The Other Music Update

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	December 18, 2009


			OTHER MUSIC'S BEST OF 2009: NEW RELEASES & REISSUES From our perspective here on East 4th Street, there are a couple of ways to look at 2009. The first and best way, we figure, is through the lens of all the great music that we heard this year. From indie to electronica to jazz, hip-hop, drone, pop and beyond, it was another year of thrilling, heartening new music from some great new artists, and plenty of older ones making the best music of their careers. Add to that another banner year for reissues, with the continued emergence of untold gems from the past in genres including psychedelia, soul, country, African, reggae, gospel, modern classical, post-punk and everything in between, and it would take much more than a year to listen to all the great finds that were unearthed in '09. Another way to look at 2009 would be in the dimming light of all the great NYC record shops that have shuttered their doors this year, and the general woes that the music industry has continued to suffer from. But that's not the way we want to send out this decade, and really it just makes us all the more grateful for all the love and support that Other Music feels from our customers on a daily basis. We hope you enjoy looking through the lists below of our top 25 new releases and top 25 reissues of 2009, and if you have not already enjoyed all these amazing sounds, that you will take this opportunity to tune in to some of our favorite music. We have also compiled our Staff's Personal Picks of the year, which are posted on our website. Click here to check out your favorite clerk's favorite music. Thanks for a great 2009! -All of us at Other Music


			GIFT CERTIFICATES We hope we can make your holiday shopping just a little bit easier this year. Other Music gift certificates are perfect for that music lover in your life and can be redeemed for purchases made both in the store and off our CD/LP website. You can buy a gift certificate in the shop, or purchase one on-line by going to: www.othermusic.com/giftcertificates.html Download gift certificates are available for Other Music's MP3 website as well, in $25, $50 and $100 increments. HOLIDAY SHIPPING If you require expedited shipping (Second Day Air and Next Day via UPS, or Express Mail through the USPS), email orders@othermusic.com with your confirmation number and specific shipping request. ORDER WITH A TEXT MESSAGE Many of our customers have been enjoying the ease of texting their orders with their mobile phone. To take advantage of this option with any of the items listed, go to subports.com where you can create your free Subports account. Afterwards, just text the corresponding subcode listed underneath each item to 767285.


	$14.99 CD $9.99 MP3		DIRTY PROJECTORS Bitte Orca (Domino) "Stillness Is the Move" "Remade Horizon" The weight of all the ink spilled on this band in 2009 could drag down a zeppelin, both from the sheer quantity of praise -- Dirty Projectors will surely be riding high on all manner of best-of lists this month -- and also from a sort of qualitative weight. Besides obvious comparisons between bandleader Dave Longstreth and the brainy David Byrne, the most common descriptors seemed to center on Longstreth's lofty musical training and compositional skill. From the lyrical content to the complex and unusual vocal and string arrangements, Longstreth was 2009's go-to "genius," and the Dirty Projector's stunning breakthrough album was in danger of coming off as a bit staid if you spent too much time reading about it and not enough time listening. Now we at Other Music love to snob it up with the best of them, but the most striking thing we heard in Bitte Orca revolved around pop-filled hooks and gorgeous harmonies, plus some pounding drums and shredding guitar. In fact, our Update contributor Kevin Coultas actually gave the album a point-by-point comparison to Led Zepplin III in his review earlier this year, pointing out some striking (and surprising) similarities between the two records: "Male vocalist who is unafraid to sing in falsetto, thunderous and perfectly economic drumming, unabashed world music fandom as worn on the band's collective sleeve, killer and willful guitar solos, jaw-dropping arrangements, and super-catchy riffs and alternate guitar tunings." But he also contrasted the two records adding, "One major substitution seems to be DP's '80s and early-'90s R&B worship, a la Prince for Zeppelin's Chicago blues fascination." Bitte Orca is in fact neither hard rock nor avant-classical, but it is without a doubt one of the most groundbreaking and purely enjoyable albums we've heard in a long time. Order CD by texting "omcddirtybitte" to 767825


	$14.99 CD $9.99 MP3		ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino) "My Girls" "Summertime Clothes" The last couple of records (more if you include Panda's solo excursions) had seen the Collective take a firm grip of Brian Wilson-patented saccharine pop, but where those releases still seemed to have another boot lodged somewhere in an experimental wasteland, Merriweather Post Pavillion is where the band's skewed pop vision assuredly took center stage. The folk-leanings of their past were now left to the music historians and Animal Collective reframed themselves as some kind of post-electro act leaving the carcass of the neo-folk scene to their less-talented hangers on. Which is not to say this album is not dense, complicated and full of surprises, it's just hooky and groovy too. While Animal Collective may not be Billboard's best-selling band of 2009 (we're guessing that Taylor Swift receives that honor), they are no doubt the most influential, listened to not just by every wannabe Brooklyn band and indie starlet out there, but also by mainstream hip-hop producers, minimal house gurus and probably Taylor Swift too. Yes, they used to work here and they are our bros, and yes, this album is pure brilliance. No bull and no bias, it just rules. Order CD by texting "omcdanimalmerriweather " to 767825


	$15.99 CD		DAM-FUNK Toeachizown (Stones Throw) "Let's Take Off" "The Sky Is Ours" Dam-Funk offered up a hefty two-plus hours of sweaty robot funk on his debut full-length, effectively (and rather impressively) connecting the dots between pre-Paisley Minneapolis, California's G-funk, Detroit's P-funk, Ohio's Zapp & Roger, and hell, even New Jersey's Italians Do It Better. There's no doubt that a double-album debut is both ambitious and overwhelming, but Toeachizown wonderfully blends sex, wit, and above all else, soul. The record manages to be both retro and futuristic, impressive and nonchalant, intricate and direct, and it's not a minute too long. Definitely a favorite of our staff and customers, perhaps you joined us in one of our impromptu boogie parties if you happened to visit Other Music while we were playing this on the shop stereo -- which is too many times to count. Order CD by texting "omcddamto" to 767825


	$12.99 CD $14.99 LP+MP3		COLD CAVE Love Comes Close (Matador / Heartworm) "Life Magazine" "Love Comes Close" Not only did Cold Cave's debut full-length, Love Comes Close, deliver on the promise that they had shown on a string of earlier 7"s and EPs, these Philly-based noir merchants made a great album and got picked up by Matador to boot. Undoubtedly a pop band at its core, Wes Eisold and his revolving cast of characters (Dominic Fernow of Prurient/Hospital, author Max G. Morton, Xiu Xiu's Caralee McElroy, etc.) have a definite knack for crafting the perfect three-minute pop song and then piling on layers of fuzz, static, grime and rust. There's an underlying industrial/early-Factory Records/minimal shoegaze vibe, and combined with equal parts nihilism and undying romance, Love Comes Close is a true success; not a groundbreaking original, just damn good, which is usually better anyway. Order CD by Texting "omcdcoldlove" to 767825 Order LP by Texting "omlpcoldlove" to 767825


	$11.99 CD $12.99 LP $9.99 MP3		BROADCAST & THE FOCUS GROUP Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age (Warp) "The Be Colony" "One Million Years Ago" This was without a doubt the most directly psychedelic, disorienting release yet applied to the Broadcast name, and simultaneously one of the most wholly satisfying Ghost Box-related records as well. Essentially a new Broadcast album with Ghost Box/Focus Group honcho Julian House triangulating the Birmingham, UK duo, the group created a wonderfully dense and dizzying sound environment where singer Trish Keenan's lucid dream vocals and James Cargill's keyboard and guitar melodies were new ingredients in House's Ghost Box of sampladelic tricks. Each contribution is treated with equal importance -- while Keenan's vocals manage to sneak out what could be considered a pop tune here and there, she mainly sings lullabies into the sonic ether, like a moth drawn to a multi-colored flame; her voice gets cut up, looped, and multi-tracked amongst nature samples, jazz drum fills, tribal séances, flutes, alarm clock bells, and plenty of the wonky, slightly antiquated electronics that we've come to love from both groups. This is a challenging record, to be sure, but it's beautifully so, and ends up as one of the best Broadcast (or Ghost Box) releases in years. Order CD by Texting "omcdbroadcastinvestigate" to 767825 Order LP by Texting "omlpbroadcastinvestigate" to 767825


	$13.99 CD		THE XX xx (Young Turks / XL) "VCR" "Heart Skipped a Beat" It's hard to put a finger on why this stuff works so well, as the elements that make up this utterly charming, nearly sublime album might not seem destined to add up to much. This London quartet employ a disarmingly basic he-said/she-said vocal interplay, recalling a less-jaded Hazlewood/Sinatra, that somehow fails to wear thin over the course of an album, deployed over simplistic beatbox rhythms, airy keyboards, guitar, and a percolating bass that propels the perfect, quiet groove. They clearly love modern R&B, but they sound more like the Young Marble Giants than Aaliyah (whom they have covered). The xx possess a directness and lack of posturing that generally eludes the best of us in our formative years, plus they sing sweet, simple songs of sex and longing, and we love them for it. Order CD by texting "omcdxxxx" to 767825


	$15.99 CD $19.99 CDx2+DVD		FEVER RAY Fever Ray (Mute) "When I Grow Up" "Triangle Walks" What can we say about this solo release from the Knife's Karin Dreijer Andersson, save that if you were ensorcelled by Silent Shout and can't bear to wait for the brother-and-sister duo to reconvene for its follow-up, then you definitely need Fever Ray -- Karin may, in fact, have eclipsed her own band with this thrilling solo outing. All of Silent Shout's sonic tics remain. Narcotic drum programming and production? Check. Eerie, icy ambiance permeating the crevices of every song? Check. Uncanny songs about the haze of childhood, being a farmer, and dishwasher tablets? Yep. Dreijer Andersson's girl vocals chopped 'n' screwed down to the point of gender confusion, thematic indecipherability and lobe-scrambling bliss? Check. Some of the booming house-inspired bass tones of the Knife have been stripped, replaced by more fragile flourishes, and with Dreijer Andersson's vocals inhabiting sonic space at the forefront, this record feels like something new and truly special. NEW TRIPLE-DISC VERSION COMES WITH COPIUS BONUS MUSIC AND VIDEO. Order Deluxe CD by Texting "omcdfeverfever" to 767825


	$17.99 CD		KING MIDAS SOUND Waiting for You (Hyperdub) "Cool Out" "I Man" Waiting for You is stunning, haunting, deep and worldly, an after-hours journey into a mix of modern digidub and lover's rock from the trio of producer Kevin "The Bug" Martin, poet/vocalist Roger Robinson, and vocalist Hitomi. Martin's deep history of exploring and updating the many facets of reggae music is wonderfully focused here; each song has an atmosphere unto itself, womblike, full of hollow space, deep echoes, and ghostly tales. Collectively they float together in an infectious, hypnotic, atmospheric, intimate and tender brew. The sparse yet fulfilling bed of mechanic clicks, muted snaps, tumbling percussion, deep pulses, crackles, warm bass and low end hum gently form the framework for Robinson's soft and magnetic voice draped in reverb and delay, and Hitomi's sweet and sour vocals add a lightness that cuts through the barren smoky wasteland like a ray of light. This is a new rethinking of the genre rather than aping the past for a shallow rehash. Although the sound is undeniably '90s Bristol, it's equally Caribbean as it is British. Like a time capsule from the future with a message from the past, this is modern and ancient, and very special. Waiting for You is a simply beautiful detour from the masses and a deep record that caresses you with every listen. Order CD by Texting "omcdkingwaiting" to 767825


	$12.99 CD		PHOENIX Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (Glassnote) "Fences" "Liztomania" Within the first few seconds of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix you know exactly what you're going to get; we burst straight into "Lisztomania" without so much as a breath of introduction and Phoenix lay down their philosophy. The French band have never been subtle, but their fourth album is their leanest offering yet -- ten impeccably crafted electro-pop classics that are tickling dancefloors from Brooklyn to Beijing -- and 2009 seems to be Phoenix's year, as mainstream pop audiences appear to have finally realized just how much fun their songs really are. They might have been linked to Daft Punk, Air, Justice and pretty much anyone else coming from France in recent years, and sure they share a similarly obsessive attention to detail in terms of production, but that's where the comparison has to end. Phoenix are a pop band, in love with their imagining of vintage American AM radio gold, and hell-bent on making an album that plays like a singles collection. By the time Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix grinds to its epically arranged, composed and crafted close you want to go right back and play it all over again -- and if that isn't the sign of a great pop record we don't know what is. Order CD by texting "omcdphoenixwolfgang" to 767825


	$13.99 CD $15.99 LP		GIRLS Album (True Panther) "Lust for Life" "Hellhole Ratrace" Remember pizzas and bottles of wine, smoking on the beach, and holding hands? Remember that boy in that band who played in your best friend's basement? The San Francisco duo Girls do, and their debut record proves that they're just as haunted by the good times as we are. Album is a joyous, blissed-out affirmation of stumbling indie rock and hooky, hazy California pop-punk, but it's also a nostalgic, filthy-mouthed swan song that mourns the end of summer, and not caring, and youth in general. Despite the (joyfully) sophomoric lyrics and seemingly half-hearted production, what propels Girls above the other SoCal riffraff is their obsessive attention to texture, albeit not quite a traditional approach; the guitars sound like they've been dunked into a community swimming pool, and the vocals squawk at you from the speakers above a 7-11 parking lot. It shouldn't, it couldn't, it can't work, yet it's undoubtedly one of the best records we've heard this year. Order CD by texting "omcdgirlsalbum" to 767825 Order LP by texting "omlpgirlsalbum" to 767825


	$12.99 CD $14.99 LP $9.99 MP3		REAL ESTATE Real Estate (Woodsist) "Fake Blues" "Green River" Nondescript in both name and appearance, New Jersey's Real Estate's debut full-length is nonetheless a beautifully distinct achievement of shimmering, near-ethereal suburban ennui and thoroughly of-the-moment lo-fi psychedelic pop. Seemingly consumed by a quest for their own endless summer, the band's tracks serve as blissful, unassuming paeans to things like the Jersey shore, swimming, and even refreshing drinks, all soaked in lazy rhythms and gently intertwining guitars. Familiar though it may be, the approach and unassuming demeanor add up to make Real Estate, the album, supremely comforting. Some of Real Estate's members do time in more abstract and experimental projects like Predator Vision and Ducktails, but there's a breezy simplicity to the ten songs gathered here, channeling bits and pieces of the Feelies and Galaxie 500 to great effect. A surprising debut, Real Estate is sure to help you through those cold winter months and well beyond. Order CD by Texting "omcdrealreal" to 767285 Order LP by Texting "omlprealreal" to 767285


	$15.99 CD $9.99 MP3		MATTHEW HALSALL Colour Yes (Gondwana) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store An outrageously great record from Matthew Halsall, a 25-year-old trumpeter from Manchester who impossibly managed to create an entire album that just feels totally timeless, beautifully combining the modal jazz and spiritual lyricalness of John Coltrane, Alice Coltrane, and Pharoah Sanders, with the stately grandeur of an earlier generation of British improvisers and composers like Stan Tracey, Keith Tippet, and John Surman. Obviously, just about every jazz musician alive is influenced by John Coltrane, but on Colour Yes Halsall and his cohorts absolutely nail some ineffable quality that remains out of reach for the vast majority of their peers, and even elders. Halsall's star will undoubtedly be on the rise, as this is honestly a near-perfect album, easily the best jazz LP we've heard in ages, and in our opinion one of the year's best in any genre. Order CD by Texting "omcdmatthewcolour" to 767285


	$14.99 CD $21.99 LPx2 w/MP3 $9.99 MP3		GRIZZLY BEAR Veckatimest (Warp) "Southern Point" "Cheerleader" The arc of the Grizzly Bear has been one of continued refinement in sound, from the hazy, homemade, druggie drone of 2004's Horn of Plenty to the crisper dreaminess of their 2006 breakthrough, Yellow House. On the much-anticipated Veckatimest, the band followed this progression to its logical conclusion, meticulously crafting a crystalline folk-pop album so rich with complex harmonies, soaring orchestration, and a clarity of vision that few indie groups could ever muster. There is a jazzy swing to some tracks, and no doubt there are many unexpected twists and turns in both the arrangements and the melodies that sometimes approach an almost folk-prog complexity; nonetheless, the album feels as if it were assembled piece-by-piece, moment-by-moment, turned over and examined at every angle and then shined to a high gloss. 2009 was the year of the Bear, and deservedly so, as they delivered an album well worth the hubbub. Order CD by texting "omcdgrizzlyveckatimest" to 767825 Order LP by texting "omlpgrizzlyveckatimest" to 767825


	$12.99 CD		NOSAJ THING Drift (Alpha Pup) "Coat of Arms" "Cave" As part of the exciting young L.A. electronic scene that includes Flying Lotus, Daedelus, and Nobody, what Jason Chung's Nosaj Thing brings to the arena with his debut full-length is a wonderfully shimmering collage of head-nodding beats, melodic and warm synth passages, and swirling digital textures that call to mind the best moments of DJ Shadow, Prefuse 73, and obviously the instrumental work of J-Dilla. But for all the reference points that can be made, mostly to fit this magnetic new style of production into some sort of lineage, Nosaj Thing's sound is original and imaginative with a simple structure that leaves enough air to breathe, while still providing you with the thrust to get your body moving. Not a collection of sleepy beats, here the sounds are rich and clear, shifting and looping in and around themselves with a great push and pull effect that comes across as elastic and bendable. Chung is definitely a producer to watch in 2010, and this album is a fully realized and utterly enjoyable debut. Order CD by texting "omcdnosajthing" to 767825


	$13.99 CD $27.99 LPx2 (180 Gr) w/MP3		YO LA TENGO Popular Songs (Matador) "Avalon or Someone Very Similar" "If It's True" This band's greatest asset has always been its depth of range (expect the unexpected) -- so it came as a great relief that 25 years down the road, Yo La Tengo still found ways to make us forget we were listening to Yo La Tengo. While Popular Songs is packed with everything we've come to know and love about the Hoboken Three (Kiwi/Velvets worship, extended guitar meltdowns, etc.), there are just as many pleasant surprises that show the group still challenging themselves, synthesizing new moves into their already formidable playbook. From Ira Kaplan's evolution from guitar shredder and organ mauler to his recent piano eloquence, to the beautiful string arrangements that pop up on a few choice cuts here (arranged by Richard Evans of Soulful Strings/Cadet Records fame), Yo La Tengo more often than not succeed in their slippery experiments due to the unwavering generosity expressed in their musical wanderings, presenting their infatuations with such joy and reverence that we can't help but be swayed. They still approach music with an infectious enthusiasm and creative restlessness, refusing to behave like a band that's been together a quarter of a century. Here's hoping they never start acting their age. Order CD by texting "omcdyopopular" to 767825 Order LP by texting "omlpyopopular" to 767825


	$17.99 CD		MORDANT MUSIC SyMptoMs (Mordant Music) "You Are a Door" "Belgian Blues" 2009 was the year of dubstep, and Baron Mordant, with Mordant Music, has created his own distinct sub-genre. This guy's production isn't satisfied with following the rules, yet the sound is so basic and so essential, at times reminiscent of a dubstep Monoton or Mark Stewart mix. Spacious, subterranean layers, pulses and buried vocals all dubbed-out and moody (deep, yet almost aggressive), dimly lit but with a sense of openness. Mordant Music is the best of one of the most innovative sounds in electronic music. Order CD by Texting "omcdmordantsymptoms" to 767825


	$12.99 CD $13.99 LP $7.99 MP3		DESIRE II (Italians Do It Better) "Miroir Miroir" "Oxygene" Italians Do It Better have access to a veritable disco goldmine with producer Johnny Jewel on board. His new project, Desire, found the Chromatics/Glass Candy man accompanied by Nattie (also of Chromatics) and Canadian vocalist Megan, and producing some of the finest slo-mo disco of his already estimable career. Forging long, sprawling tracks with silky smooth hooks and gloriously deadpan vocals from Megan (occasionally sounding more Debbie Harry than Debbie Harry herself these days), he hit on a winning formula and while it's not so far removed from his previous projects, II managed to be his most refined full-length to date. Order CD by texting "omcddesireii" to 767825 Order LP by texting "omlpdesireii" to 767825


	$18.99 CD		RAEKWON Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2 (Ice H2O) "Mean Streets" "Surgical Gloves" 2009 was supposed to be the year hip-hop died but, in fact, to those in the know the genre ended up being invigorated and booted back into life -- thanks in part to some killer offerings from some presumed MIA operatives. To attempt a "sequel" to one of the finest hip-hop albums of all time was bound to raise some sneers and sniggers, but Raekwon managed to successfully follow it up and what's more -- he managed to birth the most consistently banging Wu joint since Supreme Clientele. Sure, it might still be rooted in the past but with Rae and Method Man on top form (Meth drops his best rhymes in YEARS), who can complain? This is an album that just grows and grows with each consecutive spin. The Chef is back. Order CD by texting "omcdraekwononly" to 767825


	$13.99 CD $9.99 MP3		THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (Slumberland) "Young Adult Friction" "Contender" While the Pains of Being Pure at Heart have shown a lot of promise since jump, few could have anticipated an album as pitch-perfect as their self-titled debut, a blustery ten-song ride of manic jangle and endless reverb that doesn't seek to resuscitate the ghosts of indie-pop's past as much as it grabs the torch light of those bygone groups and sprints into the distance with it. Pulling in strands of things like Black Tambourine, the Pastels, and a little bit of My Bloody Valentine, with buzzsaw guitars and wispy melodies the album drives hooks so far into your brain that for many of us they have been stuck there all year. And to boot, this seals the deal on the glorious revival of one of the classic indie-pop record labels, as Slumberland rides again! Order CD by texting "omcdpainspains" to 767825


	$24.99 CD		LEYLAND KIRBY Sadly, the Future Is No Longer What It Was (History Always) Track 3 Track 1 Though it's not the first time Leyland Kirby (V/VM, Caretaker) had relied on length to prove his point, this was certainly an epic undertaking in every sense of the word: three double albums, a mammoth four hours of music and each record a slow, dusty trek into the recesses of a blackened mind -- and it truly works from beginning to end. Occasionally we are reminded of Brian Eno (Thursday Afternoon or Music for Airports), Blade Runner-era Vangelis and sometimes the more gaseous moments of Thomas Koner, but Sadly, the Future Is No Longer What It Was is most clearly guided by Kirby's love affair with Angelo Badalamenti and his haunting pianoscapes. The dreamy, melancholy haze could almost sit beside a long overdue third season of Twin Peaks, and there could be no higher praise than that. Order CD by Texting "omcdleylandsadly" to 767825


	$11.99 CD		SHAFIQ HUSAYN En'a-Free-Ka (Plug Research) "Lil Girl" "Nirvana" Sa-Ra Creative Partners' Shafiq Husayn stepped up to deliver his first solo album, a dense slice of psychedelic soul that touches upon everything from Funkadelic to Serge Gainsbourg, Flying Lotus and Fela, with the same focus and attention to detail that gives his productions for artists like Erykah Badu such high quality. Shafiq manages over the course of the record to give a thoroughly modern update to a genre in need of an album that's as impressive as it is progressive, filled with equal parts spirituality and technology. Order CD by texting "omcdshafiqen" to 767825


	$15.99 CD		GROUP DOUEH Treeg Salaam (Sublime Frequencies) "Ragsa Jaguar" "Nabi El Mohamed" Early this year, we had the limited LP pressing of Group Doueh's follow-up to their stunning debut, Guitar Music from the Western Sahara, in stock for about a minute, and it was sorely missed after it was gone. Thankfully, Sublime Frequencies re-released Treeg Salaam as a CD with a lot more copies to go around. This record is just as ear-bending as Guitar Music ; the first four tracks are ecstatic and trance-inducing, fueled by frantic beats, call-and-response vocals and of course Salmou Doueh Baamar's virtuosic, phased-out guitar work. The disc ends with what is probably the most unexpected performance that the Western world has heard from Group Doueh, a 20-minute-long drone-based excursion that pretty much stops time in its tracks. Order CD by Texting "omcdgrouptreeg" to 767825


	$14.99 CD $9.99 MP3		HERE WE GO MAGIC Here We Go Magic (Western Vinyl) "Tunnelvision" "Fangela" Luke Temple delivered one of the most exciting debuts of the year with his self-titled full-length as Here We Go Magic. The album sounds at once like nothing and everything that's out there today, with songs that are so varied and influences from so far and wide, it's impossible to pinpoint what Temple was thinking when he recorded these tracks. Every tune is built from meticulous layers of instrumentation and sound: a gorgeous synth line, Krautrock-inspired percussion or African highlife-influenced guitar, distant '80s-sounding synthesizers or mysteriously unfolding layers of voices, pop gems and lulling noise passages, yet still, everything fits together almost perfectly. Beautiful, magical pop from a man whose record collection is as deep and inspired as your own! Order CD by Texting "omcdherehere" to 767825


	$15.99 CD		BLACK TO COMM Alphabet 1968 (Type) "Jonathan" "Musikl" As Black to Comm, Dekorder label head Marc Richter has released a string of great records, pulling long strands of oft-dark, gauzy tones from a variety of acoustic instruments and random electronics. Given the relatively crowded drone/psych sea in which his material often floats, it's all the more impressive that his voice emerges as the singularly beautiful entity it is, with his pieces balancing meticulous composition techniques against an innate ability to summon and sustain a series of evocative moods. There is a certain restraint and clarity of purpose here that makes these ten tracks easily the best work of Richter's career, as he sets out to deviate from his long form pieces in the pursuit of more focused "songs," and each of these tracks achieves its own distinct identity that still manages to fit as part of the larger work. But more than just a highlight of Richter's own impressive discography, Black to Comm's Alphabet 1968 is an easy high-water mark for all drone-based albums this year. Order CD by Texting "omcdblackalphabet" to 767825


	$12.99 CD $9.99 MP3		THE ANTLERS Hospice (Frenchkiss Records) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store From the blunt stone of heartache that was Peter Silberman's, Hospice marked the coming of age of a wonderful artist. Originally a solo project, Antlers had previously released a handful of EPs and one album, but now with a proper band behind him, the once upbeat dream pop echoed in the pages of Hospice. Some comparisons are obvious, and many fans of Sigur Ros, Antony, and Jeff Buckley surely sat up and took notice. Silberman's singing shares the intimate falsetto that all three of the aforementioned employ, but even in his lower register, somewhere between a whisper and breathy tenor, you feel the need to lean in close. And the music the group wraps around that voice is both hazy and intricate, full of crackle and hum, piano and string and horn arrangements making the record swell with classic beauty while pulsing and popping to a different beat. Order CD by Texting "omcdantlershospice" to 767825


	$69.99 CDx4		BIG STAR Keep an Eye on the Sky Box Set (Rhino) "When My Baby's Beside Me - Alternate Mix" "Life Is White" The best rock band to come out of Memphis, the U.S., and the World... ever? There are those of us here at Other Music that certainly think so, and this beautiful 7"-sized box holding four CDs and a gorgeous 102-page book should seal the deal for any doubters left out there. Starting off with songs by early incarnations of the band, Rock City and Icewater, and a couple of solo tracks by Chris Bell and Alex Chilton, Keep an Eye on the Sky then segues into Big Star's album tracks, which sound better than they ever have, before heading into a ton of outstanding unreleased demos, along with a raucous live set recorded in Memphis in 1973. Pure Godhead. Order CD by Texting "omcdbigkeep" to 767825


	$10.99 CD $12.99 LP		OFEGE Try and Love (Academy LPs) "It's Not Easy" "Nobody Fails" One of New York's most kick ass record shops, Academy Records, jumped into the reissue game this year with a handful of stellar African psych funk releases, of which this release of a group of Nigerian high-schoolers going by the name Ofege was the first. Tight, funky, with light psych touches and killer guitar work, what really slayed us though was the soulful longing in Melvin Ukachi's vocals. This record is a monster! Order CD by Texting "omcdofegetry" to 767825 Order LP by Texting "omlpofegetry" to 767825


	$13.99 CD		DEATH ...For the Whole World to See (Drag City) "Keep on Knocking" "Politicians in My Eyes" The story of how three African American brothers geeked out on the MC5 and formed a band in 1970s Detroit was one of the most compelling of the year, with Drag City bringing the archival goods via the high energy shut-yer-brain-off proto-punk power of Death. We're always a little wary when collector scum interest is off the charts, as it was when word of these guys started leaking out, but we can easily say this is one of the best rock records to hit our ears in ages, from the way it totally presages Bad Brains, to how it channels the insanity of Raw Power-era Stooges. Order CD by Texting "omcddeathfor" to 767825


	$16.99 CD $9.99 MP3		BETTY DAVIS Is It Love or Desire (Sundazed / Light in the Attic) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store What can we say about this record? Self-produced, recorded with the same core band as on her classic Nasty Girl (a longtime OM fave), it is every bit as intense and soulful as any of Davis' best work, a heavy, grinding, howling album of sex, wine and deep, deep worries that fueled this iconoclast from the beginning, that made her spit blood and fire and ultimately marginalized her art for all these many years. If you love Betty Davis, you need this record, and if you don't know her, you need it too. For more than 30 years, it sat in silence. Now, it sings, and wails, and moans again. Order CD by Texting "omcdbettyis" to 767825


	$17.99 CD		PATRICK CROWLEY & JORGE SOCARRAS Catholic (Macro) "Memory Fails Me" "Eddie Go to My Head" The tapes that disco pioneers Patrick Cowley and Jorge Socarras made together languished in a basement in San Francisco for over thirty years, which is a shame, as Catholic is some of the best gay avant rock/disco we've ever heard. The sound is somewhat akin to that of Arthur Russell, with Socarras' emotional vocal delivery and lyrics reflecting the sexually charged atmosphere of the 1970s. But where Russell is tender, Cowley and Socarras are biting and agitated, and this magnetic release plays like a blueprint for the post-punk, no wave, new wave, and art rock that would follow. Order CD by Texting "omcdpatrickcatholic" to 767825


	$15.99 CD		BARBARA LYNN Here Is Barbara Lynn (Water) "Take Your Love and Run" "Only You Know How to Love Me" Here Is Barbara Lynn is simply a gem among gems in the Atlantic Records 1960s soul output. She's had a storied career, not just as a powerful, soulful singer, but perhaps more importantly as a blazing (left-handed) guitarist and talented songwriter from an era when few female musicians filled those shoes. Lynn penned most of her own material, and it remains totally mystifying to us that such a compelling and accomplished solo LP from a unique female soul singer should have remained out of sight for so long. Order CD by Texting "omcdbarbarahere" to 767825


	$26.99 CDx3		VARIOUS ARTISTS Fire in My Bones (Tompkins Square) "Jesus' Blood" Golden Stars of Greenwood "I Got a Telephone..." Amazing Farmer Singers of Chicago Fire in My Bones took a dizzyingly large swath of African American sacred music as its subject, drawing on nearly 65 years of regional styles and traditions all but overshadowed in the public consciousness by the enduring popularity of the gospel vocal group and the solo singer. What we got was a staggering, occasionally disorienting, but richly rewarding view of a massive diversity of black religious music, churned out by all manner of the faithful, with all manner of instrumentation, with a pendulum that swings from old-fashioned congregational lining hymns to newfangled "sanctified soul" numbers. On a similar note, back in July we discovered a little known reissue from 2008 that certainly would have made the cut for one of the best of the year if we'd heard it then, Famous L. Renfroe's Children, a loosey-goosey and off-kilter slice of leftfield soulful gospel, all recorded by one singular and mysterious individual back in 1969. Order CD by Texting "omcdvariousfire" to 767825


	$22.99 CD		VARIOUS ARTISTS Legends of Benin (Analog Africa) "Feeling You Got" El Rego et Ses Commandos "Okpo Videa Bassouo" Gnonnas Pedro et Ses Panchos Analog Africa has proven to be, from their inception a couple years back, one of the most promising and highly consistent record labels specializing in reissues of quality African music, and 2009 was hardly an exception for these guys. Legends of Benin barely edged out Volume Two of their Orchestre Poly Rhythmo de Cotonou reissue series, if only because the sound here is perhaps more diverse than on any other of their previous comps. The groups featured here explore everything from relentlessly swinging R&B, floaty Juju vibes, Latinesque rhumba grooves, to even modernized takes on African burial rites! We seriously can't wait to see what 2010 brings from this label. Order CD by Texting "omcdvariouslegends" to 767825


	$13.99 CD $9.99 MP3		CONNIE CONVERSE How Sad, How Lovely (Lau derette) "Talkin' Like You (Two Tall Mountains)" "There Is a Vine" New label Lau derette reissued one of the most gorgeous and mysterious archival releases of the year, with this wonderful set of home recordings by idiosyncratic folk chanteuse Elizabeth "Connie" Converse. After recording these 17 songs throughout the 1950s in her Greenwich Village apartment, Converse simply packed up her belongings, wrote goodbye notes to her friends and family, and then simply disappeared. She hasn't been seen or heard from since, and that same sense of haunting mystery permeates these recordings. One of the most lovely, intimate, and bewitching albums of the year. Order CD by Texting "omcdconniehow" to 767825


	Crazy Rhythms $13.99 CD $9.99 MP3 The Good Earth $13.99 CD $17.99 LP 180 Gram Vinyl $9.99 MP3		THE FEELIES Crazy Rhythms (Bar/None) "Forces at Work" "Fa Ce-La" THE FEELIES The Good Earth (Bar/None) "On the Roof" "The Good Earth" Finally, finally, 2009 saw the mighty Feelies fully returned to print, with their propulsive, groundbreaking album Crazy Rhythms, along with its belated follow-up The Good Earth, given a long awaited re-release by our friends over in Hoboken at Bar/None. These records greatly influenced and changed the landscape of rock and pop music in the 1980s, sewing the seeds for what became the "college" rock/radio-oriented underground scene in America. These two records are essential cornerstones in the history of independent rock, and are pretty much what we consider prerequisite listening. Rather than load the reissue with bonus tracks, to maintain the integrity of the original vision, the CD and LP versions of both albums come with download cards for bonus tracks and live recordings. Order Crazy Rhythms CD by Texting "omcdfeeliescrazy" to 767825 Order Good Earth CD by Texting "omcdfeeliesgood" to 767825 Order Good Earth LP by Texting "omlpfeeliesgood " to 767825


	$34.99 CDx2		EMITT RHODES The Emitt Rhodes Recordings: 1969-1973 (Hip-O Select) "With My Face on the Floor" "Fresh As a Daisy" Hip-O Select did the world a huge favor by reissuing all four of Hawthorne, CA pop auteur/former Merry-Go-Round frontman Emitt Rhodes' long out-of-print solo albums in a convenient two-disc set. These are desert island albums, as close to pop perfection as music can get. Filled with fuzzy tales of broken hearts, confusing courtships, and lustful longings, Rhodes played nearly everything on these albums himself in a home studio he built in his garage, while also singing all of the rich, harmony-laden vocals. Rumor has it he's returning to the studio after years of record industry disillusionment, here's hoping that we see him in one of our Updates in the near future. Order CD by Texting "omcdemittrecordings" to 767825


	A Gilded Eternity $17.99 CDx2 World in Your Eyes $21.99 CDx3 $17.99 MP3		LOOP A Gilded Eternity (Reactor) LOOP The World in Your Eyes (Reactor) "Brittle Head Girl" "Arc-Lite" This year we saw the completion (?) of the Reactor label's foray into the catalog of the mighty British drone rockers Loop, with a two-disc presentation of the group's final album A Gilded Eternity, along with a greatly expanded version of their 1987 singles collection The World in Your Eyes. Between these two releases you can begin to chart the band's progress from the minimalist, Kraut- and garage-inspired shoegazer act to the much gnarlier beast they'd eventually become, as Gilded finds the group shucking off the Spacemen Three comparisons through the use of thicker guitars, darker rhythms, and a creeping sense of dread. We love both sides of the band however, and The World... is a pretty concise set that ought to have you blissed out by the group's surprisingly awesome early stabs at mantra-like riff-rock. Order Gilded Eternity CD by Texting "omcdloopgilded" to 767825 Order World in Your Eyes CD by Texting "omcdloopworld" to 767825


	NOT AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME		QUANTIC Caja Y Guacharacha (Mochilla) What we have here is hands down one of the best, most surprising, international/world groove releases we've stocked in ages -- a bumpin', bangin' mix by Quantic of nothing but vintage cumbia jams from Panama and Colombia. Quantic brought his A-game for 45 solid minutes on this mix, as you hear pumping brass sections, swirling, almost psychedelic-sounding accordion lines, and passionate vocals that ride atop rock-solid bouncing beats that are filled with rootsy grit and complex polyrhythmic intensity. Raw, dirty, and real folks; it doesn't get any better than this. We can only hope that this comes back in print.


	$17.99 CD		39 CLOCKS Pain It Dark (Bureau B) "Shake the Hippie" "Out of Sight" This reissue of the debut album by a couple of dudes from Hanover, Germany going by the name 39 Clocks was an amazing revelation. Full of droning two- or three-chord rock and roll jams with great organ and drum machine accompaniment, Pain It Dark, originally released in 1981, is an indisputable masterpiece of German rock as far as we're concerned, as these guys had far more in common with the primitive, Velvets-influenced post-punk groups like Swell Maps and Young Marble Giants than with any of their Neue Deutsche Welle contemporaries. Order CD by Texting "omcd39pain" to 767825


	$14.99 CD $13.99 LP $9.99 MP3 $14.99 CD $13.99 LP $9.99 MP3 $14.99 CD $13.99 LP $9.99 MP3		SUN RA Interplanetary Melodies (Norton) "Daddy's Gonna Tell You No Lie" Cosmic Rays "If Only I Hadn't Sinned" Qualities SUN RA The Second Stop Is Jupiter (Norton) "Dreaming" Cosmic Rays "I'm So Glad You Love Me" Juanita Rogers SUN RA Rocket Ship Rock (Norton) "Tell Her to Come on Home" Little Mack "The Sun Man Speaks" Yochanan We love Sun Ra, have for years, and review most if not all of the reissues of the man's extensive catalog we get in. These three albums, however, contain some of our favorite tracks from his extensive output, being the thrilling and totally unexpected work he did in the 1950s with various doo-wop singers, male crooners, and wailing, high-spirited R&B vocalists. Although these three discs pre-date Sun Ra's intergalactic journey into a future of his own design, they offer stunning examples of his great, leftfield approach to working with vocals and spacey melodies, and they happen to be an excellent starting point to understanding Ra's multifaceted music. Interplanetary Melodies Order CD by Texting "omcdsuninterplanetary" to 767285 Order LP by Texting "omlpsuninterplanetary" to 767285 The Second Stop Is Jupiter Order CD by Texting "omcdsunsecond" to 767285 Order LP by Texting "omlpsunsecond" to 767285 Rocket Ship Rock Order CD by Texting "omcdsunrocket" to 767285 Order LP by Texting "omlpsunrocket" to 767285


	$13.99 CD $9.99 MP3		BILL FOX Shelter from the Smoke (Scat) "Appalachian Death Sigh" "Junked Lot Serenade" Easily one of the best albums of the 1990s hardly anyone's ever heard, but when a record is this good, when it sounds better with each passing year, when it becomes the sort of record that the mere mention of causes those who already know it to share an instant bond and those who get turned on to it to be forever grateful, it was inevitable that it would see the light of day again. Though Fox had previously made two excellent punky power-pop records with his previous band, the Mice, it's the homemade Dylan-via-the-Byrds vibes on the mostly solo Shelter from the Smoke that will assure him a devoted and growing cult following for many years to come. Order CD by Texting "omcdbillshelter" to 767825


	$16.99 CDx2		THE VASELINES Enter the Vaselines (Sub Pop) "Molly's Lips" "Rosary Job (Demo)" A total classic, given the deluxe reissue treatment some fifteen years on since Kurt Cobain thrust it onto so many of our consciousness. What's startling is how this time around the Vaselines are no longer in need of their number one fan to shine on. It's easy to see now how this ragtag bunch turned C86 tweeness and Jesus and Mary Chain on its ear in this handy and exhaustive two-disc set coupling early demos and live recordings to the original compilation. A Catholic upbringing gets dismantled on almost every song, and cheekiness abounds throughout, but somehow it's easy to hear faith restored as well. Oh, and we'd be remiss not to mention one of Cobain's other great loves, the phenomenal all female D.I.Y. group the Raincoats, got restored to the catalog with a lovely reissue as well. Both are nothing less than essential. Order CD by Texting "omcdvaselinesenter" to 767825


	Visa Versa $15.99 CDx2 Triptych $14.99 CD		ELIANE RADIGUE Vice Versa, etc... (Important) "Onward 38" "Backward 19" ELIANE RADIGUE Triptych (Important) "Part 1" "Part 3" Two important reissues from Important Records graced our Out shelves this year, both by French minimalist composer Eliane Radigue. Though she studied under Music Concrete pioneers Pierre Henry and Pierre Schaeffer, her mature music shared more of an affinity with American Minimalists like Phil Niblock and LaMonte Young, and it moves like a gentle, continuous tide, full of ebbing and flowing feedback that is simply mesmerizing. These are major works that were only ever released in a miniscule edition, and it's a tremendous occasion to finally have access to them. Order Vice Versa CD by Texting "omcdelianevice" to 767825 Order Triptych CD by Texting "omcdelianetriptych" to 767825


	$17.99 CD		JOHNNY PAYCHECK Nowhere to Run (Omni) "It's a Mighty Thin Line" "Don't Monkey Around with Another Monkey's Monkey" The songs Johnny Paycheck recorded for the independent label Little Darlin' between the years 1966-70 explored the utmost limits of heartache, despair, and personal adversity. Prior to signing with legendary producer Aubrey Mayhew, the man had pretty much reached the first of many trips to the bottom, but the music he subsequently cut after picking himself up is amongst the most original to ever come out of Nashville, full of dark-edged and nuanced material the likes of which that city has rarely seen since. It was a pretty great year for country music reissues actually, and we can't resist sneaking in the long-time-coming re-release of George Jones' Blue and Lonesome in here as well, as it's a stellar collection of his outrageously soulful honky-tonk country blues, and features some of his most utterly forlorn and heartsick tracks. Order CD by Texting "omcdjohnnynowhere" to 767825


	$11.99 CD		MULATU ASTATKE New York Addis London: The Story of Ethio Jazz 1965 to 1975 (Strut) "Yekermo Sew" "Asiyo Belema" feat: Frank Holder Standard wisdom would have said that 2005 was the breakout year for Ethiopian jazzman and composer Mulatu Astatke, when his music was featured prominently in Jim Jarmusch's film Broken Flowers, or possibly back in 1998, the year Volume 4 of the famed Ethiopiques series was released and on which Astatke was heard for the first time by many of us. But as it turns out 2009 was truly the year for Mulatu Astatke, from his standout collaboration with UK group Heliocentrics, to this stellar archival comp from Strut, which paints a fuller picture of the man's accomplishment than ever before. It's certainly been worth the wait to have so much of Astatke's best work available in one place for the fist time, as this is simply some of the most mysterious and serpentine jazz music you'll likely ever hear. Order CD by Texting "omcdmulatunew" to 767825


	$9.99 MP3		SCOTT SESKIND Selected Works (Yoga Records) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store Digital-only reissue label Yoga provided Other Music Digital with a ton of excellent and obscure releases this year, but the one that struck us the most was the almost totally unheralded work of singer-songwriter Scott Seskind, who recorded an impressively captivating and moving collection of four-tracked bedroom folk of the highest order, with an out-of-time vibe that doesn't really sync with its original 1984 release date. Definitely on the loner-ish end of the folk spectrum, with songs that are really, really great and which manage to remain haunting long past their leaving. Truly an album that deserves to be heard by more people immediately. Available only as a Download.


	$24.99 CD		VARIOUS ARTISTS Fly Girls (Soul Jazz) "Simon Says" Sequence "To the Beat Y'all" Lady B Fly Girls is a lovingly curated and long overdue compilation brought to us by our friends at Soul Jazz, that chronicles the contributions that female MCs made to the formation, upliftment and continued sustainment of hip-hop music and culture. These are flawless, landmark releases from the likes of JJ Fad, Roxanne Shante, Sweet Tee, MC Lyte; all groundbreaking artists from the early days of US hip-hop, but the even greater surprise to our ears were the choice cuts from London's little known acts like the She Rockers and Cookie Crew. Order CD by Texting "omcdvariousfly" to 767825


	$15.99 CD		VARIOUS ARTISTS Tumbele!: Biguine Afro & Latin Sounds from the French Caribbean (Soundway) "Barel Coppet et Mister Lof" "Lola Martin" One of our other favorite labels of recent years to specialize in killer African reissues, Soundway turned their attention to the French Caribbean recently with equally devastating effect on Tumbele!: Biguine Afro & Latin Sounds from the French Caribbean, a set focused on the sounds created in Guadeloupe and Martinique between 1963-74. It's infectious, but never as overpowering as calypso can be, with roots in jazz-based modes and a heavy swing to the grooves. It's a style of music that wasn't popular for a particularly long time, but we'd personally love to see more releases along these lines in the near future. Order CD by Texting "omcdvarioustumbele" to 767825


	$17.99 LP		CIRCUIT RIDER Circuit Rider (The Bookworm) We drove right off the black cliffs of Hades and straight into oblivion with Circuit Rider, a bunch of biker dudes whose sole LP was privately released back in 1980 in a circulation of 300 or so copies. Don't be fooled by that release date, as this album has 1971 written all over it, as vocalist Thorn Oehrig spews out deranged but strangely poetic Morrison-isms about freedom, death, tripping, and riding that hog, while the band jams a subterranean, psychedelic blues. We'll be riding this one for a long time to come. Order LP by Texting "omlpcircuitcircuit" to 767285


	CD NOT AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME $9.99 MP3		DELROY WILSON Dub Plate Style (Pressure Sounds) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store We already knew that Delroy Wilson was without a doubt one of the finest Jamaican vocalists of all time, but nothing quite prepared us for this insanely great Pressure Sounds release that features a clutch of famous tracks recorded by Wilson, which dub master Prince Jammy subsequently tweaked out for the gloried JA sound systems of the 70s. Possibly the finest melding of soulful tunes and dub madness we've ever heard, Jammy left the integrity of Wilson's passionate vocals intact, while simultaneously enveloping the melodies with all manner kaleidoscopic studio trickery, leaving us the best of both worlds and one of the most compelling reggae albums in memory.


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