January 15, 2021 —

New Releases & Staff Picks 1/15/2021

Staff Picks
Kimber – Doves
Lindsay – Kurt Vile, Jeff Tweedy, Mary Timony, Midnight Sister, Doves reissues
Dario – Buck Meek, Midnight Sister 

 

Limited clear vinyl LP pressing. 2020 release. Love Is The King, a “beautifully honest ode to love and hope,” is the follow-up to 2018’s Warm and 2019’s Warmer, and comes on the heels of Tweedy’s second book, How To Write One Song. “At the beginning of the lockdown I started writing country songs to console myself. Folk and country type forms being the shapes that come most easily to me in a comforting way. ‘Guess Again’ is a good example of the success I was having at pushing the world away, counting my blessings – taking stock in my good fortune to have love in my life,” comments Tweedy. “A few weeks later things began to sound like ‘Love Is The King’ – a little more frayed around the edges with a lot more fear creeping in. Still hopeful but definitely discovering the limits of my own ability to self soothe.” -Jeff Tweedy
 

Buck Meek – Two Saviors (Keeled Scales) CD/LP
Buck Meek is Big Thief’s lead guitarist! “Two Saviors” is Buck Meek’s second album, following 2018’s self-titled LP also released on Keeled Scales and currently on its third pressing. Buck worked with producer and engineer Andrew Sarlo on this album (who’s produced all four of Big Thief albums, as well as co-producing Bon Iver’s i,i ). Andrew agreed to record it only if it was made under his conditions– that they make the album in New Orleans during the hottest part of the year, spend no more than seven days tracking live, on an 8-track tape machine, with only dynamic microphones and no headphones, and not allowing the players to hear back any of the takes until the final day.

 

Vinyl LP pressing. 2021 release from the Americana/Country/Bluegrass singer/songwriter. The first eight songs are fiddle standards, and the final title track is an original new song written by Tyler Childers that speaks to the acrid moments we find ourselves in, yet styled as an old fiddle tune to fit with the rest of the record.

 

Dale Crover – Rat-A-Tat-Tat! (Joyful Noise) CD/LP
Rat-a-Tat-Tat! Is that the sound of the reaper knocking on your door to collect your soul — or Dale Crover hammering out another distinctive drum fill? There are pretty good odds it’s the latter; between 36 years (and about as many full-lengths and EPs) as drummer/bassist for the Melvins and his contributions to acts as varied as Altamont, Peeping Tom, Redd Kross, Shrinebuilder, and a little band called Nirvana, he’s built quite the body of work. Features Steve McDonald (Redd Kross) and Toshi Kasai (Big Business).

 

Faye Webster – Self-Titled (Secretly Canadian) CD/LP
“Webster explores themes of different relationships through her broody tunes, tackling the notion of writing only sad songs by writing her “saddest song” yet. In a way, the record feels like a coming-of-age for the singer-songwriter into her own perfectly curated moment, which surely will lead to bigger and better things.” (NYLON)

 

Kikagaku Moyo – Live At Levitation LP (Reverberation Appreciation)
Neon Orange Indie Exclusive version. Live at LEVITATION. Recorded over the history of the world-renowned event, the series captures key moments in psychedelic rock history, and live music in Austin, Texas. The first LP in this series features Japanese psych heavyweights Kikagaku Moyo. This particular record is as strong sonically as it is meaningful in the band’s history. It showcases one of the band’s very first US shows in 2014 on the A-side, and their triumphant return in 2019 on the B-side with them firing on all cylinders amid a sold out US tour.

 

Midnight Sister – Painting The Roses (Jagjaguwar)
As Midnight Sister, multi-disciplinary LA artists Juliana Giraffe and Ari Balouzian make motion pictures. Yes, sometimes with moving images — but most often only with the music they create together. Balouzian’s serpentine, string compositions are movie scenes that allow Giraffe, a brilliant character actor, to cloak herself in new roles and voices. A bit of Jon Brion’s score work; some old Hollywood strings; a solid dose of glam and outsider disco from 70s independent cinema. Any perceived artifice is always matched by an indelible human fingerprint, something perfectly off. Giraffe and Balouzian’s respective work in fashion, visual art, video and film scoring — along with the gang of virtuosos with which they surround themselves — all wonderfully coalesce as Midnight Sister.

 

In 2021, Sleaford Mods will take stock of an astonishing rise with the release of their newest creation Spare Ribs. They will bring British political correctness, in the truest, purest sense of those words directly to the masses. Because Sleaford Mods are sincerity incarnate. Sleaford Mods are peerless. Available on green vinyl. All initial orders come with a bonus 7″!

 

Matador’s 20th Anniversary Edition of Mountains has been newly remastered and expanded into a double LP with gatefold sleeve with gold foil text on the cover. A new essay by Mary Timony is included, plus four bonus tracks, one of which is an orchestral version of “Valley Of One Thousand Perfumes” was recorded in 2019 with a string section.

 

Kurt Vile – Speed, Sound, Lonely KV CD/LP (Matador)
Kurt Vile’s Speed, Sound, Lonely KV (ep) was recorded and mixed in sporadic sessions that spanned four years at The Butcher Shoppe studio in Nashville, TN. It includes five songs — covers of John Prine and “Cowboy” Jack Clement as well as two originals — and was recorded alongside a cast of local heavies like Bobby Wood, Dave Roe, Kenny Malone and Matt Sweeney (Chavez, Superwolf).  Most importantly, it features what KV has called “Probably the single most special musical moment in my life” – a duet with the late John Prine on the songwriter’s well-loved tune, “How Lucky.”
Doves – Some Cities LP (Capitol)
Doves – Lost Souls LP (Capitol)
Doves – Last Broadcast LP (Capitol)
The first 3 Doves records are re-issued domestically as 2LPs! Finally!

 

Various Artists – Too Slow to Disco NEO: The Sunset Manifesto LP (How Do You Are)
It’s time to bring the party back to nightclubs, hotel bars and living rooms everywhere…Have you ever felt so wistful for the dance floor? Have you ever been so in need of getting your personal shimmy on? Not to worry – Team Too Slow to Disco has your back. We present: The Sunset Manifesto. Sixteen ways to party wherever you are right now. Sixteen ways to add effortless chic to your: lockdown kitchen disco / home-office yoga studio / commute to the living room. Our intention? To bring you a globe-trotting playlist of some of the most sophisticated, adult-orientated and dance-inducing pop music from today’s finest exponents of that Too Slow to Disco sound. And like a good detective about to crack a big case, DJ Supermarkt has been tailing these acts for quite a while now. It’s an eclectic gang, from Westcoast USA to Norway via a hundred (14) places in between – but with a shared golden thread. That warm sonic palette that escaped from Laurel Canyon folkies and LA session gods is there, remade by a contemporary electronic sensibility. As acts they’re all touched by that lazy, daytime disco or Balearic style.

 

Dungen – II LP (Busy Bee)
With their second album Dungen moved from a sound deeply rooted in Swedish folk music towards more psychedelia and 70’s pop. This missing link between the sparse debut and the world wide break through Ta Det Lugnt moves through 60’s and 70’s prog, psych, pop and folk with soaring flutes, woodsy violins, wicked fuzz guitars and frenetic jazz-drums. The record was originally released in 2002 under the name Stadsvandringar and a slightly different version got a very limited vinyl release as Dungen 2. II collects all tracks from Stadsvandringar and Dungen 2 as well as a single-track never available on vinyl all remastered by the original producer Mattias Glav. Dungen’s music has expanded sonic boundaries all through the 2000s and II lets you explore both the butterfly light side as well as the heavier introspective aspects of a groundbreaking, yet retrospective band.  

 

Matthew Sweet – Catspaw CD/LP (Omnivore)
It’s time for Matthew to just plain rock out by himself again. Omnivore Recordings is proud to present Catspaw – written, produced, recorded, mixed, and entirely performed (save ferocious drumming from Ric Menck of Velvet Crush) by Matthew at his home studio. Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering, the Hofner bass and Novo guitars sing and howl, harkening back to classics like Girlfriend and Altered Beast – all while retaining the hooks that dig into the listener. Well, like a cat’s paw.  

 

Trampled By Turtles – Songs From A Ghost Town LP (Thirty Tigers)
Trampled By Turtles – Blue Sky and the Devil LP (Thirty Tigers)
Trampled By Turtles first two albums are finally reissued. On Silver and gold vinyl!
BRIAN ENO – Film Music 1976-2020 CD/LP
RHYE – Home CD/LP
KIWI JR – Cooler Returns CD/LP
BICEP – Isles CD/LP
GUIDED BY VOICES – Styles We Paid For LP
NINE INCH NAILS – Quake LP
MAYER HAWTHORNE – Rare Changes LP
DAVID BOWIE – Station To Station LP reissue