FEATURED NEW RELEASES
This Heat (Box Set)
Oakley Hall
Imaginational Anthem 2
Harry Taussig
Loscil
Loren Connors
Rhys Chatham
Juana Molina
Glissandro 70
SCSI-9
Psapp
Holy Shit
Kazuki Tomokawa
Camera Obscura
Monolake
Mojave 3
Jackie DeShannon
Elektronische Musik Interkontinental 5

Alan Lomax (Gaelic Songs)
Be Your Own Pet
Saturday Looks Good to Me
Digital Disco 3
Jacob Kirkegaard
Marc Leclair

ALSO AVAILABLE
Metallic Falcons
Rosemary's Baby OST
Charalambides

BACK IN STOCK
White Flight (LP pressing)
Serge Gainsbourg DVD

COMPLETE LIST OF THIS WEEK'S NEW ARRIVALS

"24 Track Loop"

"Paper Hats"

I know a lot of people, including myself, who've been impatiently waiting for the release of this box set. While This Heat has been getting a whole lot of name-checking these past few years, it wasn't until the reissue of their self-titled "blue and yellow" full-length back in January that any of their discography had been in print since These Records went under in 2001 -- the same year of band member Gareth Williams' untimely passing. Formed in 1976 by Charles Bullen (vocals, guitar, clarinet, viola, tape), Charles Hayward (percussion, keyboard, vocals, tape) and Williams (guitar, bass, keyboard, vocals, tape), the group would only release two proper full-lengths and an EP before disbanding in 1982. But what a legacy they'd leave behind. Like any band worth its weight in Ampex analog recording tape, This Heat were impossible to classify, coming up through the experimental/prog ranks among the likes of Henry Cow, Gong, Faust and Quiet Sun, and later being identified with seminal post-punk/early-industrialists like Throbbing Gristle and 23 Skidoo. Their second and final album, Deceit, is one of the most intensely visceral and politically charged records released during the '80s, and as seminal as 20 Jazz Funk Greats, PiL's Metal Box, and arguably, Can's Tago Mago from a decade earlier.

Deriving its name from their Cold Storage studio in Camberwell (it had originally been a meat freezer), the box set is more than a simple This Heat primer. Six CDs contain their "blue and yellow" debut, Deceit, the incendiary Health and Efficiency EP, the posthumously released Repeat and Made Available-Peel Sessions (all newly re-mastered), as well as previously unreleased material on the last disc. Also included is one of the most authoritative sources about This Heat, a 44-page book featuring interviews, articles, rare photographs and various historical facts. Needless to say, if you purchase one box set this year, let it be this one. [GH]

Due to the weight of the box set, a small additional shipping charge may be applied.

OAKLEY HALL
Gypsum Strings
(Jagjaguwar)

"Lazy Susan"

"If I Was in El Dorado"

After departing from Oneida in 2001, frontman Pat Sullivan hung his coat on the roots that helped to spawn American rock 'n' roll: country music, twanging and pure. Oakley Hall has been his project since that time, following the dissolution of the more traditional project Crazee & Heaven, and over the years the informed and righteous have seen them mature from a band just slightly more together than Skip Spence on Oar into a sprawling, stomping crossbreed of early-'70s cornfed rock, Opryland symbiotics, and skintight rhythms. For their third album, Gypsum Strings, they call ahead to deeper inspirations as they pull up stakes from more traditional country music terrain and charge into a richer, more nuanced amalgamation of rock, wheat, drone, soul, and psychedelia. The sextet -- featuring organ, banjo, fiddle, lap guitar, three- and four-part co-ed vocal harmonies, and a rhythm section tighter than the drawstrings on Andrew Carnegie's purse -- have better taste than to shoot for this unholy combination in each song. Rather, each track here (and there's not a bum one among the bunch) trades in "what-if" scenarios, all while preserving the band's unique sound and songwriting prowess. "Lazy Susan" suggests some sort of imaginary alliance between Gene Clark and Tony Joe White. "Living in Sin in the USA" envisions Tammy Wynette through, say, Cracker or Wilco. "Confidence Man" burns with the righteousness of Crazy Horse, sideswiped by Ash Ra Tempel. And the album centerpiece "If I Was in El Dorado" takes off, rocket-powering roots-rock into a head-on with minimal psych/drone improvisation, drummer Greg Anderson (ex-Broke Revue) holding it down beneath a gently swarming hive of tremolo guitars and inner ear singing saw tricks. Gypsum Strings should cement Oakley Hall's legacy as the band to watch in Brooklyn, on record, as songwriters, and as a top-flight live act. Not to be missed and not to be forgotten, records such as this beg for late night porch-swing action, but rooftops and backyard BBQs will suffice. Turn it up. [DM]

"River of Heaven" James Blackshaw

"Leaving the Apple" Michael Chapman

When the new Tompkins Square imprint burst onto the scene with its Imaginational Anthem compilation, hunting down rare and unissued recordings of some of our favorite guitarists, from John Fahey and Sandy Bull to Jack Rose and Glen Jones, we knew that it was just the tip of the iceberg. And so, scarcely six months after the first volume, here comes another helping of the finest, most elegant finger-picking out there right now. The set starts off with OM favorite James Blackshaw delivering a devastating number entitled "River of Heaven." From there, heavyweights like Peter Lang and Michael Chapman appear alongside up-and-comers like Sharron Kraus, Christina Carter, and José Gonzalez. The set is topped off with a rare live recording of Robbie Basho, and it doesn't disappoint across its 10-and-a-half-minutes, leaving everyone in the crowd breathless and ecstatic. [AB]

HARRY TAUSSIG
Fate Is Only Once
(Tompkins Square)

"Baby Let Me Lay It on You"

"Rondo to Death"

As we mentioned above, it really is just the tip of the iceberg, as this lovingly rescued document of solo guitar gets brought back by Tompkins Square. Taussig was featured on the first volume of Imaginational Anthem, and this full-length disc, released only as a private-press disc in 1965 (and Taussig's only extant recordings aside from the hallowed Takoma Contemporary Guitar set from 1967). It's a shame there's not more tenable stuff, as this set shows him to be not only a fine technician but a curious man in general. He references the styles of Elizabeth Cotton, John Hurt, and Rev. Gary Davis in the notes, but also adds that he finds playing to be "like dark birds sitting on a farmer's fence. The notes not played are those that often mean the most." To further unwrap the enigma, why not find out for yourself about this most intriguing guitar player. [AB]

LOSCIL
Plume
(Kranky)

"Motoc"

"Charlie"

Loscil's Submers is still a shop favorite around here and an album that we're constantly turning people onto. Scott Morgan's blend of non-generic, emotive ambience with a human pulse and atmosphere continually manages to move us, whether his sounds seem plunged deep into the ocean or just skitter pleasantly on the horizon. That's basically where the sounds of Plume are located: floating cloudlike, yet somewhat ominous. The album seems to climb up from the skyline and level off and open up by track four, "Steam." This is where my attention was grabbed for the first time; its genuine openness slowly drew me in. It's at this point that album centerpieces "Chinook" and "Bellows" rewarded my attention. The tracks are so quietly celestial, like a slow walk through the clouds, or maybe just that morning dew-drenched grass I'm always talking about (see our last Mountains review). Lots of people get this wrong, trying to navigate these waters with "all skeel (skill) and no feel." Loscil uses both to make great music for today's Daydream Nation. [SM]

LOREN CONNORS
Night Through: Singles and Collected Works 1976-2004
(Family Vineyard)

"Pickin' It Up"

"Mother & Son"

Listening to the guitar playing of American master Loren Connors always makes me think of my favorite poets. I generally tend to like poetry that is elusive, inscrutable, condensed in its means yet expansive in content, prone to brief flashes of insight, and beautiful without being obvious. Loren Connors is a poet. Over the last 30 years, he's somehow managed the remarkable feat of making that tired old instrument the guitar, new. And though we've had a lot Loren Connors CDs in our bins through the years, I can think of no better introduction to his work than Night Through: Singles and Collected Works 1976-2004. Over the course of three CDs, it encompasses every brilliant aspect of his work, from his ability to totally subvert the blues and folk paradigm, his power to reinvent standards such as "I Love You Porgy," to his exceedingly sympathetic accompaniment of partner and singer Suzanne Langille. This is supremely moving music, infinitely subtle, and nearly always darkly mysterious. It is a great service to have all these pieces gathered here together, most were issued in miniscule editions or not at all, with a thick booklet full of information about Loren Connors' history and personal reminiscences. Hands down, this is one of the essential albums of the year. [MK]

RHYS CHATHAM
Die Donnergötter
(Table of Elements)

"Die Donnergotter"

RHYS CHATHAM
An Angel Moves Too Fast to See
(Table of Elements)

"Adagio"

A classically trained musician, student of La Monte Young and Morton Subotnick, and protégée of Tony Conrad, Rhys Chatham altered the notion of minimalism by infusing the avant-garde with multiple guitars and a rock 'n' roll beat. It was a new music that re-energized the downtown New York scene of the late-'70s/early-'80s, and his influence can be heard in works by Glenn Branca, Sonic Youth, Swans, Mars, and many others.

Die Donnergötter compiles some of Chatham's greatest ensemble pieces from 1977-86. The soaring 22-minute title-track, recorded in 1985/86, is perhaps the most stunning. Written for six specially tuned guitars, bass, and drums, it combines the rhythmic energy of Krautrock (Neu! in particular) with gorgeous, kaleidoscopic guitar lines, creating a massively euphoric, higher form of music. The earliest piece, "Guitar Trio," is also the most raucous, where Chatham channels his love for Terry Riley, La Monte Young, and Charlemagne Palestine into a repetitive eight-minute rock 'n' roll workout. Fortunately we get two versions of it here, so the whole thing really lasts a glorious 16 minutes. This sits very nicely to the recent Jonathan Kane (a long-time co-collaborator of Chatham's) records. A companion piece of sorts, "Drastic Classicism" draws upon the same fervor and energy as "Guitar Trio," but with a distinctly dissonant No Wave edge. Chatham admits to probably damaging his own hearing by playing this piece live, and it truly is the sound of speakers blowing and fuses popping. Also included are two brass-based works, the riotous and turbulent "Massacre on MacDougal Street," written for four trumpets, three trombones, tuba, and drums, and "Waterloo, No. 2," which Rhys himself describes as "Philip Glass meets the marching band." All in all, a completely essential package containing some of my favorite music of all time.

Frustrated by logistical and financial hurdles in the US, Chatham moved to Paris in the late-'80s, where he began work on the monolithic An Angel Moves Too Fast to See. Scored for 100 electric guitars, bass, and drums, it was developed with the aid of Jonathan Kane and Ernie Brooks (ex-Modern Lovers), who play drums and bass, respectively, on the recording. The pure enormity of the project was unprecedented (this is before Branca started curating similar works, mind you), and so are the sounds. The five-part piece is a thunderous choir of guitars, anchored by Kane's motorik beat, that shift from subtle drone to frenzied groove, and everything in-between. Although I suspect the recorded version of Angel only captures some of the grandeur of the live performance, this is truly rapturous music even in digital form. [AK]

JUANA MOLINA
Son
(Domino)

"La Verdad"

"Rio Seco"

Quiet is the new loud. Kings of Convenience called it a few years back. I'm cool with that. But I wasn't totally convinced until I heard "I'd Rather Dance with You" some months ago in a Starbucks. Ideological arguments over clichés like "indie-cred" aside, I actually look forward to ordering my Iced Venti Skim Latte to José Gonzalez any day now. Hopefully a Juana Molina joint too. Fellow Argentinean electro-acoustic songstress, Juana Molina has been quietly doing her Nick Drake meets Brian Eno thing for three critically beloved records now. Her brand new album, Son, is more of the same. Which is fine -- even the Ramones knew that if it ain't broke don't fix it, and Molina's borderline magical brew of blips and bleeps and acoustic manipulations certainly are far from "broke." Son may be her most immediate record yet, but that doesn't mean that it's any more accessible necessarily. Molina's music has never been about "infectious hooks." She's an originator, almost in a class of her own. A sound pioneer. She's the only artist I know that could somehow justifiably be compared to Animal Collective, Bebel Gilberto, Bjork, KT Tunstall, Beth Orton, and Red House Painters too. Word has it that Molina and José Gonzalez will be touring together soon. It makes perfect sense. Her music may be more "difficult" than her contemporaries, but as any critic worth their weight in gym memberships will tell you, it's all the more rewarding because of it. Now is Juana Molina's time to shine Stateside. I just wish I knew what she was saying. [HG]

GLISSANDRO 70
Glissandro 70
(Constellation)

"Bolan Muppets"

New from Constellation, Toronto-based Glissandro 70's debut begins with the swirling repetitive guitars of "Something," and sets the stage for their lo-fi dub meets post-rock meets acoustic-minimal disco compositions. (Even the cover art is a take on the West End label's classic 12-inch sleeve). Created over a two year period, the duo of Sandro Perri (Polmo Polpo) and Craig Dunsmuir (Guitarkestra) take inspiration from the best elements of past bands like Can, Talking Heads and Arthur Russell, as well as contemporaries like Liars, Animal Collective, and Bird Show, with a little nod to Afro-beat and Detroit techno (check their use of chants pulled from Model 500's "No U.F.O"). Much like David Byrne and Brian Eno's great collaboration, G-70 cut-n-paste, sample and loop, mix and overdub themselves to create this ethno-psychedelic world -- "Analogue Shantytown" being the perfect title for one of their songs. Throughout the album, chugging grooves, wordless chants, guitar strumming, pulsing bass, subtle electronic sounds, tribal percussion, and minimal drums are all used to nice effect. Last year, Polmo Polpo turned Arthur Russell's "Kiss Me Again" into a 20-plus-minute opus of looping guitars that build into a celestial trance movement. This five-track full-length takes that approach further, with their influences and reference points sounding natural and expansive. Kind of a hard record to describe, it's more about mood, texture and drive than, say, words and songs. I came across this album at the suggestion from a regular customer, and I'm glad that I took a listen. I actually first heard this the same day as White Flight -- Glissandro 70 being the minimal and deconstructed cousin in the lo-fi, post-whatever family. [DG]

SCSI-9
The Line of Nine
(Kompakt)

"Elegia"

"The Line of Nine"

SCSI-9 have been creating frosty, deep, melodic techno house for a while now, making significant strides going back to their secretly killer early 12" for Forcetracks, on through their Kompakt 12" "All She Wants Is," and up 'til now. Through the years, these guys have managed to release songs on almost every big minimal label and sub-label. Pretty good for two dudes stuck in Moscow busying themselves by creating their own minimal techno scene from the ground up. Two consistent things about SCSI-9: First off, they never spend too much time tweaking and freaking their sounds. Secondly, they tend to let the writing of the track speak for itself. The problem that arises from those aforementioned qualities is that it's easy to gloss over SCSI-9's tracks and blow them off as generic coffee house techno. Coffeehouse? Maybe, but generic? No! The way that their cuts build, coast and ease on through can only be done by true lovers of the form. "Elegia" has a beautifully deep and blissful bounce to it. "Sweets and Love" almost sounds like a bleep-synth Lawrence (check the climbing chords). So fine, some of their sounds have a definite '90s feel to them, but tracks this well-written are just as welcome now as they were then. [SM]

PSAPP
The Only Thing I Ever Wanted
(Domino)

"Hi"

"Hill of Our Home"

Psapp released their stunning debut, Tiger, My Friend, in late-2004, on Isan's Arable label (later picked up by Leaf). It was a gorgeous album filled with off-kilter percussion from toy instruments, warbly synths, and the standout vocal delivery of Galia Durant. Tiger, My Friend turned out to be a minor hit and before you knew it licensing deals were in place for most of the tracks on the album. Soon after, Domino had signed the duo. Well, here we are in mid-2006 with their follow-up, The Only Thing I Ever Wanted, and it is both a great album and a logical progression for the band. The quirky percussion is still there, as is Galia's trademark vocals, but there is also something quite different. Psapp seemed to have ditched the homemade, lo-fi production of their debut for a much fuller sound. The beautiful pop elements of Tiger, My Friend are still evident, but this time the vocals are layered, and there's more reliance on the electronic elements. The result comes across as some sort of mutant cousin of Herbert. Sometimes it's also reminiscent of Saint Etienne or Smoke City's "Flying Away." The Only Thing I Ever Wanted is a great step forward for Psapp, and a must-have for fans of the first album, or any of the aforementioned artists. [JS]

HOLY SHIT
Stranded at Two Harbors
(Uunited Acoustic Recordings)

"Tokyo Gamblers"

"Hot on Your Trail"

A baroque opener, then right into some misty Shadoks-reissue hop. You see it drift down toward the valley, and also perfectly meld at the smog line. With eyes always staring right through, however, keeping that song craft right up there with the seacraft. Just like in a regatta, you have to have a boat first before you can do anything. Or at least a parasail.

Ariel Pink is on board, so there is very much going to be apparent in this regard some celestial overachievement happening. Check "Tokyo Gamblers," holy shit. One of the best tracks Ariel has been involved with, if it's turned up (turn it up,) it has its own peculiar way of being STORMING. Some unexpected crisp drum machine action next, particularly as "Tokyo…" had the signature throttle and filigree of many moments to be found all over Ariel's many Haunted Graffiti jams. Also the vocals-thru-FX percussion style.

Matt Fishbeck definitely seems to write differently, and the songs unfold differently than most on Ariel's records, so what remains most from those records are the trademark intense production choices. The man has mastered the politely overdriven choogle, and does up the spectral insistence right. Very right. [DHo]

KAZUKI TOMOKAWA
Hanabana No Kashitsu
(PSF)

Chances are, if you've strolled into the store on any given Saturday night over the last six months or so, you will probably have had a chance to hear at least part of an album by Japanese folk singer Kazuki Tomokawa. My interest in his work is becoming a long-running obsession, and though I recognize that, for some, his sound world may be impenetrable, I've been heartened by the fact that every single one of his albums I've played over the last half-year has been bought from out of the CD player before it had a chance to finish.

Tomokawa is possessed of an emotional intensity so fierce and uncompromising as to brand nearly any other singer-songwriter as a phony in comparison. It is, however, an intensity that is so completely beguiling and seductive, if not outright addictive, that perhaps it's no surprise that his work resonates so frequently with our shoppers.

Tomokawa, a sometime horse bookie, poet, and painter, has had a recording career that dates back to the early-'70s. Like Kan Mikami, with whom he is frequently compared, Tomokawa reaped many of the benefits of Japan's folk boom with strong albums sales into the '80s. After a spell of inactivity, his recording career was resurrected in the '90s with a string of incredible albums for Japan's leading underground label, PSF. Celebrated and hyper-violent cult film director Takashi Miike peppered a number of his films with Tomokawa songs, which culminated in a star turn for the Tomokawa himself in 2005's Izo, where he essentially plays a one-man Greek chorus as wandering bard.

With his profile once again in ascension, PSF has seen fit to reissue a handful of their classic Tomokawa back catalog with new artwork and oversized LP-style cardboard jackets. Hanabana No Kashitsu is a good place to begin delving into Tomokawa's work, as it's shorn of any superfluous backing or instrumentation. All you get is an unadorned and simply-played acoustic guitar accompanying one of the world's most expressive singers; marvel as Tomokawa's voice swoops from harrowing heights of phonetic rupture to the loveliest of heart-rending melodic simplicity. [MK]

CAMERA OBSCURA
Let's Get Out of This Country
(Merge)

"Lloyd, I’m Ready to be Heartbroken"

"Tears for Affairs"

It sucks living in someone's shadow. No matter what your take on Belle and Sebastian's last polarizing record was, I bet nobody was happier that those guys traded the Left Banke for T-Rex, than Camera Obscura. Now that B&S were off mining another decade for post-modern pop nuggets, maybe Camera could finally get all the attention and credit they deserved for making some of the finest unironic '60s-cribbing fey pop music around. Let's Get Out of This Country should do the job. With Country, Camera have delivered a minor, left-field classic among bands who fashion their artist bios in the style of one of Dickens' novels. The record is overflowing with memorable hooks, and dazzling string-laden production that seems tailor-made for songs, with titles like "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken" and "I Need All the Friends I Can Get." Sure, the lovelorn subject matter can get slightly redundant if you were solely reading the well-designed lyric sheet; however, drowning your sorrows has never sounded this infectious. Here's to a reverb-drenched tribute to vintage keyboards, fanfares, sexy librarians, handclaps, lovers who leave, vintage eyewear, moving on, dreamers, misanthropes, a girl named Margaret, and getting the hell out of this country. Somehow, I have a feeling Jens Lekman loves this album. So do I. [HG]

MONOLAKE
Plumbicon Versions
(Monolake/Imbalance Computer Music)

"Plumbicon Epilogue"

Deadbeat Remix

Dub-techno legends Monolake release a five-song EP that outdoes some albums within the first minute of track one. ("Live in Osaka" is bananas.) Next up is Sleep Archive's remix (whose reissued vinyl is dividing-n-conquering with its straight-to-the-point, dubby acid/post-'null set' Sahko-era Mika Vainio techno). Rebreather (from L.A.?) offers a somber ambient dub version. Deadbeat's remix has the damp-funk, rainforest dub-hop of his last album. One of the most influential, long-standing institutions for this sound offering a leg-up to some new-school torchbearers. Word. [SM]

MOJAVE 3
Puzzles Like You
(4AD)

"Puzzles Like You"

"Big Star Baby"

On the latest disc from Neil Halstead and company, the group has moved away from the Mazzy Star-esque dreaminess they mined in the past, and they have also skipped the simple and sweet pop-folk that Halstead's excellent solo records embrace. Instead, Mojave 3 have delivered a relaxed suite of mid-tempo rock that pays a debt to classic the New Zealand Flying Nun sound, with strummed acoustic guitars, simple single-string leads, tinkling ivories or swirling Hammond, and Halstead's quiet vocal melodies, often accompanied by bassist Rachel Goswell's breathy harmonies. Sleepy and serene music for summer sunsets. [JM]

JACKIE DESHANNON
Songs
(Capitol)

Now I'm not a religious man, but Jackie DeShannon could make me a believer. She's all sex and swagger, f**ked over and full of forgiveness, a cry trapped in a nicotine gauze. Her cultish brand of blue-blooded soul music is enough to break down all my pseudo-intellectual preconceptions. She's the type of woman who any man could change for, and even if there isn't a god after all, DeShannon had me duped with her cover of Arlo Guthrie's "Gabriel's Mother's Children." Personally, I could care less about "god's children," but the fact that Capitol records left that song on the shelf for so many years is shameful. Repent! After listening to a track like that, it's no wonder 1971's Songs was the one and only record DeShannon ever recorded for Capitol. The label had no idea what to do with a lady who could cover '60s soul music, gospel, swamp funk, folk rock, that '70s adult contemporary s**t they used to play in this Chinese restaurant my parents would take me to on the upper east side in the '80s, and write original material as good as just about any of her contemporaries. True, she was a chameleon. However, her artistry really was in her uncanny ability to transform everything she touched into her own. That said, while Songs may not have been a hit commercially or artistically at the time, it's definitely one of the most comprehensive displays of her far-reaching talents. Dare I say the good people at RPM have made the record essential, by including 10 (!) early shelved outtakes from the Songs sessions with original producer and Memphis soul guru, Chips Moman.

These cuts include the aforementioned "Gabriel," along with a rousing cover of Emmitt Rhodes' classic, "Live Till You Die," and her take on Van Morrison's "And It Stoned Me" that really must be heard to be believed. I always found Morrison's original to be heavenly, so you'll have to excuse me if I can't even find an adjective to live up to how transcendent DeShannon's version is. And, of course, the actual album had some divine moments as well; "West Virginia Mine" is some more of that inspirational, idyllic piano-driven Laurel Canyon s**t that DeShannon literally invented. Furthermore, her bongo-laced cover of Dylan's "Lay, Lady, Lay" is a prime slice of stoner sex music, and as hot a come-on as I've ever heard from the lips of a woman of whom I've never actually met. Don't keep her waiting. For fans of Evie Sands, Dusty Springfield, Carole King, The Band… [HG]

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Elektronische Musik Interkontinental 5
(Traum)

"Wasbi" / "Tri-State"

"Tendency to Synchronize" Process

What can I say that hasn't already been said about Triple R's mix CDs or Traum compilations in general, specifically the Elektronische Musik Interkontinental series? Triple R knows how to blend the melodies with the greatest of ease, the Traum stuff is full of melodic deep-bleep and the Interkontinental series is full of new faces that are doing their take on the new German sounds. There are plenty of Deutsch dudes on this one, as well as some British, one Austrian, one Portuguese, one Canadian and one Belgian, making this one of the palest Interkontinental compilations ever. The tracks aren't too pale, though. Some standouts: Kenny Leaven's "Wasabi", Linus Quick's "Tri-State", Florian Meindl's "Don't Flue the Birds", Mashkraft's "White Lines…", and Zentex's "Loytotavara," which brings back the deep melodies commonly heard in the Interkontinental series. And by tracks 10 and 11, Gabriel Kogler and Ortin Cam offer two melodic stompers into the mix. This volume's just as melodic as Traum mixes from the past, but it's got a slight club-rockin' vibe that's still deep and minimal nonetheless. [SM]

ALAN LOMAX
Gaelic Songs of Scotland: Women at work in the Western Isles
(Rounder)

"Crodh Chailein" Mrs. Kate Nicholson

"O’s Fhada Bhuainn Anna" Mary Gillies

Certainly one of the more fascinating Lomax collections we've heard in a while, Gaelic Songs of Scotland: Women at Work in the Western Isles is comprised of recordings Alan Lomax made in the Scottish Hebrides and Highlands in 1951. Over the course of several days, he put to tape more than 250 songs and documented a way of life that has nearly ceased to exist. The women Lomax recorded sing their songs a cappella, in cowsheds while milking or around tables "waulking" the wool, the only accompaniment being the sounds of the manual work the women were laboring over. The rhythms and intonations of the Gaelic have an extraordinary and other-worldly quality; one can't help but be reminded of the beautiful melodies of songbirds as these women's singing transport them beyond the physical realities of their daily toil. [MK]

BE YOUR OWN PET
Be Your Own Pet
(Ecstatic Peace/Universal)

"Bog"

"Bicycle, Bicycle, You Are My Bicycle"

You know the story. Kids from the South get discovered by Thurston Moore and are en route to infinite stardom. And they're all like 14 years old. So, what's it like? Remember that song "Art Star" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs? The one that goes from disaffected new wave slur to grindcore in two seconds. It's still their best song. I get the same vibe here. It's 15 tracks in 30 minutes, at breakneck speed with power chords aplenty, and singer Jemina spewing out nihilistic middle finger one-liners with casual ease. Girl's a star. It sounds like YYY's obviously, and the Gossip, Bikini Kill, and X-Ray Spex with catchy indie rock sheen. Makes me wish I was young and dumb instead of old and dumb. Will be huge. [AK]

SATURDAY LOOKS GOOD TO ME
Sound on Sound
(Redder)

"Lift Me Up"

"Until the World Stops Spinning"

Nearly a decade of what might prove to Ypsilanti, Michigan's finest musical endeavor is captured in this collection of indie-Motown recordings by Fred Thomas, the heart and soul of Saturday Looks Good to Me. Due to its cut and paste nature, Sound on Sound might come off a bit disjointed; it compiles several 45s and EPs onto one disc, each with a different line-up of musicians, and instrumentation. The typical SLGTM sound heard on their three previous albums of girly shoo-whoops and tremolo-ed guitar reverberations are still there; but also included are a few pre-Postal Service electro-pop numbers, as well as some early recordings that developed into Thomas' finest compositions. A little bird once told me that SLGTM's biggest aspiration was to make a pop masterpiece somewhere between the likes of Pet Sounds and Tigermilk. This collection reveals the musical journey of someone influenced by so much sweetness. [AC]

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Digital Disco 3 / Mix by Unai
(Forcetracks)

"She's On Drugs" / "Outside the City"

"Oh You and I (Trentemoller Remix)" Unai

Okay, so Forcetracks is back!? A few CDs, a new Forcetracks 12-inch complete with the "man's eye" sleeve, and an album from Unai (the producer responsible for this mix) have quietly heralded the return of the techno imprint formerly known as "Mille Plateaux's/Force Inc's late-'90s techno/house sub-label." It's funny to hear a mix entitled Digital Disco that is actually a little more "techno/house" sounding than most disco-tinged tracks being made in the recent wave of disco-chic. The sound is better described as something like (to borrow one of the artist' names on this mix), "Soultech." It's also a bit more euro/trancey than most disco-influenced stuff floating around these days, and there's definitely no cowbell or any other acoustic/rock drum sounds. Lots of new names like Premature Wig, Morgan Page, Jussi Pekka, Ame, Soultek and Unai, himself. Also making appearances are Force alums Crane A.K. and John Tejada. Good to see the label making a go of it again. Now if they'll only reissue all the Gas albums that everyone's drooling to see back in print! [SM]

JACOB KIRKEGAARD
4 Rooms
(Touch)

"Church"

The latest work from Jacob Kirkegaard is a poignant sonic reminder marking the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. The Danish ex-pat, who currently resides in Germany, chose four different locations inside the Ukrainian city's "Zone of Alienation"-- rooms which had once been bustling centers: a church, an auditorium, a swimming pool and a gymnasium, all which have since remained abandoned since that tragic day of April 26th, 1986. Using a process that is technically similar to Alvin Lucier's "I Am Sitting in a Room," Kirkegaard would record the ambience of the room for several minutes, and then record the playback, repeating this for up to 10 times. Of course, Lucier's hallmark piece demonstrated the interaction between the human voice and the space of the room from where he was reciting his unaccompanied text which, over 32 repetitions, eventually morphs together into a rhythmic pattern of ringing tones. In Kirkegaard's four pieces, there is no voice or any controlled sound source for that matter. Instead, he lets the rooms speak for themselves, and the hums and drones of one location do indeed sound completely different than another. In each track, the ebb and flow of the ghostly tones are slow-moving and ever-evolving; one is left wondering if the sounds we hear could be the radioactive particles interacting with the empty space between the four walls. [GH]

MARC LECLAIR
Musique Pour 3 Femmes Enceintes
(Mutek_Rec)

"114e Jour"

"236e Jour"

Akufen is rising from his long rest to bring a non-dancefloor, EKG-bient album of clicks, cuts and chords. Imagine a less stark SND with more melody, approaching the melodic IDM qualities of the last Deadbeat album. But instead of a forest in twilight, the setting is more like the cover art: an open, blue-green beach. The overall feel is very "calm summer," almost approaching nostalgia with its '80s-era Phillip Glass synth sounds, everything softly echoing into the horizon. (Check out the transition between the fifth and sixth tracks.) The futuro/Windham Hill vibe is in full effect on cuts like "114e Jour," with its tinsel-y guitar plucks and ambient chord stabs. It's strange to hear stripped-down versions of these sounds produced and arranged so painstakingly; you could play this in a discerning chillout room as easily as the waiting area of a dentist's office! The pulse picks up by track seven ("180e Jour") and reminds me of a more personal Jettone -- deep, dubby, melodic synth techno with subtle nods to Basic Channel. An actual album of tracks that skillfully moves right along from one cut to the next. A solid earbud-summer record. [SM]

METALLIC FALCONS
Desert Doughnuts
(Voodoo-Eros)

"Airsails"

Sierra Casady (CocoRosie) and Matteah Baim team up to make beautiful and haunting night time music. Sounding as if it's being played by candlelight, the guitar and piano-based music soothes, spooks, and mesmerizes. Guests include Antony, Devendra Banhart, and Jana Hunter.

KRZYSZTOF KOMEDA
Rosemary's Baby - Original Soundtrack
(Harkit)

"Main Title"

Great soundtrack to Polanski's classic horror film by Krzysztof Komeda. The jazzy score ranges from dreamy to chilling, with the superb main theme (featuring Mia Farrow on vocals!) as the main attraction. Comes with a nice full-color to boot. Essential.

CHARALAMBIDES
A Vintage Burden
(Kranky)

"Spring"

New album by classic psychedelic experimentalists Charalambides. A Vintage Burden is Tom and Christina Carter's most structured and song-based album in well over a decade, running the gamut from fragile folk and psychedelic blues, to the 17-minute instrumental slow burn of "Black Bed Blues," where Tom channels his inner Garcia.

"Pastora Divine"

"Solarsphere"

From what I understand, the artist who goes by the moniker White Flight served time in a moderately successful yet somewhat marginal indie rock band for a good portion of his teens and early twenties. Apparently, some sort of personal or spiritual distraction set the young artist off on a quest for greater fulfillment and his journey found its culmination in a life altering ayahuasca trip administered by a shaman amidst the ancient ruins found in Peru. He returned to his hometown and his friends were astonished at both the outward and inward changes that had obviously manifested themselves over his person. At home, and creatively rejuvenated, he made an album that boldly broke with nearly all aspects of his previous work, far surpassing it in both inspiration and conception.

Now the tale I just related was mostly gleaned from secondhand accounts, so I don't really know the extenuating circumstances; however, the story is familiar enough in the annals of pop music and art to make it ring true, whether it be a Barrett, Gauguin, or a cult act like Maitreya Kali. The only thing I can relate for sure is the fact that he's made a great album, an ambitiously dense sonic song-collage that bears comparison to as diverse a group of artists as Animal Collective, TV on the Radio, Little Wings, and even Outkast (!), without really sounding like any of them. Like those artists, the experimentation is generally in service to the song, with layers of horns, old ethnic 78rpm samples, and outdoor field recordings making a frame for the introduction of cyclical beats and multi-tracked vocals. It's a pretty intense look into a person's headspace, but somewhat remarkably the mood rarely verges on the claustrophobic. If anything, it's generally pretty buoyant, with pop moves that wouldn't sound out of place on a Wolf Parade or Clap Your Hands record and which aren't afraid to wander into some pretty esoteric corners. Last I heard the artist was rambling around somewhere in Mexico and busking for travel money, let's hope he makes it back for the forthcoming adulation. [MK]

The LP format of White Flight is an extremely limited pressing.

SERGE GAINSBOURG
D'Autres Nouvelle Des Etoiles
(Universal France)

This 2-DVD set is as essential as it gets for any Serge Gainsbourg fan. Featuring four-and-a-half hours of music videos (including all of "Histoire de Melody Nelson"), interviews, and rare footage of the mythically scandalous French pop icon. PAL format (all zones) but compatible with multi-region DVD players. For a full review, see the May 18, 2006 edition of the Other Music Update.

THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS

[AB] Adrian Burkholder
[AC] Amanda Colbenson
[DG] Daniel Givens
[HG] Hartley Goldstein
[GH] Gerald Hammill
[DHo] Dan Hougland
[MK] Michael Klausman
[AK] Andreas Knutsen
[JM] Josh Madell
[DM] Doug Mosurock
[SM] Scott Mou
[JS] Jeremy Sponder



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