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   May 19, 2010  
       
   
     
 
 
FEATURED NEW RELEASES
The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger
LCD Soundsystem
Delorean
DJ Nuts (Arthur Verocai Mix)
Quantic (Mochilla Mix)
Jamie Lidell
Band of Horses
Male Bonding
Knight School
The Rolling Stones
13th Floor Elevators
Ecstatic Music of the Jemaa El Fna
Hedzoleh Soundz
Trembling Bells
Dimlite

 
Eighties Ladies
The Depreciation Guild
The Black Keys
Rev. Johnny L. "Hurricane" Jones
Excavated Shellac: Strings
Kris Kristofferson
Next Stop Soweto Vol. 2
Reflection Eternal
Devo

ALSO AVAILABLE
Tracey Thorn
Daniel Higgs
Shindig! Magazine (May/June 2010)

All of this week's new arrivals.

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/othermusic

 
         
   
   
   
   
   
       
   
 
 
MAY Sun 23 Mon 24 Tues 25 Wed 26 Thurs 27 Fri 28 Sat 29




  TAKEN BY TREES TICKET GIVE AWAY
Victoria Bergsman (a/k/a Taken by Trees) will be performing in New York City on Tuesday, at (Le) Poisson Rouge. The former-Concretes' singer's last record, 2009's East of Eden, was a sweetly exotic set of East-meets-West folk-pop, and we're guessing that she'll be playing songs off of that album and who knows what other musical surprises she'll have in store. If you'd like to enter to win a pair of tickets, email tickets@othermusic.com, and we'll notify two winners on Friday.

TUESDAY, MAY 25
(LE) POISSON ROUGE: 158 Bleeker Street NYC

 
   
   
 
 
MAY Sun 23 Mon 24 Tues 25 Wed 26 Thurs 27 Fri 28 Sat 29




  WIN TICKETS TO HOLLY MIRANDA
This Wednesday, May 26, Holly Miranda will headlining at the Bowery Ballroom performing a set of her wonderfully mysterious, atmospheric songs along with show openers Class Actress and Grooms. Other Music has two pairs of tickets to give away -- just email contest@othermusic.com to enter. We'll notify the two winners this Friday.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 26
BOWERY BALLROOM: 6 Delancey Street NYC

 
   
   
 
 
MAY Sun 23 Mon 24 Tues 25 Wed 26 Thurs 27 Fri 28 Sat 29




  WIN TICKETS TO THE BESNARD LAKES
This Montreal band's latest album, The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night, is filled with magnificently dense and dreamy, harmony-driven rockers that we can only imagine will sound amazing when performed live next Friday at the Bowery Ballroom. Other Music has a pair of passes up for grabs to this show, and to enter, email giveaway@othermusic.com. We'll notify the winner on Monday, May 24.

FRIDAY, MAY 28
BOWERY BALLROOM: 6 Delancey Street NYC

 
   
       
   

 

 

     
    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 GHOST OF A SABER TOOTH TIGER
Jardin du Luxembourg
(Chimera Music)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

OTHER MUSIC EXCLUSIVE! This first single from Sean Lennon's new project with girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl is exactly what we needed from the artful prince and his model muse. The b-side is of course Serge Gainsbourg's goofiest Brigitte Bardot vehicle, and Muhl can in fact fill those shoes (and those coos). The a-side treads similar territory; weird, sexy, arty pop that is both retro and future, and with Lennon's multifaceted playing and Mark Ronson producing, they pull it off quite nicely. We can't wait to hear more from this duo.

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  LCD SOUNDSYSTEM
This Is Happening
(DFA/Virgin)

"Dance Yrself Clean"
"I Can Change"

LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy has matured across the first decade of the new century. His debut single "Losing My Edge" was true zeitgeist over a groovebox beat, encapsulating an entire Brooklyn-bound generation with a wink and a head-nod. But rather than be a one-joke wonder, LCD has risen to become the true embodiment of New York rock circa 2010. And while he had to talk/half-rap his sardonic lyrics early on, on This Is Happening's opener "Dance Yourself Clean" we hear the man exploring a newfound wail. And seeing how this album digs deeper into the emotional fallout of a relationship between two people, that anguished sound suits the beats perfectly.

Recorded far from the manic pace of our city, in a Laurel Canyon mansion owned by Rick Rubin (he didn't produce -- just some light housekeeping and continental breakfast?), the music here takes its time to build up and burst into full bloom. As always though, Murphy keeps his sonic forbearers Bowie and Eno close at hand, digging deeper into their sonics while combining them in fresh contexts. I'd even posit that rather than first single "Drunk Girls" cribbing from "White Light/White Heat" (as so many bloggers have put it), it has far more in common with Iggy Pop's "Funtime" off of The Idiot. No matter, the album wholly sounds like Murphy. And while there is more rock -- even glam rock -- here than LCD is really known for, a track like "I Can Change" might be Murphy's most devastating dancefloor cut yet, acid-tinged and emotionally intense. All in all, it shapes up to LCD's finest album statement yet. Highly recommended. [AB]

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  DELOREAN
Subiza
(True Panther)

"Real Love"
"Come Wander"

This Barcelona-based four-piece has been kicking around for the better part of the past decade, creating solid but somewhat forgettable dance-rock that lands somewhere between !!! and the Faint, depending on what album you're listening to. This makes the arrival of their fourth full-length all the more surprising -- a record that shows a band finally coming into its own ten years past their inception. Named after the Basque town it was recorded in, the album title Subiza doubles as a not-so-subtle clue that the group are trading the angular, post-punky guitars and the urgent, tick-a-tick hi-hat drive of their earlier releases for the sunnier and druggier sounds of '90s Ibiza. No, they're not the first indie-pop band in recent years to bathe themselves in Balearic grooves; Air France, jj, Studio and Tough Alliance -- incidentally all Swedish groups -- beat Delorean to that tropical punch. But Subiza is certainly the most refreshing and uplifting mergers of house and rock of the aforementioned. The album comes storming in with "Stay Close," a blissful opener that makes you think of Animal Collective gone baggy in the best possible way, as a euphoric wash of Merriweather Post Pavillion-esque harmonies crest over neon-colored synth arpeggios and the endless swell of a beat that never actually kicks in. And from there, the record doesn't let up; "Real Life" gallops along ravey pianos and pitch-shifted vocal accents while in "Warmer Places," steel drum samples and singer Ekhi Lopetegi's shimmering chorus reframe the song's Euro-trance cues and tumbling beats into a feel-good dance-pop anthem -- of the non-guilty pleasure kind. While too often a reviewer is simply being lazy when they associate an album to the time of year, in this case, Subiza truly has summer written all over it. Or maybe the third Summer of Love. [GH]

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DJ NUTS /ARTHUR VEROCAI
Arranjos E Composicoes
(Mochilla)




The recent creative renaissance of Brazilian composer/arranger /producer Arthur Verocai, which included a repress of his classic 1972 self-titled debut album and a jaw-dropping LA concert performance of said record in its entirety with a full orchestra (soon to be released on DVD by Mochilla), continues with this superlative mix CD by DJ Nuts of songs written and/or arranged by Verocai throughout the late 1960s into the 70s. The mix plays like a nice companion to his album, filled with lush, lilting orchestrations, subtle funk grooves, a bit of jazz abstraction, and a pinch of psych fuzz mixed in with the tasty bossa and samba vibes. The CD sounds like someone took Marvin Gaye's What's Goin On, Rotary Connection's Hey Love, Miles Davis's Bitches Brew, Frank Zappa's Grand Wazoo, and Milton Nascimento's Clube De Esquina albums, and made a big smoothie with them; the music on offer here is rich, refreshing, and cool, and you'll be hard-pressed to find many records this year that are better summer listening than this one. If you went nuts for Verocai's solo masterpiece, this will satiate your hunger for more of the man's genius. If you're new to him, this offers up convincing evidence that he's a figure worthy of the respect and admiration similar creative folks like David Axelrod, Jean-Claude Vannier, and Charles Stepney have been (belatedly) given over the years. This one comes with my highest possible recommendation. Stunning. [IQ]

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  QUANTIC
Addis to Axim
(Mochilla)




ALSO AVAILABLE FROM MOCHILLA
: Producer/DJ Quantic's mix of vintage cumbia jams blew our minds last year and now he's back with another amazing selection, pulling entirely from music he discovered during a trip to Ethiopia. Full Review Next week.

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  JAMIE LIDELL
Compass
(Warp)

"She Needs Me"
"Compass"

Through the years, Jamie Lidell has grown from a digital sound boy to full-fledged soul man. Beginning with his second album, 2005's Multiply, Lidell has tried his best to resurrect the soulful melodies of Otis Redding, Al Green, and occasionally Prince, albeit in a modern musical setting that incorporates 21st century electronic production flourishes. The results have varied from truly amazing to almost embarrassing, as he walked that fine line between admiration and appropriation -- sometimes more indebted to his heroes than to his own vision, or veering too close to the pale-faced soul of Robin Thicke (or if you're old enough, Jamiroquai). But on Lidell's fourth full-length, Compass, he seems to have found a well-balanced mix between his love of soul, and sharp electronic production. He has always had a unique talent for infusing a great sense of personality and edginess into his songs and here he showcases real maturity and innovation in the ability to blend his humanness with his hard drive. On the album opener, "Completely Exposed," his beloved beat-boxing talents morph with pounding electronic drums, and a soaring tide of emotions in his layered lead vocals.

Surprisingly, throughout most of Compass he seems to shift between his main inspirations of Motown and Memphis to less recognizable places. Like Donny and Marie, Lidell is a little bit country, a little bit rock 'n' roll, with a lot of R&B and several twists and turns of his own; to his credit, it's become harder to pinpoint his influences and reference points. With assistance from members of Grizzly Bear and Wilco, plus Gonzales and Beck (who assisted with much of the production and co-wrote two songs), not to mention vocals from Leslie Feist and Nikka Costa, he's assembled a band that can create the naturalistic singer-songwriter vibe and rich acoustic textures, striking a nice counterbalance to the sculptured studio treatments and tricks. Lidell says he wrote the songs in a month, and that leads to the personal and immediate aspects of the lyrics as well as the loose experimental pop/rock construction of the arrangements. Again to his credit, Compass feels less like an ode to his musical heroes while still being his most personal work yet. And the moments where things get crunchy and dirty are refreshing to hear within this more traditional framework -- I sometimes miss Lidell's digital sound boy days, when he was creating multilayered loops of beat-boxing, low-end humming and emotional cries. Yet as the years roll on, Mr. Lidell seems more at home, and yes, comfortable, in his smoking jacket reliving the white boy soul man dream. Not exactly a bad thing. [DG]

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  BAND OF HORSES
Infinite Arms
(Columbia)

"On My Way Back Home"
"For Annabelle"

Ben Bridwell still has a deep-seated melancholy and the wandering heart of a cowboy, but on Band of Horses' third album he has also drunk deep at the well of vintage West Coast radio-pop of bands like the Eagles, CSN&Y and the Beach Boys. The group's major-label debut does not have many surprises, and really, who would want that from Bridwell and Co.? Band of Horses' angelic music, and their success, is built around thoughtful restraint and shimmering beauty, and both are in full effect here, with the guitar-chugging burners of yore ("The Funeral" from Everything All the Time) set on the back burner. What comes to the forefront are the sweet harmonies, lush acoustic guitar picking, and warm melodies nicely straddling the line between high lonesome and sunshine pop. It's a refinement of Band of Horses sound that could drift into the saccharin, but generally maintains purity with tasteful production and Bridwell's haunting vocal delivery. I'm not sure if there is a breakthrough hit here, but there is plenty for Band of Horses fans to love. [JM]

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  MALE BONDING
Nothing Hurts
(Sub Pop)

"Years Not Long"
"TUFF"

One of the newer acts showing up on the radar creating music with a "lo-fi" bent, Male Bonding are a three-piece from London, first introduced to one another while working together at their local record shop. Consequently, their debut is an album full of the unbridled energy and pop sensibilities most common among the seminal bands you'd expect your record store clerk to covet. Nothing Hurts has the revved-up immediacy of the Buzzcocks, the overdriven sonic palette of Dinosaur Jr, the fuzzy feedback of Nirvana, all topped off with that punky, hot-and-bothered spirit that has spanned decades. Tightly-wound opener, "Years Not Long," wastes no time in establishing the band's goal: to distill their influences into crafting their own fast-paced, no fuss tracks that have strong senses of economy, zest and tunefulness. And with songs like the compact, yet jangly "Weird Feelings," the band succeeds. Like contemporaries Abe Vigoda, No Age and Vivian Girls (who guest on closing track, "Worse to Come,") Male Bonding are at their best when they skillfully combine their thrashy, punk aesthetic with heady pop melodies, creating cohesive blasts of grandeur that make songs like "Nothing Remains" and "Pumpkin" sound fresh to even today's most jaded ears. [PG]

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  KNIGHT SCHOOL
Revenger
(Make a Mess)

Nice to see the other side of Bobby Knight here. Ok, ok... I'll admit to a bout of brief disappointment upon realizing this record had absolutely no connection with college hoops' winningest coach Bobby "The General" Knight (Hoosiers!) or his short-lived but brilliant reality show (yes, it was called Knight School). Imagine my confusion upon throwing this on, and instead of hearing the soothing tones of Bobby barking out a 1-3-1 formation, a blast of lo-fi indie-jangle comes barreling out of the speakers! Luck would have it then that next to Hoosier ball, Kiwi pop happens to be one of my favorite things in the world.

As a relatively new addition to Brooklyn's burgeoning lo-fi scene, Knight School have wasted no time locating their identity, homing in on the underground pop sounds of the late '80s and early '90s with exuberance. While many bands these days pay lip service to the laundry list of lo-fi, Knight School prove they've actually put in the r&d, trotting out scruffy, hook-laden numbers that echo the best of early-Pavement and Guided by Voices. Better still are the moments that betray a reverence for New Zealand's Flying Nun Records, and bands like Tall Dwarfs and the Clean -- some of the most beautiful and human pop music ever made. It's incredibly refreshing to hear a band reaching outside the sphere of their immediate scene and peer group for inspiration. Start your summer on the right foot and give these kids the support they deserve. You don't wanna make the General angry. [JTr]

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  THE ROLLING STONES
Exile on Main Street - Remastered
(Universal)

"Sweet Black Angel"
"So Divine (Aladdin Story)"

Double CD Version: original album plus 10 unreleased tracks.
Double LP Version: the original album only, on 180 Gram vinyl.
Super Deluxe Box Set: comes with two CDs featuring the original album and 10 unreleased tracks, double vinyl in a triple gatefold sleeve, a DVD, a four post-card set, and a 64-page cloth-bound book.


"Exile on Main Street. It was a midnight session," the legendary rock and soul vocalist Venetta Fields once told me. "...It was also a cash date [...] I was leaving the next day for two weeks with Nancy Sinatra in Las Vegas. I had seen a coat that I wanted, and the cash I got for the Rolling Stones session would be for the coat." The full discussion containing this quote illustrates some of my central ish about the supposed "World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band:" the lingering specter concerning their appropriation of Negritude, their problematic intersections with black females, and the surreal coming of age in a black (sonic) world that cared little to nothing about the Rolling Stones. Thus the events surrounding their newly reissued -- in three versions, including the super-deluxe box containing vinyl, postcards, a 64-page booklet, and a DVD of film excerpts such as Robert Frank's infamous Cocksucker Blues -- mythic album permits some moments of reflection and reconsideration. Those who have perpetually accused that these ears split hairs about the Stones since I love, know, or admire from afar a cohort of principal players-fans -- Sister Venetta, Stanley Booth, Jennifer Herrema of RTX (if he's to be venerated as the Great Spirit/Unholy Ghost largely on the altar of Exile, then Keith Richards' only heir -- period!), Anita Pallenberg, Donald Cammell, Jake Weber, Little Richard, Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, Chris O'Dell, Jim Dickinson, Chuck Leavell, (my adolescent hero/prompt to art school) Mr. Frank, Mr. Ertegun...even my sisterfriend Karina Mackenzie who runs a Shine a Light production company across the East River -- would claim I need to do penance. Hence, this review. Yet although my life was changed or seriously impacted by the late Cammell's Jagger-starrer masterpiece Performance (in some aspects the pop/private prequel to Exile) and two tomes about the band during this, their "magic" era (Booth's The True Adventures of the Rolling Stones; Robert Greenfield's account of young Jake Weber's road towards the recording of Exile, when his late father Tommy "The Tumbling Dice" Weber served as a virtual courtier of considerable power at Nellcôte), my initial frame of reference regarding the band has remained most indelible: sitting in the back of my Mum's Audi while she and another rebel sistafriend carried on heatedly about "Brown Sugar" and "Brotha Jesse" and 'nem's boycott. The lips? We thought they was Chaka's.

Other than such dialogues over the decades, the brief childhood moment when we liked "Miss You" in tha 'Hood and got the brilliance of the Jagger-Bowie pairing in the "Dancing in the Street" clip during Live Aid, the Rolling Stones and the sort of obsessive lore that has sustained the reputation of Exile-as-masterpiece all these years were meaningless. Miz Venetta's further claim -- "I never gave it [Exile sessions] another thought until Steve Marriott reminded me that I had sung on the album and that it was a classic. I've only heard it a few times." -- is what we ken. It has been rough to be perpetually so isolated from the mainstream, especially having sown one's rocker oats in the 1990s when Guns 'N' Roses were still gods stalking the land, foppish Stones clone bands ascended and imploded almost daily like the sun, Courtney Love was doing her twisted best to model as a grunge Anita, and one of the premier cult artifacts of the period was the complete Exile cover executed by Neil Hagerty (one half of the greatest band to emerge from my hometown Chocolate City after Chuck Brown's Soul Searchers and Bad Brains: Royal Trux). While the extra tracks of this set yield little in the way of earthquakes, the chance to hear anew the great line of "Rocks Off" -- "...the sunshine bores the daylights outta me..." -- amidst that high horn blare (go, Jim Price!); smile at that curious "Brown Sugar" corrective "Sweet Black Angel" as paean to my first hero (Angela Davis); appreciate the hiney-stirring elements of standard "Tumbling Dice" plus general meta-refraction of country throughout and; above all, glory in the interplay of the gospelized chorus -- featuring three immortals: Venetta, Clydie King, Tammi Lynn -- on the one cut I always dug, "Let It Loose;" carries a dose o' blessin'. And I dutifully hollered at the ultimate witness (who digs "Torn and Frayed," considers "Sweet Virginia" a classic, and purposely decamped from Keith Richards' digs before the move to Villefranche-sur-Mer as he prophesied the murk): "When I played the tracks [off Exile] for him," my Unc Stanley Booth says, "Jerry Wexler told me "Baby, too much coke in the mix"."

There you have it: the 20th century Ur-producer's co-sign to bridge the gap (if you were born after such latter-day Stones excreta as Steel Wheels et al.), and buy this suite of reissues. Unlike some, I love Cocksucker Blues as a fitting sequel to Les Américains, and might jes' spring for the big box to get footage in a more, erm, "modern" format. Meanwhile, I'll be listening to Don Covay (wink). [KCH]

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  13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS
Headstone: The Contact Sessions
(Snapper)

"You're Gonna Miss Me"
"Roller Coaster (Live at La Maison, Summer 1966)"

There seems to be an endless wealth of unreleased 13th Floor Elevators material of top-notch quality out there, and Headstone: The Contact Sessions is no exception. Originally included in the massive Sign of the 3-Eyed Men box set, the notorious Contact Sessions from 1966 finally get a standalone release by International Artists/Snapper. Recorded some six months prior to Psychedelic Sounds, this material was meant to be the first Elevators album but was inexplicably scrapped. It's got all the makings of a killer album, with a young Roky Erickson wailing through red hot versions, in glorious mono naturally, of "You're Gonna Miss Me," "Monkey Island," "Roller Coaster" (which sounds remarkably different here), "Fire Engine," and "Now I'm Home" (a mesmerizing early take on "Splash 1"). And then there are a bunch of alternate takes, including a rip-roaring "Everybody Needs Somebody," and for the completists, there are even unreleased live tracks that are not included in the box set! As always with the International Artists reissues, the CD comes in the digibook format with extended liner notes and lots of great pictures of a young, fresh-faced Roky. [AK]

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  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Ecstatic Music of the Jemaa El Fna
(Sublime Frequencies)

More blown-out treasures from Sublime Frequencies. The festival Jemaa El Fna (translated as Assembly of the Dead or The Mosque of Eternity) is both the name of a square in Marrakesh's old city and a centuries-old scene of musical incantations. A daily market and carnival of sorts, by day the square is inhabited by juice stands, acrobats, storytellers, magicians and snake charmers, catering largely to tourists. As night falls, however, locals replace tourists and snake charmers are usurped by Chleuh dancing-boys, food stalls and musicians.

The groups captured here -- Troupe Majidi, Amal Saha and Mustapha Mahjoub -- perform songs by Moroccan legends Nass El Ghiwane, Lemchaheb, Jil Jilala, Larssad and many other from the Chaabi tradition. Amal Saha's rendition of "Lahmami" is particularly scorching, as are Troupe Majidi's "Essinya" and "Khoudrini" -- which both truly live up to the description Ecstatic Music. Then again, the entire album is characterized by a fiery, hypnotic, distorted ecstasy. Like many of Sublime Frequencies' best recordings, the blown-out recordings (electricity is often provided by car batteries and broadcast through megaphones) add a layer of heat to the proceedings, bringing the listener closer to the performance, and should make these recordings as appealing to fans of Les Rallizes Dénudés and Daniel Higgs as to musicologists. SF devotees may recognize a few of the recordings from the Musical Brotherhoods from the Trans-Saharan Highway DVD (DVD SF041). An LP only-release with gatefold and liner notes by recorder Hisham Mayet. [AG]

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  HEDZOLEH SOUNDZ
Hedzoleh
(Soundway)

"Mee Bee (When)"
"Hedzoleh !"

Soundway unleashes another slice of '70s Ghana goodness with this killer reissue of the debut album by Hedzoleh Soundz, a group perhaps best known from South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela's excellent 1973 Blue Thumb Records album Masekela Introducing Hedzoleh Soundz. That record essentially featured Masekela sitting in with Hedzoleh on some tough, jazzy funk bombs spiked with a bit of rock fuzz. This debut Hedzoleh album from the same year features a more focused, less improvisatory version of that sound, and the results pack a serious punch. Heavy grooves, group vocals, fuzzy guitars a bit of psych know-how, and best of all, some insane jaw harp playing all add up to a rock-solid Afro-jam that takes all of the usual winning ingredients and mixes them up into a refreshing new style. This reissue is long overdue, and definitely sits up there with heavy classics by the likes of Orchestre Poly Rythmo, Blo, Fela's Zombie, and even Soundway's recent Ghana Special collection. These write-ups just get easier and easier -- do I really need to say anything more than the 5 magic words? AFRO JAM OF THE WEEK!! [IQ]

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  TREMBLING BELLS
Abandoned Love
(Honest Jon's)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

Though the British drummer Alex Neilson first rode to acclaim on the strength of his skills as a fiery improviser (on par with the likes of Chris Corsano and Paal Nilssen-Love), it's been his collaborative work that's gotten him the most notice as of late. Be it drumming live with Jandek, working alongside the always great Richard Youngs, or occasionally backing up Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Neilson has shown over and over again that he can thrive in a number of different idioms at any given time. With such an eclectic resumé perhaps it shouldn't have come as much of a surprise when his Trembling Bells project debuted in 2009 with the wonderful Carbeth album, and its modernist adaptations of classic British folk sounds in the vein of Fairport Convention or Pentangle. And yet astonishing it was, as it showed yet another side of Neilson -- that of songwriter, arranger, and bandleader.

Following up now with Abandoned Love, Neilson and his bandmates expand their palette a bit, Southern-frying bits of the boogie stomper "Love Made an Outlaw of My Heart," and introducing a chanting chorus amidst the crunching guitar of "Baby, Lay Your Burden Down," that has some obvious California dreams on its mind. They say this is Neilson's show, but his supporting cast is more than up to the task, with powerhouse vocalist Lavinia Blackwall carrying tracks like the beautiful piano ballad "Darling" on the raw the strength of her voice. All told, Trembling Bells have crafted a solid album that deftly displays the groups' multi-faceted talents, and something more; the sheer joy the band finds in these ancient song-forms is truly infectious, and taps into a musical force that is larger than any narrow genre. [MC]

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  DIMLITE
Prismic Tops
(Now Again)

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I first discovered the unique sound of Swiss producer Dimitri Grimm, a/k/a Dimlite, through his work with Sonar Kollektiv. Recently he's popped up in some interesting places, guesting on the last Prefuse 73 album and offering a remix for Flying Lotus' L.A. EP trilogy. Grimm has a unique talent for creating electronic compositions that blend thick Krautrock melodies, sound collage textures, and pristine digital sounds, and his hip-hop-inspired beats possess a strong sense of structure and movement. Utilizing a bit of jazzy synth, pump-valve bass tones, and shifting time signatures and melodies, his new mini-album for Now Again fits well with that label's eclectic catalogue. The real gem, "On the Same Picture," is a collaboration with British vocalist Elan Tamara; a wonderful slice of modern electronic soul, Grimm's subtle sonic treatments and trickery shine underneath Tamara's vocals, which are reminiscent of the slightly folky soul singer Linda Lewis. With the current onslaught of electronic producers creating within the wonky, post-trip-hop arena, Dimlite is not a new-schooler, and his accomplished skills are wonderfully showcased here. Throughout Prismic Tops I hear elements of, yes, Prefuse and FlyLo, but also Herbert, Dabyre, and Dilla -- it's a bit leftfield but in the best possible way. [DG]

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  EIGHTIES LADIES
Ladies of the '80s
(Universal Sounds)

"Tell Him"
"It's Easy to Move"

Oh man, yowza! Soul Jazz unearths a total monster of '80s boogie with this reissue of the sole album by the Eighties Ladies, a soul/funk vocal quintet of sassy independent females with their weapons aimed directly at the dancefloor. Produced by none other than Roy Ayers, the record bounces straight out of the speakers from the opening beat, with the girls vamping around the kind of slippery, serpentine groove Ayers is known for. There are plenty of the off-kilter, leftfield touches that defined this period of underground dance music and "mutant" disco, with all of the jazzy NYC artiness you'd expect from the man who brought you "We Live in Brooklyn, Baby." Fans of classic Levan/Mancuso/Siano-era club music will find MUCH to love here; fans of Ayers and his distinctive brand of soul will also find plenty to chew on. My only gripe is the lack of liners; I'd love to have been able to learn a bit more about the story of this album and how it sprang to life. Nevertheless, the music speaks for itself, and it's a delightful slice of New York funk that deserves your attention. Three cheers to Soul Jazz for giving it new legs and letting it freak once again! [IQ]

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  THE DEPRECIATION GUILD
Spirit Youth
(Kanine)

"Crucify You"
"Spirit Youth"

For those of you convinced shoegaze peaked circa 1992, I ask you to consider some pretty glaring evidence to the contrary: that is, the brilliantly composed Spirit Youth, the second full-length from Brooklyn's own Depreciation Guild. Consisting of Pains of Being Pure at Heart drummer Kurt Feldman, as well as the brothers Hochheim (Anton, Christoph), the Guild deal in dreamy fuzz-scapes and swirling guitar washes, frequently striking that mystical and much-sought-after balance between delicate subtlety and crushing heaviness. Their latest is ten tracks worth of gorgeous, wispy melodies embedded in layers of distorted bliss; clearly, ample attention was given to both songwriting and aesthetic, as the group excels in both areas.

They've effectively created a record that satisfies on many levels, one that is significantly more mature and nuanced than their prior (and still quite good) outing, In Her Gentle Jaws. This is in part because of a more direct, unabashed approach to their genre of choice; much like Feldman's other project, the Guild eschews frills and goes straight for the fuzz-pop jugular, writing songs that are refreshingly absent of cynicism or crippling self-consciousness. And despite a clear debt to shoegazers-past (they take cues from old school heroes like Slowdive, Swirlies, and My Bloody Valentine, to name a few), these guys are far from mere revivalists; they've altered that classic sound according to their own specifications, yielding a decidedly modern (and successful) product.

Ultra-catchy ethereal pop numbers "Crucify You" and "Dream About Me" feature woozy chord changes that would make Kevin Shields proud (or maybe jealous) also manage to break significantly from the sounds and styles of shoegazers-past, featuring a smattering of digital rhythms and synth-y weirdness. On "November," chilly, shimmering guitars washes, reminiscent of Slowdive's Souvlaki, abound; but then, suddenly, the trio breaks into an 8-bit video game riff! Of course, those tracks that don't employ Nintendo technology also manage to sound fresh and huge -- "Trace," one of the album's best, comes to mind, with its big, reverb-heavy drums and its super sticky melody. All in all, Spirit Youth is an impeccably produced update on a timeless genre, an album that manages progressiveness while remaining appropriately grounded in the values of its predecessors. Recommended for all-comers. [JK]

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  THE BLACK KEYS
Brothers
(Nonesuch)

"Tighten Up"
"She's Long Gone"

The Black Keys must have been feeling the pressure while they were hashing out Brothers, their heavy-as-granite new album of raw whiteboy blues. The band's 2008 collaboration with Danger Mouse, Attack & Release, showed these purists shaking up their formula a bit, and it resulted in their biggest seller to date. After some hard touring the duo went on hiatus, dealing with personal trials great and small, each releasing well-received solo albums, and then getting together with none other than Damon Dash for the Blackroc album, a rap-rock hybrid album that found the group backing some of hip-hop's biggest names, and again expanding their audience.

That all spells make-or-break time, with the fans (and the label) thirsty for another big breakthrough, and the haters waiting for you to fall. The Black Keys faced up the best way they know how, turning up those guitars, stripping back those drums to their most primal, and howling at the moon. Danger Mouse is back on just one tune, the irresistible whistling-soulful-strut that is "Tighten Up," which may be their most poppy effort to date, but is really an anomaly. This album will be best remembered for the narcotic blues stompers like "Next Girl," which nearly stops time with Patrick Carney's Bonham bombast and Dan Aurbach's devastating vocal delivery -- it's all in the timing -- as he intones "Oh my next girl, will be nothing like my ex girl. I made mistakes back then, I'll never do it again." The production is slick, but mostly slick circa 1971; much of Brothers was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, produced by Black Keys, and focuses on what these boys do best: face down the devil with that sweet and dirty blues. [JM]

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  REV. JOHNNY L. "HURRICANE" JONES
Jesus Christ from A to Z
(Parlortone)

A hurricane is a force of nature with which to be reckoned, unapologetic, a mighty storm in force, speed, and effect. These descriptors hold true for Reverend Johnny L. Jones, nicknamed "Hurricane" because of his larger than life delivery of the word of God. Since the Eisenhower Era, Jones has been pastor at the Second Mount Olive Baptist Church in downtown Atlanta, where he has recorded and amassed a collection of tapes of his impassioned services. Through a series of seemingly unlikely events, Dust-to-Digital's Lance Ledbetter crossed paths with Jones and began listening to and editing hours of these tapes. Jesus Christ from A to Z is the first fruit of said collaboration in what promises to be a series of LPs on the vinyl-only Parlortone imprint. Once a best-selling gospel recording artist for Shreveport's Jewel Records, seventy-three-year-old Jones retired from making albums over thirty years ago. This record marks his triumphant return to the game, and what a grand homecoming it is.

"The Day Is Past and Gone" starts off the record with an organ drone like a low storm siren, which is promptly interrupted by the moans and groans of a man with something on his mind and in his soul. Somewhere between speaking and singing, language and primal communication, Jones proceeds to lay it out for a crowd of congregants getting happy and vocal about it -- think Albert Ayler sermonizing and you're close. The record continues with "Prayer," a moving invocation for those in need, like "the people that didn't rest at all last night because pain was racking their bodies, for the widow walking the floor all night long..." The centerpiece of the collection, as well as its title, is Jones' liberation theology meditation using the letters of the alphabet as a road map; it is a tour-de-force, which when it concludes at almost fourteen minutes leaves a gaping void. The album finishes with the serene, almost sacred harp sounding "Old Ship of Zion," the calm after the storm has passed. This very same calm comes to believers amidst life's inevitable hurricanes from inspired and impassioned words and sentiments such as those heard on this record. Something tells me that Sunday morning would come much earlier for more folks if this type of experience were waiting for them at church. [KC]

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  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Excavated Shellac: Strings
(Parlortone)

Going on two years now, I've been geeking out whenever my RSS responded to a new post on Excavated Shellac, a webblog hosted by Jonathan Ward specializing in meticulously detailed commentary about and mind-blowing music from his impressive collection of 78s from around the globe. Naturally, I was thrilled but not at all surprised to find out that Atlanta's stalwarts of all things musically great (Dust-to-Digital) was issuing some of this music via their vinyl-only imprint Parlortone. As it turns out, none of the tracks on Excavated Shellac: Strings are available elsewhere, including on the blog, so...bonus! The theme of this collection being stringed instruments, of course the collection features a wide array of tunes from the four corners of the world whose primary and/or sole instrument is stringed -- guitar, oud, tar, violin, etc. While the LP is figuratively tied together with strings, Ward did a fantastic job of finding common ground within this vast category, despite the impossibly broad linguistic (Ganda to Vietnamese), temporal (1920s to 1950s, but really the whole of music history), and cultural (Bolivian to Norwegian) expanse; at the risk of new-age-y thinking, there is a palpable humanity in these sounds.

Some standouts include the first track by Armenian tar maestro Soghoman Seyranyan, the title of which translates simply to "dream." There is a certain nocturnal quality to the piece, but I wouldn't call it peaceful. One is immediately struck by the remarkable dynamic control and finesse of the soloist. The track was recorded in the 1950s, but echoes of the pain of atrocities perpetrated on Armenia from a few decades earlier resonate here. Switching gears, there is the delightful "Tko Se Bregom Sece" (translated: "Walking Up and Down the Hill") by Braca Kapugi Tamburica Orchestar i Pjevacki Zbor. The tamburica ensemble moves along soothingly in love-song mode until the final moments of the tune when they punch it, and finish with a frothy and fevered "malo kolo," or small circle dance. The record ends on a high note with Kemanî Amâ Recep's "Çifte kiris ile Rast Taksim," a work of undeniable violin virtuosity from Turkey. The tune is performed "ciftelli" meaning "double strings" (tuned GgDd), giving the illusion of two players performing together. The effect and the performance are breathtaking, as is the LP taken as a whole. Bravo to Ward and Dust-to-Digital for the continued attention to detail, from the excellent mastering job, to the thoughtful sequencing, all the way down to the awesome Parlortone label stickers. Great too that this is apparently just the beginning of Parlortone and Ward's partnership, with an all-African boxset and an ongoing series of theme-based LPs already in the works. [KC]

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  KRIS KRISTOFFERSON
Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends: Publishing Demos 1968-72
(Light in the Attic)

"Me & Bobby McGee"
"Little Girl Lost"

Devastatingly great collection of studio-recorded publishing demos from one of the greatest American songwriters of the 20th century, never before released until now. Before launching a successful recording and acting career on his own, Kris Kristofferson mainly plied his trade in Nashville writing songs for more established artists, and what is presented for us here are the fruits of that labor. Familiar tunes are lined with grit and enveloped in what must be an extremely dense cloud of cigarette smoke and late night haze. The performances are off-the-cuff, loose, raw and extremely rewarding, usually just Kristofferson alone, but once in a while he'll have a bit of backup, or a slightly disembodied chorus singing refrains to lend the proceedings an almost other-worldy air. Kristofferson is basically the Leonard Cohen of country music, and if you've ever blown him off (perhaps for having appeared in A Star Is Born with Babs Streisand say), then you seriously need to do yourself a favor and pick this up; hell, it's worth buying just to hear that gravelly voice say "fuck" when he flubs a take. Genius. [MK]

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  VARIOUS ARTISTS
Next Stop Soweto Vol. 2
(Strut)

"Come with Me" The Heroes
"Bazali Bam" Bazali Bam

Strut follows up one of my favorite Afro Jams this year with a second volume of South African groovy goodies, and woo boy, it's a doozy! While Volume One of Next Stop Soweto focused on the region's distinctive, rootsy township jazz and jive music that has inspired musicians across the globe, Volume Two sees a bit of role reversal -- this time around, the focus is on South African jams mixing that jive sound with '60s psych and '70s funk from a more Western perspective. The results are ass-kickingly satisfying, and like Volume One, many of these tracks have not seen reissue before, and all are on CD for the first time. The sounds range from beat-group style rompers to Booker T-inspired organ instrumentals, JB's funk vamps to some whacked-out go-go grooves that sound like someone spliced together their VHS copies of Austin Powers and Shaft in Africa. You getting excited? I thought so. It's another AFRO JAM OF THE WEEK, and like all of the others, it's all killer and no filler, and comes with my highest recommendation. What will Volume Three bring us? Punk? New Wave? Kwaito? Bring it on!! [IQ]

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  REFLECTION ETERNAL
Revolutions Per Minute
(Warner Bros)

"Strangers (Paranoid)"
"In the Red"

Ten years ago, the duo of Brooklyn's own Talib Kweli and Cincinnati-based DJ/Producer Hi-Tek released a near-flawless debut album called Train of Thought. The record confirmed Kweli's growing reputation as one of the best emcees in the game, and the revolutionary lyrical content dealing with the commercialization of hip-hop, its aging demographic and emotional strife, predated the naval-gazing nature of Nas' Hip Hop Is Dead, Kanye West's first three albums and Little Brother. Hi-Tek's rugged yet soulful sample-based production sat side by side with Dilla's soulquarian work as an influence on the next school of up-n-coming MPC beatsmiths. Fast-forward to today, Kweli is an established underground star and Hi-Tek's solo releases and ghost production for Dr. Dre have made him a major force in the current landscape of hip-hop.

Now as great as Train of Thought was, I personally wasn't holdin' my breath waiting for a follow-up. But after two or three delays it's finally here and I'm happy to report that it's great. Hi-Tek's production is still solid, with some nice modern day adjustments and stylistic pop nods that work. Standouts like "Back Again" feature a club-friendly, Afro-percussive rumble, complemented by a souful vocal hook, while "Midnight Hour" is an upbeat '60s Motown-inspired track with UK soul singer Estelle and a playful sounding Kweli rhyming about the ills of maintaining a long distance relationship. But for the most part, Revolutions is a socially conscious affair with songs that can tackle heavy subject matter -- "Ballad of the Black Gold" deals with greedy Nigerian oil dictators while "Liftin Off" covers the consequences of escapism through drugs -- and manages to avoid sounding self-righteous. The album also boasts strong collabos with UGK's Bun B, Jay Electronica and Kweli's frequent cohort Mos Def. Revolutions contains within it the same spirit that inspired classic albums by Public Enemy, Gang Starr and X-Clan, but it sounds thoroughly of this time. Recommended! [DH]

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  DEVO
New Traditionalists - Remastered
(Warner Bros)

By the time of Devo's fourth full-length, the "Band of the Future" would have had chart success and scandal alike, and had succeeded in advancing the cause of new wave pop music. Early pioneers of music video, the messages in their songs had gotten stronger as their albums progressed, but it was on New Traditionalists that their messages turned away from put-downs and praise of mutants to address the social and political problems of the world at large. Tracks like "Beautiful World," "Race of Doom," "Love Without Anger" and the awesome opener "Through Being Cool" ("Eliminate the ninnies and the twits!") still resonate with the same quirky passion as anything on Freedom of Choice or Are We Not Men?, but are imbued with the spirit of justice, the sound of guys who want to change the world for the better. "Beautiful World" in particular, when aligned with its heart-rending video of post-nuclear convenience juxtaposed with images of suffering, was undoubtedly the band's strongest moment of their first decade. When the same song was used in a Target commercial years later, many fans balked, but one of the main tenets of Devo's existence was to infiltrate the mass media by any means necessary, and to that extent, they certainly succeeded. Devo would have enough in the tank to produce one more noteworthy album (1982's Oh No, It's Devo!) before succumbing to general malaise and label demands, but with the advent of MTV, their fortune was just about to change. This reissue collects remastered versions of all the album tracks, along with demos and b-sides. It's an overlooked record in the band's oeuvre that really should be given more attention than it often receives. [DM]

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  TRACEY THORN
Love and Its Opposite
(Merge)

"Oh, the Divorces!"
"You Are a Lover"

Tracey Thorn finds a new home on Merge, and offers her most personal album yet. While Ewan Pearson is sitting in the production seat again, you won't find any dancefloor thumpers, Love and Its Opposite being a mature set, with acoustic instruments like piano and strings supporting the onetime Everything but the Girl singer's gorgeous, lush melodies. Includes a guest spot from Jens Lekman, who duets with Thorn on a cover of Lee Hazlewood's "Come on Home to Me."

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  DANIEL HIGGS
Say God
(Thrill Jockey)

"Jewel of the East"
"A Message from the Beautiful"

Multi-media artist, poet and, of course, Lungfish's wildman singer Daniel Higgs offers this transcendental collection of bare-boned Gospel songs, poetry and musical interludes, recorded with TVOTR's Dave Sitek. Though much of his solo recordings possess a mystical quality, this set is his most overtly spiritual, Higgs delivering his bizarre and intense shamanistic revelations over little more than the drone of a harmonium or pluck of a banjo, and often just singing alone into the heavenly abyss.

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  SHINDIG!
May-June 2010
(Shindig!)

Brand new jam-packed issue of Shindig Magazine featuring a lengthy article on Paul Revere & the Raiders, an interview with prog pioneers Caravan, great pieces on powerpop kings the Shoes and US garage royalty the Lemon Drops, Alex Chilton remembered, and chats with neo-psych masters Sun Dial and Dead Meadow. Additionally, there's the usual slew of reviews and '60s tidbits, making for yet another stellar read.

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THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS

[AB] Adrian Burkholder
[KC] Kevin Coultas
[MC] Michael Crumsho
[PG] Pamela Garavano-Coolbaugh
[AG] Alexis Georgopoulos
[DG] Daniel Givens
[GH] Gerald Hammill
[DH] Duane Harriott
[KCH] Kandia Crazy Horse
[IQ] Mikey IQ Jones
[JK] Jacob Kaplan
[MK] Michael Klausman
[AK] Andreas Knutsen
[JM] Josh Madell
[DM] Doug Mosurock
[JTr] Jonathan Treneff












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