Marketing Program/ Banner/ Listening Station Titles Promoted This Week:
Melissa Aldana – 12 Stars CD (Blue Note)
Grammy-nominated saxophonist and composer Melissa Aldana joins the Blue Note Records family with the release of 12 Stars, her debut album as a leader for the legendary label following her appearance on the acclaimed 2020 album by the collective Artemis. The Brooklyn-based tenor player from Santiago, Chile has garnered international recognition for her visionary work as a band leader, as well as her deeply meditative interpretation of language and vocabulary. 12 Stars grapples with concepts of childrearing, familial forgiveness, acceptance, and self-love, and was inspired by her deep interest in tarot. [Vinyl edition due April 8.]
Band Of Horses – Things Are Great CD/LP (BMG)
Band Of Horses return with their sixth album and first in over half a decade. Things Are Great marks a return to their earlier work and the kind of raw ethos that lies at the heart of Band Of Horses. Founder Ben Bridwell produced or co-produced all 10 tracks – most of which were written pre-pandemic. Past collaborators Jason Lytle (Grandaddy), Dave Fridmann (Flaming Lips), Dave Sardy and engineer Wolfgang “Wolfie” Zimmerman also all make contributions here. [An indie store exclusive translucent rust color vinyl pressing is available.]
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs – External Combustion CD (BMG)
For Mike Campbell, External Combustion – the second album by his first band as a leader, The Dirty Knobs – is proof that lightning can strike twice. The follow-up to their 2020 debut Wreckless Abandon beats a new set of odds and jumps ahead in vision and drive, proving the first record was no one-shot deal. Campbell experienced all the above and more with Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – riding shotgun with his friend and captain as lead guitarist, co-producer, and, at times, co-writer – when he met guitarist Jason Sinay at a session in Los Angeles in 2000. Once Lance Morrison joined in on bass and Matt Laug on drums, that turned into The Dirty Knobs, named after a faulty amp dial. [Vinyl edition due April 1.]
The Dip – Sticking With It CD/LP (Dualtone)
[April program title released this week.] Seattle-based seven-piece R&B/soul band The Dip makes their Dualtone Records debut with their new album Sticking With It. Self-produced by the band and recorded at their self-made studio in Seattle’s Central District, the new album puts forth the groove-heavy, richly detailed sound the band has become known for, expertly matching their sophisticated musicianship with a strikingly loose energy.
Loney Hutchins – Appalachia CD/LP (Appalachia Record Co.)
The sole, full length album from Loney Hutchins’ most productive era in the 1970’s. Tracked over three days in 1979 at Lee Hazen’s Studio by the Pond by Jack “Stack-a-Track” Grochmal – the resulting country rock album was too folksy for L.A. and too electric for Nashville. Featuring a rhythm section from Dolly Parton’s live band during her “Jolene” period, and searing hot country licks, this reissue is restored from the original 2″ multitrack tapes, including two never before heard tracks.
Sabaton – War To End All Wars CD/LP/Cassette (Nuclear Blast)
Written and recorded in 2021 during the COVID global pandemic, Sabaton has crafted a concept album of 11 brand new songs that dive deep into previously unexplored atrocities, miracles and events tied to the early 20th century’s World War I. With the release of The War To End All Wars, fans can expect a wealth of single releases, each one accompanied by a compelling and emotional music video that will breathe life into the fact-based story behind the song. [A limited-edition Pacific blue color vinyl pressing as well as an indie store exclusive cassette edition are available.]
Cécile McLorin Salvant– Ghost Song CD/LP (Nonesuch)
Nonesuch Records presents Ghost Song, the label debut of singer/songwriter Cécile McLorin Salvant. Ghost Song features a diverse mix of seven originals and five interpretations on the themes of ghosts, nostalgia, and yearning. Salvant says, “It’s unlike anything I’ve done before – it’s getting closer to reflecting my personality as an eclectic curator. I’m embracing my weirdness!” Ghost Song opens and ends with a sean-nós (traditional Irish unaccompanied vocal style) performance by Salvant, recorded in a church. On track one, she transitions into Kate Bush’s 1978 classic “Wuthering Heights”. Salvant says of the song, “Wuthering Heights is a book that really struck me to my core as I was making this album, during the pandemic. And the best interpretation of the novel is Kate Bush’s song.”
Nilüfer Yanya – Painless CD/LP (ATO)
Nilüfer Yanya runs headfirst into the depths of emotional vulnerability on her anticipated sophomore record Painless. Recorded between a basement studio in Stoke Newington and Riverfish Music in Penzance, the record is a more sonically direct effort, narrowing her previously broad palette to a handful of robust ideas. Yanya on lead single “Stabilise”: “…the central theme in the song is no one is coming to save you ever. It’s set in depths of reality in everyday life where we are the only one’s truly capable of salvaging or losing ourselves.” [An indie store exclusive blue w/ white color vinyl pressing is available.]
Additional Social Media Program Titles Released This Week:
Melissa Aldana – 12 Stars CD (Blue Note)
[Social Media 4/8/22] Grammy-nominated saxophonist and composer Melissa Aldana joins the Blue Note Records family with the release of 12 Stars, her debut album as a leader for the legendary label following her appearance on the acclaimed 2020 album by the collective Artemis. The Brooklyn-based tenor player from Santiago, Chile has garnered international recognition for her visionary work as a band leader, as well as her deeply meditative interpretation of language and vocabulary. 12 Stars grapples with concepts of childrearing, familial forgiveness, acceptance, and self-love, and was inspired by her deep interest in tarot. [Vinyl edition due April 8.]
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs – External Combustion CD (BMG)
[Social Media 4/1/22] For Mike Campbell, External Combustion – the second album by his first band as a leader, The Dirty Knobs – is proof that lightning can strike twice. The follow-up to their 2020 debut Wreckless Abandon beats a new set of odds and jumps ahead in vision and drive, proving the first record was no one-shot deal. Campbell experienced all the above and more with Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – riding shotgun with his friend and captain as lead guitarist, co-producer, and, at times, co-writer – when he met guitarist Jason Sinay at a session in Los Angeles in 2000. Once Lance Morrison joined in on bass and Matt Laug on drums, that turned into The Dirty Knobs, named after a faulty amp dial.
The Felice Brothers – From Dreams To Dust 2xLP+MP3 (Yep Roc)
[Social Media 3/4/22] On From Dreams To Dust, their eighth and most recent studio album, the band’s exuberance to be together doing what they do so well is palpable. Characteristic of The Felice Brothers, the new tracks are a mixture of somber tunes with ones that are musically upbeat, all the while carrying messages that beg listeners to think deeply about the environment, humanity, legacy, and death. Many of the songs depict the passage of time, nostalgia, transience and getting older. “I want for my music to do what the best music in my life has done for me,” explains Ian Felice. “I want to do that for other people – to help them think through hard times or think through how to communicate something they didn’t know how to; to just make them happy.”
CDs + Vinyl:
40 Watt Sun – A Perfect Light CD (Svart)
40 Watt Sun returns with A Perfect Light; the third studio album created by Patrick Walker under the moniker. The expertly crafted, personal songs range from sparse, unaccompanied voice and guitar, through gently layered instrumentation featuring piano and delicate brush work, to moments more reflective of the warm, subtle overdrive of the band’s previous album, Wider Than The Sky (2016). Like Patrick’s best work, the songs quietly build with emotion, and ache with a darkness and melancholy beauty.
Melissa Aldana – 12 Stars CD (Blue Note)
Grammy-nominated saxophonist and composer Melissa Aldana joins the Blue Note Records family with the release of 12 Stars, her debut album as a leader for the legendary label following her appearance on the acclaimed 2020 album by the collective Artemis. The Brooklyn-based tenor player from Santiago, Chile has garnered international recognition for her visionary work as a band leader, as well as her deeply meditative interpretation of language and vocabulary. 12 Stars grapples with concepts of childrearing, familial forgiveness, acceptance, and self-love, and was inspired by her deep interest in tarot. [Vinyl edition due April 8.]
Amenra – de Doorn CD/2xLP (Relapse)
Amenra’s first release for Relapse Records is at once a departure and a momentous act of deliverance. Stepping outside the run of albums titled Mass I-VI, de Doorn casts a 21-year journey from the heart of Belgium’s crusading hardcore scene to world-renowned, spiritually guided innovators in an enthralling new light. Ritual, remembrance, and hard-won rebirth have always been at the heart of Amenra’s colossal, soul-purging approach. [A limited-edition gold and an indie store exclusive white color vinyl pressing are available.]
Aquaserge – The Possibility Of A New Work For Aquaserge CD/LP (Made To Measure)
Recognized as one of the most inventive avant-rock bands around, Aquaserge once again look to expand their scope with this special project. Drawing inspiration from Giacinto Scelsi’s (1905-1988) exploration of timbres and oscillations, György Ligeti’s (1923-2006) moving clusters, Edgar Varèse’s (1883-1965) melodic cubism and Morton Feldman’s (1926-1987) graphic scores, Aquaserge has approached The Possibility… with a mixture of raw intuition and strict method, and have created pieces for a hybrid, semi-classical and semi-rock expanded nine-piece line-up.
As I May – Karu CD (Mighty Music/SPV)
As I May is a four-piece modern melodic metal band from Mikkeli, Finland. Formed in 2016, the band sounds like a modern day mix of In Flames and Amorphis. [Vinyl edition due March 11.]
Band Of Horses – Things Are Great CD/LP (BMG)
Band Of Horses return with their sixth album and first in over half a decade. Things Are Great marks a return to their earlier work and the kind of raw ethos that lies at the heart of Band Of Horses. Founder Ben Bridwell produced or co-produced all 10 tracks – most of which were written pre-pandemic. Past collaborators Jason Lytle (Grandaddy), Dave Fridmann (Flaming Lips), Dave Sardy and engineer Wolfgang “Wolfie” Zimmerman also all make contributions here. [An indie store exclusive translucent rust color vinyl pressing is available.]
Kris Barras Band – Death Valley Paradise CD/LP (Mascot)
British Heavyweight rockers the Kris Barras Band release their brand-new album, Death Valley Paradise. Produced by Dan Weller (Enter Shikari, Bury Tomorrow, Monster Truck) they return heavier, darker, more introspective but enormous at the same time. Barras decided to remove all shackles and began collaborating with songwriters, such as the heavyweights; Jonny Andrews (Three Days Grace, Fozzy), Bob Marlette (Alice Cooper, Airbourne, Rob Zombie), Blair Daly (Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry) and Zac Maloy (Shinedown, Tyler Bryant). [A limited-edition red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Belmont – Aftermath CD (Pure Noise)
In a landscape more genre-less than ever, it’s the seamless, at-times effortless blending of disparate sounds that guides Aftermath on a hyper-modern tour through musical styles – steadied by pop-punk energy. [Vinyl edition – including an indie store exclusive color pressing – due April 22.]
Mike Block – Machines That Fly CD (Bright Shiny Things)
Over the course of the past two+ years, Mike Block has proved prolific, with seven full-length albums, encompassing a wide array of genres and instrumentation, leading American Songwriter to state, “Mike Block exemplifies true musicianship.”
Blue Lab Beats – Motherland Journey CD/2xLP (Blue Note)
Jazztronica duo Blue Lab Beats make their full-length Blue Note Records debut with Motherland Journey, an album years in the making that celebrates pushing boundaries, taking risks, and overcoming adversity. Following their appearance on 2020’s Blue Note Re: imagined project and their 2021 EP, We Will Rise, this new album is a star-studded affair featuring the duo (producer NK-OK and multi-instrumentalist Mr DM) joined by collaborators including Ghetto Boy, Tiana Major9, KillBeatz and more.
Harold Budd – The Pavilion Of Dreams [Reissue/1978] CD/LP (Superior Viaduct)
Produced by Brian Eno in 1978, The Pavilion Of Dreams stands toe-to-toe with another minimalist masterpiece also released that year: Steve Reich’s Music For 18 Musicians. Budd’s gorgeous pieces reveal a lightness of touch that draws the listener in, while sublime voices float in and out as if in a recurring dream. Featuring saxophonist Marion Brown and multi-instrumentalists Gavin Bryars and Michael Nyman, The Pavilion Of Dreams remains a master class in exquisite timbre and shimmering texture.
Buñuel – Killers Like Us CD (Profound Lore)
Buñuel is the sound of a difficult situation made worse by an unwillingness and an inability to play nice. If slotting it in a genre makes it easier for one to understand, just so one has something to file it under, mark it down as Heavy. With a capital H. But not heavy that’s in any way predictable; Buñuel ‘s amalgam of angular rhythms, drum salvos, fast attack guitars and vocals is arty as in avant-garde noise. [Vinyl edition due March 18.]
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs – External Combustion CD (BMG)
For Mike Campbell, External Combustion – the second album by his first band as a leader, The Dirty Knobs – is proof that lightning can strike twice. The follow-up to their 2020 debut Wreckless Abandon beats a new set of odds and jumps ahead in vision and drive, proving the first record was no one-shot deal. Campbell experienced all the above and more with Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – riding shotgun with his friend and captain as lead guitarist, co-producer, and, at times, co-writer – when he met guitarist Jason Sinay at a session in Los Angeles in 2000. Once Lance Morrison joined in on bass and Matt Laug on drums, that turned into The Dirty Knobs, named after a faulty amp dial. [Vinyl edition due April 1.]
Cannibal Corpse – Evisceration Plague [Reissue/2009] CD (Metal Blade)
CD reissue of the death metal band’s eleventh studio album.
Ceramic Animal – Sweet Unknown CD (Easy Eye Sound)
Strutting out of Doylestown, PA, Ceramic Animal forge glam, post-punk, psych rock and ’70s pop into an original and exciting sound. The band’s music and ambition impressed Dan Auerbach, who signed them to his Easy Eye Sound label and invited them down to Nashville to write and record their fourth album, Sweet Unknown. Together, they created an album that marries the glitter-stomp of T. Rex with the slow rush of Tame Impala and the extravagant melodicism of Todd Rundgren.
Crowbar – Zero And Below CD/LP (MNRK)
12th studio album from the New Orleans’ sludge metal pioneers. [A limited-edition blue, gray & white color vinyl pressing is available.]
The Darkness – Motorheart CD/LP (Cooking Vinyl)
Drop the needle anywhere on The Darkness’ Motorheart and be instantly transported from this moaning and weeping vale of tears to Elysian fields of rock where all hands are raised, the drinks – just as in the Club Tropicana of yore – are free, and everyone wears a pleasingly salacious grin. Does it rock? Is the sun hot? Has your partner’s touch grown cold? The Darkness are the Orwellian boot stamping on the flaccid face of limp rock, forever. Motorheart brims with the UK glam rock giants’ trademark blazing guitar riffs and solos, soaring falsetto and immeasurable rock ‘n’ roll extravagance.
The Dead South – Easy Listening For Jerks Pt. 1 CDEP (Six Shooter)
The Dead South – Easy Listening For Jerks Pt. 2 CDEP (Six Shooter)
The Carter Family meets The Addams Family in Easy Listening For Jerks, two new covers EPs by prairie pickers The Dead South. Rich with quality finger picking and replete with harmonies, Easy Listening For Jerks offers many new moods of songs we think we know so well. Under a title that recalls the songwriting humor of Roger Miller and Steve Martin’s comedy stylings alike, the EPs offer a surprising and compelling mix of gravity and levity. Foggy Mountain Boys meets Beetlejuice. [Vinyl editions due July 29.]
Deathbell – A Nocturnal Crossing CD/LP (Svart)
Deathbell is a five-piece band from Toulouse/France, that create eerie and heavy fuzz-laden doom. [A limited-edition green color vinyl pressing is available.]
Deserted Fear – Doomsday CD/LP (Century Media)
New release from the Thuringian melodic death metal trio.
Sussan Deyhim – Desert Equations: Azax Attra (1986-2021) CD/LP (Crammed Discs)
When it first appeared in 1986, the Desert Equations: Azax Attra album was greeted with enthusiasm, awe, and disbelief: nobody had done anything quite like it before, and this dizzying, inspired blend of Persian tradition, New York avant-garde and electronic music remains incomparable, powerful, and mesmerizing to this day. Combining the sublime voice of Iranian vocalist Deyhim and the electronic wizardry of US composer Horowitz, this haunting and futuristic album prompted writer Paul Bowles to wonder: “Was this composed under the influence of Majoun?,” and convinced filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci to entrust the soundtrack music for his Sheltering Sky movie to Richard Horowitz (which earned him a Golden Globe). This 2021 remastered reissue includes three previously unreleased bonus tracks, and a rich booklet with photographs and notes recounting the duo’s fascinating life stories.
The Dip – Sticking With It CD/LP (Dualtone)
Seattle-based seven-piece R&B/soul band The Dip makes their Dualtone Records debut with their new album Sticking With It. Self-produced by the band and recorded at their self-made studio in Seattle’s Central District, the new album puts forth the groove-heavy, richly detailed sound the band has become known for, expertly matching their sophisticated musicianship with a strikingly loose energy.
Dream Theater – Lost Not Forgotten Archives: The Majesty Demos (1985-1986) CD/2xLP+CD
Now available on stand-alone CD. Original 1986 demos from Dream Theater’s original days as Majesty. Previously only available on CD through the band’s Ytsejam Records, now remixed and remastered, and available for the first time on vinyl in The Lost Not Forgotten Archives. Featuring a collection of rare tracks, The Majesty Demos captures Dream Theater’s iconic history during their time as students at Boston’s Berklee College of Music.
Eamon – No Matter The Season CD/LP (Now-Again)
A masterful mix of timeless American soul with vintage 1970s African samples in a most rewarding way – musical traveler Eamon teams with production duo Likeminds for No Matter The Season.
Endtime – Impending Doom CD/LP (Heavy Psych Sounds)
Not only is the world on a downward spiral to annihilation, but it’s also the name of Endtime’s new album. Impending Doom contains six tracks so powerful that it makes the Tzar Bomba look like a firecracker. Put the needle to the wax and you will experience the sound of a thousand collapsing stars and a feeling like hell is imploding and heaven is falling. Lol. [A variety of color vinyl editions is available.]
The Ergs! – Hindsight Is 20/20 My Friend Volume Two CD/LP (Creep)
The Ergs! is an American punk rock band formed in 2000 in South Amboy, New Jersey, by three high school friends: drummer/lead vocalist Mikey Erg (Mike Yannich), guitarist/vocalist Jeff Erg (Jeff Schroeck), and bassist Joey Erg (Joe Keller).
Ex Norwegian – Spook Du Jour CD (Think Like A Key)
For their 13th album, the ever delightfully irreverent rockers Ex Norwegian managed to combine their sweet power pop sensibilities with a darker, more art rock vibe-creating their most unique album to date. [Vinyl edition due March 25.]
Eye Q – Please The Nation CD/LP (Now-Again)
Eye Q’s rock stands on par with the early Zamrock of Witch and Ngozi Family. Please The Nation encapsulated Eye Q’s desire to forge forth, in a new, free country, and this set collates their 7″ singles, ultra-rare album and songs from master tape and presents their music for the first time outside of Zimbabwe.
Marianne Faithfull – Vagabond Ways [Reissue/1999] CD/LP (BMG)
CD and vinyl reissue of the 1999 album from the rock icon. At the time of its release, Vagabond Ways was her first album of original material since A Secret Life (1994). This work, produced by Daniel Lanois and Mark Howard, is a balladry-like extension of her then neo-cabaret persona, interpreting songs by herself and legendary songwriters of her generation, like Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, Leonard Cohen and the songwriting duo Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Many of the stories told on this album were adapted from memories that didn’t make her autobiography or her observations of social struggles she felt particularly moved by.
Fetal Blood Eagle – Indoctrinate CD (Listenable)
Fetal Blood Eagle create brutally heavy death metal. For fans of: Aborted, Cannibal Corpse, Dying Fetus, Decapitated. [Vinyl edition TBD.]
Fieh – In The Sun In The Rain CD/LP (Jansen)
The Norwegian neo-soul 7-piece release the follow-up to their 2019 debut album, Cold Water Burning Skin, which was fittingly described as “future soul” by God Is In The TV and “left field R&B” by Clash Magazine. On In The Sun In The Rain, the band continues in the same vein, although simultaneously broadening their spectrum.
The Flower Kings – By Royal Decree 2xCD/3xLP+2xCD (Inside Out U.S.)
Swedish prog-rock legends The Flower Kings return with their third studio record since introducing drummer Mirko DeMaio and keyboardist Zach Kamins into the lineup, By Royal Decree is a vintage affair in many respects. With virtually no touring to endeavor upon for the last two years, the band was free to focus on recording new material, as well as reviewing things left on the cutting room floor from previous sessions.
Fueled By Fire – Pastpresentno Future CD (M-Theory Audio)
This EP CD contains all four songs from the two 7″ singles released by L.A. thrashers.
Growth – The Smothering Arms Of Mercy CD/LP (Wild Thing)
Debut album from the Australian metal trio. Growth began as a study in isolation by brothers Tristan (guitars/bass/artwork) and Nelson Barnes (drums) in Melbourne, Australia, after a decade’s absence from each other while pursuing music overseas. With the line-up soon rounded out by Luke Frizon on vocals (ex-Jack The Stripper), the trio set out to create music that explored the human aspects of connection, trauma, despair, and the fragility of hope. The result is The Smothering Arms Of Mercy, a claustrophobic narrative of total spiritual collapse written while in psychiatric care and thrown over nine suffocating acts. [A limited-edition red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Guided By Voices – Crystal Nuns Cathedral CD (GBV Inc.)
GBV release their 35th album just four months since It’s Not Them. It Couldn’t Be Them. It Is Them!, 12 twelve songs determined to challenge for the title of greatest Guided by Voices album of all-time. The guitars are bigger, the arrangements are more ambitious, the songs are uplifting, epic, and as incredibly hook-laden as always. Pure power pop perfection.
Hath – All That Was Promised CD (Willowtip)
On All That Was Promised, Hath set out to expand on what they did with previous releases – experimenting with more varied sounds and new ideas – but now more directly and cohesively. In the end, the record came out darker and more punishing than expected. It’s important to the band to grow and learn without losing sight of what they do best. The content on this album is more personal and introspective, with songs enduring change and all the promises made to us in life – broken or otherwise.
Keiko Higuchi – Vertical Language CD/LP (Black Editions)
Based in Tokyo, Keiko Higuchi is a vocalist and instrumentalist internationally renowned both for her solo performances and extensive collaborations in the world of underground improvisation, jazz and the avant garde. On Vertical Language, Higuchi has created an evocative and hauntingly beautiful album that unfurls in equal parts light and darkness, form, and emptiness. On solo voice and piano as well as in duets with bassist Louis Inage, Higuchi performs a collection of songs and improvisations that take unexpected paths; her voice and piano starkly, soulfully emerge. They gradually take form as sparse notes resonate and build into intense layers of sound.
Loney Hutchins – Appalachia CD/LP (Appalachia Record Co.)
The sole, full length album from Loney Hutchins’ most productive era in the 1970’s. Tracked over three days in 1979 at Lee Hazen’s Studio by the Pond by Jack “Stack-a-Track” Grochmal – the resulting country rock album was too folksy for L.A. and too electric for Nashville. Featuring a rhythm section from Dolly Parton’s live band during her “Jolene” period, and searing hot country licks, this reissue is restored from the original 2″ multitrack tapes, including two never before heard tracks.
Andy Irvine / Paul Brady – Andy Irvine / Paul Brady [Reissue/1976] CD/LP (Mulligan Records)
Long thought of as one of the seminal releases in the Irish music cannon, Andy Irvine / Paul Brady’s 1976 eponymous album has been praised by artists such as Bob Dylan (who recorded Paul Brady’s arrangement of “Arthur McBride And The Sergeant”), Bono, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Liam O’Maonlai (Hothouse Flowers), and Radie Peat and Daragh Lynch (both of Lankum). [A 180gm purple color vinyl pressing is available.]
Just Friends – Hella CD/LP (Pure Noise)
Just Friends is a band from the East Bay of California. Their new album, Hella, is a jam-packed spectacle of rhythmic funk, riotous punk, and just about everything in between. [A limited-edition red color and indie store exclusive clear vinyl pressings are available.]
Lemonheads – It’s A Shame About Ray [Reissue/1992] 2xCD/2xCD+MP3 (Fire)
Digitally remastered and expanded double CD edition of Lemonheads’ seminal album It’s A Shame About Ray, lovingly reissued for its 30th Anniversary. The set includes a slew of extra material, including an unreleased “My Drug Buddy” KCRW session track from 1992 featuring Juliana Hatfield, B-sides from singles “It’s A Shame About Ray” and “Confetti”, a track from the “Mrs. Robinson/Being Round” EP, alongside demos. [The deluxe edition includes photos, digital download, and more.]
Benjamin Lew / Steven Brown – Douzième Journée: Le Verbe, La Parure, L’Amour. [Reissue/1982] CD/LP (Made To Measure)
A much-told story by now, the chance encounter between Benjamin Lew and Steven Brown in the ebullient creative nexus that was Brussels in the early ’80s led to one of these discreet but unforgettable minor miracles which take place sometimes. Poetic, magical and evocative, Douzième Journée takes the listener on a journey through alien landscapes, which has elicited comparisons to the music of Jon Hassell and Can. Steven Brown is a front figure of US band Tuxedomoon.
Margolnick – Margolnick CD (Bright Antenna)
Drake Margolnick knows that sometimes you must hit the restart button. He knows that change is not only inevitable, but necessary, both in your personal life and in your art. He knows that becoming who you’re meant to be can require letting go of who you’ve been. It’s these sentiments that inhabit Margolnick, the songwriter and musician’s debut solo album under the eponymous moniker Margolnick. [Vinyl edition due March 25.]
Marillion – An Hour Before It’s Dark CD/CD+DVD/2xLP (earMUSIC)
New release from the veteran British prog group. British rock band Marillion, founded in 1979, has, over the course of 19 studio albums, become one of the most commercially successful progressive rock bands of the ‘80s and are still one of the most outstanding representatives of their genre. Whether it’s the last hour you were allowed to play outside as a child before you had to go home, a reference to the fight against time regarding the climate crisis or the last minutes of a person’s life – An Hour Before It’s Dark certainly doesn’t lack interpretations. Recorded in Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios, Marillion remain musically true to themselves and continue swimming against the path of adjusting to norms and limitations. [A limited-edition orange vinyl pressing as well as a stand-alone Blu-ray edition are available.]
John McLaughlin – John Mclaughlin: The Montreux Years CD/2xLP (BMG)
Curated and compiled by John McLaughlin, this collection of his finest performances from six legendary concerts at the Montreux Jazz Festival includes rare and previously unreleased material from Claude Nobs’ private collection.
Midnight – Let There Be Witchery CD/LP (Metal Blade)
Filthy, belligerent, and obnoxious, Midnight makes music to start fights to. Since 2003, one-man-band Athenar has been churning out an ungodly racket, dropping countless demos, splits, and EPs, and in 2022 he returns with Midnight’s fifth full-length, Let There Be Witchery. Delivering more of what can be expected from his demented mind, it is a catchy mixture of black and speed metal and dirty punk rock, and it is relentlessly compulsive. [A limited-edition color vinyl pressing is available.]
Roy Montgomery – Audiotherapy CD/LP (Grapefruit)
For his fourth and final release spanning 2021-2022, the New Zealand underground guitar legend builds his compositions from the subconscious, breaking down form and inviting in new techniques.
Noltem – Illusions In The Wake CD (Transcending Obscurity)
New album from the Connecticut black metal band. (Yes, there is a black metal scene in Connecticut.)
Omnific – Escapades CD/2xLP (Wild Thing)
Melbourne progressive instrumental trio The Omnific – featuring the unique line-up of two bass players and a drummer – release their long-awaited debut album, Escapades. It’s an instrumental mosaic that dances between the edges of progressive rock, djent, funk, Nintendocore, and synth-driven electronic soundscapes. [A limited-edition blue and gold color vinyl pressing is available.]
Dolly Parton – Run Rose Run CD (Butterfly)
Run Rose Run is released at the same time as the publication of a novel co-written with famed author James Patterson sharing the title, Run Rose Run. The 12 songs were inspired by the book’s storyline and feature country and bluegrass artists such as Joe Nichols, Rhonda Vincent, The Isaacs, and Dailey & Vincent. [Vinyl edition due April 1.]
Porches – All Day Gentle Hold! CD/LP+MP3 (Domino)
All Day Gentle Hold! is the fifth album from Aaron Maine and a celebratory collection of songs. Harder, faster, shorter and louder than any other Porches record, it’s direct and pointed, charged up and chaotic, described by Maine as “the most energetic, off-the-cuff moments, collaged together into the most captivating songs [he] could make.” [An indie store exclusive vinyl pressing is available.]
Sabaton – War To End All Wars CD/LP/Cassette (Nuclear Blast)
Written and recorded in 2021 during the COVID global pandemic, Sabaton has crafted a concept album of 11 brand new songs that dive deep into previously unexplored atrocities, miracles and events tied to the early 20th century’s World War I. With the release of The War To End All Wars, fans can expect a wealth of single releases, each one accompanied by a compelling and emotional music video that will breathe life into the fact-based story behind the song. [A limited-edition Pacific blue color vinyl pressing as well as an indie store exclusive cassette edition are available.]
Cécile McLorin Salvant– Ghost Song CD/LP (Nonesuch)
Nonesuch Records presents Ghost Song, the label debut of singer/songwriter Cécile McLorin Salvant. Ghost Song features a diverse mix of seven originals and five interpretations on the themes of ghosts, nostalgia, and yearning. Salvant says, “It’s unlike anything I’ve done before – it’s getting closer to reflecting my personality as an eclectic curator. I’m embracing my weirdness!” Ghost Song opens and ends with a sean-nós (traditional Irish unaccompanied vocal style) performance by Salvant, recorded in a church. On track one, she transitions into Kate Bush’s 1978 classic “Wuthering Heights”. Salvant says of the song, “Wuthering Heights is a book that really struck me to my core as I was making this album, during the pandemic. And the best interpretation of the novel is Kate Bush’s song.”
Stereophonics – Oochya! CD/2xLP (Ignition)
Oochya! is the brand-new studio album by Stereophonics, featuring 15 tracks, including the brand-new single “Hanging On Your Hinges”. As Stereophonics celebrate 25 years as one of the UK’s most loved bands, with Oochya! Kelly Jones continues to cement his place amongst the great British songwriters.
Stromae – Multitude CD/LP (Interscope)
Paul Van Haver makes light, bouncy songs about heavy subjects. The Belgian-born, French-speaking singer and producer, known as Stromae, first caught waves in 2009 with “Alors On Danse”, a self-satirizing, electro-tinged track about someone who tries—and fails—to escape their problems on a dance floor. It became an international club hit and cemented Van Haver’s place as a modernist pop force, eager to slip sobering themes (debt, misogyny, racism, death) inside his fizzy bubblegum creations. On Multitude, his first new album in eight years, he continues to find inspiration in contradictions—darkness and light, joy, and pain. [An indie store exclusive white color vinyl pressing is available.]
Sylvaine – Nova CD/LP (Season Of Mist)
Sylvaine solidifies its place at the apex of the atmospheric metal pantheon with its brand new full-length, Nova. Led by multi-instrumentalist Kathrine Shepard, the album is a deeply emotional journey, swinging like a pendulum between meditative spirituality and raw vulnerability. Shepard’s ethereal voice elevates the record’s dreamy aura, enchanting the listener with its heavenly darkness. For Fans of Alcest, Deafheaven, Cult of Luna, Constellatia and Numenorean.
System Exclusive – System Exclusive CD/LP (Castleface)
“Often when music is constructed with synths and other electronically generated sound makers, their level of exactitude and control is such that the vocalist will either wittingly or otherwise seek to emulate the relative artifice of the soundscape. This is often done to great effect, think Kraftwerk. But what if there was a unit whose music was synth-generated but the vocals were coming from a hot-blooded, singing-for-the-cheap-seats approach? If done well, it’s a case of two great tastes that taste great together, which brings me to System Exclusive.” – Henry Rollins
The Temperance Movement – Caught On Stage – Live & Acoustic CD/2xLP (Earache)
Now available on CD. The Temperance Movement is one of Britain’s finest Rock bands of the last 10 years. Formed in London but with a Glaswegian singer, The Temperance Movement is simultaneously anthemic, defiant and cathartic. It bears echoes of the great rock ‘n’ roll icons of the ’60s and ’70s – The Faces and Led Zeppelin, Free and The Rolling Stones. The band has released three studio albums since 2012. This special release Caught On Stage – Live & Acoustic features a collection of rare live tracks recorded from various locations including intimate acoustic live shows, radio sessions with Planet Rock and rehearsal room recordings, compiled with the help of founding member and guitarist Paul Sayer.
Various Artists – Essential Sun Record: The Ultimate Collection CD (Sun)
Sam Phillips created the label where rock & roll was born, Sun Records. He and Shelby Singleton produced and released countless hit records, spanning across genres. From the original recording of Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line”, Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Great Balls Of Fire”, and The Dixie Cups “Chapel Of Love”, to reimagined classics like Dave Dudley’s “Six Days On The Road” and everything else in between, Essential Sun Records: Ultimate Collection is your definitive playlist of timeless American hits.
Various Artist – Jack Kerouac: 100 Years Of Beatitude CD (Bear Family)
This tribute to Jack Kerouac, on the occasion of his 100th birthday in March 2022, contains 52 songs and historical audio documents from 1946 to 1963. Jack Kerouac, who along with Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs formed the core cell of the Beat Generation. The beatniks, as representatives of pop literature, listened to a wide range of specific styles of music.
Vein.fm – This World Is Going To Ruin You CD/LP (Closed Casket Activities)
New album from the Boston metalcore band.
Veonity – Elements Of Power CD (Scarlet)
Fifth album from the Swedish power metal band. With Elements of Power, Veonity deliver a true conceptual story about a boy who happens to become the hero that finally defeats the evil – once and for all. The story takes the listener far away to a parallel dimension: the Underworld is threatening to destroy humans and only by recharging the Masterstone and place on the Power of Altar will the world be saved from eternal darkness.
Vio-Lence – Let The World Burn CDEP/12” (Metal Blade)
Formed in 1985, Oakland thrashers Vio-Lence helped define and refine what came to be known as the Bay Area sound, dropping three seminal albums before splitting in 1993. Leaving behind a heady legacy, they briefly reformed a couple of times in the intervening years before becoming a full-time going concern once more in 2019. After playing a string of successful shows, the quintet started to think about new music and now they deliver Let The World Burn, a five-song EP showcasing their first new material in 29 years, which delivers on the classic Vio-Lence sound. [A limited-edition orange w/ red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne – Blues From Chicago To Paris CD/LP (Stony Plain)
Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne’s new album Blues From Chicago To Paris pays tribute to two of Chicago’s blues legends, piano-pounding Memphis Slim and bass-slapping Willie Dixon. Focused when the two giants teamed up to tour the globe in the late ‘50s and early ’60s, this album presents a collection of favorites and tunes that have inspired and influenced blues players ever since.
The Weather Station – How Is It That I Should Look At The Stars CD/LP (Fat Possum)
How Is It That I Should Look At The Stars is an introspective record of songs which were written alongside those that appeared on Ignorance. It is intended not to be a follow up, but to be a companion piece, a piece of reflection and quiet, meant to hold stillness in the aftermath. It was recorded live, as a performance, an improvisation, with a group of Toronto jazz musicians. [An indie store exclusive color vinyl pressing is available.]
Mary Wilson – The Motown Anthology 2xCD (Motown)
The Motown Anthology is a collection of Mary’s leads for the Supremes and their original group the Primettes, the CD debut of her 1979 solo album on Motown, plus a total of 7 unreleased tracks and 13 unreleased mixes or alternate takes. Inside is a 36-page booklet featuring rare photos, an extensive essay detailing her career, and testimonials from her peers – among them Sir Paul McCartney, Otis Williams, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Nilüfer Yanya – Painless CD/LP (ATO)
Nilüfer Yanya runs headfirst into the depths of emotional vulnerability on her anticipated sophomore record Painless. Recorded between a basement studio in Stoke Newington and Riverfish Music in Penzance, the record is a more sonically direct effort, narrowing her previously broad palette to a handful of robust ideas. Yanya on lead single “Stabilise”: “…the central theme in the song is no one is coming to save you ever. It’s set in depths of reality in everyday life where we are the only one’s truly capable of salvaging or losing ourselves.” [An indie store exclusive blue w/ white color vinyl pressing is available.]
DVDs + Blu-ray:
Marillion – An Hour Before It’s Dark Blu-ray (earMUSIC)
This standalone Blu-ray version contains a 96khz 24-bit WAV Hi-Res stereo mix, DTS Master Audio surround mix and HD video content including (but not limited to) a documentary on the making of the album and a performance of Murder Machines from Real World Studios along with a booklet featuring song lyrics and condensed album artwork.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Akon – Konvicted [Reissue/2006] 2xLP (Republic)
The sophomore album from global superstar Akon defined an entire era with its global appeal.
Archgoat – Whore Of Bethlehem [Reissue/2006] LP (Debemur Morti)
Archgoat – The Light Devouring Darkness [Reissue/2009] LP (Debemur Morti)
Archgoat – The Apocalyptic Triumphator [Reissue/2015] LP (Debemur Morti)
Archgoat – The Luciferian Crown [Reissue/2018] LP (Debemur Morti)
Vinyl reissues of four albums by the Finnish black metal band.
Beastie Boys – Aglio E Olio [Reissue/ 1995] 12” (Capitol)
Aglio E Olio covers a lot of ground in the span of 8 tracks and 11 minutes, a reminder of the Beastie Boys’ early punk beginnings. Along with Mike D, Ad-Rock, and MCA, Aglio E Olio features contributions from drummer Amery “AWOL” Smith of Suicidal Tendencies. It was originally released by the band’s now inoperative label Grand Royal.
Behavior & Mayako XO – Free World LP (Post Present Medium)
Free World is the first full-length issue from an ongoing collaboration between Behavior (Bedros Yeretzian, Evan Burrows, Justin Tenney, Robbie Cody) and Mayako XO (Sara Gernsbacher). It was tracked between 2019 and 2020 and assembled over the course of the last year in Los Angeles. The album reflects its creation under open-ended yet intent circumstances. What’s recorded is a tangled pas de deux between discredited and demonstrative characters, singing through shifting voices over a living, melancholic music rendered legible by surveillance.
The Beths – Future Me Hates Me LP+MP3 [Reissue/2018] (Carpark)
Two color vinyl pressings: blue and brown. The Beths occupy a warm, energetic sonic space between joyful hooks, sun-soaked harmonies, and acerbic lyrics. Their debut album, Future Me Hates Me, delivers an astonishment of roadtrip-ready pleasures, each song hitting your ears with an exhilarating endorphin rush like the first time you heard Pavement’s Slanted And Enchanted or The Breeders’ “Cannonball”. Front and center on these 10 infectious tracks is lead singer and primary songwriter Elizabeth Stokes. Stokes has previously worked in other genres within Auckland’s rich and varied music scene, recently playing in a folk outfit, but it was in exploring the angst-ridden sounds of her youth that she found her place. [A cassette edition is also available this week.]
Biohazard – Urban Discipline [Reissue/1992] 2xLP (Rhino)
Double 30th Anniversary edition featuring bonus tracks never before available on vinyl. Biohazard formed in Brooklyn in 1988 and soon after released their first demo. The band consisted of founding members Billy Graziadei (vocals, guitar), Bobby Hambel (lead guitar) and Evan Seinfeld (vocals, bass). After the release of their second demo in 1989, drummer Anthony Meo left the band and drummer Danny Schuler replaced him. Biohazard released their combined the urban sounds of hard-core, metal and rap with scorching lyrics describing the forces at work in our modern urban lives.
Bitch – Bitchcraft LP+MP3 (Kill Rock Stars)
Limited-edition color vinyl edition. Bitchcraft was born in a move from New York City, where Bitch had lived for 15 years, to a log cabin in the woods. There was all the time in the world to make art, and it was there, in the cabin, that Bitch began to write some of the songs that would appear on Bitchcraft. “It gave me space to think about the biggest version of myself that I could be,” she says of those early days in the cabin. The songs she wrote were a departure from anything she’d ever written before, and she began to craft huge pop tracks with the help of her trusty violin. Then, she moved to L.A. and Bitchcraft began to shapeshift again. The resulting record is one that is full of glorious pop tracks that go in unexpected directions. Bitchcraft is like Joni Mitchell set to a click track, it’s queer Cyndi Lauper. It’s neon pink, in your face, ready to hex you with its brilliance. It’s an unbelievably fun record that is extremely capable of breaking your heart a little bit. It also makes you think about the state of the world, about evil politicians, about what it means to exist as a woman, and how to find joy along the way.
Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers – Play Selections From The New Musical Golden Boy [Reissue/1963] LP (Honeypie)
Golden Boy is a 1963 album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, performing compositions by Lee Adams and Charles Strouse written for the Broadway musical Golden Boy.
Mike Brooks – What A Gathering [Reissue/1976] LP (Secret)
Singer and producer Mike Brooks along with Jah Lloyd created their Teams label kin 1969. This Vinyl reissue is of the 1976 Burning Sounds release What A Gathering – a compilation of tracks recorded at Channel One, produced by Jah Lloyd and named after Mike’s biggest hit.
The Browning – End Of Existence LP (Spinefarm)
Limited-edition red color vinyl pressing of the latest album by the American electronicore band best known for their unique blend of deathcore, metalcore and EDM. This 12-track opus tells a fascinating and fiery cataclysmic tale over a backdrop of chugging detuned guitars, eerie electronic transmissions, and a guttural vocal gut punch.
Cerebral Rot – Excretion Of Mortality LP (20 Buck Spin)
Red and yellow color vinyl pressing. Ascending from the odious decay of their first album, Cerebral Rot passes from animal to human contagion with a new more purulent virus on Excretion Of Mortality. A return of such festering decrepitude and anatomical canker as befits the true adherents of vile and sick underground death metal. Soaked in the swamp of radioactive sewage, Cerebral Rot’s tumor like growth on this release bludgeons with a hammering heaviness that few can manage or survive.
Chicago – Chicago 16 [Reissue/1982] LP (Friday Music)
Chicago 16 finds the band reinventing itself after the tragic death of Terry Kath and enlisting the talents of guitarist/keyboardist Bill Champlin to great effect. Album anchor “Hard To Say I’m Sorry”, the band’s second No. 1 single, proved that Chicago was still very capable of cranking out hits and was indeed a band to be reckoned with.
Chas Cronk – Liberty LP (Renaissance)
Chas Cronk, composer, performer, and bassist extraordinaire. Chas Cronk is an English rock singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the bassist for the Strawbs from 1973 to 1980, then again from 2004 to the present, as well as touring as part of Steve Hackett’s band in the 1980s. Over the course of quarantine, Chas utilized the time in lockdown to work on his solo music. Originally planned to be released as an EP, Liberty is the result of his hard work with all music being written and recorded during lockdown.
DJ Quik – Safe + Sound [Reissue/1995] 2xLP (Be With)
DJ Quik – Rhythm-Al-Ism (Over 70 Minutes Of Commercial-Free Music) [Reissue/1998] 2xLP (Be With)
DJ Quik is a giant of West Coast hip-hop. With 1995’s Safe + Sound, he scaled new levels of musical magnificence with his signature new age P-Funk/laconic G-Funk. With his fourth album Rhythm-Al-Ism he created his masterpiece, a perfect hip-hop album.
Doctor Smoke – Dreamers And The Dead LP (Ripple Music)
Released last September on CD – now available on vinyl. New album from the Ohio metal band – their first in seven years.
Escape The Fate – Dying Is Your Latest Fashion [Reissue/2006] LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
Standard black vinyl pressing. Dying Is Your Latest Fashion is the debut studio album by Escape the Fate, originally released in September 2006. It is the only full-length album and second release with original singer and founding member Ronnie Radke, who would later be incarcerated and eventually become the frontman of his own band, Falling In Reverse, after getting kicked out of Escape The Fate. It is also the last release to feature rhythm guitarist Omar Espinosa and keyboardist/vocalist Carson Allen, as he would depart before the release of the album and was thus uncredited.
The Felice Brothers – From Dreams To Dust 2xLP+MP3 (Yep Roc)
On From Dreams To Dust, their eighth and most recent studio album, the band’s exuberance to be together doing what they do so well is palpable. Characteristic of The Felice Brothers, the new tracks are a mixture of somber tunes with ones that are musically upbeat, all the while carrying messages that beg listeners to think deeply about the environment, humanity, legacy, and death. Many of the songs depict the passage of time, nostalgia, transience and getting older. “I want for my music to do what the best music in my life has done for me,” explains Ian Felice. “I want to do that for other people – to help them think through hard times or think through how to communicate something they didn’t know how to; to just make them happy.”
Goldmund – The Malady Of Elegance [Reissue/2008] LP (Unseen Music)
Keith Kenniff is a Portland-based artist who works under the moniker Goldmund. Kenniff started playing drums, guitar, and bass at a very young age. His musical journey took him to the prestigious Berklee College of Music, where he graduated with honors in 2006 with a B.A. in percussion and composition. Keith’s first album under the moniker Goldmund, Corduroy Road, was released in 2004. His critically acclaimed follow-up album, The Malady Of Elegance, was released in 2008.
Grant Green – The Latin Bit [Reissue/1962] LP (Blue Note)
Guitarist Grant Green explored Latin and Brazilian influences on his highly enjoyable 1962 album, The Latin Bit, featuring Johnny Acea on piano, Wendell Marshall on bass, Willie Bobo on drums, Carlos “Patato” Valdes on conga, and Garvin Masseaux on chekere. Part of Blue Note’s Tone Poet Series which features all-analog, remastered sound.
Doug Hammond & David Durrah – Reflections In The Sea Of Nurnen [Reissue/1975] LP (Now-Again)
Deep, spiritual jazz of the highest order. Originally planned for issue on Strata-East, Doug Hammond took his collaboration with David Durrah to Detroit and issued his masterpiece, Reflections In The Sea Of Nurnen. This is your chance to indulge in the music and story of one of the most meaningful, local movements of the 20th Century Black American experience, one that expanded outwards towards the cosmos. In the words of the collective themselves, “Music is the healing force of the universe.”
Jack Irons – Koi Fish In Space LP (ORG Music)
Jack Irons may be best known as a founding member of Red Hot Chili Peppers and former member of Pearl Jam. A drummer and multi-instrumentalist, he has recorded and toured with the likes of Joe Strummer, The Wallflowers, Les Claypool, Neil Young, and many others. As a solo artist with three albums and two EPs under his belt, Irons stretches out into new territory, taking a more experimental approach which showcases his unique talents both as a composer and player. This 12″ vinyl release combines his 2019 EP Dream Of Luminous Blue and the brand new Koi Fish In Space EP, with each EP per side.
Quincy Jones & Band – I Dig Dancers [Reissue/1961] LP (Honeypie)
Deliberately presented as a dance music release, this brilliant Quincy Jones album comprises material from two marvelous big band performances recorded the year before in Paris and New York. Here the great composer and arranger leads a first class “dance organization” – a top-flight big band featuring the cream of NY jazz musicians.
Karate – The Bed Is The Ocean [Reissue/1998] LP (Numero)
In their short time together, Karate helped bolster the national punk ecosystem, a scene in which individual artistic vision was prized but rarely achieved. Their exacting precision and emotive interplay helped recombine the DNA of the dignified grace of slowcore, the hot-and-sweaty atmospherics of the blues, and the high-wire tension of post-hardcore to deliver drawling instrumental curveballs and a furtive riptide climax with a controlled grace.
Flore Laurnetienne – Volume 1 LP+MP3 (RVNG Int’l)
Volume I inaugurates a series of orchestral synergies from Flore Laurentienne, the vessel of Canadian composer Mathieu David Gagnon. Born near the St. Lawrence River, the classically trained musician channels the nature, grandeur, and light of his formative environment into spectral hues of early progressive rock and the compositional art of fugue. Volume I breaks through the classical and popular music milieu to arrive at expansive horizons of instrumentation and imagery, technicolor moments of blossoming arpeggio, and plaintive, aching tones of decay.
Byron Lee’s All Stars + Friends – Soul Ska: Original Rocksteady LP (Burning Sounds)
All songs are performed by Byron Lee’s Allstars featuring Ken Lazarus, Jo-Jo, Keith Lynn, Smokey 007, Hubert Lee and Cecil Barker. All the tracks originally recorded in the mid- ‘60s, and were produced by Alty East, one of the first producers of the Jamaican ska scene. Pressed on red vinyl.
Luna Li – Duality LP (In Real Life)
New release from the Korean Canadian singer/songwriter.
Lost Dog Street Band – Glory LP (Anti-Corp)
This collection of songs showcases the husband/wife centered band’s patently dark country songwriting, exploring subjects ranging from recovery from addiction to the struggle to maintain self-reliance in an industry overwhelmed with vultures, while never abandoning their traditional Americana roots.
Aksak Maboul – Redrawn Figures 1 LP (Crammed Discs)
Aksak Maboul – Redrawn Figures 2 LP (Crammed Discs)
During the year which followed the release of the Figures double album, 14 artists have revisited or remixed songs from Aksak Maboul’s acclaimed “comeback” opus. Participants include experimental pop luminaries The Notwist (DE), Cate Le Bon (GB), Kate NV (RU) and Vanishing Twin (GB), respected electronic music artists Felix Kubin (DE), Tolouse Low Trax (DE), Hello Skinny aka Tom Skinner (Thom Yorke’s new bandmate in the Smile project, GB), Matias Aguayo (CL/DE) and Stubbleman aka Pascal Gabriel (GB/BE), revered experimentalist Carl Stone (US), up-an-coming beat makers Shungu (BE) and ohh_luuu (US), Nihiloxoca’s Spooky-J (GB) and Chicago house veteran Jordan Fields (US). Additionally, Aksak Maboul’s Marc Hollander has reworked 4 tracks. All these colorful interpretations are available on two separate, limited-edition vinyl LPs.
Mad Butcher – Metal Meat [Reissue/1987] LP (Dying Victim Productions)
Mad Butcher was one of the first real metal bands in Germany to pick up sonic influence from the burgeoning NWOBHM movement and the early US metal scene. Originally released in 1987, Metal Meat is far closer to the dark & heavy sleaze of early W.A.S.P. or even Exciter’s way ugly Unveiling The Wicked than, say, Poison or Ratt.
Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – Mannthology: 50 Years Of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band 6xLP+2xDVD (Creature Music)
A celebration to mark 50 years of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, Mannthology brings together all the band’s singles from 1971 to date, including some from solo projects, and contains previously unreleased tracks, hard-to-obtain B-sides, and rare mixes. Mannthology showcases Manfred Mann’s striking ability to identify, arrange and perform other people’s songs to make them his own, including songs by Dylan, Springsteen, Bob Marley, Weller, and Sting. This set comprises six vinyl albums with a paperback book and two DVDs (the Earth Band’s 2017 Baloise session and a documentary film covering the band’s 50-year history). The book has comprehensive history of the band, biographies, extensive track notes, comments, and anecdotes from band members, plus 50 high quality photos. The set also includes an exclusive slipmat.
Melvins – Eggnog [Reissue/1991] 10” (Boner)
Melvins – Lice-All [Reissue/1992] 10” (Boner)
Translucent green and red (respectively) color vinyl pressings. Originally released as a 10-inch in 1991, Eggnog is a wild ride into the outer limits of Melvins-dom. Lice-All, from 1992, previously known as self-titled, was the Melvins last release before signing their Atlantic deal, and features the introduction of new bass player Joe Preston (previously of Earth, currently of Thrones). It’s one long, slow, loud blob of drones, moans and fuzztones. The opening endless power chord shimmer influenced Sleep, Sunn O))), and countless other sludge metal drone freaks for years to come.
Scott Metzger – Too Close To Reason LP (The Royal Potato Family)
Guitarist Scott Metzger spent the past decade earning a reputation as one of the most adventurous improvisers in live music. When he wasn’t sharing the stage with the likes of Phil Lesh, John Scofield or Nels Cline, he was playing to massive crowds with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead. His musical interests, however, run broader than those bona fides might suggest. During breaks he pursued projects like WOLF!, a hard-charging, fully electrified guitar trio that balanced tight compositions with group improvisation, and the Showdown Kids, an acoustic gypsy jazz trio. And once in a great while he booked a solo acoustic show, most notably a 2018 sellout at New York’s iconic Joe’s Pub.
Modern Nature – Island Of Noise LP+MP3 (Bella Union)
Since the demise of his previous band Ultimate Painting, Jack Cooper – under his Modern Nature guise – has never stopped looking ahead, exploring, and reaching for something further. Since 2019, he’s released an EP, last year’s mini album Annual, one full length LP, one 7″ and three live cassettes – in the process mapping out astonishing new terrain. Constructed over the last 12 months, his beautiful new album, Island Of Noise, presents an obvious new peak in his discography and represents an absolute career highlight.
Napalm Death – Enemy Of The Music Business [Reissue/2000] LP (Secret)
Red color vinyl pressing of the UK thrash band’s ninth album.
Nation Of Language – A Way Forward LP (PIAS America)
Nation of Language’s A Way Forward is more relaxed and confident than anything the Brooklyn band have done before. Released in May of 2020, their debut album, Introduction, Presence, did so much better than they’d ever imagined it would that they felt it best to trust themselves and follow their instincts on the resulting follow-up. Those instincts led them to a record more rooted in Krautrock and early electronic music, with influence from artists like Kraftwerk, Laurie Spiegel, and Cluster. A Way Forward feels even more like a journey than its predecessor, something that can be followed from start to finish with greater emotional peaks and valleys and new sonic landscapes being explored. [CD edition due March 11.]
Pablo Solo – Solo Sings Simon CD (Think Like A Key)
Released last November on CD – now available on vinyl. A collaborative album between legendary songwriter-producer John Simon (Music From The Big Pink, Cheap Thrills) and singer-songwriter Pablo Solo from Cantabria, Spain. Solo brings his raw energy and musicianship to create a strong set of beautiful songs written by Simon throughout his career, including two recent compositions, Irresistible and the poignant One as well as classics like Tannenbaum and King Lear’s Blues.
Peach Pit – From 2 To 3 LP (Columbia)
From 2 To 3 is the new album from Peach Pit. It draws inspiration from ‘60s – ‘70s rock and folk music, with the band citing Paul McCartney, Neil Young, Eagles, Glen Campbell, and George Harrison as their biggest influences.
Phronesis – Alive [Reissue/2010] 2xLP (Edition)
First-time vinyl pressing. Over the last two decades, Phronesis forged a reputation for spell-binding live performances, capturing the imaginations of audiences worldwide. Years of performing, touring, and recording gave this trio a matchless rapport that inspired an ever-flowing stream of pioneering new music. Flawless in execution and driven by some of the most infectious and compelling music written in recent years, this extraordinary recording became one of the most talked-about live piano trio releases.
Pink Floyd – Piper At The Gates Of Dawn [Reissue/1967] LP (Sony Legacy)
Vinyl reissue of Pink Floyd’s debut album, The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (Mono Version), previously available only as a 2018 Record Store Day exclusive. This album, originally released in 1967, is the only title recorded while under the leadership of Syd Barrett. It was recorded at the now legendary Abbey Road Studios and is considered one of the quintessential psychedelic records of its era.
Real Friends – Torn In Two 12” (Pure Noise)
Released last September on CD, an indie store exclusive blue w/ pink & white color vinyl pressing is now available. New EP from the Illinois-based pop-punk band.
Swami John Reis – Ride The Wild Night LP (Swami)
Green color vinyl pressing. Swami John Reis celebrates his 100th year in rock ‘n’ roll with a brand-new band and record. Ride The Wild Night is neither completely similar nor dissimilar to his previous bands (Hot Snakes, Night Marchers, The Sultans, Rocket From The Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, etc). Yet the sound is immediately familiar and assuring (like an old friend you lost touch with that comes back into your life only to ask to borrow money). The music is an amalgam of ’60s folk-punk, ’70s punk-punk and pre-Vietnam War rock ‘n’ roll, filtered through the Reis’ unregistered, trademark sensibilities.
Reverend Bizarre – Slave Of Satan [Reissue/2005] 12” (Svart)
First-time vinyl pressing of the Finnish doom metal band’s 2005 EP.
Penny Rimbaud – Corpus Mei LP (One Little Independent)
Prolific punk pioneers Penny Rimbaud and Youth proudly present their collaboration album Corpus Mei. In a series of epic, cinematic soundscapes, Penny spits tales of the grotesque and absurd. Gargantuan sermons delivered in counter to swelling, emotive orchestration where he and former bandmate Eve Libertine deliver a slew of anti-capitalist weaponized poetry. With their carefully constructed verse, they arm the listener against corrupt institutional powers as well as the abstract. High concept and highly descriptive, these vivid and dramatic pictures are painted with artful, honest passion against a monstrous, post-apocalyptic backdrop.
Rival Consoles – Overflow 2xLP+MP3 (Erased Tapes)
Rival Consoles returns with a resonant and explorative soundscape of original music, composed for renowned choreographer Alexander Whitley’s contemporary dance production Overflow. Exploring themes of the human and emotional consequences of life surrounded by data, the piece echoes the concept of social media, advertising, marketing companies and political factions exploiting our data to gain wealth, political advantage, and sow division. Key reading for the project was based around the contemporary philosophical work Psychopolitics: Neoliberalism And New Technologies Of Power by Byung-Chul Han. [CD edition due March 25.]
RZA as Bobby Digital – Digital Bullet [Reissue/2001] 2xLP (Get On Down)
In the late ‘90s, Wu-Tang Clan superstar RZA developed a new persona. Based on his birth name and the fact that he was branching out into more digital production, Bobby Diggs became Bobby Digital. As RZA himself put it, “My birth name is Bobby Diggs. So, at the time, creatively, I felt like I was in a digital frame… As Bobby Digital, I could use a character to describe some of the earlier days of my own life. Partying, bullshitting, going crazy, chasing women, taking drugs. It was a mixture of fiction and reality together to make a character I thought would be entertaining.”
Shinyribs – Late Night TV Gold LP (Mustard Lid)
Shinyribs defies genres as a sonic melting pot of Texas blues, New Orleans R&B funk, horn-driven Memphis soul, country twang, border music, big band swing, and roots-rock. The Austin-based nine-piece (sometimes 10-piece) supergroup is led by Kevin Russell, the charismatic frontman with colorful suits and extravagant shoes who continuously swaps out an electric guitar for a ukulele and never falls short of creating a cinematic experience with on-stage antics that often include him donning a light-up cloak or leading a conga line through the crowd. Late Night TV Gold is filled with Caribbean organs, verbed-out distant delay vocals, chunky fatback guitars, dance hall horns, trip-trap, soul-tap, boldface bass, mellotron traced, late-night rhythms, -isms and -gasms, prisms, schisms, and chasms, this’ems and that’ems of molecular musical atoms splitting hairs and lost heirlooms. [A limited-edition swirl multi-color vinyl pressing is available.]
Skid Row – Skid Row [Reissue/1989] LP (Friday Music)
180gm audiophile vinyl reissue of the glam rock band’s 1989 debut album. Features Smash Hits “18 And Life”, “I Remember You”, “Big Guns”, & “Can’t Stand The Heartache”.
Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators – 4 4xLP+Cassette (BMG)
Now available: A deluxe four-LP box set including the cassette Live Rehearsal Tape 5/28/21, a 36-page photobook, a lithograph, a sew-on patch, an Axe Heaven miniature Les Paul guitar, and a pick tin containing four custom guitar picks. 4 is Slash’s fifth solo album and fourth overall with his band featuring Myles Kennedy (vocals), Brent Fitz (drums), Todd Kerns (bass & vocals) and Frank Sidoris (guitar & vocals). A vibrant rock album fueled by memorable guitar hooks and compelling melodies, big choruses, and even bigger riffs; 4 builds on the legacy of Slash (Feat. Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators)’s prior work. For 4, Slash and the band traveled across the country together to Nashville, TN, and recorded the new album at the historic RCA Studio A with producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile), revealing a stunning new sound and style all captured live in the studio. Cobb shared the band’s desire to lay down the tracks live, in the studio including guitar solos and vocals – a first for the group.
Soft Machine – Paris 1970 2xLP (London Calling)
Despite their gradual dissolution in the late ‘70s, Soft Machine’s stock has never been higher thanks to a steady stream of archival recordings that continue to surface and throw light on the importance of varying line-ups. The quintet version of the band, captured at the Theatre de la Musique, Paris on March 2, 1970, for Frances Pop Deux TV show features that short lived and often lamented line-up of Lyn Dobson and Elton Dean on their respective reeds accompanying the obligatory Hopper, Ratledge and Wyatt. The Paris date in March caught Dobson near the end of his tenure which came two weeks later.
Spirit Adrift – Forge Your Future LP+CD (Century Media)
New EP from the Arizona doom metal band. Vinyl features an etched B-side.
Kiefer Sutherland – Bloor Street LP (Cooking Vinyl)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Kiefer Sutherland, mostly known as an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor, producer, and director, began pursuing a secondary musical career in the 2000s and 2010s by forming the Ironworks label. He signed Rocco DeLuca, Ron Sexsmith and started his own rootsy Americana outfit called the Kiefer Sutherland Band. Bloor Street is his latest album.
Tally Hall – Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum [Reissue/2008] LP (Oglio)
Vinyl LP pressing in gatefold jacket. The long-awaited repress of Tally Hall’s classic debut album is here. Originally released on Atlantic Records in 2008, Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum features the internet viral hits “Good Day”, “Banana Man”, “Ruler Of Everything”, and over a dozen more whimsical songs from your favorite tie-wearing miscreants.
Truth – For All Intents And Purposes LP (Animal Military Recs)
Truth continues his verbal onslaught with his third album, For All Intents And Purposes. Truth teams up with the legendary production duo Da Beatminerz (Mr. Walt and DJ Evil Dee) (who also featured production on Truth’s first two LP’s). Truth’s sound remains consistent once again throughout giving the listener banger after banger.
Tuff Crew – DJ Too Tuff’s Lost Archives [Reissue/2008] 2xLP (Ruffnation)
Tuff Crew is known throughout the world as Philly’s first Rap super group. They’ve toured extensively with some of the biggest names in Rap music such as Public Enemy, Run-DMC, Biz Markie, Big Daddy Kane, Rob Base and LL Cool J.
Ulcerate – Stare Into Death And Be Still [Reissue/2020] 2xLP (Debemur Morti Productions)
The unmistakable sound of Ulcerate finds it’s emotional apex on sixth album Stare Into Death And Be Still, as the band emerge from the claustrophobia and dissonance of their recent past to present a next-level exploration of melody, harmony and power. The band’s signature ultra-atmospheric blend of highest order unorthodox death metal with the texture of futurist black metal is here pared down with the consummate hand of experience, giving stunning credence to the riff, the song, and the meaning.
Undeath – Lesions Of A Different Kind LP (Prosthetic)
Limited-edition green color vinyl pressing. Skull crushing death metal reigns supreme; if the blood-spattered glory of Carcass is your (body) bag, if the headbang-inducing brutality of Cannibal Corpse is too much for you to resist, then Undeath have served up a feast for you. 2020’s Lesions Of A Different Kind is the sound of three lifetimes of subterranean sickness and death metal worship coalescing in a severe brain-bludgeoning unlike anything you’ve heard before.
Various Artists – 20 Years Of Bastard Jazz 4xLP (Bastard Jazz)
From its humble beginnings in 2001, the Brooklyn label Bastard Jazz Recordings has trailblazed a unique path in the world of independent record labels. Appealing to both DJs and music fans from all walks of life, BJR has become known for its eclectic sound & community of global artists from Mumbai to Napoli, New York to Kinshasha, who touch on everything from funk to hip-hop, house music to forward thinking beats, soul to jazz and international sounds, along with its unrelenting commitment to the vinyl medium.
Various Artists – Erased Tapes 20 LP+MP3 (Erased Tapes)
At a time of global separation, Erased Tapes founder and sonic explorer Robert Raths stitched together a project putting what is most important at the forefront – connection. This collection of works by undisclosed artists from the roster gives space and time to appreciate art at its most honest. By shedding the information noise usually attached to release cycles and by bringing music back to the magic of sound, we’re presented with an opportunity for exploration when we need it most.
Various Artists – Jazz In South Africa LP (Honeypie)
South Africa is in fact the only country in the whole African continent that has developed a strong jazz tradition. Initially influenced by the great American stylists, (Ellington, Gillespie…) South Africa gradually developed its own soulful style based on a distinctive taste for melody and a deep sense of groove. Masterfully selected from the so-called “Golden Age” of the genre, (late ’50s/ early ’60s), this compilation represents the best introduction to the work of a large and varied body of musicians and composers who inevitably developed their music as part of the historical Anti-Apartheid struggle, and as means of self-expression in the dark times of exile.
Various Artists – Motown: A Symphony Of Soul (With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) LP (Motown)
Released last November on CD – now available on vinyl. Motown: A Symphony Of Soul features some of Motown’s best known and loved singles now reimagined with new orchestration by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Also included are some beautiful new guest vocalist versions that sit alongside the original vocals laid down over 50 years ago. Beverley Knight joins Marvin Gaye on the seminal “Abraham, Martin & John” and Mica Paris joins Jimmy Ruffin on “What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted”.
Various Artists – Ocean Child: Songs Of Yoko Ono LP (Atlantic)
Imagined and curated by Benjamin Gibbard (lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of Death Cab For Cutie), Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono is comprised of 14 all-new versions of Ono’s tracks performed by a diverse range of rising artists and legendary stars including David Byrne, Japanese Breakfast, The Flaming Lips, Sharon Van Etten, Jay Som, and more. A portion of the proceeds from the record will be going to WhyHunger, a non-profit organization Ono has supported for decades in their efforts to transform our food system by building social justice and striking at the root causes of hunger and poverty.
Warsaw – Warsaw LP (Out-Sider)
Limited blue colored vinyl pressing. Joy Division, originally named Warsaw, consisted of singer Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bass player Peter Hook, and drummer Stephen Morris. Warsaw was the planned debut album by the English post-punk band. Recorded in May 1978, it comprised eleven tracks now known collectively as the RCA Sessions. The band was disappointed with the label’s post-production work and the deal fell through; the album being scrapped. This Warsaw release presents the RCA Sessions (some of which would be released on their debut EP, An Ideal For Living); “As You Said” from the 1980 Komakino single; and the band’s first recorded music, five Warsaw Demo tracks from 1977.
Waveform* – Last Room LP (Run For Cover)
Blue color vinyl pressing. On Last Room, the third album from the Connecticut-based Waveform*, there’s a purposeful hollowness. It’s a record you can fall into, a collection of music that’s unafraid to venture into emotion, exploring the gaping distance that develops in some relationships, the constant confusion that accompanies self-discovery, and the darkness that accompanies abandonment.
White Ward – Futility Report [Reissue/2017] LP (Debemur Morti Productions)
Black w/ gold & gray color vinyl pressing. Furious and intimate, exciting and intriguing, 2017’s Futility Report stems from a thoroughly modern vision, an innovative interpretation of extreme music which breaks down established codes whilst simultaneously deep-rooted in the obscure history of black metal.
Xythlia – Immortality Through Quantum Suicide LP (Voidhanger/Translation Loss)
Vinyl reissue of Xythlia’s crushing debut – an epic collision of tech-death, grind and hardcore that is equal parts face melting as it is soul devouring.
Cassettes:
The Beths – Future Me Hates Me [Reissue/2018] (Carpark)
The Beths occupy a warm, energetic sonic space between joyful hooks, sun-soaked harmonies, and acerbic lyrics. Their debut album, Future Me Hates Me, delivers an astonishment of roadtrip-ready pleasures, each song hitting your ears with an exhilarating endorphin rush like the first time you heard Pavement’s Slanted And Enchanted or The Breeders’ “Cannonball”. Front and center on these 10 infectious tracks is lead singer and primary songwriter Elizabeth Stokes. Stokes has previously worked in other genres within Auckland’s rich and varied music scene, recently playing in a folk outfit, but it was in exploring the angst-ridden sounds of her youth that she found her place.
Sabaton – War To End All Wars (Nuclear Blast)
Written and recorded in 2021 during the COVID global pandemic, Sabaton has crafted a concept album of 11 brand new songs that dive deep into previously unexplored atrocities, miracles and events tied to the early 20th century’s World War I. With the release of The War To End All Wars, fans can expect a wealth of single releases, each one accompanied by a compelling and emotional music video that will breathe life into the fact-based story behind the song.
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