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   July 21, 2010  
       
   
     
 
 
FEATURED NEW RELEASES
The Books
Amen Dunes
Oriol
Yama & the Karma Dusters
Buffalo
Lower Dens
School of Seven Bells
Gaslamp Killer
Mim Suleiman
The North Sea
Peter Howell & John Ferdinando
Brainticket
Aphrodite's Child
Endless Boogie
Drunkdriver
 

Terror Danjah
Tully
Saigon Rock & Soul (Sublime Frequencies Comp.)

ALSO AVAILABLE
Department of Eagles
Max Richter

BACK IN STOCK

Wierd Records Presents: Cold Waves & Minimal Electronics

PRE-ORDER
Arcade Fire

All of this week's new arrivals.

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JUL Sun 25 Mon 26 Tues 27 Wed 28 Thurs 29 Fri 30 Sat 31




  WIN TICKETS TO A BOAT RIDE WITH MAGIC KIDS
Magic Kids are taking a one-day break from their nationwide tour with Ariel Pink for a boat ride around the East River this Monday, July 26, and you're invited. The SS Half Moon will begin boarding at 7PM and then an hour later embark on a three-hour cruise, complete with beer, BBQ, and a performance from the band, who are sure to be blasting "Sailin'" while circling around the Statue of Liberty. We've got two pairs of tickets up for grabs, just email tickets@othermusic.com. We'll notify the two winners this Friday.

MONDAY, JULY 26
ROCKS OFF CONCERT CRUISE: E. 23rd St & FDR Dr NYC
SS Half Moon boards at 7PM/Departs at 8PM
$10 tickets available here

 
   
   
 
 
AUG Sun 08 Mon 09 Tues 10 Wed 11 Thurs 12 Fri 13 Sat 14
  Sun 15 Mon 16 Tues 17 Wed 18 Thurs 19 Fri 20 Sat 21




  UPCOMING OTHER MUSIC IN-STORE PERFORMANCES
THE GHOST OF A SABER TOOTH TIGER: MONDAY, AUGUST 9 @ 8PM
We've been digging "Jardin du Luxembourg," the debut single from the GOASTT (the musical collaboration of Sean Lennon and Charlotte Kemp-Muhl). The duo will be stopping by the shop to play an acoustic set, and fingers crossed they'll include their awesome cover of Gainsbourg and Bardot's "Comic Strip."

NITE JEWEL: MONDAY, AUGUST 16 @ 8PM
We're very excited to welcome Ramona Gonzalez (a/k/a Nite Jewel) back to Other Music, who will be celebrating the release of her new EP, Am I Real, with an in-store performance. If you can't wait until next month, you can download the EP's title track off of Other Music Digital right now.

 
   
       
   

 

 

     
    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 below, go to subports.com where you can create your free Subports account. Afterwards, just text the corresponding subcode listed underneath each item to 767825.
 
         
   
       
   

 

 

     
 

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  THE BOOKS
The Way Out
(Temporary Residence)

"I Didn't Know That"
"We Bought the Flood"

In our current era of constant media-oversaturation, a five-year absence certainly feels like it may as well be a lifetime. But that's exactly how long it's been since the duo known as the Books last graced listeners with an album's worth of their hodgepodge pop confections, meticulously crafted from the odd assemblage of the conventional (guitar, cello) and the decidedly less so (bizarro vocal samples, other assorted aural detritus). And in this case, absence has truly worked to the group's advantage, as one pass through The Way Out, the duo's newest record (and first for the Temporary Residence label), feels as warm and comforting as a conversation with an old friend that you haven't seen in some time. And while that mix of acoustic and electronic instruments and sounds that the Books favored was clearly not something that they alone championed, they've still managed to put their stamp on it, crafting songs that sound wholly original within the paradigm.

Tending to favor slightly harder and more percussive sounds this time out, tracks like "I Didn't Know That" and "A Cold Freezin' Night" show the duo in fine form after their hiatus, once again mixing intricate performances and tweaked instrumental samples with found voices, creating tracks that find an unexpected resonance in a chorus of people chanting "I didn't know that" and a pair of kids trading hilarious/frightening insults and taunts (respectively). Some of the best moments here, however, barely rely on hiccupping samples and vocal volleys. "All You Need Is a Wall" is a beautiful ballad -- gently reverbed vocals, simple guitars, and steadily encroaching swells of strings matched against drones. Likewise, "Free Translator" utilizes a similar spare approach, as the duo take an earnest and simple stab at Americana, dueting with an old vocal recording amidst a backdrop of gentle static. Ultimately displaying a fine form with no accumulated rust, The Way Out is a more than welcome return from the Books. [MC]

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  AMEN DUNES
Murder Dull Mind EP
(Sacred Bones)

"Murder Dull Mind"
"Yur a Liar"

Nice curveball out of the Sacred Bones camp here! While this Brooklyn label has become the go-to for all things loosely filed under "new weird synth-punk industrial-crust goth...explosion," this new Amen Dunes peach falls a little farther from the tree. That being said, if you've been on board with the label's aesthetic for a little while, this record will make perfect sense from a "big picture" standpoint. Amen Dunes first surfaced last year with a full-length on Locust that put more of a scuzzed-out, Roky Erikson visits the psychiatrist, foot forward. This EP retains some of the same dark, wandering weirdo vibe while scaling back the blown-out "rock" moments of the full-length in favor of more brooding, skeletal folk insinuations. Copious ground covered, given the format, buzzing towers from Laurel Canyon to Sao Paulo, and nodding to the heads all along the way. In particular, shades of Crosby's haunted hippie opus If I Could Only Remember My Name come to mind, and while there's nothing explicitly Brazilian to speak of, the music embodies the same bold experimental spirit of Caetano Veloso's London exile period, tempering curiously infectious bummer folk numbers with "Night Driver Sunriser," a track that wouldn't sound out of place on one of the Type label's more harrowing releases. All in all, an abundance of ideas thrown at the wall -- and all of which manage to stick. But at the end of the day, when you're kicking off your clogs and turning out the lights, it still comes down to the same old running concern: are there any SONGS, man?! Yes, my friends, there are. Underneath it all, there are in fact, very good songs. So go ahead and turn the "Back in 5 -- gone to see the shaman" sign face out on the door of your "place of business" and spend some time with a record, as they used to say. [JTr]

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  ORIOL
Night and Day
(Planet Mu)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

Imagine lying on a beach in Spain, or Trinidad, at sunset, as a crystal blue sky turns pink and purple, while blinding white, billowing clouds melt into the sparkling darkness as a cool breeze tickles your skin. Now imagine that you have drifted off into a slight sleep and simultaneously dream of a 1970's boogie wonderland, a 90's rave downtempo/chillout room, and the bedroom of an inspired producer in the London of today. These images first come to mind when listening to the debut album from Spanish-Trinidadian Oriol Singhji, currently a resident of London. Oriol's Night and Day is the sunniest and brightest addition to the Planet Mu label in some time. Fusing a love of Herbie Hancock's late-70's electric period, 80's freestyle synth and drum patterns, and LTJ Bukem's feel for the mellow, late-90's jazz-influenced broken beat, Night and Day fits right alongside the new crop of producers like Floating Points and Untold, as well as the contemporary nostalgia of Hudson Mohawke and Dam Funk, but sans the vocoders and PlayStation elements -- no sonic bombs, no time warped effects, no rubber band bass, just nice melodies and sparkling synth sounds, with crisp, clean, rich and swaying electronic grooves. With a pleasant use of arpeggios, the occasional soul vocal sample, and lots of spacious layers, this is music for the open air. Not cluttered with endless bleeps and squiggles, each sound has its place and is used to heighten and/or deepen the compositions. While the record definitely is danceable, the tracks lean more towards the vibey, with a cool blend of jazz, soul, and electronic beats. A pleasant surprise, one that's quite fun to listen to, and without a dark, foreboding or sinister note in sight. This is the perfect warm weather record, inspired by the sun-drenched soul of Barcelona, and the electronic fusion of London. A nice update to several sub-genres that seem to be slowly re-emerging. [DG]

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  EUPHORIA BLIMP WORKS PRESENTS: YAMA & THE KARMA DUSTERS
Up from the Sewers
(Lion Productions)

"Take Me Back To Puerto Rico"
"Snow Bitch"

Alright, so this release came out a couple of months ago, and I'll cop to having slept on it, but man, I have been more that making up for lost time as this killer album has been on near constant rotation around the house for the last week. Even after having read the enormously entertaining liner notes (more on those later) I'm still not sure if I'm supposed to call this band Euphoria Blimp Works, or Yama & the Karma Dusters, but regardless, this inter-racial folk-rock group emerged out of an urban commune located in Chicago in the late '60s and early '70s, with the main songwriter being peace activist and radical Howard Berkman. These guys and girls were regulars at Midwest Be-In's, peace protests, and happenings, and were poster children for free-love exposes in the national media, but astonishingly hardly made a dent in the popular consciousness outside of Illinois. If their lone LP hadn't of been self-released it could have been huge; it's a really strong collection of both rocking and moving songs, with a high factor of trenchant songwriting coming of Berkman's mind. There's a level of toughness palpable throughout, with Berkman, to my ears, sort of bridging the gap between Bob Dylan and Lou Reed. While it's not quite as rocking as say, the MC5, another radically aligned group from the Midwest, I think lyrically and musically it more than holds its own, and doesn't come off as dated in the least. Now I've got to single out, for a moment, the incredible job Lion Productions did on the liner notes here, which are surely some of the most engrossing, hilarious, and informative I've ever seen on a reissue, as they practically read like a mini-novel and are quite honestly worth the price of admission alone. Stellar job, and highest possible recommendation. [MK]

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  BUFFALO
Dead Forever
(Repertoire)

"Leader"
"I'm a Mover"

The Masters Apprentices had left Australia to get heavy in the UK, so by 1971 it was time for another band from down under to take the reins. Among contemporaries like the Coloured Balls and Blackfeather, Sydney's Buffalo stood out -- though not having much in the way of flashy guitar or progressive flourishes; these guys just wanted to be heavy, sound evil, and WIN. Over the course of three albums for the Vertigo label, of which Dead Forever is the first, the band plied an aesthetic that'd predate the bad boy boogie of a nascent AC/DC, and best many of their American and European forefathers in terms of lunkheaded stomp and bad vibes. It's been said that a Vertigo PR office claimed Dead Forever the superior (and heavier) album to another of that label's releases of the time, Black Sabbath Vol. 4. History shows us that no one of a sound mind would back that claim, but there is a lot more going on here than meets the eye, a moodier sound that burns off into pure aggression, as well as an interesting take on the concept of the rock frontman -- at the time of this recording, Buffalo had two lead singers, Dave Tice and Alan Milano. Listen how wild they get on a ten-minute-plus cover of Free's "I'm a Mover," and take comfort in the fact that the band's originals (like the killer title track, and the driving acoustic aggression of "Bean Stew") are just as intense. Aztec's reissue includes a 24-page color booklet, and singles sides both as Buffalo, and as their earlier incarnation, Head. Tice would later move to England, where he'd front the Count Bishops; the late Peter Wells, who played bass in Buffalo, would join Rose Tattoo as a guitarist down the road. If this record impresses you in the slightest, and you look for the heaviest examples of '70s rock, be sure to seek out its ridiculous follow-ups, 1973's Volcanic Rock and 1974's Only Want You for Your Body -- they run with the group's dark, crude sensibilities and push them so far over the top that the band's claim as one of the nastiest in the hard rock/proto-metal sweepstakes is all but secured. [DM]

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LOWER DENS
Twin-Hand Movement
(Gnomonsong)

"Hospice Gates"
"Truss Me"

Lower Dens is the new full-band project from Jana Hunter, who first emerged during the freak folk boom of the mid-aughts. Although Hunter released solo albums via Devendra Banhart's Gnomonsong label and toured with many of that scene's leading lights, her songs always seemed to inhabit a much darker world than many of her contemporaries, one rooted more in the spirit and tradition of southern blues than the Incredible String Band. Instead of being front and center, the "freak" was lurking somewhere below the surface -- a dark, unsettling presence, implied more in the lyrical narratives and blue-black, skeletal arrangements. Lower Dens moves forward with this conceit, taking that blueprint and adapting it for a more-or-less traditional "rock" band set-up. And while not much here would qualify as "rock," there are some surprisingly spirited numbers folded into Hunter's traditionally mid-tempo brooders. "Hospice Gates" boasts a bpm and backbeat that the Ronettes would understand, and "Holy Water" sounds like it could have been peeled off some long-lost early-Clean demo, with its driving, sun-baked dreams of the pipeline. Some (like OM staff-member Karen) might also sense a kinship with fellow Baltimore scene-vets, Beach House, what with the stately procession of some of the songs, not to mention the muttered, smoky incantations both women employ in their delivery could certainly justify such a comparison. More than anything though, this sounds like a sly reinvention/invigoration. The Beatles bought a sitar. Dylan painted his face. Mark Kozelek blew some comb-overs back by getting together a new band (Sun Kil Moon) and cranking out rock songs. 2010 has been quietly asserting itself as (gasp!) a good year for music, and I wouldn't be surprised to see this one make its way into a lot of sleeper hit lists when the book is written. [JTr]

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  SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS
Disconnect from Desire
(Vagrant)

"Windstorm"
"Joviann"

On their sophomore full-length, the trio of producer/guitarist Benjamin Curtis and the sisters Claudia and Alejandra Deheza once again pay heartfelt tribute to shoegaze and dreampop icons, but Disconnect from Desire offers a crisper, more fully realized version of their established sound. As on the stellar first single, "Windstorm," the Deheza's intoxicating harmonies often stand in for guitar or keyboard hooks, delivering My Bloody Valentine-worthy riffs with vocals alone, and the sisters' close tones and layered approach is reminiscent of Stereolab's best stuff, in a more modern context. "Heart Is Strange" brings to mind of New Order circa Technique, and Curtis can deliver more of-the-moment club-ready grooves as well. Fittingly enough, while more pop oriented than Alpinisms, Disconnect from Desire can nonetheless put the listener in a dream-like trance state; something not many artists are able to do once in their careers, let alone on back to back albums. [BL]

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  GASLAMP KILLER
Akuma No Chi Ga Odoru
(Low End Theory)




Following his stellar production work on Gonja Sufi's debut album, A Sufi and a Killer, said killer, Gaslamp Killer releases another great alter-universe mix CD, Akuma No Chi Ga Odoru, originally only available during his tour of Japan last year. A 43-minute journey indexed in four parts, it begins with Indian tablas and flutes before GLK quickly moves into psych break-beats, 8-bit-ish sounding Moog jams, dubstep, jazz, underground hip-hop, ethno-funk, as well as a few tracks that I can't even label. GLK's gift, strength and skill is his ability to match moods across genres, while maintaining a strong present-day mentality; Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Dr. Octagon, OutKast, Nine Inch Nails, and many more all find a home here. With an ear for the wicked, the sinister, the funny, and even the occasionally abrasive, his mixes are some of the freshest, dirtiest, and wackiest around. Like many of the artist he's collaborated with through the years -- Prefuse 73, Flying Lotus, OBEY -- GLK is a taster's choice for a skilled DJ with a leftfield approach to mix selection. Flawless and freaky in the best possible way, and definitely one of my current favorites in the Low End Theory/Brain Feeder crews. [DG]

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  MIM SULEIMAN
Tungi
(Running Back)

"Mpenz"
"Haraka Haileti Baraka"

Zanzibar singer-songwriter Mim Suleiman is no stranger to collaboration. After relocating to electronic music hotspot Sheffield, she's already lent her voice to folks like Bare Knuckle Soul and Rafiki Jazz, finding the sweet spot between soul, Afrobeat, and funk. But no one navigates between genres without ever settling on one (and dashing in a few more) better than Suleiman's producer, Maurice Fulton. Now, we've heard him work his magic on everyone from Alice Smith to Kathy Diamond to his own jaw-dropping partner, Mu, but his meeting with Suleiman is something special indeed. His house-quaking sensibilities, that pliant bass, and those intergalatic breaks, all commingle with Suleiman's strong, singular pipes to make this an outré choice for funking up dancefloors. [AB]

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  THE NORTH SEA
Bloodlines
(Type)

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The North Sea is one Brad Rose, who runs the excellent Digitalis label when he's not conjuring black magic from an array of tangled voodoo circuits and synthesized rituals. Bloodlines sees him in collaboration with Zelinople drummer Mike Weis for an album that takes elements of heavy drone composition, early Sheffield industrial music, Stomu Yamashta's percussion masterpiece Red Buddha, and even a bit of power electronics and manages to blend them into a sonic landscape that reminds me, more than anything, of the sputtering, viral synthesis of Gil Melle's groundbreaking score for The Andromeda Strain. Rose displays great depth and range here; where many of his peers seem rather monochromatic, the landscape on Bloodlines is dark but lush, overflowing with texture, tension, and most importantly, direction. Fans of the recent Pan Sonic album, of Fennesz's less sun-bleached work, and of German synth wizards like Conrad Schnitzler, and even Throbbing Gristle, should take note; while recent releases on the Editions Mego label have taken the drone-and-texture game into safer waters through a more "listener friendly" interface, the North Sea manage to flex that same muscle via a much more thorny yet just as rewarding sonic catharsis. You've tested the waters with Emeralds and Oneohtrix, and now it's time to go deeper. The waters don't get much deeper and darker than this. Gorgeous. [IQ]

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  PETER HOWELL & JOHN FERDINANDO
Alice Through the Looking Glass
(Acme / Lion Productions)

"Jabberwocky"
"The Alice Theme"

The earliest recorded proof yet of John Ferdinando and Peter Howell's complete musical genius, being the soundtrack for an amateur theater troop's 1969 production of Lewis Carroll's Alice Through the Looking Glass. Ferdinando and Howell were the masterminds behind several longtime Other Music faves, notably the records they released as Friends, Agincourt, and Ithaca. Working out of a home studio in the U.K., the duo were simply geniuses at creating soft-tinged pastoral folk psychedelia, resplendent with lovely pop touches. Every one of their releases is somewhat charmingly lo-fi, but still manages to evince a great breadth of invention, particularly through Howell's mastery of home electronics, which he had such a talent for that he was eventually hired by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, where he still works to this day.

Carroll's Looking Glass surely seemed quite resonant and reflective of the times when the Ditchling Players selected it as that year's original presentation. Ferdinando and Howell rose to the challenge of interpreting the dizzying adventures of Alice into an aural landscape that is rose-tinged and disorienting in equal measure. The music is very suitably English sounding, somewhat reminiscent of very early Pink Floyd, with recorders, chimes, organs, finger-picked guitars, and electronic tones judiciously placed throughout the arrangements. I can't help but be reminded of the soundtrack to the Wicker Man as well, but with a Victorian sensibility in place of that work's paganism. A lovely relic from what seems a distant age. [MK]

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  BRAINTICKET
Psychonaut
(Esoteric)

"One Morning"
"Watchin' You"

If their name doesn't already tip you off, Brainticket are all about the trip, man. Born of a late-60's jazz group and led by organist/flautist Joel Vandroogenbroeck, the band, which contained Swiss, German and Italian members, specialized in, erm, trippy Kraut abstractions, finding a meeting point between their German, UK and American contemporaries. 1972's Psychonaut is, in a sense, a snapshot of where the group was at the moment. After debut Cottonwoodhill attempted to replicate the trajectory of an LSD hallucination, with enough swirling organs and drum breaks to make fans of Booker T, Steppenwolf, Charlatans UK and Deep Purple break into (stoned) rapture, and before the Deep Age ethno-tronics of Celestial Ocean, here, they still pursue deep space jams but with an eye toward getting it together in the country.

Fitting snugly between those two albums then, Psychonaut doesn't exactly jettison their heavy organ fuzz workouts but overall there is a pursuit of a more pastoral vision. Hand drums and strums characterize "Radagacuca" before ascending into an organ freakout. Fans of Popol Vuh will delight in "One Morning," with a cyclical piano riff Werner Herzog would agree could equally soundtrack his films. Then again, fans of Free Design and Harpers Bizarre may also take to it -- the song's AM radio-inspired lullaby incantations share an early-70's LA aesthetic.

The group does return to their organ-driven sound for a few songs. "Watchin You" would be in like company on any of the Cherrystones collections, like a slow-burning progenitor to the rawer side of Madchester. Closer "Coc'o Mary" may be the perfect middle ground, the most quintessential meeting point of where the group had been and where they were going. Fans of Bruce Palmer's The Cycle Is Complete, early (pre-synth) Tangerine Dream, Can, and Bitches Brew will definitely feel this. An open-ended jam repetitive drum motif with Joel Vandroogenbroeck's delayed flute excursions, swirling organs and fuzz guitar lift off early and hover for the song's duration. If Psychonaut doesn't clobber you over the head with its brilliance, it may be the perfect introduction to the group, the album that captures nearly everything Brainticket did and would do in one sitting. [AG]

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  APHRODITE'S CHILD
End of the World + Bonus Tracks
(Esoteric)

"Don't Try to Catch a River"
"Valley of Sadness"

With its recent economic crisis, it's great to hear something from Greece other than bad news. Hailing from the Athens, psych/prog band Aphrodite's Child are best known for kick starting the career of synthesizer wizard Vangelis and for their Revelations-inspired conceptual opus, 1972's 666 -- one of the most zonked-out, progressive head trips of the '70s. The band's 1968 debut, End of the World (here re-mastered by Vangelis himself), though lacking 666's vision and scope, still bursts with creative arrangements and is a fantastic document of late-'60s psychedelic pop. Ranging from trippy, organ drenched, proto-prog workouts to eerie psych-pop, End of the World's general lack of focus can be easily overlooked, as tight, Mediterranean-influenced melodies (unique during an era when many other bands were looking to the Far East for inspiration) and Vangelis' pounding Mellotron and electronic noodling make this an enjoyable, whacked-out listen. Despite its apocalyptic title, End of the World is decidedly more Romantic (with a capital R); singer Demis Roussos' soulful croon and melancholic lyrics ("You should come with me to the end of the world... But I know I'll go away myself") work perfectly against the swelling organ and fuzzy guitars. Overall, it's an excellent psych-pop album that foreshadows Aphrodite's Child more progressive future. Recommended! [CPa]

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  ENDLESS BOOGIE
Full House Head
(No Quarter)

"Tarmac City"
"Pack Your Bags"

Can't say that a whole lot has changed with Endless Boogie's approach since the last time we heard from this New York quartet (ca. 2008's great No Quarter debut Focus Level), but, hey, if it ain't broke, then choogle onwards into that great night. Even still, something about Full House Head, the group's latest set of odes to lengthy, grimy blues riffs and gruff vocals, seems to hit just a little harder than its predecessor. Though these guys are more than content to continue showcasing a genuine affection for the likes of ZZ Top, Beefheart, and maybe even a bit of Edgar Broughton Band, tracks like "Tarmac City" cut with a newfound ferocity and confidence, something that at times seemed lacking for this group. Elsewhere, "Slow Creep" does exactly that, taking its sweet time winding a path towards nowhere in particular (and managing to look and sound damn fine in the process), while "Pack Your Bags" crunches ahead, offering Paul Majors and company a platform to shred away with glee. Saving the best (and most epic) moment for last, Endless Boogie walk away with "A Life Worth Leaving" as their parting shot, tapping back into the sound of their first two (extremely limited and now long-gone) LPs for a rugged, ragged jam that should convince even the hardiest of non-believers that these four do more than just pay homage to a bygone style -- they own it outright in an era like no one else. [MC]

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  DRUNKDRIVER
Drunkdriver
(Self-Released)

After endless delays, label changes, and a scene-dividing controversy, Drunkdriver finally took matters into their own hands and released this posthumous sophomore album themselves. At this point, anyone entrenched in scene politics will have long ago made up their minds as to whether they're buying this or not, so I won't take up any more bandwidth attempting to address the complicated issues surrounding this album's release. Suffice to say that if you're fortunate enough to come to this record with an empty duffel, be prepared to assess the distress of a brutally punishing, unrelenting hardcore punk record done up raw after the old style. In their prime, circa the making of this album, Drunkdriver were untouchable, doling out a nauseous gruel that incorporated elements of old school punk, thrash, and hardcore. Nobody was, or is, even approaching this level in terms of ferocity, focus, and purity of presentation -- Sex/Vid, and maybe Pissed Jeans are the only names I would even place in the same conversation, and even then, it's like comparing Prospect Park to the Olympic National Rainforest. It's a shame these guys went down in a conflagration befitting the album cover, but at least they went out at the absolute top of their game, leaving behind a flawless testament to the fact that these three people were making heavy, uncompromising music as well as it could possibly be done at this late stage in the game. Essential face-peeling for all takers up for the challenge. [JTr]

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  TERROR DANJAH
Power Grid EP
(Planet Mu)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

Grime produce Terror Danjah folllows up his excellent Acid 12" for Hyperdub with this blazing eight-track, thirty-minute-long EP for Planet MU. Power Grid is all beefy beats, thick synths, and power chords, coupled with his trademark gremlin squeals. Where his earlier comp, Gremlinz, gathered instrumental versions of older tracks produced for various UK MCs, this batch of new material finds TD feeling highly energized, funky, and focused. The title cut drops some classic DnB breaks in the middle of booming bass cannons. His use of samples this time around are well placed and work more within the framework of the track, as opposed to being simply layered on top. What's also more apparent on these songs is Danjah's firm grip on blending elements like R&B, grime and dubstep into a new brew of urban sonics. Tracks like "Twisted, "Upton Lane" and "Menace" are true whip-snapping combinations of the 'purple' synth sound favored by Joker or Guido, along with the melodic and textural pads typical of modern R&B producers like The-Dream. Heavy stuff, and it gets better with every listen. And don't worry, he keeps those Gremlin giggles to a tasteful minimal. [DG]

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  TULLY
Live at Syndey Town Hall 1969-70
(Chapter)

"Love 200"
"Sights & Sounds of 69"

Heads are still plangently ringing from the spurt of Paul Witzig surf soundtrack recordings issued by Japan's fabulous EM label some years back, including Sea of Joy, a mellow, meditative and gorgeous album by Australian progressive rock band Tully. This new CD finds the same band in an earlier incarnation, before they had commingled with Aussie psych-folk gods Extradition. Two long-form pieces of music, recorded at Sydney Town Hall, showcase some of the earliest examples of rock opera in the country's musical history. "Love 200" was a commissioned work by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commemorating Captain James Cook's observation of the Transit of Venus in 1769. Its 20-minute runtime features a lengthy operatic vocal, reserving the bouncy, modern young people groovin' to its first and last five minutes. Stodgy, yes, but historically significant! "Sights and Sounds of '69" is a more atavistic piece, likely to be of greater interest to this readership: a good half-hour's worth of jazz/organ mugging, solid beats and several melodic shifts that give some indication what Australian society thought of the cultural explosion. Aggressively weird and definitely of interest to those who dig experiments of the past. [DM]

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  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Saigon Rock & Soul: Vietnamese Classic Tracks 1968-1974
(Sublime Frequenceis)

Well, I was just about fed up with Sublime Frequencies' Vietnamese and Thai excursions, primarily because of the high kitsch factor (blame my damaged Western ears) but along comes Saigon Rock & Soul to knock me on my ass. The first track is an incredible garage-fuzz blaster by the CBC Band (who fled the war and relocated to Houston, where apparently they still perform and run their own nightclub!) which seriously wouldn't sound out of place on a volume of Back from the Grave and it doesn't let up from then on: killer garage with rock lots of overdriven fuzz and crazy out of place guitar solos, rough-edged tight JB's-style grooves, and off-kilter pop with high-pitched echoey vocals. Imagine Santana, Blue Cheer, Hendrix, and King funk run through some sort of unique Vietnamese filter. My guess is, most of these songs came from cassettes but if this exists on vinyl, I want them all because there's not a novelty track in sight. Outside of the Group Doueh and Group Inerane, this is the best Sublime Frequencies release to date. Beautiful gatefold sleeve and limited as always. [AK]

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  DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES
Archive 2003-2006
(American Dust)

"While We're Young"
"Brightest Minds"

This collection of demos and unreleased Department of Eagles tracks provides an intimate glimpse at the creative process behind Grizzly Bear-man Daniel Rossen's other great band. Though the songs here aren't as fully-formed as 2008's In Ear Park and are often very skeletal, these lo-fi recordings and "Practice Room Sketches" reveal that from day one, Rossen and Fred Nicolaus were gifted songwriters and mood creators, with an MO for lush harmonies and baroque embellishments. The fine-tuning and experimentations that take place on these recordings is at times as intriguing as the spectral Americana-pop that would come from DoE, and Grizzly Bear themselves.

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  MAX RICHTER
Infra
(Fat Cat)

"Infra 5"
"Journey 4"

Combining ethereal piano phrases with the hum of old tube radios and the loping swirl of dial-turning static, the classically trained Max Richter continues his groundbreaking string of records for Fat Cat Records with Infra, a haunted ode to leaving and leveling with oneself. Richter always produces his work with an intimate touch, delicately filling in the spaces between pianos and strings with the ghostly transmissions of old radio broadcasts.

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  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Wierd Presents: Cold Waves and Minimal Electronics, Vol. 1
(Angular)

"Figures" Absolute Body Control
"Dans Votre Monde" End of Data

Co-compiled by Wierd Records founder Pieter Schoolwerth and Angular's Joe Daniel, this excellent collection of minimal/cold wave music of the 'very rare' variety is an essential pick up point from where Tigersushi's infamous So Young but So Cold and Stones Throw's recent Minimal Wave Tapes compilations left off, featuring names like Stereo, Linear Movement, Bal Pare, Ruth, Opera Multi Steel, the Neon Judgement, Absolutely Body Control, Days of Sorrow, and much more, with many of the tracks seeing reissue for the first time.

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Arcade Fire
Pre-order
On Sale
$11.99
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  ARCADE FIRE
The Suburbs
(Merge)

Arcade Fire's anticipated new album, The Suburbs, hits store shelves on Tuesday, August 3, and can be pre-ordered right now for the sale price of $11.99. The album will be shipped to arrive at your door on or near the record's release date. Shipping and handling charge for domestic packages in the US begins at $2, and international orders start at $4. Questions: email orders@othermusic.com.

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  All of this week's new arrivals.

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THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS

[AB] Adrian Burkholder
[MC] Michael Crumsho
[AG] Alexis Georgopoulos
[DG] Daniel Givens
[IQ] Mikey IQ Jones
[MK] Michael Klausman
[AK] Andreas Knutsen
[BL] Brian Levine
[DM] Doug Mosurock
[CPa] Chris Pappas
[JTr] Jon Treneff



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