April Program Titles Released This Week:
Avey Tare – Cows On Hourglass Pond CD/LP+MP3/LP+10”+MP3 (Domino)
Dave Portner aka Avey Tare of Animal Collective, has returned, following up 2017’s release of Eucalyptus and 2018’s audiovisual album Tangerine Reef, a collaboration between Animal Collective and avant-garde coral macro-videographers Coral Morphologic, with a gorgeous and layered new record. Cows On Hourglass Pond takes inspiration from the future and the past in equal measure, referencing a myriad of cultural touchstones and influences: Buddy Holly, robots, Waylon Jennings, Morricone soundtracks, and much more. “The first single, ‘Saturdays (Again)’, is pretty low-key, with few of the bracing vocal contortions that Portner sometimes peppers his songs with. Sonically, it’s much slicker than the scrappy Eucalyptus, which felt like a return to the scrappy early days of Animal Collective, with its layers of lo-fi acoustic guitar and sound effects like malfunctioning electronic toys. The acoustic is back for ‘Saturdays (Again)’ but it sits within a lush and dubby mix, atop melodic synth bass, accompanied by peals of lead guitar.” — SPIN [Limited deluxe vinyl pressing adds a bonus 10” featuring the non-album tracks “Tipped In Hugs” b/w “Dog Says Goodbye”.]
Bad Suns – Mystic Truth CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
The third full-length from L.A. band Bad Suns, Mystic Truth gets its title from a piece of art that vocalist Christo Bowman stumbled upon while visiting London’s Tate Modern on tour. Created by Bruce Nauman in 1967, the neon-and-glass piece spells out a possibly paradoxical statement in blue spiraled cursive: “The True Artist Helps The World by Revealing Mystic Truths.” “I thought that connected back to the message of the record, which is about finding the extraordinary in very simple things, even though we’re living in a very dark time right now,” says Bowman. Right from opener “Away We Go”, Bad Suns reveal the timeless sensibilities at the heart of Mystic Truth. With its soaring vocals, majestic piano melodies, and fiery guitar tones, the song unfolds as a brightly anthemic battle cry. “‘Away We Go’ was mostly inspired by us growing up and really being adults for the first time, and trying to make sense of all that,” says Bowman, who co-founded Bad Suns at age 17. “It’s about learning how to make decisions for yourself, and sometimes just going for something and blindly trusting that it’s going to work out.” [Limited clear vinyl pressing also available.]
Andrew Bird – My Finest Work Yet CD/LP (Loma Vista)
My Finest Work Yet finds Andrew Bird grappling with themes of current day dichotomies and how to identify a moral compass amidst such divisive times. “I’m interested in the idea that our enemies are what make us whole – there’s an intimacy one shares with their opponent when locked in such a struggle. If we were to just walk away would our enemies miss us? How did we get to this point and how can we, through awareness of it, maybe pull ourselves out of this death spiral,” says Bird. He tackles these topics with a more direct songwriting approach than his previous releases, taking greater risks both lyrically and in recording. Bird and the band taped all the songs live without headphones or separation attempting to create a sound where all instruments bled into each other’s microphones. Of the new music, Bird reflects, “There is a certain optimism to this record…it’s pretty up musically though it doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to the lyrics.”
Luther Dickinson and Sisters Of The Strawberry Moon – Solstice CD/LP (New West)
“The stars aligned and the strawberry moon coincided with the 2016 summer solstice. Our recording session felt like a pot-luck dinner – a group of interesting new friends convened and marveled at what was brought to the table. ‘Oh, a gut-string banjo and a clarinet? Check out this Mississippi bamboo cane fife and funky beats. Is it OK if I sing this harmony? Wow, listen to how our voices blend together…’ The music came together and flowed organically, as did the band name. The Sisters Of The Strawberry Moon passed the mic, family style, backing each other up with sympathy and empathy, enjoying their new found chemistry. With instruments as ingredients and songs as recipes, The Sisters Of The Strawberry Moon stirred up lovely new concoctions as well as fresh interpretations of family heirloom songs we hold dear. We believe music is a celebration of life and folk music an expression of community and family, and Solstice is an artifact of our new friendship and musical fellowship.” – Luther Dickinson
Ex Hex – It’s Real CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
On their sophomore album It’s Real, Ex Hex’s commitment to larger-than-life riffs and unforgettable hooks remains intact, but the garage-y, post-punk approach that defined their debut Rips has grown in scale and ambition. What started as a reaction to the blown-out aesthetic of Rips would test the sonic limits of the power trio and lead the band on a quest for a more immersive and three-dimensional sound. Vocal harmonies are layered ten tracks deep, solos shimmer and modulate atop heaving power chords, and the codas linger and stretch toward new frontiers of sound. On first listen, you might think you’ve unearthed a long-lost LP carved from the space where crunch-minded art rock and glitter-covered hard rock converge, an event horizon at the intersection of towering choruses and swaggering guitars. Ex Hex was already one of America’s best guitar bands – but on It’s Real, their musical savvy has thrillingly combined with anything-goes curiosity, studio experimentation, and a dedication to refinement, resulting in an album that’s ready to be played at maximum volume.
Kevin Garrett – Hoax CD/2xLP (KG Music LLC/AWAL)
Kevin Garrett twists up soulful tradition with singer-songwriter spirit, lush instrumentation, and alternative adventurousness. The Pittsburgh-born Grammy-nominated artist, multi-instrumentalist, and producer is known as a writer on “Pray You Catch Me” from Beyoncé’s Lemonade. He also has played shows alongside Alessa Cara, Mumford & Sons, and James Vincent McMorrow. His debut album, Hoax, echoes the kind of grit meant to be smoothed out only on vinyl and emanates the ambition of a 21st century festival draw. The album’s second single “Faith You Might” “is at once forlorn and hopeful, telling the story of someone who refuses to give up on love, even when the odds are stacked against them. This acoustic track plucks along quietly at first, cradling Garrett’s luscious croon as he sets the scene. Then the chorus sets in, folding in strings that seem to sing along with the artist, optimistic in tone that his fight is worth the work. ‘Lost my way, once or twice but I won’t sway in a fight/Do I pray? No, but I have faith you might,’ Garrett sings.” – Earmilk
Ibibio Sound Machine – Doko Mien CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
“Music is a universal language but spoken language can help you think about what makes you emotional, what makes you feel certain feelings, what you want to see in the world,” says Eno Williams, frontwoman of Ibibio Sound Machine. When Williams uses both English and Ibibio – the Nigerian language from which her band’s name is derived – on Doko Mien, the group somehow produces a world of both entrancing specificity and comforting universality, a language entirely of their own. By pulsing the mystic shapes of Williams’ lines through further inventive, glittering collages of genre on Doko Mien, Ibibio Sound Machine crack apart the horizon separating cultures, between nature and technology, between joy and pain, between tradition and future.
La Dispute – Panorama CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
Hardcore luminaries La Dispute return with their fourth album. Panorama was produced by the band in tandem with Will Yip, and combines jazz, rock, slowcore, noise, hardcore among other influences over the span of 10 tracks. It’s a highly ambitious and deeply affecting body of work that filters narrative storytelling through a personal lens, like a set of Joan Didion essays put to music. Where the past two albums had vocalist Jordan Dreyer delving further into fictional subject matter, it’s with Panorama that the band has created the most personal project since their breakthrough Somewhere At The Bottom Of The River Between Vega And Altair, an album whose influence has been palpable within the genre over the course of the past decade.
Lambchop – This (is what I wanted to tell you) CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
As with 2012’s engrossing Mr. M and 2016’s staggering FLOTUS, Kurt Wagner’s openness to unexpected collaborators to give his thoughts and feelings the shape they need was central to the creation of This (is what I wanted to tell you). In the summer of 2017, Wagner re-met Matthew McCaughan, who has spent the last decade drumming for the likes of Bon Iver and Hiss Golden Messenger. McCaughan told Wagner he had been adventuring inside the world of rack-mounted analogue synthesizers and asked if Wagner might send some vocals to which he could compose. They became instant musical pen pals, with Wagner sending him a cappella takes of new song ideas and McCaughan dispatching long-form synthesizer pieces for inspiration. McCaughan eventually headed to Nashville, where, together, they put a band behind the songs, using pedal steel and piano and the harmonica of Nashville legend Charlie McCoy to color in the spaces of these black-and-white sketches.
Jenny Lewis – On The Line CD/LP (WB)
Jenny Lewis returns with her highly anticipated fourth solo album, On The Line – the former Rilo Kiley member’s follow up to 2014’s critically acclaimed The Voyager. Produced by Beck and Ryan Adams, the 11 all-new original songs were written by Lewis and recorded at Capitol Records’ Studio B and feature a backing band of legendary talent including Benmont Tench, Don Was, Jim Keltner, Ringo Starr, Beck and Adams. There were two events in Jenny’s life that had an emotional impact on recording the album. One was a recent breakup and the other was the passing of her mother. On The Line is introduced by the retro, Emmylou Harris-esque lead single, “Red Bull & Hennessy.” “What’s the matter with me?” Jenny Lewis sings on her latest single, “Redbull & Hennessy.” On [“Redbull & Hennessy”] Lewis “offers a darkly suggestive tale of dissolution and desire. Riding a sparkling Seventies pop-rock piano riff, Lewis’ narrator second-guesses herself into a haze of liquor and regret. She has long been a master at juxtaposing candy-sweet melody with ominous narrative, and her latest is no exception.” – Rolling Stone [Limited indie-store exclusive blue colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Mötley Crüe – The Dirt (The Original Soundtrack) CD/2xLP (Eleven Seven Music)
Director Jeff Tremaine’s (Jackass co-creator) 2019 dramatization of Mötley Crüe’s best-selling 2001 autobiography The Dirt follows the band’s anarchy-fueled rise from musical misfits to heavy metal demigods. The accompanying 18-song soundtrack features a collection of Mötley Crüe classics that meaningfully underscore significant moments that shape the film. The album collects 14 fan-favorites including “Dr. Feelgood”, “Girls, Girls, Girls”, “Kickstart My Heart”, “Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)”, “Shout At The Devil”, and the iconic ballad “Home Sweet Home”. Mötley Crüe also recorded four exclusive new songs for the soundtrack: “The Dirt (Est. 1981)” (feat. Machine Gun Kelly) with effortless rap verses surrounding signature guitar riffs; the three remaining songs conclude the album with the catchy “Ride With The Devil”, “Crash And Burn”, and the band’s own spin on Madonna’s, “Like A Virgin.”
Orville Peck – Pony CD/LP+MP3 (Sub Pop)
Combining the lulling ambience of shoegaze with the iconic melodies and vocal prowess of classic American country music, enigmatic outlaw cowboy Orville Peck croons love and loss from the badlands of North America. The resulting sound is one completely his own, taking the listener down dusty rose-colored desert highways, through a world where worn out gamblers, aloof road-dogs and lovesick hustlers drift in and out of his masked gaze. Orville’s debut album, Pony, delivers a diverse collection of stories that sing of heartbreak, revenge and the unrelenting tug of the cowboy ethos. Warm lap steel guitars and echoing drums move through dreamy ballads, campfire lullabies and sometimes frantic buzzsaw tunes, all the while paying homage to his country music roots.
Robin Trower – Coming Closer To The Day CD/LP (Mascot Label Group)
Robin Trower, the iconic guitarist who rose to fame with the legendary Procol Harum, returns with a new album, Coming Closer To The Day. It’s rare to find a ’60s legend still on trailblazing form in their eighth decade. But while Trower’s peers recycle the old hits or retreat from view, the 73-year-old guitarist finds himself in a golden late-bloom of creativity. Even at this career pinnacle, Trower admits he “just can’t stop.” And with Coming Closer To The Day, his songcraft and soulful performances have never sounded more alive. Acting on artistic instincts – rather than bowing to market forces – might not be a fashionable or profitable approach in the modern music industry. But in 2019, it’s a philosophy that is driving Trower’s late career to new creative heights, as the bluesman tightens his grip on the long-term fans who fell for his classic ’60s work, while reeling in younger music-lovers who crave something honest and unvarnished in the age of artifice.
Nilüfer Yanya – Miss Universe CD/2xLP (ATO/Caroline)
Nilüfer Yanya, London’s 23-year-old “effortlessly smooth new soul star” (The Fader) releases her hotly-anticipated full length debut, Miss Universe. Uniquely blending elements of soul and jazz into intimate pop songs with electronic flourishes and a newly expressed grungy guitar sound, Miss Universe is big and ambitious. “Angels,” with its muted, harmonic riffs, channels ideas “of paranoid thoughts and anxiety” – a theme that runs through the album, not least in its conceptual spoken word interludes which emanate from a fictional health management company “WWAY Health”. “You sign up, and you pay a fee,” explains Nilüfer of the automated messages, which are littered through the album and are narrated by the titular Miss Universe. “They sort out all of your dietary requirements, and then they move onto medication, and then maybe you can get a better organ or something…and then suddenly it starts to get a bit weird. You’re giving them more of you and to what end?” [Limited clear vinyl pressing also available.]
CDs + Vinyl:
American Football – American Football: LP3 CD/LP+MP3/2xLP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
American Football’s original triumph, on their 1999 self-titled debut, was to reunite two shy siblings: emo and post-rock. It was a pioneering album where lyrical clarity was obscured and complicated by the stealth musical textures surrounding it. Like Slint’s Spiderland, or Codeine’s The White Birch, even Talk Talk’s Laughing Stock, American Football asked far more questions than it cared to answer. But there wasn’t a band around anymore to explain it, anyway. The three young men who made the album – Mike Kinsella, Steve Holmes, and Steve Lamos – split up pretty much on its release. 15 years later, American Football reunited (now as a four-piece, with the addition of Nate Kinsella). LP3 is contemplative, rich, expressive, yet with a queasy undercurrent. It is heavy with expectancy, revealing its ideas slowly, eliciting the hidden stories people carry around with them. [Limited single-disc colored pressing and deluxe double-vinyl edition mastered at 45rpm and pressed on 180gm vinyl are also available.]
Anatole – Emulsion CD/LP (Mercury)
Emulsion is the debut album by Anatole aka Jonathan Baker; it draws inspiration from his jazz and classical background, combined with electronic soul and dynamic beat-driven production.
Matt Anderson – Halfway Home By Morning CD/LP (True North)
Recorded live off the floor in Nashville, Tennessee, celebrated songwriter Matt Andersen’s tenth album collects all the essential elements for a down-home ramble and shoots them through with enough electrifying energy to drive the rock ‘n’ roll faithful to simmer, shimmy, and shake. Over its 13 tracks, he explores every facet of his sound-sweat-soaked soul, incendiary rhythm and blues, heartbroken folk, and gritty Americana.
Apparat – LP5 CD/LP (Mute)
Like previous Apparat albums, LP5 is essentially the result of collaboration between Sascha Ring and cellist Philipp Thimm and on the album you can also hear trombone, trumpet and saxophone, a harp, a double bass and other strings. John Stanier, the dancing dervish from math-rock outfit Battles, plays percussion and the songs were developed over endless group improvisations and lavish orchestral sessions. The music of Apparat is now music of enrichment, of omission and override; every melody, every sound is at the same time a palimpsest.
Bloodbound – Rise Of The Dragon Empire CD/LP (AFM)
New album from the dragon-taming power metal titans – recommended for fans of Sabaton, Powerwolf, and Nightwish.
Anne Briggs – Anne Briggs [Reissue/1971] CD (Topic Treasures Series)
Anne Briggs began singing in local folk clubs in her teens. In 1962 she became part of the Centre 42 tour which was a leftist group of artists, writers, actors and musicians whose aim was to make arts and culture accessible to the masses. Widely regarded as a long-lost treasure and recorded in 1971 by Sean Davies, her eponymous album features Johnny Moynihan from Sweeny’s Men on bouzouki.
Markus Burger, Peter Erskine, & Bob Magnusson – Accidental Tourists: The Alaska Sessions CD (Challenge)
Accidental Tourists is the jazz music project led by German pianist and composer Markus Burger, who is supported, on every release, by others acclaimed and talented musicians. For his latest record, The Alaska Sessions, Burger asked the collaboration of two of the most renowned musicians of the American jazz scene: acclaimed drummer Peter Erskine and bassist Bob Magnusson. As some already said, this ensemble basically combined European elegance with an “American drive”.
Kate Bush – The Other Sides 4xCD (Rhino)
Four discs’ worth of Kate Bush rarities, B-sides, remixes and cover versions that filled out the back half of last year’s second CD box set of the singer’s reissued catalog get their own separate release.
Célia – Célia [Reissue/1970] CD/LP (Mr. Bongo)
Célia was a Brazilian vocalist who worked frequently with master arranger-composer Arthur Verocai in her early years and many other heavyweights over the course of her extensive career. Joyce was particularly supportive in the making of this album, writing the beautiful “Abrace Paul McCartney” and her husband at the time, Nelson Ângelo, recorded some of the songs.
Cellar Darling – The Spell CD (Nuclear Blast America)
Celar Darling confidently fuse heavy alternative and progressive rock with strong folk influences and poetic lyrical tales, creating what you may very well call a New Wave Of Folk Rock. [Vinyl edition due March 29.]
Steven Curtis Chapman – Deeper Roots: Where The Bluegrass Grows CD (New Day)
A mixture of familiar hymns, fan-favorites and brand-new songs.
Shirley Collins – The Sweet Primeroses [Reissue/1967] CD (Topic)
During the 1960s and ‘70s, Shirley Collins was regarded by many as the first lady of folk music. Between 1955 and 1978 she recorded for the Folkways, Argo, Harvest and Topic labels. After the release of For As Many As Will in 1978 she withdrew from performing and the music world after developing dysphonia. Shirley recently returned to recording after a very long hiatus and is still widely acknowledged as one of the finest singers and ambassadors to have emerged during the Folksong Revival.
Defication – Killing With Kindness CD (Metal Bastard)
Eight long tracks full of hate, brutality, grinding metal.
Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves – Allison De Groot and Tatiana Hargreaves CD/LP (Free Dirt)
Allison De Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves’s self-titled debut album features lesser-known American fiddle and banjo songs from African American duo Nathan Frazier & Frank Patterson, centenarian Arkansas fiddler Violet Hensley, bluegrass pioneer Alice Gerrard, contemporary master tunesmith Judy Hyman (The Horse Flies), and more. Together they create a sound that is adventurous, masterful, and original, as they expand on the eccentricities of these old songs, while never losing sight of what makes them endure.
Deicide – The Stench Of Redemption [Reissue/2006] CD (Earache)
CD reissue. Emerging from seemingly endless controversy re-energized and re-focused, the death metal originators hit back with their most confrontational album in years with 2006’s The Stench Of Redemption. Bristling with the defiance and confidence borne of a new line up (welcoming Jack Owen and Ralph Santola to the fold), Deicide 2006 plays with an intensity that puts every young pretender to shame.
Duster – Capsule Losing Contact 3xCD/4xLP (Numero)
San Jose’s sonic cure-all for the Y2K hangover that never materialized, Duster emerged from a cloud of lonely bong rips to take indie rock to the moon, and beyond. Scotch-taped guitars toggle between a chorus of brittle winter trees and a blanket of distorted fuzz. The low rumble of a cardboard box being kicked in a dead mall keeps pace in the background, as muffled, sung-spoken vocals ponder the great mysteries of modern mundanity. Three years of home recording accidents and blown-out 2am studio experiments are spread across three CDs and four LPs, gathering the short-lived trio’s Stratosphere and Contemporary Movement albums, 1975 EP, singles, demos, and other miscellaneous debris into one escape pod, now free to drift in the endless void of space.
Elephant Gym – Underwater CD/LP (Topshelf)
Elephant Gym builds worlds through a bass-driven, jazz-and-funk-inflected writing style that teems with agile, articulate excitement. While commonly associated with the sub-genre of math-rock, Elephant Gym employs their own unique technical candor, with rhythms and melodies that never cross the line into uncomfortable angularity.
Harem Scarem – The Ultimate Collection 14xCD (Frontiers)
A collection of the Canadian melodic rock band’s 13 albums along with a disc of rare tracks. [Four of their albums have been reissued on vinyl and are now available.]
Barbara Howard – On The Rise [Reissue/1969] CD/LP (Colemine)
Recently released on vinyl – now available on CD. Barbara Howard’s On The Rise is more than just another rare soul LP. It’s a love story. It’s a dream. It was an attempt to break through. And although Barbara certainly never became a star, one song did become a staple in rare soul and funk DJ sets, keeping interest in Barbara Howard just under the surface. [Limited pink colored vinyl pressing also available.
Iron & Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days [Reissue/2004] CD/LP+MP3 (Sub Pop)
Sam Beam, aka Iron & Wine, released Our Endless Numbered Days, his second in March of 2004. It followed his hushed, literate, intimate, melodic, 2002 debut album, The Creek Drank The Cradle. This reissue of Our Endless Numbered Days features the original album plus eight previously unreleased demo versions and a 12-page booklet with an essay by Amanda Petrusich.
Anton Lavey – The Satanic Mass [Reissue/1968] CD/LP (Stanton Lavey)
A historic recording from 1968 – the first ever authentic audio documentation of a satanic ceremony, conducted by High Priest and Church Of Satan founder Anton Lavey.
John Lennon & Yoko Ono – Wedding Album [Reissue/1969] CD/LP+MP3 (Secretly Canadian/Chimera Music)
Originally released in 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Wedding Album was the couple’s third experimental, album-length record, and one of the most remarkable of the duo’s testaments to an intense romantic and artistic partnership that would last fourteen years, until Lennon’s murder in 1980. [Limited white colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Dean Lewis – A Place We Knew CD (Island)
Debut studio album by the Australian singer-songwriter. Lewis said that the title “encapsulates the bittersweet memories of past relationships. All the songs were written through relationships I’d been in and houses I used to live in and hotel rooms.” In addition to writing every song on the album, Dean also plays piano and guitar on the project.
Aubrey Logan – Where The Sunshine Is Expensive CD (Resonance)
New album from acclaimed powerhouse trombonist/vocalist. Where The Sunshine Is Expensive was recorded live at the legendary EastWest Studios in Los Angeles in front of an intimate audience and captures an exciting blend of pop, jazz and R&B tunes that tell a story about Hollywood from Logan’s unique perspective.
Bill MacKay – Fountain Fire CD/LP (Drag City)
The Chicago-based guitarists continued sonic journeys in conversation with himself follow a travel-worn map written in his own hand. Bill has followed the trail from familiar confines to unknown places, catalyzing a style equally enamored with the traditional and the avant-garde to make his most expansive and forceful music to date.
Megadeth – Warheads On Foreheads 3xCD/4xLP (Capitol)
35 tracks representing 35 years of the legendary thrash metal band’s impressive career.
Meow Meow + Thomas Lauderdale – Hotel Amour CD (Heinz)
A musical love affair between two singular artists, Hotel Amour is the long-awaited collaboration between beloved Pink Martini founder and bandleader Thomas Lauderdale, and international singing sensation, the crowd-surfung tragi-comedienne and queen of Chanson, Meow Meow. Guests include Rufus Wainwright, Barry Humphries (of Dame Edna fame), and The von Trapps, as well as a very special live recording with the legendary pianist/composer Michel Legrand. [Vinyl edition due May 3rd.]
Van Morrison – The Healing Game [Reissue/1997] 3xCD/LP (Sony Legacy)
Digitally remastered and expanded CD edition deluxe edition of The Healing Game includes the original album plus two additional discs of rare and unreleased material featuring B-sides, session outtakes and duets with John Lee Hooker, Carl Perkins and B.B. King. Also included is the first official release of a performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival in the summer of 1997. [First-time single-disc vinyl edition also available.]
The Mute Gods – Atheists And Believers CD (Inside Out U.S.)
The third album by The Mute Gods – featuring Nick Beggs (Steven Wilson, Steve Hackett, Kajagoogoo), Roger King (Steve Hackett) and Marco Minnemann (The Aristocrats, The Sea Within). 10 tracks that run from turbulent rock compositions to more sentimental pieces of music. [Vinyl edition due March 29.]
Kinloch Nelson – Partly On Time: Recordings 1968-1970 CD/LP (Tompkins Square)
Partly On Time: Recordings 1968-1970 contains unheard ’60s recordings by the secret Rochester, NY guitarist. Kinloch (sounds like kin-law) Nelson studied classical guitar privately with Stanley Watson in Rochester NY, jazz guitar with Gene Bertoncini at Eastman School of Music, and music theory at the University of Rochester. In 1973, he began teaching both privately and at The Hochstein Music School in Rochester where he was on the faculty for 25 years. In 1985, Nelson co-founded the Guitar Society of Rochester, which during its ten-year run presented many of the world’s greatest guitarists. Nelson is the author of a book, Alternate Guitar Tunings.
Nérija – Nérija CD/LP+MP3 (Domino)
Nérija is a collective of London-based musicians playing exciting and original music inspired by jazz, hip-hop, and Afrobeat. Featuring a line-up truly representative of the up-coming London jazz scene, the seven-piece band features rising players such as tenor saxophonist Nubya Garcia (Polar Bear, Outlook Orchestra, Steve Reid InNOVAtion Award Winner), trumpeter Sheila Maurice-Grey (KANO, Little Simz, KOKOROKO) and guitarist Shirley Tetteh (Maisha, Gary Crosby’s Groundation).
No Win – Downey CD/LP (Dangerbird)
Danny Nogueiras had one simple motivation for the 10 songs that make up Downey, the debut album by his band No Win – honesty. This candor is evident from the very first notes, but with each subsequent listen the songs dig deeper and deeper, attaching themselves to the listeners own emotions and experiences until they’ve become shared memories. It’s the perfect summer record, but it’s also the perfect end-of-summer record: from the glorious, melancholic power-pop opener “After Your Legs”, to the energetic, full-throttle wonder of “Endless Scan”, and the laidback splendor of “Shelley Duvall”, all the songs are inspired by Nogueiras’ personal memories, but have a universality to them, too.
Leroy Jodie Pierson – Rusty Nail [Reissue/1988] CD (Omnivore)
When Omnivore Recordings acquired Nighthawk Records they also gained a secret weapon in Leroy Jodie Pierson. Leroy had founded Nighthawk, co-produced most of the albums, wrote most of the liner notes, photographed the artists, and best of all, wanted to be involved in the revival of the label. Throughout his life, Pierson devoted himself to musical pursuits. Among his endeavors was production of blues shows and festivals, teaching blues classes at Washington University in St. Louis, helping form the Missouri Friends of the Folk Arts, hosting/DJ-ing radio shows, authoring books and recording his own music.
Prefab Sprout – I Trawl The Megahertz CD/2xLP (Sony Legacy)
Originally released as a Paddy McAloon solo album in 2003, the totally original, spellbinding I Trawl The Megahertz is now reissued with new artwork and captivating liner notes written by Paddy McAloon. I Trawl The Megahertz was conceived and recorded after Paddy was diagnosed with a medical condition that seriously affected his vision. Not surprisingly, the album is a testament to the healing power of music. The album is comprised of nine compositions; the lengthy 22-minute title track, a series of shorter instrumental pieces and a couple of songs originally intended to accompany a short film. Though the record originally appeared as a solo album, it seems fitting to now classify it as a Prefab Sprout project.
The Rippingtons featuring Ross Freeman – Open Road CD (E1)
New album from the smooth jazz mainstay. [Vinyl edition due April 26.]
Ritual Howls – Rendered Armor CD/LP (Felte)
Ritual Howls create a cinematic blend of twangy industrial rock that could fuel a post-apocalyptic dance floor.
Lucy Rose – No Words Left CD/LP (Arts & Crafts)
Where 2017’s Something’s Changing was an artist rediscovering their voice, No Words Left, is UK singer-songwriter Lucy Rose using that voice to devastatingly frank effect. Lyrically and musically fearless, her fourth studio album is a beautifully intense, but often unsettling listen. It’s a body of work, a fine modern example of the enduring strength of the album format. [Limited white colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Adam Sandler – 100% Fresh CD (WB)
Adam Sandler takes his comical musical musings back out on the road, from comedy clubs to concert halls to one very unsuspecting subway station. This is the audio companion to his Netflix special 100% Fresh.
Sermon – Birth Of The Marvelous CD (Prosthetic)
Sermon is an anonymous musical force, dedicated to preaching the concept of spiritual and theological balance. In a world of divisive opinion and reckless faith, their output aims to craft a thoughtful intersection for all beliefs. Their sound is formed and driven by regal vocals, otherworldly percussion, soaring mellotrons, with a dense wall of tumbling bass and spacious, distorted guitar. [Vinyl edition due March 29.]
Shlohmo – The End CD/LP (Friends Of Friends)
Shlohmo is acclaimed electronic producer, designer and composer Henry Laufer, a staple in the independent Los Angeles music scene. Dread and angst and an eerie sense of calm merge together to create something truly special as this one of a kind artist takes his next step forward into his unique genre-defying depths.
Martin Simpson – Prodigal Son [Reissue/2007] 2xCD (Topic)
Considered by many in the folk world as one of Martin Simpson’s finest albums, 2007’s Prodigal Son has been reissued with a bonus disc of live tracks.
John Smith – Hummingbird CD (Commoner)
UK-based critically-acclaimed folk/Americana maestro John Smith, who has released five albums and toured the world for almost fifteen years playing as a session guitarist and singer for the likes of Joan Baez, Lisa Hannigan, and David Gray, returns with a new album.
Spike Orchestra – The Book Beri’ah Vol 3 – Binah CD (Tzadik)
Based in London, The Spike Orchestra is one of the most adventurous big bands working today, blending jazz, rock, klezmer, cartoon music and the avant garde into a cohesive and compelling whole. Their first Masada project Cerberus was a surprise hit and one of the most powerful and imaginative interpretations in the entire Book Of Angels series. Here they top that spectacular CD with new interpretations from The Book Beri’ah. With influences ranging from Gil Evans, Frank Zappa, John Zorn and the most experimental side of the Stan Kenton organization, Spike Orchestra creates an incredibly varied program of Masada music at its rocking best. Astonishing big band jazz leading us into the 21st century.
Spiral Stairs – We Wanna Be Hyn-No-Tized CD/LP+MP3 (Nine Mile)
For his feel-good third solo album, We Wanna Be Hyp-No-Tized, Pavement co-founder Scott Kannberg – best known to the musical world as Spiral Stairs – concocted some of the most fun and accessible music of his storied career by expanding his musical repertoire. We Wanna Be Hyp-No-Tized is fun, infectious and musically compelling, while still managing to cover some hefty topics like the current rambunctious political climate.
Strand Of Oaks – Eraserland CD/LP (Dead Oceans)
Leading off with standout track “Weird Ways” and his powerful declaration of “I don’t feel it anymore,” Eraserland traces Tim Showalter’s evolution from apprehension to creative awakening, carving out a new and compelling future for Strand Of Oaks. In February 2018, he spent two weeks alone in Wildwood, New Jersey writing and demoing all of the songs that would eventually comprise Eraserland. And in April, he went into the studio to record with Kevin Ratterman at La La Land Studios in Louisville, Kentucky, and with Broemel, Hallahan, Koster, and Blankenship as his band. Jason Isbell also contributed his Hendrix-esque guitar work to Eraserland, while singer- songwriter Emma Ruth Rundle provided gorgeous vocals. [Limited white colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Tamaryn – Dreaming The Dark CD/LP (DERO Arcade)
While Dreaming The Dark occasionally mines a 4AD-adjacent musical palette—all manner of Cocteau Twins gauze, her Kate Bush meets Tears for Fears level vocal delivery and melodic guitar lines that might have swirled off of a mid-80’s Cure record—the album also packs a hefty emotional wallop. Dreaming The Dark flirts with the aesthetics of classic ’80s synthpop while playing at the fringes of hip-hop production and forward-thinking electronica.
These New Puritans – Inside The Rose CD/LP (Infectious Music)
Brutal and beautiful, Inside The Rose arrives six years after the critically acclaimed album Field of Reeds and is arguably the Barnett brothers’ most innovative work to date. 40 minutes of powerful melodies, lush strings and progressive electronics, packed with jaw-dropping sonic left turns.
Henry Townsend & Roosevelt Sykes – Blues Piano And Guitar: Washington University, Graham Chapel, 1973 2xCD (Omnivore)
Legendary St. Louis bluesmen Roosevelt Sykes and Henry Townsend met in the mid-1920s when Townsend was looking to learn the piano to augment his guitar playing. It was the local Sykes brothers, specifically barrelhouse-style pianist, Roosevelt who gave Townsend the pointers he was looking for on the keys. The two started a lifelong friendship as well as a professional relationship. Featuring 30 previously unissued performances from these blues icons, Blues Piano And Guitar captures this historic event-the first of several reunions before Sykes’ death in 1983.
The Treatment – Power Crazy CD (Frontiers)
Fourth full-length album from the British hard rockers. Coupling sonic power with an insane taste for infectious riffs, The Treatment are firing on all cylinders with a hot slice of no frills hard rock full of riffs, huge choruses, catchy licks, and straight to the point songs.
Twiztid – W.I.C.K.E.D. [Reissue/2009] CD (Majik Ninja)
Remastered and expanded reissue of the seventh studio album by the hip-hop group. [New album due April 26.]
TX Connect – Mutant Waves 7” (Medical Records/Transfusions)
Gavin Guthrie (TX Connect) delivers three of his most ambitious cuts for our listening pleasure. Conceptualized as a document to a very special night in Texas during the early winter of 2018, TX Connect raises the temperature utilizing acid heat in these three otherworldly cuts that fully illustrate the analog brilliance and multifocal dance floor dazzling that his reputation always delivers.
Paul van Dyk – Music Rescues Me CD (Rough Trade)
Signaling a newly galvanized creative stream from the electronic music legend, Paul van Dyk releases Music Rescues Me, which follows his wildly successful, critically embraced comeback album, From Then On. Part tribute to/part personal mediation on music’s seemingly limitless capacity to heal, restore and lift, it’s a subject that has rapt Paul to the greatest of degrees.
Ally Venable – Texas Honey CD/LP (Ruf)
“Ally is the future of the blues and the crossover music of American roots-rock,” nods Mike Zito.
Wallows – Nothing Happens CD/LP (Atlantic)
Nothing Happens sees Wallows reunited with Grammy award-winning producer John Congleton (St. Vincent, Alvvays, Future Islands) and captures the band’s journey towards adulthood through 11 intimate, introspective tracks.
Yungblud – Yungblud (Live In Atlanta) CD/LP (Geffen)
Yungblud’s first-ever live album was recorded during his sold-out October 10, 2018 show at Vinyl. The 12-track set kicks off with “21st Century Liability” – the title track of his 2018 debut album – and includes searing versions of “I Love You, Will You Marry Me”, “Psychotic Kids”, “California” and “Die For The Hype”.
Zeal & Ardor – Live In London CD/2xLP (MVKA Music)
Black metal blues alchemists Zeal & Ardor deliver the double live album.
John Zorn – The Hermetic Organ Vol 6: For Edgar Allan Poe CD (Tzadik)
In these two spectacular performances, Zorn literally pulls out all the stops in paying tribute to one of his favorite writers, the legendary Edgar Allan Poe, whose fantastical creations continue to capture the imagination of those interested in the dark side. This is organ improvisation at its most outrageous and macabre.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
Daniel Avery – Song For Alpha Remixes – One 12” (Mute)
On the first remix EP born of Daniel Avery’s transcendent sophomore album, Song For Alpha, three contemporaries of modern techno offer diverse interpretations.
Cannibal Corpse – Live Cannibalism [Reissue/2000] 2xLP (Metal Blade)
Cannibal Corpse – Gore Obsessed [Reissue/2002] LP (Metal Blade)
Vinyl reissues of the death metal band’s eighth full-length studio album and 2000 live double-album. Live Cannibalism features material recorded at a pair of Midwest gigs at The Rave in Milwaukee, WI on February 16, 2000 and The Emerson Theater in Indianapolis. Gore Obsessed is one of their most accomplished and scrutinized recordings.
The Champs – Go, Champs, Go! [Reissue/1958] LP (Sundazed Music)
Limited gold colored vinyl LP pressing. Composed of legendary Los Angeles session men, The Champs are responsible for one of the best instrumentals ever recorded, the ultra-infectious “Tequila”. Their Tex Mex long player is full of driving guitar and propulsive rhythms, accompanied by the punctuating persistent sax sounds of Chuck Rio (who penned the boozy bruiser that became their biggest hit).
June Chikuma – Les Archives LP (Freedom To Spend/RVNG Int’l)
A whooping gonzo record of synths, samplers, string quartet and drum machines, Les Archives is composed, arranged and produced by illusive Japanese artist June Chikuma. Her neon-vibrant aesthetic would be at home with films like After Hours, Repo Man, Gleaming The Cube or Teknolust. If it scored an action movie this record is a tale of mistaken identity (hijinks ensue).
Citizen: kane – Popcorn 7” (Medical Records/Transfusions)
Citizen: kane (Marco Guerra) is a producer based in Lisbon. He is a member of Fungo, an artist collective and label which performs mostly in the Portuguese capital city and its surrounding scene. His influences are diverse, but acid is probably the one that stands out the most in his music. Here we have four intense and focused techno burners that result in a marriage of old-school acid and modern elements sure to fit snugly into the intricate DJ set of those with discriminating taste.
Copeland – Blushing 2xLP (Tooth & Nail)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. While they began as a rock band, Copeland’s music has explored multiple genres and pulled in various stylistic influences like electronic and symphonic. In the past the musicians have aptly melded these styles, creating a unique amalgam of sounds. This time they wanted to take each sound and style and push it to its logical extreme. “We wanted to take all of the elements that made up our sound in the past and push those elements farther,” Aaron Marsh says. “So, rock becomes more rock than we’ve been in the past. If we’ve taken elements of symphonic tones, let’s now be very symphonic. When we’re being electronic, be very electronic. We wanted to emphasize each element of sound harder, like an exaggerated version of Copeland’s sound. We could be each thing individually by pushing each facet of our art in a more focused way.” “On Your Worst Day” best exemplifies the band’s sonic goals for Blushing, opening as a perfectly orchestrated song led by Aaron’s voice and strings before transforming into a melancholy electronic number. “Night Figures” is an intimate love song, a theme that threads through the album.
Corners – The Floor LP (Day End)
Corners was an integral part of the Los Angeles music scene from 2011 to 2015, reveling in a sense of nervy urgency that quickly set them apart from their peers. Combining driving rhythms with stark guitar work and haunting synths, the foursome of Tracy Bryant, Robert Cifuentes, Rick Mabery and Jeffertitti helped spawned the revival of L.A.’s now-thriving post-punk scene.
Dark – Dark Cross The Ages: Dark Round The Edges + Dark Round The Edges Live 2xLP (Lion Productions)
One of the greatest guitar-heavy psych records, Dark Round The Edges (1972) was originally issued in an edition of around 50 copies, mostly for friends, family, and the odd record company. Its reputation has since blossomed into something resembling a redwood, or perhaps an original Van Gogh. It is a holy grail for lovers of fuzz-driven hard rock.
Devo – Smooth Noodle Maps [Reissue/1990] 2xLP (Futurismo)
Deluxe colored vinyl pressing. Inspired by the concept of chaos theory, a theme inherent in de-evolution itself, Smooth Noodle Maps paralleled the Devo’s own dissolution of order, yet the album’s tight conceptual elements (the artwork featured animations of chaos motion developed by an actual laboratory) and arthouse pop make it a record easy to love. Though it may have foreshadowed a hiatus for the band, Smooth Noodle Maps is a joyous enigma, a record demonstrating a stronghold of captivating tunes.
DJ Cam – Underground Vibes [Reissue/1994] LP (Digger’s Factory)
Released in 1994 on his own label, the first record of Laurent Daumail aka DJ Cam brings a French response to the hip hop experimentations that are beginning to spread around the world. At the time, trip-hop was spreading even though nobody really knew what it really covered. And, in this case, here preferred to refer to his work as abstract hip-hop, meaning that he played a lot more with textures and climates than words to bring his message. In that spirit, DJ Cam mixed in his passion for jazz music, inherited from his father. In his test tube, Cam tries to fit in the length and melancholia of jazz music plated on rough samples and reinforced by various moving beats and scratches. More than any of his future works, Underground Vibes is characterized by its melodic unity which makes the whole record perfectly homogenous but never monotonous.
Ellis – The Fuzz 12” (Fat Possum)
A faint voice and a fervent guitar make their match in a cluttered bedroom, each song finding itself in a growing folder of recordings stamped by initials L.S. Ellis is the music project of Linnea Siggelkow. Daughter to a traveling book salesman and a piano teacher, Ellis flips the words from the books she once read, intertwining vulnerable with bold into the songs that she now sings. Having already made her mark as a solo performer in the Toronto DIY scene, the project has evolved into a four-piece band, inspiring a grittier take on the same solemn refrain.
Bill Evans – At The Montreux Jazz Festival [Reissue/1968] LP (Analogue Productions)
200-gram vinyl reissue 1969 Grammy winner for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group.
Everclear – The Very Best of Everclear LP (Cleopatra)
Limited splatter vinyl pressing. The Very Best of Everclear finds the platinum selling alt-rockers revisiting their old stomping grounds with these recently recorded versions of their hit singles “Santa Monica”, “I Will Buy You A New Life” and “Father Of Mine” plus a few covers.
Sosena Gebre Eyesus – Sosena Gebre Eyesus LP (Little Axe)
Ethiopian artist Sosena Gebre Eyesus sings accompanied by her playing of the Begena, or King David’s Harp, one of the world’s oldest and most beguiling instruments. Since ancient times the Harp of David has been used as an aural balm, a soother of evil and disturbed spirits -it’s low, buzzing tones widely noted for their ability to sweetly refresh one’s soul.
Fatamorgana – Terra Alta LP (La Vida Es Un Mus)
Fatamorgana can be pin-pointed somewhere between early Depeche Mode, Young Marble Giants, The Human League and a rounder-around-the-edges Borghesia. Dreamlike synthesizers and echoed voices circle around danceable rhythms, inviting one to simultaneously contemplate and move one’s body. Be teleported from the majesty of nature to the glow of the discotheque.
Miya Folick – Premonitions LP (Terrible)
The debut full-length release for the Los Angeles singer-songwriter. “She handcrafts everyday situations into something angelic yet relatable and celebratory yet poignant. Her appeal extends well beyond the realms of pop as there’s a distinct, developed lyrical voice and a dynamic, extraordinary literal voice that makes 2018 feel much less scary and isolating and much more pure and magical.” – Paste
Aretha Franklin – Amazing Grace: The Complete Collection 4xLP (Atlantic)
Grace is the biggest selling release of Aretha’s 50+ year career and the best-selling gospel album of all time. Amazing Grace was the fourth live album by Aretha. Released in 1972, it won Franklin the 1973 Grammy Award for Best Soul Gospel Performance. The album was recorded at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles during January 1972. This quadruple vinyl LP pressing contains live sets recorded on Thursday, January 13th, 1972 and Friday, January 14, 1972.
Aretha Franklin – Songs Of Faith: Aretha Gospel [Reissue/1965] LP (Geffen)
Powerful, other-worldly renditions of gospel standards recorded when Aretha was just 14.
Paula Frazer and Tarnation – What Is And Was [Reissue/2017] LP+MP3 (Slimstyle)
180gm translucent red colored vinyl. “My introduction to the music of San Francisco-based singer-songwriter Paula Frazer started with her breakthrough second album, 1995’s Gentle Creatures (4AD), released under the band name Tarnation. I remember being blown away after listening to the very first track – the transistor-radio sounding ‘Game of Broken Hearts’, which featured nothing but Paula’s lonesome, melancholic vocals lilting over a strummed guitar. Evoking nuances of Patsy Cline and the Old West, this was probably my first intro to the musical genre of alt-country. I was immediately hooked. Over the years that followed, Paula released several additional albums. While the artist/band names may have varied over the years, the one constant is Paula’s brilliant songwriting and trademark vocal style, contributing to the unique and immediately identifiable sound across all of her recordings.” – Soundthread
Gazpacho – Tick Tock [Reissue/2009] LP (Kscope)
Formed in Oslo in 1996 by childhood friends Jon-Arne Vilbo and Thomas Andersen along with Jan-Henrik Ohme (later joined by Mikael Krømer, Lars Erik Asp and Kristian Torp), Gazpacho have honed their unique sound over a string of critically acclaimed albums and numerous tours, including several with long-time supporters Marillion. Their 2009 album is back in-print on vinyl.
Françoise Hardy – Personne D’Autre LP (Arts Music)
Personne D’Autre is the 28th studio album by the French singer. It was originally released in April 2018. The album features 10 original songs, including one sung in English, “You’re My Home” penned by Yael Naim, a cover of Michel Berger’s “Seras-Tu Là”, and an adaption of Finnish band Poets Of The Fall’s “Sleep”, titled as “Dors Mon Ange”.
A Handful Of Dust – Dragging Her Wings Of Rusty Knives: Selected Recordings 1994-2016 LP+MP3 (Thin Wrist)
A Handful Of Dust was founded over three decades ago by two giants of the New Zealand underground, Bruce Russell (The Dead C) and Alastair Galbraith. Declaring their raison d’être in the now infamous Free Noise Manifesto the group has advanced a radical aesthetic; rejecting any notion of structure or comfort they’ve ground music to its sub-elemental parts. A scraping and howling electricity, spontaneous, unrestrained, physical. Contains expanded and unreleased works spanning the group’s history including their first studio recordings since 1995 and new writings, a late coda to The Journal Of Vain Erudition, Logopandocy.
Harem Scarem – Weight Of The World [Reissue/2002] LP (Frontiers)
Harem Scarem – Higher [Reissue/2003] LP (Frontiers)
Harem Scarem – Thirteen [Reissue/2014] LP (Frontiers)
Harem Scarem – United [Reissue/2017] LP (Frontiers)
Four albums from the Canadian melodic rockers – available on colored vinyl.
Lightnin’ Hopkins – Bring Me My Shotgun (The Essential Collection) [Reissue/2013] LP (Goldenlane)
Limited edition red vinyl compilation by one of the most prestigious bluesmen in the history of the genre, Lightnin’ Hopkins, featuring the legendary cuts “Mojo Hand”, “Shake That Thing”, and, of course, “Bring Me My Shotgun”, Vintage cuts from 1960 and earlier.
Hunter Complex – Open Sea LP (Death Waltz)
10 tracks of supreme synth goodness that are at the same time retro and yet totally futuristic. It’s musically rich in ideas; melodies intertwine with soaring synths and ’80s style drum machines, but it never once feels like pastiche or a carbon copy of a bygone era. The hooks on this record are incredible; it’s mix of warm analog and bright digital synths featuring a layer of complexity. Limited blue colored vinyl pressing.
Laraaji & Lyghte – Celestial Realms LP (Morning Trip)
Originally released on cassette in 1986, Celestial Realms is a collaborative album from New Age figurehead and Brian Eno-collaborator Laraaji, and fellow cosmic traveler Jonathan Goldman (aka Lyghte). Laraaji conjures his typically vivid soundworld of shimmering electric zither, while Goldman inhabits that world with pulsing guitar and droning synthesizer.
Locust – Red 7” (Medical Records/Transfusions)
Mark Van Hoen (prior jaunts in Seefeel, Scala, Autocreation among others) as Locust emerges with the first of a series of EPs for Medical/Transfusions that dive into unadulterated techno spaces that you were clearly not prepared for. Four powerful weapons start this series with sounds and textures that clearly incorporate Locust’s indescribable signature that we have all fallen in love with but take the dance floor to an undisclosed locale where deep vibes transfix our minds into pure bliss
Malevolent Creation – The 13th Beast LP (M-Theory Audio)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. New album from the long-running and highly influential extreme metal group – their first since the death of vocalist Bret Hoffman. The 13th Beast also marks the recording debuts of bassist Josh Gibbs (Thrash Or Die, Solstice) and drummer Phil Cancilla (Bits of Gore, Primitive Brutality, Misericordiam), who join founding guitarist Phil Fasciana on the 11-track tour de force.
Meshuggah – Nothing [Reissue/2002] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast America)
Meshuggah – I [Reissue/2004] LP (Nuclear Blast America)
Meshuggah – Catch Thirtythree [Reissue/2005] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast America)
Meshuggah – obZen [Reissue/2008] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast America)
Meshuggah – Koloss [Reissue/2012] 2xLP (Nuclear Blast America)
One of the most prolific bands on Nuclear Blast, the majority of Swedish extreme tech-metal pioneers Meshuggah’s catalog has been unavailable on vinyl for years. A series of new colored editions from the label boast newly remastered audio for spectacular sound and newly designed gatefold jackets.
Michael Morley – Heaven’s Idleness Awaits 2xLP (Thin Wrist)
Michael Morley has long been acclaimed for his electric guitar and electronic forays in New Zealand’s legendary The Dead C and Gate. On Heaven’s Idleness Awaits, he strips his music to its most elemental state. Recorded at home and using only a single-tracked acoustic guitar, Morley creates an intimate and intensely meditative work.
New Order – Temptation b/w Hurt [Reissue/1982] 12” (WB)
Featuring the full versions of both tracks, this 12” was originally released in May 1982 and comprised New Order’s first self-produced recordings.
Pineapple Thief – What We Have Sown [Reissue/2007] 2xLP (Kscope)
First-time vinyl pressing of the modern prog band’s sixth album.
Elvis Presley – Elvis Now [Reissue/1972] LP (Friday Music)
On this 1972 album, the King offers up a wide-ranging mix of ballads, gospel numbers and all out rockers with his Las Vegas residency firmly in mind. [Translucent blue and black swirl colored vinyl pressing also available.]
Primitive Finks – Cave Party LP (H-Tide Recordings)
13 creepy cuts for fans of The Mummies, Messer Chups and Satan’s Pilgrims.
Pye Corner Audio – Stasis [Reissue/2016] LP+MP3 (Ghostbox)
Conceived as a kind of sequel to 2012’s Sleep Games, there’s an epic sensibility to Stasis. The haunted concrete caverns of the earlier album give way here to vast, awe inspiring spaces. The album has a strong narrative flow that can be read either as the soundtrack for an interplanetary voyage under suspended animation or the exploration of vast inner realms under some other form of technologically enhanced sleep.
Red Mass – Kilrush Drive LP (No Coast)
Red Mass is a gathering of artists, musicians and agent provocateurs from around the globe. Created by Roy Vucino (CPC Gangbangs, PyPy, Birds Of Paradise, Night Seeker, Les Sexareenos) as part of the ‘Free Creative Enterprise’ TA DA arts collective, its goal is to create punk music and art, in various mediums while incorporating techniques of automatic creation, chaos magic and liberation through art.
Repeat Viewing – The Beach House LP (Lunaris)
The latest offering from Repeated Viewing, the moniker of Scotland-based recording artist Alan Sinclair since 2009. A worthy follow up to 2016’s hailed Frozen Existence. The Beach House was inspired by a deserted house found during a hungover morning walk along the beach near the filming location of The Wicker Man (1973). Repeated Viewing created 9 brand new tracks of synth-terror and saltwater damaged electronics.
Shouldies – 🙂 LP (Graveface/NEVERGOTH)
Attention all goth kids, pop princesses, darkwave divas: the new sound still isn’t rock and roll. At least not to Shouldies, a synth punk trio consisting of Yancey Ballard, John Pierce, and Daniel Eberlein, on a mission to fuse dance with a relatable dose of realness – but make it goth.
Snarky Puppy – Immigrance 2xLP (Ground Up Music)
Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. Immigrance, the twelfth Snarky Puppy studio album, is all about movement. “The idea here is that everything is fluid, that everything is always moving and that we’re all in a constant state of immigration,” explains Michael League. “Obviously the album’s title is not without political undertones.” Like the Grammy-winning Culcha Vulcha, Immigrance is a studio project, and it features most of the same musicians. And though it shares that project’s ace musicianship and dynamic, kinetic spirit, it is also rawer and moodier than its predecessor. Several of the compositions put a newfound emphasis on delivering simpler, streamlined impact. With Immigrance, Snarky Puppy is essentially practicing what it’s preached all along: People from different places can bring their various strengths and experiences, and that can be beautiful and cohesive. The band itself is a representation of that musical expression.
Gabor Szabo – 1969 [Reissue/1969] LP (Modern Harmonic)
Limited gold colored vinyl pressing. Masterful ’60s pop by Hungarian jazz guitar guru Gabor Szabo. The guitar master’s 1969 platter of folk and pop music standards is highlighted by the rock ‘n’ bossa spin on “Sealed With A Kiss” and nuanced takes on the handful of Lennon-McCartney gems “Dear Prudence”, “You Won’t See Me”, “In My Life” and “I’ve Just Seen A Face’.
Henri Texier – A Cordes Et A Cris [Reissue/1979] LP (Disques JMS)
A longtime fixture on the French jazz circuit and known for his work during the ‘60s and ‘70s opposite Don Cherry, Louis Sclavis and Didier Lockwood among other notables, bassist Henri Texier also had a sideline as a member of France’s godhead folk prog merchants Total Issue back in the early 70’s and the downy wistfulness and deep sweet soul ache that he nailed during his tenure in the outfit seems to have left a lasting impression, as his three solo missives that followed over the course of the ‘70s (this being his third) are all suffused with the same sort of profound beatific glow that he established with them.
Tia Carrera – Visitors/Early Purple LP (Small Stone)
Having maintained radio-silence for about 8 years (since 2011, Cosmic Priestess), Austin, TX’s Tia Carrera from Austin, Texas return with a 34-minute long jam split into two parts. “Get ready for some groovy heavy rock jams with psychedelic mood, lengthy, tasty solos and hazy atmosphere.” – Downtuned
The Trashmen – Surfin’ Bird [Reissue/1964] LP (Sundazed Music)
Limited gold colored vinyl pressing. In November 1963, The Trashmen came roaring out of the frozen, landlocked expanses of Minnesota to shake the foundations of Western culture with their debut release “Surfin’ Bird”. Two and a half minutes of gleeful, unhinged garage abandon, it set a standard for transcendent teen dementia. In the early months of ’64, just as Beatlemania was beginning to hit America, “Surfin’ Bird” ascended to the No. 4 spot on Billboard’s singles chart, as well as becoming a seminal smash in such far-flung locales as Australia, Sweden, Mexico and Venezuela.
Unknown Instructors – Unwilling To Explain LP (ORG Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Unknown Instructors are an all-star outfit featuring the former rhythm section of Minutemen and Firehose, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley, with poet Dan McGuire. Dinosaur Jr guitarist J Mascis was recruited for their fourth effort, Unwilling To Explain. They seamlessly blend flavors of jazz, punk rock, spoken word, noise, and art rock.
Various Artists – Africa Airways Five (Brace Brace Boogie 1976-1982) LP (Africa Seven)
10 slices of Afro boogie goodness.
Muddy Waters – I’m Ready [Reissue/1978] LP (Friday Music)
Audiophile translucent red colored vinyl pressing.
The Way Down Wanderers – Illusions LP (ORG Music)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. With their sophomore album, Illusions, the Way Down Wanderers have fine-tuned their signature blend of heartfelt songwriting, lyrical harmonies, and dance floor drumbeats. These eleven songs are informed by a diverse range of musical traditions, somewhere between bluegrass and hip-hop, and the result is an album that sounds both timeless and fresh.
Jacob Wick – Feel LP (Thin Wrist)
A trumpeter and improviser living in Mexico City, over the last ten years Jacob Wick has become known for deconstructing the instrument itself and any expectations of how it “should” be played. The explorations on Feel focus on sound as it relates to specific spaces and in turn the subtle but profound connections they have to emotions and the body. The result is a highly personal music that is both unique and immediate, abstract yet undeniably visceral.
X – Wild Gift [Reissue/1981] LP (Fat Possum)
Four decades after their inception, one thing is clear: X was not only one of the most influential bands to crash out of the punk movement of the late ’70s, but the group’s music continues to be sonically groundbreaking today. Songs written during the group’s inception are as relevant and inventive today as they were in 1977. The band’s early albums, Los Angeles, produced by Ray Manzarek of the Doors, Wild Gift, and Under The Big Black Sun explored dark love and an even darker L.A. with the unflinching eye of a Raymond Chandler novel. [CD edition due April 12.]
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