New Releases - 2/21/20

Hitting The Racks

Here's your weekly rundown of what's hitting the new release racks at Grimey's

Jump to… New Releases Reissues & From The Vaults New on Vinyl

New Releases

Best Coast - Always Tomorrow CD/LP (Concord) 

Inspired by the '70s, L.A.-based duo Best Coast expand their signature indie pop sound into a harmonic blend of melodic guitars and keyboards as warm and refreshing as a California breeze. Multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno, along with the irrepressible Bethany Cosentino, combine to bring her masterful storytelling to new heights, crafting their most eloquent and reflective album to date. "Always Tomorrow is about leaving the darkness for the light, but still understanding that nothing is ever going to be perfect," Cosentino said. "It's about burning it all down and starting from scratch even when the idea of that is fucking terrifying. Closing one chapter and moving onto the next even when you have no idea what is on the other side. Acceptance. It's about taking a gigantic leap of faith." We're having a listening party on Friday, February 21st, at 6PM with prizes & free beer!

Guided By Voices - Surrender Your Poppy Field CD/LP (GBV Inc.) 

Starting off the year with a 100-song marathon in Los Angeles on New Year's Eve, Robert Pollard is setting a mighty high bar for Guided By Voices in 2020. Following three acclaimed and stylistically distinct full-length albums in 2019, Surrender Your Poppy Field is a head-spinning tour de force: a bit of everything... plus more.

Courtney Barnett - MTV Unplugged: Live In Melbourne CD/LP (Mom + Pop Music) 

On October 22nd Courtney Barnett performed a unique and special show at the invitation of MTV Australia in her hometown of Melbourne. The Unplugged performance features Barnett as you've never heard her before; warm, vulnerable and emotional. [Limited blue colored vinyl pressing.]

Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man CD/LP (Epic) 

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Ozzy Osbourne returns with Ordinary Man, his first new solo music in almost ten years. Preceded by the tracks "Under The Graveyard" and "Straight To Hell" with Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash, the album was recorded in Los Angeles and features producer Andrew Watt on guitars, Duff McKagan (Guns N' Roses) on bass and Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers) on drums. Beyond the core band, Ordinary Man features an A-list of guest collaborators including Elton John, Post Malone, and Tom Morello. [Limited edition vinyl picture disc pressing also available. Indie store exclusive free litho with purchase (limited supply)]. Also enter to win a vinyl test pressing of Ordinary Man when you come in to pick up the new album!

Greg Dulli - Random Desire CD/2xLP (BMG) 

For the last 30 years Greg Dulli, frontman of The Afghan Whigs and The Twilight Singers, has been the poet laureate of the bizarre whims and cruel tangents of desire. A foremost authority on the sell-your-soul rewards of carnal lust, the high voltage epiphanies of chemical enhancement, and the serotonin lows left in their wake. Therein lies Random Desire,the first solo album under Dulli's own name. Opener, "Pantomima," sets the tone from the sardonic taunts of the album's first bars: desolation, come and get it. Clocking in at a lean 37 minutes, Random Desire is a clinic put on by a veteran master operating at the height of his powers, offering evidence of the hard-fought and weary wisdom learned from setbacks and victories alike. A lucid, confident and self-assured document of the songs of experience, the perils of existence, and the possibilities that offer themselves anew with each breath. Another death and rebirth from an outlaw who has seen it all and somehow lived to tell.

Katie Pruitt - Expectations CD/LP (Rounder) 

Emerging singer, songwriter, and musician Katie Pruitt releases her highly anticipated debut album, Expectations. Co-produced by Pruitt and her close friend Mike Robinson, Expectations was recorded in Nashville and consists of ten new songs written solely by Pruitt including the title track, which has already received critical acclaim. Rolling Stone praises, "There's something wonderfully nostalgic about Katie Pruitt's 'Expectations'. The chorus-pedaled guitar tone wouldn't be out of place on a Tears For Fears album, while the arrangement - full of pop hooks, layered harmonies and reverb-heavy riffs - rustles up the timeless, infinite feeling of being young and limitless," while American Songwriter declares, "The single demonstrates what Pruitt does best: blend indie rock, Americana and solid songwriting." Don't miss Katie Pruitt when she play a free live set at Grimey's this Saturday, February 22nd, at 5PM!

Grimes - Miss Anthropocene CD/LP+MP3 (4AD) 

Canadian artist Claire Boucher aka Grimes follows-up 2015's Art Angels with her highly-anticipated fifth studio album, Miss Anthropocene. An amalgamation of three albums Grimes recorded over the past three years, Miss Anthropocene is based on a neologism commonly used in scientific circles. Misanthropocene refers to both the misanthrope's loathing of humanity and the Anthropocene era in which our planet is dominated by human activity. The 10-track collection is introduced by the breathy and beat driven "Violence" and atmospheric "So Heavy I Fell Through The Earth."

Agnes Obel - Myopia CD/LP (Blue Note) 

For almost a decade, Danish singer-songwriter Agnes Obel has been one of the most independent and original artists in contemporary music. Following the same principles as with her previous albums (Philharmonics, Aventine and Citizen Of Glass), which she completed as a one-woman project in her own Berlin home studio, Obel has been under self-imposed creative isolation with the removal of all outside influences and distraction in the writing, recording and mixing process of Myopia. "Paradoxically, for me I need to create my own myopia to make music." Obel was experimenting with techniques of recording processing, warping and pitching down vocals, strings, piano, celesta and lutheal piano, finding ways to melt these elements together to become one and twisting them in a way that you feel at home within the sound she conjures throughout the record.

King Krule - Man Alive! CD/LP (True Panther Sounds) 

Like any great artist on the rise, Archy Marshall's life is moving fast. There's a lot to catch up on, after 2017's sprawling masterpiece, The OOZ, broke through amid Mercury Prize nominations and mind-blowing media plaudits. Unlike that record, Man Alive! doesn't aim to present any kind of narrative thread, or Brexit-era state-of-the-nation address; just a collection of snapshots and stories, artfully sequenced into a dazzlingly coherent whole.

Jack Peñate - After You CD/LP (XL) 

The third album - and first in 10 years - by the British singer/songwriter.

Six Organs Of Admittance - Companion Rises CD/LP (Drag City) 

Ben Chasny mixes synths and digital processing techniques with his spacey guitar folk to lift his song-craft further out, while bringing it strangely full circle at the same time, sounding at times like Dark Noontide-era and other times likes something all-new. Exquisitely arranged and rich with harmonic exploration, the album presents a handful of folk-tales whose theme can best be stated as 'Stellar-Gnostic.' Sci-folk in the right place at the right time for the new decade.

Califone - Echo Mine CD/LP (Jealous Butcher) 

Echo Mine is Califone's score to Robyn Mineko Williams' dance. The movement and the music started together and grew together, like two clear entities. At times totally intertwined and at other times bouncing off one another, sort of like reflections. But, somehow, always connected and listening.

Lee Ranaldo and Raül Refree - Names Of North End Women CD/LP (Mute) 

A new collaborative record from Lee Ranaldo and Raül Refree. In a remarkable career that has seen him flourish as a songwriter, a singer, a guitarist, a noisemaker, a poet, a visual artist, a producer, and more, Ranaldo has seen many fellow quixotics - from his bandmates in Sonic Youth to this most recent collaboration with Refree, whose restless career had taken him from hard-core bands in his youth, to the vanguard of a new movement redefining flamenco. One of the most renowned producers in southern Europe, his collaboration with Rosalía on her debut album has shaped both the modern sound of flamenco and her new found stardom.

Sightless Pit - Grave of a Dog CD/LP (Thrill Jockey)
Sightless Pit brings together three of the most ambitious and prolific minds in heavy music today. The trio, comprised of Lee Buford of The Body, Kristin Hayter of Lingua Ignota, and Dylan Walker of Full of Hell, combine their profound talents and eclectic tastes to make music that is defiantly original and emotionally sublime. The central pillar to what coheres the three into a unified voice throughout the album is a shared bleak vision of existence and a willingness to follow each other into bold new territory. While their collaboration borrows keystones from each members' musical arsenal, from Buford's singular percussion and production to Walker's venomous howl to Hayter's virtuosic voice, in tandem the trio carve out a path all their own for a wildly dynamic and exhilarating experience. Limited edition pink translucent vinyl pressing.

Spinning Coin - Hyacinth CD/LP (Domino/Geographic)
The Glasgow/Berlin-based band's sophomore release. A brave step forward, Hyacinth is an album full of poetry, light and warmth of heart, and presents a band holding nothing back. It registers a number of changes for the group since their 2017 debut Permo: personnel changes, geographical changes, an ever-changing world outside. Throughout Hyacinth, there is joy in spades, but also melancholy, and a checked fury, threading the group's political vision through their reflections on the personal and the interpersonal. Made in France at Black Box Studios, Hyacinth is a beautiful patchwork of a record, a group spinning off in various directions, sometimes all at once. It's experimental, pop, psychedelic, and it's got so much love and humanity about it.

Wilsen - Ruiner CD/LP (Secret City) 

Wilsen is the Brooklyn-based trio of Tamsin Wilson (guitar/vocals), Johnny Simon Jr. (guitar), and Drew Arndt (bass). Ruiner is their second album and follow-up to 2017's I Go Missing In My Sleep. With producer Andrew Sarlo (Bon Iver, Big Thief, SASAMI) at the helm, Ruiner dissolves both the heavy reverb and ethereal moments found on their first recording by instead letting the band's essentials - drums, bass, guitar, and vocals - have center stage. In the album's opening moments, you might hear a knotted wash of guitars and Wilson softly humming, for a very brief moment returning you to their dreamscape but sharply, a driving rock rhythm comes into focus and so too does a revitalized band. Although Wilsen haven't lost their fragility entirely, on Ruiner they mainly use bolder sounds and play with gritty textures and jarring grooves. See "Birds II" which centers on a piercing guitar line or the crunchy "Down" which is powered by a riotous percussion section.

Purr - Like New CD (ANTI-) 

Purr began in 2017 as the second project from New York City born, raised and forever-based songwriting partners Eliza Barry Callahan and Jack Staffen. Their debut album Like New was produced by Jonathan Rado (Weyes Blood, Father John Misty, Whitney, The Lemon Twigs). The duo - who had previously captured attention releasing deft, stripped down, warm-toned pysch-pop under their names, Jack and Eliza - shifted to what naturally felt like their next musical gear. If Jack and Eliza showcased the songwriting prowess of a promising young duo (they are both still in their early twenties), then Purr lets Callahan's and Staffen's work bloom in the fertile ground of a fully realized soundscape. Purr builds upon an ageless, classic sound that at once looks at the past while leaning into their own, individual future - with Staffen's and Callahan's vocals humming at the center. While the band is heavily rooted in New York City, the album was recorded at Rado's East Los Angeles studio with and takes on a distinctly west coast feel which glows with a sunny warmth, whirrs with breeziness and is at times a little noir too.

Sweet Lizzy Project - Technicolor CD/LP (Mono Mundo) 

Every debut album represents a journey, but few have come as far or struggled so tenaciously for the chance to be heard on their own terms as Cuba's Sweet Lizzy Project. The five-piece rock band built a strong following in its native Havana with scant resources or infrastructure to support them, in a cultural setting where they could never be entirely themselves. When American roots rockers The Mavericks' lead singer Raul Malo, whose parents emigrated from Cuba in 1960, got to know the band, he sponsored them for US work visas and signed them to their record company in late 2017. The band made the bold decision to move to Nashville, where they recorded Technicolor at Blackbird Studios. The feisty, infectious album draws on several eras of rock and pop, adding subtle Latin undertones. 

Sonny Landreth - Blacktop Run CD/LP (Mascot Label Group) 

A percussive burst of acoustic resonator guitar pushes the narrator on a journey "between the life I left and the edge of next" in the title cut of guitarist, songwriter and bandleader Sonny Landreth's new album Blacktop Run. As the singer feels the wind at his back, a rising bass line intersects Landreth's vocalizing to stretch the fingerpicked tune into Far Eastern melodicism. The south Louisiana artist's groundbreaking work has long mixed familiarity with experimentation, and his latest ten-song collection stretches from hard-edged electric instrumentals to wistful acoustic ballads. The project's range is the fruit of a renewed collaboration. Producer RS Field - who helmed Landreth's trio of breakout albums - joined the six-stringer and co-producer Tony Daigle to finish the record which mixes genres and styles across a landscape of lyricism and rootsy grooves. [Limited gold colored vinyl pressing.]

David Starr - Beauty & Ruin CD/LP (David Starr)

Americana artist David Starr embarks on a new musical and literary adventure with a collection of songs inspired by Of What Was, Nothing Is Left, a novel written by his grandfather in 1972. Beauty And Ruin, recorded in Nashville, is produced and arranged by John Oates (Hall & Oates) and co-produced by David Starr and David Kalmusky. After working with Oates on his 2017 The Head And Heart EP, David approached him with the idea: what if we gave several of our favorite songwriters a copy of the book and asked them to write for a concept album based on the story? Starr and Oates collaborated with a group of incredible artists on the project, including Jim Lauderdale, Wood Newton, Dana Cooper, Doug and Telisha Williams (Wild Ponies), Irene Kelley, and Shelley Rae Korntved.

Pat Metheny - From This Place CD/2xLP (Nonesuch)Pat Metheny's first album of new material since 2014's Kin (←→), From This Place features ten new self-penned original compositions, and finds the revered guitarist joined by his long-time drummer, Antonio Sanchez, Malaysian/Australian bassist Linda May Han Oh, and British pianist Gwilym Simcock as well as the Hollywood Studio Symphony conducted by Joel McNeely. Additional special guests include Meshell Ndegeocello (vocals), Gregoire Maret (harmonica), and Luis Conte (percussion). "From This Placeis one of the records I have been waiting to make my whole life," Metheny says. "It is a kind of musical culmination, reflecting a wide range of expressions that have interested me over the years, scaled across a large canvas, presented in a way that offers the kind of opportunities for communication that can only be earned with a group of musicians who have spent hundreds of nights together on the bandstand."

Amity Affliction - Everyone Loves You CD/LP (Pure Noise)Seventh studio album by Australian metalcore band.

Word Alive - Monomania CD/LP (Fearless)Phoenix, AZ quartet The Word Alive spurn genre distinctions and urge alternative music forward through the seamless integration of cinematic electronic fits and undeniable melodies into hard-hitting heaviness. [Limited colored vinyl pressing.]

Reissues, Sundry Compilations & Vault Excavations...

Hank Williams - Pictures From Lifes Other Side: The Man and His Music in Rare Recordings and Photos 6xCD+Book (BMG)

This book + six-CD set, carefully curated and assembled with leading music historian and Hank biographer Colin Escott, features over 200 images of Hank, including dozens of rare and unseen. The book is packaged with six CDs of Hank's live in-studio performances known as the "Mother's Best" radio shows, newly restored and remastered.

Miles Davis - Birth Of The Cool: Music From And Inspired By Birth Of The Cool, A Film By Sanley Nelson CD (Sony Legacy)

The definitive audio companion to the critically-acclaimed new documentary. The soundtrack is an essential Miles Davis playlist for seasoned fans and new listeners alike, lovingly curated by the director and paired with short audio excerpts from the film for a unique listening experience. It brings together recordings and performances spanning labels and the artist's musical evolution-from "Donna Lee" to "Moon Dreams" from the groundbreaking 1949 Capitol sessions that were ultimately collected on the album Birth Of The Cool, through the seminal 1950s pieces for Columbia that revolutionized the worlds of jazz and popular music.

Various Artists [Elaquent] - Forever is A Pretty Long Time CD (Mello Music Group)

As with all brilliant producer compilation albums, the Guelph, Ontario-based Elaquent vividly constructs his own world. It's the hip-hop equivalent of that old question: who would you want to invite to your dream dinner party if you had the chance? But instead, it's the lab, and the visitors include a murderer's row of underground MCs including Oddisee, Blu, Chester Watson, Cavalier, and Guilty Simpson. The curation is impeccable, but more than that, it creates its own orphic sense of magic. [Vinyl edition due March 20.]

John Lee Hooker - Black Night Is Falling (Live At The Rising Sun Celebrity Jazz Club) CD (Justin Time)

Released last November on vinyl for RSD Black Friday - now available on CD. This set, recorded live in Montreal in 1977, finds John Lee Hooker in fine voice and backed by a driving band composed of John Garcia on guitar, Steve Jones on bass, and Larry 'Wild Man' Martin on drums, with the end result being an excellent example of Hooker at his best. We still have a couple of LPs left from Black Friday!

Mister Rogers - Bedtime [Reissue/1992] CD (Omnivore)

Mister Rogers - You Are Special [Reissue/1992] CD (Omnivore)

Mister Rogers - You're Growing [Reissue/1992] CD (Omnivore)

Mister Rogers - Coming And Going [Reissue/1997] CD (Omnivore)

Unavailable for decades, these original releases are back in-print on CD. 60 tracks across four separate collections.

The Five Americans - Progressions CD (Sundazed)

An exciting combination of sunshine pop, bubblegum and folk rock with psychedelic undertones, Progressions is The Five Americans' most well-crafted album on par with fellow groups like the Monkees. [Vinyl edition due March 20.]

New on Vinyl

Aubrie Sellers - Far From Home LP (Aurbrie Sellers Music)

Released earlier this month on CD - now available on vinyl. For anybody who's ever felt as if they didn't quite fit in, Aubrie Sellers' masterful second album, Far From Home, the follow-up to her sensational debut, New City Blues, is essential listening. Sonically, it's a sweeping, epic vision made manifest in crushing, amp-busting guitar rock - Sellers once dubbed this sound "garage country" - and delicate yet shattering widescreen ballads that form compelling frameworks for her angelic voice to take flight.

France Gall - Poupée De Cire, Poupée De Son [Reissue/1965] LP (Third Man)

France Gall - Baby Pop [Reissue/1966] LP (Third Man)

France Gall - 1968 [Reissue/1968] LP (Third Man)

France Gall was a prolific French vocalist and performer, remembered as one of the central figures of the 1960s yé-yé pop movement. Aligning catchy, spirited rhythms with lighthearted lyrics and drawing from the beat music a la early Beatles and Hollies, the yé-yé artists promoted a sort of new freedom of expression and breaking down of social barriers in post-WWII France.

Thin Lizzy - Nightlife [Reissue/1974] LP+MP3 (Mercury)

Thin Lizzy - Fighting [Reissue/1975] LP+MP3 (Mercury)

Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak [Reissue/1976] LP+MP3 (Mercury)

Thin Lizzy - Johnny The Fox [Reissue/1977] LP+MP3 (Mercury)

Thin Lizzy - Bad Reputation [Reissue/1977] LP+MP3 (Mercury)

Vinyl reissues of the Irish hard rock band's fourth-through-eighth studio albums.

Bruce Springsteen - 18 Tracks [Reissue/1999] 2xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)

Bruce Springsteen - Live In New York City [Reissue/2001] 3xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)

Bruce Springsteen - The Rising [Reissue/2002] 2xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)

Bruce Springsteen - Devils & Dust [Reissue/2005] 2xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)

Bruce Springsteen - Live In Dublin [Reissue/2007] 3xLP+MP3 (Sony Legacy)

2020 vinyl reissues. The Rising and Devils & Dust have yet to arrive. Hopefully Friday?

Staple Singers - Come Go With Me: The Stax Collection 7xLP (Craft Recordings)

Come GoWithMe: The Stax Collectionis a set that features The Staple Singers'Stax Recordsstudio albums(six albums), plus one disc of rarities (non-album singles and Live AtWattstaxtracks). The studio albums includeSoul Folk In Action, We'll Get Over, The Staple Swingers, Be Altitude: Respect Yourself, Be What You Are, andCity In The Sky. Liner notes are written byLevonWilliamsand Langston Wilkins.

Masumi Hara - 4 X A Dream [Reissue/1984] LP (Numero)

A seamless mix of the organic and inorganic, the recent past and distant future, and the possible and impossible, Japanese multi-media artist Masumi Hara's sophomore album arrived like a fish on the moon in 1984. An album filled with contradiction and purpose, 4 X A Dream is both Balearic acid folk and damaged steel drum dub, hi-tech new wave balladry and ambient synth pop. Classical and neo-impressionist vibes haunt and entrance. Quite possibly the most unique LP you'll ever add to your collection.

Fruit Bats & Vetiver - In Real Life: Live At Spacebomb Studios LP (Spacebomb Arc)

Limited custard colored vinyl pressing. In Real Life documents this musical partnership between Fruit Bats and Vetiver as part of the ongoing Live At Spacebomb series.

Rebecca Foon - Waxing Moon LP+MP3 (Constellation)

The composer and musician behind Saltland and Esmerine (and former longstanding member of Silver Mt. Zion) presents a new album. While best known as an incomparable cellist crafting textural soundscapes and instrumental chamber-rock in the aforementioned projects (and more recently recognized for her creative and organizational work as cofounder of Pathway To Paris), Waxing Moon finds Foon emphasizing piano and voice with striking intimacy and elegance, showcasing a captivating evolution in her always resplendent songwriting.

Selena Gomez - Rare LP (Interscope)

Recently released on CD - now available on vinyl. The eagerly awaited new album from the multi-platinum singer and actress includes the singles "Lose You To Love Me" and "Look At Her Now".

Banoffee - Look At Us Now Dad LP+MP3 (Cascine)

Banoffee is a Melbourne-born, Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and producer with a transgressive and deeply vulnerable approach to music. She has toured with Taylor Swift on a worldwide stadium tour as part of Charli XCX's troupe, and represents the new wave of mutant pop bubbling up from the queer club underground. [Limited colored vinyl pressing.]

Allie X - Cape God LP (Twin Music Inc.)

Allie X's new album Cape God includes collaborations with Troye Sivan and Mitski. The first single "Fresh Laundry" was released in September 2019 and coincided with a series of tour dates supporting the likes of Charli XCX and MARINA across the US, UK and Europe.

Prophet - Don't Forget It LP (Stones Throw)

Prophet is an electro-funk musician from the San Francisco area, who until his debut Stones Throw album in 2018, had only released an obscure private-press LP called Right On Time (1984, Treasure Records) which to this day has a dedicated cult following. After its release, Prophet disappeared for over three decades until Stones Throw's founder Peanut Butter Wolf, a long-time fan, met him by chance encounter.

Daisies - Cherries 12" (K. Records)

Third release from the purveyors of the electronic paisley underground.

Blueboy - Unisex LP (A Colourful Storm)

A Colourful Storm's reissue project of Blueboy's Sarah Records albums culminates with Unisex, arguably the finest moment of the trio of Keith Girdler, Paul Stewart, and Gemma Townley. A bona fide indie-pop classic. The first vinyl issue since 1994, the album has gained an immense cult following in all corners of the world and stands as an almost forgotten pinnacle of pop songwriting. Full-color reverse card sleeve with printed lyric sheet designed by Matt Haynes.

Nancy Priddy - You've Come This Way Before [Reissue/1968] LP (Modern Harmonic)

Released just a year after her vocals graced Leonard Cohen's debut, Nancy Priddy's lone album is a sweeping odyssey across avant garde arrangements rife with experimental pop instrumentation and adorned with her sublimely delivered psychedelic poetry.

Lightning Bolt - Ride The Skies [Reissue/2001] LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)

Compared to their 1999 eponymous debut, Ride The Skies is cleaner and tighter as it was recorded in studio rather than live. Which is not to say this is boring or sanitized in any way; Lightning Bolt never fail to make magic, filling a space with loud, raw sound. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Heldon - Un Reve Sans Consequence Speciale LP (Bureau B)

Orignally released in 1976. On their fifth album, Richard Pinhas' group Heldon was thriving and roaring like never before. More work was being completed in a proper studio, the recently-acquired Moog helped strengthen the sound and direction, and Pinhas's rotating cast of collaborators was solidifying into something resembling a regular lineup, with François Auger on drums and Patrick Gauthier on synthesizers. The result was a darker, heavier, and more intense sound. The LP opens with a  prog-gone-skronk onslaught, sounding rather like Robert Fripp being sliced into bloody chunks in Thurston Moore's basement, and side B features both sinister dystopian squelch rock and an epic piece conceivably serving to connect the dots between Hawkwind's most freeform passages and the Detroit techno innovations of the coming decade.

Heldon - 6 - Interface LP (Bureau B)

Originally released in 1977. Heldon represented one of rock n' roll's most distant relatives; an innovative fusion of avant-garde rock sounds and synthesizer pulsations. The album's final song, its side-long title track, builds up slowly into a roaring tornado of fiercely mutating drum patterns, effervescent synth work, and guitar licks that wail into the atmosphere like an abandoned astronaut, then this ultramodern music fades out and is replaced by a concluding few seconds of traditional blues-rock guitar, reminding us that such music, however improvisatory or fused with electronic elements, will forever have its roots in those early rock n' roll records that are responsible for so many varieties of aural exploration. Despite its often warm and near-funky feel, Interface has been cited as an influence on key industrial and noise musicians including Wolf Eyes and Merzbow.

Heldon - Stand By LP (Bureau B)

Heldon's final album of the 1970s, originally released in 1979. Stand By's mood remains urgent and gripping throughout, fashioned via immense synthesizer sounds, a plethora of interweaving drum patterns, spiraling guitar chops, and lurching riffs. It's been likened to krautrock, yet Pinhas never paid attention to the German scene. There are other similarities to parallel innovations that John Carpenter was making in the field of sci-fi/horror soundtracks. The album's unearthly vocals were provided by Klaus Blasquiz of Magma, and the ominous atmosphere reflects' Pinhas concerns about global developments and a slide into neoliberalism heralded by the rise of Thatcher and Reagan. Stand By was recorded at Studio Davout, the Parisian home to recordings by everyone from Karlheinz Stockhausen to Johnny Hallyday. 

Slapp Happy/Henry Cow - Desperate Straights LP (ReR Vinyl)

Originally released in 1975. Desperate Straights was the first result of the historical meeting between Slapp Happy, the German/English avant-pop band, and the apparently incompatible Henry Cow. Recorded at Virgin Records' Manor Studios and properly remastered by Bob Drake, Desperate Straights stands as a real piece of art from another time, featuring Dagmar Krause's unique voice, Peter Blegvad and Anthony Moore's eccentric pop genius, and the core quartet of Cow: Fred Frith, Tim Hodgkinson, John Greaves, and Chris Cutler, plus a bunch of very special guests, among them Nick Evans and Mongezi Feza (Brotherhood of Breath), Mont Campbell (Egg), and Pierre Moerlen (Gong). Desperate Straights can be recognized as one of the definitive avant-pop albums of the seventies. 

Jack Broadbent - Moonshine Blue LP (Crows Feet)

Hailed as 'the new master of the slide guitar' by the Montreux Jazz Festival, and 'the real thang' by the legendary Bootsy Collins, singer-songwriter, Jack Broadbent, returns after three years to deliver an upbeat and smooth slide guitar performance in his new single 'Wishing Well' [from his new album Moonshine Blue]. The song has a catchy hook, a hint of folk and blues, as well as a satisfying guitar solo. Growing up, Jack listened to a variety of different artists that influenced the way he produces and performs his music, including Radiohead, Robert Johnson, Joni Mitchell, and Davey Graham. Listening and learning from a wide range of artists helped him to create a unique style by mixing various genres which led him to develop his own. With a successful history of opening for acclaimed artists such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Hallyday, Robben Ford, and Tony Joe White, Jack has headlined internationally and played at sold-out shows all over the world."

Chris Janson - Real Friends LP (Warner Nashville)

Released last year on CD - now available on vinyl. Latest album from the country music recording artist and singer/songwriter. Features a guest appearance by Blake Shelton.

Happy Mondays - Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches LP (London Records)

Originally released in 1990, Pills 'N' Thrills And Bellyaches was Happy Mondays commercial peak, both a No. 4 victory (in the UK) and a benchmark album in history. That year the Mondays made a generation feel like the freaks were winning again, the dreamers and schemers hurtling in from the shadows to park themselves, like grin-faced goblins, in the daylight glare of the mainstream. Artwork lovingly replicated by original Manchester designers Central Station Design. Featured the singles "Step On", "Kinky Afro", and "Loose Fit". 180 gram vinyl; includes download code.

Various Artists - Cosmic Discotheque Vol. 2: 12 Junkshop Afro Disco Funk Gems from the 70s LP (Naughty Rhythm Records)

An amazing journey through the African side of '70s disco productions. Bands like Osibisa, Kongas, and Barrabas, with their mix of Afro-jazz-funk and tribal-freak-rock, helped to spread this unprecedented blend of sounds that, along with classic disco music, were the most danced rhythms throughout the European dancefloors of the era. Naughty Rhythm focuses on lesser known artists and unearthed gems selected from forgotten dusty singles B sides, turning out a set of 12 infectiously danceable, rhythmically hypnotic jams. Features African People, Beryl Cunningham, Songhoi Band, Max B, Tribe, and more.

The Pleasure Seekers - What A Way To Die LP (Sundazed)

The archetype for the '60s-era girl group was etched indelibly into stone, like a commandment: three pretty girls with matching outfits and bouffant hairdos would sing, with musical backing supplied by a bunch of guys standing in the shadows. The Quatro sisters shattered that archetype forever with the Pleasure Seekers, an all-girl teenage rock 'n' roll group who played all the instruments themselves and were fully capable of wiping the stage with any male band that crossed their path.

Silverstein - 18 Candles: The Early Years [Reissue/2006] 2xLP (Victory)

Silverstein - Decade (Live at the El Macambo) [Reissue/2010] 2xLP (Victory)

First time vinyl pressings. 18 Candles: The Early Years offers a rare glimpse of where the entire saga for the Canadian alt-rockers began. 2010's Decade (Live at the El Macambo) was recorded during the band's tenth anniversary tour.

Animals As Leaders - Weightless [Reissue/2011] LP (Prosthetic)

Limited colored vinyl reissue. When unknown virtuoso guitarist Tosin Abasi released his debut solo album under the moniker Animals As Leaders in 2009, few would have predicted the band's meteoric rise over the next two years. Although Abasi earned acclaim as the lead guitarist in the Washington, D.C.-based metalcore act Reflux, it was still a long-shot that an instrumental album of progressive metal with jazz, electronic and ambient flourishes would develop anything more than a cult following. Whereas the group's self-titled debut was a collaboration between Abasi and Periphery's Misha Mansoor, 2011 sophomore effort, Weightless features the recording debut of Animals As Leaders, the true band.

Ever Isles (Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith) - Cocoon LP (Touchtheplants)

Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith is a composer, performer and producer, originally from Orcas Island and currently based in Los Angeles. Although she has been acclaimed for her work with the Buchla 100 synthesizer, including a collaboration with Italian synthesizer pioneer Suzanne Ciani, Smith originally intended to use her voice as her primary instrument, then moved to classical guitar and piano. She formed experimental indie-folk band Ever Isles while studying composition and sound engineering at Berklee College in Boston, and 2009's Cocoon, her sole recording with this project, finds her exploring more traditional folk song structures with vivid production, an ear for vocal counterpoint,and a sense of whimsy throughout. Multi-instrumentalist and neo-classical composer Jeremy Harris engineered and co-produced the record.

Robin Saville - Build a Diorama LP (Morr Music)

Inspired by his penchant for ambling strolls, ISAN's Robin Saville reveals an ambient album, which merges the electronica aesthetics of his main project with field recordings, drones, and acoustic instrumentation, both a subtle culmination and a poignant antipode to what Saville has achieved with ISAN. Built around quiet field recordings, Saville's six compositions expand his established electronic palette with acoustic instruments like bass guitar, chimes, and glockenspiel, ranging from blissfully pulsing pads allowing for complete associative freedom to the playful minimalism of an orchestra dominated by busy bells.

Ekin Fil - Heavy LP (Vaagner)

In 2017, the track "Still Numbers" on Ekin Fil's album Heavy caught the attention of a certain Richard D. James (Aphex Twin), who under his "user18081971" username reposted the track to his now historic Soundcloud dump. This is also how Ekin's work initially caught the attention of labels; at first listen it sounded like an unearthed Grouper demo, a parallel that can be drawn respectfully, seeing Ekin's trademarks are also those forlorn, muffled vocal whispers, layered under sentimental tape loops, paired with ambience and feedback. The album was produced during what Ekin Fil recalls as a depressing and tumultuous time during which she turned to music as a measure of rehabilitation. This remaster by Rashad Becker preserves the fragile and heavy-hearted auditory sensibility found in the original work. Includes download code.

Zen Zsigo - Winter Orbit 12" (Vaagner)

30+ minutes of life-affirming ambient and drone from Zen Zsigo, known for his work under the Cremation Lily alias and as one of the spearheads of the current UK tape scene with his Strange Rules label. Winter Orbit was inspired by science fiction and its relation to modern life, recorded in 2015 using a mix of both modern and archaic equipment. Winter Orbit is now newly presented via an expanded re-issue, chronicling the original material, re-issued on one side (Fragments in Hologram Snow) while showcasing new material (For Artifice Rose) created in 2017.

Acronym with Corridor - Untitled 12" (Vaagner)

In 2015, two of Sweden's most revered electronic musicians quietly collaborated and released the recording in a run of just 20 tapes: brittle noise sequences and industrial laden overtones were contrasted against perplexingly rich dub techno arrangements and uplifting ambient soundscapes. The two tape sides contained densely interwoven material, showcasing the two exploring and expressing a new sonic thematic that was growing in the Swedish tape scene. The release is a strikingly personal glimpse into the esteemed duo's creative minds and remains their only released collaborative endeavor. Now available on vinyl in a wide release for the first time.

CEL (Felix Kubin & Hubert Zemler) - CEL LP (Bureau B)

Some will know Felix Kubin as the Janus-faced poltergeist of retrofuture electronic dance music. Contemporary experimental musicians see him as the personification of pop desire. For producers of pop and club music, meanwhile, he spans the deep gorge between them and high culture. Zemler's classical training encompassed jazz, contemporary music, and improvisation, positioning the drummer, percussionist and composer as a congenial counterweight to Kubin's ludicrous electronica. Their debut album as CEL spans seven self-contained instrumentals enriched by vibraphone, xylophone, and African percussion. Zemler's stripped down mechanics and Kubin's erratic electronics dovetail superbly. The album sees Kubin push his sound generators to the outer limits of the frequency spectrum, while Zemler delivers wonderfully forceful, machine-like beats and dark sonic collages.