CDs + Vinyl:

5 Seconds Of Summer – Live SOS CD (Capitol)

Live release from the Australian pop band.

Charlie XCX – Sucker CD (Atlantic)

The new pop queen’s sophomore album features the badass floor-filler “Break The Rules.” “After years of being a critical darling Charli XCX assisted Iggy Azalea on the song of the summer and landed her own ‘Boom Clap’ on the soundtrack for The Fault In Our Stars. Sucker is her second studio album, and it’s a record that seeks to bend the mainstream to its will rather than conform to its reigning trends.” [7.6] — Pitchfork

Corrections House – Writing History In Advance CD (War Crime)

Corrections House (Mike IX Williams of Eyehategod, Scott Kelly of Neurosis, Bruce Lamont of Bloodiest/Yakuza and Sanford Parker of Minsk) is a mysterious collective of lost souls that embrace the unkind, the diseased, the forgotten, the morose and their much anti-soundscapes and shadowy verses – both at once hideously beautiful, graceful and terrifying creeps forth from this, their first live recording.

Gov’t Mule – Darkside Of The Mule CD/3xCD+DVD (Evil Teen)

This archival live release features a full set of Pink Floyd covers the band recorded on Halloween 2008 at the Orpheum Theatre in Boston, MA. Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe features three CDs of the entire performance (three hours of music), plus a DVD of the entire show mixed for stereo and 5.1 surround. Vinyl version due January 13. “These new archival live releases just further [the concept of 2013’s Shout!, which sounds like Gov’t Mule but doesn’t sound like anything we had ever done],” guitarist Warren Haynes told Classic Rock, “and allow us to highlight some of our influences as well as how far we’ve come since the first album.”

Gravenhurst – Flashlight Seasons/Black Holes In The Sand [Reissue/2003/2004] 2xCD/LP/LP (Warp Records)

This year Gravenhurst celebrates a decade of work on Warp Records with the reissue of two classic albums, Flashlight Seasons and Black Holes In the Sand. 2004’s Flashlight Seasons quickly earned Gravenhurst a devoted fan base, consistently strong support from the music press, and cemented Nick Talbot’s reputation as a unique talent, and one of the most original British singer-songwriter and producers of his generation. Black Holes In The Sand, a noisier and more overtly lo-fi record of dark pastoral psychedelia firmly established an enduring Gravenhurst aesthetic: enigmatic lyrics, ghostly and virtuoso finger-picked guitars against a backdrop of cinematic, shape-shifting, semi conscious sonic textures; subliminal transmissions from the surrounding landscape. (Sadly, Nick Talbot passed away recently, so these reissues are oddly timed.) Each reissue also available separately on vinyl.

Jonny Greenwood – Inherent Vice [OST/Score] CD (Nonesuch)

Original score to Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film by Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood.

Peter Hammill – All That Might Have Been CD/LP (Fie)

This is not a disc of conventional songs, though the fragments from which its formed originally came from discrete examples of the standard form. Written and recorded over an 18 month period – the longest ever for a PH solo work – the album has gone through many transformations before arriving in this final form. It’s not a concept album as such but its use of jagged soundscapes and elusive plotlines place it closer to a cinematic world than a narrative song one. The sound palate consists of guitars, synths, crushed beats and, of course, insistent vocals. This is unlike Peter has attempted before. The music is continuous, cross-fading from one piece to another.

[Read more…] about New Releases for December 16, 2014

CDs + Vinyl:

Albatwitch – If Corporations are People, Why Won’t They Die? CD/LP (Hand/Eye)

Albatwitch’s second full-length is an angrier, yet more refined take on the anarcho-experimentalism of their debut. Politically charged bursts of grind, dark drones, and blackened crust weave together with acoustic folk and harsh noise.

Bhleg – Draumr Ast CD (Nordvis)

Debut album by Swedish metal band Bhleg delivering bleak, melancholic black metal comparable to early material by Ulver and Burzum.

Blind Mr. Jones – Tatooine: 20th Anniversary Edition CD/LP (Sainte Marie)

Digitally remastered edition of the British shoegaze band’s second album, originally released in 1994. Blind Mr. Jones’ earlier recordings featured musical assistance from Slowdive’s Neil Halstead and Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood.

Blut Aus Nord – Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry CD (Debemur Morti Productions)

“Blut Aus Nord and its mastermind Vindsval are primarily associated with boundary shifting experimentation within the musical realm of black metal. The ultra-prolific unit has been pushing beyond the Satanic and misanthropic trappings of the style since the band’s 2003 release The Work Which Transforms God. The Work is one of BAN’s most highly regarded albums, and it’s the entry point to the band’s catalog for a lot of people. But, before BAN started incorporating avant-garde elements and industrial noise into their songs, it started life as a fairly orthodox black metal band. Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry is a return to that early sound.” – Metal Injection

The Brokedowns – Life Is A Breeze CD/LP (Red Scare Industries)

Take growly Midwest punk (à la D4, Lawrence Arms) and make it heavier, angular, and a little Hot Snakes-y. The Brokedowns know how to have a good time and they know how to write punchy punk jams, but what they do best is smack you on the ass with their words.

William S. Burroughs – Häxan: Witchcraft Through The Ages CD (Sotpackan)

Soundtrack to Anthony Balch’s abbreviated 1968 version of Benjamin Christensen’s 1922 silent film Häxan. Narrated by William S. Burroughs, delivered as an incantation in droning monotone. Daniel Humair’s chaotic jazz score was played by a quintet that included Jean-Luc Ponty on violin and Humair on percussion.

[Read more…] about New Releases for December 9, 2014

CDs + Vinyl:

AC/DC – Rock Or Bust CD/LP (Columbia)

This is the first album of new AC/DC material since 2008’s multi platinum Black Ice. Rock Or Bust was recorded in Spring 2014 at Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, BC and finds AC/DC once again working with producer Brendan O’Brien and mixer Mike Fraser. It is the first album in the band’s 40-plus-year career that will not feature ailing bassist Malcolm Young. Songwriting duties, which have been shared by the Young brothers in the past, fell on the shoulders of guitarist Angus, who is said to have written the material on Rock Or Bust by himself. Contrary to published reports and rumors, this will not be AC/DC’s last album.

Anima Morte – Upon Darkened Stains CD (Transubstans Sweden)

The third album by Anima Morte sees the Swedish band evolving their moody instrumental songs one step further into the cinematic realm – rooted in ‘70s rock music with symphonic and experimental elements. Following deeper and more complex compositions the tense and melancholic atmosphere contrasts strong and thrilling musical motifs.

Aquadolls – Sun Soaked On You CD (Burger)

Sun-kissed teen dream beach pop debut on Burger Records. Pretty much sounds like Best Coast. Vinyl version due January 15.

Lee Bannon – Big Toy Box 2 CD (Chillectro)

A collection of instrumentals and unreleased tracks from the Sacramento producer. It is the soundtrack to Lee Bannon’s time in Sacramento and his growth in its thriving hip-hop and electronic music scenes.

Beanpole – Random Musings 1 CD (Jigsaw Recordings)

Vocals, guitars, strings and even flutes are layered upon each other (amidst drums, bass and keyboard) to make for a wonderful and harmonious sound. These five songs only prove that Verna Brock should be up in the same revered class of indiepop luminaries such as Rose Melberg and Pam Berry.

Bereft – The Lost Ages CD (War Crime)

Deep from the depths of Madison, WI come Bereft, a project that encompasses guitarist/vocalist Zach Johnson and guitarist Alex Linden’s views on religion, politics, social injustice and the human condition. Drawing from elements of black metal, post-metal, doom and other forms of ambient music, they present The Lost Ages, their five-track debut EP.

Theodore Bikel – Theodore Bikel’s Treasury Of Yiddish Folk & Theatre Songs CD (Real Gone Music)

Theodore Bikel is one of the most important folk singers of the recording era, and during his legendary tenure at Elektra Records, he recorded a multitude of albums exploring virtually every nook and cranny of the ethnic folk music canon.

Mary J. Blige – The London Sessions CD/LP (Capitol)

Mary J. Blige collaborates with a host of UK talent including Disclosure, Eg White, Emile Sandé, Jimmy Napes, Naughty Boy, Sam Romans and Sam Smith on The London Sessions.

Blue Six – Signs & Wonders CD (Naked Music)

With a nod to the ‘80s, Blue Six is back with another sonic gem filled with the lush grooves, and smart, introspective songwriting.

Bo-Dogs – Bad Bad Dog CD/LP (Low Impact)

Raw, wild and energetic Swedish garage and pub rock.

Brothertiger – Future Splendors CD/LP (Mush)

Future Splendors is the nostalgic-yet-new ten-track album from synth-pop darling, Brothertiger. Beholden to purest ‘80s synth-pop, the album operates as a collection of cinematic moments, drowned in glowing neon.

[Read more…] about New Releases for December 2, 2014