September Program Titles Released This Week:
Ghostland Observatory – See You Later Simulator CD/LP (Trashy Moped)
“It’s called See You Later Simulator,” Aaron Behrens says of Ghostland Observatory’s first new album in eight years. “I’ve always been on the sci-fi edge of things, which is just a reflection of being a child of the ‘80s and growing up with video games and computers, but also remembering a time before those things were common. I think all of that comes into play on this record. It’s a real comment on what’s going on right now, and on trying to figure out what’s reality and what’s a simulation.” See You Later Simulator finds Behrens and longtime partner Thomas Ross Turner bouncing back from an extended hiatus to create music that ranks with their most ambitious and timely work with tracks like “Paradise Lost”, “Permanent Vacation” and “Miss Abyss” delivering both uplifting electro-dance-rock and a loose but absorbing storyline.
Paul McCartney – Egypt Station CD/2xLP (Capitol)
Sharing a title with one of Paul McCartney’s own paintings, Egypt Station is the first full album of all-new McCartney music since 2013’s NEW. True to the inspiration behind its title, Egypt Station’s 14 songs combine to convey a unique travelogue vibe. Between the opening and closing instrumentals “Station I” and “Station II”, each song finds Paul capturing a place or moment before transporting the listener seamlessly to the next destination. Stops along the way include an acoustic meditation on present day contentedness (“Happy With You”), a timeless anthem that would fit on virtually any album of any McCartney era (“People Want Peace”), and an epic multi-movement closer clocking in at seven minutes with a song suite structure harkening back to the days of Paul’s previous combos (“Despite Repeated Warnings”). The result is a kaleidoscopic journey through myriad musical locales and eras, yet firmly rooted in the here and now – with Paul’s singular unmistakable melodic and lyrical sensibility serving as a guide. [Deluxe 180gm vinyl pressing with concertina trifold six-panel gatefold packaging also available.]
Pig Destroyer – Head Cage CD/LP (Relapse)
After six long, harsh years of absence, the mighty Pig Destroyer has reassembled to eradicate eardrums and split skulls with their highly anticipated sixth full-length opus, Head Cage (named after a grisly medieval torture device). A visceral vortex of animalistic rage and extreme sonic brilliance, Head Cage is a true work of extreme metal art, that with the addition of a bass player, is one their most dynamic and heaviest recordings. Across 12 tracks, Pig Destroyer weave together harrowing tales of philosophical dualities, touching on mortality and depression, fear and violence, and the darkest complexities of the human condition, all told through the distorted lens of delightfully transgressive vocalist/lyricist JR Hayes. Musically, the band continues to push the boundaries of metal, grindcore, noise and punk, ramping up the intensity and leaving you bludgeoned in a state of utter shock, all in less than 33 minutes.
The Posies – Frosting On The Beater [Reissue/1993] 2xCD (Omnivore)
Double-CD reissue remastered from original tapes and expanded with 31 bonus tracks—15 previously unissued. “We began our career exactly 30-years prior by releasing a home-recorded cassette called Failure, which to our complete surprise became an instant favorite around the Northwest, earning us critical accolades, radio airplay, and major label interest, all in a very short time. We were lucky to find ourselves living just a few doors down the road in Seattle from Arthur “Rick” Roberts and Mike Musburger, who agreed to join our band on bass and drums, respectively. Signed to Geffen Records, we recorded three releases, 1990’s Dear 23, Frosting On The Beater in 1993, and Amazing Disgrace in 1996. The trio of albums remain beloved by our fans; our most popular, most often cited, most requested works. However, over the years, they have either been long out of print or not issued at all depending on the territory. [Vinyl edition due October 5.]
Paul Simon – In The Blue Light CD/LP (Legacy/Sony)
Legendary songwriter, recording artist and performer Paul Simon returns with his fourteenth studio album, In The Blue Light. The album features a talented cast of musicians who have joined Simon to lend fresh perspectives on 10 of the artist’s favorite (though perhaps less-familiar) songs, drawn from his unparalleled body of work. Revisiting his repertoire, Simon has selected songs originally appearing on There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (1973), Still Crazy After All These Years (1975), One-Trick Pony (1980), Hearts And Bones (1983), The Rhythm Of The Saints (1990), You’re The One (2000) and So Beautiful Or So What (2011), refreshing and transforming the compositions through new arrangements and collaborations. Among the many musicians joining Simon on the album are trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, guitarist Bill Frisell, and drummers Jack DeJohnette and Steve Gadd.
Spiritualized – And Nothing Hurt CD/LP+MP3 (Fat Possum)
From the opening lullaby of “A Perfect Miracle” through to the Morse Code fadeout at the close of “Sail On Through”, on And Nothing Hurt Spiritualized wrap layer upon layer of gloriously transcendent sound together to create a mesmerizing and cinematic collection of songs. There are points where the waves of blissful noise are almost overwhelming – the thunderous climax of “On The Sunshine”; the spectral waltz of “The Prize”; the towering guitar solo on “I’m Your Man” – where one can imagine the studio’s speakers vibrating themselves off of the walls. Which is an incredible feat when you discover that the album was conceived and recorded almost entirely by one man – Jason Pierce aka J.Spaceman – in an upstairs room in his east London home. With no grounding in digital recording, Jason had to learn everything from scratch. [Deluxe white colored vinyl pressing with 24-page booklet and custom two-piece outer box packaging also available.]
Swamp Dogg – Love, Loss, And Auto-Tune CD/LP (Joyful Noise)
In 1970, the Southern soul music maverick Jerry Williams, Jr. made the most radical move of his career. Frustrated with music business politics Williams reinvented himself as Swamp Dogg, an irreverent anti-hero smashing the conventions of commercial R&B music. Swamp Dogg’s debut release Total Destruction To Your Mind featured a post-apocalyptic take on the Muscle Shoals’ sound, with lyrics inspired by the revolutionary politics and psychedelic drugs of the late ‘60s. The music on Total Destruction To Your Mind stood worlds apart from the formulaic pop tunes Williams started cutting in 1954 under the name Little Jerry, and Swamp Dogg hasn’t looked back since. Now, nearly fifty years after his debut release, Swamp Dogg stands on the precipice of another radical reinvention. His latest creation, Love, Loss, and Auto-Tune, is a nine song collection that finds Swamp Dogg’s bluesy southern soul colliding head-on with 21st Century electronic music production techniques.
October Program Titles Released This Week:
Idles – Joy As An Act Of Resistance CD/LP (Partisan)
Joy As An Act of Resistance is the follow up to Bristol, UK five-piece Idles’ debut album Brutalism, self-released in 2017. Produced by Space and mixed by Adam Greenspan and Nick Launay (Nick Cave, Kate Bush, Yeah Yeah Yeahs), the 12-track collection takes aim at everything from toxic masculinity, nationalism, immigration, and class inequality – all while maintaining a visceral, infectious positivity. Singer Joe Talbot summarizes: “This album is an attempt to be vulnerable to our audience and to encourage vulnerability; a brave naked smile in this shitty new world. We have stripped back the songs and lyrics to our bare flesh to allow each other to breathe, to celebrate our differences, and act as an ode to communities and the individuals that forge them. Because without our community, we’d be nothing.” [Limited pink colored vinyl edition also available.]
Ruston Kelly – Dying Star CD/2xLP (Rounder)
The release of Dying Star follows a breakout year for the Nashville-based artist, whose debut EP, Halloween, was released in April 2017 to widespread acclaim. Of the music, Rolling Stone praised that it “…shows a powerful grasp on storytelling gleaned from his love of the Carter Family and Townes Van Zandt, but also a more ragged rock & roll soul: it’s Americana, if your Americana is Bruce Springsteen with an acoustic guitar, sung by someone who spins a little heavy metal too.” Of Dying Star, Kelly comments, “A lot of my music is focused on suffering, or trying to understand the human condition through the lens of suffering…which probably sounds totally depressing, but it’s actually the flipside of that. Sometimes you’ve gotta go into that darkness – you need to get lost and then figure out for yourself how to find your way back. That’s the only way we can find pure joy, and really be thankful for the life we’ve been given.”
Donna Missal – This Time CD (Harvest)
Rising New Jersey singer/songwriter Donna Missal’s mighty set of pipes fit somewhere between the smoky pop softness of Lana Del Rey, the soulful strength and grit of Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard and the retro rocker howl of Janis Joplin. The songstress’ trifecta appeal carries her with a lighted torch to the forefront of today’s crowded musical landscape. Her striking debut single, “Keep Lying”, blew up after it premiered on Zane Lowe’s Beats 1. About the Tim Anderson (Solange, BANKS, Halsey) produced follow-up “Girl”, Lowe said, “I love the modern production, the feel of it. But it also has like a timeless, latter-day Prince vibe to it.”
[Vinyl edition due September 28.]
Bob Seger & The Last Heard – Heavy Music: The Complete Cameo Recordings 1966-1967 CD/LP (Abkco)
Rare material from the Detroit rocker’s pre-stardom band The Last Heard, available for the first time since their origination as 45rpm singles newly mastered. Bob Seger contributed to several local Detroit groups leading up to his breakthrough success with Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man (1969) and Night Moves (1976). While serving as keyboard player and occasional singer in Doug Brown & The Omens, Seger met his future manager Edward “Punch” Andrews who co-owned the Hideout Records label. After The Omens split up, Seger formed his own group and while writing for The Underdogs, another band on Hideout, co-authoring their single “Get Down On Your Knees”. After a failed attempt by The Underdogs to record the Seger-penned “East Side Story”, Seger was encouraged to record it himself and it was released by Hideout in June of 1966 under the name Bob Seger. The fantastic single was quickly reissued by Cameo Records just six months later, with Bob Seger & The Last Heard on the label, cementing the band’s name. Stylistically, Bob Seger & The Last Heard went beyond the simple garage rock stomp and stammer formula and spread their wings lyrically and sonically in a few short years.
St. Paul & The Broken Bones – Young Sick Camellia CD/LP+MP3 (Records LLC/Red Music)
With Young Sick Camellia, Paul Janeway has created an album based on a concept all-too familiar to him: family, and how we love them despite our differences. Originally envisioning the project as a trio of EPs, each from the perspective of the three generations of Janeway men, he realized he had enough material in the first volume – written from his own vantage – to make a full-length record. Assigning himself the image of a camellia, the Alabama state flower, Janeway uses his lyrics as a conduit for interpersonal conversation and excision, in addition to pieces of an actual conversation with his grandfather he recorded months before his unexpected death. From the opening space-opus of “Convex” to the snappy, buoyant charm of “Apollo” and the intensely personal bent of “LivWithoutU” and the album-ending “Bruised Fruit,” it’s clear that this is a dark, cerebral affair. Young Sick Camellia embraces a variety of sonic experiments and blurs boundary lines, but its focus remains sharply on the titular frontman and his bold, intensely personal and brave examination of his own family tree and how it has shaped him. [Limited brown colored vinyl pressing also available.]
$uicideboy$ – I Want To Die In New Orleans CD/LP (G59)
“In a time where rap skills have become synonymous with clout goggles and laptop mics, cousins Scott “$crim” Arceneaux Jr. and Aristos “Ruby da Cherry” Pertrou have risen above the silliness by becoming one of the most influential voices of the melancholic rap community…As $uicideboy$ have gained substantial ground, their ability to tour all over the map is indebted to their open-mindedness towards influences near and far. Starting off with a love of New Orleans legends from 5th Ward Weebie to Lil Wayne, Ruby and $crim have also cited Southern rap icons Three 6 Mafia for their flavor, and of course, in terms of their delivery, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. Meanwhile, local crust and vast vaporwave scenes play their hand at both sound and aesthetics. These countless factors have, in turn, produced countless mixtapes and EPs. Anticipation of first full-length I Want to Die In New Orleans thrives…” – CLVT Nation [Limited opaque grey colored vinyl pressing also available.]
William Elliott Whitmore – Kilonova CD/LP+MP3 (Bloodshot)
Alt-country/folk/blues singer/songwriter William Elliott Whitmore follows up his 2015 album Radium Death with a collection of 10 select cover songs that have influenced his 15+ year career. From The Magnetic Fields, Bad Religion, ZZ Top, Johnny Cash, Bill Withers, Captain Beefheart, Dock Boggs, to Bill Withers and more, each song offers a glimpse into how his attitude and aesthetic were formed, like a series of tattoos and scars.
CDs + Vinyl:
AHI – We Made It Through The Wreckage CD/LP (22nd Sentry)
With a voice like “gravel on silk,” Canadian songwriter and independent recording artist AHI (pronounced “eye”) blends folk, soul and rock.
Alter Bridge featuring The Parallax Orchestra – Live At The Royal Albert Hall 2xCD/3xLP (Napalm)
Live release from the hard rockers recorded at the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London. [Limited vinyl pressing features an etching on the D-side. Stand-alone DVD and Blu-ray editions also available.]
Eric Bachmann – No Recover CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
There was something sinister about Crooked Fingers, both the name of the project and the music that Eric Bachmann wrote at the helm of its ever-shifting lineups over 15 years. He retired the moniker a couple of years ago, but with his third album under his own name, the transformation feels gorgeous and final and irreversible: No Recover. The drunken louts and red devil dawns are a thing of the past now, monuments to a different time. Bachmann, husband and recent father, has some new lenses through which to view the world. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Alina Baraz – The Color Of You CD/LP (Mom + Pop Music)
Using color as a metaphor and a means of describing the discovery of new emotions, The Color Of You sees Alina thrive with her trademark vocal effervescence while exploring new sensual and striking production directions. The album thematically explores young love and musically captivates with an allover bigger sound, reflective of today’s updated pop genre, a mix of R&B and electronic styles.
Boston Manor – Welcome To The Neighbourhood CD/LP (Pure Noise)
Produced by Mike Sapone (Taking Back Sunday, Mayday Parade, Public Enemy), Welcome To The Neighbourhood is a soundtrack to disenfranchisement set in a fictionalized version of the band’s hometown.
Apollo Brown & Locksmith – No Question CD/LP+MP3 (Mello Music Group)
Released in July on vinyl – now available on CD. West Coast Berkeley grad, battle rapper and musician Locksmith has hammered out a reputation as one of hip-hop’s most enlightened no punch pulling emcees, always bringing cutting lyricism that not only questions the status quo but offers deep truths for reflection. Meanwhile Detroit’s Apollo Brown has built his illustrious career on emotive productions that draw the best out of already legendary mic kings. From his work with Ras Kass and OC, Skyzoo to Ghostface Killah, Apollo repeatedly creates eyes shut, head nodding, soul stirring perfection for our greatest storytellers to lay their truth bare.
Kirby Brown – Uncommon Prayer CD (Kirby Brown)
Kirby Brown is somewhat new to the Nashville scene and has been making himself known through gigging around town. His new album, Uncommon Prayer, was recorded at the legendary FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, AL.
Chris Butler & Ralph Carney – Songs For Unsung Holidays CD/LP+MP3 (Smog Veil)
Smog Veil Records is honored to release this last record from Ralph Carney, a celebration of the ridiculous and sublime. Celebrate your individuality on the most insane, inane, and irrelevant holidays imaginable. If it’s Tuesday it must be Bubble Wrap Day or Penguin Awareness Day so throw a party with Chris Butler (Tin Huey, The Waitresses) and Ralph Carney (“The King of the New Wave Horns”). [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Cauldron – New Gods CD/LP (The End)
Born from the ashes of genre-defining, critically-lauded Goat Horn – known for being heavily influenced by Black Sabbath, Venom, and Judas Priest – which called it a day in 2006, frontman Jason Decay wasted no time in putting together Cauldron to continue with his heavy metal vision. Cut to 2018 and the recovery from a near-fatal crash, the Toronto-based band unleashes their fifth studio effort, New Gods.
Steven A. Clark – Where Neon Goes To Die CD/LP (Secretly Canadian)
Where Neon Goes To Die explores a complex relationship full of highs and lows. From sultry pop to heart aching ballads, the album retells Clark’s travels through the city’s nocturnal fantasy land through hooky, R&B-infused synth pop-file it alongside Prince and Frank Ocean – that (maybe ironically) could fill the floors at the same clubs he’s singing about.
Clutch – Book of Bad Decisions CD/LP (Weathermaker Music)
Clutch’s twelfth studio album was recorded over three weeks at Sputnik Studios in Nashville, TN with four-time Grammy winning producer Vance Powell (Seasick Steve, The White Stripes, Arctic Monkeys). No stranger to the road, Powell spent three days on tour with the band in order to get a feel for what they do best, watching first from the front of house and then from the stage, checking out the live sound and how Clutch connect with their audience. With each band member contributing riffs to the album there was no shortage of material, each song road-tested long before it reached the studio. [Deluxe edition CD features a 24-page hardcover Clutch art-book package. Limited picture disc vinyl pressing also available.]
Alice Coltrane – Spiritual Eternal–The Complete Warner Bros. Studio Recordings 2xCD (Real Gone Music)
After the death of John Coltrane, Alice Coltrane embarked upon a solo career that was marked with the same uncompromising vision, spiritual probing, and formal innovation as that of her husband. Her first seven solo albums were recorded for the Impulse! label, home to John during the latter part of his career; those records saw her branch out in unexpected ways, introducing new instruments (harp, Wurlitzer organ), new styles (raga, modern classical), and new approaches to recording, even incorporating classical string sections into a “free” musical environment. By the mid-‘70s, however, the Warner Bros. label was aggressively pursuing a number of Impulse! artists, with Alice at the top of the list.
The Coral – Move Through The Dawn CD/LP (Ignition)
New studio album from British indie legends, recorded at Parr Street Studios in Liverpool and produced by band and Rich Turvey. The 11-track collection is the influential Hoylake five-piece’s follow-up to 2016’s critically acclaimed Distance Inbetween. The band cites Phil Spector’s ’70s albums with The Ramones and Dion as a key influence on Move Through The Dawn, music which brought “a big sound” whilst holding onto a sense of innocence.”
Julee Cruise – The Voice Of Love [Reissue/1993] CD/2xLP (Sacred Bones)
Julee Cruise – Three Demos [Reissue/1993] CDEP/12” (Sacred Bones)
Recently released on vinyl – now available on CD. Twenty-five years after its initial release, Julee Cruise’s sophomore album The Voice Of Love is being reissued on CD and pressed for the first time on vinyl. It would mark the final full-length collaboration between Cruise, David Lynch, and Angelo Badalamenti. [Limited colored vinyl pressings are also available.]
The Durutti Column – M24J (Anthology) CD/2xLP+MP3 (Factory Benelux)
The Durutti Column – Without Mercy [Reissue/1984] CD/2xLP+MP3 (Factory Benelux)
2018’s M24J (Anthology) is a collection of valuable passages recorded by The Durutti Column between 1979 and 2011 for various iterations of Factory Records, including poignant tributes to manager/mentor Anthony H. Wilson. Without Mercy was originally issued in 1984 and widely regarded as Vini Reilly’s most ambitious album. It has been digitally remastered and expanded.
Eartheater – Irisiri CD/LP (Pan)
Eartheater (aka Queens based artist Alexandra Drewchin) distills foley-filled digital production, a three-octave vocal range, and classical composition into works suspended between obsessively detailed sonic tapestries and almost recklessly romantic and gestural electronica. Modular synth staccato plucks hammer out in arrhythmic spirals over a carefully muzzled grid of pumping kicks — unleashed in unpredictable disruptions. Technoid stabs mingle with crushed black metal.
Einstürzende Neubauten – Grundstück [Reissue/2005] CD+DVD/LP+DVD (Potomak)
Originally issued in 2005 as a small limited edition, the much sought-after Grundstück is now officially available as a CD and also for the first time ever as an LP, each including a DVD with previously unpublished film recordings of the project and an extensive booklet. With their noise-laden anti-pop, Einstürzende Neubauten has established itself as one of the most radical, unpredictable and unconventional avant-garde bands in the popular music scene.
Escape-ism – The Lost Record CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
“A classic, destined to bewitch the minds, hearts, and dancing shoes of any rock ‘n’ roll fan who happens to discover it, for as long as such creatures exist. Without the high-octane hype machine of the mind-control minstrels who hypnotize the hapless through the mass media, The Lost Record is bound for inevitable obscurity, but – with its timeless tunes, poignant message, and innovative sound – rediscovery and immortal status is equally assured!” [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Estelle – Lover’s Rock CD (VP)
Born in West London to a Senegalese/Grenadian family, as a child, Estelle was exposed to African music, Gospel, reggae and dub. With Lovers Rock, her fifth album, the inspiration goes back to some of her earliest musical influences. The album features new productions from Supa Dups (“Come Over”) and guest vocals from stars in reggae, African and R&B genres.
Everlast – Whitey Ford’s House Of Pain CD (Martyr Inc.)
Platinum-selling artist Everlast returns with his first full-length studio album of original material since 2011’s Songs of the Ungrateful Living. Whitey Ford’s House Of Pain is his seventh solo studio effort overall and offers an eclectic stylistic sampling from throughout Everlast’s nearly-three-decade-long journey.
Mike Farris – Silver & Stone CD/2xLP (Compass)
Farris’ voice, widely known for its power and range, becomes a vessel for something more subtle but infinitely more rare and challenging to capture-the pure, authentic nature of returning to your roots. Musically, Silver & Stone delves deep into Farris’ background with a wide range of influences, drawing as much from Stevie Wonder and Bill Withers as from Bon Scott and Steve Marriott.
Thomas Fehlmann – Los Lagos CD/2xLP (Kompakt)
At 61, Fehlmann is a longstanding member of The Orb, a multi-talented composer and a boundless experimentalist. In the twilight of his collaboration with Alex Paterson, he was eager to taste the flavors of the unknown again. As goes with that essential love of his for the free-flowing
nature of electronic music, this is a fascination born out of its “lack of borders”, capable of “inventing, changing the emphasis, and experimenting with an unpredictable outcome”; Los Lagos “freely connects disparate extremes. Art, disco, minimalism, schmalz, jazz and funk; as he likes to say, Fehlmann’s head functions as a sampler, capturing elements and re-assembling them under his own embracing perspective.
Gold Star – Uppers And Downers CD/LP (Autumn Tone)
Marlon Rabenreither began his solo project as Gold Star in 2013 and now releases his third album, Uppers And Downers. “What artists do is reactionary to what they did before,” he reasons. “I wanted to do the opposite of my previous LP, Big Blue, and make this record a collection of songs.” Hence the title, which isn’t a strictly literal reference to different mental states, or even medication, but rather to the diversity of song styles. The idea was to achieve a deeper scope, a more dynamic range: slow songs, fast songs, less genre specific, capturing all the moods.”
Grateful Dead – Pacific Northwest ’73-’74: Believe It If You Need It 3xCD (Grateful Dead Production)
Triple-CD live archive release.
Haunt – Burst Into Flame CD/LP (Shadow Kingdom)
Haunt began as the work of modern renaissance man Trevor William Church. Son of Montrose/Sammy Hagar solo bassist Bill “The Electric” Church, the California native came to prominence as the vocalist/guitarist of doom-lords Beastmaker. However, as Haunt, Church went solo and created a bewitching brew of classic, turn-of-the-’80s heavy metal, drawing deeply from the momentous NWOBHM movement.
Hobo Johnson – The Rise Of Hobo Johnson CD (WB)
Real name Frank Lopes, Hobo Johnson plays what he describes as a kind of “Sad Boi Hip-Hop”, which is an accurate descriptor. From his slam-poet-rapped vocals, emo influences, hip-hop production, minimal and ambient instrumentation, overly dramatic themes, and bluntly honest lyrics.
Infera Bruo – Cerement CD/LP (Prosthetic)
Featuring members of Trap Them, Cul de Sac, and Pillory, New England black metal quartet Infera Bruo take discordant riffs, blast beat drums and moving harmonies and takes the listener on a journey who doesn’t realize his or her whereabouts until after the album is over. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.”
Ital Tek – Bodied CD (Planet Mu)
As on his last album, the sounds on Bodied are highly designed, but this time barely a whisper of dance music remains. Instead it’s built around acoustic elements and ghostly choral arrangements, refracted and transformed into atmospheric, alien forms which are given the time to settle and transform. Rhythm is used only as a tool to give his world a sense of dark, mechanical momentum. [Vinyl edition due September 21.]
Jeff The Brotherhood – Magick Songs CD (Dine Alone)
Magick Songs marks a departure from Jeff The Brotherhood’s previous sound. Elements of ‘80s Japanese experimental music meld with Indonesian Gamelan forms, clever improvisation and abundant hand percussion, and synthesizer. Later, it’s dreamy and ethereal, evoking psychedelic rock and ‘90s indie styles. [Vinyl edition due October 12.]
Ruston Kelly – Dying Star CD/2xLP (Rounder)
Ruston Kelly’s highly anticipated full-length debut, Dying Star, was co-produced with Jarrad K (Kate Nash, Weezer) and recorded at Sonic Ranch in El Paso, TX. It includes 14 songs written/co-written by Kelly and features Kelly (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, xylophone, harmonica), Jarrad K (12-string guitar, background vocals, electric guitar, Rhodes), Tim Kelly (pedal steel), Ian Fitchuk (piano, organ, drums, percussion), Eli Beaird (bass) and Kyle Ryan (banjo) as well as background vocals from Jon Green, Natalie Hemby, Kacey Musgraves, Kate York, Abby Sevigny and Joy Williams.
Kingcrow – The Persistence CD/2xLP (Sensory)
New release from the Italian rockers. Kingcrow is influenced by progressive rock, alternative rock, ambient music, metal, and more are all present in the band’s songs.
Korpiklaani – Kulkija CD/2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
The Finnish folk metallers return with their 10th studio album.
Lenny Kravitz – Raise Vibration CD/2xLP+CD (BMG Rights)
With his eleventh studio album Lenny Kravitz continues to transcended genre and it promises to be one of the most eclectic of the multi-Grammy winner’s nearly 30-year career. “Low”, the song that got the whole process started, developed into a smooth funk showcase; what Kravitz calls “my Quincy Jones school” complete with horns and a string arrangement. The title track is lean power-trio rock, while the ballad “Here To Love” features Kravitz backed only by his piano and a string section. “Johnny Cash”, inspired by an encounter with the late legend, is what Kravitz calls “psychedelic funk meets country.” As usual, Kravitz plays most of the instruments himself, with longtime guitarist Craig Ross. [Deluxe CD and colored and picture disc vinyl editions in special packaging also available.]
Krisiun – Scourge Of The Enthroned CD/2xLP+CD (Century Media)
Brazilian death metal brothers Krisiun return with their eleventh studio album. [Limited silver colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Led Zeppelin – The Song Remains The Same [Reissue/1976] 2xCD/4xLP/2xCD+4xLP+3xDVD (Atlantic)
Multi-format reissue of the soundtrack to the legendary concert film of the same name, which
was originally released in 1976. The performances in the film were recorded July 27-29, 1973 at Madison Square Garden during the band’s tour for its then-current studio album, Houses Of The Holy. [Along with the double-CD and 4xLP reissues, a Super Deluxe edition is also available which adds a double-DVD of the full theatrical version of the film plus bonus content plus another DVD of the entire album in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and PCM Stereo.]
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears – The Difference Between Me & You CD (Black Joe Lewis)
[Vinyl edition due October 12.]
Sonically inspired by the hill country blues of Junior Kimbrough, cowpunk style of The Gun Club, and the southern soul of Stax, The Difference Between Me & You charts new territory with a heavy stream of lyrical consciousness. Mining his first decade of experience on the road, the record is influenced by a deep repertoire of sounds: the heavy grooves of Albert King, punked-up blues of R.L. Burnside, the storytelling of Bobby “Blue” Bland, and the soulfully layered horns of the Stones, are all omnipresent throughout.
Chris Liebing – Burn Slow CD/2xLP (Mute)
Burn Slow features vocal contributions from a diverse range of artists including Miles Cooper Seaton (Akron / Family), labelmate Polly Scattergood (On Dead Waves), Cold Cave, Aleen and Gary Numan. Burn Slow is a minimalist electronic epic and the start of a new chapter for one of techno’s leading authorities. It might not be what you expect for a DJ synonymous with fast, hard, and heavy techno, but according to Liebing, he’s always been something of a slow starter. “I’ve wanted to do something like Burn Slow all my life,” he says.
Eric Lindell – Revolution In Your Heart CD (Alligator)
With his raspy, soulful voice and instantly memorable original songs, roots-rocking multi-instrumentalist Eric Lindell is a true one-of-a-kind talent. Mixing West Coast rock and swampy New Orleans R&B with honky tonk country and Memphis soul, Lindell creates American roots music that is both surprisingly fresh and sweetly familiar.
Manimal – Purgatorio CD/LP (AFM)
Modern and trend-setting power metal. [Limited colored vinyl pressings are also available.]
Maribou State – Kingdoms In Colour CD/LP (Counter)
Maribou State’s first full-length since 2015’s breakthrough debut album Portraits features new single “Feel Good” – a collaboration born of their friendship with Houston-based trio Khruangbin and a shared love of breakbeats, vintage surf riffs and a common desire to explore worldwide music cultures. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Kathy Mattea – Pretty Bird CD (Captain Potato)
From a playful take on Oliver Wood’s “Chocolate On My Tongue” to a tender rendition of Mary Gauthier’s “Mercy Now,” from a British traditional to a Bobbie Gentry classic, these are the songs that helped Mattea reclaim her voice, and she inhabits each as fully as if it were her own.
¡Mayday! – South Of 5th CD (Strange Music)
With a reggae tinged vibe, the fellas in ¡Mayday! once again immerse you in the sonic landscape of their city, Miami.
Metal Allegiance – Volume II: Power Drunk Majesty CD/LP (Nuclear Blast)
Built around the core group of David Ellefson (Megadeth), Alex Skolnick (Testament), Mike Portnoy (Winery Dogs), and principal partner Mark Menghi, all-star metal outfit Metal Allegiance was formed in 2011 with the intention to “unite a collection of hard rock and heavy metal’s most notable musicians in a setting born under one ideal, a love of music and performing.” Their second album An adrenaline-soaked, thrash-worshipping, groove-driven affair. [Limited black and orange colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Milo Greene – Adult Contemporary CD/LP (Nettwerk)
The genre of “adult contemporary” is characterized by its exceptional euphony. In skill, it effortlessly mingles sounds. In intent, it envelops itself in harmonies. In spirit, it has the beguiling ability to disarm listeners. That’s why L.A.’s Milo Greene, the always-evolving indie-pop band, chose the genre as its muse and namesake for their third album.
Mirah – Understanding CD/LP (K Records)
Mirah’s sixth full length solo record is a conscious return to her early unconventional recording process – an embrace of spirited imperfection and rawness inclusive of rough takes, natural room sounds and a fair amount of broken equipment. Bathed it he sparkles of disco ball light, Mirah recorded demos with vocals, guitar, organ and percussion in a former army barracks gymnasium at The Headlands Center for the Arts where she spent four weeks as an artist in residence. Once home in Brooklyn, Mirah teamed up with her frequent co-producer Eli Crews (tUnE-yArDs, The Julie Ruin, Son Lux) and invited Deerhoof’s Greg Saunier to join them in the studio. The collaboration sparked new textures and ideas. Building on top of Mirah’s vibrant original tracks they used MIDI to transform a marimba into a distorted farfisa melody, drastically lowered the pitch of vocals until they morphed into sub-bass lines and added layers of distinct timbres from Crews’ extensive vintage synth collection, a mellotron and an ‘80s era Soviet drum machine.
The Molochs – Flowers In The Spring CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Innovative Leisure)
Clear, concise, immediate, undeniable, simple, direct pop songs.
Monstrosity – The Passage Of Existence CD/LP (Metal Blade)
2018 sees the return of Florida death/tech metal pioneers Monstrosity with their first new music in almost ten years. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Shannen Moser – I’ll Sing CD/LP (Lame-O)
Hailing from Berks County Pennsylvania, Shannen Moser grew up steeped in folk and country music. Influenced by the historically rich area, stretching farmland, and local folkers, Shannen credits the area with giving her the tools to write the music she does today.
Mothers – Render Another Ugly Method CD/2xLP+MP3 (ANTI-)
Sophomore album from the indie rock band. They describe their new record as “an assemblage of personal vignettes and imagine scenarios that examines consent, escape of the body, power & powerlessness, and the act of making.” [Limited yellow colored vinyl pressing also available.]
The Munsters – The Munsters [Reissue/1964] CD/LP (Real Gone Music)
Did you know Herman, Grandpa, Lily, Marilyn and Eddie Munster doubled as a rock and roll band? Despite the subhead on the album proclaiming them as “The Newest Teen-Age Singing Group,” they weren’t a real band, but that didn’t stop the label execs at Decca Records from trying to cash in on the then-new CBS hit TV show. Veteran producers Joe Hooven and Hal Winn had the good sense to hire the Wrecking Crew (most notably Glen Campbell and Leon Russell) to play this surf-tinged set of songs. [Limited green colored vinyl pressing also available.]
New Reveille – The Keep CD (Loud & Proud)
On The Keep, New Reveille’s distinctive talents find common ground in traditions that stretch back to and beyond early America. On that foundation, through their varied gifts, they build a unique sound that encompasses the virtues of music that came before and the promise of what it might yet become. Their sound: Amy Kamm on lead vocals, Daniel Cook on banjo and guitar, George Hage on guitar, Autumn Brand on violin — an Americana lineup so far. But there’s also Kaitlin Grady on cello, adding a classical element, combining with Autumn in mini-orchestral textures and melodies. Cook’s banjo avoids flashy patterns, instead harks back to a pre-bluegrass era.
Brett Newski – Lift Upside Down CD/LP (AFM/Backseat)
Growing up on Pixies, Cake, Beck, Weezer, and
Violent Femmes (who Newski has toured with on several occasions), Life Upside Down channels a raw ’90s sound that brings you back to an era where guitars were king and MacBooks didn’t count as a live instrument.
Night Demon – Live Darkness CD/3xLP (Shadow Kingdom)
An exhaustive survey of Night Demon’s iron-clad canon of traditional style metal.
The Night Game – The Night Game CD/LP (Interscope)
The Night Game is the next musical chapter of Boston born/Los Angeles based Grammy nominated singer, songwriter and producer Martin Johnson (previously of Boys Like Girls fame as well as writing credits for pop stars like Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Kygo, Avril Lavigne, Jason Derulo, Christina Perri, Gavin Degraw, Elle King, Mike Posner).
Ocoeur – Inner CD/LP+MP3 (N5Md)
“Diving into fragile synthesizer-based ambient plateaus and cascading atmospheric streams, Bordeaux-based Franck Zaragoza takes his music to another level on his 5th inner outing. Continuing to radiate light, each slice offered on this release is a breath of fresh air, a dreamlike soundtrack that seems to have always been there for us with each orbit around the Sun.” – Igloo
Bernard Parmegiani – Les Soleils de l’Île de Pâques [1972] / La Brûlure de Mille Soleils Brulure Mille Soleils [1965] CD/2xLP (We Released Whatever The F**k We Want)
WRWTFWW Records issue two never-released-before soundtracks by French award-winning composer, audio experimenter, electroacoustic, and musique concrète magician, and all-around sound visionary Bernard Parmegiani, sourced from the original reels, and with English and French liner notes.
Barre Phillips – End To End CD/LP (ECM)
A solo bass album by one of the great pioneers of the idiom. Over the last 50 years Barre Phillips, California-born but long a resident of France, has periodically issued solo recordings, considering them the musical equivalent of diary entries (the first one, in 1968, was called Journal Violone), updates on his ever-evolving relationship to his chosen instrument.
Russ – Zoo CD (Columbia)
During the 2010s, Russ Vitale — a rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer — emerged from the Atlanta-area underground with dozens of independent singles and albums, all of which were made freely available as downloads. Inspired by 50 Cent and Eminem, as well as the classic rock he absorbed as a youngster, the New Jersey-born Vitale gradually learned to play several instruments, including guitar, which was taught to him by his father. “Russ, an Atlanta MC, shows off his R&B chops on his new song, ‘Serious,’ from his new album, Zoo. ‘Serious’ is a lovelorn jam built around a mid-tempo drum grove and a delicate mix of piano and guitar.” – Rolling Stone
Satan – Cruel Magic CD/LP (Metal Blade)
10 tracks of searing metal. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Saxon – Thunderbolt CD (Militia Guard)
Special Tour Edition of the British metal band’s latest album.
Say Hi – Caterpillar Centipede CD/LP (Euphobia)
Caterpillar Centipede is the twelfth record by the indie-pop solo project of multi-instrumentalist Eric Elbogen. Since 2002, the songwriter’s knack for hooky melodies, quirky lyricism and crunchy production has garnered a devoted cult following and critical acclaim. This new full-length, inspired by a vivid dream about a centaur named David Bowie, is his most focused and catchy album yet, with ten rock gems that will worm their way into your heart in whatever way possible (hence: the title of the record).
Danny Seiwell Trio – Boomerang CD/LP (Quarto Valley)
Master drummer Denny Seiwell, best known for his work as founding member, alongside Paul McCartney in Wings, quickly became a legend in the jazz genre that make up the Denny Seiwell Trio. He is joined by Joe Bagg, who has been called “a masterful organist” by the Los Angeles Times, and John Chiodini, best known for his guitar work on Natalie Coles “Unforgettable” Tour.
The Skull – The Endless Road Turns Dark CD/LP (Tee Pee)
Featuring vocalist Eric Wagner and bassist Ron Holzner, formerly of metal legends Trouble, The Skull creates classic Sabbathian doom with a psych-tinged metal vision.
Skyharbor – Sunshine Dust CD/2xLP (E1)
Skyharbor bridge the gap between the postmodern prog-metal movement and the broader rock world, both literally and figuratively, crossing over creatively with dedicated skill and composure without sacrificing their identity. Sunshine Dust, the band’s first release in nearly four years and first full-length album in a decade, delivers on the atmospheric and emotional promise of their earlier material, with breathtaking tectonic shifts between wall of sound ambience and groove.
Kandice Springs – Indigo CD/LP (Blue Note)
Simple while funky. Classic but contemporary. Straightforward in the way it breaks down complex ideas and genres. And, at the end of the day, undeniably human. That said, Springs isn’t quite a rebirth for the Nashville-born artist, who after stints living in New York and Los Angeles has returned back home to Music City. She’s long had that lithe and smoky voice and an intensely expressive mastery over the piano.
Stoned Jesus – Pilgrims CD/LP (Napalm)
The fourth album from Ukranian stoner rock trio Pilgrims is a rather multi-faceted affair mixing groove with noise rock elements infused with prog.
The Stray Birds – Let It Pass CD (Yep Roc)
Let It Pass charts the trio’s tumultuous emotional journey in the years since the release of their 2016 album Magic Fire, a period which saw de Vitry and fiddler/guitarist/mandolinist/ ocalist Oliver Craven end their romantic relationship while choosing to continue their musical one. Along with bassist/banjoist/vocalist Charlie Muench, the pair had to face down an uncertain future and reevaluate what it meant to create art together.
Stryker Brothers – Burn Band CD/2xLP (Scriptorium Rex)
There’s a mythical, fraternal pair known only as the Stryker Brothers whose ghostly chords and verses have haunted the desolate Texas prairies for decades. There isn’t much known about the brothers. No legal records of the two exist. It was only a year ago that a set of original, reel-to-reel tapes were discovered.
Suicidal Tendencies – Still Cyco Punk After All These Years CD/LP (Suicidal)
“This is not a nostalgia act. This will be a full on Cyco Punk set taken to a whole new level with the legendary drummer Dave Lombardo (of Slayer fame) brutally beating the songs and sound that is made to get your slam on!” [Limited colored vinyl pressings are also available.]
Taj Mahal – Sounder [Reissue/1972] CD (Varèse Sarabande)
Sounder is the 1972 Grammy-nominated soundtrack composed and performed by Taj Mahal, one of the most accomplished blues singers and multi-instrumentalists of our time. He also co-starred in the film as “Ike,” friend and neighbor of the Morgan family. The CD has been out of print since 1997.
Tamia – Passion Like Fire CD (E1)
Three years after releasing her No. 1-debuting R&B album Love Life, Tamia is back with her sizzling seventh studio album.
Mark Turner/ Ethan Iverson – Temporary Kings CD (ECM)
The initial musical connection between saxophonist Mark Turner and pianist Ethan Iverson was made in 1990s jam sessions in New York City, with both going on to individual success Iverson in hit trio The Bad Plus and Turner as a solo leader and in such groups as the trio Fly (recording in both capacities for ECM). A decade after their first meeting, the saxophonist and pianist began an association in the Billy Hart Quartet, the two players featuring sympathetically on two widely lauded ECM albums by that band. Now with Temporary Kings, their debut on record as a duo, Turner and Iverson explore aesthetic common ground that encompasses the cool-toned intricacies of the Lennie Tristano/Warne Marsh school, as well as the heightened intimacy of modernist chamber music. [Vinyl edition due November 2.]
Various Artists –Beatfreak 9: Rare & Obscure British Beat 1965-1968 CD (Particles)
A sonic showdown of rare British beat pop pleasures delivered with a whiff of R&B, twenty tracks recorded between April 1965 and June 1968.
Various Artists – Dustin E Presents… Cornflake Zoo: Episode Fourteen “Il Sogno Psichedelico Originale” CD (Particles)
The tribe of diggers and scribes at Cornflake Castle have painstakingly scoured the Roman landscape for plastic matter, not an easy task, considering that pasta, pizza and a bottle of the finest Barolo offer daily distractions. Italy has been notably absent from previous chapters in the series and Volume Fourteen aims to restore an air of equality to the occasion. While an Italian flake may evoke visions of a 99 for some, it is in fact, Dustin E’s ode to psychedelic spaghetti.
Various Artists – Future Sounds Of Jazz 14 2xCD/4xLP (Compost)
Compiled by Permanent Vacation’s Benjamin Fröhlich and Tom Bioly -28 tracks by Move D, Roman Flügel, Slowdive, Isolée, Cobblestone Jazz, Luke Abbott, remixes by Avalon Emerson, Russ Gabriel, Kassem Mosse, I: Cube, among others, including three exclusive and previously unreleased tracks.
Waxahatchee – Great Thunder CDEP/12”+MP3 (Merge)
Katie Crutchfield’s ever-shifting musical project Waxahatchee returns with the Great Thunder EP. Featuring a collection of songs written with now-dormant experimental recording group Great Thunder while Crutchfield was also writing the Waxahatchee albums Cerulean Salt and Ivy Tripp, the original recordings have mostly faded into obscurity. Unearthing and re-imagining them with producer Brad Cook at Justin Vernon’s April Base studio in Wisconsin was a cathartic experience. On the heels of 2017’s critically acclaimed Out In The Storm, Crutchfield found herself looking to take a sharp turn away from the more rock-oriented influences of her recent records towards her more folk and country roots. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Yes featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman – Live At The Apollo 2xCD/3xLP (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
In 2016, Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman brought together their incredible talents and long experience of working in Yes to take to the road for a series of concerts celebrating Yes’ musical legacy of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s. This performance, captured at the Manchester Apollo, includes classic tracks such as “Roundabout”, “Owner Of A Lonely Heart”, “And You And I”, “Hold On”, “Heart Of The Sunrise”, “Rhythm Of Love”, “I’ve Seen All Good People” and many more. [Opaque orange 180gm vinyl pressing and stand-alone DVD and Blu-ray editions are also available.]
DVDs + Blu-ray:
Alter Bridge featuring The Parallax Orchestra – Live At The Royal Albert Hall 2xCD/3xLP (Napalm)
Live release from the hard rockers recorded at the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London.
The Church – Future Past Perfect (Live At The Enmore Australia) 3xDVD (Unorthodox)
Triple DVD set with bonus eight-page tour program.
Yes featuring Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, Rick Wakeman – Live At The Apollo DVD/Blu-ray (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
In 2016, Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin and Rick Wakeman brought together their incredible talents and long experience of working in Yes to take to the road for a series of concerts celebrating Yes’ musical legacy of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s. This performance, captured at the Manchester Apollo, includes classic tracks such as “Roundabout”, “Owner Of A Lonely Heart”, “And You And I”, “Hold On”, “Heart Of The Sunrise”, “Rhythm Of Love”, “I’ve Seen All Good People” and many more.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Bitter Funeral Beer Band with Don Cherry and K. Sridhar – Live In Frankfurt 82 LP (Black Sweat)
The marriage between this Afro-polyrhythmic roots, with the spiritual jazz of the eternal Don Cherry, and the Ondian sarod of K. Sridhar, it is in the direction to a pan-internationalism of profound spirituality, which blends different geographical traditions in a single contemplative gaze. It is the convergence towards a music without boundaries, where every instrumental voice shines and is well fermented and integrated.
Kurtis Blow – Kurtis Blow [Reissue/1980] LP (Island)
Kurtis Blow’s self-titled debut remastered from the original analog tape and reissued on gold vinyl. The LP features the classic “The Breaks” and was the first hip-hop record to be certified Gold.
Marc Bolan – Misfortune Gatehouse: Home Demos Volume 4 LP (Easy Action)
Misfortune Gatehouse is the fourth installment in a series of LPs of home demos restored and remastered for vinyl from recently acquired materials returned to the estate of Marc Bolan. Featured here are embryonic recordings of songs, some of which would find their way on to T. Rex’s 1974 album, Zinc Alloy while many remained unreleased.
David Bowie – Zeroes (Radio Edit) b/w Beat Of Your Drum 7” (Rhino/Parlophone)
In anticipation of the David Bowie Loving The Alien box set, Parlophone issues a special 7” vinyl picture disc of “Zeroes” from the newly ‘re-produced’ version of 1987’s Never Let Me Down which is included in the box set.
Bruise – Chief Ritual LP (Unbeaten)
Debut album from the Indiana hardcore band – “a five-piece wrecking crew who traffic sludgy, depressive jams that split the difference between fiery, pit-ready metalcore and depressive sludge metal” (Revolver). [CD version due October 5.]
Ned Collette – Old Chestnut 2xLP (Feeding Tube)
“A haunting prog-folk song cycle for the ages. Ned’s approach to voice and guitar resemble various models at various times. You’ll hear smatterings of Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed, Pip Proud in lyrics and phrasing, but these are always just spices, added to the beautifully melancholic vistas Ned arrays before our ears.” – Byron Coley
Editors – The Black Room [Reissue/2005] LP (PIAS America/Kitchenware)
Vinyl reissue of the debut album from the Birmingham based indie-rock outfit.
Emerald Web – The Stargate Tapes1979-1982 [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Finders Keepers)
Sharing social circles and spiritual ideologies with artists such as Iasos, Connie Demby and Deuter, whilst splitting label release schedules with Laraaji, Laurie Spiegel and Wendy Carlos, the unique Florida-raised soul mate duo known as Emerald Web released their privately pressed debut LP at an axis where post-prog rock met proto-new age and ambient electronic music. his compilation album comprises early tracks from Emerald Web’s debut vinyl release and the four rare cassette-only albums on Stargate Records from 1979-1982. Taken from original master tapes and recorded using revolutionary and prototypal music technology.
ESG – Come Away With ESG [Reissue/1983] LP (Fire)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Reissue of the classic 1983 genre-busting debut album by the Bronx sisters ESG. So the story goes Anthony H. hooked up with Ed Bahaman and the band’s landmark first effort, Come Away With ESG was born. In the intervening years, it’s been sampled to death. Those in the know have hailed ESG as innovators who helped fashion hip-hop and house music and rewrote post punk, yet somehow remain something of a secret.
The Gaslight Anthem – Sink Or Swim [Reissue/2007] LP (XOXO)
Starting with their auspicious 2007 debut Sink Or Swim, New Jersey-based quartet The Gaslight Anthem joyfully injected aspects of rock’s most universal languages – arena rock and barroom blues, folk and pure pop – into punk’s round hole, ultimately forging its own powerful, populist sound. Frontman Brian Fallon’s penchant for evocative heart on sleeve lyrics and catchy melodies already appeared fully formed here and saw him anointed punk-rock’s Bruce Springsteen while the band’s ability to construct contrasting up-tempo numbers, folk sing-alongs and acoustic ballads with aplomb proved that they weren’t interested in being defined or limited by genre or their heroes.
David Gilmour – On An Island [Reissue/2006] LP (Sony Legacy)
2006’s On An Island is the third David Gilmour album and his first studio recording since Pink Floyd’s 1994 album The Division Bell. Here he reveals a personal vision and a breadth of styles – folk, jazz, orchestral and rock – brought together as a unified piece by his lyrical guitar playing and instantly recognizable voice.
Grateful Dead – Portland Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR – 5/19/74 6xLP (Grateful Dead Production)
The complete Portland Memorial Coliseum show from 5/19/74 presented on six-LP, 180gm vinyl.
Colleen Green – Casey’s Tape / Harmontown Loops LP (Infinity Cat)
Many moons ago, Infinity Cat released an EP from L.A.’s own Colleen Green. Referred to by Green as Ramones-Core, this concise collection evoked the spirit of old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll, applying a heavy layer of classic punk influence to the songwriter’s well-known pop confections. The limited edition tape sold out immediately, and after years of emails, tweets, and letters, Infinity Cat is proud to present Casey’s Tape on vinyl for the first time. Featuring newly recorded versions of the OG cassette on side A and never-before-released tracks created for feral audios Harmontown podcast on side B. Allow yourself to be taken back to a simpler time when the Brill Building bustled and teen punks hustled; when pop music was more about craft than commercialism.
Catherine Christer Hennix – Selected Early Keyboard Works 2xLP (Blank Forms)
The first in a series of planned archival records of the unheard music of Swedish composer, philosopher, poet, mathematician, and visual artist.
Kristin Hersh – Wyatt At The Coyote Palace LP (HHBTM)
Wyatt At The Coyote Palace is the 10th solo album from Kristin Hersh (Throwing Muses/50 Foot Wave) since her debut Hips & Makers. WATCP is a 24 track double LP that was written over five years during a turbulent period of her life while also being inspired by her son Wyatt and his fascination with an abandoned apartment building that was inhabited by coyotes. The deluxe comes on pink colored vinyl with a slipmat.
House Of Krazies – Home Sweet Home [Reissue/1993] LP (Majik Ninja)
HOK (House Of Krazees) was the original name of the Detroit hip hop band that became Twiztid. After 25 years, HOK is re-releasing their albums on vinyl. The first is Home Sweet Home. This LP is standard weight, translucent yellow vinyl.
Gabriel Kahane – Book Of Travelers LP (Nonesuch)
The genesis for Gabriel Kahane’s Book Of Travelers began on the day after the 2016 presidential election, when Kahane embarked – with no cell phone or other internet-connected device – on a looping, 8,980-mile railway journey through the United States. Over the course of two weeks, he broke bread with dozens of strangers whose stories were woven into the song cycle. Book Of Travelers is a personal yet expansive meditation on the idiosyncrasies and anachronisms of train travel, which simultaneously grapples with the wrenching reality of a divided country.
Roland Kayn – Simultan 3xLP (Die Schachtel)
First in the series of LP boxsets documenting the birth of Roland Kayn’s cybernetic music. One of the great pioneers of electronic, computer, and instrumental avant-garde music, for the majority of his life, the German composer Roland Kayn remained almost entirely unknown, a founding member of the legendary ensemble, Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza, heralded as a singular genius by a small number of figures like Jim O’Rourke.
Hiro Kone – Pure Expenditure LP (Dais)
Since assuming the recording moniker Hiro Kone in 2011, New York City-based electronic artist Nicky Mao has personalized a space predicated on dark layers interacting with rhythm.
Pure Expenditure plunges into meditation and throbs in and out of a lucid consciousness orchestrated by Mao, but never veering into vanity.
Konstrukt & Keiji Haino – A Philosophy Warping Little By Little That Way Lies A Quagmire LP (Karlrecords)
Second album by Turkish free jazzers Konstrukt and the Japanese avant-garde/noise icon Keiji Haino, this time recorded live in concert.
Korn – Follow The Leader [Reissue/1998] LP (Epic)
20th Anniversary vinyl reissue of the third studio album by nu metal band.
La Force – La Force LP (Arts & Crafts)
La Force is Ariel Engle, vocalist and newest member of Broken Social Scene. Balancing grace and ferocity, she creates a dusky universe of godless devotional music that comes straight from the beating heart. Produced with Warren Spicer (Plants & Animals), and featuring members of Broken Social Scene, SUUNS, Patrick Watson, and more fellow Montreal musicians, La Force is orbital soul music, with Engle’s magnetic voice at its core.
Marnie – Crystal World [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Crepuscule)
Clear vinyl reissue of the debut album by Marnie, the moniker adopted by Ladytron lead singer Helen Marnie for her solo recordings. Crystal World remains a stylish, slow-burn bestseller praised as an “ice-cool selection of shimmering nouveau synth-pop and frosty ballads” by The List, and “gorgeous and delectably glacial” by The Electricity Club. Expanded with a side of remixes.
Mark McGuire – Vision Upon Purpose LP (Amethyst Sunset)
Warm electric soul rainbow songs for the Elders – past, present, and future. Mastered by the incredible James Plotkin.
Mocky – Music Save Me (One More Time) LP (Heavy Sheet)
Compilation of so far digital only/unreleased or Japan-only tracks by the Canadian producer Mocky, who co-produced/co-wrote Feist’s Pleasure (2017), Joey Dosik’s Inside Voice (2018), and Kelela’s Take Me Apart (2017). Featuring guests Jamie Lidell, Chilly Gonzales, Joey Dosik, Pegasus Warning, and Moses Sumney.
Ian Moore – Toronto LP (Last Chance)
Ian Moore offers a new release of bright, blazing rock-n-roll that combines his legendary guitar prowess with radio-friendly songs that showcase his elastic, soul-inflected vocals. Toronto represents his initial blues-oriented guitar sound, touching on graceful pop songs and the psychedelic as well as British pub rock and deep Americana.
Nightmare Air – Fade Out LP (Nevado Music)
Nightmare Air – Dave Dupuis [guitar, vocals], Swaan Miller [bass, vocals], and Jimmy Lucido [drums] – emit swaths of analog synth transmissions punctuated by distorted guitars before succumbing to hummable hooks befitting of the big screen.
Owl – Nights In Distortion LP (Temple Of Torturous)
New album from the German doom metallers.
Charlemagne Palestine – Interrvallissphereeee LP (Moog Recordings)
Charlemagne Palestine – Ttuunneesszz Duh Rruunneesszz LP (Moog Recordings)
These two releases come from Moog Recordings Library second UK lab session and is the first Charlemagne Palestine Moog Sound Lab. All electronic long-form drone works from an archive of
six recordings.
The Pentangle – Sweet Child [Reissue/1968] 2xLP (Real Gone Music)
Limited sky-blue colored 50th Anniversary vinyl reissue. Pentangle has a style that seamlessly straddles jazz, traditional British folk, rock, blues, and even classical.
Punch Brothers – All Ashore LP (Nonesuch)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Punch Brothers’ first self-produced album, All Ashore, includes nine original songs written by the contemporary bluegrass quintet featuring guitarist Chris Eldridge, bassist Paul Kowert, banjo player Noam Pikelny, mandolinist/lead singer Chris Thile, and fiddler Gabe Witcher. As Thile says, the album is “a meditation on committed relationships in the present day, particularly in the present political climate. We were hoping to create something that would be convincing as a complete thought, in this case as a nine-movement, or nine-piece, thought. Though it’s rangy in what it’s talking about, and in the characters who are doing the talking…” Punch Brothers returned to the same room at United Recording Studios in Hollywood (formerly Ocean Way) where they had recorded both 2015’s The Phosphorescent Blues and their 2010 Jon Brion-produced Antifogmatic. Thile says they felt they had “established a rapport” with the space; the same “level of trust and love that breeds confidence” also led them to produce the album themselves, for the first time.
Screaming Trees – Sweet Oblivion [Reissue/1992] LP (Sony)
Vinyl reissue of the 1992 album from the alt-rock band considered to be one of the godfathers of grunge. Although they were one of the best Seattle bands of the early ’90s, they never achieved the commercial success of bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains. Lead singer Mark Lanegan started a very successful solo career after the Screaming Trees, working with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, Greg Dulli (Afghan Wigs), Isobel Campbell (Belle & Sebastian) and UNKLE.
Shades – In Praise Of Darkness 2xLP (Caroline)
As pioneers of the half-time bass music sound, Shades has grown to become one of the more influential artists in bass heavy dance music. The duo has developed into something akin to a cult in the four years since their inception with music that’s not only a legitimate full-frontal assault in the same vein as tunes from the golden era of gluttonous bass and synths, but that embraces that ethos while giving it a more polished feel.
Archie Shepp meets Kahil El’Zabar’s Ritual Trio – Conversations 2xLP (Black Sweat)
If Conversations celebrates the memory, the artistic and spiritual heritage of bassist Fred Hopkins — a historical member of the revolutionary Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians of Chicago — who died in January 1999, it also marks the amazing collaboration between the Ritual Trio of Kahil El’Zabar (with Ari Brown and Malachi Favors) and the intrepid veteran Archie Shepp, the great voice of the ’70s Afro-free-jazz.
Soundtrack – Go [Reissue/1999] 2xLP (Real Gone Music)
Doug Liman’s breakthrough film Swingers showed he had a real ear for music; for his next film, 1999’s Go, he traded neo swing nostalgia for rave culture, but the beats-heavy score still took center stage. Limited red and limited ‘Gopaque’ colored vinyl pressings available.
Soundtrack – True Romance [Reissue/1993] LP (Real Gone Music)
Limited 25th Anniversary clear with white splatter vinyl edition.
Sun Ra – Disco 3000 [Reissue/1978] LP (Art Yard)
Originally released in 1978 on El Saturn Records. Disco 3000 is one of Sun Ra’s greatest from the ’70s. Recorded in Italy in 1978, it features some incredibly otherworldly keyboards that are some of his most enigmatic on record. Original tracks from the album include “Disco 3000”, an incredible workout on synthesizer, with a tiny bit of drum machine, a little “Space Is The Place” breakdown, and all of the wild sound you’d expect from a Sun Ra album — plus more long tracks — the sweetly soulful “Friendly Galaxy”, a great soul jazz number, and “Dance Of The Cosmo Aliens”, which has spooky organ, frenetic bass, and somber percussion.
Theatre Of Tragedy – Storm 2xLP (AFM)
Sixth studio album by the Norwegian gothic metal band. [Limited colored vinyl pressings are also available.]
Third Eye Blind – Thanks For Everything LP (Mega Collider)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. New seven-track covers EP featuring songs originally by Tim Buckley, Queens Of The Stone Age, Bon Iver, Santigold, Chastity Belt, Happy Diving and Babyshambles.
Tuomo & Markus – Dead Circles LP+CD (Schoolkids)
Finnish soul wizard Tuomo Prättälä and Americana/folk singer-songwriter Markus Nordenstreng joined forces, headed to Tuczon, Arizona and made an album.
The Vintage Caravan – Gateways 2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Fourth album the Icelandic heavy rockers.
James White And The Blacks – Sax Maniac [Reissue/1982] LP+MP3 (Futurismo)
Limited 180gm colored vinyl LP pressing including bonus track. This fantastic Redux version of one of James’ most revered records showcase his anarchic saxophone and deconstructionist approach to rock ‘n’ roll through avant-garde arrangements and a blending of contemporary jazz with a true punk ethos.
Womack & Womack – Conscience [Reissue/1988] LP (Island)
Womack & Womack’s fourth album is back in-print on vinyl. Features their successful hit single “Teardrops”.
Stevie Wonder – Journey Through The Secret Life Of Plants [Reissue/1979] 2xLP (Motown)
Vinyl reissue of Stevie Wonder’s soundtrack to the documentary The Secret Life Of Plants, directed by Walon Green, which was based on the book of the same name by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird. Wonder created the film score by having Michael Braun, the film’s producer, describe each visual image in detail, while the sound engineer, Gary Olazabal, specified the length of a passage. This information was processed to a four-track tape, leaving Wonder space to add his own musical accompaniment. Wonder attempted to translate the complex information of the book and film into song lyrics.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Fever To Tell [Reissue/2003] 2xLP (Interscope)
Limited edition Deluxe box set, signed, numbered and wrapped in red fishnet. Contains the original album newly remastered on two LPs, with nine unreleased demos, eight B-sides and rarities, and five newspaper lyric posters. Also includes a 164-page book of Nick Zinner’s photos with pages from Karen O’s personal diary, an iron-on patch, sticker, one photo card from Nick Zinner, and signed by the band, a cork USB with over 90 minutes of video and the 29 audio tracks included on the vinyl.
Zero 7 – Simple Things [Reissue/2001] 2xLP (New State Ent.)
Childhood friends Sam Hardaker and Henry Binns began their musical career as sound engineers before teaming up as Zero 7 to produce remixes for the likes of Radiohead, N.E.R.D., Sneaker Pimps and Lambchop. In 2001 they captured the attention of music lovers around the world with their now-classic era-defining debut, Simple Things. Singers Sia, Mozez and Sophie Barker brought new layers of soul to the duo’s jazz-funk roots, resulting in the million-selling, Mercury-nominated collection.
Rob Zombie – Vinyl Box 15xLP (Geffen)
Foil stamp-numbered 180gm 15-LP box set featuring 11 albums, creeper robot mask, five lithographs, turntable mat and 8GB USB stick. Each copy signed by Rob Zombie himself. includes the albums: Hellbilly Deluxe, American Made Music To Strip By, The Sinister Urge, Educated Horses, Zombie Live, Hellbilly Deluxe 2, Mondo Sex Head, Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor, Spookshow International Live, The Electric Warlord Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser and Astro-Creep: 2000 Live.
Cassettes:
Mark McGuire – Vision Upon Purpose (Amethyst Sunset)
Warm electric soul rainbow songs for the Elders – past, present, and future. Mastered by the incredible James Plotkin.
The Molochs – Flowers In The Spring (Innovative Leisure)
Clear, concise, immediate, undeniable, simple, direct pop songs.
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