CDs + Vinyl:

American Nightmare – American Nightmare CD/LP (Rise)

American Nightmare is a dark hardcore record that pays homage to groups who have always influenced the band ranging from Negative Approach, SSD, and The Cro-Mags to Joy Division and Siouxsie And The Banshees.

Laurie Anderson & Kronos Quartet – Landfall CD/2xLP (Nonesuch)

Inspired by Laurie Anderson’s experience of Hurricane Sandy, Landfall is the first collaboration between the iconic storyteller/musician and the groundbreaking Kronos Quartet. Landfall juxtaposes lush electronics and strings with Anderson’s powerful descriptions of loss, from water-logged pianos to disappearing animal species to Dutch karaoke bars.

Angra – Omni CD (earMUSIC)

“If there is any band that put South American heavy metal on the world stage, it’s Brazil’s Angra. Formed better than a quarter century ago by guitarist Rafael Bittencourt, Angra has dropped eight albums and toured the world extensively, sharing the stage with many of their European counterparts. Now, Angra returns with their ninth album, Omni. Their sound and arrangements are expansive and technical, bombastic and soaring. By example, a song such as ‘Insania’ begins with a brash opening only to drop into a bass and drum line that sounds like jazz rock fusion. This juxtaposition of heaviness and fusion continues throughout but allowing for a ripping guitar solo in the center. Somewhat similar is ‘Magic Mirror,’ where the large majestic riffage leads to Fabio Lione’s voice lilting over a fusion of drums and light electric guitar. But this then yields to more aggressive power metal, getting heavier and leading to a middle solo. Then at the 4:30 mark the power metal bluster abruptly ends, allowing for a breakdown of piano, symphonic synths, and a smooth bass line. Omni is another exceptional album of melodic progressive power metal from this seminal band. I would expect nothing less. Get it. Easily recommended.” – Dangerdog Music Reviews

Ataraxy – Where All Hope Fades CD (Dark Decent)

“Ataraxy are a Spanish death metal band and this is their second album. The band combine their death and doom metal influences well across these tracks. Where All Hope Fades comes across as a real old-school treat, so much so that you can easily imagine it being a lost gem from the ‘90s.” – Wonderbox Metal

Belle and Sebastian – How To Solve Our Human Problems CD/3×12” (Matador)

This CD release combines the tracks from three vinyl EPs. The How To Solve Our Human Problems EP project is the latest installment in a career that has always pursued a singular and delightful vision of what pop represents and what it can achieve, a career that has seen them triumph against the odds to win a Brit award, be one of the first bands to curate their own festival, and play at the London residence of the US ambassador. Belle and Sebastian’s new music has the timeless blend of joy and melancholy that has always characterized them. [Stand-alone vinyl pressing of Part 3 is also available this week.]

Born Ruffians – Uncle Duke & The Chief CD/LP+MP3 (Yep Rock)

Produced by Richard Swift (Foxygen, The Shins), Uncle, Duke & The Chief is a record less concerned with what sounds hip than what feels good. In the Ruffians case that meant shedding some of their artier influences (the Pixies, Talking Heads) and reconnecting with the sounds they first heard on their parent’s turntables as kids: Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, and pre-psychedelic Beatles. It’s about going back to the deepest, most satisfying itch to scratch, says lead singer Luke Lalonde. And in doing so, the album takes you back to a time when the Ruffians sounded less like a band and more like a gang, raising a wild ruckus and speaking in telepathic tongues. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Calibro 35 – Decade CD/LP (Record Kicks)

The sixth studio album form Italian super cult combo. Decade marks 10 years of Calibro 35’s first release and it’s the very first album recorded by Calibro with an orchestral-inspired enlarged line-up that features horns, strings and various percussion instruments.

[Read more…] about New Releases for February 16, 2018

CDs + Vinyl:

The Atlas Moth – Coma Noir CD/LP (Prosthetic)

While 2014’s The Old Believer saw The Atlas Moth gaze off into psychedelic realms throughout the album, new album Coma Noir is packed tightly with riffs and hooks. It’s the bands most rocking album by far, though it’s far from being a rock album.

Wade Bowen – Solid Ground CD (Thirty Tigers)

Waco native Wade Bowen began recording Solid Ground intent on making the artistic statement of his career – a high bar considering the twenty years of success he’s enjoyed – but as his personal odometer rolled over into his fourth decade, his focus is more on legacy than next Saturday night. Solid Ground is personal but not necessarily autobiographical, peppered with distinct south-of-the-border imagery and good-time revelry.

BOYO – Me, Again CD/LP (Danger Collective)

BOYO is the pseudonym of 20-year-old singer-songwriter Robert Tilden. Tilden’s been kicking around the L.A. DIY scene since he was 16 years old, spending the better part of it fronting the garage band Bobby T. and the Slackers. Me, Again, the follow up to his debut Control, taps into his sense of vulnerability, taking on themes of isolation, addiction, and regret. The album is a jagged collection of garage rock and soft DIY indie and noisey pop music, channeling everyone from Ty Segall to Elliot Smith to Deerhunter.

Calibro 35 – Decade CD/LP (Record Kicks)

The sixth studio album form Italian super cult combo. Decade marks 10 years of Calibro 35’s first release and it’s the very first album recorded by Calibro with an orchestral-inspired enlarged line-up that features horns, strings and various percussion instruments.

Dashboard Confessional – Crooked Shadows CD/LP+MP3 (Fueled By Ramen)

The first album in over eight years from the alt-rock band. Crooked Shadows was produced by band leader Chris Carrabba alongside Jonathan Clark and co-producer Colin Brittain. Includes the single “We Fight.” Carrabba says, “When I wrote ‘We Fight’ I thought it was just about the music scene that I came up in – a place where people who’d never quite fit in anywhere felt they actually belonged. When we began playing the song live on our summer tour, I realized that ‘We Fight’ held a much broader meaning. It’s a song for people who, in spite of their differences, can find common ground in their convictions and foster those into something bigger than themselves. That, to me is something worth fighting for.”

Mark Deutrom – The Silent Treatment [Reissue/2000] CD/2xLP (Season Of Mist)

CD and first-time vinyl (re)issue of the solo debut from the renowned ex-Melvins member Mark Deutrom. The album’s wild and quirky rock grooves tread the slow ‘n’ low ground Deutrom helped break with the eccentric trio, loosing hot and heavy ear worms that feel like old friends.

Alela Diane – Cusp CD/LP (Alela Diane)

Cusp was written in January 2016 in a small cabin deep within snowy woods where Alela resided during a three-week artist residency at Caldera, Oregan, alone for the first time since becoming a mother. A broken thumbnail resulted in Alela’s signature finger-plucking being replaced by songwriting on a grand piano, resulting in the most piano driven album of her career, fueled by that energy that only comes with facing and falling in love with something new. Cusp explores the weight and beauty of creating life, with Alela refusing to stray from her perspective as a mother and woman.

[Read more…] about New Releases for February 9, 2018

CDs + Vinyl:

Bernard Allison – Let It Go CD (Ruf)

Let It Go was recorded at Bessie Blue Studio, Stantonville, Tennessee, with legendary music producer Jim Gaines. Recalls Bernard, “we made the decision to not flood the CD with keyboards or horns, to go back to the true basic rhythm section sound – and to show more mature songwriting.”

Fritz Ambro$e – Doe Quarterz CD/Cassette (All City)

Fitz Ambro$e is a Tokyo based producer originally from Cape Breton Island in remote eastern Canada. With a slew of self-released cult classic albums and mix CDs he steps up with a 14-track mini LP rooted in Fitz’s love of ’80s soul and funk mixed with ’90s hip-hop and R&B. Stripped down intricate hip-hop beats heavily layered with vocals, obscure samples and unpredictable drum progressions, Doe Quarterz sees Fitz come with a uniquely modern sound respectful to its roots – melodic head nodding grooves busting with his original flavor.

AWOLNATION – Here Come The Runts CD/LP (Red Bull)

AWOLNATION’s third undertaking sees Aaron Bruno once again at the helm producing, writing and recording. “With this record I really wanted to make a rock ‘n’ roll/pop album.” says Bruno. “And I say ‘pop’ how I grew up listening to it, in the sense of Dire Straits or Born In The U.S.A. or The Cars or Tom Petty.”

Bardo Pond – Volume 8 CD/LP+MP3 (Fire)

Volume 8 is the brand-new album from the neo-space rock stoner drone outfit. It’s a euphoric transcendental journey to a mountain top nirvana, a psychedelic tapestry that slowly unwinds as they travel onwards into the inner mind. A 40-minute opus delivered from a hail of reverb soulfully caressed by a ceremonial flute, that makes way for a shroud of Weld–era Neil Young fog. Bardo Pond is your rather ruffled tour guide to this far off place, this distant sense of wonderment at the crossroads with bewilderment.

Bat Fangs – Bat Fangs CD/LP+MP3 (Don Giovanni)

Slick and sick visions channeled from the midnight mirror world. Acid-soaked hard-rock to thrill the living and raise dead. Rooted in the pop-metal of time beyond memory, the tunes are dark and spiritually corrupted, but also boldly anthemic. They deliver thunder and feedback, wild energy and melodic uplift. Music meant to lay waste to the airwaves and unfold the collective cranium.

The BellRays – Punk Funk Rock Soul Vol. 2 CD/LP (U&Media)

Punk. Funk. Rock. Soul. The main ingredients in a potent witch’s brew that the Bellrays have been mixing for a long time now.

Anna Burch – Quit The Curse CD/LP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)

The deceptively complex pop of Quit The Curse marks the debut of this Detroit singer/songwriter. The nine tracks come on sugary and upbeat, but their darker lyrical themes and serpentine song structures are tucked neatly into what seem at first just like uncommonly catchy tunes. Burch’s crystal clear vocal harmonies and gracefully crafted songs feel so warm and friendly that it’s easy to miss the lyrics about destructive relationships, daddy issues and substance abuse that cling like spiderwebs to the hooky melodies. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

[Read more…] about New Releases for February 2, 2018