Heavy week for November. Loads of killer wax this week. And we’ve been buying some fresh stuff for the used bins too. It’s supposed to be lovely out this weekend, so come on down for a dig.
…..pick of the week…..
The Olympians: s/t (Daptone) LP
Limited stock on “cosmic” colored vinyl! After repeatedly being visited by a strange messenger in his dreams while on tour in the islands of Greece, Toby Pazner became consumed with a vision to tell the stories of The Olympians through music. Chosen by the gods as a messenger for not only his musical gifts, but for his unique position at the center of the Daptone family, Toby built a home studio from scratch and employed some of the top soul musicians in the world to help him breath life into this album. The result is a dramatic and cinematic journey to the outer limits of instrumental soul music, built on a foundation laid by the same craftsmen who’s bricks built the legacies of Sharon Jones, Lee Fields, Charles Bradley, The Budos Band, and Menahan Street Band, and painted with lush strings, harpsichord, harp and horns. The Olympians is destined to be the instrumental gem of the year.
File Under: Funk, Soul, Daptone
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…..new arrivals…..
94 East (Featuring Prince): Just Another Sucker (Snapper) LP
This latest Charly re-issue holds the earliest known recordings of Prince, made with Pepé Willie’s band 94 East, recorded between December 1975 and February 1979. Prince contributes electric guitar, bass, keyboards, synths, organ, drums, harmony and backing vocals to the proceedings and is clearly heard on all of these historic recordings. This release has received a new, pure analogue remastering from Pepé Willie’s original tapes by Matt Colton at Alchemy Studios, and comes pressed on 180g heavyweight audiophile vinyl by Optimal Media, GmbH, Germany. Limited edition first pressing of 1000 copies will be offered on purple colored vinyl. “What makes these recordings particularly special is that they reflect an important element in the development of the ‘Minneapolis Sound’ – a phenomenon bought to the world’s attention by the emergence of Prince. And the outstanding contributions that Prince bought to these recordings are testimonial to his phenomenal, precocious abilities at such a young age.” – Pepé Willie
File Under: Funk, Soul, Disco
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The Bevis Frond: Superseeder (Fire) LP
“Superseeder marks a return to the sort of extended raga-like acid rock workout that typified early Bevis Frond releases.. the whole album is excellent.” Allmusic Released on Nick Saloman’s label Woronzow in 1995, The Bevis Frond’s ‘Superseeder’ arrived after ‘Sprawl’. At this point, Nick began releasing albums annually compared with his earlier recordings that would see multiple releases per year. Soaring and melodic rock workouts prevail with a notably strong rhythm section making this record another favourite. Eastern tinged opener ‘Superseded’, ‘I Can’t Cry’ and 17-minute ‘House Of Mountains’ are exemplary workouts whilst the garage-punk of ‘Dolly Bug’ takes a different tone as do ‘Golden Walks Of London’ and ‘Queen Of May’ which have more traditional British influences. Playing many instruments on the record, Nick continues here to work with his live band with Andy Ward on the drums, Adrian Shaw on bass and guest second guitarist Bari Watts returns (tracks 6 & 12). ‘Superseeder’ is reissued on double LP, single CD and download, it’s released alongside ‘Sprawl’ and ‘It Just Is’ on Fire Records ahead of their 30th anniversary year in 2017.
File Under: Psych, Stoner
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Danny Brown: Atrocity Exhibition (Warp) LP
Atrocity Exhibition is one of the freshest and boldest-sounding rap albums in recent memory, a sonic swirl inspired by the work of Talking Heads and Joy Division that nonetheless sounds like nothing else from the past or present. Featuring contributions from producers like Evian Christ, Petite Noir (who also lends vocals to the world-weary clang of “Rolling Stone”), Black Milk, the Alchemist and frequent collaborator Paul White, the album is full of laser-beam guitars, gym-teacher whistles, creaking vocal samples, and air-raid drones. It is the most intriguing take on hallucinatory rap since the heady heights of Cold Vein or Madvillainy. Known for his wide range of collaborations, including everyone from Purity Ring, the Avalanches and Rustie to Schoolboy Q, E-40, and Ghostface Killah, Atrocity Exhibition sees a continuation of this carefully curated mix. Kelela lends her snaking vocals to the intriguingly murky “From the Ground,” Cypress Hills B-Real delivers “Get His” languid hook, and Earl Sweatshirt, Kendrick Lamar, and Ab-Soul all convene for the twinkling ominousness of album standout “Really Doe.” “When XXX came out, all of us were peers, and those were the three rappers who were the best,” Brown explains on having the star-packed trio appear on the track. “I felt like we were competitors, they made me want to step my game up. I wanted to put the hottest rappers in the game on there.” This album is a highly personal take on Danny Brown’s ruminations on life and the changes that have occurred – and those that didn’t – following the ups and downs of career success. Atrocity Exhibition makes for a thrilling third installment in his singular biopic, one not to be missed.
File Under: Hip Hop
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Sandro Brugnolini: Overground (Cinedelic) LP
1970 Italian obscure psychedelic jazz-rock masterpiece composed by Sandro Brugnolini and recorded in Rome at Dirmaphon Studio. Performed by Silvano Chimenti (Guitar), Giorgio Carnini (Organ), Giovanni Tommaso (Bass) and Enzo Restuccia (Drums).
File Under: Italian, Library, Psych, Jazz
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Brugnolini/Torossi: Musica per Commenti Sonori (Schema) LP
‘Musica per commenti sonori’ is a cult series within the diverse world of Italian library music. In the late sixties and seventies, the small record label Costanza Records has published several releases precisely focusing on ‘background music’, including works of great composers such as Peppino De Luca, Roberto Pregadio, Franco Micalizzi, Vito Thomas, Giancarlo Thomas Puccio Roelens, Riccardo Luciani, and by the protagonists of this long-time due reissue: Sandro Brugnolini and Stefano Torossi. The two musicians, who had also worked together on the masterpiece “Feelings” (1974), have often collaborated and delivered some of the best Italian library music of all time. “Musica per commenti sonori” is certainly one of the most interesting. On the two equally split sides of this LP, the first for Torossi and the second for Brugnolini (but it seems that this partition was exclusively dictated by legal demands), there are twelve amazing tracks that will excite lovers of the wildest funk, producers in search of rare breaks, and those with a penchant for the psycho-beat atmospheres of the sixties. Among the most heated tracks featured on Torossi’s side, we can’t pass over the amazing “Sweet-Beat”, “Interrupted” (perhaps the best track of the album) and “Repetition” while “Polyphony”, “Motuproprio” and the closing track “Flyer” shine on Brugnolini’s. Virtually impossible to find, even at astonishing prices, this reissue puts back into the market one of the best examples of ‘The art of Italian library music’: a genre worldwide envied and collected.
File Under: Italian, Library
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Tim Buckley: Lady, Give Me Your Key (Light in the Attic) LP
In 1967, the face of rock was changing. In that year alone there were debut albums from The Velvet Underground, The Doors, and Pink Floyd, to name a few. The Beatles had combined orchestration with their music—the result was Sgt. Peppers in June, the same month that Tim Buckley recorded Goodbye & Hello. Buckley was no longer just another singer-songwriter with an acoustic guitar; he was drenched in acid-folk tinges of harpsichord and harmonium. Lyricist Larry Beckett embellished Tim’s songs with introspective lyrics at times, worldly views at others. It was the first major triumph for Tim as an album artist, partially because there were a remarkable amount of pre-production demos that led to it. Available here for the first time are these newly discovered master tapes, recorded by Goodbye & Hello’s producer Jerry Yester, along with an ultra-rare acetate, found to be in co-songwriter (and best friend) Beckett’s possession. Of the 13 previously unreleased solo acoustic songs contained here, six of them did eventually appear with more expansive instrumentation on Goodbye & Hello (along with another four not included here). However, the crown jewel of this package is seven never-before-heard compositions. These will be new to even the most devoted Buckley fan. Arguably, two of them crept out decades after Tim’s death (albeit, much different recordings than what you have here) but with little fanfare. So much has been written about Tim Buckley but so little of it by people who actually knew him. This booklet, however, includes a detailed interview with both Larry Beckett and Jerry Yester, providing real insight on how these recordings came to be and attempting to uncover the man behind all the myths, the real Tim Buckley. Several rarities releases in the 1980s and ‘90s shed light on his talent, especially the live recordings, but all of the studio material has generally been alternative versions of songs that fans already knew—until now. This is the first-ever posthumous release that reveals a wealth of previously unreleased and unheard tracks from Tim at the peak of his career. In short, you need this!
File Under: Folk
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Franco Chiari: Al Sint (Cinedelic) LP
Franco Chiari, born in 1927 in Naples, was an eclectic artist who is considered a bit of a wildcard of keyboard instruments: he played the piano, accordion, synthesizer, vibraphone and marimba in both jazz and symphony. For three consecutive years (1957/58/59) he won the National Jazz referendum, was vibraphonist in the national TV Orchestra and participated in numerous important broadcasts. He received many awards in his career, and numerous are the artists who have wanted to play live alongside him, including Lionel Hampton, Stéphane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt, Piero Piccioni, Armando Trovajoli, Lelio Luttazzi, and more. In this album released in 1973, the most groovy in his career, and now the most wanted from collectors, he rearranges the compositions of Mario Bertolazzi electronically with the use of synthesizer on rhythms ranging from latin beats to funk.
File Under: Funk, Jazz, Library
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Crazy Horse: Crazy Moon (Dust Bug) LP
The Crazy Horse masterpiece and often overlooked hidden jewel in the Neil Young and Crazy Horse canon of releases is now finally restored to vinyl for the first time since 1978 from the original analogue tapes. Features tracks initially written around the Zuma sessions and subsequently toured as part of the Neil Young and Crazy Horse Rolling Zuma Revue of Northern California in 1975. Crazy Moon shows the band at their laid back and rocking best. Features Neil Young on 5 tracks on what some consider to be his most searing guitar work of the period, plus former members of The Rockets and Crazy Horse. If you’ve never heard Crazy Moon in all its glory… you are in for a treat.
File Under: Classic Rock
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Czarface: A Fistful of Peril (Silver Age) LP
“Czarface (Wu-Tang Clan’s Inspectah Deck & 7L & Esoteric) are back! Fresh off the heels of their collaboration with Marvel Comics, the trio continues to combine music and art with their latest release A Fistful Of Peril. The back story of this album begins in the summer while Deck and Esoteric were in the studio recording some new Czarface material. During this time Marvel Comics had reached out to Czarface wanting some music to soundtrack their Black Panther web series, promoting their breakout comic of the same name. This Marvel meeting spawned the lead track ‘All in Together Now’ and served as the primary inspiration for a fleshed-out album that nobody saw coming. The group camped out in the studio playing beats, talking comics, video games, and pop culture….what came about was A Fistful Of Peril. Starting the album off with the ARP keyboard odyssey of ‘Electric Level 1’ is like entering the vortex of color and light in Kubrick’s 2001. The aptly titled ‘Two In The Chest’ showcases Deck & Eso’s ability to deliver punchlines and pop culture references with ease over an exceptional bass and guitar combo. ‘Czar Wars’ has the two sparring back and forth bringing that ‘X-Men/Danger Room’ mentality that Deck often to refers to when in Czar-mode. Psycho Les of The Beatnuts steps in on ‘Dust’ while ‘Lizard City’ introduces ‘Czarface Pajamas’. Yes you read that correctly. The off-kilter ‘Steranko’ has Meyhem Lauren and Rast join forces with Czarface as they weave their way through a mind-bending array of varying beats. Other features on the album are Conway on ‘Machine, Man & Monster’ and AOTP’s Blacastan on ‘Tarantulas’. Another one of the album’s highlights is ‘Dare Iz A Darkseid’ which, along with ‘Talk That Talk’, is the perfect balance of wit and humor that make up the core of Czarface.”
File Under: Hip Hop
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James Luther Dickinson: Dixie Fried (Future Days) LP
“People like Stan Phillips thought I was scary, that I was over the top – but I could play rock’n’roll.” -Jim Dickinson The late Jim Dickinson is one of the most eclectic personages rock n’roll has ever thrown up: a musical maverick. From Sun Records and Ardent Studios in the 1960s, to sessions with the Rolling Stones, Ry Cooder and Bob Dylan, significant productions of Big Star and the Replacements, and the twisted roots rock of his own Mud Boy & The Neutrons, the man was never, ever predictable. A solo album had not been at the forefront of Jim Dickinson’s mind then, but once the idea was put in place by Jerry Wexler at Atlantic, he reacted conceptually, and with gusto. Dickinson always shot from the hip. He could be coarse on a rocker like “Wine,” or dignified and joyous when celebrating “The Strength of Love.” Inebriated laments like “Wild Bill Jones” contrast sharply with the carny talk of “O How She Dances,” and a shifting, indignant anti-war recitation entitled “John Brown.” As a music maker who could relate equally to both the intellectual and the visceral aspects of popular culture, anything Dickinson lent his hand to was at least interesting and frequently rewarding. Such is the case with Dixie Fried, his solo debut from 1972. Unsuccessful upon release, the record now is now a cult item that, for many, mirrors the deliciously unexpected twists and turns of Dickinson’s subsequent career.
File Under: Blues Rock
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D
rake: If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late (Republic) LP
Grammy Award-winning multiplatinum artist Drake issued the surprise album/mixtape If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late in February 2015. The release debuted at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 and features 17 tracks including “Legend,” “Madonna” and “Used To” plus collaborations with Lil Wayne, Travis Scott and PartyNextDoor. If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2016 Juno Awards. “With each new major full-length, Drake has pushed through major leaps in maturity and technical skill and shifts in his artistic sensibility…If Nothing Was the Same was a glimpse at an artist just starting to realize the weight of the crown on his head, If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late captures a monarch compromised by the demands of his kingdom: the pressure to stay relevant, the hordes of fake friends and snakes aiming daggers at his back, the struggle to find anyone true to share in your success.
File Under: Hip Hop, Pop
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Drake: Take Care (Universal) LP
Take Care is the highly anticipated sophomore full-length release from platinum-selling, Grammy nominated recording artist Drake and follow-up to his 2010 breakthrough debut Thank Me Later. The album features guest appearances from The Weekend, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, Birdman, Nicki Minaj, and Andre 3000 along with production from the likes of Noah ’40’ Shebib, T-Minus, and Just Blaze among others.”Drake’s 2010 debut Thank Me Later was one of the most striking hip-hop coming-out parties in recent memory. The Canadian rapper’s tales of the high life were tinged with a sense of regret that perfectly fit the spare, somber tone in his music. The much-anticipated follow-up is more expansive, with producers from Just Blaze to the Neptunes to Lex Luger creating tracks that range from piano-laden R&B to Southern hip-hop, and guests like Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross, The Weeknd and Lil Wayne rolling through to liven things up. Drake is still the same lovably conflicted dude, and that’s part of what makes Take Care…compelling.” – Rolling Stone “Drake’s debut effort, Thank Me Later, (2010), cemented Drake as a force in the hip-hop game. But Take Care presents Drake at his best: unraveling without the care of being judged when spit-singing emotional verses over intricate, piano-heavy synths.” – Billboard
File Under: Hip Hop, Pop
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Drake: Views (Republic) LP
Grammy Award-winning multiplatinum superstar Drake who The New York Times says, “…is still his own genre,” returned in April 2016 with his fourth official full-length effort, Views, and yet another US Billboard 200 No. 1 showing. Drake told Beats 1 anchor Zane Lowe that the album was, “…probably the most blatant display of being proud of where I’m from.” The 20-track set is home to hit lead single “Hotline Bling,” groovy club banger “One Dance” featuring Wizkid and Kyla and “Pop Style” which features a reunion of epic proportions with contributions from the legendary Kanye West and Jay-Z. Longtime collaborators Noah “40” Shebib, Boi-1da, and Nineteen85 provide production while additional famous guests include PARTYNEXTDOOR, Pimp C, dvsn, Future and Rihanna. “Views – Drake’s fourth solo album, not counting umpteen mixtapes and other ephemera – finds him a conqueror between territories: fending off attacks from below, maintaining his grip on turf he controls and wondering what might be next…Views shows how Drake’s original sound has become a genre unto itself – not just as a template for others but also for Drake himself. The framework pioneered by him and his right-hand producer, 40 – tender, lush, soothing melodies about romantic vulnerability – can be used for songs about heartbreak, but also for songs about competitive stress, mistrust and fear.” – Jon Caramanica, New York Times
File Under: Hip Hop, Pop
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Federale: All the Colours of the Dark (Death Waltz Originals) LP
Federale, a seven-piece ensemble based in Portland, OR spearheaded by longtime Brian Jonestown Massacre bassist Collin Hegna, have announced details of the release of their fourth album. All The Colours Of The Dark is released on Friday 2nd December 2016 on Death Waltz Recording Co. The album is heralded by a video, directed by Paul Dillon, an ex-member of Mercury Rev and Sparklehorse, for the track I Swore I’d Never Kill Federale has always operated under the guidance of a larger story arc. 2007’s La Rayar is a classic tale of betrayal and vengeance. 2009’s Devil In A Boot centers on a small town terrorized by a railroad company baron’s expansion and destruction. 2012’s The Blood Flowed Like Wine tells the supernatural tale of an evil so powerful that not even hell can hold back its wrath. All The Colours Of The Dark continues this tradition while breaking new musical terrain. Though the new record includes cinematic instrumentals and that the band is known for, it also sees Federale expanding their vision to narrative songs in the baritone-driven style of heroes Lee Hazlewood, Scott Walker and Nick Cave. Murder, revenge, regret, power and corruption are the lyrical themes of this collection. This album will be the band’s first on Death Waltz Records. In 2014, Federale, a band conceived as an outlet to channel inspiration from ‘60s & ‘70s European soundtracks, particularly those from Italy made famous by the Spaghetti Western & Giallo genres, contributed five songs to Ana Lily Amirpour’s acclaimed gothic vampire film noir, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, setting the mood of both the film and the soundtrack. Lily’s new film, The Bad Batch, will feature the title track from the new album.
File Under: OST
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Lee Fields & The Expressions: Special Night (Big Crown) LP
“There are a few terms that get thrown around loosely, two of which are legend and retro-soul. One of these fits Lee Fields hand and glove, one of these doesn’t fit at all. Very few people in music have both earned the status of legendary and continue to solidify it. 50 years in the game and only getting better, gaining more fans, and evolving his sound on each album, Lee is in fact a living legend. This brings us to the misuse of the term ‘retro-soul’ when talking about Mr. Fields. You don’t have to look far to find a younger generation emulating the essence and styles of an era they’ve only experienced through music and movies. It seems unfair to tag Lee with a term that implies imitation when he is part of the generation that actually defined the genre. Plain and simple, this is not that. Special Night is a masterclass in soul music past and present. ‘I feel that every human being’s purpose is to do what their inner voice says to do,’ says Lee Fields. ‘And my inner voice, my driving force, wants me to put out music and keeping making better records.’ Produced by Leon Michels and Thomas Brenneck, and brilliantly performed by the Expressions, Special Night was written, recorded, mixed, and mastered entirely to tape in three weeks at the legendary Diamond Mine Studios in Queens, NY. A sense of urgency, equal parts fun and inspiration, and a decent amount of beer and Jack Daniels were the driving forces during the sessions that produced Lee Fields & The Expressions latest offering. Special Night is also the first record in the Expressions catalogue in which every song was written jointly by Lee Fields and The Expressions. ‘When I record, I make every song like I actually mean it. I mean every word I say. On Special Night I’m talking to my lady — literally, expressing the way I feel,’ says Lee Fields. ‘You can tell if a song is real or not, and every moment I’m recording, those moments are real, this is a record about what people do in real life.’ For one example, he cites the song ‘Work to Do,’ which tells the story of ‘a guy going to counseling, drinking too much, apologizing to the old lady and trying to keep family together, doing the manly thing.’ On ‘Make This World’, Lee makes a nod back to his early funk roots with a cautionary tale about the health of the planet. ‘The world was designed to last indefinitely,’ says Fields. ‘We’re the only living species on Earth who can alter that process. I’m hoping that song has a chain reaction, helps somebody put into action whatever contribution they can to change what the world is going through.’ As always, sticking to the formula but pushing the boundaries ‘Never Be Another You’ from the first note doesn’t sound like something you would hear on a Lee record, that is until he starts singing anyhow. A low tempo ballad with a head nodding drum track, sparse piano lines, and all the space Lee needs to lay down what is sure to be one of the flyest love songs of 2017. Whether tackling a tune about love lost, found, or broader topics like the state of humanity, Lee has a very unique and honest perspective that is on display with each unforgettable performance. Also, The Expressions have never been sharper, they, along with Lee, have created a collection of music on Special Night which holds court with pretty much any soul music that came before it.”
File Under: Funk, Soul
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Philip Glass/Kronos Quartet: Dracula (Orange Mountain) LP
Orange Mountain is pleased to announce for the first time on vinyl Philip Glass’s 1998 score to the 1931 film Dracula starring Bela Lugosi. For his new score, Philip Glass tapped the all-star Kronos Quartet and wrote specifically for them. In the late-1990s Universal Pictures approached composer Philip Glass to compose a new score for one of its classic monster movies. Glass chose to compose a score for Tod Browning’s 1931 Dracula because it never had an original score. He composed the work for string quartet to evoke an ancient sound and now almost 20 years later Glass and Kronos continue to perform the music live to film around the world. In the end Glass’s music gave the film new life, perhaps adding something that had been missing before there was music: structure and pacing and above all a new sense of mystery and soul. Dracula album was originally available on Nonesuch in the late-1990s. This is the first time Dracula is available on vinyl.
File Under: OST, Classical
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Wojciech Golczewski: Reality Check (Death Waltz Originals) LP
Polish born Film and TV composer Wojciech Golczewski (400 Days, We Are Still Here) delivers his debut solo LP for Death Waltz Originals. Using his knowledge of film scoring and his love of melodic modern electronica he has managed two create an absolutely flawless, beautiful synth record that soars above all others creating this style of music at the moment . 14 tracks of dystopian decayed synth workouts that are both incredibly intricate yet moving and melodic. A truly immersive listening experience.
File Under: Synth, Electronic
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The Green Birds: Diapason (Four Flies) LP
Totally brilliant and obscure psych era Italian library music. Originally released in 1971 for the microsmall label Vi.Di.Elle, the same label as another psych bomb, “The Black Fire – Cream”. Behind the mysterious “The Green Birds” name is a marvellous trio of unsung composers like Franco Bonfanti, Romano Rizzati (Corfull) and Renato Sperduti (Myrval), playing here some really dope jams in the style of the Braen’s Machine’s Underground LP. The whole album is full of psych effects, synth melodies, wah-wah & fuzz guitars, drum breaks & loungey vibes. Track A4 “Ambiente Elegante” by Franco Bonfanti was compiled in the cultish Speedball Experience in 1996.
File Under: Italian, Library, Funk
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Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consananza: s/t (Schema) LP
Way ahead of their time, Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza were an experimental collective fully based on improvised music. It was the only European group exclusively made of composers, instead of simple performers. The Group tried to break the schemes by making use of new instruments and electronic effects, reinventing new timbres, using the voice in an unconventional way. They were also known for the presence of Ennio Morricone on trumpet who, at the same time (1966), was also working as a soundtrack composer for Sergio Leone’s western movies! Up until now all the works have been the fruit of a composer and that this open form was in reality still closed to a still greater opening. It was the presence in Rome of one of its principal members, the composer Larry Austin, that encouraged the formation of the IMPROVISATION GROUP OF THE NUOVA CONSONANZA, which is the only group in Europe formed exclusively of Composers.
File Under: Italian, Library, Morricone
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Hold Steady: Almost Killed Me (French Kiss) LP
Frenchkiss Records and The Hold Steady present the long awaited release of Deluxe Editions of the New York-based rock ‘n’ roll band’s milestone first two LPs, Almost Killed Me (2004) and Separation Sunday (2005). Both records have been remastered from the original tapes, with each now appended by an array of bonus material (available via a download for the vinyl releases not on the actual LP). Almost Killed Me: Deluxe Edition comes joined with five rare tracks, including the very first Hold Steady 7″ single, “Milkcrate Mosh,” and songs previously only available on the album’s original Australian CD release. Separation Sunday: Deluxe Edition features six additional tracks, including the never before available “212-Margarita” and “The Most Important Thing” along with previously unreleased demos of “Cattle and the Creeping Things,” “Charlemagne in Sweatpants,” and “Crucifixion Cruise.” As if all that were not enough, Almost Killed Me will be offered on bright blue vinyl, with Separation Sunday pressed on pristine white vinyl. The Deluxe Edition LPs mark the first time both albums have been available on vinyl in more than a decade. Released by Frenchkiss in March 2004, Almost Killed Me instantly marked The Hold Steady as one of the most vital and original rock ‘n’ roll bands of the new millennium, blazing with the raw riffs and conceptual songcraft that continue to define their extraordinary canon. Kicking off with the classic “Positive Jam,” the album introduces singer/guitarist Craig Finn’s utterly unique lyricism and intensely detailed storytelling, a world of tough love, hard drugs, and barstool blues unlike any other before or since. Almost Killed Me received unanimous praise upon its arrival and was ultimately ranked at #2 on Rolling Stone’s “100 Best Albums of the 2000s” tally, who praised its “Springsteen-size cast of characters, lost kids staggering through America in search of sex, drugs and salvation. The band sounded so real and raw, so loaded with compassion and wit and raunch, they became a word-of-mouth sensation. Suddenly the 2000s didn’t look so hopeless after all.”
File Under: Indie Rock
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Hold Steady: Separation Sunday (French Kiss) LP
Frenchkiss Records and The Hold Steady present the long awaited release of Deluxe Editions of the New York-based rock ‘n’ roll band’s milestone first two LPs, Almost Killed Me (2004) and Separation Sunday (2005). Both records have been remastered from the original tapes, with each now appended by an array of bonus material (available via a download for the vinyl releases not on the actual LP). Seperation Sunday: Deluxe Edition features six additional tracks, including the never before available “212-Margarita” and “The Most Important Thing” along with previously unreleased demos of “Cattle and the Creeping Things,” “Charlemagne in Sweatpants,” and “Crucifixion Cruise.” As if all that were not enough, Almost Killed Me will be offered on bright blue vinyl, with Seperation Sunday pressed on pristine white vinyl. The Deluxe Edition LPs mark the first time both albums have been available on vinyl in more than a decade. The Hold Steady followed up their breakout 2004 debut Almost Killed Me with Separation Sunday in May 2005. It was greeted as The Hold Steady’s finest work to that point – a dazzling collection that forwarded the band’s distinctive sound and vision on virtually every level. And as was the case with its predecessor, Separation Sunday was also greeted by reams of critical applause. “The elegiac Biblical lost-innocence junkie odyssey that Denis Johnson never wrote…(Finn is) the poet laureate of the loading dock behind the mall where the runaway kids get together to sniff cheap coke at 5 a.m.” – Pitchfork “A triumph of non-judgmental storytelling delivered within purgative rock ‘n’ roll.” – The Guardian (5 Stars) “Chapter Two of indiedom’s most incisive soap opera…[Finn’s] stories unpack post-hardcore emotional verities, scene mythologies, and tragicomic punch lines.” – SPIN
File Under: Indie Rock
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Gerardo Iacoucci: Urbanistica (Four Flies) LP
Gerardo Iacoucci’s Urbanistica is one of the most elusive LP from the very sought after Octopus series. Released in 1971 as a non-commercial album of background music specially recorded for cinema, radio and television, Urbanistica is now come back to life in a special 180gr limited edition of 500 copies. Gerardo Iacoucci is one of the men behind Flipper’s sound scene, also known for L’avventura and Simbolismo Psichedelico (both published for Deneb label), but this is definitively his grooviest record, totally psych-beat, with jazzy-breaks, killer hammond, stunning drums and soul-jazz brass section.
File Under: Italian, Library, Psych
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Jerusalem: s/t (Lion) LP
“Sledgehammer-heavy masterpiece of underground British rock!” —Classic Rock Magazine “Big fat chords, wailing guitar, punch-drunk bass and straight-ahead solid drums all strutting in your face like some massive guy you just don’t want to f**k with.” —Head Heritage “I made the record because they are bloody good and it seems a shame for their sound not to be recorded… right now there’s a rawness and excitement…” Ian Gillan, in Disc & Music Echo, January 29th, 1972 Heavy UK hard rock album from 1972, produced by Deep Purple’s legendary frontman, Ian Gillan, originally released on the Decca/Deram label. It was Gillan who said of them: “Not many bands really excite me. But this one’s so raw and completely unpretentious. They make the biggest, bloodiest noise you can imagine, tempered with moments of extreme emotion.” And, of course, he’s right—the music is a menacing combination of over-the-top vocals and screaming lead guitars that could easily pass for something from the early British heavy metal scene—or something from the emotional hard core scene of the mid-1990’s (‘Primitive Man’). A favorite among vinyl collectors, the album is presented here in its ultimate glory, with all tracks direct from the original master tapes, housed in a high quality old-style gatefold cover; insert has liner notes written by bassist Paul Dean + rare photos. Stickered to indicate that this is the purple vinyl edition. Rough, raw, and doomy!
File Under: Hard Rock, Metal
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Kronos Quartet: Pieces of Africa (Nonesuch) LP
For more than 40 years, San Francisco’s Kronos Quartet – David Harrington (violin), John Sherba (violin), Hank Dutt (viola), and Sunny Yang (cello) – has combined a spirit of fearless exploration with a commitment to continually re-imagining the string quartet experience. In the process, Kronos has become one of the world’s most celebrated and influential ensembles, performing thousands of concerts, collaborating with many of the world’s most eclectic composers and performers, and commissioning over 850 works and arrangements for string quartet. A Grammy winner, Kronos is also the only recipient of both the Polar Music Prize and the Avery Fisher Prize. Originally issued on Nonesuch Records in 1992, this “potent new brew of folk influences, minimalism, and European forms by eight black, brown, and white African composers,” as Time described it, became a cross-cultural and commercial landmark: the first album to top both the Classical and World Music Billboard charts. Includes moving guest performances by such artists Dumisani Maraire, Hassan Hakmoun, Foday Musa Suso, Hamza el Din, Obo Addy, Radouane Laktib, Said Hakmoun, Dan Pauli, and the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir.
File Under: Classical, World, Africa
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Lambchop: Flotus (Merge) LP
For Love Often Turns Us Still – officially titled FLOTUS – is like many of Lambchop’s records: a subtle masterpiece, the kind that slowly and generously reveals its quiet wisdom to those patient and attentive enough to receive it. Inspired as always to make art from the unsung sounds and scenes of his South Nashville neighborhood, Kurt Wagner set aside what he has learned over the last 30 years and embarked on a musical adventure to bring us this album that sounds like no one else – or rather, completely, unmistakably, like himself. Start to finish, FLOTUS is imbued with that magic energy that comes when an artist stumbles upon the thrill of the new – something that makes them crazy enough to want to start the whole process over again. The album is bookended by two long-form pieces: the first, “In Care of 8675309,” is most reminiscent of where Lambchop has been, while the second, the sprawling, hypnotic “The Hustle,” suggests where they might still be headed. The latter seamlessly shifts between movements, a foundation suggestive of krautrock and early electronic music, gorgeously ornamented with perfectly placed piano and horns. Drawing upon a diverse palate of influences and transcending each one, it’s a stunning piece of work – certainly one of the most impressive achievements of Lambchop’s catalogue.
File Under: Indie Rock, Folk, Electronic
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Ennio Morricone: La Califfa (Vinyl Magic) LP
La Califfa (1970) is a rare example, probably very rare, in which the director and author of the book on which the film is inspired coincide; we’re talking about Antonio Bevilacqua, who won the Nastro D’Argento prize as Best New Director with this film. The film deals with the issue of the class struggle, and in particular the love-hate relationship between a businessman (Ugo Tognazzi) and a female worker (Romy Schneider, almost too sensual here) who lost her fiancé at the working place. A romantic and dramatic work, as the music written and orchestrated by Ennio Morricone, here often surrounded by an impressive aura of sacredness. This LP also features, as guests on voices and choirs, Edda Dell’Orso and I Cantori Moderni di Alessandro Alessandroni. Surprisingly, despite the success of the film and its soundtrack received at the time, “La Califfa” has never been reissued on LP since the early ’70s. This new edition on Vinyl Magic record label eventually fills this gap and, except for the front cover image, the artwork has been completely renewed: the inner sleeve contains in fact many reproductions of posters and lobby cards of the film. Various tracks, never released on LP until today, have also been added to the final tracklist.
File Under: OST, Maestro
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Ennio Morricone: Le Due Stagioni Della Vita (Vinyl Magic) LP
More than a halo of mystery surrounds Le due stagioni della vita (The two seasons of life), a film virtually impossible to find in any format, that we hardly know the names of its actors and director. The latter, Samy Pavel, of Belgian nationality but born in Egypt in 1944, debuted in 1972 precisely with this film, which was presented at the Venice International Film Festival in the same year. The author of the soundtrack is Ennio Morricone, who was already a World famous composer in those years thanks to his unforgettable soundtracks written for Sergio Leone’s western movies and beyond. He’s here accompanied, as often happened in those years, by conductor Bruno Nicolai and singer Edda Dell’Orso. Entirely orchestral, first of all the LP shows a long suite on side A, composed of a series of the main theme variations; the B-side, on the other hand, presents a brief interlude for solo voices, followed by another long composition that we wouldn’t hesitate to define ‘unbelievable’: sixteen long minutes of a constant tension generated by string instruments only, with sporadic inserts of tribal percussion, dissonant piano chords and notes, and darkened choirs.
File Under: OST, Maestro
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Ennio Morricone: Teorema (Vinyl Magic) LP
Teorema is a film directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, publicly presented for the first time in September 1968 at the International Film Festival in Venice; it immediately shocked its viewers, like many other of Pasolini’s works, and was seized by the Public Prosecutor of Rome and the director, with producer Donato Leoni, were charged with obscenity – and eventually absolved. The music of the film is divided in two: the original vinyl B-side is entirely occupied by Mozart’s “Messa da Requiem”, while the A-side houses five original compositions written by Ennio Morricone. These ones consist of two opening dissonant and discordant tracks, solely played with classical instruments (“Teorema”, “Frammenti”), a ballad sung by the Junior Trio (“Fruscio di green leaves”), a piece that reminds of a western movie by Sergio Leone (“L’ultima corrida”) and a closing instrumental beat/psych song (“Beat N° 3”).
File Under: OST, Maestro
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Ennio Morricone: Vergogna Schifosi (Vinyl Magic) LP
Vergogna schifosi is a 1969 movie directed by Mauro Severino, a “Generation ’68” film whose aim is to depict a social protest against the middle-class youth of the time, with the deserted – as empty as the protagonists – city of Milan in the background; everything is tied together by a mysterious murder that occurred years before, resurfaced by a mysterious individual. The soundtrack of this film was entrusted to Ennio Morricone who, with the collaboration of I Cantori Moderni di Alessandro Alessandroni and an incredible Edda Dell’Orso, combined symphonic and pop music, with a jazzy rhythmic background. Six tracks with a soothing and romantic atmosphere that wouldn’t look out of place in a ‘lounge’ compilation; undoubtedly brilliant is the reinterpretation of the famous nursery rhyme melody of “Giro Giro Tondo”, included in the two pieces of the same title “Matto, Caldo, Soldi, Morto… Girotondo”.
File Under: OST, Maestro
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Morricone Youth: Night of the Living Dead (Country Club) LP
Original live score composed (except where noted) and performed by MORRICONE YOUTH to George A. Romero’s 1968 Zombie Classic.
File Under: Electronic, OST
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Colin Newman: A-Z (Sentient Sonics) LP
Colin Newman’s early 80’s solo albums, originally released on Beggars Banquet / 4AD, now re-released on his own new imprint Sentient Sonics. The vinyl editions have been unavailable for many years—remastered original albums on single LP. The CD versions of the 3 remastered albums are accompanied by a 2nd CD of extra tracks, b-sides & demos – quite a lot of which have never been released – released as double digipacks. These albums were recorded and released between 1980 & 1982 in a “post 154” rush of activity. While all the albums bear the name Colin Newman they differ in that A-Z & Not To were recorded as “band” albums with Colin being joined by Wire’s Robert Grey, Mike Thorne (who also produced, as he had the first 3 Wire albums) & Desmond Simmons on A-Z and Robert, Desmond & Simon Gillham on Not To. provisionally entitled the singing fish was more an “actual” solo album in that everything was played by himself. Colin produced the latter 2 albums with Steve Parker engineering.
File Under: Rock, New Wave, Wire
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Colin Newman: Not To (Sentient Sonics) LP
Colin Newman’s early 80’s solo albums, originally released on Beggars Banquet / 4AD, now re-released on his own new imprint Sentient Sonics. The vinyl editions have been unavailable for many years—remastered original albums on single LP. The CD versions of the 3 remastered albums are accompanied by a 2nd CD of extra tracks, b-sides & demos – quite a lot of which have never been released – released as double digipacks. These albums were recorded and released between 1980 & 1982 in a “post 154” rush of activity. While all the albums bear the name Colin Newman they differ in that A-Z & Not To were recorded as “band” albums with Colin being joined by Wire’s Robert Grey, Mike Thorne (who also produced, as he had the first 3 Wire albums) & Desmond Simmons on A-Z and Robert, Desmond & Simon Gillham on Not To. provisionally entitled the singing fish was more an “actual” solo album in that everything was played by himself. Colin produced the latter 2 albums with Steve Parker engineering.
File Under: Rock, New Wave, Wire
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Colin Newman: Provisionally Entitled… the Singing Fish (Sentient Sonics) LP
Colin Newman’s early 80’s solo albums, originally released on Beggars Banquet / 4AD, now re-released on his own new imprint Sentient Sonics. The vinyl editions have been unavailable for many years—remastered original albums on single LP. The CD versions of the 3 remastered albums are accompanied by a 2nd CD of extra tracks, b-sides & demos – quite a lot of which have never been released – released as double digipacks. These albums were recorded and released between 1980 & 1982 in a “post 154” rush of activity. While all the albums bear the name Colin Newman they differ in that A-Z & Not To were recorded as “band” albums with Colin being joined by Wire’s Robert Grey, Mike Thorne (who also produced, as he had the first 3 Wire albums) & Desmond Simmons on A-Z and Robert, Desmond & Simon Gillham on Not To. provisionally entitled the singing fish was more an “actual” solo album in that everything was played by himself. Colin produced the latter 2 albums with Steve Parker engineering.
File Under: Rock, New Wave, Wire
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OST: Drive (Invada) LP
Cliff Martinez’s iconic soundtrack to the cult classic film Drive by Nicolas Winding Refn is turning 5, and to mark the anniversary, Invada Records and Lakeshore Records will be co-releasing a limited edition version of the soundtrack. This features Martinez’s score and all other music used in the film, including the legendary tracks by College, Kavinsky and Desire. This release will feature brand new liner notes written by the film’s director Nicolas Winding Refn, and also by the score’s composer Cliff Martinez. Pictured above, this edition is also presented with stunning new artwork by Lakeshore art director John Bergin. Cliff Martinez has made a name for himself as one of the soundtrack world’s most innovative composers, having worked on many other classics such as Solaris, Farcry 4, The Neon Demon and Lincoln Lawyer.
File Under: Electronic, OST
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OST: Narcos (Invada) LP
Invada are thrilled to announce the vinyl release of Pedro Bromfman’s incredible score to “Narcos” season one, the 10-episode Netflix series which tells the story of notorious drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, detailing his gory rise to power. The 28-track release includes Bromfman’s sinister instrumental cues, with dark, criminal undertones and a haunting atmosphere. The release also contains the show’s theme song ‘Tuyo’ by Brazilian songwriter Rodrigo Amarante. Bromfman is known for his previous work on Brazilian crime thriller “Elite Squad” and for his work on “Robocop”. His score for “Narcos” will appeal to fans of Paris Texas OST, Drive OST and Donnie Darko OST.
File Under: OST
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OST: Planet of the Apes (Mondo) LP
Mondo is thrilled to be releasing Jerry Goldsmith’s absolutely astounding score to one of the greatest science fiction films of all time: the original Planet of the Apes. Nominated for an Academy Award, Goldsmith’s score is unlike anything moviegoers had heard before – avant garde, experimental and using every instrument Goldsmith could get his hands on. It stills spins heads today. Essential listening for soundtrack collectors, and fans of the franchise.
File Under: OST, Mondo
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OST: Shock Waves (Waxwork) LP
Waxwork Records is thrilled to announce the vinyl debut of SHOCK WAVES. The 1977 film stars horror movie legend Peter Cushing and is directed by Ken Wiederhorn (Return Of The Living Dead 2). The 100% analog synth score composed by Richard Einhorn (The Prowler, Don’t Go In The House) marks one of the earliest electronic compositions created for film. Waxwork is proud to finally release this landmark electronic horror score in vinyl format 40 years after the film’s initial public release. LP package features include the complete score available on vinyl for the very first time, composer liner notes by Richard Einhorn, director liner notes by Ken Wiederhorn, heavyweight old style tip-on gatefold jackets, “Sea Foam Green” colored vinyl, all new album artwork by Marc Schoenbach of Sadist Art Designs, and center label art by Ghoulish Gary Pullin.
File Under: OST
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Puccio Roelens: Musica Per Commenti Sonori (Schema) LP
“Musica per commenti sonori”, also known as “Lipstick” and released by Costanza, came out in 1979 and is one of Roelen’s latest examples of library music before his death, which occurred in 1985. The tracks are often characterized by a typical late-seventies funky mood, but they also feature some laid down moments that would sound great in some erotic films soundtracks. ‘Music for all hours’ says the back cover, and that’s perfectly true!
File Under: Italian, Library
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Nina Simone: A Very Rare Evening (Tidal Waves) LP
Tidal Waves Music proudly presents the re-issue for Nina Simone’s A Very Rare Evening. Originally released on PM records in 1979, featuring Weldon Irvine on organ, Don Allias on drums and Jazz legend Gene Perla on bass. Included on these European sessions from 1969 you’ll find Nina classics & rare versions of recordings written by Aretha Franklin, Barry Gibb, Randy Newman & Pete Seeger. One of the most sought after Nina Simone albums is now back available as a deluxe limited vinyl edition for the first time since 1979. Produced by Gene Perla, officially licensed from PM Records & featuring the original artwork created by A.M. Schnider. “It’s her first LP in years, but was taped back in 1969 in Europe with a confident, impressive organ and rhythm section backup band. Simone is an acquired taste. But, for those who appreciate her singing, these eight tracks will prove welcome.” – BILLBOARD Anything by this lady of song is welcome, especially when she’s in front of an adoring audience, as she is in these decade-old, never-released sides. Simone covers all bases from Barry Gibb’s “In The Morning,” to Pete Seeger’s adaptation from the Book of Ecclesiastes, “Turn! Turn! Turn!” She gives special meaning to such tunes as the poignant “The Other Woman,” the gospel inflected “Save Me,” and “I Think It’s Going To Rain Today.” But the highlight is her own tune, composed with keyboardist Weldon Irvine, Revolution.”- CASH BOX MAGAZINE “Though the Simone catalog overflows with live recordings, this 1969 German concert outranks all others. Focusing almost exclusively on then-contemporary material—the Gibb brothers’ “In the Morning” and “To Love Somebody,” Randy Newman’s “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today,” Aretha Franklin’s “Save Me,” the Byrds’ “Turn! Turn! Turn!”—Simone is at her most assuredly earthy and intrepidly regal.” – THE JAZZ TIMES
File Under: Jazz, Soul
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Giuliano Sorgini: Zoo Folle (Four Flies) LP
First official reissue ever for this Italian holy-grail soundtrack, finally back to life in a long-waited 180gr. limited edition, supervised by M° Giuliano Sorgini himself, who also wrote his personal liner notes. Remastered from the original master tapes that were preserved for more than 40 years in almost perfect shape, ZOO FOLLE is a highly sought after psych-funk album, a true masterpiece for all breaks-beat lovers, full of rhythmic percussion, acid flute, synth work, dark electronics, drum machines, and crazy hand-claps. The score was composed for an Italian TV movie in 1974, directed by Riccardo Fellini (brother of the most well-known Federico), and originally released on Ricordi Label in the same year. Featuring Edda Dell’Orso and some of the best and leading Italian session players in the soundtrack and library landscape, such as Maurizio Majorana and Antonello Vannucchi (from I MARC 4), Nino Rapicavoli on flute, and Giuliano Sorgini himself on organ, keyboards, piano, drums, and percussion.
File Under: Italian, OST, Funk
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Carl Stone: Electronic Music from the Seventies & Eighties (Unseen Worlds) 3LP
“Of the serious composers to come out of 1980s California, Carl Stone is the one who has always performed in nightclubs as well as concert halls, for spiky-haired punks as well as the Ph.D-and-ponytail set – his brand of electro-acoustic bricolage was probably better known among jazz musicians than it was to the blue-haired Monday Evening Concerts crowd.” – Jonathan Gold, from the liner notes. This 3LP set contains a selection of seven early works by American composer Carl Stone, all previously unpublished except for “Shing Kee,” which appeared on the 1992 New Albion CD release, Mom’s. Notorious, formerly elusive recordings like “Sukothai,” “Shibucho,” and “Dong Il Jang” exemplify how Stone masterfully guided his art through the transition period when New Music exited the loft scene of the 1970s for a stab at commercial presence in the 1980s, satisfying both impulses by fusing his compositional ambition with systems of live performance that were simultaneously pop savvy, commercial suicide, and technologically and aesthetically forward thinking. His live performance practice, documented here in a carefully restored archival recording of “Kuk Il Kwan” at The Kitchen in 1981, has merged seamlessly with today’s computer-driven methods. The earliest works of this collection, “LIM” and “Chao Praya,” realized on the Buchla 200, date to the early 1970s while Stone was a student of James Tenney and Morton Subotnick at CalArts, a rare glimpse of Stone working with purely electronic source material. Liner notes by Carl Stone, Jonathan Gold, Richard Gehr, and Marc Weidenbaum accompany on a gatefold sleeve. Download card is included with a digital-only bonus track, “Unthaitled” from 1978. Mastered and cut by Rashad Becker.
File Under: Early Electronic, Experimental
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Tad: Salt Lick (Sub Pop) LP
TAD was a mighty force in the late-‘80s/early-‘90s Seattle scene. Their heavy, churning rock/metal/punk buzz was a crucial part of Sub Pop’s early years, and, along with peers like Mudhoney, Nirvana, and Soundgarden, they defined the sound that reinvigorated the rock world in the early ‘90s. TAD was led by the physically imposing yet incredibly sweet singer/guitarist Tad Doyle, with bassist Kurt Danielson (Bundle of Hiss), drummer Steve Wied, and guitarist Gary Thorstensen. With an image that sometimes cast the band as deranged lumberjacks, and influence from Head of David and Killdozer, TAD put a uniquely rain-and-fog-coated Northwest spin on ‘80s underground rock. The band released two albums and a few EPs on Sub Pop between 1988 and 1991, all of which are now lovingly remastered by the band’s friend and engineer Jack Endino (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees) and repackaged with bonus tracks (available on an accompanying download) and expansive liner notes. After their 1989 debut album, God’s Balls, TAD continued to write and record, releasing a string of singles and the Salt Lick EP between 1989 and 1990. Salt Lick features the single “Wood Goblins,” the video for which MTV banned because it was, to the delicate eyes of MTV programmers, “too ugly.” The sounds of Salt Lick are, indeed, wonderfully ugly, thanks in part to the involvement of noise-rock technician Steve Albini (Big Black, Shellac, Nirvana, The Jesus Lizard), who recorded the EP. The band continued to release singles and gain momentum in the press. As Tad himself puts it: “Lyrically we had a lot of subject matter that was meant to be tongue in cheek from the beginning but had been presented by Sub Pop and ourselves as true-to-life. As a result, the press had taken it all seriously and began to feed on and ravenously devour the mythology that we had created.” This reissue of Salt Lick includes tracks from the “Wood Goblins” single, a split 7″ with Pussy Galore, and the “Loser” 7″ on an accompanying download.
File Under: Noise Rock, Grunge
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Tad: 8-Way Santa (Sub Pop) LP
TAD was a mighty force in the late-‘80s/early-‘90s Seattle scene. Their heavy, churning rock/metal/punk buzz was a crucial part of Sub Pop’s early years, and, along with peers like Mudhoney, Nirvana, and Soundgarden, they defined the sound that reinvigorated the rock world in the early ‘90s. TAD was led by the physically imposing yet incredibly sweet singer/guitarist Tad Doyle, with bassist Kurt Danielson (Bundle of Hiss), drummer Steve Wied, and guitarist Gary Thorstensen. With an image that sometimes cast the band as deranged lumberjacks, and influence from Head of David and Killdozer, TAD put a uniquely rain-and-fog-coated Northwest spin on ‘80s underground rock. The band released two albums and a few EPs on Sub Pop between 1988 and 1991, all of which are now lovingly remastered by the band’s friend and engineer Jack Endino (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees) and repackaged with bonus tracks (available on an accompanying download) and expansive liner notes. In 1991, after tens of thousands of miles on the road in support of God’s Balls, and a run of powerful EPs/singles, TAD released their second full-length album, 8-Way Santa. Recorded at Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin with Butch Vig, whose work with Killdozer the band admired, 8-Way Santa finds TAD pushing their sound in new directions. Not a band to rest on its laurels, TAD began to add melodic touches to their sound, as evidenced by the lead single, “Jinx.” Many touring dates and shows followed the record, plus a copyright-infringement brouhaha over the original album cover – which was quickly pulled from stores when the couple portrayed in the cover photo objected. 8-Way Santa was the last record with the original TAD lineup, and their last album for Sub Pop before jumping to a major label. This reissue of 8-Way Santa includes tracks from the “Jinx” single, a 1990 EP, and a handful of unreleased album demos recorded by Jack Endino on an accompanying download coupon.
File Under: Noise Rock, Grunge
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Tad: God’s Balls (Sub Pop) LP
TAD was a mighty force in the late-‘80s/early-‘90s Seattle scene. Their heavy, churning rock/metal/punk buzz was a crucial part of Sub Pop’s early years, and, along with peers like Mudhoney, Nirvana, and Soundgarden, they defined the sound that reinvigorated the rock world in the early ‘90s. TAD was led by the physically imposing yet incredibly sweet singer/guitarist Tad Doyle, with bassist Kurt Danielson (Bundle of Hiss), drummer Steve Wied, and guitarist Gary Thorstensen. With an image that sometimes cast the band as deranged lumberjacks, and influence from Head of David and Killdozer, TAD put a uniquely rain-and-fog-coated Northwest spin on ‘80s underground rock. The band released two albums and a few EPs on Sub Pop between 1988 and 1991, all of which are now lovingly remastered by the band’s friend and engineer Jack Endino (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees) and repackaged with bonus tracks (available on an accompanying download) and expansive liner notes. God’s Balls, TAD’s punishing, noise-drenched debut album, was recorded with Jack Endino at Reciprocal Recording in Seattle in 1988, and released early the following year. In addition to their usual arsenal of guitars, bass, and drums, the band employed a variety of unusual instruments – an empty gas tank from a car, a hacksaw, a large brass tube from a microwave transmitter, CB radio mics, a cello bow used on cymbals to emulate guitar feedback – to thunderous effect, adding a Neubauten-esque clang to the band’s rock riffs. After releasing God’s Balls, TAD flew to Europe with Nirvana for both bands’ first European tour. The now-legendary, month-long tour took the bands to the UK, Ireland, Scotland, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Italy, Denmark and Sweden. This reissue of God’s Balls features bonus tracks from TAD’s 1988 debut 7″, plus the previously unreleased “Tuna Car” from the 7″ session on an accompanying download coupon.
File Under: Noise Rock, Grunge
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Victims: Form Hell (Death Waltz) 10″
Form Hell is the debut release by Victims, the collaborative project of film composer Timothy Fife, and Video Nasties member, Chris Livengood. Mainstays in the darkest, most obscure netherworlds of the New England underground scene, the work of these individuals has circulated over the past decade only amongst the filthy hands and minds of those in the know. Together as Victims, the two make synthesizer music inspired in equal measure by the highest and lowest expressions of the medium. For every nod to Subotnick and Mort Garson there’s a indiscrete wink aimed at Marcello Giombini and Walter Sear. “Form Hell” finds the two minds meeting and melting at their most damaged point: the holes torn open by repeated viewings of the most filthy of films, setting forth a pulsating kosmiche geyser of shimmering cinematic sounds. Perhaps if Tangerine Dream geared up and jammed immediately after their 12th consecutive viewing of Burial Ground: Night of Terror, it might sound something like this. If Michael Hoenig had scored The Gate before abandoning his analog synths, those fleshy little minions would’ve been dancing to the arpeggiated menace of Form Hell.
File Under: Electronic, Synthwave
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Weezer: s/t (Geffen) LP
Weezer doesn’t look like rock stars, its amusing name doesn’t evoke stadium-heights glories, and the group’s lyrics don’t exude confidence or flash. For precisely these reasons, and the fact that the band’s songs on their Ric Ocasek-produced 1994 self-titled debut are the stuff of air-guitar dreams and shout-it-out choruses, the quartet became ironic arena-rock stars equally celebrated by in-the-know hipsters and mainstream radio listeners. Underdogs and misfits, Weezer emerged from Los Angeles, CA as nerdy kids that eschewed traditional party-hard ways in favor of studying Kiss records, engaging in conversations about old LPs, and playing Dungeons and Dragons. The band’s awkwardness joyfully translates in the songs on their debut, largely concerned with jealous insecurities, pop culture, true-to-life heartbreak, common accidents, youthful misconceptions, and daydreaming. Replete with urgent melodies, quirky confessional narratives, wry humor, and gargantuan hooks, Weezer (Blue Album) remains the best geek-rock record ever made. More than three-times platinum, the Blue Album claims an iconic cover that pays tribute to that of the Feelies’ Crazy Rhythms. The picture – as well as the bubblegum-inspired content within – has become an indelible part of modern culture. And “My Name Is Jonas,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Buddy Holly,” and “Undone (The Sweater Song)” are all modern classics.
File Under: Rock
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Adrian Younge: The Electronique Void: Black Noise (Linear Labs) LP
Adrian Younge calls The Electronique Void an academic album, by which he means it is both instructional and informational. There’s a problem at the heart of it, a woman who’s been told that she’s loved, but she doesn’t recognize that, can’t feel it, may have heard it all before, may be worrying about the wrong things. Jack Waterson, long a guitarist in Younge’s band, plays the role of narrator, sounding professorial and rather superior as he lays out for the woman where she’s erred. That vocoder you hear is Adrian, talking to her on a subterranean level, the way an artist must. Music, especially electronic music, reliant as it is on abstraction and unrepentant as it is about hijacking your physiological responses to tempo and rhythm and dynamics, is a way to get there without going through it. Electronic music as practiced and developed by pioneers like Dick Hyman and Raymond Scott and Wendy Carlos is precise and intentional. In making his first electronic album, Younge took his cues from them, reminding a contemporary audience what a synthesizer, deep in its heart, really could be. The lady of The Electronique Void, only ever seen through a man’s eyes, who’s being told what to do by him, sounds trapped by her history and by her position, her ancestors’ trauma echoing through her lineage and booming out of her as a phobia, distrust, misapprehension, rational response to a fucked up situation. Waterson’s text here seems to say that if his character could go back in time, catch her before the damage was done, she would be able to love. And that’s reasonable. Don’t get hooked. Don’t do wifey shit for a fuck boy. Don’t let it go to your head, no. It’s also possible he has no idea what he’s talking about. The lessons for men in The Electronique Void are unspoken but plain as day. This music is an urgent tutorial. Adrian Younge looks at us and sees the frontline of a crisis, something we only have time to triage right now. This isn’t romantic and it isn’t about settling down. This is the fight of our lives: how to love.
File Under: Electronic
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Various: David Bowie’s Lazarus (Columbia) 3LP
As the November 2016 UK opening of Lazarus at London’s King Cross Theatre approaches, the cast and band of the original New York production will release their versions of the David Bowie songs from the show as the Lazarus Cast Album in October. Standing alongside the cast’s interpretations of classics from his canon are the three final Bowie studio recordings. Co-produced by Bowie and Tony Visconti and recorded with Donny McCaslin and his quartet, the same band that played on Bowie’s ★ album, these last three songs – “No Plan,” “Killing A Little Time,” “When I Met You” – bring completely new dimensions to their cast counterparts. The original ★ version of “Lazarus” is also included on the cast album. The Lazarus cast album was produced by the show’s musical director Henry Hey, who had previously worked with Bowie on “The Next Day” and features vocals from Hall, Caruso, Cristin Milioti, Michael Esper and other cast members backed by the seven-piece house band Hey assembled for the New York run. The album was recorded January 11, 2016. Upon arriving at the studio, the musicians and cast were shocked and saddened to learn that Bowie had passed away the evening before. Their emotional performances that day are captured on this recording. The distinctive artwork for the Lazarus cast recording has been designed by Jonathan Barnbrook who also worked with Bowie on the ★, The Next Day, Heathen and Nothing Has Changed albums. Written by Bowie and Enda Walsh, directed by Ivo Van Hove and produced by Robert Fox, Lazarus opened December 7, 2015 at the New York Theatre Workshop to great critical acclaim. The New York Times raved “Ice-cold bolts of ecstasy shoot like novas through the glamorous muddle and murk of Lazarus, the great-sounding, great-looking and mind-numbing new musical built around songs by David Bowie,” while Rolling Stone hailed it as a “Surrealistic Tour de Force… milk-swimming, lingerie-sniffing, gin-chugging theater at its finest.”
File Under: OST, Rock
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Various: Puissance 13 + 2 (Lion) LP
“The atmosphere was wonderful throughout all of the recording sessions, sessions recorded in the open air, in the sunshine, amongst friends. We were motivated simply by the desire to play music, the music we love the way we wanted to play it. All the titles on this album are unreleased, and most of them were recorded specifically for this occasion…. this isn’t any old debut, it’s the Debut.” — Laurent Thibault (1971) Amazing sessions by the cream of underground French prog and psych bands, first released in 1971 on Thélème, a boutique label owned by Magma bassist and Barclay Records manager Laurent Thibault. When Thibault founded Thélème, he wanted to set up a prestige outfit. He had this in mind when he set out to fulfill his ambition of presenting a panorama of the French rock scene by gathering the best groups in France together on one double-album, to be recorded at the legendary Chateau d’Hérouville studio, live in the courtyard with no overdubs. Thibault had hoped that labels would allow their best acts to appear. Philips offered Magma (the version of ‘Mekanik Kommando’ appearing on Puissance is the first ever conceived or recorded by the band) and Catherine Ribeiro; Barclay allowed Alain Markusfeld to participate; Le Chant du Monde let Voyage appear. The band Catharsis said yes; so did Contrepoint, discovered by Magma’s René Garber. Thélème artists included Ergo Sum, MOR, Zabu, and Solitude. Two guests from America were recommended by Le Chant du Monde: folk-singers Roger Mason and Steve Waring. And happily Spectre, a band featuring legendary Hérouville engineer Dominique Blanc-Francart, brought the monster prog jazz funk synth madness of ‘Arkham’. Brilliant!
File Under: Prog
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…..Restocks…..
Avalanches: Wildflower (Astralwerks) LP
Butthole Surfers: Electriclarryland (Plain) LP
Cranberries: No Need To Argue (Plain) LP
Damned: Machine Gun Etiquette (Chiswick) LP
Miles Davis: Agharta (4 Men With Beards) LP
Miles Davis: Bitches Brew (Legacy) LP
Miles Davis: In A Silent Way (Legacy) LP
Miles Davis: Kind of Blue (Legacy) LP
Miles Davis: Sketches of Spain (Legacy) LP
Goblin: Susperia (AMS) LP
Jaylib: Champion Sound (Stones Throw) LP
King Crimson: In the Wake of Poseidon (Pangaea) LP
Michael Kiwanuka: Home Again (Universal) LP
LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver (DFA) LP
Lydia Loveless: Real (Bloodshot) LP
Massive Attack: Mezzanine (EMI) LP
James Vincent McMorrow: We Move (Dine Alone) LP
Minor Victories: s/t (Fat Possum) LP
Mumford & Sons: Babel (Glass Note) LP
Mumford & Sons: Sigh No More (Glass Note) LP
OST: It Follows (Milan) LP
OST: The Neon Demon (Milan) LP
Pharcyde: Labcabincalifornia (Bicycle Music) LP
Porcupine Tree: Stupid Dreams (Kscope) LP
Prince: Sign o the Times (Warner) LP
Steve Reich: Music For 18 Musicians (Nonesuch) LP
The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World (Light in the Attic) LP
Slint: Spiderland (Touch & Go) LP
Sparklehorse: It’s A Wonderful Life (Plain) LP
William Tyler: Modern Country (Merge) LP
Wilco: Schmilco (Anti) LP
Various: Wayfaring Strangers: Cosmic American Music (Numero) LP