Goldmund – Sometimes CD/LP (Western Vinyl)

Though he may not be a household name, Keith Kenniff aka Goldmund’s evocative, distinctly American music has become quietly ubiquitous in the past few years, often appearing on NPR, in films, on TV, and in ads for Apple, Facebook, and Google among others. Recorded over the course of three years, the material on his new album Sometimes functions as a journal, documenting brief moments in Kenniff’s day when he could turn to the piano as a source of solace and unending creative possibilities. Kenniff wrote and recorded everything on the album with the exception of the track “A Word I Give”, which is a collaboration with preeminent Japanese pianist Ryuichi Sakamoto, who once described Goldmund’s music as “…so, so, so beautiful.”

Mark McGuire – Beyond Belief CD/2xLP (Dead Oceans)

Though deservedly known for his virtuosic multi-tracked guitar playing, McGuire in fact plays every bass/synth/piano note, and every beat on Beyond Belief himself — his vocals more prominent than ever before. Like many before him, McGuire isn’t entirely comfortable with the critically-bestowed ‘new age’ tag, but the resonance is there particularly in McGuire’s prose, and it’s not unreasonable that he appeared alongside venerated new age masters Iasos and Laraaji in The New York Times’ appraisal of the new age music renaissance For New Age, the Next Generation, Mike Rubin).

 

Medusa – First Step Beyond CD (Numero)

“You must physically hold this album, kneel at its altar; we will fail to describe it. Medusa’s First Step Beyondmight have forever shifted the perception of Chicago rock history had it managed to make the leap from tape to its never-realized vinyl pressing. Instead, the conflagration of Sabbath, Hawkwind, and Amon Düül remained petrified in the Corycian Caverns — otherwise known as the drummer’s basement. Self produced on four track in 1975, this lone transmission from Medusa’s repertoire appeared on the extremely mysterious Pepperhead label, whose proprietor allegedly disappeared after a bad trip and was never seen again. Forged in ceremonial mock-velvet, custom embossed in Gorgon-gold and blood-red, and art directed in accordance with the band’s elaborate original stage props and artwork, we have positioned this unreleased opus to finally reach its destination: the stereos of pot-smoking and leather-clad teenagers, young and old.” (This CD version contains three tracks not included on the vinyl edition, which Numero released in 2013.)

Mutemath – Vitals CD (Wojtek)

Mutemath is a Grammy-nominated alt-soul/rock band from New Orleans that formed in 2002. The band consists of members Paul Meany (vocals, keyboards, piano, keytar), Darren King (drums, percussion), Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas (bass, vocals), and Todd Gummerman (guitar, vocals). They meld hip-hop styled beats, moments of beauty and grandeur, big hooks, and vocals that pay homage to classic rock.

Oneohtrix Point Never – Garden Of Delete CD/2xLP+MP3 (Warp)

“Garden Of Delete is unlike anything that Daniel Lopatin has done, in terms of technique, mood, or scope. It is denser than his previous albums, by several orders of magnitude. It is more varied, and it is funnier—scarier, too. The album carries with it a risk of whiplash that’s as potent on the 15th listen as on the first” [BNM/8.7] – Pitchfork

Panda Bear – Crosswords CD/EP/12”+MP3 (Domino)

On his Crosswords EP, Panda Bear, aided on studio production duties by Sonic Boom, bequeaths five fresh and finely observed body-pop wonders — three new songs: “No Mans Land,” “Jabberwocky” and “Cosplay” — and two re-castings of previous ore – “The Preakness” — previously heard in spirited demo form on 2012’s Tomboy LP box set — and the whole shebang treasure-topped with a fresh take on his Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper LP soul tour de force “Crosswords.”

Puscifer – Money $hot CD (Puscifer Entertainment)

Recent. Money $hot is the follow up to 2011’s Conditions Of My Parole and marks Maynard Keenan (Tool) and company’s third full length album.

Rocket From The Tombs – Black Record CD/LP (Fire)

Rocket From The Tombs is back. Black Record delivers eight new tracks, as well as definitive recordings of Rocket classics “Sonic Reducer” and “Read It And Weep” and a cover of The Sonics’ “Strychnine.” Still fighting mad. Fronted by founding members Crocus Behemoth and Craig Bell, Black Record delivers anthems borne of decades of raw energy coupled with decades of experienced musicianship, firmly assuring its place in the extraordinary history of the band.

A Sunny Day In Glasgow – Planning Weed Like It’s Acid/Life Is Loss: Pop Songs 2015 CD (Mis Ojos)

After returning from tour in August 2014 for Sea When Absent, A Sunny Day In Glasgow thought it would be a good exercise to write a bunch of songs, record them right away, and get them out there. Hanging out drinking coffee until it was time to start drinking beer until it was time to start taking drugs. They aren’t big drug takers, but that was definitely the vibe, and their lack of drug-doing prowess inspired the title of one of the EPs. Everyone wrote songs and then steered their songs to completion, with everyone else chiming in with whatever they thought would make it better. Or they didn’t, and that was fine too. Whoever wanted to, played whatever instrument they felt like playing. Once they were rolling, their only satisfaction would be these songs, in the world—now. Two EPs on one CD.

TRAAMS – Modern Dancing CD/LP (FatCat)

Following the success of their debut album release, TRAAMS has spent the last couple of years bringing their frantic, high-energy performances to various festivals and venues across Europe and the US, opening for the likes of Wire, Fucked Up, Parquet Courts, Royal Blood and more. Their second album Modern Dancing captures the energy of their live performances and draws a wealth of brooding aggression and krautrock-infused-post punk. They have adapted the charisma of White Denim’s experimentalism and early Modest Mouse indie guitar pop to fit their own generation’s drowsy indie ethos.

Various Artists – Brown Acid: The First Trip – Heavy Rock From The American Comedown Era CD (Riding Easy)

Expertly archived compilation (assembled by L.A.’s Permanent Records along with Riding Easy) explores the wealth of proto-metal, pre-stoner lost rock tracks from the past 30 years. Features blowouts from Snow, Tour, Zebra, Bob Goodsite, Raw Meat, Punch, Bacchus, Lenny Drake, The Todd, and Josefus.

Various Artists – Pop Ambient 2016 CD/LP+CD (Kompakt)

“The Pop Ambient series, launched by the Cologne label Kompakt in 2001, is an annual compilation of lush ambient textures, packaged in a pastel-tinted case featuring photos of flowers in full bloom. Several of the tracks on Pop Ambient 2016 suggest nature and the changing of the seasons. In general, the series showcases the gentler, more melodic side of ambient electronic music, with nothing too dark or jarring. Highlights of Pop Ambient 2016 include contributions by the noted German sound artist and musician Stephan Mathieu, the electronic music legends in The Orb, and label cofounder Wolfgang Voigt. (Voigt is known under many different aliases; longtime fans of ambient music may know of his string of enigmatic ambient techno albums, recorded under the name Gas.)” — NPR

Various Artists – Soul Jazz Records Presents: Caxsone’s Music 3xCD (Soul Jazz)

Coxsone’s Music is a stunning new collection featuring over two and half hours of early Jamaican proto-ska, rhythm and blues, jazz, Rastafari and gospel music — charting the earliest recording produced by clement Dodd, in the years before he launched the might Studio One Records, brought together here for the first time. Vinyl editions (two volumes) due November 27.

The Wainwright Sisters – Songs In The Dark CD/2xLP (PIAS)

After collaborating with members of Cibo Matto and the Dirty Three for 2012’s Come Home To Mama, folk artist Martha Wainwright is taking a more familial approach to her next LP. Specifically, she’s teamed up with sister Lucy Wainwright Roche to release an album called Songs In The Dark as, fittingly enough, the Wainwright Sisters. In addition to their own musical family tree, the folk-flecked album also includes the Wainwright Sisters’ “dark, mysterious, and beautiful” take on number made famous by Woody Guthrie and Jimmie Rogers.

Wrekmeister Harmonies – Night of Your Ascension CD/LP+MP3 (Thrill Jockey)

Nearly a year in the making, and including a cast of 30 musicians, J.R. Robinson delivers his towering third album as Wrekmeister Harmonies. As with previous Wrekmeister albums, the ensemble is made up of an all-star cast of musicians from the metal, new music and rock communities. Night of Your Ascension features appearances from The Body, Mary Lattimore, Marissa Nadler, Olivia Block, Sanford Parker, and members of Einstürzende Neubauten, CAVE, Disappears, Indian, Corrections House, Anatomy of Habit, Come, Yakuza, Mind Over Mirrors, and Bloodiest.

Neil Young – Bluenote Café 2xCD/4xLP (WB)

Recorded at various shows during Neil Young and Bluenote Café’s 1988 tour, this superb live set documents one of Neil’s most funky and heartfelt periods, featuring seven unreleased songs – “Soul Of A Woman,” “Bad News Comes To Town,” “Ain’t It The Truth,” “I’m Goin’,” “Crime Of The Heart,” “Doghouse,” “Fool For Your Love,” — and a searing 19+ minute version of the immortal “Tonight’s The Night” at The Pier in New York City. It was a wild night.

 

Young Galaxy – Falsework CD/LP (Paper Bag)

The winter of 2014/2015 took Young Galaxy from their studio in Montreal to Gothenburg. The band’s new full length Falsework completes the sound they have mining on their past two albums Shapeshifting andUltramarine with producer Dan Lissvik. The album is undeniably synth pop without the simplicity and was informed and inspired by ‘80s electro, acid house and R&B, music that was well ahead of it’s time. Falseworkwas made using machines from the past to sound like music from the future.

JEFF The Brotherhood – Global Chakra Rhythms 2xLP (Infinity Cat)

“Between the release of Wasted On A Dream in March and numerous festival stops this summer, brothers Jake and Jamin Orrall, aka JEFF the Brotherhood, found time to record a new double album, Global Chakra Rhythms. This LP pressing is limited to 1,500. The album is set to feature the duo diving into psych rock and includes a cover of Mazzy Star’s ‘Mary Of Silence’ and a final version ‘Whatever I Want,’ which was originally recorded with Jack White at Third Man Records. The album will feature a variety of collaborators, including Jack Lawrence of The Dead Weather and Raconteurs, Reece Lazarus of Bully, Jessica Mcfarland and more and will also see the group incorporating new instrumentation, such as saxophones, organs and pedal steel guitar.” – American Songwriter

Majical Cloudz – Are You Alone? LP+MP3 (Matador)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Are You Alone? is the follow up to Majical Cloudz’Impersonator; a heart-on-white sleeve statement of intent that brought Devon Welsh and Matthew Otto from the Montreal underground onto arena stages, critics’ year end lists and the hearts and minds of thousands. After the journey they’ve returned with Are You Alone? Armed with little more than the recording equipment used onImpersonator, Majical Cloudz enlisted friends and family (including Owen Pallet) for only the subtlest of studio embellishment. The record, however, immediately sounds bigger, at once more intense and more immediate — Welsh’s voice has evolved from baritone proclamation to a sweeter, almost yearning, croon.

Marek Zebrowski & David Lynch – Polish Night Music [2007] 2xLP (Sacred Bones)

Barren train stations, Polish factories at night, and silent hotels where lonely travelers meet. These are the images and suggested narratives that pervade the spirit of Polish Night Music, the musical collaboration between filmmaker David Lynch and Polish concert pianist and composer Marek Zebrowski. Zebrowski and Lynch first met during the Camerimage Film Festival in Lodz, Poland and started to work together during the organic evolution of Lynch’s Inland Empire. Originally, Zebrowski served as a translator for the shooting of several Lodz-based Polish scenes in Empire, but upon discovering their shared interest in musical experimentation and improvisation, Lynch invited Zebrowski to his Los Angeles studio to participate in a series of musical experiments. From these initial collaborations, inspired by their unique and distinct connections to Poland, emerged a tangible mood and distinctly modern texture that became Polish Night Music.

ADELE – 25 CD/LP

M83 – Digital Shades reissue CD/LP

M83 – Saturday = Youth reissue CD/LP

SHOVELS AND ROPE – Busted Jukebox vol 1 CD

ARCA – Mutant CD

TINARIWEN – Live In Paris CD/LP

GUIDED BY VOICES – Suitcase 4: Captain Kangaroo Won The War 4CD

GRATEFUL DEAD – Fare Thee Well CD

SMOKE FAIRIES – Wild Winter CD/LP

BEAT HAPPENING – Look Around CD/LP reissue

JULIA KENT (Rasputina, Antony & The Johnsons) – Asperities CD

BESNARD LAKES – Golden Lion LP

DANDY WARHOLS – Dandys Rule OK LP

KILLING JOKE – Pylon LP

NIRVANA – Self-Titled LP