CDs:
311 – Stereolithic CD/2xLP (311 Music)
Eleventh album from the alt-rock quintet.
Addictive – Kick M Hard (Rebooted Edition) 2xCD (Divebomb)
Digitally remastered double-CD containing both albums from the Australian thrash metal band: Pity Of Man (1989) and Kick ‘Em Hard (1993). Combining all the best elements of early Metallica, Kreator, and Megadeth, Addictive were a band surely on the rise, but the shifting tides of the music industry unfortunately left them drifting aimlessly by the mid-’90s.
Ambrose Akinmusire – The Imagined Savior Is Far Easier To Paint CD (Blue Note)
Trumpeter and composer Ambrose Akinmusire returns an impressive and expansive new album that broadens the palette of his firebrand quintet with the addition of guitarist Charles Altura, the OSSO String Quartet, and vocalists Becca Stevens, Theo Bleckmann, and Cold Specks.
Architects (UK) – Lost Forever // Lost Together CD/LP (Epitaph)
The sixth album from Brighton, England-based metalcore outfit is a blend of brutal, thundering metal and melody-spiked hardcore with heavy riffs and intricate arrangements inspired by artists as unlikely as Sigur Ros.
Axemen – Derry Legend CD/LP+MP3 (Luxury Productions)
Digitally remastered edition of this rare album from the New Zealand indie band. Derry Legend was one of Kurt Cobain’s top NZ platters and a staple of his mixtapes. “An album simmering with background chaos worthy of prime-era Buttholes or Royal Trux. The real surprise is how Derry Legend clears room for pop chops, making it possible to see the Axemen’s relation to bands like the Clean and The Gordons.” — Byron Coley/Forced Exposure Magazine
Battleme – Future Runs Magnetic CD/LP (El Camino Media, LLC)
There aren’t a lot of frills or gimmicks surrounding Battleme’s second album Future Runs Magnetic because, simply put, the music speaks for itself. Bombastic, driving and powerful, the album is a timeless collection of rock anthems.
Bayeté (Todd Cochran) – Worlds Around The Sun [Reissue/1972] CD (Omnivore)
The music world of the early-1970s was a time of experimentation and activism. When listeners heard Santana play “Free Angela” on their classic 1973 release Lotus, few, if any knew the song was originally released by its writer, Todd Cochran, a year before. Worlds Around The Sun was recorded and issued on Prestige Records in 1972 by Todd Cochran (as Bayeté). Not only did the young protégé write all of the album’s material, he also produced and played keyboards on it, along with other jazz greats including a young Bobby Hutcherson on vibes. The combination of jazz and groove, anchored by Cochran’s pumping Rhodes and clavinet have made Worlds Around The Sun a sought-after collector’s album.
Big Eyes – Almost Famous CD (Grave Mistake)
Sophomore full length finds Big Eyes stepping up their game with a more definitive sound and unified vision. Drawing a hard rock influence while maintaining their well-loved pop sensibility and punk edge, they are inspired by bands like Kiss and Blue Oyster Cult, as well as The Nerves and The Undertones. The trio tastefully embraces the more glamorous aspects of rock & roll without compromising the attitude and grit.
Aloe Blacc – Lift Your Spirit CD/LP (Interscope)
Brand new album from the soul singer/songwriter features the hits “The Man” and an acoustic version of “Wake Me Up.”
Black Hat – Thought Of Two CD/LP (Hausu Mountain)
Composed within an intricate system of digital processes and synth hardware, Black Hat’s debut LP is the culmination of the project’s tonal explorations and structural decisions. Sophisticated rhythmic grids and detailed lead voices, congealing and conflicting in unpredictable fashion, propelling each track through diverse atmospheres and textures.
Chicago – Live In Japan [Reissue/1972] 2xCD (Rhino)
Chicago Live In Japan is a double-CD reissue of their live shows recorded in Japan in June of 1972. The album features live versions of their hits and key album tracks from their early Chicago Transit Authority-era through to Chicago V, including “Make Me Smile,” “Saturday In The Park,” “Dialogue,” “Beginnings” and more.
Coke Bust – Confined Anthology CD (Grave Mistake)
28-song CD collecting the past two years of the band’s output onto one release. A much needed document of one of Washington DC’s best and most active hardcore bands.
Nat King Cole – En Español CD (Jackpot)
Inspired by a Latin American tour, Nat King Cole recorded three collections of songs in Spanish between 1958 and 1962, starting with Cole Español, which reached the Top 10 in the American LP charts. All the songs from that album are included here along with the best tracks from his subsequent Spanish-language records. The singer didn’t speak Spanish at all and learned the lyrics phonetically. Nevertheless he offered vivid and personal interpretations of classic Latin numbers.
Colin Edwin/Lorenzo Feliciati – Twinscapes CD/LP (Rarenoise)
New collaboration between two acclaimed bassists: Italian Lorenzo Feliciati (of the adventurous jazz rock band Naked Truth and the intensely searching nu jazz group Berserk!) and Australian Colin Edwin (of the longstanding prog rock band Porcupine Tree and the heavy-duty, experimental Metallic Taste Of Blood as well as Ex-Wise Heads and Burnt Belief).
Cowboy Troy – King Of Clubs CD (WB)
New album from the country music rapper.
Dirty Guv’Nahs – Hearts On Fire CD (Summertown)
New release from the roots rockers from Knoxville, TN.
Elbow – The Takeoff And Landing Of Everything CD/LP (Concord)
Free lithograph with purchase – while supplies last! “Elbow do cloud-scraping bombast as well as any of their peers – with the bonus that frontman Guy Garvey is the sort of every-bloke you can imagine sipping bitter with. Along with the uplift, however, the Mancunians have a tendency to brood which has arguably served as a drag on their progress … Make no mistake, this is a bleak record, a paean to middle years ennui, the slow realization that, actually, there are no more second chances. You’ve made your bed and here you will stay.” – Hot Press
Sara Evans – Slow Me Down CD (Sony Nashville)
New album from the contemporary country singer.
The Everly Brothers – Songs Our Daddy Taught Us [Reissue/1958] CD (Varèse Sarabande)
Digitally remastered and expanded edition of this 1958 album, the second from the legendary country/pop/rock & roll duo. Songs Our Daddy Taught Us is a selection of songs that the brothers learned as boys from their father, Ike Everly.
Falls – Into The Fire CD (Verve)
Australian duo Falls is Melinda Kirwin and Simon Rudston-Brown, who once found themselves in a relationship, but split-up before ever thinking about writing music together. The end of their romantic relationship marked the beginning of their musical careers, when they quickly began writing folk tunes and touring with the likes of The Lumineers, Of Monsters And Men, and Passenger. With influences like Crosby, Stills & Nash, their sound is reminiscent of The Civil Wars, Lord Huron, and Fleetwood Mac.
Jackson C. Frank – Fixin’ To Die CD (Secret)
16 rare tracks of early recordings. Having flourished on the mid-1960s folk scene in London, Jackson C. Frank became a well-known face, establishing himself as a song-writer of beautiful songs and befriending a myriad of up and coming British and American songwriters and singers, only to succumb to stage fright and eventual depression during his upward trajectory. His dark, melancholic acoustic songs spoke of a deeper pain that had haunted him and would continue to for many years to come.
Free Nelson Mandoomjazz – Shape Of Doomjazz To Come & Saxophone Giganticus CD/LP (Rarenoise)
With a crunching sound that is as teeth-chatteringly heavy as metal icons like Slayer and Megadeth, or ferocious grindcore groups like Napalm Death and Brutal Truth, yet is imbued with the freedom principle of such avant-garde jazz icons as saxophonists Marshall Allen, Albert Ayler and Peter Brötzmann, this formidable instrumental power trio from Scotland drops a provocative new double-EP.
Grinder – Dead End [Reissue/1989] CD (Divebomb)
German band Grinder released three albums worth of in-your-face thrash/speed metal during their brief existence. This reissue of their sophomore album includes nine bonus tracks.
Peter Hammel & Gary Lucas – Other World CD/LP (Cherry Red)
Stunning new collaborative album from Van Der Graff Generator member Peter Hammel and Gary Lucas (frequent Jeff Buckley collaborator).
Havenside – Living Our Darkest Days CD/LP (Innerstrength)
New release from the Sacramento, CA hardcore band.
Inferno – Pioneering Work: 56 Song Discography 2xCD (Beer City)
Digitally remastered double-disc anthology by the seminal early ’80s German hardcore band. The 56 songs spread over two discs include all the band’s full lengths; split releases (including a split in 1985 with Japan’s Execute) and most compilation tracks (including the 1984 compilation Welcome To 1984 released on Maximum Rock ‘n’ Roll and the infamous 1985 release of Cleanse The Bacteria.
Lena Horne – Lena On The Blue Side [Reissue/1962] CD (Sepia Recordings)
Apart from a long-deleted Japanese reissue from 1991, this 1962 album by Lena Horne makes its CD debut in the Western world with eight bonus tracks. The bonus tracks are from Horne’s single releases, all making their CD debut, including four songs from her Broadway musical success Jamaica that were recorded with Neal Hefti for the pop world and not included in the subsequent Broadway cast album.
Christine Jensen – Habitat CD (Justin Time)
Jensen’s previous album, Treelines, won the 2010 Juno Award and the Opus Award for Jazz Album Of The Year, as well as topping several national and international best of lists. “Always a compelling writer, capable of strong lyricism combined with harmonic invention and plenty of narrative twists and turns, Jensen’s music not only impresses on a first encounter, but reveals more with each and every listen.” — All About Jazz
Hari Kondabolu – Waiting For 2042 CD (Kill Rock Stars)
Hari Kondabolu is a Brooklyn-based comic who was discovered in Seattle by the HBO Comedy Festival in 2006 while working as an immigrant rights organizer. He was recently a writer and correspondent for the Chris Rock-produced Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell on the FX network. He has also performed on Conan, Jimmy Kimmel Live, John Oliver’s New York Standup Show and has his own half-hour Comedy Central Presents special.
Sonja Kristina – Sonja Kristina [Reissue/1980] CD (Angel Air)
Sonja Kristina fronted Curved Air from its inception in 1970 until its split in 1976. She then embraced the vibrant music of the late ‘70s and formed her own band Sonja Kristina’s Escape (whilst her husband Stewart Copeland formed The Police). The album Sonja Kristina was released in 1980 and whilst it is credited to Sonja it is really the band Sonja Kristina Escape who established themselves as one of the strongest bands on the club circuit in the late ‘70s.
KXM – KXM CD (Rat Pak)
KXM is a supergroup featuring guitar legend George Lynch, longtime Korn drummer Ray Luzier and Kings X bassist/singer Dug Pinnick.
Laibach – Spectre CD/LP (Mute)
New release from the Slovenian noisemakers. Spectre is Laibach’s first studio album since 2006’s Volk, and the follow up to the original soundtrack for Iron Sky.
Ledisi – The Truth CD (Verve)
Ledisi’s new album is filled not only with her trademark soaring ballads but also a generous collection of up-tempo, beat-driven celebrations of love and lust. Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds three bonus tracks.
Metronomy – Love Letters CD/LP (New Elektra)
The brainchild of Devon-based singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Joseph Mount, Metronomy first scored widespread attention for their eclectic electronica and inventive remixes of artists including Gorillaz, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Lykke Li, and Franz Ferdinand.
MØ – No Mythologies To Follow CD (RCA)
Debut album from the 24-year-old Danish singer/songwriter is a unique blend of bedroom beats, soul/punk/electro/R&B and pop harmonies. Vinyl version due March 18.
Thelonious Monk – Unissued Live At Newport 1958-59 CD (In Crowd)
Contains Monk’s splendid and also unissued quartet concert at the same festival the following year. As a bonus, the only two existing tracks featuring Monk with the Duke Ellington band recorded at Newport ’62 also appear here for the first time on CD.
Derrick Morgan – Shake A Leg CD/LP (Secret)
Compilation of early reggae and ska tracks by Derrick Morgan, featuring “The Hop,” “Fat Man,” “Shake A Leg” and “Forward March” (a song about Jamaican Independence). Compiled from the famous Blue Beat Records.
Motorjesus – Electric Revelation CD (Artoffact Records)
Twelve tracks of explosive heavy metal, howling stoner-rock, and riff-crunching mania. Vinyl version due March 18.
Nedavine – At Rest CD (Ay)
Drawing on a wide range of influences as diverse as Steve Reich to Public Enemy, Nedavine began getting involved with various online music projects and appearing on CD’s alongside big name artists such as Venetian Snares. His music comes with a distinctly hip-hop feel and yet runs extremely heavy on the electronic side of things. Melodies abound around the sound of old broken keyboards and rattled drum machines.
Night Birds – Other Side Of Darkness CD/LP (Grave Mistake)
Night Birds – Born To Die In Suburbia CD/LP (Grave Mistake)
Night Birds – Fresh Kills Vol. 1 CD/LP (Grave Mistake)
A non-stop, demented thrill ride of high-octane surf-inspired punk, delivered with urgent and unmistakable precision.
Ozomatli – Place In The Sun CD/LP (Vanguard)
L.A.’s Latin alternative stalwarts make their Vanguard debut with this sun-soaked mélange of rock, cumbia, hip-hop, funk, dub, and all-around goodness.
David Pack – David Pack’s Napa Crossroads CD (Concord Jazz)
Napa Crossroads is a first-of-its-kind collaboration between five prestigious wineries — Silver Oak, Far Niente, Pride Mountain, Gargiulo Vinyards, and Casa Piena — and David Pack, legendary producer, vocalist, and hit-maker (former singer-songwriter Ambrosia,) who conceived and produced the project. Guest stars include The Doors’ Ray Manzarek, Bela Fleck, Alan Parsons, Todd Rundgren, David Benoit, Billy Dean, Larry Carlton, Doyle Dykes, Mindi Abair, Robert Schwartzman, Cage The Elephant’s Lincoln Parish, Rick Braun and others.
Peak Twins – Peak Twins CD/LP (Bedroom Suck)
Peak Twins are Joel Carey and Liam Kenny. A cover of the Fred Neil Torch song “The Dolphins” accompanies eight original numbers, including the previously released 7” single, “Steppin’ Off.” The Peak Twins LP does not have two lead singers — it is fronted by a lone, powerful voice, supported by choir-strength backing, swimming in a sea of angelic guitars and flatfoot drumming.
Portal – For All That’s Damned To Vanish CD (Vic)
The long-awaited second album from the melodic death metal band — their first in 13 years.
Prince Fatty & Mungo’s Hi Fi – Prince Fatty CD/LP (Mr. Bongo)
Prince Fatty faces off against the mighty Mungo’s Hi Fi Soundsystem. Mungo’s Hi Fi champion the evolution reggae, dub and dancehall music and are re-invigorating soundsystem culture.
Psyclon Nine – Disorder: The Shadow Sessions CD (Metropolis)
Companion remix album to Order Of The Shadow: Act 1 contains 11 remixes featuring mixes by Alien Vampires, Dismantled, Life Cried, and others.
Rough Francis – Maximum Soul Power CD/LP (Riot House)
Fueled by ‘70s proto-punk, Motown, the British Invasion and ’80s hardcore, Rough Francis continue to prove an overwhelmingly powerful force onstage. They have shared stages with Mos Def, Agent Orange, Death, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Fishbone, The Dictators and many others.
Robin Saville – Public Flowers CD (Second Language)
Robin Saville has been plying his electronic wares as one half of electronic luminaries Isan for over fifteen years. Earning a reputation for bringing an emotional dimension to music with a reputation for the cerebral, Isan have claimed to be in the business of making easy listening out of difficult sounds.
Christian Scalas – Winter CD (Ay)
Winter is Scalas’s first album and features ten tracks influenced by Massive Attack, Hans Zimmer, Brian Eno, Deep Forest, Vangelis, Bjork and many more.
School Jerks – School Jerks CD/LP (Grave Mistake)
Rawer than raw punk, harder than hardcore, this is primal hardcore punk stripped to the core leaving very little room for misinterpretation.
Gil Scott-Heron – Pieces Of A Man [Reissue/1972] CD/LP (Beat Goes Public)
New reissue of Gil Scott-Heron’s 1972 album taken from the original master tapes and featuring three songs (two previously unreleased) by Gil’s college group Black And Blues. The booklet features an in-depth song analysis. The album features many of Gil’s most important early songs including “Home Is Where The Hatred Is,” “Lady Day & John Coltrane” and “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.”
Sid Selvidge – The Cold Of Morning [Reissue/1976] CD/LP (Omnivore)
Sid Selvidge’s The Cold Of The Morning is a mid-’70s Memphis classic. Recorded in 1975, Selvidge and producer Jim Dickinson (Big Star, Ry Cooder, The Replacements) created a 12-track song cycle, captured live in the studio with Selvidge on vocals and guitar, plus Dickinson on piano with Memphis’ iconic Mudboy and the Neutrons on two tracks.
Klaus Shulze – La Vie Electronique Vol. 14 3xCD (Made In Germany Music)
Collects recordings from the years 1993 to 1999.
The Shrine – Bless Off CD/LP (Tee Pee)
Undoubtedly one of America’s hottest underground bands, The Shrine play loud, heavy rock & roll fueled by cheap beer and bad acid that combines the hook-laden appeal of ‘70s garage rock and gritty ‘80s hardcore with a skate punk energy and attitude resulting in a sound the trio describes as “psychedelic violence.”
Matt Sorum’s Fierce Joy – Stratosphere CD (+180)
New solo release from the former Guns ‘n’ Roses, Velvet Revolver, and Cult drummer.
Spotlight Kid – Ten Thousand Hours CD (Saint Marie)
Spotlight Kid is an English five-piece who make reverb-soaked noise-pop of the finest order, with layered harmonies and swirling distorted guitars that at one time may have sat happily grinning among the Creation Records roster of the ‘90s.
Sudden Death Of Stars – All Unrevealed Parts Of The Unknown CD/LP (Ample Play)
Sudden Death of Stars hail from the medieval city of Rennes, France, which may explain why they sound like monks playing modern day Velvet Underground, Os Mutantes and Pentangle.
Sultan – Check & Mate [Reissue/1990] CD (Divebomb)
Digitally remastered deluxe edition of the Swiss power metal band’s 1990 debut album.
Tensnake – Glow CD (Astralwerks)
Glow represents a new milestone in a career that has traveled the world’s greatest dance floors and earned Tensnake his reputation as one of house and disco’s leading producers. This debut album features an impressive range of collaborations including the almighty Nile Rodgers, three time Grammy-winning Stuart Price (AKA Jacques Lu Cont), Jamie Lidell, MNEK, Fiora, and more.
Various Artists – Divergent: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD (Interscope)
Tracks from: Zedd, Ellie Goulding, Pia Mia, Snow Patrol, Woodkid, Tame Impala, M83, A$AP Rocky, Skrillex, and Big Deal. Vinyl version due March 25.
Various Artists – Inner City Beat 2xCD/2xLP+MP3 (Soul Jazz)
Killer selection of funky, deep, rare, exciting and dancefloor heavyweight “spy themes,” “detective music” and thrillers from the 1960s and 1970s. The music spans heavyweight break-beat funk, deep and heavy jazz, super-catchy mod themes, imaginary super-charged orchestral soundtracks and more.
Various Artists – Veronica Mars: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD (WaterTower Music)
Tracks from: Alejandro Escovedo, Emperor X, Mr. Twin Sister, ZZ Ward (ft. Freddie Gibbs), Sufjan Stevens, Max, Mackintosh Braun, Typhoon, Lou Rawls, Gregory Alan Isakov, and The Dandy Warhols.
Dean Wareham – Dean Wareham CD (Double Feature)
Debut solo album from the former Galaxie 500/Luna frontman (following last year’s mini-album Emancipated Hearts). Nine new songs produced by Jim James (My Morning Jacket). Personnel include bassist Britta Philips and drummer Anthony LaMarca with Jim James on keyboards, guitars and backing vocals. Vinyl version due March 18.
Don Williams – Reflections CD/LP (Sugar Hill)
Country music’s ‘Gentle Giant’ re-teams with award-winning producer Garth Fundis for Reflections, the follow up to 2012’s well-received comeback album And So It Goes.
Various Artists – Lou Adler: A Musical History CD (Ace Records UK)
The latest in Ace’s Producers series contains 25 key tracks from the career of record producer, songwriter, publisher, record company owner, film director and all-round music biz mogul Lou Adler, an architect of the California sound and founder of the Dunhill and Ode record labels.
The collection spans the 1950s to the mid-1970s: from R&B stars Sam Cooke and Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson to ‘stoner rock’ comedy duo Cheech & Chong and Sweet Transvestite from the US production of the Rocky Horror Show.
Various Artists – Young Money: The Rise Of An Empire CD (Universal Republic)
Features Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Tyga, Gudda Gudda, Shanell, Lil Twist, Christina Milian, and new Young Money signee Euro. Available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds three bonus tracks. “Lil Wayne’s Young Money label celebrated the potential of its budding roster back in 2009 with an excellent compilation called We Are Young Money; the project showcased Nicki Minaj and Drake before they’d reached stratospheric levels of celebrity. Five years later, they follow the record up with a new compilation.” — Pitchfork
DVD + Blu-ray:
Eric Clapton – The Story Of… DVD (Laser Media)
Contains accounts of rarely seen/heard stories, interviews and live performances from Clapton’s early days. 60 minutes.
Eric Clapton – The 1970s Review DVD (Sexy Intellectual)
This documentary follows Clapton’s journey through the ‘70s, from his immersion in musical collectives such as Delaney & Bonnie & Friends and Derek And The Dominoes, through his re-emergence in 1974 as a phenomenally successful solo artist and onwards across a series of critically acclaimed albums and tours in the latter half of the decade which cemented EC’s reputation as not just a extraordinary musician but as a composer of majestic material and a performer of quite startling intensity. Featuring new and archive interviews, rare performance footage, contributions from the likes of Bonnie Bramlett, Bobby Whitlock, The Albert Brothers, George Terry, Willie Perkins, Bill Halverson, Clapton biographer Marc Roberty and others, plus a host of other features. 151 minutes.
Inside Llewyn Davis – DVD/Blu-ray (Sony Pictures)
An aspiring singer-songwriter navigates the 1960s folk-music scene in New York City’s Greenwich Village. Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Starring Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund and Justin Timberlake.
Steve Martin Featuring Steep Canyon Rangers With Edie Brickell – Live DVD+CD/Blu-ray+CD (Rounder)
This live set captures an extraordinary performance at the historic Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside California last fall. The live performance was recorded for PBS Great Performances and features material from Martin and Brickell’s Grammy-nominated album Love Has Come For You, as well as music from Martins Grammy-nominated collaboration with The Steep Canyon Rangers, Rare Bird Alert, and his Grammy Award winning album The Crow: New Songs For the Five-String Banjo.
Thin Lizzy – The Story Of… DVD (Laser Media)
Live performances from the legendary Irish rock group + interview clips with the group members who survived front man Phil Lynott. Also included are comments on the band’s influence by celebrities. A rare musical document. 50 minutes.
Muddy Waters – Blow Wind Blow DVD (Blueline)
Classic live performances from the blues legend, recorded at three separate gigs between 1960 and 1977. Tracks include “Got My Mojo Working,” “Back At the Chicken Shack” and “Blow Wind Blow.” 44 minutes.
The Who – Sensation: The Story Of The Who’s Tommy DVD/Blu-ray (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
This new film explores the background, creation and impact of The Who’s landmark 1969 rock opera through new interviews with Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, archive interviews with the late John Entwistle, and contributions from engineer Bob Pridden, artwork creator Mike McInnerney plus others involved in the creation of the album and journalists who assess the album’s historic and cultural impact. 113 minutes.
Vinyl:
Alsarah And The Nubatones – Silt LP (Wonderwheel Music)
Described as “East African retro pop,” Alsarah And The Nubatones’ music harkens back to the hazy sounds of 1960s and ‘70s Nubian music with it’s haunting instrumentation, soaring vocal melodies, and pentatonic arrangements.
David Bowie – Rebel Rebel 7” (Rhino)
40th anniversary picture disc. Original single mix b/w remixed US version.
Clark – Superscope 12” (Warp)
Hard biting white noise and cutting synths unite over a sputtering female vocal that would work themselves into an Underground Resistance set as easily as contemporary producers like Jacques Greene and the Night Slugs camp.
Dragging An Ox Through Water – Panic Sentry LP (Mississippi/Eggy)
A weird mix of rock solid songwriting with guitar accompaniment and music concrete. Deep and heavy vocals, making for a pretty melancholy record, but never with a dull moment.
Nancy Dupree & The Ghetto Reality Youngsters – Ghetto Reality LP (Mississippi/Moi J’Connais)
In 1969, Nancy Dupree was running an after school music program in Rochester, NY. She helped the kids in the program write songs that related to their own experiences and feelings. The results are really something else; black power anthems, odes to stealing candy, a beautiful tribute to James Brown, and an even more beautiful tribute to Martin Luther King. Not a novelty record with kids being goofy but rather a heartfelt work of art.
Dwarves – The Dwarves Must Die [Reissue/2004] LP (MVD)
Deluxe vinyl reissue of the Dwarves’ 2004 magnum opus. Originally released on Sympathy For The Record Industry and long out of print, this reissue compiles the whole album plus two awesome bonus tracks. Full bore punk rock meets noise and garage rock and all the sleaze you fit on a 12” piece of vinyl.
Simon Finn – Pass The Distance [Reissue/1970] LP (Little Big Chief)
Limited vinyl LP repressing of this rarity from the British singer/songwriter. Recorded in Chalk Farm Studios in London by Vic Keary for his Mushroom imprint (also home to Chillum and Second Hand), Pass The Distance sees landless folkie Simon Finn chase, tumble down and ultimately ravage his beasties and neuroses in a myriad of gripping and frequently terrifying ways. File awkwardly between Leonard Cohen’s Songs From A Room and Kenneth Higney.
Flying Eyes – Lowlands LP (Noise Solution)
Heavy psych rock from Baltimore.
Flyying Colors – Flyying Colors LP (Shelflife)
True to their name, Flyying Colours unashamedly display their influences in this debut: tone bending MBV/Swervedriver guitars, Ride’s bass hooks and the familiar soft hush of early ’90s male/female vocals.
Giobia – Introducing Night Sound LP (Sireena)
Intense Italian neo-psych rock inspired by the late ‘60s and shoegaze.
Government Warning – No Moderation LP (Grave Mistake)
With blistering, no-frills early ‘80s hardcore, Government Warning adds speed and ferocity to the hook-laden So-Cal punk sensibilities of Agent Orange and Adolescents.
Joel Grind – Yellowgoat Sessions LP (Acid Rat)
New album from the founder of Toxic Holocaust. 10 tracks of raw and fuzzed out rock & roll/metal/punk in the vein of the first Bathory album, Motörhead, and fairly reminiscent of the demo days of Toxic Holocaust.
Curtis Harding – Keep On Shining 7” (Burger)
Inspired by Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Bo Diddley and B.B. King, Harding is a guitarist/singer/songwriter whose songs evoke the sound of soul from the ‘60s, with the nitty-gritty of indie music of today.
Jerry’s Kids – Is This My World [Reissue/1983] 2xLP (Taang!)
Vinyl reissue of the debut LP from the thrash masters, originally released in 1983 on Xclaim.
Krampuso & Vocokesh – Split LP (After Music)
Jazzy, improvised noise rock Krampuso is paired with the space rock offerings of Vocokesh (featuring Richard from space rock legends F/I) on this split release.
Jason Lee & The R.I.P. Tides – Jason Lee & The R.I.P. Tides LP (Dionysus)
Hailing from San Diego, Jason Lee & The R.I.P. Tides is a trio who deliver a raw and edgy mix to the culture of instrumental surf music. Using a blend of vintage and modern equipment, they dial in a tone that is huge.
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – More Noise And Other Favorites [Reissue/1992] 2xLP (Taang!)
Vinyl reissue of the 1992 classic in a gatefold edition taken from the original masters.
ONO – Diegesis LP/Cassette (Moniker)
The legendary gospel noise band has never sounded so furiously focused, with warped beats remaining the adhesive, binding the band’s maximalist, gestural noisemaking — guttural bass, swooping guitar feedback, delirious chanting. This LP is the conflation of language and noise, their most aggressive, most militant document yet, digging unflinchingly at the body politic.
Oscar Peterson – During This Time [Reissue/1972] LP (Made In Germany Music)
An outstanding masterpiece of jazz performance from 1972 that brought together some of the most acclaimed musicians of that time. Ben Webster, who made a name for himself as one of the leading tenor saxophone players in Duke Ellington’s orchestra, lends his sensitive side to extraordinary pianist Oscar Peterson.
PINS – Girls Like Us LP (Bella Union)
Released last week on CD — now available on vinyl. “Although the majority of Manchester’s recent breakout bands have been cloaked in a futuristic swathe of electronica, heavy bass and samples, the arrival of PINS on the live scene back in 2011 was a definitive and standout shot in the arm for the city’s live scene. Sneering, immediately identifiable and possessing an incredible, fizzing chemistry within their sound, they immediately became a whispered name – one to find and one to follow.” – Drowned In Sound
Sabina – Toujours LP (Bar/None)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Toujours, the first solo record from Brazilian Girls cofounder Sabina, updates the classic ye-ye music that was exploding in France, Italy and Spain in the early ‘60s. Imagine Nico and Serge Gainsbourg having cocktails.
Scraper – Scaper LP (Cut Rate)
“Muscular, vicious punk. The lo-fi hiss surrounding their sound is sign enough that this is a trashy rock & roll album, they seal the deal w/some laughably over-the-top violence. Vaguely threatening and ready to party.” — Pitchfork
Sectarian Violence – Upward Hostility LP (Grave Mistake)
Debut LP from this intercontinental straightedge hardcore band delivers some of the burliest meat and potatoes hardcore you’ve heard in years.
The Shirks – The Shirks 12” (Grave Mistake)
Trashy, fuzzed-out punk rock & roll.
Sleeper’s Work – No Turn Before The Shoreline LP (Primary Records)
Sleepers Work is William Flynn (St Vincent, Acrylics, Aufgang, and The Prigs), a multi-instrumentalist and producer currently calling Brooklyn home. No Turn Before The Shoreline is the product of years of listening, collecting, questioning, splicing, synthesizing, and brilliantly combining sounds in a meticulous quest to reflect a state of truth and comfort through a highly polished musical looking glass.
Snowmine – Dialects LP (Mystery Buildings)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Snowmine share some insight on the recording process behind their new album Dialects: “To give you some background on the recording, there are no foreign samples on this album. Every single sound and orchestral moment was written, arranged, and recorded by us. The goal of the album was to capture a surreal ambiance that married hyper modern ambient synth tones with vintage ‘60s sounding cinematic orchestral motifs. We recorded a choir, strings, woodwinds, and reamped synths in a church to capture truly real stereo reverbs, so in headphones you can feel physical, not artificially created space.”
Strong Intention/Department Of Correction – Split LP (Give Praise)
Two juggernauts of US and European grind metal bring a big wall of sound of the finest in brutality.
Various Artists [Eric Clapton] – Crossroads Guitar Festival 2013 4xLP (Rhino)
Released late last year on CD – now available on vinyl. Four-LP collection containing highlights from Clapton’s celebrated music festival. Among the highlights were the surprise pairing of John Mayer and Keith Urban for the Beatles’ “Don’t Let Me Down,” Vince Gill and Clapton taking on “Lay Down Sally,” Keb Mo and Taj Mahal covering the Sleepy John Estes’ song, “Diving Duck Blues,” Gill performing “Tumbling Dice” with Urban and Albert Lee and members of the Allman Brothers — Gregg Allman, Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks — joined forces for a haunting acoustic cover of Neil Young’s “The Needle And The Damage Done.”
Various Artists – Modern Myan: The Indian Music of Chiapas, Mexico LP+7” (Mississippi/Moi J’Connais)
In the mid 1970s, Richard Alderson made these amazing recordings in Chiapas, Mexico. A very unique blend of ancient music and modern rhythms. Here we have modern Mayan people singing beautiful folk songs accompanied by guitar, ragged brass bands, and much more. A trip into a very beautiful world.
Wild Throne – Blood Maker 12” (Brutal Panda)
The progressive metal trio formerly known as Dog Shredder emerge with the debut EP under their new moniker. A mind bending amalgamation of progressive rock, metal, jazzy syncopations, and swirling melodies.
Yacht Club – Tropicana b/w Under Power 7” (Burger)
’80s-inspired electronic pop featuring Ben Cook, guitarist of F##ked Up, and the alter ego of the prolific Young Guy. Extremely catchy radio-friendly dance pop hits from Toronto’s finest.
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