AIMS Marketing Program/ Featured Titles Promoted This Week:
Brian Dunne – Loser On The Ropes CD/LP (Kill Rock Stars)
Recorded in Athens, GA, with producer Drew Vandenberg (Faye Webster, Of Montreal), Loser On The Ropes explores defeat and denial, fortune and faith, shame and redemption, all set against the backdrop of a world run by blowhards and bullshitters who manage to perpetually skate by without cost or consequence. Dunne may be a singer/songwriter in the purely technical sense of the term, but he shares more in common on this album with the punks and new wave weirdos who turned up in lower Manhattan and the outer boroughs in the ’70s and ’80s, DIY misfits who came to crash the party and ended up building their own scene instead. That’s not to say Loser On The Ropes is a punk album-in fact, it might be the most beautiful and melodic record Dunne’s ever made-but rather that the songs are lean and gritty, sick of mincing words and insistent on cutting straight to the heart of things with a raw, understated poeticism. [A limited-edition color vinyl pressing is available.]
Fruit Bats – A River Running To Your Heart CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
Fruit Bats has often showcased love songs where people and locations meld into one. It’s a loose song structure that navigates what Eric D. Johnson calls “the geography of the heart.” Those pathways extend straight through the newest Fruit Bats album, aptly titled A River Running To Your Heart. Self-produced by Johnson – a first for Fruit Bats – with Jeremy Harris at Panoramic House just north of San Francisco, it’s Fruit Bats’ tenth full-length release. After two decades of making music, hard-earned emotional maturity has clearly seeped into Johnson’s already inviting songs. [An indie store exclusive blue w/ cream color vinyl pressing is available.]
Jesus Piece – …So Unknown CD/LP (Century Media)
Seven years into a career built on an uncompromising ethos and carefully crafted, brutal sounds, Jesus Piece melds intelligence and aggression in a manner that doesn’t just push the genre’s rigid boundaries. It sets the standard for the shape of hardcore to come…. So Unknown is the sound of articulated brutality that defies categorization. It’s 28 minutes of rage and introspection slammed into the red. From explosive opener “In Constraints” to the dissonant strains of “Tunnel Vision” to the caustic “An Offering To The Night”, Jesus Piece’s first full-length since 2018’s Only Self has been worth the wait. Co-produced and mixed by Randy LeBouef (Every Time I Die, Orthodox), …So Unknown is a spectacular second act and a passage to something more intense and personal for the five Pennsylvania natives. [A limited-edition clear vinyl pressing is available.]
Magnolia Park –Baku’s Revenge CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
Since forming in Orlando, Florida, in 2019, the six-piece act-vocalist Joshua Roberts, guitarists Tristan Torres and Freddie Criales, bassist Jared Kay, drummer Joe Horsham and keyboardist Vincent Ernst-have released an EP, mixtape and handful of singles and toured with everyone from Sum 41 to Simple Plan to bring their upbeat brand of alt-rock to the masses. While Magnolia Park’s music is at times lighthearted, the ethnically diverse band are also serious about spreading a message of inclusivity and inspiring other kids like them to start bands as a form of creative expression.
Ann-Margret – Born To Be Wild CD (Cleopatra)
New full release from stage and screen icon, the lovely Ann-Margret. One of Hollywood’s brightest lights and star of such film classics as Bye Bye Birdie and Viva Las Vegas, Ann-Margret proudly presents all new recordings of her singing pop and rock standards in her own ineffable, entrancing singing voice. This project pairs her with several stellar guests including The Who’s Pete Townshend, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, The Oak Ridge Boys, Pat Boone, country legends Mickey Gilley & T.G. Sheppard, Stax guitarist Steve Cropper, Robben Ford and many more.
Natalie Merchant – Keep Your Courage CD/2xLP (Nonesuch)
Keep Your Courage isNatalie Merchant’s ninth solo studio album and first of new material since 2014’s self-titled record. An eclectic album, produced by Merchant, it features two duets sung with vocalist Abena Koomson-Davis (Resistance Revival Chorus), contributions from the Celtic folk group Lúnasa and Syrian virtuoso clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, and horn arrangements by jazz trombonist Steve Davis. There are lush orchestrations throughout by seven composers including Gabriel Kahane, Stephen Barber, Colin Jacobson, and Megan Gould. Keep Your Courage comprises nine original songs by Merchant as well as an interpretation of “Hunting The Wren” by Ian Lynch of the Irish band Lankum.
Metallica – 72 Seasons CD/2xLP/Cassette (Blackened Recordings)
Metallica returns with its long-awaited twelfth studio album 72 Seasons. Issued via the band’s own Blackened Recordings, the 12-track collection was produced by Greg Fidelman with James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich and clocks in at over 77 minutes. 72 Seasons is Metallica’s first full length collection of new material since 2016’s Hardwired…To Self-Destruct. Speaking on the concept of the album title, James said, “72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves. The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are. I think the most interesting part of this is the continued study of those core beliefs and how it affects our perception of the world today. Much of our adult experience is reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry.” [An indie store exclusive vinyl pressing is available.]
Caitlyn Smith – High & Low CD/2xLP (Monument)
Last year, powerhouse vocalist Caitlyn Smith released High, which Forbes called “captivating” and the Tennessean stated, “showcases an artist finally in control of her life and career.” It was the first half of a record that the critically acclaimed singer/songwriter self-produced. Now Smith has added six new songs to make her full record, High & Low. The additional six new tracks balance 2022’s critically-acclaimed High, celebrated by NPR as “her most fully realized project yet,” with High & Low capturing the full picture of who Smith is as an artist and as a creator – where embracing the yin and yang simply makes you more human.
The Tallest Man On Earth – Henry St. CD/LP+MP3 (ANTI-)
Kristian Matsson returns as The Tallest Man On Earth with Henry St., his sixth studio album following 2012’s There’s No Leaving Now, 2015’s Dark Bird Is A Home, and the self-released I Love You, It’s A Fever Dream in 2019. Henry St. notably marks the first time he recorded an album in a band setting. “My entire career I’ve been a DIY person – mostly fueled by the feeling that I didn’t know what I was doing, so I’d just do everything myself,” he explains. But now, longing for the energy that’s only released when creating together with others, Matsson invited his friends to come and play. Nick Sanborn (of Sylvan Esso) produced Henry St., which includes contributions from Ryan Gustafson (of The Dead Tongues) on guitar, lap steel and ukulele, TJ Maiani on drums, CJ Camerieri (of Bon Iver) on trumpet and French horn, Phil Cook on piano and organ, Rob Moose (of Bon Iver, yMusic) on strings and Adam Schatz on saxophone. An overarching theme of Henry St., he says, is “how to be a person in this world.” [An indie store exclusive translucent red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Temples – Exotico CD/2xLP (ATO)
Produced by Sean Ono Lennon and mixed by Dave Fridmann (Beach House, Spoon, The Flaming Lips), Temples fourth full-length album Exotico takes place on an impossibly utopic island dreamed up by the four band members. With its resplendent collage of psychedelia, krautrock, and time-bending dream-pop, Exotico brings that world to life in crystalline detail, all while exploring an entire spectrum of existential themes: impermanence, mortality, our connection with nature and the wild immensity of the mind. [An indie store exclusive pink color vinyl pressing is available.]
Waterparks – Intellectual Property CD/LP (Fueled By Ramen)
Pop/rock three-piece Waterparks deliver their much-anticipated fifth full-length studio album Intellectual Property. The band steps into an elevated sound and enhanced aesthetic here introduced by a string of high-energy tracks including lead single “Funeral Grey”, the incendiary “Fuck About It” (feat. blackbear) and the confessional, diaristic “Self-Sabotage”. In an interview with Kerrang!, frontman Awsten Knight revealed, “I think that it does everything that Waterparks does best, and it expands. There are pieces that feel like they could have been on any other albums, but then there’s elements of it that full-on expand past anywhere we’ve been before. I think there’s a perfect balance between the poetry that you’d find on [2018 album] Entertainment versus the blunt crazy shit that you’d find on Fandom. It’s a perfect melding of all of it.”
The Wood Brothers – Heart Is The Hero CD/LP (Honey Jar/Thirty Tigers)
The Wood Brothers have learned to trust their hearts. For the better part of two decades, they’ve cemented their reputation as freethinking songwriters, road warriors, and community builders, creating a catalog of diverse music and a loyal audience who’ve grown alongside them through the years. That evolution continues with Heart is the Hero, the band’s eighth studio album. Recorded analog to 16-track tape, this latest effort finds its three creators embracing the chemistry of their acclaimed live shows by capturing their performances in real-time direct from the studio floor with nary a computer in sight. An acoustic-driven album that electrifies, Heart is the Hero is stocked with songs that target not only the heart, but the head and hips, too. [An indie store exclusive clear vinyl pressing is available.]
Additional Social Media Program Titles:
No additional social media titles this week.
CDs + Vinyl:
Abraham Alexander – Sea / Sons CD/LP (Dualtone Music Group)
Singer-songwriter Abraham Alexander’s highly anticipated debut album. Features guest appearances from Mavis Staples and Gary Clark, Jr. Includes the single “Tears Run Dry”.
Archon Angel – II CD (Frontiers)
The second album from Archon Angel features vocalist Zak Stevens (Circle II Circle, Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra) & producer/guitarist Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere, Sweet Oblivion). Here the band delivers a fantastic slab of power/progressive metal. Sonically, fans of the huge anthems of metallers Savatage will find much to love here (Stevens was hand-picked by Savatage’s Jon Olivia to take over as lead vocalist for the band in 1993).
Ashrain – Requiem Reloaded CD/LP (Metalville)
Ashrain is a new Power Metal band formed by a guitarist/producer, Nozomu Wakai (Destinia / Shortino/ Sigh).
Black Orchid Empire – Tempus Veritas CD/LP (Season Of Mist)
Blending elements of contemporary AOR, melodic rock, and djent, Black Orchid Empire present a progressive sound that is as polished as it is technical, as fresh as it is familiar, and as melodic as it is hard hitting.
Boris Boublil – Mù 93 – Manifesto CD/LP (Carton)
Boris Boublil’s Mù project also sets out in search of a dream continent, an artistic space where everyone’s imagination and languages meet and exchange through a common dialogue. The idea being that music can also reveal what is hidden and create imaginary folklore, through the utopia that everyone carries within them.
Joe Bonamassa – Tales Of Time CD+DVD/CD+Blu-ray/3xLP (J&R Adventures)
Tales Of Time is a live performance of his last studio album, Time Clocks – a sprawling and expansive musical undertaking filmed in August 2022 at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado. Joe’s virtuoso guitar style, with his unique blues-rock technique and flair, elevates the evening’s performance to a stratospheric level. The visual spectacle of Red Rocks was almost dwarfed by the incredible imagery of the show’s visual backdrop, which highlighted the beauty of the live music.
Crom – The Cocaine Wars 1974–1989 [Reissue/2001] CD/LP (To Live A Lie)
Crom is the ultimate amalgamation of mystery mixed with futility. They are one of the most frustratingly undefinable bands out there – mixing general metal aesthetic into a stew of subgenres ranging from sludge and doom to perfectly cultivated thrash parts and plenty of punk, hardcore, and powerviolence influence spices to get a perfect boiling mixture.
Darling West – Cosmos CD/LP (Jansen)
Darling West decamped for a tiny island on Norway’s west coast to begin writing what was to become Cosmos, their fifth studio album. For the first time, the band’s core – married couple Mari and Tor Egil Kreken – have included band members Thomas Gallatin and Christer Slaaen in the songwriting and production process. As a larger united, Darling West has really evolved. Cosmos is indeed the sound of expansion. West coast, cosmic folk, Americana… Call it what you will – there are even hints of Afro blues on here – but where the band once fit firmly in the folk/Americana category, you might as well just call it pop these days.
Jackson Dean – Live At The Ryman CD (Big Machine)
Fast-rising country singer/songwriter Jackson Dean is quickly earning a reputation for his gritty, lyric-driven, outlaw country style and electric live shows. In October 2022, the “artist to watch” made his Ryman Auditorium debut, wowing the crowd with a spellbinding eight-song set captured on Live At The Ryman.
Chris Duarte – Ain’t Giving Up CD/LP (Provogue)
Blues-roots guitarist Chris Duarte releases Ain’t Giving Up, his 15th studio album. Featuring a wide range of outlaw blues, Americana, roots, and even alt-country influences, Ain’t Giving Up finds the Austin, Texas guitarist teaming up for the first time in 22 years with producer-guitarist Dennis Herring, also known for his work with artists like Buddy Guy, Modest Mouse, Elvis Costello, and the Hives. But the resulting album isn’t a calculated return to roots affair. Recorded live on the studio floor with vintage gear and minimal overdubs, it’s a raw and revved-up showcase for the virtuoso’s jaw-dropping chops; his mastery of the elusive Texas shuffle; and his deep love and commitment to the blues.
The Ducks – High Flyin’ 2xCD/3xLP (Reprise)
This is the first official release by The Ducks – a short lived group that Neil Young played with in 1977. The Ducks featured Neil (guitar, harmonica and vocals), Bob Mosely (bass and vocals), Jeff Blackburn (guitar and vocals) and Johnny Craviotto (drums). Mosely was an original member of Bay Area band Moby Grape; Blackburn had previously fronted his own band and co-wrote with Neil the classic track “My My Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)”. The band played several shows in Santa Cruz, CA and other California venues during two months in 1977, and this 25-track live album features highlights from those shows.
Brian Dunne – Loser On The Ropes CD/LP (Kill Rock Stars)
Recorded in Athens, GA, with producer Drew Vandenberg (Faye Webster, Of Montreal), Loser On The Ropes explores defeat and denial, fortune and faith, shame and redemption, all set against the backdrop of a world run by blowhards and bullshitters who manage to perpetually skate by without cost or consequence. Dunne may be a singer/songwriter in the purely technical sense of the term, but he shares more in common on this album with the punks and new wave weirdos who turned up in lower Manhattan and the outer boroughs in the ’70s and ’80s, DIY misfits who came to crash the party and ended up building their own scene instead. That’s not to say Loser On The Ropes is a punk album-in fact, it might be the most beautiful and melodic record Dunne’s ever made-but rather that the songs are lean and gritty, sick of mincing words and insistent on cutting straight to the heart of things with a raw, understated poeticism. [A limited-edition color vinyl pressing is available.]
El Michels Affair & Black Thought – Glorious Game CD/LP (Big Crown)
Glorious Game a remarkable debut partnership in more ways than one. Michels provides his bottom-heavy, soul-tinged production for Black Thought who gives us some of the more personal and transparent verses we’ve ever heard from him. [A limited-edition sea blue tansparent color vinyl colorway w/ OBI strip is available.]
Feist – Multitudes CD/LP (Interscope)
Multitudes serves as the 11-time Juno Award-winning artist’s sixth full-length album and first release since 2017’s critically acclaimed Pleasure. The 12-track collection took shape soon after the birth of Feist’s daughter and the sudden death of her father, a back-to-back convergence of life-altering events that left the Canadian singer/songwriter with “Nothing performative in me anymore.” Amid meditations on mortality, connection and the frenetic state of the human condition, Multitudes ultimately radiates an ineffable sense of hope. [An indie store exclusive clear vinyl pressing is available.]
The Flower Kings – Paradox Hotel [Reissue/2006] 2xCD/3xLP+2xCD (Inside Out U.S.)
The Flower Kings reissue campaign continues with the band’s ninth album Paradox Hotel, their fourth studio double-album. Originally released in 2006, this is the only studio appearance of drummer Marcus Liliequist. Never before released on vinyl, the album has been newly remastered and includes additional photo material.
Flub – Dream Worlds CDEP/12” (The Artisan Era)
Four new blistering neoclassical tech death songs from the California prog death metal band.
Fruit Bats – A River Running To Your Heart CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
Fruit Bats has often showcased love songs where people and locations meld into one. It’s a loose song structure that navigates what Eric D. Johnson calls “the geography of the heart.” Those pathways extend straight through the newest Fruit Bats album, aptly titled A River Running To Your Heart. Self-produced by Johnson – a first for Fruit Bats – with Jeremy Harris at Panoramic House just north of San Francisco, it’s Fruit Bats’ tenth full-length release. After two decades of making music, hard-earned emotional maturity has clearly seeped into Johnson’s already inviting songs. [An indie store exclusive blue w/ cream color vinyl pressing is available.]
Gatekeeper – From Western Shores CD (Cruz Del Sur Music)
Vancouver, British Columbia’s Gatekeeper returns with From Western Shores – a captivating eight-song journey that redefines epic, melodic heavy metal. [Vinyl edition due April 28.]
GoGo Penguin – Everything Is Going To Be Ok CD/LP (XXIM/Masterworks)
Emotive, break-beat minimalist trio GoGo Penguin is back, with their album Everything Is Going To Be OK. Bursting with the optimism of new beginnings, with a new drummer, their new record label, (Sony Records’ electronica and classical imprint XXIM Records), and a subtly updated and developed sound, the band are ushering in a more ambient era. Everything Is Going To Be OK is born from a time of turbulence and loss. [A limited-edition clear vinyl pressing featuring a bonus 7” single is available.]
Adam Green – Garfield [Reissue/2002] CD/2xLP (Org Music)
Garfield is the debut album from Adam Green (of New York anti-folk group The Moldy Peaches). Originally released in 2002 Garfield is now available for the first time on vinyl as well as on its original CD format and features unpublished photos and liner notes written by Adam, as well as unreleased demos and live recordings from the early to mid- 90’s. The vinyl edition of the album comes as a deluxe double LP packaged in a gatefold jacket, available on both powder blue and standard black vinyl.
Haliphron – Prey CD/LP (Listenable)
Debut album from the Dutch extreme metal band featuring ex and active members of Izegrim, God Dethroned and Bleeding Gods. [A limited-edition brown color vinyl pressing is available.]
HateSphere – Hatred Reborn CD/LP (Scarlet)
Hatred Reborn is filled with razor-sharp riffs, some wicked melodic solos, a groovy-thick rhythm section and a truly hysteric and menacing vocal delivery (courtesy of new frontman Mathias Uldall) – not to forget the subtle, brilliant songwriting variety surfacing here and there. Lyrically, Hatred Reborn revolves around the subject of man’s fascination with evil.
Holy Moses – Invisible Queen CD (Fireflash)
New release and final studio album from Germany’s legendary thrash metal cult band Holy Moses. 12 new, extreme, progressive and mind-blowing tracks featuring founding member and icon Sabina Classen on vocals.
Justin Hurwitz – Babylon: Music From The Motion Picture 2xCD/2xLP (Interscope)
Interscope Records and Paramount Pictures have released the soundtrack for the original motion picture, Babylon. The soundtrack is scored by Oscar-winner Justin Hurwitz. Babylon, which contains over two hours of original music, was written and directed by Damien Chazelle. The movie is an original epic set in 1920s Los Angeles, led by Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, and Diego Calva.
Jesus Piece – …So Unknown CD/LP (Century Media)
Seven years into a career built on an uncompromising ethos and carefully crafted, brutal sounds, Jesus Piece melds intelligence and aggression in a manner that doesn’t just push the genre’s rigid boundaries. It sets the standard for the shape of hardcore to come…. So Unknown is the sound of articulated brutality that defies categorization. It’s 28 minutes of rage and introspection slammed into the red. From explosive opener “In Constraints” to the dissonant strains of “Tunnel Vision” to the caustic “An Offering To The Night”, Jesus Piece’s first full-length since 2018’s Only Self has been worth the wait. Co-produced and mixed by Randy LeBouef (Every Time I Die, Orthodox), …So Unknown is a spectacular second act and a passage to something more intense and personal for the five Pennsylvania natives. [A limited-edition clear vinyl pressing is available.]
Magnus Karlsson’s Free Fall – Hunt The Flame CD (Frontiers)
The fourth installment of Magnus Karlsson’s Free Fall ongoing melodic metal musical series. Multi-talented Swedish guitarist/songwriter/producer has assembled a killer cast of incredible lead vocalists to lend their talents: James Durbin (Durbin, Cleanbreak), Michael Eriksen (Circus Maximus), Girish Pradhan (Girish And The Chronicles), Terje Haroy (Pryamaze), Jake E (Cyhra), Alexander Strandell (Art Nation, Crowne), and more.
King Tee – Thy Kingdom Come [Reissue/2002] 2xCD/2xLP/2xCassette (RMV)
Thy Kingdom Come is the fifth studio album by West Coast hip hop artist King T. It was released in 2002 on Greedy Green Entertainment and Mo Beatz. The album was originally titled The Kingdom Come and was slated for a release on June 30, 1998, on Aftermath Entertainment. The album is primarily produced by Dr. Dre, with guest contributions by Bud’da, DJ Battlecat, Ant Banks, DJ Quik, Stu-B-Doo and Mike Dean. The album features guest appearances by Ice T, Baby S, Dawn Robinson, Dr. Dre, Too Short, DJ Quik, El DeBarge, Kid Frost, Playa Hamm, Sharief, MC Ren, Shaquille O’Neal, Crystal, Ruben “RC” Cruz, Kool G. Rap and Tray Deee.
L.A. Guns – Black Diamonds CD (Frontiers)
Produced by founding member and guitarist Tracii Guns, Black Diamonds is a tour-de-force of rock ‘n’ roll that fans have come to expect from the long-running hard rockers.
Fenne Lily – Big Picture CD/LP/Cassette (Dead Oceans)
From the first line to the last, Big Picture finds Fenne seeking clarity in the uncertain; comfort in the uncomfortable. A gorgeous and gripping portrait of Fenne’s last two years, Big Picture was rarely easy for its author to produce but its contents offer a brilliant catharsis. Started haltingly after a period of writer’s block, the songs that would make up her latest work were pieced together over the course of the pandemic, in an effort to self-soothe. [A limited-edition ultramarine color vinyl pressing is available.]
Madness – 7 [Reissue/1981] 2xCD (Salvo Sound & Vision)
Following two hugely successful albums (their debut and sophomore records One Step Beyond and Absolutely, 7 was Madness’ third studio album in as many years. Showcasing their ever evolving songwriting skills, it was originally released in 1981, reached #5 in the UK album charts and featured the hit singles “Grey Day”, “Cardiac Arrest” and “Shut Up”. This expanded double-CD edition features bonus tracks and exclusive liner notes by journalist Stevie Chick which include interviews with band members Lee ‘Kix’ Thompson, Mike Barson and Chrissyboy Foreman.
Magnolia Park –Baku’s Revenge CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
Since forming in Orlando, Florida, in 2019, the six-piece act-vocalist Joshua Roberts, guitarists Tristan Torres and Freddie Criales, bassist Jared Kay, drummer Joe Horsham and keyboardist Vincent Ernst-have released an EP, mixtape and handful of singles and toured with everyone from Sum 41 to Simple Plan to bring their upbeat brand of alt-rock to the masses. While Magnolia Park’s music is at times lighthearted, the ethnically diverse band are also serious about spreading a message of inclusivity and inspiring other kids like them to start bands as a form of creative expression.
Ann-Margret – Born To Be Wild CD (Cleopatra)
New full release from stage and screen icon, the lovely Ann-Margret. One of Hollywood’s brightest lights and star of such film classics as Bye Bye Birdie and Viva Las Vegas, Ann-Margret proudly presents all new recordings of her singing pop and rock standards in her own ineffable, entrancing singing voice. This project pairs her with several stellar guests including The Who’s Pete Townshend, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, The Oak Ridge Boys, Pat Boone, country legends Mickey Gilley & T.G. Sheppard, Stax guitarist Steve Cropper, Robben Ford and many more.
Natalie Merchant – Keep Your Courage CD/2xLP (Nonesuch)
Keep Your Courage isNatalie Merchant’s ninth solo studio album and first of new material since 2014’s self-titled record. An eclectic album, produced by Merchant, it features two duets sung with vocalist Abena Koomson-Davis (Resistance Revival Chorus), contributions from the Celtic folk group Lúnasa and Syrian virtuoso clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, and horn arrangements by jazz trombonist Steve Davis. There are lush orchestrations throughout by seven composers including Gabriel Kahane, Stephen Barber, Colin Jacobson, and Megan Gould. Keep Your Courage comprises nine original songs by Merchant as well as an interpretation of “Hunting The Wren” by Ian Lynch of the Irish band Lankum.
Metallica – 72 Seasons CD/2xLP/Cassette (Blackened Recordings)
Metallica returns with its long-awaited twelfth studio album 72 Seasons. Issued via the band’s own Blackened Recordings, the 12-track collection was produced by Greg Fidelman with James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich and clocks in at over 77 minutes. 72 Seasons is Metallica’s first full length collection of new material since 2016’s Hardwired…To Self-Destruct. Speaking on the concept of the album title, James said, “72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves. The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are. I think the most interesting part of this is the continued study of those core beliefs and how it affects our perception of the world today. Much of our adult experience is reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry.” [An indie store exclusive vinyl pressing is available.]
Mike Miz – Only Human CD/LP (Blackbird)
After years as a regular fixture on the Northeast jam scene, Mike Miz found just what he was seeking, when he moved to Nashville three years ago, in pursuit of the highest level of song-craft and guitar playing. Hailing from Northeast Pennsylvania, Mike spent the better part of the last decade playing festivals, clubs, and songwriter joints from Philadelphia to Asbury Park to NYC. His new album, Only Human, is a songwriter’s champion and an audiophile’s delight. At times desperate and dark, Only Human is true to its title, proving through its mere existence that hope can persist, and that our struggles and setbacks are part, but not the whole, of our story.
Motörhead – Inferno [Reissue/2004] CD/LP (BMG)
Inferno is the 17th album by Motörhead and was originally released on June 22. 2004. The first of many of the band’s albums to be produced by Cameron Webb, Inferno became Motörhead’s heaviest album in years, although the final song on the album, “Whorehouse Blues” was something of a departure with its country blues style and Lemmy on harmonica. The album was heralded as their best in a decade.
Natural Information Society with Ari Brown – Since Time Is Gravity CD (Aguirre)
The next chapter of the Natural Information Society is here. Since Time Is Gravity, credited to Natural Information Society Community Ensemble with Ari Brown, presents a newly expanded manifestation of acclaimed composer and multi-instrumentalist Joshua Abrams’ nearly 15 year, seven albums-and-counting avant-garde, psychedelic, free jazz ensemble. [Vinyl edition due May 12.]
NLE Choppa – Cottonwood 2 CD (WB)
Memphis hometown hero NLE Choppa is back with his new 22-track album Cottonwood 2. NLE Choppa taps in heavyweight producers and artists such as Lil Wayne, Timbaland, and DJ Paul to name a few. The project is the perfect blend of Choppa’s known high energy along with clever lyricism.
Poison Ruïn – Poison Ruïn [Reissue/2020] CD/LP (Relapse)
Poison Ruïn – Harvest CD/LP (Relapse)
Evoking a rich tapestry of ice-caked forests, peasant revolts, and silent knights, Poison Ruïn stab at the pulsing heart of what it means to live under the permanent midnight of contemporary life. With Harvest, the band aligns their sonic palette to their godless, medieval-inflected aesthetic symbolism, creating a record which strikes with an assured sense of blackened harmony. With Harvest, Poison Ruïn has constructed a richly chilling fable out of modern living. Their tale is as lurid as it is seductive, as much a promising fantasy as it is a dreary portrait of reality itself. [Also available this week: CD and vinyl reissues of the band’s eponymous debut album; a killer blend of punk, post-punk and dungeon synth.]
Caitlyn Smith – High & Low CD/2xLP (Monument)
Last year, powerhouse vocalist Caitlyn Smith released High, which Forbes called “captivating” and the Tennessean stated, “showcases an artist finally in control of her life and career.” It was the first half of a record that the critically acclaimed singer/songwriter self-produced. Now Smith has added six new songs to make her full record, High & Low. The additional six new tracks balance 2022’s critically-acclaimed High, celebrated by NPR as “her most fully realized project yet,” with High & Low capturing the full picture of who Smith is as an artist and as a creator – where embracing the yin and yang simply makes you more human.
The Tallest Man On Earth – Henry St. CD/LP+MP3 (ANTI-)
Kristian Matsson returns as The Tallest Man On Earth with Henry St., his sixth studio album following 2012’s There’s No Leaving Now, 2015’s Dark Bird Is A Home, and the self-released I Love You, It’s A Fever Dream in 2019. Henry St. notably marks the first time he recorded an album in a band setting. “My entire career I’ve been a DIY person – mostly fueled by the feeling that I didn’t know what I was doing, so I’d just do everything myself,” he explains. But now, longing for the energy that’s only released when creating together with others, Matsson invited his friends to come and play. Nick Sanborn (of Sylvan Esso) produced Henry St., which includes contributions from Ryan Gustafson (of The Dead Tongues) on guitar, lap steel and ukulele, TJ Maiani on drums, CJ Camerieri (of Bon Iver) on trumpet and French horn, Phil Cook on piano and organ, Rob Moose (of Bon Iver, yMusic) on strings and Adam Schatz on saxophone. An overarching theme of Henry St., he says, is “how to be a person in this world.” [An indie store exclusive translucent red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Temples – Exotico CD/2xLP (ATO)
Produced by Sean Ono Lennon and mixed by Dave Fridmann (Beach House, Spoon, The Flaming Lips), Temples fourth full-length album Exotico takes place on an impossibly utopic island dreamed up by the four band members. With its resplendent collage of psychedelia, krautrock, and time-bending dream-pop, Exotico brings that world to life in crystalline detail, all while exploring an entire spectrum of existential themes: impermanence, mortality, our connection with nature and the wild immensity of the mind. [An indie store exclusive pink color vinyl pressing is available.]
Thron – Dust CD/LP (Listenable)
Formed in 2015 as a project of experienced, devoted musicians from German bands in the Black Forest region, Thron’s initial goals were to play authentic black/death in the spirit of the early to mid ’90s. Although born in Germany, Thron could originate from a Nordic country though: heavily influenced by bands like Dissection, Unanimated, Possessed and Mercyful Fate among others, adding traditional heavy metal flavor a la Judas Priest, the band create a blazing symbiosis of icy melodies, harshness and a haunting atmosphere. [A red color vinyl pressing is available.]
Mike Tramp – Songs Of White Lion CD (Frontiers)
As the title implies, Songs Of White Lion sees respected vocalist/guitarist Mike Tramp re-imagining select cuts from his former band White Lion’s catalog. [Vinyl edition due July 14.]
Two Year Vacation – Expedition Nowhere CD/LP (Clouds Hill)
Contradictory to it’s name the expedition to Nowhere started during the summer of 2021 when Two Year Vacation escaped society and set off deep into the Swedish wilderness to a place truly like nowhere else in this world – legendary “Silence Studios”. What was caught on those recordings, the little bit of that magic during that expedition, is what made the embryos for the Swedes now finalized new album Expedition Nowhere.
Dionne Warwick – The Complete Scepter Singles 1962-1973 3xCD (Real Gone Music)
The Complete Scepter Singles 1962-1973 offers the A and B-side of every single Dionne cut for the Scepter label (74 tracks total, with the bonus inclusion of her single for Musicor featuring the hit “Only Love Can Break a Heart”), all original, (mostly) mono single versions remastered by Mike Milchner of Sonic Vision from original tape sources and annotated by veteran music journalist and Billboard contributor Paul Grein.
Waterparks – Intellectual Property CD/LP (Fueled By Ramen)
Pop/rock three-piece Waterparks deliver their much-anticipated fifth full-length studio album Intellectual Property. The band steps into an elevated sound and enhanced aesthetic here introduced by a string of high-energy tracks including lead single “Funeral Grey”, the incendiary “Fuck About It” (feat. blackbear) and the confessional, diaristic “Self-Sabotage”. In an interview with Kerrang!, frontman Awsten Knight revealed, “I think that it does everything that Waterparks does best, and it expands. There are pieces that feel like they could have been on any other albums, but then there’s elements of it that full-on expand past anywhere we’ve been before. I think there’s a perfect balance between the poetry that you’d find on [2018 album] Entertainment versus the blunt crazy shit that you’d find on Fandom. It’s a perfect melding of all of it.”
The Wood Brothers – Heart Is The Hero CD/LP (Honey Jar/Thirty Tigers)
The Wood Brothers have learned to trust their hearts. For the better part of two decades, they’ve cemented their reputation as freethinking songwriters, road warriors, and community builders, creating a catalog of diverse music and a loyal audience who’ve grown alongside them through the years. That evolution continues with Heart is the Hero, the band’s eighth studio album. Recorded analog to 16-track tape, this latest effort finds its three creators embracing the chemistry of their acclaimed live shows by capturing their performances in real-time direct from the studio floor with nary a computer in sight. An acoustic-driven album that electrifies, Heart is the Hero is stocked with songs that target not only the heart, but the head and hips, too. [An indie store exclusive clear vinyl pressing is available.]
Neil Young with The Santa Monica Flyers – Somewhere Under The Rainbow 1973 2xCD/2xLP (Reprise)
Neil Young and The Santa Monica Flyers (Neil Young, Nils Lofgren, Ben Keith, Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina) played London’s Rainbow Theatre on November 5th, 1973, with the first half of the concert dedicated to Neil Young’s masterpiece album Tonight’s The Night. The intense concert was recorded by Pete Long, and includes riveting versions of the Tonight’s The Night tracks, plus Young classics “Cowgirl In The Sand”, “Don’t Be Denied”, and “Flying On The Ground Is Wrong”.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Avoid – Cult Mentality LP (Invogue)
Yellow color vinyl pressing of the sophomore album from the Seattle-based band.
David Axelrod – Heavy Axe [Reissue/1974] LP (Craft Recordings)
Legendary composer/producer David Axelrod’s album, Heavy Axe, is a jazz-rock opus that encapsulated the sound of the mid- ‘70s. With help from iconic players Johnny “Guitar” Watson, Cannonball Adderley and George Duke, the album moves between lush funk sounds, full round low end, and majestic orchestral flourishes that made Axelrod’s sonic realm a goldmine for sample-hungry hip-hop beatmakers from the ’90s to today.
Bailen – Thrilled To Be Here [Reissue/2019] LP (Fantasy)
Limited baby pink color vinyl pressing. Siblings Daniel, David and Julia Bailen present transcendent harmonies, striking arrangements and meticulous songcraft on their 2019 debut album, Thrilled To Be Here, produced by Grammy-winner John Congleton (St. Vincent, The War On Drugs).
Lauren Barth – Stormwaiting LP (Spiritual Pajamas)
Driving up the coast highway from L.A., once you hit Santa Barbara you are struck with a noticeable change in landscape. It is the gateway to the Central Coast, where the contours of the land begin to take on more dramatic inclines and feelings burn like wildfires. This was the childhood home of Lauren Barth, ranch-living and horseriding amongst the golden and dusty open ranges that still expand through parts of California. It is at these gates of change that Lauren Barth explores on Stormwaiting, her second solo effort.
Eric Bibb – Ridin’ 2xLP (Stony Plain Music)
The follow-up to his multiple award-winning, critically acclaimed 2021 album, Dear America, Ridin’ is a continuation of the vision that informs Bibb’s artistry as a modern-day blues troubadour. Grounded in folk and blues traditions with contemporary sensibilities, Bibb’s music continues to reflect his thoughts on current world events and his own lived experiences, whilst remaining entertaining, uplifting, inspirational and relevant.
Boris The Sprinkler – Bits O Boris LP (Beer City)
19 Lost nuggets of Wisconsin cheese-punk from Boris the Sprinkler. Bits O Boris collects a veritable cornucopia of stray BTS tracks from 1992-2003 that originally appeared on singles, compilations, and whatever else.
David Bowie – Aladdin Sane [Reissue/1973] LP (Parlophone)
50th Anniversary half-speed master version of Bowie’s iconic 1973 album. [A limited-edition picture disc pressing is available.]
The C.A. Quintet – Trip Thru Hell [Reissue/1968] LP (Sundazed)
Red color vinyl pressing. The C.A. Quintet’s journey to Hades burned hot enough to melt the ice in their frigid Minnesota environs. A coveted collectable since the psychedelic record collecting disaster whirl first started over 30 years ago, Trip Thru Hell (1968) is rightly regarded as the epitome of local psych-cum-garage rising above its humble roots into something truly monolithic.
Carbellion – Weapons Of Choice LP+MP3 (Qumran)
Gold metallic vinyl pressing with full color insert and backstage pass styled download cards. Weapons Of Choice, Carbellion’s third full-length album, pulls from nearly 20 years of experience and lessons learned by fire to deliver the group’s most compelling release to date. The ten-song collection brings together the band’s strongest and most cohesive material to date, though its inception was rather unusual.
The Cinematic Orchestra – Every Day [Reissue/2002] 3xLP+MP3 (Ninja Tune)
Triple translucent red color vinyl pressing housed in gatefold jacket. Includes four bonus tracks. The Cinematic Orchestra mark the 20-year anniversary of their celebrated album, Every Day with this limited reissue replete with bonus tracks “Oregon” and “Horizon (feat. Niara Scarlett)” as well as two tracks previously unreleased on vinyl in “Semblance” and the unearthed “Flite (Original Version)”. The release features new artwork from the original designer, Openmind, and gatefold sleeve complete with Gilles Peterson’s original liner notes as well as a selection of previously unseen photographs presented on a 12″ card insert.
Brother Culture – 40 Years Anniversary Collection LP (Evidence Music)
Brother Culture is a symbol of the UK music scene, and this album is a testament to his musical journey. From roots reggae to bass music, this collection is not only Brother Culture’s musical journey, but also a testament to the evolution of the UK reggae music scene.
Don Cherry & George Gruntz Group – Maghreb Cantata, Live 1969 2xLP (WHP)
A marvelous double album as document of the historical collaboration between Don Cherry and Swiss pianist, composer George Gruntz, a central figure in European jazz who always showed a special interest in extending his solid post-bop skills through other languages such as ethnic or even baroque music. This is North-African, deep-flavored jazz recorded live in Tunisia and Germany in May and September 1969, with Cherry (cornet, flute) and Gruntz (piano, celeste) leading a highly mixed line-up featuring multi reeds player Sahib Shihab, bassists Henry Texier and Eberhard Weber, and Swiss drummer extraordinaire Daniel Humair, plus four North African musicians on traditional instruments like bendir, ney, bagpipes, tabla and darbouka. A trance-inducing jazz ritual.
Deströyer 666 – Cold Steel… For An Iron Age [Reissue/2002] LP (Season Of Mist)
Limited silver and green color vinyl pressing housed in gatefold jacket. With their third album Cold Steel… For An Iron Age, Deströyer 666 continued their steep climb with fans and critics alike. Cold Steel… unleashed another relentless assault of thrashing black metal misanthropy and spite. Now remastered, repackaged and featuring liner notes and a bonus track
Dimmu Borgir – Spiritual Black Dimensions [Reissue/1999] LP (Nuclear Blast)
Vinyl reissue of the Norwegian symphonic black metal band’s 1999 album.
Lee Dorsey – Ride Your Pony – Get Out Of My Life Woman [Reissue/1966] LP (Charly)
Lee’s Dorsey’s effervescent personality was simple for legendary producer Allen Toussaint to work on and with the Sansu house band – The Meters – they crafted a string of classic New Orleans funk records that resonated around the world; if not always big hits, always hugely influential, and the cream are featured here. This uncompromising collection captures Dorsey at the top of his game and forms part of a complete retrospective by Charly Records. This is the first time ever that Dorsey’s unique output has been accurately curated, uniting all his contemporaneous recordings – plus unreleased material – inextricably linked with his four landmark albums recorded between 1961 and 1978.
Down By Law – Quick Hits Live In The Studio [Reissue/2019] LP (Cleopatra)
Orange color vinyl pressing. Influential L.A. punk band Down by Law revisit key tracks from their 30+ year career.
Earth Crisis – To The Death [Reissue/2009] LP (Svart)
Earth Crisis, the legendary American hardcore band, reunited in 2007 after playing what was meant as a last show in 2001. After the successful one-off concert the band decided to embark on a number of US and European dates and also signed a deal with Century Media, which resulted in this highly acclaimed comeback album, To The Death. For many a fan, To The Death was a revelation: clean but powerful production, creative songwriting that at times harks back to the band’s classic ‘90s records and performance that holds nothing back. [A limited-edition green colorway is available.]
Eldovar – A Story Of Darkness & Light Reissue/2021] LP (Robotor)
Eldovar is a German-American supergroup featuring members of Elder (2) and Kadavar. Their 2021 debut is now available on transparent marbled vinyl.
Caleb Elliott – Weed, Wine & Time LP (Single Lock)
Like the sprawling branches of a tenured Magnolia, Caleb Elliott’s sophomore album Weed, Wine & Time is beauty and grit personified. From the first track of the record, Elliott lays bare a thesis of hope and healing that continues throughout the album’s entirety. Elliott’s opening chorus states that, “You learn as you go along, simple as a song,” and this theme courses like blood through each of the 11 tracks that follow. The result is genre defiant grandeur that traces Elliott’s personal growth over the years of his life. There are veins of JJ Cale country, the soul-jazz of Michael Kiwanuka, and the lyric fragility of Sufjan Stevens crisscrossing throughout the album. [CD version due May 5.]
Ben Frost / Francesco Fabris – Vakning LP (Room40)
A Note from Lawrence English on Vakning: “Nothing is fixed, nothing is permanent, nothing holds for anyone, any time or anything. As stable as we might choose to think it is, this planet is anything but that. A paper thin crust, the zone in which we find ourselves, and mostly concern ourselves with, exists as a modest veil cloaking a dynamic seismic turbulence that is as powerful as it is unknowable. There are moments though where ruptures occur. The pressure from within carves it’s way to, and through, the surface of the planet simultaneously delivering destruction and virgin landscapes, as primordial as any we might care to imagine. It is here, in these places, where we can literally see the living planet, that geologic time is condensed and world building is made visible, and audible to us, in an unrestrained and provocative detail. These volcanic ruptures, such as those captured on Vakning by Francesco Fabris and Ben Frost, speak to the very living geology of Earth. These recordings, captured at close range, exist at a nexus where liquid rock becomes solid. They capture moments of transformation, of obliteration and of creation, often all at once. These are recordings of a living, material planet, dynamic and unrestrained.”
Fit For An Autopsy – Oh What The Future Holds LP (Nuclear Blast)
Orange color vinyl pressing of Fit For An Autopsy’s 2022 album. Not just blurring, but eradicating the lines between technical metal virtuosity, death metal menace, hardcore intensity, melodic insidiousness, and abstract approaches, the New Jersey band embody an uncompromising vision of their own.
The Flaming Lips – Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots [Reissue/2002] 5xLP (WB)
The Flaming Lips’ Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots was released in 2002 and is the band’s best-selling album, certified Gold in the US with over 700,000 albums sold. The album features one of the band’s most iconic songs – “Do You Realize?” – plus the singles “Fight Test”, “Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell”, and the title track. The 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition five-LP Vinyl box set includes the original album, B-sides, demos, and radio sessions, and other assorted rarities. 56 tracks total, of which over 30 are previously unreleased, and 40 that will be available on vinyl for the first time.
Dom Flemons – Traveling Wildfire LP (Smithsonian Folkways)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Dom Flemons has built a reputation on presenting 100 years of American roots music, but now, with Traveling Wildfire, his own songwriting prowess comes into the spotlight. Carefully selected from his personal repertoire, these original songs reveal his love of country, western, blues, Americana, bluegrass and folk music as they tell of true love, family legacy, survival, time travel, and the juxtaposition between light and dark. Traveling Wildfire weaves through the themes of hope and humor as it rises above the hard times with strength and lightheartedness.
Florence + The Machine – Dance Fever (Live At Madison Square Garden) 2xLP (Republic)
A collection of live recordings from her Dance Fever Tour, recorded at two sold-out September 2022 Madison Square Garden dates in New York City, Dance Fever sees Florence at the peak of her powers, coming into a fully realized self-knowledge, poking sly fun at her own self-created persona, playing with ideas of identity, masculine and feminine, redemptive, celebratory, stepping into her place in the iconic pantheon.
Simon Franglen – Avatar: The Way Of Water: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack LP (Hollywood)
Jake Sully lives with his newfound family formed on the planet of Pandora. Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started, Jake must work with Neytiri and the army of the Na’vi race to protect their planet. Score by Simon Franglen.
Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru – Jerusalem LP (Mississippi)
A revelatory new album of piano compositions by the renowned and beloved Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, unreleased or virtually inaccessible until now. [CD version due June 9.]
Hank III – Damn Right Rebel Proud [Reissue/2008] LP (Curb)
Blue colorway. Damn Right Rebel Proud is the fourth studio album released by Hank Williams III, an American musician, singer, and multi-instrumentalist, known for his unique combination of country music, punk rock, and heavy metal.
Lee Harris – Timelines LP (Golden World Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Timelines is a voyage through sound and a journey of joy and humanity. The unique arrangements and instrumentation evoke the sense of hope and possibility for our future as we hearken back to our roots. The timelines of our lives run in cycles across space and time.
The Infinity Ring – Nemesis & Nativity LP (Profound Lore)
In the summer of 2020, the seeds for what would become The Infinity Ring were planted by Cameron Moretti, drawing together many musicians long active in the Boston metal, punk, and electronic scenes. At times, the band has been said to invoke sounds such as Swans, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Dead Can Dance, all particular to their sonic world building.
Juju – A Message From Mozambique LP (Strut)
Strut continue their in-depth work with Oneness Of Juju’s Plunky Branch with the first ever reissue of Juju’s powerful 1973 album for Strata-East, A Message From Mozambique.
Larry June – Spaceships On The Blade 2xLP (The Free Minded Recs)
Double orange and bone quad color vinyl pressing. After a monstrous run of sold out North American and European shows following the release of the critically acclaimed album, “Orange Print”, San Francisco legend and entrepreneur Larry June releases his next solo offering, Spaceships On The Blade on LP. The 20-track LP features the hit singles, “Private Valet” & “In My Pockets”, and sees production from a wide range of producers, such as Jake One, DJ Khalil, Cardo, DJ Fresh, Chuck Inglish, Turbo and more. With an eye on always expanding and diversifying his income streams, it’s clear to see that Uncle Larry is going to continue to do numbers for a long time. Good Job, Larry.
Junius – Reports From The Threshold [Reissue/2011] LP (Prosthetic)
Limited blue and black color vinyl pressing of the second full-length studio album from art rock band Junius, originally released in 2011.
Kicksie – Slouch LP (Counter Intuitive)
Limited colored vinyl LP pressing. Kicksie – the project of Toronto 22-year old Giuliana Mormile (she/they) – began with rapid-fire Bandcamp uploads in early 2018. Since then, their warm, incisive brand of electro-tinged emo-pop has evolved and blossomed while still orbiting around Giuliana’s base layers of brazen honesty and melodic magic tricks.
Kid Koala – Creatures Of The Late Afternoon 2xLP (Envision)
Three decades into an unparalleled career, Kid Koala continues to grow his immersive this-dimensional real-life cartoon musical universe with each orbit around the sun. The world-renowned DJ, composer, and lifelong visual storyteller also known as Eric San drops his latest foray into the depths of “creating things to joyfully connect people.” Creatures Of The Late Afternoon is the soundtrack to an accompanying board game centered around a cast of creatures who band together through the power of music to save their habitat from destruction.
Krisiun – Arise From Blackness [Reissue/2012] LP (Listenable)
Krisiun – Forged In Fury [Reissue/2015] 2xLP (Listenable)
Red color vinyl reissues. Krisiun is a Brazilian death metal band, founded by brothers Alex Camargo (bass, vocals), Moyses Kolesne (guitars) and Max Kolesne (drums).
Lambert – All This Time LP (Mercury KX)
Lambert – the German masked pianist, composer, and producer of modern classical and electronic music – ventures into contemporary jazz with an electrifying and diverse jazz-electronic album. All This Time ranges from mesmerizing classic jazz vibes to high-energy, beat-driven alternative jazz fusing electronics, drums, double bass, and piano, referencing the sound worlds of Portico Quartet and GoGo Penguin. Released jointly on Verve Records and Mercury KX.
Mike Lindsay featuring Guy Garvey, Katherine Priddy – The Endless Coloured Ways: The Songs Of Nick Drake 7” (Chrysalis)
The Endless Coloured Ways is a collection of songs by legendary singer/songwriter, Nick Drake, performed and recorded by over 30 incredible artists from a range of different backgrounds, genres, age groups and audiences. From Fontaines D.C. to Guy Garvey, Aurora to Feist, and Self-Esteem to David Gray, each artist has offered their own incredible take on a timeless classic.
London Brew – London Brew 2xLP (Concord Jazz)
Recently releasedon CD – now available on vinyl, including an indie store exclusive maroon colorway. London Brew is inspired by the legendary Miles Davis album Bitches Brew, one of jazz’s greatest albums. Produced by Martin Terefe and Downtown Music UK Limited, the record reflects an emotional journey of the times, having been recorded during the pandemic after many months of isolation and the inability to collaborate in person. Recorded in December 2020 at The Church Studios in London, the recording session brings together 12 all-star London based artists including Nubya Garcia, Shabaka Hutchings, Theon Cross, Dave Okumu, Benji B, and Tom Skinner among others. The group is collectively known as London Brew. “Sometimes the music is uncomfortable,” producer Martin Terefe describes, “other times it’s familiar and joyous and other times it’s like deep meditation.”
LØLØ – Debbie Downer x Overkill LP (Hopeless)
Two EPs rolled into one. Pop-punk rising star LØLØ has cemented her place in the genre’s ongoing renaissance as she continues to be likened to the scene’s female pioneers, Paramore and Avril Lavigne, and having toured with pop-punk titans like Neck Deep, Mayday Parade, Waterparks, New Found Glory and Less than Jake.
Lucki – Flawless Like Me 2xLP (Lucki)
Double pink and white galaxy color vinyl pressing housed in gatefold jacket. Lucki Camel Jr., known professionally as Lucki, is an American rapper and record producer from Chicago, IL. His debut single, “Untouchable Lucki”, was produced and premiered by music blog Elevator. Lucki followed with his first project, “Alternative Trap”, in 2013 and has continued to work with prominent music figures ever since including Chance The Rapper, FKA Twigs, Danny Brown, Earl Sweatshirt, and Lil Yachty. In 2021, he collaborated with Philadelphia producer, F1thy, on “Wake Up Lucki”. Throughout the next year he released a series of standalone tracks. And in June 2022, he released “Y Not?” which is included here as a bonus track. Album includes appearances from Future and Babyface Ray. 24 tracks total.
Walter Lure & The Waldos – Wacka Lacka Boom Bop A Loom Bam Boo [Reissue/2018] LP (Cleopatra)
Red color vinyl pressing of the 2018 album from the legendary Heartbreakers guitarist/vocalist.
Macabre – Sinister Slaughter [Reissue/1993] LP (Nuclear Blast)
Baby blue w/ multi-splatter color vinyl pressing of the US death/grind band’s third album.
MC Yallah – Yallah Beibe LP (Hakuna Kulala)
Born Yallah Gudencia Mbidde in Kenya and raised in Uganda, MC Yallah has been involved in East Africa’s rap scene since 1999. Alternating rhymes in Luganda, Luo, Kiswahili and English, her conscious, poetic, and experimental style was slow to creep into Uganda’s mainstream. Following a brief but necessary hiatus, she returned to the stage in 2018 with a new lease of life accepting her role as a central component of the Nyege Nyege/Hakuna Kulala family.
Messa – Close 2xLP (Svart)
Blue color vinyl pressing of the 2022 release by the rising stars of eclectic heavy rock. Close will draw you further into Messa’s spellbinding textures and immersive dynamics. Described as “Stevie Nicks fronting Black Sabbath,” singer Sara’s colossal voice omnipotently carries the listener on an emotional rollercoaster ride where the sonic cauldron of Iommi guitars gives way to Arabian oudh and progressive solos in a masterful style-clash that well befits Messa’s incendiary reputation.
Moon Boots – Ride Away 2xLP (Anjunadeep)
Exceptionally talented keyboardist, DJ, and producer Moon Boots (Peter Dougherty) releases his third studio album Ride Away. Written and produced over a nearly two-year period beginning in early 2021, Ride Away contains themes of love, companionship, and personal exploration. Hauling in a crate’s worth of musical influences, Moon Boots has imbued Ride Away with his characteristic blend of soul, disco, and house music, whilst also introducing the sounds of synthpop, breakbeats, and psychedelia.
Motörhead – 1916 [Reissue/1991] LP (BMG)
1916 is the ninth studio album by British rock band Motörhead, originally released in 1991. The single “The One to Sing the Blues” peaked at number 45. The album was the final Motörhead album to feature Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor on drums in its entirety.
Neck Deep – Rain In July [Reissue/2012] 12” (Hopeless)
Limited orange color vinyl LP pressing of the debut EP from the Welsh pop punk band.
Emily Nenni – On The Ranch LP (Normaltown)
Indie store exclusive translucent blue colorway. The sun sets over the ranch, a can of beer cracks, and an acoustic guitar wrangles the day’s thoughts and memories into a semblance of order. During moments like these, California-born and Nashville-based singer and songwriter Emily Nenni chronicles her life through delicate songcraft rife with honky-tonk spirit and spiked with just the right amount of soul. In possession of a deep understanding of music stoked by a lifelong passion and sharp chops shaped by endless sets in smoky bars and sizzling doublewides, she asserts herself as the consummate country storyteller on her full-length 2022 debut album, On The Ranch.
Angel Olsen – Forever Means 12” (Jagjaguwar)
Last year’s Big Time brought Angel Olsen to a deeper, truer sense of self than ever before. Borne from the twin stars of grief and love, the album delivered beautiful sense of certainty, the sure-footed sound of an artist fully, finally at home with herself. But within that wisdom comes the realization that there is no finish line, no destination or static end point to life while you’re living it, and Forever Means collects songs from the Big Time sessions that hold this common theme. They are, in Olsen’s words, “in search of something else.” [A limited-edition pink colorway is available.]
Pariah – Youths Of Age [Reissue/1983] LP (Radiation Reissues)
Formed in 1981 in suburban Martinez, east of San Francisco, second-wave punk act Pariah struggled to find acceptance until future Green Day engineer Kevin Army produced a demo, placing “Up To Us” on the Rodney On The Roq Vol. 3 compilation. Their sought-after debut album for Posh Boy, Youths Of Today, was the breakthrough that saw them backing the Ramones, UK Subs, and Suicidal Tendencies, the hit “White Line” an anti-cocaine anthem; this edition includes the great “Learning Process” from esteemed compilation Not So Quiet On The Western Front.
Persefone – Aathma [Reissue/2017] 2xLP (ViciSolom Productions)
Double curacao blue color vinyl LP pressing of the 2017 album from the progressive death metal band.
Samora Pinderhughes – Grief LP (Ropeadope)
2022 album now available on vinyl. Samora Pinderhughes is a composer, pianist, vocalist, filmmaker, and multidisciplinary artist known for striking intimacy and carefully crafted, radically honest lyrics alongside high-level musicianship. He is also known for using his music to examine sociopolitical issues and fight for change and works in the tradition of the black surrealists, those who bend word, sound, and image towards the causes of revolution.
Planning For Burial – Matawan – Collected Works 2010 – 2014 Vol. 2 2xLP (The Flenser)
In 2017 The Flenser released a CD collection of material from Planning For Burial’s early period entitled Matawan – Collected Works 2010-2014. Named after the band’s long-term home-base in Matawan New Jersey, the collection included many of Planning For Burial’s beloved rare tracks that originally appeared on seven inches, cassettes, or online. Since 2017, the band’s own Thom Wasluck has re-examined the material found on the Matawan collection with the intention of releasing a vinyl version. This vinyl version of the second volume of the Matawan collection includes much of the first disc of the CD version tirelessly remixed and edited, and the inclusion tracks not found on the original edition specially prepared for the vinyl format.
Bernard Purdie – Purdie Good! [Reissue/1971] LP (Craft Recordings)
In between being one of the most recorded studio drummers of all time (the “Purdie Shuffle” graced everything from Aretha Franklin to Steely Dan), Bernard Purdie squeezed in a few sessions of his own. Purdie Good! was recorded early in 1971 by legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder. The album masterfully balances three Purdie originals with three covers, including a blazing romp through James Brown’s “Cold Sweat.”
Nathaniel Rateliff – Closer [Reissue/2015] 12” (Mod y Vi)
Vinyl repress of the 2015 EP from the singer/songwriter.
Riot Jazz Brass Band – Riot Jazz Makes People Happy LP (Riot Jazz)
Spawning from the Manchester music scene in 2008 and now sucking in members from all over the UK, the Riot Jazz Brass Band is a nine-piece genre-mashing, foot stomping party behemoth bringing the love buzz to ears and feet all over the world. New album Riot Jazz Makes People Happy is the culmination of a 15-year mission to spread joy and get people moving. With three trumpets, three trombones, sousaphone and drums bringing the noise and MC Chunky conducting the chaos, the result is a gleeful cacophony encompassing jazz, hip hop, drum ‘n’ bass, trap, grime, and more.
Rotting Christ – Passage To Arcturo [Reissue/1991] LP (Season OF Mist)
Rotting Christ – Non Serviam [Reissue/1994] LP (Season OF Mist)
Vinyl reissues of the first and third albums from the Greek extreme metal band.
RPWL – Crime Scene LP+MP3 (Gentle Art Of Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. On the new long player Crime Scene this Bavarian Artrock institution directs its attention to the morbid, the perverse, the evil in good, the abysses of the human behavior spectrum in all its unpredictable diversity, which sometimes comes across as bizarrely disturbing and conclusive, if one tries to fathom it. In six densely atmospheric tracks RPWL have once again embarked on intensive journeys through their own band vita, as well as their own record collections. The effort of comparisons is always such a thing, because after all this is the 19th release of this internationally successful band.
Saor – Guardians [Reissue/2021] 2xLP (Season Of Mist)
Expertly transitioning between atmospheric black metal, Celtic folk, and traditional Scottish sounds – the wildly exploratory music of Saor knows no limitations and seeks out every opportunity to expand on it’s potential. On the band’s third full-length Guardians, mastermind Andy Marshall channels the Caledonian spirit and landscape into beautiful and vigorous music.
Scar Symmetry – Pitch Black Progress [Reissue/2006] LP (Nuclear Blast)
Scar Symmetry – The Holographic Universe [Reissue/2008] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
Scar Symmetry – Dark Matter Dimensions [Reissue/2009] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
Scar Symmetry – The Unseen Empire [Reissue/2011] LP (Nuclear Blast)
Color vinyl pressings of the second, third, fourth and fifth albums by the melodic death metal band.
The Silent Comedy – Common Faults [Reissue/2010] LP (Inkind)
The Silent Comedy – Enemies Multiply [Reissue/2015] LP (Inkind)
In September 2010, their album Common Faults won the San Diego Music Awards’s ‘Best Pop Album’ award. Their songs “Bartholomew” and “All Saints Day” were used in 2011 TV advertisements for the video game Dark Souls. “Bartholomew” was the fifth song from their full-length record, Common Faults, and was the first songwriting contribution from The Silent Comedy guitarist and harmonica player Timothy Graves. “Bartholomew” was also used in trailers and television advertisements for the “History Channel” three-part epic miniseries “Hatfields & McCoys” premiering on May 28, 2012.
Sortilège – Apocalypso 2xCD/2xLP (Season Of Mist)
The mighty Sortilège are true pioneers of French heavy metal. From their 1980 inception, and [the] prolific six-year run that followed, the quintet paved the way for a generation of French bands and labels to follow. Apocalypso, their first album of new material in over 30 years, flies the flag of heavy metal loudly and proudly. Led by their vocalist Christian “Zouille” Augustin, the new incarnation of Sortilège steps back into the limelight with metal as timeless as it is classic.
Greg Spero – The Chicago Experiment LP (Ropeadope)
The acclaimed series that began with The Philadelphia Experiment returns. Ropeadope returns to the series to highlight the musical legacy of cities around the globe. The Chicago Experiment was born of collaborations organized by Greg Spero (Spirit Fingers) and his hometown friends Makaya McCraven, Marquis Hill, Joel Ross, Irvin Pierce, Jeff Parker, and Darryl Jones.
Sunsleeper – While You Can LP (Rudenetworks)
2022 album from the Utah emo band now available on vinyl. While You Can was recorded and produced by Brett Romnes (Oso Oso, Hot Mulligan) and mastered by Will Putney (Counterparts, Knocked Loose). Enlisting heavyweight personnel across scenes and genres underlines what the band views as this album’s mission: to connect with and inspire as many listeners as possible while venturing into their most daring and expansive material to date.
Gabor Szabo – The Sorcerer [Reissue/1967] LP (Verve)
Recorded live at Boston’s Jazz Workshop in 1967, The Sorcerer showcases virtuoso guitarist Szabo (a veteran of bands led by Chico Hamilton and Charles Lloyd) at the top of his game on a diverse program featuring standards (“What Is This Thing Called Love”) and pop hits (“The Beat Goes On”) as well as the original, psychedelic-tinged jam “Space.” Part of the Verve By Request Series featuring transfers from the analog tapes remastered.
Tan Cologne – Earth Visions Of Water Spaces LP (Labrador Sweden)
“Blissful, ambient guitar pop with a Mazzy Star-like vocal drift,” according to MOJO, Earth Visions Of Water Spaces is the follow-up to Tan Cologne’s 2020 debut, Cave Vaults On The Moon In New Mexico, an album extolled by a diverse range of people – from members of Broken Social Scene and The Psychedelic Furs to Gorilla vs. Bear – as one of their favorite albums in 2020.
Telex – Telex 6xLP+MP3 (Mute)
Following 2021’s compilation This Is Telex, the Belgian synthpop trio returns with a limited edition color vinyl box set of their full catalog spanning 1979 – 2006: Looking For Saint Tropez, Neurovision, Sex, Wonderful World, Looney Tunes, and How Do You Dance?. These studio albums have all been remastered and newly mixed by band members Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers, keeping the spirit of the original tracks whilst adding a freshness to produce a definitive version of each album. [CD version due May 5.]
Telomante – Codantera LP (Moli Del Tro)
A prolific producer, Jose Guerrero aka Telomante runs multiple projects such as Sentuhlà on Abstrakce Records and Rastrejo on his own label. Codantera is a contemplative stroll through soundscapes that leave a lot of space for improvisation, where harmonic fields and abrupt experimentations meet on the same level. A jewel of minimalist electronic music.
Thes One – Farewell, My Friend LP (Piecelock 70)
When Thes One’s longtime music partner in People Under The Stairs died suddenly in 2021, he turned inward to create an opus on grief, loss and redemption. In this ambitious instrumental elegy, Thes One tells the story of their life together by covering Double K’s favorite songs in a densely layered mosaic of jazz, beats, and psychedelia. Featuring a cast of renowned musicians from around the globe, final footnote Farewell, My Friend is both a parting gift to the fans and a love letter to a lost friend.
Toro y Moi – Anything In Return [Reissue/2013] 2xLP+MP3 (Carpark)
10th anniversary color picture disc double vinyl pressing. Since his first offerings began making the Internet rounds in 2009, Toro y Moi has proven himself to be not just a prolific musician, but a diverse one as well, letting each successive release broaden the scope of his oeuvre. Toro y Moi’s third full-length album, Anything In Return, sees Chaz Bear blending funk, psych-pop and colorful, glitchy electronic sampling, locking in his unique sound that would push him to the forefront of alternative and chillwave music in the 2010s.
Transient & Bastard Noise – Completed Exposition & Blackphone666 LP (To Live A Lie)
“Do you remember the Judgement Night soundtrack? An interesting shmash-up of hip-hop and metal/rock musicians tossed together to create a memorable compilation. Well, this isn’t quite like that, but it is a collab split features two amazing hardcore bands from different countries utilizing experimental noise artists to lay noise in the perfect places to enhance and elevate the songs.”
Uriah Heep – Return To Fantasy [Reissue/1975] LP (Sanctuary/BMG)
Vinyl picture disc pressing of the eighth studio album from Uriah Heep which features the hits “Return To Fantasy”, “Your Turn To Remember” and more.
Various Artists – 8 Mile (Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture 4xLP (Shady)
The 8 Mile Deluxe Edition 4LP (180gm) is the Official soundtrack to the (Eminem) semi-autobiographical film of the same name; originally released on October 29, 2002. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and eventually became the fifth best-selling album in the US in 2002. Certified 6x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Apart from tracks by Eminem himself, the album also features hard-hitting tracks with Jay-Z, Macy Gray, Boomkat, and more.
VoidCeremony – Threads Of Unknowing LP (20 Buck Spin)
Time-melting death black fusion. [A violet with black splatter colorway is available.]
Warforged – The Grove / Sundial LP (The Artisan Era)
2022 album from the Chicago tech death metal band now available on vinyl.
Weedeater – …And Justice For Y’all [Reissue/2001] LP (Season Of Mist)
Weedeater – God Luck…And Good Speed [Reissue/2007] LP (Season Of Mist)
Annual colorways drop of two stoner metal classics. Limited-edition white (…And Justice For Y’all) and green (God Luck…And Good Speed).
Whadya Want – Skippy Knows [Reissue/1985] LP (Chapter Music)
Limited white and red color vinyl LP pressing of the 1985 album from the Australian new wave/synth-pop band.
White Reaper – Asking For A Ride LP (Elektra)
Released late last year on CD – now available on vinyl. Recorded and largely self-produced in Nashville with the help of close friend and engineer Jeremy Ferguson, Asking For A Ride finds Louisville band White Reaper taking a more direct and in-your-face approach, prioritizing the collection’s raw energy and its ability to translate live through ripping and nervy compositions. It’s White Reaper at their most exciting – dialing up the chrome-plated riffs and monster hooks – a welcome reminder of just how much fun rock music can be.
Cassettes:
The HIRS Collective – We’re Still Here (Get Better)
Completely self-produced (like always) and completely self-managed (the Collective is also a driving force behind Get Better Records, who are handling the release) the Hirs Collective’s We’re Still Here is a statement of bravery and irascible resilience that will be one of their many entries into an already unmatched career whose influence has already started to affect young musicians the nation and world over.
King Tee – Thy Kingdom Come [Reissue/2002] (RMV)
Thy Kingdom Come is the fifth studio album by West Coast hip hop artist King T. It was released in 2002 on Greedy Green Entertainment and Mo Beatz. The album was originally titled The Kingdom Come and was slated for a release on June 30, 1998, on Aftermath Entertainment. The album is primarily produced by Dr. Dre, with guest contributions by Bud’da, DJ Battlecat, Ant Banks, DJ Quik, Stu-B-Doo and Mike Dean. The album features guest appearances by Ice T, Baby S, Dawn Robinson, Dr. Dre, Too Short, DJ Quik, El DeBarge, Kid Frost, Playa Hamm, Sharief, MC Ren, Shaquille O’Neal, Crystal, Ruben “RC” Cruz, Kool G. Rap and Tray Deee.
Fenne Lily – Big Picture (Dead Oceans)
From the first line to the last, Big Picture finds Fenne seeking clarity in the uncertain; comfort in the uncomfortable. A gorgeous and gripping portrait of Fenne’s last two years, Big Picture was rarely easy for its author to produce but its contents offer a brilliant catharsis. Started haltingly after a period of writer’s block, the songs that would make up her latest work were pieced together over the course of the pandemic, in an effort to self-soothe.
Metallica – 72 Seasons (Blackened Recordings)
Metallica returns with its long-awaited twelfth studio album 72 Seasons. Issued via the band’s own Blackened Recordings, the 12-track collection was produced by Greg Fidelman with James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich and clocks in at over 77 minutes. 72 Seasons is Metallica’s first full length collection of new material since 2016’s Hardwired…To Self-Destruct. Speaking on the concept of the album title, James said, “72 seasons. The first 18 years of our lives that form our true or false selves. The concept that we were told ‘who we are’ by our parents. A possible pigeonholing around what kind of personality we are. I think the most interesting part of this is the continued study of those core beliefs and how it affects our perception of the world today. Much of our adult experience is reenactment or reaction to these childhood experiences. Prisoners of childhood or breaking free of those bondages we carry.” [An indie store exclusive vinyl pressing is available.]
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