As you can tell by the lateness of this transmission, the volume of new stock in conjunction with the current date; we’re a bit swamped over here…..
…..pick of the week…..
Advisory Circle: From Out Here (Ghost Box) LP/CD
The Advisory Circle return with a new album and a much darker sound with ‘From Out Here’, the enchanted follow-up to the pastoral ambience of ‘As The Crow Flies’. Masquerading under this guise, Jon Brooks reveals what is quite possibly his strongest work to date; an 18 track suite drifting from brassy cosmic warning signals to ancient-futurist miniatures reminding of the fragile motifs in Actress’ ‘R.I.P.’ album. The common theme is undoubtedly Brooks’ exquisite sound design, uniting a series of individual themes that add up to what Ghost Box describe as “a Wyndham-esque science fiction story, where bucolic English scenery is being manipulated and maybe even artificially generated by bizarre multi-dimensional computer technology”. It’s all super hi-Q nostalgia for a pioneering age, capturing the spirit of intrigue and curiosity in a range of shape-shifting forms, from radiophonic vignettes sounding like Conet Project transmissions thru the joyfully self-explanatory ‘Experiment!’, the stoic development of ‘Discipline Before Data’ or the eldritch synaesthetics of ‘Sine Seeing’. It’s a deeply rewarding listen, begging to be curled up with on short winter days on long nights.
File Under: Electronic, Pseudo-Library, Ghost Box
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……new arrivals…..
49th Parallel: Singles (Lion) LP
All of 49th Parallel’s singles and b-sides + rare alternates, on vinyl for the first time since their initial pressings back in 1966-68! The band’s first single, ‘All Your Love’, was recorded in 1966 as the Shades of Blond; it was previously only available on a staggeringly rare EP featuring Calgary bands. Their debut as 49th Parallel came with ‘Laborer’/’You Do Things’ in mid 1967, followed by ‘She Says’ b/w ‘Citizen Freak in early 1968: four hard-edged garage punk tracks—tough, and thick with fuzz guitar and a defiant sneer. The next single, ‘Blue Bonnie Blue’ b/w ’Missouri’ appeared in late spring of 1968. In the spring of 1969, the beautiful ‘Twilight Woman’ b/w ‘Close the Barn Door’ zoomed up the charts across Canada and parts of the USA. Both ‘Twilight Woman’ and the hit follow-up, ‘Now That I’m A Man’ b/w (Come On Little Child &) Talk To Me are melodic pop/psych of the purest and finest kind. One more post-LP single and a couple of rare tracks round out the story. Fifteen tracks all told on this, the ultimate 49th Parallel vinyl collection.
File Under: Psych, Garage, CanCon
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Arcesia: Reachin’ Arcesia (Guerssen) LP
A classic since year zero of rare record collecting, Reachin’ Arcesia has always been the focus of many rumors and bizarre stories. Guerssen sets the record straight with this, the first ever legitimate reissue of this legendary album. John Arcesi was a veteran singer of the big band era who, in the early ’70s, recorded a pop album with help from an anonymous hip studio musicians. The album was released in a private edition of 300 copies and most of them were given away to family and friends. In the late ’80s, one of those copies was unearthed by record dealer Paul Major, who was one of the first people to appreciate the singularity of Reachin’ Arcesia. Since then, the album, which mixes over-the-top crooner vocals with late ’60s acid-rock and pop arrangements, has developed a reputation as a lounge-psych/real people masterpiece. Remastered and presented in a gatefold sleeve with the original artwork on the back and a new cover design on the front. Includes insert with lyrics. Features detailed liner notes and rare photos in the inner gatefold, telling the real story of John Arcesi.
File Under: Psych, Private Press, Lounge
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Blind Shake: Breakfast of Failures (Goner) LP
Minneapolis three-piece The Blind Shake crafts dense, massive locomotive music—powerful sounds with the ability to careen through one cinematic, post-apocalyptic chase scene after another. The band’s latest album Breakfast of Failures comes clanging and crashing through these confused times. Fronted by brothers Jim and Mike Blaha along with friend Dave Roper on drums, the trio was tunneling through the underground since before telephones could talk. With six full-length albums to their credit, several singles, three collaborations with psych legend Michael Yonkers and another with downstroke warrior John Reis, The Blind Shake continues to push the sliding scale between catchy punk songs and pitch-red noise. “The Blind Shake is at once spacey, primitive futuristic, and brutal: a kind of backyard extraterrestrial minimal surf-punk party. One guitar, one baritone guitar, a fuckload of reverb, and a drummer who deserves an Olympic medal.” —SF Weekly.
File Under: Punk, Surf
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Bo Ningen & Savages: Words To The Blind (Pop Noire) LP
London-based post-punks Savages and Japanese psych outfit Bo Ningen release their collaborative record, Words to the Blind, via Stolen Recordings/Pop Noire. Words to the Blind was conceived after Savages saw Bo Ningen play a show while they were recording their excellent debut, Silence Yourself. From there, the two groups hit the studio together, drawing inspiration from Zurich’s Cabaret Voltaire, a club created in 1916 where “artists would experiment with forms of sound poetry and simultaneous poetry.” The result of their collaboration is one sprawling, 37-minute track. Billed as a “loose composition based around five chapters,” it features a half-improvised noisy jam with lyrics sung in English by Savages’ frontwoman Jehnny Beth and in Japanese by Bo Ningen’s Taigen Kawabe. While the song does take a while to truly ignite, it’s a freewheeling, aggressive, and compelling piece that shows two bands gelling into one unit.
File Under: Psych, Post Punk
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Glenn Branca: The Ascension (Superior Viaduct) LP
Glenn Branca’s first full-length album The Ascension is a colossal achievement. After touring much of 1980 with an all-star band featuring four guitarists (Branca, fellow composers Ned Sublette and David Rosenbloom, and future Sonic Youth member Lee Ranaldo) along with Jeffrey Glenn on bass and Stephan Wischerth on drums, Branca took his war-torn group into a studio in Hell’s Kitchen to record five incendiary compositions. Originally released in the summer of 1981, The Ascension effectively tears down the genre-ghettos between 20th century avant-garde and ecstatic rock ’n’ roll. On “The Spectacular Commodity,” chiming, shimmering tones unfold into sinister drone-territory à la Tony Conrad, while abrasive guitars and repetitive beats retain the raw primitivism of No Wave. The title track attains a densely packed, larger-than-life sound and (as author Marc Masters says best) “never stops climbing skyward.” With artist Robert Longo’s stark front cover that depicts Branca battling an unidentified man, The Ascension is a must-have record not only for fans of early Swans and Sonic Youth, but also of Steve Reich or Slint’s Tweez.
File Under: Minimalism, Drone, Avant-Garde, No Wave
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Harold Budd & Eraldo Benocchi : Music For Fragments From The Inside (Sub Rosa) LP
A “classic” from the Sub Rosa catalog, never released on vinyl before. An astonishing piano-player drifts on beats and soundscapes. Recorded during a magical night in the courtyard of a Siena Renaissance Italian Palazzio where the lightness of Harold Budd meets Eraldo Bernocchi’s deep electronics. Beats and bass, drones and soundscapes tie together harmonically to meet one of the most emotionally-involving piano players/composers.
File Under: Piano, Ambient
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Captain Beefheart: Live 66-67 (Keyhole) LP
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band are firmly established as one of the most imaginative acts to have emerged from late-’60s America. The historically vital recordings preserved on this set — a live set captured from Avalon Ballroom in 1966 and a radio station set from 1967 — capture Beefheart and his musicians as they emerge from their blues-based beginnings and begin to evolve into something far stranger. The set is accompanied by background notes and rare images. Features two tracks not previously available on the CD version.
File Under: Blues, Psych
Cybotron: s/t (Dual Planet) LP
Part Man Part Machine, Cybotron was the synthesis of progressive rock and electronic music experimentation. Conceived by pioneers of the Australian electronic underground, Steve Maxwell Von Braund and keyboardist Geoff Green, together they produced a series of mind-altering cosmic albums throughout the 1970s which set the tone for the Minimal wave and electronic post punk scene of early 1980s Melbourne.Part Tangerine Dream, part Ash Ra Tempel, Cybotron channelled the spirit of Krautrock to create their own unique brand of throbbing Komische electronica rivalling the futuristic vision of their German counterparts.Dual Planet present the long awaited reissue of this landmark Australian recording. Issued as an exact replica of the rare 1976 Clear Light Of Jupiter LP.
File Under: Electronic, Prog, Kosmische
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Dada Plan: A Dada Plan is Free: s/t (Kingfisher Bluez) LP
“Dada Plan emerge from the picturesque Great Bear Rainforest in Vancouver with their blend of trip hop, orchestral noise polluted, synth storm rock.”—Creem Magazine. “A Dada Plan Is Free sounds like ’80s outsider pop, with retro drum-machine programming and synth sounds from [Matt] Krysko’s Roland Juno-60, but it’s no pale homage. There is a deeper meaning at work here, a haunting, dystopian tinge to its chill metropolitan grooves inspired by Brian Eno and Robert Wyatt.”—The Georgia Straight. Recorded to tape by Josh Wells (Black Mountain, Lightning Dust). Limited to 250 copies on black vinyl.
File Under: Rock, Psych, CanCon
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Death In June: The Corn Years (Pylon) 2LP
This vinyl issue marks the 25th Anniversary of the first CD-only release by Death In June, originally released in 1989. All tracks recorded 1985-1987. This release has never been available on vinyl before. The double LP comes in a foil blocked gatefold sleeve with 2 fold out posters. Limited to 700 copies on grey vinyl for retail.
File Under: Goth, Industrial
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Death In June: The Wall of Sacrifice (Pylon) LP
This vinyl issue marks the 25th Anniversary of the original release. All tracks originally recorded in 1988-1989. The album features 3 different unreleased versions of songs from this album which were recorded in 2005/2006 – ‘Giddy Giddy Carousel’, ‘Fall Apart’ and ‘Hullo Angel’. The double LP comes in a foil blocked gatefold sleeve with an insert and spot varnishing of the Totenkopf 6 on the front and back of the jacket. Limited to 700 copies on orange/yellow vinyl for retail. All artwork for this release has been reinvented and all recordings. Digitally re-mastered.
File Under: Goth, Industrial
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Destroy All Monsters: Hot Box (Munster) 3LP Box
Destroy All Monsters are known by some for their role as a bastion of resistance of Detroit’s rock; for being, during their second period, the band in which Ron Asheton would reappear. For others, they are a pivotal reference point in the copious but relatively unknown avant-garde underground from the same city, after Thurston Moore and Byron Coley dug up their first recordings in 1996 and the original line-up reunited. Destroy All Monsters comprises two complementary and interconnected poles throughout the saga of the Motor City’s music scene, from the University of Michigan’s Cooperative Studio for Electronic Music to The Stooges, through to the White Panther Party. In its two incarnations, the experimental — led by Cary Loren, Jim Shaw and Mike Kelley — and the high energy one — with Asheton and Michael Davis from MC5, both featuring the phantasmagorical Niagara in the role of doped-up priestess, Destroy All Monsters are the object of one of the most devotional cults of America’s cultural underground, as testified by their abundant artistic and record production. Hot Box 1974-1994 is the first anthology to bring together the best outcome of those two hemispheres, including much unreleased material. Includes a generously-illustrated booklet featuring photos and artwork never seen before. All tracks have been remastered from recently discovered tapes.
File Under: Punk, Garage, Experimental
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Werner Durand: Hemispheres (Blume) LP
Going back to his early musical inspirations in the early ’70s, Werner Durand was fascinated with the multiple saxophone sounds coming from Terry Riley’s “Poppy Nogood” and “Happy Ending,” Dickie Landry’s “Fifteen Saxophones” and Ariel Kalma’s “Reternelle.” His participation in the Parisian saxophone ensemble Urban Sax in 1976/1977 became a starting point for his own musical endeavors. The two saxophone pieces presented here were composed and recorded roughly 10 years apart and document his move from free microtonality towards just intonation, to which he was turned onto as a member of Arnold Dreyblatt & the Orchestra of Excited Strings from 1990 to 1997. The two hemispheres represent the two parts of the brain, associated with the intuitive (right) and rational (left) part. “Right Hemisphere” for soprano sax was composed in 1990 for a festival in Berlin, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the invention of the saxophone. The main idea for this piece was to make one forget what instrument one is listening to as well as to feature various unorthodox techniques like loose embouchure, false fingerings, or circular breathing, and a free microtonality. It was inspired by certain composers of microtonal music like Giacinto Scelsi, Phill Niblock, Lois V. Vierk, and Mary Jane Leach. The original version of “Left Hemisphere” was developed between 1995 and 2000. Dreaming of a certain ratio and intervals during a summer holiday in England in 1995, the piece slowly evolved over the next years. This version was recorded in 2000. The piece uses just intervals derived from the third and seventh harmonics played over a sax drone. All music composed, performed, recorded, and mixed by Werner Durand.
File Under: Drone, Minimalism
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Electric Eels: Die Electric Eels (Superior Viaduct) LP
Cleveland’s electric eels (all lower case in homage to poet e.e. cummings) is America’s quintessential proto-punk band. Formed in 1972 by singer Dave E. McManus and guitarists John Morton and Brian McMahon, the group enlisted drummer Nick Knox (later of The Cramps) and producer Paul Marotta to record a flurry of catchy and genuinely fucked-up tunes. After only five legendary live performances—complete with Dave E. in black leather jacket covered in rat-traps and playing a gas-powered lawnmower on stage—the eels broke up in 1976 and posthumously released their classic single Agitated on Rough Trade in 1978, blazing a trail for high-art, low-concept rock. As Jon Savage writes in the liner notes, “There is something heroic about the eels’ isolation and uncompromising attitude: a fierceness that you can hear in these songs that still resonates in a different time and world.” Retrospective LP of seminal Clevland band, circa 1975. From the loud and snotty “Agitated” and its B-side “Cyclotron” (which Johan Kugelberg listed as #1 in his top 100 punk singles) to the anarchic anthem “Jaguar Ride” and the loose, bluesy sludge of “Anxiety,” the album exorcises the demonic power of the Stooges and Velvets and captures the mystique of these outsider artists inventing a new language. As the eels demand “Attendance Required” on their flyer for the infamous Special Extermination Music Night, listening is absolutely mandatory for this seminal band. Recommended for fans of Dead Boys, Simply Saucer and Pagans.
File Under: Punk, Proto-Punk
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Howard Eynon: So What If I’m Standing In Apricot Jam (Earth) LP
A reissue of the one and only album from the virtually unknown Australian singer Howard Eynon, now to be reissued 40 years after it’s original release. So What If Im Standing In Apricot Jam (note no apostrophe) is a bizarre and wonderful acid folk treasure in the vein of wild-eyed geniuses such as Syd Barret, Kevin Ayers, Neil Innes or Nick Drake, although perhaps even more beautiful and mysterious. It’s certainly more unusual, with its colloquial lyrics, acerbic wit and Howard’s Anglo-Australian accented singing voice. So What If Im Standing In Apricot Jam is a bold and madcap record on a par with Paul McCartney’s Ram. The evocative lyrics take in everything from political commentary, to anti-authoritarian jabs, to bright homely humor and deep descriptive stories. This daffy folksy psychedelic ramble full of tall tales, delightfully quirky melodies, hilarious lyrics and marvelous wordplay, risqué irreverence and beguiling lapses into musical frippery, has not only stood the test of time, but completely and utterly blown it away.
File Under: Psych, Acid Folk
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Father Yod & The Spirit of ’76: Kohoutek (Drag City) LP
“….the second coming of Kohoutek. This was the first spontaneous release that was made into a record, credited to Father Yod and The Spirit of ’76. It came out in 1973, the year of Kohoutek, when the imminent arrival of the big comet spawned a new round of cosmic consciousness in the media and with people all over the planet. This was more than a comet, its radiance was enormous, it came from ancient times to be experienced again by the enlightened people of the day. The Source Family were alive with expectation about the return of this long-haired messenger, and Father devoted considerable time chanting and eventually changing in his identity to Yahowa while meditating on the comet. Events like these were to be cherished for bringing infusions of energy that could only be accessed via the rare occasions. Life had to be lived in order to grow — and the two sides of Kohoutek are a special jam that passes through tranquility to exultation, a tapping of the passing flame in the skies and a greeting from Father to the messenger and bearer of such awesome gifts. Very pure. After the original LP pressing in 1973, Kohoutek was issued on CD for the first time as a part of the God and Hair boxset in 1996; this is the first time the vinyl has been available again since the 1970s. Features all of the original artwork, including an insert about the comet, plus new inserts with reflections from Isis. These emanations from the original Source are pure, uncut spiritual visions from the mid-1970s, not to be missed.”
File Under: Psych, Cults, Private Press
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Githead: Waiting for a Sign (Swim) LP/CD
Githead are Colin Newman (Wire), Malka Spigel and Max Franken (Minimal Compact), and Robin Rimbaud (Scanner). But who they are is far less important than what they are: a band, rather than just a collaboration between individuals, each with their own highly regarded creative résumé. Githead formed in 2004, for what was initially intended as a one-off performance at the Swim record label’s ICA-hosted 10th anniversary event. Over the course of preparations for the gig, though, it quickly became obvious to all involved that there was a natural and rare chemistry between them, one that held the potential for significant organic development. Waiting for a Sign marks the return of Githead after a five-year break from recording and pushes further than their previous records, underscoring the band’s commitment to pursuing new directions. Fans will recognize many of the classic Githead tropes here: the hypnotic, motorik repetition, the weighty bass lines, and the dreamy melodicism that have come to define the band’s aesthetic. But Waiting for a Sign isn’t about sticking with a proven formula: Githead are forward-looking musicians, committed to reinvention rather than recycling. As previous releases such as Art Pop (2007) and Landing (2009) show, Githead’s forté has increasingly been to bring the synergy and inventiveness of their live performances to bear on the studio process. For this album, however, they upped the ante, arriving at the studio without any written material and trusting that their response to each other’s ex-temporization, as well as to the mood and the surroundings, would get the creative juices flowing. ‘Slow Creatures’ is a good example, kicking off in an almost heretically bluesy mode, although this flavour eventually dissolves into a larger hypnotic groove as the track builds. There’s a similar effect on ‘Air Dancing’, its introduction combining Kala bass and acoustic guitar. Most memorable is ‘For the Place We’re In’, whose melodic structure makes it Githead’s first bona fide folk song. Approaching the project as something of a blank slate, their minds free of predefined ideas and open to creativity makes this their most accomplished release thus far.
File Under: Art Rock, Wire
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Icecross: s/t (Lion) LP
Rippers Alert: Legendary and essential shreddage on board! Seriously great raw proto-metal with a punk spirit – this is a MUST GRIP. Icecross possess a unique and dark sound, which reveals influences ranging from Black Sabbath to King Crimson to Blue Oyster Cult, all melded together to form a distinct style. Considered proto-metal by many, though they don’t achieve this with a typical smash your face approach. Icecross unleash some killer inventive guitar sounds by way of Leslie speakers combined with wild ominous bass lines, frantic drumming, spooky effects on vocals and splendid use of bow to create a perfect dark heavy guitar album. Carefully re-mastered for pristine sound that lays waste to all the bootlegs that have come before. Includes insert with liner notes, clippings and photographs and a poster featuring cover art and band photos celebrating the 40th anniversary of this classic heavy rock cult favorite. For fans of Leaf Hound, Blue Cheer, Elias Hulk, Jerusalem, Necronomicon, Incredible Hog, Dust, Pentagram, Uriah Heep, Flower Travellin’ Band and the like.
File Under: Psych, Hard Rock, Metal
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Icky Boyfriends: Live in San Francisco (Castle Face) LP
“You like anchovies? Morning breath? Dried blood? The sun-up residue after a night of hard drugs? Well, you’re gonna love Icky Boyfriends. “I painted houses for a couple years with an old-school San Francisco artist / musician dude who would let me run the boombox while we worked. This was right around the time I became obsessed with Icky Boyfriends. I would play the shit all day and wax about how I much I loved them. He piped up one day and asked what they were called again. ‘Icky Boyfriends,’ I said. ‘Oh yeah, I remember those guys…man, they could clear a room.’ “That’s the Ickys—an acquired taste for people who maybe have eyes that feel natural when trolling the gutter for nutrition. These are stories of strung-out super heroes singing the praises of the old school San Francisco freak scene. Hilarious at times, genius always and as scuzzy as anything you could ever hear. “Live in San Francisco was recorded masterfully by the Castle Face engineers team at the grand SF Eagle. There are many classic favorites here, as well as a couple new jams (I challenge anyone to tell the difference). We’ve kept it primal and simple as the Ickys always have. What a treat, now let’s eat!” —John Dwyer.
File Under: Punk, Garage
Invisible Hands: Teslam (Abduction) LP/CD
“The Invisible Hands is a transcontinental collaboration between Alvarius B. (Alan Bishop of Sun City Girls) and four stellar young musicians from Cairo, Egypt: Cherif El Masri, Aya Hemeda (both formerly of the popular Egyptian group Eskenderella), Adham Zidan and Magued Nagati. On Teslam, The Invisible Hands expand the already panoramic range of their eponymous debut LP with a haunting set of melodic, impeccably crafted songs whose vintage psych/hard-rock edge conjures up early Alice Cooper almost as often as it recalls Sun City Girls and 20th-century icons like Ennio Morricone and Serge Gainsbourg. The band’s exquisite sonic palette is deepened by Cairo-based guest musicians Mohamed Ibrahim, Mohamed ‘Moe’ Asem, and Sammy Sayed, as well as by longtime SCG compatriot Eyvind Kang. Recorded in Cairo between 2013 and 2014, Teslam represents a further evolution of Alvarius B.’s peerlessly idiosyncratic pop sensibility, which is just as volatile and unclassifiable as his more experimental work. His songwriting — both on his own, and in partnership with Cherif El Masri — is marked by a unity of purpose that has compressed countless musical and emotional incongruities into a handful of sharp-edged, pitch-black jewels. A brooding track composed by keyboardist Adham Zidan (‘The Great Implosion’) perfectly complements the record’s uneasy mood. As usual, Alvarius B.’s lyrics comprise an apocalyptic pile-up of cruel metaphors at the intersection of culture, politics and international crime. But they take on new power and new implications as sung by El Masri and Hemeda, whose seductive voices are as inviting as a welcome mat at the gates of hell. Each song stands on its own while also fitting into a planet-sized jigsaw puzzle detailing dark associations and secret narratives that stretch back as far as the foundation of the world. Arguably Alvarius B.’s most accessible work to date, Teslam is a generously baited steel-jaw trap for the unwary listener. Like The Invisible Hands’ 2013 debut, Teslam inevitably reflects the precarious political circumstances in which it was conceived and recorded. As such, it’s a vivid document not just of an unlikely musical collaboration, but also of a critical moment of hope, defiance, rage and sorrow in one of the world’s most venerable cities. [This limited-edition razor-edged stainless-steel CD comes in a beautiful die cut balsawood jacket that folds out to form a fully operational guillotine. Just kidding, but it does come as a digipak CD with lyrics booklet and lovely artwork].” –B. Kearney
File Under: Rock, Sun City Girls
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King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard: I’m In Your Mind Fuzz (Castle Face) LP/CD
Four clicks and we’re off, galloping through realms on a phase-shifted, hydra-headed, many-armed and muscular monster. This Australian beast of a band with a bear of a name and a thick herd of members delivers many things on this warped song-cycle: a skeleton of propulsive kraut-beat fleshed out with a liberal dose of citric sweetness; flutes and harmonicas bleeding through the mix often and welcomingly; an early-’80s heavy metal / fantasy vibe; and many lovely left turns into psychedelic mellowing, both groovily and sometimes with just a dash of DMT dread. The whole thing is just gooey with tape manipulations, saturations and wah pedal, yet many tasty tidbits bubble to the top.
File Under: Psych, Fuzz
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Magma: Ëmëhntëhtt Ré (Jazz Village) LP
Ëmëhntëhtt Ré, Magma’s tenth studio album, was originally released in 2009, though some of its material had been played live since 1975. The album is the third chapter of Magma’s Köhntarkösz trilogy, which also includes Köhntarkösz Anteria and Köhntarkösz. Housed in a gatefold sleeve. 180 gram super fidelity vinyl; includes a digital download for CD master quality .wav files.
File Under: Jazz-Rock, Prog, Fusion
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Magma: Rïah Sahïltaahk (Jazz Village) LP
“Rïah Sahïltaahk is the name of the Kobaïan who left after all the others, despite their disapproval. He thought he was better than anyone else and he was sure he could convert Kobaïa’s enemies to the Kobaïan spirit. But he failed and left alone for Kobaïa. On the symbolic stop-over planet, Malaria, he has to face the raging elements he thinks he can dominate. With his ship almost sunk, he ends up begging them… to no avail. He will disappear. Drowned, swept away by the frenzied elements. After the noise… silence. At dawn, only a final calm remains, enlightened by the soft beams of the sun in this new day.” Recorded and mixed between September 2013 and June 2014 at UZ Studio. 180 gram super fidelity vinyl; includes a digital download for CD master quality .wav files.
File Under: Jazz-Rock, Prog, Fusion
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Magma: Kohtarkosz (Jazz Village) LP
Originally released in 1974, Köhntarkösz is the second chapter of Magma’s Köhntarkösz trilogy, which also includes Köhntarkösz Anteria and Ëmëhntëhtt Ré. Includes “Coltrane Sündia” (“Coltrane Rest in Peace”), an elegy for John Coltrane. 180 gram super fidelity vinyl; includes a digital download for CD master quality .wav files.
File Under: Jazz-Rock, Prog, Fusion
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Magma: Köhntarkösz Anteria (Jazz Village) LP
Originally released in 2004, Köhntarkösz Anteria was Magma’s first full-length studio release in over 20 years. The material was in large part originally composed by drummer Christian Vander in 1973 and 1974, and is sung almost entirely in Kobaïan, Magma’s constructed language, apart from a short passage in French (‘Les Musiciens du Bord du Monde’). The album is the first chapter of Magma’s Köhntarkösz trilogy, which also includes Köhntarkösz and Ëmëhntëhtt Ré. Housed in a gatefold sleeve. 180 gram super fidelity vinyl; includes a digital download for CD master quality .wav files.
File Under: Jazz-Rock, Prog, Fusion
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Sean McCabe: It’s Time (Z) LP
Joey Negro’s tastemaking and scene-defining disco-house label Z Records is proud to announce its next full-length release, namely a debut album from Sean McCabe entitled It’s Time. It’s an LP that bucks the modern trend and shows up many of its peers by being one that is made of wholly original material, sounds and ideas, rather than one that leans on tired and classic samples. This lush and musical 12-track affair is Sean’s first big solo project and it has been in the works for almost three years. Written mostly in his Bristol studio, the LP features a wealth of international collaborations — Jennifer Wallace, Diane Charlemagne, Renn — and has been made primarily on real hardware such as the Fender Rhodes, SH-09, Juno 106, Poly 61, JV-1010, EMU Vintage Keys and the Moog Slim Phatty. Sean, who has been producing since his teens and includes fine labels like U.S. garage staple King Street Sounds, Defected, Strictly Rhythm and Local Talk in his discography says of the album: “It was important for me to get it perfected to my original vision, and to keep that vision throughout was difficult. I’ve literally drawn inspiration from everything that’s influenced me as producer and writer over the years. I always wanted to create something that demonstrates all my tastes in soulful dance music, which can be influenced by so many subgenres like hip-hop, disco, jazz, soul, deep house, U.S. garage, etc. The NuYorican Soul album has always been a benchmark for me in terms of a perfectly constructed album and is something I never get tired of listening to.” Those influences shine though in this fantastically musical and deeply considered album: it bares all the hallmarks of a proper full-length that has been built from the ground up with fantastic arrangements, catchy vocals and real song structures. “Everything’s Alright” opens the album in glorious style, with retro-tastic and sing along vocals, well-defined and authentic house production and plenty of feel-good chords. From there, there’s skipping and soulful house like “Something About You,” diva vocal cuts like “Holding On” and blessed-out dance-pop nuggets like “Tomorrow’s Another Day.” The good vibes continue from start to finish with many highlights along the way, such as the sultry and seductive deep garage house of “Want Me” and classically-inclined joys of “Love for Life.” The production values are sky-high on this album, and though it might have been a long time in the making, it was worth it, because it categorically proves that now really is Sean McCabe’s time.
File Under: House, Garage House, Downtempo
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McKay: Into You (Lion) LP
“One of the ‘holy grails’ of Indianapolis private-pressdom (surpassed only by Zerfas and Anonymous) available again in its original format! Ray ‘McKay’ Pierle and his musically-adept brothers and friends partied, jammed and partied some more on Indy’s south side throughout the mid-70’s, forming a band (Loos) which managed to garner zero media attention at the time. However, Ray’s trusty Teac four-track was always close at hand and countless hours of home recordings were induced onto magnetic tape, as well as a few songs laid down at a local studio. After a brief hiatus, the core members reconvened as McKay, and created their sole document, the 300-press Into You album (1978); the LP was given to friends and family and consigned in nearby record shops. A mere 15 years had to pass before the collecting world discovered the highly-personal songwriting, tight playing, and not-so-well-hidden West-Coast stylistic touches. A vinyl reissue was locally produced back then but it’s long gone, so here’s a new all analogue, master tape edition for a new generation to savor.”
File Under: Psych, Private Press
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Ennio Morricone/Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consananza: A Quiet Place in the Country (Votary) LP
The missing link in the Morricone / Gruppo discography. Their originally unreleased avant / cacophonic score to Elio Petri’s manic Artsploitation masterpiece was the first and last time Morricone and Il Gruppo would co-sign an OST/session. Conducted by Bruno Nicolai with vocalisations by Edda Dell’Orso and drums by Vincenzo Restuccia, A Quiet Place In The Countryis anhistoric (and quite forgotten) recording that sees Il Gruppo in their key gestational phase just prior to recordings for Deutsche Grammophon, RCA Italiana (The Feed-Back) and the magnificent unreleased session, Niente. Featuring Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consananza members Franco Evangelisti, Mario Bertoncini, Egisto Macchi, Ennio Morricone, John Heineman and Walter Branchi and recorded at Forum Studios Roma 1968. Remastered 2014 from the Original Stereo Album Master Tapes (originally prepared by Morricone for a 1968 LP release but for reasons unknown not issued at the time).
File Under: OST, Italian, Maestro
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OST: Christmas Evil (Death Waltz) 10″
“The greatest Christmas film ever made” – John Waters Death Waltz Recording Company are overjoyed to bring you a bit of early Christmas spirit in the form of the score to the classic 1980 yuletide slasher movie Christmas Evil. When young Harry sees his mother being seen to on Christmas night by Santa Claus, it causes a shockwave that starts to convince him that he is Father Christmas. Grown up, Harry makes toys for children and spies on neighbourhood kids, checking if they really are naughty or nice, and violently dismembering anyone who gets in his way, be it churchgoers or co-workers. The music of Christmas Evil is composed by the trio of Don Christenson, Joel Harris, and Julia Heywood, who created a score both menacing and upbeat, with tunes in the Christmas tradition. Like many horror soundtracks of the era, synthesisers dominate, with melodies similar to John Carpenter’s legendary Halloween, only in a happier and more deranged fashion. Wild and swirling synths acts as a window into the mind of Harry and what seems to be a nervous breakdown, and a menacing mix of foreboding notes and seasonal bells, all leading up to the ending that’s frankly crackers. This holiday season, give your loved ones Christmas Evil.
File Under: OST, Horror, Festive(?)
OST: Kill! (Roundtable) LP
Fuzz guitars, go-go beats, weird exotic soundscapes and Doris Troy (of ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’ fame) screaming about gizzards. Only in Rome, only in 1971. Brilliant but overlooked composer Berto Pisano and (we suspect) his no less talented brother Franco (working under a pseudonym) to craft the perfect score for this drug-fuelled piece of cinematic mayhem. Recorded at the Orthophonic Recording Studio, Roma 1971 and remastered in 2014 from the original stereo album master tapes this LP includes 2 previously unreleased tracks (one a haunting vocalization from ill-fated star Jean Seberg). Featuring extensive and exclusive liner notes by Alvin Lucia (documenting the largely unknown and quite incredible history of the making of Kill!) plus original artwork and rare photos/ephemera.
File Under: OST, Fuzz, Psych
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OST: Oldboy (Milan) LP
Film and soundtrack fans have been asking for it for years and it is finally happening! The soundtrack to Park Chan-Wook’s cult Korean classic, Oldboy, is getting a proper vinyl release through Milan Records. Visionary director Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive, Only God Forgives) took the helm as executive producer and supervised the visual presentation of the ‘Oldboy’ vinyl release. This is the first release in a new series of classic soundtracks released on vinyl only and presented by Nicolas Winding Refn. Acclaimed illustrator Laurent Durieux (famous with the fans of Mondo) designed the whole original layout of the album. The soundtrack features a digital download card and is pressed on 180 gram red vinyl (with 500 units pressed on orange vinyl for the European Union).
File Under: OST, Korean
OST: Stage Fright (Flick) LP
By 1987, Simon Boswell had already contributed fantastic music and songs to Dario Argento’s ‘Phe- nomena’ and scored all of Lamberto Bava’s ‘Demoni II’. When it came to hiring a composer for ‘Stage Fright’, Simon came highly recommended and was my first choice. ‘Stage Fright’ (aka ‘Aquarius’, ‘Deliria’ and ‘Bloody Bird’), was my first feature-length movie and has always held a special place in my heart. When I heard the ‘Stage Fright’ music I realised that Simon had matched my vision with something unique and fresh, combining his expertise in programming and playing synthesisers and samplers with his skills as a great guitarist. I love the way his classical roots rub shoulders with the distinctive ‘thrashy’ sound of 70’s English punk music, dreamy synth landscapes and the programmed rhythms of the indie dance music that he produced so much of in the 80’s. Altogether, this enabled him to compose a score that was very contemporary, hypnotic, scary and, when needed, both beautiful and aggressive. Here it is, for the first time on vinyl since 1987. Enjoy it! – Michele Soavi, August 2014
File Under: OST, Horror
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OST: Turkey Shoot (Dual Planet) LP
The notorious 1982 Australian film, Turkey Shoot (Also known as Escape 2000 in the US and Blood Camp Thatcher in the UK) has long been considered the ultimate of Australian Video Nasties. Set in a dystopian future where a totalitarian regime imprison a group of ‘deviants’ to a high security prison destined for rehabilitationand social re-programming. The story involves the group of inmates fleeing from the camp controlled by the draconian warden, a sadistic alopecic henchmen and a bizarrely scripted lycanthropic carnival-mutant…shall we read on..? Produced by Antony I Ginnane’s F.G films (Patrick, Thirst, Snapshot etc…) together with British actor David Hemming (Blow Up, Fragment of Fear, Deep Red), the film was aesthetically influenced by the brutality and savagery of Italian sub-genre cinema, (ie Umberto Lenzi’s Cannibal films and Lucio Fulci’s Zombie films), as well as borrowing the central theme from the 1932 film The Most Dangerous Game. Scored by renowned Australian film composer Brian May (Mad Max, Patrick, The Day After Halloween), the predominantly electronic soundtrack hints stylistically to brooding horror-synth of John Carpenter, the mutant patchbay of Gil Melle’s soundtrack The Andromeda Strain as well as some of the sonic characteristics found in Italian B-cinema (Fabio Frizzi & Goblin). Pulsing synth oscillations and pounding percussion together with inspired sound design all encapsulate the confused and claustrophobic human big-game hunt.
File Under: OST, Electronic
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Maxine Payne: Making Pictures: Three for a Dime (Dust-to-Digital) Book
In the 1930s, the Massengill family of rural Arkansas built three portable photography studios on old truck frames, attached each to the back of any car that would run, and started a mobile photo booth business that would last for a decade. Without formal training or help, the Massengill family invented and improvised ways to mimic the popular photo booths they had seen in drug stores and brought their business to the dirt roads and open fields they knew well. Making Pictures: Three for a Dime, featuring Massengill family prints and photo albums collected by the artist Maxine Payne, illuminates a sliver of the Depression-era south previously unseen by the public. Unlike the hardscrabble lives and worn-down faces captured by Works Progress Administration photographers of the time, the Massengill photographs often show folks working to look their best. A man mugs in his Sunday suit and hat; a girl preens with lusty eyes; a boy clutches his prize rooster. Hand-painted backdrops, colorized prints, and even the occasional prop add a playful edge to these scenes. Among them, we also get a haunting glimpse or two of the difficult lives lived outside of these moments. Not unlike discovered troves of photographs by Vivian Maier or Mike Disfarmer, the Massengill photographs invite us to reconsider a time and place from a new perspective. Alongside the prints and albums, this volume includes introductions by Payne and curator Phillip March Jones, short remembrances from Lance and Evelyn Massengill, and a transcribed diary that recounts the difficulties and successes of the family business in short, powerful bursts. (“June 18, 1939 Mr Pennington drowned today. We went home about 4:00 o’clock and made cream at mama’s.”) Collected here in a handsome and ample design, Making Pictures: Three for a Dime is the definitive volume of the Massengill photographs. Hardcover book, 180 pages, 8.5″ by 6.25″, 271 images reproduced in full color.
File Under: Books, Depression
Pip Proud: A Bird In The Engine (Superior Viaduct) LP
In the late ’60s, Pip Proud recorded two of the oddest records ever to come out of Australia—Adreneline & Richard and A Bird in the Engine—before vanishing into obscurity for the better part of three decades. Often called the “Australian Syd Barrett,” Proud actually released his second album in 1969, a year prior to The Madcap Laughs, and developed his indigenous psychedelia in virtual isolation. A Bird in the Engine is even more rare than his debut. From the extraordinary “Eagle-Wise” to the remarkable title track (which includes the uncredited performance of a friend hitting a cardboard box with a microphone), Proud’s unrestrained genius is laid bare, a delicate tension of simple melodies and maddening form. While other compilations of Proud’s music have been released in recent years, this is the first time A Bird in the Engine has been reissued in its original format. Recommended for fans of Alvarius B., Donovan and Jandek.
File Under: Psych, Acid Folk, Outsider
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Pip Proud: Adreneline & Richard (Superior Viaduct) LP
In the late ’60s, Pip Proud recorded two of the oddest records ever to come out of Australia—Adreneline & Richard and A Bird in the Engine—before vanishing into obscurity for the better part of three decades. Often called the “Australian Syd Barrett,” Proud actually released his second album in 1969, a year prior to The Madcap Laughs, and developed his indigenous psychedelia in virtual isolation. To quote Byron Coley, who like a handful of underground luminaries discovered Proud in the ’80s via collector mail-order lists, Adreneline & Richard features “weirdly strummed barre-chord guitar, monotone vocals that occasionally [try] to pass way beyond their known range, oddball lyrics that [combine] nursery rhymes with druggy imagery. It [is] a hell of a cool record.” While other compilations of Proud’s music have been released in recent years, this is the first time that Adreneline & Richard has been reissued in its original format (including inner sleeve with lyrics). Recommended for fans of outsider and lo-fi pop from the US, UK, New Zealand and beyond.
File Under: Psych, Acid Folk, Outsider, Lo Fi
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Ptarmigan: s/t (Lion) LP
Ptarmigan recorded the basic tracks for what would eventually become their only album in 1972. It then took the band’s producer and manager, renowned flautist Paul Horn, more than a year to find a label willing to release such unusual music. Finally, in 1974, Columbia Records released Ptarmigan’s album to critical acclaim, and minimal sales. The music of Ptarmigan is deep and authentic and intimate; it’s reflective sounds are well suited to meditating on a landscape, an emotion, a bottle of wine, or maybe while staring at a flickering candle. Sometimes it is free-flowing and jazz-oriented; at other times it has the mystical feel of a shamanistic ceremony, fueled by Eastern-tinged harmonies. But in the end, this album is about the sea: Ptarmigan was, after all, from Vancouver Island, and the musicians were well-versed in the contradictory moods of the surrounding ocean. Hypnotic, mystical, largely instrumental tracks, all based on a complex interplay of recorder, hand drums and acoustic guitar—one of those hidden gems that make life better when you discover them all these years later. Rated by many as the best “folk/progressive” and/or “folk/psych” album ever made. As one contemporary review said, this is “music from musicians, for musicians, late-at-night, last joint music.” Our Lion Productions reissue comes with a massive fold-out insert which includes lyrics, liner notes from the band, and a multitude of photos and historical mementos.
File Under: Folk, Prog, Psych
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J Rider: No Longer Anonymous (Machu Picchu) LP
Hot on the heels of our ecstatically received reissue of Anonymous’ classic album “Inside the Shadow”, Machu Picchu Ltd. is thrilled to announce the reissue of their elusive and legendary follow-up. After the 1976 release of “Inside the Shadow”, the group decided to change their name to J Rider (after the second cut on the Anonymous LP) and pursued a similar rich vein of impeccable songwriting, but this time adding more hard rock to the mix, resulting in a fantastic sounding album that sadly went unreleased at the time. The excellent reissue label OR Records first unearthed the tapes and put out a small edition of LPs in 1996, and we are now very happy to present you with a new and deluxe edition of this gem, complete with new sleeve art. “Kiss Of Your Soul” and “Pike River” get our vote for two of the greatest songs ever written, and “One Sided Lover”, “High Roller” and “Sunday‘s Hero” each offer a heavier spin on the group’s Television-like interplay and compositional prowess. This record is highly recommended for everyone who enjoyed “Inside the Shadow”, and it also happens to come with an entire unreleased album of songs recorded by the group’s visionary songwriter Ron Matelic! That’s right, ten bonus tracks of previously unheard songs recorded in the 1990s, featuring most of the members of Anonymous; a lost LP, if you like, and a fascinating complement to the Anonymous and J Rider albums. (Bonus tracks will be included in the form of a download card with each LP and are included on the compact disc.)
File Under: Rock, Psych
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Mark Rogers & Mary Byrne: I Line My Days Along Your Weight (Important) LP
Important Records presents the vinyl version of I Line My Days Along Your Weight, the acclaimed debut from Brooklyn-based duo Mark Rogers & Mary Byrne. The album was recorded as a true duet: Rogers and Byrne played facing each other, inches apart, intent upon listening. They wove together archaic instruments — baritone acoustic, tricone resonator, golden-era flattop, space-age lap steel, upright piano, and hundred-year-old mandolin — into a new and vibrant third voice. All the songs were recorded live to two-inch analog tape, the studio equivalent of tightrope-walking without a net. Rogers and Byrne later added minimal touches of lap steel, piano, and electric guitar, but essentially what one hears is what they performed together, start to finish. With Rogers’ deeply expressive, contextual finger style and Byrne’s emphatic, unaffected singing, this striking debut invites listeners into a space most intimate and most human.
File Under: Folk
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Gabriel Saloman: Movement Building Volume 1 (Shelter) LP
Gabriel Saloman has developed a reputation for releasing penetrating works of haunting beauty in his new role as a solo performer and composer. Known for his part in the seminal electronic-noise duo Yellow Swans (alongside Pete Swanson), Saloman has taken the sweeping drones and fried electricity of his former band and embedded them within an expanding palette of bowed strings, martial percussion and resonant piano. The majority of his work to date has been developed as music for contemporary dance, exemplified by two solo albums with Miasmah, 2012’s melancholic Adhere and last year’s celebrated ode to mud and decay Soldier’s Requiem. As he continues to prolifically produce music for dance, Saloman has developed a new series with Shelter Press to make these works available: Movement Building. The first of two volumes to be released individually on vinyl and together on CD, “The Disciplined Body” is a 34-minute work that moves through ghostly minimalist drones, poly-vocal drumming and culminates in an aching climb through sheets of shimmering guitar chords before erupting in a violent spurt of harsh noise. While at its climax it may be evocative of transcendental string manglers ranging from My Bloody Valentine to Godspeed You! Black Emperor, in its more subtle moments it wades through the kind of blackened water that suggests the outer boundaries of ambient metal, or the ghostly remnants of a cassette dub of beatless electronics. Composed for Daisy Karen Thompson’s “Re-Marks on Source Material,” the music shares that dance’s Foucault-influenced questioning of the limits imposed on our bodies by technology and labor, reaching for an ecstatic escape from discipline and control. Listeners may want to reach for the same — to do so we suggest they play this recording very, very loud. Mastered and cut by Helmut Erler at Dubplates & Mastering, Berlin. All music by GMS (guitar, percussion). Recorded at 611 Alexander and SFU SCA in Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories, Spring and Summer 2013.
File Under: Ambient
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Conrad Schnitzler: Grun (Bureau B) LP
Conrad Schnitzler’s green album (aka Grün), originally released in 1981 on Edition Block. “Schnitzler’s tracks in the 1970s were lengthy and shared a musical pattern which varied only minimally. Hence the green album has just one track on each side and any changes in melodic structure are subtle in nature. Both pieces are very much typical of Schnitzler in style, but less so tonally. An analog rhythm machine ploughs almost brutally through the astoundingly delicate electronic veil of ‘Der Riese und seine Frau’ (‘The Giant and His Wife’), bearing little resemblance to Schnitzler’s usual sequencer cascades. The second piece, created four years later, sounds completely different. Its title may be similarly poetic, but ‘Bis die Blaue Blume blüht’ (‘Until the Blue Flower Blooms’) transports the listener into another world altogether. A diminutive melody, consisting of just seven notes, becomes a kind of mantra, repeated with only the slightest variation until the end, as clusters of tiny sonic meteorites constantly swirl around, sparkling in all the colors of the spectrum. The composition is carried and held together by a permanent sequencer figure, brilliantly enhancing the catchy tune. Listening to the rhythmic-harmonic character and taking into account the year in which it was made (1980), it is fair to assume that this was recorded in Peter Baumann’s Paragon Studio, like the Con album. The similarities are impossible to ignore. It is a well documented fact that Peter Baumann often allowed Schnitzler to work in his studio during this period. On the LP version, ‘Bis die Blaue Blume blüht’ can be played at 33 or 45 rpm, revealing a wholly different piece of music at the chosen speed. Both speeds are available as two tracks on the CD version. For a composer to come up with something like this by design speaks of great artistry — or perhaps of great fortuity. Presumably the former. Schnitzler most likely experimented to this end and set up the recording in the studio to allow for both playback options — an unusual device for the early 1980s and further evidence of his capacity for transcending artistic borders. The borders between Schnitzler’s creative periods are too nebulous to be sure that the green album represents the coda of his ’70s music. Still, Schnitzler’s musical essence of the decade is in evidence as aural concentrate on both pieces. Not, however, as a recapitulatory review, but as a foundation, fertile ground in which Schnitzler’s art would thrive in the decades which followed.” –Asmus Tietchens
File Under: Krautrock, Ambient, Kosmische
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Conrad Schnitzler: Gelb (Bureau B) LP
Conrad Schnitzler’s yellow album (aka Gelb), originally released in 1981 on Edition Block. “The chronology of Schnitzler’s solo releases in the 1970s — and even more so in the ’80s — resembles a book with seven seals. Schnitzler regularly issued his music on analogue cassette or LP, often on his own as ‘private releases’, without any help from a label or professional distributor. The yellow album, for example, was issued on vinyl in 1981 by René Block in Berlin on his art gallery label (Edition Block). Schnitzler had previously released records on various other labels. The music on the yellow album had, in fact, already been on the market as The Black Cassette in 1974, although the production run was probably limited. The yellow album is subtitled ’12 pieces from the year 1974′, pointing to Schnitzler’s novel approach. Whereas his prior works always lasted for the whole side of an LP or tape, the tracks here are shorter. Also new: Schnitzler goes beyond automatic sonic processes on a number of tracks, using his keyboards to integrate something approaching melodic improvisations ‘played by hand’ into his musical cosmos. Schnitzler’s otherwise crystalline, inorganic world of art is thus enriched by an almost human, organic element. An amiable breeze wafts through the music of the yellow album, thankfully miles away from the sentimental platitudes which run through off-the-shelf ambient music of the 1980s. The yellow album is not only amiable from start to finish, it also documents an important stage in Schnitzler’s musical development. Belatedly released on LP (1981) and lacking in discographical detail, this aspect is easily overlooked. On careful listening, as Schnitzler connoisseurs will also realize instantly, this album reveals itself to be an important milestone, illuminating a clear path into the future. Schnitzler had begun to free himself from the constraints of orthodox conceptual art, advancing into the wide open spaces of uncharted musical territory.” –Asmus Tietchens
File Under: Krautrock, Ambient, Kosmische
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Shake! Records Assorted Tapes
Just got a whole slew of new tapes in from our pals at Shake records in Victory! All kinds of cool stuff from The Betrayers, Babysitter, Backhomes, Hansmole, Kim Gray, Zen Mystery Fogg, Surprise Party, Napalmpom, Line Traps, Psychomatic Itch, Lab Coast, Vicious Cycles, Throwaways, Defektors, Catholic Girls, The Mants, and more!
File Under: Punk, Garage, CanCon, Tapes
She & Him: Classics (Columbia) LP
Zooey Deschanel and Matt Ward, aka She & Him, are as comfortable and complementary a musical pair as Les Paul and Mary Ford. Matt and Zooey make music for an eternal springtime, when the temperature is warm enough to go riding with the top (or at least the windows) rolled down and the radio turned up. They occupy an alternate universe where the saddest of songs feel as warm as sun showers; the rain may be coming down, but somewhere nearby, everything looks bright. What began as a fascinating, no-strings attached collaboration on 2008’s Volume One has evolved into a bona fide recording and touring outfit not to mention three follow-up albums including Volume Two (2010), A Very She & Him Christmas and Volume 3 (2013). Now the duo returns in 2014 on Columbia Records with Classics, a collection of carefully-selected timeless standards from the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s which they recorded live and accompanied by a 20-piece orchestra, allowing a spontaneity that captured the spirit of the songs in their truest forms. In addition to lead single “”Stay Awhile” (Dusty Springfield), the 13-track walk down memory lane includes sublime takes on “Oh No, Not My Baby” (Maxine Brown), “Time After Time” (Jule Styne) and “This Girl’s In Love With You” (Burt Bacharach). “We are incredibly excited to release a record of our favorite songs,” said Deschanel. “It was a dream of ours to record these songs in a way that highlighted the brilliance of the songwriting and the beauty of their melodies. We had a wonderful time making the record and we hope people have a wonderful time listening to it.”
File Under: Folk, Indie, M Ward
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Sin 34: Do You Feel Safe? (Sinister Torch) LP
Formed in the wake of the first wave of LA punk, SIN 34 epitomized the Southern California hardcore scene at the time. Fast, defiant thrash; one part suburban teenage rebellion, one part crass satire, all held together by a thread of reckless adventuring. One of the rare hardcore bands fronted by a female singer, SIN 34 bounced it’s way briefly but not quietly through the SoCal scene, dodging flying bodies and antagonistic LA police as they went. SIN 34’s only full length LP, Do You Feel Safe?, captured the band in their short-lived prime. Originally released in 1983 and out of print for over 30 years until now; Julie Lanfeld, Dave Markey, Phil Newman, and Mike Glass encapsulated the youthful spirit of a vital and influential music movement.
File Under: Punk
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Sleep: Volume One (Tupelo) LP
Volume One is the debut album. It was the only album recorded with second guitarist Justin Marler, before he became an Orthodox monk. Volume One showcases a darker sound and stronger doom metal influence than Sleep’s later work.
File Under: Metal, Doom, Stoner
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The Thing/Thurston Moore: Live (The Thing) LP
On tour for their album Boot!, the Scandinavian free-jazz monsters teamed up with Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth fame at London’s Café OTO to produce some heavy improvised thunder. Recorded live in concert by John Chantler and Jonathan McHugh at Café OTO, London, February 10th, 2013. Mixed in July 2014 by Martin Siewert and Mats Gustafsson at Garnison7, Vienna. Mastered by Martin Siewert. Cover by Lasse Marhaug. Mats Gustafsson (baritone saxophone); Ingebrigt Håker Flaten (electric bass); Paal Nilssen-Love (drums); Thurston Moore (electric guitar).
File Under: Jazz, Free Jazz
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Ugly Things #38 Magazine
“For our cover story this issue, we have a massive, exclusive, detail-packed interview with Dave Davies of The Kinks by Richie Unterberger, who also got access to internal memos from Warners/Reprise (the Kinks’ US record company) that shed new light on the band’s story. Also on the cover? US ’70s art punks The Screamers; we are featuring an extensive unpublished 1978 interview by Jon Savage, rare photos and more. And there’s lots more: Texas garage-psych icons The Golden Dawn, cult hard rock trio Dust, Swedish beat innovator Hazze Hep, Dutch beat group The Lazy Bones, ’70s punkers Elton Motello, Norway’s Borres Kork, Unsettled Society (of ’17 Diamond Studded Cadillacs’ infamy), Blue Cheer, Vanda-Young’s Marcus Hook Roll Band, the early years of Lester Bangs, Rhino 39, and mind-melting interviews with Dennis Dunaway (Alice Cooper), acid folkster Marc Brierley, and Johnny Strike of Crime. Cyril Jordan of the Flamin’ Groovies shares his experiences of 1968, and we take a journey deep, deep into The Diamond Mine with legendary DJ Dave Diamond. And, as always, our comprehensive review sections covering all the latest reissues, in-depth, and rock’n’roll-related books.”
Lino Capra Vaccina: Antico Adagio (Die Schachtel) LP
One of two LP versions. Includes the first six tracks from Lino “Capra” Vaccina’s Antico Adagio (DS 027CD), originally released in 1978. Antico Adagio is an amazing work that anticipated countless others in the field of so-called “new age” and world music, yet remains at the crossroad between those genres and experimental and electronic music. Apart from a few violin parts and the extraordinary vocal lines (sung by Vaccina himself and Juri Camisasca), Antico Adagio is an album fully built on percussion. At the same time, it’s the farthest thing from the typical idea of percussion. You won’t find a single trace of African or primitive beats: instead, this is a collection of rather long, subtle and thoughtful compositions, crafted with vibraphones, marimbas and gong. Together they create a work which will remain unique — both in Lino Vaccina’s discography as well as in a more general sense.
File Under: New Age, Ambient, Electronic
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Lino Capra Vaccina: Frammenti (Die Schachtel) LP
The second of two LP versions. Includes the tracks from Frammenti da Antico Adagio, which features previously-unreleased material from the original 1978 sessions of Lino “Capra” Vaccina’s Antico Adagio.
File Under: New Age, Ambient, Electronic
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Hartley C. White: This Is Not What You Expect (Original Recordings) LP
This Is Not What You Expect is a collection of material recorded by Hartley C. White of Queens, NY from 1984-2009. Hartley is the progenitor of a style of music he calls “Whopazootic,” which he has described as “a nonclassical music utilizing a broken rhythm”. Under consideration is the entire contemporary and past landscape of time and being, from the shape of a joke to the cry of the politically disenfranchised to the observation of flowing water. When we first heard Hartley’s music, we were shocked, and you will be too. No matter how many albums you’ve listened to today, this will be the first Who-pazootic one.
File Under: Outsider, Weirdo Whopazootic
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Ya Ho Wa 13: Savage Sons of Ya Ho Wa (Drag City) LP
“Now that the story of The Source Family is out there, as the subject of an acclaimed book and documentary film (as well as an ongoing series of rare, never-before-released recordings), it’s time to turn the light back on the records that made this whole thing a story in the first place. In the 1990s, it was a revelation to discover that there was a series of records made by a hippie cult led by a big Santa Claus-looking guy named Father Yod. It was of further interest that these records weren’t simple, predictable light-rock recitals about Jesus — far from it! Instead, they were darkly psychedelic, stream-of-consciousness jams, with Father and the members of his band (usually The Spirit of ’76 and YaHoWa13) reaching together for divine transformation, and often finding it, as Father screamed, pounding kettle drums ecstatically, while the band erupted with coils of enlightenment rock, over and over. Records like Penetration, Contraction, To the Principles for the Children, and I’m Gonna Take You Home were amazing home-recorded documents, adorned with hand-drawn phrases and logos and grainy color shots of what appeared to be truly magical everyday cult life with Father. Super-crazy, inspiring stuff. Savage Sons of Ya Ho Wa is a record that Father doesn’t appear on. Well, he doesn’t play on the record, but look on the cover — Yahowa is still in the driver’s seat. Musically, YaHoWa13 go it on their own, with Octavius, Sunflower, Djinn, and Rhythm collaborating with Electron, who supplies powerful lead vocals. What’s here is a collection of powerful rock songs that will echo in your consciousness, like the opening track, ‘Edge of a Dream,’ and the refrain ‘I want to see/What’s going on.’ The guttural nature of Electron’s vocal sound may recall the name of Beefheart to some, and Electron is occupying the same unconsciousness, free in the communal slipstream, with less blues and more country gospel in his soul. This is one of Isis’ favorites of the original Source Family releases, and one of ours too. This is its first LP pressing in decades. Features all of the original artwork, including a really far-out inner-sleeve, plus new inserts with reflections from Isis. These emanations from the original Source are pure, uncut spiritual visions from the mid-1970s, not to be missed.”
File Under: Psych, Cults, Private Press
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Various: Aimer Et Perdre (Angry Mom) 3LP Box
This is one from the heart. The unique pre-war music of the Cajun bayous, the Carpathian Mountains of Ukraine and Poland, and the American rural countryside has been collected to narrate the human odyssey of love gained and love lost. Early songs of unbridled anticipation and desperate longing color the canvas of love, courtship, dejection and marriage… a never-ending cycle. The accompanying 16-page booklet features many rare, previously unpublished images and comprehensive lyrical translations. Three original artworks by Robert Crumb provide a backdrop for these sublime songs of passion and despair. Respectfully crafted by Christopher King and Susan Archie for Angry Mom Records.
File Under: Pre-War Blues, Crumb
Various: Jukebox Mambo Volume 2 (Jazzman) LP
Long-awaited follow-up to the original game-changing Jukebox Mambo set of sweltering, rumba-accented rhythm & blues. Two years in the making, this sequel ploughs deeper still into the revolutionary ’40s and ’50s Afro-American musical canon, pulling together another combustible collection of lascivious Latin-edged blues exotica. Issued with extensive biographical notes and exclusive photographs on CD and deluxe old style 2LP paste-on gatefold (with A3 size show poster inside), Jukebox Mambo Vol. 2 is likely to be as influential in setting tastes as its predecessor. Artists include: Lincoln Chase, Christine Chapman & Peppy Prince Orchestra, Chris Powell & His Five Blue Flames, Zilla Mays, Johnny Oliver, Chuck Edwards, Oscar Saldana, Jimmy Nolen, Four Blazes, Chanters, Jeanne DeMetz, Camille Howard, Ashton Savoy, Freddie Mitchell & His Orchestra, Note & Toe & The Grenadiers, John McKinney & The Premiers, T-Bone Walker, Ron Rico & Sax Kari Orchestra, Don Tosti y su Conjunto, Billy Emerson, Frank Motley, and Red Saunders.
File Under: Mambo, Rumba, Exotica, RnB, Latin
Various: Folk Music of Sahel Volume 1 (Sublime Frequencies) 2LP
Folk Music of the Sahel: Niger consists of field recordings collected in the Republic of Niger during the course of six expeditions undertaken by Hisham Mayet between 2004 and 2014. This first volume in Sublime Frequencies’ new Folk Music of the Sahel series comprises a subjective but spectacular overview of Hausa, Zarma, Fulani, Songhai and Tuareg music culled from Mayet’s rich archives. On this lavish double album, Mayet methodically reveals the dazzling range and power of Nigerian music, from stream-of-consciousness griot performances that serve as a local news broadcast and gossip column to a rare example of ritual music from a private spirit-possession ceremony. Its four sides offer a tantalizing glimpse of this region’s unmatched musical riches, including the awe-inspiring courtship dances of the Wodaabe men and a rare duet between the late, great Tuareg guitarist Koudede and the renowned molo master Ousenni. The gorgeous gatefold cover features a 25-page bound-in booklet with extensive and informative liner notes, as well as Mayet’s emblematic photographs from towns and villages throughout the region. In addition to preserving an exciting variety of sacred and profane musical performances by known and unknown artists, these recordings capture the music of Niger at a difficult cultural crossroads in which ancient musical and oratory traditions are imperiled both by the demands of modern assimilation and by the reactionary forces that oppose it. As such, the intent of this album is not just to document the fantastic heterogeneity of Sahelian music, but also to bear witness to the changes and challenges faced by Niger’s diverse ethnic groups during a decade marked by almost inconceivable political instability and technological upheaval. Coming from an area wracked by disease, food shortages and droughts, as well as by social turmoil, this music reflects the essentially improvisational character of Sahelian life as well as its unfathomable cultural wellsprings. From exuberant a cappella drone chants to the riveting instrumental minimalism of goje possession music, the performances on this album represent a poignant cry to the universe by musicians who hold every note as sacred as the gift of enduring in this exceptionally severe region of the African continent. Housed in one of Sublime Frequencies’ most stunning packages, which pays homage to the great European ethno labels of yore, this monumental one-time pressing, limited edition double LP beautifully inaugurates SF’s comprehensive musical survey of the Sahel.
File Under: Desert Blues, Tuareg, Nigeria
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Various: When I Reach That Heavenly Shore (Tompkins Square) 3CD
“Among the most powerful music to be captured on 78 rpm in America during the 1920s and 1930s are recordings of black sanctified and gospel singing. Ranging from plaintive mourning to unbridled ecstasy, the sacred music from this time period represents a flowering of diverse and idiosyncratic rural songs styles. At no time was there a wider panorama of religious songs in America. Selected exclusively from Christopher King’s private collection, the 78s included here represent the most unhinged, the most compelling survey of pre-war black gospel. Of the 42 tracks in this 3CD collection, 34 have never been reissued until now. The complete recorded output of the Primitive Baptist Choir of North Carolina is also included in this collection for the first time. Several rare and previously unissued photographs are also contained within. Lovingly and respectfully designed by Susan Archie and firmly grounded in Scripture by Christopher King.”
File Under: Gospel
…..used goodies…..
The Beatles: Early Beatles (Capitol) LP
The Beatles: Magical Mystery (Capitol) LP
The Beatles: Second Album (Capitol) LP
Black Sabbath: Paranoid (Warner) LP
Byrds: History of (CBS) 2LP UK
Johnny Cash: Original Golden Hits Volume 1 (Sun) LP
Johnny Cash: All Aboard the Blue Train (Sun) LP
Johnny Cash: At San Quentin (Columbia) LP
Johnny Cash: At Folsom Prison (Columbia) LP
Jimmy Cliff: The Harder They Come (Island) LP
Leonard Cohen: Songs of Love & Hate (Columbia) LP
Leonard Cohen: Songs of Leonard Cohen (Columbia) LP
Leonard Cohen: Songs from a Room (Columbia) LP
Ry Cooder: s/t (Reprise) LP
The Kinks: Something Else (Reprise) LP
John Mayall w/Eric Clapton: Blues Breakers (London) LP
Big Joe Turner: The Boss of the Blues (Atlantic) LP
Big Joe Turner: Every Day I Have the Blues (Cleo) LP
Big Joe Turner: Have No Fear, Big Joe Turner Is Here (Savoy) 2LP
Joe Turner: Jumpin’ With Joe (Charly) LP
Joe Turner: Jumpin’ The Blues (Arhoolie) LP
Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson: Kidney Stew (Circle) LP
Muddy Waters: Fathers & Sons (Frog) 2LP
Muddy Waters: McKinley Morganield (Chess) 2LP
Muddy Waters: King Bee (Blue Sky) LP
Muddy Waters: At Newport (Chess) LP
Muddy Waters: Rolling Stone (Chess) LP
Muddy Waters: Sings Big Bill Broonzy (Chess) LP
Muddy Waters & Howlin’ Wolf: London Revisited (Chess) LP
Muddy ‘Mississippi’ Waters: Live (Epic) LP
Sonny Boy Williamson & The Animals: s/t (Charly) LP
Sonny Boy Williamson: The Real Folk Blues (Chess) LP
Sonny Boy Williamson & Memphis Slim: In Paris (GNP Crescendo) LP
…..restocks…..
Alvvays: s/t (Royal Mountain) LP
Aphex Twin: Richard D James (1972) LP
Aphex Twin: Selected Ambient Works 85-92 (Apollo) LP
Sir Richard Bishop: Polytheistic Fragments (Drag City) LP
Black Keys: Rubber Factory (Fat Possum) LP
Black Keys: Thickfreakness (Fat Possum) LP
Marc Bolan & T. Rex: Zinc Alloy (Fat Possum) LP
Carlton Melton: Photos of Photos (Agitated) LP
Nick Cave: Nocturama (Anti) LP
Luciano Cilio: Dell’ Universo (Die Schachtel) LP
Gene Clark: No Other (4 Men With Beards) LP
The Clean: Anthology (Merge) LP
Coloured Balls: Heavy Metal Kid (Defcon) LP
Cramps: A Date With Elvis (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Big Beat From Badsville (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Fiends of Dope Island (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Look Mom No Head (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Rockinnreelininaukland… (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Smell of Female (Vengence) LP
Cramps: Stay Sick (Vengence) LP
Destroyer: Your Blues (Merge) LP
Dirty Beaches: Badlands (Zoo) LP
Drexciya: Harnessed (Tresor) LP
Kyle Bobby Dunn: And the Infinite Sadness (Students of Decay) 3LP
Ex Hex: Rips (Merge) LP
John Fahey: America (4 Men With Beards) LP
Fennesz: Endless Summer (Editions Mego) LP
Flower Travellin’ Band: Satori (Phoenix) LP
Brigitte Fontaine: s/t (Superior Viaduct) LP
Nils Frahm: Felt (Erased Tapes) LP
Funkadelic: Maggot Brain (Westbound) LP
Serge Gainsbourg/Jane Birkin: J’ Taime (Light in the Attic) LP
Galaxie 500: On Fire (20/20/20) LP
Galaxie 500: Today (20/20/20) LP
Grobschnitt: s/t (Ohr) LP
Gulaab: Ritt Durch Den Hades (Merlins Nose) LP
Hawkwind: s/t (4 Men With Beards) LP
Lee Hazlewood: LHI Years (Light in the Attic) LP
Heads: Everybody Knows We Got Nowhere (Rooster) 2LP/5LP
Hot Snakes: Automatic Midnight (Swami) LP
Hot Snakes: Suicide Invoice (Swami) LP
Jawbreaker: 24 Hour Revenge Therapy (Blackball) LP
Kiasmos: s/t (Erased Tapes) LP
King Khan & BBQ Show: s/t (In The Red) LP
King Khan & BBQ Show: Invisible Girl (In the Red) LP
King Khan & BBQ Show: What’s For Dinner? (In The Red) LP
Nazoranai: Most Painful…. (Idealogic Organ) LP
Nirvana: Unplugged in New York (Geffen) LP
Nomeansno: Mama (Wrong) LP
Nomeansno: Dance of the Headless (Wrong) LP
Oh Sees: Drop (Castle Face) LP
Oh Sees: Help (In The Red) LP
Oneohtrix Point Never: Returnal (Editions Mego) LP
Pallbearer: 2010 Demo (20 Buck Spin) LP
Pallbearer: Foundations of Burden (Profound Lore) LP
Parson Sound: s/t (Subliminal Sound) LP
Public Image Ltd: First Issue (Light in the Attic) LP
Public Image Ltd.: Second Edition (4 Men With Beards) LP
Real Estate: s/t (Woodsist) LP
Sonic Youth: Daydream Nation (Goofin) LP
Stars of the Lid: Avec Laudenum (Kranky) LP
M. Ward: Transistor Radio (Merge) LP
Various: Native North America (Light In The Attic) 3LP Box