New Releases for March 25, 2022

Marketing Program/ Banner/ Listening Station Titles Promoted This Week:

Architects – For Those That Wish To Exist At Abbey Road CD/2xLP+MP3 (Epitaph)

Architects’ new album captures a historic live stream performance event at the iconic Abbey Road studios: spiritual home to legends like The Beatles and Pink Floyd. Dubbed For Those That Wish To Exist at Abbey Road, the album features a reimagined orchestral version of their masterpiece album For Those That Wish To Exist, backed by their friends in the Parallax Orchestra, the well-respected UK based orchestra made up of some of England’s best and most versatile classical musicians, arranged and written by Simon Dobson, Parallax Orchestra’s conductor and a three times British Composer award (BASCA) winner for his compositions. [An indie store exclusive clear w/ yellow & purple splatter color vinyl pressing is available.]

Barrie – Barbara CD/LP/Cassette (Winspear)

On Barbara, the sophomore album from Brooklyn-based songwriter and producer Barrie, she battles the loss of a parent, the start of a new relationship, and the impulse to separate herself from her music. This result is a beautifully peculiar, and quietly ambitious collection of synth-pop, art-pop, indie rock, and folk songs that reflect a new willingness to let listeners into her world. Two events redefined Barrie Lindsay’s life and shaped the direction of Barbara. In the summer of 2019, she met her now-wife, the musician Gabby Smith. Simultaneously, Lindsay’s father learned that his lung cancer had worsened. In January of 2020, she moved home to Ipswich to spend time with family and begin work on her album. Three months became nine, thanks to the pandemic. Lindsay wrote Barbara while quarantining with Smith in Maine, while her father was dying, and while she was falling in love. [An indie store exclusive blue color vinyl pressing is available.]

Michael Bublé – Higher CD (WB)

Produced by Greg Wells and Bob Rock along with Alan Chang, Jason ‘Spicy G’ Goldman and Paul McCartney, Higher serves as Michael Bublé’s first studio album in three years and eleventh studio effort overall. The 11-track collection catapults the star’s enormous talent into the stratosphere as he continues his ongoing journey reinventing and interpreting the music of America’s most beloved standards amongst others. Fitting perfectly throughout these gems are a handful of Bublé originals that further cement his gift for writing and performing great pop tunes and luscious ballads. An irresistible and uplifting collection from the ultimate romantic once again reminds us that the thrill of exploring the subject of love and romance continues inspiring this artist and the world. [Vinyl edition due May 13.]

Destroyer – Labyrinthitis CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)

Destroyer’s new album brims with mystic and intoxicating terrain, the threads of Dan Bejar’s notes woven through by a trove of allusions at once eerily familiar and intimately perplexing. More than an arcane puzzle for the listener, Labyrinthitis warps and winds through unfamiliar territory for Bejar as well. Written largely in 2020 and recorded the following spring, the album most often finds Bejar and frequent collaborator John Collins seeking the mythic artifacts buried somewhere under the dance floor, from the glitzy spiral of “It Takes a Thief” to the Books-ian collage bliss of the title track. Initial song ideas ventured forth from disco, Art Of Noise, and New Order, Bejar and Collins championing the over-the-top madcappery. [An indie-store exclusive green w/ bone white color vinyl pressing is available.]

Maia Friedman – Under The New Light CD/LP (Last Gang)

Recently released on vinyl – now available on CD. Following a breadth of experience as a collaborator and multi-instrumentalist (Maia has spent the past four years as a member and co-vocalist of Dirty Projectors and Coco ft. members of Lucius, Maia Friedman’s densely textured pop is wise and evokes the sensuality of touch, feeling and image – a sonic form of empathy. Friedman’s voice lends a unique quality of warm comfort that permeates all her collaborations, but Under The New Light presents her full intention. Her role is that of the wounded healer, one who has gained wisdom through darkness and grief. The album plays like a fulfilled journey, and though Friedman is still somewhere in the middle of her own, on Under The New Light her vision is fully formed.

Guerilla Toss – Famously Alive CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Sub Pop)

Dig deep enough inside yourself — start treating your body as your sanctuary rather than your enemy – and eventually you’ll find yourself blooming right back out into the sun. That’s the transformation Guerilla Toss trace on their effervescent new album, Famously Alive. After a decade sprinkling glitter into grit, building a reputation as one of the most ferociously creative art-rock groups working, the upstate New York band have eased fully into their light. This is Guerilla Toss at their most luminescent – awake, alive, and extending an open invitation to anyone who wants to soak it all up beside them. [An indie-store exclusive purple color vinyl pressing is available.]

Aldous Harding – Warm Chris CD/LP+MP3 (4AD)

An artist of rare caliber, Aldous Harding does more than sing; she conjures a singular intensity. Her body and face a weapon of theatre, Harding dances with steeled fervor, baring her teeth like a Bunraku puppet’s gnashing grin. Her debut release with 4AD, Party (produced with the award-winning John Parish; PJ Harvey, Sparklehorse) introduced a new pulse to the stark and unpopulated dramatic realm where the likes of Kate Bush and Scott Walker reside. Harding’s 2019 album Designer found the New Zealander hitting her creative stride, touring the world, and making her American television debut. For Warm Chris, the New Zealand musician reunited with Parish. All ten tracks were recorded at Rockfield Studios and includes contributions from H. Hawkline, Seb Rochford, Gavin Fitzjohn, John and Hopey Parish and Jason Williamson (Sleaford Mods).

Ibibio Sound Machine – Electricity CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)

Produced by the Grammy Award and Mercury Prize–nominated British synthpop group Hot Chip, Electricity is the fourth and most progressive album from Ibibio Sound Machine. Their collaboration was born out of mutual admiration watching each other on festival stages, as well as a shared love of Francis Bebey and Giorgio Moroder. The fruits of their labor reveal a gleaming, supercharged, Afrofuturist blinder. Electricity is the first album Ibibio Sound Machine has made with external producers since the group’s formation in London in 2013 by vocalist Eno Williams and saxophonist Max Grunhard. Along the way, the team conjured a kaleidoscope of delights that include resonances of Jonzun Crew, Grace Jones, William Onyeabor, Tom Tom Club, Kae Tempest, Keith LeBlanc, The J.B.’s, Jon Hassell’s “Fourth World”, and Bootsy Collins. [An indie-store exclusive yellow & black splatter color vinyl pressing is available.]

Ignite – Ignite CD/LP+CD (Century Media)

After half a decade of not releasing new music Orange County’s most notorious melodic hardcore force Ignite are ready to get back to work with their new vocalist Eli Santana up front and a new album in hand. “It’s a new chapter for Ignite,” reaffirms Brett. “But there’s a lot of looking back to some of our earliest records like Call On My Brothers and having the same feeling writing these songs with a new singer.” In these Southern California stalwarts’ minds, the more things change, the more they stay the same. “This is what we love doing – as it was in 1993 and as it is now.” [A limited-edition clear vinyl pressing is available.]

Gabriel Kahane – Magnificent Bird CD/LP (Nonesuch)

With his fifth album Magnificent Bird, Kahane brings to life a trunk of songs written in self-imposed isolation-a full year off the internet-with the help of a dozen colleagues whose long-distance contributions were made possible, paradoxically, through the very technology he had shunned. Despite having written two-and-a-half dozen songs, Kahane chose just ten for the album. Its tight construction makes its themes throb in technicolor: wildfires, recurring dreams, a shadowy “emperor” (is that a Silicon Valley tech bro?) all float in and out of the frame. Indeed, the album’s brevity somehow enhances its urgency and power, like a carefully considered letter to an old friend. And, like such letters, the album is also, for Kahane, a belated return to the confessional mode.

Machine Gun Kelly – Mainstream Sellout CD (Bad Boy/Interscope)

Originally called Born With Horns, Mainstream Sellout is the sixth studio album from the multi-faceted rapper turned rocker Machine Gun Kelly. Following up on the pop-punk sound of 2020’s Tickets To My Downfall, he described the project as TTMD if he “turned the lights off.” With a harder rock sound than TTMD and references to the journey of his career, Mainstream Sellout is an introspective project that reflects on his musical adventures. [An indie store exclusive Tour Edition featuring two bonus tracks and alternate cover art is available.]

Matisyahu – Matisyahu CD/2xLP (Fallen Sparks)

Like all gifted storytellers, Matisyahu spins the rare kind of stories that simultaneously enlighten and enthrall and expand the audience’s sense of possibility. On his eponymous new album, the Grammy Award-nominated singer/songwriter/rapper shares his most autobiographical work to date, merging that personal revelation with a shapeshifting collision of reggae and hip-hop and boldly inventive pop. Produced by Salt Cathedral (a Brooklyn-based duo comprised of Colombian musicians Juliana Ronderos and Nicolas Losada), the result is an undeniably transformative album, one that invites both intense introspection and unbridled celebration. [An indie store exclusive color vinyl pressing is available.]

Larry McCray – Blues Without You CD (KTBA)

Poised to become a genre-shaping staple with the release of two major label albums in the ‘90s, rustbelt blues singer and guitarist Larry McCray proves he’s been hiding in plain sight with the release of his first album in nearly seven years, Blues Without You. Produced by blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith, the 12-track collection is released via Bonamassa’s Keeping the Blues Alive Records (KTBA Records), and features performances by Bonamassa, Warren Haynes, Joanna Connor, and Reese Wynans. [Vinyl edition due June 17.]

Night Demon – Year Of The Demon CD (Century Media)

The point is simple: These songs deserve a wider release than the collector’s edition 7″ vinyl treatment they received in 2020. To that end, Year Of The Demon compiles these prized tracks in one place for all to enjoy. The package is rounded out by stunning cover artwork created by Don Phury. Ultimately, Year Of The Demon is aptly named because it captures a year in the life of Night Demon, a year in the life of us all, unlike anything any of us had ever experienced before. It is a snapshot, a permanent marker, of that moment in time. [A limited-edition silver color vinyl pressing is available.]

Ian Noe – River Fools & Mountain Saints CD/LP (Lock 13)

Like the creeks that run and tributaries that trickle throughout singer-songwriter Ian Noe’s homelands in Eastern Kentucky, water flows throughout his new album. Thoughtfully and intentionally named, River Fools & Mountain Saints highlights Noe’s storytelling prowess through 12 country rockers and Appalachian ballads, depicting contemporary and historical life in the region. Broader in scope and brighter in tone than his lauded debut, 2019’s Between The Country, River Fools & Mountain Saints boasts a fuller sound with more diverse instrumentation.

Placebo – Never Let Me Go CD/LP (BMG)

Nine years on from the release of their last outing Loud Like Love, Placebo return with the long awaited eighth studio album, Never Let Me Go. As great masters in cataloguing the human condition, Placebo’s unique way of examining both its flaws and beauty finds fertile ground in 2021. Crawling out of the pandemic into a landscape of intolerance, division, tech-saturation, and imminent eco-catastrophe, theirs is a voice that has rarely felt more significant to contemporary discourse, and more appropriate to sing these stories to the world. [An indie store exclusive translucent red color vinyl pressing is available.]

The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys – Never Slow Down CD (Smithsonian Folkways)

Like seekers finally hitting the open road after a year without its exhilarating freedom, deep-rooted bluegrass troupe The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys kick it into high gear on Never Slow Down, their newest collection of classic songs and soon-to-be-classic originals. The Grammy-nominated group pours every ounce of passion they have into these recordings as they always have, this time with even more fervor and zeal with the addition new band member Laura Orshaw. Taking on material by their heroes The Stanley Brothers, Hazel Dickens & Alice Gerrard, George Jones and more, The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys bridge the gap between the past and present, proving the eternal importance of bluegrass and making it accessible to all. [Vinyl edition TBD.]

Soul Glo – Diaspora Problems CD (Epitaph)

Philadelphia is a city ripe for a black and brown punk reclaiming. Entire movements have thrived for more than a decade dedicated to promoting art and music by marginalized people. Enter Soul Glo, a band etching dark, interpersonal screeds on ancient parchment cut from the skin of the rotting corpse of hardcore punk. Their music travels pedal-driven through lush, dense shoe-gaze forests, bursting out of the other side screaming. Lead singer Pierce Jordan’s voice is an unmatched wail that snakes through the band’s wiry punk orchestration as a truly exhaustive vessel for his trauma-informed lyrics.

Wallows – Tell Me That It’s Over CD/LP (Atlantic)

Wallows’ highly anticipated sophomore album, Tell Me That It’s Over, was produced by multi-Grammy Award winner Ariel Rechtshaid (Vampire Weekend, Haim, Adele) and contains 10 tracks informed by everything from lo-fi post-punk to indie-folk to early ’90s dance-pop psychedelia. TMTIO is a thrilling continuation of the sonic exploration first begun on Wallows’ 2019 album Nothing Happens featuring their platinum-selling single “Are You Bored Yet?” (feat. Clairo). Following their critically acclaimed 2020 EP Remote, the band released the first taste of music from their new album with the well-received singles “I Don’t Want To Talk” and “Especially You”. [A value-added guitar pick pack is available while supplies last.]

Additional Social Media Program Titles Released This Week:

Machine Gun Kelly – Mainstream Sellout CD (Bad Boy/Interscope)

Anaïs Mitchell – Anaïs Mitchell LP (BMG)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl (including an indie store exclusive green color pressing). Anaïs Mitchell returns with her first solo studio album in over a decade. “The sound is gently polished and the songs richly melodic enough to bear comparison with Taylor Swift in downhome mode (both Mitchell and Swift contributed vocals to Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner’s last album as Big Red Machine), but the whole enterprise is noticeably low-key. Around Mitchell’s acoustic guitar are delicate shimmers of tremolo-heavy guitar or electric piano; little smears of electronics so subtly placed you barely notice them first time around; the occasional sax solo courtesy of Bon Iver sideman Michael Lewis, sprawling gracefully in a way that recalls the same instrument’s use on Nick Drake’s Bryter Layter, as well as Lewis’s work on Gayngs’ small-hours soft rock-inspired album Relayted. Even the drums are gently tapped: rimshots rather than snares; brushes and soft mallets rather than drumsticks. That the musical scenery is shot in soft focus draws the listener’s attention to Mitchell’s distinctive voice…” – The Guardian

Tinariwen – The Radio Tisdas Sessions [Reissue/2001] 2xLP+MP3 (Wedge)

Double white color vinyl pressing housed in gatefold jacket. The 20th Anniversary edition of Tinariwen’s first studio album The Radio Tisdas Sessions has been remastered for vinyl. It includes an unreleased bonus track, exclusive photos, and brand-new liner notes.

Tinariwen – Amassakoul [Reissue/2003] 2xLP+MP3 (Wedge)

Double indigo color vinyl pressing. Amassakoul was Tinariwen’s breakthrough album, originally recorded in Mali and the UK in 2003. Now remastered for vinyl with a bonus unreleased track, exclusive photos, and brand-new liner notes.

CDs + Vinyl:

8 Kalacas – Fronteras CD+DVD (Atomic Fire)

8 Kalacas emerged from Orange County in 2003. Their potent blend of Latin-infused ska and hardcore eventually gave birth to the term “skacore”. The band, fueled by the concepts of hate, love, injustice and life, have recorded two full-length albums, one EP and multiple compilations, now release their third studio album, Fronteras.

Abbath – Dread Reaver CD/LP (Season Of Mist)

Riff-maestro Abbath Doom Occulta cements his place among the metal hierarchy with Dread Reaver, his third album with eponymous project Abbath. His signature blend of blistering speed metal, traditional metal influences, and touch of ice-cold black metal creates a sound and style that is distinctly his. [Regular and Deluxe CD editions are available. Deluxe includes bonus material.]

Absent In Body – Plague Of God CD/LP (Relapse)

The debut album by experimental sludge metal/post metal band Absent In Body – featuring current and former members of Amenra, Neurosis, and Sepultura – is bound by the same ideals of unity and fearlessly uncompromising honesty of expression that have driven their respective bands to imperious heights of reverence and groundbreaking sonic deliverance. Plague God is by turns devastating and sublime, drawn from musicians for whom life and art are inextricably bound. [An indie store exclusive red w/ blue color vinyl pressing is available.]

Architects – For Those That Wish To Exist At Abbey Road CD/2xLP+MP3 (Epitaph)

As The World Dies – Agonist CD (Transcending Obscurity)

Formed by members of Memoriam and Pemphigoid, As The World Dies is among UK’s most promising new bands. Gritty and spiteful, the music rampages mercilessly hearkening back to the era of Bolt Thrower, Grave and the like.

Anton Barbeau – Power Pop!!! CD (Big Stir)

No mere broadside, Power Pop!!! sees Anton Barbeau charting his own path forward as always, inviting the adventurous pop-rock fans of the world to follow. It’s a work so unfettered by genre constraints that it can only be seen as our Ant’s next leap, with much to offer to longtime fans and newcomers alike.

Barrie – Barbara CD/LP/Cassette (Winspear)

John Berry – Find My Joy CD (Gaither Music Group)

Grammy Award-winning country singer/songwriter John Berry has created heartfelt renditions of gospel classics that have inspired him offstage and grounded his lauded musical journey. Find My Joy features his unmistakable voice that has garnered platinum records and 20 hit singles.

BillyBio – Leaders And Liars CD/LP (AFM)

Leaders And Liars is the new album by Billy Graziadei, who is best known as the vocalist/guitarist for Biohazard. [A limited-edition silver color vinyl and an indie store exclusive red color vinyl pressing is available.]

Binker And Moses – Feeding The Machine CD/LP (Gearbox)

Feeding The Machine is the long-awaited third studio album by semi-free jazz duo Binker And Moses. The album yet again cements Binker and Moses’ status as being at the vanguard of London’s jazz and jazz-adjacent music scene. With honorary band member Max Luthert on tape loops and electronics, Feeding The Machine crosses into ambient, minimalism and experimental electronic music territories, whilst also nodding to the duo’s roots in riff-heavy free jazz.

Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver (10th Anniversary Edition) CD/2xLP+MP3 (Jagjaguwar)

Expanded 10th anniversary edition of Bon Iver’s highly acclaimed sophomore release, 2011’s Bon Iver, Bon Iver. This edition features five songs from Bon Iver’s beautiful AIR Studios session, which captures the grand spirit of the album and distills it into sharper focus, as Justin Vernon and Sean Carey perform the songs as a duo, on grand pianos and vocals only. [A white color vinyl edition is available.]

Dennis Bovell – The DuBMASTER – The Essential Anthology 2xCD/2xLP (BMG)

Since making his recording debut in the early ‘70s with legendary British reggae band, Matumbi, Dennis ‘Blackbeard’ Bovell has repeatedly demonstrated his supreme talent and versatility in a variety of music fields. And yet enormity of his impact upon the UK’s music scene over the past five decades has remained largely overlooked. The DuBMASTER – The Essential Anthology sets to finally address this injustice by presenting the first serious retrospective of Dennis’s output as both a performer and producer.

Apollo Brown – Blacklight CD (Mello Music Group)

Simplicity is genius. Great artists can make the ostensibly impossible seem effortless. It’s in this rarefied air where you’ll find Detroit’s Apollo Brown, constantly conjuring fresh innovations out of a tried-and-true formula. He makes music for old and young heads-bone bruising beats that summon visceral images of back-alley brawls in ’81, pool hall melees, and metropolitan griminess. An East Coast sound with a midwestern mentality, channeling the marrow-freezing chill of the wind fleeing Lake Michigan.

Michael Bublé – Higher CD (WB)

John Cage – Radio Music CD (Dirter Promotions)

Jean-Hervé, Zappi and Steve Pittis recorded their interpretations of Radio Music independently in 2007 and 2010. They all felt it important to keep to the score as much as possible, given the obvious ambiguities of having to adapt it from Cage’s original 1956 score. These recordings were released as a 10″ vinyl EP and sold out instantly, so here they are on CD format with some extras.

Camp Hope – Running With The Hurricane CD/LP (Run For Cover)

Running With The Hurricane finds Camp Cope on the other side of a storm. The third LP from Melbourne trio Georgia Maq, Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich and Sarah Thompson is about what happens after chaos hits; when you’ve walked through the fire and come out stronger, calmer, and happier than ever before. [A limited-edition neon violet color vinyl pressing is available.]

Capricorn – For The Restless CD (Wild Kingdom)

10 tracks of burning rock ‘n’ roll. [Vinyl edition due April 1.]

Albert Castiglia – I Got Love CD (Sono Recording Group)

11 blistering blues-drenched tracks.

Ornette Coleman – Genesis Of Genius: The Contemporary Albums 2xCD (Craft Recordings)

Genesis of Genius: The Contemporary Albums combines legendary jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman’s albums for Lester Koenig’s Contemporary Records. It features his first albums as a bandleader – Something Else!!!! and Tomorrow Is The Question! – both of which were originally recorded by legendary engineer Roy DuNann and have been newly mastered by Bernie Grundman. [Vinyl edition due April 22.]

Cowboy Junkies – Songs Of The Recollection CD (Proper)

The brand-new Cowboy Junkies album Songs O The Recollection features covers of well-known songs by the likes of David Bowie, Gram Parsons, The Rolling Stones, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Bob Dylan and The Cure [Vinyl edition due May 13.]

Cydeways – Cydeways CD (Law)

Cydeways’ eponymous album builds on their previous success while continuing to improve upon the production, songwriting, and lyrics. In addition to working with the David Foral/Jungle Josh production team, the band hit the studio with esteemed alternative and pop-rock producer and engineer Kyle Black (Paramore, State Champs, The Story So Far) and reggae-rock mainstay Lewis Richards (Dirty Heads, Slightly Stoopid, Sublime) to round out the album’s sound.

Graham Day – The Master Of None CD/LP (Countdown)

One of the stars of the UK Medway scene since the 1980s, Graham Day was a member of The Prisoners (1980-86), Thee Mighty Caesars (1984-88 as a drummer), The Prime Movers, The Solarflares, The Buff Medways, Graham Day & The Gaolers, amongst other bands. The Master Of None is his debut solo album.

Destroyer – Labyrinthitis CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)

Extinction A.D. – Culture Of Violence CD (Unique Leader)

The Long Island metallers return with their new album, Culture Of Violence. Essential listening for fans of Slayer, Megadeth, Testament and Pantera.

Eyes Set To Kill – Damna CD (Revival)

New release from the Tempe, AZ-based metalcore band.

Faust – 1971-1974 7xCD/7xLP+2×7” (Bureau B)

Repress for those who missed out last year. Few bands have been as innovative, influential, or as irrepressible as Faust – the way they revolutionized the history of music in the space of just four years puts them right up there with The Velvet Underground. What began in a Hamburg (Sternschanze) bunker in 1970 would send shockwaves around the world. This box is the first virtually complete collection of Faust works from the years 1971-1974. In addition to the debut album, it includes the 1972 album So Far, the legendary 1973 Virgin UK release The Faust Tapes, Faust IV and, for the first time ever, the mythical, so-called Munich album Punkt, which Faust recorded at Giorgio Moroder’s Musicland Studios in 1974. For one reason or another, this last album never saw the light of day – until now. The bonus albums Momentaufnahme I and Momentaufnahme II also feature unreleased material, simultaneously affording us a fascinating glimpse of Faust’s creativity in their Wümme studio phase.

Freakons – Freakons CD/LP (Fluff & Gravy)

Mekons (beloved, mythical British rabble-rousing beast) and Freakwater (also beloved, yet often derided as godmothers of alt-country) have allied their sundry song & dance talents for the forces of good. Together they are Freakons, and they have joined forces to sing songs about coal mining, of all things.

Billie Free & The Lasso – Holy Body Roll CD (Mello Music Group)

Holy Body Roll is a groove-filled guidebook for healing, the soundtrack to help you move from tear-streaming breakdown to full-body boogie. The first collaborative album from Michigan multi-instrumentalist/producer The Lasso and New Mexico-based singer/rapper A. Billi Free, it’s also a quest for self-realization and self-preservation. With the aid of musical trio Tri Magi, The Lasso imbues thumping ’80s boogie, guitar-wailing funk descended from Midwest legends, heart-pumping house and techno direct from Detroit, celestial and spiritual jazz, and slices of krautrock with hip-hop sensibilities. [Vinyl edition due August 12.]

Maia Friedman – Under The New Light CD/LP (Last Gang)

Gauntlet Rule – The Plague Court CD (Target)

Debut album from the Swedish heavy metal band. [Vinyl edition due April 8.]

Get Well Soon – Amen CD/2xLP (Virgin)

Amen is Konstantin Gropper’s 2022 full-length release as Get Well Soon. Gropper found himself pondering the bigger social questions that the last two years – and the accompanying isolation – have provoked: the pros and cons of individualism, the good and bad that binds and divides us, the pursuit of happiness and the purpose of hope, and the wisdom of Chinese fortune cookies. He emerged with a crucial realization, that’s as surprising to him as it will be to others: he’s an optimist.

Ghostly Kisses – Heaven Wait CD/LP (Akira)

Ghostly Kisses is the work of French-Canadian singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Margaux Sauvé. Playing the violin since the age of 5, it was almost 20 years later that she began to write and sing her first songs. Now working with Louis-Étienne Santais – composer, producer, and pianist – together they create Ghostly Kisses’ haunting yet ultimately soothing sound; beautiful compositions wrapped around Margaux’s delicate voice. [A limited-edition color vinyl pressing is available.]

Goldfrapp – Felt Mountain [Reissue/2000] CD/LP (Mute)

Felt Mountain is the melodic and moody debut album by English electronic duo Goldfrapp featuring Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory. Originally issued in 2000, the influential album takes inspiration from a variety of musical styles including 1960s pop, cabaret, folk, and electronica. [A limited-edition gold color vinyl pressing is available.]

Matt Goss – The Beautiful Unknown CD/LP (Explorer1 Music LLC)

After 30 years living in the US, between Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Matt Goss (one-half of BROS) has decided it’s time to return home to London. The Beautiful Unknown launches an exciting new solo chapter in the British pop music legend’s career, following a resurgence of recognition off the back of 2018’s BAFTA winning documentary After The Screaming Stops.

Guerilla Toss – Famously Alive CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Sub Pop)

Daryl Hall & John Oates – Marigold Sky [Reissue/1997] CD/2xLP (BMG)

Rock & Roll Hall of Famers and legendary duo Daryl Hall and John Oates reissue their fifteenth studio album Marigold Sky. To celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the album, it is available for the first time on double LP, as well as an expanded CD format that includes three bonus tracks previously unavailable on the original album release. Regarded as a fan favorite, Marigold Sky is a collection of exquisitely crafted soul-pop that is irresistibly smooth, laying bare the mastery of the duo’s classic songwriting chops that has been prevalent throughout their career.

The Hanging Stars – Hollow Heart CD/LP (Loose Music)

With Hollow Heart, The Hanging Stars transcend their well-earned repute as masters of a captivating meld of blissful psychedelic folk and harmony-laden cosmic country. This fourth album from the accomplished London five-piece; recorded at Edwyn Collins’ Clashnarrow Studios in North-Eastern Scotland; scales fresh artistic heights, as they conjure a record more sonically varied, more contemporary, and less in awe of its influences. [A limited-edition yellow color vinyl pressing is available.]

Aldous Harding – Warm Chris CD/LP+MP3 (4AD)

Haunted Shores – Void CD (MNRK Records LP)

Haunted Shores is the instrumental side project of Periphery guitarists Mark Holcomb and Misha Mansoor, two high-profile members of the heavy music community. The record is a balls-out blast of heavy music played at breakneck speed, with rumbling grooves, and tons of twists and turns. [A gold w/ black marble color vinyl pressing is due April 8.]

Homeboy Sandman – There In Spirit CDEP (Mello Music Group)

Since 2007, Homeboy Sandman has delivered timeless projects exhibiting his imaginative flows and thought-provoking lyrics.

The Home Team – Slow Bloom CD (Revival)

“Slow Bloom is a curious record in the sense where, at first listen, it sounds like a fairly innocuous pop-punk record that went maybe a touch heavy on the pop. With more listens, however, the subtleties and nuances within the release become more and more evident—and it starts with the percussion. Laid down by the explosive percussionist from an infamous MySpace deathcore act, Idols, the drumming throughout Slow Bloom is punchy and bouncy, giving each song a strong, solid foundation.” – New Transcendence

Hooded Menace – Fulfill The Curse [Reissue/2008] CD (Napalm)

CD reissue of the debut album from the Finnish doom metal band.

Jon Hopkins – Music For Psychedelic Therapy CD/LP+MP3 (Domino)

Music For Psychedelic Therapy carves a new path for Jon Hopkins sonically and philosophically as a follow up to 2018’s Grammy nominated Singularity. Enveloping Hopkins’ journeys across geographical and cosmological spectrums, the album is an inimitable and all-embodying journey in and of itself. It’s a richly rewarding and personal listening experience; one highly recommends indulging in without distraction. [An indie store exclusive clear vinyl pressing is available.]

Ibibio Sound Machine – Electricity CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)

Ignite – Ignite CD/LP+CD (Century Media)

Gabriel Kahane – Magnificent Bird CD/LP (Nonesuch)

Rokia Koné/Jacknife Lee – BAMANAN CD/2xLP (Verve)

On her debut international release, Rokia Koné (aka the Rose of Bamako) teams up with Irish-born, California-based rock producer Jacknife Lee and reimagines the Malian sound in ways both leftfield and groundbreaking.

Kraftwerk – Remixes 2xCD/3xLP (Parlophone)

Remixes showcases Kraftwerk’s immense influence on club & DJ culture, techno and all forms of electronic dance music. Featuring 19 official remixes, it collates Kraftwerk’s own remixes alongside contributions from some of the world’s biggest DJ’s and producers including François Kervorkian, William Orbit, Étienne de Crécy, Orbital, Underground Resistance, DJ Rolando, and Hot Chip. The remixes are taken from various Kraftwerk 12” singles, CD singles and digital releases from 1991-2021.

Isik Kural – in february CD/LP (RVNG Int’l)

On in february, Isik Kural works like a photographer of sound, documenting the passing and returning of time as if material snapshots of life’s temporality. Across the album’s twelve songs, each composed from chance loops and cocooned within the soft container of Isik’s memorable voice and melody play, time is held on to hopefully, impossibly, eternally. [An indie store exclusive pink color vinyl pressing is available.]

Jessy Lanza – DJ-Kicks CD/2xLP (!K7!)

Lanza presents her entry for the DJ-Kicks series – a sprawling, club-indebted odyssey that draws you in closer and closer with each listen. Recorded this summer, the mix is an incisive snapshot of her emotional landscape during the past 18 months.

Machine Gun Kelly – Mainstream Sellout CD (Bad Boy/Interscope)

Matisyahu – Matisyahu CD/2xLP (Fallen Sparks)

Larry McCray – Blues Without You CD (KTBA)

Reba McEntire – My Chains Are Gone CD (MCA Nashville)

My Chains Are Gone is a collection of hymns and gospel favorites from country music icon Reba McEntire. Featuring 12 tracks, the album is a mix of songs from Reba’s 2017 Grammy Award-winning release, Sing It Now: Songs Of Faith & Hope, combined with four brand-new selections including the beloved “The Lord’s Prayer” and “Because He Lives”. The CD includes an acoustic version of “Back To God” (featuring Lauren Daigle) which has never been available physically before now. [A standalone DVD video of Reba belting through these songs in various settings is also available.]

Hedvig Mollestad – Tempest Revisited CD/LP (Rune Grammophon)

Hedvig Mollestad must surely be one of the hardest working musicians on the Norwegian music scene at the moment, with Tempest Revisited being her third album in a mere 18 months, all at a consistently high artistic level.

Maren Morris – Humble Quest CD/LP (SME Nashville)

Maren Morris delivers her third album, Humble Quest, which was produced by Greg Kurstin and includes the autobiographical single, “Circles Around This Town”, a tribute to her late friend and producer, Busbee. The introspective 11-track collection finds Morris returning to her country roots and features no collaborations.

Necrophobic ‎– Death To All [Reissue/2009] CD/LP (Century Media)

With 30 years of active, nefarious service under their bullet belts, Necrophobic are undisputed legends of the death and black metal underground. Formed in 1989 by drummer Joakim Sterner, the Stockholm blackhearts propagated a singular and fearless vision from the very start, confirming their prowess with now legendary debut album The Nocturnal Silence in 1993. Eschewing the self-conscious amateurism and primitive sonics that many of their peers held dear, Necrophobic established a bold and vivid identity of their own, conjuring a densely melodic but endlessly wicked take on macabre extreme metal that countless lesser bands have since emulated.

Night Demon – Year Of The Demon CD/LP (Century Media)

Nigo – I Know Nigo CD (Victor)

Global multi-hyphenate (fashion designer, DJ, producer & entrepreneur) Nigo is tapping back into his musical roots to present the new album, I Know Nigo. The album boasts features from A$AP Rocky, Lil Uzi Vert, Kid Cudi, Tyler The Creator, Pop Smoke, A$AP Ferg, Pusha T and more.

Nite – Voices Of The Kronian Moon CD/LP (Season Of Mist)

The San Francisco Bay has a history steeped in heavy metal and Nite carries that torch with pride. Founded in 2018, their blackened heavy metal barrels towards the peril of an unknown future, while still paying homage to metal’s foundations. Guitarists Van Labrakis (Satan’s Wrath) and Scott Hoffman (High Spirits) let loose galloping riffs and harmonies that evoke the classic sounds of the NWOBHM while driving their dark, melodic metal into the modern era.

Ian Noe – River Fools & Mountain Saints CD/LP (Lock 13)

Joell Ortiz – Autograph CD (Mellow Music Group)

Brooklyn-born rapper Joell Ortiz has earned much respect throughout the hip-hop scene, receiving critical acclaim with his many albums and mixtapes, in addition to achieving mainstream success as part of the supergroup Slaughterhouse. He is renowned for his tireless worth ethic as well as his strong narrative skills and freestyling abilities. [Vinyl edition – including an indie store exclusive red color pressing – due July 8.]

Paradise Lost – Drown In Darkness – The Early Demos CD (Vic)

Drown In Darkness – The Early Demos is a compilation album featuring the gothic metal band’s demos recorded in 1988 and 1989.

Placebo – Never Let Me Go CD/LP (BMG)

The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys – Never Slow Down CD (Smithsonian Folkways)

Kenny Rogers – The Love Of God [Deluxe Edition] CD (UMe)

Deluxe expanded edition of the late country and pop singer’s 2011 gospel album. Includes the previously unreleased “The Gospel Truth” which features the Oak Ridge Boys.

Michael Romeo – War Of The Worlds // Pt. 2 2xCD/2xLP (Inside Out U.S.)

A fresh installment of progressive rock/meal from the Symphony X founder.

Xavier Rudd – Jan Juc Moon CD/2xLP (Virgin)

The wind blows strong through Australian singer-songwriter’s Xavier Rudd’s tenth album, Jan Juc Moon. It’s a recurring image that speaks of wide-open space and the awesome natural elements that shape it: a force far greater than us, but ours to harness if we take the time to learn, reflect and respect its ways. [A limited-edition white and an indie store exclusive blue color vinyl pressings are available.]

Rudimentary Peni – Death Church [Reissue/1983] CD/LP/Cassette (Sealed)

Death Church is the first studio album by the anarcho-punk/deathrock band Rudimentary Peni, released in 1983 on Corpus Christi Records.

Ed Schrader’s Music Beat – Nightclub Daydreaming CD/LP+MP3 (Carpark)

After turning heads with the densely orchestrated Riddles, produced by Dan Deacon, the Baltimore-based duo Ed Schrader’s Music Beat has given us another giant leap forward with their fourth record Nightclub Daydreaming. The whiplash-inducing stylistic shifts between aggressive noise rock and operatic gloom pop that have become the band’s trademark have given way to a single aesthetic that fuses both impulses. On Nightclub Daydreaming, menace teems just below the surface as propulsive, stark arrangements leave space that Schrader fills with strident, reverb-soaked narration. [A limited-edition gold color vinyl pressing is available.]

Scritti Politti ‎– Cupid & Psyche 85 [Reissue/1985] CD/LP (Rough Trade)

Released last August on vinyl – now available on CD. Despite the series of radical shifts that underpinned its creation, Scritti Politti’s second album Cupid & Psyche 85 achieved the virtually impossible. While everything was scaled up – the ambition, the sound, the audience – the singular artistic vision that drove the group not only remained intact and undiluted in these bigger surroundings, but became more inventive, more adventurous and, ultimately, more beloved.

Sleaford Mods – Austerity Dogs [Reissue/2013] CD (Extreme Eating)

Originally released in 2013, now reissued on Sleaford Mods’ own Extreme Eating imprint. Sleaford Mods started out sometime during 2006 while Jason Williamson was living in Nottingham. Born out of part frustration and part accident, it quickly found its feet as an aggressive verbal onslaught on all that is contrived and connected to the day-to-day hammer of low paid employment and domestic situations arising from that trap.

Darden Smith – Western Skies CD/LP (Bull By The Horns)

Comprising a new studio record, a book of photography, lyrics, and essays, Western Skies is an immersive journey through a world both real and imagined, inspired by the west Texas landscape.

Soul Glo – Diaspora Problems CD (Epitaph)

The Staple Singers – Coming Home: Early Classics CD/LP (Contrast)

Soul empress Mavis Staples has mesmerized listeners for decades, and this collection showcases her at the start of a remarkable career. With famed family group The Staple Singers, Mavis, even at age 16, displays a fully formed prowess and instinctive, communicative gift that’s thrilled listeners for generations. Soul-stirring gospel at it’s very finest.

Suicide – Surrender CD/2xLP (BMG)

Collated by Marty Rev, Alan Vega’s partner, Liz Lamere, and Henry Rollins, Surrender includes tracks from Suicide’s classic debut album, Suicide (1977), to their final outing, American Supreme (2002). The LP also features two brand new, unheard tracks “Girl (Unreleased Version)” and “Frankie Teardrop (First Version)”. Presented as digipack CD and a limited-edition blood red color double vinyl with an embossed outer and mirror board inner gatefold, this unique package also contains a set of brand new, extensive and extraordinary liner notes by long serving fan/collaborator and NYC stalwart Henry Rollins.

Crash Taylor – Retired Outlaw CD (Fanatic)

Crash Taylor shows up with nothing to prove and everything that stirs the heart to share. With his husky baritone and seasoned guitar playing, Crash will strike a chord with any folk/rock lover. Acoustic guitars blend with a screaming Les Paul to set the tone while a Hammond organ supplies the glue for these musical poems.

Telefís – a hAon CD/LP (Dimple Discs)

Debut album from the unique electronic pop collaboration between two Irish iconoclasts – acclaimed producer Garret “Jacknife” Lee (U2, R.E.M., Two Door Cinema Club) and singer-lyricist Cathal Coughlan (Microdisney, The Fatima Mansions). Part celebration, part satire, Telefís (pronounced Tele-feesh, the Gaelic word for Television) is an exploration of Irish nostalgia and modern global hierarchies, strange characters and caricatures springing from Coughlan’s fertile imagination, while Jacknife Lee creates irresistible electro-funk backdrops full of melodic, squelchy synths and thunderous basslines.

TesseracT – Polaris [Reissue/2015] CD (Kscope)

The pioneers of an ever-evolving metal scene, TesseracT, released their third album, Polaris, in 2015. Originally formed as a studio project by guitarist Acle Kahney, TesseracT is a band full of melody, dynamics and groove, they sit outside the bounds of any genre specificity to truly create a sound that has always been pioneering and creative; an unstoppable force of off-kilter riffs, soaring melodies and disorientating atmospherics.

Mark Turner/Jason Palmer/Joe Martin/Jonathan Pinson – Return From The Stars CD (ECM)

Mark Turner’s writing for his quartet on Return From The Stars gives the players plenty of space in which to move, on an album both exhilarating and thoughtful in its arc of expression. Although he has been a frequent presence on ECM in contexts including the Billy Hart Quartet, the Fly trio, and a duo with Ethan Iverson, this his first quartet album since 2014’s Lathe Of Heaven and is an essential document of his artistry as a player and his conceptual thinking as a bandleader.

Two Another – Back To Us CD/LP (Virgin)

The upbeat sound of Two Another embraces earnest themes such as self-acceptance, sexuality, mental health, and fatherhood.

Various Artists – Legacy: A Tribute To Leslie West CD/LP (Provogue)

When Leslie West passed away in December of 2020, he left behind a towering legacy of epic recordings that few rock guitarists can match. But there was more to West than great songs (although, to be sure, he created a ton of them); there was his brilliant, idiosyncratic sound, a gargantuan earthmover that razed arenas and stadiums across the globe. More than just paralyzing tone, though, he also had a touch nobody could beat. Stinging, swooning, and sensual melodies leapt from his fingertips – with a deft flick of his wrist, he sounded like a Delta bluesman had picked up a violin. These elements and more helped to make West one of the most significant, influential, and irreplaceable guitarists of the rock era. Executive produced by Jenni West, Bob Ringe and John Lappen, Legacy: A Tribute To Leslie West features dizzying, heartfelt performances by Slash, Zakk Wylde, Dee Snider, Bachman & Bachman, Martin Barre, Joe Lynn Turner, Charlie Starr, Elliot Easton, Robbie Krieger, Mike Portnoy, Eddie Ojeda, George Lynch, Marty Friedman, Steve Morse and Yngwie Malmsteen, among others. [A limited-edition silver color vinyl pressing is available.]

Various Artist – My Friend: A Tribute To Rusty Young CD (Blue Élan)

My Friend: A Tribute to Rusty Young celebrates and highlights the legacy of Rusty Young, the late co-founder of country-rock band Poco. Plans for a tribute album were already underway before Young suddenly passed away on April 14, 2021. Unfortunately, Young was never able to hear the renditions of his iconic songs that were recorded by this talented group of artists. Artists contributing to the project include Rusty’s labelmates Jesse Dayton, Janiva Magness, Chelsea Williams, Colin Devlin, Mustangs of the West, Roan Yellowthorn and Bob Gentry. Additional artists include Sam Morrow, the Orchid Quartet, Mary Scholz and Taylor John Williams along with the newly formed Cimarron 615 featuring Tom Hampton (Poco), Bill Lloyd (Foster & Lloyd, Sky Kings), Rick Lonow (Flying Burrito Brothers, Poco), Jack Sundrud (Great Plains, Poco) and Michael Webb (Poco).

VR Sex – Rough Dimension CD/LP (Dais)

The latest by Andrew Clinco’s acid punk alias VR SEX takes it’s title from an architectural phrase but more importantly refers to the warped, wicked underworld the songs both chronicle and condemn. [A limited edition ‘apple red’ color vinyl pressing is available.]

Wallows – Tell Me That It’s Over CD/LP (Atlantic)

The Winstons – Color Him Father [Reissue/1969] CD/LP+12”+MP3 (Soul Jazz)

What do Tyler the Creator, Mantronix, Stetsasonic, DJ Shadow, Eric B and Rakim, Brand Nubian, Jay-Z and N. W. A. have in common? What do UK Apachi and Shy FX, DJ Zinc, Bukem, Ganja Kru, Lemon D Ice, Dillinga, Photek, 4-Hero, Congo Natty, Krome and Time, Roni Size, Skream and Shut Up and Dance have in common? Not to mention The Prodigy, Squarepusher, Leftfield, Oasis, Aphex Twin, Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa, David Bowie, Primal Scream, Lady Gaga and Dizzee Rascal? Answer: They have all sampled The Winstons’ ‘Amen, Brother! The Winstons’ “Amen, Brother” is THE most sampled drum break in the history of music and has shaped the evolution of electronic music ever since its creation in 1969. This reissue includes four bonus tracks.

John Zorn – Perchance To Dream… CD (Tzadik)

A beautiful suite of music for late night listening, spiritual and evocative, performed by an all-star unit of four members of Zorn’s inner circle. Structured like a religious mass, these seven lovely nocturnes take you to an otherworldly space of beauty and tenderness, unlike any other Zorn compositions you have ever heard. Gorgeous and restful music from a compositional seeker who continues to defy categorization, Perchance To Dream… is one of the most unusual and haunting collections in his catalog.

DVD:

Reba McEntire – My Chains Are Gone DVD (MCA Nashville)

This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:

Acid Mothers Reynols – Vol. 2 LP (Hive Mind)

A second blistering free-psych freak-out from cult Argentine rockers Reynols and eccentric Japanese anarcho-mystics Acid Mothers Temple.

Mike Adams At His Honest Weight – Oscillate Wisely [Reissue/2011] 2xLP (Joyful Noise)

Silver color 10^th Anniversary vinyl edition. There’s a weird grandeur to Adams’ music, starting with that fully formed, geekily majestic 2011 debut LP Oscillate Wisely. A sense that Adams is guiding his listeners toward a cosmic joke so personal, so inscrutable, so funny (“funny”), if you give him your attention. He’s not Oscar Wilde, but a uniquely Midwestern type of deeply sincere romantic and dyed-in-the-wool goofball cast from the mold of Hoosier icons like Letterman and Vonnegut.

After The Fire – Der Kommissar LP (Renaissance)

After the Fire (or ATF) were a British rock band that evolved from playing progressive rock to new wave over their initial ten-year career. Coming originally from a progressive rock background, After The Fire changed its musical style with the advent of punk and new wave and became more of a commercial pop band dominated by the keyboards of founding member, Peter Banks. Coupled with the thoughtful lyrics of vocalist/bassist Andy Piercy the band regularly played London’s Marquee Club and headlined at Finsbury Park’s Rainbow Theatre. They also toured the club circuits extensively in Europe and the US and opened for the likes of Queen, Electric Light Orchestra and Van Halen on big stadium tours worldwide.

Alewya – Panther In Mode 12” (London)

London-based artist, illustrator and sculptor Alewya releases her debut EP Panther In Mode, a stunning six track exploration that provides a glimpse into the world of one of the most exceptional new artists. Across its six tracks, Panther In Mode finds Alewya blurring the line between African indebted rhythms and the cutting edge electronic sounds of London.

Asking Alexandra – See What’s On The Inside LP (11-7 Recording Corp./Better Noise Music)

Released last October on CD – now available on either red color vinyl or Deluxe black 180gm vinyl. “Ever since frontman Danny Worsnop’s reconciliation with Asking Alexandria in 2016, the band have continually bridged their vocalist’s love of classic rock and country – something evidenced by his solo output and other band We Are Harlot – with their metalcore roots. A formula that’s undoubtedly paid off for the quintet given the huge streaming numbers that accompanied their hard-rock-leaning previous LP, Like A House On Fire, it makes sense that the band have continued down that path for this seventh record. While See What’s On The Inside doesn’t really break any new ground, what it does do is demonstrate Asking Alexandria’s knack for radio-friendly hard-rock, as well as Danny’s tremendous vocal abilities.”

Asteroid No.4 – Tones Of The Sparrow LP (Club Ac30)

Stalwarts of the modern ‘psych’ scene, California-based psychedelic-rock cult legends The Asteroid No.4 has never shied away from wearing their influences squarely on their sleeves. Originating from Philadelphia in the latter half of the 1990s, they took their early shoegaze inspirations from Mazzy Star, Medicine, MBV, Spacemen 3 etc. But with Tones Of The Sparrow, the band edge towards the more psychedelic side of the genre. Known for their rich, multi-textured guitars, reverb-drenched vocal harmonies and an unwavering rhythm section, Tones Of The Sparrow is their eleventh studio album and comes 25 years after the release of their debut. [Three color variants are available: frosted clear; blue w/ red & clear starburst; and blue w/ red splatter.]

Atrophy – Socialized Hate [Reissue/1988] LP (Massacre)

Vinyl reissue of the debut album of the US thrashers.

Bambara – Love On My Mind 12” (Wharf Cat)

With Love On My Mind – the six song mini-album, mixed by Claudius Mittendorfer (Tennis, Parquet Courts, Johnny Marr) – Bambara condense all the energy and darkness that have made them so compelling and rearrange it into something defiantly new.

Gregor Barnett – Don’t Go Throwing Roses In My Grave LP+MP3 (Epitaph)

Limited-edition indie store exclusive clear w/ black smoke color vinyl pressing. Gregor Barnett, guitarist/co-vocalist for The Menzingers, delivers his debut release Don’t Go Throwing Roses In My Grave. Written and recorded in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Don’t Go Throwing Roses In My Grave is a sonic departure from Barnett’s more punk-leaning work with The Menzingers, drawing on the gritty, off-kilter Americana of Tom Waits or Warren Zevon as it faces down loss and doubt in search of relief and redemption. “It was this perfect storm,” says Barnett. “The band couldn’t tour, I was going through a really difficult time, and I was stuck at home watching my family struggle with illness and death and hardship. The only thing I could do was write my way through it.”

Jorge Ben – Bem-Vinda Amizade [Reissue/1981] LP (Vampisol)

Jorge Ben’s Tropicalia/samba sound was eventually influenced by new musical trends coming from the States at the edge of the ‘70s. Boogie and disco music were making headway and soon became popular in the Brazilian market. Jorge Ben’s albums recorded at the beginning of the ‘80s reflect this trend and deliver a good number of outstanding tunes. Bem-Vinda Amizade is one of those albums.

Tim Bernardes – Recomeçar [Reissue/2017] LP (Mapache)

Vinyl reissue of the first solo album by the singer and composer of Brazilian band O Terno. Recomeçar is a magical chamber pop album that can be totally explained with just a word: beauty.

Birth Control – Operation [Reissue/1971] LP (Ohr)

Amongst the longest running bands of German rock, Birth Control was formed in 1968 in Berlin. They chose their rather controversial name as a stab at Pope Paul’s anti birth control policy.

Paul Bley – Bremen ’66 LP (Sowing)

Recorded live in Bremen, Germany, on September 27th, 1966, for broadcast on Nordwestradio. this set captures the young genius of Paul Bley at the head of his trio featuring bassist Mark Levinson and drummer Barry Altschul. A highly interactive piano trio whose peculiar instrumental interplay became a model for generations to come. The music played by Paul Bley with this line-up stands as one of the most advanced statements among those modern jazz forms that arose in the mid- ‘60s.

Blink 182 – Greatest Hits [Reissue/2005] 2xLP (Geffen)

Blink-182’s Greatest Hits is a collection of tracks from Cheshire Cat, Dude Ranch, Enema Of The State, The Mark, Tom & Travis Show, Take Off Your Pants And Jacket, blink-182 and more. The album also sports two bonus items: “Not Now” (an outtake from their 2003 self-titled album) and “Another Girl Another Planet”, which served as the theme to the MTV reality show Meet The Barkers, starring drummer Travis Barker.

Blood Incantation – Timewave Zero LP+CD (Century Media)

Clear vinyl pressing. Spawned in 2011, Blood Incantation has spent the past decade establishing a reputation for creating powerful atmospheric death metal with progressive elements, while gradually incorporating more psychedelic and ambient components with each new release. Epitomizing their cosmic essence and experimental nature, Timewave Zero reveals an alternate dimension for experiencing the mind-bending songwriting of Blood Incantation´s dense otherworldly sonic landscapes – beyond the limitations of genre and free to travel among the stars. Echoes of Tangerine Dream, Pink Floyd, Lustmord, Popol Vuh and Dead Can Dance synthesize in an archaic planetarium soundtrack, taking the listener on a cinematic journey.

Blood Red Shoes – Ghosts On Tape LP (Jazz Life)

Recently released on CD – now available on translucent blue color vinyl. After years spent living on opposite sides of the Atlantic world events threw Laura Mary Carter and Steven Ansell of Blood Red Shoes back together into what has become the must fruitful era of their 17 years together. And that brings us back to Ghosts On Tape. It appears that like David Lynch’s The Lost Highway; nothing is linear in the world of Blood Red Shoes.

Cattle Decapitation – To Serve Man [Reissue/2002] LP (Metal Blade)

Cattle Decapitation – Humanure [Reissue/2004] LP (Metal Blade)

Cattle Decapitation – Karma.Bloody.Karma [Reissue/2006] LP (Metal Blade)

Cattle Decapitation – The Harvest Floor [Reissue/2009] LP (Metal Blade)

Color vinyl reissues of the grindcore/death metal band’s third, fourth, fifth and sixth albums.

Natalie Cole – Unforgettable… With Love [30^th Anniversary Edition] 2xLP (Craft Recordings)

Recently released on CD – now available on 180gm double vinyl. Digitally remastered edition including two bonus tracks. Unforgettable… With Love was legendary singer and songwriter Natalie Cole’s biggest selling album. Since its initial release in 1991, it has sold over seven million copies and won Cole seven Grammy Awards. The album’s title track, an interactive duet with her father, would go on to be one of her most memorable recordings.

Theon Cross – Intra-I LP (New Soil/Marathon Artists)

Theon Cross is at the forefront of the thriving London jazz scene, with the gifted musician and composer expanding the sonic possibilities of tuba playing. Today, Cross – a core member of Mercury Prize-nominated outfit Sons Of Kemet – releases his new solo album, Intra-I (meaning “Within Self”).

Cynic – Carbon Based Anatomy [Reissue/2011] 10” (Season Of Mist)

Legendary progressive music-makers Cynic redefined themselves with their 2011 EP Carbon Based Anatomy which combines diverse influences from ‘70s-inspired prog rock to cutting-edge metal, tribal folk and futuristic alien shapes and sounds.

Steve Dawson – Gone, Long Gone LP (Black Hen)

Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. Steve Dawson has always been hard to pin down. A guitarist, a composer, a sought-after musical enabler, and sideman? Of course, he’s all those things and more, but none of those descriptions really do the seven-time Juno Award-winning musician justice. Since moving to Nashville in 2013, it’s been full tilt for the Vancouver native. Gone, Long Gone reflects Dawson’s mastery of songcraft and features brilliant instrumental performances from some of the finest players in roots music.

Kevin Devine – Nothing’s Real, So Nothing’s Wrong LP (Round Hill)

Two color vinyl pressings: clear and purple. Nothing’s Real, So Nothing’s Wrong is a grown-up break-up record, for strugglers by a struggler. It’s a record about fatherhood written during a pandemic. It’s a kitchen-sink tenth album pivot, painstakingly brought to life by two career-long collaborators and their shared and split obsessions. Lyrically evocative, excavating, and unflinching without irresponsibly printing your journals.

First Fragment – Gloire Eternelle 2xLP (Unique Leader)

Three color vinyl variants: red & orange; translucent rust; and gold. First Fragment was founded in 2007 by Phil Tougas (Chthe’ilist, Atramentus, Funebrarum) and brothers Gabriel Brault-Pilon and David AB. From day one, the trio sought to create a brand of extreme technical death metal that combined counterpoint-based riffing, neoclassical lead guitar work, power metal-inspired passages as well as flamenco and swing sections in a desire to branch out and establish their own unique voice in the Quebec scene. The band has since honed their craft and perfected their sound through expanding upon their extensive musical influences, further blurring the line between flamenco-inspired technical death metal and neoclassical power metal.

Frankenstein Drag Queens From Planet 13 – Night Of The Living Drag Queens [Reissue/ 1998] LP (Hey Suburbia)

Vinyl reissue of the second full-length release by North Carolina horror punk band.

Fucked Up – Do All Words Can Do LP+MP3 (Matador)

Nine B-side rarities from the era of Fucked Up’s monumental rock opera David Comes To Life, available as an LP for the first time.

Ghost – Opus Eponymous [Reissue/2010] LP (Rise Above)

Turquoise color vinyl pressing. A daringly beautiful combination of Satanic rock music with an almost unthinkable pop sensibility, 2010’s Opus Eponymous (Latin for self-titled work) is where it all began for the beautifully dark global phenomena Ghost.

God Dethroned – The Christhunt [Reissue/1992] LP (Vic)

Color vinyl reissue of the Dutch death metal band’s debut album.

Betty Harris – Soul Perfection [Reissue/1969] LP (Sougramma)

Released in Decmember 2020 – now available on vinyl. A collection of Allen Toussaint-produced singles; raw yet sophisticated Southern soul arrangements featuring Harris’ rich, distinctive voice. Prime specimens of the classic soul era.

Beth Hart – Bang Bang Boom Boom [Reissue/2012] LP (Provogue)

Clear vinyl reissue of the Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter’s sixth studio album. Bang Bang Boom Boom was originally released in 2012 as the follow-up to the highly successful soul-rock covers album Don’t Explain, a collaboration with blues sensation Joe Bonamassa.

The High Keys – A Little Too Heavy LP (Sundazed)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Recorded 1970-1972 under the watchful eyes and ears of Ron and Howard Albert, aka Fat Albert Productions (Wishbone Ash, Procol Harum, CSN) at the legendary Criteria Studios in Miami, this powerhouse album finally sees the light of day on orange color vinyl pressed at Third Man.

Howlin’ Wolf – The London Howlin’ Wolf Sessions [Reissue/1971] LP (Trading Places)

Tutored on guitar by Charley Patton and harmonica by Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin’ Wolf impacted the Southern club circuit in the late 1930s, and after a spell in the army cut impressive work at Sun, but really came into his own in Chicago, bridging the Delta and modern blues styles. In May 1970, The London Sessions teamed him with Rolling Stones alumni Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, and Ian Stewart, as well as Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood.

The James Hunter Six – With Love LP (Daptone)

With Love is a heart-shaped collection of candle-lit ballads and love songs. Plucked like so many “he loves you” petals from the vast and sumptuous garden of his Daptone Recordings, these twelve lilting melodies have been selected and sequenced with great care, tenderness, and intention by Daptone staff for the solitary purpose of compiling some of the criminally overlooked treasures in the James Hunter Six’s critically acclaimed catalog. [CD version due April 1.]

Colin James – Open Road LP (Stony Plain Music)

Released last November on CD – now available on vinyl. With a vault full of songs written over the past two years, from the road and in lockdown, it was tough to select just 13 tracks. Colin and co-producer Dave Meszaros set up three full band sessions in Vancouver and remotely through pandemic lockdowns in studios on both sides of the Atlantic. The result is a stunning album that captures the magic that musicians can do when given the time and space.

Kingdom Come – Journey [Reissue/1973] LP (Trading Places)

Theatrical rocker Arthur Brown gained notoriety and fame in equal measure through “Fire”, an anthem to their pyrotechnic excess. When his backing musicians quit to form Atomic Rooster, Brown formed Kingdom Come to further explore the nexus of music and theater and of the series of albums they cut for Polydor, Journey is the strangest and greatest. Stretching to the deepest reaches of space rock, Journey used the Bentley Rhythm Ace drum machine, and Victor Peraino’s synths, Theremin and mellotron, to chart the astral records of history. This is Brown’s true masterpiece, an astounding record that was eons ahead of its time.

Liquid Tension Experiment – Liquid Tension Experiment [Reissue/1998] CD/2xLP (Magna Carta)

The debut album from instrumental project Liquid Tension Experiment – a prog rock band that featured guitarist John Petrucci and drummer Mike Portnoy, at the time both of Dream Theater; bassist Tony Levin; and keyboardist Jordan Rudess, who would go on to join Dream Theater in 1999. [A 180gm purple & green haze splatter multicolor vinyl pressing is available.]

Madball – Legacy [Reissue/2005] LP (Good Fight Music)

Originally coming to fruition as an Agnostic Front side-project, Madball quickly established a reputation as being one of the hardest-working and most visceral hardcore bands in the scene, which still holds true to this day. Produced by renowned heavy-music specialist Zeuss (Hatebreed, Shadows Fall, Throwdown), 2005’s Legacy served as the group’s first release in half a decade and was a continuation of all the standards that any fan could expect from the group: bruising rhythms and riffs, commanding vocals, and an overall confidence that most hardcore troupes couldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole. 180gm blue color vinyl pressing.

Madteo – Head Gone Wrong By Noise 2xLP (Honest Jon’s)

Almost a decade since his classic album Noi No, NYC’s Madteo runs amok with nine new tracks of groove graffiti, scrawling on disco, hip-hop, house and garage styles with inimitably thrifty, freehand tekkers.

Baris Manço – 2023 [Reissue/1975] LP (Guerssen)

Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing. From 1975, this is Baris Manço’s masterpiece. Stunning cosmic, psychedelic, groovy conceptual album with fantastic electronics and a strong Turkish folk flavor, as usual. Legit deluxe release. Comes with the original gatefold cover, a reproduction of the full-color booklet, and an insert with extensive liner notes.

The Herbie Mann Nonet ‎– Flute, Brass, Vibes And Percussion [Reissue/1961] LP (Life Goes On)

In 1959, flutist Herbie Mann put together a very interesting band that was in its brief existence (before Mann’s interests shifted elsewhere) one of the tops in Afro-Cuban jazz. Utilizing four trumpets (including Doc Cheatham), up to three percussionists and a flute-vibes-bass-drums quartet, Mann performs four standards (including “Dearly Beloved”, “I’ll Remember April” and “Autumn Leaves”) and two originals in a style that was beyond bop and much more African- and Cuban-oriented.

Margolnick – Margolnick LP (Bright Antenna)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. 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.

Branko Mataja – Over Fields And Mountains LP (Numero)

Otherworldly guitar meditations, akin to Ennio Morricone spaghetti westerns, the electrified belly dance music of Omar Khorshid, and ’90s bedroom psychedelia. [A limited-edition ‘white blossom’ color vinyl pressing is available.]

Maybeshewill – No Feeling Is Final 2xLP (Wax Bodega)

Blue color vinyl pressing. Since 2006 Maybeshewill has released four full-length albums of towering, cinematic instrumental music. After a decade long career that saw them tour across four continents, they bowed out in 2016 with a sold-out show at London’s Koko. Having reformed briefly in 2018 at the request of The Cure’s Robert Smith for a show at Meltdown Festival, 2022 sees the band return with their first new material since 2014’s Fair Youth. Having worked on ideas separately in the intervening years, it was the sketches of music that would become No Feeling Is Final that pulled the band back together.

Metal Cross – Soul Ripper LP (MNRK Music Group)

Recently released on CD – now available on two color vinyl variants: orange & black and gray & black. Show Ripper contains the classic heavy metal of their now cult ‘80s demos “Crucifying The Virgins” and “M.A.D.H.O.U.S.E.” with a renewed power and energy. It will indeed rip your soul and leave you thirsty for more from this Scandinavian heavy metal powerhouse. It all began in 1983.

Mighty Baby – Jug Of Love [Reissue/1971] LP (Trading Places)

Evolving from London Mod act The Action, Mighty Baby signed to Parlophone on the reputation of their live sets, featuring guitarist Alan King, bassist Mike Evans, and drummer Roger Powell, with former Savoy Brown guitarist Martin Stone and keyboardist/sax player Ian Whiteman joining after. Their 1969 debut moved into heavy psych, and sophomore set A Jug Of Love took semi-acoustic form, blending bluesy folk and a touch of North African spice into their psychedelic prog, the style reminiscent of the Grateful Dead, but very much their own. An unsung masterpiece, feted by Julian Cope.

Anaïs Mitchell – Anaïs Mitchell LP (BMG)

The Muslims – Gentrifried Chicken LP+MP3 (Epitaph)

2020 album now available on vinyl. The Muslims is the only true punks to have ever existed. Drawing from the influence of the most legendary artists and revolutionaries of our time, they have successfully synthesized the “f* you” energy of the oppressed into an ass-kicking, head-smashing, fascist-punching sonic experience. This all-queer, black & brown punk band emerged onto the US music scene shortly after the election of 2016 and has been chugging white tears and destroying lives ever since. [An indie store exclusive vinyl pressing is available.]

Nas – King’s Disease II 2xLP (Mass Appeal)

Released last December on CD – now available on gold color vinyl. Following the Grammy Award winning album, King’s Disease, the king returns to his throne with the second coming, King’s Disease II. The star-studded project offers tacit game on life, love, and loss, uplifting through action and lived experience in a way only Nas can.

Oberhofer – Smothered LP (Telefono)

Released last November on CD and cassette – now available on vinyl. For their third album, Smothered, Oberhofer teamed up with producer Jonathan Rado (Weyes Blood, The Lemon Twigs, Crumb, The Killers) to bring his dreampop vision to life. They were joined by an all-star cast of guests, including King Princess, Jónsi, Teddy Geiger, Shamir, and Nick Valensi of The Strokes, to name a few.

Oddland – Vermilion LP (Target)

Recently released on CD – now available in vinyl. New album from the Finnish prog masters. Aggressive tones, spacious textures, and glorious melodies.

Oingo Boingo – Only A Lad [Reissue/1981] LP (Rubellan Remasters)

Limited-edition green & white vinyl repress. Before becoming a world-renowned film composer, Danny Elfman fronted the band Oingo Boingo. The group emerged from the surrealistic musical theatre troupe The Mystic Knights Of The Oingo Boingo. Reducing from a 15-piece troupe to an 8-piece band, Oingo Boingo was formed in 1979. With a style that initially mixed punk, ska, rock, and new wave, Oingo Boingo stood out from the traditional guitar/bass/drums by incorporating a three-piece brass section to accompany their quirky, frantic rhythms. Originally released by A&M in 1981, their debut album Only A Lad fit alongside similar contemporaries of the day, including Devo and Suburban Lawns.

Os Mutantes – Live At Teatro De Arena De Ribeirao Preto 8 August 1978 2xLP (DBQP)

Sérgio Dias, the only remaining original member of Os Mutantes, led the band until it’s dissolution in 1978. During this time, they released one more studio album, a live album and an EP. Here’s a brilliant performance of the band just before they disbanded, embracing a more solid prog-rock vibe.

P.E. – The Leather Lemon LP (Wharf Cat)

P.E. ‘s sophomore album, The Leather Lemon, ushers in a new era for the New York band. A wild ride through chewy bubblegum pop, sweeping synthetic orchestrations, and mutant club beats, the album slides ever closer to the fully realized pop sensibility only winked at with their debut album Person (2020) and subsequent releases. [An indie store exclusive green color vinyl pressing is available.]

Polyphia – Renaissance [Reissue/2016] LP (Equal Vision)

Dallas, TX-based instrumental outfit Polyphia’s sophomore album, Renaissance, was recorded with Nick Sampson (Asking Alexandria, Of Mice & Men) who co-produced it with guitarists Tim Henson and Scott LePage. Renaissance introduced a new conceptual and artistic direction for the trio’s sound, vibe and visual aesthetic, that sees the band embracing their eclectic musical tastes (which include EDM, hip hop, pop and classical music) to create their own innovative blend of technical, yet melodic instrumental arrangements.

Mike Pride – I Hate Work LP (RareNoise)

Orange color vinyl pressing. Mike Pride was not a fan of legendary punk band MDC – a straight-edge hardcore devotee, you could even say he had a chip on his shoulder about this more mainstream, less disciplined form of punk – when he suddenly found himself on a tour of Europe as their drummer sometime in the early ’00s. Twenty years later, now a longtime fan and friend of the band, Pride unexpectedly turns to the band’s raucous catalogue as a source for jazz standards on his warped new album, I Hate Work.

Red Kite – Apophenian Bliss LP (RareNoise)

Release last November on CD – now available on blue color vinyl. Distilling order from a crushing whirlwind of chaos has been the stock in trade for Red Kite since the Norwegian jazz-rock supergroup joined forces in 2014. Apophenian Bliss, the much-anticipated follow-up to the quartet’s powerhouse 2019 self-titled debut references the tendency in the human brain to find patterns and connections even when none exist. While it may be a stretch to call Red Kite’s blistering alchemy of surging psychedelia, steamroller rock and fringe-dwelling jazz “benign,” it’s at least a far less harmful application of the term than the conspiracy theories warping minds across the globe. Still, corralling the heady pandemonium of heavy prog, free jazz, combustible fusion, and avant-metal into a cohesive sound is one thing; bringing that music to life in the face of the real-world chaos of a global pandemic is something else entirely.

Reptaliens – Multiverse LP (Captured Tracks)

Recently released on CD – now available on transparent blue color vinyl. A crisp pop record packed with surprising flourishes from the Portland, Oregon duo.

Tom Rogerson – Retreat To Bliss LP (Western Vinyl)

Since the release of his last album – 2017’s Finding Shore, a collaboration with Brian Eno – pianist and singer-songwriter Tom Rogerson’s life has undergone several dramatic transformations. While writing his new album Retreat To Bliss, Rogerson had a child, lost a parent, and received his own diagnosis of a rare form of blood cancer. The new decade brought him from Berlin to the Suffolk of his childhood, composing profound pieces of minimal songwriting in the church next to his parents’ home. It was working with Eno, another Suffolk native, that eventually led Rogerson back to his roots and back to a place where he could write Retreat To Bliss, his solo debut album. [CD edition due April 8.]

Jimmy Ruffin – Ruff’n Ready [Reissue/1969] LP (Endless Happiness)

All killers and no fillers on this fabulous 1969 Motown masterpiece. It is a shame that Jimmy lived in the shadow of those other Motown singers such as Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder.

Ruth B. – Moments In Between LP (Downtown)

Released last September on CD – now available on color vinyl. 25-year-old Ethiopian Canadian singer and songwriter Ruth B. releases her new album Moments In Between. Executive produced by Patrick Wimberly (Beyonce, Solange, Blood Orange, Ellie Goulding), the album features eleven new, original songs all written or co-written by Ruth. Following her gold-certified 2017 debut Safe Haven and multi-platinum hit single “Lost Boy”, Moments In Between is a raw emotional accounting of the anxieties and uncertainty Ruth faces as a woman in her mid-twenties, giving voice to her inner strife via warm vocals, shapeshifting textures, and hazy harmonies.

Samson – Survivors [Reissue/1979] LP (Culture Factory)

Samson – Head On [Reissue/1980] LP (Culture Factory)

Color vinyl reissues of the British heavy metal band’s first two albums.

Suzanne Santo – Yard Sale LP (Suzanne Santo/Soundly Music, LLC)

Release last August on CD – now available on vinyl. Suzanne Santo has never been afraid to blur the lines. A tireless creator, she’s built her sound in the grey area between Americana, Southern-gothic soul, and forward-thinking rock ‘n’ roll. It’s a sound that nods to her past – a childhood spent in the Rust Belt; a decade logged as a member of the L.A.-based duo HoneyHoney; the acclaimed solo album, Ruby Red, that launched a new phase of her career in 2017; and the world tour that took her from Greece to Glastonbury as a member of Hozier’s band – while still exploring new territory. With Yard Sale, Santo boldly moves forward, staking her claim once again as an Americana innovator. It’s an album inspired by the past, written by an artist who is only interested in the here-and-now.

Yasuaki Shimizu – Kiren LP (Palto Flats)

Recently released on CD – now available in vinyl. By the early 1980s acclaimed saxophonist, producer, and composer Yasuaki Shimizu had established himself on the Japanese new wave scene, producing many important experimental pop records and releasing several albums as the bandleader of Mariah. Following the release of his widely regarded solo classic Kakashi, from 1982, and the otherworldly Utakata No Hibi, by Mariah in 1983, he went into the studio the following year with frequent collaborators, producer Aki Ikuta and Morio Watanabe (bassist of Mariah), to record a mystifying collection of experimental dance music. Utilizing cutting-edge technology and studio trickery, Kiren showcases Shimizu’s trademark playfulness, marrying richly layered production techniques to off-kilter, sometimes traditional sounding rhythms and melodies. Unreleased until now, Kiren represents an important period of Shimizu’s artistic expression, an artist at his peak, while successfully exploring the intersections of fusion, synthpop, new wave, and jazz.

Stereophonic Space Sound Unlimited – The Flawless Ms Drake LP (Hi-Tide Recordings)

12 surf, lounge and exotic sounds from the Swiss duo.

Tanya Tagaq – Tongues LP (Six Shooter)

Recently released on CD – now available in vinyl. You don’t think about what’s underfoot until it stirs. Tanya Tagaq, an experimental, improvisational, exceptional artist, has felt the land beneath her shake. To survive, you must know what you’re doing. To survive, you must trust in the body. Tagaq’s power, her voice, still comes from this place, where to defy nature is doom. Tongues enters deep chasms and dangerous spaces. Produced by Saul Williams and mixed by Gonjasufi, Tagaq’s Tongues speaks not to horrors and crisis, as previous Tagaq albums wordlessly, powerfully encircled, but directly of these things.

Richard Thompson – A Collection Of Unreleased And Rare Material 1967-1976 [Reissue/1976] 2xLP (Island)

45th Anniversary reissue of the British folk legend’s 1976 collection of rarities with Fairport Convention, Linda Thompson and solo.

Tinariwen – The Radio Tisdas Sessions [Reissue/2001] 2xLP+MP3 (Wedge)

Tinariwen – Amassakoul [Reissue/2003] 2xLP+MP3 (Wedge)

Vanir – Sagas LP (Target)

Two color vinyl pressings: gold and gold w/ black. From the sagas of old, to the halls of Valhalla, from Danish and Germanic battlefields with their bloody battles and fierce warriors, Danish Viking/folk metal warriors Vanir return with an epic new epic album. [CD edition due April 15.]

Suzanne Vega – Close-Up Series Volumes 1-4 4xLP (Cooking Vinyl)

Widely regarded as one of the foremost songwriters of her generation, Suzanne Vega emerged as a leading figure of the folk-music revival of the early 1980s when, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, she sang what has been called contemporary folk or neo-folk songs of her own creation in Greenwich Village clubs. The Close Up Series, originally released over a decade ago, is now available in a beautifully packaged and designed bookpack. It includes The Close-Up albums, Volumes 1-4, each as a different color 180gm heavyweight vinyl LP.

Vitalic – Dissidænce Episode 2 LP (Clivage Music)

Dissidænce Episode 2 opens with “Sirens”, a towering tornado of synths and sweat, followed by “Dancing In The Street”, “The Void And Light Is A Train”, sparse techno boiled down to its essence – mechanical, cold and alarming. Tempering this hostility are moments of grace and poetry like “Marching Friends & Foes” and “Winter Is Coming”, both melodic and melancholic.

Vladislav Delay – Anima [Reissue/2001] 2xLP+MP3 (Keplar)

Sasu Ripatti’s monumental 2001 hour-long prog-jazz masterpiece is finally available again in a newly remastered edition and a first vinyl pressing in over two decades. When it was originally released in 2001, Anima was a culmination of Ripatti’s many divergent musical threads, weaving deep house, dub techno and fried freeform noise into a sprawling pseudo-soundtrack to drugged-out excess. It still pretty much sounds like nothing else.

Watain – Rabid Death’s Curse [Reissue/2000] 2xLP (Season Of Mist)

In a scene of countless carbon copies and soulless attempts to evoke the majesty of the ancient Swedish black/death metal legacy, Watain stand solemnly alone. These Satanic Swedes’ heavily sought-after debut release Rabid Death’s Curse (2000) is available on vinyl once again in a green color double-LP set with gatefold packaging.

Oliver Patrice Weder – The Pool Project LP (SA)

Recorded in a pool house surrounded by an evergreen oak tree forest just outside of Madrid; musician and composer Oliver Patrice Weder’s second artist album The Pool Project combines textural and meditative sounds that touch on global influences from jazz, ambient and modern composition.

Wganda Kenya – Wganda Kenya [Reissue/1976] LP (Vampisoul)

Wganda Kenya was formed at the request of José María Fuentes in 1974. In keeping with the exoticism and façade of foreignness, the vocalists often sang in made-up languages that approximated Indigenous Colombian, Haitian Creole, Papiamento from the Dutch Caribbean, or Nigerian Yoruba; at other times they invented Spanish lyrics that mimicked the original foreign language ones, often in a humorous way.

The White Stripes – Elephant [Reissue/2003] 2xLP (Third Man)

The White Stripes – Get Behind Me Satan [Reissue/2005] 2xLP (Third Man)

Vinyl reissues of The White Stripes fourth and fifth albums.

Within Silence – Gallery Of Life [Reissue/2015] LP (Ulterium)

Limited-edition black vinyl edition of the debut album from the melodic power metal band.

Wormwitch – Heaven That Dwells Within [Reissue/2019] LP (Prosthetic)

180gm vinyl edition. Heaven That Dwells Within is the follow up to 2016’s Decibel Magazine Year End charting Strike Mortal Soil. The riffs are stronger, the overall feel is darker, and the band’s love of black metal dimly shines through much more than their past releases. The album was mixed and mastered by V. Santura (Triptykon, Schammasch), giving it that gloomy touch.

Cassettes:

Barrie – Barbara (Winspear)

Guerilla Toss – Famously Alive (Sub Pop)

Rudimentary Peni – Death Church [Reissue/1983] (Sealed)

Death Church is the first studio album by the anarcho-punk/deathrock band Rudimentary Peni, released in 1983 on Corpus Christi Records.

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