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   May 26, 2010  
       
   
     
 
 
FEATURED NEW RELEASES
Alps
Beach Fossils
The Lloyd McNeill Quartet
Roy Brooks
Issa Juma and Super Wanyika Stars
Rangda
Rolf Julius
Ty Segall
Wild Nothing
Twin Sister
Dara Puspita
Waylon Jennings
Mount Carmel
Madlib
The Sandwitches
Moby Grape
 
ALSO AVAILABLE
The Jayhawks
Clubroot
Helios

VINYL PRESSING
Jeff Eubanks

BACK IN STOCK
Kurt Vile (Back in Print)
Robert Lester Folsom

All of this week's new arrivals.

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MAY Sun 30 Mon 31 Tues 01 Wed 02 Thurs 03 Fri 04 Sat 05




  WIN TICKETS TO THE TWILIGHT SAD & MONO
Scotland's Twilight Sad will be bringing their powerful, brooding pop sounds to the Bowery Ballroom stage this Sunday, performing along with Japanese noise-rockers MONO. Other Music has two pairs of tickets to give away to this epic bill, courtesy of Twilight Sad's label, FatCat Records, and to enter just email contest@othermusic.com. We'll notify the two winners this Friday.

SUNDAY, MAY 30
BOWERY BALLROOM: 6 Delancey Street NYC

 
   
   
 
 
MAY/JUN Sun 30 Mon 31 Tues 01 Wed 02 Thurs 03 Fri 04 Sat 05




  TICKET GIVE-AWAY TO ATHLETE
Other Music is giving away two pairs of tickets to see England's Athlete, who will be performing in the NY/NJ area for two evenings in support of their much-acclaimed new album, Black Swan. To enter for tickets to their Hoboken show at Maxwell's on Monday, May 31, email giveaway@othermusic.com, and for the following night at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC on Tuesday, June 1, email tickets@othermusic.com. We'll notify the two winners this Friday, good luck!

MONDAY, MAY 31
MAXWELL'S: 1039 Washington St. (at 11th) Hoboken, NJ

TUESDAY, JUNE 1
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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  ALPS
Le Voyage
(Type)

"Crossing the Sands"
"Telepathe"

A stunning tour de force of rustic Americana, dirty French psychedelics, and German Kraut buzz, instrumental trio the Alps manage to take the listener on an aural adventure, laidback yet expansive, living up to every facet of its ambitious title. On Le Voyage, they spin ten near-perfect soundscapes out of musical threads that span multiple decades, nations, and genres, yet distill them all into a moment of beauty as melancholic, sexy, and hypnotic as an epic sunset. Orchestral grandeur rubs up against pulsating rhythm beds, musique concrete sound collage mingles with psychedelic drone, and the entire record breathes with a cinematic air and a throbbing low-end that recalls the sensuality of Gainsbourg and Vannier, the creepy dread of Goblin, and the hazy pastoralist dreams of Popol Vuh. I've been absolutely floored by this album since my first listen; I discover new details with each spin, and it's one of those records that, whenever it plays here in the store, commands the attention of anyone shopping and forces them all to inquire about its origins. How much more hyperbolic praise do I need to dish out? I'll stop here; the music simply speaks for itself, and I won't hesitate in saying that this is not only one of the year's best, most beautiful albums, but is also a high watermark in the Type Records catalogue -- and looking at the intense winning streak they've been riding, that's really saying something. Absolutely highest recommendation!! [IQ]

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  BEACH FOSSILS
Beach Fossils
(Captured Tracks)

"The Horse"
"Twelve Roses"

The album cover of Beach Fossils' self-titled debut is smarter and more appropriate for a modern day tide-washed pop project than you would at first think. It's a simple picture of peeling paint, almost nauseatingly white and reminiscent of walls under fluorescent lights. The many excellent lo-fi and sixties-oriented bands pumping out the nostalgia, like Best Coast, Dum Dum Girls, Real Estate, and Woods, know that most people are not cruising down the California coast blasting these songs. Their audiences are most likely stuck inside of offices that look like Beach Fossils' album cover, gently bobbing their heads to the fuzzy sweetness in their ears and waiting to punch the clock.

Beach Fossils certainly does continue the recent string of blissed-out pop records that could as readily start your morning, carry your workday, or happily blast from a rooftop barbecue, but this Brooklyn trio doesn't necessarily want to fit in with their contemporaries. Instead of verses, choruses, and bridges, main man Dustin Payseur and his band will cheerfully ride one hazy, gorgeous riff right into the sunset; the drums, once wound up and let go, rarely deviate from course for three minutes; the guitar lines, once introduced, never really disappear. Over and over, Payseur piles or loops another brilliant idea onto the previous one, threatening to wash the listener away with so much momentum. Like a great New Order song, the best riffs stick around, and Beach Fossils are geniuses with those earworms, as on opener "Sometimes," which utilizes a snaky 16-bar guitar line as a rhythm track for the entire three-minute duration of the song. What characterizes their best songs, like "Youth," "The Golden Age," and "Window View," is a potent blend of youthful vigor, a tinge of melancholy, and the sense that even they know that summer ends, or that after the weekend, you've got to punch that clock and get back to the whitewashed office. But for 34-minutes or so, Beach Fossils pulls you out of your world and into its own, and damn if it isn't a wonderful ride. [MS]

Order CD by Texting "omcdbeachbeach" to 767825
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PLEASE NOTE: The LP is a limited-pressed, silk-screened, hand-numbered version with clear vinyl. Available to ship at the end of this week.
 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

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  LLOYD MCNEILL QUARTET
Asha
(Universal Sounds)

"Asha"
"Dig Where Dat's At!"


ROY BROOKS AND THE ARTISTIC TRUTH
Ethnic Expressions
(Jazzman)

"The Smart Set"
"The Last Prophet"

It's a huge week for jazz reissues, with two absolutely stunning and impossibly scarce artifacts from the heyday of the D.I.Y. private-jazz scene. First up is Lloyd McNeill's self-released debut LP from 1969, Asha. McNeill is a true renaissance man, a painter, photographer, poet, civil rights activist, composer, flautist and teacher who has been at NYU for many years; when I first moved to New York you could still occasionally score copies of several of his great later albums after he'd dropped them off at places like Mercer St. Books, and in fact when I still lived in New York until recently, would see him having coffee nearly every morning at a spot about two blocks away from the shop. Isn't New York awesome? Anyway, I can't recommend this LP enough, extremely flowing jazz performed with eastern and Latin accents that is compulsively listenable. He's got such a gorgeous, spacious tone on his flute, which is just beautifully offset by the loping, modal grooves of his cohorts. There's a fine balance throughout between exotic shades of darkness and the fine solar rays of a glorious summer afternoon; it's a major album by a mostly unsung genius and I cannot recommend it heartily enough.

Recorded and released four years later, we come to drummer, percussionist, and composer Roy Brooks' Ethnic Expressions, a seminal spiritual jazz set recorded live at Small's Paradise, and pressed in a miniscule quantity by the small New York indie label Im-Hotep. I'm not exaggerating when I say people go crazy for this LP, as it's considered a holy grail item among jazz connoisseurs not only for its scarcity, but for the extraordinary level of playing throughout. Brooks was a pretty in demand session drummer throughout the sixties on many a soul jazz LP, and spent a stretch with Charles Mingus in the year prior to this release. Perhaps that's where a bit of the massiveness here comes from, with roiling stretches of loose but still tightly controlled playing that continually percolates with joy and soul. He's got the cream of New York City's jazz-loft scene to assist, people like Hamiet Bluiet, Olu Dara, Joe Bonner, not to mention the outstanding bass playing of jazz legend Reggie Workman. In some ways it's an artifact of its time, and yet the glory and power of the playing here simply cannot be denied. [MK]

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  ISSA JUMA AND SUPER WANYIKA STARS
World Defeats the Grandfathers - Swinging Swahili Rumba 1982-1986
(Sterns)

"Barua"
"Wacha Waseme"

The summer jams keep heating up, the Afro jams keep tearing it up, and this week we've got a great compilation that combines a bit of the best of both worlds. This stellar collection of Swahili rumba bangers by Tanzanian singer and bandleader Issa Juma gives ample proof of his talents as an African collusionist -- on these nine tracks dating between 1982 and '86, he blends the weightless guitar acrobatics of the Congolese sound with the 4/4 throb of Kenyan benga, topped off by lovely, uplifting vocal harmonies and chants. The horns add a bit of funk flavor, and this overall sound went on to pretty much define the essence of Kenyan popular music during this period. The liner notes to this set give a bit of Juma's background, as well as lyric translations and recording dates. This one's a great representation of a sound we don't get much of here at the shop; Kenyan benga and Swahili rumba jams are not particularly easy to come by on CD these days, especially at this level of quality and care. For that reason alone, I can't recommend this jam enough. Have enough Congolese sets in your collection and want a little more bounce to the ounce? Look no further, people. What are the magic words? Oh yeah, that's right: AFRO JAM OF THE WEEK! [IQ]

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  RANGDA
False Flag
(Drag City)

"Bull Lore"
"Serrated Edges"

The debut album by this dream trio, comprised of Richard Bishop, Ben Chasny and Chris Corsano, announces its arrival with the explosive "Waldorf Hysteria," but there's much more to False Flag than three of the most talented players of the new-psych/noise/improv scene facing off for a blowout session. "Bull Lore" quickly announces that this is something a bit different, as searing guitar leads are carefully placed over a Sabbath-esque dirge. It's refreshing to hear Corsano play in a more rock context here, after many recent free jazz outings, and the album achieves a deft balance between bombast and clarity. It's not at all the kind of thrown-together meet up that you might expect three folks from such far-flung locales to have produced. Quite a variety of approaches are represented in just under 40 minutes, and the trio never outstays its welcome.

"Fist Family" features Corsano's trademarked approach of throwing so much energy at his drum kit that it sounds like three drummers, as his rapid-fire tom and cymbal flail is perfectly contrasted by the restrained wailing tones of both guitarists. "Serrated Edges" is another short, energetic blast, this time featuring the kind of stop-on-a-dime moments that made Sun City Girls seem as if they shared one brain. But Bishop and Chasny are both known for being able to let rip as well as play in a more plaintive, sparse style. The latter is on display in both the reflective "Sarcophagi" and the nearly side-long "Plain of Jars." This epic brings together the various strands present throughout the album, alternating between sections of rolling, thunderous free wail and expressive, melodic resolve. These three players are experienced enough to know how to complement one another's gestures, with no one voice dominating the proceedings. False Flag has proven well worth the wait, and is a standout in the discographies of all three musicians. [MM]

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  ROLF JULIUS
Music for the Ears
(Western Vinyl)

"Song from the Past"
"Music on Two High Poles"

A very, very welcome disc here, being that I believe this is the first ever domestic release of recordings from the remarkable German sound/installation artist Rolf Julius. In the late nineties Editions RZ issued a fantastic series of discs by this important figure, but they've been long out of print, and Western Vinyl has now thankfully stepped in and plan on doing a slew of releases on this incredibly interesting man and his completely unique approach to music and art making. Starting in the late seventies, and with a disparate array of influences spanning minimalism and the Fluxus movement, to John Cage and Morton Feldman, Julius began planning site-specific installations in outdoor environments and discrete locations in galleries, using analog tapes, speaker wire, small speakers, stones, clay pots, dust, wind instruments, and other diverse and unlikely sculptural elements to create what he dubbed "Small Music" -- an at times almost Zen-like exploration of sound in relation to silence and the ways in which they alter our sense of perception.

This inaugural release, Music for the Ears, is the aural document of two of Julius' early installations, entitled "Song from the Past" and "Music on Two High Poles," the playing time of each running over twenty-five minutes. The first piece is the quieter of the two, with some sort of wind instrument, perhaps a flute, or maybe even simply a bottle, providing a hushed and sustained tone interspersed with a fleeting sense of melody that alternates with long gaps of silence. Musically, the effect is almost akin to the sounds of loons you'd hear on some mist-covered lake in the morning, being extremely intimate yet nevertheless faintly distant. The silence between each sustained breath of sound creates an interesting sensation in the listener born of the tension that those moments of reflection and anticipation create. The second piece, "Music on Two High Poles," more forcefully enters the listener's consciousness, with long, droning sustained patterns of sound created with a harmonium or bagpipes, perhaps. For a work that was realized in the open air, it's a remarkably great headphone listen, as brittle and slightly astringent pieces of the whole crackle into and out of the main flow of sound. Both are brilliantly realized and engrossing pieces of music, and we can't wait to see what Western Vinyl comes out with from Julius next. [MK]

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  TY SEGALL
Melted
(Goner)

"Caesar"
"My Sunshine"

If you've been paying attention it probably won't come as a surprise that this record is as good as it is, but if you've managed to be unaware of Ty or his music until now, expect to be blown away at how much fun it is. A lot of ink spilled about the guy is often focused on his age, and while he is young and all, it should be noted that Ty Segall is closing in on a ten-year career in music. Because of that he has done more than his fair share of growing up on record and he occasionally succumbs to the more more more school of thought practiced by his friend John Dwyer of the Oh Sees. However, Ty does seem to hold the best of the best for his proper records, which keep getting better and better. The core of the album is still a one-man affair, but lots of friends drop in and add to the party, and while there are tons of blown-out garage stompers, don't be surprised to find them right up against acoustic guitars and the occasional psychedelic flourish. With more fully realized songs than ever before, the added dimensions only heighten the enjoyment. Some garage rock records seem to be suited for nights full of action and beer, but this one seems to be tailor-made for bright sunny afternoons with time to kill. It is a welcome change and well worth your time. [DMa]

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WILD NOTHING
Gemini
(Captured Tracks)

"O, Lilac"
"Summer Holiday"

Like the Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Wild Nothing wistfully refashion the sonic textures of the 1980s for their own purposes -- lovingly and painstakingly recreating the chirpy reverb of Johnny Marr's guitar, the Phil Collins-trademarked gunshot snare drum sound, and that Christmas-y synthesizer bleat that serves as a cue for the heartwarming moments of most John Hughes movies. But unlike the Pains, who unabashedly wear their influences on their sleeves, the Nothing's Jack Tatum uses the templates of the eighties as a foundation, not a finish line -- the result is a sound at once familiar but remarkably fresh and innovative, and a pleasant hi-fi surprise from Captured Tracks, a label better known for widely distributing tape hiss.

The excellent album opener, "Lived in Dreams," plops you smack in the middle of happy-sad night at your local bar, but perhaps the best starting point is the second track, "Summer Holiday," a four-minute celebration of teenage energy and joy, whose ringing hooks are so intoxicating that the song almost threatens to overpower the rest of the album. The other standout, "Bored Games," sounds like a "Temptation" remix, with its "dance to me!" electronic drums, and the chiming guitar accents that lurk around every corner.

As a label, Captured Tracks can be pigeonholed for its raw aesthetic and sandblasted surface sound. But with Wild Nothing, the label has found an act that maintains the lo-fi sensibility of the label, but with a shinier, more expansive palette. Nothing about Tatum's music is small, but no detail is overlooked either. From the title of penultimate track "Our Composition Book," to the just-right reverb on the guitar, and that bass line that seems to be on poppers, Gemini plays like an extended love letter to the entire Slumberland catalog and the many '80s bands who pioneered those sounds, but none of it sounds played out either. [MS]

Order CD by Texting "omcdwildgemini" to 767825
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PLEASE NOTE: The LP is a limited-pressed, silk-screened, hand-numbered version with clear vinyl. Available to ship at the end of this week.

 
         
   
   

 

 

     
 

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  TWIN SISTER
Color Your Life
(Infinite Best)

"Lady Daydream"
"All Around and Away We Go"

The second little record from this Brooklyn quintet, they are one of those rare groups these days who know their limits, take their time, and will release a full-length when they are damn well ready. In the meantime, we have this wonderful new EP, a woozy, dreamy summer concoction that will tide us over for a bit. The center of their sound is Andrea Estella's breathy yet powerful voice, which hovers above the music like a bird on the wind. Her intimate and warm singing is made all the more engaging because she does not sugar-coat her delivery, letting the edges show sometimes on what could be too dreamy a concoction; the natural beauty of her voice would lead many down a road of gossamer haze. And the band (and production) also like to show their humanity, in all the best ways. I've seen this crew compared to Stereolab several times, and while they do at times employ a similar keyboard wash and Krautrock-inspired rhythmic churn, Twin Sister don't strive for the sunny sheen that the 'Lab employ on their note-perfect productions. The long instrumental passages (and the six-minute ambient swirl of "Galaxy Plateau") are as dynamic, engaging and moody as Estella's broken-hearted vocals, and the combination makes for some great and original sounds from a definite band to watch -- and hear! Recommended. [JM]

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  DARA PUSPITA
1966 to 1968
(Sublime Frequencies)

"Musafir Cinta"
"Lihat Adikku"

Even though most garage rock connoisseurs have broadened their horizons significantly enough to survey the sound as it circled the globe in the mid-to-late 1960s, only a (relatively) minor amount of attention has been paid to Dara Puspita (a/k/a Flower Girls). An all-female band from Indonesia, this foursome rose to fame in their home country and even managed to tour extensively in Europe, all the while releasing a bunch of albums and singles during their existence. Following on the heels of Sublime Frequencies' collection of the excellent Koes Bersaudara, Dara Puspita 1966-1968 gathers 26 tracks from the four LPs crafted by the band's original lineup, providing an effective survey of this strangely little-heard group's work.

Regarded as one of the first female bands to sing and play their own instruments in Indonesia, Dara Puspita sprang to life in a political climate that wasn't exactly hospitable to rock 'n' roll, finding themselves on the receiving end of government interrogations before the climate changed to welcome the approach of Western music. Wildly popular, this collection easily shows why, as even some forty years later the energy and ebullient passion of their performances hardly seems dulled. Starting with opener "Pip Pip Yeah," Dara Puspita bound with abandon through each and every track here. Though the moves they pull from garage, blues, and surf rock will undoubtedly be familiar to most, tracks like "Puyaili (Thai Folk Song)" and "Mabuk Laut (Sea Sick)" pulse with a nimble rhythm all their own. More than just going through the rock motions as mere imitators of Western musicians, these ladies effectively managed to translate the joy of expressing their freedom to perform in a post-communist nation to wax, which is something few of their contemporaries could ever boast! [MC]

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  WAYLON JENNINGS
The Dark Side of Fame
(Omni)

"Just to Satisfy You"
"(I'd Be) A Legend in My Time"

Waylon Jennings, light of my life, swaggers and sways somewhere in my thoughts and through my speakers at least for an hour of every day. Whether it's his honky tonk boot-stomping classics from the '70s or the earlier country kitsch tracks he started solo with -- after the tragic plane crash on February 3, 1959 that killed Buddy Holly (as well as Ritchie Valens and "The Big Bopper" J.P. Richardson), and ended Jennings' romp as the bass player in the Crickets -- his recordings all have their time and place and reveal some history in Waymore's life-spanning career, defining and redefining country music with every new sound and image he took on. That last statement I will admit is not only true for Jennings but also for his other Highwaymen outlaw pals, who have each created their own defining country classics and their own places in our minds and hearts.

But what is fascinating about Jennings, unlike Nelson, Kristofferson or Cash, is that while Jennings is the voice of so many pivotal songs, he was rarely the songwriter of them. This lies true throughout The Dark Side of Fame, this great new collection out on Omni Recording Company, which includes some very recognizable cuts penned by other songwriters (Joe South's "Games People Play" and Kristofferson's "Sunday Morning Coming Down") amongst the 28 tracks. Culled from Jennings recordings originally released between '66 and '71 -- prior to his masterpieces Lonesome, On'ry and Mean and Honky Tonk Heroes, but right on the cusp of where his image, the songs, and everything that makes him so iconic fell into place -- some of these tracks were in fact recorded in the Nashville studio system that Jennings would soon famously buck. Although familiar with many of these songs, this was the first I have heard them paired with that husky croon of Jennings and for the most part his fine baritone brightens every word it picks up. Real heartbreakers come out here one after another; love lost, hard living, tragic death, and of course the lonesome life that comes with being a singer of sad songs, no one tells 'em like Waylon does, and paired with subtle strings and blazing harmonicas, the real feeling of each story comes across with vivid sorrow and longing.

We still get a few barn burners; "Just to Satisfy You," co-written by Jennings/Bowman and also the title track of his '69 album on RCA, remains one of my absolute favorites of his career. Also of note, we have his duet with Lee Hazlewood, "Rock, Salt and Nails," which keeps a mid-pace shuffle as the two voices work surprisingly well off each other with Hazlewood's effortless candor balancing out Jennings' polished bravado, making quite a pair to imagine in the studio together. Although this is most likely not the place to begin exploring this essential American artist, The Dark Side of Fame still merits purchase for those already in possession of the aforementioned early-'70s albums (also available at OM -- if don't have yet get 'em now) or really anyone with an ear for tender ballads, Nashville songwriters, or looking to get deeper into the history of country music. [AC]

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  MOUNT CARMEL
Mount Carmel
(Siltbreeze)

"Livin' Like I Wanna"
"Sacksburg"

First of all we should get this out of the way. This record is a straight-up blues-rock affair. That seems like a pretty lightweight sentence, but for a label that really made an impression on folks with releases by the Dead C, Times New Viking, the Shadow Ring, etc. -- which have been draped in fuzz and grime and in many cases barely cling to any recognizable song structure -- to go so far the other way, well it's a little bit of a shock. However, when you get down to it the real shock is just how good the record is. The two brothers and the other dude who make up Columbus, Ohio's Mount Carmel hit the 70's British blues nail on the head so many times over that it is easy to forget that they come not only from the low-fi/shitgaze capital of the USA, but also from the home to one of the largest universities in the country. Seriously, it is an endless sea of bros icing bros in between frat parties and Jersey Shore look-alike contests. So for these dudes to have created something so out of time and out of step with all scenes is downright unbelievable. There is not a note on the record to suggest that it is not 1973 yet there isn't anything to suggest that they aren't living in the now. Expertly captured on tape by Mike "Rep" Hummel and Adam Smith (co-head honcho of Columbus Discount Records), their work goes a long way, as they manage to make the album sound nice and fuzzy warm and big but not in your face. It all adds up to a record that invites repeated listens and before you know it the songs will be so ingrained in your brain that you might start thinking you've been listening to them since 1973. [DMa]

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  MADLIB
Medicine Show #5: The History of the Loop Digga
(MMS)

"Episode XVIII"
"Really Days"

Before he was Madlib, the Beat Konducta, Quasimoto, DJ Rels, and half of both Madvillian and Jaylib, Otis Jackson Jr. was known as the Loop Digga, producer and rapper for the Lootpack crew. Volume five in Madlib's increasingly expansive and diverse Medicine Show series chronicles the Loop Digga's unreleased productions throughout the 1990s. These 34 tracks begin to unravel the true-life comic book figure Madlib has become, with short snippets of loop-based grooves dug up from forgotten soul, jazz, and funk LPs, along with a wealth of movie dialogue and incidental narration. (Dudley Perkins gives his classic "You are listening to a Madlib invasion" throughout.) Birthed during the golden era of hip-hop, the beats are reminiscent of the sampledelic creations of Pete Rock, DJ Premier, and Prince Paul -- pure head-nodding bass bumps, neck-snapping snare hits, and a movie junkie's closet full of VHS tapes waiting to be re-appropriated. Like a time capsule of lost West Coast hip-hop history, this is a collection of leftfield bedroom beats from a young and hungry producer crafting his unique skills. Madlib has never been short on imagination, and although lots of his tracks last less than a minute, in those brief moments he can create a whole film -- and a soundtrack too. Most of the tracks are numbered episodes, showing the storyline aesthetic he would go on to fully develop with his Beat Konducta persona and his forthcoming collaboration with Guilty Simpson. A great collection, but this one no doubt is mostly for his die-hard followers, and works well as a backpacker-friendly, not-so-old-school beat tape. [DG]

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  THE SANDWITCHES
How to Make Ambient Sadcake
(Turn Up)

"No No"
"Kiss My Feet"

Hailing from San Francisco, which is quickly becoming this country's rock and roll revival capital, the Sandwitches are much better than their name. They're loose like the Smith Westerns, but star-crossed with Buddy Holly and thrown through the gender-bender machine. There's something wildly fun and inherently awesome about an all-girl pop group, but the mysterious gals who make up the Sandwitches shy away from the snarl and fuzz that characterize contemporaries like the Vivian Girls and Dum Dum Girls -- when it comes down to the structures and the vibe, the Sandwitches come across like Zooey Deschanel's bad older sisters. Their best songs like "Back to the Sea," "Stranger's Shadow," and "The Revisionist" possess a jaunty bar-room brawl swagger, but run through a fritzed-out Danelectro instead of a lap steel. More "la-de-da's" than you can shake your shins at, it's easy to get a little caught up in How to Make Ambient Sadcake's twisted sock hop spirit. [MS]

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  MOBY GRAPE
Live
(Sundazed)

"Ain't No Use (Avalon 67)"
"I Am Not Willing"

The Sundazed label's rehab of the Moby Grape catalog may have hit a snag or two as decades-old legal hassles reared their heads and recalled their fantastic reissues of the band's studio records, but Sundazed carried on not only with the excellent outtakes compilation, The Place and The Time, but now with this fantastic set of previously unreleased live recordings. It's testament to the truth behind the hype and praise showered on this band that these odds and ends are in fact so essential, and the greatness of these musicians is proven to be more than smoke and mirrors as they burn through a set of early material at the Avalon Ballroom in 1967. They are on fire, tight as can be one moment and free and fluid the next -- real magical stuff that few bands ever achieve. You also get the long lost full set from the Monterey Pop Festival (also '67); their short set early on the second day must have been a bitch to try to follow, ending with an amazing version of "Omaha." A 1969 set for Dutch radio that starts with a smoldering version of "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" doesn't sound like a band on their last legs at all as they still hit all their marks, and once again close with "Omaha," but this time they take a nice improvisational detour in the middle before coming back in for the kill. All of the would be more than enough to get me to wholeheartedly tell you that you need this, but the real killer is the 1966 Skip Spence mammoth jam prophetically titled "Dark Magic." Loose and free, it is a 17-minute improvisational trip that adds even more to their already considerable legacy, and although it all ended so badly the mind reels at what they would have done with this thing in the studio. Dark Magic indeed. [DMa]

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$11.99
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  THE JAYHAWKS
The Jayhawks - a/k/a The Bunkhouse Album
(Lost Highway)

"Let the Critics Wonder"
"The Liquor Store Came First"

This long-overdue reissue of the Jayhawks 1986 debut shows a very different band than the one you may know and love today. Even close to a quarter-century back, they were pickin' and a singin' through the alt-country songbook, but this was back when Mark Olson still accounted for half of the Jayhawks' creative force, and one listen here will remind you of how besotted Olson and partner Gary Louris were at that point with the legacy of Gram Parsons and the rest of the '60s/'70s L.A. country-rock scene. A bit heavier and less refined than the sounds of the group's 1992 classic Hollywood Town Hall, but still well worth a listen.

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$14.99
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  CLUBROOT
II: MMX
(Lo Dubs)

Deep, deep dubstep that references a diverse cross-section of artists, from Burial to Muslimgauze, drenched in reverb, full of organic ambience and found sound, and oftentimes truly unsettling; there is a track called "Cherubs Cry," do you get where this is coming from yet? Limited-edition two-CD version.

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HELIOS
Unleft
(Unseen)

A collection of b-sides and assorted odd tracks from Portland-based electronica experimenter Keith Keniff. Culled from more than ten years of recordings, this stuff ranges from ambient to hazy downtempo to reverbed guitar beauty, but still manages to flow from start to finish.

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$6.99 MP3

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  JEFF EUBANK
A Street Called Straight
(Drag City / Yoga Records)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

A Street Called Straight is the true definition of a "lost album." The sole output of Kansas City native Jeff Eubank, this platter of light-rock AM gold was recorded for the most part in the early '80s after Eubank spent a disheartening stint as an L.A. session guitarist. He managed to take some of the hazy west coast sunshine vibes back home with him, but before the record could see proper release, an unexpected pregnancy and resultant health complications for his wife put a 25-year hold on any rock and roll dreams. Pretty dark back story, but strangely fitting to the naive pop sounds made right before things got kinda bleak. The songs here are leaning less toward isolated basement genius vibes and much more like the smalltown kid too good-natured to actually make it, though he's every bit as talented as anything out there. Glorious saccharine harmonies and lush acoustic arrangements, always one toke under the line for stoner folk but one level of production short of radio schmaltz. An intensely satisfying and intimate listen, swooping from one territory to the next abruptly. The album starts in some Fred Neil via Al Stewart space and by the end is dabbling with melancholic subtly synthy psych-folk that could serve as some weird missing link between David Crosby's solo work and the Bobb Trimble records. [FT]

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$17.99
LP w/MP3

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  KURT VILE
God Is Saying This to You...
(Mexican Summer)

Philly boy Kurt Vile was responsible for my favorite record in 2008, a moody, mostly lo-fi disc of gems called Constant Hitmaker that showcased his innate knack for low-slung pop songs created with contemplative guitar, moody drones, and a spare drum machine or two. Apparently, bigger labels out there are lining up to rescue the guy from the instant obscurity that comes with releasing an album on Gulcher, but in the meantime, he's got plenty to keep him busy, with three new releases arriving almost on top of each other. Dropping almost simultaneously alongside The Hunchback, a punched-up EP that shows his ability to lead a full-throated rock band, God Is Saying This to You... collects a bunch of intimate tracks recorded over the past few years.

Those who fell hard for Constant Hitmaker will be equally smitten with this limited edition LP, as it's chock full of the modest numbers that made his debut so memorable. Held mostly to intricately plucked acoustics, warm guitar and synth tones, and that ever-so-stoned voice of his, tracks like the gorgeous "My Sympathy" and "Can't Come" are more earnestly folky than anything he's attempted before, while pieces like "Beach on the Moon" and "My Best Friends" douse slightly ominous and slack-jawed pop moves with liberal doses of reverb that make for some truly haunting moments. Closing out with a pretty endearing stab at No Pussyfooting-era Robert Fripp, this collection from the young Vile is all the more proof that he's one to watch. [MC]

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  ROBERT LESTER FOLSOM
Music and Dreams
(Mexican Summer / Yoga Records)

Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store

Recorded in '76, this private press LP came to be after Robert Lester Folsom went into a studio in Atlanta to record a demo for one song. The producer was so impressed with Folsom's tune that he encouraged him to come back and record more tracks, which resulted in Music and Dreams. Stylistically, it's straight outta the mellow gold school of '70s folk rock. CS&N, Todd Rundgren and Steve Miller are all good references, but there's also a mysterious vibe to the tunes (a la Merrell Fankhauser) and a healthy dose of yacht rock thrown in as well. Highlights include the lovely title track and the earnest ballad "Please Don't Forget Me." There's a lot of stylistic variety here, including a couple of jazzy instrumentals and a full on blast of Tom Petty-esque power pop ("Blues Stay Away"). All in all, Music and Dreams is a pretty solid and lovely album that'll appeal to fans of the aforementioned. It ain't avant/savant rock by any means, it's simply a great record that is "outside" simply by default...and that's just fine with us. [DH]

Order LP by Texting "omcdrobertmusic" to 767825
 
         
   
   
   
      
   
         
  All of this week's new arrivals.

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THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS

[AC] Amanda Colbenson
[MC] Michael Crumsho
[DG] Daniel Givens
[DH] Duane Harriott
[IQ] Mikey IQ Jones
[MK] Michael Klausman
[JM] Josh Madell
[DMa] Dave Martin
[MM] Marc Moeller
[MS] Michael Stasiak
[FT] Fred Thomas


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- all of us at Other Music

 
         
   
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