CDs + Vinyl:
Against Me! – Shape Shift With Me CD/2xLP+MP3 (Total Treble)
Seventh full-length studio album from punk rock band, dropping right before lead singer Laura Jane Grace’s memoir titled Tranny: Confessions Of Punk Rock’s Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout (due mid-November.) [Limited white color vinyl edition also available.]
Alex G – DSU CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Run For Cover)
Two years after its initial release on boutique Brooklyn label Orchid Tapes, Alex G’s fourth LP DSU is back in print across all formats. Considered by many to be the record that shone a spotlight onto the longtime lo-fi Bandcamp-favorite, DSU is an indie rock record empowered and enlightened by Alex Giannascoli’s bedroom-pop sensibilities.
Joey Alexander – Countdown CD (Motema)
New release from the 13-year-old jazz pianist. Joey Alexander’s jaw-dropping ability and beyond-his-years artistry brought him to some of the grandest stages, from performing at the Grammys and the White House, to appearing on The Today Show and 60 Minutes.
Devon Allman – Ride Or Die CD (Ruf)
Son of Greg Allman, Devon Allman’s new album Ride Or Die contains twelve soulful and powerful tracks that showcase Allman’s maturity as a songwriter.
Dorothy Ashby – The Fantastic Jazz Harp Of Dorothy Ashby CD/LP (Spellbound Music)
A reissue of Dorothy Ashby’s sixth album, originally released in 1965. Ashby was a Detroit born jazz harpist who passed away in her early ‘50s in 1986. She left a rich legacy of music with The Fantastic Jazz Harp Of Dorothy Ashby being one of her milestones. It is an utterly progressive effort and the pop sensibility of many tracks make it a great joy to spin.
Albert Ayler – Ghosts [Reissue/1965] CD (Skokiaan)
Ayler and his mates — Don Cherry on trumpet, Sonny Murray on drums and Gary Peacock on bass guitar — are definitely on par with the other free jazz gods like John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman on this 1965 release.
Bad Suns – Disappear Here CD/LP+MP3 (Vagrant)
Sophomore record from Los Angeles’ Bad Suns. “The band’s first new music in over two years does not disappoint, picking up right where they left off with a stadium-sized chorus tucked neatly into a song that screams Bad Suns. From lead singer Christo Bowman’s booming tenor to Gavin Bennett’s resilient bass, ‘Disappear Here’ marks a resounding return. Bad Suns’ arrangements tend to be a warm and equal blend of instruments that work together as a whole, rather than individually. “Disappear Here” is exactly such an arrangement: A strong bass line coupled with a frisky drum beat drives the rhythm forward as Bad Suns go about reintroducing themselves. Lead guitar and a light keyboard support Bowman’s voice as he carries the melody through short, sinusoidal phrasings. Bowman goes for the jugular when he jumps into a melting falsetto in the chorus, but the stunning impact of such a move would be lost without the instrumental backup around him.” – Atwood Magazine
Dave Ball – Photosynthesis CD (Cold Spring)
Dave Ball (Soft Cell, The Grid) and Jon Savage present Photosynthesis. They explain how Photosynthesis developed: “We started composing some quasi pop/classical pieces that gradually morphed and evolved into one, hour-long piece. Via digital recording and processing of vintage analog sound sources (i.e. mini Moog, Sequential Circuits, Prophet 5 synthesizers etc.) the piece gradually took shape. The title Photosynthesis was re-appropriated from the botanical process. Sitting in the garden surrounded by trees and plants on a sunny day, the idea of organisms using sunlight to synthesize nutrients from carbon dioxide and water became an inspiration to us.”
Barishi – Blood From The Lion’s Mouth CD/LP (Season Of Mist)
Gritty progressive metal quartet Barisi release their adventurous new album Blood From The Lion’s Mouth. More than simply “progressive,” Barishi strikes a deft and unique balance between elegance and aggression. Tracks such as “Grave Of The Creator,” “Bonesetter,” and the title track are ruthlessly heavy and oddly beautiful, and delivered with purpose and poise that belies the quartet’s young age. “…Willfully avant-garde prog-metal… which mixes melodic and psychedelic tendencies with hardcore bite and bitterness and the same sort of autistic-savant creativity of Ihsahn’s solo output. Magic, in a word.” – No Clean Singing
Matt Berry – The Small Hours CD/LP+MP3 (PIAS America)
The Small Hours is the new long player from the swooning, hysterical and critically acclaimed Matt Berry. Following on from Witchazel And Kill The Wolf through to 2014’s Music For Insomniacs (which saw the musician, writer and celebrated actor explore the effects of sleeplessness through a range of modular equipment) The Small Hours explores themes of death, religion, loneliness and the changing of the seasons.
Beware Of Darkness – Are You Real? CD/LP+MP3 (Bright Antenna)
Beware Of Darkness is a hard rock band with an old soul, pissed at life in the modern age. Where the band’s earlier material may have fallen more on the side of leather and metal, Are You Real? hearkens to the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Royal Blood, The Struts, Wolf Alice, Cage The Elephant, Skaters, and Nirvana.
Bitori – Legend Of Funaná: Forbidden Music Of The Capes CD/LP (Analog Africa)
A masterpiece that many Cabo Verdean consider the recording of Funaná (a frenetic, soca-style dance music made by and for the working classes). Despite its roots in colonial oppression, here is the sound of absolute joy.
Mykki Blanco – Mykki CD/LP+MP3 (!K7)
A singular artist who has made an indelible mark on the pop music landscape with a string of street-level releases and mixtapes, Mykki Blanco releases his debut album.
Blue States – Restless Spheres CD/LP (Memphis Industries)
Blue States’ fifth album, Restless Spheres, doffs its cap to the soundtracks of Budd and Morricone, to ‘60s Greek bands such as The Forminx, to German electronic pioneers Dieter Moebius and Michael Rother and to American minimalist composers Steve Reich and Phillip Glass.
Richard Bona & Mandekan Cubano – Heritage CD (Membran)
Originally from Cameroon, Richard Bona remains true to his roots on Heritage, his 8th album as a leader and the first one with his Afro-Cuban band Mandekan Cubano. An energetic, life affirming and truly fantastic album, it explores the alchemy of African rhythms in Cuba.
Matt Brewer – Unspoken CD (Criss Cross)
Upright bassist Matt Brewer presents an inspired quintet recording, convening tenor saxophonist Ben Wendel, pianist Aaron Parks, guitarist Charles Altura, and drummer Tyshawn Sorey, all top-of-the-pyramid under 40 improvisers and consequential composers in their own right, to perform a nine tune program that includes seven Brewer originals and reimagined versions of Bill Frisell’s “Twenty Years” and Charlie Parker’s “Cheryl.”
Thomas Brinkmann – Certain Degree Of Stasis CD (Frozen Reeds)
Thomas Brinkmann – A 1000 Keys CD/LP (Frozen Reeds)
Often associated with sparse electronic music, A Certain Degree Of Stasis sees Thomas Brinkmann in command of a maximalist’s palette. A sonic counterpart to Agnes Lux’s visual work, featured on the sleeve, the piece explores both fiercely distorted textures and sustained crystalline calm. He takes his seductive reductionism to the next level with A 1000 Keys, a harsh meditation on the expressive qualities of digital sound production.
Peter Brötzmann/Steve Noble/John Edwards – …The Worse The Better CD (Otoroku)
Originally released on vinyl in 2012 – now available on CD. Café OTO is a concert venue operating in Dalston, East London, specializing in various strains of avant-music: free-jazz, song, electronics, etc. OTO have been professionally recording various shows on and off since the venue opened in 2008. The Worse the Better is a recording of the stunning first set performed by the trio of Peter Brötzmann, Steve Noble and John Edwards at Café OTO in January 2010 during Brötzmann’s first residency at the venue. It was also the first time this trio had played together.
Brujeria – Pocho Aztlan CD/2xLP (Nuclear Blast)
First new album in 16 years from the death metal/grindcore band.
Michael Bundt – Electri City [Reissue/1980] CD/LP (Bureau B)
Having played his way through the 1970s in various rock combos (Medusa, Nine Days’ Wonder), Michael Bundt embarked on a solo career in the latter part of the decade, releasing three albums which saw him explore the vast potential of electronic music. Delightfully varied and typical of his willingness to experiment, his music orbits around krautrock, Berlin School electronica, space-futurism and synth pop.
Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band – Live At Knebworth Park – Saturday 5th July, 1975 CD (Ozit)
Previously released on vinyl for RSD 2016 – now available on CD with three bonus tracks. Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band returned to England with a new line up on July 5, 1975 to appear on the bill with Pink Floyd at Knebworth Festival.
Peter Case – Peter Case [Reissue/1986] CD (Omnivore)
30th anniversary expanded edition of the former Plimsouls frontman’s classic debut. Helmed by J. Henry (T Bone) Burnett and Mitchell Froom — who would become two of the world’s most sought-after producers — and featuring players including Mike Campbell, John Hiatt, Jim Keltner, Roger McGuinn, Jerry Moratta, Van Dyke Parks, Jerry Scheff, and Victoria Williams, Peter Case includes 11 originals and a cover of The Pogues’ “Pair Of Brown Eyes.” Peter Case has become a classic, a template for Americana singer/songwriters. This 30th anniversary edition features the remastered 12-track album plus seven bonus tracks: two from a 1986 promotional EP and five previously unissued recordings.
Casting Crowns – The Very Next Thing CD/LP (Reunion)
New album from the top-selling Christian act.
Chinx – Legends Never Die CD (E1)
Second posthumous album from the Queens, New York rapper.
Chixdiggit! – 2012 CDEP (Fat Wreck Chords)
Canada’s favorite pop-punk sons return an epic EP consisting of a 24 minute-long opus chronicling every tour stop Chixdiggit! made throughout 2012. From Schiphol to Victoria, 2012 takes the listener on a whirlwind trip via their trademark upbeat, guitar driven sound, addictive melodies, and KJ’s cheeky lyrics. [Vinyl edition due September 30.]
Coil – The Ape Of Naples [Reissue/2005] CD/2xLP (Important)
Coil – The New Backwards [Reissue/2008] CD/LP (Important)
The Ape Of Naples is Coil’s highly celebrated final album completed by Peter Christopherson following the tragic death of John Balance in 2004. Often noted for being a fan favorite, The Ape Of Naples uses Balance’s final recordings and material recorded at Trent Reznor’s studio in New Orleans to create a deep, heavy masterpiece. The New Backwards, created in 2007, was originally included in The Ape Of Naples box set released on Important in 2008 and was constructed by Peter Christopherson using material from the Backwards sessions, recorded in the early ’90s for a planned release on Trent Reznor’s Nothing Records label. The New Backwards, like The Ape Of Naples, is an intense fan favorite and an essential part of the Coil catalog.
Colony House – Only The Lonely CD/LP+MP3 (RCA)
Sophomore album from this Christian rock quartet. [Limited gold-brown color vinyl also available.]
Jesse Mac Cormack – Music For The Soul [Reissue/2014] CDEP (Secret City)
Jesse Mac Cormack – Music For The Soul + Crush LP (Secret City)
Jesse Mac Cormack – After The Glow CD/LP (Secret City)
For the last three years, singer/songwriter, musician and producer Jesse Mac Cormack has collaborated with many artists on the Montreal music scene, including Emilie & Ogden, Melanie Boulay and Rosie Valland. His first EP, Music For The Soul, delivers a very personal acoustic sound. After The Glow is his new album for Secret City.
Crooked Man – Crooked Man CD/LP (DFA)
He may be ill at ease with the darkroom throb of 21st century clubs, but the house music Crooked Man produces is as weighty, alien, raw and left of-center as anything you’d get from many a hyped young producer. His instincts, honed through years of DJing, production and dancing in sweaty cellars, remain as sharp as ever.
Cymbals Eat Guitars – Pretty Years CD/LP+MP3 (Captured Tracks)
On their fourth album, Pretty Years, Cymbals Eat Guitars’ trademark cacophony guitar rock and innate propulsion are still abundant, now buttressed by raucous synth and keyboard lines and an extemporaneous saxophone performance, which enrich when they could easily clutter these songs. The band also worked more quickly and efficiently than they had in the past, facilitated by years on the road in which they’ve played close to a thousand shows, which rendered them a tight, fully-oiled machine in the studio.
Dalis Car – InGladAloneness [Reissue/2012] CDEP (Kscope)
Digipak reissue of Dalis Car’s (Peter Murphy, Mick Karn) last EP (which was originally intended as an LP, but the sessions were cut short by Mick Karn’s death).
Dawes – We’re All Gonna Die CD/LP+MP3 (HUB Records II LLC)
L.A. band Dawes return with their fifth album. We’re All Gonna Die was produced by Grammy nominated producer Blake Mills (Alabama Shakes) and includes backing vocals from Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Brittany Howard of The Alabama Shakes, Mandy Moore, Will Oldham, and Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig of Lucius. Of the album, Taylor Goldsmith (guitar, vocals) explains, “Pretty much every song on this record explores a difficult situation and tries to find a way to find the good in it, or at least remind yourself that it’s not always that big of a deal. After all, as scary as it is, we are all gonna die.” “If last year’s All Your Favorite Bands was a sweet source of comfort-rock, We’re All Gonna Die is something of a wake-up call, with sharper sounds and harsher vibes, straight from the jarringly fuzzy note that opens its title track” – The Fader. [Limited yellow marble color vinyl pressing also available.]
Deap Vally – Femejism CD (Nevado Music)
New album from the female duo produced by Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner. NME aptly described them as a “hippie Karen O fronting Black Sabbath.”
The Devil Makes Three – Redemption & Ruin CD/LP+MP3 (New West)
Redemption & Ruin is a 12-song covers record with two distinct, but intertwined personalities. The first side focuses on the faults and vices that can drive the creative forces within music while the second side focuses on the absolution of life, the soul and forgiveness. Within Redemption & Ruin The Devil Makes Three exhibit their wide range of influences including nods to the blues (Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters), gospel (Down in The Valley), country (Townes Van Zandt, Hank Williams Sr.), bluegrass (Ralph Stanley), and the obscure (Tom Waits). The energy of The Devil Makes Three’s live show is translates in all of their recordings and Redemption & Ruin pays homage to where that energy was created and shaped.
Die Antwoord – Mount Ninji And Da Nice Time Kid CD (Zef/Kobalt)
Mount Ninji And Da Nice Time Kid is the fourth studio album by South African rap-rave group Die Antwoord (duo of Ninja and ¥o-landi Vi$$er). “When Ninji, ¥o-landi and God hooked up with The Black Goat and started recording Die Antwoord’s 4th album around 2 years ago the mood of the tracks we started banging out was rough and tough and mischievious and wild and hard and dark and at that point were going to call this album Rats Rule, cos in life you get the champions and the underdogs and in our minds we sometimes feel like 1 level below the underdogs in this fucked up pop world, but we also know our time is coming, and soon we gonna take over this whole bitch. So anyway, then we made some more tracks and the core of the album stayed all dark and ratty but a new layer oozed out around our dark core that was kinda mental and lunatic and random and juicy and 2 much fun and so we changed the name of our album to We Have Candy. Then recently while we was finishing up this album another layer exploded out of our dark wild juicy core like a giant supernatural mega aura and suddenly our album was so epic and sometimes vulnerable and sometimes sweet and romantic and so brave and full of mystery. ¥o-landi said, ‘Why don’t we call the album Mount Ninji And The Nice Time Kid?’”
Dinosaur – Together As One CD (Edition)
Dinosaur, led by trumpeter and composer Laura Jurd, blend elements of folk, jazz and rock into a sound that is both formidable and compelling. [Vinyl edition due September 30.]
Krisztian Dobrocsi – Playback Philosophy CD/2xLP (KX)
Nine sweeping cuts brimming with glistening melodies, succulent synths and earthy, propulsive beats.
The Douglas Fir – California Memory CD/LP (Dark Years)
“Fake your way to the front of the line, and forget about all those friends that you have left behind…” The opening lyric on The Douglas Fir’s new album California Memory ushers listeners into twelve song album about, opportunity, indecisiveness, deceit, longing, and obsession. The Fir’s moody indie-pop songs and sensibilities take the listener on a series of adventures in a city as nightfall takes over. “Songwriter Jay Walsh’s vivid lyrical narratives flow like short stories or your favorite Alfred Hitchcock film. Don’t miss out on this one!”—The Big Takeover
Dow Jones And The Industrials – Can’t Stand The Midwest: 1979-1981 CD/2xLP+DVD (Family Vineyard)
For just more than two years starting in 1979, Dow Jones and the Industrials created roaring art-punk that collided with the confusion and celebration of technology. Their left field approach turned gnarled guitar riffs into unshakable melodies battered by synths and propelled with sharp lyrics. Can’t Stand The Midwest 1979-1981 includes 29 songs remastered from the original tapes: The Industrials’ side from “Hoosier Hysteria,” the rare 1980 split LP with the Gizmos; a 1981 7” EP; nine unreleased studio tracks; live versions of unrecorded songs and more. A 12-page booklet features liner notes by the Gizmos’ Dale Lawrence and Keith Smith’s never before seen Indiana punk scene photos. [The 2xLP also comes with a 70-minute DVD of a September 1980 club performance and download coupon. CD version has one less song.]
Dreezy – No Hard Feelings CD (Interscope)
“Chicago rapper Dreezy is a drill-adjacent upstart from the South Side, and her major-label debut is a fully-formed offering that seamlessly balances rugged raps with pristine pop songs.” — Pitchfork
Edison – Familiar Spirit CD/LP (Rhyme And Reason)
Edison (vocalist/guitarist Sarah Slaton, multi-instrumentalist Dustin Morris, and Grammy-nominated guitarist Maxwell Hughes – formerly of The Lumineers) craft alt-folk songs built on stirring instrumentals and vivid emotion.
Eek-A-Mouse – Arena Long Beach, May, ’83 CD (Klondike)
Achieving global recognition alongside Junjo Lawes and Linval Thompson, Ripton Joseph Hylton, aka Eek-A-Mouse, brought his highly desirable dancehall mantras with a social and satirical twist to the American west coast after his then current album The Man And The Mouse (1983). The entire Arena, Long Beach CA KSAN FM broadcast is presented here, professionally remastered.
El Perro Del Mar – KoKoro CD/LP (The Control Group)
Written and produced by El Perro Del Mar and Jacob Haage, the 10 original songs of KoKoro are her most ambitious and musically adventurous to date, yet no less emotionally direct, covering themes that speak to both big and small matters of the heart. With soundscapes that echo of Thailand, Sumatra, India, Ethiopia, and China, the orchestration of KoKoro is unlike any of El Perro Del Mar’s previous releases, a direction only hinted briefly on the Pale Fire LP highlight “I Was A Boy.” It features the Chinese string instrument Guzheng, the Japanese Shakuhachi flute, various other Asian flutes, Arabic strings, Dulcimer, and rhythms influenced by Ethiopian music.
The Excitements – Breaking The Rule CD/LP (Penniman)
The third album by Barcelona-based R&B combo The Excitements, confirming their explosive power and strange sweetness. The steamroller rhythm section pounds under searing guitars and roaring horns while vocalist Koko claws at their hypnotic gyrations with wild abandon.
FIS – From Patterns To Details CD/LP (Subtext)
The Berlin-via-New Zealand electronic artists presents his second full length release. Mirroring the idea of natural flow over imposition, From Patterns To Details draws from the sense of a deeper underlying order. It imagines states of alignment with all and harmonious design, a complete integration between personal and external systems whether organic or technological.
Masayoshi Fujita & Jan Jelinek – Schaum CD (Faitiche)
Schaum takes a “tropical” approach in that deals with “atmospheric sounds” and “dense background textures.” Jan Jelinek writes, “I am fascinated by the idea of installing clear minimalist forms amid such luxuriant tropical growth.” Japanese vibraphonist Masayoshi Fujita prepares his instrument with various percussion elements as well as metal objects and toys, while Jelinek layers loops made using small-scale electronic devices.
The Funkees – Now I’m A Man [Reissue/1976] CD/LP (PMG)
Formed after the Biafran War to raise spirits in the east, The Funkees quickly conquered the dance floors of Lagos and in 1973 headed to London, playing at Ronnie Scott’s and tearing up the local scene. Now I’m A Man captures the band at the height of their London-era pomp. Africans were making soca, West Indians were playing Afro-funk and discolypso blasted from boom-boxes across West London. The Funkees soaked it all up and delivered it back — funkier, tighter and louder.
Giggs – Walk In Da Park [Reissue/2009] CD (Spare No1 Productions)
Back in print on CD. Walk In Da Park is the first album by the UK rap/grime producer, currently signed to indie-behemoth XL.
Robert Glasper – ArtScience CD/2xLP (Blue Note)
The first album in three years from Robert Glasper and his Robert Glasper Experiment cohorts. The band features saxophonist Casey Benjamin, bassist Derrick Hodge, and drummer Mark Colenburg. ArtScience includes the first single “Find You.”
GlerAkur – Can’t You Wait CD/LP (Prophecy)
“GlerAkur blends many different styles into one sonic mass of vibrant atmospheric and hypnotizing sound. You’ll find elements of post-rock, drone, ambient, post-black, psychelic rock, doom, prog, shoegaze, krautrock and yet much more, everything put into one coherent soundscape with almost epic proportions.” – Terraelicta
Grumbling Fur – Furfour CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Grumbling Fur is the joint manifestation of Alexander Tucker and Daniel O’Sullivan which, since 2011, has birthed a series of increasingly focused albums of psychedelic pop. Furfour is the fourth album by the British duo, and features performances by This Heat’s Charles Bullen and Isobel Sollenberger from Bardon Pond. Tucker and O’Sullivan create simple, hypnotically engaging songs from paradoxically freeform beginnings. Shaping the lot are their long-standing shared musical affections, a polyglot music encompassing orchestrated poptones, collage, dub and beatmaking as well as experimental and drone elements.
Giovanni Guidi/Gianluca Petrella/Louis Sclavis/Gerald Cleaver – Ida Lupino CD (ECM)
Pianist Giovanni Guidi and trombonist Gianluca Petrella, key figures in what some are hailing as a golden age of Italian jazz, found their strong improvisational rapport inside Enrico Ravas band (see for instance the 2010 ECM album Tribe) and, keen to play more, formed the duo Soupstar, giving many concerts in which they are intermittently joined by guests. For Ida Lupino, producer Manfred Eicher brought the dynamic duo together with drummer Gerald Cleaver and French clarinetist Louis Sclavis, for an outgoing set of music that includes lyrical free improvising and tunes composed by Giovanni and Gianluca.
The Handsome Family – Unseen CD/LP (Milk & Scissors Music)
Husband and wife duo The Handsome Family release their 10th studio album. With its unique mix of country instrumentation and intriguing surrealist lyricism, Unseen explores the unseen stories, people, and places of the American West, where members Brett and Rennie Sparks live (Albuquerque, NM) and shines a light on the obscure and forgotten. Unseen continues The Handsome Family’s embrace of things beyond easy view: the slow dive of the sun, enormous bugs awakening in thorny yards, sirens, and coyotes that cry out to the purple sky. An epic western gothic masterpiece, the album draws from real life events. “Gold” first began when a bunch of twenty-dollar bills blew in Brett’s face in a parking lot dust storm and “Gentlemen” is a tribute to William Crookes who built the first vacuum tube in 1875, hoping to detect spirits from alternate dimensions. Many tracks fix around the idea that light emanates from things we can’t see, including behind “The Red Door,” in the empty hands of blackjack losers (“The Silver Light”), and amidst desert bones bleaching in the sun (“King of Dust”).
Heaven Shall Burn – Wanderer CD/2xCD/2xLP+CD+MP3 (Century Media)
Munich, Germany’s Heaven Shall Burn specializes in highly controversial and politicized death metal fused with hardcore; a hybrid style often referred to as deathcore. Combining their militant defense of social concerns (racism, corruption, animal cruelty, veganism, etc.) with a seemingly boundless metallic wrath, the group’s brutalizing sonic onslaught has drawn comparisons to traditional death metal bands like England’s Bolt Thrower, as well as the less regimented, but equally emphatic work of Sweden’s The Haunted. [CD is available in Regular and Deluxe editions. Deluxe adds the bonus disc Too Good To Steal From which compiles all of the cover versions they had ever recorded since signing with Century Media Records in 2003.]
Keaton Henson – Kindly Now CD/LP+MP3 (PIAS America)
Kindly Now is the third official studio album from acclaimed London-based musician and visual artist Keaton Henson. It features the first single “Alright,” a wonderfully emotive song that showcases Keaton’s trademark fragile vocals accompanied by a sparse piano performance and a lush string arrangement. Struggling with the apparent trade-off of having to put himself on display in order to make the music he loved, “Alright” describes a very English way of grinning through pain (and also the sense that despite your world shifting so quickly, maybe you haven’t changed very much at all). It’s a stunning introduction to the album, a record that simultaneously broadens Keaton’s canvas – more electronic in places, more classical in others – yet also reflects a life-long love of Randy Newman. Kindly Now is ultimately Keaton Henson’s most emotionally stripped-back album thus far, an unheroic and unsettling examination of past loves, the role of the artist, and owning up to your own destruction.
High Spirits – Motivator CD/LP (High Roller)
With their fourth album Motivator High Spirits once again prove that traditional heavy metal does not have to sound stale.
Ian Hunter & The Rant Band – Fingers Crossed CD/LP+MP3 (Proper)
Ian Hunter’s (Mott The Hoople) latest studio album unveils ten new, self-penned songs including his homage to David Bowie, “Dandy.”
In The Woods… – Pure CD (Debemur Morti)
First album in 17 years from this legendary Norwegian group. “Easily the group’s most accessible album since Heart Of The Ages decimated black metal’s then-strict sonic and aesthetic doctrines over two decades ago.” – Decibel
Inanimate Existence – Calling From A Dream CD (Unique Leader)
The NorCal technical death metal outfit returns with their third full-length release. [Vinyl edition due September 30.]
Ethan Iverson – The Purity Of The Turf CD (Criss Cross)
The Purity Of The Turf is kind of a ‘bucket list’ moment for Ethan Iverson, who has always wanted to make a record with famous bassist Ron Carter. Iverson, pianist of the famous trio The Bad Plus, chose drummer Nasheet Waits to fill out the trio, as Waits represents the avant-garde as well as swing. The repertoire is mostly originals and jazz classics.
Mick Karn – More Better Different [Reissue/2003] CD (Kscope)
Mick Karn – Three Part Species [Reissue/2006] CD (Kscope)
Reissued on vinyl last year – now back in print on CD. Best known for his work with Japan, Mick played plenty of other music before he passed away in 2011. It is impossible with each piece to predict which genre would come next with each release. Of all his albums, Three Part Species best illustrates how completely in command of musical composition he was, with the blending of so many diverse types of music that never sound confused in direction.
King 810 – La Petite Mort Or A Conversation With God CD (Atlantic)
La Petite Mort Or A Conversation With God finds King 810 taking listeners deep into the dark heart of Flint, Michigan. Far from a retread of their acclaimed debut, La Petie Mort (which translates to “The Little Death”) is an inspired, holistic body of work that marks a profound evolutionary leap for the restless and driven souls of the band. The title itself is a reference to the duel themes of the records: the real life violence and despair of Flint that builds the basis of frontman David Gunn’s narrative and secondly, the steady desensitization and terminal closing down of the human spirit experienced when confronted with those real life conditions. Entwined around that conceptual core is an omnipresent haze of dark sexuality and desperation that provides La Petite Mort with some of its most unnerving moments. As the album takes listeners on a journey to enlightenment via Gunn’s self-reflection, it continually builds upon a diverse musical palette showcasing dark ambient electronica (“Wolves Run Together”), street-level poetry (“War Time” Feat. Trick Trick) and grand string arrangements (“Black Swan”).
Kishi Bashi – Sonderlust CD/LP+MP3 (Joyful Noise)
Sonderlust is an album forged through heartbreak. After his two previous studio albums and his String Quartet Live! release, Kishi Bashi was at a musical impasse. “As I sat down to write songs last summer, I went to all my usual conduits of creation: violin loops, guitar, piano, and I came up with the musical equivalent of fumes,” says K Ishibashi. “I tried to create orchestral pop recordings that I assumed were my forte, and in turn I found myself standing in front of a creative wall of frightening heights.” At this very same moment of musical uncertainty, K’s personal life was falling apart… He and his wife of 13 years had briefly separated and were struggling to keep their marriage together. In his own words, “Touring and its accompanying lifestyle took a heavy toll on my soul and my family.” As an outlet, K submerged himself in a new musical direction. Sonderlust emerged as a direct result of this personal struggle that took place at an artistic crossroads. With the help of producer Chris Taylor (Grizzly Bear), engineer Pat Dillet (Angelique Kidjo, David Byrne), and drummer Matt Chamberlain (Morrissey, Fiona Apple, of Montreal), Kishi Bashi has created a personal and artistically adventurous work. [Limited gold and black color vinyl edition also available.]
Osamu Kitajima – Benzaiten [Reissue/1976] CD/LP (Psychedelic Sounds International)
Benzaiten is world music and ethno sounds with an obvious Japanese origin, meeting progressive rock and psych rock. The result is a captivating piece of melodic and deeply atmospheric music that paints pictures of life in ancient Japan. If Pink Floyd were Japanese, their music might have sounded like this album.
Knocked Loose – Laugh Tracks CD/LP (Pure Noise)
New album from the KY hardcore band.
Kool Keith – Feature Magnetic CD (Mello Music)
“In a world filled with cheesecake rappers, one man Kool Keith, has assembled a phenomenal team to bring you madness. Critics are calling it sensational. So stop what you’re doing and get ready for a journey you’ve never taken before. The ultimate adventure into Feature Magnetic. You will never be the same. Free association, sci-fi, sextastic, horrorcore, Kool Keith invented it all. His newest excursion into rhyme finds a who’s who of rappers holding it down alongside Keith. From Dirty Nasty to Slug, MF Doom to Bumpy Knuckles, Mac Mall to Rass Kass — the best to have ever done it spit hotter fire than even Dylan. Like butterscotch ice cream on your crotch or eating dead bok choy with Soldier Boy, you’ve got to think about it. Get cozy and sit inside the paragraph. This is Feature Magnetic, Kool Keith’s newest reality breaker.” [Vinyl edition due September 27.]
Kuroma – Dark Horse Rides Again CD (Votiv)
“Hank Sullivant has been a recognizable working musician for over a decade, but he’s always had a brusk relationship with studios. He left The Whigs, a band he helped found, before they were signed to a label, and joined MGMT as a touring musican. With his Kuroma project, he’s released three full-length albums — all definitely studio records, for sure, though the process was always one of quick hits, with little to no budget and everything coming together rather last minute. With the band’s new album, The Dark Horse Rides Again, things were very different. This time around, Sullivant was able to prepare the demos for the record in his newly constructed home studio. When he was ready to bring the tracks into the studio, there was actually a budget in place for the time and additional work with his band and producer Al Carlson. Without those auxiliary concerns hanging over their heads, Kuroma worked with newfound joy and speed. Two weeks after entering the studio, they left with a finished record. As a whole, the record is largely inspired by Sullivant’s conversation with Catholicism and how it helped him crawl out of some dark places in his life.” – Consequence Of Sound
Led Zeppelin – The Complete BBC Sessions 3xCD/5xLP/3xCD+5xLP (Rhino)
Nearly 20 years ago, Led Zeppelin introduced BBC Sessions, a double-disc set of live recordings selected from the band’s appearances on BBC radio between 1969 and 1971. The Complete BBC Sessions is an updated version of the collection, newly remastered with supervision by Jimmy Page and expanded with eight unreleased BBC recordings, including three rescued from a previously “lost” session from 1969. Highlights include the debut of a long-lost radio session that has achieved near-mythic status among fans. Originally broadcast in April 1969, the session included three songs: “I Can’t Quit You Baby,” “You Shook Me,” and the only recorded performance of “Sunshine Woman.” Also included are two unreleased versions of both “Communication Breakdown” and “What Is And What Should Never Be.” Separated by two years, the performances vividly demonstrate the young band’s rapid evolution over a short period of time. [Deluxe box set containing both CD and vinyl formats also available.]
Aaron Lewis – Sinner CD/LP (Dot)
Known for genuinely gritty lyrics and hard rock anthems, Aaron Lewis returns to his country roots with new album Sinner. He comes out of the gate with both fists flying on the lead single “That Ain’t Country,” available today where he laments the current state of country music and pines for the sound of his honky-tonk heroes. The Bocephus-styled musicality and Lewis’s accessible vocals showcase pain, heartache and desperation — the bedrock of traditional country that is often missing from the airwaves today. “I’d like to think that Sinner is a newer take on classic, traditional outlaw country, Waylon and Merle and Willie, and Hank Jr. and Johnny Cash and all that stuff,” says Lewis. “That was the music I heard a kid, and that’s the country music that permeated my soul and stuck with me my whole life.”
Empyrean – Lord Of The Lost CD (Rough Trade/Out Of Line)
A dystopian future-metal-concept album driven by a furious mix of gothic metal, glam, electro, prog and industrial.
Lotus Thief – Gramarye CD/2xLP (Prophecy)
Lotus Thief is a San Francisco band that merges post-black metal, space rock and ambient music, seamlessly blending the genres into a unique and greater musical whole.
Marsh Dweller – The Weight Of Sunlight CD (Bindrune Recordings)
Marsh Dweller is the melodic death/black metal project of John Owen Kerr (also of Seidr, Notem, and Vit) and features guest appearances from Tanner Anderson (Obsequiae, Celestiial), Andrew D’Cagna (Brimstone Coven, Obsequiae, Nechochwen) and Aaron Carey (Nechochwen, End). “Marsh Dweller could very well become the next Panopticon. For now, it’s hard to ask for a better start.” — Angry Metal Guy
Meat Loaf – Braver Than We Are CD/2xLP (429)
Thirteenth studio album by singer Meat Loaf, written by songwriter/producer Jim Steinman (who helmed Mr. Loaf’s famous Bat Out Of Hell albums).
Mac Miller – The Divine Feminine CD (WB)
The Divine Feminine is an album about women, for women. It includes guest contributions from Kendrick Lamar, CeeLo Green, Anderson .Paak, Ty Dolla $ign, Ariana Grande, and Chicago singer Njomza. “‘It was actually a concept that was told to me about just the energy of the world being a female energy, the energy of the planet,’ Miller said of the album’s title during an interview with Beats 1 Radio’s Zane Lowe. ‘And just kind of like how that mirrors the soul of a woman, and you know, like Mother Earth and falling in love with the universe.’ On The Divine Feminine’s first single, ‘Dang!,’ the rapper is in a more crooning, reflective mode as he sings of the allure and confusion that comes with a relationship over a smooth funk groove. ‘It’s an album that’s all about the journey that is love,’ he told Lowe and the vibe of the first single fits into that concept. He also revealed that the album initially began as an EP, but he found that as he got deeper into the material, he had to further ‘shed light on the topic.’” – Rolling Stone
Mndsgn – Body Wash CD (Stones Throw)
Mndsgn (born Ringgo Ancheta) grew up in south New Jersey, raised with gospel music at church, and B-Boy culture at home. Experimenting with beatmaking, he befriended fellow producer Knxwledge and the two formed the influential Klipmode collective (along with Devonwho and Suzi Analogue). Mndsgn’s music flourished when he moved to Los Angeles, catching the attention of Stones Throw who released Yawn Zen (2014), an LP of introspective and mostly instrumental beat creations, punctuated by vocal cuts. Body Wash is his second album for Stones Throw, a full set of realized songs that were only hinted at on Yawn Zen. Influences here include the likes of early SOLAR records material, Leon Sylvers III, Kashif, and Dave Grusin. These artists, Mndsgn says, “embodied that potent feeling in the early ‘80s boogie/funk/soul/jazz/fusion wave.” He explains Body Wash as “a soul record that plays with nostalgic elements in a very dynamic & positive way. Think about it as a box of crayons for you to draw emotions with.”
Helen Money – Become Zero CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Cellist Helen Money joins forces with Jason Roeder (Sleep, Neurosis) and Rachel Grimes (Rachel’s) to deliver an album that is incredibly personal, visceral, and delicately ethereal.
The Monochrome Set – Cosmonaut CD/LP+CD (Tapete)
“Cosmonaut is the third new Monochrome Set album since 2012, following on from last year’s Spaces Everywhere, and while it retains the band’s trademark combination of jangling guitars and wryly-worded lyricism, it’s a lighter, less claustrophobic collection than its predecessor, being the sound of several indie veterans enjoying themselves tremendously. After very nearly forty years of bewildering audiences with their musical invention and seemingly endless supply of rhyming couplets, that The Monochrome Set can produce an album as raw, visceral and relentlessly entertaining as Cosmonaut is an impressive feat by any ’70s punk veteran standards. Two parts rock ‘n’ roll excess to one part nonsensical poetics, The Monochrome Set are at least as relevant today as they have ever been.” — Adequacy
Sonny Murray – Sonny’s Time Now [Reissue/1965] CD (Skokiaan)
Sonny Murray’s first album as a leader is one of the holy grails for collectors and aficionados of free avant garde jazz music from the 1960s.
Natural Child – Okey Dokey CD/LP (Natural Child)
New album from the Nashville riff rockers – “’70s-style summer jams.” – Brooklyn Vegan
Willie Nelson – For The Good Times: A Tribute To Ray Price CD/LP (Sony Legacy)
For the Good Times: A Tribute to Ray Price finds Willie paying tribute to one of his most legendary influences and longtime friend, Ray Price. The album debuts Willie’s new interpretations of 12 songs Price made famous, including “Heartaches By The Number,” “Crazy Arms,” “Night Life,” “Faded Love” and “For The Good Times.” It was produced and arranged by longtime Nelson and Price friends/collaborators, Fred Foster and Bergen White. For The Good Times showcases the breadth of Price’s output by featuring Nelson’s unique approach in his tribute. For the more traditional country songs, Nelson and Foster recruited the Grammy Award-winning Western swing outfit The Time Jumpers, featuring such luminaries as guitarist Vince Gill and pedal steel player Paul Franklin.
Carrie Newcomer – The Beautiful Not Yet CD (Available Light)
Newcomer joined forces with producer and banjo virtuoso Jayme Stone (Lomax Project) to create The Beautiful Not Yet. It is a collection of joyous, earthy songs featuring elegantly layered chamber/roots arrangements, Newcomer’s signature warm, intimate vocals and filled with the ache and awe of human longing. “We live in an ever accelerating world where we are not encouraged to stop, reflect or pause the perpetual motion of our lives,” Newcomer remarks. “I’ve always been more intrigued by good questions than easy answers questions like, what do I love beyond words or measure, what sustains and connects us, where do we find help in hard times, how can I be more present in my daily life, and when I stop and pull back the layers of distraction, what is at the very heart of my life?”
New Orleans Suspects – Kaleidoscoped CD (Louisiana Red Hot)
Kaleidoscoped is the fourth New Orleans Suspects album in as many years. “Many of these songs are still groove-based, but now it’s their own groove. The opening “Get It Started” combines bits of James Brown, the Meters and Dirty Dozen into a seamless whole. The song builds to a false ending before Jeff Watkins’ sax takes it to jazzier territory, yet the central riff never lets up. “You Got the Fire” and “Round Up Dem Suspects” respectively throw fresh spins on vintage local R&B and funked-up Indian chants; and you’ve always got to love a band that will write itself a theme song. Frequent touring partners Paul Barrere and Fred Tackett join in for “Dixie Highway,” but the arrangement is more slinky and sax-driven than anything Little Feat would come up with. It sounds like the Feats joining the Suspects, not the Suspects becoming the Feat” – Offbeat. [Vinyl edition due September 30.]
Nox Formulae – The Hidden Paths To Black Ecstasy CD (Dark Decent)
Debut album from the Greek black metal band.
Panopticon – Revisions Of The Past 2xCD (Bindrune Recordings)
Deluxe double-CD set containing reworked versions of two early Panopticon albums.
Patten – Ψ CD/LP (Warp)
The future-facing UK duo returns with their third LP and second for Warp, an album of deconstructed club music with multiple strains of pop, post punk industrial and hi-tech electronics.
Pestifere – Hope Misery Death CD (Bindrune/Eihwaz)
New album from Minneapolis-based black thrash band. “This one includes some high-energy, technically impressive instrumental work, but it’s also home to some darker, more atmospheric passages with acoustic picking and ghostly ambient sounds, as well as furious, thrashing assaults.” — No Clean Singing
Madeleine Peyroux – Secular Hymns CD (Verve)
2016 marks Madeleine Peyrouxs twentieth anniversary as a recording artist with the release of Secular Hymns, a spirited and soulful masterwork of loping, skipping, sassy, feisty and sexy tunes delivered in a captivating mélange of funk, blues and jazz.
P.G. Lost – Versus CD/2xLP (Pelagic)
Fifth album from the long-running Swedish post-rock collective. P.G. Lost is a band of many directions and Versus is a true post-rock masterpiece, an album loaded with great melancholy, heaviness, and catchy musical ideas delivered in an incredible mass of sound. It’s sometimes easy to forget that there are only four people creating these vast orchestral landscapes. Fans of Mono, Explosions In The Sky, Mogwai, Cult Of Luna, EF, Caspian, and Russian Circles pay heed.
Richard Pinhas/Tatsuya Yoshida/Masami Akita – Process And Reality CD (Cuneiform)
Three founding fathers of experimental music join forces to conjure an unholy serenade for a society on the verge of collapse on Process And Reality, an hour-long whirlwind of pessimistic prophecy transformed into a heady monolith of sound. Boundary-stretching guitarist Richard Pinhas, founder of the influential French electronic-rock band Heldon, teams with two icons of the Japanese avant-garde — drummer Tatsuya Yoshida, mastermind of warped-prog legends Ruins, Koenjihyakkei and Korekyojinn, and Masami Akita, aka noise guru Merzbow — to summon a brutally honest, politically potent, sonically tumultuous reflection of the last gasps of the industrial age.
Richard Pinhas/Barry Cleveland featuring Michael Manring/Celso Alberti – Mu (Cuneiform)
“Mu” is often translated as ‘”nothingness,”’ but as the response in Zen’s most famous koan, the gesture speaks to a truth deeper than rational dualistic thinking can obtain therefore also resonating with the creative mindset accompanying the purest forms of musical improvisation. The music created by French guitar iconoclast and electronic music pioneer Richard Pinhas and insistently inventive San Francisco Bay Area guitarist Barry Cleveland on Mu originated in just such a way, arising seemingly from “nothingness.” Unfettered by genre conventions, Mu is a mesmerizing combination of entirely improvised music and Cleveland’s post-production compositional development. The four long pieces unfurl as a confluence of overlapping musical currents informed by art rock, ambient, electronic, avant-garde jazz, and various “world” music inflections.
Preoccupations – Preoccupations CD/LP (Jagjaguwar)
Preoccupations is the band formerly known as Viet Cong. Preoccupations bears the visceral, personal sound of holding onto some steadiness in the midst of changing everything. Frontman Matt Flegel is quick to point out how little mystery is in the titles of these songs: “Anxiety,” “Monotony,” “Degraded,” “Stimulation,” “Fever.” “‘Monotony’ is a dead end job; ‘Anxiety’ is changing as a band,” he says. “‘Memory’ is watching someone lose their mind; ‘Fever’ is comforting someone. It’s all drawing from very specific things.” These things — bigger ones like breakups, smaller ones like simply trying to calm someone down — are ultimately the things that explode our brains, that keep us up at night. And so where their previous album Viet Cong was built in some ways on the abstract cycles of creation and destruction, Preoccupations explores how that sometimes-suffocating, sometimes-revelatory trap affects our lives. It is a singular, bracing collection that proves what’s punishing can also be soothing, everything can change without disrupting your compass. Your best year can be your worst year at the same time. Whatever sends you flying can also help you land. [Limited color vinyl edition also available.]
Tim Presley The WiNK CD/LP/Cassette (Drag City)
The dark force behind White Fence steps into the solo light. “The man inside White Fence’s psych-punk dirigible is shown to be just that — a man, unwashed and yeah, somewhat slightly dazed. Tim’s sharp-hooked tunes, produced by Cate Le Bon in a shattered fashion implying calamitous twists of fate, pull at us addictively, pull us narcotically inward. Dark, compelling listens on repeat!”
P.S. Elliot – 2007-2011 2xCD (Don Giovanni)
P.S. Eliot was a pop punk band formed in 2007 in Birmingham, Alabama by twin sisters Katie (guitars, vocals) and Allison Crutchfield (drums). They released two albums: Introverted Romance In Our Troubled Minds (2009) and Sadie (2011). After the band broke up in 2011, both members pursued their own musical projects — Katie started Waxahatchee and Allison started Swearin’. 2007-2011 collects the complete recorded work of P.S. Eliot as a 50-track double-CD set which also includes unreleased home demos, the impossible to find Living In Squalor EP, and more.
Radionics Radio – An Album of Musical Radionic Thought Frequencies CD (Sub Rosa)
Radionics’s idea that thoughts can be represented as frequencies is vigorously explored on An Album Of Musical Radionic Thought Frequencies through microtonal compositions which range from mutating drones to electronic sambas. With nods to Raymond Scott and Daphne Oram, this album focuses on Delawarr Laboratories’s multi-oscillator and its supposed ability to select clusters of frequencies that embodied thoughts, ailments or concepts.
Royal Canoe – Something Got Lost Between Here And The Orbit CD/LP (Nevado Music)
“Sexy, shiny, and slimy in one colourful package; everything about Something Got Lost Between Here and the Orbit is meticulously tuned and contoured, but somehow, Winnipeg math-pop outfit Royal Canoe have managed to squeeze all of the evidence of their hard work into something fun and goofy. It’s impossible to give Royal Canoe enough credit for what they do, Something is strange, eclectic, and mesmerizing.” — BeatRoute
Bobby Rush – Porcupine Meat CD/2xLP (Rounder)
To Bobby Rush’s many fans, he is an American music icon, a legendary showman, a King Of The Chitlin Circuit, and perhaps one of the most vital living Southern musicians to have started his career on the Chicago blues scene in the 1950s. Not only has he made unforgettable contributions to the blues world but also to funk, soul, and a genre he’s credited as creating: folk-funk. His new release, Porcupine Meat, features all-new compositions that range from the down-and-dirty funk of “I Don t Want Nobody Hanging Around” and the playful double entendre of “Catfish Stew,” to the deep blues of “Got Me Accused” and the slippery R&B of the title track (about the charms of an otherwise malicious lover). Guest guitar soloists include Keb Mo , Joe Bonamassa, and Dave Alvin.
Sat. Nite Duets – Air Guitar CD/LP (Father/Daughter)
“Milwaukee alt rock kingpins Sat Nite Duets are back, and dare I say, better than ever?” — Tiny Mix Tapes. “Idiosyncratic, heartfelt rock music that inspires a devoted cult following” – Stereogum. Sat. Nite Duets is one of the most compelling outre bands in the ultra-diverse Milwaukee new music scene, and they’re on their way to becoming one of the best indie rock bands in the Midwest.” – Impose
Sari Schorr – A Force Of Nature CD (Manhaton)
Hard-driving blues-rock, influenced by the late ‘60s British blues movement. “Sari is definitely the next big blues diva that will sweep through the blues scene.” — Big City Rhythm & Blues Magazine
Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – Savvy Show Stoppers [Reissue/1988] CD/LP (Yep Roc)
Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – Dim The Lights, Chill The Ham [Reissue/1991] CD/LP (Yep Roc)
Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – Sport Fishin’: The Lure Of The Bait, The Luck Of The Hook [Reissue/1993] CD/LP (Yep Roc)
Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet is the seminal Canadian instrumental combo formed in Toronto, in 1984. They released three albums before disbanding in 1996, reconstituting once again in 2013. Yep Roc Records is proud to be re-releasing all three original studio albums on CD and vinyl (in deluxe gatefold sleeves with expanded artwork and liner notes).
Amanda Shires – My Pieces Of Land CD/LP+MP3 (BMG Rights Management)
My Piece Of Land is Amanda’s third record and follows up 2013’s Down Fell The Doves and was primarily written while pregnant with her and husband Jason Isbell’s first child. “Shires is a virtuoso, and anyone who’s seen her front her own band or play in Isbell’s knows she can cultivate musical drama. A few tracks on My Piece Of Land (which was produced by Dave Cobb, who loves nuance and rocking out in equal measure) build to big climaxes: ‘My Love – The Storm’ is the classic Garth Brooks-style stomper its title implies, while ‘You Are My Home’ builds to a grand finale that recalls the mid-1970s sound of Warren Zevon. Amanda Shires can command a spotlight. But My Piece Of Land really shines in subtle gradations, in the natural environment where the voice warbles and catches, and the mind adjusts, opens up and leans toward love.” – NPR
SikTH – Opacities CD/LP+MP3 (Peaceville)
New album from the British prog metal forefathers – the band’s first in ten years.
Silver Apples – Clinging To A Dream CD/2xLP (ChickenCoop Recordings)
Clinging To A Dream is the Silver Apples first album since 1998. It features 11 new songs recorded at the ChickenCoop studios in Fairhope, Alabama. The new songs carry on the band’s tradition begun in 1967 of merging pure, raw electronic sounds with melodic poetic content; it represents 40 years of polishing and refining this experiment. [Limited white and purple splatter color vinyl pressing also available.]
Sin Fang – Spaceland CD/LP+MP3 (Morr Music)
Leaving the rooted flora behind, Sin Fang, project of Sindri Már Sigfússon, glides into uncharted territory with his fourth full-length entitled Spaceland – a collection of electrified tunes that pack a soft punch. It’s his idiosyncratic take on future R&B, one that doesn’t mince matters and features various guests including Jónsi, Sóley, Pascal Pinon’s Jófríður Ákadóttir and Farao.
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith & Suzanne Ciani – FRKWYS Vol. 13: Sunergy CD/LP (RVNG International)
Sunergy brings together synthesists Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and Suzanne Ciani for the thirteenth installment of intergenerational collaboration series FRKWYS. For this edition, a panorama of the Pacific Coast provides the place and headspace for exploratory Buchla synthesizer passages that meditate on a life-giving form vast and volatile with change. [Vinyl version includes a download of album with bonus track.]
Southern Culture On The Skids – The Electric Pinecones CD (Kudzu)
Southern Culture On The Skids’ newest album is the band’s fifth album on their own label, Kudzu Records. The Electric Pinecones is a bit of a departure for the band conceptually and sonically. The inspiration for the record was born in an alter-ego side project from the early years of the band. “The Pinecones was folk-a-hill-a-billy garage band we used to put together just for kicks,” Miller relates. “We loved the sound of ’60s west coast folk rock and psych bands. The Pinecones was our outlet for material that was not in the SCOTS vein. We even opened for ourselves occasionally. The Pinecones set list was the jumping off point for this latest collection of songs.”
Spacemen 3 – Recurring [Reissue/1990] CD (Space Age)
Limited edition reissue of the fourth and final Spacemen 3 studio album. By the time the album was recorded, relations between the band had soured to the extent that the record is essentially in two parts. The first seven tracks were written and performed by Sonic Boom, aka Pete Kember, and the last seven tracks were written and performed by Jason Pierce punctuated by the cover version of Mudhoney’s “When Tomorrow Hits”, the only track on which both Kember and Pierce appear together.
Stilla – Skuggflock CD (Bindrune Recordings)
Skuggflock is the third album from Swedish black metal band Stilla and presents a highly interesting blend of ‘90s black metal with ‘70s-era prog-rock ala Goblin. Members of Stilla also perform in Bergraven, Armagedda, Deranged and Sorgeldom.
Sumerlands – Sumerlands CD/LP (Relapse)
Debut album from the Philadelphia, PA heavy/power metal band.
TesseracT – Polaris/Errai CD (Kscope)
TesseracT –Errai 12”+MP3 (Kscope)
This expanded 2016 edition of TesseracT’s 2015 studio album Polaris includes the Errai EP which is comprised of four re-worked tracks by the band’s longtime live producer and sound engineer Aidan O’Brien. [180gm clear vinyl pressing of Errai also available.]
Touché Amoré – Stage Four CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
“Touche Amore set the standard for modern melodic hardcore. Their new album Stage Four combines furious energy with earnestness, curiosity, and introspection” – Chicago Reader. [Limited white vinyl edition also available.]
Trentemøller – Fixion CD/2xLP+MP3 (In My Room)
The fourth full-length offering from Danish artist Anders Trentemøller. Fixion succeeds in traversing a swathe of influences and unassuming genres — yet all the while holding true to Trentemøller’s unique and sometimes challenging vernacular. From cascading minimalist synth-scapes to driving electro-punk, each track is bound together with a contemplative melodic complexity.
Tricca/McNiff – Southern Star CD/LP (Dell’orso)
Tricca and McNiff, brought together a number of years ago by their mutual appreciation of Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, finally met their plans of one day recording together. The songs on Southern Star feature the pair sharing vocals on each other’s material, three songs written by both Tricca and McNiff, and highlight a yearning for travel and the emotions that are stirred by distant shores.
Uriah Heep – …Very ‘Eavy, Very ‘Umble… [Reissue/1970] 2xCD (Sanctuary)
Uriah Heep – Your Turn To Remember: The Definitive Anthology 1970-1990 2xCD (Sanctuary)
New dboule-disc expanded edition of Uriah Heep’s classic 1970 debut album. Disc One features the original album remastered by renowned engineer Andy Pearce. Disc Two is an “alternative expanded reimagining” of the album, featuring 12 unreleased versions of songs compiled by Robert Corich and Heep’s Mick Box. Your Turn To Remember: The Definitive Anthology 1970-1990 cherry picks tracks from some of Heep’s most celebrated albums including Look At Yourself (1971), Demons And Wizards (1972), The Magician’s Birthday (1972), Return To Fantasy (1975), Conquest (1980), and Equator (1985).
Various Artists – Afterschool Special: The 123s Of Kid Soul CD/2xLP (Numero)
The formula was simple: marry bubblegum and soul to the absolute sincerity of an enthusiastic child, cross your fingers and pray for airplay. But while the youthful sums of that formula may have grown up and walked away from their illusions of stardom, their permanent records remain. With enterprising parents, neighbors, and teachers turning play dates into recording dates, groups like Magical Connection, Little Man And The Inquires, and Five Ounces Of Soul emulated the Jacksons, who’d made grade-school stardom appear easy as ABC. Afterschool Special: The 123s Of Kid Soul contains 19 tiny tunes ranging from a bilingual D.A.R.E. anthem, to James Brown bio, to young love and life beyond the playground.
Various Artists – Black Solidarity Presents: Dance Inna Delamere Avenue CD (Black Solidarity)
During the ’80s dancehall era a number of record producers claimed to be the real authentic sound of downtown Kingston but Ossie Thomas’s Black Solidarity label, operating out of Delamare Avenue in the heart of the ghetto, was the real deal. Features: U Roy, Linval Thompson, Triston Palma, Robert Ffrench, 3t 1f, Little Kirk, Al Campbell, Early B, Jolly Stewart, Lover Boy, Phillip Frazer, Sassafras, Sammy Dread.
Various Artists – Imaginational Anthem VIII – The Private Press CD/2xLP (Tomkins Square)
Tompkins Square label presents the eighth volume of the acclaimed series focusing on acoustic guitar, particularly in the American Primitive vein. Volume VIII, compiled by hardcore record collectors Michael Klausman (former used LP buyer for NYC’s recently shuttered Other Music) and Brooks Rice, features some of the best and most obscure private press guitar records virtually no one has heard. Amidst the obscure entries are bits of rock-star lore; Joe Bethancourt was supposedly given a sitar by an admiring Jimi Hendrix, and Perry Lederman was reportedly responsible for teaching Bob Dylan how to fingerpick. But the true joy of this collection is derived from discovering incredible acoustic guitar performances completely lost to time.
Various Artists – Katanga! Ahbe Casabe: Exotic Blues & Rhythm Vol. 1 & 2 CD (Captain High)
This compilation combines the first two volumes from the Exotic Blues & Rhythm compilation series named Katanga! (2013) and Ahbe Casabe! (2013) with two additional bonus tracks. The set is a colorful garden of delights consisting of R&B and rock ‘n’ roll based songs from the 1940s to the early 1960s that all have this slightly exotic, dark and mystical feeling from the melody structures and instrumentation.
Various Artists – La Torre Volumen Uno CD/2xLP (Hostel La Torre Recordings)
Tucked away on the west coast of the island, Hostel La Torre beckons with its beauty and “vista spectacular,” encompassing the essence of that authentic Balearic spirit, as pioneered by Alfredo Fiorito at Amnesia and José Padilla at Café del Mar in the early ’80s. La Torre Volumen Uno is a celebration and expansion on Balearic music and Ibiza. Features: Finis Africae, Francis Bebey, Ahmed Fakroun, Dominique Dumont, Mark Barrott and more.
Various Artists – Meantime (Redux) CD/2xLP (Magnetic Eye)
15 artists — including Rosetta, F**k The Facts, Ken Mode, Meek Is Murder, and Ironweed — take on Helmet’s classic Meantime album in full (along with additional tracks from Helmet´s catalog).
Various Artists – Nigeria Soul Fever 2xCD/3xLP+MP3 (Soul Jazz)
Soul Jazz Records’ new Nigeria Soul Fever is their first release to explore the vast wealth of Nigerian music recorded in the 1970s. Packed-full with Afro-funk, disco and boogie all from Nigeria, this triple-LP/double-CD set brings together a stunning collection of diverse West African sounds. Whilst a small handful of the artists featured (Joni Haastrup, Tee Mac, Christy Essien) have seen the light of day outside Africa, this is essentially a collection of killer tracks by an array of artists completely unknown outside of Nigeria.
Various Artists [Simon Mills] – Sunset Hours 3 CD (Secret Life Music)
Simon Mills compiles the third installment of the Sunset Hours series, a collection of compilation albums inspired by the breathtaking views from Marini’s On 57 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Features tracks from Larry Heard, Dekoi, Robi Insinna’s alter ego project Manhead, Farbror Resonde Mac and many more.
Vukari – Divination CD (Bindrune/Eihwaz)
“Divination is fury restrained, its force buttery smooth. Through this emerges atmosphere: raw, elegant, moody, sick, and despairing; long, careful passages of doom; pillow-like softness and a dab of hope before the guns again blare. When they do, it’s goosebumps.” — Metal Sucks
The Wedding Present – Going Going CD (Scopitones)
The ninth studio album from UK indie darlings The Wedding Present, tells the story of a road trip across the USA, revealed across a collection of twenty “linked” songs, each with an accompanying short film. Throughout this enchanting album, ambient soundscapes and orchestral pop arrangements jostle for position with layers of feedback-drenched guitars, pummeling drums and a truly massive bass sound as the band plays some of the heaviest material they have ever recorded. The films that accompany each track are a mesmerizing collection of moving photographs. [Vinyl edition due November 18.]
Jenny Whiteley – The Original Jenny Whiteley CD (Black Hen Music)
The songs on The Original Jenny Whiteley range from bluegrass (Whiteley is a founding
member of Toronto’s High Lonesome Wednesdays with her band Heartbreak Hill), jug band
music (through the ‘80s and ‘90s, Jenny and brother Dan were part of Junior Jug Band,
a family band with dad, Chris, and uncle Ken), to old time and early jazz (the soundtrack
to Whiteley’s childhood). Along with vocals and guitar, the songs included here feature jug, banjo, harmonica, fiddle, bones, jaw harp and some unbelievable whistling.
Widow – Carved In Stone CD (Soulfood/Pure Steel)
A mix of traditional American-rooted hard rock and fine old-school metal.
Steven Wilson – Transience CD (Kscope)
Featuring songs recorded between 2002 – 2015, Transience is a personally curated introduction to the more accessible side of Steven Wilson’s (Porcupine Tree) solo output. [Vinyl edition due October 9.]
Woven Hand – Star Treatment CD/2xLP+MP3 (Sargent House/Glitt)
“[Woven Hand’s] David Eugene Edwards has been treading some of the same territory as Cave for a long time now. His music deals in the same darkness, the same obsessiveness. His songs are steeped in the history of American music, of folk and country and blues, and yet they owe as much to some of the clanging, confrontational forms that followed: punk, metal, hardcore, noise-rock. His songs sound like incantations, like prayers bubbling up from below. He’s not Cave, but he’s cut from the same cloth.” — Stereogum
Wrekmeister Harmonies – Light Falls CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
On Light Falls, the core of Wrekmeister, JR Robinson (vocals, guitar) and Esther Shaw (keyboards, piano, violin, vocals), is joined by Godspeed You! Black Emperor musicians Thierry Amar on bass and contrabass; Sophie Trudeau on piano, violin and vocals; and Timothy Herzog on drums. Chicago musicians Ryley Walker and Cooper Crain (Cave, Bitchin Bajas) make guest appearances on the album as well.
Young Guns – Echoes CD/LP (Wind-Up)
Fourth album from UK-based alt rock quartet.
Yuksek – Sweet Addictions CDEP/12” (Partyfine)
Yuksek’s characteristic sound, midway between post-disco, house and pop, shines through on his new EP Sweet Addictions. Airy, but still conveying a touch of hedonism in its most club-friendly sounds.
Frank Zappa – ZAPPAtite: Frank Zappa’s Tastiest Tracks CD (Zappa Records)
Spanning three decades and 18 tracks, this compilation is a sampler platter for the curious and a buffet of favorites for the fans. From “Trouble Every Day” off the 1966 Freak Out! album to 1987’s “Strictly Genteel” featuring the London Symphony Orchestra, Zappatite cooks up a feast of Frank Zappa’s expansive work.
DVDs + Blu-ray:
All Things Must Pass [2015] DVD (Filmrise)
Released earlier this year on Blu-ray – now available on DVD. Established in 1960, Tower Records was once a retail powerhouse with 200 stores, in 30 countries, on five continents. From humble beginnings in a small-town drugstore, Tower Records eventually became the heart and soul of the music world, and a powerful force in the music industry. In 1999, Tower Records made an astounding $1 billion. In 2006, the company filed for bankruptcy. What went wrong? Everyone thinks they know what killed Tower Records: The Internet. But that’s not the story. Directed by Colin Hanks, and featuring music icons like Dave Grohl, Elton John and Bruce Springsteen, All Things Must Pass is a feature documentary film examining this iconic company’s explosive trajectory, tragic demise, and legacy forged by its rebellious founder Russ Solomon.
Toto – Live At Montreux 1991 DVD+CD/Blu-ray+CD (Eagle Rock)
Toto have welcomed many different band members across their long career but in the early ‘90s they had a short period as a four-piece featuring Steve Lukather (guitar & lead vocals), David Paich (keyboards & vocals), Jeff Porcaro (drums & percussion) and Mike Porcaro (bass). The line-up, with some additional touring members, performed this concert at Montreux in July 1991 and would go on to make the Kingdom Of Desire album released in 1992, shortly after the tragic early death of drummer Jeff Porcaro. The Montreux show combines then unreleased tracks from the Kingdom Of Desire album with classic hits and covers of songs by Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone.
Pete Townshend’s Deep End – Face The Face DVD+CD (Eagle Rock Entertainment)
This show was filmed for the famous German TV series Rockpalast at MIDEM in Cannes on January 29th, 1986. Pete Townshend’s Deep End was touring in support of Townshend’s solo concept album White City: A Novel. Several of the musicians that appeared on the album were featured in the line-up of the Deep End including Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour on lead guitar. The set list has tracks from the White City album, other Pete Townshend solo tracks, Who classics, David Gilmour’s song “Blue Light” and a couple of surprises. Pete Townshend and the band deliver an outstanding performance that showcases him as a solo artist as distinct from his work with The Who.
This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:
AlunaGeorge – I Remember LP (Interscope)
I Remember is the second studio album by English electronic music duo AlunaGeorge aka Aluna Francis and George Reid. The album includes collaborations with Popcaan, Zhu, Leikeli47, Dreezy, Flume and Pell. [CD edition due September 23.]
Anicon – Exegeses LP+MP3 (Gilead Media)
New album of powerfully dynamic black metal featuring members of Trenchgrinder, Yellow Eyes, and Krallice.
Dylan Golden Aycock – Church Of Level Track LP (Scissor Tale)
Dylan Golden Aycock’s collaborations are too many to list — from working as producer for Mum, to working within “cosmic Americana” with releases on Tompkins Square, Perservation, Tape Drift, and more. Aycock’s first proper full length is based solely around acoustic 6 and 12 string guitars. Here he seems to fall in line with the likes of William Tyler and James Blackshaw with the blending of American primitive, drone and classical leanings. The melancholic approach is more akin to Nick Drake than John Fahey.
Bassnectar – Unlimited 2xLP (Amorphous)
Released last June on CD – now available on vinyl. Bassnectar’s tenth album includes collaborations with LUZCID, Rye Rye, Zion I, G Jones, Lafa Taylor, LEViTATE, The Glitch Mob, Hayley, Gnar Gnar, Crywolf and more. Limited color vinyl (one blue, one yellow – both with black splatter).
Beasteater – Beasteater LP+MP3 (Big Neck)
Tom Potter from Choke Chains, Dirtbombs, Bantam Rooster and Seger Liberation Army, teams up with Aaron Aducci and Traci Volker from Fatal Figures and The Blowtops. They then kidnapped Nick Lloyd from the Dirtys to create nine ferocious garage songs full of venom, anxiety and eagerness. This is Tom’s third project to come out this year. He is on a rock ‘n’ roll rampage to destroy young minds and bend them to his new cult’s will – the cult of rock. Limited green vinyl.
Black Tar Prophet / Iron Gavel – Iron Gavel / Black Tar Prophet LP (Broken Limbs)
Tennessee’s Black Tar Prophet is coming off its successful full length, Deafen, and Pennsylvania’s Iron Gavel has been slowly fine-tuning its heavy, destructive noise. Perfect timing for a new split LP. Instrumental sludge duo Black Tar Prophet pushes low-end frequencies to the limit, with heavy noise champions Iron Gavel maintaining the balance.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre – Sun Ship 10” (A. Records)
“Sun Ship” brings the traditional Brian Jonestown Massacre sound mixed with eastern influences, bringing it up to date with the benefit of all the additional weirdness that’s been discovered in the past 40 years. The B-side “Playtime” is exclusive to this release.
The Cannanes – A Love Affair With Nature [Reissue/1989] LP+MP3 (Chapter Music)
Picture disc vinyl reissue of the second album by the Australian DIY icons. Includes 13 digital bonus tracks from early singles and unreleased sessions.
CC Dust – CC Dust 12” (K Records)
“Tumbling, stomping, and sashaying her way through the underground, Mary Jane Dunphe of Olympia’s Vexx has earned her reputation as one of the most inspiring frontpeople in American punk. Even in shoddy YouTube clips, her blazing presence, on stage and in basements, will fill your heart. I once read Vexx’s live show described as ‘Merce Cunningham choreographing Iggy at a Stooges gig’ and was struck by a level of intrigue I have not shaken. Clearly Dunphe likes to dance. So it’s no surprise she has manifested that impulse towards pure movement into a searing new synth pop duo called CC Dust. In collaboration with Laurent Dagnicourt, CC Dust’s ‘Never Going To Die’ is a euphoric anthem that breathes through pounding beats, galactic synths, and Dunphe’s gnarled, full-bodied singing.” [Best New Track] — Pitchfork
Cheap Girls – God’s Ex-Wife LP (Asian Man)
Influenced by the Lemonheads, Superchunk, The Old 97’s, Green Day, Superdrag and Samiam, Cheap Girls produce a sound filled with pounding drums, jangly guitars and super sweet vocal melodies that harkens back to a simpler time and place. God’s Ex-Wife is a collection of unreleased tracks, B-sides and compilation appearances. Purple color vinyl.
J Churcher – Borderland State LP+MP3 (PIAS America)
Londoner J Churcher offers up his debut album, an 11-track set enveloped in lush orchestration and countered by ever-wistful vocals.
Chivalrous Amoekons – Fanatic Voyage LP/Cassette (Sea Note)
A work of devotion, conviction and trust, Fanatic Voyage trips through The Mekons’ decades-wide
catalog in search of that elusive freedom born of the weight of the oppressed. With Bonny Billy, Angel Olson and Emmett Kelly gathered round the mic and Ben Boye, Van Campbell and Danny Kiley on rhythm, Chivalrous Amoekons embody the shambolic strength of street knowledge and rock & roll.
Clutch – Full Fathom Five [2008] 2xLP (Weathermaker Music)
A collection of groove-laden live performances compiled from four locations on the band’s 2007/2008 sold-out headlining world tour (Boulder, Sayerville, Pittsburgh and Melbourne). First-time vinyl edition includes bonus tracks.
Albert Collins – Ice Pickin’ [Reissue/1978] LP+MP3 (Alligator)
180gm vinyl reissue. A cousin of the legendary Lightnin’ Hopkins, Collins emerged with a blues sound and style all his own, featuring a combination of icy echo, shattering, ringing, sustained high notes, an ultra-percussive right-hand attack, and an unheard-of minor key guitar tuning (taught to him by his cousin Willow Young). Albert’s greatest success came after he signed with Alligator in 1978 and cut Ice Pickin’. It won the Best Blues Album of the Year Award from the Montreux Jazz Festival, and was nominated for a Grammy.
Communions – Don’t Hold Anything Back b/w Eternity 7” (Fat Possum)
“A gloriously summery piece indie-pop track, ‘Don’t Hold Anything Back’ is a bit of a kaleidoscopic record. Just when you think you’ve sussed where the track is heading it surprises you. It’s an instant indie-hit, just made for the radio or teens to dance to in the mud at a festival.” — Pondmusicblog
Lew Conetta / Jimmy Rogers – You Got Me Crazy b/w What Have I Done 7” (Popcorn)
Moody and malevolent, male vocal popcorn burner from jazzy crooner Lew Conetta. On the flip, is an alternate cut of bluesman Jimmy Rogers’s super low-down “What Have I Done,” a track so similar to “You Got Me Crazy” that it must have provided the inspiration.
The Cranberries – No Need To Argue [Reissue/1994] LP (Plain)
Cranberry color vinyl reissue in gatefold cover with printed inner sleeve that includes the lyrics. First domestic vinyl release. Propelled by the hit song “Zombie” about the Irish conflict, The Cranberries sophomore album No Need To Argue was a worldwide smash and helped make the band one of the biggest of the ‘90s.
Crowhurst – II LP (Broken Limbs)
Crowhurst is an L.A. based black metal group founded in Philadelphia in 2011. Led by Jay Gambit (Drug Ring, Barren), the project started as a noise project whose recurring themes included collaboration (both live and remote) as well as terrifying soundscapes featuring vicious textures and synthesizer beats fused with ambient drone compositions.
The Dear Hunter – Act V: Hymns With The Devin In Confessional 2xLP (Cave & Canary/Equal Vision)
Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. Less than a year after releasing the long-anticipated Act IV: Rebirth In Reprise, The Dear Hunter return with the fifth entry in their six-part concept series. Act V: Hymns With The Devil In Confessional was recorded during the same sessions as Act IV. Both albums feature an orchestral score written by bandleader Casey Crescenzo and prepared by Brian Adam McCune for the Awesöme Orchestra with conductor David Möschler.
Decrepit Birth – …And Time Beings [Reissue/2003] LP (Osmose Productions)
Vinyl reissue of the CA tech/brutal death metal band’s debut album.
Diners – Three LP (Asian Man)
Diners play wide-eyed, lush indie pop with melodies that will make you smile for days. Pressed on color vinyl. Touring October/November 2016 with Andrew Jackson Jihad.
Drudkh/Grift – Betrayed By The Sun/Hägringar 12”+MP3 (Season Of Mist)
Drudkh continue with their ongoing series of split-EPs, this time with acclaimed Swedish one-man project Grift. As he has done through the band’s history to date, Drudkh mastermind Roman Sayenko looks to national poets for inspiration. Lyrical themes are built on the work of Bohdan-Ihor Antonych (1909–1937) in “His Twenty-Fourth Spring”, while “Autumn In Sepia” features passages from Mike Johansen (1895–1937). Musically the split is in the classic Drudkh style, but with an emphasis on the rich detail in their signature melodies. Limited numbered color vinyl.
Dub FX – Thinking Clear 2xLP (Membran)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. A pioneer of live looping, Dub FX builds each track in the moment by beat boxing a heavy groove, layering soulful vocals & warm melodic bass lines.
Ian Dury & The Blockheads – Live At Rockpalast 1978 LP (Let Them Eat Vinyl)
Introducing the ground-breaking performance by Ian Dury & The Blockheads live at Rockpalast 1978, now finally available on vinyl. Rockpalast (Rock Palace) is a German music television show that broadcasts live on German television. The eclectic punk band played many fan favorites including “Sex And Drugs And Rock ‘n’ Roll,” “I’m Partial To Your Abracadabra” and “If I Was With A Woman.”
Entrance – Promises 12”+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Guy Blakeslee has resurrected his pioneering solo project Entrance for a new four-song EP, Promises, in advance of a full-length studio album coming in early 2017. His newest creations add up to a set of rich, cinematic songs featuring expansive orchestration and imaginative storytelling, as unique to himself as they are, at times, evocative of Townes Van Zandt, Scott Walker and Gene Clark.
Eskimeaux – Year Of The Rabbit LP (Double Double Whammy)
Released in April on CD – now available on vinyl. Eskimeaux follows up their critically acclaimed album O.K. with six earnest pop songs teetering between heartbreaking and hopeful. Limited color pressing.
The Exploited – Troops Of Tomorrow [Reissue/1982] LP (Radiation Reissues)
Fresh reissue of the Scottish punk band’s second album.
Extra Medium Pony – Meaninglessness LP (Exitstencil)
Call the genre whatever you want: indie rock, medium-fi, punk or dirty pop. Regardless, Extra Medium Pony is going to give you the feels. With braided themes of isolation, depression, introversion and self-consciousness, the Cleveland-based band circles around songwriter Rick Spitalsky, who solely wrote and recorded Meaninglessness — a 12-track, lyric-driven and perception-bending LP based on observations from Spitalsky’s life, where he spends most of his time making music, hanging out with his two puggles, avoiding reality at the movie theatre and over-analyzing awkward situations.
Fascinating – Dice Game LP (Quality Time)
11-song lo-fi masterpiece by Cleveland’s gutter pop phenomenon Fascinating. Dice Game features short, refined pop songs with dark undertones.
The Fleshtones – The Band Drinks For Free b/w Love My Lover 7″ (Yep Roc)
First single from The Fleshtone’s recent album, The Band Drinks For Free. A-side “The Band Drinks For Free” is a non-album track (go figure).
Nick Fradiani – Hurricane LP (Dot)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. New album from the American Idol Season 14 winner.
Peter Frampton – Acoustic Classics LP (Phenix Phonograph)
Released last February on CD – now available on vinyl. Frampton performs a selection of his favorite Frampton songs from past releases using nothing but his acoustic guitar.
Manuel Göttsching – E2-E4 (35th Anniversary Edition) [Reissue/1981] LP (MG.Art)
Recently reissued on CD – now back in print on vinyl. “As the story is sometimes told, Göttsching stopped in the studio for a couple of hours in 1981 and invented techno. E2-E4 is the most compelling argument that techno came from Germany — more so than any single Kraftwerk album, anyway. The sleeve credits the former Ash Ra Tempel leader with ‘guitar and electronics’, but few could stretch that meager toolkit like Göttsching. Over a heavenly two-chord synth vamp and simple sequenced drum and bass, Göttsching’s played his guitar like a percussion instrument, creating music that defines the word ‘hypnotic’ over the sixty minutes … A key piece in the electronic music puzzle that’s been name-checked, reworked and expanded upon countless times.” — Mark Richardson, Pitchfork
Greylock Mansion – Greylock Mansion [1969] LP (Lysergic Sound Distributors)
A buried treasure of pure underground psychedelia. Greylock Mansion emerged loudly from Tucson, Arizona in 1968. The band’s sound is powerful, deep underground psych with thick, dominant funereal organ and distorted fuzz guitar and effects, backed by heavy precise drumming.
Neil Michael Hagerty & The Howling Hex – Full Moon In Gemini 7” (Drag City)
A multi-section piece in at least one tempo, “Full Moon In Gemini” expands on the direction of the last two years’ worth of Howling Hex records. Side One features a smeared palette alternating chugging and stabbing rhythms, cloudy and steamy harmonics and the main beef of the composition. The flip catches a jam whirling into new phases, shifting gears and opening up.
Hellvetron – Death Scroll Of Seven Hells And It’s Infernal Majesties LP (Hell’s Headbangers)
A black doom ceremony of death spewing from the Mouth of Hell, Hellvetron’s debut full-length ritual emerges through the threshold into a manifestation of obscure Hell Psalms of Death.
Julius Hemphill – Dogon A.D. [Reissue/1972] 2xLP (Int’l Phonograph Inc.)
Considered by many as a true jazz classic, Julius Hemphill’s Dogon A. D is listed by the New York Times as one of the 100 most essential jazz recordings. A fundamental statement of a new era in jazz music, Hemphill’s performance here avoids the loud, instinctual blowing so many other jazz musicians defaulted to in the early ‘70s, and instead provides lean instrumentation, blues, funk, and avant-garde chamber jazz. Long out of print, it has been repressed on 200gm vinyl with the bonus track “Hard Blues.”
Hogg – Solar Phallic Lion 12” (Scapes)
Hogg is a Chicago duo that take influence from early industrial, no wave, noise, and punk music.
Koen Holtkamp – Voice Model LP+MP3 (Umor Rex)
For listeners unaware of Holtkamp’s solo efforts, most will have encountered him as half of the Brooklyn based duo Mountains—a project which has pushed musical boundaries for more than a decade. Voice Model wades effortlessly into this same ambitious territory, but focuses on the breadth of possibility activated by a narrow band of sonorities.
Lightnin’ Hopkins with Sonny Terry – Last Night Blues [Reissue/1961] LP (4 Men With Beards)
Lightnin’ Hopkins – Smokes Like Lightning [Reissue/1963] LP (4 Men With Beards)
Joined by harpist Sonny Terry, Last Night Blues is a stripped down, soulful release with Sonny delivering instinctive accompaniment to Lightnin’s fluid finger picking guitar and gritty vocals. Originally released in 1963 from sessions recorded in 1962, Smokes Like Lightning features Hopkins solo on guitar and vocals except for a full band on three of the tracks. Both vinyl reissues 180gm.
Hour Of Of Penance – The Vile Conception [Reissue/2008] LP (Osmose)
Hour Of Of Penance – Paradogma [Reissue/2012] LP (Osmose)
Vinyl reissues of the Italian tech metal band’s third and fourth albums.
I Hate Myself – Eleven Songs LP (No Idea)
No Idea is pleased to announce the newly remastered, re-cut and one-song-longer version of the (perhaps) classic I Hate Myself album from 1997. Pressed on 150gm black vinyl.
Ishan Sound feat. Rider Shafique – Trojan 2×10” (Peng Sound)
Trojan is an unmistakable Ishan Sound production, in perfect combination with Rider Shafique who steps up in authoritative style, going full charge with lyrical firepower. The “Version” lets the rhythm take full control, for extended dub-wise pressure. The infamous Gorgon Sound remix, sonically pretty much exactly between the sounds of Bandulu and Gorgon, with their extra overdriven low-end and amplified, multiplied kick drum pattern. Dubkasm flips the energetic steppers on its head in favor of an uplifting one-drop beat, giving the vocal and rhythm a brand new space and presence.
Johnny Foreigner – Mono No Aware LP (Acopop!/Lame-O)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. “The British punk band Johnny Foreigner’s songs often seem made up of components of older emo and pop-punk songs, but remembered wrong, reversed and compressed into anxious nodes.” [7.9] – Pitchfork
Joker – XXIV Bit 12” (Kapsize)
Joker continues to plow the hybrid furrow of grime/bass/dubstep with this latest addition to his hyper-color canon.
Kambodsja – Stanger LP (Mas-Kina Recordings)
New album from the Norwegian post-math/prog/hardcore band.
Knife Hits – Eris LP (Dead Tank)
Twelve tracks of wounded and rabid hardcore, evoking turn-of-the-millennium screamo bands like Orchid and Pg. 99.
Krallice – Hyperion 12”+MP3 (Relic)
The Hyperion 12″ EP was written and recorded in 2013 for an intended split release that never materialized. Rather than allowing this material to remain in the shadows, Krallice chose to present the album as its own release. “A succinct, explosive encapsulation of the Brooklyn black metal band’s evolution and progression during the last decade.” — Pitchfork
Anton Szandor Lavey – The Devil Speaks (& Plays) LP (Aberrant)
“Known to the world as the founder of the Church Of Satan and author, among other cult esoteric texts, of the Satanic Bible (1969), Anton Szandor LaVey was also a skilled musician with a taste for weird, creepy and old-timey sounding tunes. Presented in this compilation are six of his best recordings and the first ever recording of a Satanic mass conducted by the very high priest himself in 1968. A compendium of the words and music of one of the most singular and demonized (and rightfully so) characters pop-culture has ever seen. Let yourself go with the suave and eerie sounds of the satanic empire and hail the dark lord!”
The Lee Harvey Oswald – Blastronaut [Reissue/1996] LP+MP3 (Touch & Go)
The Lee Harvey Oswald was a trio from Texas compromised of Zowie Fenderblast, Dredge, and James Meat. Third and last album, Blastronaut, is now available on vinyl for the first time.
Benjamin Francis Leftwich – After The Rain LP+MP3 (Vagrant)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. After The Rain is the follow up to the English singer/songwriter’s critically acclaimed debut 2011 album Last Smoke Before The Snowstorm. Limited edition 180gm green vinyl pressing.
Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam – I Had A Dream That You Were Mine LP (Glassnote)
New collaboration between Hamilton Leithauser (formerly of The Walkmen) and Rostam Batmanglij (formerly of Vampire Weekend). In the spirit of collaborative albums, not unlike those of David Byrne and Brian Eno, each musician’s individuality remains intact while both Hamilton’s identity as a singer and Rostam’s as a producer reach new heights. [CD version due September 23.]
Long Tall Texans – Saturnalia! [Reissue/1989] LP (Let Them Eat Vinyl)
Vinyl reissue of the psycho trio’s third album.
Losoul – Soda Island 12” (Tardis)
Two tracks from the personal archives of Peter Kremeier, aka Losoul, a man who has been rocking dancefloors and enchanting listeners with his abstract and tripped-out take on minimal house for two decades.
Madonna – Something To Remember [1995] LP (WB)
Vinyl edition of Madonna’s second greatest hits collection, originally released in 1995, featuring her biggest ballads. Includes “Take A Bow,” “Crazy For You,” “Live To Tell,” “This Used To Be My Playground” and many more.
Rob Magill – The Owl And The Pussycat LP (Sun Ark)
Magill uses sax drones for the role of The Owl and a flood of spoken word for The Pussycat.
Mayhem – Live In Zeitz LP (Peaceville)
Released officially for the first time in over a quarter of a century since the event, Live In Zeitz features the classic lineup of Euronymous, Dead, Necrobutcher and Hellhammer performing iconic tracks on their now-legendary 1990 tour. [Limited gold color vinyl pressing available.]
Medicine Head – New Bottles Old Medicine [Reissue/1970] LP (Radiation Deluxe Series)
180gm vinyl reissue of the debut from British group Medicine Head. A duo at the time, they had recently been discovered by the legendary John Peel who immediately signed them to his Dandelion record label, following with the release of this album. One of the more enigmatic and inventive groups of the British folk-rock scene, the duo’s leader, John Fiddler would simultaneously sing, play guitar and operate a bass drum and hi-hat cymbal with his foot, while bandmate Peter Hope-Evans would play harmonica, jew’s harp, and various percussion instruments. Creating a sound that was simultaneously ethereal and earthy, and with a voice that touched on the heartbroken vibes of Nick Drake and John Martyn, Medicine Head were truly one of the most brilliant groups of early ’70s UK scene and rarely get the attention they deserve.
PAPA – Kick At The Dust LP+MP3 (Hit City U.S.A.)
“With early singles ‘Put Me To Work’ and ‘If You’re My Girl, Then I’m Your Man,’ SoCal’s own PAPA quickly made it known they were well-versed in all-consuming, arena-ready indie rock. Their 2013 debut record, Tender Madness, proved this notion, and now, they’re looking to up the ante with their follow-up. According to a press release, the LP sees PAPA bringing more anthems, as well as questioning the meaning and value of success in a world where products are oftentimes weighed more heavily than artistry.” – Consequence Of Sound
Paul Perryman / Little Bobby Roach – Work To Be Done b/w Mush 7” (Jukebox Jam Series)
Cracking R&B dancefloor stroller with a strong New Orleans feel to it from Paul Perryman, backed up with Little Bobby Roach’s “Mush,” a top R&B instrumental which sounds tailor made for tassel twirling.
Profanatica – The Curling Flame Of Blasphemy LP (Hell’s Headbangers)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Arguably the band’s crudest and most primitive full-length thus far, The Curling Flame Of Blasphemy bulldozes into being with a crushing, blown-out explosion of sound, setting out Profanatica’s stall and drawing a very firm line in the sand: you either submit to its gloriously hypnotic blasphemy or get trampled under cloven, obsidian hoof.
Psychic TV – Alienist LP (Angry Love Productions)
Alienist is the follow-up to 2014’s Snakes which in part, explored Genesis Breyer P-Orridge’s foray into African Voudoun culture. Alienist in part explores drummer and Psychic TV’s co-producer Edley ODowd’s fascination of Psychic TV’s longtime reinterpretation of contemporary rock classics. This time tackling “Jump Into The Fire” by the late Harry Nilsson as well as Genesis’ teenage favorite “How Does It Feel To Feel” by ’60s British psychedelic rockers The Creation. Original tracks include the haunting yet emotional “Looking For You” — an epic journey in which Genesis lets Lucifer himself know that his “time is over.” A delightful fusion of dance grooves harking back to Psychic TV’s acid house days and the band’s current love of heavy psychedelic rock.
Radio Birdman – Radios Appear [Reissue/1978] LP (4 Men With Beards)
Radios Appear is the debut album from one of most important Australian bands of all time. Though they are often lumped in with the punk-rock sound of their contemporaries in London and New York, they actually owe more to the earlier sounds of Detroit, specifically The Stooges and the MC5. Their debut is a scorching piece of unparalleled snotty rock & roll. Reissued here on red & black swirl color vinyl with a deluxe tip-on jacket and insert.
Ramlord / Sea Of Bones – Sea Of Bones / Ramlord LP (Broken Limbs)
This new collaboration between New Haven’s Sea Of Bones and New Hampshire’s Ramlord guarantees genuine excitement for fans of all that is heavy. The all-consuming darkness of Sea Of Bones partners perfectly with Ramlord’s continued exploration of metal and punk stripped down to its essence.
The Riot Squad – F**k The Torries –Complete Singles Collection 1982-1984 LP (Radiation Reissues)
Riot Squad was a second-wave punk rock band from Mansfield, England, initially active between 1981 and 1984.
Jack Rose – Jack Rose [Reissue/2007] LP (Three Lobed)
Jack Rose – Dr. Ragtime And His Pals [Reissue/2008] LP (Three Lobed)
Jack Rose – I Do Play Rock And Roll [Reissue/2008] LP (Three Lobed)
140gm vinyl reissues in Stoughton tip-on jackets. Part of a collaboration with Jack Rose’s estate and Three Lobed Records to restore all of his LPs to print. [Three additional titles – his early work with VHF/Eclipse Records – due next week, September 23.]
Shakey Jake – Good Times [Reissue/1960] LP (4 Men With Beards)
Good Times is the debut album by Chicago harpist and vocalist Shakey Jake. Recorded in New Jersey by Rudy Van Gelder with Brother Jack McDuff joining on organ and guitarist Bill Jenning rounding out the drummer less trio. 180gm.
Shining – I: Within Deep Dark Chambers [Reissue/2000] LP (Osmose)
Shining – II: Livets Ändhållplats [Reissue/2001] LP (Osmose)
Vinyl reissues of the Swedish extreme/doom/“suicidal” black metal band’s first two albums.
Silkworm – Lifestyle [Reissue/2000] LP (Touch & Go)
Originally released in 2000, Lifestyle is Silkworm’s seventh album (and third for Touch & Go). These songs show Silkworm presenting their clearest and most polished visions. To the beat of Michael Dalquist’s drums, Andy Cohen’s razor-wire guitar and Tim Midgett’s baritone guitar snake around one another like twin brothers with a common soul. And, when the last strains of Lifestyle fall away, there is hope — hope that reasonably well-adjusted adult guys can turn the boredom and disappointment of the everyday into glorious art-rock.
Soundtrack – Scream 1/Scream 2 LP (Varese Sarabande)
The original Scream 1 & 2 scores by Marco Beltrami – available on vinyl for the first time. Limited 180gm “bone white” color pressing.
Spawn Of Possession – Cabinet [Reissue/2003] LP (Osmose)
Vinyl reissue of the death metal band’s debut album.
George Strait – Cold Beer Conversation [2015] LP (MCA Nashville)
Released last year on CD – now available on vinyl. 29th album from the veteran country star.
Sun Ra & His Myth-Science Arkestra – The Lady With The Golden Stockings 10” (Modern Harmonic)
Sun Ra & His Arkestra – Rocket Number Nine 10” (Modern Harmonic)
Limited orange and green vinyl, respectively. “The Lady With The Golden Stockings” is a propulsive, forthright groove – a decisive, deep-space, pre-dawn party jam, emitting golden sparks from the black hole center which begat “Africa” and “Watusa.” Among Sun Ra’s most famous and jet-propelled anthems, “Rocket Number Nine” is heard here in one of the earliest renditions from a marathon June 1960 session, with a staggering, swaggering, hip-bop beat.
Television – Adventure [Reissue/1978] LP (4 Men With Beards)
Television’s second LP Adventure highlights the guitar interplay of Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd. It shows the dreamier side of this groundbreaking band. On gold color vinyl.
The Time Jumpers – Kid Sister 2xLP (Rounder)
Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. New album from the Grammy-winning western swing band. The Time Jumpers lost their 11th member, vocalist Dawn Sears, who passed away Dec. 11, 2014. Diagnosed with lung cancer in February 2012, Sears fought the disease ferociously and championed efforts for lung cancer research. In many ways, Kid Sister is a tribute to the memory of Dawn, with various songs, including the title track, written in her honor.
Turnstyle – Move Thru Me 7” (Pop Wig)
Youth-minded, youth-driven hardcore punk from Columbus, OH.
Steven Tyler – We’re All Somebody From Somewhere 2xLP (Big Machine)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler takes a stab at country music.
Various Artists – Midnite Spares LP (Efficient Space)
On Midnite Spares, Australian music devotees Andras Fox and Instant Peterson hold a candle to overlooked avant-pop and electronic works by antipodean artists and outsiders working through the ’80s and ’90s. Features tracks from Maria Kocic And The MK Sound, Whadya Want? Poets Of The Machine, The Couch, → ↑ → (pronounced “Tch Tch Tch”), The Igniters, Mumbo Jumbo, Mix, Foot And Mouth, and Cameron Allen & Graham Bidstrup (whose soundtrack for petrol headed “ozploitation” film, Midnite Spares (1983) is the compilation’s namesake).
Videodrone – Videodrone LP (FDH)
13 bizarre broadcast signals transmitted from a synth punk station in Bordeaux, France.
Sweet Pea Walker – Sweet Pea 7” (Sweet Pea)
Absolute killer R&B from Sweet Pea Walker, aka singer Paul Clifton, with the eponymous “Sweet Pea”, a crude guitar and harp led groover with a twisting shuffle rhythm which for some reason was never originally issued, meaning that it appears on 45rpm vinyl here for the first time.
Drake White – Spark LP (Dot)
Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Every reaction begins with a catalyst, some initial event that sets things on their inexorable course. For Drake White, it goes back to something raw and elemental in his debut album Spark. “I learned how to play guitar and keep people’s attention around a fire,” explains the Hokes Bluff, Alabama native. “A spark can start a fire that can keep you alive and sustain you. So this is the beginning for me. This is the first strike of the flint.” The first sound on Spark — before the pulse-quickening “Heartbeat” kicks into gear — is the voice of White’s late grandfather speaking from the pulpit. Several of these ghostly transmissions from the past appear on Spark, all extolling the virtues of love, brotherhood and nature. It’s a touch of the surreal that nods at White’s fondness for Pink Floyd’s psychedelic masterpiece The Wall, but also a deeply personal gesture that matches his vision perfectly. With his gospel-derived, passionate delivery, White seems to have inherited his grandfather’s ability to touch crowds with a sermon — his divine vocal improvisations at the end of the honky-tonk flavored “Story” will undoubtedly get butts out of seats. White stresses that he isn’t a preacher, but doesn’t see a problem with putting his own methods for surviving the world out there.
Bobby Womack – Fly Me To The Moon [Reissue/1968] LP (Premium Cool)
Bobby Womack – My Prescription [Reissue/1970] LP (Premium Cool)
Bobby Womack – The Womack “Live” [Reissue/1970] LP (Premium Cool)
180gm vinyl reissues now available. 1968’s Fly Me To The Moon was Womack’s first solo long-player, after a decade of forging a singular path as R&B morphed into soul music, first with the Sam Cooke-sponsored Valentinos, and subsequently as a songwriter and guitarist for the likes of Wilson Pickett. Womack’s sophomore, My Prescription, album may however well be one of the most demonstrative showcases of studio and session crew, incandescent on a finely-honed program of classy and soulful performances, with the singer in full control. In 1970 Womack and manager Ed Wright decided to capitalize on his new-found solo visibility by capturing an in-person performance at a Los Angeles nightclub. The Womack “Live” was the result, a compelling, cathartic session where, as the original liner notes attest, Womack “held church,” agonizing, pleading, exhorting and testifying to a crowd fully in rapture to him.
The Woofers And Tweeters Ensemble – Beatle Barkers [Reissue/1983] LP (Aberrant)
“Attention Beatles fans and lovers of all things canine — Here’s what you’ve all been waiting for, a vinyl rerelease of one of the weirdest artifacts the world’s ever seen. Originally published in 1983 in Australia and New Zealand and long out of print, Beatle Barkers finally answered the vital question: How would the fab four’s biggest hits sound as interpreted by dogs (and an assortment of other beasts)? The answer is right there in the grooves of this magnificent oddity, an animal feast of barking, yapping and howling that would have made the Liverpool wonders proud of mankind’s best friend. Woof, woof!”
Peter Zummo – Dress Code (Don’t Look At My Car) LP (Optimo Music)
Peter Zummo (born 1948) is an American composer and musician. He plays the trombone, valve trombone, euphonium, synthesizer, other electronic instruments, and also sings. He is associated with the post-minimalist and Downtown aesthetics, and he describes his music as “minimalism plus a whole lot more.”
Cassettes:
Alex G – DSU (Run For Cover)
Two years after its initial release on boutique Brooklyn label Orchid Tapes, Alex G’s fourth LP DSU is back in print across all formats. Considered by many to be the record that shone a spotlight onto the longtime lo-fi Bandcamp-favorite, DSU is an indie rock record empowered and enlightened by Alex Giannascoli’s bedroom-pop sensibilities.
Chivalrous Amoekons – Fanatic Voyage (Sea Note)
A work of devotion, conviction and trust, Fanatic Voyage trips through The Mekons’ decades-wide
catalog in search of that elusive freedom born of the weight of the oppressed. With Bonny Billy, Angel Olson and Emmett Kelly gathered round the mic and Ben Boye, Van Campbell and Danny Kiley on rhythm, Chivalrous Amoekons embody the shambolic strength of street knowledge and rock & roll.
Tim Presley The WiNK (Drag City)
“The man inside White Fence’s psych-punk dirigible is shown to be just that — a man,
unwashed and yeah, somewhat slightly dazed. Tim’s sharp-hooked tunes, produced by
Cate Le Bon in a shattered fashion implying calamitous twists of fate, pull at us addictively,
pull us narcotically inward. Dark, compelling listens on repeat!”
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