New Releases
Architecture in Helsinki
We Died, They Remixed
PS, US US version is a limited edition tour-only, digipak CD that
didn't leave the plant in time for their tour. Lucky us and you!
Features EXCLUSIVE remixes of every track from "In Case We Die"
from DAT POLITICS, HOT CHIP, ISAN, QUA,, MOUNTAINS IN THE SKY, JEREMY
DOWER, MOCKY, NEW BUFFALO, SAFETY SCISSORS, and many more.
Bar/None-183
CD
$15.00
Arctic Monkeys
Brianstorm
PS, US This pre-album single serves to prepare you for the coming
onslaught that is the rocking brilliance of their new release, "Favourite
Worst Nightmare". Like some cruel bait-and-switch, this record
opens with a lovely string quartet before a rude intrusion of frantic
drums and squealing guitars send them packing (apparently inspired
by The Jesus Lizard no less). The second track, "Brianstorm"
barrels out of the gate with an itchy energy. "Temptation Greets
You Like Your Naughty Friend" is a taut, suspenseful track featuring
a guest verse from Dizzee Rascal.
DominoRecordingCo.
CD5
$4.75
Army Of Me
Citizen
PS, US Army Of Me was named one of the top unsigned bands in America
by Alternative Press, and the article started a barrage of major label
interest for the Washington, DC-based band. On the surface, their
music could fit snugly into the playlist of any mainstream radio station.
The epic guitars and soaring vocals are more reminiscent of early
Coldplay and U2 than of quirkily trendy indie pop. Below the surface,
however, Army Of Me carries the self-starter scars of one of the hardest
working bands in showbiz.
Doghouse
CD
$12.50
Basic
Splinters of the Cross
PS, US Features the long awaited single "Splinters of the Cross"
w/ vocals
by DAVID J (Bauhaus/Love & Rockets). Originally an iTunes exclusive
release, the EP also features a remix by The FRIENDS OF JESUS SOUNDSYSTEM
& a remix of "C404" by PLASTIC PERVERT. Formed in '99
& soon came to the attention of Bono & The Edge of U2, who
released the band's debut single on their label 'Kitchen Recordings'.
The dark & eclectic music video that accompanied became an MTV
& SKY TV chill out favorite.
ReverbRecords-015
CD
$8.50
Black Tie Revue
Code Fun
PS, US Their hooky keyboard driven power-pop has been drawing ravenous
fans everywhere they play. Often compared to power pop bands likeThe
Only Ones, The Wildhearts & The Records, the band is everything
great about being young, geeky & American: adictively hooky, powerful,
flagrantly irresponsible three-chord pop songs, loud guitars &
new-wave keyboards, & a whole lot of jumping around.
Gearhead-074
CD
$11.50
Blonde Redhead
23
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
4AD
LP
$11.00
Blonde Redhead
23
PS, US As rich and densely layered as their last album, "Misery
Is A Butterfly", but the overall mood of wistfulness, melancholy,
and regret has been replaced by one of mystical wonder and renewed
energy. "It's art music and heart music, with equal appeal to
a Serge Gainsbourg fan as to a Sonic Youth fan, without ever sounding
like either act" - LA Times. "An otherworldly, richly cinematic
adventure" - Q Magazine.
4AD
CD
$13.25
Bloomfield, Mike
Junko Partner
PS, US Undoubtedly one of the greatest musicians of his era. A maestro
of guitar, & an excellent composer & interpreter, he introduced
young & old alike to a world of pure & authentic blues. This
excellent album was released just after his death.
Akarma-376
CD
$15.75
Booji Boy High
Doubleshaw
PS, US A new project from the musical tag team duo, Georgios Panayiotou
& Mother Markzbow of HOT CHIP. Side A "Doubleshaw" is
an anthem of love & disbelief for dear friend of theirs, a party
animal of great intelligence & wit. It JUMPS! Side B "Twist
Myself" again is about legal highs & super hero hulk out
lows. Both sides are pop masterpieces!
DFA
45
$6.00
Book of Knots
S-T
PS, US New York based quartet of Matthias Bossi, Joel Hamilton, Carla
Kihlstedt, & Tony Maimone. Feat. CARLA BOZULICH, MEGAN REILLY,
JON LANGFORD, WATT, TOM WAITS & DAVID THOMAS with no end to the
scraping & swirling guitars, soaring string arrangements, rupturing
bass, & plate-shattering drums. Sure to be one of the most ear-opening
releases of 2007
Anti
CD
$16.00
Book Of Knots, The
S-T
PS, US ALL MUSIC GUIDE: "The Book Of Knots' self-titled metal
opus is a concept album about the sea. But don't expect any prog rock
opera cheese. Book of Knots is a noisy, bludgeoning rock record, full
of feedback, improvisation and bitter currents -- like Mike Watt's
Contemplating the Engine Room played by Queens of the Stone Age. The
tumultuous record ranges from the oddly Björk-ish "Tugboat"
to the psych, hesher rock of "Crumble" and Jon Langford's
downright catchy piece of slithering melancholia "Back on Dry
Land"." It's a demented and expansive narrative that takes
at least multiple listens to make sense of, but the cinematic scope
is apparent from the beginning. While Book of Knots is a bit too difficult
for everyone, those who enjoy digging deeper into the layers of an
epic rock album will be more than satisfied." (Charles Spano)
Arclight
CD
$14.00
Bright Eyes
Cassadaga
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
SaddleCreek-103
DLP
$16.50
Bright Eyes
Cassadaga
PS, US A swirling, euphonious record, at times bursting w/ bombastic
confidence & country swagger & at others loose-limbed &
mesmeric. An album so full of soaring strings & female harmonies
that it feels almost buoyant in comparison to previous releases. Feat.
ANDY LEMASTER (NOW IT'S OVERHEAD), BEN KWELLER, JANET WEISS (EX-SLEATER-KINNEY),
JASON BOESEL (RILO KILEY), JOHN MCENTIRE (TORTOISE), M. WARD, MARIA
TAYLOR & many others! ALL MUSIC GUIDE: "Call him pretentious,
call him sensitive, call him what you will, but there's no denying
the fact that Conor Oberst is a talented and intelligent songwriter.
Actually, it's probably more correct to say that Bright Eyes are a
group of talented and intelligent songwriters, because it's the pedal
steel, the clamorous percussion, the orchestral arrangements, the
thick background vocals that add to the songs in Cassadaga -- the
band's fullest and most developed record to date -- almost as much
as the lead singer's own wobbly voice and sharp lyrics."
SaddleCreek-103
CD
$11.50
Camera Obscura
Tears For Affairs
PS, SPAIN VINYL VERSION!!!
Elefant-253
45
$6.50
Camera Obscura
Tears For Affairs
PS, SPAIN "Tears for affairs" is the fourth song taken as
a single from the highly praised third album by CAMERA OBSCURA. Along
with the title track, the CD-single format includes one new, previously
unreleased track: "The last song", as well as a brand new
video of "Lloyd, I´m ready to be heartbroken", directed
by Victoria Bergsman (THE CONCRETES, TAKEN BY TREES) and filmed by
Blair Young, the man behind most of the band's videos; the clip features
artwork by François Marry, French designer and musician living
in England.
Elefant-368
CD5
$6.75
Cap D
Return of the Renegade
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
AllNatural-050
LP
$7.25
Cap D
Return of the Renegade
PS, US As a Muslim hip-hop artist who truly lives & breathes the
culture, he's in the vein of other Chicago Muslim MCs such as Lupe
Fiasco & Rhymefest, who makes a cameo appearance here. Guest producers
include J.Rawls & Maker & other guest MCs incl. ANIs Iomos
Marad & OneBeLo, another fellow Muslim MC & veteran of the
underground hip-hop circuit
AllNatural-050
CD
$11.50
Casados
T-Shirt Dark Slate-Grey (Sunny Sun Design) (14/16)
PS, US Dark Slate-Grey T-shirt / Fruit Of The Loom / 100% Cotton.
Size: 14/16.
TS
$12.00
Casados
Passages
PS, US Nic Dillon and Heather Dillon are in self-imposed exile. Tossing
aside the respectable nine-to-fives, they've taken to the road on
a Garfunklean journey to look for America. Passages is a documentary
of the beginning of that journey and the people observed: five small
lives of pain and change - the wide-eyed drifter, the penitent divorcee,
the dogmatic slacker. Five lives of quiet desperation, playing out
their bit parts on a grand stage.
Casados-001
CD5
$7.00
Casados
T-Shirt Dark Slate-Grey (Sunny Sun Design) (M)
PS, US Dark Slate-Grey T-shirt / Fruit Of The Loom / 100% Cotton.
Size: Medium.
TS
$12.00
Casados
T-Shirt Dark Slate-Grey (Sunny Sun Design) (L)
PS, US Dark Slate-Grey T-shirt / Fruit Of The Loom / 100% Cotton.
Size: Large.
TS
$12.00
Chinese Stars
Listen To Your Left Brain
PS, US Having honed their chaotic four-on-the-floor post-punk dance
style into an unequivocal signature. Here, the Chinese Stars set in
motion a tsunami of new waves, crafting an atmosphere of propulsive
sonic escapism fueled by noodle-stringed guitar riffs, seat-of-your-pants
lyrics, and hallucinatory synths. This is a fast-forward audio movement,
taking music back to the base pleasures. Razor-sharp, aural pop art:
the overblown are busted.
SkinGraft-086
LP
$14.50
Christ On Parade
Sounds of Nature
PS, US Reissue of the legendary 80's Bay area hardcore band's classic
1985 debut lp, with bonus tracks & a previously unreleased Avenger's
cover.
Neurot-048
CD
$10.00
Clark, Gene
Gene Clark with the Gosdin Brothers [Bonus Tracks]
PS, US The first solo album by an ex-Byrd, Gene Clark doesn't fly
too far from the nest -- Byrds' Chris Hillman and Michael Clarke make
up the rhythm section, while the Gosdin Brothers chime in with sweet
harmony vocals. Add guitarists Glen Campbell, Jerry Cole and future
Byrd Clarence White, and some beautiful orchestration by Leon Russell
to Clark's melancholy melodies and the result is a forward-looking
country-rock primer that sounded like nothing else in '67 and continues
to astound and inspire today. With 3 bonus tracks and liner notes
courtesy Sid Griffin.
Bonus Tracks: The French Girl, Only Colombe, So You Say You Lost Your
Baby (acoustic demo)
Sundazed
CD
$16.25
Client
Heartland
PS, US A sultry electro pop album from a sultry electro pop trio.
Teasing beats, grooving melodies, fishnet hooks, and sweet seducing
vocals. DJs will be hard pressed to find just one dance floor track,
for the whole album is laden with them. From the happy "Drive"
to the bouncy "Lights Go Out" to the rocking "Zerox
Machine", to the 60's go-go-esque "6 In The Morning",
Client have covered all the bases to make sure they aren't thought
of as just another pretty face. They're a diverse band who know how
to rock it.
MetropolisRecords
CD
$14.00
Clorox Girls
J'aime Les Filles
PS, US Third LP from Portland, OR popsters channels the 70's style
LA punk attitude of brevity, urgency & punchy pop hooks. Produced
by Pat Meares (EXPLODING HEARTS).
BYO-113
CD
$13.75
Clorox Girls
J'aime Les Filles
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
BYO-113
LP
$13.75
Cluster
II [re-issue] (ON SALE)
PS, US Krautrock klassic re-issued. This early 70s release from German
electronic pioneers Cluster (Dieter Moebius, Hans-Joachim Roedelius,
and Conrad Schnitzler) prefigures modern ambient music.
Lilith
CD
$18.00
CocoRosie
Adventures of Ghosthorse & Stillborn
PS, US Here the girls continue to experiment w/ their disparate voices
& clashing personalities, juxtaposing devastating ballads w/ exhilarating
tracks. This is a departure from their earlier obscured blur of stained
glass rêve to what they describe as ""a more self-exploitive
memoir."" A lush, orchestral array of sounds & beauty
- A vaudevillian opera, if you will. W/ producer Valgeir Sigur?sson
(Bjorks main studio conspirator since Dancer in the Dark).
TouchandGo-306
CD
$12.50
CocoRosie
Adventures of Ghosthorse & Stillborn
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
TouchandGo-306
LP
$14.25
Collins Beat, Paul
Flying High
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
GetHip-1138
LP
$12.50
Collins Beat, Paul
Flying High
PS, US 1st album in 10 years by the NERVES & the BEAT'S founder!
Great power pop that picks up where his 1979 genre masterpiece left
off, only this time, a bit more paced & reflective. Still catchy,
still great melodies, still a classic.
GetHip-1138
CD
$13.00
Comas, The
Spells
PS, US
Vagrant
CD
$12.25
Cowboy Junkies
At the End of Paths Take
PS, US New album.
Zoe
CD
$17.00
Cub
Betti-Cola
PS, US REMASTERED! This is the album that put Mint Records and Cub
on the map. Available again in this expanded and re-mastered format
which feat. classic artwork by Dan Decarlo of Archie Comics fame.
This compiles songs from early Cub 7""s as well as 15 songs
recorded for the album. An essential release, this topped the Canadian
college charts for 3 months
Mint-002
CD
$14.00
Cub
Come Out Come Out
PS, US REMASTERED! Featuring the songs "New York City" and
"Flaming Red
Bobsled". Itt presented the amazing growth of Cub as a band with
bassist Lisa Marr, guitarist Robynn Iwata & Lisa G on drums &
proved to the fantastic pop creation that made them a mainstay on
the independent music scene.
Mint-005
CD
$14.00
Dead Meadow
Howls from the Hills [re-issue]
PS, US Reissue album of their 2001 album, recorded in a barn in thw
wilds of rural Indiana. At this stage in their carreer their sound
ecompassed everything from ambient guitar drones to blues-folk ballads
to distorted space-rock, to southern slow boogie. Mesmerizingly authentic
70s psychedelic rock!
Xemu
CD
$15.00
Deerhunter
Flourescent Grey EP
PS, US Four new songs recorded while mixing Cryptograms. A snapshot
of what direction the band might explore next? Probably not. This
EP arrives on the heels of a well received sophomore LP, Cryptograms.
EP functions in many ways as an epilogue to both the LP and the accompanying
well-reported anxiety surrounding it's creation. The band now has
a clean slate to explore something entirely new in the future. Four
songs plus video for "Strange Lights". DOA: "The Flourescent
Grey EP basically picks up where the album left off, combining the
droning atmospherics of space-rockers like Loop and Spacemen 3 with
the kind of Martin Hannett style production and drumming of Unknown
Pleasures-era Joy Division."
Kranky
CD5
$7.00
Dolly Varden
Panic Bell (ON SALE)
PS, US Fans of George Harrison, The Volebeats, Fleetwood Mac, Joe
Henry, The Stones and The Shins will find safe harbor here... Chicago's
Dolly Varden marks their triumphant return with The Panic Bell. After
a three-year hiatus marked by solo records, art exhibits, and raising
babies, the record ushers in a new focus for the band. Fronted by
harmony-happy husband and wife duo Steve Dawson and Diane Christiansen,
the songs on The Panic Bell are filled with images of Dawson's struggle
to hold onto his band and his hope in a world numbed by the distortion
and violence of "shock and awe." The Panic Bell brings new
rawness and energy to Dolly Varden's sound, while still maintaining
their melodic strengths and top-notch songwriting. ALL MUSIC GUIDE:
"This band have been compared to artists like Lucinda Williams
and Marshall Crenshaw for their deliberate blend of pop and alt.country.
This is quite apparent on the mid-tempo, pretty and powerful opener
Complete Resistance. Resistance to this particular song would be futile,
as it instantly grows on the listener... It's rare that the words
and music come together so perfectly, but that is the case with much
of this record. Your Last Mistake is a come down that seems to cement
this album's high quality by an equally fine outfit." (Jason
MacNeil) /// HARP MAGAZINE: "The Panic Bell serves notice that
Dolly Varden continues to make pop music that is seductive, transcendent
and peerless."
Undertow
CD
$14.00
DT's
Filthy Habits
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Get Hip-1137
LP
$12.50
DT's
Filthy Habits
PS, US Brand new album from Bellingham, WA brightest, toughest &
finest rock n' roll combo! Feat. the Janis Joplinesque irresistable
sexy growl of Diana Young- Blanchard & the fabulous guitar licks
of ESTRUS headhoncho Dave Crider. Chuck full of killer originals!
Get Hip-1137
CD
$13.00
Dying Californian, The
Coarsegold
PS, US The sound of The Dying Californian is rooted in American tradition,
influenced by country and folk as much as rock. With floating melodies
and complex harmonies, it is difficult to place it into a genre. It
is as much at home in a drunken hootenanny as in a late and lonesome
night. It all just fits. The Dying Californian's third release on
Turn Records is titled Coarsegold. Three years in the making, the
album marks a jumping point in the bands signature style and sound,
refined and redefined. The story of the album starts 3 years ago when
Nathan Dalton, the primary songwriter for The Dying Californian found
himself with a new job that had him traveling throughout California,
staying in a variety of different places, often, for weeks as a time.
On one lengthy trip, Dalton found himself holed up in the small town
of Coarsegold, the geographic center of California. Neither northern
or southern, western or eastern, simply Coarsegold, California - a
town existing somewhere in between. It was here that Dalton found
a new center for his own writing, influenced by the stark contrasts
of California as well as the isolation and inspiration that only come
from being on the road. He began to pen a new record; handheld tape
recorders, lyrics on napkins, music on motel notepads, wherever he
could find to write it down, he would. Coarsegold, the geographic
center of California, the heart, also serves as the pinion for the
record.
Turn-021
CD
$9.75
Eames Era
Heroes & Sheroes
PS, US The bands sophomore record is so brazenly hooky, with songs
that are so totally fleshed out with memorable sing-a-longable instantly
familiar melodies, chugging guitars, ba-bas, harmonies & handclaps,
you could forgive it for what it lacks in innovation. In fact, Heroes
highlights are some of the best chick-pop, and wholeheartedly deserve
to sit amongst your Go-Gos greatest hits CD, Blondies Parallel Lines
& the last Mates of State record too. The first single, "When
You were a Millionaire", is currently featured as the theme song
on MTV's new show, "I'm from Rolling Stone". Also had a
song featured on Grey's Anatomy soundtrack.
MDF-429
CD
$10.00
Earth
Hibernaculum
PS, US NOW ON LP! The audio material consists of 3 classics redone
in a different, stark & clean tone (akin to the "Hex"material)
plus the track "A Plague of Angels" was previously available
on a rare tour only split (w/ sunn 0)))) 12".
SouthernLord
LP
$15.00
El Perro Del Mar
S/T
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
TheControlGroup
LP
$14.00
Elk City
New Believers
PS, US New album from former Hidden Agenda artists, now on Friendly
Fire. For 'New Beleivers' the band would recall the soul of Dusty
Springfield, the power of Patti Smith, the big sound of Phil Spector
and the warped-pop sensibilities of The Breeders on an album that
brought vocalist Renée LoBue to the forefront. his new Elk
City calls upon a wide palette of influences: 1960's psychedelic bands
such as Love, the girl group sounds of classic Motown, 1970's proto-punk
heroes John Cale and Television, and 1980's alternative rock such
as The Smiths and The Pixies. Features guest appearances by Brother
JT and former members of Luna.
FriendlyFire
CD
$15.00
Familjen
Det Snurrar I Min Skalle
PS, SWEDEN The music is joyus. Not to mention, deceptively simple.
Run a three-note arpeggio through a phaser and there's your refrain.
Naturally, there's a bit more to it than that, but the essence of
Familjen's pop/electronica sound is uncomplicated fun. Perhaps the
lyrics tell a completely different story, but hey - I don't speak
Swedish so I don't really care. Familjen makes warm electronica. Sounds
like the Hacienda in springtime, Mylo on downers, Rex the dogs soundsystem
and A guy called geralds dreams. It makes us all fuzzy and fightable
inside.
Hybris-047
CD
$13.50
Flying Burrito Bros
Definitive Collection
PS, US Gram Parsons, Chris Hillman (BYRDS) & the FBBs made country
cool again when everybody else was into big rock sounds. They introduced
the fuzztoned pedal steel and psychedelic nudie suits to a culture
that was about as far from country cool as you could get. And God,
"Hot Burrito No. 1" is one of the best vocal takes ever
put to tape. 25 songs.
Hip-O
CD
$15.00
Flying Luttenbachers
Destroy All Music
PS, US Fully re-mastered, extended edition of FL's landmark 1995 album.
This special edition, which features notorious drummer/multi-instrumentalist
Weasel Walter & renowned jazz saxophonist Ken Vandermark, captures
the band at the height of the internal struggles that would soon dissolve
the quintet line-up. This comprehensive edition includes seven never-before-heard
vintage recordings, all painstakingly re-mastered by bandleader Weasel
Walter.
SkinGraft-085
CD
$14.50
Folkswingers
Raga Rock
PS, UK This heady blend of instrumental pop covers, fuzzed-up guitars
& sitar is a kitsch blast from start to finish. Feat. the cream
of L.A.'s session players alongside sitar virtuoso Harihar Rao (Ravi
Shankar's senior disciple), it was originally released in 66 &
makes its long-overdue CD debut here, showing itself to be the first
& best "sitarsploitation" album ever recorded.
Fallout
CD
$16.25
Fun Years
Life Sized Psychoses
PS, US A duo of turntable & baritone guitar, The Fun Years have
disguised their instruments w/ atmospheric textures comprised of obscure
samples & blissful repetition. The result is a stream of audio
magma, filled w/ dreamy sound washes & subtle phrases that effortlessly
tumble over one another.
BargeRecordings-002
CD
$11.00
Fursaxa
Alone in the Dark Wood
PS, US Recorded half in Pennsylvania, half in Finland, this evokes
pale moonlight & deep shadows, where tree limbs bend to form cathedral
arches over a procession of mystics. Disembodied female voices rise
like sacral fire-smoke amongst the strum of mandolin, balalaika, &
the piper's call of bells & flute- whistle. At some turns mournful
& stark, at others a celebratory invocation, it displays her alchemical
knack for turning folk into lo-fi, & then into sheer psych &
back again.
AllTomorrowsParties-026
CD
$15.50
Fursaxa
Alone in the Dark Wood
PS, US Beautiful new release from Tara Burke (aka Fursaxa) feat. 12
tracks recorded in Philadelphia and Ulvila, Finland (recorded by Sami
Sanpakkila). Also has Tara's cover design & artwork in a nice
12x24 inch foldout insert. Edition of 950 copies.
Eclipse-056
LP
$15.00
Gelfand, Dmitry + Evalina Domnitch + Various Artists
Camera Lucida
PS, US 12k/LINE are very happy to announce their first DVD release
with groundbreaking visual artists Dmitry Gelfand + Evalina Domnitch.
Their visual work is enhanced by a roster of musicians we are very
proud to be working with including Alva Noto, Carter-Tutti (chris
& cosey) and Matmos. Camera Lucida is a highly introspective immersive
spatial art work creating a fleeting ephemeral materiality by intersecting
ultrasound with hyperlight... in essence the creation of a sonic aurora.
Domnitch and Gelfand's piece rejects any possibility to be fixed in
space and time, but rather offers up the very definition of an unstable
work of art, existing entirely for and within the perceptive realm
of the viewer. Stephen Kovats, Director of Transmediale 2008. LINE
is proud to announce the release of its first DVD, Camera Lucida.
The project by Russian/American installation and video artists, Evelina
Domnitch and Dmitry Gelfand and developed in collaboration with scientific
laboratories in Japan, Germany, Russia and Belgium, Camera Lucida
(chamber of light or lucidity) is a 3-dimensional sonic observatory
that directly transforms sound into light by employing a phenomenon
known as sonoluminescence: ultrasound, propagating within a liquid,
triggers the formation and implosion of micro-bubbles that reach temperatures
as high as are found on the Sun, and emit light in the shape of sound
waves. The authors of the installation, Evelina Domnitch and Dmitry
Gelfand, joined forces with multiple sound artists to create the sonochemical
compositions presented on this DVD. This DVD also contains a data
partition with uncompressed high resolution audio files of all the
works. Evelina Domnitch and Dmitry Gelfand create sensory immersion
environments that merge physics, chemistry and computer science with
uncanny philosophical practices. Having dismissed all forms of fixative
and recording media, Domnitch and Gelfand's installations exist as
ever-transforming phenomena offered for observation. Because these
rarely seen manifestations take place directly in front of the observer
without being distorted and flattened onto a screen, they often serve
to vastly extend the observer's sensory envelope. Their works have
been exhibited worldwide, including shows at V2 Institute for Unstable
Media (Rotterdam, Netherlands), Nijo Castle (Kyoto, Japan), Museum
of Dreams (St. Petersburg, Russia), I-20 Gallery (New York, USA),
Die Schachtel (Milan, Italy) and Tesla (Berlin, Germany). TRACKS/CHAPTERS:
TAYLOR DEUPREE + RICHARD CHARTIER specification.sixteen 8:54 ALVA
NOTO sonolumi (for camera lucida) 4:04 EVELINA DOMNITCH + DMITRY GELFAND
xenon wind 9:03 ALEXANDER KALINE analyzing turbulence 3:16 ASMUS TIETCHENS
camera lucida 4:08 *KENNETH KIRSCHNER august 18, 2006 3:10 MATMOS
photisms 6:48 COH not sweet without honey 3:04 CARTER TUTTI the noise
of chance 4:35. Due to the detailed and subtle visual nature of this
work and phenomenon the artists have chosen to use PAL over NTSC encoding
to maintain the maximum resolution possible for the movie and sound
files. This DVD is region free and can be played on any computer DVD
drive. No region switching is necessary For television screen viewing,
it can only playback on a PAL or multi-system DVD player. Playback
in a darkened space with monitor brightness turned up is encouraged.
Line-030
DVD
$20.25
Giant Robot
#47
PS, US Mountain Man (animal planet), Paradorn City (white line fever),
Back to the Future (TaroShoten talks), Invisible Waves (un-deconstructing
art) & tons more about Asian pop culture & beyond!
ZINE
$4.75
Girl Talk
Unstoppable
PS, US
Illegalart-009
CD
$14.50
Golden Bear
To The Farthest Star
PS, US Follow up to impressive debut pushes their sound to places
your ear couldn't have imagined existed. A truly intimate experience
for both the band & the listener, emphasizing Chris Gregory's
songwriting while taking a more collaborative approach than ever before.
" avoids the power pop trap, moving through forests of fuzz w/
wild often makeshift instrumentation...Bear w/ this record & the
fruit shall appear."-Magnet
C-Side-005
CD
$11.00
Goldrush
Heart Is The Only Place
PS, US Goldrush Heart is the Place Better Looking blr026cd 8 .1 9
CD STREET DATE 4/10. EXPORT ONLY!! For this new album, the band worked
with James Rutledge (aka DJ Pedro on Mush Records). Goldrush had previously
worked with the legendary David Fridmann, but Rutledge took a different
approach and encouraged the band to be more sonically adventurous.
BetterLooking-026
CD
$11.25
Grinderman
S-T
PS, US Nick Cave sporting a scary mustache, playing music that is
even leaner and meaner than his "usual" Bad Seeds stuff.
In fact fans of The Birthday Party will be in ecstacy. Pitchfork calls
it "An indulgent study in excess, sure, but the twist is that
at every turn Cave keeps the chaos carefully in check, emphasizing
messiness when need be but also showcasing the deceptively precise
playing of his band as well as his loose and at times gloriously silly
lyrics."
Anti-86861
CD
$14.00
Heyman, Richard X.
Actual Sighs
PS, US ALL MUSIC GUIDE: "Any Average Joe rock dude could reissue
an out-of-print EP they recorded in 1986, and the same sort of guy
could easily add a few bonus tracks to boost the value of the package.
Richard X. Heyman, however, is no Average Joe -- he's perhaps America's
greatest unsung hero of power pop, a songwriter of uncommon talent
and intelligence, and a one-man rock band without peer. So when Heyman
decided to resurrect his long-gone Actual Size EP twenty years after
it first hit the racks, he went for the grand gesture -- Actual Sighs
features the six tunes from that aged 12" in their original sequence,
preceded by fourteen (yes, fourteen) previously unavailable songs,
turning a fleshed-out single into an epic..." (Mark Deming)
TurnUp
CD
$13.50
Hunter, Jana
There's No Home
PS, US second full-length formal release from Jana Hunter. Recorded
over two consecutive weeks in Fall 2006 at a friend's home in Houston,
TX (known locally as "Feagan House"), the album features
Hunter writing, playing and producing throughout. As extroverted as
Hunter's previous release "Blank Unstaring Heirs of Doom"
was introverted, "There's No Home" focuses on community
involvement. While Hunter plays most of the instruments herself, she's
aided and abetted here by her brother John (Inoculist, Dethro Skull),
John Adams (Fatal Flying Guilloteens) and Matt Brownlie (Bring Back
the Guns), among others. Released on Devendra B's Gnomonsong label.
Gnomonsong-006
CD
$13.25
Hunter, Jana
There's No Home
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!
Gnomonsong-006
LP
$14.25
Hynes, Nina
Staros
PS, US Dublin's Hynes sophomore album, released in 2002, was only
available in the US as an Import. It was received extremely well by
Irish an UK critics & audiences. The album was recorded in Studio
Black Box in France & Produced by Nina & ex-Frames member
David Odlum with many musicians including The Frames helping out.
The first single from the album, Mono Prix, was mixed by the legendary
Steve Osborne (Perfecto), whose recent work includes New Order, PJ
Harvey & tracks by Doves, U2 & Placebo, among others.
ReverbRecords
CD
$10.00
Hynes, Nina
Creation
PS, US Originally released in 1999, the Irish artist's debut album
got amazing reviews from all corners. Amazon.com voted it No. 44 in
their 'Top 100 Releases Of The Year'. HITS Magazine called it "The
last amazing find of the year." Ireland's HOT PRESS tipped her
as "One of the country's most exciting new artists." She
also ventured out on several U.S. tours in 2000/2001 w/ Nina's solo
electro-alternative sound capturing new admirers at every turn.
ReverbRecords-001
CD
$10.00
Icicles
Arrivals & Departures
PS, US New Cd from the Icicles!!!
Microindie-
CD
$10.00
Junior Boys
Dead Horse
PS, US This EP gathers a dizzying array of talents from the world
of electronic music to bring a personal touch to the music of Junior
Boys: Carl Craig's contribution is a subtle and brooding epic, Hot
Chip's is a dreamy organic take, Tensnake shifts gears from minimalist
house to four-on-the-floor electric dreams, and Kode 9 offers a deep
space futurist dub, providing a ghostliness that's equal parts Eno
and Fennesz.
DominoRecordingCo.
CD5
$4.75
Kite Operations
Heart Attacks, Back to Back
PS, US A thrashing, beautiful destructive collection of love songs
from the end of the world. Singer JOSEPH KIM'S open-throated belting
is contrasted by co-frontman DAVID YANG'S hushed delivery. As guitarists,
they are both well versed in the vocabulary of noise, trading off
abrasive & delicate passaged w/ ease.
KOA-006
CD
$10.25
Larsen & Friends
Abeceda (CD/DVD)
PS, US This CD/DVD set captures an extremely special evening for Larsen,
one that places them in a perfect visual and musical perspective revealing
more an a little about this enigmatic quartet from Torino Italy. For
one night only Larsen assembled their closest musical friends to play
to a sold out crowd at the Teatro Colosseo in Torino Italy. The purpose
of the performance was to pay tribute to the work of Czech avant garde
designer, typographer, founder of Devestil and cultural radicalist
Karel Teige and his Abeceda - a 1926 collaboration with poet Vitoslav
Nezva which minimalised text down to its basic components establishing
a poetic dialogue between text and images. To Abeceda Larsen brings
their minimalist beauty and melody with this live performance incorporating
music, dance and projections. With Larsen are their close musical
friends David Tibet (Current 93), Baby Dee ( Current 93 member and
acclaimed solo performer), Johann Johannsson (Touch/4AD) The music
swells in gentle pulses of soflty stated melody. Emotion clings to
each note while glistening shimmers of electonics dance quietly in
the mix. The DVD reminds us of what a rich visual experience Abeceda
was and is. As The Wire so perfectly put it in a extensive write up
of the evening, David Tibet's performance "Provides a vital link
between the music and the visuals... At one point he connects beautifully
connects perfectly with the dancer, breathing deeply into the microphone
in time with her movements." Visual projections, created by Bellissimo,
portray a woman in a 20's style bathing suit, much like Teige's original
work, portraying letters of the alphabet which slowly become obscure
by Teige's brilliant typography. Thanks to Larsen's definitive discipline
and their kindred visual and musical collaborators. Abeceda is an
event of great subtlety and complexity. It is truly a gift that this
performance was so perfectly documented in both an audio and visual
format. Where the work of Karel Teige was a tremendous gift for the
eyes, Larsen & Friend's Abeceda is a gift for both the eyes and
the ears. Hats off to Bellissimo, the design team responsible for
Larsen's distinctive packaging, for putting the finishing touches
on a perfect evening and a perfect package. "My dear friends
Fabrizio and Larsen honoured me by asking me to interpret the alphabet
for their project ABECEDA in the light of Nezval's verses for Karel
Teige. Being neither an admirer of dada, surrealism or the avant-garde,
I escaped from them all by taking a train from the seaside town of
Hastings where I live, to London, after kissing my cats goodbye. I
looked at the blurs of sheep, tree, hedge, sea, pond passing me like
living clouds. I looked at each letter of the alphabet, and covered
Nezval's text with my hand. I ordered the letter to tell me what it
looked like. I disbelieved its answer. Letters always lie. So I peered
at the shape of the letter and wrote down my immediate responses.
Important-129
CD/DVD
$14.75
Lesbians On Ecstasy
We Know You Know
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Alien8-069
LP
$11.75
Lesbians On Ecstasy
We Know You Know
PS, US The much anticipated sophomore release delves deeper into some
of the cliches of iconic lesbian music. More melodic than the previous
release with hooks that might remind you of campfire sing alongs at
some mythical womyn's event in the 70's, with several tracks featuring
a chorus backing. A danceable album that is at moments uplifting and
at other moments very dark, but all with a sense of humor and fun
. Their sound bridges the gap between electro/techno with punk rock.
Alien8-069
CD
$11.75
Limbeck
S/T
PS, US Their third full-length is equal parts rock, Americana, pop,
and country. "Limbeck" proves that these four former punk
rockers from Orange County and Milwaukee have finally grown into their
cowboy boots and crafted a disc that everyone from The Bamboozle to
Bonnaroo can appreciate. "This California indie band works a
terrain similar to that of the Old 97's, who helped invent a more
upbeat, carefree alt-country" - Rolling Stone. For fans of The
Format, Wilco, The Replacements, The Beach Boys.
Doghouse
CD
$12.50
Loden
Valeen Hope
PS, US Debut full lenght of melodic electronica from up and coming
Dutch producer. Shoegaze-inspired electronic work with rays of early
90's pop melody and layers of deconstructed beats and oceans of ambient
synth noise.
Mush-251
CD
$10.00
Lovedrug
Everything Starts Where It Ends
PS, US Defining their own unique space between indie pillars (Modest
Mouse, Sunny Day Real Estate) & super-size rock (Smashing Pumpkins,
Nirvana), chief protagonist Michael Shepards otherworldly vocals set
intriguing tales against a massive sonic backdrop. "Somewhere
between 70s-style guitar-rock grandeur & pre-weird Radiohead lives
this inebriated, quasi-hallucinatory tale."-EW
MilitiaGroup-050
CD
$12.50
Machine Go Boom
Music for Parents
PS, US A distorted pop invention that is a frighteningly good mix
of acoustic folk balladry, amphetamine-lit punk & synth fed new
wave. It
has been generally agreed that the city of Cleveland deemed it the
most welcomed musical event. The 3 year wait for a new album is definitely
worth it!
CollectibleEscalators-013
CD
$11.00
Marcus, Joshua
Make/Believe
PS, US Featuring duet compositions for the banjo & upright bass,
these songs are both easy to listen to & hard to forget, as the
subtle melodies deliver potent lyrics in an inviting manner that inspires
the listener to sing along. Marcuss songwriting is powerful &
astonishingly honest, evoking beauty from lifes many juxtapositions.
He has been the subject of considerable praise & has been featured
on NPRs All Songs Considered.
Contraphonic-062
CD
$9.75
Mardie, Montt
Clocks / Pretender (ON SALE)
PS, SWEDEN Montt Mardie has went from bedroom pop dreamer to being
at the forefront of the burgeoning Swedish pop movement. His new record,
the 2 cd set Clocks/Pretender (Hybris) is one of the most eagerly
anticipated releases of the year. Clocks one contains 10 songs recorded
with a string quartet and big band backing up Montt mardié
in full crooner/motown style while disc two is full of duets with
the likes of Hello Saferide, Jens Lekman, Andreas Mattsson and many
more. Montt mardié brand of music wears it influences on the
sleeves but never fails to be unique. Boombastic, danceable and always,
always with the biggest heart. Montt mardié is one of the finest
pop jewels ever found in Sweden.
Hybris-049
DCD
$14.00
Markel, Graig
Via Novella
PS, US Graig layers acoustic & electric guitars, strings, pianos
& organs along shimmering vocal melodies w/help from Modest Mouse
drummer Jeremiah Green, vocalist Jen Wood (POSTAL SERVICE, RACHELS),
& members of TAGGING SATELLITES to create captivating, autobiographical
short stores inside lush, haunting indie rock soundscapes. Produced
by Aaron Prellwitz (SUN KIL MOON).
SonicBoom-024
CD
$12.25
Mezzanine Owls
Slingshot Echoes
PS, US Reference Points: Arcade Fire, Doves, Silversun Pickups, Interpol,
Yo La Tengo, U2, Coldplay, JAMC. Selling Points: SXSW shows, full
radio promotion with AAM, multiple reviews in national print, free
downloads from spin.com. new media campaign with filter. Multiple
US tours. Overview: Spring of 2006 saw Mezzanine Owls travel from
Los Angeles to record with Andy LeMaster (Bright Eyes, Azure Ray,
R.E.M.) in Athens, GA. These sessions produced Slingshot Echoes, a
dreamy, noisy collection of songs featuring dense layers of guitars
and keyboards washing over driving beats. Reviews: "A haunting
Jesus and Mary Chain rattle filtered through an anthemic guitar line
as driven as something from another avian outfit, Doves..." -
Spin "this four piece builds luxuriant canopies of british heart
racers doves and elbow but bearing the intriguing twist of wounded
vocals landing somewhere between dean wareham and mercury rev."
- San Francisco Guardian "the Pixies re-imagined by Lush"
- bullz-eye "soaring pop melodies" - usounds "melodic,
memorable pop music that is, at times, slightly reminiscent of The
Tyde." (5/5) - babysue "Vocalist Jack Burnside recalls a
softer, less dramatic Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes... a quiet stunner
of a debut" - sound as language "These guys remind me a
bit of what Interpol would sound like if they weren't trying to be
Joy Division. It's a sort of shoegazey, downtempo'd post-punk"
- I guess I'm floating "Indie Jayhawks meets shoegazer Ride/Jesus
Mary Chain...your stereo will thank you." - The Tripwire"Also
spent a lot of time with: the driving, layered guitars of Mezzanine
Owls' "Slingshot Echoes..." - LA Times Best of 2006
Pehr-095
CD
$9.00
Murphy, Jeff
Birth of A Band, The Record Deal and The Making of "Present Tense"
US This 8-1/2" x 11", paper back book documents Jeff Murphy's
personal rememberences and photos of how Shoes formed and progressed
in their early years, culminating in the recording of their first
major-label release, "Present Tense" in England. Includes
dozens of color pictures and mementos from the time as well as anecdotes
and "Behind-the-Scenes" details of their progression from
garage band to major-label recording artists.
Black Vinyl
BOOK
$18.75
Murphy, Jeff
Cantilever
PS, US Jeff Murphy, from the parenial band SHOES, ventures out on
his own in this first solo CD. This 11-song collection was self-produced
and engineered at home, in the spirit of the first McCartney album,
Emitt Rhodes early works and Todd Rundgren's "Something/Anything".
Foregoing the use of sequencers, drum machines and the "cut and
paste" mentality that dominates much of today's music. Murphy
plays all of the instruments on "Cantilever" and returns
to the days of real, organic instruments actually played by a human
being instead of being programmed and triggered by a computer. The
end result is a return to the feel and mood of early works by SHOES
with a more stripped-down sound that really allows the melodies and
individual instruments to show through.
BV10101-2 Black Vinyl
CD
$13.50
My Midnight Creeps
Histamin [2007]
PS, NORWAY New album from Norwegian garagerock/psychblues supergroup
featuring guitarists Bobby Cagehill (AKA Robert Burås from Madrugada)
and Alex Kloster-Jensen (Ricochets). Two years in the making 'Histamin'
(Norwegian spelling for the chemical released into the human body's
bloodstream during orgasm) is a result of living under the spell of
the mighty garage demon. My Midnight Creeps' award nominated, self-titled
first album was hinting at it, but now their gloomy universe of dark,
dangerous psychedelic vibrations is laid bare in all its triumphant
wonder. Norway's hardest hitting rock outfit not only delivers the
goods with 'Histamin' - they lift themselves to a new, astonishing
level, even by the bands own high standards. It's hard, heavy and
angry; it's sweet melodies and vulnerable hearts, all driven ever
edgeward by manic guitar riffs, bass from the hall of the mountain
king, and drums straight out of 'Also Sprach Zarathustra'. Murky,
moody, hynotic rock'n'roll. Likened to Union Carbide Productions,
The Stooges, Spacemen 3, The Rolling Stones, The Gun Club, and The
Cramps, with a bluesier take on modern marvels like BRMC and Black
Angels. Totally.
EMI/MMC-002
CD
$13.75
Mystery Jets
Diamonds In The Dark
PS, US The beauty of it thus far: they've been born of paradoxical
simplistic complexities, glorious sing alongs rise out of intriguing
& technically mesmerizing verses. The epic synth-led solo on display
here comprises few notes yet still manages to sound like the whole
world is singing it. Enlisting the help of Brit-pop legend Stephen
Street this debut is fed through the pop-aliser & comes out the
other side polished, accessible & better.
DimMak-106
CD5
$6.25
Noisettes
What's the Time Mr. Wolf
PS, US New album from London hipsters & one of Rolling Stone's
10 Bands to Watch. On tour supporting Bloc Party this spring. Yup.
Univeral
CD
$9.75
Null, KK
Fertile
PS, US Composer, guitarist, singer, mastermind of seminal noise group
Zeni Geva & electronic wizard. In recent years he has concentrated
his efforts on his solo & collaborative recordings, exploring
the outer territories of electronica. His intense clashing waves of
noise, structured electro-acoustic ambience, broken down rhythmics,
scattered pitch sculptures & droning isolationist material could
be described "cosmic noise maximal/minimalism."
Touch-074
CD
$15.50
Old Soul, The
S/T
PS, US
FriendlyFire-007
CD
$12.50
Panthers
The Trick
PS, US Panthers have returned from the sprawling highs of their 2004
LP "Things Are Strange" with a follow-up record so concisely
intense it demands attention from all areas; from jaded riff-rock
devotees to the most indifferent pop listener and everyone in between.
Recorded in 2006 by renowned producer and engineer Steve Revitte (Liars,
Beastie Boys, Black Dice), "The Trick" is the third full-length
offering from this Brooklyn-based quartet and their second on Vice.
Ten tracks of calculated abandon.
Vice
CD
$11.50
Pjusk
Sart
PS, US Sart is the debut full-length cd from Norwegian duo Jostein
Dahl Gjelsvik and Rune Sagevik, collectively known as Pjusk. First
heard on 12k's Blueprints (12k1039) compilation, Pjusk's sound can
be characterized as warm, dark, delicate, and wet. Sart builds a cavernous
scape that listens like a surreal storybook, utilizing a combination
of electronics, dub, rhythm, found sounds such as tape machine noise,
fans, and ski lifts as well as field recordings from around the world.
It is in their inspiration from very human events, such as private
conversations, empty rooms, or smells that gives Pjusk's music a strangely
familiar yet very disconnected and alien mood. They are very interested
in the presence or disappearance of man and mankind's impact on nature,
building on this dichotomy of tension as they create their work. Difficult
to immediately classify, Pjusk carry on the organic and tonal tradition
of 12k's recent output but twist it into darker and more narrative
territory. Sart is a beautifully produced debut that clearly carves
out the artists' own niche in electronic music. Pjusk is a duo from
the westcoast of Norway. Jostein Dahl Gjelsvik started doing electronic
music in the early nineties techno scene and layed live around the
country with the Neural Network band. A dozen releases have since
appeared both solo and in various bands. Most prominently the Circular
project which relased several acclaimed albums on the same label as
the Biosphere work of that era. Rune Andre Sagevik was an early party
promoter way out in the vividly beautiful countryside in the deep
fjords. He started doing electronic music a decade ago. The Pjusk
project began when Jostein many years later heard one of these tracks
on the radio. He liked it so much that he made contact with Rune and
a fruitful, productive collaboration started in 2005. In the two years
that have passed they have released work on compilations and their
debut cd Sart, on 12k in New York.
12K-1042
CD
$12.25
Poem Rocket
Invasion!
PS, US A sumptuous smorgasbord of acoustic and amplified sonic delights,
and their best album ever. An incredibly sophisticated, expansive,
and densely layered double album. "This week's most beautiful
pop record" - Melody Maker. "...a new type of organism...the
songwriting is just too inventive to bog down in matchmaking"
- Alternative Press.
Atavistic
CD
$17.50
Qua
Painting Monsters On Clouds
PS, US An unrepentent, gorgeous & nostalgic mix of sunlit electronics
& guitars, buoyed by complex arrangements. Brings to mind the
playfulness of Mouse on Mars, the sophistication of Ennio Morricone
& the quirky pop of Architecture in Helsinki.
Mush-229
CD
$10.00
Qua
Forgetabout
PS, US Thirteen tracks in a plethora of electronic sub-genres that
mingle elements of world music, folk, rock and more. Cool keys, warm
guitars & found sound recordings are heightend by pristine digital
editing & expert musicianship.
Mush-210
CD
$10.00
Racingpaperplanes
Made of Broken Parts
PS, US The 3rd full-length release from Gothenburg Sweden outfit finds
the band exploring a decidedly Americana feel, more than on previous
efforts that merely flirted Alt-Country. Sweet melodies & dripping
pedal-steel guitar hover around front man Richard Wilson's strong
vocals and rhythm guitar.
Tract-054
CD
$10.00
Rollins, Henry
Talk Is Cheap Vol. 4
PS, US This set documents his 2004 tour. This show happening at San
Jose State in N. California. Disc 2 being the show at the University
of California @ Bakersfield, Oct. 21, 2004.
2.13.61
DCD
$11.00
Rough Bunnies
Weisse Westen, Dreck Am Stecken
PS, US LIMITED TO 200. I once saw an interview with the members of
Nirvana talking about when they toured with Shonen Knife and would
cry every night while they watched their set out of sheer joy and
unrivaled beauty. I didn't think much about it or even try to understand
that feeling until my band played a festival in Sweden last year and
the Rough Bunnies played right before us. Hailing from Malmo, this
duo (with occasional guests) encapsulates a sense of innocence, joy,
confusion and real youth style feelings and communicates them in a
way so honestly it's hard to look away, whether or not you like the
music. All the elements of ameturish-yet-immediate songwriting and
musicianship that go into the songs of the Rough Bunnies could illicit
comparisons to bands that came before with a similar vibe; the Velvet
Underground, Beat Happening, the Vaselines, Moldy Peaches, Shonen
Knife, et al.. but paying attention and really getting to know the
group, you come to understand that they're not just another band that
SOUNDS like those lifechanging, unsung, widely overlooked and underrated
groups, nor are they trying to coyly mimic that feeling. The Rough
Bunnies are the next band on that page of history, a beautiful and
amazing, if dog-eared and tea stained page. This LP is their first,
following three extremely limited CDRs available
only in Sweden.
Yipsilanti-032
LP
$15.00
Saturday Knights
S/T
PS, US LITA's new band sounds like a party where the Beach Boys, Geto
Boys, the Coasters & The Clash all seamlessly perform together.
"The Saturday Knights are a wicked mix of girl group harmonies,
classic rock heaviness & stone cold hustler humor. The songs 'bounce
like a giant booty' & 'rock like a hurricane'"-SF Weekly
LightintheAttic-024
CD5
$6.00
Scotland Yard Gospel Choir, The
In Hospital/Then and Not A Moment Before (Collector's edition - 250
only)
PS, US Collector's edition (250 only) 7" pink colored vinyl &
digital download release. The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir have been
doing it themselves and doing it well for a few self-released, well
received singles and an album. They back it up with an amazing live
show, piling the stage with instruments and guest musicians. This
single is a collaboration between the band and their friends here
at Microindie, longtime fans and supporters of the band. The folks
at AMG list the Smiths, Billy Bragg, Belle and Sebastian and Camera
Obscura in the band bio. The SYGC single is part of a back-to-basics
approach by Microindie Records. Previous to running Microindie, label
owner Mike Babb released many records on the 7" vinyl format
which was a great pleasure. Due to decreasing vinyl demand and increasing
cd demand, the cd format became the first option. With the increase
in quantity and acceptability of digital downloading, Mike has decided
to de-emphasize the cd format and release singles on the beloved 7"
vinyl and digital download formats. There will also be a limited number
of specially designed promotional discs produced for print and online
reviewers
Microindie
45
$3.50
Shaky Hands
S/T
PS, US Debut full-length from Portland jangly-pop wunderkinds. Sliding
bouncy go-go beats under shambling guitars & reedy, swooning vocals,
SH make the kind of catchy, soulful indie rock tailormade for brokedown
car stereos & river-rat boomboxes. Sloppily romantic warmth thats
equal parts summer sunshine & candlelit mellow, pre-party buzz
& scruffy day-after fuzziness. The result is a fully formed and
confident debut; a big-hearted, starry-eyed bear hug of a record full
of youthful energy & tumbling vigor.
HoloceneMusic-005
CD
$15.25
Skyscraper
#24
PS, US Features on NEUROSIS, THE WILLOWZ, GRAHAM COXON, TED LEO, EXPLOSIONS
IN THE SAKY, AN ALBATROSS, HOT CROSS, VIETNAM, JESU, BLACK LIPS, PANDA
BEAR, JOHN WIESE & many others. Plus the usual plethora of articles,
& reviews.
ZINE
$5.50
Smith, Sonny
Fruitvale
PS, US A loose concept record based on his neighborhood in Oakland.
In some songs you get imagery about the neighborhood & in others
a sense of the folk troubadour sound found throughout. There is a
kind of roughed up Paul Simon meets a woozy & now urban Townes
Van Zandt. Guests on the record include LEROY BACH (Wilco), DAVE HILLIARD
(David Byrne), MATHEW LUZ (Azita). He has upcoming tour dates w/ Neko
Case & David Dondero.
BelleSound-003
CD
$12.50
Soft Machine
Third [Remastered/Bonus CD]
PS, US Soft Machine plunged deeper into jazz and contemporary electronic
music on this pivotal release, which incited The Village Voice to
call it a milestone achievement when it was released. The original
vinyl release was a double album of stunning music, with each side
devoted to one composition -- two by Mike Ratledge, and one each by
Hugh Hopper and Robert Wyatt, with substantial help from new bandmember
Elton Dean on saxophones and a number of backup musicians, including
Canterbury mainstay Jimmy Hastings. The Ratledge songs come closest
to jazz fusion, although this is fusion laced with tape loop effects
and hypnotic, repetitive keyboard patterns. Hugh Hopper's "Facelift"
recalls "21st Century Schizoid Man" by King Crimson, although
it's more complex, with several quite dissimilar sections. The pulsing
rhythms, chaotic horn and keyboard sounds, and dark drones on "Facelift"
predate some of what Hopper did as a solo artist later (this song
was actually culled from two live performances in 1970). On his capricious
composition "Moon in June," Robert Wyatt draws on musical
ideas from early 1967 demos done with producer Giorgio Gomelsky. Lyrically,
"Moon in June" is a satirical alternative to the pretension
displayed by a lot of rock writing of the era, and combined with the
Softs' exotic instrumentation, it makes for quite a listen. Not exactly
rock, Third nonetheless pushed the boundaries of rock into areas previously
unexplored, and it managed to do so without sounding self-indulgent.
A better introduction to the group's psychedelic pop side is Vols.
1 & 2, but once introduced, this is the place to go. [The 2007
remastered edition features the original two-disc vinyl set of Third
on one CD plus a bonus live disc of the Softs' "classic quartet"
-- Ratledge, Hopper, Dean, and Wyatt -- performing "Out-Bloody-Rageous,"
"Facelift," and "Esther's Nose Job" live at Royal
Albert Hall in 1970; this live material (also remastered) was previously
issued as the Live at the Proms 1970 CD.] ~ Peter Kurtz, All Music
Guide
Sony / BMG Import SNYB687293.2
DCD
$11.50
Sons
Viracochas
PS, US Former members of Boston shoegaze/drone outfit SUNTAN (Kimchee)
& 3 members of Chapel Hill by way of Arkansas spazz lunatics "A
Problem of Alarming Dimensions."" Deftly combines Swervedriver
style shoegazing, Loop-esque drone, the haphazard psych of the 13th
Floor Elevators & 90's staples Seam & Built to Spill. Charged
guitars & rolling bass lines. Big rock fused w/elements of psych
pop & indie rock quirkiness. RECOMMENDED
FracturedDiscs-009
CD
$9.75
Spiderwebs
Strands Formerly Braided
PS, US Feat. TOM CARTER, SANDY EWEN, MIKE TAMBURO, KEENAN LAWLER &MATTHEW
MCDOWELL
MusicFellowship-015
CD
$14.25
Spiritualaires
Singing Songs of Praise
PS, US The Spiritualaires of Hurtsboro, Alabama are 1 of the very
last still active gospel quartets w/origins in Gospel's Golden Age
of the '50s. Weaving together influences from the blues & country
& western, the Spiritualaires over the years have remained faithful
to their ever distinct yet traditional sound. Drawn from recent studio
recordings & live radio broadcasts, "Singing Songs of Praise"
reveal the Spiritualaires as both a super fine harmony quartet &
a unique blues guitar driven ensemble.
CaseQuarter-103
CD
$12.50
Stafraenn Hakon
Gummi
PS, UK Much-anticipated brand new full length from one of the leading
lights of Iceland's burgeoning alternative music scene, following
2004's "Ventill/Poki" and the accompanying debut UK tour.
Stafraenn Hakon is the pseudonym of Olafur Josephsson, and "Gummi"
is his fourth album release for UK indie Resonant - the first two
effectively being full releases for his bedroom recordings. While
"Ventill/Poki" represented his first material recorded with
a supporting cast - a progression that was very evident in comparison
to his previous output - "Gummi" marks a further giant leap
forward in every respect. Having established himself as a predominantly
instrumental artist, Josephsson will surprise many with the inclusion
of six full vocal tracks among the nine included here - featuring
Birgir Hilmarsson (Blindfold/Ampop) on five tracks and Efterklang's
Casper Clausen on one, alongside other guest musicians and collaborators.
While recognising the need to constantly evolve in order to maintain
and expand upon your audience, the key elements that have always marked
out Stafraenn Hakon from the crowded post-rock platform are still
very much in place; delicate, intricate instrumentation and atmospherics,
building slowly and organically, drawing in the listener. Sure to
be his biggest album to date, "Gummi" is housed in a full
colour CD wallet featuring stunning hand-drawn artwork, and will be
supported by UK tour dates around the release.
Resonant-023
CD
$15.00
Stooges
S-T
PS, US REPRESS! Their 1st LP from 1969 on vinyl.
Sundazed
LP
$17.00
Superdrag
Changin' Tires on the Road to Ruin
PS, US B-sides and live stuff, kick-assedly collected on one CD. When
you play in a band for 10 years, you write a lot. Usually, you only
get a record out every couple of years so you're going to end up with
a fair number of songs that never see the light of day for one reason
or another. Sometimes the version that's issued on record will be
your second or third attempt to get it "right" so your demos
are left behind like pieces of evidence. People sometimes care about
'em, sometimes they don't. You'll wind up with hundreds of live recordings,
mostly of dubious origin. A good percentage of these will be terrible,
others might be great, and some will hold sentimental value because
of the places and times they stand for: good or ill. These are just
some of the things this record is concerned with...
ArenaRock
CD
$15.50
Sur La Mer
Prelude to the Sea
PS, US The brainchild of ATSU NAGAYAMA (Boredoms, Prescriptions),
who wrote & arranged all of the material for this debut EP. Nagayama
enlisted the help of friends Dino, Julie Liu (Rex, Tortoise), Jason
McDermott, Kim Ambriz (Rabbit Rabbit), and Fred Erskine (June of '44,
Hoover) when it came time to record. The results speak for themselves-provocative,
captivating & ambient instrumental bliss.
ThirtyGhosts-004
CD5
$7.75
Ten Speed Racer
Eskimo Beach Boy
PS, US Debut album released in 2000 to critical acclaim. US College
radio immediately took to it & amazing reviews began pouring in.
Comparisons were made to The Stooges, The Dandy Warhols & even
Spiritualized. At the heart of the band are 3 brothers; Dermot, Pat
& John Barrett, w/ 2 other close mates, Terry Cullen & Joe
Chester filling in the musical gaps. "A vivacious mix of sonically
charged guitars, ethereal melodies and intelligent vocals."-Virtually
Alternative
ReverbRecords-005
CD
$10.00
Tiger Saw
Tigers on Fire
PS, US Founded in Hollywood, CA in 1999 by Dylan Metrano, Tiger Saw
is an ever-changing group of friends, whose ranks can vary to form
a quiet duo or a fifteen-person orchestra incorporating piano, cello,
horns, percussion, & a small choir. 4th album sees the collective
expanding their sound to explore basement soul, back porch stompers,
breezy sambas, &bedroom hymns. Feat. guest performances by Jason
Anderson (K RECORDS), Casey Daniel (HUSH), Nat Baldwin (DIRTY PROJECTORS)
and members of UNBUNNY, HOTEL ALEXIS and SUFJAN STEVENS' BAND.
Tract-053
CD
$10.00
Toad
S/T
PS, US Legendary first release by this 1970s power-rock blues band,
considered a must have by fans & collectors alike. Originally
released in 1971, this album (mixed by Martin Birch of Deep Purple
and Iron Maiden fame) showed to the world the talent of three young
musicians.
Akarma-083
CD
$15.75
Torske, Bjorn
Kokt Kveite
PS, US Bjorn Torske delivers another killer 12". This one shows
us more of the soundworld that Torske is in these days. With references
to 23 Skidoo, This Heat, Residents, Idut Boy & Count Ossie and
his unique blend of quirky, avant-garde, dubbed out, psychedelic sounds
Torske creates a whole new genre; the free-disco. This 12" contains
3 tracks "Kokt Kveite" & "Soloppgang Over Yukigaya"
(written by Torske togehter with Cato canari and Ole Andre Farstad)
as well as the bonus "Yukigaya Bonus". 25 minutes of new
music!
SmalltownSupersound-12912
12
$9.25
Under The Radar
#17
PS, US Feist cover plus Bands on their favorite films, ,Jarvis Cocker,
Gruff Rhys, Interpol, Charlotte Gainsburg, Bright Eyes, Klaxons, Yoko
Ono, Deerhunter and much more.
ZINE
$3.75
Unrecognizable Now
In a Cave or a Coma
PS, US Reference Points: múm, lali puna, brian eno, the books,
air, to rococo rot, tristeza, album leaf, boards of canada, fennesz,
matmos, neu, tortoise, do make say think, bjork, aphex twin, dntel,
languis. Overview: Unrecognizable Now is the duo of Marcus Fischer
and Matthew Jones, two young men from North Portland who blend organic
instruments and field recordings into an evolving collage of melodies
and rhythms with their laptops. You may have seen or heard Marcus's
work before: He has designed album covers for various bands on K Records
out of Olympia, Washington; has handled live projections for Hovercraft
(remember Eddie Vedder's ex-wife?); and has styled Adidas products
for the past few years. You also may have seen him drumming in the
Sleater Kinney side-project named Tommy, or one of many other Olympia
bands. Unrecnow's live shows have hypnotized Portland residents with
projected film paintings, layers of real-time xylophone, drums, guitar
sinews, sine waves and glitches. Now you can enjoy this experience
in your home. Enhanced CD also contains an ice-themed video directed
by Rob Tyler. If you read Wire magazine, enjoy going to Cologne, or
if you are a fan of music straddling post and electronic worlds, you
will love in a cave or a coma.
Pehr-032
CD
$9.00
Vapnet
Något Dåligt Nytt Har Hänt
PS, SWEDEN Vapnet doesn't stray too far from the band's effervescent
pop compositions, although it does sound like they've tidied up the
arrangement for their guest Jens Lekman, that features on one of the
tracks. Bells, flute, melodica, guitar, and that show-stealing sax
blow kisses to one another over a percolating beat, goosing the stop/start
melody to that exuberant filigree that leads so joyously into the
chorus. Despite the exuberance of the music, an undercurrent of melancholy
runs through it.
Hybris-048
CD
$9.50
Various
Eye of the Beholder IV
PS, US 18 exclusive tracks by today's best underground bands. RIVULETS,
GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS, HALEY BONAR, PINK NASTY, VIKING MOSES & a
dozen wonderful bands gave up previously unreleased gems to this collections.
Tract-025
CD
$10.00
Various
Bridging the Distance: A Portland, OR. Covers Compilation
PS, US
ArenaRock
CD
$13.50
Veirs, Laura
Saltbreakers
PS, US Listening to Veirs is like looking up into the night sky and
suddenly witnessing a meteor shower: there's something startling and
magical, both intimate and awesome, about her songs. The nature-obsessed
images she conjures up and the mesmerizing sound she creates are as
indelible as the blaze of shooting stars. Her third Nonesuch release
is her most beautifully realized, band-oriented yet. Produced by Tucker
Martine (The Decemberists, Built To Spill), it is by turns haunting,
playful, tender, and fierce, embracing everything from machine-driven
beats to angelic gospel choirs to fuzzed-out guitars, and driving
alt-rock rhythms.
Nonesuch
CD
$14.00
XBXRX
Wars
PS, US Continuing to progress, they expand their musical horizons,
incorporating a wider palette of textures, rhythm & structure
as well as gaining a newfound clarity in the vocals. Never wishing
to repeat themselves, they've made a conscious effort to move beyond
the non-stop blastbeat/screaming assault of previous releases, while
retaining the vigorous exhilaration that people expect from them.
Polyvinyl-129
CD
$12.00
XBXRX
Wars
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Polyvinyl-129
LP
$12.00
Xiu Xiu
Remixed & Covered
PS, US The 1st disc, a batch of covers, is an exercise in sisterly
fan-domand inspired innovation. Feat. LARSON, OXBOW, MARISSA NADLER,
WHY?, DEVENDRA BANHART & others!!! The remix half feat. GOLD CHAINS,
SON, KID606, TO LIVE & SHAVE IN reach your arms into them &
get pulled into their reality for awhile.You might not come back the
same.
5RueChristine
DCD
$14.25
Forthcoming
Releases
A&E
Oi! (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US Artists formerly known as AE. Pleasant ballads drift into daringly
arranged pop songs. A meld of traditional Japanese singing, deft jazz
guitar , gameboy chirping, junkshop keyboards & punk drums. Four
of the tracks are electric interpretations of Japanese folk songs
from the late 19th & early 20th centuries.
Sonig-060
CD
$15.00
Aa
gAame (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US They've been honing their unique, intensely stylized brand
of DIY maximalism in the lofts, clubs & parking lots of NYC since
'02. Like an ADD-afflicted Boredoms or Aphex Twin re-imagined as a
high school marching band, their polyrythmic sound synthesized elements
of hardcore, ambient, pop, crunk, noise, dance, psych & dance
filtered through their distinct, largely self-taught aesthetic.
GiganticMusic-017
CD
$14.50
Acrnym
Flowers (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 29TH)
PS, CANADA Genre: Electronic/Breakcore. Discovered by Bong-Ra for
his Kriss record label, 20 year old Glasgow, Scotland artist Calum
Gunn makes music under the moniker Acrnym, his debut album "Flowers"
is 13 killer tracks tethering spastic rhythms and malfunctioning breaks
with spellbinding melodic instrumentation. "Flowers" shows
off some awesome technical exercises in speedy BPMs with a buzz-storm
of frenetic break episodes and blazing synth lines. Think Venetian
Snares meets Wisp i.e., Amazing breakcore with actual melodies.
Sublight-3401
CD
$12.25
Acute
Arms Around a Stranger (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 1ST)
PS, US LA indie boy trio who place an emphasis on quality songwriting
while playing both energetic hook-filled pop & reflective rock
that ranges from Pavementy though practiced indie rock to Neutral
Milk Hotel chewy goodness. Wonderful, subtle & surprising inflections
of southwestern appeal like pedal steel, horns & tremeloed guitar
sit next to dreamy cello, piano, occasional violin & even some
Andrew Bird-esque whistling. RIYL: Magnetic Fields, Shins, Sea &
Cake, Seam. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Help
CD
$11.00
Alchemist
Rapper's Best Friend (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US One of the most celebrated producers in hip-hop today, he's
been making hot beats for nearly 15 yrs. This is an instrumental CD
comprising 14 finely chiselled jams, which feat. a combination of
previously unreleased beats & recent studio work that he did for
Mobb Deep, Jadakiss, Tony Yayo, Dilated Peoples & more!
Decon-048
CD
$15.75
Alchemist
Rapper's Best Friend (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Decon-048
DLP
$16.75
Alex Delivery
Star Destroyer (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US ALEX DELIVERY have gleefully exposed their myriad gifts and
influences with their debut full-length "Star Destroyer,"
almost two years in the making. On it the New York-based quintet have
demonstrated their penchant for the electro-organic, seamlessly blending
the sharp and gentle, like a chain-gang draped in organza. You can
hear the chattering of insects resonating from the inside of a kettle
drum, and you can imagine this colossal robo-beast wobbling and waltzing
down an abandoned carnival boardwalk. Sylphs soar across strings,
occasionally descending to enjoy some wiggle-worthy poly-rhythms.
These and many more colorful characters have climbed aboard the "Star
Destroyer."
JagJagWar-099
CD
$11.00
Alex Delivery
Star Destroyer (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Jagjaguwar-099
LP
$9.50
Alsace Lorraine
Dark One (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 8TH) (ON SALE)
PS, US Alsace Lorraine is the delicately delicious and unique electronic/guitar
pop creation of seminary professor Paul Francke. We're pleased to
announce that our favorite singer on Earth, Argentinean Singer/Artist
Isol has joined Alsace Lorraine to sing on four of the album's 14
tracks too. Isol sings here in English for the first time! Isol left
her band Entre Rios (Elefant {Spain}/Darla {US}) when the group signed
with EMI Latin America because the deal demanded too much time away
from her profession as an Artist/Illustrator. Caitlin Brice sings
backing vocals on two tracks. Jane Francke (Paul's sister) sings one
track. The sophomore Alsace album Dark One, though not literally very
"Dark", was recorded and mixed by Paul at Paul's home studio
in Chicago. Isol's warm, exotic, sensual vocals were recorded in Isol's
bedroom studio in Buenos Aires. Paul's unique bedroom uber-pop soundtrack
provides the perfect music bed to Isol's vocal. The result is a unique
blend of Astrud Gilberto, Wolfgang Press, Eurythmics, Pale Saints,
St. Etienne, Magnetic Fields, Hope Sandoval, as well as The Wake,
Section 25 and other Factory-esque influences. Hopefully, Paul and
Isol will make more beautiful music together. Alsace Lorraine sounds
romantic; thoughtful, sensuous and smart. Comment from Paul Francke:
I began the album begun during college on the south side of Chicago
and completed it while working in Campbeltown, on the end of the Kintyre
Peninsula, the most remote part of mainland Britain. Between those
points I worked on the record in an Episcopalian seminary dormitory
in Alexandria, Virginia, while training to be a seminary professor.
It couldn't have been done without my brilliant, non-religious friends:
Isol sings four of the best songs on the album, but she also made
important suggestions for changes to the lyrics and music. We share
a lot of beliefs regarding art and beyond, and it has been fascinating
to work with her. Her friend Nico recorded her vocals in a studio
in Buenos Aires. Caitlin Brice, the lead singer from the previous
album, sings excellent backup on two songs here. Joe Moore plays guitar
on one song, and my younger sister Jane sings on one song as well.
Darla-178
CD
$12.25
Amandine
Solace in Sore Hands (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US The sophmore album from Malmo, Sweden is 11 tracks of plaintiv,
bittersweet songs that merge a newly extensive sonic palette w/ their
poignant lyrical content. Though still centered around an Americana/roots
axis, their songs have broadened in both scope & depth in addition
to easy references like Rex & Songs:Ohia/Jason Molina.
FatCat-050
CD
$13.25
Antiguo Automata Mexicano
Kraut Slut (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, MEXICO Angel Sánchez Borges, the man behind AAM (Antiguo
Automata Mexicano) takes techno to the next level with his second
album and first release with Static Discos. Previously AAM released
the infamous Microhate album on Germany's Background label. Inspired
by German kraut and space rock, minimal techno and screwed up digital
antics, AAM's Kraut Slut is the stuff of wicked dance dreams. Angel
Sánchez Borges also records as Seekers Who Are Lovers on the
Soundsister label. In a recent interview on URB Magazine, Borges says
his secret to the AAM sound is his love for "My Bloody Valentine,
a gentle way of dealing with strange layers of sounds. I want people
to dance to these noisy grooves". Pitchformedia recently described
his music in "the glitch/dub/minimal techno vein, with carefully
constructed rips and blips stretched across a wide, white sonic canvas".
StaticDiscos-019
CD
$12.25
Arcade Fire
Neon Bible (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 8TH)
PS, US VINYL VERSION!!!
Merge-285
DLP
$17.50
Arcade Fire
Keep the Car Running (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 8TH)
PS, US Feat. single from Neon Bible. Youve probably heard the song
by now - but its a hook laden affair w/ a driving Joy Division bass
line & drum pattern held together by Win Butlers impassioned vocals!
"Broken Window" is another mini epic building on a minor
key acoustic gutar strum & insistent violin.
Merge-304
45
$5.00
Arctic Monkeys
Favourite Worst Nightmare (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US New full-length.
Domino
CD
$14.50
Asa Irons & Swaan Miller
S/T (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US This record is forever. After listending to it you'll realise
that it doesn't matter that Asa Irons plays in Witch with J Mascis
as well as the acclaimed folk outfit Feathers. This record needs no
associations and it's songs are so timeless that they feel as if they've
been passed around for generations and hardly need any recording medium
at all. This is the first release from Asa Irons and Swann Miller
but it sounds like they've lived within each others voices for a million
years. Asa's deep-breath-voice lays down a mossy hill for Swann's
beautiful voice to tread upon. His guitar work is simply intricate
and his fingerpicking perfectly suits the way their voices combine
to become one. This record always has been and always will be. This
record is forever. "After spending years in New Hampshire and
often Nova Scotia, I began writing songs about my Northeastern window
through which I view the world. Most of the pieces represent strong
fundamentals in my life such as living without comfort resources like
electricity and running water, the building trends of carpentry and
masonry with which I make my living, and the slow paced rural life
in which I grew up. The land of Northeastern North America is very
important to me and compelled me to describe it in the form of music.
Many people in my life were musicians - my father, cousins, friends
- so I had plenty of good examples to pull from and think about. My
style of song writing, I believe, comes from the influence of these
loved ones combined with certain deep-rooted melodies or images from
books that have stuck with me. (Such as sound tracks of old cinema
and authors like Tolstoy and Carolyn Chute.) My older sister's art
work has also had a tremendous effect on the way I see the world.
Many of her primary subjects revolve around various representations
of our own home place and the people who inhabited this and the other
woods houses in which we grew up. One of the people connected to me
through music and lifestyle is Swann Miller. She is the daughter of
a man who was a good friend of my father's. Through the '70's our
fathers built houses together around N.H. and also played a lot of
music. So, I have known Swann my whole life and perhaps it was inevitable
that we made music together. When I reached her house in the winter
of 2003, I had just had my notebook of songs stolen along with other
things. I decided to try to catalogue all I could remember by practicing
them. Swann practiced with me. On a whim, her boyfriend - who works
as a sound engineer - recorded the two of us singing in an abandoned
yellow women's bathroom in the basement of the building where they
lived. It all took about an hour and a half including set up of mics,
recording, and breaking down. I borrowed a twenty year old Guild guitar
from a friend of a friend which was very similar to my father's guitar
that I grew up with. I am so happy to have had the opportunity to
help capture Swann's beautiful voice and continue the music of our
families. The album is a quick glimpse of a world view from Southern
New Hampshire through the voices of two old friends whose fathers
were friends before them." Asa Irons
Important-143
CD
$12.25
Badgerlore
We Are All Hopeful Farmers, We Are All Scared Rabbits (PRE-ORDER:
SALEABLE APRIL 24TH)
PS, US BADGERLORE is the great tribal council of the so-called "Freak
Folk" movement. The supergroup features Rob Fisk (DEERHOOF, 7-YEAR
RABBIT CYCLE) and Ben Chasny (SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE, COMETS ON
FIRE), with Tom Carter (CHARALAMBIDES), Pete Swanson (YELLOW SWANS),
Glen Donaldson (BLITHE SONS, JEWELED ANTLER) and Liz Harris (GROUPER).
Together they proceed with masterful nuance and inexorable tension;
"We Are All Hopeful Farmers, We Are All Scared Rabbits"
is the sound of effigy mounds slowly rousing from prehistoric slumber.
TableoftheElements-114
CD
$12.25
Basement
Illicit Hugs Playground (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 8TH)
PS, US Brit press darlings who live in the soup made from that late
60's wet spot left by Gram & the Flying Burritos, Dylan's albums
w/The Band & Van Morrison's best work. From jangly footstomping
romps to raucous twang & bittersweet laments. "Effortlessly
charming folk-tinged tales."-The Sun.
Zealous-704
CD
$13.75
Beatnik Filmstars
henaniganism (Tape Hiss & Other Imperfections) (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE
MAY 1ST)
PS, UK Beatnik Filmstars return with their eighth full length album,
and this one is really something else. More 'Odd-Pop' sure! The group
recorded a new album ('If We Did That Then...') at the end of last
year, but in typical Beatnik fashion, decided to record another more
Lo-Fi one straight away, in the space of two weeks, despite not having
any songs. So everything you hear on this album was written and recorded
in a two week period in February (the other new Mid-Fi album will
be released later...). As usual everything was self recorded in their
homes, on a variety of recording equipment, from plain old cassette
to 8 Track. No computers were allowed anywhere near the music... Some
journalists will slate the record for it's under-produced sound, but
Beatnik Filmstars hate the over polished sheen on modern pop music.
If this group, nicknamed the 'British GBV' really are the 'British
GBV' then this album must surely be their 'Bee Thousand'. Fans of
eccentric British pop music will love this album. Imagine a Lo-Fi
Kinks, with a hint of The Fall at their most melodic, with Smiths
style humour, and Syd Barrett conducting. Fans of the group's earlier
albums 'Phase 3' and 'In Hospitalable' will love this record. New
fans will be delighted with this collection of songs. This album should
be the soundtrack to your summer. Only you can make it so...The first
500 copies all come with a one of a kind hand made booklet, wrapped
in a printed Tracing Paper sleeve, packaged in a jewel case with a
yellow tray. Some recent quotes about the Beatnik Filmstars: Screwball,
infectious and ablaze with more hooks than a Japanese deep sea fishing
trawler.More deranged episodes than an acid flashback resulting from
a bad trip. Wonky pop with Investing mock Stones and Cockney Rebel
harmonies aplenty, the warming glow of the barbed fuzzy felt like
West Coast fizz pop. Delicious, dinky and distracted, the trip like
laid back kookiness seductively subtly evoking elements of Bacharach.
A spliff smoking day-glo kaleidoscopic tapestry lysergic enhanced
celestial honey crusted waltz nuzzling snow baked gem.
InternationalLo-FiUnderground-004
CD
$14.50
Bergraven
Dödsvisioner (PRE-ORDER: SALEABLE MAY 22ND)
PS, US Bergraven turns the traditional blast-and-flay aesthetic of
"frost bitten grimness" on its ear and comes at you with
sweeping riff dirges, winding cinematic passages, melodic guitar interludes,
tortured-yet-vaguely authoritarian and Germanic vocal overtones and
- get this - ambient pedal steel excursions. All of which is enough
to make your head spin, especially if you're down with weirdness.
"Dodsvisioner" is not your typical black metal experience,
and Bergraven is not your standard Swedish killing machine.
