New Releases - 8/4/23
Hitting The Racks
Here's your weekly rundown of what's hitting the new release racks at Grimey's
New Releases
Activity – Sprit In The Room CD/LP (Western Vinyl)
Haunting and evocative, Activity's sophomore album Spirit In The Room is an emotional séance held through an unearthly haze of menacing trip hop, ambient electronica, and synth-based noise rock. [Limited-edition cloudy clear vinyl.]
An Autumn For Crippled Children – Closure CD/LP (Prosthetic)
An Autumn For Crippled Children has become a staple act in both black metal and shoegaze circles, delivering hauntingly evocative missives of introspective, yearning and sorrow alike. On Closure, the Dutch band continues to push the sonic template of their disparate influences to its limits, resulting in a sound that nurtures their ethereal sensibilities as much as their wall of sound approach to the genre's more extreme inclinations. [Limited-edition silver vinyl.]
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band – How We Do b/w Nuthin But A G Thang 7” (Big Crown)
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band are back with a heavy two sider of West Coast hip-hop covers that put a new spin on tried-and-true classics.
Dinner Party – Enigmatic Society LP (Sounds Of Crenshaw)
Enigmatic Society is the next offering from the multi-faceted, Grammy-nominated supergroup Dinner Party. Full of opulently intricate instrumentation and a range of sleek R&B to smooth neo-soul vocals, Enigmatic Society is mesmerizing in its entirety. [Indie store exclusive yellow vinyl.]
Cian Ducrot – Victory CD/LP (Geffen)
Irish singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Cian Ducrot cements his rising star status with the release of his eagerly anticipated debut album Victory. Fan Favorites "All For You", "I'll Be Waiting", and "Part Of Me" provide an insight into the soul-bearing vulnerability and supreme songcraft that Cian demonstrates throughout Victory. For Cian, it represents the culmination of a lifelong dream. But even more significantly, it represents a triumph in the face of insurmountable odds in which his mother's selfless bravery, determination, and support changed his future for the better.
El Michels Affair & Black Thought – Hollow Way b/w I’m Still Somehow 7” (Big Crown)
Following up on the incredible success of El Michels & Black Thought's Glorious Game album, the duo treats you to another 7" featuring two standouts from the album.
Chris Farren – Doom Singer CD/LP+MP3 (Polyvinyl)
On his third full-length album, Doom Singer, Chris Farren injects his latest work with a newfound sense of power and cohesion. Collaborating for the first time with outside drummer Frankie Impastato (Macseal), Farren's songs take on a whole new dimensionality, with Impastato's live drums bringing a fresh spontaneity to the tracks. Doom Singer marks another significant milestone in Farren's career as it is the first time he collaborated with a producer, multi-instrumentalist Melina Duterte (Jay Som, Bachelor, Routine). Her masterful production experience adds a layer of sophistication to Farren's sound, creating a rich and multi-dimensional sonic landscape that takes his music to new heights. [Limited-edition translucent blue vinyl.]
The Front Bottoms – You Are Who You Hang Out With CD/LP (Fueled By Ramen)
For New Jersey’s The Front Bottoms, working on new music has always been therapeutic, but on their new album You Are Who You Hang Out With, having complete and utter fun took top priority for the duo of Brian Sella and Mat Uychich. It’s this carefree and laid-back mindset that colored the sessions for the album. Armed with the duo’s signature anthemic melodies, take-no-prisoners lyrics and tight musical interplay, every spin of You Are Who You Hang Out With is a chance to peek behind the curtain at two friends having one hell of a time doing what they do best. [Indie store exclusive ‘neon coral’ color vinyl.]
Vince Gill & Paul Franklin – Sweet Memories: The Music Of Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys CD/LP (MCA Nashville)
Vince Gill & Paul Franklin team up for a special tribute to Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys. From the foreword from country icon Bill Anderson, "They have taken their admiration for Ray Price to the next level. The students honoring the teacher with one of the finest true-country tributes of all time. It's more than a tribute, though. It's Vince's and Paul's way of saying 'thank you' to one of the masters who helped define the genre while influencing them greatly."
Holy Wave – Five Of Cups LP (Suicide Squeeze)
Five Of Cups opens with the title track, establishing the album's auditory and thematic modus operandi from the get-go. Holy Wave's lysergic textural palette is immediately apparent in the song's woozy synth lead and anti-gravity guitar jangle, but the atypical chord progressions and vocal melody steers the music away from anodyne escapism into a pensive grappling between self-determination and defeatism. [Limited-edition gold vinyl.]
Mammoth WVH – Mammoth II CD/LP (BMG)
With his solo band Mammoth WVH, Wolfgang Van Halen consistently challenges himself as a songwriter, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. After a monumental breakthrough - with a Grammy nomination for his first-ever single, #1 debuts on multiple charts, television performances, and sold-out shows over a two-year span - it would’ve been easy to settle. Instead, he consciously tested himself to further develop his sound from every angle on his second full-length offering, Mammoth II. Coming out swinging, the hooks hit harder, the riffs roar louder, and the lyrics cut deeper as he delivers an urgent, undeniable, and unforgettable 10-song body of work. [Indie store exclusive yellow vinyl.]
William Matheny – That Grand, Old Feeling CD/LP (Hickman Holler)
New album from West Virginia based singer-songwriter, William Matheny, set for release on Tyler Childers' Hickman Holler Records. While That Grand, Old Feeling is a document of Matheny's own journey as a seeker, he hopes that the album can inspire anyone else out there searching for meaning in their own lives, whether they're searching at a truck stop or in an album of old photographs. "I feel like I've just been trying to recapture that youthful excitement my entire life, trying to regain that clarity and that feeling of purpose," he says. "And it comes and goes. I mostly seem to be looking for it at gas stations and rest areas and at gigs. But I think a lot of people are probably looking for it in a lot of places like that, too. Pilgrim to pilgrim, I hope you find it."
Quelle Chris – Being You Is Great! I Wish I Could Be You More Often [Reissue/2017] LP (Mello Music)
Limited splatter color vinyl pressing. Quelle Chris's album, Being You is Great! I Wish I Could Be You More Often, is one of the most poignant, self-aware, and hilarious rap albums in recent memory. For the Mello Music Group release, Quelle assembled a veritable hip-hop Justice League: Roc Marciano, Homeboy Sandman, Denmark Vessey, Jean Grae, Elzhi, Cavalier, et. al. Then there's the production, mostly handled by Quelle, but aided by crucial assists from MNDGSN, Iman Omari, Chris Keys, Swarvy, and Alchemist.
Rock City Machine Company - RCMC LP (Lindsley Records)
After more than a decade of friendship and live musical triumphs, one of rock music's newest and exciting bands is emerging from Music City... Rock City Machine Company (RCMC) featuring vocalist/guitarist Ryan Spencer Cook, guitarist Jeremy Asbrock and bassist Philip Shouse. Having spent the past six years supporting Rock And Roll Hall Of Famers Gene Simmons and Ace Frehley, this trio recently joined forces with award winning producer/songwriter Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe, Ozzy Osbourne) to create a solid slab of hard rock with a much welcomed sense of newness and familiarity. [All copies of this LP at Grimey's are signed by the band!]
Rick Springfield – Automatic CD (Symphonic)
Rick Springfield describes Automatic as “20 new songs stylistically somewhere between Working Class Dog and Tao.” Sonically, the album sees Springfield returning to his first love of guitar-based power pop and keyboards, while lyrically featuring his favored subjects of love, sex and death. "My goal was solid three-minute tunes with the biggest hooks I could come up with." As Springfield explains, "the album is called Automatic because the songs just kind of came out on their own." [Vinyl edition due October 20.]
Teenage Wrist – Still Love CD/LP+MP3 (Epitaph)
Over the past eight years Teenage Wrist has continually evolved their sound, a process that's peaking with their third full-length, Still Love. Reaching new heights in both scope and execution, the album sees the duo - Marshall Gallagher (vocalist, guitarist, bassist) and Anthony Salazar (drums, vocalist, percussion) - producing the album themselves to handcraft their most expansive collection of songs to date from the ground up. The result is a self-realized collection of songs that saw the band borrowing vintage gear, bringing in friends in the form of members from 311 vocalist/turntablist Doug "SA" Martinez and Softcult and incorporating tasteful pop sensibilities to craft a collection of songs that redefines the band's sound while staying true to their guitar-driven roots. [Indie store exclusive eco-mix vinyl.]
Will Haven – VII LP (Minus Head)
Seventh album from Sacramento noise metallers.
Brett Young – Across The Sheets CD/LP (BMG)
The title of multiplatinum country star Brett Young's album, Across The Sheets, is a recurring theme throughout his lyrics, inspired by "the person you want to share everything with, the one you lay your head down with every night." The album kicks off with the single "Dance With You", includes a cover of the heartbreaking 1994 classic that inspired Brett to pursue a career in music, Tim McGraw's "Don't Take The Girl", and a rerecord of one of his most beloved songs," You Ain't Here To Kiss Me".
Bailey Zimmerman – Religiously. The Album. CD/2xLP (Warner Music Nashville)
Recently released on CD – now available on limited edition white vinyl. Establishing himself as one of music’s most exciting new voices, Bailey Zimmerman arrived at the cusp of superstardom with the 2022 release of his debut EP, Leave The Light On – the biggest streaming country debut of all time and the most-streamed all-genre debut of the year. A young artist with the rasp of a seasoned rocker and the heart of a sensitive songwriter, he continues to showcase the straightforward authenticity for which he is known and loved on Religiously. The Album.
Reissues, Comps, Live Recordings, Vault Excavations...
Atmosphere – Sad Clown Band Dub 2 [Reissue/2000] 2xLP (Rhymesayers)
Originally released in 2000, Sad Clown Bad Dub 2 was a rather stripped-down DIY release - a simple CD tucked behind an illustrated cover with handwritten tracklist and liner notes. The recordings were equally as rough, consisting of a dozen raw four-track demos that hadn't been treated to any sort of mixing or mastering. Although Atmosphere initially produced only 500 copies of these CDs to sell on the road for extra cash, the buzz and the subsequent demand from fans eventually led the group to pressing more of the CDs, this time stamping the cover art with the phrase "Authorized Bootleg" as a sly nod to those who'd been ripping and sharing the files.
Azymuth – Azymuth [Reissue/1982] LP (Craft Recordings)
This 40th-anniversary pressing of Azymuth's funky, samba-instilled fusion record, Telecommunication, marks the first vinyl reissue of the album since its original release in 1982.
Cardi B – Invasion Of Privacy [Reissue/2018] 2xLP (Atlantic)
Clear vinyl pressing. The spiritual descendant of Nicki Minaj and Remy Ma, the artist born Belcalis Almanzar brought a similar glitz-meets-grit attitude to her debut, a fun and endlessly quotable collection of big-bass trap dusted with pop-savvy glitter. The production is top notch and the guest features are not wasted, but it's Cardi's personality and charm that are the stars of the show.
Terri Lyne Carrington – TLC & Friends [Reissue/1981] LP (Candid)
Carrington's very first session, TLC & Friends, features an epic and enviable lineup of collaborators, including Kenny Barron on piano, George Coleman on saxophone, and Buster Williams on bass.
Willie Colón – El Juicio [Reissue/1972] LP (Craft Recordings)
Limited 180gm black and brown splatter color 50th anniversary vinyl pressing of Willie Colón's classic salsa album, El Juicio. It features Fania legends Johnny Pacheco, Hector Lavoe, Cheo Feliciano, Ray Barretto and many more.
Diddy – Press Play [Reissue/2006] 2xLP (Bad Boy)
Press Play is the fourth studio album by American hip-hop recording artist Diddy. The album was supposed to be his first album released under the "Diddy" stage name.
Michael Dixon – You’re Everything b/w You’re All I Need 7” (Numero)
Former Mind & Matter bandmates James "Jimmy Jam" Harris and Michael Dixon teamed up for 1978's gospel-boogie banger "You're All I Need" b/w "You're Everything" on the private Mad label.
Hamza El Din – Al Oud [Reissue/1965] LP (Real Gone Music)
Limited clear vinyl pressing. It's fair to say that what Ravi Shankar did for the sitar, Hamza El Din did for the oud (the short-necked Arabian lute): bringing a little-known instrument to the attention of the West and popularizing it. Indeed, he ended up playing oud with everybody from the Grateful Dead to the Kronos Quartet to his one-time roommate Sandy Bull. But El Din's gifts went beyond that of an oud virtuoso; he was also an accomplished singer and composer, and you will hear all those talents on full display on the seminal Al Oud, released on Vanguard in 1965 soon after his star-making appearance at the 1964 Newport Folk Festival that attracted the attention of Bob Dylan and Joan Baez.
Jerry Garcia – Might As Well: A Round Records Retrospective CD/2xLP (Rounder/ATO)
Might As Well: A Round Records Retrospective presents a collection of Jerry Garcia's most beloved solo studio recordings and collaborations with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter. The compilation contains 16 remastered, original recordings of fan favorites including "Sugaree", "They Love Each Other", "Rubin & Cherise", and "Cats Under The Stars", among others. It highlights the performances that helped enshrine the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia in the Songwriters Hall of Fame. While the creative duo penned countless legendary works together for the Grateful Dead and other projects; this collection focuses solely on the compositions appearing on Garcia's solo releases. Might As Well serves as a preface into the world of these two songsmiths and the devotion to their craft.
Grateful Dead – Dick’s Picks Volume One: Tampa, Florida 12/19/73 [Reissue/1993] 4xLP (Real Gone Music)
The road to Dick's Picks Vol. 1 began in 1985, when Grateful Dead archivist Dick Latvala sat bassist Phil Lesh down and virtually forced him to listen to some tapes from older shows. It still took Dick eight years to get the band to agree to release the first volume of Dick's Picks, and the second one didn't come till two years later... but Dick's persistence paid off with a series of live recordings that revolutionized the way bands approach archival material. Now, on the 30th anniversary of its release and the 50th anniversary of the show itself, Real Gone Music is proud to reissue Dick's Picks Volume One: Tampa Florida 12/19/73, remastered for vinyl by Jeffrey Norman from the original analog tapes for the first time ever (the previous LP release was taken from digital files).
Gucci Mane – Mr. Davis [Reissue/2017] LP (Atlantic)
2017 release. Mr. Davis includes the hit singles, "Tone It Down" (featuring Chris Brown), "I Get The Bag" (featuring Migos), and the iconic song "Curve" (featuring The Weeknd). Produced by Metro Boomin, the mixtape received widespread critical attention, with Pitchfork declaring it to be "their most unhinged music in some time."
The Jesus & Mary Chain – Sunset 666 (Live At Hollywood Palladium) CD/2xLP (Cooking Vinyl)
Recorded at the Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles in 2018. [Indie store exclusive translucent red vinyl.]
Alejandro Jodorowsky – Holy Mountain O.S.T 2xLP (Abkco)
Blue color vinyl pressing. The Holy Mountain score is every bit hallucinatory as the visual imagery in the film. Musical styles that range from deep, primordial chants, to sitar folk melodies, to blaring orchestral riffs and romantic string arrangements provide the perfect aural accompaniment to the film. Featuring liner notes by New York Times contributor Eric Benson, exclusive quotes from Alejandro Jodorowsky himself and a copious number of production stills.
Elton John – Victim Of Love [Reissue/1979] LP (Mercury)
Elton John – The Complete Thom Bell Sessions [Reissue/1989] LP (Island)
Elton John – Made In England [Reissue/1995] LP (Island)
Elton John – The Diving Board [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Capitol)
Elton John – Wonderful But Crazy Night [Reissue/2016] LP (Island)
Another grip of Elton John vinyl reissues now available.
JoJo – The High Road (2018) 2xLP (WB)
Due to incredible fan demand, JoJo’s 2018 re-recording of her second album The High Road, featuring the hits “Too Little Too Late”, “How To Touch A Girl” and “Anything”, is now on vinyl for the first time. Features an etched D-side.
King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard – Demos & Rarities (Music To Kill Bad People To – Volume 1) [Reissue/2020] LP (Org Music)
Music To Kill Bad People To is a compilation of demos and rare recordings by Australian acid rock band King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard recorded between 2011 and 2020. Part of the official Bootlegger series, this LP has exclusive alternate cover art by visual artist Griffin Scanlan and was mastered by Joseph Carra. This version is pressed on sea foam color vinyl.
Toshiko Mariano – Toshiko Mariano Quartet [Reissue/1961] LP (Candid)
Toshiko Mariano Quartet is the 1961 album from fourteen-time Grammy-nominated pianist and composer Toshiko Akiyoshi - then known as Toshiko Mariano. Women have long been denied the credit they deserve in jazz. It must be noted that as a Japanese woman in jazz, Akiyoshi had to battle for acceptance on many fronts. Jazz has been a patriarchy community from the beginning, and even critical praise of her playing could not help but take note of her gender.
Bruno Mars – 24k Magic LP (Atlantic)
24K Magic is the third studio album by Bruno Mars, originally released in 2016.
Jackie Mittoo – Keyboard King At Studio One [Reissue/2000] 2xLP+MP3 (Soul Jazz)
This compilation features the work of Jackie Mittoo at Studio One. It features music recorded as a solo artist (as opposed to the numerous singers that he accompanied). Most of these are taken from his recordings in the mid- ‘60s where he was recording on an almost daily basis at Studio One's Brentford Road studios, developing the funky reggae sound that was his trademark. Jackie Mittoo is as much an icon of reggae as he is to fans of funk music. He is without doubt the funkiest keyboard player ever to come out of Jamaica.
Lee Morgan – Infinity [Reissue/1981] LP (Blue Note)
Lee Morgan's Infinity, which was recorded in 1965 but not released until 1981, finds the great trumpeter leading a robust quintet featuring saxophonist Jackie McLean, pianist Larry Willis, bassist Reggie Workman and drummer Billy Higgins to the far reaches of the hard bop tradition and beyond. Part of Blue Note’s Tone Poet Series.
Willie Nelson – Teatro [Reissue/1998] LP (Island)
Teatro is the 45th studio album, released in 1998, by American country music singer Willie Nelson. It contains tracks such as "The Maker", "I Never Cared For You", "Everywhere I Go", and more.
Duke Pearson – The Right Touch [Reissue/1967] LP (Blue Note)
Duke Pearson's 1967 album The Right Touch is perhaps the finest of his career and a showcase for the breadth of his talents as a pianist, composer, and arranger. Six memorable originals are performed by a dynamic 8-piece band including Freddie Hubbard (trumpet), Stanley Turrentine (tenor sax) and James Spaulding (alto sax). Part of Blue Note’s Tone Poet Series.
Pleasure – Joyous [Reissue/1977] LP (Craft Recordings)
Produced by Wayne Henderson (The Jazz Crusaders), Pleasure's 1977 cult-classic album delivers instant party vibes, thanks to a lively blend of soul, funk, disco, and jazz.
Ponderosa Twins Plus One – Bound b/w I Remember You [Reissue/1971] 7” (Numero)
An American soul vocal group that would go on to shape the sound of pop music much farther beyond their imaginations, Numero is proud to present the first official American 45 repressing of the Ponderosa Twins Plus One’s original 1971 release of “Bound” b/w “I Remember You”.
Gil Scott-Heron & His Amnesia Express – Legend In His Own Mind 2xLP (Made In Germany Music)
Green color vinyl pressing. A fantastic concert Gil Scott-Heron gave with his band at the Schauburg Theater in Bremen (Germany) on April 18, 1983.
The Smiths – The Queen Is Dead [Reissue/1986] LP (Rhino)
Digitally remastered edition of this 1986 album from the legendary British quartet. The Queen Is Dead is The Smiths' great leap forward, taking the band to new musical and lyrical heights.
Carl Stone – Electronic Music From 1972-2022 3xLP (Unseen Worlds)
Electronic Music From 1972-2022 seeks to frame fifty years of Carl Stone's compositional activity, starting with Stone's earliest professionally presented compositions from 1972 ("Three Confusongs" and "Ryound Thygizunz", featuring the voice and poetry of Stefan Weiser - later known as Z'EV) up to the present. This collection is not meant as a definitive history but rather as a supplement to be used alongside the previous two archival releases. It is simultaneously an archival release marking Carl Stone's evergreen 70th birthday and a document of archival art. In the spirit of disorienting repetition and layering, call it an archive of archiving.
Tricot – T H E [Reissue/2013] LP+MP3 (Topshelf)
Tricot – A N D [Reissue/2015] LP+MP3 (Topshelf)
Multi-color 180gm vinyl pressings. Started in 2010, Tricot has developed a unique sound that utilizes captivating guitar interplay and stop-and-start percussion over complex polyrhythms while harnessing the emotional vocals of singer Ikkyu Nakajima. The result is somehow neatly packaged and delivered as dense, and invigorating pop songs.
Townes Van Zandt – Live In Johnson City, TN. April 1985 LP (Mind Control)
Archival live recording from the legendary singer-songwriter.
Various Artists – Playing For The Man At The Door: Field Recordings From The Collection Of Mack McCormick, 1958-1971 3xCD (Smithsonian Folkways)
In the 1950s and ‘60s, the blues was the dominant form of Black vernacular music throughout Texas and the surrounding areas. In segregated neighborhoods, community members gathered in saloons, dancehalls, and each other's homes to hear their neighbors sing their stories of sorrow, heartbreak, jubilation, and triumph. Robert "Mack" McCormick, an academically untrained but fanatical devotee of the blues, stepped into this world and became one of its most devout advocates and documentarians. By photographing Black and Latino Texans and their neighborhoods, as well as recording and interviewing musicians-many of whom never stepped foot into a proper recording studio - McCormick endeared and eventually embedded himself into these communities. Playing For The Man At The Door: Field Recordings From The Collection Of Mack McCormick, 1958-1971 is the first compilation of music drawn from his legendary archive, which indelibly documents a pivotal moment in African American history. [Vinyl edition due September 8.]