New Releases - 6/25/21
Hitting The Racks
Here's your weekly rundown of what's hitting the new release racks at Grimey's
New Releases
Hiss Golden Messenger – Quietly Blowing It CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)
Hiss Golden Messenger's Quietly Blowing It was written and arranged by M.C. Taylor in his home studio – his 8' × 10' sanctuary packed floor to ceiling with books, records, and old guitars – as he watched the chaotic world spin outside his window. Between March and June 2020, Taylor wrote and recorded upwards of two dozen songs – in most cases playing all of the instruments himself – before winnowing the collection down and bringing them to the Hiss band. In July, the group of musicians, with Taylor in the production seat, went into Overdub Lane in Durham, NC, for a week, where they recorded Quietly Blowing It as an organic unit honed to a fine edge from their years together on the road. Throughout the album, Taylor brings his keen eye to our "broken American moment" – as he first sang on Hiss Golden Messenger's critically acclaimed, Grammy-nominated Terms Of Surrender – in ways that feel devastatingly intimate and human. [Limited-edition metallic blue color peak vinyl pressing + poster.]
Gary Allan – Ruthless CD (EMI Nashville)
With the allure of a modern-day outlaw, Gary Allan has won over fans, peers and critics with his signature blend of smoldering vocals, rebellious lyrics and raucous live performances. The superb instrumentation is a stand-out of Ruthless which adds a layer of complexity and appeal, drawing from Allan's deep-rooted influences of the ‘80s and ‘90s. [Vinyl edition due October 22.]
Amenra – De Doorn CD/2xLP (Relapse)
Amenra's first release for Relapse Records is at once a departure and a momentous act of deliverance. Stepping outside the run of albums titled Mass I-VI, De Doorn casts a 21-year journey from the heart of Belgium's crusading hardcore scene to world-renowned, spiritually guided innovators in an enthralling new light. Written for the purpose of that rite, De Doorn (‘The Thorn') occupies a place between Amenra's recorded and live work, less a testimony to the band's individual bereavements, more an invitation for others to come forward, and to pass through darkness into light. Where the Mass albums have taken the form of solitary struggles whose fearless honesty has aligned itself to the most intrinsically human of chords, the dynamics of De Doorn are as stricken by destiny as ever, but sonically looser. [Limited-edition white vinyl.]
Gaspard Auge – Escapades LP (Because Music)
Gaspard Auge, best known as one half of Justice - the duo that united rock and rave and whose dancefloor smashes defined a generation - releases his debut album. Escapades is an instrumental album whose sound will be familiar to Justice fans, echoing some previous works and inspirations of the cult duo. It sounds like a UFO landing from another galaxy or time, a baroque masterpiece that reimagines European classical music for this century.
Beartooth – Below CD/LP (Red Bull)
Beartooth harness the sacred and profane, purging inner darkness with a dizzying light. The fearlessly determined and boundlessly creative Midwest powerhouse perfects a sound sought by a generation of bands. Their marriage of colossally catchy choruses and post-hardcore, soaked in sweaty metal, is without rival. Below is a pure distillation of rage – weaponizing its deceptively radio-ready bombast to deliver stone cold truth missives, each packed like a bomb with noisy rock chaos. The album revels in the darker underbelly of traditional metal, soaked in stoner rock tones and doomy dirge. [Limited-edition grey & purple vinyl.]
Justin Bieber – Justice 2xLP (Def Jam)
Now on limited picture-disc vinyl - the sixth studio album from the pop megastar.
Brainstory – Ripe 12” (Big Crown)
Ripe pulls from jazz, hip-hop, ‘70s funk, ‘60s soul, and life in Southern California in the year 2021.
Ceramic Dog – Hope CD/2xLP+MP3 (Northern Spy)
By May 2020, Marc Ribot had begun to find being depressed depressing. The guitarist and his Ceramic Dog trio – bassist/multi-instrumentalist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Ches Smith – hadn't played for months. With precautions in place, the trio headed to Ismaily's Figure 8 Recording studio in Brooklyn, NY and set about capturing eight originals that reflect the era's uncertainty.
Darkthrone – Eternal Hails CD (Peaceville)
With the highly revered Norwegians remaining ever dedicated to the art of the riff after 35 years of existence, Darkthrone returns for album number nineteen and a new dose of metallic godliness. [Vinyl edition due July 23.]
Lucy Dacus – Home Video CD/LP+MP3 (Matador)
This new gift from Lucy Dacus, her third album, was built on an interrogation of her coming-of-age years in Richmond, VA. Many songs start the way a memoir might – "In the summer of ‘07 I was sure I'd go to heaven, but I was hedging my bets at VBS" – and all of them have the compassion, humor, and honesty of the best autobiographical writing. Most importantly and mysteriously, Home Video displays Dacus's ability to use the personal as portal into the universal. "I can't hide behind generalizations or fiction anymore," Dacus says, though talking about these songs, she admits, makes her ache. This album is a gorgeous example of the transformative power of vulnerability. Dacus's voice, both audible and on the page, has a healer's power to soothe and ground and reckon. [Limited-edition indie store exclusive clear vinyl with gatefold.]
Matthew Dear – Preacher's Sigh & Potion: Lost Album CD/LP+MP3 (Ghostly Int’l)
Twenty-plus years into his career, producer/vocalist/songwriter/DJ Matthew Dear remains artistically unpredictable in pursuit of his prescient strain of electronically formed, organically-delivered indie pop. His work traverses myriad musical worlds, belonging to none. Preacher's Sigh & Potion finds Dear unknowingly at an intersection in his young run, a burgeoning songwriter at his most freewheeling and unaffected. The album is filled with the reckless notions of an artist dashing the history of pop and rock, the twang of country, the build and release of techno. [Limited edition yellow & black marble vinyl.]
Vincent Neil Emerson – Vincent Neil Emerson CD/LP (La Honda)
Vincent Neil Emerson is a torchbearer of the Texas songwriter tradition. He channels the straightforward truth-telling and resonance of his songwriting heroes in Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, and Steve Earle into something fresh and distinctly his own. Where his 2019 debut Fried Chicken And Evil Women proved that he is one of the most reverent students of country and Western musical traditions, his eponymous follow-up LP, the masterful Rodney Crowell-produced Vincent Neil Emerson, is a brave step forward that solidifies his place as one of music's most compelling and emotionally clarifying storytellers. His songs are cathartic and bluntly honest, never mincing words or dancing around uncomfortable truths. [A limited-edition indie store exclusive black vinyl pressing with Flexi-disc.]
Evidence – Unlearning Vol. 1 2xLP (Rhymesayers)
Throughout his career, Evidence has always been adept at both staying true to his roots and evolving as he grows and learns from life experiences, including recognizing when the time comes to unlearn. During the campaign for his last album, Weather Or Not (2018), he expressed a desire to close the chapter on the weather-related theme that had been a staple of his solo career to that point. Unlearning Vol. 1 not only sees that vision come to life, but shines brilliantly in the process.
Free Throw – Piecing It Together LP (Triple Crown)
Limited-edition white color vinyl pressing. Produced by Will Yip, Piecing It Together is the fourth full-length album from Free Throw and it finds the band grappling with hard truths, and making music about the present and how seeking balance in our lives is far more meaningful work than the endless pursuit of whatever you deem to be enough. In essence, Piecing It Together is an exploration of self-acceptance.
Paula Fuga – Rain On Sunday CD (Brushfire/Republic)
Rain On Sunday is Paula Fuga's much-anticipated second full-length album and her debut on Jack Johnson's own Brushfire Records. Since the release of her EP, Misery's End, Fuga has performed on stage at Madison Square Garden, The Sydney Opera House, and is a three-time return guest artist to The White House. Her music is dedicated to inspiring positive social change - rooted in perseverance and hope.
John Grant – Boy From Michigan CD (Bella Union/Partisan)
John Grant has established himself as one of the great musical chroniclers of the American Dream, angled mostly from its flip side - from those who did not thrive. Grant stopped being a boy in Michigan at 12, when he moved to Denver, shifting rust to Bible belt, a further vantage point to watch collective dreams unravel. "I quickly learned all about the American caste system and where I fit in. Or didn't," he recalls. A John Grant album always feels like vignettes divined from a tart book of poetry. Boy From Michigan is the author's shaggy-dog story, a novelistic approach where songs are more like chapters in a leatherbound book bought from a favorite thrift store. "I guess I'm just thinking about where I came from," he notes, "and what I went into." With Cate Le Bon in the production chair, Grant has pared back his zingers, maximizing the emotional impact of the melodies, stripping the noise of vaudeville and mood-enhancing a fruitful, spare, strangely orchestrated new world for him to live in.
Hiatus Kaiyote – Mood Valiant CD/LP+MP3 (Brainfeeder)
Twice Grammy nominated, Melbourne-based group Hiatus Kaiyote returns with the new album Mood Valiant. Comprised of Naomi "Nai Palm" Saalfield (guitar, vocals), Paul Bender (bass), Simon Mavin (keys), and Perrin Moss (drums), the new record is the follow up to 2015's Choose Your Weapon, which Rolling Stone described as "a stunning step up." The new project comes after being sampled on songs by The Carters (Beyonce & Jay-Z), Kendrick Lamar, Anderson .Paak, Chance The Rapper, and Drake – with whom Nai Palm collaborated on his Scorpion album. Mood Valiant has been in the making for six years, but that interval reflects more hustle than hiatus. The result is an album that relaxes into a groove: sunlit, sublime, masterful. Behind everything is Hiatus' familiar sense of musical adventure, their knack for making the complex sound simple. [Both a deluxe glow-in-the-dark vinyl pressing & indie exclusive red & black vinyl pressing are available.]
Iceburn – Asclepius LP (Southern Lord)
Asclepius is the new album from the ever-evolving and adventurous collective Iceburn, who return with their first new material in 20 years. The rawness of Asclepius harks back to the days of their early records (such as Hephaestus), and fuses elements of metal, jazz, psychedelia, and rock with a seamless flow, monolithic riffs, swirling harmonies, and a groove that are the cornerstones of their sound.
Island – Yesterday Park CD/LP (Frenchkiss)
“Yesterday Park is an album about nostalgia, that feeling of looking back, not to one specific time or place but rather the feeling associated with the hazy blur of childhood and teenage memories. The songs cover a lot of different themes, but at their heart they all stem from formative memories. When writing we considered how our understanding of past experiences had shifted through the many different retrospective lenses we have. Life has become more complex and we wanted to capture that feeling of looking back, finding the beauty in those simple moments that exist as silver-linings in our memories. That reflection also brought us to think differently about the complexity and challenges of life today. It inspired us to consider the importance of taking responsibility for the harm that the world is doing to itself, at the same time as needing to take more responsibility in our own lives.” [Limited-edition indie store exclusive translucent neon yellow vinyl.]
John Carroll Kirby – Septet 2xLP (Stones Throw)
Ubiquitous producer and keyboardist John Carroll Kirby presents a live instrumental jazz record featuring seven musicians who came together to perform Kirby's compositions in Los Angeles.
Duncan Laurence – Small Town Boy CD (Capitol)
Back in 2019, Duncan Laurence won the Eurovision Song Contest with his debut single “Arcade”. This is quite the way to start off a story about a small town boy. Growing up in the Netherlands, Duncan experienced bullying all throughout his childhood. He would isolate himself at home and play the piano and write music as a way to process his emotions and turn them into something positive. Duncan’s debut album Small Town Boy feels like you’re listening to a musical diary. It’s an intimate experience. He says, “Each song opens a window into my life and tells my own story. Creating this album allowed me to grow as a person and learn more about myself and who I want to be as a musician. It is a dreamy, raw and poppy invitation into my world – really everything I could ever wish for in my first album.”
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver – Roundtable CD (Billy Blue)
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, fronted by the longtime member of progressive bluegrass pioneers the Country Gentlemen, is a bluegrass ensemble that has made both gospel and secular recordings since its inception in 1979. (Though, as Lawson is a devout Christian, the numbers tip in favor of the gospel.) The group has had numerous members move through its ranks over the years, the one constant being Lawson, who jokingly refers to his group as a "farm team" for professional bluegrass. In April 1979, he laid the foundation for the unit that would become Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver.
Lightman Jarvis Ecstatic Band – Banned CD/LP+MP3 (ANTI-)
Lightman Jarvis Ecstatic Band – aka Yves Jarvis and Romy Lightman – are a pair of idiosyncratic and restlessly creative artists. Banned was recorded in the tranquil environment of the Tree Museum, an outdoor art gallery in rural Ontario hosting residencies for contemporary sculptors over the past 20 years. The pair credit its 200 acres of natural spaces intermingling with human-made creations as the fuel for their unfettered process. Recorded over two weeks in a free-flowing stream of improvisation, the album finds Lightman on synthesizer with Jarvis on drums and guitar, as their voices weave together into an electrified pastoral tapestry. Beyond leaving the city behind to live alone in the woods, the album title Banned also highlights an element of risk. Like the late '60s counterculture musical Hair, the duo rejects notions of repression with unspoken celebrations of naturalism, openness, and sexual liberation. [Limited-edition yellow vinyl.]
Maple Glider – To Enjoy Is The Only Thing CD/LP (Pie Eater)
Maple Glider is the new project of solo artist Tori Zietsch (Peach With A Z). In the singer-songwriter tradition, the music on To Enjoy Is The Only Thing is centered around the lyrics, exploring intimate themes and often serving as a self-catharsis. Offsetting the heavy nature of some of the words, Maple Glider herself is humorous, fabulous and warm. Over plucked acoustic guitar or deftly weighted piano chords, Maple Glider shares vignettes of her life; growing up in a restrictive religious household, falling in an out of love, interstate and international relocations, the new perspectives travel can bring along with the alienation of being away from the familiar. [Includes a lyric/photo book while supplies last. Limited-edition green & white marble vinyl.]
The Marías – Cinema LP (Atlantic)
The Marías quickly grew a passionate local following, prompting the Los Angeles Times to declare them the perfect indie band for L.A. kids. With sold-out shows and rapidly increasing national attention, the band made an auspicious debut with their twin EPs: Superclean, Vol. I and Vol II. Cinema, which features tracks in English and Spanish - draws inspiration from the classic films and directors that María and Josh grew up watching, including Pedro Almodóvar and Wes Anderson. The title also pays homage to how the band first began creating music in the first place.
Mayako Xo – XO LP (Post Present Medium)
Mayako Xo is the solo music project of Sara Gernsbacher based in Los Angeles. XO is an exercise in singing to multiple selves, non-human, past and future, converging in one looping currant. It is a structure of sparse layers, new age no wave of post punk femme, notes repeating. Guitar phrases asking and answering each other over and over, each time though somehow distinct, with a voice sewn through and around the middle. Recorded and mixed by Steve Albini at Electrical Audio.
Modest Mouse – The Golden Casket CD/Cassette (Epic)
Returning with their first new album in six years, Grammy-nominated band Modest Mouse deliver their anxiously awaited seventh full-length, The Golden Casket. The new collection is introduced by the anthemic "We Are Between", a song driven by Isaac Brock's trademark vocals vacillating between sonic isolation and the support of a full chorus, with lyrics alternating between "the best" and "the worst" parts, determining that "we are somewhere between the dust and the stars." The album hovers in the liminal space between raw punk power and experimental studio science as Brock explores themes ranging from the degradation of our psychic landscapes and invisible technology, to fatherhood. The twelve tracks behave like amorphous organisms, undergoing dramatic mutations and mood swings that speak to the chronic tug-of-war between hope and despair that plays out in Brock's head. [Deluxe edition CD includes a t-shirt. Vinyl edition due August 6.]
T. Hardy Morris – The Digital Age Of Rome CD/LP (Normaltown)
Heading into the spring of 2020, T. Hardy Morris had 12 demos that he thought would make-up his next album, then, everything changed. The world took a break and so his plans to record did as well. As we all watched and waited out the storms; viral and societal, we seemed to wake up scrolling through a whole new century, a time Morris began to refer to as The Digital Age of Rome. He scrapped the demos and began a collection of songs in quarantine where the unprecedented times and topics were unavoidable. He wanted to document the era sonically and lyrically in some way. "I wanted it to sound like how the world felt to me in the second half of 2020. Uncomfortable and chaotic, dystopian but still beautiful," Morris says. The Digital Age of Rome was recorded in a deserted downtown Athens, GA with long-time collaborator/producer Adam Landry. [Limited-edition indie store exclusive coke bottle clear vinyl.]
The Mountain Goats – Dark In Here CD/2xLP+MP3 (Merge)
When The Mountain Goats got together in early March 2020, it was to make not one album, but two: Getting Into Knives and Dark In Here. That's how many keepers the band's superhumanly prolific frontman, John Darnielle, had come up with since they'd recorded In League With Dragons in Nashville back in 2018. "One of the words that John used when we were talking about the direction for Dark In Here was "wild," which I liked a lot," explains the band's Peter Hughes. "Not wild in the sense of abandon – these aren't those kind of songs. But wild in the sense of something undomesticated, untamable. Wild like the immutability of nature, the way it will take back any piece of untended space as its own, whether amidst the AutoZones and Chick-fil-A's of Muscle Shoals [home of FAME Studios, where the album was recorded] or among the ruins of a scientific outpost on the Kola Peninsula. Wild like the whale; like a powerful animal. Or a virus – the beast that awakes, emerges from a forest, and stops the world. You can fight the calamity all you want, but either way, it's going to demand your surrender." [Limited-edition midnight blue peak double vinyl with etching.]
The Murlocs – Bittersweet Demons CD (ATO)
With their fifth album, Bittersweet Demons, The Murlocs share a collection of songs reflecting on the people who leave a profound imprint on their lives, the saviors and hell raisers and assorted other mystifying characters. The most personal and boldly confident work yet, the album sets that storytelling to 11 infectious tracks written mostly on piano, lending a greater emotional intensity to the band's restless and radiant brand of garage-rock. What emerges is a beautifully complex body of work, one that shines a light on the fragilities of human nature while inducing the glorious head rush that accompanies any Murlocs outing. Llimited-edition indie store exclusive ‘illuminate the shade’ color vinyl pressing shipped late and will arrive next week.]
Jennifer Nettles – Always Like New CD/LP (Concord)
Grammy Award-winning Sugarland frontwoman and Broadway performer Jennifer Nettles delivers a genre defying re-imagination of the American Songbook with her new album Always Like New.
Pom Pom Squad – Death Of A Cheerleader CD/LP+MP3 (City Slang)
Death Of A Cheerleader moves through moods like a camera panning across an expertly collaged bedroom wall: a Ronettes drum beat here ("Head Cheerleader"), a Doris Day nod there ("This Couldn't Happen"), the impossible romance of swelling strings ("Crying") collapsing into guitar thrash ("Drunk Voicemail"). Here, too, are all the overlapping, contradictory tenets of 21st-century young womanhood – the carnality and the vulnerability, the sugar and the defiance. With Death Of A Cheerleader, Pom Pom Squad offer a fresh and decidedly queer take on picking up the pieces – from heartbreak, from injustice – and creating yourself anew. [Limited-edition red vinyl.]
Rose City Band – Earth Trip LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Rose City Band is celebrated guitarist Ripley Johnson. A prolific songwriter, Johnson started the project as an outlet nimble enough to match the pace of his writing as well as to explore songwriting styles apart from Wooden Shjips and Moon Duo. Rose City Band allows him to follow his musical muses as they greet him and not be bound by the schedules of bandmates and demands of a touring group. On Earth Trip, Johnson's third album as Rose City Band, the guitarist colors songs with a country-rock twang and a melancholic, wistful undertone. [Limited edition forest green vinyl.]
Jack Savoretti – Europiana CD (Capitol)
Jack Savoretti returns with a wonderful new album that arrives complete with its own genre, Europiana. Europiana is the follow-up to Jack’s breakthrough 2019 album Singing To Strangers, his third consecutive gold seller and first UK number one. While that album was recorded in Rome at Ennio Morricone’s studio, this new disc was conceived in between lockdowns at Jack’s Oxfordshire home.“Europiana isn’t a sound. It’s references and inspirations and the emotions they evoke,” Jack says. “It’s the music of my childhood summers, remade for today.”
Caroline Shaw & Sō Percussion – Let The Soil Play It’s Simple Part CD/LP (Nonesuch)
Recently, Caroline Shaw and Sō Percussion, who have known each other since their student days, were presented with three days of gratis studio time and decided to experiment with ideas they had begun putting to tape during the sessions for their January 2021 release Narrow Sea. With Shaw on vocals and Sō – Eric Cha-Beach, Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, and Jason Treuting – filling out this new band, they developed songs in the studio, with lyrics inspired by their own wide-ranging interests: James Joyce, the Sacred Harp hymn book, a poem by Anne Carson, the Bible's Book of Ruth, the American roots tune "I'll Fly Away", and the pop perfection of ABBA, among others.
Spellling – The Turning Wheel 2xLP (Sacred Bones)
Red velvet curtains draw back to reveal a cosmic wheel of fortune, floating in the deep black star-studded theater of infinite space. A whirl of timbres, personalities, and stories. The Turning Wheel, the third full-length by the Bay Area artist Spellling (Chrystia Cabral), revolves around themes of human unity, the future, divine love and the enigmatic ups and downs of being a part of this carnival called life. Venturing to push the boundaries of her primarily synth-based work, Spellling took on the ambitious task of orchestrating and self-producing an album that features an ensemble of 31 collaborating musicians. The Turning Wheel incorporates a vast range of rich acoustic sounds that cast Spellling's work into vibrant new dimensions.
Squirrel Flower – Planet (i) CD/LP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
Squirrel Flower's heart-rending sophomore album Planet (i), following her 2020 debut I Was Born Swimming, is exactly that. A singular planet, a world entirely of artist Ella Williams' making. The title came first to her as a joke: it's her made-up name for the new planet people will inevitably settle and destroy after leaving Earth, as well as the universe imagined within her music. Buoyed by her steadfast vision and propelled by her burning comet of a voice, the record is a love letter to disaster in every form imaginable. Tornadoes, flooding, gaslighting assholes, cars on fire – these songs fully embrace a planet in ruin. As Williams rides from melancholy to jubilance to complete emotional devastation over the course of twelve songs, she carves out a future for herself and those she loves. Planet (i) is at once a refuge, an act of self-healing, and a musical reflection of Squirrel Flower's inner and outer worlds. [Limited-edition blood orange colored vinyl.]
Various Artists – Sweet Relief Benefit: A Tribute To Joey Spampinato CD (True North)
The Sweet Relief Musicians Fund provides financial assistance to all types of career musicians and music industry workers who are struggling to make ends meet while facing illness, disability, or age-related problems. That life is hard is true, and yet we're graced with gifts that make it easier. One of those gifts is Joey Spampinato. The singer, songwriter and bassist was co-founder of NRBQ, a rock quartet who released their first album in 1969 and whose genre-defying music inspired a generation of music fans and especially other musicians. Many of those musicians answered the call from Kami Lyle, and producer Sheldon Gomberg when they contacted them about recording one of Joey's songs for an album to help raise funds for Joey when it was revealed he was battling cancer. The result is Sweet Relief - A Tribute To Joey Spampinato, an inspired album of songs written by Joey and recorded by an astounding group of musicians who are all generously donating their proceeds from these previously unreleased recordings to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund to support Joey and other struggling musicians. [Vinyl edition due in September.]
Faye Webster – I Know I’m Funny Haha CD/LP (Secretly Canadian)
New album from Faye Webster. She loves the feeling of a first take: writing a song, then heading to the studio with her band to track it live the very next day. When you listen to the 23-year-old Atlanta songwriter's poised and plainspoken albums, you can hear why: she channels emotions that are so aching, they seem to be coming into existence at that very moment. Webster captures the spark before it has a chance to fade; she inks lyrics before they have a chance to seem fleeting. Her signature sound pairs close, whisper-quiet, home-recorded vocals with the unmistakable sound of musicians together in a room. Webster's sound draws as much from the lap-steel singer-songwriter pop of the 1970s and teardrop country tunes as it does from the audacious personalities of her city's rap and R&B community. [Limited edition opaque blue vinyl pressing.]
Emily Wolfe – Outlier CD/LP (Crows Feet)
Emily Wolfe transcends the ranks of ordinary musicians. As a triple-threat rock & roll singer-songwriter-guitarist and producer from Austin, TX, Wolfe is on a mission to breathe new life into classic rock & roll with her incendiary guitar chops and original songwriting.
Reissues, Compilations, Live Recordings & Vault Excavations...
Angel Bat Dawid & Tha Brothahood – Live 2xLP (International Anthem)
Live was mostly recorded on November 1st, 2019, at Haus der Berliner Festspiele in Berlin, Germany, during the 2019 edition of JazzFest Berlin. For Angel Bat Dawid and her band Tha Brothahood - which includes Deacon Otis Cooke, Viktor Le Givens, Xristian Espinoza, Norman W. Long, Dr. Adam Zanolini, and Asher Simiso Gamedze - it was the first stop of their first European tour.
Caterina Barbieri - Vertical cassette (Cassauna)
Vertical (2014) is Caterina Barbieri's debut album, composed for vocals and Buchla 200 modular synthesizer. Vertical takes a meditative approach to primary waveforms and the polyrhythm of harmonics, stretching the boundaries between drone, minimalism and techno in multichannel systems. This minimalistic focus arises from the polyrhythmic and stratigraphic potential of voltage-controlled sequencers. Synthesis, drone and immersive listening are three fundamental conditions to enhance an advanced auditory art, not based on extrinsic links but solely built on the experience of the spectrum, able to develop our very limited ability of perceiving the vertical domain of music, involving us in a holistic way.
Sonny Clark – Cool Struttin' [Reissue/1958] LP (Blue Note)
Sonny Clark was the quintessential hard bop pianist. Possessed of a lyrical flow and inventive melodic ideas, he had a deeply rooted feeling for the blues. It was in 1958 that Clark arrived at his masterwork, Cool Struttin', recorded with a quintet featuring Art Farmer, Jackie McLean, Paul Chambers, and 'Philly' Joe Jones. The album has only grown in stature since his premature death at age 31 in 1963.
Alice Cooper – School's Out [Reissue/1972] LP (Friday Music)
Limited 180gm vinyl audiophile pressing of the shock rocker’s fifth studio album.
Miles Davis – Merci, Miles! Live At Vienne CD/2xLP (Rhino)
Miles Davis' performance at Vienne Jazz Festival on July 1st, 1991 became one of his final live performances before he passed away on September 28th, 1991, and this previously unreleased set includes two songs written by Prince, "Penetration" and "Jailbait".
The Drifters – The Drifters' Golden Hits [Reissue/1972] LP (Atlantic)
An Atlantic compilation from 1968, this was included in Rolling Stone's best albums of all time in 2012. Packaged in its original sleeve, illustrated by Loring Eutemey.
Dyke & The Blazers – Down On Funky Broadway: Phoenix (1966-1967) 2xLP (Craft Recordings)
Dyke & The Blazers – I Got A Message: Hollywood (1968-1970) 2xLP (Craft Recordings)
Two new compilation albums from the funk legends. Long coveted by cratediggers and beatmakers, Dyke & The Blazers was one of the earliest funk acts to emerge in the mid-'60s soul scene, alongside artists like James Brown and The Meters. Hailing from Phoenix, AZ, the band was known for their tight guitar riffs, grooving jazz organs, upbeat horns, and frontman Arlester "Dyke" Christian's coarse yet commanding vocals.
Ethiopian & His All Stars – The Return Of Jack Sparrow [Reissue/2017] LP (Omnivore)
Reggae legend, Leonard Dillon, known as the Ethiopian, was the founder of one of Jamaica's premier ska, rocksteady, and early reggae sensations The Ethiopians, but got his start under the name Jack Sparrow. His early solo Jack Sparrow single efforts, some backed by The Wailers, didn't yield any hits and prompted him to form a group, The Ethiopians, where he found his first success.
Bill Evans – Everybody Still Digs Bill Evans 5xCD (Craft Recordings)
Bill Evans – On A Friday Evening CD/2xLP (Craft Recordings)
First-ever career-spanning collection of music from the legendary American jazz pianist. Everybody Still Digs Bill Evans features over 60 tracks that spotlight his exceptional work as a leader and co-leader, spanning his catalogs. Disc 5 is comprised entirely of a previously unreleased Bill Evans Trio live performance from 1975 (which is also available as a separate release on CD and vinyl).
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Back The Way We Came: Vol. 1 (2011-2021) 2xLP (Sour Mash)
The new release from Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Back The Way We Came: Vol 1 (2011-2021), celebrates 10 years since the inception of NGHFB. This double album, curated and compiled entirely by Noel, includes tracks from the three albums (Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Chasing Yesterday and Who Built The Moon?) and the three acclaimed EPs (Black Star Dancing, This Is The Place and Blue Moon Rising) - plus two previously unreleased tracks including the brand new single “We're On Our Way Now”.
Jerry Garcia Band – GarciaLive Volume 16: November 15th, 1991 Madison Square Garden 3xCD (Round/ATO)
GarciaLive Volume 16 presents the Jerry Garcia Band's first performance at the world's most famous arena during their legendary Fall '91 tour. Produced from remastered soundboard recordings, The Grateful Dead co-founder is joined by John Kahn (bass), David Kemper (drums), Melvin Seals (keyboard), Gloria Jones and Jacklyn LaBranch (backing vocals) delivering a transcendent performance of classics from the Jerry Garcia Band songbook.
Goo Goo Dolls – Rarities CD/2xLP (WB)
Rarities is a retrospective collection of 20 songs spanning Goo Goo Dolls' career from 1995 to 2007; a prolific period during which the band released several chart-topping hits and ascended to mainstream stardom. The set features numerous tracks previously unreleased on digital streaming platforms or any physical format, including B-sides, live songs, acoustic renditions, radio performances, international releases and additional non-album tracks.
Grateful Dead – Grateful Dead (Skulls & Roses) Live 2021 Remaster 2xCD (Grateful Dead)
For the Grateful Dead's second live album, released in 1971 and two years after its predecessor Live/Dead, the band delivered an equally magnificent, but entirely different sound. Whereas Live/Dead was a perfect sonic encapsulation of the band at the peak of their primal Dead era, Skull & Roses captures the quintessential quintet, the original five piece band, playing some of their hardest hitting rock 'n' roll ("Johnny B. Goode", "Not Fade Away"), showing off their authentic Bakersfield bona fides ("Me & My Uncle", "Mama Tried", "Me & Bobby McGee"), and some originals that would be important parts of the Dead's live repertoire for the next 24 years ("Bertha", "Playing In The Band", "Wharf Rat"). [Vinyl edition due August 6.]
Gym Class Heroes – As Cruel As School Children [Reissue/2006] LP (Fueled By Ramen)
Silver color vinyl reissue of the alt hip-hop band’s third album.
PJ Harvey – White Chalk: Demos CD/LP (Island)
2007's White Chalk served as PJ Harvey's eighth studio album and first new material since 2004's critically acclaimed Uh Huh Her. It finds her once again teaming up with Flood and John Parish who had previously worked together on the Grammy-nominated To Bring You My Love and Is This Desire? White Chalk also includes musical contributions from Harvey's longtime associate Eric Drew Feldman, and Jim White from The Dirty Three. This collection of previously unreleased White Chalk demos includes early versions of the singles "When Under Ether", "The Piano" and "The Devil". It also features brand new artwork with previously unseen photos by Maria Mochnacz. [A stand-alone vinyl reissue of White Chalk is also available this week.]
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble – This Is A Mindfulness Drill LP (Jagjaguwar)
Opaque black & white color vinyl pressing. This is a Mindfulness Drill encompasses the second installment of the Jagjaguwar’s commemorative Jag Quarterly series -- a year-long, four-part celebration of collaboration and community -- and it features a fully reimagined reissue of Richard Youngs' 1998 album, Sapphie. In this new take on a definitive moment of the Jagjaguwar catalog, the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble transforms Youngs' intimate compositions, originally recorded with just classical guitar and voice, expanding the instrumentation to include affecting and intuitive arrangements of horns and more. Moses Sumney, Perfume Genius and Sharon Van Etten pay homage to Youngs' plaintive vocal performances, delivering remarkable, reinterpreted renditions to each of Sapphie's three torch songs.
Etta James – Etta James: The Montreux Years CD/2xLP (BMG)
Etta James: The Montreux Years is a treasure trove of timeless classics, powerful and electrifying performances and raw, soaring vocals by one of the greatest ever female vocalists. The collection, featuring recordings from James’ Montreux Jazz Festival concerts in 1977, 1978, 1989 1990 and 1993, encapsulates and reflects Etta’s dynamic artistry and long-lasting impact. Spanning performances from across three decades, ‘Etta James: The Montreux Years’ offers deeply personal and intimate snapshots into James’ acclaimed musical journey, highlights and her phenomenal career.
Juju – Live At 131 Prince Street LP (Strut)
Strut continue their in-depth archive reissues from the Black Fire label with a definitive edition of Juju's Live At 131 Prince Street, recorded in 1973 at Ornette Coleman's gallery in New York.
Lady Gaga – Chromatica LP (Interscope)
Limited edition color vinyl pressing. On the heels of her comeback single "Stupid Love", - an infectious dance-pop collaboration with producer/songwriters Bloodpop (Michael Tucker), Max Martin, Tchami, Martin Joseph and Eli Rise - Lady Gaga delivers her sixth studio album, Chromatica, which finds the Grammy and Academy-Award winning artist triumphantly reclaiming the dancefloor. It also features collaborations with Ariana Grande, Elton John and Blackpink.
(The) Melvins – (A) Senile Animal [Reissue/2006] LP (Ipecac)
Melvins – Nude With Boots [Reissue/2008] LP (Ipecac)
Melvins – The Bride Screamed Murder [Reissue/2010] LP (Ipecac)
Limited-edition color vinyl reissues. Alt-rock legends The Melvins keep it exciting by ignoring any set of rules, by their exorbitant ability to make the most beautiful noise ever heard and by their humor, which is an essential brandmark of the band. They never compromise or apply for anything: they just do their own thing in their very own way. They always keep it challenging for themselves and potential listeners.
Motörhead – No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith [Reissue/1981] 2xCD (Sanctuary)
Upon release, No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith went straight to number one, Motörhead’s first and only in the UK and is still the most necessary live album of all time. This brand new remaster was created from the original tapes. [Deluxe box set edition due July 9.]
Peter Murphy – Cascade [Reissue/1995] 2xLP (Beggars Banquet)
Peter Murphy – Last And Only Star: Rarities LP (Beggars Banquet)
Peter Murphy's solo career began in 1986 with the release of Should The World Fail To Fall Apart and continues to this day. In addition to his work as the frontman of the legendary and groundbreaking Bauhaus, he has issued ten solo albums and several live releases. Beggars Arkive presents 2021 colored vinyl reissues for all five Peter Murphy solo releases on Beggars Banquet, plus the release of the brand new rarities album, The Last And Only Star.
My Morning Jacket – It Still Moves [Reissue/2003] 2xLP (ATO)
My Morning Jacket – Evil Urges [Reissue/2008] 2xLP (ATO)
Limited edition remixed/remastered color vinyl pressings. My Morning Jacket's reverb-drenched, landmark third studio album It Still Moves boasts some of the great American rock music of our time. Everything would shift for My Morning Jacket after It Still Moves - as the conclusion to their initial trilogy of albums, it remains one of their most pivotal and enduring releases. The Grammy-nominated Evil Urges remains to be the band's most ambitious and controversial album to date. On their fifth studio effort, an emboldened MMJ created a fiercely uncompromising, highly eclectic, and deeply personal record that catapulted the band into public consciousness and solidified their place as innovators and titans of indie rock.
Nine Inch Nails – Hesitation Marks [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Sony Legacy)
180gm vinyl reissue of Nine Inch Nail’s eighth studio album. Like previous albums, the album was produced by frontman Trent Reznor alongside longtime collaborators Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder.
Nipsey Hussle – Victory Lap [Reissue/2018] 2xLP (Atlantic)
Vinyl reissue of the debut and only studio album by the late rapper.
Queensrÿche – Operation: Mindcrime [Reissue/1988] 2xCD/2xLP/4xCD+DVD (Capitol)
Queensrÿche – Empire [Reissue/1990] 2xCD/2xLP/3xCD+DVD (Capitol)
Expanded reissues of the band’s third and fourth albums – each available in a variety of configurations. With a unique blend of progressive rock and heavy metal propelled by the first class musicianship of guitar shredders Chris DeGarmo and Micheal Wilton, power vocalist Geoff Tate, and the solid rhythm section of Scott Rockenfield (drums) and Eddie Jackson (bass guitar), Queensrÿche has struck a universal chord with eleven gold and platinum plaques and several Top 10 hard rock anthems.
The Roots – Do You Want More?!!!??! [Reissue/1995] 3xLP (Geffen)
Coming two years after their independent debut Organix (1993), The Roots' official major-label debut album, 1995's Do You Want More?!!!??! marked a shift in how hip-hop sounded at the time. While Stetsasonic were known as a hip-hop band, The Roots took that distinction to a whole different level with a full band of talented musicians anchored by Questlove on the drums and two MCs in Black Thought and Malik B. This vinyl triple-LP reissue was remastered from the original tapes and include bonus tracks curated by Questlove.
The Rubinoos – The CBS Tapes CD/LP+MP3 (Yep Roc)
Recorded at CBS Studios in San Francisco in 1976, before they were signed to the legendary Beserkley Records, The CBS Tapes captures The Rubinoos as the scrappy, bratty kids they were. It also shows the huge talent and energy of a young band near the beginning of their career, who believed they were unstoppable. This never before released recording is the perfect way to kick off the band's 50th anniversary celebration. [Limited-edition red & black splatter vinyl.]
Nina Simone –Nina Simone: The Montreux Years CD/2xLP (BMG)
The Montreux Jazz Festival takes place for two weeks every summer in Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Geneva. Created in 1967 by Claude Nobs, the Montreux Jazz Festival has become over the years an essential event, generating fantastic stories and legendary performances. In its 50 year plus history, Montreux has hosted iconic performances by artists including Nina Simone, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald, Marvin Gaye, Prince, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, Elton John and Stevie Wonder. The High Priestess of Soul made five appearances at the Montreux Festival between 1968 and 1990. This set gathers material from all five of her storied performances.
Six Organs of Admittance – The Veiled Sea LP (Three Lobed)
The Veiled Sea is easily one the most viscerally satisfying records in the Six Organs Of Admittance discography. As always, Ben Chasny finds the invisible threads between incongruous sound worlds. Here it's American (electric) guitar heroics and galactic postpunk, Popol Vuh-ish pastoralism and heavy psych.
Toto – With A Little Help From My Friends CD/2xLP (The Players Club)
With A Little Help From My Friends captures one special night on November 21, 2020 when Steve Lukather, Joseph Williams and David Paich appeared with the new line-up of Toto for a global event originating from Los Angeles, CA. Joining Lukather, Williams and Paich for this next chapter in their indelible history are new band members bassist John Pierce (Huey Lewis and The News), drummer Robert "Sput" Searight (Ghost-Note, Snarky Puppy), and keyboardist/background vocalist Steve Maggiora (Robert Jon & The Wreck). Keyboardist Dominique "Xavier" Taplin (Prince, Ghost-Note) and multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Warren Ham (Ringo Starr) segued over continuing their tenure in the ensemble. [Limited-edition transparent vinyl.]
Various Artists – Eccentric Disco LP (Numero)
“Party people pink” color vinyl pressing. Ten Numero-minted, dance floor ready dive bombers from disco's all-to-brief heyday, previously swept under rug by the whitewashed glitz and glam of the era. Chugging grooves, bubbling synths, soaring strings, and sonorous voices are guaranteed to light up your night, on living room rugs and dance floors alike.
Jessie Ware – What's Your Pleasure? The Platinum Pleasure Edition 2xCD/2xLP (Interscope)
Deluxe Edition of Jessie Ware's 2020 album. What's Your Pleasure? The Platinum Pleasure Edition features the original album plus six new songs, including the single “Please, 0208 With Kindness”, and the Endless Remix of “Adore You”. What's Your Pleasure? received critical acclaim for its cohesive songwriting, killer grooves, and flawless production. It was featured on
many Best of 2020 lists. Pitchfork raved, “Jessie reminds us why we listen to dance music in the first place.”
The Whatever – Valley Of Death (Or Whatever) CD/LP (Beatrocket)
Unheard garage greatness. Whatever you call this many monikered group, their impossibly rare 1967 single has been making collectors everywhere salivate. But there's more to the story' these NY teens made it into the studio to cut six additional songs, plus a couple car dealership jingles that rowdily repurpose their iconic single. [Limited-edition white vinyl.]