STAFF PICKS
Lindsay – Colter Wall reissues
Dario – Mary Halvorson
Kimber – Swervedriver reissue
Jake –  Spiritualized and Mid-Air Thief
Zach – Daniel Johnston, 90 Day Men, Mid-Air Thief

Danny Brown – Quaranta CD/LP+MP3 (Warp)
As the intro notes, Quaranta is Italian for “forty.” According to Brown, Quaranta is the spiritual sequel to XXX, his breakout album released on Fool’s Gold in 2011, that infamously cataloged a life lived on the edge at 30. The whirlwind of parties, tours, collaborations, and achievements that followed that landmark release seemed to fly by fast–ten years later, when COVID-19 brought the world to a halt, Brown found himself in downtown Detroit, living alone for the first time ever. After years of escapist escapades, he was forced to adjust to the stillness and silence, and the bars on Quaranta are diaristic in a distinctly Danny Brown way. There’s no shortage of Brown’s typical blitzing verses over angular, mesmerizing production from some of his oldest collaborators including Quelle Chris, Paul White & SKYWLKR, but the Alchemist produced “Tantor” is just the kind of cold-steel contradistinction which he’s been celebrated throughout his career. [A limited-edition red color vinyl pressing is available.]

Green Day – Saviors CD/LP/Cassette (Reprise)
Green Day is not your savior, but the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll might be. And as the greatest punk band alive, they’re the loudest vessel we have… to give it a shot. Green Day is ready to flip off the famous, stupid, and contagious, by putting a mirror to the present tense like only they can, with Saviors, their inspired new studio album. Amazingly, Saviors is Green Day’s 14th studio album, yet somehow this enduring power trio, Billie Joe Armstrong, Tré Cool & Mike Dirnt, remain devoted to their defiant craft that has fueled their career-long destruction of every boundary bestowed on the genre, and landed 3 East Bay punks in the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame. [Several indie store exclusive editions are available: pink w/ black color vinyl; and autographed CD. A deluxe 180gm vinyl pressing is also available.]

Mary Halvorson – Cloudward CD/LP (Nonesuch)
Cloudward is the new release by Brooklyn-based guitarist, composer, and MacArthur fellow Mary Halvorson. The album features eight new compositions by Halvorson, performed with her sextet Amaryllis; the improvisatory band that performed on her critically praised 2022 albums Amaryllis and Belladonna comprises Halvorson, Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), Nick Dunston (bass), Tomas Fujiwara (drums), Jacob Garchik (trombone), and Adam O’Farrill (trumpet). Labelmate Laurie Anderson also is featured on the album track “Incarnadine.”  The dual 2022 releases’ acclaim included being named Jazz Album of the Year in DownBeat’s annual Critics Poll.

Sleater-Kinney – Little Rope CD/LP (Loma Vista)
Sleater-Kinney returns with Little Rope, one of the finest, most delicately layered records in the band’s 30-year career. On the surface, Little Rope’s ten songs veer from spare to anthemic, catchy to deliberately hard turning. But beneath that are perhaps the most complex and subtle arrangements of any Sleater-Kinney record, and a lyrical and emotional compass pointed firmly in the direction of something both liberating and terrifying: the sense that the only way to gain control is to let it go. [An indie store exclusive blue color vinyl pressing is available.]

Elzhi & Oh No – Heavy Vibrato CD/LP (Nature Sounds)
Known for weaving together complex rhymes with style, Elzhi has been rapping circles around the competition for more than two decades. After years as a member of iconic group Slum Village, Elzhi’s impressive solo career has included projects produced by acclaimed artists like Black Milk, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Khrysis, and Will Sessions. Now, the Detroit emcee is linking with California beat maestro Oh No for the new collaborative album Heavy Vibrato. A multitalented underground hip-hop luminary, Oh No has built a formidable resume behind the boards, crafting tracks for Mos Def, Freddie Gibbs, MF DOOM, Action Bronson, Talib Kweli, Ab-Soul, Danny Brown, and more. Heavy Vibrato is a thrilling showcase for Elzhi’s lyrical wizardry and cinematic storytelling, as Oh No breathes new life into a compelling tapestry of jazz samples, producing the entire collection.

Laufey – CD (Laufey LLC)
Released last year on LP – now available on CD. Raised between Reykjavík and Washington, DC, Icelandic-Chinese singer-songwriter Laufey makes music that is the byproduct of rich cultural heritages and mixed musical influences. Inspired in part by her mother, a classical violinist, Laufey took up piano and cello early on. But it wasn’t until deep diving into her father’s record collection, consisting of jazz artists Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, that she launched into her musical journey. Through free-form scatting and reposeful vocal styling, Laufey transforms her heartfelt truths into a revived classic-sound for contemporary audiences to resonate with.

Slift – Ilion CD/LP+MP3 (Sub Pop)
Slift’s third album Ilion is a towering work of rock music, a steamrolling record that starts at the highest peak and never lets up. If that sounds overwhelming, trust that this Toulouse, France trio have you in good hands. Ilion feels massive and oceanic, merging the furious intensity of metal and the wigged-out guitar heroics of psych rock with post-rock’s epic sense of scale. ILION is the kind of music where you listen to it and think to yourself, “This came from only three people?”

Spiritualized – Amazing Grace [Reissue/2003] CD/LP (Fat Possum)
Limited gray dove LP version is here! CD and vinyl reissues of the fifth album by the British rock band Spiritualized, so named to indicate its considerable gospel influence. After working with free-jazz collective Spring Heel Jack on one of their albums and tour, frontman Jason Pierce was inspired to make a record with the same principles. His approach meant that the rest of Spiritualized was given the songs on the same day as they were recorded, meaning the record (including orchestral overdubs) was completed in three weeks. This is a huge difference compared to its predecessor, Let It Come Down, which took four years to record.

Colter Wall – Imaginary Appalachia [Reissue/2015] CDEP/12” (RCA)

Colter Wall – Colter Wall [Reissue/2017] CD/LP (RCA)

Colter Wall – Songs Of The Plains [Reissue/2018] CD/LP (RCA)

Colter Wall – Western Swing & Waltzes And Other Punchy Songs [Reissue/2020] CD/LP (RCA)
CD and limited-edition red color vinyl reissues of Colter Wall’s debut EP and first three albums. His style is folk, Americana, blues, and country. His voice has a resemblance to Johnny Cash, and performance and lyrics in the vein of Townes Van Zandt and Hank Williams.

The 90 Day Men – We Blame Chicago 5xLP (Numero)
90 Day Men spent a decade boldly in conflict with the world, catering to no one and careening toward its own abyss. Forged by Midwestern teens amid a late- ‘90s spike in angular indie rock, the band wrote itself into the lexicon of Chicago music history. Eschewing trend and time, 90 Day Men was as ornate as it was alienating, transcending genre, and embracing the strange. This 5xLP set, remastered by Heba Kadry, collects the band’s three studio albums and a previously unreleased 2001 Peel Session, plus EPs, singles, and outtakes, all detailed within a 68-page oral history curated by Joan Of Arc’s Tim Kinsella. [A multi-color vinyl edition is available.]

Deadmau5 – for lack of a better name [Reissue/2009] 2xLP (Mau5Trap Recordings)
Blue colorway. Originally released in 2009, for lack of a better name is the fourth studio album by Canadian electronic music producer & composer deadmau5. Comprised of some of deadmau5’s biggest hits, including fan favorite “Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff” featuring Rob Swire, which reached 2x RIAA Platinum certifications.

Daniel Johnston – Alive In New York City LP/Cassette (Joyful Noise)
Clear vinyl pressing. Daniel played several shows in New York City in April of the year 2000, but there is no way to know for certain the exact date this recording was made, or the venue in which the performance took place. Sorry. This LP was mastered from a DAT Kramer found 20 years later. It contains one brilliant Daniel Johnston performance in its entirety, unedited, unaltered, and unforgettable. These memories conclude with a brief excerpt from a street interview Daniel gave in New York City, recorded during the same period in his extraordinary life.

King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard – Demos Vol. 5 + Vol. 6 2xLP (Reverberation Appreciation Society)
Career spanning demos recorded between 2010 – 2022 by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. Limited to 1000 splatter gatefold 2×12″ LPs. First pressing in a gatefold jacket. Each 12″ in a poly-lined inner-sleeve. A unique hypnotic op art inner label for each 12″. LP 1 pressed on milky clear with cobalt blue splatter color vinyl. LP 2 pressed on milky clear with apple red splatter.

Swervedriver – 99th Dream [Reissue/1998] LP (Outer Battery)
Red colorway. Swervedriver’s legendary 99th Dream is available again on vinyl. Initially released in 1998, the band broke up shortly after and this classic LP was lost to the ages. Now reissued as a proper double LP, with a bonus 4th side of remixes from Alan Moulder (My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Lush, etc.).

Bud Powell – Amazing Bud Powell Vol 1 LP (Blue Note)
The amazing bebop piano genius Bud Powell made his most enduring recordings as a leader for Blue Note. Powell’s 1949 and 1951 sessions were compiled in 1955 on The Amazing Bud Powell, Vol. 1. Featuring the pianist with the likes of Sonny Rollins, Fats Navarro, Roy Haynes and Max Roach on bebop classics including “Un Poco Loco” and “Bouncing with Bud.” Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series is all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

Mid-Air Thief – Crumbling LP (Top Shelf)
Initially released in 2018. Although sung almost entirely in Korean, Mid-Air Thief’s cult-acclaimed album Crumbling exhibits a distinct universality, merging disparate sounds and styles into a cohesive, electronic-infused folk amalgam that tactfully blurs the lines between organic and synthetic. Listeners are led through enrapturing passages of swirling melodies underscored with eloquent plucks, strums, and bursts of bubbly glitches.

Various – Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era (1965-1968) (Rhino)
The most groundbreaking and influential compilation of all time. Produced by Lenny Kate in 1972. Limited colored pressing.

Various – Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era (1965-1968) Vol 2 LP (Rhino)
Nuggets Vol 2 as originally thought of by Lenny Kaye and released to celebrate the 50 years of the legendary compilation. Pressed on limited colored vinyl.

COMING NEXT WEEK!
SMILE – Wall Of Eyes CD/LP
TY SEGALL – Three Bells CD/LP/CASS
SARAH JAROSZ – Polaroid Lovers CD/LP
ALKALINE TRIO – Blood Hair and Eyeballs CD/LP
FUTURE ISLANDS – People Who Aren’t There Anymore CD/LP
GRUFF RHYS – Sadness Sets Me Free CD/LP
NAS – Magic 3 CD/LP
JOHN MORELAND – In The Throes CD/LP
KARATE – Some Boots LP reissue
KATY KIRBY – Blue Raspberry CD/LP
MENZINGERS – Some Of It Was True CD/LP
TORRES – What An Enormous Room CD/LP
DINNER PARTY – Dinner + Dessert CD
MATMOS – Return To Archive CD
HOTELIER – Home Like Noplace Is There LP
NEW MODEL ARMY – Unbroken LP
MIKE – Burning Desire LP
WILLIAM ELLIOTT WHITMORE – Silently The Mind Breaks LP