CDs + Vinyl:
10,000 Maniacs – Playing Favorites CD (Omnivore)
Recorded before an adoring crowd in Jamestown, NY, Playing Favorites features live 14 tracks, including hits and fan favorites from the group’s storied and influential career. The six-piece band (Jerome Augustyniak, Dennis Drew, Jeff Erickson, Steven Gustafson, John Lombardo, and Mary Ramsey) is augmented by strings, horns, and backing vocalists. According to Dennis Drew, “We are thrilled to release a recording that represents 10,000 Maniacs’ true live sound. The MTV Unplugged (1993) record was an acoustic record. This is really what we sound like…a rock band. The energy in that room was electric.”
Amber Arcades – Fading Lines CD/LP+MP3 (PIAS America)
Amber Arcades is the moniker of Dutch-born musician Annelotte de Graaf. De Graaf first started writing songs in 2010 while temporarily living in Philadelphia. Back in the Netherlands she put out a first EP in 2012 containing soft-voiced, melancholic folk ballads. Wanting to develop her sound and mature from the safe bedroom folk environment, she got in touch with producer Ben Greenberg (Beach Fossils, The Men, Destruction Unit) to produce a collection of songs she had written over the years. In May 2015, de Graaf flew out to New York to record the songs in the Strange Weather recording studio in Brooklyn, backed by a band consisting of members of Real Estate, Quilt and Kevin Morby. The result is a record that is as dreamy and esoteric as it is gripping, presenting slightly off, floating pop melodies over a mixture of kraut-inspired drums, cutting guitars and fuzzed-out organs.
And The Kids – Friends Share Lovers CD (Signature Sounds)
Friends Share Lovers has a more audacious, ambitious, involuted sound than the band’s 2015 debut, Turn To Each Other, with intertwining lines becoming more complex and artfully crashing against each other. The title track is exemplary of their growth. Intricate rolling drum patterns and transitions, wonderfully balanced guitar and bass, and alluring synths compete and combine and play off each other for infectious rhythms. That is not to overlook their consistently introspective lyrics or Hannah Mohan’s silky delivery. [Vinyl edition due June 24.]
Joseph Arthur – Family CD (True North)
Joseph Arthur is a singer, songwriter, poet and artist from Akron, Ohio, known for his solo material and as a member of RNDM and Fistful Of Mercy. Combining poetic lyrics with a layered sonic palette, Arthur has built his reputation over the years through critically-acclaimed releases, collaborations and constant touring; his unique solo live performances often incorporate the use of a number of distortion and loop pedals, even live painting and a sprinkling of beat-poetry. [Vinyl version due June 24.]
Banta – Dark Charms CD/LP (E1)
Amongst the garage rawk acts and synth-pop duos of Echo Park is a coed collective known as Banta. Led by singer-songwriter Sharaya Mikael, the band channels a vintage soft rock vibe via smooth vocals, acoustic strums, and gentle grooves which often conjure an uncanny Fleetwood Mac likeness.
Bear Tooth – Aggressive CD/LP (Red Bull)
Bear Tooth has as much in common with stomping metalcore as old-school punk, vintage screamo, and harder edged pop punk, with a bit of cinematic extravagance.
William Bell – This Is Where I Live CD/LP (Stax)
This is Where I Live is the legendary Stax artist’s first Stax album in over 40 years. William Bell is probably best known for 1961’s “You Don’t Miss Your Water” (his debut single); 1968’s “Private Number” (a duet with Judy Clay, and a top 10 hit in the UK); and 1976’s “Tryin’ To Love Two,” Bell’s only US top 40 hit, which also hit No. 1 on the R&B charts. As a songwriter, Bell co-authored the Chuck Jackson hit “Any Other Way” (itself a cover, since Bell issued it first, as a follow-up to “You Don’t Miss Your Water”), Billy Idol’s 1986 hit “To Be a Lover” (originally a hit for Bell under its original title “I Forgot to Be Your Lover”), and the blues classic “Born Under A Bad Sign,” popularized by both Albert King and Cream.
Fiona Brice – Postcards From CD/LP+MP3 (Bella Union)
The music world is filled with talented artists whose names are reserved for the liner notes, over-shadowed by the name of the artist on the front cover. One such person is composer, orchestral arranger and violinist Fiona Brice. She is responsible for orchestral arrangements for artists such as John Grant, Anna Calvi, Midlake, Placebo, Vashti Bunyan and Jarvis Cocker, scores for concert performances by Roy Harper as well as countless violin performances for the likes of Kanye West and Robbie Williams.
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band – Got A Mind To Give Up Living: Live 1966 CD (Real Gone Music)
Issued in July 1966, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band’s East-West took blues-rock to places only free jazz had dared to tread, offering lengthy, modal improvisational passages that sparked the West Coast rock revolution, and, in Mike Bloomfield and Elvin Bishop, fully unleashing the first great guitar tandem in rock history. Recorded live at Boston’s Unicorn Coffee House 50 years ago in May 1966, two months before the release of East-West, Got A Mind To Give Up Living: Live 1966 reaffirms that The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was simply untouchable live, capable of turning on a dime from slow burning blues tunes to up-tempo rave-ups.
Candlemass – Death Thy Lover CDEP/12” (Napalm)
The legendary Swedish doom metallers release a special 30th-anniversary EP.
Laura Cantrell – At The BBC CD (Spit & Polish)
Laura Cantrell At The BBC compiles the best of her on-air performances from 2000-2005, recorded at the BBC s famous Maida Vale recording complex, the Broadcasting House studios in London, and the more informal setting of ‘Peel Acres,’ John Peel’s home studio. Cantrell ultimately was invited to do five Peel Sessions, two recorded at Maida Vale and three broadcast live from ‘Peel Acres.’ All of those sessions are represented on this collection, and traces the arc of Cantrell’s rise as an Americana artist on the airwaves of the venerable British broadcasting system. In addition to including several previously unreleased songs, all are now being released on CD for the first time.
Classixx – Faraway Reach CD/2xLP+MP3 (Innovative Leisure)
Faraway Reach casts the duo’s young-but-nostalgic melodies and sublime chords in a more mature, restrained light, albeit no less lively and bright. Establishing themselves as producers of note on their debut LP (Pitchfork called them “great songwriters, too”), Faraway Reach delivers powerfully smooth and soulful jewels that are still decidedly their own – the Classixx signature is one that can’t be traced. Their love of plaintive voices and disco-inspired grooves is as evident as ever, but this time around everything is a bit bolder, the cast is bigger, the melodies distilled into a higher potency — it’s all just as good, but better.
The Claypool Lennon Delerium – Monolith Of Phobos CD/2xLP (ATO)
After Primus and The Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger completed a successful summer tour, Les Claypool and Sean Lennon decided to combine their abstract talents into a project called The Claypool Lennon Delirium. Monolith Of Phobos fuses Lennon’s psychedelic sensibilities with Claypool’s alternative air, resulting in a record that sounds post-apocalyptic and futuristic at the same time. Their sound is fleshed out by keyboardist Mark “Money Mark” Ramos Nishita (Beastie Boys) and drummer Paul Baldi (Fungi Band).
Judy Collins & Ari Hest – Silver Skies Blue CD (Cleopatra)
Folk icon Judy Collins presents a new collaboration with Bronx born singer/songwriter Ari Hest.
Combichrist – This Is Where Death Begins 2xCD (Rough Trade)
Eighth album from the Norwegian-American electronic hard rock/heavy metal band — an apocalyptic behemoth of guitars, electronica, infernal drums and dark elemental force. [Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe includes a bonus live disc. Vinyl version due June 24.]
Cough – Still They Pray CD/2xLP (Relapse)
Cough’s first album in over five years, Still They Pray is the kind of monolithic cosmic doom that will take you to the heights of despair and the bottom of the abyss. Tortured grooves collide in melodic agony alongside a hallucinogenic blend of harsh and clean incantations, crushing and cathartic yet utterly mesmerizing.
Kyle Cox – Trio & Friends CDEP (Rock Ridge)
Nashville-based singer-songwriter Kyle Cox, originally from Orlando, FL, Cox has been praised by press, particularly for his 2014 album The Plan, The Mess (demonstrated his dedication to the art of songwriting—the song was always the focal point and never buried in the production process); Absolute Punk called it “an absolute pleasure… astounding…. Confident, polished and endlessly melodic… an engaging delight.” His new EP, Trio & Friends, was recorded in East Nashville with producer Mike Marsh (drummer of The Avett Brothers).
Dan + Shay – Obsessed CD (WB)
Dan + Shay are an American country music duo composed of vocalists and songwriters Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney. Obsessed is their sophomore album. Includes the single “From The Ground Up.”
Die Krupps – Live Im Schatten Der Ringe 2xCD+DVD/2xCD+Blu-ray (AFM)
Catch Die Krupps headlining the E-tropolis Festival in the sold out Turbinenhalle, Oberhausen (Germany) on February 22, 2014.
The D.O.C. – No One Can Do It Better [Reissue/1989] CD (Real Gone Music)
This is one of Dr. Dre’s earliest production efforts outside of N.W.A. and stands as one of his best, and most over-looked, releases. The critical and commercial success of No One Can Do It Better was undeniable with the project peaking at Number 20 on the Billboard Top 200 and going on to achieve platinum status. The D.O.C. was a monster on the mic, though his career was cut short due to suffering from a crushed larynx in an automobile accident just 5 months after the release of No One Can Do It Better. Perhaps if that accident had never happened, this album would stand in the hip hop pantheon alongside Straight Out Of Compton and The Chronic. Musically, it is certainly deserving. In addition to Dre’s production, the album features contributions from all members of N.W.A. Get On Down is proud to present this too often over-looked portion of hip-hop’s West Coast best.
Robert Ellis – Robert Ellis CD/LP (New West)
Robert Ellis’ fourth full-length project finds the singer/songwriter building upon the familiar themes of love and loss, regrets and heartache, but also hope and optimism for the future. Almost entirely self-produced, the eponymous release finds Ellis’ writing growing in maturity and depth, while offering choice co-writes with such esteemed writers as Jonny Fritz and Angaleena Presley. Musically, the 11-song collection is a further unfolding of the genre-melding soundscapes that were explored so effortlessly on the critically acclaimed The Lights From The Chemical Plant. On Robert Ellis, sweeping string arrangements, arresting harmonies and the virtuosic instrumentation lay the foundation for tales of love and abandon, memories and new desires.
Tinsley Ellis – Red Clay Soul CD (Heartfixer Music)
A vibrant new set of original, soulful compositions from the veteran Georgia blues rocker.
Elvis Depressedly – Holo Pleasures / California Dreamin’ CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Run For Cover)
Airy synthesizers, distant drums and cooing vocoders provide an intricate and fascinating backbone to the groovy, trance-inducing songs that are seen by the band as a bridge between the fuzzy indie pop of 2013’s Holo Pleasures and the more laid-back grooves of their 2015 LP, New Alhambra. This double EP provides a unique experience to both long-time and first-time listeners of Elvis Depressedly that a standard reissue of older material wouldn’t achieve. [Limited color vinyl also available.]
Keith Emmerson – Nighthawks: OST [Reissue/1981] CD (Varese Sarabande)
The original motion picture soundtrack from the 1981 film — Emerson’s first major American film score. The soundtrack includes his vocal of the Stevie Winwood classic “I’m A Man.” The album has been unavailable on CD for more than a decade, and it features new liner notes.
Fairport Convention – Live In Finland 1971 CD (Real Gone Music)
Never during any of the band’s eras did Fairport rock harder, and, though the band lacked any lead vocalist of the stature of Sandra Denny or Iain Matthews, all four members of the group sang and sang well, which lent their on-stage act extra energy.
The Farm Hands – Dig In The Dirt CD (Pinecastle)
Fresh off their win for Bluegrass Music’s Vocal Group of the Year and Bluegrass Gospel Band of the Year, The Farm Hands release their sophomore album.
Fear Of Men – Fall Forever CD/LP+MP3 (Kanine)
“At some point, we’ve all felt isolated from the people we love most, or found ourselves stuck in a decaying relationship that has warped into something unrecognizable. In her songs, Jessica Weiss, singer and guitarist of Fear Of Men, has used a nimble touch to regularly address these themes; and with ‘Island,’ a compelling new song from the UK band’s new album, Fall Forever, she gives depth to the loneliness, depression and heartbreak she feels. Melancholy has been a pervasive thread in the band’s songwriting and in the tonality of its dreamy art-pop aesthetic form the start. Fall Forever, on the other hand, is the result of escape and solitude. Working with producer Tom Morris, Fear Of Men continued to refine its formula, harnessing layers of instruments and stripping away the echoing chasm of reverb that can submerge voices below the surface. That leaner approach can be heard in ‘Island’’s sleek restraint: pulsing synthesizers and a ghostly choir of harmonies enveloping even the corners of the song” – NPR. [Limited copies also available on white vinyl.]
Fews – Means CD/LP+MP3 (PIAS)
“Sometimes a short sharp shock is all that’s required to get the adrenalin flowing. Which is just as well because post punk collective Fews have an abundance of them at their disposal. Hailing from all corners of the globe – Sweden, America and new bassist Jay Clifton from the UK – this Malmo based foursome have set pulses racing since second single ‘The Zoo’ arrived unsuspectingly in the latter part of 2015. For a band very few people outside of their homeland would have been aware of this time last year, their buzz has accelerated thanks to the band’s incendiary live performances. What this makes for is a debut album containing no filler whatsoever, and a record that mirrors the ferocious intensity of those live shows to boot.” – Drowned In Sound
Four By Fate – Relentless CD (The End)
Some pedigrees write themselves while on the way up and then if lucky, they become as one. Four By Fate is the culmination of six, then four talented, seasoned musicians who came together by calculated chance. This end result is quite plainly driven. John Regan (bass guitar and producer) has the monumental musical background that would eventually lead to the other three musicians in the band. Tod Howarth (singer/songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, and producer) encountered John while he was on tour with Cheap Trick doing keys and vocals and ended up joining Ace Frehley’s Comet with John already solidified. Rob Affuso (drums and percussion) came from rock royalty as well via Skid Row. Pat Gasperini (guitarist, singer/songwriter, keyboardist and producer) has mapped his way through the business not only by way of talent but his songwriting ability.
Michael Franti – Soulrocker CD/2xLP (Fantasy)
In creating Soulrocker, Michael Franti & Spearhead introduce a new sensibility to their potent hybrid of hip-hop, rock, folk, and reggae: a gracefully arranged take on electronic music. Co-produced with Jamaica-natives Stephen “Di Genius” McGregor and Dwayne “SupaDups” ChinQuee, the new album includes 13 new tracks. Franti’s interest in electronic music helped shape the sound of Soulrocker, growing out of the early acoustic guitar demos that gave the songs their start. “One of the first records I had as a kid was a Kraftwerk 7” that I got from the giveaway bin at the UC Davis radio station KDVS,” Franti said. “We always do a DJ set at the end of our shows, and I wanted to try bringing in those dance and electronic elements but still keep the organic instrumentation that I’ve always loved.”
Serge Gainsbourg – Gainsbourg London Paris CD/LP (Wrasse)
A 24-track compilation charting Gainsbourg’s psychedelic-pop journey between London and Paris from 1963 to 1971.
Gates – Parallel Lives CD/LP (Pure Noise)
Sophomore album from the indie rock quintet. “The album starts off with what Gates knows best, the harmonious sounds of synths. Utilizing these, there’s a brief solitude in sound before drums and a somber piano join along. Capitalizing on the atmosphere, airy vocals enter the fray and show off the fully-encompassed sound the band has become known for.” — SoundFiction
Gevurah – Hallelujah! CD/2xLP (Profound Lore)
One of Canada’s most promising prospects, the enigma known as Gevurah has slowly carved their ritualistic impression on virulent, spiritual black metal sophistication for several years. [Vinyl edition includes a 20-minute bonus track.]
The Dave Grisman Sextet – The Dave Grisman Sextet CD (Acoustic Disc)
In 1976 the newly-formed David Grisman Quintet recorded the first album of dawg music, an acoustic blend of many styles and traditions. Now forty years later that music continues to evolve with this first recording of the David Grisman Sextet.
Steve Gunn – Eyes On The Lines CD/LP+MP3 (Matador)
Steve Gunn’s solo ventures, emerging over the past decade and culminating most recently the highly-acclaimed Way Out Weather, have been pastoral, evocative affairs. Here he embraces his urban surroundings through a series of songs that fully showcase his extraordinary ability to match hooks to deftly constructed melodies. These are songs you can take in quickly, but spend all the time in the world devouring. The very large and the very small are present in equal measure. The inability to categorize them within the avalanche of impotent diatribes that pass for categorization is a testament to their power.
Heaven’s Cry – Outcast CD/LP (Listenable)
Continuing where their 2012 full-length Wheels Of Impermanence left off, Montreal-based prog outfit Heaven’s Cry return with a concept album that examines the corruption of governments around the world and incites humankind to rally up and fight as this will be the key to our survival and growth.
Hellyeah – Unden!able CD/2xLP (Eleven Seven Music)
“For more than a decade now Hellyeah, the supergroup made up of members of Pantera, Mudvayne and Nothing Face, have been cranking out amazingly-heavy, catchy metal while upping their game in the process. I didn’t think they would be able to top the last release, Sangre por Sangre, but man was I wrong.” – Pure Grain Audio. [Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe includes four bonus tracks.]
If These Trees Could Talk – The Bones Of A Dying World CD/2xLP (Metal Blade)
New album from the Akron, Ohio post-rock outfit. RIYL: Caspian, This Will Destroy You, God Is An Astronaut.
Max Jury – Max Jury CD/LP (Marathon Artists)
A soft-voiced young piano playing singer/songwriter out of Des Moines, Iowa, Max Jury has struck a rich seam of pure, musical gold. His self-titled debut album is a classic in the making. Think of the bruised Americana of Gram Parsons, the rich piano storytelling of Randy Newman and Tom Waits, the lush melodicism of Paul McCartney and rough edged gospel heart of the Rolling Stones playing country ballads. And then trace a fragile link to the tender soul of Curtis Mayfield and Al Green all the way to the 21st century beats of Alicia Keys and D’Angelo. Weave together a magical tapestry of ‘70s Laurel Canyon acoustic confessionals and 21st century neo soul and breathe it all out in a whisper of breathless emotion.
The Kills – Ash & Ice CD/2xLP+MP3 (Domino)
Ash & Ice is the follow up to 2011’s critically lauded Blood Pressures and was five years in the making in part due to Jamie Hince’s five hand surgeries, which resulted in him having to re-learn how to play guitar with a permanently damaged finger. It was during Hince’s recuperation from surgery that he first started sketching out what would become the songs for the album. To shake up the writing process, Hince booked a solo trip on the infamous Trans-Siberian Express for inspiration while Alison Mosshart, now residing in Nashville, TN, wrote some of the most affecting, poetically candid lyrics that she ever has, painting word pictures that mine the dangerous terrain between romantic obsession, prophecy and tough love. Where previous albums had an air of detachment and emotional austerity, underpinned by an uneasy self-awareness and unexpressed anger, the 13 songs on Ash & Ice are more understated, less tempestuous and more affecting because of that, exposing the kind of push-pull you feel when you find yourself in a complicated but all-consuming relationship. [Limited red/blue swirl color vinyl also available.]
The Kinks – Everybody’s In Show-Biz – Everybody’s A Star [Reissue/1972] 2xCD/3xLP (Sony Legacy)
This Legacy Edition version of Everybody’s In Show-Biz includes the original album in its entirety alongside a full disc’s worth of previously unissued studio sessions outtakes (recorded for the album in 1972) and live material (recorded March 2-3, 1972 during The Kinks’ triumphant Carnegie Hall concert run).
Ladyhawke – Wild Things CD/LP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
“People wonder why there’s always a massive gap between my albums,” says Pip Brown, better known as Ladyhawke, the one-woman synth-pop act from New Zealand. The reason is both complicated and easy. The simple explanation: “I’ve never released anything I’m not proud of. That’s important to me. I don’t want to release anything that I have a weird feeling about.” Brown’s conviction to authenticity led her on a journey starting in 2013. Over three years, she scrapped a full Ladyhawke album (“The material didn’t feel like me. It felt too dark or something”). Once reliant on alcohol to surmount social anxiety (“I’d never done a sober show in my life until last December”), she quit drinking and focused on getting healthy. Then she welcomed that newfound clarity by crafting her latest release, the blissed-out Wild Things. “I think I went even more synthy and poppy this time around,” Brown says of the buoyant Wild Things. “I feel good for the first time in 10 years. I actually have a clear mind! I have a wife. I feel stable. That is what I’m celebrating.”
The Lonely Heartstring Band – Deep Waters CD (Rounder)
On their debut album, The Lonely Heartstring Band forges a sound not unlike the genre-bending contributions made by the Punch Brothers, Alison Krauss, and Infamous String Dusters.
Brad Mehldau Trio – Blues And Ballads CD/LP (Nonesuch)
Interpretations of songs by other composers, this time with the focus on blues and ballads implied by the album’s title.
Melvins – Basses Loaded CD (Ipecac)
The Melvins are one of the quirkiest groups around and are predictably unpredictable. Always keeping fans on their toes with lineup changes and varying degrees of sonic differences from album to album, they’ve mixed it up again with their newest record, Basses Loaded. The record features several guest bass players, giving credence to the album title’s pun. A total of six bassists laid down tracks on the album, including (in order of appearance) Steve McDonald (current Melvins live bassist), Jared Warren (Melvins, Big Business), Melvins drummer Dale Crover who is reprising his 1983 role with the group, JD Pinkus (Butthole Surfers), Trevor Dunn (Melvins Lite, Fantomas) and Krist Novoselic (Nirvana). [Vinyl edition due July 1.]
Milk ‘n’ Cookies – Milk ‘n’ Cookies 3xCD/3xLP+Book (Captured Tracks)
Released last February on vinyl – now available on CD. Milk ‘n’ Cookies are the stuff of legends — or would be legends. Forming in the early ‘70s in Long Island, New York, this power pop group was originally signed to Island Records and seemed destined for greatness. Yet, through many cases of “wrong place, wrong time,” the band never managed to break. The core line-up of the band was made up of Ian North, Justin Strauss, Sal Maida and Mike Ruiz and, in their time, they played classic NYC venues like CBGB’s and Max’s Kansas City. They shared bills with everyone from Talking Heads to The Ramones and have amassed a cult following, influencing the likes of Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth) and Debbie Harry (Blondie). After working extensively with the band members, Milk ‘n’ Cookies is a lavish reissue of the group’s entire recorded output.
Minor Victories – Minor Victories CD/LP (PIAS/Fat Possum)
Comprised of Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite, Slowdive’s Rachel Goswell, Editors’ Justin Lockey and his brother James, noise-wave supergroup Minor Victories was born out of Justin’s desire to create an extreme noise EP topped off with delicate female vocals. It became quickly apparent that the power of the resulting tracks was more than enough to lay the foundation stones of a full album, and so Minor Victories became a cinematic ten-track LP. Masterfully crafted by four band members who have somehow never all been in the same room together, it was also produced and engineered by Justin.
Moonface and Siinai – My Best Human Face CD/LP+MP3 (Jagjaguwar)
Wolf Parade may be recapturing their glory days with an upcoming reunion, but the band’s musical spin-off projects aren’t slowing down at all. Dan Boeckner’s Operators drop their debut album Blue Wave, and now Spencer Krug has revealed plans for the next Moonface release. Under his solo moniker, Krug has once again teamed up with Finnish outfit Siinai for a new record My Best Human Face.
Craig Morgan – Whole Lot More To Me CD (Black River Entertainment)
Ninth album from the veteran country hitmaker.
Maren Morris – HERO CD/LP (Sony)
Debut full-length album by the country singer/songwriter. “Equal parts gritty and pretty … The 25-year-old Texas native co-wrote each of her album’s 11 tracks, including the grooving ‘My Church,’ the pop-inflected ‘80’s Mercedes’ and the confessional ‘I Wish I Was.’
Mourn – Ha, Ha, He. CD/LP (Captured Tracks)
There are moments on Ha, Ha, He. – the youthful Catalonian quartet’s sophomore LP – when there’s a distinct impression of listening to several House Of Love tracks played at the same time. Which is no bad thing; short and snappy it may be – its 12 tracks are done and dusted within half an hour – yet the band still manage to cultivate dramatic intent amidst the jangly guitars and posturing hooks. This is, in essence, a photogenic record, forming patterns from anger but also vibrancy.
David Nance – More Than Enough CD/LP (Ba Da Bing!)
David Nance lives in a world where rock has been influenced as much by This Kind of Punishment and The Pin Group as by The Velvet Underground and The Rolling Stones. Omaha’s best-kept secret, up to now known primarily to DIY tape collectors and record club subscribers, Nance welcomes all with More Than Enough, his first full band full-length, which follows the stellar but criminally under-heard 2013 Actor’s Diary LP on Grapefruit Records, as well as a string of limited-edition, over-modulatingly intense and emotionally destructive cassette releases.
Nervosa – Agony CD/LP (Napalm)
Nervosa indulge in relentlessly raw all-female thrash metal on their second studio album Agony that almost effortlessly merges the energy of the glorious ‘80s with the refined aggression of this millennium.
Pale Dian – Narrow Birth CD (Manifesto)
“You may not know it yet…but Pale Dian are about to become one of your favorite new bands of 2016. Hailing from Austin Texas, these are the dreamy swirling melodic sounds inspired by classic 4AD artists like Cocteau Twins and Lush, and just as surely will thrill fans of Them Are Us Too and Drab Majesty” – Part Time Punks, KLXU. [Vinyl version due June 24.]
Poison Headache – Poison Headache CD/LP (Metal Blade)
Poison Headache is a gnarly new metallic hardcore band featuring a mystery member from a prominent band.
Psychic Ills – Inner Journey Out CD/LP (Sacred Bones)
The seekers in New York City’s Psychic Ills have spent more than a decade following their muse wherever it takes them. Inner Journey Out, the band’s highly anticipated fifth album and first since 2013, is indeed an odyssey, traversing the psych-rock landscape they’ve carved throughout their career and taking inspired pilgrimages into country, blues, gospel, and jazz.
Rebelution – Falling Into Place CD (Easy Star)
Falling Into Place is the fifth album from the California reggae/rock band. “We named the album Falling Into Place,” said Rebelution frontman Eric Rachmany, “because all of our varied inspirations and experiences came together into one cohesive collection of music that we all really love.” The follow-up to 2014’s Count Me In features production and writing credits from the likes of Dwayne “Supa Dups” Chin-Quee, Sam Hollander, Yeti Beats and Donovan “Doncorleon” Bennett. Also appearing, Jamaican reggae performer and former Rebelution tour mate Protoje guests on the track “Inhale Exhale.” [Vinyl edition due July 1.]
Xenia Rubinos – Black Terry Cat CD/LP+MP3 (ANTI-)
With a unique and soulful sound that the The New Yorker described as a “rhythmically fierce, vocally generous music that slips through the net of any known genre,” Rubinos uses her powerful voice to traverse an array of genres from R&B to hip-hop to jazz and beyond, all of it delivered with a New York punk-funk abandon. As Rubinos explains, “Black Terry Cat is a #browngirlmagic carpet ride powered by deep pocket backbeats and funky bass lines. “Lonely Lover” is the first full song I finished for the album — it was a real breakthrough where I felt like I’d created my own sound, and became kind of my mantra for making the rest of the album. I was listening to a lot of R&B, hip-hop, rap, digging into black culture in America as well as the Afro Latin diaspora which I’m a part of.”
Paul Simon – Stranger To Stranger CD/LP (Concord)
Paul Simon’s thirteenth solo album Stranger To Stranger, his first since 2011’s So Beautiful Or What, was inspired in part by 20th century composer Harry Partch, who created custom-made instruments in microtonal tunings. “Paul Simon’s first new album since 2011 on first listen conjures up recollections of his masterpiece Graceland, released 30 years ago, and for good reason. Stranger To Stranger, like Graceland, explores not just a sound that is atypical to the Western ear, but an entire realm of tones. Nothing Simon has ever written — then or now — is simple. Even if he were to write a boy-meets-girl-falls-in-love-lives-happily-ever-after tune, there would be more layers and complexities to it than the US tax code (although to be fair, the lyrics are a lot better reading). Stranger To Stranger is not an album for the faint of heart. Instead, it is a pretty darn challenging and welcome one for someone who has tired of monosyllabic lyrics and music targeting the lowest common denominator of listener” – Cleveland.com/Entertainment. [CD is available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds five bonus tracks.]
Sister Sadie – Sister Sadie CD (Pinecastle)
Debut album for bluegrass’ only all-female supergroup.
Spray Paint – Feel The Clamps CD/LP+MP3 (Goner)
“Aptly labeling themselves ‘avant punk,’ Spray Paint blends classically ambivalent vocals with more experimental elements in order to achieve a unique sound. Perhaps their most defining feature: The space between each steady guitar part and driving bassline is filled with spirals of noise and warped droning that add an element of psychedelia to the otherwise straightforward orchestration.” – Stereogum
Bridget St. John – Dandelion Albums & BBC Recordings Collection 4xCD (Cherry Red)
Discovered and nurtured by the late, great John Peel, Bridget St. John was one of the UK’s leading folk voices of the late ’60s and early ’70s. This comprehensive box set includes the three sensational albums recorded for Peel’s Dandelion label, plus live recordings and recordings made for the BBC between 1968 and 1972.
Byron Sutton – The More I Learn CD (Sugarhill)
As a mountain musician from the bluegrass tradition, Sutton is esteemed in the school of American guitar that includes Doc Watson, Norman Blake, and Tony Rice.
Tegan And Sara – Love You To Death CD/LP (WB)
Tegan and Sara are pop purveyors now — there’s no debating that. Not only did the Sisters Quin prove their remarkable chops on 2013’s synth glitterbomb Heartthrob, but one could theorize that they’ve been practicing for the Big Game on every previous record in some shape or form, whether that’s 2004’s mostly acoustic breakout So Jealous (2004), the more experimental and piano-based pop of The Con (2007), or the touch of Paramore-punk rush on Sainthood (2009). Heartthrob reached the sugar-coated apex of one of the many Everests they’ve conquered, but the sublime new Love You To Death manages to stay there. Even as Love You To Death is the shiniest record the ladies have released yet (largely thanks to Sia/Adele co-conspirator Greg Kurstin), its lyrics are substantially rawer and dig further under the skin than ever before. Heartthrob painted an emotional spectrum with a broad brush, but the language on Love You To Death is tenderly nuanced” – SPIN. [Limited color vinyl copies also available.]
JG Thirwell – Music Of The Venture Bros Volume Two CD/2xLP (Virtual Label Group)
Thirlwell’s oeuvre stretches the gamut from orchestrations, big band, cathartic noise-rock to abstract electronics and sound sculpture, chamber music, serial music and imaginary soundtracks — sometimes all in the same album. Here we have the second volume of music
from the series where once again Thirwell takes the listener on a cinematic roller coaster with thrilling results.
Train – Does Led Zeppelin II CD/LP+MP3 (Crush Music)
The roots rock band performs the entirety of the 1969 sophomore album by Led Zeppelin.
Traveling Wilburys – Traveling Wilburys Collection 2xCD+DVD/3xLP (Concord)
This set contains Traveling Wilburys’ two albums, Vol. 1 and Vol. 3, with bonus tracks and a DVD of the True History Of The Traveling Wilburys mini-documentary and five music videos. [The CD edition is available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe is packaged in a linen-cloth cover with 40-page case-bound book, an envelope containing two postcards, two photo-cards, a fabric sticker of the iconic logo and a uniquely numbered letter of authenticity. Vinyl edition is HQ-180gm in a linen-cloth lift off cover and packaged with collectible 12”x12” 14-page booklet, a 36”x12” foldout color poster; 6 6”x4” sepia color post cards and envelope.]
Troller – Graphic CD (Crucial Blast)
On their acclaimed eponymous debut release, doom-laden Austin, Texas, darkwave outfit Troller introduced a lush, lugubrious sound combining heavy synths, slow-motion rhythms and haunting vocal melodies, woven into infectious, brooding blasts of dark-pop perfection.
William Tyler – Modern Country CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
Modern Country is the fourth full-length album by guitarist and composer William Tyler and his first recorded outside of his hometown of Nashville, Tennessee. It features an ensemble backing group consisting of multi-instrumentalist Phil Cook (Hiss Golden Messenger, Blind Boys of Alabama), bassist Darin Gray (Tweedy, Jim O’Rourke), and percussionist Glenn Kotche (Wilco). While there is never a comfort zone in instrumental music, Tyler attempts to leave any perceived one behind on his new album. Modern Country finds Tyler exploring more focused melodic themes rather than ethereal wanderings. These aren’t pop songs, per se, but they are closer in spirit to Neu!, Penguin Cafe Orchestra, and Bill Frisell. Primarily written while Tyler was on sabbatical in Oxford, Mississippi, where he stayed at the cabin of a family friend within a stone’s throw of William Faulkner’s house, the album is a collection of songs about the vanishing America that still exists on back roads, in small towns, on AM radio stations.
Umberto – Alienation CD/LP (Not Not Fun)
The origin story behind Matt Hill’s perplexingly stark and melancholic new full-length is suitably cryptic: “I had a vision of a man experiencing a series of alienating situations.” Whatever the impetus, Alienation stands as the most fascinatingly atypical Umberto album to date: downcast, subdued, haunted, ethereal.
Useless Eaters – Relaxing Death CD/LP+MP3 (Castle Face)
Full of nervous energy and a gritty industrial vibe, Useless Eaters Seth Sutton recently told The Fader that the new LP is a “concept record with ten different perspectives of people who are experiencing the modern world in rapid decline.”
Various Artists – Motown Gospel Presnets 1 Mic 1 Take CD (Motown)
Motown Gospel has compiled twelve unplugged performances from Smokie Norful, Tasha Cobbs, Brian Courtney Wilson, Myron Butler & Levi, and Royce Lovett. All recordings were completed at Capitol Studios in Hollywood, CA; under the 1 Mic 1 Take brand.
Violent Soho – Waco CD/LP+MP3 (SideOneDummy)
Fourth studio album from internationally acclaimed Australian alternative rock band. Received praise from the likes of Mark Hoppus (Blink 182), Alexander William (All Time Low), Samantha Ronson, and more.
Volebeat – Seal The Deal & Let’s Boogie CD/2xLP (Republic)
New album from the Danish hard rock band. A fusion of rock and roll, heavy metal and rockabilly, Volebeat is inspired by classic rock & roll artists such as Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, as well as modern hard rock, thrash metal, heavy metal, alternative rock and hardcore groups.
Loudon Wainwright III – The Atlantic Recordings [Reissue/1999] CD (Real Gone Music)
Reissue of a 24-track collection of Loudon’s complete Atlantic recordings.
Western Centuries – Weight Of The World CD (Free Dirt)
Round up a country band and an early R&B group with three lead vocalists, weave in a hefty amount of vocal harmony and witty turns-of-phrase, and let ’em rock out like The Band. The sound of roots music mavericks Western Centuries sits at these crossroads, and their debut album Weight Of The World introduces a band as skillful in their musicianship as they are innovative in their writing. [Vinyl version due June 24.]
White Zombie – It Came From N.Y.C. 3xCD/5xLP (Numero)
Years before Beavis and Butt-head headbanged “Thunder Kiss ’65” and “More Human Than Human” into the eternal rock video canon, there was primordial White Zombie — a quintessential, diabolically loud byproduct of Manhattan’s underground rock scene, born of art school rendezvous and squalid apartment circumstance. It Came from N.Y.C. is the most exhaustive attempt so far to document the band’s wondrously ugly birth. Get reintroduced to White Zombie as New York noise-rock, a grotesque creation that clawed and threatened its way to crossover metal glory. On June 3rd 2016, Numero resurrects White Zombie’s eternally out-of-print early EPs and LPs as It Came From N.Y.C. spread across five LPs or three CDs, all 39 tracks have been remastered by guitarist J. Yuenger and packaged alongside the original lurid artwork.
Whitney – Light Upon The Lake CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Secretly Canadian)
Formed from the core of guitarist Max Kakacek (ex-Smith Westerns) and singing drummer Julien Ehrlich (ex-Unknown Mortal Orchestra), to say that Whitney is more than the sum of its parts would be a criminal understatement. The band itself is something bigger, something visionary, something neither of them could have accomplished alone. Their debut, Light Upon The Lake, marks the culmination of a short, but incredibly intense, creative period for the band. Chicago’s Whitney arrive as a fully formed gang of outsiders, their album rich in the musical history of the classic bands of the ‘60s and ‘70s. Classic and modern at the same time, Whitney revels in concrete details, evocative turns of phrase, and thorny emotions that don’t have exact names.
Andre Williams – I Wanna Go Back To Detroit City CD/LP (Bloodshot)
At 79 years old, Andre Mr Rhythm Williams has been a singer, writer, producer, star-maker, showman, cult hero and hustler for six decades. He has been high, and he has been low. For I Wanna Go Back To Detroit City, he wanted to return to his adopted hometown of Detroit – a town that has seen peaks and valleys just like Andre; from hustle and bustle to bust, from drinking out of crystal to drinking out of brown paper.
Edgar Winter – The Definitive Collection 2xCD (Real Gone Music)
This 30-track collection hits all the high points of Winter’s carreer in chronological order.
Nico Yaryan – What A Tease CD/LP+MP3 (PTKF/Partisan)
“Our introduction to LA solo act Nico Yaryan was ‘Just Tell Me,’ a groovy retro pop song that reminds me of the Walkmen with a soulful skip in their step. Now Yaryan has shared full details of his Partisan debut album What A Tease along with the album’s opening song. “Old Gloria” is a grand, midtempo folk-rock ballad in the tradition of Van Morrison. The lyrics tell the story of a woman who’s been burned by her lover and is afraid she’s gotten too old to win the heart of another — presumably the beginning of the album’s narrative about Yaryan working on a marijuana farm to fund his transcontinental romance. Musically, it pulls inspiration from a lot of classic material and stands its ground.” – Stereogum
Paul Young – Good Thing CD/LP (Baked)
New release from the British blue eyed soul vocalist and Los Pacaminos member. On Good Thing, his first solo album in 20 years, Paul has recorded a selection of his favorite Memphis soul tunes including “L-O-V-E (Love),” “Big Bird” and “Your Good Thing (Is About To End).”
DVDs + Blu-ray:
Imagine Dragons – Smoke + Mirrors Live DVD+CD/Blu-ray+CD (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
Performances of their multi-platinum hits and fan favorites with bonus features.
The Rolling Stones – Totally Stripped 4xDVD+CD/4xBlu-ray+CD (Eagle Vision)
Totally Stripped is a newly-revised version of the documentary that was originally made to coincide with the release of The Rolling Stones Stripped album released in November 1995. It tells the story of the two studio sessions and three live shows that made up the Stripped project. This followed the conclusion of the mammoth Voodoo Lounge tour and found The Stones reimagining tracks from their back catalog in pared back versions alongside a couple of carefully chosen covers in the studio and doing smaller scale club gigs to showcase these versions, which was a marked contrast to the huge arenas and stadiums that had hosted the Voodoo Lounge tour. [Vinyl version also available.]
Yanni – Dream Concert: Live From The Great Pyramids Of Egypt Blu-ray (Masteworks)
Would be a dream to set up a PA on the grounds of the Great Pyramid. And Yanni did just that. Probably flown in by helicopter. You are the jury: Blown dream or absolute magic?
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Adam & The Ants – Kings Of The Wild Frontier [Reissue/1980] LP (Sony Legacy)
Limited vinyl LP pressing includes the original UK tracklist. Kings Of The Wild Frontier was the Adam & The Ants’ second album and their commercial breakthrough. After having his previous backing band wooed away by producer Malcolm McLaren, who used them to form Bow Wow Wow, Adam Ant recorded Kings Of The Wild Frontier with guitarist Marco Pirroni as his new
writing partner.
After The Burial – Dig Deep LP+MP3 (Sumerian)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Fifth studio album by the deathcore/prog metal band. [Limited copies pressed on color vinyl.]
Alcest – Souvenirs D’Un Autre Monde [Reissue/2007] LP (Prophecy)
Within a short amount of time, Alcest’s debut Souvenirs D’Un Autre Monde has become a standard work of the post-black-metal movement and is already considered as one of the genre’s indispensable classics.
All Out War – For Those Who Were Crucified [Reissue/1998] LP+MP3 (Victory)
All Out War is one of Victory’s heaviest bands in their roster of metal and hardcore bands. Along with Hatebreed, Strife and Blood For Blood, All Out War paved the way for the current wave of metalcore bands such as Killswitch Engage, As I Lay Dying and Shadows Fall.
Awards Banquet – If Not Now Then Summer LP+MP3 (Scioto)
Awards Banquet is the latest band from Brooklyn-based J.P. Olsen (The Beetkeepers, Burn Barrel and The Malefactors Of Great Wealth), featuring Tyler Evans (Ed Askew, The Black Swans) and Rob Heath (Justin Townes Earle). A record of alternately sunlit and seething originals, it evokes the homemade sonics of Flying Nun, the airiness of Loaded-era Velvet Underground, the menace of Suicide and the fearless experimentation of Sparks and early Eno; all the while supporting Olsen’s signature lyrical wit and memorable, deadpan vocal delivery.
Christian Death – Deathwish [Reissue/1984] LP (Cleopatra)
Clear vinyl reissue of an EP of demos the goth rock band originally released in 1984 but recorded in 1981 just prior to their debut album.
Deftones – B-Sides & Rarities [2005] 2xLP+DVD (Reprise)
Previously released and unreleased B-sides, including a DVD featuring multimedia content and a complete videography.
Derivatives – Forwards, Futures, And Options 12” (Transfusions)
Four distinct and uncompromising tracks that could be loosely associated with minimal techno but with a more complex and certainly darker edge.
Drive Like Jehu – Bullet Train To Vegas b/w Hand Over Fist [Reissue/1992] 7”+MP3 (Merge)
Drive Like Jehu’s sole 7” is back in print. Originally released in 1992, its songs display a harnessing of powers first introduced on their self-titled record from the previous year and later fully realized on their final album, 1994’s Yank Crime.
Lucky Dube – House Of Exile [Reissue/1992] LP (Shanachie)
“South Africa’s foremost reggae star continued to grow with 1992’s House Of Exile. His voice, powerful as always, presented more facets than the trademark Peter Tosh-style baritone that first attracted attention.”
Effetto Joule Mechanic Soldier – Mechanic Soldier LP (Medical Records)
Hailing from Bologna, Italy in the late ’80s, Effetto Joule were brothers Flavio and Valero Biagi, Massimo Chericoni, and Valerio Tassinari. Drawing on influences of the early ’80s new wave and synth pop scene and armed with an arsenal of synthesizers (Korg Poly-800, Roland Alpha Juno-1 and Juno-2, etc.) from the mid ’80s, Effetto Joule crafted their own sound. HQ-180gm translucent green vinyl.
Eluvium – Life Through Bombardment Vol. 2 7xLP (Temporary Residence)
Life Through Bombardment Vol. 2 collects every Eluvium recording made since the release of the first Life Through Bombardment set back in 2009. Packaged similarly to the first — a library-style clothbound hardcover book with seven distinct sleeves featuring new original artwork by longtime collaborator Jeannie Lynn Paske — this is the first time these recordings have been released on vinyl. Includes the albums Similes, Static Nocturne, and Nightmare Ending, as well as the B-sides, remixes, and bonus tracks that accompanied them. Also included is Wisdom For Debris, the rare album that accompanied Paske’s art book of the same name, and finally Curious Things, a full-length bonus album of rare and previously unreleased material recorded from 2009-2015.
Fake Surfers – Cheap Meat LP (X! Records Detroit)
Blazing through 10 tracks of stripped-down, breakneck punk in just under 18 minutes, Fake Surfers keep it direct and urgent on Cheap Meat—their new one-sided LP. The two-piece guitar/drums duo from Detroit have a lot more in common with Bantam Rooster than the White Stripes. Take the raw energy of Necros and Teen Idles/early Dischord and heave it into the meat grinder with the attitude of Cheater Slicks and Reatards lo-fi frustration and out will ricochet Fake Surfers, fully-formed and ready to spew their buzzsaw, snarling, rustbelt anxiety right there in your basement.
Four Years Strong – Explains It All [2009] LP (I Surrender)
A tribute to the pop/punk band’s favorite songs of the ‘90s, including covers of Everclear, Alanis Morissette, Smashing Pumpkins, Third Eye Blind, No Doubt, Pantera, Sugar Ray and Nirvana among others.
Frustrations – Transmissions From The Ether LP (X! Records Detroit)
On their third album, Detroit’s Frustrations evoke the sonic mood of a psychedelic fever dream permeated with the urgent unease of modern life. Careful time was spent honing these tracks at practice and in the studio to create an album with depth that holds up to multiple listens—without sacrificing any of the anxious energy that propels it all. The new album presents a fully fleshed out amalgam of weird punk noisy strain akin to the sonically varied noise rock of Unwound, off-kilter structures of Pere Ubu, and fuzzed out riffs of Mudhoney but all with an acid-fried Detroit vibe.
Kevin Gates – Islah 2xLP+CD (Atlantic)
Released last January on CD – now available on vinyl. New hip-hop from New Orleans. In a statement via Hot New Hip Hop, Gates explained the meaning of the album title Islah. “’Islah’ means to reform, to improve, to make better, and I believe that’s what my first daughter did to me. So I named my first album after my first daughter; because it improved me, it made me better.”
Brantley Gilbert – Halfway To Heaven [2011] LP (Valory)
Sophomore album from the Jefferson, GA native country musician.
Dexter Gordon – Body & Soul [Reissue/1988] LP (ORG Music)
Tenor-saxophonist Dexter Gordon was in peak form when recording at Copenhagen’s Legendary Jazzhus Montmartre in 1967. A portion of that recording would later become Body & Soul, an album originally released by Black Lion Records, which has been out of press on vinyl for almost three decades. HQ-180gm.
Lukas Graham – Lukas Graham LP (WB)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Classically trained with the Copenhagen Boys’ Choir, with a musical scope widened by his Irish folk roots and passion for hip-hop, Lukas Graham possesses a distinct, poetic ability to capture the full range of emotions in his music.
Hard Working Americans – Rest In Chaos LP+MP3 (Melvin)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Fronted by singer/songwriter Todd Snider, the Hard Working Americans includes guitarists Neal Casal (solo artist, Ryan Adams’ Cardinals) and Jesse Aycock, bassist Dave Schools (Widespread Panic), keyboardist Chad Staehly (Great American Taxi), and drummer Duane Trucks (Widespread Panic). This diverse group of musicians has managed to create an inspired mix of American roots music – rock, blues, country – that is delivered with energy, intelligence, and humor. Produced by Schools, Rest In Chaos is said to take the band’s sound into new and exciting new sonic directions. The thirteen-track Rest In Chaos offers a cover of Guy Clark’s “The High Price Of Inspiration,” with Clark himself sitting in on guitar, along with a dozen original songs written by the band while touring, the material recorded live in six different studios.
The Horrors – Strange House [Reissue/2007] LP+7” (Polydor)
Vinyl reissue of the UK Top 40 debut album from British rock band The Horrors. Includes a bonus 7”.
Freddy Hubbard – Straight Life [Reissue/1971] LP (ORG Music)
Arguably trumpeter Freddie Hubbard’s greatest recording, Straight Life features an all-star group that includes tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, keyboardist Herbie Hancock, guitarist George Benson, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Jack DeJohnette. HQ-180gm reissue.
RM Hubbert – Telling the Trees LP (Chemikal Underground)
The extraordinary, tattoo-bedecked, flamenco-inspired guitarist – and dare we say profane raconteur – that is RM Hubbert has returned with a new album and it’s every bit as bold, unpredictable and affecting as we could have dared expect.
Killswitch Engage – Incarnate LP+MP3 (Roadrunner)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Seventh album from the metalcore band. Incarnate follows 2013’s Disarm The Descent and is their second album since the return of original vocalist Jesse Leach and the fourth album overall with Leach in the front man role.
King Khan – Children Of The World b/w Gone Are The Times 7”+MP3 (Merge)
King Khan’s new 7” was inspired by the story of The Invaders, a militant civil rightsgroup from Memphis, Tennessee. An eponymous documentary about the group will be released soon. John B. Smith, founder and leader of The Invaders, invited King Khan & The Shrines to provide the soundtrack to their story. “King Khan is a fiery arrow shot into the night sky which no one knows how high or far it will travel. However, we do know that as that arrow streaks across the heavens, its flames will light up dark places along the way,” wrote Smith. “King Khan’s music can become the voice of many around the world, some of whom have never been heard from before.”
Linkin Park – Reanimation [Reissue/2002] 2xLP (WB)
Linkin Park – Living Things [Reissue/2012] LP (WB)
Limited vinyl reissue of the nu-metal band’s 2002 remix LP and 2012 album.
Local H – As Good As Dead [Reissue/1996] 2xLP+MP3 (SRC Vinyl)
Limited double HQ-180gm color vinyl LP pressing housed in a gatefold sleeve. Includes digital download with ten bonus tracks. As Good As Dead, two-man band Local H’s breakthrough second album, was produced by Steven Haigler (Quicksand, Pixies) and originally released in 1996 on Island Records on CD and cassette.
Lera Lynn – The Avenues [2015] LP (Sands Foley)
“It takes a truly able voice to drop a lead single with barely any words in the chorus, but Lera Lynn — with her dreamlike wordplay, quirky metaphors and fantastically sultry tone — can do just that. ‘La Di Da,’ she sings on the track of the same title, tapping the syllables with her tongue and layering unspoken words through pure inflection. And what a voice it is — never showboating those earthy pipes just for the sake of it, she wanders through a firm but delicate sophomore album that explores the fragile threads of love, meeting somewhere in the country plains between the Twin Peaks world of Chris Isaak and Joni Mitchell’s ‘Urge For Going.’” – Rolling Stone
Man Is The Bastard/Bastard Noise – The Honey Shop LP (Robotic Empire)
Two long-form compositions at nearly 20 minutes each were custom designed, arranged, recorded, mixed and professionally edited by Michael Rozon (The Red List, A Culture of Monsters, Skulldozer and Rogue Astronaut, to name a few). This time around, the lineup consists of New York-based sound designer/performer Anthony Saunders and founding member Eric Wood. These vast, post-Armageddon landscapes are delivered in crystal-clear fashion, accentuated by Wood’s most brutal and extreme vocals to date. Cut by engineer master David Cheppa (NWA, Geto Boys, Black Flag, Kraftwerk, etc.), The Honesty Shop is a must-have for all mutants addicted to hearing more in sound.
Matchess – The Rafter LP (Monofonus Press)
The Rafter is the third LP from Chicago artist Matchess. Synthy, electronic strings, choir ghost vocals, and the pulse of the wind sort of explain what this sounds like.
Keb’ Mo’ – Live: That Hot Pink Blues Album 2xLP (Kind Of Blue Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Keb’ Mo’ delivers some of his best material in the most authentic form, through live recordings. Recorded throughout the past year while on tour, and produced by Casey Wasner, the double-disc album features 16 live recorded songs from Keb’ Mo’s extensive catalog.
Nervosas – Nervosas X2 [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Let’s Pretend)
A repress of the first self-titled album from Nervosas. Dark, anxious, paranoid, manic, obsessive, melodic, misanthropic, gothy, punk. Like if Wipers, X, & Dead Moon were somehow one band. These songs ooze talent and precision, ranging from breakneck hardcore skate punk tempos to a few melow rockers. Pressed on color vinyl with a D-side etching.
Axel Rudi Pell – Oceans Of Time 2xLP+CD (Steamhammer)
Released last January on CD – now available on vinyl. Exceptionally talented German heavy metal guitar wizard Axel Rudi Pell has been at the forefront of the European melodic metal scene for over three decades now.
Pink Floyd – Piper At The Gates Of Dawn [Reissue/1967] LP (Pink Floyd)
Pink Floyd – A Saucer Full Of Secrets [Reissue/1968] LP (Pink Floyd)
Pink Floyd – Ummagumma [Reissue/1969] 2xLP (Pink Floyd)
Pink Floyd – More [Reissue/1969] LP (Pink Floyd)
HQ-180gm vinyl reissues now available.
Pink Floyd – London 1966/1967 12” (Kscope)
Two tracks: “Interstellar Overdrive” and “Nick’s Boogie.” White vinyl.
Prodigy & Alchemist – Albert Einstein [2013] LP (Vodka & Milk)
First time vinyl edition of the collaboration between Mobb Deep’s Prodigy and his musical partner The Alchemist. Albert Einstein is the follow-up to the duo’s 2007 album Return Of The Mac, and features guest appearances from Roc Marciano, Action Bronson, Havoc, Raekwon and Domo Genesis (Odd Future).
The Rolling Stones – Totally Stripped 2xLP+DVD (Eagle Vision)
Totally Stripped is a newly-revised version of the documentary that was originally made to coincide with the release of The Rolling Stones Stripped album released in November 1995. It tells the story of the two studio sessions and three live shows that made up the Stripped project. This followed the conclusion of the mammoth Voodoo Lounge tour and found The Stones reimagining tracks from their back catalog in pared back versions alongside a couple of carefully chosen covers in the studio and doing smaller scale club gigs to showcase these versions, which was a marked contrast to the huge arenas and stadiums that had hosted the Voodoo Lounge tour.
Sacred Few – Beyond Iron Walls [Reissue/1985] 2xLP (Shadow Kingdom)
One of the rare and early heavy metal bands from the US that didn’t play thrash metal.
Severed Heads – Stretcher [Reissue/1985] 2xLP (Medical Records)
After personnel changes in 1985 (Garry Bradbury and Paul Deering left the band), Severed Heads was now down to a two-piece (Tom Ellard and Stephen Jones). Stretcher was originally released to be a compilation to introduce the band to an American audience, but it was ultimately sold in three versions due to other countries desiring their own version (an EP in Canada and England and an LP in Australia). This version is based on the Volition release (Australian version) but with all the tracks from the other versions for a full collection of 17 tracks over two LPs.
Slightly Stoopid – Closer To The Sun [2005] 2xLP (Stoopid)
First time vinyl edition of the Ocean Beach feel-good folk/rock/reggae/blues/hip-hop/metal/punk/funk band’s fourth album.
Regina Spektor – Soviet Kitch [Reissue/2004] 2xLP (Sire)
Regina Spektor – Begin To Hope [Reissue/2006] 2xLP (Sire)
Vinyl reissues of the Russian-born, Bronx-bred singer/songwriter/pianist’s first two albums.
Wynn Stewart – The Very Best Of Wynn Stewart 1958-1962 LP (Varese Sarabande)
Wynn’s early recordings helped forge the Bakersfield Sound, yet this is the first compilation to anthologize the Challenge-label sides that got his career rolling.
Supermoon – Playland 2×7” (Mint)
The self-proclaimed gadabouts of moody pop return. Supermoon’s latest excursion, Playland, bubbles with intelligent, weirdo songs that combine sunny riffs and distorted ring-outs. Coated in sugary vocals with driving bass, spectral guitars and marching drums, the songs of Supermoon wink at something lurking beneath the surface.
Tarentel – From Bone To Satellite [Reissue/1999] 2xLP (Temporary Residence)
One of the most overlooked post-rock classics returns for their label’s 20th anniversary.
Erin Tobey – Middlemaze LP (Let’s Pretend)
Erin Tobey’s energetic songs stomp with shimmering guitars and pop-punk propulsion. This soon gives way to her quintessential starry folk, depicting married love and apocalyptic dread with equal tenderness.
Tombstalker – Black Crusades [2015] LP (Shadow Kingdom)
Established in 2008 these champions of chaos have been harnessing their unique blend of Kentucky-style black and death metal fury and, not unlike North Korea, “are prepared to conquer all in their path.”
Robert Turman & Aaron Dilloway – Blizzard 2xLP (Fabrica)
Recorded in the midst of an actual extreme winter weather event, Blizzard conjures the early synthesizer experiments of Popol Vuh and Tangerine Dream combined with the gritty reel-to-reel tape manipulations long employed by both Aaron Dilloway (Hanson Records / ex-Wolf Eyes) and
Robert Turman (founding member of the pioneering industrial outfit NON and a celebrated solo artist in his own right).
Unleashed – Where No Life Dwells [1991] LP (Century Media)
Back in the late ‘80s, a Swedish underground death metal band named Nihilist turned into the breeding ground from which two big players of the genre emerged: Entombed and Unleashed. Together with Grave and Dismember (R.I.P.), these bands are crucial for turning the punkish Scandinavian death metal sound into a global phenomenon, defining and refining its stylistics, and making it a successful genre to the very day. Parallel to records by Asphyx, Tiamat, Grave, and Morgoth, Unleashed’s debut album, Where No Life Dwells, is one of many all-time-classics of death metal.
We Remember Dennis Brown – We Remember Dennis Brown LP (VP)
Dennis Brown is one of the most influential vocalists among reggae musicians and was noted to be Bob Marley’s favorite singer. His iconic status and pivotal place in the history of reggae music is highlighted by the range of contemporary artists and power in the musical selections on We Remember Dennis Brown. The album blends romantic love songs and ballads with roots and revolutionary songs made famous and (mostly) written by Brown. [CD version due July 1.]
The end.
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