse than previous classics, while Jesu mastermind Justin K. Broadrick wrote, recorded, mixed, and produced his two tracks at Avalanche from January - May 2008.
+Falty DL - Love Is A Liability CD/2xLP (Planet Mu)
This New Yorker is no stranger to making music, with releases on Napalm Enema and Ramp Records, and his signature style is drawing attention from plays on Mary Anne Hobbs' BBC Radio 1 show. Love Is A Liability is comprised of post-garage ambience, round, warm melodies, and disjointed two-step beats.
+Fenn O’Berg -Magic & Return 2xCD (Editions Mego)
Editions Mego (re)presents legendary supergroup Fenn O'Berg (Christian Fennesz, Jim O'Rourke and Peter Rehberg) with this double CD reissue of The Magic Sound Of Fenn O'Berg and The Return Of Fenn O'Berg, each originally released in 1999 and 2002, respectively.
+Foreign Born - Person To Person CD/LP (Secretly Canadian)
An album of dense pop that justifies the band's place among top songwriting contemporaries like Cass McCombs, James Mercer, and David Bowie. African high-life guitars are countered with new wave wash; the sound of a band daring to keep its palette open to most any influence, from U2 to The Feelies.
+Future Of The Left - Travels With Myself And Another... CD/LP+MP3 (4AD)
The follow-up to their acclaimed 2008 debut Curses is both melodically brutal and uncompromising in its lyrical bit. Features the single "The Hope That House Built" with its marching Queens Of The Stone Age-style riff.
+Ginuwine - A Man’s Thoughts CD (Notifi LLC)
The sixth album from the R&B vocalist, produced by The Underdogs, B Cox, Timberland, The Runners, Johnta Austin, Oak and Polow Da Don. Includes guest appearances from Brandy, Missy Elliott, Bun B and Timberland.
+Goatwhore - Carving Out The Eyes Of God CD (Metal Blade)
Follow up to 2006's A Haunting Curse features current and former members of Acid Bath, Soilent Green, Crowbar, and Nachtmystium.
+God Help The Girl - God Help The Girl CD/LP+MP3 (Matador)
After the success of Belle And Sebastian’s most recent album, The Life Pursuit, band leader/singer/songwriter Stuart Murdoch decided to pursue his dream of writing a rock musical scored for female singers. After auditioning vocalists via Internet contests, he made his choices and, with all members of Belle And Sebastian backing him up, recorded this breathtaking record. It combines the strengths of early Belle And Sebastian records in a broader musical palette, drawing equally on musicals, ‘60s girl groups, ‘80s indie, and classic pop.
+A Hawk And A Hacksaw - Délivrance CD/LP (Leaf)
Recorded in Budapest during mid-2008 around the core of the Hun Hangar Ensemble (a group of extraordinarily talented Hungarian folk musicians), Délivrance proves that months of submersion in the local culture and making music the focus of daily life has seeped right through Barnes and Trost's songwriting and playing. A vivid, intense, and confident work.
+Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul (Deluxe Edition) CD (Stax)
Remastered 40th Anniversary Edition features two bonus tracks, new photographs and expanded liner notes by Jim James (My Morning Jacket).
+The Higher - It’s Only Natural CD (Epitaph)
If Justin Timberlake were a band, he'd be The Higher. With boy band good looks and unabashed pop sensibilities, The Higher have won a legion of fans with their unique take on emo, pop, and R&B colliding in a dance party explosion.
+Jedi Mind Tricks - Greatest Features CD (Babygrande)
Jedi's tattooed, gritty and enigmatic frontman Vinnie Paz has worked with a slew of the underground's best throughout his career. Now, for the first time, all of the tracks that Vinnie Paz has recorded outside of the Jedi Mind Tricks umbrella are collected in one place for the fans' listening pleasure. Featuring 7L & Esoteric, Guilty Simpson, Percee P, Apathy, ILL Bill, Outerspace, and many more.
+Jets Overhead - No Nations CD (Vapor)
Jets Overhead follows up its 2007 Juno nomination (Canadian Grammy equivalent) with an album that combines atmospheric moods with timeless songwriting. ''The band's lush, driving rock is the bristling, slightly psychedelic offspring of the likes of Radiohead and Pink Floyd.'' -- L.A. Times
+LANDy - Eros And Omissions CD (Nine Yards)
LANDy is occasionally famous actor/filmmaker/musician Adam Goldberg, plus Steven Drozd (Flaming Lips), Aaron Espinoza (Earlimart), a host of others, and often times, Goldberg very much alone. ''Adam's music is kind of the opposite of him in some ways, unguarded and fragile... And he's created a beautiful little world of sound. Oh, and this record is perfectly complemented with a bottle of bourbon.'' -- Steven Drozd
+Leadbelly/Sonny Terry/Brownie Meghee - American Blues Legends 2xCD (Varese Sarabande)
Original recording remastered. Double-disc set from these all-time legends of acoustic blues containing a set of tracks from Leadbelly on the first and a collection of tracks from Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee on the second.
+Timothy Leary - Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out CD (ESP-Disk’ Ltd.)
Original recording remastered. The first-ever reissue of the original ESP-Disk' edition released in 1966.
+Lemonheads - Varshons CD (The End)
Lemonheads’ new album feels like a cool mix tape slipped to you by a music-obsessed friend. Produced by Gibby Haynes (Butthole Surfers) and featuring guest appearances by Liv Tyler and Kate Moss, the collection is filled with strange bedfellows, from G.G. Allin and Townes Van Zandt to Wire and Leonard Cohen.
+Loop - A Gilded Eternity 2xCD (Reactor)
The last in the Loop reissues series -- their final album, originally released in 1990. This two-disc set has been remastered from the original analog sources and includes extra material from the relevant timeframe.
+Lord Cut-Glass - Lord Cut-Glass CD (Chemikal Underground)
Sometimes bashful, occasionally imbued with curmudgeonly bluster, and yet always lifted by humorous life learned truisms, Lord Cut-Glass strikes a dashing figure of musically inventive bravado. Galloping percussion, waltzes and marches, promenades of male and female harmony, delicate and serene creations punctuated by casual profanity and shot through with brazenly hilarious words-to-the-wise.
+Love Is All - Last Choice CD/LP (What’s Your Rupture?)
Sweden's Love Is All are back with the ultimate tale of late night regret. ''Last Choice,'' the stand out track from their release ''A Hundred Things Keep Me Up At Night'', is backed with five all new recordings.
+Man - Revelation CD (Esoteric)
Originally released in 1969, Revelation was the first album by Welsh rock legends, Man. A fabulous blend of psychedelia and acid rock, the set is now regarded as an early classic by the band. Featuring the French hit single “Erotica” and a loose concept inspired by the space race, this reissue features four bonus tracks including a previously unreleased extended take of “Erotica.”
+Bob Marley - B Is For Bob CD (Tuff Going)
Executively produced by Ziggy Marley, B Is for Bob is a collection of original Bob Marley songs re-imagined for kids and fans of all ages.
+The Mars Volta - Octahedron CD (WB)
Their fifth studio album. Following 2008's The Bedlam In Goliath, The Mars Volta's punkperverted neo-psychedelia goes acoustic on Octahedron. Says the band's Cedric Bixler Zavala: “There's electricity throughout it! But that's what our band does-celebrate mutations.”
+Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster - III CD (Ferret Music)
Surges forward with as much savage twang and fearsome melody to inspire the wrath of any just god. A barrage of crunch and stomp, a tirade of licks and rapid-fire snares. ''If Lynyrd Skynyrd had a hair up their butts and were more generally pissed off than Slayer, they'd sound a whole lot like Birmingham, AL’s Maylene And The Sons Of Disaster.'' -- L.A. City Beat
+Eugene McGuinness - Eugene McGinness CD+MP3 (Domino)
The North American debut of this young and gifted songwriter from Liverpool highlights his acidic sense of humor on twelve utterly charming pop tracks that skip between stylistic boundaries. The album veers from unabashed, starry-eyed romance to pre-coital forked-tongue come-ons via a sound that's cinematic yet endearingly ramshackle.
+John Mellencamp - Life Death Live And Freedom CD (Hear Music)
Live performances of key songs from Mellencamp's highly successful 2008 release Life Death Love And Freedom. These live versions are presented here just as they were performed: no overdubs or studio enhancements of any kind were added.
+John Mellencamp -Life Death Love And Freedom 2xCD+DVD (Hear Music)
Deluxe Tour Edition reissue includes the original T Bone Burnett produced CD+DVD set plus the eight-song live companion CD, Life Death Live And Freedom, recorded on his Summer 2008 tour.
+Merzbow - 13 Japanese Birds V.6 CD (Important)
Sixth in the 13-month series of releases inspired by Olivier Messaien’s Catalogue D’Oiseaux.
+David Moore - My Lover, My Stranger CD (Doghouse)
''(David Moore) reaches back beyond Nebraska to the Springsteen of Born To Run and Darkness On The Edge Of Town to the parched and pleading soul of Wilson Pickett and Sam & Dave. It helps that he bears a muscular resemblance to the Boss, and that he's got the thematic skills to back it up.'' -- CMJ
+Mount Eerie - Dawn CD+Book (Buenaventura)
The music of Mount Eerie and The Microphones has always been a very personal, almost voyeuristic, view inside the mind of Phil Elverum. Dawn is an archival core sample from an intensely creative period of Elverum’s life, the winter of 2002/2003 spent in arctic Norway, a kind of “lost album” finally properly recorded on just guitar and singing. Packaged with a 144-page hardcover book and 16 color photo cards, all bound in simulated “wood” paper.
+National Health - National Health CD (Esoteric)
+National Health - Of Queues & Cures CD (Esoteric)
Reissues of National Health’s late-‘70s albums. Evolving from Canterbury stylists Hatfield & The North, National Health featured the talents of Dave Stewart (Eurhythmics) on keyboards, John Greaves on bass, Pip Pyle on drums and Phil Miller on guitar along with guests such as Jimmy Hastings and Peter Blegvad.
+Native Window - Native Window CD/LP (Star City)
Not long ago, the members of Kansas found themselves in a bit of an uncertain situation. ''Three to four years ago, the main writers for Kansas -- Steve Walsh and Kerry Livgren -- stated that they would no longer be writing for the band Kansas,'' explains drummer Phil Ehart. ''That didn't mean that Kerry might not write a song or two for a special project, but that the two of them were done writing any album length material for Kansas. The four of us decided that we were not one yet, and Native Window was born to scratch that 'new material itch.'''
+Nurse With Wound - Spiral Insana CD (United Jnana)
Originally released in 1996, Spiral Insana is more ambient and user-friendly than other NWW outings, but still surreal and avant-garde. Here, Stapleton and guests mix bowed piano, percussion, a radio, and loops together into an hour-long collage of mashed-up sounds, jarring juxtapositions, buzzsaw distorion, and even a pipe organ.
+Ohbijou - Beacons CD (Last Gang)
Born in the bedrooms of their family home in Ontario, bound with youthful frailty and unnerving beauty. Furnished with mandolin, violin, piano, banjo, cello and an impressive array of other instruments, Ohbijou is an orchestral pop tour de force.
+Brian Olive - Brian Olive CD/LP (Alive Records)
Brian Olive's name first came into the public eye as a founding guitarist/singer of the Greenhornes, and later as a member of the Soledad Brothers, for whom he provided saxophone and sundries under the pseudonym of Oliver Henry. Brian's self-titled debut is a breakout multicolored affair.
+Onna - Onna CDEP (Holy Mountain)
Reissue of this 1983 psychedelic punk single from Japanese artist Keizo Miyanish. ''Cortigiana Dal Velo'' and ''Mune O Tsutsunde'' pair acid guitar and bass over tripped out drum programming and loops to produce a psychedelic masterpiece that fits somewhere between the first White Stains seven-inch and Les Rallizes Denudes oeuvre circa 1980.
+Patterson Hood (Drive By Truckers) - Murdering Oscar: And Other Love... CD/LP+CD (Ruth St.)
The second solo record from the leader of the Drive By Truckers. Most of his DBT band mates join him, along with Don Chambers, Will Johnson, and Scott Danbom from Centro-matic.
+Phenomenal Handclap Band - Phenomenal Handclap Band CD (Friendly Fire)
A sound that is equal parts anthemic, dancefloor-oriented and orchestral, borrowing elements from progressive rock, disco, electro, and psychedelia.
+PRE - Hope Freaks CD/LP (Skin Graft)
The second album from London’s new school, no-wave naughties PRE. Recorded in Chicago with Steve Albini at Electrical Audio and mastered by Weasel Walter in San Francisco, Hope Freaks is a power vault up from the acclaimed newborn gnarl of their debut, Epic Fits.
+Push-Pull - Between Noise And The Indians CD (Joyful Noise)
This Bloomington, IN band's sound lies somewhere in between highbrow prog and lowbrow, PBR-soaked basement punk. With Between Noise And The Indians, it seems the trio have sharpened their wit and crafted their musical skills into something unique and undeniably important.
+Masha Qrella - Speak Low - Loewe And Weill In Exile CD (Morr Music)
In October 2007, indie-pop chanteuse Masha Qrella (Contriva, Mina, Nmfarner) was asked by Berlin's Haus der Kulturen der Welt (House Of World Cultures) to put together an evening's performance as part of the ''New York-Berlin'' celebrations to mark the venue's 50th anniversary. Under the heading Broadway - Cradle Of Popular Music, the challenge was to work with and find new approaches to the compositions of Kurt Weill and Frederick Loewe, two giants of Broadway who had their origins in Berlin.
+R.E.M. - Reckoning 2xCD/LP (A&M)
Remastered and expanded -- includes the original album and a bonus disc of a previously unreleased concert from 1984 at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom.
+Risil - Non Meters Vol. 1 CD (Important)
Risil is a band of 1,000 alternating members with a foundation of 13. Risil stands for the word ''resilient,'' characterized or marked by resilience as A: capable of withstanding shock without permanent deformation or rupture; and B: tending to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change.
+Charlie Robison - Beautiful Day CD (Dualtone)
The follow-up to his 2004 Dualtone debut, Good Times. Since then, Robison got divorced from his wife Emily (Dixie Chicks), so it's only natural to assume that this new record is his ''divorce album,'' which is not altogether untrue. But Robison writes from a perspective that draws from and speaks to larger matters and issues within human existence.
+Royal City - Royal City CD/LP (Asthmatic Kitty)
For a generation of Guelph music fans, Royal City was something akin to a supergroup. From his early teens, Aaron Riches was a figurehead in the city's hardcore punk scene, fronting numerous politically charged punk bands and promoting DIY gigs. Tracing punk's spiritual heritage back to Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, Aaron found himself drawn to the acoustic guitar and began writing softly strummed songs about streetlights, Shakespeare, dogs, and broken hearts, all sung in his creaky, distinctive voice. This previously unreleased collection tells the story of Royal City.
+Sa-Ra Creative Partners - Nuclear Evolution: Age Of Love CD/LP (Ubiquity)
A unique blend of street wit, dirty-sex talk, tall stories, and intergalactic future sounds. The album oozes equal parts jazz, soul, pop, funk, and hip-hop. Contributors include Erykah Badu, saxophonist Gary Bartz with his quartet, and many talented, up-and-coming artists.
+Serengeti & Polyphonic - Terradactyl CD (Anticon)
Serengeti and Polyphonic's Terradactyl is about place -- losing place, mostly, struggling to find it again, and succumbing to the fact that it's cold, and surprisingly lonely, dressed in the human condition.
+Mack Allen Smith - Early Years 1962-1967 CD (Fat Possum)
The songs on this collection were all cut at either Hi recording studio or at Rick Hall's Fame recording studio in Muscle Shoals, AL, and most appeared on singles on the now collectable Vee Eight, Mariteen, Status, and Cynthia labels. Many are straight blues, a style Smith first heard as a boy blaring out of the cafes on the other side of the tracks in North Carolina.
+Soul Assassins -Intermission CD (Gold Dust)
The third album from Soul Assassins, lead by DJ Muggs. Intermission features a rotating cast of heavyweight MCs including Bun B, B-Real, Evidence, Prodigy, and others.
+Regina Spektor - Far CD/CD+DVD/LP (Sire)
New album spotlights Spektor’s daring piano pop, vocal acrobatics and offbeat wit. Far combines her rich soundscapes with evocative and intricately structured melodies and a remarkable gift for crafting intelligent, refreshingly honest odes to life. Special Edition package adds a DVD featuring four videos.
+Spinnerette - Spinnerette CD/LP+MP3 (Anthem Entertainment)
The self-titled Spinnerette album includes 13 new songs written by Brody Dalle and produced by Alain Johannes, and is the first Brody Dale helmed full-length release since The Distillers' 2003 Coral Fang album. Recorded in L.A. at Pink Duck, the band lineup on the record includes Dalle, Johannes (Queens of the Stone Age, Eleven) Tony Bevilacqua (The Distillers) and Jack Irons (Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers).
+Spooky Tooth - Lost In My Dream: Anthology 2xCD (Esoteric)
Spans their entire recorded output for Island Records -- from their first single to 1974’s “The Mirror”. Includes non-album singles, a previously unreleased mix of “Lost in My Dream” and two previously unreleased songs from 1968.
+Sunset Rubdown - Dragonslayer CD/2xLP+MP3 (Jagjaguwar)
Sunset Rubdown was once the moniker under which Spencer Krug released lo-fi solo recordings. The project has long since evolved into a full band, and Dragonslayer is the third full-length. The musicianship is unassisted by studio magic, and the songs are left to justify for themselves their own screwy pop-rock existence.
+Otis Taylor - Pentatonic Wars And Love Songs CD (Telarc)
Taylor's new recording, Pentatonic Wars And Love Songs, throws a light on the complexities of love in all of its forms. In addition to Taylor's trademark haunting vocals and simple but stirring guitar riffs -- a combination often referred to as trance blues -- the album also features guest appearances by Irish blues-rock guitarist Gary Moore and jazz/hip-hop pianist Jason Moran.
+Tonic - A Casual Affair: The Best Of Tonic CD (Polydor)
Features 12 selections from Tonic's three albums (Lemon Parade, Sugar, Head On Straight), plus three previously unreleased bonus tracks.
+Tortoise - Beacons Of Ancestorship CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Their first new record in over five years, Beacons Of Ancestorship gives nods to techno, punk, electro, lo-fi noise, cut up beats, heavily processed synths, and mournful, elegiac dirges. In fewer words, it is exactly what you’d expect from Tortoise.
+Various Artists - Appalachian Tradition: Original Bluegrass Classics CD (The Great American Music)
The Appalachian Tradition is an ideal primer for those just beginning to explore bluegrass. Its 18 selections are immediately accessible. The ''classics'' presented here, in other words, are usually those infrequent bluegrass cuts to have gained radio recognition beyond a core bluegrass audience.
+Venetian Snares - Horsey Noises CDEP/12” (Planet Mu)
Hot on the heels of his new album, Filth, Venetian Snares is back with a new four-track EP. The title track includes a vocal, and the B-side includes a remix of the song.
+VNV Nation - Of Faith, Power And Glory CD (Anachron America)
New album from the Irish/English duo. As with all of VNV Nation's albums, the title represents the theme. In this case, it is a commentary on us as individuals and on humanity as a whole. Faith, power and glory; three things that, in succession, can bring people to the greatest of heights and achievement, or that can corrupt and destroy.
+Voivod - Infini CD (Relapse)
The phrase ''living legends'' is often overused however nothing better represents Voivod and the band's nearly three-decade contribution to the evolution of metal. Infini, the final studio release since the untimely death of founding member Denis ''Piggy'' D'Amour, and addition of bassist Jason Newsted (Metallica) in 2002, perfectly articulates the many facets of this trail blazing band.
+Larry Jon Wilson - Jon Larry Wilson CD/LP (Drag City)
His first album since 1980. Known for his deep country soul style, this album is the closest to the bone. It stands apart from his ‘70s recordings as Wilson stands mostly alone, occasionally accompanied by a single fiddle.
+Woolfy - If Ya Know What’s Good For Ya CD (Rong/DFA)
New release from Scottish singer/songwriter Simon James (AKA Woolfy) eloquently brings together varying styles and sounds to great effect. Woolfy's vast knowledge and influences produce a seamless blend of funk, pop, dirty disco, rare grooves, and new wave, full of epic guitar lines and infectious lyrics.
+YaHoWha 13 - Magnificence In The Memory CD/LP (Drag City/Twos & Fews)
Skimmed from the riches in Source Family member Isis Aquarian's vaults, the nine tracks on Magnificence In The Memory run the gamut of YaHoWha 13's rainbow of styles, from the whispered funk of “Camp Of The Gypsies” to the screaming and stomping of “Camp Of The Gypsies.”
+Pete Yorn - Back And Forth CD (Columbia)
Back And Fourth follows Yorn’s first three albums, which he considers a trilogy, and is his first album in three years. Yorn wrote all ten songs and recorded the album in Omaha, NE, with producer Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, Rilo Kiley). Columbia’s co-chairman Rick Rubin helped guide the project from its earliest demo stages to final mastering.
+Yppah - They Know What Ghost Know CD (Ninja Tune)
Joe Corrales, Jr., AKA Yppah (pronounced ''Yippah''), is back. Fashioning a rockier sound than last time out, the album draws on a cultural heritage that takes in not only hip-hop, but various forms of electronic music, psychedelic soul, and rock as well.
DVDs:
+John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band - Live In Toronto ’69 DVD (Shout Factory)
Filmed on the eve of the release Abbey Road, this is the only performance ever caught on film of John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band.
+Amanda Palmer - A Collection Of Music Videos DVD (Roadrunner)
Subtitled: A Surrealist Mini-Mystery By Michael Pope. Featuring additional videos by Alex De Campi, Chip Yamada with The Danger Ensemble. Includes exclusive interview footage.
+Various Artists - Punk In England DVD (Odeon Entertainment)
Picking up where Punk In London left off, this music packed sequel features a variety of punk, post punk, ska and new wave acts. Includes legendary performances and insightful interviews from The Clash, The Jam, Spizzenergi, Madness, The Pretenders and more.
+Various Artists - Punk In London DVD (Odeon Entertainment)
The musical magic of the London punk scene of the late 1970s is captured for posterity in this documentary that showcases some of the era’s most important bands. Includes interviews and performance footage featuring The Adverts, Chelsea, X-Ray Spex, The Lurkers, The Red Cow Club, The Jolt, The Killjoys, Subway Sect, The Jam, The Boomtown Rats, The Clash and more.
Vinyl:
+Chesterfield Kings - Up And Down 7” (Wicked Cool)
Up And Down is the first 7'' in several years from the Chesterfield Kings. It also features a live rendition which will be on the band's CD/DVD release this fall, plus two additional tracks.
+Cocktail Slippers - Saint Valentines Day Massacre LP+CD (Wicked Cool)
Now available on vinyl. Includes a bonus CD of the entire album and three bonus tracks.
+Earth - Radio Live LP (Southern Lord)
Vinyl only release. Radio Live is comprised of two tracks from a live radio broadcast on KFJC (12/31/07) and two tracks from a live performance in Vienna on their 2008 European tour.
+Eprhyme - Shomer Salaam b/w My Mouth Is 7” (K)
This is the latest installment of K Records' International Pop Underground series. Moving effortlessly from Middle Eastern melodies to dance hall and deep house rhythms, "Shomer Salaam" is multicultural and polyrhythmic. On the B-side, "My Mouth Is A House Of Prayer" represents soul music in its purest form.
+Faust - So Far LP (4 Men With Beards)
HQ-180 vinyl reissue of the band's second album (1972). Includes exact reproductions of all ten original LP inserts.
+Al Green - Greatest Hits LP (Fat Possum)
+Al Green - I’m Still In Love With You LP (Fat Possum)
+Al Green - Let’s Stay Together LP (Fat Possum)
HQ-180 vinyl reissues.
+Green Day - Know Your Enemy 7” (Reprise)
Ultra-limited edition 7” single features the non-album B-side “Hearts Collide.”
+Gregory Isaacs - Night Nurse LP (Island)
HQ-180 vinyl pressing.
+Modest Mouse - Autumn Beds 7” (Epic/Sony)
Insanely ultra-limited edition 7” single features the B-side “Whale Song.”
+Of Montreal - For Our Elegant Castle 7”+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
The third single from Skeletal Lamping is backed with a remix by Depressed Buttons (Todd and Jacob of The Faint). Initial pressing is limited to 2000 copies on colored vinyl. Includes digital download code with songs and bonus video.
+Owen / The Rutabega - Split 12”+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
Mike Kinsella (American Football, Cap'n Jazz, Joan Of Arc) and his nom de guerre is joined by The Rutabega (a.k.a. Josh Hensley) on this popular Owen title that's being released for the first time on vinyl.
+Pavement - Brighten The Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition 4xLP+MP3 (Matador)
Vinyl edition of the deluxe reissue of Brighten The Corners includes eight extra tracks not on the CD reissue, several of which are previously unreleased. Also includes material from the CD version: the re-mastered original twelve song album, ten non-album B-sides, ten outtakes, and fourteen live radio session tracks. Super deluxe M-Pak accordion style box set, 16-page, 12"x12" full color booklet, MP3 coupon, and huge essay by New Yorker critic Alex Ross. The wealth of extra material testifies to the extraordinary creativity of the band in this period.
+Skull Defekts - Temple 2xLP (Important)
The Skull Defekts is a band from Sweden. Since early 2005, their intense, monotonous, rhythmic, and sexual rock has been spreading energies of various kinds to welcoming audiences and listeners. The Temple is the follow-up to Blood Spirits & Drums Are Singing (Conspiracy), but is deeper, harder, more sexual, and more occult.
+Sparks - Kimono My House LP (Hip-O)
HQ-180 vinyl reissue.
+Those Darlins - Those Darlins LP+CD (Oh Wow Dang)
Those Darlins are a pop group, if they are any one thing, which doesn't mean anybody with ears can't hear the country and rock ‘n’ roll in their sound. After seducing live audiences nationwide supporting acts as various as Dan Auerbach, Boss Hog, Wanda Jackson, Ida Maria, Deer Tick, Those Darlins quickly became the next ''it'' band at this year's SXSW.
+Valhall - Red Planet LP (Housecore)
Pure stoner rock from Norway, featuring Fenriz from the mighty Darkthrone on drums. Slow and grooving, with free riding, free smoking, dirt head biker themes that'll drone its hooks into your THC filled head.
+Various Artists - Black Rio 2: Original Samba Soul 1971-1980 LP (Strut)
Highlights some of the lesser-known gems of the ‘70s Black Rio Soul and Funk movement in Brazil. The album is compiled and annotated by leading Brazilian music DJ Cliffy, the man behind London club night Batmacumba, the longest running Brazilian club night in England.
+Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones LP (Island)
HQ-180 vinyl reissue.
+Wilco - You Never Know 7” (Nonesuch)
Ultra-limited edition 7” single includes the B-side “Unlikely Japan.” New album Wilco (The Album) due 6/30/09.
+Wino - Punctuated Equilibrium LP+10” (Southern Lord)
This deluxe gatefold edition of Punctuated Equilibrium is manufactured on HQ-180 vinyl and features a bonus 10'' with four brand new bonus tracks unavailable on the CD.
+The Woggles - Tempo Tantrum LP+CD (Wicked Cool)
The Woggles’ Tempo Tantrum is a compilation of the band's coolest instrumentals, carefully amassed from both their early material and newer recordings. Features two bonus tracks and includes a CD with all 14 tracks.
+Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson - Relator b/w I Don’t Know What To Do 7” (Rhino)
Ultra-limited 7” released ahead of their forthcoming collaborative album Break Up, due late-summer 2009.
+Aggrolites - IV LP (Hellcat)
+Neko Case - Middle Cyclone 2xLP (Anti)
+Devil Wears Prada - With Roots Above And Branches Below LP (Ferret)
+Damian Lazarus - Smoke The Monster Out LP (Get Physical Music)
+Lightnin’ Hopkins - Lightnin’ Strikes LP (Vee Jay)
+Thou - Tyrant LP (Southern Lord)
+Wolves In The Throne Room - Black Cascade 2xLP (Southern Lord)
These titles now available on vinyl.
16 JUNE 09
+Among The Oak & Ash - Among The Oak & Ash CD/LP (Verve Forecast)
Veteran singer/songwriters Josh Joplin and Garrison Starr have teamed up for a very unique project. Among The Oak & Ash faithfully render traditional ballads and folk tunes but with a contemporary American sound.
+Amorphis - Skyforger CD (Nuclear Blast)
New album is a mix of their early influences melded with Finnish folk music, clean vocals and dark yet romantic lyrics.
+Beherit - Engram CD (Fontana International)
Latest from the black star of Finnish metal.
+Big Star - #1 Record / Radio City CD (Fantasy)
This newly remastered version of #1 Record / Radio City features enhanced packaging and two unreleased bonus tracks.
+Michael Buble - Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden CD+DVD (Reprise)
Live recording features powerful performances of his hits “Everything,” “Home,” and “Feeling
Good.” DVD features the 60-minute concert, plus two bonus songs “Stardust” and “You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You.”
+Builders And The Butchers - Salvation Is A Deep Dark Well CD (Gigantic)
In the vein of the Southern gothic tales, songwriter Ryan Sollee weaves stories of struggle with the usual cast of characters: God, the devil, soldiers, branches, wind, rain and hellfire.
+Sonny Burgess - Arkansas Wild Man CD (Snapper)
Contains 25 tracks by the rockabilly wild man from Sun Records, including “Red Headed Woman,” “We Wanna Boogie,” “Restless” and many more.
+Rodney Carrington - El Nino Loco CD (Capitol Nashville)
Ten years after his first major label release, Rodney is still the same regular guy he's always been -- sporting his trademark black cowboy hat, boots, and Texas twang. He is the king of middle class comedy and has no plans of changing his regular guy approach.
+Will Downing - Classique CD (Peak)
Taking his inspiration from the French term “Classique” -- an author, artist, or work of art of the highest excellence -- Will Downing returns with his fourteenth collection of sensual grooves and true love primers.
+Tommy Emmanuel - Only: Special Edition CD (Original Works)
This special edition includes bonus tracks of previously unreleased recordings. Remixed and remastered by the original engineer/producer.
+Ha Ha Tonka - Novel Sounds Of The Nouveau South CD/LP (Bloodshot)
Written in 1907, The Shepherd Of The Hills (a novel by Harold Bell Wright) is the story of an old, mysterious man (The Shepherd) who leaves the city for a remote hills life. Through encounters with others, he gradually learns to find peace with losses he’s experienced and those yet to come. The novel is an Ozark classic, and comprises the basis for Ha Ha Tonka’s new album.
+George Harrison - Let It Roll: The Songs Of George Harrison CD (Capitol)
George Harrison’s first-ever career-spanning solo hits collection. Special packaging includes a 28-page booklet featuring previously unseen and rare photos, and new liner notes by Warren Zanes.
+Don Henley - The Very Best Of CD (Geffen)
Features his most enduring songs -- "Dirty Laundry," "The Boys Of Summer," "The End Of The Innocence" and "The Heart Of The Matter."
+Incubus - Monuments And Melodies 2xCD/4xLP (Epic)
New hits collection includes two new tracks and a bonus disc of B-sides and rarities.
+Laura Izibor - Let The Truth Be Told CD (Atlantic)
On her debut album, Izibor continues the lineage set out by artists like Lauryn Hill and Jill Scott -- artists who combine a reverence for the traditions of early R&B with a thoroughly modern sensibility.
+The Jacka - Tear Gas CD (Smc)
Third solo album from the hip-hop star. Tear Gas is being dubbed this year's blockbuster album, featuring a host of hip-hop favorites from coast to coast coupled with Jacka's unique production.
+Jonas Brothers - Lines, Vines And Trying Times CD (Hollywood)
Lines, Vines And Trying Times showcases an incredible musical journey by the Jonas Brothers, as well as their growth as songwriters and musicians. They’ve incorporated horns into several songs, as well as harmonicas and peddle steel guitars. Enhanced CD features two exclusive bonus videos.
+Candye Kane - Superhero CD (Delta Groove Productions)
Having recently beaten pancreatic cancer, and with renewed energy and a new lease on life, Candye makes a triumphant return with Superhero. Features special guests Kid Ramos, Dave Gonzales and Mitch Kashmar.
+The Kinks - The Village Green Preservation Socitety 3xCD (Sanctuary)
Digitally remastered and expanded deluxe three-disc edition of their 1968 masterpiece features a plethora of bonus material including original stereo mixes, mono versions, demos, Euro editions, instrumentals BBC sessions and more.
+Legends - Over And Over CD (Labrador)
A brilliant, modern mix of white noise, ‘60s girl pop, indie and krautrock. Hypnotic washes of distorted synthesizers and sweet, bouncy melodies echo under walls of feedback and crushingly loud shimmering guitars.
+Kim Lenz And The Jaguars - It’s All True! CD (Riley Records)
Twelve new tracks include seven Kim Lenz originals, a track co-written by Kim and Big Sandy, a number crafted expressly for Kim by the Lucky Stars' Sage Guyton, and two rampaging covers.
+Little Big Adventure - Hateful Eye CDEP (Labrador)
Cool and delicately poignant pop melodies mixed with hard distorted drums and warped synthesizers.
+Magrudergrind - Magrudergrind CD (Willowtip)
Debut full-length combines elements of grind, crust, and thrash.
+Major Lazer - Guns Don’t Kill People... Lazers Do CD/2xLP+MP3 (Downtown)
Major Lazer is the Grammy-nominated super producer duo of Switch and Diplo, best known for their work with M.I.A and Paper Planes, as well as production work for Santigold, Amanda Blank, Bondo do Role (Diplo) and Tricky (Switch).
+Mary Onettes - Dare CD (Labrador)
Imagine a Swedish equivalent of The National on a diet of speed and Go-Betweens singles.
+Lee Phil - So Long, It’s Been Good To Know You CD (SteadyBoy)
With thirty years of roadwork and songwriting, Nashville singer songwriter Phil Lee is the real deal. You can hear it in his rough-edged voice, and in the vivid imagery that his lyrics present, with stories of worker-bee illegals, truck-driving killers, rats, weasels, and humans with rodent-like qualities. Lee's is a world of people on the literal and figurative outskirts, straight out of Springsteen's Nebraska, just a little further south and with a sense of humor.
+Rod Piazza & The Mighty Flyers Blues Quartet - Soul Monsters CD (Delta Groove)
Over the last 44 years as a musician, Piazza's virtuosity on the harmonica and respect for tradition has been celebrated by fans and critics alike. On Soul Monsters he is joined by the interplay, spontaneity, and classic chops of The Mighty Flyers.
+Rock Plaza Central - At The Moment Of Our Most Needing CD (Paperbag)
“This is a straight-forward, Americana-flavored indie rock album. There’s something of a Western aspect to the roll of the lyrics – almost like a desert album accidentally fallen into the hands of a city indie band. There is also some pretty lonesome fiddle screeching going on at times, squarely in Spaghetti Western territory, but whilst they flirt with this aesthetic, they never seem to quite give themselves over to it entirely.” -- songbytoad.com
+Sleep - Holy Mountain CD (Earache)
Special limited edition digipak reissue features a bonus track and video.
+Solitude Aeturnus - Downfall CD (Crash Music)
+Solitude Aeturnus - Through The Darkest Hour CD (Crash Music)
Long out-of-print classic albums reissued in limited edition digpaks.
+Tim Sparks - Little Prince: Tim Sparks Plays Naftule Brandwein CD (Tzadik)
Another fabulous disc of traditional Jewish music arranged for finger-style guitar and performed by the wonderful trio of Tim Sparks, Greg Cohen and Cyro Baptista.
+Spectrum - War Sucks CDEP (Mind Expansion)
Running the whole gamut of Spectrum's take on pop, psychedelia, rock and experimental sounds, this four-song EP features two covers: a reworked version of the Red Crayola classic "War Sucks" and Laurie Anderson’s overlooked gem "Walking & Falling," plus two originals.
+Spinal Tap - Back From The Dead CD+DVD (Label Industry)
Includes re-imagined versions of all the hits from the classic movie, plus new tracks and an hour-long DVD featuring a newly recorded track-by-track commentary by David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls.
+Street Sweeper Social Club - Street Sweeper Social Club CD (Street Sweeper Social Club)
Tom Morello and Boots Riley are Street Sweeper Social Club. This eleven-song set was produced by Morello and features Riley on vocals, Morello on guitar and bass, and Stanton Moore (Galactic) on drums.
+Stone Breath - Silver Skein Unwound CD (Hand Eye)
Digitally remastered and expanded edition of this rural acid folk classic. The album is informed by the furrowed fields and green forests, shaded by falling leaves and falling dreams; time worn, weird, blood-red, rattled and ragged. Sparse in places with thick tangled drones in others, aged in moldy oak barrels for flavor, hidden from the sun, decayed, withdrawn. Features a previously unreleased song from the same sessions along with the original illuminated color lyric booklet and housed in special packaging.
+Sworn Enemy - Total World Domination CD (Century Media)
Featuring a newly reinvigorated lineup, this ten-track offering takes the group’s sound to new heights, which sees them embracing a thrashier edge and pummeling the listener with unbridled aggression.
+The Thing - Bag It! CD (Smalltown Superjazz)
After four intensive days of recording with Steve Albini, The Thing created Bag It!, a new mastodon of ecstasy music. The Thing is well known for their free jazz versions of rock classics from PJ Harvey, The White Stripes, The Sonics, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Lightning Bolt. This time the band is only doing two rock interpretations. Contains a bonus CD featuring a 30-minute impro-suite (also recorded by Albini) entitled "Beef Brisket - For Ruby's."
+Tiny Masters Of Today - Skeletons CD (Mute)
It has certainly been an action packed journey for siblings Ivan and Ada (ages 15 and 13 respictively), A.K.A. Tiny Masters Of Today. Almost overnight, the band went from a few homemade recordings on MySpace to collaborating with Karen O and Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kimya Dawson, Fred Schneider (B-52s) and Gibby Haynes (Butthole Surfers), being remixed by CSS and Liars, and touring the world.
+Rhonda Vincent - Destination Life CD (Rounder)
The seven time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year returns with a stellar lineup of new, original and classic bluegrass songs. Rhonda Vincent takes the music to new heights while maintaining her deep bluegrass roots. The new album features her award-winning touring band in their first studio appearance.
+The Waifs - Live From The Union Of Soul CD (Compass)
Live From The Union Of Soul is a collection of 14 songs recorded on the road during last year's memorable and historic Australian Union Of Soul tour and features guest appearances from John Butler and Clare Bowditch.
+The Wallflowers - Collected: 1996-2005 CD (Interscope)
With leader Jakob Dylan overseeing its production and compiling the track list, the 16-track Collected: 1996-2005 is the definitive look at a critically-acclaimed favorite of the past decade, whose tales of disillusionment and perseverance were wrapped in a sound both gritty and polished, melancholy and aggressive.
+Wand - Hard Knox CD (Ecstatic Peace)
A collection of demos, outtakes and home recordings. "These lo-fi hymns succeed because they're highly listenable. The collection's direct, unadorned, honest, and idiosyncratic. Like neo-folk's most interesting players (Banhart, Ben Chasny, Joanna Newsom), Toth sounds more like his precursors than his contemporaries, and very much like himself." -- Pitchfork
+Holly Williams - Here With Me CD (Mercury Nashville)
The granddaughter of Hank Williams and daughter of Hank Jr. has succeeded in creating the type of album that would easily find a place among the works of her favorite artists: Tom Waits, Cat Stevens, Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, and Jackson Browne.
+Hank Williams Jr. - 127 Rose Avenue CD (Curb)
New album from the rowdy country rock icon features the single “Red, White, & Pink-Slip Blues.”
Vinyl:
+Burial Hex / Zola Jesus - Split LP (Aurora Borealis)
A split from two of Wisconsin's finest exports. Limited edition (500).
+Serge Gainsbourg - Bonnie And Clyde LP (4 Men With Beards)
A classic from these two French heroes -- originally released in 1968 -- reissued on HQ-180 vinyl with a high quality tip-on jacket.
+Plastic Ono Band - Live Peace In Toronto LP (Capitol)
Repressed on HQ-180 vinyl. Comes with an original, spiral-bound 1970 calendar with photos.
+Psychedelic Horsesh!t - Sh!tgaze Anthems LP (Woodsist)
After a two year absence, what has happened since we last peeked in on these "sh!tgaze" innovators? Well, that famous "distorto-lo-fi-sound" has been popping up in quite open spaces: No Age has become the new Brittany Spears, Wavves crashed in outta nowhere like a mid-‘90s grunge signing, and Vivian Girls are playing on the speakers in Target stores nationwide. Expect better production, poppier songs with druggier references, and elements as disparate as dub and emo combining to form a classic sound that is at once new and strangely familiar.
+Red House Painters - Songs For A Blue Guitar 2xLP (Plain)
First time on vinyl for Mark Kozelek's fifth album as the Red House Painters. Originally received a 9.0 rating from Pitchfork.
+Roxy Music - Country Life LP (Virgin)
+Roxy Music - Stranded LP (Virgin)
Repressed on HQ-180 vinyl. Each comes with a poster of the cover image.
+Steel Pulse - True Democracy LP (Elektra)
Vinyl edition of the iconic British reggae stars’ debut studio LP for Elektra.
+Various Artists - Smalltown Supersound On Fire LP (Smalltown Supersound)
All new stuff taken from the forthcoming STS releases as well as some exclusive goodies including Bjorn Torske's great Sunburned Hand Of The Man remix and Prins Thomas' remix of Tussle. The album also introduces the new signings K-X-P, Mungolian Jet Set, Meanderthals, and Drivan. "Everything here is brilliant and it’s possibly the best compilation I’ve heard this year." -- Fact Magazine
+Beach Boys - Sunflower LP (Capitol)
+Beach Boys - Surf’s Up LP (Capitol)
+Red Hot Chili Peppers - Freaky Styley LP (Capitol)
+Red Hot Chili Peppers - Mother’s Milk LP (Capitol)
+Red Hot Chili Peppers - Uplift Mofo Party Plan LP (Capitol)
+The Specials - The Specials LP (Elektra)
Repressed on HQ-180 vinyl.
+Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown LP (Reprise)
+Green Day - Nimrod LP (Reprise)
+Hatebreed - For The Lions LP (Koch)
+Taking Back Sunday - New Again LP (WB)
These titles now available on vinyl.
DVDs:
+Dickey Betts & Great Southern - Rockpalast: 30 Years Of Southern Rock DVD (SPV)
Dickey Betts & Great Southern were the third highlight at the Rockpalast Festival on March 4th/5th, 1978. On those evenings, they played for the first time in Europe in front of an enthusiastic audience at the Gruga-Halle in Essen, Germany and millions of viewers on television. Dickey Betts is not unknown to those who are familiar with American rock music. He was one of the original members of the Allman Brothers Band and formed his own band Great Southern in 1976.
+De La Soul - Me, Myself & I DVD (Charly)
This concert, filmed at the 1997 Lokerse Festival, features their hits “Me, Myself And I” with its samples of Funkadelic’s “Not Just Knee Deep” and “Ring, Ring, Ring.”
09 JUNE 09
+Above & Beyond Presents Oceanlab - Sirens Of The Sea Remixed 2xCD (Ultra)
Above & Beyond is joined by the vocal talents of Justine Suissa, who has collaborated with some of the world's top DJs, including Armin Van Buuren. Contains remixes by Jaytech, Andy Duguid, Oliver Smith, Armin Van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, and of course, Above & Beyond.
+The Aggrolites - IV CD (Hellcat)
The Aggrolites offer their brand of funky old-school ska and reggae, lovingly representing the classic sounds of ‘70s Jamaica to a generation that has never heard of Studio One. This is their most accomplished set yet, with more soulful settings to feature singer Jesse Wagner's Motown-inflected voice.
+Amber Asylum - Bitter River CD (Profound Lore)
Bitter River is the darkest and most devastating Amber Asylum album ever conceived. The perfect follow-up to the plunging Still Point, this introspective journey into lost love and lost innocence paints powerful sonic portraits of vast, lonely landscapes, dark chambers, rolling fog, and monumental twilight.
+Trey Anastasio / Don Hart - Time Turns Elastic CD (Rubber Jungle)
Collaborative recording blends the intrinsic elegance of classical music with searing blues-rock guitar, resulting in an exhilarating work that engages and challenges fans of both genres.
+Anti-Flag - People Or The Gun CD/LP+MP3 (Side One Dummy)
Their seventh full-length takes aim at those who use the bible to control the masses. The Bush Administration's legacy should keep the band in songs for years, from the war in Iraq to the economy. The group writes songs to build community and union, to create awareness and preparedness for when the students and workers of the world push to level the playing field and bring equality.
+A Skylit Drive - Adelphia CD (Fearless)
The musical mix between vocalist Michael Jagmin -- whose high-pitched voice is reminiscent of Geddy Lee, Anthony Green, and Claudio Sanchez -- and the band's heavy instrumental work, has earned ASD the respect of the hardcore scene. RIYL: A Day To Remember, Coheed & Cambria, and Chiodos.
+Autumn Offering - Requiem CD (Victory)
Requiem is a brooding, furious metal masterpiece that blends the incredible hooks and melodies of their last opus, Fear Will Cast No Shadow, and their first two Southern thrashers.
+Biosphere - Wireless: Live At The Arnolfini, Bristol CD (Touch)
First live CD from hugely influential Norwegian master of ambient, recorded live at The Arnolfini, Bristol, October 27, 2007.
+Blackberry Smoke - Little Piece Of Dixie CD (Adrenaline)
Oozes addictive melodies and hooks, not to mention multiple shots of lead singer Charlie Starr's trademark dry wit. Recorded with legendary producer Dann Huff (Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts) and engineered by Justin Niebank. Atlanta-based Blackberry Smoke continues to grow into the premiere southern rock band of America.
+Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) CD (Black Eyed Peas)
Brand new album from the hip-hop hit makers.
+Black Landlord - Addicted To Distraction CD (Sanctuary)
Rolling Stone describes this nine-piece musical machine as ''what would happen if KRS-One and James Brown showed up at your house and then wouldn't leave.'' Highly anticipated coast to coast, this is pure big band hip-hop soul music from Philadelphia.
+Black Meteoric Star - Black Meteoric Star CD (DFA)
The latest project by longtime DFA alumni Gavin Russom is inspired by equal parts Euro-disco, wonky early electronic body music from America's Midwest, and a fascination with the outer reaches of global psychedelic rock.
+Blackout - Best In Town CD (Epitaph)
The Welsh screamo-rock sextet's Epitaph debut resembles an aural entry into a boxing ring; a powerful sonic right to the chin. ''Driving, sinuous modern rock packed equally with aggression, sublime melodies, and hooks the size of Peru!'' -- Kerrang
+Blind Pilot - 3 Rounds & A Sound CD (ATO)
Original July 2008 release now on ATO. Blind Pilot sounds something like a wistful mix of The Shins with a bit of Iron & Wine folksiness.
+British Sea Power - Man Of Aran CD+DVD (Rough Trade)
Man Of Aran is a powerful and provocative dramatized documentary from the late American filmmaker Robert J. Flaherty. In a series of startling black and white sequences, the film presents daily life on the inhospitable Aran Islands on the west coast of Ireland. Includes the accompanying soundtrack.
+Busdriver - Jhelli Beam CD (Anti)
Both smart and smartass, theatrical without being pompous, and, as always, funny. BD's breath-defying flow teeters precariously on top of samples of classical music, jazz drumming, and proggy guitar parts, without ever losing sight of the electronic music that helped define his sound.
+Cave - Psychic Summer CD (Important)
Chicago group’s latest -- expertly crafted and embracing maximum minimalism, repetition, Can-cloud-bounce, and full-on heavy chant. Like driving a train full-speed off a cliff only to discover that the plane can fly and you’ll live forever if you stay inside.
+Chickenfoot - Chickenfoot CD/2xLP (Redline Entertainment)
New supergroup featuring Joe Satriani, Chad Smith, Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar.
+Chicks On Speed - Cutting The Edge 2xCD/2xLP (Chicks On Speed)
Chicks On Speed’s fifth album is the result of two years of productive creativity: filming video, making art installations, organizing Girl Monster extravaganzas, reading books, exhibiting all over the planet, making patchwork fashion collections, and building “objekt instruments.”
+Coalesce - Ox CD/LP+MP3 (Relapse)
With Ox, Coalesce encapsulates over a decade of forward thinking hardcore into fourteen songs that typify the trend-eschewing band and proves that they still have much to say. The Kansas clan lurches uncontrollably, adding just the right touch of bombast and contrast to make the seething aggression all the more engaging.
+Cosmos - Jar Of Jam Ton Of Bricks CD/LP (Happy Jack)
The latest collaboration project from Robert Pollard comes with a bit of a twist: Pollard hooked up with another indie rock icon, Richard Davies (The Moles, Cardinal), to form the band Cosmos. To round out the ensemble, Davies enlisted some of his Massachusetts merry men to assist with the music, including David Minehan (The Neighborhoods) and Malcom Travis (Human Sexual Response, Sugar).
+Dance Gavin Dance - Happiness CD (Rise)
Dance Gavin Dance's fourth album -- catch them on this year’s Warped Tour.
+Deerhunter - Rainwater Cassette Exchange CDEP (Kranky)
Certainly not a group to rest on their laurels (especially difficult when they have new songs burning a hole in their collective back pockets), Deerhunter delivers five new tracks on this extended play. This is not some stopgap release between albums, or mere leftovers from Microcastle, but an all-new session.
+Serge Devant - Wanderer CD (Ultra)
The debut from one of the top DJs in the world. Includes the single, "Sweet Harmony", already a favorite of Pete Tong on BBC Radio.
+Dial - Dial CDEP (Robotic Empire)
Progressive rock/pop with female vocals from Detroit, Michigan.
+Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca CD/LP (Domino)
Their fifth release is a big rock album by design. Its idiosyncratic and sincere take on popular music is reminiscent of David Byrne with whom Dirty Projectors collaborated on "Knotty Pine" for the 2009 compilation Dark Was The Night. In many ways, group leader David Longstreth could be seen as this generation's answer to Byrne, a distinctive torchbearer of labyrinthine song arrangements that go down easy.
+Discipline - Anthology CD (I Scream)
The undefeated kings of European street rock have released four studio albums, a cover album, a compilation, numerous EPs, and a live split with Agnostic Front. Ten years after their debut they deliver twenty-eight of their best tracks on a double CD.
+Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion CD/LP (Dredg)
''Veering between ominous dirges and wide-eyed big sky anthems, they play massive art metal that's been treated to multi-layered, intricate production in the vein of Radiohead and Pink Floyd; and for a band that can smash and roil like waves against Pacific beaches, they frequently take the subtler road, softening themselves with atmosphere and world music flourishes.'' -- Pitchfork
+Einstürzende Neubauten - Ende Neu CD/LP (Potomak)
Reissue of their classic 1996 release. The quintessential scientists of the post-avant-garde abstain from focusing on listener disintegration tactics as they did on prior albums, but opt instead to hone their craftsmanship in new compositional areas,
+Elusive Parallelograms - And Everything Changes CD (Rainbow Quartz)
Psychedelic, fuzzed-out guitars and engaging rhythms.
+The Features - Some Kind Of Salvation CD (Loose Tooth)
It's been four years since Nashville, TN's best-kept secret snuck onto our speakers with their critically lauded debut, Exhibit A. They return with self-produced Some Kind Of Salvation, which boasts a hodgepodge of songs with inventive lyrics and infectious melodies.
+The Friday Night Boys - Off The Deep End CD (Fueled By Ramen)
Produced by Emanuel Kiriakou, The Boy’s debut features everything from instantly accessible power ballads (“She’s Finding Me Out”) to energetic pop-punk rockers (“Suicide Sunday”) and everything in between.
+Holly Golightly - Down Gina’s At 3 CD/2xLP (Damaged Goods)
+Holly Golightly - Painted On CD/LP (Damaged Goods)
+Holly Golightly - Up The Empire CD/LP (Damaged Goods)
Her Sympathy label back-catalog -- reissued via Damaged Goods.
+Nanci Griffith - The Loving Kind CD (Rounder)
The Loving Kind finds Nanci Griffith at the top of her game as a songwriter, interpreter, and singer. Features nine new songs and four well-chosen covers.
+Robert Hampson - Vectors CD (Touch)
New album from the founding member of Loop and Main.
+Headdress - Lunes CD/LP+MP3 (No Quarter)
The second album by this Texas psychedelic duo. Lunes was written in the desert, but recorded during an endless NYC winter, resulting in a dark meditation on Americana. It's the blues shaped by the avant compositions of La Monte Young and Dylan Carlson. It's drone rooted deep in the American tradition. Vinyl is limited to 1,000 copies and includes an MP3 download card.
+Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Here And Now CD (Bar/None)
The first collaboration in almost two decades by the acclaimed songwriters of The dB's. “With pop this piercingly pure, and Everly’s-worthy harmonies to boot, The dB's songwriting team has put together another instant classic.” -- Blurt
+Homemade Jamz Blues Band - I Got Blues For You CD (Northern Blues)
The Homemade Jamz Blues Band rocked the Blues world by coming in second in the 2007 International Blues Challenge in Memphis -- competing against 100 other bands. Their debut recording last year, Pay Me No Mind, led to the Homemade Jamz receiving a Blues Music Award nomination for Best New Artist Debut.
+Hoods - Pit Beast CD (I Scream)
Their music is a call to arms for all those who've grown tired of watching hardcore get exploited and bastardized. Mike Hood has spent his years of experience crafting one of the most brutal and honest West Coast hardcore bands ever.
+The Horse’s Ha - Of The Cathmawr Yards CD (Hidden Agenda)
Debut album from Chicago slowburn-folk troupe led by Janet Bean (Eleventh Dream Day, Freakwater) and Jim Elkington (The Zincs) backed by stalwart Chicago indie-rock vets. Think Fairport Convention, Pentangle and a little Astral Weeks.
+Iron Maiden - Flight 666: The Original Soundtrack 2xCD/2xLP+MP3 (Columbia/Legacy)
17 tracks as they appear in the film Flight 666. Follows the band on the first leg of their Somewhere Back In Time World Tour in February and March of 2008. Also available on limited edition double-picture disc vinyl.
+Joan Of Arc - Flowers CD/LP (Polyvinyl)
Despite being written over the course of a year in four different sessions with four different lineups, the songs on Flowers sound more cohesive than those on last year's Boo Human. This experience encapsulates the spirit of Joan Of Arc -- a mentality that embraces contradictions and tears apart common musical structures, only to rebuild them without a blueprint.
+JR Writer - Presents Fred Money: Money Rules Tha World CD (Babygrande)
Buzzing New York street artist Fred Money has been building his following consistently over the last few years across numerous appearances on his brother JR Writer's albums. Now, with his solo debut Money Rules Tha World, Fred is ready to take over the game.
+Kasabian - West Ryder Paurer Lunatic Asylum CD (RCA/Red Ink)
Two years in the making, West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum is the sound of a band at the peak of their powers. A 52-minute mash up of sky scraping melodies, electro-punk riffs, Morricone-esque symphonics, Mariachi stomps, and psych-pop lullabies, it is both a stadium sized declaration of intent and a bar raising benchmark.
+Gregg Kowalsky - Tape Chants CD (Kranky)
A series made up of performances and compositions using tapes as the main source material, as well as mono speakers of various cassette players for the piece's amplification. Inspired by experiments with tape loops, cassette players and recorders, analog synths, sine oscillators, mixer feedback, contact mics and various acoustic sound sources.
+Lady Gaga - Lovegame: The Remixes CDEP (Interscope)
Features five remixes of “Lovegame.”
+Tracy Lawrence - The Rock CD (Rocky Comfort)
A powerful, emotional overview of spiritual consciousness, The Rock takes stock in life's blessings and the need to be more grateful, recognizes that life is hard, and not always good, but through it all, the strength of faith and hope reign triumphant.
+Liechtenstein - Survival Strategies In A Modern World CD/10”+MP3 (Slumberland)
Mixing its '80s influences with a very fresh and contemporary enthusiasm, Survival Strategies In A Modern World packs so much excitement into less than 23 minutes that you will discover a new favorite song with every spin. At least, that is, until your sister sneaks into your room, snatches it (along with your Vivian Girls records and rare Mo-Dettes singles), and takes her own shot at indie stardom.
+The Lonely H - Concrete Class CD (The Control Group)
Their third full-length howls through roadhouse walls and soothes that long walk of shame the next morning. Twelve glowing tracks of tires humming through the Southwest while Skynyrd scratches through the nearest AM radio station. Written at bar stools and scrawled on diner napkins, Concrete Class seethes with a lust for America's highways and laughs with the trials that ensue.
+The Low Anthem - Oh My God, Charlie Darwin CD (Nonesuch)
The group's Nonesuch debut, Oh My God, Charlie Darwin, offers an elegant sort of Americana. Its songs about long-ago travels and romantic travails, eternal longing and inevitable leaving are often hushed, dreamy and mysterious. Simple folk-song structures are uplifted by hymn-like, chamber music arrangements.
+Teena Marie - Congo Square CD (Stax)
Internationally renowned singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Teena Marie, the "Ivory Queen Of Soul," presents an all-new 16-song set. Features guest appearances by Faith Evans, George Duke, MC Lyte, Howard Hewitt and Shirley Murdock.
+Rhett Miller - Rhett Miller CD (Shout! Factory)
Old 97’s singer/songwriter Rhett Miller returns with his sophomore solo effort. Recorded in Dallas and produced by Salim Nourallah (who also produced the latest critically acclaimed Old 97’s release, 2008’s Blame It On Gravity) the album also features multi-instrumentalist and producer Jon Brion on guitar and bass, The Apples In Stereo’s John Dufi lho on drums and Billy Harvey on guitar.
+Molotov Solution - Harbinger CD (Metal Blade)
Molotov Solution delivers a violent and brooding sound with a strong politically driven message that this world is only getting worse as each day goes by.
+Morrissey - Maladjusted (Expanded Edition) CD (Fontana)
Originally released in 1997, this expanded reissue features upgraded packaging, album B-sides, rare photos, a twelve-page booklet, and more.
+Mos Def - The Ecstatic CD/2xLP (Downtown)
Fourth studio album from the New York rapper. Produced By Chad Hugo and Mos Def.
+Nite-Liters - A-nal-y-sis CD (Dusty Groove)
Reissued for the first time on CD. The Nite-Liters were the instrumental core of Harvey Fuqua's New Birth soul collective for RCA but they also stood strongly on their own, and were easily one of the hippest acts to ever record for the label in the 70s. Each cut feels like a lost funky 45 stepping out with heavy keyboards, choppy guitar, monstrous drums, and sharp-edged horns that really make the record cook.
+North Lincoln - Midwestern Blood CD (No Idea)
Hailing from the reeling metropolis of Grand Rapids, deeply rooted in a community that rode the post-industrial wave of collapse and still struggles to keep its head above water, North Lincoln embodies a newer wave of working-class punk rock that ditches the anthemic trappings of Boston and New York and instead builds on the melancholy hymns of luminaries like Jawbreaker and Leatherface.
+Offonoff - Slap & Tickle CD (Smalltown Superjazz)
Massimo Pupillo, Terrie Ex and Paal Nilssen-Love performed this gem live in concert at Kongsberg International Jazzfestival in July 2007. If possible to describe, the music is in the midst of Black Flag, DNA, Pere Ubu, Last Exit, James Blood Ulmer, early Sonic Youth and of course Terrie's very own legendary band The Ex.
+Pastor Troy - Ready For War CD (Real Talk)
The aggressiveness of Pastor Troy is still in his heart as it's let out on the amped-up banger Ready For War. Throughout the whole album you get Troy's best music with his hyped-up crunk style along with a dose of realistic lyricism like only he can deliver.
+Pigface - 6 CD (Full Effect)
6 is uniquely Pigface, combining all the alumni (Connelly, Levi, Esch, and the usual suspects) with new blood (Hanin Elais, Noko, Alex Moklebust, Chant, and more).
+Placebo - Battle For The Sun CD (Vagrant)
Battle For The Sun -- recorded over three months by producer Dave Bottrill (chosen by the band largely because of his work with Tool) and mixed in London by Alan Moulder -- is a startling, alive, vital and boundary-vaulting record that marks a whole new era for a band that were in need of a change.
+Portland Cello Project - The Thao & Justin Power Sessions CD (Kill Rock Stars)
Portland Cello Project is a group of cellists from Portland, OR. This album includes collaborations with Thao Nguyen of Thao as well as local musician Justin Power. As would be expected of PCP, the remainder of the album showcases cello sublimity and madness: from a Pantera cover, to a solemn religious piece by John Tavener.
+Post Honeymoon - Post Honeymoon CD/LP+MP3 (Two Thumbs Down)
Echoes the sultry and urgent sounds of Siouxsie & The Banshees, Motels, Suicide, and Love & Rockets. Limited edition vinyl includes free digital version with exclusive remix.
+The Present - Way We Are CD (Loaf)
Following their abstract masterpiece, The World I See, The Present returns with an album that delves ever deeper into the human psyche. Like an audio equivalent of Apocalypse Now, The Way We Are is by turns terrifying, enchanting, hallucinatory, and sharply focused. A psychedelic power-trio from a mythical dimension, The Present creates a strangely familiar music, as if they had already seen your dreams and your nightmares.
+Quest For Fire - Quest For Fire CD/LP (Tee Pee)
"Toronto's Quest For Fire conjure up the original root of psychedelia with the raunch, muscle, and oscillations of Hawkwind and Comets On Fire, and Pink Floyd's sensory panorama, all resting on a simplistic, plodding Spacemen 3 thump." -- Montreal Mirror
+Rolling Stones - Emotional Rescue CD (UME)
+Rolling Stones - Some Girls CD (UME)
+Rolling Stones - Tattoo You CD (UME)
+Rolling Stones - Undercover CD (UME)
Phase two of the remastered reissues.
+Rubies - Explode From The Center CD (Telle)
Debut album from Californian bedroom disco duo is nothing less than a modern classic. First single “I Feel Electric” (featuring Feist) is already a massively popular radio (not to mention blogged) tune. The album features musical appearances from Feist and friends Lars Skoglund, Maria Eriksson (The Concretes), Karl-Johan Winqvist (Blood Music) and Erik Glambek-Boe (Kings of Convenience).
+Oumou Sangare - Seya CD (Nonesuch)
Singer and songwriter Oumou Sangare is genuine superstar in her native Mali, and a charismatic performer who has thrilled audiences around the world with her exhilarating live performances. Sangare takes up the causes of her fellow Malian women, frankly exploring their problems and unabashedly articulating their desires; the outspokenness of her words are a liberating as her music, which combines traditional instrumentation and rhythms with a sophisticated, funk-driven, contemporary groove.
+The Seasons - Undone CD (City Centre Offices)
This is the debut full-length release by The Seasons -- a collaborative project by an international assemblage of accomplished musicians in the realm of jazz, electronic, and indie-rock.
+Six Finger Satellite - Half Control CD (Load)
Archival 2001 recordings from Providence's finest square peg. Half Control veers sharply away from the krautrock stylings of 1998's Law Of Ruins with a lineup that is hotwired.
+Todd Snider - Excitement Plan CD (Yep Roc)
Combines social commentary, gypsy recession recovery plan and soul-folk in to one unified masterpiece. Self-awareness never sounded so good as Snider and crack sidemen Jim Keltner and Greg Liesz team up with Grammy-winning producer Don Was (Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones) for an album that exemplifies Snider's by-your-wits lifestyle and once-an-age lyricism.
+So Many Dynamos - Loud Wars CD (Vagrant)
For the past six years, Edwardsville, Illinois’ So Many Dynamos have been developing their own highly evolved brand of indie rock that touches on math rock, dance punk and indie pop while staying firmly outside the confines of any one genre. Their sonic evolution has culminated with the group’s third full-length, The Loud Wars.
+Sonic Youth - The Eternal CD/2xLP+MP3 (Matador)
The Eternal is a supercharged rocker, recalling aspects of the Evol-Sister-Daydream Nation holy trinity, but with cleaner, louder production and more straightforward momentum. With Pavement's Mark Ibold joining on bass, and producer John Agnello back at the controls, The Eternal takes the melodic songwriting of 2006's Rather Ripped and slams down the accelerator pedal. Initial pressing in a four-panel wallet with two printed inner sleeves; one containing disc, the other a sticker and card with credits. Subsequent pressings are jewel case. Double-LP pressed on hyper-deluxe HQ-180 RTI vinyl and packaged in a heavy duty Stoughton gatefold jacket with printed inner sleeves.
+Stardeath And White Dwarfs - The Birth CD (WB)
One half stoners with nothing to do but roll joints on their King Crimson record sleeves and one-half confetti launchers/space bubble technicians for the Flaming Lips, Stardeath And White Dwarfs debut their own free-floating circus. A mind-trip of emotion and mood, recalling everything from “upper” dance freak-outs to “downer” Floyd-esque anthems, The Birth celebrates a love of all things psychedelic.
+Stars Of The Lid - Music For Nitrous Oxide CD (Sedimental)
Long-overdue reissue of Stars Of The Lid’s brilliant 1993 debut.
+There For Tomorrow - A Little Faster CD (Hopeless)
The follow-up to their debut self-titled EP is filled with hard hitting yet perfectly glossed guitars, pop hooks in minor keys, and vocals dripping with the emotion of vocalist/guitarist Maika Maile's unique voice.
+Traditionalists (Secret Chiefs 3) - Le Mani Destre Recise Degli Ultimi Uomini CD/LP (Web Of Mimicry)
From out of nowhere, Secret Chiefs 3 (operating here as Traditionalists, one of the seven satellite bands introduced on their Book Of Horizons album) present an elaborate colonna sonora paranoica: original compositions that were dreamt up in the harmonic language of the Giallo Horror Film Soundtrack -- a particular subgenre of B-movie with remarkable scores by Italian masters such as Bruna Nicolai, Stelvio Cipriani, Ennio Morricone, Goblin, or Pierro Piccioni.
+U2 - Magnificent CDEP (Interscope)
Features five remixes of “Magnificent.”
+Paul Van Dyk - Volume 2xCD (Ultra)
Volume includes selections from his massive fifteen-year catalog. Track list includes works from his studio albums 45 RPM, Seven Ways, Out There And Back, Reflections, and In Between. Also includes the long-awaited remastered and remixed classic "2009 For An Angel."
+Various Artists - 2009 Warped Tour Compilation 2xCD (Hopeless)
The official soundtrack for the 2009 tour is a double CD featuring new, rare, and unreleased tracks from the biggest names in rock, including NOFX, Flogging Molly, Underoath, Chiodos, Anti-Flag, Bad Religion, Less Than Jake and many more.
+Various Artists - Blasting Concept CD (Smalltown Superjazz)
Features Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Ken Vandermark, Lasse Marhaug, Thurston Moore, Mats Gustafsson, Paal Nilssen-Love, Joe McPhee, John Hegre, Håvard Wiik, Jim O`Rourke, Peter Brtzmann, Massimo Pupillo, Cato Salsa Experience, Terrie Ex and Yoshimi. The album title is borrowed from SSTs groundbreaking compilation with the same name. We wanted to have a label with its roots in the 60's free jazz but with the DIY attitude of the 80s punk/hardcore label. Like a meeting between Black Flag & Albert Ayler. Maybe. Anyway. Decide for yourself, here is our blasting concept.
+Various Artists - Memphis 60: Soul, R&B And Proto Funk From Soul City USA CD (BGP)
A look at the soul, R&B and proto funk that the real music city was releasing in the 1960s. These feature some classic artists, but also many who were never known outside the myriad small clubs that filled the city. Some of these records are sought after collectors' items, others are newly discovered gems that we are pleased to place under the spotlight.
+Various Artists - Milky Disco 2: Let’s Go Freak Out! 2xCD (Lo)
Milky Disco 2 is packed with exclusive tracks as well as a few new underground classics like the rolling Throbbing Gristle-meets-Snatch slo-mo groove of Pollyester's "You Are Amen," the deep-bush kalimba vibes of "Pissed and Passed Out" by Ghost Note, the Arthur Russell-ish narco-disco of Nite Jewel's "What Did He Say," Canyon's deep-space blues "Big City Lights," and Gatto Fritto's kraut-meets-disco epic "Hungry Ghosts."
+Various Artists (Cielo) - Playtime 2xCD (Tommy Boy)
From its state-of-the-art space in NYC's ultra-chic Meatpacking District, Cielo provides a music program specializing in deeply soulful house music as well as various genres of electronic music. Featured artists include Furry Phreaks, Amana Melone, Risk Soundsystem, Kenny Larkin, DJ Fudge, The Lost Men, Phonique, Kiko Navaro, Sebo, and more.
+Various Artists - Ultra Dance Anthems CD (Ultra)
With a fresh and funky mix of massive club tunes exploding on dance floors everywhere, this set includes: Jes, Deadmau5, Sharam, David Guetta vs. Chris Willis, Kaskade with Tamra, Benny Benassi feat. Channing, and many more.
+Various Artists - Ultra Hits CD (Ultra)
Includes fifteen of the top urban releases to come out over the past year.
+Kathryn Williams & Neill MacColl - Two CD (Nettwerk)
Supremely talented Mercury prize nominee Kathryn Williams and amazing guitarist/vocalist Neill MacColl teamed up to record the critically-acclaimed Two, one of the most astonishingly beautiful albums to see the light of day in recent years.
+Darryl Worley - Sounds Like Life CD (Stroudavarious)
On Sounds Like Life Worley is reunited with James Stroud. Stroud has a long history with Worley, having signed him to his first record deal as president of Dreamworks Nashville. Worley also works with his long time touring band, The Krew, on the vast majority of the tracks.
+Toki Wright - A Different Mirror CD (Rhymesayers)
The first artist in the Rhymesayers’ Spotlight Series. Best known as opening act and hype man for Brother Ali, Toki is not only a well-established emcee, but he's one of the hardest working community activists in the Twin Cities. With numerous accolades and a tour history that has taken him from NY to Uganda, Toki is ready to take his next step with this release. Features Brother Ali, Scarub (Living Legends), I Self Devine, Felipe Cuauhtli (Los Nativos), St. Paul Slim, and Trama.
+Wumpscut - Bunkertor 7 (Re-Sample Edition) CD (Metropolis)
Featuring eleven of the original tracks completely redone by Wumpscut as well as Haujobb and Stillste Stund. Still as impressive as Bunkertor 7 was in 1995, this release is sure to leave its mark on the electronic music community.
DVDs:
+Iron Maiden - Flight 666: The Film 2xDVD (Columbia/Legacy)
Flight 666 documents the first leg of Maiden's legendary Somewhere Back In Time World Tour. Includes a second disc of the entire set from the 2008 segment of this tour. Sixteen songs from sixteen different cities in eleven countries around the world, for the first time ever encompassing such varied places and cultures in one concert.
+Various Artists - Woodstock: 3 Days Of Peace And Music - The Director’s Cut 2xDVD/4xDVD (WB)
Newly remastered. Bonus content includes: new retrospective The Museum At Bethel Woods: The Story Of The Sixties & Woodstock. Four-disc Ultimate Collector’s Edition features more than three hours of extras -- including two hours of rare performance footage and three featurettes.
VINYL:
+Avenged Sevenfold - Sounding The Seventh Trumpet 2xLP (Hopeless)
+Avenged Sevenfold - Waking The Fallen 2xLP (Hopeless)
Limited edition (1000) specially colored vinyl versions of the classic Hopeless Records albums.
+Blank Dogs - Waiting 7” (In The Red)
Two exclusive tracks. "Waiting" finds the band drifting ever closer to C-86 Brit-pop terrain and incorporates more guitar than synth.
+Cheap Time - Woodland Drive b/w Penny And Jenny 7” (In The Red)
Two brand new studio tracks from Nashville, TN's favorite pop-punk-glam-bubblegum band. Snotty, catchy ditties informed by Sparks, The Quick, Milk 'n' Cookies, and early Kinks that'll tide you over until this band unleashes their next full-length.
+Equinox - Vivid Dreams 12” (Planet Mu)
Following releases on some of the most influential drum 'n' bass labels (Metalheadz, Bassbin, Breakin, Inperspective, and Intasounds), scene veteran Equinox is back on Planet Mu with more weighty jungle business.
+Gable - I’m OK LP (Loaf)
A twelve-track mini-album big on ideas, I'm OK represents a progression in style. Gable uses conventional instruments like cello and brass in unconventional ways that complement their usual array of found sounds, squeaks, and samples.
+Guided By Voices - Alien Lanes LP+MP3 (Matador)
Their critically acclaimed Matador debut and best selling album is back in print on vinyl for the first time since 1999. HQ-180 virgin vinyl, gatefold sleeve.
+Tim Hecker - Harmony In Ultraviolet 2xLP (Kranky)
Double-vinyl pressing of Hecker’s 2006 experimental/electronic/ambient gem.
+Here We Go Magic - Here We Go Magic LP (Western Vinyl)
Now available on vinyl. The album was recorded using analog synths, a cassette four-track, and a trusty SM-57 mic, coloring the sound with warmth and creating textures that you just want to
wrap yourself in.
+The Kills - Keep On Your Mean Side LP (Domino)
Vinyl reissue of The Kills’ 2003 debut.
+Kreng - L'Autopsie Phenomenale LP (Miasmah)
These sample-based constructions incorporated sounds from free-jazz, new electronic-generated sounds, classical modernism and vintage geographical recordings. Discordant segments of wailing, top-end violins give way to clunking rhythmic passages of metal marimbas and tuned percussion; free-roaming passages of rasping, low-end bass and the shuffle of free-jazz recall the work of Prestige-era Moondog, as well as aspects of Harry Partch's instrumentation via Tom Waits.
+Love Is All - Covers LP (What’sYourRupture)
Covers include "Kung Fu On The Internet" (Lung Leg), "I Ran" (A Flock Of Seagulls), "So Far Away" (Dire Straits), "Golly Gosh" (Jed Dmochowski), and "Darling Nikki" (Prince). Limited edition (500).
+Pelican - Ephemeral 12” (Southern Lord)
Over three songs and 20 minutes, the vinyl-only Ephemeral introduces a heavier, darker, more riff-based Pelican for 2009. Features a cover of Earth’s "Geometry Of Murder" with Dylan Carlson on guitar.
+Riverboat Gamblers - A Choppy Yet Sincere Apology 7” (Volcom)
Leaving behind the images of broken teeth and lacerated body parts, the Gamblers push their unique brand of blistering pith 'n' vinegar anthems and quirky pop serenades over the edge. Limited edition (300).
+School Of Seven Bells - My Cabal 12” (Ghostly International)
Third single from Alphinsisms. Pronounced "my cable." The song "My Cabal" reflects that strange conflation of technology and the supernatural, spinning a drum-machine throb, a few chiming guitars, and a My Bloody Valentine-style atmospheric "whoosh" into a sophisticated dream-pop anthem.
+Starkey - Miracles (Jamie Vex’d Vs. Starkey Remix) 12” (Planet Mu)
Following the huge success of his debut album Ephemeral Exhibits, Starkey is back with another absolutely mind-blowing, next-level 12-inch, ahead of his in-the-works second album on Planet Mu.
+Tape - Luminarium LP+MP3 (Immune)
Taking cues from pop, experimentalism, and minimalism Tape has become recognized internationally for it's "luminarium of sound where past and present merge at the speed of light." Released on CD by Hapna in 2008, Immune is proud to release "Luminarium" on vinyl for the first time. Limited edition (500).
+Thieves Like Us - Really Like To See You Again 12” (Shelflife)
12” single lifted from their 2009 album Play Music. Think 1982 with heavier low end and less tape hiss. The four songs include a ballad written about that non-existent other half, a rerecorded version of "Desire" with guitars overdubbed in a Creation style and an old four-track demo.
+White Hills - Heads On Fire LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Now available on vinyl. With just the right blend of psychedelia and hypnotic grooves, White Hills weave in and out of anthemic chants, deep space bleeps, and otherworldly madness for a mix that proves intoxicating.
+Cake - Motorcade Of Gernerosity LP+MP3 (Upbeat)
+Children - Hard Times Hanging At The End Of The World LP (Kemado)
+Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications 2xLP (Rough Trade)
+Deastro - Moondagger LP (Ghostly International)
+DOOM - Born Like This LP (Lex)
+The Horrors - Primary Colours 2xLP (XL)
+Ben Sollee - Learning To Bend LP (Sonablast!)
These titles now available on vinyl.
02 JUNE 09
+311 - Uplifter CD/CD+DVD/LP (Volcano Entertainment)
311's ninth album, produced by Bob Rock (Metallica, Bon Jovi, The Cult) at the band's L.A. residence/studio. Uplifter will satisfy longtime followers while serving to grow their tribe, exposing a new generation to 311's music and their hopeful message of vitality and unity. Limited deluxe CD+DVD edition includes two bonus audio tracks plus a bonus 70-minute DVD.
+Acid Mother’s Temple - Are We Experimental CD (Prophase)
The world's premier psychedelic warriors have blasted out yet another album that distills their weird world into eleven tracks of sonic mayhem. Hawkwind-style guitar overload meets ethnic folk music from around the globe as a UFO crashes in the midst of it all.
+Alestorm - Black Sails At Midnight CD/CD+DVD (Napalm)
The Scottish buccaneers stand ready to capture the wealth of the seven seas by offering a treasure chest of sweeping Scottish pirate metal worthy of any loot-loving corsair. Irresistible growling choruses from the port side and lively keyboard melodies and heavy metal riffs from starboard form the basis of this highly explosive rum-induced metal mix. Deluxe edition includes a bonus live DVD featuring their entire 2008 Wacken performance.
+AZ - Legendary CD (Real Talk)
With Legendary, AZ brings back the much-anticipated, original “AZ sound.” His incredible flow and legendary lyricism have had hip-hop fans hooked for over a decade.
+Ryan Bingham - Roadhouse Sun CD/2xLP (Lost Highway)
New album from Ryan and The Dead Horses -- produced by Marc Ford, formerly of The Black Crowes.
+Boy Least Likely To - Best B-Sides Ever CD (+1R)
Indie-store exclusive!
Limited edition seven track disc of B-sides and rarities.
+Jeff
Buckley -
Grace Around The World CD+DVD/CD+2DVD (Columbia/Legacy)
CD+DVD set marks the 15th
anniversary of Buckley’s masterpiece Grace.
Grace
Around The World includes footage from TV
appearances that Buckley taped in America, Germany,
England, Japan and France. And because Buckley didn't
perform the Grace
track ''Corpus
Christi Carol'' on tour, the DVD includes footage of him
doing the non-album track ''What Will You Say'' instead.
The DVD also includes several bonus songs and interviews.
The CD contains audio of all ten live performances from
the DVD, as well as additional versions of ''Grace'' and
''So Real'' recorded in 1995 on MTV's 120
Minutes. The deluxe version includes
the regular CD+DVD set along with a bonus DVD
Amazing
Grace -- an hour-long documentary
directed by Buckley fans Laurie Trombley and Nyla Bialek
Adams. The film features archival footage of Buckley as
well as interviews with fans and people close to him.
+Ray
Charles -
Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, Volumes 1
& 2 CD (Concord)
Expanded and remastered
reissue of the 1962 classic album and its successful
follow-up. Packaged together for the very first
time, Volume
2 has
never-before been available on CD.
+Elvis
Costello -
Secret, Profane And Sugarcane CD (Hear Music)
New
album -- produced by T Bone Burnett and recorded by Mike
Piersante during a three-day session at Nashville's Sound
Emporium Studio. Joining Costello were Jerry Douglas
(dobro), Stuart Duncan (fiddle), Mike Compton (mandolin),
Jeff Taylor (accordion) and Dennis Crouch (double bass),
some of the most highly regarded recording artists and
musicians in traditional American country music,
bluegrass and beyond. Also features a duet with Emmylou
Harris.
+Marshall
Crenshaw -
Jaggedland CD (429)
A
musically dynamic and lyrically intimate collection of
songs creating a truly a career-defining record harkening
back to the best and brightest from one of America's
greatest songwriters and performers.
+Crosby,
Stills & Nash - Demos CD (Rhino)
Twelve-song collection of
previously unreleased demos from 1968-1971. Features Neil
Young on ''Music Is Love.''
+Daestro
- Moondaggers CD
(Ghostly International)
New
album from electronic singer/songwriter Randolph Chabot
AKA Deastro. Moondagger
expands upon the
positive electropop of Keepers,
their home-recorded opus from 2008, with the addition of
a full band. Thankfully, the mercurial, prolific Chabot
still seems blissfully unaware of his music's
genrelessness.
+Deranged
Diction (Jeff Ament) - No Art, No Cowboys, No
Rules CD (Monkeywrench)
Indie store exclusive! Jeff
Ament’s (AKA Jeff Diction) old band. From Jeff:
''Seattle, Washington, 2008. I ran into Rod at Easy
Street Records and reminisced about our days in Deranged
Diction and he mentioned having a rehearsal tape of the
songs we wrote together. I listened and we thought it was
a shame that we never recorded those songs. Rod and I
approached Bruce and Sergio about recording those songs.
We went into Avast studios and recorded and mixed it in
four days in the spirit of how we might have done it 24
years earlier. It was a blast playing with my old friends
again and it's sounds pretty damn good, if I say so
myself.''
+J
Dilla -
Jay Stay Paid CD (Nature Sounds)
25-track collection of
unreleased Dilla beats mixed and arranged by Pete Rock.
While mostly instrumental, J$P
also offers a few
guest vocals from artists that Dilla worked with or
admired including Black Thought (The Roots), DOOM,
M.O.P., Blu and more.
+Drop Dead,
Gorgeous -
The Hot N’ Heavy CD (Suretone)
New
album from Denver-based metalcore band.
+Ronnie
Earl And The Broadcasters - Living In The Light CD
(Stony Plain)
Ronnie Earl returns for his
fifth Stony Plain release. Including his old friend Kim
Wilson on harmonica and vocals on three tracks,
Living
In The Light is mostly an instrumental.
Features additional guests David Maxwell, Rod Carey, Dave
Keller and Jason James.
+Eels
- Hombre Lobo:
Twelve Songs Of Desire CD (Vagrant)
The
seventh studio album from the ever-changing project led
by singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mark
Oliver Everett (aka E). Hombre
Lobo was recorded entirely at E's
studio in Los Angeles with Koool G Murder (bass,
keyboards and guitar) and Knuckles (drums and
percussion).
+Emery
- ...In Shallow
Seas We Sail CD (Tooth & Nail)
Returning to work with
producer Aaron Sprinkle (Anberlin, The Almost, Emery's
The Question), ...In
Shallow Seas We Sail showcases some of the best
songwriting of Emery’s career.
+Enslaved
- Hordanes Land
CD (Season Of Mist)
Limited reissue of the
Norwegian metal album.
+Franz
Ferdinand - Blood CD/LP (Epic)
Upon
completion of Tonight:
Franz Ferdinand, the album's co-producer,
Dan Carey, began to conduct a dub experiment with the
tracks. Carey's own experience had included an
apprenticeship of sorts with legendary south London dub
specialist The Mad Professor, owner of Ariwa Sounds, one
of the UK's premier reggae labels. And thusly,
Blood
was born.
Comprised of eight radical revisions from Franz
Ferdinand's acclaimed third album, a bonus ninth track,
"Be Afraid."
+Girl In A
Coma -
Trio B.C. CD/LP (Blackheart)
A
unique amalgamation of eclectic influences: oldies,
rockabilly, ‘90s alternative, and contemporary bands both
indie and mainstream. Features Joan Jett on guest vocals.
+Hoots And
Hellmouth - The Holy Open Secret CD
(Mad Dragon)
The
Holy Open Secret was produced by the band in
collaboration with Bill Moriarty (Dr. Dog, Man Man) and
captures the fire and the spirit of a Hoots And Hellmouth
community revival with a fierce and fiery alchemy.
Outfitted with three-part harmonies, acoustic guitars,
mandolin, upright bass and foot stomps, colorful Hammond
organ and drums, the record enlivens your spirit through
a blend of Americana style and punk rock attitude.
+Iwrestledabearonce
- It’s All
Happening CD (Century Media)
New
album from the electro-metal, trip-hop pioneers from
Shreveport, LA.
+Kult Ov
Azazel -
Destroying The Sacred CD (Arctic)
Heretical black metal outfit
return with a fresh scathing attack on monotheistic
religions.
+Amy
LaVere -
Died Of Love CD (Archer)
Indie store exclusive!
Songstress and stand-up bass player Amy Lavere has
released this EP for fans of her smooth and smart lyrics
and melodies. From the otherworldly cover of Tom Waits'
''Green Grass'' to the thundering rock of ''Washing
Machine (Reloaded)'' and driving ''If Love Was A Train,''
the set reveals an artist in LaVere who is relentlessly
daring and infinitely intriguing.
+Lydia
Lunch -
Queen Of Siam CD (Atavistic)
Reissue of Lydia Lunch's solo
debut -- originally recorded in 1980. Featuring the noted
talents of guitarist Robert Quine (Lou Reed, The
Voidoids), multi-instrumentalist Pat Irwin (B-52's, Eight
Eyed Spy), and the big band sound orchestra of Billy
VerPlack (of Flintstones theme fame), the work proved to
be a slap in the face to those critics awaiting a new
Teenage Jesus-type of album from Lunch. Dirty,
sophisticated, literary and raw, the album is today seen
as the jewel in the crown of NYC’s no-wave underground
movement.
+Dave
Matthews Band - Big Whiskey And The
GrooGrux King CD/CD+DVD/2xLP (RCA)
Dave
Matthew’s highly anticipated first studio album in four
years. Produced by Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical
Romance), Big
Whiskey has been hailed by Rolling
Stone as the group's “heaviest album yet, both musically
and emotionally.” The deluxe version adds a DVD
documenting the making of the new album.
+The
Meatmen -
Cover The Earth CD (Meat King)
After a twelve year lapse,
The Meatmen bounce back big with a 24-track ode to the
tuneage of yore. Cover
The Earth features all of Tesco's
favorite musical blasts of the last 40 years. Some are
obvious: Fear, GG Allin, Johnny Thunders; and some are
head scratchers: Jimmy Dean, 10CC, The Temptations (?!).
All delivered in reverential but irreverent form.
+Paolo
Nutini -
Sunny Side Up CD (Atlantic)
Sunny
Side Up sees Nutini continuing to
mine his arresting brand of soulful modern pop. Songs
such as “Ten Out Of Ten” and “Coming Up Easy” display the
gifted tunesmith's ever-growing knack for irrepressible
melodies melded with insightful and intimate lyricism,
all held together by Paolo's gritty and unpredictable
vocal stylings.
+Pink
Floyd - A
Momentary Lapse Of Reason CD (EMI/Capitol)
Reissue of the
Floyd-sans-Waters 1987 album. This 1997 remastered
version, available now through EMI, was the band's first
release after the departure of Roger Waters and features
David Gilmour along with Floyd members Nick Mason and
Richard Wright. Also features musical assistance from
Tony Levin, Carmine Appice and Jim Keltner.
+Pisces
- A Lovely Sight
CD (Numero)
Unfortunately, 1969's
A
Lovely Sight -- Pisces' only attempt at an
LP -- never made it to wax. Now resurrected on CD, the
album combines homespun psychedelic vision and secondhand
studio trickery with naive readings of the rock sound of
the day, resulting in a diverse, haunted rock headspace
few coastal bands ever flew through, let alone over.
+Iggy
Pop -
Préliminaires CD (Astralwerks)
Iggy
Pop takes on the language of romance and puts a decidedly
French twist on his new album, Préliminaires.
Produced by longtime collaborator Hal Cragin (They Might
Be Giants, Sarah McLachlan, Rufus Wainwright),
Préliminaires
(which translates
to "foreplay") highlights another facet of the Iggy Pop
persona, focusing more on jazz arrangements and the
distinctive, rich baritone heard on classics like
"Nightclubbing" and his duet with French legend Françoise
Hardy on the song "I'll Be Seeing You."
+Willy
Porter -
How To Rob A Bank CD (Weasel)
Seventh release from the
esteemed guitarist/singer/songwriter is a self-produced
tour de force on three fronts: vast and deep writing,
crisp playing and powerful vocal arrangements.
+Rancid
- Let The Dominos
Fall CD/2xCD+DVD/2xLP (Epitaph)
A
ready-made punk classic that'll take its place
beside And
Out Come The Wolves as a touchstone of the genre.
Deluxe three-disc (double CD+DVD) edition includes the
regular CD, an additional acoustic disc, a bonus DVD,
three foldout posters and four guitar picks.
+Terry
Riley -
Persian Surgery Dervishes 2xCD (Felmay)
Recorded in Los Angeles, CA
and Paris, France between 1971 and 1972. An instant
classic from one of the fathers of minimalism.
+Perry
Robinson & Burton Greene - Two Voices In The Desert CD
(Tzadik)
One
of the greatest modern free jazz clarinetists in the
world meets virtuoso pianist in this historic new
installment to Radical
Jewish Culture.
+The
Sounds -
Crossing The Rubicon CD/LP (Original Signal)
Their synth-pop, guitar
driven sound still takes center stage, but there’s an
ambition and sophistication to both the songs and
production that reveals new layers of depth to the
overall aesthetic.
+Dakota
Stanton -
Time To Swing CD (DRG)
The
dean of the world jazz critics, Leonard Feather, called
Dakota Staton "a dynamic song stylist recalling at times
elements of Dinah Washington and Sarah Vaughn." On
Time
To Swing, originally released in
1959, she is backed by the famous arranger-leader Sid
Feller. Also included are five bonus tracks of
never-before-released material.
+Taking
Back Sunday - New Again CD/CD+DVD (Warner
Bros.)
Taking Back Sunday returns
with a new energy, a new guitarist and a new fearlessness
on New
Again -- produced by David Kahne
(Sublime, The Strokes, Paul McCartney). The deluxe
edition includes a bonus DVD and special packaging.
+Tankard
- Thirst CD (AFM)
Fresh alcohol-fueled thrash
metal.
+TYR
- By The Light Of
Northern CD/Limited Edition CD (Napalm)
Traditional homeland
melodies, Viking choruses, and classic heavy metal songs
from the Norwegian Viking metal band. Limited digipak
edition features two bonus tracks.
+Umphrey’s
McGee -
Live: Soundstage CD (E1 Entertainment)
A must-have for fans, this amazing performance --
recorded in high-definition for the PBS concert
series Soundstage
-- showcases the
band's spontaneity and dazzling musicianship in an
awe-inspiring 13-song set. Includes two bonus live tracks
(including "Made To Measure" off their new studio
album Mantis).
+Various
Artists -
Music From The Original Soundtrack And More: Woodstock
2xCD (Rhino)
Deluxe 40th anniversary
double-CD reissue of the sprawling and era-defining sonic
document featuring CSNY, The Who, Santana, Jimi Hendrix,
and much more. Remastered from the original analog
soundboard tapes.
+Various
Artists (Bob
Dylan) -
Theme Time Radio Hour: The Best Of The Second Series CD
(Chrome Dreams)
50
tracks as played by Bob across the second series of the
show. The selections are just as eclectic, fascinating
and enjoyable as those he played during the first series,
and again each show was themed by subject matter.
+Various
Artists -
Omnidance CD (Last Gang)
Latest in the
Turbo
Studio Sessions series. All new and exclusive
material from core artists and long time Turbo
collaborators Tiga, Boys Noize, Chromeo, Dim and more.
+Various
Artists -
SK 200 CD (Sonar Kollektiv)
200
releases is a great achievement for any indie label. To
mark this respective milestone for the Sonar Kollektiv
label, Jazzanova put together another of their pristine
compilations. Far from adhering to a kind of obvious
“best of” format, they have chosen to include almost
exclusively tracks from the last year of Sonar's output.
+Various
Artists -
Well Hung CD (B-Music)
22 stomping selections from the vaults of Eastern
Europe's best kept secret, Hungaraton/Qualiton Records.
This compendium piles heavy psych, jazz, glam and funk
onto a heaping spoonful of ‘60s/’70s Hungarian rock.
+Various
Artists -
Woodstock Two 2xCD (Rhino)
Originally released as a
double-LP, Woodstock
Two expands the listening
experience with 16 additional performances from the
historic 1969 concert. Two's
highlights include extra tracks from legendary sets by
Hendrix and CSNY, with additional tracks by two
performers not featured on the original soundtrack --
Mountain and Melanie. Remastered from the original analog
soundboard tapes, including a deluxe booklet with new
liner notes and rare photos.
+Ween
- All Request
Live CD (Chocodog)
All
Request Live was recorded in 2003
(originally available in a painfully limited edition) and
features tracks that were recorded especially for the CD
(Parts 4 and 5 of ''The Stallion''). From the classic old
school jam ''Reggaejunkiejew'' to the
should-have-been-a-hit ''Stay Forever'' to old
Pod
favorites like
''Awesome Sound'' and ''Demon Sweat,'' the craftsmanship
remains top-notch. The highlight for most Ween heads is
the six minutes of ''Where'd The Cheese Go,'' the band's
now-legendary rejected Pizza Hut jingle.
+The
Who - Sell
Out: Deluxe Edition CD (MCA)
Digitally remastered and
expanded deluxe double-disc edition of The Who's 1967
classic. Contains previously unreleased songs and mixes,
and a 28-page booklet featuring unseen photos, ephemera
and more.
+Vanessa
Williams -
The Real Thing CD (Concord)
Her
first album in four years, The
Real Thing serves up a mix of sultry
jazz standards and pop sketches. Features two new songs
written by Babyface.
+Neil
Young -
Neil Young Archives, Vol. 1: 1963-1972 8xCD (Reprise)
This
is the first volume of the Neil
Young Archives series of box sets, produced
by Young himself. This series is the definitive,
comprehensive, chronological survey of his entire body of
work. Volume
I covers the period from his
earliest recordings with the Squires in Winnipeg, 1963,
through to his classic 1972 album, Harvest
and beyond, including studio and live tracks with the
legendary Buffalo Springfield, CSNY, and Neil Young with
Crazy Horse. A total of 116 tracks, all presented in HDCD
quality sound, and featuring over 40 previously
unreleased songs, versions, mixes, and rare tracks.
DVDs:
+B.B.
King -
Live At Montreux DVD (Eagle Rock)
Features “Every Day I Have the Blues,” “Nightlife,” “Love
Me Tender,” “Inflation Blues” and more.
+Deep
Purple -
History, Hits & Highlights ’68 - ’76 2xDVD (Eagle
Rock)
Since Deep Purple’s debut in 1968, fourteen different
musicians have contributed to 24 studio and live albums.
Today the group consists of vocalist Ian Gillan,
guitarist Steve Morse, bassist Roger Glover, keyboardist
Don Airey and drummer Ian Paice. This is the lineup
represented here, with the exception of retired member
Jon Lord, who plays keyboards in most of the concert
footage.
+Various
Artists -
Fillmore: The Last Days DVD (Rhino)
Renowned rock promoter Bill Graham closed the famous
Fillmore West venue in 1971 with five nights of all-star
concerts to mark the occasion. Every moment was captured
for posterity and the resulting documentary is a
testament to the San Francisco sound of the ‘60s. Great
performances from Santana, Grateful Dead, Jefferson
Airplane and other acts that epitomized the club are
featured.
+Neil
Young -
Neil Young Archives Volume 1 (1963 - 1972) 10xDVD
(Reprise)
Neil Young produced this comprehensive survey of his
career that’s unlike any other music retrospective. This
ten-DVD set focuses on his early days in Winnipeg with
The Squire’s through the recording of Harvest
and features live
performances, videos, interviews, studio footage and
more. Also included, in addition to the 128 recordings,
is Young’s first film Journey
Through The Past (1973).
Vinyl:
+Beck
- One Foot In The
Grave 2xLP (Interscope)
Expanded 15th anniversary edition of the pop/rock
uber-genius' 1994 album includes 16 bonus tracks (13 of
them previously unreleased). Bonus tracks include cuts
from the rare “It's All In Your Mind” single.
+Various
Artists -
Beat At Cinecitta LP (Crippled Dick Hot Wax)
The first volume in a series dedicated to the most
raunchy, erotic beat film music from the vaults of
Italian ‘60s and ‘70s cinema. Brass pasta sound for hot
nights from some of the most acclaimed Italian composers
of all time: Bruno Nicolai, Pierro Piccioni, Armando
Trovajoli, Luis Bacalov, Riz Ortolani. Comes with with
numerous stills ''al dente'' as well as extensive liner
notes. Limited edition, gatefold white vinyl.
+Various
Artists -
Shake Sauvage LP (Crippled Dick Hot Wax)
Compilation of French soundtracks from the ‘60s and ‘70s
(only exception: ''Grand Theme Malko'' from 1982). Sails
from pulsating thriller-beats to relaxed sexy grooves.
Limited edition, gatefold white vinyl.
+Various
Artists -
Smart’s Palace LP (Numero)
Between 1963-1975 Smart’s
Palace held court for the entire Wichita, Kansas soul
scene. At its heart was Dick Smart, bassist, club owner,
DJ, record store owner, promoter, and sole proprietor of
the Solo label. Collected here for the first time is the
story and songs that came out of this thriving, if not
totally unknown scene.
+Gert
Wilden & Orchestra - The Schulmädchen Report LP
(Crippled Dick Hot Wax)
Compiles Wilden’s work for the erotic cinema, including
the most swinging themes from the famed
Schoolgirl
Report series and other
sexploitation films. Limited edition, deluxe gatefold
white vinyl LP includes numerous sexy stills and
extensive liner notes.
+Amadou
& Mariam - Welcome To Mali 2xLP+CD
(Nonesuch)
+Chester
French -
Love The Future LP (Interscope)
+Earth
Crisis -
To The Death LP (Century Media)
+New York
Dolls -
‘Cause I Sez So LP (Rhino)
+Patrick
Watson -
Wooden Arms 2xLP (Secret City)
These titles now available on vinyl.
26 MAY
09
+Dave Alvin
& The Guilty Women - Dave Alvin & The Guilty
Women CD (Yep Roc)
Dave Alvin, has been roaming the highways of American
music for over a quarter century. During those decades
he's busted speakers with roots rock kick-starters The
Blasters, as well as mined the depths of country, folk
and blues with his solo projects. A mainstay during much
of this journey has been Alvin's electrifying band The
Guilty Men.
+Dave Alvin
& Various Artists - Chris Gaffney Tribute: The
Man Of Somebody’s Dreams CD (Yep Roc)
A founding member of the Hacienda Brothers and a renowned
west coast country-soul singer/songwriter, Chris Gaffney
moved people as much with his smile as with his trademark
croon. Gaffney passed away in 2008 after a courageous
battle with liver cancer and is survived by his family
and the litany of musical heroes he called friends and
collaborators.
+Naim
Amor -
Soundtracks Vol III CD (Amormusic)
The third installment of all-instrumental tracks by
ex-Parisian Amor that he has recorded in his chosen home
city of Tucson, AZ. The fact that there are no actual
films to go with the utterly charming music doesn't
lessen its impact in the least. Amor is a bit of a
wizard, a supremely gifted singer, songwriter and guitar
player. On this CD he also plays violin, lap-steel,
vibes, drums, piano, banjo melodica, harp, a vintage SK1
keyboard and does some drum programming.
+Bachelorette
- My Electric
Family CD/LP (Drag City)
Bachelorette’s music beams to us through a universe of
unconquered pop. She stands in the cradle of modern
songwriting, that of psychedelic pop music. The psych
vibe shimmers in an acousto-synthetic haze, not really
overt -- so completely are those long-ago verses absorbed
in her DNA. Her impulses are fed into a format that
rhymes couplets over dancing beats, voices, keyboards,
and a variety of guitars and percussions to create the
melodic constructs we know so well, and delight in, and
sing along with, and imagine to.
+Ray Barbee
& The Mattson 2 - Ray Barbee Meets The
Mattson 2 CD+DVD (Galaxia)
Collaboration between guitarist extraordinaire and
contemporary jazz duo.
+Buffalo
Stance -
Sugar Glider CD (Obey Your Brain)
Brainchild of soulful pianist Jamey Robinson. Filled with
wonderfully layered keyboards and vocals, the album at
times sounds like Wendy Carlos' sublime synthesizer
symphonies combined with a simultaneously innocent and
informed approach to singing and harmony. Features
appearances from members of Icy Demons, Man Man, Need New
Body, Delta 72 and Bardo Pond.
+Beausoleil
Avec Michael Doucet - Make The Veiller CD+DVD
(Varese Fontana)
31 tracks of pure Cajun music on the 35th anniversary
celebration of the band. Performing to a small
"living-room" audience they demonstrate not only their
complete mastery of traditional music but also of their
fusion of modern influences.
+Bike For
Three! -
More Heart Than Brains CD/LP (Anticon)
Debut release from international duo Buck 65 and
Greetings From Tuskan.
+Sir
Richard Bishop - The Freak Of Araby CD (Drag
City)
The debut of Bishop and his Freak Of Araby ensemble-- a
talented quartet of players getting deep into the Middle
Eastern mystic with hand drums, percussion, bass, drums,
electric guitars and a heavy dose of Moroccan chanters,
all of it captured with depth, detail and sympathy for
the eternal enigma.
+Black Moth
Super Rainbow - Eating Us CD (Graveface)
After a year of eerie, stilted silence, the sun shines
and the shadows reappear. Black Moth Super Rainbow has
crept from the forests and cities to make Eating Us,
their dark bubblegum freakout for 2009. The first fully
hi-fi BMSR record, Eating Us, adds space and dimension to
the band's sticky, off-kilter melodies.
+James
Blackshaw - Glass Bead Game CD (Young
God)
Latest from UK twelve-string guitar virtuoso.
+Blank
Dogs -
Under And Under CD/lLP (In The Red)
Massive new album from Brooklyn artist shows off his pop
chops more than previous releases.
+Brain
Donor -
Wasted Buzz Excessive CD (Brain Donor Records)
Wasted
Fuzz Excessive is the long awaited follow-up
to Brian Donor's 2006 epic DrainD
Boner. This new album continues
the dark traditions of declaimed metallic poetry, but
extends further into works of epic construction and
length.
+Brian
Jonestown Massacre - Smoking Acid CDEP/2x12” (A
Records)
A collaboration between Anton Newcombe and Icelandic
artist Jon Saemundur Auoarson. The double 12'' features
an etched disc by Jon Saemundur Auoarson.
+Harold
Budd / Clive Wright - Candylioin CD (Darla)
Candylion
contrasts
previous work, A
Songs For Lost Blossoms, in that it is more
thoughtful and structured. Still, it constantly surprises
the listener with a fresh collage of aural landscapes and
moods. Sometimes it evokes the feeling of a traditional
Japanese piece, or the mood of a gentile, ‘60s, British
film, or a Renaissance cathedral with cloisters
reverberating a choral ensemble. Harold Budd and Clive
Wright use new colors to paint Canylion's
soundscapes: Harp, strings and even drums.
+Gary
Burton & Pat Metheny - Quartet Live! CD (Concord)
An all new eleven-song live recording Gary Burton, Pat
Metheny, Steve Swallow and newest member Antonio Sanchez.
+Bury Your
Dead -
It’s Nothing Personal CD (Victory)
Guitarist Brendan ''Slim'' MacDonald previously stated
about the group's new material: ''I say it every time we
go into the studio: This is the best thing ever that we
have ever written ever and it's meaningful. Between the
awesome tours and heading overseas twice, there were a
fair amount of remedial bullshit to have to get over, and
I promise you will hear about most of it on the record.”
+Carolina
Chocolate Drops & Joe Thompson - Barcelona Chocolate Drops
& Joe Thompson CD (Fat Possum)
Black musicians playing the fiddle and banjo have a
history that dates back from slavery times to well into
the last century. Joe Thompson of Mebane, NC is the
oldest and last known black traditional old time fiddler
of this genre. In 2005, it seemed to Joe that his
community would not carry on his music. Then, the
Carolina Chocolate Drops began to visit him every
Thursday night to learn his songs. This album was
recorded live at MerleFest 2008.
+Cave
- Psychic Summer
CD/LP (Important)
Important Records' dream come true -- a full length
studio album from Chicago's Cave. Major momentum,
expertly crafted and embracing maximum minimalism,
repetition, Can-cloud-bounce, and full-on heavy chant.
Like driving a train full-speed off a cliff only to
discover that the plane can fly and you'll live forever
if you stay inside.
+Corridor
- Corridor CD
(Manimal Vinyl)
Eight tracks of lush noise drenched stories of passion,
loss and coming of age in the modern world.
Multi-instrumentalist Michael Quinn is in his early 20’s
but is already considered a seasoned player in the
post-hardcore scenes in Boston and Seattle. Once he
transplanted to L.A., Quinn wasted no time getting key
slots on shows with Ariel Pink, Xu Xu Fang, Winter
Flowers, etc. Taking his influences from ‘70s kraut-rock,
Michael Gira's Swans and Django Reinhardt.
+Creedence
Clearwater Revival - Creedence Covers The
Classics CD (Fantasy)
Brand new compilation that covers their classic hits.
+City
Center -
City Center CD/LP (Type)
Debut full-length release by Brooklyn-based Fred Thomas
as City Center. Although this is his first solo project,
Thomas is far from a newcomer to the scene. Rather, he
has spent most of his life in search of the perfect pop
music -- first as the frontman/mastermind of Saturday
Looks Good To Me, recording with His Name Is Alive's Warn
Defever, and as a member of Flashpapr.
+Crash
Kings -
Crash Kings CD (Milk/Crash Kings)
Three-piece alt-rock band from L.A., signed by Linda
Perry in 2008.
+Current
93 - Aleph
At Hallucinato By Mountain CD (Coptic Cat)
The unpredictable follow-up to Black
Ships Are The Sky is Current 93’s most powerful
album to date.
+Das
Boton -
Soda Drip CD (Sixgunlover)
Bill Dolan is most known for his guitar work in 5ive
Style and Heroic Doses (Sub Pop). He has been a huge
influence to a generation of artists with his explosive
1960’s New Orleans / Afrobeat guitar work. With his roots
intact, this record is heavily influenced by post-punk
and early NYC new wave. Features his former band mate,
Ryan ''Euphone'' Rapsys and Karl ''Babybird'' Ropp.
+Fully
Celebrated - Drunk On the Blood Of The
Holy Ones CD (AUM Fidelity)
Long one of Boston's musical gems, Fully Celebrated have
always been Jim Hobbs (alto sax), Timo Shanko (bass), and
Django Carranza (drums). "The band's core instincts
involve bold, expressionistic playing, and drumming with
emphatic glee. Indian raga, free-form swing, waltz,
ballad, Latin, and funk rhythms were employed before the
climactic rave." -- Boston Globe
+Georgia's
Horse -
Shepherd CDEP (Fire)
Redolent of the sun-baked vacant lots of Wim
Wenders' Paris,
Texas, the gentle (ex-patriot)
Americana of The New Pornographers, a light dusting of
the folk-psychedelia of Smog and the torrid and
threatening country death songs of PJ Harvey's
To
Bring You My Love.
+Graves Of
Valor -
Salarian Gate CD (Relapse)
Graves of Valor (ex-Through The Eyes Of The Dead) explode
to the forefront of the modern extreme metal scene with
their Relapse debut.
+Grizzly
Bear -
Veckatimest CD/2xLP (Warp)
The long-awaited follow-up to Grizzly Bear's critically
hailed album Yellow
House. Neoclassical composer Nico
Muhly and Beach House singer Victoria Legrand contribute.
+Hallucinogen
- In Dub Live CD
(Sci Fidelity)
A solid hour of heavy grooves and upbeat psychedelic sofa
monsters that features several new tracks.
+The
Intelligence - Fake Surfers CD/LP (In The
Red)
The possibility of an industrial/pop music crossover
seems as unlikely as a black metal/country
conglomeration, but on this new album, The Intelligence
introduces a whole new spectrum of sonic awareness
cleverly buried under little piles of dirt, with
glimmering specks of brilliance poking through.
+Khanate
- Clean Hands Go
Foul CD (Hydra Head)
Clean
Hands Go Foul represents the final nail in
the Khanate coffin, and a more fitting ending could not
have been devised. Having left hordes of imitators in
their wake, there will only ever be one Khanate.
Clean
Hands Go Foul is the most interesting
material from Khanate and is telepathic in its cohesion.
+The Lava
Children -
Lava Children CD/LP (Graveface)
With their debut on Graveface, Oklahoma's The Lava
Children have created eerie masterpieces that bring about
feelings of nostalgia while immediately making the
listener aware that they are witness to something
completely uncommon.
+Damian
Lazarus -
Smoke The Monster Out CD (Get Physical Music)
Though Lazarus's grounding in house and techno is
apparent throughout, this record is really a song based
affair, full of unusual acoustic instrumentation and
delicately wrought arrangements.
+Lindstrom
& Prins Thomas - II CD/4x12”+CD (Eskimo)
The highly-anticipated second full-length release by
Oslo's cosmic-disco kings Lindstrøm & Prins Thomas,
the follow-up to their 2006 eponymous debut, which
captured the hearts and minds of the global music
community.
+Julian
Marley -
Awake CD (Tuff Going)
Third album from Bob Marley’s son.
+Marilyn
Manson -
High End Of Low CD/2xCD (Nothing)
New album. Reunites Manson with long time collaborator
Twiggy Ramirez.
+Merzbow
- 13 Japanese
Birds V.5 CD (Important)
Fifth volume in Merzbow's 13-month series of releases
inspired by Olivier Messaien's Catalogue
D'Oiseaux.
+Minsk
- With Echoes In
The Movement Of Stone CD (Relapse)
New album burns slow through twisted, psychedelic post
rock with equal parts bombast and deliberation.
+Guido
Möbius -
Gebirge CD (Karaoke Kalk)
The third full-length release by Berlin's Guido Möbius
sounds quite different from everything Mobius has
previously released. His first two albums,
Klisten
(Klangkrieg)
and Dishoek
(Dekoder)
featured melodies on a collision course with sounds,
styles and idiosyncrasies, melancholy and humor.
Everything was interwoven, multi-layered and contrasting.
+Mandy
Moore -
Amanda Leigh CD (Storefront)
Mandy Moore purposely chose to record her latest album
Amanda Leigh in a modest home basement studio in Meford,
MA within the span of four weeks. No glitz, no glamour,
and once again reinforcing her penchant for electing art
over commerce. Inspirations for the album included Joni
Mitchell, Tudd Rundgren, CSNY, and Nilsson.
+The Paper
Chase -
Someday This Could All Be Yours Vol. 1 CD (Kill Rock
Stars)
On Someday
This Could All Be Yours Vol. 1, The Paper Chase sounds even
more unlike any other band in modern music. As a band,
The Paper Chase has matured but hasn't lightened up,
leaving open spaces and allowing melodies to fully
develop, the group presents its most powerful work to
date. Utilizing a newfound dynamic command with drummer
Jason Garner making his recorded debut with the group,
these songs are able to breathe -- subtly building
feelings of anticipation, yet erupting into violence and
chaos as crisis becomes inevitable.
+Phoenix
- Wolfgang
Amadeus Phoenix CD/LP+MP3 (Glassnote)
Brand new (fourth) album from the popular French, indie
rockers. ''Stylishly morose noir pop, lighter than light,
cooler than cool.'' -- Rolling Stone
+Po’
Girl -
Deer In The Night CD (Po Girl)
This disc sees Po' Girl bring a fresh clarity to their
self-styled urban roots music, distilling the seemingly
instinctive interplay and magical chemistry between
Allison Russell and Awna Teixeira (and Bennt Sidelinger
and JJ Jones) into life affirming and soulful jams.'' --
Alan Pedder/Where's The Trouser Magazine
+Pour
Habit -
Suiticide CD (Fat Wreck)
Straight outta Compton, CA Pour Habit is the newest
member of the Fat family. Turning heads since they formed
in 2005, Pour Habit has emerged as one of the punk
scene’s most dynamic up and coming bands. Their debut
brings blazing dual guitars, furious bass lines, tight
pummeling percussion, and soulful energetic melodies.
+Rusted
Shut -
Dead CD/LP (Load)
Houston's Rusted Shut has been at it in one form or
another since 1986. This record is the work of a band
determined to work out some difficult shit, so bear
witness. Dead
is not for the
faint of heart or those with weak kidneys. Don Walsh
spins a negative vortex of such power that clothing, food
wrappers and other loose items are easily sucked into its
encompassing downer orbit. The music backing this
maelstrom references hard rock superheroes with no sense
of fidelity: The tinittus of Lemmy Kilmeister and the
cochlea pain of GG Allin.
+Naomi
Shelton & The Gospel Queens - What Have You Done My
Brother? CD/LP (Daptone)
Like many gospel and R&B singers, Naomi Davis Shelton
learned to sing at an early age in the church where she
was baptized in Alabama. She began her professional
career with a gig as the house singer at a little club
called the Night Cap in Brooklyn, NY. It was there where
she would meet the man who would become her producer,
mentor, and friend for life. Over the next few years,
Roth formed and developed Daptone Records with partner
and saxophonist Neal Sugarman. It took three sets of
sessions over three years before Roth and Driver finally
found the right combination of singers, songs, and
musicians to cut Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens'
full length. The final result, What
Have You Done, My Brother?, is a testament to the
singular sound of gospel and soul music.
+Shitmat
- One Foot In The
Rave CD/2xLP (Planet Mu)
Fourth Planet Mu full length for Brighton breakcore
veteran is an old-school throwback.
+Michelle
Shocked -
Soul Of My Soul CD (Mighty Sound)
The sentiments on Soul
Of My Soul are couched mainly in
straight four, no frills rock ‘n’ roll -- just the
context for Shocked's two pronged passion play. She's
righteously, morally, and intellectually pissed off at
the state of the nation over the last eight years.
+Shonen
Knife -Super Group CD (Valve)
The all-female Japanese garage pop punk legends Shonen
Knife, championed by Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Red Kross,
etc. return with their latest album Super
Group.
+Stratovarius
- Polaris
CD (Armoury)
The band took a month off in a cottage on the sea in the
Finnish countryside and emerged better than ever. Here is
their newest CD full of positive energy, melody, and
strong anthems for life.
+Sunn
O))) -
Monoliths And Dimensions CD (Southern Lord)
Sunn O))) is proud to present their seventh studio album.
Work that spanned a year and a half resulted in their
most intense, mature, and off-a-point-of-reference work
to date. With this album they wanted to extend their
embracing of sonic to integrate acoustic ensemble
players.
+Team B -
Team B CD (Tonacity)
The previous two years have been extremely busy for
former Lexingtonian Kelly Pratt. Between touring with The
Arcade Fire and Beirut and recording with Coldplay, Nina
Persson, Final Fantasy, The Macabees, Bishop Allen,
Herman Dune, and many others, there shouldn't be time to
breathe, much less write songs. This busy sideman
lifestyle, however, is the driving force behind Pratt's
new project, Team B.
+Thirteenth
Rune -
Thirteenth Rune CD (Ghost Dance)
Kevin Finn, now performing under the Thirteenth Rune
moniker, continues to reconstruct his art with a
patchwork of new songs creating new musical dimensions
for voice and guitar. For fans of Mark Kozelek.
+Christopher
Tignor -
Core Memory Unwound CD (Western Vinyl)
For years, Slow Six bandleader, composer, and software
designer Christopher Tignor has performed with his
signature software instruments alongside fellow band
members, sampling and transforming their live
performances in accordance with his meticulous,
emotionally charged scores. On Core
Memory Unwound, Tignor's debut under his
given name, he brings his software to the forefront
alongside some of his most intimate compositions for
violin and piano.
+Tyvek
- Tyvek CD/LP
(Siltbreeze)
First full-length album from Detroit band follows a
string of popular singles and EPs.
+Vast
- Me And You CD
(2Blossoms)
Sixth studio album continues Vast’s tradition of deep
songwriting and innovative production featuring moving
vocals and lush strings.
+Viva
Voce -
Rose City CD (Barsuk)
After two years of non-stop touring, band founders Kevin
and Anita Robinson took an entire year off (unheard of
for them) to clear their heads and focus on other
projects. Now Viva Voce are back with Rose
City,
an album they wrote, arranged, and recorded all in one
furious month -- choosing not to deliberate over every
little thing but living purely in the moment musically
and lyrically. Immersing themselves in sonic
experimentation, it was spontaneous and cathartic. The
result is an angular, immediate record that pulses with
the palpable urgency of a band yearning for a return to
the vagabond life of the working, touring musician.
+War
Tapes -
Continental Divide CD (Sarathan)
Although a studio album, this bands energy shines through
as though it were a live punk out get down and fly around
punk show.
+Xasthur
- All Reflections
Drained CD/2xLP (Hydra Head)
All
Reflections Drained is just another step in
Xasthur's slowly evolving descent into psychic isolation
and misanthropic bleak darkness. All of the usual
symphonic contempt is present; bordering on blurred
misery and solitary beauty. Recorded in 2007/’08,
All
Reflections Drained marks yet another crucial
transition for Xasthur, with the inclusion of guest
vocalist M.H., but to say it is the next logical step
would be an uneducated statement. Malefic's musical
progression is as reclusive and unsettling as the man
himself and that's a good thing. This is music agony, not
entertainment.
+Jenny Owen
Young -
Transmitter Failure CD (Nettwerk)
After being thrust into the spotlight with a record deal,
her song ''F**k Was I'' being featured on the TV
show Weeds
season two
premier, and being the topic of super-celebrity blogger
Perez Hilton, Jenny Owen Youngs returns with her latest
album Transmitter
Failure.
+Zap
Mama -
ReCreation CD (Heads Up)
In addition to a rhythm section rooted in a rich
Brazilian vibe, ReCreation
also boasts a
guest list of high-profile vocalists including Bilal, G.
Love, actor Vincent Cassel (La
Haine, Ocean's
Twelve) and several others. The
album offers everything the title suggests -- a time to
make a break, to renew, and to play.
The
Reissue zone...
+Amon
Amarth -
Avenger 2xCD (Metal Blade)
Amon Amarth is reissuing their first four albums as
double-disc sets. The first disc features the original
album with bonus tracks, and the second contains a live
show of the band performing the album in its entirety.
All shows were recorded between December 28-31, 2008.
+Creedence
Clearwater Revival - The Concert (40th
Anniversary) CD (Fantasy)
Recorded live at the Oakland Coliseum Jan 31, 1970.
+Del-Lords
- Frontier Days
CD (American Beat)
+Del-Lords
- Based On A True
Story CD (American Beat)
+Del-Lords
- Johnny Comes
Marching Home CD (American Beat)
What do you get when you mix the guitarist from legendary
New York punk-rock band The Dictators (Scott Kempner),
the one-time guitarist from Joan Jett's Blackhearts (Eric
Ambel), the future-drummer of country-alt-rockers Cracker
(Frank Funaro), with a bass player that could bottom out
the Grand Canyon (Manny Caiati)? You get the Del-Lords --
a Springsteen meets Johnny Thunders mix of
back-to-the-roots country-fied urban rock ‘n’ roll.
+Alejandro
Escovedo -
Gravity 2xCD (Floating World)
Gravity
was the first
solo album by the former main man of The True Believers
and Rank And File (and before that hard core punk outfit
The Nuns) and was originally released in 1992. Escovedo's
debut was met with much critical acclaim and paved the
way for his major label breakthrough. Includes a bonus
disc of live material.
+Alejandro
Escovedo -
Thirteen Years 2xCD (Floating World)
The follow up to Gravity
was released in
1994 -- here Escovedo expands his musical line up to
include Cellos, Violins, and Harps, yet kept the rocking
element, particularly on the track, ''Losing Your Touch''
which features the guest guitar of Charlie Sexton. This
release has an added a bonus disc which contains live and
rare material including a stunning version of The Velvet
Underground's “Pale Blue Eyes.”
+Golden
Ear-rings - Just Earrings CD
(RPM-Retro)
+Golden
Ear-rings - Miracle Mirror CD
(RPM-Retro)
+Golden
Ear-rings - Winter Harvest CD
(RPM-Retro)
The Golden Ear-rings (name change to the singular Golden
Earring in 1969) were pioneers -- Holland's first
homegrown beat-era stars: before The Motions, before Q65,
before The Outsiders. Their first single hit the charts
in April 1965 and began a career which still thrives
today. Before the international smash “Radar Love” in
1974 the band had scored an unbroken run of Dutch hit
singles during the '60s. Unlike most bands of the era,
The Golden Ear-rings wrote their own material -- they
only ever recorded a single cover version. The reissue of
their first three albums -- 1965's Just
Earrings, 1967's Winter
Harvest and 1968's
Miracle Mirror -- reveals that The Golden
Ear-rings were amazingly assured, years before the
international recognition. Bonus tracks from singles
complete these reissues, making The Golden Ear-rings'
entire recorded works available for the first time.
+Holly
Golightly - Down Gina’s At 3 CD/2xLP
(Damaged Goods)
+Holly
Golightly - Painted On CD/LP (Damaged
Goods)
+Holly
Golightly - Up The Empire CD/LP
(Damaged Goods)
Her Sympathy For The Record Industry back-catalog --
reissues via Damaged Goods.
+Loop
- The World In
Your Eyes 3xCD (Reactor)
+Loop
- A Gilded
Eternity 2xCD (Reactor)
Final two in a series of reissues from late-‘80s British
psych rock band includes a wealth of bonus material.
+Motley
Crue - Dr.
Feelgood (20th Anniversary) CD (Motley Records)
The expanded 20th Anniversary edition of Dr, Feelgood
features all original 11 tracks, 5 bonus live tracks, and
never before seen photos from the Dr. Feelgood
photoshoot.
+Dave
Brubeck -Time Out (50th Anniversary)
2xCD+DVD (Columbia Legacy)
+Miles
Davis -
Sketches Of Spain (50th Anniversary) 2xCD (Columbia
Legacy)
+Charles
Mingus -
Ah Um (50th Anniversary) 2xCD (Columbia/Legacy)
Deluxe reissues now available.
Simply
The Best...
+Big Audio Dynamite - Best Of CD (Camden)
2009 collection from the '80s outfit formed by former
Clash guitarist/vocalist Mick Jones (later of Carbon
Silicon). Fifteen tracks including “C'mon Every Beatbox,”
“The Bottom Line,” “Just Play Music,” “Rush” and many
more.
+Paul
Hardcastle - Collection CD (Trippin’ N’
Rhythm)
From the elusive hit maker and studio wiz Paul Hardcastle
comes this definitive collection of some of his finest
works in a set that will invigorate his passionate legion
of fans. Includes two new tracks ''The Circle'' and
''Dancing Lights.''
Simply
The Rest...
+Six
Finger Satellite - Half Control CD (Load)
Archival 2001 recordings from Providence's finest square
peg. Half
Control veers sharply away from the
krautrock stylings of 1998's Law
Of Ruins with a lineup that is
hotwired.
+Pumajaw
- Favourites CD
(Fire)
Retrospective of the first four albums. These fourteen
gems were handpicked by the group. A duo that weave
multi-octave voice with looped guitar, mandolin, samples,
concertina and hypnotic rhythms. They have their own
seductive sound that defies categorization and stretches
from psychedelic pop through sultry folk songs to eerie,
cacophonous, trance-inducing laments.
+Telescopes
- Singles
Collection Volume 2 CD (Mind Expansion)
Ten mind blowing tracks taken from the extremely limited
edition 7” singles and an extremely rare live 10'' vinyl
single from 2005. Also features songs that were only
released on the hand made tour CD's.
The
Compilation zone...
+Various
Artists -
Not Given Lightly: A Tribute To The Giant Golden Book Of
New Zealand’s Alternative Music Scene 2xCD/3xLP (Morr
Music)
Morr Music presents a compilation paying tribute to the
great, highly-influential New Zealand indie-pop bands of
the 1980s, whose steadfast DIY aesthetic paved the way
internationally for the future development of all modern
indie bands to follow. CD1 features cover versions of New
Zealand's most beloved songs from that era by Morr's top
current artists, and CD2 features previously-unreleased
tracks that look towards the future of indie-pop. In New
Zealand, the archetype of what was called indie-pop was
established.
+Various
Artists -
Psychedelic Guide To Monsterism Island CD (Lo Recordings)
Original compositions from some of the underground's most
intrepid musical explorers. Monstrous rock fry-ups,
electronic exotica via psychedelic folk and spooky
krautrock. Artists include: Luke Vibert, Wolf People,
Gruff Rhys and Monsters At Work.
+Various
Artists -
Take Me To The Water: Immersion Baptism In Vintage Music
And Photography 1890-1950 Book+CD (Dust-To-Digital)
The latest release from Grammy Award-winning reissue
label Dust-to-Digital gives music fans another reason to
rejoice. A stunning 96-page hardcover book of historic
baptism photographs, taken between 1890 and 1950 and
compiled from the collection of noted folk art collector
Jim Linderman, is accompanied by a CD of rare gospel and
folk recordings from original 78 RPM records (1924-1940),
featuring artists Washington Phillips, Carter Family,
Tennessee Mountaineers, and more. Produced by the 2009
Grammy winner for "Best Historical Album," Steven Lance
Ledbetter. The CD could easily be seen as the seventh
disc of Goodbye, Babylon (DTD 001CD), Dust-To-Digital's
critically acclaimed and Grammy-nominated box set from
2003. Original 78 RPM records came from the collections
of Joe Bussard, Steven Lance Ledbetter, Frank Mare and
Roger Misiewicz. 96-page hardcover book (8.75 x 6 inches)
with 75 sepia photograph reproductions from 1890-1950; CD
includes 25 songs and sermons from 1924-1940.
+Various
Artists -
Twenty First Century Twenty First Year CD (Luaka Bop)
The Luaka Bop label started in 1988 as David Byrne began
making cassettes for his friends of his favorite
Brazilian music. Now, twenty-one years later, this
compilation album begins with the first track on Luaka
Bop's first album: Unbabrumma
by Jorge
Ben. Twenty
First Century Twenty First Year continues through some of
their biggest hits with tracks from artists such as
Shuggie Otis, Zap Mama, Geggy Tah, Susana Baca, Los
Amigos Invisibles, and Moreno Veloso.
The DVD
zone...
+Diana
Krall -
Live In Rio DVD (Eagle Rock)
Diana Krall has had a long time fascination with bossa
nova, a type of music, which perfectly suits her
sophisticated yet sensual style. This culminated in her
recently released studio album Quiet
Nights and in this stunning concert
filmed in the home of the bossa nova, Rio de Janeiro, in
November 2008. Accompanied by her band and an orchestra,
Diana Krall delivers a superb set of standards in true
bossa nova style but clearly bearing her unique stamp.
This DVD captures Diana Krall at her scintillating best.
+Ministry
- Adios...Putas
Madres: Ministry's Final World Tour 2008 2xDVD (13th
Planet)
The peerless sounds of Ministry take center stage --
literally -- in this two-disc set that features a
performance from the group's final tour and an insightful
documentary. Join frontman Al Jourgensen and his
bandmates as they present such industrial music classics
as ''Let's Go,'' ''Waiting,'' ''So What,'' ''N.W.O.,''
''What a Wonderful World,'' and more
+The Moody
Blues -
Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970 DVD (Eagle Rock)
In 1970 The Moody Blues were at their creative and
commercial peak. After reinventing themselves from their
R&B roots to a much more sophisticated sound, between
1967 and 1970 they released five albums, four of which
hit the Top 5 in the UK with two of them going to No.1.
They enjoyed similar success in the USA where four of the
albums hit the Top 20 and the other was just outside. At
the end of August 1970,shortly after the release of their
album A
Question Of Balance, The Moody Blues took to the
stage of the Isle Of Wight Festival in front of an
audience estimated at over half a million. This DVD makes
that performance available to be seen for the first time.
+Procol
Harum -
Live In Concert With The Danish National Concert
Orchestra And Choir DVD (Eagle Rock)
This DVD was filmed over two spectacular concerts held in
the grounds of Ledreborg Castle in Denmark in August
2006. The band was accompanied throughout by the Danish
National Concert Orchestra And Choir and these epic songs
really benefit from the full symphonic arrangements they
receive. Also included are six previously unreleased live
tracks from a 1974 Danish TV special as a bonus feature.
The
Vinyl zone...
+Asunder
/ Graves At Sea - Split LP (20 Buck Spin)
Much-requested repress of the long out-of-print doom LP.
+DJ
Kaos -
Love The Nite Away 12” (Rong/DFA)
A disco/rock hybrid reminiscent of Daniele Baldelli with
its rough male vocal sound and “I Feel Love”-style acid
bass lines.
+Group
Doueh -
Treeg Salaam LP (Sublime Frequencies)
Compiled from their personal archives, these five tracks
are as brain shifting in their ecstatic brilliance as any
music ever heard. From the wah-stroked lead off track to
the blazing dexterity of "Ragsa Jaguar," the whole of the
first side is an entrance to the lip-puckering tea den of
Saharan trance heaven. One-time pressing of 1,500 copies
on HQ-180 vinyl.
+iTal
Tek -
Massive Error 12” (Planet Mu)
Hot on the heels of his 2008 debut album
Cyclical,
Alan Myson is back with more material at the crux of
techno and dubstep.
+Walter
Jones -
I’ll Keep On Loving You 12” (DFA)
Staggeringly unique, haunting electronic pop from dance
music enigma.
+The Juan
MacLean -
One Day 12” (DFA)
A concise and exhilarating slice of electro-pop -- the
second single off The Juan MacLean’s epic new
full-length The
Future Will Come.
+Pinch
- Attack Of The
Giant Killer Robot Spiders 12” (Planet Mu)
Arguably the king of the Bristol scene, DJ Pinch is a
name that everyone into dubstep should know.
+Raffertie
- Wobble Horror
12” (Planet Mu)
Hailing from Britain’s South Coast and now based in
Birmingham, Raffertie is the 21 year old DJ/producer
whose innovative and downright filthy style has been
smashing up the UK’s underground dance music scene for
the last couple of years.
+Omar
Souleyman - Highway To Hassake: Folk
And Pop Songs Of Syria 2xLP (Sublime Frequencies)
Now available on double-LP. Omar Souleyman is a Syrian
musical legend. Since 1994, he and his musicians have
emerged as a staple of folk-pop throughout Syria, but
until now they have remained little known outside of the
country. To date, they have issued more than 500 studio
and live-recorded cassette albums which are easily
spotted in the shops of any Syrian city. Born in rural
Northeastern Syria, he began his musical career in 1994
with a small group of local collaborators who remain with
him today.
+What’s
Up? -
Content Imagination LP+MP3 (Obey Your Brain)
Debut from Portland, OR instrumental rock group led by
Robby Moncrief. CD out on Tomlab.
+Feist
- Let It Die LP
(Arts & Crafts)
+Feist
- Open Season
LP+MP3 (Arts & Crafts)
+Feist
- Reminder LP
(Arts & Crafts)
Deluxe HQ-180 vinyl reissues now available.
+Anathallo
- Canopy Glow LP
(Anticon)
+Karen
Dalton -
It’s So Hard To Tell Whose Going To Love You The Best
2xLP (Light In The Attic)
+Steve
Earle -
Townes 2xLP (New West)
+Eminem
- Relapse LP
(Aftermath)
+Heartless
Bastards -
Mountain LP+7” (Fat Possum)
+Monks
- Black Monk Time
2xLP (Light In The Attic)
+Mt. Eerie
(Mount) -
Live In Copenhagen 3xLP (Burnt Toast Vinyl)
+Witch
Hunt -
Burning Bridges To Nowhere LP (Alternative Tentacles)
+Your Black
Star -
Beasts LP (Hawthorne Street)
These titles now available on vinyl.
19 MAY
09
+Almost
Charlie -
Plural Of Yes CD (Words On Music)
North
American debut release by Berlin, Germany’s Almost
Charlie. The record’s thirteen compositions, a cunning
blend of gifted melodies and chamber pop atmospherics,
are the inimitable offspring of a transatlantic
songwriting duo who, to this day, have never met.
Berlin-based singer-guitarist Dirk Homuth answered an
Internet ad in early summer 2003 from New York City
lyricist Charlie Mason, who was searching for a composer.
Almost Charlie was born and with it a strict division of
lyricist and composer that brings to mind classic
songwriting teams like Burt Bachrach/Hal David. RIYL:
Elliott Smitth, Belle & Sebastian, Nick Drake, and
Kings Of Convenience.
+Tori
Amos -
Abnormally Attracted To Sin CD/CD+DVD/LP (Republic)
Tori's tenth studio album is another innovative chapter
in the artist's trailblazing story. Every track on the
album will be accompanied by a corresponding
`visualette,' featuring footage that has been captured
over the past year. Shot in HD and Super 8, the
visualettes will incorporate a documentary style. Also
available on vinyl.
+Apostle
Of Hustle - Eats Darkness CD (Arts
& Crafts)
Apostle Of Hustle consists of Andrew Whiteman (lead
guitarist of Broken Social Scene), bassist Julian Brown
(Feist), and Dean Stone (Sarah Harmer, Amy Millan) on
drums. Each highly regarded for their individual
accomplishments in their craft, together they create a
sound that is incredibly unique, thought provoking, and
fueled by a raw, explosive energy.
+Au
Revoir Simone - Still Night, Still Light CD
(Our Secret Record Company)
Third release from the indie pop darlings. Lush,
intricately arranged keyboard sounds create a backdrop
for the ladies' beautiful vocal harmonies in a soundscape
ranging from the intimately delicate to the powerfully
psychedelic. The album is a warm, circuitous current of
energy that is gorgeously incandescent and instantly
familiar.
+Avizee
- Zee Avi CD
(Brushfire Records)
23 years old and born in Borneo, she became a YouTube
sensation, and discovered by Raconteurs’ drummer Patrick
Keeler, who immediately got her signed.
+Scott
H Biram -
Something’s Wrong / Lost Forever CD/LP (Bloodshot)
Austin TX's dirty old one-man band's third album for
Bloodshot is profane and tender, alluring and
frightening. And while such intensely polarizing forces
would tear a lesser man apart, Scott appears to revel in
the tug of war.
+Blood
Tsunami -
Grand Feast For Vultures CD (Candlelight)
Seven blistering songs from the Norwegian metal band.
+Harlan
T. Bobo -
I’m Your Man CD (Goner)
Harlan is a feature character in MTV's web and TV
series $5
Cover, and this, his second album,
also contains songs featured on the series.
+Dale
Ann Bradley - Don’t Turn Your Back CD
(Compass)
Good advice, and a great new album. Bradley has never
failed to deliver the goods when it comes to making
music. This one finds her with her familiar mix of
covers, traditional and originals. Produced by friend and
fan Alison Brown this one goes perfect with those Spring
breezes that we’ve been feeling around here lately.
+Busta
Rhymes -
Back On My B.S. CD/CD+DVD (Motown)
As Busta Rhymes embarks on his eighth studio album
Back
On My B.S., his first release through
Motown Records, Busta will once again prove that he is a
formidable centerpiece in music. His undeniable talent
coupled with upcoming partnerships, demonstrate he is a
living legend. Bonus DVD edition features “Arab Money
[Live]” and bonus material.
+Carbon
Leaf -
Nothing Rhymes With Woman CD (Vanguard)
Produced by John Morand, who manned the board for their
Vanguard debut, Indian
Summer, Nothing
Rhymes With Woman finds the Virginia-based band
firmly in touch with its roots -- the Celtic tinge that
cloaks "Pink" is reminiscent of Carbon Leaf's passel of
self-released discs. Throughout the set, however, the
quintet affirms a commitment to moving forward, kicking
out the jams a bit more aggressively on the sinewy
walking blues "Another Man's Woman" and interpolating the
rich organ playing of longtime Dave Matthews Band
keyboardist Butch Taylor on several tracks, including the
arresting opener "Indecision."
+Children
- Hard Times
Hangin’ At The End of the World CD (Kemado)
Tradition meets stamina head on throughout the album's
six massive long playing tracks. With intricate,
narrative dual guitar work and a frenzied wired demeanor
they bring it all together: thrash advancements, serious
girth, familiar passage crosscut with relentless speed, a
formidable edge and self-proclaimed "spiritual conspiracy
party riffs."
+Craig
Chaquico -
Follow The Sun CD (Shanachie)
Craig Chaquico is an undeniable guitar wizard who remains
at the top of the national charts for a fourth decade and
a new millennium. Smooth jazz concert veterans will
recognize Chaquico as an original cast member of Guitars
& Saxes all-star tour that has featured Richard
Elliot, Warren Hill, Peter White, Jeff Golub and Jeff
Kashiwa.
+CKY
- Carver City CD
(Roadrunner)
The roots of the relationships that bring you the
present-day CKY date back to late 1992 in West Chester,
PA. Over the course of four albums, a DVD, countless live
shows and several stints with MTV2 programming, CKY
emerge in 2009 stronger than ever and ready to stir
things up again. Also available as a Special Edition
version with four bonus tracks.
+Eric
Clapton And Steve Winwood - Live From Madison Square
Garden 2xCD (Reprise)
History rocked and rock made history during a sold-out
three-gig stand at Madison Square Garden in late February
2008 when icons Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood performed
together for the first time since their all-too-brief
days in the legendary Blind Faith in 1969. Also available
on DVD.
+Coralie
Clement -
Toystore CD (Compass)
Coralie Clement, the tri-lingual French pop singer (she
records in French, English, and Italian), took a playful
approach to her third album Toystore.
Backed by a montage of toy instruments (ukulele,
pennywhistle, pocket comet, alto half-violin,
slide-flute, Melodica, maracas, shaker, xylophone, baby
Farfisa) Clement's expressive vocals are a perfect fit
for film.
+Clues
- Clues CD/LP
(Constellation)
This is the wondrous debut record from Clues. Co-founders
Alden Penner and Brendan Reed have been quietly nurturing
this project in Montreal since the demise of their
respective bands, Unicorns and Les Angles Morts. As a
member of the short-lived Unicorns, Penner's songwriting
prowess was unveiled in a bright burst of mysterious and
kaleidoscopic energy, in the form of a single full-length
album (released in 2003) and countless live shows, both
of which rallied passionate responses from audiences and
critics alike.
+Jarvis
Cocker -
Further Complications CD/2xLP (Rough Trade)
His second solo album, following 2006's
Jarvis.
Recorded in Steve Albini's Electrical Audio studio in
Chicago, Further
Complications contains the more roughed up
tunes Cocker has been peddling since parting with Pulp.
+Combichrist
- Heat EP: All
Pain Is Beat CDEP+12” (Metropolis)
Features remixes by the likes of VNV Nation and
Assemblage 23. The CD contains six tracks and two bonus
videos, while the 12-inch maxi single houses three tracks
on a red buzz saw-shaped slab of vinyl.
+The
Curious Mystery - Rotting Slowly CD/LP (K)
A junkyard band with a heart of dirt, smoke and wires.
This Seattle group blends ‘60s-style psychedelia with
American country-blues and garage experimentalism. Their
debut places an emphasis on dense sonic texture and
unorthodox song structures. It has a vast implied
distance and textural tension, canvassing canyons and
turning tight corners.
+Dane
Cook -
Isolated Incident C+DVD (Comedy Central)
After his last two highly rated specials and
multi-platinum selling albums, Dane reinvented his act
and took it to the stage in front of 400 people at the
Laugh Factory in Hollywood. This intimate show was
performed in a nightclub atmosphere where Dane shared the
audience's energy in a real-time performance, without a
safety net. Here, he showcases a darker and more personal
set with cutting edge material that pushes the envelope.
The double-digipak contains a full-length CD of his best
new material plus a DVD documenting the making of the
album.
+Deathstars
- Night Electric
Night CD (Bieler Bros.)
Night
Electric Night is tough and black, yet
seductive and passionate in its expression of the city's
destructive night side. By expanding structures and using
even more varied elements, these Swedish death glammers
have strengthened and deepened the richness in their
trademark super dark rock.
+Drive
A - Loss
Of Desire CD (Adrenaline)
Their debut is a killer mix of pounding drums, lethal
guitars, cascading bass lines, and fierce vocals that
converge to create a sound that pays respect to the past,
stands up to the present, and will kick down the door to
the future.
+Ear
Pwr -
Super Animal Brothers III CD/LP (Carpark)
Blistering thumpers with infectious melodies, disco
chants with wild-eyed electro anthems - all part of the
unique electronic vision of Baltimore's Ear Pwr. This duo
has blended bits of Italo disco, Baltimore club, and twee
indie pop to create a nuclear party grenade that'll blow
your mind.
+Eddy
Current Suppression Ring - Primary Colors CD (Goner)
This explosive second album from the Melbourne, Australia
group.
+Elfin
Saddle -
Ringing For The Begin Again CD/LP (Constellation)
Elfin Saddle is the musical project co-founded by Jordan
McKenzie and Emi Honda. Partners in life and in art,
Jordan and Emi have been building a wonderful body of
visual, installation and video art that combines organic
living materials with found and scavenged objects to
create enchanted environments of growth, slow
transformation and gradual decay. Miniature examples of
this work can be seen on the album cover art for this,
their second record, and first for Constellation.
+Richard
Elliot -
Rock Steady CD (Artistry)
Richard
Elliot has a history of picking the right tune and
wrapping his signature sax sound around it.
Rock
Steady boasts appearances by Gerald
Albright, Rick Braun and Jeff Lorber among others.
+Eminem
- Relapse CD
(Aftermath)
Eminem marks his tenth anniversary as a hip-hop icon
with Relapse,
yet another skillful collaboration with Dr. Dre. Features
the single “Crack A Bottle” (which features Dre and 50
Cent).
+Evil
Cowards -
Covered In Gas CD (Metropolis)
Evil Cowards is the side project of Tyler Spencer of
Electric Six. The debut by this NYC duo is catchy while
bathing in the majesty of William Bates' (Fall On Your
Sword) unique production.
+The
Field -
Yesterday And Today CD (Anti)
The Field is Axel Willner, and 2007's Here
We Go Sublime was one of the year's most
acclaimed releases, receiving a 9.0 from Pitchfork as
well as universal praise. It was a soundtrack to the
spit-shined airport of your dreams -- faceless,
futuristic, and fuzzy. Now, Willner expands his palette,
continuing the oblique sampling strategy while building
up the rhythmic architecture.
+Faraway
Places -
Out Of The Rain, The Thunder, & The Lightning CD
(Save It Records)
The second record from this L.A. band comes at you with a
full-force blend of creative influences. The group
combines Motown rhythm, Lou Reed guitar and blown-out
moog-style synths. This album explores a sonic collage
with an arena-rock flavor and a sound the band has dubbed
as "California Krautrock."
+Flipper
- Fight (Live) CD
(Flipper)
Live album from the gritty art punk masters. Recorded in
2007 as the live companion to the new studio
album, Love.
+Flipper
- Love CD
(Flipper)
Brand new studio album from the art punk sludge legends.
Recorded by legendary grunge producer Jack Endo at Krist
Noveselic’s Murky Slough Studios.
+Oscar
G - DJ
2xCD+DVD (Nervous)
Oscar G is a world class DJ who has built his reputation
on the substance of his music and ability, not just his
image. This double CD+DVD was recorded and filmed live
from Space Terrace during one of his infamous Sunday
morning after-hour sessions.
+Paul
Giallorenzo - Get In To Go Out CD (482
Music)
This high-voltage aggregate features Giallorenzo’s
alternately fiery and contemplative pianism in the
company of saxophonist Dave Rempis, cornetist Josh
Berman, bassist Anton Hatwich, and Frank Rosaly on drums.
"GITGO"
presents controlled fire music born of an homage to
experimental jazz of the late ‘50s and blazing trails
into territory illuminated by the music's pioneers.
+Green
Day - 21st
Century Breakdown CD (Reprise)
Produced by Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins,
Garbage) 21st
Century Breakdown continues American
Idiot's punk-rock opera format.
+Guru
- Guru 8.0: Lost
& Found CD (7 Grand)
Fourth release from the iconic MC.
+Mike
Hale -
Lives Like Mine CD/LP+MP3 (Suburban Home)
Follow-up to his debut, Broken
With No Hope. Vinyl limited to 1,000
copies, on colored vinyl, coming with a download coupon.
+IamX
- Kingdom Of
Welcome Addiction CD (Metropolis)
The Sneaker Pimps' Chris Corner releases his third album
-- ''a place where the aches and pains of banality can be
relieved; vices, insecurities, stupidities cured. A
little bit like Disneyworld but with lipstick, cynicism,
and wit.'' -- Chris Corder, Postwave
+Jack
O & The Tennessee Tearjerkers - Disco Outlaw CD (Goner)
MTV series $5
Cover character Jack Yarber, aka
Jack O, is an underground Memphis legend. According to
Spin Magazine, he is ''arguably the finest rock talent
Memphis has produced since Alex Chilton.''
+Jes
- High Glow CD
(Ultra)
Jes is undeniably an outstanding singer -- her vocal
talents have been used on collaborations with Tiesto,
Paul Van Dyk, and Gabriel & Dresden. She was also the
vocalist of Motorcycle. ''High Glow'' remixes her
self-proclaimed and utterly unique ''rocktronica'' sound.
+Jonathan
Kane - Jet
Ear Party CD/2xLP (Table Of The Elements)
Drummer and visionary multi-instrumentalist Kane was a
founding member of No Wave behemoth Swans, then the
percussive thunder behind the minimalist ensembles of La
Monte Young and the guitar armies of Rhys Chatham.
Underlying it all is Kane's complete immersion in the
blues. His second release is a masterpiece of raw,
ass-thumping Americana.
+Karate
High School - Invaders CD (Eyeball)
San Francisco-based Karate High School’s debut commercial
release effortlessly melds metal guitar riffs with
electronic accents, forming an album of true punk rock.
+Mat
Kearney -
City Of Black & White CD (Aware)
Mat Kearney returns with an album informed by the
traveling, performing and adventuring the Oregon-born,
Nashville-based singer did while supporting his
breakthrough album.
+Killah
Priest -
Exorcist CD (Iceman Music)
New release from the Wu-Tang Clan associate.
+Kronos
Quartet -
Floodplain CD (Nonesuch)
With Floodplain,
Kronos Quartet draws together work from the Middle East,
Africa, South Asia and Eastern Europe in particular from
those nations whose external conflicts and internal
divisions have, for many Westerners, often overshadowed
their rich musical legacies. With these twelve specially
commissioned tracks, Kronos Quartet explore centuries-old
traditions while also presenting adventurous new music by
young composers who sample and reinterpret aspects of
their indigenous cultures.
+Jim
Kweskin -
Enjoy Yourself (It’s Later Than You Think) CD (Blix
Street)
A mixed set consisting of four brand new tracks, joined
by four tracks from his album Now
And Again, and three tracks from Samoa
Wilson's Live
The Life album. Backed by The Jim
Kweskin Band.
+Jeffrey
Lewis & The Junkyard - ‘Em Are I CD/LP (Rough
Trade)
Part folkie, part indie-rocker, part comic book artist --
how does indigenous New Yorker Jeffrey Lewis do
it? Em
Are I is an eleven-song production
that seems to reflect a love of the last forty years of
popular music, all filtered through Jeff's unmistakable
idiosyncratic muse.
+Frank
& Lorin London - Skramberg - Tsuker-Zis CD
(Tzadik)
This third installment of their Nigunim projects focuses
on Hasidic holiday songs. Features guitarist Knox
Chandler (Psychedelic Furs), legendary oud player Ara
Dinkjian ank Indian percussion virtuoso Deep Singh.
+Joe
Lovano Us Five - Folk Art CD (Blue Note)
Joe Lovano formed a new band that he calls Us Five to
record Folk Art, his 22nd effort for Blue Note. In the
liberated spirit of 1960s avant-garde and 1970s loft
scenes -- featuring rising stars Esperanza Spalding on
bass, Francisco Mela and Otis Brown III on drums and
percussion, and James Weidman on piano -- this is Joe's
first album of all original compositions, mixing his
native-tongue free jazz elasticity with nuanced Latin
grooves and meditative lyricism.
+Jason
Lytle (Grandaddy) - Yours Truly, Commander
CD/LP+MP3 (Anti)
Highly anticipated new album from Granddaddy frontman,
Jason Lytle. After fifteen years at the helm of
Grandaddy, Lytle returns with a new collection of songs
that elaborates on the musical and lyrical ideas he
explored in that band. Electronic flourishes collide with
acoustic guitars and soulful piano parts, recreating
Lytle's signature electro-lo-fi atmospheres.
+Steve
Martin -
The Crow: New Songs For The Five-String Banjo CD
(Rounder)
Comedian, actor, author, and banjo player Steve Martin
releases his first musical recording since 1978's
King
Tut.
This is no novelty record though. It's some of the best
banjo music to come down the pike in a long time.
The
Crow features able assistance from
some of Steve's pals, including Dolly Parton, Vince Gill,
Earl Scruggs, Bela Fleck, Tim O'Brien and Mary Black.
Martin wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on this album.
+Antsy
McClain & The Trailer Park Troubadors
- New Good Old
Days CD (DPR)
“Why is this man laughing? We’re a nation at war for
pete’s sake! Our economy is going down the tubes! We’re
in the middle of a housing crisis, surrounded by man-made
and natural disasters, and this guy has the audacity to
smile. What does this guy know that we don’t know?? The
answer is music!! Antsy’s new album is an upbeat and
often humorous look at our changing world. His
songwriting reminds me of Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark and
me.” -- Willie Nelson
+Method
Man & Redman - Blackout 2 CD (Def Jam)
New album from the hip-hop duo.
+MewithoutYou
- It's All Crazy!
It's All False! It's All a Dream! It's Alright! CD (Tooth
& Nail)
It's
All Crazy!... is another daring
adventure. Much of the MewithoutYou anguish of old has
given way to a sense of gentle wonder, as the band and a
whole slew of guest musicians have unearthed strange and
beautiful sounds that accompany the album's many marvels.
The band remains in left field, but one that continuously
draws to them more eccentrics, seekers, and lovers of
original music.
Milk
Inc -
Forever CD (Ultra)
New hit album from Belgium's hottest live dance act.
They're the winners of this year's MIA Best
Dance/Electronica award and the TMF Award's Best Album,
Best Live, and Best Dance awards. This release has now
gone platinum in Belgium.
Miss Kittin
And The Hacker - Two CD/2xLP (Nobody’s
Bizzness)
Miss Kittin (Carline Herve) and The Hacker (Michel Amato)
-- individually, as writers, artists, DJs and producers
they are impressive. On the brand new album,
Two,
together again as a duo, they are unrivalled. It's been
far too long since the release of their era-defining
classic First
Album, but wait no more, dear
music lover, for they are back with a bang. And you'd
better believe, it's a big, cosmic ''bang''.
Monahans
- Dim The Aurora
CD (Misra)
Austin's Monahans offer their second album, showcasing
their newly discovered pop talents. In order to give
these anthemic pop vistas the space they need, the band
has balanced the album with a number of predominantly
instrumental tracks, including the twenty-plus minute
''Terrene''. Their music is as enduring as the white sand
hills of West Texas after which they were named. RIYL: My
Morning Jacket, REM, Explosions In The Sky, Califone.
Russell
Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out - Russell Moore & IIIrd
Tyme Out CD (Rural Rhythm)
The soulful mountain vocals of Russell Moore, combined
with the unmatched band harmonies and top-notch
instrumentation from IIIrd Tyme Out, continue to define
this group as one of the most respected names in
acoustic/Bluegrass music.
Ikue
Mori -
Class Insecta CD (Tzadik)
One of the pioneers of laptop electronics, Ikue (formerly
of the landmark No Wave band DNA) has been breaking new
ground on the musical frontier for three decades. This
newest solo CD features her idiosyncratic take on
contemporary dance rhythms and electronica. Fascinating
ambient textures, detailed improvisations and pulsing
hypnotic rhythms clash and combine in this complex and
charismatic electronic masterpiece.
Nino
Moschella - Boom Shadow CD/LP
(Ubiquity)
Boomshadow is a fictional character concocted by
Moschella and friends nearly a decade ago. He's a super
hero of sorts who didn't have a specific power, but would
just come onto the scene and save everyone. As such, this
album launches with a super hero-like frenetic flying
kick to the eardrums, followed by raw, angular funk rock,
more soulful sounds, and tracks with a cosmic bounce.
+The
Oak Ridge Boys - The Boys Are Back CD
(Spring Hill)
The Boys Are Back... back with an all-new album... back
to the traditional four-part harmonies on which they were
founded... back to the "rootsy" recording styles of the
outlaw music days on the Row... and back to their
timeless ability to stay on the cutting edge.
+OHMphrey
- OHMphrey CD
(Magna Carta)
OHMphrey, the brainchild of three members of the
Chicago-based jam-band Umphrey's McGee (keyboardist Joel
Cummins, guitarist Jake Cinninger and drummer Kris Myers)
and OHM guitarist Chris Poland, a legendary player who's
perhaps best known for work with head-banging pioneers
Megadeth, and bassist Robertino Pagliari (a.k.a.
''Pag''), unleashes their improv-heavy self-titled debut
-- a record that assimilates not only disparate musical
genres but the individual playing styles of everyone
involved.
+Old
Man’s Child - Slaves Of The World CD
(CMA)
Seventh album from the Norwegian black metal outfit.
+Tim
‘Ripper’ Owens - Play My Game CD
(Steamhammer)
American metal vocalist Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens’ (Beyond Fear,
ex-Judas Priest, ex-Iced Earth) new album features a
dozen brand-new tracks that Owens composed with renowned
friends, including Bob Kulick and Chris Caffery
(Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra), guitarists Doug
Aldrich (Whitesnake), Michael Wilton (Queensryche), Jeff
Loomis (Nevermore), Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), bassists
Marco Mendoza (ex-Whitesnake), Billy Sheehan (Mr. Big,
ex-David Lee Roth), and more.
+Passion
Pit -
Manners CD/LP (French Kiss)
Starry-eyed Massachusetts D.I.Y. poppers Passion Pit have
one foot in the skronky, shambling lo-fi underground and
one in the flashing-lights big-room dance-pop overground.
+Dusty
Rhodes And The River Band - Palace And Stage CD/LP
(Side One Dummy)
Their sophomore album blends modern rock, gospel, Motown,
alt-country, and folk in an intoxicating mix, showcasing
music that is as accessible as it is original. Their
sound defies easy categorization, but boasts the
freewheeling approach that draws natural comparisons
to Exile
On Main Street-era Rolling Stones.
+Lionel
Richie -
Just Go CD (Island/Mercury)
Singer, songwriter, producer, Oscar recipient and
five-time Grammy award-winning artist Lionel Richie gets
into a new groove on Just
Go,
his first new studio album in more than two years.
+Savath
& Savalas - La Llama CD (Stone’s Throw)
Savath & Savalas is Guillermo Scott Herren (perhaps
best known as Prefuse 73), Eva Puyuelo Muns and Roberto
Carlos Lange. We've been experimenting with some
different ways of releasing our records, just as
Guillermo Scott Herren is experimenting with a new way of
releasing Savath & Savalas, his Catalan acid-folk
project which even pre-dates Prefuse 73.
+Polly
Scattergood - Polly Scattergood CD (Mute)
Debut album from the quirky singer/songwriter. Built
around fractious yet pretty guitar and piano (she plays
Stylophone and accordion, too), Polly Scattergood's
peculiar talent conjures up a looking glass world where
nothing is quite how it first appears to be. More
creative than a person has a right to be, Polly writes
brilliantly unsettling odd pop and will soon unveil a
live show that is as arresting and powerful as her
recordings, expect more revelations from this
extraordinary young artist.
+Settle
- At Home We Are
Tourists CD (Epitaph)
The debut by this Pennsylvania band is a pop dreamscape
that deftly combines indie and dance rock, alternately
ironic and deeply emotional. Citing influences from Elvis
Costello to The Liars, and inspiration from art to social
networking sites, this record illustrates both the
outlandish collection of pop culture that moves the band,
and an unusual ability to craft a remarkably accomplished
record. RIYL: Franz Ferdinand, The Liars, Arctic Monkeys,
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and Brand New.
+Andy
Shauf -
Darker Days CD/LP (P Is For Panda)
This album is crisp and full of character, easily called
a new-folk pop record due to the mounting hooks and
layered studio sound, but it's much more. Whether full of
layered vocals that feel like an Elliott Smith song
cleaned up for a date, or the light picking sounds of an
old guitar marking the lessons of letting go, each song
retains the original bedroom fuzz -- the experiment of an
idea in the quick moment - because Andy's musical roots
begin there, with the bedroom demos he hid from even
those closest to him.
+Skeletonbreath
- Eagle’s Nest,
Devil’s Cave CD (Ernest Jennings)
While the name Skeletonbreath might suggest ghostly
figures and chain-rattling wraiths lurking behind your
walls, the Brooklyn-based instrumentalist trio is
anything but invisible. Bob Pycior (of O'Death, violin)
and Andrew Platt (bass) cut their Skeletonbreath teeth in
2002, with former member Crockett Doob on drums, and in
2006 self-released their debut, Louise.
Their relentless touring turned heads, and the sonic orgy
of screeching strings and explosive percussion seized
ears. Though Doob parted amiable ways with Pycior and
Platt in 2007, Skeletonbreath's inertia was unrelenting,
and the remaining duo sequestered the skills of Tris
Palazzolo (also of Philly's Red Racket, formerly Red
Rocket, and Grandchildren) and have since only gained
momentum.
+Leo
Wadada Smith / Jack DeJohnette - America CD (Tzadik)
Features six new compositions by one of the most
consistently brilliant composer/performers out of the
legendary AACM, and telepathic interplay by two virtuoso
instrumentalists who have been pushing the musical
envelope since the 1960s.
+Ruben
Studdard -
Love Is CD (Sony)
The collection of love songs features originals as well
as covers, including Ruben's versions of Extreme's
classic hit “More Than Words” and Michael Jackson's “I
Can't Help It.”
+Tartufi
- Nests Of Waves
And Waves And Wire CD (Southern)
This San Francisco duo, much praised for their
awe-inspiring live sets and loop-heavy soundscapes, have
taken their sonic vision to the next level. After three
years of experimentation within their performance, both
on-stage and in the studio, the band has developed their
craft into an art form. Tartufi welcomed engineer and
co-producer Tim Green back into the control room and
spent over four months recording and mixing what has
become their most ambitious work to date.
+U.S.
(Funkadelic) - U.S. Music With Funkadelic
CD (Westbound)
In 1972, as the lineup of Funkadelic that had made the
first three albums collapsed in on themselves, some
members shuttled back and forth between Detroit and
Toronto and kept recording. One of the projects they
embarked upon was an LP by a group called U.S. (United
Soul). The original album of five tracks includes some
prime era Funkadelic grooves including the outrageous
“Rat Kiss The Cat On The Navel” and “Be What You Is”
which are both uptempo psychedelic funk, as well as the
wonderful gospel-imbued vocals of Gary Shider on the
opener “This Broken Heart.” An album reached
test-pressing stage, but was never released.
+John
Vanderslice - Romanian Names CD/LP (Dead
Oceans)
His best record to date contains twelve songs
representing a career-defining moment; a pitch-perfect
collection written and recorded with the utmost care and
attention. A symphony of sounds both subtle and lush.
+Gaura
Vani & As Kindred Spirits - Ten Million Moons CD (Equal
Vision)
The second release from one of the most sought after
kirtan (chant) groups in the world. They transport us to
their divine universe with lush, cinematic arrangements,
beautiful vocal harmonies, dynamic ethnic rhythms, and
rich textured instrumentation.
+Kate
Voegele -
A Fine Mess CD (Interscope)
New release from Kate Voegele who has starred in
One
Tree Hill.
+The
Warlocks -
The Mirror Explodes CD/LP (Tee Pee)
Throbbing bass lines, distant rolling thunder drums, and
zombie rattlesnake shake are a heartbeat of strange,
ominous vitality. Guitars howl, slash, and bounce like
light. The vocals sound oddly alone and unsettlingly
intimate all at once.
+White
Rabbits -
It’s Frightening CD/LP (TBD Records)
Highly anticipated sophomore album from this Brooklyn
band. Produced by Britt Daniel of Spoon. ''Exuberant
Brooklyn rock with no fuzzy distance, either sonic or
ironic.'' -- Village Voice
+Hermas
Zopoula -
Espoir 2xCD (Asthmatic Kitty)
Zopoula is the youngest of thirty-six children of a West
African family. He's a moped enthusiast, orphanage
volunteer, and Internet café proprietor. He's also a
psalmist, and this is his first international recording.
Hermas sings in four different languages here: French,
English, Dioula, and Sissali (his mother tongue). Disc
One presents a refined and practiced Hermas while the
second disc is just him and a guitar in his backyard.
Comparisons to singer/songwriter Seu Jorge are
inevitable, but listeners will find Hermas' voice sweeter
and warmer.
The
Reissue zone...
+Les
Baxter -
Space Escapade CD (El Records)
Space
Escapade (not reissued or digitalized
in the half century since it's original release) is the
Holy Grail to Baxterites and students of the exotica
genre -- showcasing all of the eclecticism and sensual
orchestral effects that are Baxter's trademark.
+Nick
Cave & The Bad Seeds - First Born Is Dead CD+DVD
(Mute)
+Nick
Cave & The Bad Seeds - From Her To Eternity CD+DVD
(Mute)
+Nick
Cave & The Bad Seeds - Kicking Against The Pricks
CD+DVD (Mute)
+Nick
Cave & The Bad Seeds - Your Funeral My Trial
CD+DVD (Mute)
Remastered
classics from Nick Cave, Each deluxe double disc set
contains the remastered stereo album, the new 5.1
surround mix, a specially commissioned short film, plus
the B-sides from the singles. Previously import-only, now
available domestically.
+Christian
Death -
Catastrophe Ballet CD (Season Of Mist)
Original recording remastered.
+Lenny
Kravitz -
Let Love Rule: 20th Anniversary Edition 2xCD (Virgin)
20th anniversary deluxe double-CD reissue of Lenny
Kravitz's debut album features the original album
remastered with six bonus tracks. Disc Two features a ten
track live performance from a 1989 Boston performance and
two tracks from a 1990 Amsterdam performance.
+Jim
O’Rourke -
I’m Happy, And I’m Singing, And A 1, 2, 3, 4 2xCD
(Editions Mego)
Indeed Mr O'Rourke (look under O' in the Penguin guide to
post populist art-wank) has done just this to produce a
solo computer album. Although traits of O'Rourke-ien past
can be found here, some definite bright new angles also
shine throughout the three(dare we say it) elegant tracks
featured here. Equal parts -- schizoid pop, cracked
minimalism, concrete drama and melancholic contemplation.
It strikes us as a highly personal release. Imagine the
powerbook as a springboard to explore oneself inside...
not a machine for accentuating the inhuman, but a machine
for embracing, and giving voice to the more delicate
elements of the inner human. Thought it couldn't be done?
Think again. It has, and has been blessed with a nifty
title to boot!
+Siouxsie
& The Banshees - Hyaena CD (Fontana Hip-O)
+Siouxsie
& The Banshees - Kiss In The Dreamhouse CD
(Fontana Hip-O)
+Siouxsie
& The Banshees - Nocturne CD (Fontana Hip-O)
Siouxsie
& The Banshees - Tinderbox CD (Fontana
Hip-O)
Import reissues now available.
+Subhumans
- From The Cradle
To The Grave CD/LP (Bluurg)
Remastered from original analog tapes with restored
artwork.
Simply
The Best...
+Kenny
Chesney -
Greatest Hits II CD (RCA)
2009 collection from the country music great, his second
collection of hits, featuring fifteen tracks including
the brand new single “Out Last Night” (only available on
this collection).
+Jellyfish
- Best CD
(Virgin)
Digitally remastered twenty-track anthology from the
critically acclaimed psychedelic pop band that earned
their fame in the early 1990s. This special collection
includes four live tracks previously only appeared as
single B-sides plus two demo tracks originally included
on the now out-of-print Fan
Club box set.
Simply
The Rest...
+Civ
- Solid Bond: The
Complete Discography 2xCD (Equal Vision)
The complete 43-track discography of the NY punk band.
Members were in the legendary hardcore bands Gorilla
Biscuits, Youth Of Today, and Quicksand. This release
contains their 1995 debut Set
Your Goals, their second and final
release Thirteen
Day Getaway, B-sides, live tracks, and
rehearsal recordings from the Civ archive.
+Iron
And Wine -
Around The Well 2xCD/3xLP (Sub Pop)
Collects songs ranging from out-of-print to
never-before-released and spans Iron And Wine's earliest
sessions which yielded the band's debut (2002's The Creek
Drank The Cradle) through material recorded for 2007's
The Shepherd's Dog. An assortment of hushed home
recordings, unedited and raw, and highlighted moments
captured in the studio with the help of other musicians,
friends, and engineers. Triple LP also available.
+Panicks
- Complete
Recordings CD (Gear Fab)
The great Ohio garage band that was featured on
Psychedelic
States Ohio In
The 60's. Eight previously unreleased
studio recordings from 1967-1968, plus their two great
45’s and a great live version of ''You're My Baby.''
+Ernest
Tubb -
Early Years 1936-1945 CD (JSP)
Four-disc, 103 track collection by the country music
legend.
The
Compilation zone...
+Various
Artists -
Exotic Beatles V.3 CD (Exotica)
A long overdue repress, for this, the third part of
Exotica's Beatles trilogy and it features many more
classic Beatles songs interpreted in eccentric, but truly
endearing ways. The disc also contains interludes and
introductions from The Beatles themselves as well as
characters such as Noel Gallagher, Rolf Harris and Homer
Simpson. The Exotic
Beatles series are recognized as the
most well researched and thorough Beatle related cover
albums in the world.
+Various
Artists -
Songs From The Penalty Box 7 CD (Tooth & Nail)
These are great compilations with great artists. This one
features Emery, Jonezetta, Run Kid Run, FM Static and
many more.
The
Soundtrack zone...
+Soundtrack
- True Blood CD
(Elektra)
Soundtrack includes the show theme song “Bad Things” by
Jace Everett and features artists such as C.C Adcock,
Lucinda Williams, Ryan Adams, Allen Toussaint, The
Legendary Shack Shakers, The Watson Twins and more.
The DVD
zone...
+Eric
Clapton And Steve
Winwood -
Live From Madison Square Garden DVD (Reprise)
DVD version. History rocked and rock made history during
a sold-out three-gig stand at Madison Square Garden in
late February 2008 when icons Eric Clapton and Steve
Winwood performed together for the first time since their
all-too-brief days in the legendary Blind Faith in 1969.
+De
La Soul -
Me Myself & I DVD (Charly)
Singing about peace and love rather than about sleaze and
violence like most of their considerably more hardcore
rap contemporaries, De La Soul come across as modern day
hippies, an image which found favor with rock audiences.
Hailed on their arrival on the scene in 1989 as the
future of hip-hop, De La Soul were quickly perceived as
the leaders of a contingent of New York based alternative
rappers who dubbed themselves The Native Tongues Posse.
This movement for a while looked as if it was going to
eclipse hardcore hip-hop in terms of popularity. This
concert, filmed at the 1997 Lokerse Festival, features
their hits “Me, Myself And I” with its sample of
Funkadelic’s “(Not Just) Knee Deep,” and “Ring, Ring,
Ring.”
+King
Crimson -
Eyes Wide Open DVD (Discipline)
King Crimson are an enduring rock legend, their
experimental progressive rock tinged sounds still win
over countless fans across the globe. Two full concerts
are included on this release, proving their strength in
the live arena. A mixture of improv and standard songs
make up the two shows, one from Tokyo in April 2003, the
other from London in July 2000.
+Paul
Simon -
Paul Simon & Friends DVD (Shout! Factory)
Commemorating the first awarding of the Gershwin Prize
for Popular Song to Paul Simon, the Library of Congress
arranged for a spellbinding array of Simons peers to
perform in a remarkable live concert tribute in the
nations capital. The program includes performances by
Simon, Art Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Alison Krauss,
George Harrison from 1976, James Taylor, Lyle Lovett and
others.
+Various
Artists -
Likk Your Idols DVD (Le Chat Qui Fum)
Likk
Your Idols plunges you right into the
New York undergound scene of the nineteen eighties.
Through steamy excerpts, exclusive interviews Richard
Kern, Lydia Lunch, Joe Coleman, Thurston Moore, in your
face performances and previously unreleased
photographs, Likk
Your Idols retraces the chaotic story of
transgressive cinema. In New York, in the beginning of
the nineteen eighties, this spontaneous movement, monster
child of Reaganism, definitively broke free of the codes
set by avant-gardism and the classic conventions of
storytelling. As ephemeral as a suicide, as sensual as it
is sexual, transgressive cinema created for itself
improbable links between Warhol, Dadaism and the punk
attitude.
The
Vinyl zone...
+Animal
Collective - Danse Manatee 2xLP (Fat
Cat)
Import. More early goodness from the AC boys now
re-issued on 200 gram DMM heavyweight audiophile vinyl.
+Bellini
- The Precious
Prize Of Gravity 2xLP (Temporary Residence)
After four years, this husband-and-wife punk rock power
couple of Giovanna Cacciola and Agostino Tilotta reunite
with bassist Matthew Taylor and drummer Alexis Fleisig
(Girls Against Boys) to unleash their third and most
thunderous album. Recorded as always with long-time
collaborator Steve Albini. RIYL: The Jesus Lizard, X,
Husker Du, Girls Against Boys, The Ex, PJ Harvey.
+Comet
Gain -
Broken Record Players 2xLP (WhatsYourRupture)
Deluxe issue Double LP in a gate-fold Stoughton jacket.
+Desolation
Wilderness - No Tomorrow b/w Pacific
Palisades 7” (K)
These two new songs connect last year's debut,
White
Light Strobing to their next
full-length, New
Universe, due in August 2009. "No
Tomorrow" is a tribute to summer days well spent, living
in the moment, never growing old. "Pacific Palisades" is
a slow burner -- the soundtrack of a California beach
under a long dusk.
+Faux
Hoax -
Your Friends Will Carry You Home 7” (Polyvinyl)
Faux Hoax contains members of Menomena, Gang Of Four,
Tracker, 31Knots, and Asthmatic Kitty. Very little is
known: are they a band? Are they a studio project? And
are these the only songs they'll ever record? This
two-song 7-inch includes a digital download code for both
tracks plus two bonus songs. First pressing on black
vinyl limited to 1,000 copies.
+Headlights
- Remixes LP+MP3
(Polyvinyl)
Originally released as a limited edition CD last December
and sold out in less than three months. Now comes this
limited edition (2,000 copies) LP featuring remixes from
The Album Leaf, Casiotone For The Painfully Alone, and
Son Lux, to name a few. Includes digital download code
with bonus track.
+Mates
Of State -
All Day LP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
Does an EP have the capacity to mark a pivotal point in a
band's history? Whether they intended to or not, this
organ and drums duo did just that with
All Day. Available for the first
time on vinyl.
+Charlie
Poole -
Husband And Wife Were Angry One Night LP (Monk)
Born in North Carolina in 1892, singer and banjo player
Charlie Poole is often considered to be one of the
grandfathers of bluegrass and modern country music. Poole
recorded 60 songs during the 1920’s for Columbia Records
with his wildly popular North Carolina Ramblers, so this
LP is a small sampling of some of his very best songs,
many of which, like his first big hit for Columbia,
"Don't Let Your Deal Go Down Blues" are blues standards.
His North Carolina Ramblers sold huge numbers of records
for the time and Poole became one of the first country
music stars.
+Sigur
Ros - Von
2xLP (One Little Indian)
+Sigur
Ros -
Agaetis Byrjun 2xLP (Fat Cat)
Import. 200 gram DMM audiophile vinyl pressings.
+Young
Widows / Melt-Banana - Young Widows Split Series
Vol. 2 7” (Temporary Residence)
Second of four 7”’s in Young Widows split singles series.
All songs are new and exclusive to this series, and each
is limited to a one-time pressing of 2,000 copies. The
artwork fits together to form one large puzzled image.
+Black
Eyes -
Black Eyes LP (Dischord)
+Cocteau
Twins -
Garlands LP (Vinyl 180)
+Leonard
Cohen -
Live Songs LP (Sundazed)
+Leonard
Cohen -
New Skin For The Old Ceremony LP (Sundazed)
+Leonard
Cohen -
Songs From A Room LP (Sundazed)
+Leonard
Cohen -
Songs Of Leonard Cohen LP (Sundazed)
+Leonard
Cohen -
Songs Of Love And Hate LP (Sundazed)
+Faust
- So Far LP (Four
Men With Beards)
+Flipper
- Public Flipper
Limited LP (Four Men With Beards)
+Flipper
- Sex Bomb Baby
LP (Four Men With Beards)
+Fugazi
- In On The
Killtaker LP (Dischord)
+Public
Image Ltd. - Flowers Of Romance LP (Four
Men With Beards)
+Public
Image Ltd. - Second Edition LP (Four Men
With Beards)
+M.
Ward - End
Of Amnesia 2xLP (Future Farmer)
HQ-180 vinyl reissues now available.
+Booker
T - Potato
Hole LP+MP3 (Anti)
+Camera
Obscura -
My Maudlin Career LP (4AD)
+Les
Claypool -
Of Fungi And Foe LP (Prawn Song)
+Crystal
Method -
Divided By Night LP (Ingrooves)
+Cursive
- Mama, I’m
Swollen 2xLP (Saddle Creek)
+Eagles
Of Death Metal - Heart On LP+7” (Ipecac)
+Felice
Brothers -
Yonder Is The Clock 2xLP (Team Love)
+Ben
Harper & The Relentless 7 - White Lies For Dark Times
2xLP (Virgin)
+Hopewell
- Good Good
Desperation LP (Tee Pee)
+Horrors
- Primary Colors
2xLP (XL)
+Joker’s
Daughter -
Last Laugh LP (Team Love)
+Rodriguez
- Coming From
Reality LP+7” (Light In The Attic)
+Allen
Toussaint - Bright Mississippi 2xLP
(Nonesuch)
These titles now available on vinyl.
12 MAY
09
+Acid
Mothers Temple & The ME - Lord Of The Underground:
Vishnu And The Magic Elixer CD/LP (Alien 8)
This latest full length is made up entirely of new studio
recordings that have captured the band in fantastic
form. Lord
Of The Underground will see the light of day on
both limited edition vinyl and CD. The band is captured
flying at full speed, dishing out three slabs of
Turkish-psych-meets-Krautrock, served up Acid Mothers
Temple style.
+Afroman
- Frobama: Head
Of State CD (Hungry Hustler)
He’s back, with new singles “Homegrown Alabama,” “No No
Fro,” and many more.
+Aiden
- Knives CD
(Victory)
Knives
is guaranteed to
be an album that will close this decade off with style
and open the floodgates to a whole new chapter for dark
defiant rock.
+Americans
In France - Pretzelvania CD (Odessa)
"Liking You" is beautifully heartfelt, girded by
melancholy organ lines, and features their signature
complementary vocals. They are elusive shape-shifters,
who seem equally at home with prog rock as they do with
punk rock, a marriage that is cringe-inducing on paper,
but feels natural upon listening.
+Belleville
Outfit -
Time To Stand CD (Belleville)
Time
To Stand captures what the band does
best by mixing genres like blues, swing, bluegrass and
even gypsy into a sound that’s all their own.
+Better
Than Ezra - Paper Empire CD (MRI)
Full of the great hooks and melodies that the band is
famous for, Paper
Empire marks yet another step
forward in main Ezra songwriter Kevin Griffin's evolution
as a master tunesmith and builds on the great work Kevin
has done writing with and for artists like Howie Day,
David Cook, Train, and Missy Higgins.
+Big
Business -
Mind The Drift CD (Hydra Head)
Producer Phil Ek (insert famous bands like The Shins
here) has again evolved the band's grandiose sound and
taken the biz into new sonic territories. Guitarist and
newest band member Toshi Kasai adds new voice and
dimension.
+Boxcutter
- Arecibo Message
CD (Planet Mu)
A veteran of Planet Mu, Boxcutter (the Irish-born Barry
Lynn) returns with his latest installment in album
form, Arecibo
Message. It is a space voyage, a
musical journey through the galaxy. Arecibo
Message collects a number of shorter,
more condensed tracks, one of which, ''A Familiar
Sound,'' features electronic soul duo Kinnego Flux with
Brian Greene on vocals.
+Brain
Donor -
Wasted Fuzz Excessive CD (Brain Donor)
Wasted
Fuzz Excessive is the long awaited follow-up
to Brian Donor's 2006 epic DrainD
Boner, this new album continuing
in those dark traditions of declaimed metallic poetry,
but extending further into works of epic construction and
length.
+Bricolage
- Bricolage CD
(Slumberland)
The symbiotic relationship between Glasgow and an
indefinable, distinct breed of extraordinary pop is the
object of limitless fascination. Virtually from the
moment the legendary Orange Juice transformed the once
barren Scottish metropolis into a wellspring of tuneful,
literate, joyous music, new bands have continued to flow
from its environs. From the early-'80s explosion that
begat Altered Images, The Pastels, and many others, to
latter-day heirs such as Teenage Fanclub, Belle &
Sebastian, and Franz Ferdinand, the city is as synonymous
with the abstract notion of ''indie'' as Detroit is with
the Motown sound or New York with early punk.
+British
Expeditionary Force - Ch.1: Long Way From Home CD
(Erased Tapes)
Ethereal soundscapes, sonorous guitars, beautifully
fragile vocal and vocoder work, Justin Lockey's
now-trademark sensitivity to drum sounds and Aid Burrows
inclement lyrics combined together to form something akin
to My Bloody Valentine filtered through the best of Brian
Eno with a smattering of the sonic vistas of Sigur Ros.
+Brötzmann/Kondo/Pupillo/Nilssen-Love
- Hairy Bones CD
(OkkaDisk)
This new quartet brings together, on disc, for the first
time since the late ‘90s Peter Brötzmann (reeds) and
Toshinori Kondo (electic trumpet). With a new rhythm
section of Massimo Pupillo (electric bass) and Paal
Nilssen-Love (drums). Live recording.
+Burden Of
A Day -
Oneonethousand CD (Rise)
The new record was produced by Andrew Wade (A Day to
Remember). For fans of A Day to Remember, Chiodos, and
Silverstein.
+Burning
Image -
Fantasma CD (Alternative Tentacles)
Their first new album in more than 20 years was fuelled
by the gloom and doom of life during wartime and global
economic meltdown, arguably the best time for dark music
to emerge. The record features ten songs birthed in this
new world of pain -- a return to form from ''the band
that refused to die.”
+Cam’ron
- Crime Pays CD
(Asylum)
Founder of the highly successful crew The Diplomats,
Cam'ron releases his eighth album, Crime
Pays. After a highly publicized
split with former underlings Jim Jones, Juelz Santana and
Freekey Zeekey, Cam'ron returns with a vengence.
+Cats On
Fire - Our
Temperance Movement CD (Matinee)
Second album from fashionable Finnish pop foursome that
has earned favorable comparisons to indie legends The
Smiths, Felt, Orange Juice, Pulp, and Belle &
Sebastian. This album expands upon the traditional
guitar, bass, and drums with liberal bursts of piano,
organ, clarinet, banjo, glockenspiel and other percussion
which help to showcase the extraordinary style of singer
Mattias Bjorkas and his poetic, sardonic, and rather
eccentric take on the world.
+Children
- Hard Times
Hanging At The End CD/LP (Kemado)
Tradition meets stamina head on throughout
Hard
Times six massive long playing
tracks. With intricate, narrative dual guitar work and a
frenzied wired demeanor Children bring it all together:
thrash advancements, serious girth, familiar passages
crosscut with relentless speed, a formidable edge, and
self proclaimed ''spiritual conspiracy party riffs.''
+Church
- Untitled #23 CD
(Second Motion)
New album. Untitled
#23 is an irresistibly melodic
album, dense, psychedelic, yet emotive and personal. Set
in a lush soundscape carved out of another world, the
band has succeeded in creating a listenable work of art,
meshing guitars and rhythms into a sonic journey of
intrigue and understanding.
+Stanley
Clarke Trio - Jazz In The Garden CD
(Heads Up)
Stanley brings us a straightforward new recording -- an
acoustic jazz trio phenom. Features Hiromi and Lenny
White.
+Crystal
Method -
Divided By Night CD/LP (Ingrooves)
Brand new album -- featured guests include New Order
bassist Peter Hook and Matishyahu.
+Dexateens
- Singlewide CD
(Cornelius Chapel)
For the better part of the last decade, a band of Alabama
garage rockers called the Dexateens have been bringing
their self styled skillet rock to an audience of music
lovers that hunger for something that feeds the spirit,
sets the soul ablaze, and gives the body the inspiration
to jump up and dance, to witness, to testify, and sing
along. As the title indicates, Singlewide is a decidedly
low fi turn for the band, a simplification of sorts to
the band's essence.
+James
Luther Dickinson - Dinosaurs Run In Circles CD
(Memphis International)
Jim Dickinson's third album in as many years for Memphis
International is very much a stylistic departure from
anything he's previously recorded in a music career that
spans five decades. Here he is joined only by the rhythm
section of Sam Shoup (bass) and Tom Lonardo (drums) for
an outing that celebrates his non rock and roll roots.
+Casey
Driessen -
Oog CD (Red Shoe/Thirty One Tigers)
“Sitting on the San Diego coastline watching breathtaking
fiery red sunsets over the Pacific Ocean, I strummed and
plucked out these melodies on my fiddle in anticipation
of the famed ‘green flash.’ I never witnessed the flash
-- maybe I blinked -- but I look forward to another
viewing excursion. This interpretation was inspired by
the drum ’n’ bass work of Squarepusher. The low bass
notes are from using my shoe to strike a metal room
service plate cover I borrowed from a hotel in Glasgow,
Scotland.” -- Casey Driessen
+Candy
Dulfer -
Funked Up CD (Heads Up)
On Funked
Up Dulfer is joined by artists
such as Moon Baker, Leona, Thomas Bank, and an all-star
cast on horns.
+Durutti
Column -
Love In Time Of Recession CD (Fulfill)
New album written and played by Vini Reilly, with drums
and percussion from guru Bruce Mitchell -- this is the
second album to feature new vocalist Poppy Roberts, who
also plays electric piano on several tracks.
+Steve
Earle -
Townes CD/2xCD/2xLP (New West)
Steve Earle's new album Townes
is the highly
anticipated follow up to the Grammy Award winning
Washington
Square Serenade. The fifteen-song set is
comprised of songs written by Earle's friend and mentor,
the late singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt. The songs
selected for Townes were the ones that meant the most to
Earle and the ones he personally connected to. Deluxe
double-CD edition featuring eleven bonus tracks also
available.
+Jeremy
Enigk - OK
Bear CD (Lewis Hollow)
OK
Bear,
the third full-length solo album from Jeremy Enigk (Sunny
Day Real Estate, The Fire Theft), offers a surprising
sense of intimacy while staying undeniably Enigk.
+Paul
Gilbert & Freddie Nelson - United States CD (Mascot)
Paul Gilbert began his career with the legendary shred
metal band Racer X and since then his guitar playing has
brought him number one hits with the band Mr. Big and a
devoted following of guitar and music lovers all over the
world. Singer and guitarist Freddie Nelson shares many of
the same musical and cultural roots. Both grew up outside
of Pittsburgh and were born and started playing guitar
around the same time. This album is the first
collaboration of Paul Gilbert and Freddie Nelson and it
features ten new songs, which they wrote, performed, and
produced together in the summer of 2008.
+Haystak
- The Natural,
Vol. 2 CD (Real Talk)
New album. Initially known best for being a huge
white-boy rapper from Tennessee, Haystak overcame his
anomalous status with time as listeners learned to
cherish his sincerity. Unlike many of his Southern peers,
Haystak didn't embrace materialism and greed; he rapped
about his life as so-called "white trash," exploring the
social dimensions of being white and underprivileged in
the South.
+Hill
Country Revue - Make A Move CD (Razor &
Tie)
Formed last year by Cody Dickinson of the North
Mississippi Allstars, Hill Country Revue is a collective
of musicians from the fertile soil of North Mississippi
who have grown up living the music. The self proclaimed
''modern blues band for the new generation'' features
Cody Dickinson (rhythm guitar), Chris Chew (bass), Kirk
Smithart (lead guitar), dixie Dan Coburn (vocals), and Ed
''Hot'' Cleveland (drums). Hill Country Revue represents
a return to the juke joint one chord trance blues of
North Mississippi, styles made famous by local blues
legends like R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough.
+Hanne
Hukkelberg - Blood From A Stone CD
(Nettwerk)
Blood
From A Stone is the third album by
Norwegian artist Hanne Hukkelberg. In part inspired by
her past as a member of various rock and metal bands
(especially their live incarnations) and in part by her
80’s dominated collection of indie/rock albums, Hanne
acknowledges that the likes of Sonic Youth, Cocteau
Twins, Pixies, Einstüerzende Neubauten and P.J. Harvey
have all exerted an influence over her new songs, while
one can also detect traces of Siouxsie & The Banshees
at their most oblique and many other new wave/post punk
outfits.
+Impossible
Arms -
Ripped In No Time CD (Odessa)
A raucous amalgamation of sloppy but searing guitar
solos, upbeat rhythms, pounding bass and catchy vocal
melodies. From the Misfits-esque "Oh Oh OHHS!" of "Big
Plans" to the lone acoustic guitar and vocal of "Ghost
Town," this album is a song cycle that charts a
tumultuous but inspired year in the life of a trio of
friends.
+Kid
606 -
Shout At The Döner CD (Tigerbeat6)
New album combines all the brash and exciting
plunderphonic and sampledelic elements he is best known
for with a whole new world of uncharacteristically
musical and danceable hooks and styles which are both
fresh and timeless. 606 draws on some of his biggest
electronic influences like LFO, AFX, Mike Ink, Green
Velvet, Mouse on Mars, the Prodigy, Daft Punk, Shizuo,
Mr. Oizo and Giorgio Moroder, to make bold and powerful
songs about the decline of America, leaving California,
broken hearts, drunken hook-ups, social phobias, soulless
partying, economic downfall, gnarly basslines, ego
worship, moving to Berlin, diva vocals, Baltimore club,
obsessive compulsive disorder, the best parts of horror
movies, acidhouse, ADHD, shameless irony, speed garage,
megalomania, LSD, satanism and the ever prevalent Döner
Kebab, arguably Europe's best late night cuisine to
consume on the way home from from the club (especially if
you had too much to drink!).
+Kiki
- Kaiku CD
(BPitch Control)
Finnish beatmaker Kiki will return to the production
arena after a quiet 2008 with his newest
full-length, Kaiku.
The album features two prominent guest spots: First, MC
Chela Simone drops in for what the press release calls
some “old school jacking,” in what we’re guessing is a
nod to his hip-hop past. Then, later on in the album, we
have Italian experimental quartet Pirica for goodness
knows what.
+Liondialer
- Live! CD (White
Box)
Debut full-length collaborative project from Greg Haines
and Danny Saul. Using cello and guitar as a starting
point, they compose and process their sound to
devastating effect -- laptop pub-ambient, anyone? The
songs on this record are glimmering evocations built from
dark cello drone and echoing guitar meanderings that
sound almost too beautiful and fully realized to possibly
be improvised. Looped meditations for stringed
instruments for fans of Talk Talk, Stars Of The Lid, Tony
Conrad and Loren Connors.
+Louderbach
- Autumn CD/LP
(Minus)
Louderbach’s long awaited second album autumn represents
another jump in the evolutionary cycle of minimal techno,
having developed from the largely instrumental project
that gave us enemy love into a fully-fledged song based
outfit. As a result, autumn has a much deeper feel than
its predecessor and indeed breaks new ground, with the
dark metaphors of Gibby Miller’s often chilling vocal
performances fitting hand-in-glove with the ominous
landscapes and broken architecture that troy pierce
constructs so effectively.
+Mark
Kozelek -
Lost Verses - Live CD (Caldo Verde)
Mark Kozelek of Red House Painters and Sun Kil Moon
performs a veritable best of selection of songs from his
career on his new live album, Lost
Verses - Live. Recorded live during
Kozelek’s 2007 and 2008 acoustic tours with Phil Carney
as accompaniment, this fourteen song set features songs
primarily chosen from the Sun Kil Moon catalog but also
includes solo and Red House Painters’ material.
+Maximo
Park -
Quicken The Blame CD/LP (Warp Record)
Maximo Park have two albums that are just about to go
platinum in the U.K. A Mercury nomination for the first
one, 2005's A
Certain Trigger. An impassioned fan base
that tunes into Paul Smith’s idea packed lyrics, the
songs intense pop explosion, and the bands incendiary
live shows.
+Del
McCoury -
By Request CD (McCoury Music)
By
Request is a collection oh what Del
and his sons feel are the 14 most requested songs during
Del's live shows (as most of you know, Del never had a
set list, but plays audience requests).
+Chuck
Mead -
Journeyman’s Wager CD (Grassy Knoll)
He's been known as the cofounder of BR549, the honky honk
heroes that almost single handedly lit and carried the
blowtorch for the mid '90s alternative country explosion.
+Meanderthals
- Desire Lines CD
(Smalltown Super Sound)
Meanderthals' Desire
Lines is their chosen path of
beautiful anc mellow balearic disco. A warm and dreamy
blend of dub, folk, prog, kraut, psychedelia and ‘70s
West-Coast combined to invent an organic, slanted and
proggy feel. Recorded live.
+Meat
Puppets -
Sewn Together CD/LP (Megaforce)
Twelve new songs of pure rock, country, and a bit of punk
attitude. Recorded at The Saltmine in Phoenix, Arizona in
winter 2009, Sewn
Together features the Kirkwood
brothers, Cris and Curt, with drummer Ted Marcus.
+Fabio
Musta -
Passport CD (Babygrande)
With his finger on the pulse of the local Italian scene,
and never more than a few ''clicks'' away from the U.S.
indie hip-hop scene, Fabio Musta is perfectly positioned
to push the borders and boundaries of hip-hop,
with Passport.
+Nugentalecia
- Hillbilly
Goddess CD (Rounder)
Her voice is winning hearts worldwide. On
Hillbilly
Goddess Nugentalecia is joined by
Brad Walker, J.D. Crowe, The Infamous Stringdusters and
many others.
+Pixel
- The Drive CD
(Raster-Noton)
This is the third full-length release by Danish artist
Pixel (Jon Egeskov). The Drive is meant to be the
soundtrack to his imaginary journey by car across the USA
-- a road movie encoded in the tracklist.
+Poison
Arrows -
First Class & Forever CD (File13)
New project featuring members of Don Caballero,
Atombombpocketknife, Ponys and 90 Day Men.
+Projects
- Words Of Love
Broadcast CD (Mind Expansion)
Second album by London-based group with co-founding
members Graeme Wilson and Alex Lawton joined by
Ladytron’s Mira Aroyo and Dino Gollnick, Comet Gain’s
Phil Sutton, David O'Malley and that one-man-record
making-machine Edward Ball. A journey through the thought
processes of Graeme Wilson -- a world where voices in
Russian or Spanish coexist with English without losing
intimacy or familiarity. Its musical formulas follow a
constructivist pattern overlaid with utterances torn from
the pages of a diary, fragile in their harshness.
Ultimately, these songs invoke lullaby qualities with a
sense of melancholy found in the knowledge that there's
an end to all things.
+Prong
- Power Of The
Damn Mixxxer CD (Megaforce)
Prong's Power
Of The Damn Mixxxer conjures the same dissonant,
dark, dirty, and deranged emotion as it
predecessor Power
Of The Damager and brings it to a boil. This
isn't some half-baked feel good remix record aimed at
dance floor DJs. This remix compilation of
Power
Of The Damager material has added elements
provided by great remixers, producers, and deejays
infused in all the tracks.
+Roman
Candle -
Oh Tall Tree In The Ear CD (Carnival)
Produced by Jason Lehning (Alison Krauss, The Silver
Seas), Roman Candle's Oh
Tall Tree In The Ear capitalizes on the band's
distinct melodic sensibilities and its earnest,
introspective lyrics. Skip, Timshel, and Logan Matheny,
the familial trio at the core of Roman Candle, remain a
band dedicated to the power of a well-crafted song.
+snd
- Atavism CD
(Raster-Noton)
Atavism
is the fourth
album from Sheffield, UK's snd (Mark Fell, Mat Steel) --
their first full-length release since 2002's
Tenderlove
on Mille
Plateaux. Atavism
reveals, explores
and reinterprets the fundamentals of its origins
interpreted in a new time and a new context:
simultaneously iteration, re-interpretation and a process
of invention; both an allusion to the origins of a type
and the genesis of something new.
+Spiral Joy
Band -
Little Sparrow CD (VHF)
Derived from the extended Pelt/Jack Rose/Black Twigs
family, the group traffics in lengthy microtonal
explorations rooted in the expansive tradition of beards
like Taj Mahal Travellers, Henry Flynt, and Theatre Of
Eternal Music. The four tracks here are an evolution from
the trance-like gong and percussion sounds of recent Joy
Band releases, with the quartet putting more of an
emphasis on heavily bowed string sounds.
+Starring
Janet Leigh - Spectrum CD (Metal Blade)
Fusing death metal, hardcore, and modern jazz to create a
sound that can best be described as progressively
technical death metal, Starring Janet Leight's aural
onslaught is a fine blend of artistry, fury, passion, and
precision.
+Starving
Weirdos -
Into An Energy CD (Bo Weavil)
Avant/drone/psychedelic improv duo. These eight new
pieces bear all the hallmarks of the group's greatest
work: the dizzying mixture of instrumental sounds,
electronics, and field recordings, the pointillistic
attention to sonic detail, the duo's post-production
technique, which achieves something like the aural
equivalent of deep-focus photography.
+Torngat
- La Petite
Nicole CD (Alien 8)
Montreal's ambient power trio Torngat create majestic
instrumental music that is at times as breathtaking as
the glorious Quebec mountain range from which they take
their name. La
Petite Nicole offers forays into dub-heavy
elements of post rock as well hints of Krautrock and the
occasional miniature freak-outs.
+Unholy
- New Life Behind
Closed Eyes CD (Prosthetic)
Unholy's New
Life Behind Closed Eyes will grab you from within the
same way death draws you nearer to it on a daily basis.
For fans of Entombed, Hatebreed, Slayers, Crowbar, and
Carcass.
+Utada
- This Is The One
CD (Island/Mercury)
Ten new songs written by Utada herself -- produced by
Stargate and Tricky.
+Paul
Wall -
Fast Life CD (Asylum)
Featuring guests like Pittbull, Webbie, Yung Joc, and
Tech N9ne, Fast
Life is further proof that hard
work pays off. Former Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker
offers up three productions on Fast
Life including the drug-induced
“Pop One Of These” featuring Too $hort, Skinhead Rob and
The Federation. This album is a hearty dose of life as
only Paul Wall knows it. For the people, by the people.
+Wisp
- Shimmering Hour
CD/2xLP (Rephlex)
This is the highly anticipated debut full-length Rephlex
release from Niagara Falls, NY-based braindancer Reid
Dunn aka Wisp. After a track of his was confused with the
mysterious The
Tuss back in 2007, Rephlex did
some further investigation of the artist known as Wisp,
and it just so happened that he had a veritable vault of
unreleased gems waiting to see the light of day. Rephlex
(and many other fans) believes that Wisp is perhaps the
most exciting signing for perhaps a decade.
+Wooden
Birds -
Magnolia CD/LP+MP3 (Barsuk)
The Wooden Birds is the new project of American Analog
Set frontman Andrew Kenny. He returned home to Austin
from Brooklyn to make Magnolia
the album of his
career, featuring members of acclaimed bands
Sparklehorse, Ola Podrida and Lymbyc System. Despite the
involvement of new musical partners, creating a much more
vocal-and percussion-driven sound than the
keyboard-and-vibes-hypnotics of American Analog Set, his
voice and ear for melody and rhythm are unmistakable.
The
Reissue zone...
+Death
Set - Rad
Warehouse To Bad Neighborhood CD+MP3 (Counter)
Reissue includes downloadable extras.
+Duncan
Browne -
Give Me Take You CD (Grapefruit)
Widely acknowledged as a genuine UK baroque
pop/psychedelic folk classic, Give
Me Take You has long been a heavily
sought-after album on the collectors' circuit.
+Ned
Doheny -
Ned Doheny CD (Collector’s Choice)
After Dave Mason recorded his song “On And On” in 1971,
Ned Doheny became the very first artist signed to David
Geffen's Asylum Records label. And, though he didn't meet
with the commercial success of label-mates Joni Mitchell
and Jackson Browne (Geffen's batting average was to
improve with age), he did lay down this memorable album
with such stellar sidemen as Graham Nash and Don Menza.
Long, long out of print, this album appears here with
notes by Richie Unterberger that explore Doheny's place
in the fertile SoCal singer-songwriter scene.
+Al
Green -
Belle Album CD (Fat Possum)
+Al
Green -
Gets Next To You CD (Fat Possum)
+Al
Green -
Livin’ For You CD (Fat Possum)
Three previously out-of-print albums by the soul legend,
originally released by the Hi label -- remastered and
reissued.
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Baddest Hubbard CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Bundle Of Joy CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
High Energy CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Liquid Love CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Love Connection CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Skagly CD (Wounded Bird)
+Freddie
Hubbard -
Windjammer CD (Wounded Bird)
Freddie Hubbard’s Columbia catalog has been seriously
overlooked as far as CD reissues go, until now.
+Ann
Peebles -
I Can’t Stand The Rain CD (Fat Possum)
Digitally remastered reissue of the soul diva's 1973
album originally released by the Hi label. Includes her
signature hit “I Can't Stand The Rain.”
+William
Elliott Whitmore - Hymns For The Hopeless CD
(Southern)
Repressed. Songs that are stripped bare of any pretense,
songs of redemption and murder; with little more that a
banjo, a harmonica and an incredibly resonant voice. For
fans of Ralph Stanley, Leadbelly, Doc Watson, and
Handsome Family.
+William
Elliott Whitmore - Song Of The Blackbird CD
(Southern)
The crowning jewel of the Southern Records trilogy.
Haunting songs of love and loss, life and death.
+Bill
Wyman’s Rhythm Kings - Greatest And Latest: Just
For Thrill And Live 2xCD (Varese Sarabande)
Two-for-one reissue, now available.
Simply
The Best...
+Amazing
Rhythm Aces - Very Best Of CD (Varese
Fontana)
A greatest hits collection from the 'Aces -- lots of
Southern pop/rock/country rock hits.
Simply
The Rest...
+Del
McCoury -
Celebrating 50 Years 5xCD (McCoury Music)
A stunning five-disc special edition box set collection
encapsulating a 50-year legacy of brilliant, heartfelt
music from the Bluegrass icon. With more than 30 new
recordings of songs from Del’s first 40 years of
performing, and an additional eighteen from the Del
McCoury Band’s most essential tracks of the last decade,
this quintessential box set is complete with a
twelve-page full color booklet of photographs from the
McCoury family archives -- some which have never been
seen.
+VNV
Nation -
Reformation 01 2xCD+DVD (Anachron America)
Deluxe hardcover embossed box contains two full length
CDs, a DVD, and a 32-page booklet. The first CD has
twelve live tracks, the band's first ever-live album
release. The second features thirteen tracks of
unreleased material and remixes. The DVD collects eight
live video clips from their last two world tours.
+Hank
Williams -
Rockin’ Chair Money: Gonna Shake CD (Bear Family)
Rockin
Chair Money is the first new compilation
of Hank Williams uptempo classics since 1957. Starting
with his original Sterling recording of “Pan American,”
this collection showcases classics from virtually every
point in the singers six-year recording career along with
some unexpected, seldom-heard treats, including a
guitar-only demo of “Ten Little Numbers” and a full-tilt
rockabilly overdub on “Fool About You.” Six other
posthumous overdubs feature sympathetic backings from
Williams' Drifting Cowboys and steel guitarist Don Helms.
Part of Bear Family's acclaimed Gonna
Shake This Shack Tonight series, this 33-track
collection is perfect for parties and road trips.
The
Compilation zone...
+Various
Artists -
Sound Of Wonder CD (Finders Keepers)
The first wave of plugged-in pop from the Pakistani
picture house. Rare electronic pop from the Lollywood
vaults (1973-1980). Fifteen un-traveled currants of
space-age cinematic surf and Urdu funk.
+Various
Artists -
We All Love The Human Race: Fairytales Can Come True
Volume 4 CD (Psychic Circle)
The Psychic Circle label presents the fourth volume in
the Fairytales
Can Come True series -- a compilation of
strange things fluorescently shimmering. Twenty tracks of
a pop-psych nature gathered from the UK and Europe are
presented here for your listening pleasure.
The
Soundtrack zone...
+Soundtrack
(Bill Frisell) - All Hat CD (Emarcy)
In conversation with All
Hat's
composer, Grammy-winner Bill Frisell "It's hard to find a
more fruitful meditation on American music than in the
compositions of guitarist Bill Frisell. Mixing rock and
country with jazz and blues, he's found what connects
them: improvisation and a sense of play. Unlike other
pastichists, who tend to duck passion, Mr. Frisell plays
up the pleasure in the music and also takes on another
often-avoided subject, tenderness." -- The New York Times
The
DVD zone...
+Insane
Clown Posse - A Family Underground DVD
(Psychopathic)
The documentary cameras of A
Family Underground give you all access and front
row seats -- but it's not just about the concerts,
comedy, carnival rides, nightclubs, contests, or
wrestling. It's about the Huggalos and what brings them
together. It's a step into their world.
+Queen
- Rock In Rio DVD
(Hudson Street)
Queen performs live at the historic Rock In Rio Festival.
Titles are, “Tie Your Mother Down,” “Seven Seas Of Rhye,”
“Keep Yourself Alive,” “Liar,” “It’s A Hard Life,” “Now
I’m Here,” “Is This The World We Created,” “Love Of My
Life,” “Brighton Rock,” “Hammer To Fall,” “Bohemian
Rhapsody,” “Radio Gaga,” “I Want To Break Free,” “We Will
Rock You,” “We Are The Champions” and “God Save The
Queen.”
The
Vinyl zone...
+Ada
- Adaptations 12”
(Kompakt)
A sublime slice of electro power pop. It is as if Matthew
Dear did trance. On The flip is the slightly more
dancefloor “Fizzmann” with a Dee Pulse Remix. Top end
teasing all the way with this one. A great showing of
spacey production and how to really work a remix. Solid
allround. Trance is ok.
+Beaten
Awake -
Coming Home LP (Fat Possum)
Band includes former members of Party of Helicopters, The
Man I Fell In Love With, The Six Parts Seven and Harriet
The Spy. Beaten Awake has a completely unique sound maybe
like a drunk Nick Drake with electric guitars.
+Cause
Co-motion! - Because Because Because 12”
(Slumberland)
Hot on the heels of their critically-lauded singles
compilation, It’s
Time!, Cause Co-Motion! have hit
the studio to bring you their latest installment of
earnest DIY pop, this time in the form of this fab
six-song 12”.
+Cindytalk
- Silver Shoals
Of Light 10 LP (Bluesanct Music)
The concept behind this series is to celebrate the tenth
year of the label with a series of releases that give an
excuse to work with some of its biggest
influences. Silver
Shoals Of Light is quintessential Cindytalk,
written and produced by Gordon Sharp and Matt Kinnison.
For those not familiar with Cindytalk's work, it is a
sound that straddles several genres. Gordon Sharp was at
one time perhaps best known for lending his angelic voice
to several tracks on This Mortal Coil's classic 1984
masterpiece It'll
End In Tears (4AD), but those tracks are
nothing but a footnote in history. Since 1982, Cindytalk
has recorded half a dozen fiercely challenging albums of
devastating beauty, and there is no end in sight for this
seminal group.
+Genghis
Tron -
Board Up The House Remixes V4 LP (Anticon)
Following the arrival of Genghis Trons celebrated Relapse
Records debut, the kaleidoscopic metal feast Board Up the
House, Anticon has released the fourth in a five-volume
series of remix EPs on limited multi-color vinyl. Things
kick off with the first official Anticon contribution
from long-time label associate and Lex Records band
Subtle. Known for its uniquely hands-on
remixes/reinventions, the Subtle sextet here braids two
Genghis Tron originals into the frenetic and moody City
Whipped. Recent B-Pitch Control signees Telefon Tel Aviv
follow with their dub of Relief, supplying an entirely
new beat-seething ether for Genghis frontman Mookie
Singermans vocals to bask in.
+Grischa
Lichtenberger - Ununbium 12” (Raster-Noton)
The second release in Raster-Noton's Unun series, derived
from the Greek atomic numbers of the chemical elements
111-119 in the periodic table. For Ununbium,
Berlin's Grischa Lichtenberger recorded sounds from the
world around him -- a sliding table-top, the noise of a
radiator or the droning of a broken machine. By means of
digital manipulation, these sounds become instruments.
+Mt.
Eerie -
Live In Copenhagen 3xLP (Burnt Toast Vinyl)
Mt. Eeries Live in Copenhagen is our most ambitious vinyl
release ever: three LPs in a triple gatefold jacket with
LP-sized booklet that includes hand-written lyrics in
both English and Danish, all beautifully illustrated by
Phil Elverum. Five sides contain 34 live tracks from a
two-set solo performance in Copenhagen from 5 April 2003.
The sixth side features an etching by Genevieve Elverum
(Phils wife) and a bonus track, 'The Boom,' recorded in a
Copenhagen apartment.
+Nofx
- Frisbee LP (Fat
Wreck Chords)
After recently celebrating their 25th anniversary as a
band,NOFX are still firing on all cylinders with the
release of their 11th studio full length, Coaster.
Boasting a title that takes a playful jab at the current
direction of the music industry, Coaster showscases
NOFX's limitless proficiency in crafting songs that
simultaneously electrify and entertain. Cd has alternate
title Coaster and different artwork but same music.
+Osborne
- Hovercrafting
12” (Spectral Sound)
One of Ghostly International's compilation standout
tracks "Wait A Minute" by Osborne is back by popular
demand. The extended mix has an irresistible Rhodes-based
hook and ubiquitous talkbox which noodles into Arto
Mwambe's remix, which squishes the track's exuberance
into an understated slice of handclap-house. On "Fire,"
Osborne spins scratchy lite-funk guitars and violins into
an elegantly arranged disco number. "The Count" closes
things out with fat 'n’ dirty techno tones that are
decidedly of-the-moment.
+Various
Artists -
Designer Records Presents Together LP (Fat Possum)
This is the first release from this classic soul gospel
catalog. It features tracks by the Jubliee Humming Birds,
Union Gospel Singers, Madam Andrews And The Heavenly
Echoes, and The Mosby Family Singers.
+Jamie
Vex’d - In
System Travel LP (Planet Mu)
Jamie Vex’d is without question one of the pioneers of
the dubstep/bass scene. In
System Travel is a deep lush sounding
track. Warm and organic in feel, it has a wave of bass
that will push you along. On the flip side "Radiant
Industry" is a full-blown space bass adventure. Waves of
bass, flickers of light, and space debris everywhere.
"Saturn's Reply" has a warm thick bass over a staggered
lurching beat. Listening is believing. Welcome to 2009.
+Weinland
- Breaks In The
Sun LP (Jealous Butcher)
It's uncommon for a contemporary artist to create a
timeless album, one that is both surprising and
comforting. Yet after only a few listens to the new
record from Weinland, a soon-to-be well known quintet
from Portland, you'll know it's still possible. The
characters in Adam Shearer's lush songs are often tense,
morose, and struggling, but they're informed by a wry,
celebratory hope. Their calm sense of knowing foils the
emotional complexity in Shearer's lyrics -- that, and the
gorgeously subdued vocal harmonies, atmospheric finger
picking, strings, brushed drums, melodica, and subtle
percussive minutiae.
+Wildbirds
& Peacedrums - Snake LP (Leaf)
Being awarded with the Jazz in Sweden-award this year,
Wildbirds & Peacedrums return with a new album. This
time they've dug deeper into the darker corners of the
human soul and returned with an eclectic, evocative and
multi-faceted sound. The music takes you on a journey
through a multitude of different moods.
+Witch
Hunt -
Burning Bridges To Nowhere LP (Alternative Tentacles)
Philadelphia co-ed anarcho screamers Witch Hunt do their
dirty deeds for the first time on Alternative Tentacles.
Formed in 2001 as a New Jersey trio, Witch Hunt's
political lyrics and breakneck speeds recall the hardcore
of yore. Parts of ''Everyday'' and ''Reflections'' veer
toward a vintage Husker Du guitar tone. Short bursts of
fury cross over between the crust world and modern
contemporaries like F##ked Up. Having Rob Fitzpatrick
move from drums to second guitar adds a thickened wall of
density to the sound.
+Easy Star
All-Stars - Lonely Hearts Dub Band
LP+7” (Easy Star)
+Flower-Corsano
Duo - Four
Aims 2xLP (VHF)
+Los
Straitjackets - Further Adventures Of Los
Straitjackets LP (Yep Roc)
+Juan
Maclean -
Future Will Come LP (DFA)
These titles now available on vinyl.
05 MAY
09
+39
Clocks -
Zoned CD (De Stijl)
German art rock band 39 Clocks were known for
pranksterism and the destruction of the clubs in which
they'd perform. Theirs was a sound attuned to classic
American punk/Nuggets.
This collection was put together with the non-completist
in mind (originals of some of these records are extremely
rare), intending to display the general 39 Clocks vibe,
but also some of their more curious wrinkles.
+69
Chambers -
War On The Inside CD (Nightmare Records)
The debut album War on the Inside from the rock/metal
trio 69 Chambers with frontwoman Nina Treml on guitar and
vocals, bass player Maddy Madarasz and drummer Michi
Brugger. It's a high quality production with a powerful
sound, heavy dropped guitars, and unique vocals that sing
unusual yet catchy melodies.
+Abstract
Rude + Vitamin D - Rejuvenation CD
(Rhymesayers)
The new album from Project Blowed, ATU, Haiku D'Etat,
A-Team, Mass Men affiliate and West Coast legend Abstract
Rude. Produced entirely by Seattle super producer Vitamin
D. Features Aceyalone, Myka 9 and the next generation of
Project Blowedians.
+Akron/Family
- Set ‘Em Wild,
Set ‘Em Free CD/xLP (Dead Oceans)
Their musical vocabulary runs deep - it's not just Jimi
Hendrix, Neil Young, and The Grateful Dead that inform
this record; the band feels at home, confident, and
self-assured. With limited outside assistance, the trio
has made a focused, powerful, and unified work. This is
the new psychedelic rock.
+Arctic
Monkeys -
At The Apollo CD+DVD (Domino)
Double-disc set contains an exclusive live album recorded
in Texas and the entire 75-minute live performance film
plus bonus footage.
+Autumn
Hour -
Dethroned CD (Rock Ridge)
This New Jersey project began as a dark, acoustic
singer/songwriter collaboration between vocalist Alan
Tecchio (Hades, Non Fiction) and guitarist Justin Jurman.
The duo eventually expanded into a quartet, which has
molded a new, bold, dynamic sound on this, their debut.
''Dethroned'' is a three-part concept album based upon
exponential technological growth and its effects in a
post-apocalyptic world.
+Ballyoo!
- Cheers! CD
(Surfdog)
This group has been touring nonstop for the past couple
of years, spreading their music from coast to coast.
+Chris
Barber -
At The BBC CD (United States Of Distribution)
British jazz trombonist Christ Barber celebrates his 60th
year as a bandleader. Inspired by the King Oliver Creole
Jazz Band, Chris formed his first Barber New Orleans Band
in 1949.
+Jim
Beard -
Revolutions CD (Sunnyside)
Pianist and composer Jim Beard has been writing inspiring
musical compositions for many years. On his new
recording, Revolutions, Beard was fortunate to be able to
realize the full spectrum of his compositional sound with
his work with Vince Mendoza and the Metropole Orchestra.
The radio orchestra (featuring full big band and strings)
along with Mendoza's arrangements bring Beard's
compositions to full bloom.
+Beherit
- Nordic Demons
Live CD (IMV Blueline)
First official live album from the dark Gods of
Scandinavian black metal. Raw, brutal and heavy featuring
all classic songs from the 90s like ''Black Mass
Prayer'', ''Werewolf, Semen and Blood'' and ''Dawn of
Satans Millennium.”
+Benassi
Alle Presents
Mobbing (Benny Benassi) Rock The Dog CD (Ultra)
The hot new artist album from Italian house legend Benny
Benassi's other half: Grammy Award winning power-producer
Alle Benassi. "Open Legs" has dominated the Beatport
charts and is supported by top DJs such as Bob Sinclair,
Fedde Le Grand, and Carl Cox.
+The
Birthday Massacre - Show And Tell CD
(Metropolis)
Toronto's Birthday Massacre offer their first live CD,
capturing the intensity of their shows recorded in late
2007 in Hamburg. Features fifteen fan faves. Look for the
DVD later this year, as well as another studio album.
+Blood
Tsunami -
Grand Feast For Vultures CD (Candlelight)
Seven blistering songs from the Norwegian metal band.
+Fiona
Boyes -
Blues Woman CD (Yellow Dog)
Following three consecutive Blues Music Award nominations
for ''Contemporary Blues Album'', ''Contemporary Blues
Artist'', and ''Acoustic Blues Album'', Fiona Boyes picks
back up her electric guitar for a new studio album full
of tasty licks and brassy attitude. Described by one
reviewer as ''Bonnie Raitt's evil twin'', Boyes is joined
by special guests Marcia Ball, Pinetop Perkins, and
Watermelon Slim for a rollicking trip through the
contemporary blues landscape.
+Bruford
Levin Upper Extremities - Bruford Levin Upper
Extremities CD (United States Of Distribution)
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities is the band formed by
Bill Bruford and Tony Levin in 1998. Both musicians first
came together in King Crimson in the early '80s and of
course had extremely distinguished careers before meeting
up in King Crimson.
+Candlemass
- Death Magic
Doom CD (Nuclear Blast)
Brand new studio album from the kings of epic doom metal.
Includes bonus track.
+Carolina
Chocolate Drops - Presents Colored
Aristocracy: Sankofa Strings CD (Musicmaker)
Listening to them is like dropping the needle on a
Victrola record. -- Mitch Teich, Arizona Public Radio
+The
Chariot -
Wars And Rumors Of Wars CD (Solid State)
2009 release from the metalcore monsters. The Chariot
have never been a band comfortable with the status
quo. Wars
And Rumors Of Wars will tip the scales and push
the limits of what modern Metalcore can accomplish in the
span of just ten songs.
+Ciara
- Fantasy Ride
CD/CD+DVD (LeFace)
Includes the smash singles "Never Ever" featuring Young
Jeezy, "Love Sex Magic" featuring Justin Timberlake and
"Tell Me What Your Name Is." Limited edition deluxe
version adds a bonus DVD and extra tracks.
+Closure In
Moscow -
First Temple CD (Equal Vision)
The debut full-length by this Australian group follows an
impressive EP. RIYL: Saosin, The Mars Volta, Coheed &
Cambria.
+Combichrist
- Heat EP: All
Pain Is Beat CDEP+12” (Metropolis)
Featuries remixes by the likes of VNV Nation and
Assemblage 23. The CD contains six tracks and two bonus
videos, while the 12-inch maxi single houses three tracks
on a red buzz saw-shaped slab of vinyl. Look for
Combichrist on tour this summer.
+Cracker
- Sunrise In The
Land Of Milk And Honey CD (429 Records)
That creative genius David Lowery from Cracker/Camper Van
Beethoven, is back with new, edgy, innovative and
original rock songs! Features guests Adam Duritz, John
Doe, and Patterson Hood.
+The
Dangerous Summer - Reach For The Sun CD
(Hopeless)
Their debut full-length is a polished and wise endeavor
brimming with a poise that belies the band's years. Love,
life, death, the past, the future...it's all there in the
vein of the honest and clear-cut rock of Jimmy Eat World,
Third Eye Blind, and Foo Fighters. RIYL: Jimmy Eat World,
The Starting Line, Taking Back Sunday, The Maine, We The
Kings.
+Das
Boton -
Soda Drip CD (Sixgunlover)
Bill Dolan is most known for his guitar work in 5ive
Style and Heroic Dose (Sub Pop Records). He has been a
huge influence to a generation of artists with his
explosive 1960s New Orleans, Afrobeat guitar work. With
his roots intact, this record is heavily influenced by
post punk and early NY new wave. Joined by his former
band mate, Ryan ''Euphone'' Rapsys and Karl ''Babybird''
Ropp for Das Boton's debut album.
+David
Davis & The Warrior River Band - Two Dimes & A Nickel CD
(Rebel)
David Davis has come a long way since he first picked up
the mandolin. As leader of the Warrior River Boys for
nearly 25 years, he has seen many festivals, hotels,
diners and overnight drives. Decidedly the most
significant thing he's seen in those years is the
evolution of his music. From a strict adherence to the
traditional style of bluegrass to a more contemporary
sound, Davis has always strived to bring a fresh, sincere
sound to his fans. Two Dimes And A Nickel is testament to
this man's ambition and is the latest installment in his
life's work.
+Deradoorian
- Mind Raft CDEP
(Lovepump United)
Astonishingly mature, dark, beautiful, and unexpected, if
only because it seems to have tapped into something far
older and wiser than Angel Deradoorian's (Dirty
Projectors) twenty-two years would suggest. Whether it's
the guitar, bass flute, or her stunning voice, Angel's
musical proficiency is boundless. This is as promising as
a debut can get.
+Devil
Wears Prada - With Roots Above And
Branches CD/CD+DVD (Ferret)
Their Ferret debut is possessed of equal parts slithering
metal riffage meshed with plush rock passages, peppered
with a barrage of synth sounds and harsh to melodic
vocals. Their attack is complicated further with
unexpected twists and turns in composition, larger
melodies, and a more focused aggression. Limited, deluxe
edition contains bonus DVD.
+Diary Of
Dreams -
(If) CD (Metropolis)
Their ninth studio album features twelve tracks riddled
with emotional stress and turmoil. Themes of happiness,
sadness, confusion, loss, and understanding run
throughout, but it's not a concept album. Each track
tells its own story. Their mix of classical, electronic,
and rock elements couple with powerfully stunning vocals
to deliver a message straight from the heart to the soul.
Heartwarmingly sad, yet beautiful.
+DJ
Shadow -
Diminishing Returns 2xCD (Reconstruction Productions)
Official djshadow.com 'last chance limited-edition
re-release.' The groundbreaking mix in its entirety --
includes bonus track "War Is Hell" by DJ Shadow.
+Double
Dagger -
More CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Baltimore trio Double Dagger creates a cacophonous wall
of sound. Their dynamic combination of energy, melody,
angst, and playfulness is captured exquisitely on their
third full-length/Thrill Jockey debut.
+Earth
Crisis -
To The Death CD (Century Media)
Following one of the most talked about reunions of 2008,
Earth Crisis return to deliver their most angst ridden
and unrelenting offering to date. Featuring "To Ashes."
+Fischerspooner
- Entertainment
CD (WFL)
Third full length -- recorded over a two-year period in a
carriage house in Brooklyn.
+John Foxx
/ Robin Guthrie - Mirrorball CD (Metamatic)
An idea that began when the pair performed at a Harold
Budd concert in May 2005. Layers of echoes and
reverberations are explored on Mirrorball, so that
Guthrie's unique playing merges with abstract, often
improvised vocals. The former Cocteau Twins guitarist and
producer has joined John Foxx who has been experimenting
as a film-maker (including a pioneering video for L.F.O.
and recent performances of his Super 8 project Tiny
Colour Movies in Melbourne, London and Barcelona), artist
(he has exhibitions this year in London and New York and
his images have been used on the covers of books by
Anthony Burgess and Salman Rushdie) and musician and he's
now developing a growing international reputation as a
writer - last year he headlined a major literature
festival where he reads extracts from his as yet
unfinished novel The Quiet Man. He is currently working
on new material with Paul Daley (Leftfield).
+Gibson
Brothers -
Ring The Bell CD (Compass)
12 track blend of bluegrass and old-timey harmonies,
featuring six new original songs by Shawn Camp, Paul
Kennedy, Chet O'Keefe, Joe Newberry, and Marshall
Warwick. The "Brothers" include Mike Barber on bass,
Clayton Campbell on fiddle, Joe Walsh on mandolin, and
guest resonator guitarist Mike Witcher from Missy Raines
& The New Hip.
+Green
Day -
Lowdown 2xCD (Sexy Intellectual)
Double-disc set celebrates the incredible achievements
and staggering longevity of Green Day. Featuring a
stunning disc of exclusive interviews with all the band
members, and a disc of audio biography which tells Green
Day's complete story on a spoken word talking book, this
package is an ideal companion to the Green Day catalog.
Completed with booklets, rare photos, inner
+Ben
Harper /
Relentless7 - White Lies For Dark Times
CD/CD+DVD (Virgin)
This is a timeless rock album, mixing raw, unrelenting
thunder with deep grooves and haunting emotion. Ben has a
new band with him this time around. The deluxe edition
includes a DVD featuring a video for the song ''Shimmer
and Shine'', exclusive documentaries, band photos and
more.
+Joel Octet
Harrison -
Urban Myths CD (Highnote)
Joel Harrison is a wildly diverse musician with a
penchant for unorthodox instrumental combinations who has
sustained one of the most unpredictable discographies of
the last decade. Here Joel, along with David Binney,
Stephan Crump & others sets his focus on the electric
jazz of Chick Corea, Zawinul and Shorter, Frank Zappa
& others that influenced him growing up in the
1970's.
+Hatebreed
- For The Lions
CD (E1 Music)
18 new bludgeoning covers including "Refues / Resist"
(Sepultura), "Ghosts Of War" (Slayer), "Escape"
(Metallica) and "Suicidal Maniac" (Suicidal Tendencies)
and more.
+Highwaymen
- Cambridge Tapes
2xCD (Folk Era)
Originally a college group that had Top Ten hits of
Michael Row the Boat Ashore and Cotton Fields, The
Highwaymen toured extensively during their college
careers, juggling studies during the week with performing
on weekends. Following graduation in June of 1962, they
pursued music full-time. This album, recorded on October
26, 1963, has The Highwaymen returning to campus, this
time to MIT for a fantastic live performance that would
be a career highlight. Fortunately it was preserved on
tape and is presented here, digitized and only lightly
edited.
+Hopewell
- Good Good
Desperation CD (Tee Pee)
On Good
Good Desperation Hopewell blends vintage fuzz
pedal jams with their early space rock and shoegaze
roots. A perfect noisy bridge between the epic
psychedelia of '90s acts like The Flaming Lips and
Mercury Rev and a new generation.
+Jon
Hopkins -
Insides CD (Domino)
This composer, pianist, and self-taught studio wizard
makes big, bold electronic music using walls of synths,
twinkling melodies, and amorphous bass rumbles. His
previous two albums had him labeled by ambient patriarch
Brian Eno as an electronic innovator, while an impressive
sweep of artists such as Herbie Hancock, David Holmes,
Coldplay, and lo-fi folkster King Creosote have called
upon his handiwork as producer and composer. On this, his
Domino debut, Hopkins showcases an intriguing musical
aesthetic. "Insides" is about juxtaposition: natural,
arcane textures welded to pulsing, hypnotic rhythms;
beautiful acoustic melodies set against jarring bass.
Reminiscent of the beautiful melodies and harsh dirty
beats of Four Tet, Squarepusher, Burial, and Aphex Twin.
+The
Horrors -
Primary Colours CD/2xLP (XL)
Their debut Strange
House was as controversial as it
was celebrated, landing them on the cover of NME in their
native England. Produced by Geoff Barrow (Portishead) and
noted video director Chris Cunningham (Aphex Twin,
Bjork). ''Genuinely, gloriously deranged.'' -- The Onion
+Ice
Palace -
Wonder Subtly Crushing Us CD (Rebel Group)
Fifteen years ago, Ice Palace's singer/songwriter Adam
Sorensen and Cloud Cult's Craig Minowa spent a night
writing and recording a song together. After years of
separate endeavors, the two have re-aligned on this
album. ''...a beautifully melancholic and jittery nod to
Northern rock, from the Pacific Northwest to the shores
of Lake Superior.'' -- Minnesota Public Radio
+Isis
- Wavering
Radiant CD (Ipecac)
This is the bands fifth full length effort, they navigate
the process of growing and evolving without disavowing
their initial vision, first single is ''20 minutes/40
years.''
+King
Crimson -
Collectable King Crimson V.4 2xCD (Discipline)
Fourth in the series which captures live King Crimson at
their finest, live in Warsaw, Poland, 2000 will appeal to
both Crimson enthusiasts and music lovers alike. This 2
CD is the perfect companion to the forthcoming re-release
of the Eyes Wide Open double DVD. Live
In Warsaw 2000 showcases the four piece
line up of Robert Fripp, Adrian Belew, Pat Mastelotto and
Trey Gunn and includes an encore rendition of David
Bowie's `Heroes', the original of which Robert's
distinctive guitar playing helped make famous.
+Chris
Lake -
Crazy CD (Nervous)
Chris is one of the most respected DJ/producers repping
the more progressive side of dance, creating classic
collaborations with Deadmau5 and Sebastien Leger, and
deejaying the top venues in the world. For his debut,
he's managed to combine the best of his many talents,
including underground bombs like "Word" and "Aqualight",
radio hits "Changes", "Carry Me Away", and "Only One",
and his next chart topper "If You Knew" featuring
vocalist Nastala.
+Doyle
Lawson & Quicksilver - Lonely Street CD (Rounder)
One of Bluegrass' most honored and revered talents is
back with another blue ribbon recording featuring the
award winning vocal harmonies and hot picking that has
placed Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver at the top of
bluegrass radio charts and award shows time and time
again.
+Led
Bib -
Comfortable Shoes CD (Cuneiform)
Sensible Shoes is the third album by this London quintet
of dual saxes, keyboards, bass and drums. It is a
cataclysmic offering of free-jazz, jazz-rock,
avant-skronk, funk-rock, noise-metal and whatever else
they can lay their hands on.
+Omar
Rodriguez-Lopez (El Groupo Nuevo De Omar
Rodriguez-Lopez) - Cryptomnesia CD/LP (Sargent
House)
El Groupo Nuevo De Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is differentiated
from the guitarist's other namesake projects by his
selection of players, specifically Zach Hill (Hella) on
drums, Jonathan Hischke (Hella) on synth bass, and Juan
Alderete de la Peña (The Mars Volta) on bass guitar.
Additionally, Cryptomnesia
features the
vocals of guest frontman Cedric Bixler Zavala (The Mars
Volta).
+Madina
Lake -
Attics To Eden CD (Roadrunner)
They have been touring non stop for two years, including
Warped Tour and others, here's their new release, first
single is ''Never Take Us Alive.''
+Magik
Markers -
Balf Quarry CD/LP (Drag City)
Balf
Quarry has moody space in its soul,
melodies whether stretched over rock, ululating rhythm,
chimes 'n’ piano and/or wah-wah, but it is also a
mind-and-body-slamming forty-five minutes.
+Ziggy
Marley -
Family Time CD (Tuff Going)
Family
Time is Ziggy Marley s third solo
album and first full-length offering especially for
children and families.
+Katie
Melua -
Pictures CD (Dramatico)
Includes the tracks "If THe Lights Go Out,k" "Perfect
Circle," and "If You Were A Sailor." "Melua's third album
is arguably her best." -- Mojo
+Chrisette
Michele -
Epiphany CD (Def Jam)
Featuring The Hits "Epiphany (I'm Leaving)", "What You
Do" featuring Ne-Yo and "Blame It On Me." Produced by
Ne-Yo.
+Mika
Miko - We
Be Xuxa CD/LP (PPM)
Never polished, always urgent and catchy, they somehow
conduct a current take on the old emotions of great punk
rock bands that came before them, such as the blistered
energy of Redd Cross and early Legal Weapon, the charming
shrillness of Lilliput and Rubella Ballet, and the
ferocity of The Adolescents. On their second full-length,
they expand on their remarkable songwriting skills,
mixing great riffs with simple ideas and melody with
speed while sending you into a mind melting frenzy.
+Miriodor
- Avanti! CD
(Cuneiform)
For fans of: Birdsongs of the Mesozoic, Gentle Giant,
Hatfield & The North, Henry Cow, Univers Zero, and
Frank Zappa.
+New York
Dolls -
'Cause I Sez So CD (Atco)
Produced by Todd Rundgren."It was amazing working with
Todd again, and I think we were able to evoke the special
sound of our first album and drag it by the hair in the
the present." David Johansen
+Nomo
- Invisible
Cities CD/LP (Ubiquity)
With a theme stolen from Italian novelist Italo Calvino,
each tune on Invisible
Cities is a little world of its own,
dense with rhythm and timbre. Hot horns blaze through
intersecting lines, heavy percussion drives the band down
winding streets, the bass rumbles in some subterranean
corridor.
+Conor
Oberst And The Mystic Valley Band - Outer South CD/2xLP (Merge)
While touring in support of last year's debut
Conor
Oberst, Conor And The Mystic Valley
Band began writing new songs. The result is the first
album credited to this group. Oberst's songwriting and
delivery remain an engaging presence, but the addition of
songs by Taylor Hollingsworth, Nik Freitas, and Jason
Boesel make for a multi-textured and colorful
collaboration. The Mystic Valley band also includes Macey
Taylor and Nathaniel Walcott.
+Tara Jane
O’Neil - A
Ways Away CD/LP (K)
Her fifth album and first for K contains an elegant
attention to detail in the mix that will please all those
in need of great headphone jams, electronic minimalist
drone magic, and heroic adventure. Contributors include
Jana Hunter, Mira, Osa Atoe (New Bloods), Geoff Soule
(Fuck), and Jean Cook and Daniel Littleton (Ida).
+Our
Brother The Native