FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2015

Beach Slang – The Things We Do To Find People Like Us
Buena Vista Social Club – S/T (180 gram double vinyl)
Peter Case – Hwy 62 (Yellow vinyl w/download card) It’s been five years since we’ve gotten new material from Peter Case!
The Chills – Silver Bullets First new album in nearly two decades
Martin Courtney – Many Moons
Dogs On Acid – S/T
Expert Alterations – You Can’t Always Be Liked Their debut EP is steeped in the jingliest, scrappiest indie pop, the kind that started off in the early ‘80s in New Zealand, bloomed in the mid- ‘80s in the U.K., and really never went away.” “The beginning steps from a band with some serious potential for better things in the future” ALL MUSIC “Though the trio hails from Baltimore, their muted brand of pop would easilty fit alongside UK-based indie projects of the mid-to-late ‘80s such as the Vaselines or the Wedding Present.” STEREOGUM
Flatliners – Division of Spoils
Gems – Kill The One You Love (limited edition white vinyl) Vinyl LP pressing includes digital download. When Lindsay Pitts and Clifford John Usher first met, their connection was instantaneous. That bond still fuels their art. As GEMS, they self-released the Medusa EP in 2013, a debut with a remarkably mature sound. On Medusa, Lindsay’s haunting and deeply emotive vocals provide the backbone for Clifford’s dark and dreamy production, balancing gauzy atmospherics with emotional heft. That mix finds new tension and release on GEMS’ first full-length album, Kill the One You Love. The record more deeply indulges in the group’s evocative shadow pop, influenced by R&B production and shoegaze. At the core of GEMS’ music is existential longing. Lindsay and Clifford try to capture the intangible and they arrive closest with Kill the One You Love.
Vince Guaraldi Trio – Charlie Brown’s Holiday Hits
Larry Gus – I Need New Eyes
Thee Headcoats – Good Times Are Killing Me (Re-issue of 1993 release)
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings – It’s a Holiday Soul Party
Jeffrey Lewis & Los Bolts – Manhattan Manhattan, the first studio album in four years by NYC native Jeffrey Lewis, is at once a big step forward – he recorded with a full band, and worked with producer John Agnello (Kurt Vile, Dinosaur Jr., Phosphorescent) to craft a big, warm, crackling rock sound – as well as a look back, lyrically, toward the city, people, and streets that have influenced and informed his art throughout his life.
Lowercase Roses – Lowercase Roses 7″ EP
Mastodon – Once More ‘Round the Sun (Limited edition colored vinyl) Art is a cyclical beast. The same can easily be said of Grammy Award nominated hard rock juggernaut Mastodon. The group’s four members recognize the importance of life’s omnipresent cycles on their sixth full-length album, Once More ‘Round the Sun. The band orbits around themes of loss and rebirth, twirling a sonic spiral of its signature robust riffing, hypnotically haunting soundscapes, triage of dynamic voices, and thundering seismic grooves.

The very title says something slightly different for each member. “Quite literally, Once More ‘Round the Sun means a year-in-the-life,” explains Dailor. “Lyrically, we were discussing things that happened to us recently, whereas in the past we looked further back for inspiration. It’s about 365 days in this band. It was a tough and strange journey. We happened to be in the middle of completing a full rotation musically as everything else was going on.”
Paisleys – Cosmic Mind At Play (Re-issue) Minneapolis psychedelic wizards!
Pantera – History of Hostility
The Promise Ring – Nothing Feels Good First time on vinyl in 15 years
Root Manuva – Bleeds (Limited edition clear orange vinyl)
Son Volt  – Trace: 20th Anniversary Edition
Various Artists – Ork Records: New York New York Where in the mythos of punk is there room for a frizzy-haired cinephile San Diegan? How could the defining rock attitude and look of the late 1970s get brainstormed by two go-nowheres from a boarding school in Hockessin, Delaware – a D student and kid voted Most Unknown by his senior class? Forget the worn-out yarns about London gobbers and safety-pin piercings – the true story of the birth of punk rock on 45 is the story of Ork Records, captured by Numero Group on four hefty LPs (or two shiny compact discs) and told across 120 (184 for the CD) high-gloss pages filled with insider photos and sordid details. It is a story populated by iconic names like Television, Alex Chilton, Lester Bangs, Richard Hell, the Feelies, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Brian Eno, Blondie and the Ramones. And it’s a tale told from the hallowed grounds of CBGB, Max’s Kansas City, and Ardent Studios. It all began with Terry Ork, a Jewish SoCal film nerd enthralled by Andy Warhol’s posse as they made a transgressive surfing flick, who moved cross-country to manage a movie memorabilia shop on the grubby streets of the Lower East Side. Made in the shadow of disco and dereliction in late-‘70s Manhattan, Ork Records: New York, New York is not just the genesis of punk, it is the birth of the New York City scene and indie culture as we know it.
Various Artists – We Love Disney Gwen Stefani, Fall Out Boy, Kacey Musgraves, Rascal Flatts and more covering Disney songs.
Vitals – Gold Night (limited edition 10″) Gold Night is the follow up to The Vitals’ 2012 debut album, Qualia. After spending time on the road, showcasing at SXSW, and continuing their strong California presence, the band worked on their sophomore effort in their hometown of Los Angeles. Recorded almost entirely live in the studio, Gold Night showcases The Vitals’ raw sound that fans are treated to at their dynamic live shows.
Baby Washington – That’s How Heartaches Are Made (Re-issue)
The Who – Live At The Isle of Wight Festival 1970

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2015
Gang of Four – Solid Gold Formed in 1977 by Leeds University students, Gang of Four produced some of the most exhilarating and lasting music of the early English post-punk era of 1978-1983. Fueled by the fury of punk rock and radical political theory, Gang of Four successfully welded the two in an inspired display of polemics and music that addressed the vagaries of life in the modern world (including love and romance) as matters of political inquiry. What made Gang of Four’s polemical clang’n’roll so compelling was that it worked as harsh, bracing, and ultimately liberating rock & roll. With Allen and Burnham combining as a formidable and frequently very funky rhythm section, Gill didn’t play guitar as much as emit thick wads of semi-tuneful distortion, while King “sang” in a dry, declamatory fashion similar to that of the Fall’s Mark E. Smith. They have always remained, to the ears of those opened wide by punk rock, an extremely important band.
Starsailor – Love Is Here

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2015

Allman Brothers  Band – Shades of Two Worlds Limited edition 180 gram vinyl LP pressing. The Allman Brothers Band’s signature mix of down-home groove and instrumental virtuosity, blues-drenched soul and guitar-driven rock, and dedication to all-night jamming, laid the groundwork for what became known as the Southern Rock movement. The band rewrote the rulebook on how rock guitarists could play together along the way, and laid the groundwork for every two and even three-guitar band that would follow in their wake. ABB followed-up 1990 comeback album Seven Turns, their first in almost a decade and first with integral new additions Warren Haynes (lead guitar/vocals) and Allan Woody (bass), with the same revitalized line-up and the accomplished Shades Of Two Worlds a year later. The musicianship, songwriting and improvisation here is as good as it had been in decades and proved that the Allman’s were officially back.
Art Blakey – Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers
Miles Davis – Volume 2
Deer Hunter – Fading Frontier
Flaming Lips – Imagene Peise Merry Christmas from the Flaming Lips
John Grant – Grey Tickles, black Pressure
Mastodon – Asleep In Th Deep 12″ maxi picture disc
Miriam – Down Today
Joanna Newsom – Divers
Petal – Shame
Protomartyr / R.Ring – A Half of Seven Protomartyr returns with a brand new track recorded at Candyland in Cincinnati with Mike Montgomery (R. Ring) in late 2014. “Blues Festival” is a relentless, propulsive, and occasionally pissed off tirade about band life bummers that weighs fact against philosophy. What is hell? What should you not do? Tune in as singer Joe Casey barks through a few of these universal truths. “Blues Fesival” also features guest vocals by Kelley Deal (The Breeders, R. Ring). The duo of R. Ring contributes a b-side track – also recorded at Candyland – titled “Loud Underneath”. Both tracks are available as a limited 7” pressing. Following a triumphant 2014, “Blues Festival” is the first new material from Protomartyr following their critically acclaimed LP, Under Color of Official Right.
Pure Bathing Culture – Pray for Rain – To hear Sarah Versprille and Daniel Hindman tell it, their Portland, OR-based band Pure Bathing Culture has always evolved naturally and at a steady pace. “That’s really the path we’ve been on as a band, always putting one foot in front of the other as opportunities presented themselves,” Versprille said. “The music just revealed itself to us as we kept going.” But for Pure Bathing Culture’s second album, Pray for Rain, the band has taken a big leap forward. You can hear it from the opening notes of their anthemic title track: in Hindman’s clean yet serpentine guitar lines interacting with the live rhythm section and Versprille’s lucid vocals cutting through it all as she asks: “Is it pleasure? Is it pain? Did you pray for rain?” Pray for Rain is the sound of the group confidently taking a step up to the next level and finding their footing as a true band. “We needed to make a big step and our version of that was to cut the cord from our previous albums,” Hindman said of the process, then confesses: “I was nervous all the way through. It was nerve-wracking and almost antagonizing at times.” The roots of Pure Bathing Culture stretch back to 1999, when Versprille and Hindman befriended one another on the first day of freshman orientation at William Patterson University in Wayne, New Jersey. A decade later, they became bandmates when they both joined Vetiver for their Sub-Pop albums Tight Knit and The Errant Charm. It was while playing in Vetiver that Pure Bathing Culture emerged as its own entity. “Dan was working on some instrumentals that he would make on a looping pedal,” Sarah said. “One night he was out and I just listened to this loop and wrote some lyrics to it. He came home and I showed it to him. We laughed at first, as we didn’t have some grand plan to start a band. It just happened naturally.” That song “Lucky One,” wound up in the hands of Richard Swift, who encouraged the duo to keep writing. “Richard pushed us along and became an inspiration,” Dan said. Swift wound up producing the band’s first EP and dreamy full-length, 2013’s Moon Tides at his National Freedom studio. “John pushed us to not make clichés, to not play into the style of other bands,” Dan said. The challenges came right away as Congleton pressed the group into unfamiliar and at times uncomfortable territory in the studio. “He tricked me with the guitars on the album,” Dan said. “We got the basic tracks down and he asked me to do scratch guitar and then John wouldn’t let me go back and do the guitars again. He refused to do any layering.” As a result, everything on Pray for Rain is pretty much as Pure Bathing Culture actually sounds, all analog gear, with virtually no plug-ins or effects added afterwards, no hiding behind multiple layers. “There aren’t a lot of tricks; What you hear is naturally what’s there,” Dan said. Sarah summarizes the Pray for Rain experience as one of “stepping into the realm of discovering who we are as a band and as songwriters,” echoing a theme of the album itself, the process of change and transition. “You can find the best version of yourself in those hardest moments,” she said. To which Dan adds: “You have to be backed up against the wall in order to really feel those feelings and respond to them.” Pray for Rain is the sound of Pure Bathing Culture transforming from who they were to who they will be, of finding their way, ready to take steps both small and momentous on their musical path.
Rush – Presto (200 gram re-issue)
Rush – Roll The Bones (200 gram re-issue)
Horace Silver Quintet & Trio – Blowin’ The Blues Away
Smokey – How Far Will You Go? The S &M Recordings, 1973-1981 A compilation of LA’s Glam-Punk-Disco band featuring cameo performances from Randy Rhodes and James Williamson.
Tuxedo Moon & Cult With No Name – Blue Velvet Revisted
McCoy Tyner – Expansions
Walter Trout – Battle Scars
Wax Idol – American Tragic
With The Dead – S/T Limited 180 gram colored vinyl LP pressing, comes in laminated flipback sleeve with lyric insert. With The Dead rides roughshod all the weak sounds of it’s contemporaries. With it’s mid-song breakdown and “F*** you!” clarion call “The Cross” oozes tar-black malevolence and by the closing, crashing chords of “Screams From My Own Grave,” a song of horror that unravels at it’s own torturous pace, any listener will be left battered on the floor, bludgeoned into submission by With The Dead’s musical brutality. Here each song is an epic, With The Dead saying more in six or seven minutes than some bands can muster in their entire careers. Check out the sneering, sardonic “Living With The Dead” as it moves through a series of darkening moods or the primordial slithering musical morass of hellish opener “Crown Of Burning Stars” that wants nothing less than to rip out your jugular with jagged riffs that snarl against a drum-quake that sounds like the falling columns of crumbling temples.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2015

!!! – As If Limited double vinyl LP pressing. 2015 release, the sixth album by the indie post-punk outfit. Combining punk abandon and tightly-coiled dance music has always been bonded into !!!’s DNA. It’s this core plus their growth and mastery of songwriting that has seen them outlive the mid-2000s ‘indie/dance punk’ tag and has allowed them to consistently grow lyrically and sonically from album to album. As If is their most transcendent collection of songs yet. Includes ‘All You Writers’, ‘Sick Ass Moon’, ‘Lucy Mongoosey’, ‘Til The Money Runs Out’ and many more. !!! was formed in Sacramento, California, in 1996 by lead singer Nic Offer. Its name is most commonly pronounced Chk Chk Chk.
Anderson East – Delilah
Back To The Future – Music from the Motion Picture Soundtrack (Picture Disc)
Beach House – Thank Your Lucky Stars Surprise! Another LP From Beach House!
Blackalicious – Imani Vol. 1 Double vinyl LP pressing. 2015 release, the fourth studio album and first in a decade by the critically-lauded hip hop duo. Ten years after 2005’s The Craft comes Blackalicious’ self-release, Imani, Vol. 1. Three years in the works, the album stays true to rapper Gift of Gab’s clever tongue-twisting wordplay and DJ/producer Chief Xcel’s unique beats. First volume of a trilogy with appearances from Lifesavas, Lateef, Lyrics Born, funk band Monophonics, polyphonic Afro-Pop singer Zap Mama, and Fantastic Negrito who won a performance on NPR’s Tiny Desk. Like a few other West Coast rap acts, including the Pharcyde and Jurassic 5, Blackalicious has generally favored what hip-hoppers call the “positive tip”; in other words, it’s lyrics have often been spiritual and uplifting rather than violent or misogynous. Like a lot of experimental alternative rappers, Blackalicious can be quirky and eccentric; nonetheless, spirituality is a big part of the group’s music.
Peter Buck – Warzone Earth
John Carpenter – John Carpenter’s Lost Themes Remixed John Carpenter has inspired countless musicians since his earliest minimal, synth-based film scores. The themes to his features like Assault on Precinct 13, Halloween, and Escape from New York have remained instantly recognizable since he penned them nearly four decades ago. In February 2015, Sacred Bones released his first solo record of non-soundtrack music, Lost Themes, to overwhelming critical success. The Horror Master proved that not only could he perfectly score his own films – he could also score the movies in your mind. Eight pivotal contemporary electronic artists were moved to reshape the original songs on Lost Themes in tribute to one the genre’s great pioneers. Several of the remixes were released as part of the digital deluxe edition of the album, but Lost Themes Remixed marks the first time any of the tracks have been on vinyl.
Childbirth – Women’s Rights Childbirth is a “supergroup” in the sense its members are all in other hit bands (Julia Shapiro of Chastity Belt, Bree McKenna of Tacocat, Stacy Peck of Pony Time) and also that they do good for the world while in costume. Childbirth’s forthcoming album, Women’s Rights, is piss-your-pants funny – subject matter includes a trashy friend bringing coke to a baby shower (“Baby Bump”) characteristics that warrant an instant “swipe left” on Tinder (“Siri, Open Tinder”) and dating vapid IT douches (“Tech Bro.”). Lyrics on Women’s Rights are highly quotable – from “Tech Bro”: “I’ll let you explain feminism to me/If I can use your HD TV.” Like the majority of effective political art, Women’s Rights shows rather than telling. The songs describe what is fucked up in the world so evocatively that it needs no commentary, and always with a biting sense of humor.
Jon Cleary  – Go-Go Juice
Coheed & Cambria – The Color Before The Sun
Dave Davies – I Will Be Me Featuring guest performances by the Jayhawks, Anti-Flag, Oli Brown, chris Spedding & Ty Segall.
Disclosure – Caracal Double vinyl LP pressing. 2015 release from brothers Guy and Howard Lawrence – aka Disclosure. Caracal follows Disclosure’s highly-lauded debut Settle, which has gone on to sell 1.6 million units worldwide and 5.3 million singles. “Holding On”, featuring American jazz musician Gregory Porter, was released as the album’s lead single. Disclosure then released “Omen”, featuring English recording artist Sam Smith, which later peaked at #13 in the UK. “Willing & Able”, featuring British recording artist Kwabs was released as the album’s third official single. Disclosure are an English electronic music duo. The siblings grew up in Reigate, Surrey. Their debut album Settle was nominated for Best Dance/Electronica Album at the 2014 Grammy Awards.
Dokken – Under Lock & Key (Re-Issue)
Esmerine – Lost Voices – Montréal chamber rock ensemble Esmerine return with the new full-length album Lost Voices, the most dynamic and incendiary record of the group’s career, following its highly-acclaimed and Juno award-winning 2013 release Dalmak.  Led by co-founders Bruce Cawdron (Godspeed You! Black Emperor) on various mallet instruments and Rebecca Foon (Thee Silver Mt. Zion, Saltland) on cello, Esmerine also includes drummer/percussionist Jamie Thompson (The Unicorns, Islands, Little Scream) and multi-instrumentalist Brian Sanderson. Lost Voices can fairly be called Esmerine’s “rock” album, expanding upon the band’s celebrated prowess at deploying structure and dynamic, balancing melodic expression against methodical restraint through a diversity of stylistic touchstones while allowing for explosive crescendos of exuberant density and maximalism that most notably distinguishes this record from previous work. Lost Voices is a deeply satisfying and evocative journey and another brilliant iteration of Esmerine’s distinctive instrumental chamber rock; cerebral and visceral, controlled and volatile, and wholly cinematic in scope throughout.
Fela – Alagbon Close (Re-issue)
Fela – Beast of No Nation (Re-issue)
Fela – Everything Scatter (Re-issue)
Fela – Fear Not For Man (Re-issue)
Fela – Na Poi (Re-issue)
Fela – Roforofo Fight (Re-issue)
Iron & Wine – Archive Series Volume No. 2 – Iron & Wine’s ‘Archive Series Volume No. 2’ collects two cover versions of classic songs found in Sam Beam’s early home recorded cassettes and presents them on limited edition colored 7″ vinyl. Side A features a cover of Neil Young’s “Albuquerque” while Side B features a cover of “It’s The Same Old Song” by the Four Tops. These two covers augment the Sam Beam original songs on ‘Archive Series Volume No. 1’, all of which were performed and recorded at home on a 4-track cassette by Sam – before he was Iron and Wine. Includes download coupon. Artwork by Chicago’s Plastic Crimewave.
Gun Outfit – Dream All Over On their most refined and ruefully elegant album, Gun Outfit perfect their incandescent sonic signature: a dusky, canyon-cult blues fueled by melodic dual-guitar weaving and seductive male/female incantations at zero hour. It’s the nocturnal sound of desert-damaged L.A. burnout, a soured American surrealism in rock and roll creole: white line fever, paint fume flashbacks, a stranger wading out alone into the black surf. Featuring Henry Barnes (Man Is the Bastard/Amps for Christ) on homemade sitars; engineered and co-produced by Facundo Bermudez (Ty Segall, No Age, King Tuff.)
SK Kakraba – Songs of Paapieye SK Kakraba is master of the gyil, Ghanaian xylophone made of 14 wooden slats strung across calabash gourd resonators. The buzzy rattle emitted with each note comes from the silk walls of spiders’ egg sacs stretched across holes in the gourds, called paapieye in Lobi language. The gyil’s earthy sound can be heard in parts of Upper West and Northern Regions of Ghana, as well as Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and beyond, where it goes by other names. The characteristic buzzing timbre might sound odd to foreign ears. But this distortion is just one of the beautifying sensibilities crucial to SK’s gyil music, which he learned as a child from elders in his Lobi community in the far northwest reaches of Ghana. Although the gyil is sometimes played in pairs and with drum and bell, SK lives in Los Angeles these days and plays alone quite often. Songs of Paapieye surveys a deliberate snapshot of SK’s hereditary Lobi repertoire heard through the lens of a stripped-down, and sometimes spare-sounding, solo gyil. The album focuses on a selection of SK’s favorite song cycles, funeral dirges, improvised interpretations on traditional songs and original compositions—and combinations thereof.
King Crimson – USA Newly cot from masters approved by Robert Fripp. Pressed on 200 gram superheavyweight vinyl.
Lionlimb – Turnstile 7″
Man Or Astro-Man – 1000X To allow the release of a consequential amount of detailed information about the Scientific Musical Experiment known as Man or Astro-Man? would be quite a contradiction. Any group whose ultimate complot centers around escape and exodus from the Planet Earth and conquest of all its indigenous life forms would obviously not release even a minute, trivial link to their master plan. Yet most understandably, the higher-ups of Astro-Tech Inc. realize the need to perpetuate certain conquest propaganda procedures, and thus the possibility of this select Astro-info downlink: Enter 1000X, originally transmitted in 1997. To human ears, 1000X may sound like “music”, but, in all actuality, it is a collection of ultra-modulated tone code transmissions originating from Outer Space, somewhere near the grid sector 23-B61. To capture these audio emissions, Starcrunch, Birdstuff, and Coco the Electronic underwent self-inflicted electrical torture. This, combined with sleep deprivation, helped to produce the sonic sound unit that is 1000X. Altering mini-customary Astro procedures, the Astro-Man began to reveal the true sound of what lies beyond this atmosphere as the majority of Earthly transmission influences have been processed through various analog filter devices and eliminated. Disintegrating force fields, surging asteroids, black holes, UFOs. Planet Earth can keep you safe from these things, but nothing can save you from the audio explosion that is… Man or Astro-Man? ** After 1000 listens, 1000X plays a secret message between the second and the third track (decoder required).
Neon Indian  – Night School Limited edition version with slip mat,
Prof – Liability Prof, the newest signee to Rhymesayers Entertainment, is already a legend on the southside of Minneapolis. With three self-released albums, plus three additional mixtapes of exclusive material already under his belt, it should come as no surprise he’s been tirelessly making music for over a decade. While he’s continued to develop over that time, both musically and artistically, he’s also fine-tuned his live show to such a spectacle that he’s undeniably made a lasting impression on the scene. As an entertainer, Prof shows incredible diversity. Whether artistically, or characteristically, he purposefully maneuvers between the parallels of inconceivable experiences and extraordinary fantasies. From the factual to the fictitious, there’s seemingly no end to the number of unique narratives or deliveries at his disposal. Once considered the underdog, Prof has fought his way to the forefront of the scene and amassed a ravenous following along the way. On Liability, Prof describes our world; a place where a harsh environment and poor circumstances can make someone abandon their expectations and change their moral compass. The album takes the listener on a journey of incredible range, and ultimately calls attention to the often unseen conditions that lead individuals down the regrettable paths of being fighters, drunks, drug addicts– or simply put, liabilities. With impressive guest appearances from Tech N9ne, Waka Flocka Flame and Petey Pablo, and a list of production credits that includes Ant (Atmosphere), Aesop Rock, Big Chocolate, Mux Mool, Curtiss King and more, this album is without a doubt Prof’s greatest work to date.
Spencer Radcliffe – Looking In Currently living and working in Chicago, Spencer Radcliffe still calls Ohio home. Anticipating which direction he will be growing next as an artist, however, is not as easy to pinpoint. After self-releasing a number of brief albums recorded at different points in time throughout scattered locations, the multi-instrumentalist turned the ear of the underground in his direction last year with the release of Brown Horse, a split cassette on Orchid Tapes alongside R.L. Kelly.  This fall, he joins Run for Cover Records for the release of his debut full-length, Looking In. The album, recorded in solitude at Queen Mary’s Lighthouse in Chicago, encompasses all corners of Radcliffe’s songwriting style, leaving no part of his sonic map uncovered. Guitars and carefully outlined drums accentuate his pop craft on tracks such as “Mia” and “Yankee.” Traditional songwriting methods come apart naturally elsewhere through tumbling Rhodes piano, modified electronics, and brass in disarray. The one instrument that stitches the album’s atypical patchwork together is Radcliffe’s voice, allowing listeners to draw up their own impressions of his often equivocal work.
Josh Ritter – Sermon On the Rocks Limited 180 gram blue vinyl LP pressing with bonus Home Recordings CD. Sermon On The Rocks was produced by Ritter and Trina Shoemaker (Queens of the Stone Age, Emmylou Harris), the 12-song album was recorded over two weeks at New Orleans’ The Parlor Recording Studio and features Matt Barrick from The Walkmen on drums, Zachariah Hickman on bass, Josh Kaufman on guitar and Sam Kassirer on piano. Over the course of his acclaimed career, Ritter has released seven full-length albums, including his most recent, 2013’s The Beast In It’s Tracks, which debuted at #22 on the Billboard 200 and #8 on the Top Rock Albums chart. The record also received widespread critical praise – NPR Music called it, “… gorgeous and glorious,” while Pitchfork asserted, “Beast is contemplative and forgiving, a means of burying one relationship to commit to another, and Ritter nicely evokes the excitement and resignation of such a transition.”
Rival Consoles – Howl
Brian Setzer Orchestra – Rockin’ Rudolph
Shopping – Why Choose Shopping’s debut album Consumer Complaints drew a flurry of press for their spot on divining of post-punk’s driving force, dubbing them as a “band you need to hear” by NME and “Artist To Watch” by SPIN. The band evokes revered touchstones The Slits, Delta 5, Gang of Four and ESG, though as Pitchfork reminds, “they never sound particularly dated or like a carbon-copy, a testament to the group’s songwriting abilities.” Rather, they embody the spirit of experimentation, social upheaval, (without becoming didactic) clashing gender politics and ethical change that defined their 70’s counterparts and still ring true today. The band teams up again with Jamie Grier, who mixed and mastered their first LP, this time placing Grier in the recording chair at Glasgow’s Green Door Studios, while mastering duties fall to Alan Douches. The album is full of the same timeless spark that drove the debut, propelled by Billy Easter’s toothsome bass lines and Rachel Aggs’ jagged yet rubbery guitar. All three band members lend their voices to Why Choose, pushing and pulling between Aggs’ knife hilt yelps and drummer Andrew Milk’s steadied responses, giving heft to the anxious energy of tracks like “Straight Lines” and brevity to the detached cool of “Passing Through” and “Private Party.”
Small Black – Best Blues Coming full circle from the group’s hazy, lo-fi beginnings and more streamlined, clean recent releases, Best Blues offers a fusion of structure and ambience. Colored by singer Josh Hayden Kolenik’s poetic, stream-of-consciousness lyrics, the freewheeling and atmospheric music offers listeners an electronic pulse and an intimate connection. Small Black stretches out on Best Blues and takes a step forward, showcasing an evolved sound that’s both more refined and aggressive.
Various Artists – Gazing With Tranquility – A Tribute To Donovan Nonprofit label Rock the Cause Records have been offering up their unconventional brand of charitable entertainment for almost a decade. Through their dedication & unwavering work, they have become internationally recognized as the preeminent nonprofit organization that combines advocacy and activism with music. With their upcoming release, Gazing with Tranquility: A Tribute to Donovan, a select group of the most incredible artists out there today and Rock the Cause have teamed up to re-contextualize Donovan s already timeless tracks into modern-day indie marvels. We couldn’t be more excited to share this reverent tribute to Donovan, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who brought us ‘Colours’, ‘Catch the Wind’, and ‘Sunshine Superman’, and collaborated with artists like Joan Baez, Jimmy Page, and George Harrison. An unexpected blend of classic and fresh, Gazing with Tranquility: A Tribute to Donovan kicks off with Mixd Up Kidz s version of ‘Atlantis’, the first studio track from Chris Mars, former drummer of The Replacements. The album also boasts contributions from Sharon Van Etten, Lissie, Brett Dennen, The Flaming Lips, and more! Presale begins August 4th, and includes an instant download of ‘To Susan on the West Coast Waiting’ by The Walkmen s Hamilton Leithauser. This tribute will be available in all digital formats, as well as a limited number of compact discs and vinyl distributed by The Orchard. Proceeds from Gazing with Tranquility will be donated to Huntington s Hope. As Huntington s disease is genetic, families often exhaust their financial resources on medical costs, leaving their children with little to no funds to pursue a secondary education. Huntington s Hope gives children of those with Huntington s disease financial support for their college years and hope for a brighter future. And with this many incredible artists coming together in support of the cause, we can t imagine a better way for Rock the Cause to bring hope, happiness, and music to the masses.
Wolf Eyes – Slicker
Yachts – I Thought The Future Would Be Cooler
Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention – One Size Fits All  Limited edition 180 gram repressing
Zombi – Shape Shift

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2015

New Order – Get Ready Get Ready is the seventh studio album by English rock band New Order. Recorded between 2000 and 2001 and released in August 2001 by record label London, Get Ready was the group’s first album in eight years, following 1993’s Republic. This was the last New Order album featuring the classic lineup of Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, Gillian Gilbert and Stephen Morris. This album will be reissues on 180gm vinyl. 
New Order – Republic Republic is the sixth studio album by the English rock band New Order. Released in 1993 by London Records, it is their first album released after the demise of Factory Records, and their last for eight years. This album will be available on 180gm vinyl. 
New Order – Waiting For The Sirens Call Waiting for the Sirens’ Call is the eighth studio album by the English rock band New Order. The album was released on 28 March 2005 in the United Kingdom and 25 April 2005 in the United States, and was preceded by the single “Krafty” in February. Two additional singles from the album were released: “Jetstream”, which features vocals by Ana Matronic from Scissor Sisters, and the title track of the album. The album will be avialable on 180gm vinyl.
Wilco – Star Wars

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015

Alex G – Beach Music Over the course of six self-recorded and mostly self-released LPs, Alex G has built a body of work unassuming in its presentation, but astounding in its depth. Beach Music was written and recorded in his apartment between the fall of 2014 and the spring of 2015, during breaks from touring. Earlier albums often came in uninterrupted bursts—from his head to the internet in a matter of hours or days. The songs on Beach Music were written within months of one another. Surprisingly, the result is his most cohesive and beautiful work to date; a standout addition to an incredible body of work.
Beirut – No No No Coming four years after The Rip Tide, and recorded over a two week period during one of the coldest New York winters – with blizzard after blizzard raging outside – No No No is Condon’s most vibrant and spirited record to date. To coincide with the release of No No No, Beirut will tour throughout North America and Europe this year, including a headline appearance at Radio City Music Hall in New York.
Decemberists – Florasongs 2015 EP from the alt-rock/indie favorites. Florasongs is a collection of rare and unreleased tracks from the sessions that produced their acclaimed seventh studio album, What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World, which came out in January, 2015. The group’s songs range from upbeat pop to instrumentally lush ballads, and often employ instruments like the accordion, Hammond organ, Wurlitzer organ, and upright bass. In it’s lyrics, the band eschews the introspection common to modern rock, instead favoring a storytelling approach, as evidenced in many songs in their catalog. Since their formation in 2000, they’ve become one of the most respected American bands of the millennium alongside other critical darlings like Arcade Fire.
Robert Forster – Songs To Play In 2008, Robert Forster, one of Australia’s most respected singer-songwriters, released The Evangelist, a work that was widely regarded as his best solo album; it more than lived up to the many high points of his legendary band The Go-Betweens. In 2015, seven years after that album, fans and critics alike may wonder what’s been doing since. Quite a lot, as it turns out. Producer for acclaimed albums by Brisbane bands The John Steel Singers and Halfway. An extended stint as a music critic for the Australian periodical The Monthly that was so well received that a collection of his writings was published as The Ten Rules of Rock and Roll in 2009, and was reprinted in revised and updated form in 2011. Curator and compiler of G Stands for Go-Betweens: The Go-Betweens Anthology Volume 1 (2015), the first of three lavish box-set compilations charting the career of the iconic Australian band of which he was founding member, singer, and songwriter. Still, seven years is a long time, musically speaking. Time for writing songs, time for gathering musicians, time for preparing a refreshed creative direction that took shape as Songs to Play. Ten very different Robert Forster songs recorded on a mountaintop half an hour from his Brisbane home, in an analog studio, with a troop of young musicians: talented multi-instrumentalists Scott Bromley and Luke McDonald (from The John Steel Singers), Matt Piele (drummer from Forster’s touring band), and violinist and singer Karin Baumler. The resultant album is really like nothing he’s ever done before, although it retains many of the qualities listeners know from his songwriting. His work remains highly melodic, with incisive, witty lyrics attuned to real people and real lives. The surprise is in the spirit of the record, it’s sense of adventure and fun – especially after the meditative reflections of The Evangelist (recorded a year after the death of The Go-Betweens co-founder Grant McLennan). Seven years have brought a bolder, wilder approach to sound, and a set of truly inspiring compositions. Pop songs. Five minute epics. A bossa nova tune. Singer-songwriter classics. Experimental, detailed production assistance from Bromley and McDonald. It’s no wonder that, from the album’s opening lines on the super-charged Learn to Burn, Forster is bursting to get out and tell his story. Seven years in the making. And worth every minute.
Glen Hansard – Didn’t He Ramble Didn’t He Ramble, the second solo outing from acclaimed singer songwriter Glen Hansard, will be released September 18 via Anti- Records. The new album is his first in over three years and follows 2012’s solo debut Rhythm & Repose, which Billboard hailed as “Hansard at his most engaging.” Didn’t He Ramble was produced by Thomas Bartlett (The National, Sufjan Stevens), a frequent collaborator of Hansard’s, and Grammy winner and former Frames band-mate David Odlum (Paloma Faith, Tinariwen). The album, which was recorded in New York, Dublin, Chicago and France, is Hansard’s most intimate and elegant record since his work in Once and features guest appearances by John Sheahan (Dubliners), Sam Beam (Iron and Wine) and Sam Amidon. Glen Hansard is the celebrated principal songwriter and vocalist/guitarist for the influential Irish group The Frames. Whether busking the streets of Dublin, where he got his start, or headlining a gig, Hansard has garnered a reputation as an unparalleled frontman. Hansard is also one half of the acclaimed duo The Swell Season. In 2007, he and Czech songstress Markéta Irglová took home the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Falling Slowly” off the Once soundtrack. In 2013,the Broadway adaptation, Once The Musical, won eight Tony Awards including the top musical prize. Most recently, Hansard has won critical acclaim for his moving interpretations of the songs of Jason Molina of Songs:Ohia.
Benji Hughes – 7″ Shark Attack / Mama I’m A Zombie / Instrumental “Why should you buy a new bikini, when you don’t need a bikini at all?” Good vibes are important to Benji Hughes, and he brings them in spades with two limited edition 7-inches out October 9. “Freaky Feedback Blues” b/w “Jazz x 10” This single features a rollicking jam about lightning, clairvoyant white-haired girls, and tigers while the B-side kicks off with a sweet drum beat that would fit right in at the skating rink. “Shark Attack” b/w “Mama, I’m a Zombie” The fact that the A-side could have been the soundtrack to Benji’s (and Merge’s) home state of North Carolina this summer should not stop anyone’s enjoyment of one of the catchiest songs ever written. The B-side could have been snagged from a lost Magnetic Fields album about monsters. Zombies love to party, and you will too!
Benji Hughes – 7″ Freaky feedback Blues / Jazz X 10
Legendary Shack Shakers – The Southern Surreal Their first release in five years, the album lands on the band’s 20th anniversary and is their Alternative Tentacles debut. The Legendary Shack Shakers’ incendiary interpretations of the blues, punk, rock and country are all-at-once irreverent, revisionist, dangerous and fun. Built upon a haunting, Southern Gothic theme, The Southern Surreal is a 15 track set featuring regular band members Colonel JD Wilkes (vocals, harmonica, banjo), Rod Hamdallah (electric guitar), Mark Robertson (electric and upright bass) and Brett Whitacre (drums), with guest appearances by actor/musician and longtime Shack Shakers fan Billy Bob Thornton, and Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison.
Monster Magnet – Cobras & Fire Dave Wyndorf and his henchmen seemingly had the time of their lives when they completely rearranged and boosted Last Patrol in 2014 and christened it Milking the stars: A Re-Imagining of Last Patrol! Now Monster Magnet have gone back even further to the year 2010 and revisited their classic release Mastermind. Even if you know the album inside and out you will not be prepared in the slightest for the trip that is Cobras and Fire (The Mastermind Redux)! Familiar elements drift by and are swallowed whole by thundering psych orgies – Wyndorf often focuses on a singular song fragment and turns it into his ride to total Nirvana. Go look for your daily dose of average rock elsewhere: this is the mindfvck of the year!
New Order – Restless 12″ single with remixes by Andy Weatherall & Agoria
Of Montreal – Snare Lustrous Doomings Snare Lustrous Doomings captures of Montreal’s incredible live energy with 19 high-quality recordings taken from performances at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall and Portland’s Wonder Ballroom Featuring over 90 minutes of music spanning the band’s entire career — from Bedside Drama to Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? to Lousy with Sylvianbriar and everything in between — this deluxe 2xLP is packaged in a gatefold jacket and includes a large, full-color booklet with stunning professional tour photographs. Nedelle Torrisi contributes vocals to a cover of Fairport Convention’s “Time Will Show the Wiser.”
Protomartyr – The Agent Intellect
Roger Lion – Roger Lion Maybe 15 years ago one of the latter day dudes from the Butthole Surfers showed up at a gig of mine with a vinyl copy of the Scud Mountain Boys Pine Box LP for me to sign. He seemed pretty stoked. I honestly thought he was fucking with me. Sure, I’d been a fan of the Buttholes since ’87 or ’88 after a roommate played me the killer track “The Shah Sleeps in Lee Harvey’s Grave.” But why would that dude like the Scuds? We made this kind of music, and they made that kind. While he went on with the compliments, I kept my hand resting over my drink for fear he was going to dose me with some crazy fucking desert zombie acid. Clearly this dude thought I’d made the shittiest record of all time, and he was going to pay me back by sentencing me to a life of spittle-lipped babbling, ill-fitting Huggies and self nipple twisting. I looked around for one of his spiral-eyed freak cohorts getting it all on video. I didn’t trust that dude one bit. I was instantly reminded of a night the Scud Mountain Boys were playing the Mercury Lounge. I was standing alone in front of the club freaking out about telling the guys I was quitting the band. May I be struck dead if Tommy Stinson clad in malnourished rock icon getup and a woman on each arm didn’t strut by at that very instant, take one look at the marquee and scoff, “Fucking sleepy-time music.” Fucking perfect, I thought. And we even had “Friday Night Is Killing Me” in our goddamn van. I think the Scuds lasted another couple weeks. Did Tommy Stinson help break up the band? No, but he sure as shit didn’t help keep us together. Anyway, turns out the guy from the Butthole Surfers was sincere. He knew all about my music. And if it was all a big ruse and he dosed me, I’m still beaming. Cut to 2013. I get a Twitter message from Budo: “I’d love to remix a Scud Mountain Boys track.” Me (to my wife): Here we fucking go again. Wife: Do you even know who he is? Me: What’s there to know? He’s some young white kid who plays with Macklemore. (Long silence) Hello? You know, Macklemore? That tune Pawn Shop? Wife: And that is exactly why you will always be a dinosaur in the new economy. Me: I bet he wears those enormous red-framed glasses Sally Jessie Raphael wore before he was even conceived. Wife: You’re an idiot. Me: I can see this prick now with his Nazi U-boat pilot haircut, eating artisanal pepperoncini while cruising Seattle on a fucking penny farthing. Wife: Let’s divorce. What can I say. I’m a skeptic. But thankfully I also have a drunkard’s unquenchable thirst for music. I cued up Budo’s record The Finger And The Moon. It totally blew my mind. The tune “Berlin” made me cry, which isn’t easy to do since my heart is made up mostly of wire coat hangers. I dug deeper into his remixes on Soundcloud, and they were epic. I started referring to Budo as The Spoon Bender. After some defensive circling and sizing up via email, the Spoon Bender and I finally talked on the phone: Me: Do you know who Josh Ritter is? Budo: I love his music. Me: Want to try making a record about his divorce? Budo: For real? Me: Kind of. Actually, I don’t know Jack Shit about his divorce or his marriage. I don’t even know his ex wife’s name for that matter. And I don’t want to know. But for some reason I’ve been writing these songs, thinking about Josh Ritter’s divorce. Budo: That’s a little fucked up. Me: Hey, man, you wrote to me. Budo: Did you know his ex wife is— Me: Dude, come on. You’ll fucking wreck it. Budo: Sorry. Me: (long beat) So, you in? Budo: As long as we never meet. Me: You and Ritter’s ex? Budo: No, me and you. –JP, 2015, Toronto
Rush  – Signals Re-issue on 200gram vinyl
Supergrass  – Should I Coco Newly remastered 20th anniversary edition.
W.A.S.P – Babylon
W.A.S.P. – Dominator
W.A.S.P. – Golgotha
Joe Louis Walker – Everybody Wants A Piece
Xiu Xiu Fabulous Muscles Limited 180 gram colored vinyl LP pressing in gatefold sleeve, includes digital download. Previously out of print, 2004’s Fabulous Muscles has been re-mastered for vinyl. Xiu Xiu’s best selling and most critically acclaimed album includes “I Luv the Valley OH!,” “Crank Heart,” “Clowne Towne” and more. The music is drawn from British post punk and synth pop, modern Western classical, noise and experimental music, Asian percussion music, American folk, torch singers, house, techno and 1950s rock n roll. There are sounds used to rhythmically push some songs forward in a top 40 way but with fewer straight beats. Noise restrictions also led to more use of single, quiet acoustic instruments. This record is the most pop Xiu Xiu record and the most experimental. It was recorded at home in Seattle and Oakland.

 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6. 2015

Teenage Time Killers – Greatest Hits, Volume 1 (2 LP set on colored vinyl)

 

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2015

Alesana – Confessions North Carolina rock n’ roll veterans Alesana are back and better than ever with Confessions, their first studio full length release in over four years. The album, which is available April 21st on Revival Recordings, is the final installment in a trilogy that has inspired thousands of loyal fans all around the globe. The Annabel Trilogy began it’s wildly successful run with The Emptiness (Fearless Records) and continued with A Place Where The Sun Is Silent (Epitaph Records). Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe, the story, penned by lyricists Shawn Milke and Dennis Lee, follows the horrific and abstract journey of a love-struck artist and his muse, Annabel. Packed full of surprising twists and memorable characters, the trilogy takes you on an imaginative journey that is delivered through a vehicle of haunting vocals, 3-part guitars, string quartets, and orchestra choirs. Having toured the nation and the world extensively over the better part of a decade, fans of Alesana, and their storytelling approach to album composition, are chomping at the bit to see how the trilogy concludes. Produced by Shawn Milke and Neil Engle, Confessions promises to deliver all of the elements that have made Alesana a staple of the indie music scene while simultaneously taking steps into unchartered waters. The band has always pushed themselves to take their sounds to new and unexpected heights and their impressive fifth studio full length release promises no less; and the twist at the end of the story will haunt even the most die-hard fans for days.
The Birthday Party – Prayers On Fire (Re-issue)
David Bowie – Space Oddity / Wild Eyed Boys From Freecloud (7″ picture disc)
Boy – We Were Here Hamburg’s favorite female duo BOY’s highly anticipated sophomore album We Were Here is the follow up to their 2013 critically acclaimed debut album Mutual Friends, that featured the infectiously catchy “Little Numbers” and boasts over 14 million YouTube views. This new album finds BOY spreading their wings, exploring new textures and musical approaches while remaining true to their aesthetic. We Were Here is a sharp burst of delightful melodies, perfectly poised craft and mischievous grace.
The Butterscotch Cathedral – The Butterscotch Cathedral The Butterscotch Cathedral is the new psychedelic studio project from Matt Rendon (The Resonars, Lenguas Largas) with Chris Ayers & Jim Waters. Featuring three tracks total (side one is one 18-min sidelong track, & side two contains “Loud Heavy Sun” & the 17-minute suite “Lisa’s Dream”) the project is Rendon’s homage to the great Sixties & Seventies concept records from bands like The Who & The Beach Boys, both of whom Rendon cite as an influence. Art & design by Jason Willis.
James Cotton – Live (Antone’s re-issue)
Family of the Year – Family of the Year
Craig Finn – Faith In the FutureFaith in the Future is the second solo album from Craig Finn, and it’s being released on Brooklyn-based indie label Partisan Records. Josh Kaufman produced the record in the cozy, rustic confines of Woodstock’s The Isokon recording studio and helped Finn stretch the boundaries of his songwriting with confidence, invention and ambition in order to realize what is sure to be a defining moment in his career. At times stark and spare, at other times vibrant and dynamic, Faith in the Future is Finn’s most compelling collection thus far, each song a powerfully alluring and subtly nuanced composition wedded to his distinctive short story narratives, which owe as much to authors such as John Cheever and Raymond Carver as they do any rock influences. Most of the material on Faith in the Future was written several years ago, around the time Finn’s mother died, and while none of them directly address that loss, he insists the idea of transcending grief and finding redemption running through the album can be directly traced to that event. “I had both the music and lyrics to these songs, though they changed a great deal in the studio,” Finn explains. “There’s a grandness to The Hold Steady that tends to make me write about bigger, more dramatic themes. Some of these songs are more mundane, with minor slices of life that wouldn’t best be supported by the hugeness of a rock group. It wasn’t always about what we wanted to put in, but what should we leave out? We didn’t want to sermonize or moralize. Just let these songs, and characters, be.” 
Ben Folds – So There (Limited edition colored vinyl)
The Fratellis – Me & The Devil (180 gram)
The Gaslight Anthem – The ’59 Sound (Limited edition colored vinyl)
Mark Lanegan – Houston, Publishing Demos 2002
Little Boots – Working Girl (Limited edition white vinyl)
Motion City Soundtrack – Panic Stations When Motion City Soundtrack formed in Minneapolis in 1997 there was a sense of fun that threaded through everything that involved the band. That youthful glee, the feeling that everything was exciting and anything was possible, has been inevitably dampened over the years. On their sixth album, Panic Stations, MCS found that feeling again. The process of creating the new songs, which open a new chapter in the band’s storied career, was based on instinct and openness, a methodology that resulted in a buoyant, impassioned record. Panic Stations is as exciting to listen to as it was for the musicians to make. The feeling of their renewed pleasure for the craft resonates through each note and lyric, leaving you just as inspired as they sound. “We realized this is so much fun,” lead singer Justin Pierre says. “We’re just having fun again. It’s not that we weren’t before, but everything seems so fresh and new on this album. I feel like Panic Stations is a new beginning, and it’s exciting to get to open the next chapter of Motion City Soundtrack’s career.” – Finishing a highly successful 10 Year Anniversary tour of their breakout album, Commit This To Memory (2005) – Motion City Soundtrack have received rave reviews and features in Rolling Stone, Spin, Entertainment Weekly, Alternative Press, and many others. – For fans of Weezer, Fall Out Boy and Green Day.
Motorhead – Motorhead (Re-issue of 1977 release on 200 Gram Super Vinyl. Numbered and limited to 1500.)
Oingo Boingo – Dead Man’s Party (Red vinyl re-issue)
Pinetop Perkins – Live At Antone’s Vol. 1 (Antone’s re-issue)
Pinetop Perkins – Pinetop’s Boogie Woogie (Antone’s re-issue)
Promised Land Sound – For Use & Delight Nashville’s finest purveyors of febrile root-work psychedelia return with a dizzyingly accomplished second album that highlights an expanded band (including members of the Paperhead and Fly Golden Eagle); bigger, bolder arrangements featuring more and louder guitars, squally strings, and Steve Gunn; and road-ripened songwriting that veers between the frenetic and tender, recalling Jim Ford, the Pretty Things, the Grateful Dead, Dennis Linde, and the Byrds at their most eight-miles-fried.
Kurt Vile – B’Lieve I’m Goin’ (Deep) Down (Limited edition triple LP) Kurt Vile does his own myth making; a boy/man with an old soul voice in the age of digital everything becoming something else, which is why this focused, brilliantly clear and seemingly candid record is a breath of fresh air. Recorded and mixed in a number of locations, including Los Angeles and Joshua Tree, b’lieve I’m goin’ down… is a handshake across the country, east to west coast, thru the dustbowl history (“valley of ashes”) of woody honest strait forward talk guthrie , and a cali canyon dead still nite floating in a nearly waterless landscape. The record is all air, weightless, bodyless, but grounded in convincing authenticity, in the best version of singer songwriter upcycling. In Kurt’s words, “I wanted to get back into the habit of writing a sad song on my couch, with nobody waiting on me. I really wanted it to sound like it’s on my couch — not in a lo-fi way, just more unguarded and vulnerable.”
Weird Science – Soundtrack, Various Artists

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