STAFF PICKS
Lindsay – Cut Worms
Dario – Mort Garson and Nina Simone
Kimber – Pelican reissue
Caleb -Half Japanese and Boxhead Ensemble
Zach – Shintaro Sakamoto and Cut Worms 

Blur – The Ballad Of Darren CD/LP (Parlophone)
Britpop legends Blur are back with their first new album in over eight years. The Ballad Of Darren is the band’s ninth studio album overall, their first since 2015’s The Magic Whip, with artwork featuring an image by British photographer Martin Parr. Damon Albarn said, “This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now.” Graham Coxon adds, “The older and madder we get, it becomes more essential that what we play is loaded with the right emotion and intention. The highly anticipated 10-track collection is introduced by lead track “The Narcissist” which The Guardian says, “chugs along to a motorik beat, rising to an anthemic chorus that seems to be reflecting on the band’s career path.” [An indie store exclusive blue color vinyl pressing is available.]

Cut Worms – Cut Worms CD/LP/Cassette (Jagjaguwar)
As Cut Worms, songwriter Max Clarke’s contemporary vision of American heritage rock-n-roll is both pristine and askew. He’s been called a modern Buddy Holly and Everly Brothers while also being tagged as “Lynchian.” Since 2016, this vision has made Cut Worms fans of Nick Lowe, Norah Jones, Wilco, and other notable powerhouse artists. And on his self-titled third album, we find Clarke refining his craft down to its most crucial elements. [A limited-edition ‘seaglass wave’ color vinyl pressing is available.]

Mort Garson – Journey To The Moon And Beyond CD/LP (Sacred Bones)
The Mort Garson (Plantasia, Ataraxia, Lucifer) archives have brought to bear yet another awe-inspiring bloom. Journey To The Moon And Beyond is a colorful synthetic dream world consisting of a collection of largely unreleased and unheard material from the Patch Cord Productions archives. Highlights include music from a soundtrack to the 1970 National Geographic special and the live broadcast of the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing, as first heard on CBS News. [A limited-edition ‘Mars red’ color vinyl pressing is available.]

Half Japanese – Jump Into Love CD (Fire)
CD now, LP coming next week. Jump Into Love is the new album from Half Japanese, true DIY noise-rock royalty, led by the ever-effervescent Jad Fair. It’s a meeting of minds, a coming together from the world’s favorite indie-alt-rock outsiders. Atypically out there and off-kilter, the album wears its heart on its sleeve through a cascade of new, dark and brooding songs from the band who would be king.

Boxhead Ensemble – Ancient Music CD (Jealous Butcher)
Cinema is baked into Michael Krassner’s musical DNA, and these recordings sometimes veer from evoking a lost psychedelic sci-fi flick to a desolate western, or from a horror film to a sun-dappled romance. Listening closely, you hear the years in these songs, but also the freshness of a brand new moment. Though one could read the title Ancient Music as a cheeky display of Krassner’s self-deprecating humor, listening to its majestic swells and spooky corners, it becomes clear that Krassner means it the other way too. These are songs that have somehow always existed. And somehow, they always will.

Nina Simone – You’ve Got To Learn CD/LP (Verve)
The Newport Jazz Festival had always brought the best out of Nina Simone. On July 2, 1966, the audience was treated to the full range of her artistry – from the opener, a breathtaking version of “You’ve Got To Learn” to a swinging take on “Mississippi Goddam”. After a sustained standing ovation, her fans were rewarded with the show-stopping encore, “Music For Lovers”. This previously unreleased recording makes it clear why hearing Nina Simone in concert was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. [An indie store exclusive color vinyl pressing is available.]

Russian Circles – Station LP (15th anniversary, blue) (Sargent House)
Originally released in 2008, Russian Circles’ Station marked the second album in an eight LP journey that tracked the band’s rise to the upper echelon of heavy music. Fifteen years later, the beloved album has been reissued on vinyl via Sargent House. Lumbering layers of chiseled post-rock and feathery psychedelic infusions continue to rev and entice listeners new and old. Station weaves intense and cinematic compositions that form into audible head trips that defy pigeonholing. Inertia builds to impossible levels before imploding into earth-shattering riffs. It’s push-and-pull on a seismic scale, where schisms feel rapturous. In addition, Station was the first Russian Circles album to feature now long-time member Brian Cook on bass.

The Teskey Brothers – The Winding Way CD/LP (Glassnote)
Four years after the boys from Warrandyte’s globe-conquering second album, Run Home Slow (2019), which followed their debut album Half Mile Harvest (2017), the artistic vision of vocalist Josh Teskey and his brother, guitarist and engineer Sam Teskey is more defined than ever on their highly anticipated new studio album The Winding Way. The album is a bigger and more adventurous sounding record than The Teskey Brothers’ first two albums – but while it’s a more studio-oriented release, each track is bursting with life and full of surprises. [An indie store exclusive white color vinyl pressing is available.]

Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway – City Of Gold CD/LP (BMG)
City Of Gold follows Molly Tuttle’s acclaimed 2022 record, Crooked Tree, which won Best Bluegrass Album at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards and led NPR Music to call her, “a female flat picker extraordinaire with agility, speed and elegance who distinctively brings American roots music into the spotlight,” adding that the album “marries the improvisatory solos of traditional bluegrass with singer-songwriter sophistication.” Produced by Tuttle and Jerry Douglas and recorded at Nashville’s Sound Emporium Studios, City Of Gold was inspired by Tuttle’s constant touring with Golden Highway the past few years, during which they have grown together as musicians and performers, cohering as a band. These 13 tracks – mostly written by Tuttle and Ketch Secor (Old Crow Medicine Show) – capture the electric energy of band’s live shows by highlighting each members’ musical strengths. [An indie store exclusive blue color vinyl pressing is available.]

Greta Van Fleet – Starcatcher CD/LP (Republic)
Grammy Award-winning retro rockers Greta Van Fleet follow-up 2021’s The Battle At Garden’s Gate with their much anticipated third studio album Starcatcher. Produced by the ever in demand Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile) and recorded at the legendary RCA Studios in Nashville, TN, the band utilized the large recording room to capture the pure energy of their world-renowned live performances. [Two limited-edition vinyl colorways are available: white; and clear.]

Guided By Voices – Welshpool Frillies CD/LP (Guided By Voices Inc.)
Welshpool Frillies finds the gang back together, in a Brooklyn basement with producer Travis Harrison. Much of it was recorded live to tape. The catchy ear worms in these new songs are undeniable, as the kinetic energy of the band is captured in its most raw and pure form. The album is brash, no-frills, and punky, inspired by the wiliness of ‘90s-era GBV, specifically the Scalping The Guru compilation that Pollard put together in 2022.

Death Cab For Cutie – Transatlanticism [Reissue/2003] 2xLP+MP3 (Baruk)
The latest in Barsuk’s deluxe vinyl reissues of the indie rock band’s catalogue.

Shintaro Sakamoto – Like A Fable LP (Zelone)
Coke bottle clear vinyl pressing. Six years since his last album, Love If Possible, Shintaro Sakamoto has completed his fourth solo album, Like A Fable. The album’s ten songs describe everyday life in a world undergoing dramatic changes during a pandemic. Sakamoto continually updates his sound, and with Like A Fable, he has made his best pop album yet.

Illa J – Yancey Boys LP [Reissue/2008] (Delicious Vinyl)
Limited edition 2LP coke bottle clear vinyl. John “Illa J” Yancey, younger brother of late, genius producer Jay Dee, J Dilla, rhymes and sings over a treasure trove of previously untouched Jay Dee Gems. The Project represents both a full-circle collaboration and a whole new beginning in the story of the musically exceptional Yancey brothers.

Madlib – Rock Konducta Pt 1 (Madlib Invazion)
Rock Konducta is the fifth installment in Madlib’s Beat Konducta series. It grabs its source material from various worldwide rock scenes from the 60s through the 80s, from American psychedelia to Germany’s krautrock to acid-soaked Spanish prog to synthy, early 80s oddities. Limited re-press on clear vinyl.

Pelican – The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Call [Reissue/2005] 2xLP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)
Pelican and Thrill Jockey present a deluxe edition of the band’s acclaimed 2005 album: The Fire In Our Throats Will Beckon The Thaw, newly remixed, remastered, and featuring special bonus rarities including an early version of “Red Ran Amber”, (previously only available on a split with Mono) and demos of “Autumn Into Summer”, “Last Day Of Winter”, and “Sirius”. The Fire In Our Throats established Pelican as indisputable masters of their craft. Pelican’s ability to alchemize their influences into a sound so wholly original and then expand on that sound into a work of captivating beauty remains a marvel. The album indelibly shifted the paradigm of heavy music, and the ripples of that shift can be heard in the countless bands that have risen to prominence since its release. [An indie store exclusive pressing is available.]

Phish – Fuego [Reissue/2013] 2xLP (Jemp)
‘Spontaneous combustion’ orange color vinyl pressing of Phish’s thirteenth studio album.

Various Artists – Dig Me In: A Dig Me Out Covers Record LP (Many Hats)
Sleater-Kinney first emerged from Olympia, WA in 1994. The group’s 1997 landmark album, Dig Me Out, earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”  To commemorate 25 years of their iconic record, Dig Me Out, the band gathered artists across genres to reimagine the 13 original tracks. Artists include Courtney Barnett, St. Vincent, Wilco, The Linda Lindas, NNAMDÏ, Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires, and more!

Various Artists – Barbie The Album: Soundtrack CD/LP/Cassette (Atlantic)
To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken. Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig’s (Little Women, Lady Bird) new Barbie film stars Oscar-nominees Margot Robbie (Bombshell, I, Tonya) and Ryan Gosling (La La Land, Half Nelson) as Barbie and Ken. Barbie The Album features new tracks from an unprecedented lineup of artists including Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice, Lizzo, Karol G, Charli XCX, PinkPantheress, Ava Max, Dominic Fike, Khalid, The Kid Laroi, Tame Impala, Haim, Gayle and Fifty Fifty feat. Kali. Barbie star Ryan Gosling also joins the robust roster of soundtrack artists with his iconic original song performed as his character, Ken. [A limited-edition hot pink vinyl pressing is available.]

COMING NEXT WEEK!
BETHANY COSENTINO (Best Coast) – Natural Disaster CD/LP
APHEX TWIN – Blackbox Life Recorder/21F/In A Room7 CD/LP
BUDOS BAND – Frontier’s Edge CD/LP
MAC KROL (Mac McCaughan + Mike Krol) – For Some Other Reason 7″
POST MALONE – Austin CD/LP
AVAIL – 4AM Friday LP reissue
BAD RELIGION – Recipe For Hate LP reissue
BUSH TETRAS – They Live In My Head CD/LP
GODFLESH – Purge LP
THE CLIENTELE – I Am Not There Anymore CD/LP
MUTOID MAN – Mutants LP
BRAD – Shame LP