February Program Titles Released This Week:
None
CDs + Vinyl:
Balsam Range – Aeonic CD (Mountain Home)
On the heels of their second International Bluegrass Music Association Entertainer of the Year award, this eminent band continues to be a tour de force in Bluegrass with their new album, Aeonic.
Mark Deutrom – The Blue Bird CD/LP (Season Of Mist)
Intrepid rock trailblazer Mark Deutrom (former Melvins bassist, producer and co-founder of Alchemy Records) returns with his new album The Blue Bird, the first work under the Texan’s own name in almost six years. A full album listening experience, it explores melody, space, nuance, and volume as it flows from track-to-track like a prismatic audio storybook.
Festerday – iihtallan CD/LP (Season Of Mist)
Repugnant Finnish death metal forged in the flames of early Carcass worship.
John Garcia and The Band Of Gold – John Garcia and The Band Of Gold CD/LP (Napalm)
The Kyuss legend and founder of desert rock institutions such as Unida, Slo-Burn, Hermano and Vista Chino returns with his next incarnation: John Garcia and The Band Of Gold. Chris Goss (who produced Kyuss and the Queens of the Stone Age) gave Garcia’s self-titled album its finishing touches and provided that gritty, unmistakable coating. [Limited edition red colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Ed Harcourt – Beyond The End CD/LP (PIAS America)
Mercury Prize nominated recording artist’s eight studio album sees the supremely versatile singer, writer and all-round instrumentalist bravely eschew vocals and lyrics and create a soft-spoken yet emotionally loquacious group of piano-led instrumentals. It is as if Harcourt is sound-tracking an as yet invisible film, or responding to today’s ferocious shouting match of a planet with a mesmerizing, meditative calm.
Legion Of The Damned – Slaves Of The Shadow Realm CD/CD+DVD/LP (Napalm)
The Dutch thrash outfit, flirting with death and black metal, unleash their seventh album. [Deluxe CD edition adds a bonus live DVD and features special packaging.]
Steve Roach – Mercurius CD (Projekt)
Mercurius is a resplendent sonic expression on the psychology and spirituality of impermanence and finding comfort in the liminal spaces of the in-between. Moving beyond the security of naming the infinite nuances intrinsic to being human is just one of the threads of intention woven into this music. Composed in four movements, Mercurius is a soulful resonation upon the ineffable.
Erik Wøllo – Infinite Moments CD (Projekt)
An hour of ambient electronic music from the veteran Norwegian composer. Infinite Moments was
performed entirely on electric guitars processed with the diffused sustain of the EBow and layered note structures of harmonizers.
Xenobiotic – Prometheus CD (Unique Leader)
“Prometheus serves as a sort of modern and technical effort that borders on the progressive at times, especially with some of the song structuring as well as the track listing. As the name suggests, the release features themes linked to the subgenre of “aliencore” in addition to other lyrical content that deals with issues such as death and mysticism.” – Metal Trenches
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Atrament – Scum Sect LP (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)
Fusing together crust/anarcho punk, black and death metal with classic Swedish D-Beat, Atrament draw influence from bands like Doom, Discharge, Deviated Instinct, Skitsystem, Craft, Darkthrone and Dismember to instate widespread terror and summon total sonic warfare.
Ayyur – The Lunatic Creature LP (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)
Birthed at the very edge of the Mediterranean where the Western world and Europe die and dissolve leaving pace to an ancient and inscrutable frontier land of lost history and arcane mystery, Tunisian black metal enigma Ayyur re-surface after a lengthily slumber with The Lunatic Creature, a new MLP of soul-tearing atmospheric black metal shrouded in malevolent mysticism and superbly impenetrable atmospheres.
Jill Barber – Chances [Reissue/2008] LP (Outside Music)
“Timeless. The voice, once heard, always recognized. Like Edith Piaf, or Patsy Cline. Not that Jill Barber sounds like them, but she has the kind of voice they had. Unmistakable. Somehow so connected to the heart, that the song comes clear and true to the listener, unaffected, unsullied by fashion, untouched by commercial necessity. It is a voice that stops time. And the songs. Great songs need an underlying truth, even wisdom. Jill’s songs don’t sound ‘written’. They sound like standards, like they were always there, waiting for her voice to take full flight. Here is a rare talent, a fully realized artist. Her work is sultry, heartfelt, humane and beautiful. I hear her, I think ‘classic’. Here is a bouquet of love songs, wrapped in ravishing arrangements, and sung with tenderness and grace. Taken with two fingers of strong spirits, they will soothe the tangled madness of the day, fill the heart, ease the mind, and remind us that life can be very beautiful.” – Tom Gallant, 2008
Boston – Boston [Reissue/1976] LP (Friday Music)
180gm audiophile translucent gold vinyl pressing.
David Bowie – 1. Outside [Reissue/1995] 2xLP (Friday Music)
David Bowie – Hours… [Reissue/1999] 2xLP (Friday Music)
Two different colored variations of each title are now available: 180gm black & white swirl and 180gm green & blue pressings of 1. Outside and 180gm orange & red and translucent blue & gold swirl pressings of Hours…
Cannibal Corpse – Red Before Black [Reissue/2017] LP (Metal Blade)
Picture disc pressing. In 2017 death metal veterans Cannibal Corpse returned with their fourteenth full-length slab, the monstrous Red Before Black.
Deth Crux – Mutant Flesh LP (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)
40 minutes of shapeshifting and deviant horror punk/gothic rock soaked in neon, blood, sex, and perversion. Shrouded in an aura both erotic and extraterrestrial, Mutant Flesh is a modern post-punk juggernaut in which Deth Crux have distilled the most tumultuous, unclean, and eclectic aspects of their home town Los Angeles to create a dark punk opera of unparalleled seductiveness and darkness.
Happy. – Cult Classic LP (RudeNetworks)
Released last year on CD – now available on vinyl. Happy.’s mission is to provide a sense of nostalgia for listeners with a sound that is full of infectious melodic hooks, oozing with catchy harmonies.
Eric Lindell – Revolution In Your Heart LP (Alligator)
Released last September on CD – now available on vinyl. 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 honkytonk country and Memphis soul, Lindell creates American roots music that is both surprisingly fresh and sweetly familiar.
Mercyful Fate – Into The Unknown [Reissue/1996] LP (Metal Blade)
Mercyful Fate – Dead Again [Reissue/1998] 2xLP (Metal Blade)
Mercyful Fate – 9 [Reissue/1999] LP (Metal Blade)
Limited picture disc pressings of the Danish heavy metal band’s final three albums.
Mestis – Eikasia LP (Sumerian)
Mestis is the project of world renowned guitarist Javier Reyes (Animals As Leaders). His new seven track offering, Eikasia showcases Reyes’ vast musical diversity and features a variety of instrumentation performed by highly acclaimed musicians like Matt Garstka (also of Animals As Leaders) and Eric Moore (Lillake, Suicidal Tendencies).
Willie Nelson – Teatro [Reissue/1998] 2xLP (Modern Classics)
When Willie Nelson and producer Daniel Lanois set out to create the cinematic-sounding album, Teatro (1998), they took over a disused movie theater in Oxnard, CA, and pictured its dusty glory on the LP sleeve. Recorded as-live in situ amid the red velvet seats, Teatro sees Nelson working extensively with his frequent collaborator Emmylou Harris, who joins him for duets and on backing vocals on 11 of the 14 tracks. The other major player is collaborator Lanois (producer of Bob Dylan’s Time Out Of Mind, Harris’ Wrecking Ball), who produced the album, plays guitar and bass, took the cover photo and wrote one of the album’s songs, “The Maker”, a stunning performance with glacier-thick vibe where Red Headed Stranger masterfully meets the BrianEno/Lanois classic Apollo.
Nothing More – Nothing More [Reissue/2013] LP (Eleven Seven Music)
Nothing More is a four-headed musical hydra that runs on frenetic passion, unswerving DIY spirit and relentless sonic experimentation. Part schizoid System Of A Down weird-isms, part Mars Volta-esque prog rock freak out, part effortless pop nous, they seamlessly barrel from churning headbang to skyscraping chorus and back again in the blink of an eye.
The Ocean – Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic 2xLP (Metal Blade)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Based in Berlin, Germany, The Ocean have been making what they refer to as ‘ambient soundtrack doomrock’ since 2001. Their style combines elements of hardcore punk and modern, technical metal with epic arrangements and classical instrumentation. After five years of touring on 2013’s Pelagial, the band delivers their long-awaited eighth studio album, Phanerozoic, split into two volumes.
Old Wounds – Glow LP (Good Fight Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. New Jersey metalcore band Old Wounds follows-up 2015’s The Suffering Spirit with the new album Glow which boasts guest vocals from Chris Motionless (Motionless In White) and Lee Acosta-Lewis (Division Of Mind). “The dynamic and extremely personal 10-track record marks a new era for [Kevin] Iavaroni – who rejoined the goth-tinged hardcore quartet last year – as well as for the band itself, which explores a much wider expanse of sounds, emotions and textures than on its previous offering, 2015’s The Suffering Spirit” – Revolver
The Pineapple Thief – Tightly Unwound [Reissue/2008] 2xLP (Kscope)
Remixed and remastered vinyl reissue of The Pineapple Thief’s seventh album.
Elvis Presley – King Creole [Reissue/1958] LP (Friday Music)
180gm translucent red audiophile vinyl pressing.
Eliane Radigue – Geelriandre / Arthesis [Reissue/2003] LP (Important)
Eliane Radigue ‘s Geelriandre / Arthesis is named for the pieces that fill it’s two sides. “Geelriandre”, realized on an ARP 2500 synthesizer in 1972, features Gérard Fremy on prepared piano. “Arthesis”, realized using the University of Iowa’s Moog in 1973, comprises the full duration of side B.
Ricky Eats Acid – Three Love Songs [Reissue/2014] LP (Run For Cover)
Ricky Eat Acid’s first full length album Three Love Songs is a modern masterpiece for the Bandcamp era. The album was originally released in 2014 by Sam Ray, whose other projects include American Pleasure Club [FKA Teen Suicide], Julia Brown and Starry Cat. A departure from the indie and lo-fi leaning sounds of most of those bands, Ricky Eat Acid’s first full-length release takes varying elements of all types of electronic music – ambient, drone, dance, house, and more – and infuses them with Ray’s authentic and hyper-personal songwriting to create a truly unique record.
Terry Riley – In C [Reissue/1968] LP (Classical Music On Vinyl)
California composer Terry Riley launched what is now known as the minimalist movement with his revolutionary classic In C in 1964. If ever there were a popular work of minimalism, one that stated its purpose so clearly it could not be mistaken, Riley’s legendary composition, In C is the one. It is a work that needs no explanation for its pulsing sequences of pitch all centering around the 53 phases of no duration played on the note and its performances have been numerous – even if there have been relatively few recordings of it.
The Sacrifice – The Sacrifice LP (Season Of Mist)
Featuring members of break-through French electro-pop band Panzer Flower, The Sacrifice draws disparate elements of darkwave, metal, and classic ‘80s pop to produce a sophisticated sound devoid of any genre limitations. Driving beats, soaring synths, razor-wire guitars, and macabre prose (influenced by Pink Floyd, Mayhem and Depeche Mode and more) blend into a sprawling musical mosaic.
Schammasch – Triangle [Reissue/2016] 3xLP (Prosthetic)
New colored vinyl repress of the colossal 2016 album from the Swiss avant-garde extreme metal titans.
Toadliquor – Hortator’s Lament 2xLP (Southern Lord)
Extremely cult, extremely mysterious and extremely rare. All allowed/known recordings of this behemoth legend pressed up on double vinyl. Not only does this include some extremely scarce recordings dug up from the grave but also includes a newly recorded song that was especially prepared, written and documented for this release. For fiends of: Eyehategod, Buzz-oven, LICE and Grief.
Ben Wendell – The Seasons LP (Motema Music, LLC)
Released last October on CD – now available on vinyl. Ben Wendel, perhaps best known for his bold and forward-thinking group Kneebody, has been hard at work for the last two years on a project of ambitious scope. The Seasons is Wendel’s tribute to twelve musical collaborators and friends, including such heavy-hitters as Jeff Ballard, Julian Lage, and Mark Turner.
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