Having trouble viewing this email? Go to othermusic.com/2008june25update.html

   
   June 25, 2008  
       
   
 
 
JUL Sun 06 Mon 07 Tues 08 Wed 09 Thurs 10 Fri 11 Sat 12






  THE BREEDERS TO PERFORM LIVE AT OTHER MUSIC!
Yes, the rumors are true! On Friday, July 11th at 9PM, indie rock legends the Breeders will be setting up in our shop and playing a very special in-store performance, which will be filmed for an upcoming Live at Other Music episode. Obviously, space is super limited and we've only got 50 pairs of passes to go around. We're going to keep it simple...all you have to do to enter is email enter@othermusic.com. We'll be picking the 50 names at random on Tuesday, July 1st, and notifying the winners via email. Good luck!!
 
   
       
   
         
 
FEATURED NEW RELEASES
Jay Reatard
Sigur Ros
Gilberto Gil
Roy Harper
Studio
James Blackshaw
Daniele Baldelli & Marco Dionigi
Liz Phair
Mary-Anne Hobbs presents Evangeline
The Feelies
Borg
SYNB / HSDOM
 


Bill Dixon
Electric President

ALSO AVAILABLE

iTAL tEK
Venetian Snares
Low Motion Disco

DOMESTIC PRESSING
Hercules and Love Affair

All of this week's new arrivals.

 
         
   
   
   
   
   
       
   
 
 
JUN Sun 22 Mon 23 Tues 24 Wed 25 Thurs 26 Fri 27 Sat 28
  Sun 29 Mon 30 Tues 01 Wed 02 Thurs 03 Fri 28 Sat 05






  WIN TICKETS TO MOODYMANN & RICK WILHITE
We've got tickets to give away to upcoming performances from some of electronic music's greatest DJs. This Saturday night, the Beach Party returns to the Water Taxi Beach with residents Justin Carter, DJ Probus and the Brothers' Brothers. They'll be kicking off the season with a rare appearance from Moodymann, who'll be playing for three hours on the East River. And then the following day, the Sunday Best crew (residents Eamon Harkin, Justin Carter and Doug Singer) welcome Rick Wilhite of Three Chairs and Still Music's Jerome Derradji, who'll be spinning at the weekly late afternoon barbeque cum dance party at The Yard, a leafy waterside lot on the Gowanus Canal. Enter to win a pair of tickets (we're giving away two pair for Moodymann and one pair for Rick Wilhite) by emailing tickets@othermusic.com, and please list the party you'd like to go to in the subject line. We'll be notifying the winners this Friday, June 27th.

SATURDAY, JUNE 28: MOODYMAN
THE BEACH PARTY AT WATER TAXI BEACH: 2nd Street and Borden Avenue Long Island City, Queens
8PM-3AM / $5

SUNDAY, JUNE 29: RICK WILHITE & JEROME DERRADJI
SUNDAY BEST AT THE YARD: 400 Carroll Street (between Bond and Nevins) Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn
3PM-9PM /$8

 
   
   
 
 
JUL Sun 29 Mon 30 Tues 01 Wed 02 Thurs 03 Fri 04 Sat 05
  Sun 06 Mon 07 Tues 08 Wed 09 Thurs 10 Fri 11 Sat 12



  WEBSTER HALL TICKET GIVE AWAYS: RZA & BORIS
No, not on the same night (that would be some bill, right?), but we've got several pairs of tickets to give away to upcoming shows at Webster Hall with Wu-Tang's RZA as Bobby Digital featuring Stone Mecca and Japanese noise lords Boris. You can enter to win a pair by emailing tickets@othermusic.com (please include the show you'd like to see in the subject line), or stop by the shop and drop your name into the contest box at the register counter. We'll be giving away three pairs of tickets to each show via email entries, and two pairs to each night selected from our ballot box at the shop. The winners will be notified on Monday, June 30th.

SATURDAY, JULY 5: RZA AS BOBBY DIGITAL FEATURING STONE MECCA
THURSDAY, JULY 10: BORIS W/TORCHE

WEBSTER HALL: 125 East 11th Street NYC

 
   
   
 
 
JUL Sun 06 Mon 07 Tues 08 Wed 09 Thurs 10 Fri 11 Sat 12



  CRYSTAL ANTLERS IN-STORE PERFORMANCE
The buzz behind these schizophrenic rockers is deafening, both in the blog world and the sounds coming from their amps. Hailing all the way from Long Beach, California, Crystal Antlers will be playing their first ever New York show at Other Music on Monday, July 7th. Don't miss it!

MONDAY, JULY 7th @ 8:30PM
Free Admission / Limited Capacity

 
   
   
 
 
AUG Sun 10 Mon 11 Tues 12 Wed 13 Thurs 14 Fri 15 Sat 16



  WIN TICKETS TO REGINA SPEKTOR & ALBERT HAMMOND JR.
The summer concert season has officially begun and this one will no doubt be one of this year's biggest shows at Brooklyn's McCarren Park Pool. On Friday, August 15th, Regina Spektor will be performing with special guest Stroke, Albert Hammond Jr. Tickets go on sale this Friday, June 27th, but we've got two pairs to give away! Enter right now by emailing contest@othermusic.com. We'll be notifying the two winners Thursday, June 26th.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 15 (5PM DOORS / 6PM SHOW)
McCARREN PARK POOL: Williamsburg, Brooklyn @ Lorimer Street (Driggs Ave & Bayard Street)

TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, JUNE 27th at 12PM
TICKET PRICES: $35.00/ $38.00
General Admission / Standing Room Only
Tickets available online at: http://www.livenation.com
To charge-by-phone dial 212.307.7171. Tickets also available at the Irving Plaza box office.

 
   
   
   
   
   
       
   

 

 

     
 

$18.99
CD/DVD

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  JAY REATARD
Singles 06-07
(In the Red)

"Don't Let Him Come Back"
"Hammer I Miss You"

Well, here you have it! This is what we here at OM have all been waiting for, all of Jay's out-of-print and ultra-rare singles from 2006 and '07 in one handy format. No need to scour eBay any longer, it's all here! You get the "Night of Broken Glass" mailorder 12-inch and seven-inches like "I Know A Place," "Hammer I Miss You," "In The Dark," the Stained Circles demo, a split with the Boston Chinks, and a few more. Yeah, and by the way, the CD version also comes with a bonus DVD containing four brilliant shows! To say that this collection is essential is a true understatement. Contained herein are, hands down, the best songs from the best pop songwriter of the past three years. And if you even think of doubting us, try and name a better pop song than "Let It All Go," "All Over Again" or "Hammer I Miss You." Try playing "Night of Broken Glass" without wanting to rip out your air guitar. I dare you. If this were a "real" album instead of a compilation it would easily be "album of the year." Hell, this collection is the basically one of the best things released this decade...'nuff said. [JS]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$10.99
CD

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  SIGUR ROS
Med sud I eyrum vid spilum endalaust
(XL)

"Goobledigook"
"Illgresi"

From the first moments of opener "Gobbledigook," there is an obvious theme to Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust, the fifth studio album of Iceland's Sigur Ros: change. Following their critical breakthrough, Agaetis Byrjun, released in 1999, the band established their atmospheric formula of heavy instrumentation and fading vocals. And, at first, the music created was dreamy, surprising and elegant, something to be lauded. It still is. Yet, over the course of the next three releases, the method never considerably differed and critics weren't afraid to tag their music as stale. Now it looks as if Sigur Ros is finally challenging themselves. Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust was not recorded in their native Iceland as all previous efforts have been, but in studios in London, New York and Havana; British producer Flood (NIN, Smashing Pumpkins) signed on to bring his not-so-light touch to the helm; and vocalist/guitarist Jon Thor Birgisson sings album closer "All Alright" in English. The overall effect is a record that maintains Sigur Ros's past experimental sensibilities while simultaneously blending them with a pop aesthetic, making their music deservedly new and exciting once again. The first half of the record showcases the fact that Sigur Ros can make shorter, bouncier songs with sunshine-drenched, pop tendencies and make them very well, a treat for both new fans as well as the diehards yearning for something fresh and original. Yet following the fifth track, "Festival," the album's tempo slows down, signifying a shift into the territory Sigur Ros knows so well: longer songs with dense, but beautiful atmospherics, near orchestral instrumentation and a focus on Birgisson's haunting and captivating vocals. Thus the band doesn't completely abandon the formula and music that gave them their current commercial stature, but instead manage to blend both the old and the new to create something ideal for any listener. A stunning and extremely affecting album. Recommended. [PG]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 
Gilberto Gil 1968
$15.99
CD

Buy


Gilberto Gil 1969
$15.99
CD

Buy


Expresso 2222
$15.99
CD

Buy

  GILBERTO GIL
Gilberto Gil 1968
(Water)

"Frevo Rasgado"
"Vitrines"


GILBERTO GIL
Gilberto Gil 1969
(Water)

"Cerebro Eltronico"
"2001"


GILBERTO GIL
Expresso 2222
(Water)

"Expresso 2222"
"Back in Bahia"

Tropicalia: the late-60's Brazilian countercultural musical movement that has been romanticized by and influential to generations of musical free-thinkers (such as David Byrne, Kurt Cobain, and Beck) and obviously much loved here by OM staff and customers. At the fore of this movement was a young Bahian musician, Gilberto Gil, who fused traditional music such as samba and bossa nova with American rock & roll to create a funked up version of political protest. His story is that of legend, as he was once imprisoned and exiled by his government for subversive criticisms, and, in an ironic twist-of-fate perhaps only rivaled by Ice-T, he now holds the federal position Minister of Culture. Anyhow, the man made some groundbreaking music along the way, and three of his seminal records are now finally being re-released.

Self-titled, Gil's sophomore recording cannot be categorized as a singular sound, rather it is emblematic of a confluence of influences including but not limited to jazz, funk, samba, baroque pop, reggae, prog-rock, and touches of classical. Released in 1968, Gil is backed by psych pioneers Os Mutantes and the avant-garde orchestration of Rogerio Duprat -- the result of which sounds like the Rolling Stones doing a Monkees-style rendition of the score to Fantasia in Portuguese. Gil was heavily inspired by British bands like the Beatles and Pink Floyd, who were able to create commercial music that maintained integrity and seeming freedom. Sonically, this album is both deep and colorful as Gil exuberantly dismisses political oppression. One of the finest examples of tropicalia on record.

Following a year-long solitary confinement at the hands of Brazil's dictatorship due to political miscreance, Gil returned home in 1969 and channeled his discontent to record his second self-titled LP. Although this album contains his first hit song ("Aquele Abraco" with Caetano Veloso), it is thematically one of the most experimental records of its time. The upbeat Carnaval style you'd expect from a tropicalia album is certainly present, yet there are brilliantly bizarre moments of spoken word and tape effects reminiscent of both John Cage and dub reggae. During the recording of the album, Gil had fostered a significant relationship with poet/mad scientist Rogerio Duarte, and the resulting album plays like a masterpiece of Afrofuturistic surrealism.

Released in 1972, Expresso 2222 is Gilberto Gil's first album recorded in Brazil after returning from a two-year government exile to England. On this album, you can sense Gil's love-hate relationship with his home country as he sounds both proud and subdued throughout the LP. His usual conglomerate of styles are present on this record, if not a few more as a result of new relationships with prog-rockers Yes and the Incredible String Band. Poet Torquato Neto has said of this album, "There are many ways to sing and to make Brazilian music; Gilberto Gil prefers them all." After years of political struggles, Gil sounds pleasantly amicable on this record, as he finds his footing with sounds that are smooth and funky with only undertones of past frustrations. [MG]
 
         
   
   
   
   
   
   

 

 

     
 
Stormcock
$22.99
CD

Buy



Flat Baroque and Beserk
$19.99
CD

Buy

  ROY HARPER
Stormcock
(Science Friction)

"Hors d'Oeuvres"
"One Man Rock and Roll Band"


ROY HARPER
Flat Baroque and Beserk
(Science Friction)

"Don't You Grieve"
"How Does It Feel?"

As the author of dozens of idiosyncratic solo albums and a frequent collaborator with members of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd (who were all vocal fans), British singer, songwriter, and guitarist Roy Harper has spent the last four decades carving out a niche for himself as a perennially (and somewhat paradoxically) underground icon. Acknowledged now as a crucial influence by the likes Joanna Newsom, Harper and his music always managed to blend intricate guitar work with uniquely original lyrics that were as powerfully wrenching as they were subtly critical and slyly tongue in cheek.

The proprietor of his own Science Friction label for the past decade and a half, Harper has managed a (sadly) rare feat for musicians, maintaining the rights to much of his back catalog and keeping it available to the public all on his own. And while he reissued his classic 1971 side Stormcock quite some time ago, he recently saw fit to present a newly re-mastered version with enhanced packaging. These features are both nice and all, but little is needed to make the four lengthy compositions that encompass the album any more enticing. Showcasing the moment when Harper's talents fully hit their stride, the album's four cuts display equal parts deft picking and passionate vocals (and a few assists from an undercover Jimmy Page). Be it in the towering swagger of "The Same Old Rock," which grows from a careful whisper to a full-throated, howling anthem of interlocking guitars and Harper's effortless voice, or the extended blues musings of "Me and My Woman," which punctuates its intricacies with soaring string arrangements and a near-weeping croon, Stormcock is a thoroughly essential listen.

Also available is Flat Baroque and Berserk, the 1970 LP that set the stage for Harper's later masterpiece. Every bit as adventurous as Stormcock, Flat Baroque continued the singer and guitarist's exploration of applying classic folk techniques and styles to more long form compositions. Here, tracks like the live "I Hate the White Man" gradually arch with crescendos of Harper's soaring vocals and plaintive strums, while the Nice check in for the collaborative rocker "Hell's Angels" to close out the disc. Best of all here, though, is the brief "Another Day," a loving, understated ballad that ranks as one of the finest songs Harper ever recorded. As admirable for his staunch dedication to maintaining artistic independence as he is his incredible catalog of work, these two albums are the best possible introduction to the world of Roy Harper one could ever have. [MC]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$17.99
CD

Buy

  STUDIO
Yearbook 2
(Information)

"2 Hearts" Kylie Minogue
"Love on a Real Train" Williams

Studio's West Coast was my favorite "electronic" record of '07, with its sweet post-Madchester/slo-mo disco/nu-Balearic mash up. Dance music for rock dudes. Yearbook 2, which compiles the Swedish duo's best remixes, is a perfect stop-gap while we wait for a new album, and displays their talent for springing life into some pretty mediocre tracks and re-imagining the already excellent. Sunsoaked comedown vibes mesh with extended dub-disco workouts, and not once does it NOT make me want to do the Ian Brown monkey dance. Rasmus Hagg and Dan Lissvik pull off some kinda David Mancuso at the Hacienda, which is pretty audacious, but it completely works 90% of the time. I'm starting too repeat myself already. Anyway, Yearbook 2 features remixes of Kylie (great gypsy-guitar reshape, although I wish it was instrumental, Kylie grates after a while), A Mountain of One, Love Is All, Brennan Green, Rubies, Williams, and Shout Out Louds, and you should own it. [AK]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$13.99
CD

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  JAMES BLACKSHAW
Litany of Echoes
(Tompkins Square)

Deep, deep, deep new music from the UK's finest twelve-string guitarist James Blackshaw, found here furthering his compositional chops in excellent new directions. I saw him give an entrancing performance at the Issue Project Room a few months back, and as at that gig he opens Litany of Echoes with a solo piano piece, making even more explicit his connection and debt to minimal composers like Charlemagne Palestine and Lubomyr Melnyk. It's a good move for him to make and a further distancing from the blues based idiom that still dominates a good deal of solo acoustic guitar playing, but what still immediately impresses the most is this young man's breathtaking virtuosity on his principal instrument. There is a level of concentration and single-minded determination at play here that just seems all too rare these days. His collaboration with Jozef Van Wissem on their Brethren of the Free Spirit project earlier this year showed him to be an able collaborator, and here he is occasionally joined by lyrical swaths of violin and viola played by Fran Bury, the two amassing the grace, tension, and weightlessness of clouds on the threshold of bursting. (Preview songs on Other Music Digital.) [MK]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$17.99
CD

Buy

  DANIELE BALDELLI & MARCO DIONIGI
Cosmic Disco?! Cosmic Rock!!
(Eskimo)

"Beach Culture" Thomson Twins
The Other Woman" Ray Parker Junior

Using the template of cosmic -- a style of disco popularized in Italy by Beppe Loda and Daniele Baldelli, focused on slower tempos and a more eclectic mix, eschewing Italo disco almost entirely -- comes this absolutely bonkers mix by Baldelli himself, along with young protege Marco Dionigi. Blended into a chunky stomp of a rhythm, the duo run Ray Parker Jr. into Strafe FR, late-period Dream Syndicate into the Thompson Twins, deep cuts into the dollar bin, and reason into insanity. Impeccable mixing meets an outrageous selection, also including tracks by the Romantics, Alicia Bridges, Martha and the Muffins, Spirit, Spider, and something called the Bronx Irish Catholics. Possibly the most unlikely selection of tracks you could gather, here unified into a groovy, well-paced, dominant whole. You won't believe it until you hear it. [DM]
 
         
   
   
   
   
   
   

 

 

     
 

$15.99
CD/DVD

Buy

  LIZ PHAIR
Exile in Guyville
(ATO)

"Divorce Song"
"Say You"

Liz Phair's signing with ATO Records conveniently coincides with the 15th anniversary of her seminal 1993 album, Exile in Guyville. The re-released deluxe album includes three previously unpublished tracks and an hour-and-a-half DVD on the making of Exile that illuminates upon her mindset at the time and brings to life the heady days of Chicago indie rock that nurtured (spat out?) Urge Overkill, Smashing Pumpkins and Phair. With Exile, Phair gave a voice to a generation of women who had to sit by and listen to men scream about their angst but never had anyone to relate to themselves. Bluntly honest about sex and her personal life, Phair provided a breakup album from the female perspective. But labeling Exile as merely grrrl power anthems would be oversimplifying its effect on a generation of women AND men. Being given the opportunity to listen to it with fresh ears is a welcomed treat, as is learning about all the shenanigans behind the time and place. Phair's schizophrenic lyrics embody the tragic dichotomy of sexual freedom and independence with the disillusionment that comes with casual sex and the resulting longing for a stable emotional relationship. And her ability to sing about these emotional topics with a detached, deadpan voice amplifies the impact of the lyrics. Phair sounds like a tough girl, but at the time she was really uncertain of herself and her place in this world (as are most 25-year-olds) and you can hear this powerlessness in her voice.

The behind-the-scenes interviews on the DVD are the real gem of the reissue. Here we witness Phair reminiscing with old friends, producers and studio heads where wild stories are dug up from the grave and old grudges are broadcast anew. According to Phair, she wrote the album in an attempt to impress Urge Overkill's Nash Kato, who she had a huge crush on. Incidentally, it is Kato who the Matador guys called up to talk some sense into Phair about the crap she submitted for the album's artwork. So he gets her to strip naked under her faux fur coat, but with the explicit directions to keep her necklace on, and go into the photo booth at their local dive and just let it all out. What resulted is a half-naked Phair yelling at the camera and baring her chest. Phair, now divorced and raising a son, seems to have forgotten a lot of what took place at the time and you can tell that she reviles in reliving this period from the distance of a more mature age. John Cusack, Ira Glass, Matador's Gerard Cosley, ATO labelhead Dave Matthews, and producers Steve Albini and Brad Wood are also interviewed. [TL]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$14.99
CD

Buy

$21.99 LP

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Mary-Anne Hobbs presents Evangeline
(Planet Mu)

"In the Void" Shackleton
"Ligma Vip" Magnetic Man

Tastemaker on the rise, BBC Radio 1's Mary Anne Hobbs follows up her excellent debut comp, Warrior Dubz, with the equally engaging Evangeline. Here she gathers some exclusive tracks from a who's who of the emerging post-break beat culture. Beginning with the Autechre-esqe rumble of newcomer iTAL tEK, Hobbs, takes us on a journey deep into the bass bins of England and beyond. Of course the selection is top notch yet varied enough to keep the party jumping; from Shackleton's dumbek and finger cymbal shake to a new one from Wiley, things get a bit ballistic and then drop out with the mid-section chill-out tracks by Ben Frost and Flying Lotus. From there it's back to the bump-and-grime with Pinch, Surgeon, and Boxcutter among others. If you've been into the Box of Dub or Steppas Delight comps this one fits in nicely, yet sharpens the edge. Out on Planet Mu, continuing to push things forward and further. [DG]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$15.99
CD

Buy

  THE FEELIES
Only Life
(Water)

"It's Only Life"
"For Awhile"

In a uniquely awesome way, the Feelies connected the dots between the layered groove of the Velvet Underground and the nonchalant nerd-dom of Modern Lovers plus the bliss-y rhythms of post-VU-ers Yo La Tengo. (Listen to the Feelies cover of "What Goes On" and how its grinding solo right from the start reminds you of later YLT. The Feelies were also from New Jersey -- Haledon -- and were regulars at Hoboken's Maxwell's.) You can also detect their influence in Stereolab, whose mesmerizing lock grooves can be heard fifteen years earlier on the Feelies debut album, Crazy Rhythms, from 1980. For context's sake, consider the fact that this same record was one of R.E.M.'s earliest influences.

Their third album in a discography that never fell off, 1988's Only Life was one of their most critically praised. While the record didn't have the frantic, almost angular energy of Crazy Rhythms or the groovy, rustic, voodoo-folk vibe of The Good Earth, Only Life saw the band tackling their major label debut with a capable, casual and sunny, post-Velvets groove that was later picked up by bands like Luna for their first album Lunapark. (Coincidentally, Luna's original drummer Stanley Demeski was Feelies member.) They alternated their melodic eased-back, interlocking rhythms ("Only Life," "Higher Ground" and "The Undertow") with tracks of downright ecstatic hoedown energy via frantic strumming, interwoven solo guitar and pedal steel ("Away," "Too Far Gone" and "The Final Word"). For those that need more contemporary reference points, think of the Feelies as one of the first Velvet Underground, Television, and Talking Heads-obsessed bands.

It goes without saying, but the Feelies are one of the groups that helped DEFINE indie rock. That's right, these dudes wore dad-plaid shirts and flood pants in New York City when it was a counter-cultural statement and light years away from being actually "cool". More importantly, they explored an experimental folk and blues rock style that still resonates today for its originality despite its clear list of influences. I know most of our update readers will be familiar with these albums already and grab their copies, but if you haven't, do yourself a favor and check out this band. [SM]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$13.99
CD

Buy





$13.99
CD

Buy

  BORG
1
(Phaserprone)

"Nancy Song"
"Space Flight"



SYNB / HSDOM
HSDOM / SYNB
(Phaserprone)

"SYNB [HSDOM] III"
"HSDOM [SYNB] III"

The dudes of Brooklyn's Phaserprone label have released two more limited, hand-letter-pressed CD albums: Borg's self-titled disc (the more beat-oriented of the two and in an edition of 100) which I believe is UWOWL-related and the other, a co-release by SYNB, a/k/a Matt Brinkmann of Paper Rad fame, and HSDOM. (SYNB and HSDOM are reworking each other's stuff; there are beats as well, but it's overall more unstructured.) Both albums fit in that special space between techno and noise that doesn't bother with the cosmetic conventions of either genre. The groove is more of an animalistic throb (very analog/no laptops) and doesn't inspire a mating dance as much as it does a heaving, pre-battle huddle. (The tracks also run longer than the shorter edited songs of the first UWOWL LP.) And the "noise", though oftentimes wild and unruly, doesn't overtake the rest of the track and just become generic, angry noise-guy stuff. One thing that comes to mind is the thought of Pan Sonic, but without a hint of sterility, cumbersome "sophistication" and less "order", making it even more immediate and threatening. How about an impolite, rabies-infected Fuck Buttons? The Throbbing Gristle influence is there, but the drifting ex-hippy/artist vibe is replaced by an Orc/linebacker-with-Tetanus-spiked-brass-knuckles-and-rusty-knife element. Consider it a much-needed development of an underdeveloped sound, these guys creating quite an overwhelming, yet uniquely focused din. Something that will excite collectors of unique post-industrial music and techno as well as the discerning noise fan, a godsend for fans of all three! [SM]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$14.99
CD

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  BILL DIXON
17 Musicians In Search Of A Sound: Darfur
(AUM Fidelity)

"Contour One"
"Sinopia"

In the forty-plus years of Bill Dixon's musical careers he performed (relatively infrequently), composed (prolifically), taught at universities (extensively), and recorded (sparsely relative to the amount of compositions he has written). So it is with welcome arms that we get not one but two recordings this year by this great trumpeter. The first, released in February, was a collaboration with Rob Mazurek's Exploding Star Orchestra and now For 17 Musicians, a scattering of small sketches and drawn-out pieces in which Dixon composes rich, detailed and spatial smatterings of color and tone. Wide-open expanses are book-ended by tension and rage filled build-ups, paralleling the inspiration for this album. Utilizing this large ensemble allows the music to move gracefully from spacious, thematic explorations of pain and suffering to urgent and violent percussion and brass eruptions. There is a great deal of sound information to be absorbed here so multiple listens will be necessary to fully see what Dixon was trying to express. [GA]
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$15.99
CD

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  ELECTRIC PRESIDENT
Sleep Well
(Morr Music)

"Monsters"
"Ether"

The new album from Electric President (a/k/a Ben Cooper and Alex Kane) builds upon the dreamy electronic pop of their self-titled debut from 2004. These guys are great arrangers; everything on Sleep Well seems perfectly at home, in the right place at the right time. Haunting yet innocent, sappy yet funky, guitars and strings float atop the steady heart-felt grooves as occasional electronics add a refreshing spice to the music. Cleverly crafted lyrics hover around the subjects of bedtime fears and the wandering of the mind on the border of consciousness (great for summer nights). [CP]
 
         
   
       
   

 

 

     
 

$14.99
CD

Buy

$18.99 LPx2

Buy

$9.99 MP3

Buy

  ITAL TEK
Cyclical
(Planet Mu)

"White Mark"
"Insomniac"

Hot, new shit on the block courtesy of Alan Myson a/k/a iTAL tEK, who serves up a razor sharp mix of dubstep and IDM on Cyclical. Myson's programming skills are of the highest caliber and he's not afraid to pour on a little extra bass for good measure either. The album sounds strangely like certain IDM heroes of yesteryear (Funkstorung) mixed with today's cutting edge dubstep sounds. A history lesson while gazing into the future. Nice.
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$14.99
CD

Buy

$18.99 LP

Buy



  VENETIAN SNARES
Detrimentalist
(Planet Mu)

"Eurocore MVP"
"Circle Pit"

Venetian Snares returns with his 300th album, and he's taking it way, way back this time, to the very embryonic beginnings of jungle. Detrimentalist is a super rush of ragga madness, breakcore beats, murky bass, and fresh-faced experimentalism. All with the usual attention to detail. The deep and dark unbridled sound of danger!
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

$17.99
CD

Buy

  LOW MOTION DISCO
Keep It Slow
(Eskimo)

"Things Are Going to Get Easier"
"Talk Low When in Space"

Nice set of chilled out tracks by Swiss production genius(es) Low Motion Disco, incorporating loungey Thievery Corporation moves and Italo touches with KLF-esque ambience and laidback, slow-motion disco (natch). Cleverly constructed and quite varied from track to track, which is what saves it from coffee table music status and if you're digging on Lindstrom/Prins Thomas and the likes, chances are you'll be into this.
 
         
   
       
   

 

 

     
 

$13.99
CD

Buy

$17.99 LP

Buy

  HERCULES AND LOVE AFFAIR
Hercules and Love Affair
(Mute / DFA)

"Time Will"
"Hercules Theme"

The brainchild of New York party promoter and DJ Andrew Butler, the much-anticipated self-titled debut album from Hercules and Love Affair pulls from 70s/80s disco, electro and early house, but it's wrapped together with a sweeping emotion that's not normally felt in modern dance music. There's a lot of soul permeating the sparkling production, no doubt thanks to guest vocalists like CocoRosie collaborator Nomi and Antony Hegarty (Antony and the Johnsons). "Blind" seems to connect the dots between Sylvester and Arthur Russell, Hegarty's expressive voice sounding unexpectedly right at home amidst the climbing bass and keyboard arpeggiations as he delivers lines like, "As a child, I knew that the stars could only get brighter." It's really hard to imagine a more life-affirming dance record than this. On "I ris," Kim Ann Foxman sings, "This moment is yours and you can give it to someone else." (That moment is obviously right now for Butler.) Co-produced and programmed by DFA mainman Tim Goldsworthy, these tracks sound equally great blasting over a nightclub soundsystem or in the bedroom. Hercules and Love Affair is one of the best, original, dance-oriented releases since 2007's epic Sound of Silver, and I guarantee that you'll be seeing this record topping many year end lists. Highly Recommended! The domestic version of this album tacks on two bonus tracks plus a music video for the now dancefloor smash, "Blind." [BL]
 
         
   
   
   
   
 
   
       
   
         
  All of this week's new arrivals.

Previous Other Music Updates.


Visit www.othermusic.com.

PHONE ORDERS

Phone orders are accepted at
(212) 477-8150 (ext. #2, mailorder) Mon-Fri, Noon - 7pm EST

EMAIL
For general inquiries or other information please email sales@othermusic.com. Do not reply to this message.

REMOVE
This is an automated list. If you would like to be removed for any reason, please visit: digital.othermusic.com/subscribe.php
 

THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS

[GA] Geoff Albores
[MC] Michael Crumsho
[PG] Pamela Garavano-Coolbaugh
[DG] Daniel Givens
[MG] Max Gray
[MK] Michael Klausman
[AK] Andreas Knutsen
[TL] Tanya Leet
[BL] Brian Levine
[[SM] Scott Mou
[DM] Doug Mosurock
[CP] Chris Polcyn
[JS] Jeremy Sponder







THANKS FOR READING
- all of us at Other Music

 
         
   
    Copyright 2008 Other Music
Newsletter Design Big Code