CDs + Vinyl:

Joshua Abrams – Natural Information CD (Eremite)

Joshua Abrams – Represencing CD (Eremite)

Natural Information is another fascinating entry in a solo discography of recordings that gather aesthetic input from all over the map into vivid personal statements. At the heart of the album is the guimbri, a three-stringed animal hide bass traditionally used by the Gnawa of North Africa in healing ceremonies. For Represencing, recorded at home in Chicago in 2011, Abrams again organizes small group statements around the resonant grooves of the North African ceremonial instrument with a unique a broadly assimilative compositional voice.

A Certain Ratio – Sextet [Reissue/1982] 2xCD/2xLP (Factory Benelux)

Self-produced at Revolution Studio, Sextet saw the original Ratio quintet of Donald Johnson, Jeremy Kerr, Martin Moscrop, Simon Topping and Peter Terrell joined by co-vocalist Martha Tili Tilson. Written and recorded following a transformative sojourn in New York in late 1980, the album reflects Latin, samba and even jazz influences, while still retaining Ratio’s signature brittle funk textures, heard in full effect on Lucinda, Gum and trancelike floor filler Knife Slits Water.

Newly remastered and expanded with Peel Session tracks from 1981-82.

Anti-Nowhere League – We Are… The League …Uncut CD (Cleopatra)

Animal and the boys return with brand new and rowdy, re-recordings of The League’s classic debut LP plus bonus tracks.

Arca – Xen CD/LP (Mute)

Arca is the incarnation of Alejandro Ghersi, a 24-year old Venezuelan producer and musician. Having previously released EPs, mixtapes, and produced for the likes of FKA Twigs, Bjork, and Kanye West, Arca’s music is uniquely his own. Xen is a very personal record for Arca, with the underlying concept revolving around gender and sexuality. However, gender isn’t the defining concept but rather a vessel with which to expose Arca’s vulnerability.

[Read more…] about New Releases for November 4, 2014

CDs + Vinyl:

Abysmal Dawn – Obsolescence CD/LP (Relapse)

A veritable beast of a record and the perfect example of what 21^st century death metal should sound like. Features guest appearances from Christian Muenzner (ex-Obscura, ex-Necrophagist, Spawn Of Possesion) and Bobby Koelble (Death).

Bryan Adams – Tracks Of My Years CD (Polydor)

New covers album from the multi-platinum Canadian rocker. Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds bonus tracks. 

Afghan Whigs – Gentleman [Reissue/1993] 2xCD/LP (Rhino)

If there is one album fully deserving of a coming of age celebration, it is The Afghan Whigs’ Gentlemen. Originally released in October 1993, the album and the band – was seen as the bastard stepchild of the alt-rock era and, as the Los Angeles Times noted, is an “overlooked masterpiece.” The double-disc CD set features the original album newly remastered along with a bonus disc of seventeen demos, B-sides, and live performances, the great majority of which are previously unreleased.

Oren Ambarchi – Quixotism CD/LP (Editions Mego)

Recorded with a multitude of collaborators in Europe, Japan, Australia and the USA, Quixotism presents the fruit of two years of work in the form of a single, LP-length piece in five parts. Oren Ambarchi’s work in recent years has evinced an increasing fascination with the possibilities of combining abstract sonic textures with rhythm and pulse, whether in his drumming with Keiji Haino, the subtly driving ride cymbals provided by drummer Joe Talia in their work together, or the motorik grooves of 2012’s Sagittarian Domain. Quixotism takes this aspect of Ambarchi’s recent work to the next level: the entirety of this long-form work is built on a foundation of pulsing double-time electronic percussion provided by Thomas Brinkmann.

Anaal Nathrakh – Desideratum CD (Metal Blade)

“Anaal Nathrakh is their own special breed of terrifying, mixing up grindcore speediness with giant choruses and riffs that are the audible equivalent of otal nuclear annihilation. So it’s not surprise their new track “Idol” rips so hard I’m almost shocked I’m still alive after listening to it with headphones. Get yourself ready…” – Metal Injection

Atriarch – An Unending Pathway CD/LP (Relapse)

Atriarch are a Portland-based metal band whose sound encompasses hard rock, sludge, doom, and drone.

At The Gates – At War With Reality CD/LP (Century Media)

At The Gates, godfathers of the ‘Gothenburg style’ melodic death metal sound, return almost 20 years to set the story straight on who wears the extreme metal crown. At War With Reality is the follow-up to 1995’s Slaughter Of The Soul, with the lineup intact from that landmark

album. CD is available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe includes bonus tracks.

[Read more…] about New Releases for October 27, 2014

CDs + Vinyl:

The 2 Bears – The Night Is Young CD/2xLP (Kartel/Southern Fried Records)

Two years ago The 2 Bears dropped a debut album that re-invigorated a genre and gathered music fans in the open embrace of house music with Be Strong, an album rooted in their love for London. The Night Is Young takes on a more global vision. With a love for their home city still at its heart, the album pulls influences and experiences from across the world of dance music, drawing deeply from their trip to Africa last summer.

The Aislers Set – How I Learned to Write Backwards [Reissue/2002] CD/LP+MP3 (Slumberland/Suicide Squeeze)

The Aislers Set occupy an enviable place in the pop pantheon. Brimming with drunken romanticism, sharp pop sensibilities, and timeless melodies, The Aislers Set reveled in the history of great pop, spiking their classicist ‘60s-tinged tunes with post-punk energy and originality of bands like the Fire Engines and The June Brides. Every song is a meticulously constructed sound world, where the arrangement and instrumentation sublimely and uncannily bring each tune to completeness. Unfortunately they stopped playing and recording together by 2004 due to life commitments. (Vinyl version pressed on HQ-180gm green wax.)

Allo Darlin’ – We Come From The Same Place CD (Slumberland)

The third full-length recording from the much loved Anglo-Australian four-piece is made up of smart, beautiful pop music, with lyrics that resonate with experience and melodies that chime, echo and soar.

Elisa Ambrosio – The Immortalist CD/LP (Drag City)

“Elisa Ambrogio, lead singer of the art-rock heavyweight Magik Markers, usually isn’t one to get too sentimental. But her new solo album, The Immoralist, includes some heart-wrenching songs, including its arresting opening track, ‘Superstitious.’ — NPR

[Read more…] about New Releases for October 21, 2014