November 3, 2011

		FEATURED NEW RELEASES Blue Daisy James Blake James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg The Beach Boys (Smile Sessions) The Soft Moon Chris Watson Dinosaur L (4LP Box Set) Four Tet (Fabriclive 59 mix) Lee "Scratch" Perry Xeno & Oaklander In Trance 95 (Minimal Wave LP) Blouse Rheingold The Strange Boys Justice Gary Wilson Pekka Airaksinen     Taj Mahal Travellers The Cover Art of Studio One (Book) Ugly Things (Issue #32) ALSO AVAILABLE Panda Bear (Ltd. Tomboy 4LP Box) Florence + the Machine NOW ON VINYL Erkin Koray Follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/othermusicnyc Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/othermusic

		NOV Sun 30 Mon 31 Tues 01 Wed 02 Thurs 03 Fri 04 Sat 05   WIN TICKETS TO THE BUNKER FEAT: DIFFERENT WORLD, DJ JUS-ED & MARC SCHNEIDER You know that the Bunker is the best party in NYC for cutting edge techno and minimal sounds, and we are always excited to give away some tickets for their blowouts at Public Assembly. We have two pairs to offer for this Friday's edition, featuring an eight-hour set from Claude Young and Takasi Nakajima a/k/a Different World in the back room, and in the front, DJ Jus-Ed and Marc Schneider. Enter right away by emailing giveaway@othermusic.com. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 4 THE BUNKER @ PUBLIC ASSEMBLY: 70 N. 6th Street, Williamsburg, BKLN

		NOV Sun 06 Mon 07 Tues 08 Wed 09 Thurs 10 Fri 11 Sat 12   PRE-SCREENING RECEPTION FOR BETTER THAN SOMETHING: JAY REATARD If you are a longtime reader of this update, you know that Other Music loved the music of Jay Reatard, and with his tragic death last year, we lost not just an incredibly talented and thrilling artist, but also an outsized, incendiary personality who never failed to cause a reaction wherever he went. As such, Jay's too-short life and career left us with so many unanswered questions, and you can be sure that we will be in the front row for the NYC premiere of Better Than Something: Jay Reatard, the new feature-length documentary with two screenings at IFC, Friday the 4th at midnight, and Tuesday the 8th at 8:30. And before the Tuesday showing, we'll be hosting an informal meet-up at the store from 6 to 8pm, with Alix Brown from Jay's band Angry Angles DJing, free PBR (yes, Jay's favorite), and a chance to meet some of the folks behind this well-reviewed new documentary. Join us! TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8 (6PM-8PM) Other Music: 15 East 4th Street, NYC

		NOV Sun 06 Mon 07 Tues 08 Wed 09 Thurs 10 Fri 11 Sat 12   ENTER TO WIN SCRATCH ACID / KURT VILE TICKETS Courtesy of our friends at Bowery Presents, we have some tickets available for a couple of top-shelf shows next week at Webster Hall. First, on Monday, NYC will be graced by a visit from recently reformed Austin legends Scratch Acid. If you are not already a fan of this hugely influential mid-'80s band (which included half of the Jesus Lizard and two-thirds of Rapeman), it's not too late to say you were -- or better yet, check them out at Webster on the 7th and enjoy! And on Friday the 11th, Kurt Vile & the Violators return to New York, still riding the wave of their excellent Smoke Ring For My Halo LP (deluxe edition now available), with our favorites Widowspeak opening the show, plus recent Matador signing (and former Mexican Summer darlings) the Young. Don't miss it! Enter by emailing tickets@othermusic.com, and make sure to list which show you'd like to see in the subject line. SCRACTCH ACID: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7 KURT VILE & THE VIOLATORS: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11 WEBSTER HALL: 125 East 11th Street, NYC

		$15.99 CD $19.99 LPx2+CD   BLUE DAISY The Sunday Gift (Black Acre) "Descend" "Only for You" Following a series of promising 12" singles released over the past few years, London producer Kwes Darko, better known as Blue Daisy, has delivered a hugely impressive debut full-length. Blending absolutely HEAVY bass weight with a dark, unsettling psychedelic noir atmosphere and a sound that takes cues from dub, Afro-futurist hip-hop, and the dusty grit that's lacking from a fair amount of the UK bass community, with The Sunday Gift, he has created a slice of wicked psychedelic beat science that isn't afraid to let its sharp angles and gritty textures show. Darko places more emphasis on atmosphere and musical craft than on heavy rhythms and pressure, though there's plenty of that to go around as well; he's drawing from a deep instrumental palette here, with everything from chamber strings to barbed-wire guitar distortion rubbing up against thick synth drones and storm clouds of crackle and hiss. There's a deep sensuality blanketing the terror throughout, and the economical use of vocals shows a craft for arrangement; voices enter to wring maximum emotion from bleak scenarios and to provide a cushion of humanity to these musical settings. Fans of Burial, Massive Attack, FlyLo, and King Midas Sound should check this without hesitation; it's a phenomenal debut and proves that it's still possible to come correct with a fresh sound in a scene overflowing with biters and halfwit imitators. This one gets my highest possible recommendation, and if you missed out on that limited mail-order only Burial/Massive Attack 12" that everyone's been frothing over, check this out and let it clean your wounds; this is a full-length that takes the sound of that collab and maps out a complete cityscape with it. Masterful and truly epic. [IQ]

		$19.99 CD   JAMES BLAKE Enough Thunder EP (Atlas) "We Might Feel Unsound" "Fall Creek Boys Choir" (With Bon Iver) James Blake ends his breakout year with this new six-track EP, Enough Thunder, a low-key affair recorded mostly solo at home, with the exception of his live cover of Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You," and the much-discussed Bon Iver collaboration. Like a lone piano man in a smoky London pub, Blake sings to himself, with his soft and sullen young voice; he occasionally accents the piano and voice arrangements with muted synth chords, shooting digital lasers, rubbery bass, or just crackling sonics, yet the overall sound is even more distilled than his debut, focusing on the young singer/producer's songwriting more than anything. Though this is new material, it actually feels like a stark middle ground between his early singles for R&S and his full-length from earlier this year. Distancing himself further from the dubstep sect, and reaching for the Talk Talk crowd, Blake references aesthetics from both, but never really commits to either, existing in a fusion all his own. His use of still air, open space, and that lonesome voice is pure and nicely displayed across the songs, reaching some sort of climax mid-record with the sonic make-out session with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver. Their two heavily effected voices seem almost interchangeable as they bend, ooze, and swoon over one another, and if nothing else, "Fall Creek Boys Choir" cements the notion that this urban British club king and that rural American folk hero have remarkably similar aesthetics. It may not be the strongest track on the record, yet it seems like a gooey center point. My favorite is "We Might Feel Unsound," where Blake pitches his voice up for the intro, sings distantly for a bit, then drops a sparse beat of whipping snares, percolating percussion, and deep bass thumps. It's one of the best tracks he's made since his debut, full of drama, sensuality, tension, AND a dope beat. The EP runs about twenty-five minutes, creating a nice appendix to his self-titled album as well as displaying some of the subtle strengths and apparent weaknesses that make up the young man known as James Blake -- after having a couple of big hits with other people's songs, he is clearly pushing his own songwriting even more than his cutting-edge production talent, though it is hard to deny that the Joni Mitchell track is the clear standout in that department. Recommended not only for the die-hards, this also works as an appropriate starting point for those that have just discovered James Blake. [DG]

		$16.99 LP   JAMES ELKINGTON & NATHAN SALSBURG Avos (Tompkins Square) Is it me, or are acoustic guitar duet records outside of a classical context kind of rare? There's that excellent Richard Crandell and Bill Bartells album we reviewed a few years ago, and of course the superb collaboration between Bert Jansch and John Renbourn that was released stateside as Stepping Stones back in the day, but for the most part it seems to be a fairly neglected concept. Great then to have this instantly beguiling new release on Tompkins Square join the illustrious company noted above, featuring young guitarists James Elkington and Nathan Salsburg. Elkington, of Chicago, was previously in the Zincs, and has a new project he's working on with Janet Bean of Freakwater. Salsburg, of Louisville, KY, had what I considered to be the standout track on Imaginational Anthem Vol. 3, and has a solo acoustic guitar release coming in the near future on No Quarter. He's also been heavily immersed in the Alan Lomax archive, where he's worked for the last decade, and we're lucky to have him grace us as a contributor to our Update from time to time. Despite, or perhaps because of, the geographical distance between the two, there's a palpable sense of ESP and mutual sympathy taking place throughout. One of the things I liked so much about Nathan's track on the I.A. comp was that it refused to sacrifice the tunefulness of the song in favor of chops, and that concept makes up a large part of what is so wonderful about the present album. While both can certainly play, there's a real mindfulness about the compositions that has me continually returning this platter to the turntable -- nothing hurried here, nothing forced, just a lovely, laidback set of songs that reference both American and English folk music traditions in subtle and varying ways. It's always a treat to be impressed with understated virtuosity, instead of being banged over the head with it, and Avos continually delivers on that score. [MK]

		$34.99 CDx2   THE BEACH BOYS The Smile Sessions (Capitol) "Do You Like Worms (Roll Plymouth Rock)" "Cabin Essence" I was a junior in high school when I bought my first SMiLE bootleg; I'd been deep into Pet Sounds and wanted a taste of the mythical next-level recordings that had become legendary as rock and pop music's most famous unreleased album. That initial 2CD bootleg I purchased led me on a scavenger hunt that lasted well over a decade, as I bought LPs, CDs, CDRs, and downloaded assorted fan mixes of the various sessions as they appeared in my orbit. I microscopically studied every page of Dominic Priore's brilliant Look! Listen! Vibrate! SMiLE!, a mammoth scrapbook of press clippings and essays about the events leading up to, surrounding, and falling out from the album's eventual unfinished demise. I was there when Brian Wilson and the Wondermints, with orchestra, presented the NYC debut of a retroactively assembled SMiLE at Carnegie Hall, with the album's lyricist and co-conspirator Van Dyke Parks in attendance. But my obsession effectively ends today, as I sit here listening to this incredible assemblage of the album's labyrinthine recording sessions into the closest any mortal will ever come to a finished product. We can forever mull about whether or not the record would have reached the heights of critical praise that Sgt. Pepper's has received, or whether or not it may have even surpassed those heights. This much is true -- SMiLE remains, and is now finally shown to be, one of the most important, most brilliant pieces of American musical composition and craftsmanship ever recorded. It's astonishing to think that somehow, all of the remaining Beach Boys were able to finally stop bitching at one another long enough to be able to assemble what is the "definitive" version of the album, presented on Disc 1. It's also astonishing to discover just how close to completion the album actually seemed to be; there are vocals here for all the key tracks, many long left as instrumentals on bootlegs, or with later-released vocals added to those boots, long thought to never have had period vocal tracks recorded or found. Tracks I've known for years via expertly-assembled bootlegs are still surprising me, with many small details revealing themselves and with subtle yet key arrangements differing throughout. These arrangements also differ from the versions presented on Brian's solo recording of the album with the Wondermints. The compilers admirably succeed in aiming to please both the casual listener AND the diehards, and remarkably, they found things that not even the most seasoned bootleggers have heard. What's also remarkable, in listening to the expanded sessions documented in Disc-2, is just how deep into the avant-garde Brian Wilson was diving here; tracks will begin with one arrangement before veering into new directions thanks to a seemingly off-the-cuff idea discovered during many sessions of improvisation by the Wrecking Crew at Brian's encouragement. The vocal arrangements here are jaw-dropping, and the excerpted takes for these songs -- later to be heavily spliced into the masters by Wilson -- reveal ample musical riches with much replay value, surprisingly. Simply put, this CD set is absolutely essential. SMiLE remains more important to me than Pet Sounds, for all its masterful brilliance, ever managed to be. This is not only an album of classic songs documenting the history of American expansion and its moralistic downturn which can be appreciated by the casual fan, but it is a treasure trove of evidence of the power of recorded music, to the craft of musical arrangement, and to the simple but unstoppable force of the human imagination. I'll be first to admit that I'm insane about the music collected here, but I truly cannot express how historically important this album is, and how much cultural relevance it surprisingly still holds today, as global commerce and communication irrevocably change the human condition. After all of the drugs, all of the bullshit, all of the meltdowns, and all of the resurrections, there is still only the music, and now we finally have SMiLE to cement the Beach Boys' legacy as true innovators. Everyone needs to hear this, at least once, before they die. Say thank you to Brian Wilson tonight before you go to sleep. [IQ]

		$7.99 CD $10.99 LP $3.99 MP3   THE SOFT MOON Total Decay EP (Captured Tracks) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store West coast desert denizen Luis Vasquez surprised many last year with the debut album of his dark, foreboding, yet enthralling project, the Soft Moon. At precisely the right moment in modern pop history, Vasquez kicked open the sash for a viable, gripping mode of post-Goth expression that sounded as if it would be as comfortable in 1985, opening for Kommunity FK in some black-walled show box on the PCH as it would in 2010, playing in the basement of Monster Island (RIP). With the new four-song EP Total Decay, Vasquez solidifies his stance. All of the songs are more threatening and more direct, channeling Bailter Space through a Sisters of Mercy clone born in the bedroom. The beats are hard, the feedback skin-lifting, and the sense of purpose for the project reaches critical mass. There have been a lot of promising Goth-oriented records this year, but Total Decay stands with Balaclavas' Snake People as the best of the best. [DM]

		$15.99 CD   CHRIS WATSON El Tren Fantasma (Touch) "Chihuahua" "El Tajin; El Dia Y La Noche" In the sound-effects bins of used record stores across the country, you'll often find these beautiful old records documenting the sounds of trains, be it steam engines, passenger trains, or freights. Occasionally, you'll even come across a shop that keeps a devoted "steam" section, with albums bearing enigmatic titles like Titans of the High Iron, Sounds of Steam Locomotives (in multiple volumes no less), Whistles at Cass, and Steam Railroading Under Thundering Skies. I often wonder who buys these things these days -- perhaps old men in overalls and conductors caps, with out-of-use switch lights and crossing gates decorating their front yards? Neil Young? Regardless, I think it's safe to say that the railroad still exerts a powerful effect on our imaginations, and it is with a great amount of pleasure that we find Chris Watson's first solo album in eight years resuscitates this neglected genre with a brilliant aural documentation of a month-long voyage he took by train, and which spanned both coasts of Mexico. Watson is probably the foremost ambient field recordist of our day, with his career post-Cabaret Voltaire spent documenting the sonic footprint of natural landscapes, from the Sahara to the Arctic. As far as I can recollect, however, this is his first album to so prominently feature the byproduct of manmade industry, where heavy, rattling, clanking sounds impose themselves upon the natural environment. On El Tren Fantasma (The Ghost Train), Watson brilliantly distills an epic journey with the concision of a skilled writer, creating a narrative arc that's readily apparent and full of velocity. As ever with Watson, he's managed to capture some truly astonishing sounds, from chaotic train stations, to vast, echo-laden tunnels, to pastoral landscapes dotted with birdsong. Very few releases these days challenge one's perceptions (both figuratively and literally) as a Chris Watson album can, and this is surely one of his best. [MK]

		$59.99 LPx4   DINOSAUR L 24->24 Music - 4LP Box Set (Sleeping Bag) Okay, for all of you Arthur Russell heads, here's a lovely package that should in essence be called The Complete Sleeping Bag Works, or something to that effect. Rather than an expanded edition of Dinosaur L's sole, essential album, we're actually getting everything Russell recorded under assorted pseudonyms for his Sleeping Bag label, all in one package for fanatical consumption, and here we find him exploring the worlds of disco-rock fusion, electro hip-hop sampledelia, cello raga dance meditations, and even a bit of childhood rap. The four LPs of material, presented in a gorgeous hand-screened sleeve replicating the original screened covers of Dinosaur L's 24->24 Music, collects the aforementioned Dino L album, plus the Dinosaur L Francois K-mixed "Go Bang!/Clean on Your Bean" 12", Larry Levan's mix of "In the Corn Belt," the essential Indian Ocean "Schoolbell/Treehouse" 12" (perhaps my all time favorite Russell record), Walter Gibbons' rare mix of "Go Bang!," Felix's "Tiger Stripes/You Can't Hold Me Down" 12", Bonzo Goes to Washington (Arthur & Ned Sublette)'s wicked Ronald Reagan electro cut-up "5 Minutes," and the grade-school rappers of Sounds of JHS 126 Brooklyn's "Chill Pill." Each LP also boasts hand-screened sleeves bearing the Sleeping Bag koala bear logo, and there's a lovely 12"x12" booklet filled with testimonials, essays by Russell biographer Tim Lawrence, and LOADS of lovely Janette Beckman photos, many previously unpublished. This is an absolutely stunning package, but it's important to note that if you've been collecting Traffic's Sleeping Bag reissues over the past few years on vinyl, you're going to have this stuff already; there's sadly nothing here that's not available on their previous reissues. With that being said, many of those releases are no longer available on wax, so if you missed them in the past, here's your chance to get them all in one gorgeous, tidy package. These records are essential documents of Russell's brilliance and I cannot stress how valuable and important this music is in the history of NYC's underground, not to mention how innovative, funky and listenable it still remains. For those of you who are gearing up for the gift-giving season, or those who want all of the Sleeping Bag years in one tidy, lovely package, here it is, numbered and limited, ready for your devouring. Dive in and dance, because seldom do mind-warps as heavy as these come with such dancefloor-demolishing rhythms. [IQ]

		$16.99 CD   FOUR TET Fabriclive 59 (Fabric) "Pulse X" Youngstar (Musical Mob) "Pyramid" Four Tet Kieran Hebden a/k/a Four Tet's installation of the famed DJ series is an intoxicating tribute to the last 15 years of UK leftfield dance music. Hebden dissects choice pieces of old-skool 2-step, speed garage, and broken beats, as well as nu-skool styles like wonky, to create an intricate exploration of the innovative sounds of these genres. What makes all of this hang together is his remarkable ear for melody, each crazy track stitched to the next via intertwining bass lines rather than the standard 4/4 thump. Hebden has additionally added interludes of found-sound recordings of Fabric revelers gathering inside and outside the club; serving as little bumpers, they mark the arcs of a brilliant night out. Standouts of the mix include the broken tech-thump of C++'s "Angie's Fucked" and the otherworldly 2-step of Crazy Baldhead's "First Born," which utilizes ghostly phrases of vintage '80s R&B from Anita Baker. The real high points, however, are the exclusive Four Tet tracks: "Pyramid" is nothing less than a 4/4 banger, accented by a layered sing-songy vocal loop and an updated early-'90s rave shuffle, while album closer "Locked," which was released as a limited 12" earlier this fall, makes for a lovely comedown, with a hypnotic rolling rhythm that sounds like the Pat Metheny Group trying to cover a Three 6 Mafia instrumental. It's a soothing and brilliant way to end one of the best DJ mixes that I've heard all year. Hell, when it comes down to it, this could be the best mix of 2011. Recommended! [DH]

		$15.99 CD $15.99 LP $9.99 MP3   LEE "SCRATCH" PERRY The Return Of Pipecock Jackxon (Honest Jon's) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store Honest Jon's finally reissues an important piece of the puzzle that is Lee "Scratch" Perry's ingenious musical output with 1980's The Return of Pipecock Jackxon. Long legendary as containing the last recordings made at Perry's Black Ark studio before he burned it to the ground, the bulk of the album was recorded in the Ark with the remainder of it completed in a Dutch studio and issued on the small Netherlands label Black Star Liner. The album effectively plays as a continuation of the spiritually minded playfulness of his classic Roast Fish, Collie Weed & Cornbread, with Perry spouting his cryptic Rasta riddles over a more loose-limbed and elastic version of the hazy Black Ark groove. Opener "Bed Jammin'" is an 11-minute(!) reggae precursor to Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing" that has Perry going so far down the rabbit hole that by the time he starts toasting the alphabet halfway through the track, you're chasing after him and singing along without even realizing what's going on. The rest of the album is more concise but equally thrilling, all easy grooves and brilliant ambiances, with Perry in fine voice and top lyrical form. What makes the record so killer in my opinion, though, is the way he manages to combine the classic Black Ark production hallmarks with a peek into an alternate universe where he begins using synths and a subtle touch of electronic accents to bring the Ark into the future, blending dub, soul, and even a bit of new wave flavor before burning it all down and leaving it forever relegated to past history. This album is classic, no question about it, and it's fantastic to finally see it on shelves again after floating in collector limbo for 30 years. Fans of Perry's brilliance need this and if you're not overtly familiar with his history, this is a solid place to begin your journey. After years of Perry's catalogue being rehashed with half-hearted collections and exploitative reissues, it's time to give Honest Jon's three cheers for giving us something real to chew on. This is essential reggae listening, folks. [IQ]

		$11.99 CD $18.99 LP+MP3 $9.99 MP3   XENO & OAKLANDER Sets & Lights (Wierd) "Sets & Lights" "Blue" I've been a longtime fan of Sean McBride's solo project Martial Canterel, but I have to say, he really nails it with Liz Wendelbo and their work as Xeno & Oaklander. McBride is one of the few modern synth producers who really seems to get the minimal synth sound and how to move it in a new direction, creating tracks that are both innovative in their construction and just plain fun to listen to. Obviously well versed in the history of synth music of the last 30 years, he pays homage to the genre with his expert and calculated programming, detached and slightly-theatrical vocal delivery, and the desolate feeling he manages to elicit though the din of all his vintage gear working overtime. The addition of Wendelbo on synths and vocals couldn't be a better match to McBride's aesthetic with her mournful, angelic voice adding a sensuality to these tracks that is totally spot on. Sets & Lights is ultimately a collection of synth-pop songs, but far from it being anything like the mainstream acts of yesteryear, this is the true sound of the underground. Amidst the arpeggiated keyboards and analog drum beats, Xeno & Oaklander touch on classic cold wave, synth wave (of the Italian and Belgian variety), early EBM, and even moments that feel reminiscent of the squelch of Detroit techno. Yet, this isn't just a rehash of the past -- the warm textures the duo create in the layers of keyboards and the crystal-clear production that lets each synth shine through makes for a truly personal sound seldom heard in groups mining the '80s for inspiration. Definitely one of the best releases from Wierd Records, if you've been into reissues from Minimal Wave, Anna Logue, or Dark Entries, you will definitely want to check this out. Likewise, those enamored with the '80s throwback vibes of indie artists like M83, Washed Out, or Neon Indian should give this a whirl to hear how it's really done. [CPa]

		$22.99 LP 180 Gram   IN TRANCE 95 Cities of Steel and Neon (Minimal Wave) This is a seriously excellent blend of melodic synthwave and industrial that could only have happened in Greece and only in its relatively late release year of 1989. Why? Because this duo obviously had a knack for cherry-picking choice elements from all of the quality synthpop and industrial that came before and arranging it in a way quite unlike the typical late-'80s copycats who were flourishing in the UK and US at the time. This record is chock full of styles that didn't quite exist before -- I hear strangely hit-worthy sounds of early Front 242, Nitzer Ebb and D.A.F. (but only more tasteful and without any overdone clunkiness or macho posturing) combined with a very song-oriented Visage/Depeche Mode (but without any candy coating or overblown melodrama). Add to that a pro-sounding, yet no less sincere Vangelis/Aphrodite's Child haze and compositional sense (that I can only attribute to the duo's Greek bloodline) and you have one singularly great LP. As usual, great packaging and mastering job from Minimal Wave. [SM]

		$12.99 CD $12.99 LP+MP3 $9.99 MP3   BLOUSE Blouse (Captured Tracks) "Into Black" "Roses" If Blouse had released nothing more than their much-blogged-about "Into Black" / "Firestarter" single from earlier this year, I'd still be talking about this Portland, OR trio. These two songs were all dreamy, dreary and wistful-- the A-side a perfect melding of Seventeen Seconds/Faith-era Cure and the hazy, yearning pop of Mazzy Star -- and they stood out instantly from the endless wellspring of gray-hued music that's been pouring forth recently from young bedroom Goths. Both of the single's tracks are included here and this, their debut album, further reveals a young band with a firm grasp on both style and songwriting. Though most of Blouse's cues pull from '80s-era synth- and Goth-pop, the group covers a fair amount of ground, moving from chugging cold wave ("Time Travel") and woozy, glo-fi'ed electro-disco ("Videotapes") to sparse, brooding, atmospheric numbers like "They Always Fly Away" and "Ghost Dream" -- these two tracks anchored by the moody bass lines of producer Jacob Portrait (also of Unknown Mortal Orchestra) which recall the Cure's Simon Gallup. Throughout the record, Charlie Hilton's cool, detached vocals complement the icy synths and blurred production, but plenty of emotion still pokes through her melodies; like the best minimal/cold/new wave, a very human sense of longing and heartache melts the chill of the instruments, and it ensures that Blouse are more than mere '80s revivalists. A solid debut and one of my favorite records to come from the Captured Tracks camp this year. [GH]

		$16.99 CD   RHEINGOLD Rheingold (EMI) "Fluss" "International" A German classic, Rheingold's 1980 debut skillfully combined a stripped-down take on the nascent bop of new wave with the exploratory, guitar-driven kosmische sound popularized by Manuel Göttsching's work as Ashra and groups on Sky or Brain Records. Anchored by the bright strumming of power pop and minimal drum machine beats, Rheingold's singular style relies most heavily on the guitar noodlings of the Kraut-scene which swirl in and around buoyant synth lines and Bodo Staiger's talk-sing vocals. Unlike many of their contemporaries who were exploring the more art-damaged end of synth-pop and industrial in Berlin, Rheingold's friendlier sound definitely takes influence from fellow Dusseldorf residents Kraftwerk; the general vibe here has that gentle, shimmering quality of tracks from The Man Machine like "Neon Lights" or "The Model" (albeit with guitars). A coworker also compared Rheingold to Wire, which in a lot of ways makes total sense, but whereas Wire took a more aggressive approach to punk minimalism, Rheingold's spartan aesthetic works to create an easy-going, feel-good base for their kosmische leanings to take flight. This record was a huge hit in Germany upon its release, and though they never made waves in the UK or stateside, their biggest track "Dreiklangsdimensionen" became something of a Balearic beat mainstay and new wave club jam in the more forward-thinking nightspots across Europe in the '80s. This is the 2005 reissue which includes some bonus B-sides and English versions of some of Rheingold's biggest German hits. Fans of Kraftwerk, Neu!, Palais Schaumburg, Der Plan, or anyone with even a passing interest in the sound of late-'70s Germany should definitely check this out. [CPa]

		$12.99 CD $9.99 MP3   THE STRANGE BOYS Live Music (Rough Trade) "Me and You" "My Life Beats Me" After a couple of noisy, bratty rock and roll records on In The Red, the Texas maulers known as the Strange Boys were snapped up by Rough Trade, and they are doing their big-time label right, delivering a more mature, refined take on the same themes they have always explored with their music. Produced By Spoon's Jim Eno, and Mike McHugh (Ty Segal, Mika Miko, Cheap Time), Live Music (no it's not a live record, they just want you to really live the music, man) peels back some of the hiss and haze that enveloped much of the group's earlier stuff, and delivers a soulful, strutting take on the classic blues-rock swagger of the Stones, as updated by Nikki Sudden, the Reigning Sound or any number of San Francisco garage bands. The beauty here is in the details -- it's an old bag of tricks they work with, but when the Strange Boys pull out that honking sax solo, piano run, harmonica riff, or a sweet melodic guitar lead, these tunes take off, and while singer Ryan Sambols may not be the most dynamic blues crooner ever, he's a solid songwriter with a lot of heart, and hey, it's only rock and roll. This is neither the Strange Boys' commercial breakthrough, nor their corporate undoing (yes, in this context Rough Trade actually is THE MAN), but it's probably their best, most consistent record to date, and definitely worth a listen. [JM]

		$13.99 CD $27.99 LPx2+CD   JUSTICE Audio, Video, Disco (Ed Banger) "On n On" "Audio, Video, Disco" Justice ruled music blogs, iPods and dance floors the world over back in 2007 with the huge smash "D.A.N.C.E." off their grandiose debut full-length, which seemed to be the perfect salve for those let down by Daft Punk's then-recent minimalist moves on Human After All. Four years may be a long time for a follow-up, especially given the fickle nature of music fans in the Internet age, but the devotees of funky Parisian electro-rock are a patient bunch, and Audio, Video, Disco has been anxiously awaited. While Gaspard Auge and Xavier de Rosnay still pile everything but the kitchen sink into their productions, here they've wrenched up their prog-rock moves and then polished it all with a heavy '80s sheen. Tracks like "Ohio" and "Civilization" seem more readymade for an arena than a dance floor, with soaring male lead vocals and lots of ascending guitar and keyboard riffing. Even the prog-funk instrumental "Canon" is preceded by a baroque intro that could have been lifted from Jethro Tull sans flute solo. Of course it's all in good fun, after all, when have Justice taken themselves too seriously -- case in point the Queen-meets-Moroder "Brain-Vision," where multi-tracked Brian May-esque guitars trill over a pulsing Italo synth. Elsewhere, songs like the tight electro-funk of "Helix" wouldn't sound out of place on Discovery and, in fact, Justice seem to be borrowing more from Daft Punk's retro-futurist playbook for Audio, Video, Disco than its predecessor -- which is not a bad thing. However, unlike Daft Punk, who are almost universally loved (I'm sure I'm not the only one who's witnessed grandmothers getting down to "One More Time" at a wedding), the music here is as disposable as it is exhilarating, and one can't help but imagine that AVD's widest crossover will be to 30-something-year-old gamers. [GH]

		$17.99 LP $9.99 MP3   GARY WILSON Forgotten Lovers (Feeding Tube) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store MY TOP 3 FAVORITE DESCRIPTIONS OF GARY WILSON'S MUSIC: #3. "Imagine a drunk-ass Elvis Costello singing in a cocktail lounge on the north side of Philly with the Roots backing him up." - Questlove (2003) #2. "Cocktail music Sun Ra would play while leering at a 17-year-old." - Andy Beta #1. "I like it. It's like Steely Dan if they listened to more Blowfly." - Oscar Harriott (my father) Long out of print and never before released on vinyl, this fantastic, 2003-issued collection of Mr. Wilson's early demos, rare 7"s and unreleased tracks recorded between '73 and '81 is finally available again. And for the Gary Wilson enthusiasts who may need more ammunition to stave off the haters who remain, this is it. His creepy stalker image of a teen-skirt-chasin', mannequin-abusing R. Crumb bound in mummy wraps belies the fact Mr. Wilson is an incredibly gifted musician -- not to mention the dude can swing like a mutha. The porno instrumental jazz-funk of "Dreams," "Another Galaxy" and "Soul Travel" could be the soundtrack to a grainy, celluloid skin-flick encounter, laid down by crack session men at the CTI studios, and not the compositions of a then 17-year-old high school graduate, recorded in the basement of his house. In addition, there's the killer "Sick Trip," "Forgotten Lovers" and "You Took Me for a Walk into My Mirror," three amazing outtakes from his magnum opus, You Think You Really Know Me. As I've stated before, Gary Wilson music sounds only like Gary Wilson music and this collection of early works proves that the man knew what he was doing all along. He wasn't really "lost" all of those years in between; he was just chillin' in the park, staring at the girls, and waiting for us to catch up. [DH]

		$17.99 LP   PEKKA AIRAKSINEN One Point Music (No Label) A legendary slice of early-'70s Finnish weirdness, Pekka Airaksinen's more talked about than heard psych-art masterpiece One Point Music is at last restored to print, hopefully in a larger press than its initial run of a 120 copies. Airaksinen was one of the founding members of the late-'60s confrontational music/art collective, the Sperm. Known for their abrasive live performances, oft accompanied by pornographic films, they released a sole LP before the members headed off in different directions. One Point Music was released in 1972, shortly after that group's dissolution, but it carries on with a bit of the Sperm's interest in murky, detuned soundscapes, while prefiguring a wide swath of now familiar underground tropes and strategies. However, the weird miracle about this record is how listenable it remains while being so deliberately anti-music, with random bent notes, distantly churning distortion, and subtle, mosquito-like buzzing running through an echo chamber making for an oddly compelling experience. Highly recommended for the adventurous listener. [MK]

		$24.99 CDx2 $33.99 LPx2 180 Gram   TAJ MAHAL TRAVELLERS AUGUST 1974 (Phoenix) "II" "III" Taj Mahal Travellers' final recording is back in print as a double-CD and a beautiful double-LP package, pressed on 180 Gram vinyl. Highly regarded as a unique and beautifully crafted example of '70s-era improvisation, the Travellers' lone studio album is a mish-mash of amplified electronics, processed live instruments, and highly stylized percussion, which together sound like nothing else produced at the time. Thanks to the group's sense of timing and texture, each of the four side-long pieces flow into each other the way only composed songs usually do; abrupt utterances are somehow sewn into the album's echoey fabric, distorted passages emerge collectively as if on cue, and bursts of percussion and melody bubble up out of the quiet like they were planned and practiced, yet they still play with an utterly relaxed, improvised style. Instead of jarring the listener with disjointed and angular expressions, the Travellers subtly add and remove harmonious elements to create varied waves of melody, noise, and rhythm. Instruments like tuba, trumpet, santoor (a bit like a dulcimer), double bass, and violin are set over and against each other, sometimes for melodic effect, but more frequently for color and mood. The long, breathy tones are swept to and fro in the smoky light of trilled strings, buzzing synthesizers, and throaty, wordless vocals. There's a vaguely ritualistic quality about the entire record, thanks to the percussive bits that litter the landscape, but also because there's a calming monastic vibration in some of the voices and strings. That kind of spacious, reverb-thick atmosphere calls attention to the ambient tendencies the Travellers exhibited, and it makes 1974 far more accessible than many of its improvised cousins. There aren't many records out there like this. [LS]

		$39.99 BK   THE COVER ART OF STUDIO ONE RECORDS 12"x12" Hardback Book (Soul Jazz) Following Soul Jazz's lovely Bossa Nova and Freedom, Rhythm & Sound art books, here's another one for your already teetering coffee table. The Cover Art of Studio One Records is a deluxe 12"x12" hardback beauty, with more than 200 pages of classic and rare Studio One cover art, and also includes a lengthy introduction by reggae historian and Blood & Fire Records founder, Steve Barrow. Gaze at iconic sleeves from Horace Andy, Jackie Mittoo, Alton Ellis, Dillinger, Lone Ranger, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Ken Boothe, and many more, and marvel at the "Collector's Section" which features alternate album art and one-of-a-kind silkscreens. My own personal favorite is the "Gospel" chapter, which has some truly haunting religious imagery. Hope your stocking's big enough to hold this one! [AK]

		$8.95 MG   UGLY THINGS Issue #32, Fall/Winter 2011 (Ugly Things) There are few regular publications I look forward to as much as a new issue of Ugly Things. Mike Stax, Johan Kugelberg and company break down too-good-to-be-untrue tales of garage/punk/'60s pop mayhem by the people and players who made it all happen. In recent issues, the crew has gotten behind more '70s-oriented material, publishing insightful tales of great ones past, like Masters Apprentices, guitarist Ollie Halsall (Timebox, Patto, Kevin Ayers, the Rutles), all-female Michigan destruction unit the Pleasure Seekers, and the early days of scorching Irish garage band Them. The latter story continues in the most recent issue, along with features on Paul Revere & the Raiders' psychedelic years, the Sorrows, and the mind-melting UK band Wimple Winch. Insightful reviews of reissues and books on rock & roll guide your decision-making processes -- these steered me to a really fun read of Tommy James' autobiography Me, the Mob and the Music, among others. Each issue is designed for maximum readability. Get your copy before they sell out! [DM]

		$34.99 LPx4   PANDA BEAR Tomboy Expanded - 4LP Box (Paw Tracks) "Tomboy" "Alsation Darn" Limited edition 4LP box set of Panda Bear's Tomboy features the full-length on two LPs, the album's single mixes (11 tracks) on the third LP, and 10 unreleased Tomboy a cappellas and instrumentals on the fourth record, as well as "The Preakness" and a 16-page art booklet. All profits from this set will be donated to the American Cancer Society. Only 5,000 pressed, with no planned CD or digital release for this box.

		$15.99 CD $19.99 CD Deluxe Version   FLORENCE + THE MACHINE Ceremonials (Universal) "Only If for a Night" "Breaking Down" If you're not already familiar with this hugely successful British pop band, it will take a review quite a bit longer than this to bring you up to speed -- the singular adult-contemporary soul-goth sound of Florence + the Machine is sort of hard to describe. But for those of you who know and love the group's breakout debut Lungs, you can expect more of the same on the new one, just bigger and bolder. Produced by Paul Epworth (Adele, Cee-Lo, the Rapture, Bloc Party, Primal Scream), Ceremonials is a soaring, emotional ride, full of booming, tom-heavy percussion, epic piano chords and swelling guitars, all pushed higher and higher by Florence Welch's powerful vocals. She stuck with the formula that has worked for her, but with all of her past success (and the studio budget that goes along with it), Welch has refined her sound by making it broader and bolder. No surprises, but in pop music, surprises might be overrated. (Deluxe version includes four bonus tracks.)

		$24.99 LP   ERKIN KORAY Mechul: Singles & Rarities (Sublime Frequencies) "Mechul" "Krallar" Erkin Koray is one of the icons of Turkish psychedelic music. His records have been slowly reissued and compiled in the West over the past few years, giving new listeners a chance to hear the man who essentially brought rock music to the Anatolian country. Sublime Frequencies adds another jewel to his crown with this excellent collection of single tracks and rarities heretofore mostly unavailable on previous reissues of Koray's work, many of which were unauthorized bootlegs. Koray himself assisted in the track selection, offering material from his own archives, and it's nice to know the man is getting some royalties for this, as it's one of the best compilations of his work I've heard. He ably combines rock instrumentation with Turkish folk forms, amplifying traditional Anatolian instruments and processing them through psychedelic effects, often with heavy, funky beds of rhythm underpinning his fuzzed-out riffs and soulful vocals. If you've enjoyed reissues by the likes of Selda, Ersen, or either volume of the Turkish Freakout series, you'll find much to love here; the grooves are hypnotic, the vibes are thick with incense, and there are few characters in international psychedelia who deserve more attention from the wider turned-on, tuned-in, dropped-out masses. Fans of everything from Hendrix to the 13th Floor Elevators to Amon Duul II should check this out post-haste. [IQ]

		PHONE ORDERS Phone orders are accepted at (212) 477-8150 (ext. #2, mailorder) Mon-Fri, Noon - 7pm EST EMAIL For general inquiries or other information please email sales@othermusic.com. Do not reply to this message. REMOVE This is an automated list. If you would like to be removed for any reason, please visit: digital.othermusic.com/subscribe.php   THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS [DG] Daniel Givens [GH] Gerald Hammill [DH] Duane Harriott [IQ] Mikey IQ Jones [MK] Michael Klausman [AK] Andreas Knutsen [JM] Josh Madell [DM] Doug Mosurock [SM] Scott Mou [CPa] Chris Pappas [LS] Lucas Schleicher THANKS FOR READING - all of us at Other Music

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