CDs + Vinyl:
Josh Abbott Band – Until My Voice Goes Out CD (Pretty Damn Tough)
New release from the Texas country music band.
The Accidentals – Odyssey CD/LP (SME Masterworks)
“It wasn’t all that long ago that the qualities valued most highly in the youthful sectors of folk-pop and folk-rock were earnestness and simplicity. This was music made with minimum fuss — all four-on-the-floor foot stomps, straight-ahead strumming and spirited sing-along choruses. The Accidentals were surely aware of that movement, though they’d barely reached high school in Traverse City, Mich., when Mumford & Sons blew up. But even back then, violinist Savannah Buist and cellist Katie Larson were occupied by making familiar MGMT and Led Zeppelin songs into pieces to which they could apply their classical chops. The Accidentals became a sprightly trio several years back with the addition of drummer Michael Dause. On their latest, which the three bandmates co-produced in partnership with Jason Lehning, a specialist in roots-inflected alt-pop, they display equal interest in the focused musical forms of indie rock and pop and the expansive potential of orchestral arrangements, jam band open-endedness and impressionistic singer-songwriter expression. The fact that all of that is in the mix doesn’t, in fact, result in long songs. Most, including the closing instrumental suite, clock in under four minutes. They’re just busier, more dynamic songs, animated by the tensions between aesthetic possibilities.” – NPR
Banny Grove – Cars In Control CD/7” (Nicey Music)
“Giddy and surreal synth-driven songs that fuse pointed social commentary with off-kilter melodies and teetering rhythms.”—Bandcamp New and Notable
Beneath – Ephemeris CD/LP (Unique Leader)
Third full length from the Icelandic death metal titans.
Bobby Bland – Here’s The Man!!! [Reissue/1962] CD/LP (Tempo)
Here’s The Man!!! was originally released in 1962 on Duke Records – Houston’s legendary R&B label run by the infamous Don Robey – and is the second LP from Bobby “Blue” Bland. Featuring one of his most enduring and classic hits, “Turn On Your Love Light”, along with 10 other smoking R&B numbers – Here’s The Man!!! is a fine showcase of one of the most influential and important R&B/soul singers of the 1960s.
Cloakroom – Time Well CD/LP (Relapse)
Grandiose and deeply insular, Cloakroom’s second album is a work that transcends simple genre descriptors as the trio prove dually capable of conjuring lumbering walls of sound as well as forlorn Americana. Cloakroom occupies a compelling space between worlds on Time Well, crafting its unique brand of thoughtfully heavy music.
Reo Cragun – Growing Pains CD (Capitol)
The emerging r ‘n’ bass artist releases his new mixtap.
The Jerry Douglas Band – What If CD/LP (Rounder/Concord)
Jerry Douglas, the 14x Grammy award winner who has played on over 2,000 separate recordings (Alison Krauss, Mumford & Sons, James Taylor, etc.), presents a new album with a unique sound and a brand-new outfit of musicians, hand-picked by Douglas himself. On What If, Douglas decisively merges jazz inclinations with the bluegrass, country, blues, swing, rock, and soul he’s spent his life absorbing and performing, forging a sound that flies beyond the boundaries of anything he – or anyone else – has done before. From the up-tempo combination of what Douglas calls ‘bebop jazz and caveman jazz’ on “Cavebop” to the symphonically sweeping title track, What If delves into areas unexplored by any other musician, much less by Dobro. The album also includes a funky, soulful take on Tom Waits’ “2:19” and a blistering bluegrass-meets-jam-band reinvention of the classic “Hey Joe.” [Vinyl edition due September 15.]
Judy Dyble & Andy Lewis – Summer Dancing CD/LP (PIAS America)
Songwriter-player-producer Andy Lewis is introduced to Judy Dyble, erstwhile vocalist with folk luminaries Fairport Convention and proto-King Crimson founder who, after a somewhat extended stay out of music has been been making a low-key, experimental return. Connections completed, the pair draw from their rural-urban upbringings and like-minded interests in history and culture, early ideas are swapped electronically albeit fragments of tracks and lyrics that the pair have accumulated over the years. Weeks later and these formative ideas have evolved into Summer Dancing – a kaleidoscopic collection of audio snapshots.
Eluveitie – Evocation II – Pantheon CD/LP (Nuclear Blast America)
Second album Swiss folk metallers.
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats – Groovin’ In Greaseland CD (Alligator)
Wildly fun, musically fearless and bursting with bravado, Rick Estrin & The Nightcats have created one of the blues’ most instantly recognizable sounds and no-holds-barred styles. Featuring the world-class talents of harmonica master, songwriter and vocalist Rick Estrin, guitar wunderkind Chris “Kid” Andersen, keyboard wizard Lorenzo Farrell and dynamic drummer Alex Pettersen, Rick Estrin & The Nightcats serve up sharp and incisive original blues and gritty roadhouse rock ‘n’ roll.
Eternal Boy – Awkward Phase CD/LP (Four Chord Music)
New from the pop/punk outfit formerly known as The SpacePimps.
Ghostpoet – Dark Days + Canapés CD/LP (PIAS America)
Dark Days + Canapés is Ghostpoet’s most defining album to date. Produced by Leo Abrahams, best known for his work with Brian Eno and Jon Hopkins, it delves even further into a fuller, guitar driven sound. Serendipity and experimentalism were embraced in the studio and several original ideas evolved or were supplanted by something unexpected. On “Freakshow” the addition of manic laughter from a gospel choir, who had turned up to sing on a different track, compounds the crazed nature of the song, whilst “Blind As A Bat…,” influenced by Talk Talk’s Laughing Stock, saw string players invited to improvise with fragments of their performance sampled and overlaid to build something less structured, more wayward and reflective of the state of mind of the protagonist. [Limited white colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Gravetemple – Impassable Fears CD/LP (Svart)
Imploding, abstracting and distorting the concepts of ceremony, volume and density since 2006, surrealist, esoteric and experimental rock band Gravetemple (Oren Ambarchi, Stephen O’Malley and Attila Csihar) return with a new album.
Grizzly Bear – Painted Ruins CD/2xLP+MP3 (RCA)
Grizzly Bear release Painted Ruins, their highly anticipated fifth full-length album and first for RCA Records. The band – Chris Bear, Ed Droste, Daniel Rossen and Chris Taylor – spent the better part of two years writing and recording the 11 new compositions on Painted Ruins. Taylor produced the album and it was mixed by Grammy Award-winning engineer Shawn Everett (Alabama Shakes, The War On Drugs, Weezer). Sessions took place at Allaire Studios in upstate New York and various locations around Los Angeles, including Taylor’s own Terrible Studios. Rolling Stone called the record’s lead single “Three Rings” “spellbinding” while Spin exclaimed that the band “strike gold” with straightforward second single “Mourning Sound.” Painted Ruins follows the group’s critical and commercial 2012 breakthrough Shields.
Gunplay – Fix Tape CD (X-ray)
Fresh off the success of his sophomore album, FL-based rapper and Rick Ross protégé, Gunplay, drops his 2017 mixtape which includes 11 new tracks featuring the ferocious flow that earned Gunplay collaborations with Pharell Williams, Kendrick Lamar and Lil Wayne.
Horrific – Your Worst Nightmare [Reissue/2009] CD (Hell’s Headbangers)
A bizarro mix of ‘80s heavy metal, thrash, punk, and death metal. [Vinyl edition due September 15.]
Ray Wylie Hubbard – Tell The Devil I’m Gettin’ There As Fast As I Can CD (Bordello)
Whether or not you subscribe to the adage that the devil always has the best music, you can take it on faith that anytime he pops up from a cameo in a Ray Wylie Hubbard song, the results are gonna be pretty damned entertaining. And as any fan of the Hubbard cannon knows, Old Scratch pops up in his songs a lot nearly as often as all of Hubbard’s wise-cracking black birds, lyrical and musical nods to Lightnin’ Hopkins, bad-ass women (usually Hubbard’s own wife, Judy), and a myriad of other grifters, ruffians, and scrappy cats of the gnarly and general lowdown variety. Somewhere or another on just about every Ray Wylie Hubbard album, the devil gets his due.
Interpol – Our Love To Admire [Reissue/2007] CD+DVD/2xLP/2xLP+DVD (Capitol)
Digitally remastered 10th Anniversary edition expanded with a DVD featuring their 2007 performance at London Astoria. [Double heavyweight vinyl LP pressing in gatefold jacket including custom inner sleeves also available. Deluxe vinyl edition adds the DVD.]
Jethro Tull – Songs From The Wood [Reissue/1977] CD (Rhino/Parlophone)
Single-disc Steven Wilson mix.
Kacy & Clayton – The Siren’s Song CD/LP+MP3 (New West)
“When you grow up in a remote region of Saskatchewan, Canada, where the nearest record store is a five-hour drive, an imagination comes in handy. That’s how cousins Kacy Anderson and Clayton Linthicum – aka Kacy & Clayton – coped with life in the Wood Mountain Uplands, where rolling hills outnumbered neighbors and small-town subversion hid in the verdant sheen. And, on their last LP Strange Country, they told tales of vengeful, murderous women, unwanted babies and mysterious spirits, all housed in their breed of both eerie and ethereal folk, unique enough to catch the interest of Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, who produced their forthcoming album The Siren’s Song. With production from Tweedy, [album single] ‘The Light of Day’ finds the duo morphing into full-band territory, giving their sound a less pastoral, more psychedelic sheen along the lines of Gram Parson’s Grievous Angel, Buffalo Springfield or Sir Douglas Quintet if Linda Perhacs was at the wheel, with Anderson’s voice leaping from a sweet mountain warble to full-on Grace Slick belt.” – Rolling Stone
Katie Kern – Blues For The Highway CD (Wolf)
By coincidence watching the Ry Cooder movie Crossroads Kern became infatuated with the history of blues, especially the outstanding music of Robert Johnson. To learn how to play guitar solos she listened to the CD of B. B. King’s Live In Cook County Jail. Other strong influences include Bonnie Raitt and Mississippi John Hurt.
Kitty In A Casket – Rise CD/LP (Rodeostar)
This Austrian band takes a firm stand with their melodic punk rock, from radical to emotional, from undaunted to sensitive, from fast and hard to tender and susceptible.
KMFDM – Hell Yeah CD/2xLP (earMUSIC)
For over a quarter of a century KMFDM is the epitome and synonym for industrial rock. Hell Yeah is their first new album in four years. [Vinyl edition pressed at 45rpm for maximum fidelity.]
Shelby Lynne & Allison Moorer – Not Dark Yet CD (Silver Cross)
Not Dark Yet provides a potent look at the sisters’ individual and collective artistry through eclectic song choices from writers ranging from the Louvin Brothers, Nick Cave, Kurt Cobain, and back to Jessie Colter. Shelby and Allison wrap their arms around the past, plant their feet in the present, and nod toward what’s around the bend with the co-written “Is It Too Much” which closes out the ten-song set. [Vinyl edition due September 15.]
Lyte – Psychopathic Monstar CD (Psychopathic)
Lyte is the newest artist signed to Psychopathic Records. Monstar is available in red, green, and blue versions, each with its own unique opening track.
Major Lazer – Know No Better CDEP (M-Theory Music)
Six new tracks featuring collaborations with numerous artists, including Travis Scott, Camila Cabello, Quavo, J Balvin, Sean Paul, Nasty C, Ice Prince, Patoranking, Jidenna, Busy Signal, Anitta, Pabllo Vittar, Machel Montano, and Konshens.
Dent May – Across The Multiverse CD/LP+MP3 (Carpark)
Following the lead of musical-polymaths-with-LA-ties before him like Brian Wilson, Van Dyke Parks, and Harry Nilsson, Dent May’s style on the magical mystery tour de force Across The Multiverse will be familiar to fans of his previous work. Yet there’s something more refined about this collection… Stately strings mingle with boogie piano like old friends. Synths weave a celestial backdrop throughout. Every verse, bridge and chorus in its right place, giving it the unmistakable feel of a true songwriting craftsman at work. Lyrically Dent has never been sharper, musing on themes like modern romance (“Picture On A Screen,” “Face Down In The Gutter Of Your Love”), existential dread (“Dream 4 Me,” “I’m Gonna Live Forever Until I’m Dead”), and the distance to the moon (“Distance To The Moon”) as he searches for meaning among the infinite scrolling feeds of our 21st century augmented reality. The title track, a duet with Frankie Cosmos, is a deep space love song about finding love beyond impossible boundaries. [Yellow colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Mosquitos – Mexican Dust CD (Six Degrees)
A unique blend of Brazilian influences, American pop smarts and witty, oddball arrangements.
Mozzy – 1Up Top Ahk CD (Mozzy)
1 Up Top Ahk serves as Mozzy’s debut project and features the likes of Lil Boosie, YFN Lucci, Dave East, June, Celly Ru, and a posthumous verse from the Bay Area legend The Jacka. Available in Regular and Deluxe editions.
Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers – The Story We Tell CD (Rebel)
One of the busiest bands in bluegrass, Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers have consistently delivered chart-topping and crowd-pleasing music, as evidenced by multiple International Bluegrass Music Association awards and Grand Ole Opry appearances on their resume.
Hugh Mundell – Africa Must Be Free By 1983 [Reissue/1979] CD (VP)
Hugh Mundell was a protégé of Augustus Pablo and recorded for his Rockers International imprint. Together the two made these classic sides which still stand as genre defining forty years on. [Vinyl editions – including the Augustus Pablo Dub – due September 15.]
Neck Deep – The Peace And The Panic CD/LP+MP3 (Hopeless)
New album from the Welsh pop-punk band. [Limited white color vinyl pressing also available.]
Little Junior Parker/Bobby Blue Bland – The Barefoot Rock And You Got Me (Double Feature) [Reissue/1958] CD/LP (Tempo)
The Barefoot Rock And You Got Me brings together Duke singles by Bobby Blue Bland and Junior Parker, in a “double feature” set that devotes a side apiece to material by each of them. Hard bluesy soul.
Phora – Yours Truly Forever CD (WB)
Debut album from the 22-year-old rapper-singer.
Phylactery – Necromancy Enthroned CD (Dark Decent)
Debut album of wicked and brutal Canadian thrash metal.
Raspberries – Pop Art Live 2xCD (Omnivore)
“Having waited this long to witness the impossible—Raspberries live—we showed up two hours early, parking our car in the empty parking lot . . . [and] moments before the house lights went down, we looked at each other and said the words that we never thought we would ever say: ‘We’re at a Raspberries concert’ (Ken Sharp and Bernie Hogya from the liner notes to Pop Art Live). November 26, 2004, the stage was set for a reunion most thought could never happen—the Raspberries live in concert. Over 30 years since the original four members of Raspberries last played together, Pop Art Live captures opening night, at Cleveland’s House Of Blues. Founding members Eric Carmen, Wally Bryson, David Smalley, and Jim Bonfanti powerfully muscle through 28 slices of pure rock ’n’ roll heaven, bringing to life the legacy of power pop’s founding fathers. Pop Art Live contains live versions of songs from all four of the Raspberries’ classic original studio albums including the hits “Go All The Way,” “I Wanna Be With You,” “Let’s Pretend,” and “Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)” as well as perfect renditions of timeless favorites by The Beatles and The Who. [Vinyl edition due November 17.]
C-Schultz – Frühe Jahre CD (Unseen Worlds)
Frühe Jahre is the first-time reissue of C-Schulz’s early work from late 1980s and early ’90s. Combining the cathartic sounds of industrial, early techno, and innovative pop with inspiration from acousmatic, new music, and Dada, Schulz’s music is a prime example of the Cologne experimental music scene of the time. Rhythmic delights, outlandish juxtapositions and a sustained, unresolved, aurally-fascinating tension evoke dramatic, film-like meditations.
Slick Rick – The Great Adventures Of Slick Rick [Reissue/1988] CD (Get On Down)
CD reissue of the debut album from the Jamaican/London-born hip-hop artist.
Sojourner – Empire Of Ashes CD/LP (Avantgarde)
As equally majestic as it is furious, Empires of Ash channels that epic spirit of black metal bands like Summoning, Saor, and even Emperor. What really sets Sojourner apart from their contemporaries though is how well they weave the folk instruments into their songs; a variety of flutes, piano, and synths pour personality into the music.
Billy Jo Spears – C’est La Vie CD (Goldenlane)
The lost album from the country legend, recorded in the early ’80s but never released.
Thy Art Is Murder – Dear Desolation CD/LP (Nuclear Blast America)
Combining classic and authentic death metal elements that invoke the renegade, spirit-crushing, monstrosity of early Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse and Decapitated with the precision rhythmic assault of Meshuggah and the breakdown-infused bounce of The Black Dahlia Murder, Australian metal crew Thy Art Is murder has redefined a once cast aside and maligned sub-genre, proudly re-energizing and representing the best in extremity. [Two limited edition colored vinyl pressings are available: grey and bronze and orange.]
UNKLE – The Road: Part 1 CD/2xLP (Cooking Vinyl)
After a seven-year hiatus, James Lavelle returns with a new album from UNKLE. The Road: Part 1 is the project’s fifth album to date and long-awaited follow-up to 2010’s Where Did The Night Fall. the album taps into the multicultural landscape of modern London and sets out to unite an eclectic mix of ideas, cultures, and genres under the UNKLE umbrella to create something unique. Lavelle explains, “I wanted to make a record that I hadn’t been able to before, going back to the roots of where I came from, with a foot in modern London.” The lengthy list of contributors includes Queens Of The Stone Age’s Troy Van Leeuwen and Jon Theodore, Primal Scream’s Andrew Innes, The Duke Spirit’s Liela Moss, Dhani Harrison, Keaton Henson, ESKA, and long-time UNKLE collaborator Mark Lanegan.
Chelsea Williams – Boomerang CD/LP+MP3 (Blue Élan)
Boomerang ties together Williams’ influences – Americana, indie-folk and lush pop – for a transcendent listening experience.
Victoria Williams & The Loose Band – Victoria Williams & The Loose Band Town Hall 1995 CD (Fire America)
Released on vinyl for RSD 2017, this live archive release is now available on CD. In 1995 Victoria Williams toured with the Loose band. Critics swooned and acclaimed her live shows as “beautiful” and “intimate”, set lists varied every night, special guests happened along.
Steven Wilson – To The Bone CD/2xLP/Blu-ray (Caroline)
Wilson’s (Porcupine Tree) fifth album is a gloriously dynamic modernist pop record. It is a hat-tip to the hugely ambitious progressive pop records of his youth (think Peter Gabriel’s So, Talk Talk’s Colour Of Spring, Tears For Fears’ Seeds Of Love). [Hi-res Blu-ray audio edition also available.]
Dizzy Wright – The Golden Age 2 CD (Dizzy Wright)
Dizzy Wright finally drops his long-awaited The Golden Age 2 album, which marks as his third solo studio project in his lustrous career. The former Funk Volume signee’s new release provides a whopping total of 18 tracks, which hear features from the likes of Chellé, Euroz, Big K.R.I.T., G Perico, Reezy and many more.
Yawpers – Boy In A Well CD/LP+MP3 (Bloodshot)
The Yawpers is a rock ‘n’ roll trio from Denver, Colorado. Their name is derived from the Walt Whitman poem Song Of Myself: “I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.” The Yawpers play in a unique setting of two acoustic guitar players and drummer, yet their music is played with raucous glee comparable to seeing a metal band. Their third album, Boy In A Well, sounds like Alan Lomax using his field recorder to capture Mance Lipscomb ripping a laced joint with the Cramps and strapping on their instruments to let it fly. It’s a complex concept album – manically conceived, historically situated, emotionally underscored and set in a plot-driven fictive universe. It’s demented, unpredictable, taboo, ambitious, and yet distinctively cohesive.
DVDs + Blu-ray:
Aretha Franklin – Divas DVD (MVD Visual)
This all-star tribute to Aretha, recorded live at Radio City Music Hall and aired on VH1 in 2001, includes guest performances by Mary J. Blige, Jill Scott, Stevie Wonder, The Backstreet Boys, Kid Rock, and more.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
311 – Greatest Hits ’93-’03 [2004] 2xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)
First-time vinyl pressing of the first compilation by 311.
Accept – The Rise Of Chaos 2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Fifteenth studio album from the Teutonic metal band. Limited blue and orange color vinyl pressing also available.
Ariel Pink – Another Weekend b/w Ode To The Goat 7” (Mexican Summer)
The first single from the forthcoming album Dedicated To Bobby Jameson (due September 15). Includes the non-album B-side “Ode To The Goat.”
Audioslave – Audioslave [Reissue/2002] 2xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)
Limited 150gm vinyl reissue of Audioslave’s debut album.
Roy Ayers Ubiquity – Lifeline [Reissue/1977] LP (Polydor)
One of the most visible jazz vibraphonists of the 1960s, then an R&B bandleader in the 1970s and ’80s, Roy Ayers’ reputation is now that of one of the prophets of acid jazz, a man decades ahead of his time. Perhaps acid jazz would have emerged even if Ayers had never existed, but it certainly would have sounded different. Scores of DJs, hip-hoppers, acid jazzers, and others have incorporated samples of music created by Ayers into their own work, making his sound an integral part of these emerging musical forms.
Bobby Bland – Two Steps From The Blues [Reissue/1961] LP (Tempo)
Bobby Bland could both comfort and chill, sometimes in the same song. He does so on this undeniably classic album’s “Lead Me On,” which begins with the line “You know how it feels, you understand / What it is to be a stranger in this unfriendly land” and ends softly two minutes later with the promise “I’ll follow you.” Such drama, coupled with a mellow soulfulness, is the norm on Two Steps. Bland has been called “the Sinatra of the blues” more than once, and this album is the best explanation ever for that appellation.
Mary J. Blige – Strength Of A Woman 2xLP (Capitol)
Released this past April on CD – now available on vinyl. The 13th album from the R&B singer/songwriter includes guest appearances by Kanye West, Quavo, DJ Khaled, Missy Elliot, Prince Charlez, and Kaytranada.
Johnny Cash – Greatest! [Reissue/1959] LP (ORG Music)
Vinyl reissue of the fourth album by American singer-songwriter Johnny Cash, originally released on the legendary Sun Records in 1959. The tracks on the album were recorded between July 1955 and July 1958. Six out of the twelve songs became singles, with “Get Rhythm” topping the Country charts and becoming the most successful one. Limited edition red colored vinyl pressing also available.
Cheap Trick – We’re All Alright! 2xLP (Big Machine)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Cheap Trick’s eighteenth studio album We’re All Alright! follows 2016’s acclaimed Bang, Zoom, Crazy…Hello. Features the electrifying lead single, “Long Time Coming,” which Billboard raved is, “a crunchy hard rocker driven by a Kinks-flavored riff…a bit of a one-song tribute to Cheap Trick’s influential forebears.” Cheap Trick is an indisputable American institution, beloved around the globe since 1974 for their instantly identifiable, hugely influential, brand of pop rock ‘n’ roll. The band – Robin Zander (vocals, rhythm guitar), Rick Nielsen (lead guitar), Tom Petersson (bass guitar), and Daxx Nielsen (drums) – are true pioneers with an unparalleled streak of certifiably classic tunes, from “He’s A Whore,” “California Man” and “Dream Police” to “Surrender,” “I Want You To Want Me” and the worldwide No. 1 hit single, “The Flame.” 2016 saw Cheap Trick’s long awaited induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We’re All Alright! is available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds three bonus tracks, among them a kaleidoscopic cover of The Move’s “Blackberry Way.”
Controlled Bleeding – Carving Sounds 2xLP (Artoffact)
Recently released in CD – now available on vinyl. New 20-track remix album featuring: Japanese noise-guru Merzbow, Justin K. Broadrick from industrial-metal act Godflesh (not to mention Jesu), as well as Monolake, Crowhurst, Ramleh, Child Bite, and many others. Green colored vinyl pressing.
A.J. Croce – Just Like Medicine LP (Compass)
Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. The acclaimed singer/songwriter A.J. Croce and his producer, soul music legend Dan Penn, explore the healing power of music with Just Like Medicine. An all-star cast including Steve Cropper, David Hood, Vince Gill, Colin Linden and the McCrary Sisters come together on Croce’s ninth studio album.
Dayseeker – Dreaming Is Sinking /// Waking Is Rising LP (Spinefarm)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Dayseeker’s conceptual third full-length album maintains an inimitable and infectious intensity while representing a marked evolution for the Orange County group. Since 2012, the group has quietly sent shockwaves throughout the scene. The DNA of this story is an amalgam of the coma suffered by a friend of Rory Rodriguez’s ex-girlfriend, Alex Garland’s book The Coma, and Boys Night Out’s 2005 concept record Trainwreck – a personal favorite of the frontman.
Debt Neglector – Atomicland LP (Smart Punk)
A blast of catchy, grungy, aggressive tunes dealing with anxiety, depression, paranoia, abuse, and other warm and fuzzy subjects. For fans of Descendents, Bad Religion, Dead to Me, New Mexican Disaster Squad.
DJ Shadow – The Mountain Has Fallen 12”+MP3 (Mass Appeal)
New 4-track EP featuring collaborationsTNas, and Detroit MC Danny Brown.
Jerry Garcia – Garcia [Reissue/1972] LP (ATO)
Limited blue colored vinyl LP pressing. Originally released in 1972, Garcia is Jerry Garcia’s first solo album and was recorded over a three-week period almost entirely by Jerry with assistance from Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann and lyricist Robert Hunter.
The Goastt – Long Gone 10” (Chimera Music)
Limited 10″ vinyl from The Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger — five songs recorded circa the Midnight Sun sessions, including a cover of Syd Barrett’s “Long Gone” played by the full Goastt touring band with Robbie Mangano, Jared Samuel and Tim Kuhl. The band sold this on their tour with Beck last summer, and they have a small quantity of leftovers available to sell.
Goldfinger – The Knife LP+MP3 (Rise)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. The Knife includes 13 catchy, energetic tracks that showcase the evolution of the punk/ska band. Goldfinger’s first new album since 2008’s Hello Destiny… features several notable guest appearances, including Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker, Twenty One Pilots’ Josh Dun, Mighty Mighty Boss Tones’ Nate Albert and ONE OK ROCK’s Takahiro Moriuchi among many others. Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.
Haim – Something To Tell You 2xLP (Columbia)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. When the time came to record their sophomore album, Haim decided to “go in and record as a band, keeping it a little more organic. That was kind of a mission statement for the album” offered Danielle Haim. The group first announced the release of Something To Tell You with an in-studio video version of album track “Right Now,” which was shot and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia, Boogie Nights). Haim then released the single “Want You Back,” which Rolling Stone described as having “a Hot 100 ready sheen.” Pitchfork gave “Want You Back” its coveted Best New Track saying “Haim are pulling the rug out from under our feet in the run-up to releasing their second album.” Entertainment Weekly declared “Want You Back” sees HAIM returning to their sonic roots as a funky, pop-inspired trio, complete with groovy strings, sprightly percussion, a soulful chorus, and a spritz of electronic sheen.”
Calvin Harris – Funk Wave Bounces Vol. 1 LP (Sony)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Calvin Harris’ new album features the previously released singles “Slide” featuring Frank Ocean & Migos, plus “Heatstroke” featuring Young Thug, Pharrell Williams & Ariana Grande. The album boasts 19 guest artist collaborations including Frank Ocean, Travis Scott, Kehlani, Future, Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, Big Sean, John Legend, Khalid, Migos, Schoolboy Q, Ariana Grande, Young Thug, D.R.A.M., Nicki Minaj, Lil Yachty, Jessie Reyez, Partynextdoor plus Snoop Dogg.
Ida – Will You Find Me [Reissue/2000] 2xLP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
Deluxe double-LP in expanded packaging, including a gatefold jacket and lyric insert. “Will You Find Me is sad, pretty, hope-filled, exquisitely crafted, and utterly haunting” (Will Hermes, Entertainment Weekly). “[The songs on Will You Find Me are] like the whispers of uncertain lovers in a perpetual dance of vulnerability and assurance, parting and reconciliation” (The New York Times).
Immortal – Blizzard Beasts [Reissue/1997] LP (Osmose Productions)
Immortal – Damned In Black [Reissue/2000] LP (Osmose Productions)
Two vinyl reissues from one of the most important black metal bands in the world. Must haves for fans of brutal Norwegian black metal.
Jack Off Jill – Sexless Demons [1998] LP (Cargo)
First-time on vinyl for the Florida based outfit’s debut album (originally on Risk Records). The LP features the bonus track “Angels F##k.” Although Jack Off Jill may never have topped the charts or headlined Madison Square Garden, their contribution to gothic-alt rock as well as the grrl band revolution isn’t any less important.
Jay-U Experience – Enough Is Enough [Reissue/1977] LP (Soundway)
Originally released by EMI Nigeria in 1977, this now-rare album was written by Jay-U and engineered by disco-boogie artist Goddy Oku. Opening with the up-tempo reggae number “Reggae Deluxe”, the album descends into mind-blowing jazz-funk featuring several killer saxophone solos. The journey ends with a trip into psych-prog rock, with a sound not dissimilar to that coming out of the early ’70s British rock scene.
Juicy Lucy – Juicy Lucy [Reissue/1969] LP (Music On Vinyl)
A curiously heavy form of blues-rock, often played at break-neck speed. 180gm vinyl reissue.
Mike Krol – Mike Krol Is Never Dead: The First Two Records 2xLP+MP3 (Merge)
On Mike Krol Is Never Dead: The First Two Records, we catch up—with the past, that is. Indeed, Turkey, released in 2015, is Chapter 3 of the Krol saga; here, finally, are its long-lost predecessors. Self-released in 2011, vinyl 10” I Hate Jazz was the opening salvo of World War Krol. Only 500 copies were pressed; they were given away to anyone who showed interest (and many who showed none whatsoever). Including Krol classics like “Fifteen Minutes” and “Like A Star,” the record has long been unavailable. His second vinyl 10” Trust Fund followed in 2013; its 500 copies sold out on the ensuing tour, fueling a mini-mania that would elevate it to cult status. This set includes both records on freshly pressed Merge vinyl; an illuminating selection of digital outtakes, demos, and B-sides; and a fold-out poster showcasing a selection of Mike Krol ephemera.
k.d. lang – Ingénue (25th Anniversary Edition) [Reissue/1992] 2xLP (Nonesuch)
Expanded 25th Anniversary edition released to celebrate the double platinum-selling, Grammy Award-winning album’s silver anniversary. This double-disc set includes remastered versions of the album’s original ten tracks, including its huge hit “Constant Craving,” along with eight previously unreleased performances from Lang’s 1993 MTV Unplugged episode.
Lil Yachty – Teenage Emotions LP (Quality Control Music, LLC)
Released late last May on CD – now available on vinyl. Teenage Emotions merges Lil Yachty’s signature gleeful sing-rap and auto-tuned transmissions with hip-hop bombast, pop and ‘80s cultural touchstones. The 19-year-old Atlanta native is proudly genre-defying, mining hip-hop, alternative, indie sounds as well as his hometown Atlanta trap DNA to solidify his mosaic approach. The album features collaborations with Migos, YG, Kamaiyah, Diplo, Grace, Evander Griim and Stefflon Don, with production by WondaGurl, Earl The Pearl, Burberry Perry, Digital Nas, K Swisha, Southside, 30 Roc and others. Limited pink vinyl pressing.
Arjan Miranda – Spiritual Americana LP (The Wild Unknown)
Debut album from Arjan Miranda (Black Mountain, Family Band, Children, S.T.R.E.E.T.S.). Expertly riding the sonic precipice between classic rock, metal interludes and kosmische music, Spiritual America delivers us to that uniquely American underworld where spirituality intersects with rock & roll.
Morbid Angel –The Blessed Are Sick [Reissue/1991] LP (Earache)
Vinyl reissue of the second album from Florida’s death metal titans.
Mr. Big – Defying Gravity LP (Frontiers)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Produced by Kevin Elson, who’s worked with Mr. Big on their classic albums from the Eighties and Nineties, Defying Gravity features inspired songwriting, virtuosic musicianship and most importantly, tasty fretwork.” – Guitar World
Randy Newman – Dark Matter LP (Nonesuch)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Dark Matter, Randy Newman’s first album of new material in nine years, is the follow-up to 2008’s acclaimed Harps And Angels, which the Guardian called “the work of a true master of popular song.” Produced by long-time Newman collaborators Mitchell Froom, Lenny Waronker, and David Boucher, Dark Matter includes songs about Vladimir Putin, the Kennedy brothers, Sonny Boy Williamson, science vs. religion, love and loss, and more.
Noir – We Had To Let You Have It [Reissue/1971] LP (Music On Vinyl)
We Had To Let You Have It is the only recorded output from Britain’s first all-black rock band Noir, a band which broke up before the album was released. A melt of soul, R&B, rock, blues rock formula, with minor incursions into jazz and hints of proto-prog. 180gm vinyl reissue.
Nosound – A Sense Of Loss [2009] 2xLP+CD (Kscope)
Riding off the success of his 2016 opus Scintilla, Nosound songwriter Giancarlo Erra releases A Sense Of Loss for the first time on vinyl. The album, originally released as a CD/DVD in 2009, was Nosound’s follow up to 2008’s Lightdark and built on its predecessor by introducing a more alternative post-rock element to Erra’s ever evolving sound. Giancarlo describes the album as a “move from the classic ‘rock’ (or rock ambient) approach used in Lightdark to a more unique sound, with influences from more contemporary alt and post rock.”
Porcupine Tree – Voyage 34 [Reissue/2000] 2xLP (Kscope)
Voyage 34 is an instrumental composition from ‘92/’93, split into four phases and lasting for over an hour. Combining trance rhythms alongside more typical Porcupine Tree textures and guitar solos, Voyage 34 was a big hit in the ambient/chill out club scene of the early ‘90s (when it was originally issued as two separate 12” singles).
Rainer Maria – Rainer Maria LP+MP3/Cassette (Polyvinyl)
Rainer Maria have returned in full force with a brand new self-titled full-length written and recorded by all three founding members. Frequently hailed as a pioneering band in the Midwestern DIY scene, Rainer Maria got back together in 2015 after a decade-long hiatus and has been playing shows ever since. Inevitably, the next step in the reunion was to produce new music.
Rock Town Express – Funky Makossa [Reissue/1974] LP (Comb & Razor Sound)
Classic Nigerian funk-rock with bright, confident pop melodies and articulate lyrics.
Ryuichi Sakamoto – Thousand Knives Of Ryuichi Sakamoto 7” (Better Days/Rush Hour)
Two killer slices of ‘80s Japanese electronic music, both from Sakamoto’s 1979 album A Thousand Knives Of.
Peter Schickele – Silent Running [Reissue/1972] LP (Varese Sarabande)
The 1972 classic Silent Running is lauded as one of the most influential science fiction films of all time. The soundtrack features a memorable score by Peter Schickele and songs by Joan Baez. Green vinyl pressing.
Simple Plan – No Pads, No Helmets…Just Balls [2002] LP (Atlantic)
First-time vinyl pressing of the 2002 album from the punk-pop combo. 12 irresistible anti-anthems of adolescent alienation, each one fit to burst with unstoppable hooks, melodic punk vocalizing, and shout-it-out-loud choruses.
The Stills-Young Band – Long May You Run [Reissue/1976] LP (Reprise)
Limited 140gm vinyl reissue. Long May You Run follows mostly in a similar vein to the duo’s other joint work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, traversing various facets of Americana and folk music.
The Style Council – Our Favourite Shop [Reissue/1985] LP (Polydor)
180gm vinyl reissue of the second studio album from The Style Council. The album was a commercial and critical success, and also featured guest vocals by Lenny Henry, Tracie Young, and Alison Limerick.
Tengger Cavalry – Die On My Ride LP (M-Theory Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Global music award-winning nomadic folk metal group Tengger Cavalry return with Die On My Ride which delivers the potent, inimitable metal-meets-Mongolian/Central Asian world music sound that diehard fans have come to know and love, while incorporating more personal, topical themes of racial discrimination, identity, equal rights and freedom.
Terrorizer – World Downfall [Reissue/1989] LP (Earache)
Originally released in 1989, World Downfall is widely regarded as one of the most influential grindcore albums of all time (members went onto play in other household names in the extreme music scene such as Napalm Death, Morbid Angel and Nausea).
Terrortron – Hexed & Necrophiliac Among The Living Dead [2015/2016] 2xLP (Pure Destructive Rec)
Terrortron is the horror soundtrack inspired project of gothic rock/darkwave veteran Anders Manga, who is also known as the creative force behind the fuzzed out dark occult rock band Bloody Hammers. Limited black and red colored vinyl pressing.
Vérité – Somewhere In Between LP (Vérité)
“The immersive, electro-pop soundscapes that accompany her crystalline vocals combine to create a powerful sound that pivots in unexpected and daring ways.” – Albumism
Neil Young – American Stars ‘N Bars [Reissue/1977] LP (Reprise)
Neil Young – Comes A Time [Reissue/1978] LP (Reprise)
Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Live Rust [Reissue/1978] 2xLP (Reprise)
Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Rust Never Sleeps [Reissue/1979] LP (Reprise)
Limited 140gm vinyl reissues.
Cassettes:
Natterers – Toxic Care (Emotional Response)
Raging female fronted hardcore punk from Yorkshire.
Rainer Maria – Rainer Maria (Polyvinyl)
Rainer Maria have returned in full force with a brand new self-titled full-length written and recorded by all three founding members.
Leave a Reply