The Other Music Update

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	March 12, 2009


	FEATURED NEW RELEASES The Antlers Collie Ryan Handsome Furs Elvis Perkins The New Dawn Anita Carter Bishop Allen Local Customs (Numero compilation) Faust Toncho Pilatos		Marissa Nadler Cursive Pretty Things & Philippe DeBarge Arbouretum Last Kind Words (Mississippi LP) Tim Hecker ALSO AVAILABLE Anni Rossi

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OTHER MUSIC LISTENING PARTY FEATURING NEW ALBUMS BY MARISSA NADLER & DAN DEACON
Tonight (Thursday, March 12th), Other Music's monthly listening party will be another double-header, celebrating the release of Marissa Nadler's new album Little Hells (out now on Kemado) and Dan Deacon's forthcoming Bromst, which hits store shelves on March 24th on Carpark Records. No doubt a musically diverse pair of records, the night will kick off at 9PM when we'll play both albums back to back (starting with Marissa Nadler) and then Other Music DJs will take over the decks for the rest of the evening. And of course, it wouldn't be a listening party without giveaways and bar specials from 9 to 11PM that include $2PBRs, $3 Bud Light & Yuenglings and $3 well drinks. See you there!

THURSDAY, MARCH 12
STANTON PUBLIC: 17 Stanton Street (btwn Bowery & Chrystie) Lower East Side
No Cover / 21+ with ID

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TICKET GIVE AWAY TO THE BUNKER FEAT: ALEX SMOKE
The Bunker crew have been throwing one of the city's longest running and most respected techno parties, and at their current home, Public Assembly on North 6th in Williamsburg, they are right in the thick of things. We are pleased to offer two pairs of tickets for a great event they are hosting this Friday, March 13, with a live set from Glasgow's Alex Smoke (Soma/Vakant/Hum&Haw), plus Audio Werner (Perlon, Hello?Repeat, Hartchef Discos) and Jim Hutchinson (Hum&Haw) and resident DJs Spinoza and Derek Plaslaiko. Simultaneously, there'll be a Wolf + Lamb Showcase in the front room featuring Lee Curtiss (Dumb Unit), Wolf + Lamb, Nioclas Jarr, and No Regular Play. Email tickets@othermusic.com to enter to win two spots on the guest list. The two winners will be notified this Friday.

FRIDAY, MARCH 13
THE BUNKER @ PUBLIC ASSEMBLY: North 6th Street (between Wythe and Kent) Williamsburg, Brooklyn

MAR

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WIN TICKETS TO THE GLIMMERS, LIV SPENCER AND JAMES F!@#$%^ FRIEDMAN + A LIVE SET FROM CUBIC ZIRCONIA (THE SAVANT GUARD)
Self-titled's Oscillations party happens whenever the stars align. In the past, it's featured DJ sets from Boom Bip, Holy Ghost!, Justin Broadrick (Jesu/Godflesh), and members of the Rapture, Gang Gang Dance and the Trouble & Bass crew, as well as performances from Jay Reatard, MGMT, Yeasayer, Crystal Antlers and more. Well, the stars are obviously aligning next Friday, March 20th, when the Glimmers, Still Going's Liv Spencer and James F!@#$%^ Friedman will be behind the 1's and 2's, with a live set from Cubic Zirconia (the Savant Guard) at midnight. Other Music is giving away two pairs of tickets to this great party at Studio B, just email giveaway@othermusic.com to enter. We'll notify the two winners on Monday, March 16th.

FRIDAY, MARCH 20
STUDIO B: 259 Banker Street Brooklyn
Tickets: $8 in advance or by RSVPing to
events@self-titledmag.com / $12 at the door

MAR

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WIN TICKETS TO DJ HELL + PETER KRUDER + ANJA SCHNEIDER + JEREMY CAULFIELD w/ CONNIE + ELON + JOHN SELWAY
On Saturday, March 21st, reSOLUTE presents the New York return of DJ Hell and Peter Kruder (Kruder & Dorfmeister) who will be entertaining Gotham after a four-year absence! They'll be joined by two Berliners, Anja Schneider and Jeremy P. Caulfield, as well as Elon, Connie and John Selway at this two-room "Hell & Heaven" Costume Party. Other Music has two pairs of tickets to give away to this holy/hellacious night. Send an email to contest@othermusic.com to enter. We'll notify the two winners on Monday, March 16th.

SATURDAY, MARCH 21
LOCATION TBA
Doors: 11pm - late
Request info for pre-sale tickets and location at resolutenyc@gmail.com
YOU MUST RSVP TO ATTEND THIS EVENT!


	$9.99 CD $8.99 MP3		THE ANTLERS Hospice (Self-Released) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store There is a story behind this record -- a painful, slow-moving thunderstorm of a story that is so deeply personal, so close to the heart of a young man named Peter Silberman, that he couldn't keep it in any longer. He had to share it to keep from drowning in the emotion, so he cast this lifeline to the world. He had to write these songs, his fragile voice suggesting that he sings because he can barely speak, maybe because he is too beat-down tired, or maybe because he just doesn't know what to say anymore. I don't really know what the story is, the details of Silberman's pain. There is a friend dying in a hospital bed and there is love and loss, but I don't want to know all the cold facts; my guess is that soon enough I won't be able to escape the boring minutia in every blog post and magazine article about Silberman's lengthy ordeal, and the deeply moving, timeless classic of an album that came out of it. Soon enough I imagine the details will be everywhere, because from the blunt stone of heartache that was Peter Silberman's, he has chiseled one of the finest albums we've heard in some time, and Hospice marks the coming of age of a wonderful artist. Antlers, originally a solo project, has released a handful of EPs and one album previously, and their once upbeat dream-pop echoes in the pages of Hospice, but Silberman, now with a proper band behind him, has crafted something different here that lives in its own space. Some comparisons are obvious, and fans of Sigur Ros, Antony, and Jeff Buckley will all surely sit up and take notice. Silberman's singing shares the intimate falsetto that all three employ, but even in his lower register, somewhere between a whisper and breathy tenor, you feel the need to lean in close. And the music the group wraps around that voice is both hazy and intricate, full of crackle and hum, piano and string and horn arrangements making the record swell with classic beauty while it pulses and pops to a different beat. Silberman's vocals dip in and out of the trebly, hallucinogenic sounds, never sure if he is being cradled by the music, or bobbing for air, but there is poetry and poise in these songs, and while they were conceived in loneliness, they will not end their days that way. Hospice is the story of a young man who feels too young, too old, and simply too much, and Antlers have harnessed that pain as only true art can. [JM]


	$14.99 LP		COLLIE RYAN The Hour Is Now (Sebastian Speaks) Very lovingly assembled and limited LP release of works by Collie Ryan, an enigmatic female singer-songwriter who made a small handful of highly regarded private press albums in the seventies. One of the best tracks on the Numero Group's survey of that scene, Ladies of the Canyon, happened to be by Ryan, and while it's safe to say she shares a number of stylistic touchstones with the other "ladies" on that comp, her music is nevertheless pretty singular. She gets compared a lot to Linda Perhacs, but this music is not really as dense, just skeletal guitar arrangements, a bit of reverb, and a transcendently pure vocal tone -- highly personal, fairly restrained, and nearly always minor key. She's led an extremely unorthodox life, with years spent living in communes or alone deep in the hinterlands of Texas, where she paints mandalas on hubcaps for a living. That uncompromising vision is on ample display in her music, and for a pretty fascinating glimpse of her life circa the mid-nineties, be sure to check out this great old Utne Reader article about societal dropouts in Terlingua, Texas: www.utne.com/1996-09-01/QuittersParadise.aspx [MK]


	$13.99 CD $13.99 LP		HANDSOME FURS Face Control (Sub Pop) "Talking Hotel Arbat Blues" "Officer of Hearts" Sometimes a record just hits you at the right time. Whether it be the right age, place, or headspace, it's easy to imagine how different your personal experience of a cherished album might have been had you been exposed to it under a different set of circumstances. Or sometimes it can be as simple as the change of a season, when you're craving a release from winter's frigid slumber, and then having that catalyst come when you call. As if on cue the new Handsome Furs album has arrived, unafraid of the groundhog or his shadow, and fully prepared to smoke you out of your snow cave. For despite any indications to the contrary, Handsome Furs make rock music; and while they may not be your traditional guitar band, this is very much a "guitar" record, and it brings the rites of spring. While ostensibly a side project of Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner and his wife Alexei Perry, there's nothing here to suggest that Handsome Furs is being nourished on the scraps of Wolf Parade leftovers. In fact, Boeckner and WP co-frontman Spencer Krug's extracurricular output has always equaled, if not outstripped that of their day gig. Now with Face Control, Boeckner and Perry may have unleashed the most instantly satisfying entry into the ample catalog of Wolf Parade-related releases yet. The strength of Wolf Parade always came from the yin and yang/push and pull of its two principal songwriters. Boeckner's unrepentant bad-ass rocker poses played against the willfully eccentric delicacies of Krug; the Bowie to Boeckner's Iggy (or maybe Springsteen). This dichotomy has become more and more drastic with each passing release. The first Handsome Furs album, Plague Park, hinted at this with its moody, guitar-driven beatscapes, but the rock and roll nuts and bolts of their sound is even more apparent here. While the skeletal guitar/keys/drum-programmed arrangements might suggest some kind of take on minimal new-wave revivalism, the songs themselves are bigger than ever. This is the sound of a group understanding what they're good at and being unashamed of it. In this case, it's writing guitar anthems. And instead of suffering from their limitations in instrumentation, Handsome Furs benefit from this approach, taking a propensity for hooks and righteous riffs, and reclaiming them as valid, vital, and yes, NECESSARY evils. At the end of the day though, it's sheer conviction that makes or breaks this kind of thing. As always, it's impossible not to hear a little of the Boss in Boeckner's sweeping guitar chords and vocal delivery -- like Springsteen fronting Suicide (err...maybe covering) in a tiki bar at the end of the world. Maybe it's the pollen in the air, but I'm hearing echoes of Gene Vincent, Gun Club, and even the Cramps in Boeckner's ongoing exploration of, and tribute to, the great guitar tones and riffs or yore. Handsome Furs succeed because they make you believe there's something better than a stinking carcass in the sack they're dragging behind them, and that's a great start. Biz Markie says "It's spring again," and who are we to argue? [JTr]


	$13.99 CD		ELVIS PERKINS Elvis Perkins in Dearland (XL) "Shampoo" "I'll Be Arriving" Elvis Perkins is something of a tragic character; his first album was a musing on the deaths of his parents, his father Anthony Perkins (yes, THAT Anthony Perkins) who died of AIDS, and his mother Berinthia Berensen who died on 9/11. Through the grief, he composed a selection of haunting songs but refused to be branded just another 'singer songwriter', preferring to be called a 'recording artist'. This time around he comes backed with an able band of merry men, charmingly known as Elvis Perkins in Dearland, who flesh out his mournful ditties quite wonderfully, reframing his songs as fully realized folk-rock epics. We might not be talking Sufjan Stevens epic just yet, but it's clear that Perkins has ideas way above the simple vocal/guitar mold, and through ten carefully crafted pieces, he takes us through the mourning of his debut and into brighter pastures. The ghosts of sixties and seventies orchestral rock are inevitably present throughout, but Perkins has a deft songwriting skill and his sincerity elevates these tracks above the usual copyist drivel. There may be too many musicians weighing in with supposedly 'classic' albums at the moment, but Perkins has the voice, the raw emotion and the backing to do something rather special indeed. It's a privilege to revel in his discontent. [JT]


	$14.99 CD		NEW DAWN There's a New Dawn (Jackpot) "I See a Day" "Do What You Want To (demo)" Portland, OR's kingpin record store Jackpot Records has been branching out lately to include "killer reissue label" on its list of credentials. The last few years have seen Jackpot pressing up pristine vinyl-only reissues of the impossible-to-find first Jandek record and all three albums from seminal punk legends the Wipers. With There's a New Dawn, the first CD excursion from the store-gone-label, we're treated to a slice of obscured-beyond-belief Northwestern sonic history. Rather than going into musical details or band blurbs, the sticker on the front simply says, "The original LP of this record goes for upwards of $2,000 on eBay." This truncated sentence might be enough to give some the general gist: killer private press psych record, finally reissued, blah blah blah, etc. But the full back-story (told in part through a lush 24-page booklet) offers a deeper perspective on what makes this record so unique. The band formed in 1967 in small town Willamina, OR, touring sporadically but becoming fiercely popular on a regional level, to the point where they would just rent out halls and draw crowds of hundreds to weekly gigs. This album, recorded primarily as a demo in 1970, was mastered so bass-heavy that it skipped most of the needles of would-be listeners at the time. Those who thought to weigh down the tone arm with quarters tore up their copies. Also damaged beyond repair in the mail was a strangely large overseas shipment, rendering more than half of the already scant 500 copies pressed completely destroyed. Big label flirtation came and went just as the band was fading into non-existence, and was not enough to rejuvenate the exhausted group. The story is somewhat familiar, especially in the case of obscure hard-working hometown hero style bands. What sets the New Dawn apart is how their struggle with regional success in some ways defines and informs their amazing, spooky, reaching sound. The record is killer in the same way that a lot of records from its era are; gentle, lilting pop harmonies flooded by reverbed organ butt up against honestly wicked fuzz-guitar jams. The deep bass from the original mastering was kept intact for the reissue, which adds a nice layer of rumbly depth. This is also one of the only popsike records to employ sound effects of rushing waves, birdcalls, etc., in a way that comes off as integral rather than corny. The Northwest vibe is what really makes the sound though. There's a theme of quiet despair that runs through the entire album, an introspective narration trying so hard to be breezy, carefree and joyful, but pressed down by the cloudy reality that's all around -- surrounded by rain and waiting for the sun to shine, quite literally in the Oregon landscape, but also figuratively, waiting for widespread recognition or even a better-paying gig to come through. The minor-key dirges and the would-be-happy rockers create a lush world that's really easy to get lost in and delivers bigger rewards the deeper in you get. This reissue also includes three astonishing demos from 1971 that are a raw hint at what the New Dawn could have blossomed into, as well as a live track from a 2008 reunion recorded at one of the same halls the band rented out in the late 60s!!! A very special record, and highly recommended to anyone interested in either private-press psych or the Northwest scene of any era. This is an essential piece of both stories. [FT]


	$16.99 CD		ANITA CARTER Songbird (Omni) "Hang a Little Sign" "Love Me Now (While I Am Living)" Way, way, way overdue collection of solo recordings from country songbird Anita Carter, the youngest of the famous Carter Sisters. Johnny Cash said about her that she was "the greatest female country singer of them all," which pretty much means she's one of the greatest female singers ever, period. Her personal accomplishment has been somewhat eclipsed in the public consciousness by the "made for the movies" story of her older sister June, not to mention the gigantic role her mother played in shaping the course of country music history. The only previous CD of her work I've been aware of is a Bear Family disc that came out at least fifteen years ago, and which focused on a couple of records she cut in the early sixties to appeal to the folk music boom. That Bear Family album is great, but perhaps not fully representative of what she was really about, so this 28 track collection goes a long way towards presenting a fuller picture of her work. The songs collected here span from the early sixties to the early seventies, and include a clutch of fantastic duets with Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Hank Snow. It opens with a pretty atypical track, however, called "2001 (Ballad to the Future)" -- which was probably given to her to record by some record industry exec trying to drum up some country-hippie crossover appeal -- and though some folks will love it, it's about my least favorite cut on the album. Never fear though, this collection just gets steadily better and better as it goes along, tearing through honky-tonk burners, tales of jilting lovers and getting jilted, along with some of the most tender ballads you're ever likely to hear. And good god, that voice, like a clarion call in the night. Honestly, this release is a huge event, and as highly recommended as it gets. [MK]

$13.99 CD

$14.99 LP

$9.99 MP3

BISHOP ALLEN
Grrr...
(Dead Oceans)

"The Lion & the Teacup"

"Don't Hide Away"

Though this Brooklyn-by-way-of-Boston group has been kicking about since 2003, Bishop Allen's trajectory began arcing upward in 2006 with their highly ambitious undertaking of recording and releasing an EP for every month of that year. Ten of those 58 songs would return in reworked form on the band's sophomore album, The Broken String, and then, while the group toured their asses off building their following the good old fashioned way, their songs began reaching the masses via some high-profile TV commercials and movie soundtracks. It's always interesting to see what direction a band takes after encountering some success, and Bishop Allen have stuck to their guns. Rather than releasing an overcooked or bloated third album, main men Justin Rice and Christian Rudder actually pulled back a little on the orchestration and took a delightfully back-to-basics approach; the breezy indie pop of Grrr... is probably closer in spirit to that of their first album, Charm School, from six years ago. The new record generally sticks to simple acoustic and electric guitar strums with light string and marimba flourishes, but the deliberately subdued song structures are the perfect counterbalance to Rice and Rudder's quirky, detailed storytelling. From album opener "Dimmer" (this record's equivalent to Broken String's "Click, Click, Click, Click") to the Kinks-ian "The Lion and the Tea Cup" (which features the best use of a marimba in a pop song since Haircut 100's "Love Plus One") to the jaunty "Oklahoma," Grrr... is a fun ride throughout, and one that fans of whimsical, literate bands like Belle and Sebastian or Vampire Weekend won't want to sleep on. [GH]


	$19.99 CD w/DVD $12.99 MP3		VARIOUS ARTISTS Local Customs: Downriver Revival (Numero) "While You Were Gone" Combinations "There's a Light" Shirley Ann Lee Numero compilations have become something of a go-to guide for dedicated followers of unusual soul, funk and gospel music. The label has acted as go-between for this music, mining it carefully and reissuing it lovingly so that fans like us have access to the kind of records that most of us will never lay a finger on. This latest compilation comes from the Double-U-Sound studio in Detroit and is a collection of mostly devotional songs produced by one Felton Williams. Williams had a fascination with both religious music and the steel guitar, so it's no surprise that the music blends the two obsessions perfectly. There is a grit and grind to this gospel/R&B sound that so boldly defies the well-known local flavor of the era. Double-U-Sound was as far from Motown as it was possible to get, but the labels shared similar roots in terms of genre. Williams had honed his skills recording church music with homemade equipment, and this raw sound became his trademark, giving these artists a rare, uncluttered platform for their music. Here, the best of the bunch are collected on a 24 track disc, then the rest of the surviving recordings (around 200) are collected on an accompanying DVD along with a documentary, so there is plenty to keep even the most dedicated crate digger happy. Even casual listeners, though, should find some beauty in these rare pieces of Michigan's musical landscape. [JT]


	$17.99 CD		FAUST C’est Com...Com...Complique (Bureau B) "Lass Mich, Version Originale" "Kundalini Tremolos" Some 38 years after their formation, these Krautrock godfathers return with a new album, but in reality Faust never actually went away. Every four or five years some incarnation of this groundbreaking band releases a record, or participates in some sort of puzzling collaboration, like the 2004 album recorded with industrial hip-hop act Dalek. But through it all Faust's music has never been boring and they consistently display the kind of fearless experimentation that we expect from the group that basically invented the term "Krautrock", and established its boundless parameters. These days Faust is more or less scaled down to a trio consisting of their original rhythm section and French guitarist Amaury Cambuzat, and the sessions for C'est were recorded almost three years ago during a collaboration with Nurse With Wound. Surprisingly, these tracks form a pretty cohesive listen throughout, the album being one of the more enjoyable experimental rock records I've heard in a while. Like the classic Faust of old, each song slowly develops at its own pace, incorporating strands of seemingly disparate musical references to create a hypnotic, psychedelic, somewhat disturbing and yet hauntingly beautiful sound. The record is, however, a bit more droney than their older work. Opening track "Kundalini Tremolos" is a cavernous slow-builder constructed around "Zappi" Diermaier's minimal tribal bell and tom percussion, and the circular metallic shreds of Cambuzet's guitar. By far the most compelling moments of the album come after the minimal, electronic hum of the first suite of songs. "Stimmen" is a beautiful Dadaist vocal number, inspired by Tuvan throat music while "Petits Sons Appetissants" is probably the most obviously Faust-like of all the compositions here, with its lilting Canterbury-esque acoustic guitar and a playful yet slightly sinister vocal take. Four decades in, the band still has a lot of fresh ideas to share and to inspire others with, and we're so happy that they're still here pushing boundaries. [DH]


	$15.99 CD		TONCHO PILATOS Toncho Pilatos (No Label) "Dejenla en Paz" "Tommy Lyz" A totally sick, jamming, blues-damaged Mexican psych band from the early seventies that was somewhat famously lauded by Beck at some point or other. These dudes sound tough and even vaguely threatening on tracks like "Drunk Again" and "Dejenla En Paz" (Let Her Be), no doubt due to an over-exposure to the Jagger/Richards and Free songbooks. But they take those influences and make them sound all crazy and loose, creating a super off-kilter and cocky mess that is easily the most rockin' reissue I've heard from south of the border in ages. A short, sweet, wicked little masterpiece that's nearly impossible to fully convey how awesome it is. [MK]


	$11.99 CD		MARISSA NADLER Little Hells (Kemado) "Heart Paper Lover" "Ghosts & Lovers" Marissa Nadler shot onto the indie-folk radar a few years back when the goofy catchall 'freak folk' scene was stealing column inches in any music rag worth its weight. In the time since, she has reframed herself as an avant-pop songstress, losing the association with the rotting corpse of that now dead scene, but struggling to achieve the hype once lavished upon her as a fledgling performer. Her last album, Songs III, failed to live up to the promises made by her stunning earlier records, but on Little Hells, it sounds as if Nadler has finally found her footing as an artist. Her voice is where she has always been most stunning -- the sounds that erupt from her lips are unmistakably hers, and while there are echoes of Joan Baez and others, Nadler has developed a clear personality all her own. The shadows of folk music are still present, of course, and the songs are minimal to say the least, but the hesitant finger picking that made her early releases so charming is now pushed back to make way for electric piano, percussion and all sorts of trimmings. There are even hints at a Kate Bush-like transformation on electronic-heavy tracks such as standout "Mary Comes Alive," but this is quickly reigned in so as not to become the primary focus of what is still very much a singer-songwriter record. Comparisons with Joanna Newsom will no doubt be made, as Nadler has a similar kooky spring in her vocal chords at times, but where Newsom went orchestral, Nadler has perfected the three-minute song, making it lean and perfectly enjoyable. The starkness in her voice might hint at an age she's not yet reached, but I have no doubts of her sincerity. Little Hells is Nadler's most assured and most consistent work to date; lets hope it grants her the attention she well deserves. [JT]


	$13.99 CD		CURSIVE Mama, I'm Swollen (Saddle Creek) "From the Hips" "Mama, I'm Swollen" Over the course of six albums, Cursive's loyal fanbase have come to understand that band conflict and shifting dynamics are a sure fire indication that a great Cursive album is on the way. Original member and drummer Clint Schnase had split from the group following the release of Happy Hollow and Cursive was once again on the brink of breaking up. But after recruiting Cornbread Compton on drums, Cursive returned to the studio and the result, Mama, I'm Swollen, sounds like a band rejuvenated. This large, conceptual suite of songs seems to explore the existential crisis of couples living in suburbia, culminating in the bummer of a closer," What Have I Done?" Lyrically, Cursive hasn't lost a step, with Tim Kasher painting vivid tales of addictive behavior born out of frustration and fear of the future. The crescendo rock of Ugly Organ has given way to a more subtle ebb and flow, fleshed out by some ambitious brass, organ and string arrangements that sound a bit more balanced than they did on Happy Hollow, especially on tracks like "Let Me Up" and "Donkeys." All in all, it's a strong, solid release from these guys. If you're headin' to SXSW this year, be sure to catch this explosive live band at Other Music's Lawn Party at the French Legation Museum, on Thursday afternoon, March 19th. [DH]


	$16.99 CD		PRETTY THINGS & PHILIPPE DEBARGE Pretty Things & Philippe DeBarge (Ugly Things) "Hello, How Do You Do" "Eagle's Son" So, here's an unlikely premise: a wealthy French playboy commissions his favorite group to write and record an album in which the group will have no creative or financial restraints placed upon them. Sounds like every band's dream proposal, right? Oh, but there's just one little condition: your patron would also like to sing lead vocals on said album. Sounds like a recipe for an unmitigated disaster. Luckily, the Pretty Things were of a sturdier stock than the average band, taking the ingredients of a potentially gut-wrenching cocktail and stirring them up into a highball of old-world order. Upon listening to the finished product, it is hard to believe that work of this caliber could have gone unreleased until now. While not quite the unqualified triumph of either SF Sorrow or Parachute, the results are far from the humdrum vanity project it reads on paper. Everything great about the Pretty Things of this period (1968-70) is on generous display here. The ever-present instinct for melody of the Beatles and the Kinks intertwine with a more sun-kissed influence of West Coast groups like Love to push the Pretties that much further through the looking glass. Not to mention some guitar chuggery that lands on the rock Thin Lizzy would later build upon. Most alarming of all though, is what a surprisingly capable vocalist Philippe DeBarge proves to be. While no one would ever mistake him for Phil May, DeBarge turns in a performance that betrays neither his native French tongue, nor his relative lack of musical experience, sounding far more assured and natural than the Pretties would have had any right to imagine. In essence, this is a classic-sounding Pretty Things record with a different (but not bad) voice on top. It took a while, but it was well worth the wait, and I can't imagine any fans of the band, or of UK psych-pop in general will be less than delighted with the results. [JTr]


	$13.99 CD $14.99 LP & MP3 $9.99 MP3		ARBOURETUM Song of the Pearl (Thrill Jockey) "False Spring" "Song of the Pearl" Dave Heumann's Arboretum project is now on album number three, and for Song of the Pearl he has roped in a bunch of his friends to help him out. Beach House's Daniel Franz is on drums, Corey Allender on bass and Steve Strohmeier takes up guitar to expand Heumann's folk-rock into balls-out rock 'n' roll. There's a hint of Fleet Foxes by way of Black Sabbath in these chunky 70s anthems, and Heumann keeps it tight and tidy without losing the essence of the sound he's trying to reproduce. There's a tape-recorded authenticity to the tracks and while the beards are sometimes a little too long for their own good and the campfires burn a little too brightly, it's admirable that these guys kick it so successfully. Arboretum are not attempting to make folk-rock that the public might warm to in the same way as the aforementioned Fleet Foxes; this is clearly a private obsession, we can join the club or be damned. No doubt in a few years Song of the Pearl will be rediscovered and lauded by troubled critics in the far reaches of the known world. [JT]


	$13.99 CD $9.99 MP3		TIM HECKER An Imaginary Country (Kranky) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store I think it's appropriate at this point to call Tim Hecker 'legendary'. The Canadian producer has been working his fingers to the bone for many years now, refining and perfecting his own particular brand of ambient music and creating a name for himself which has become synonymous with quality. His is a sound which began as an oddity among a sea of 'glitchy' delights from the Mille Plateaux label and has slowly become a mainstay, one which is as much plagiarized as it is adored by masses of ambient, noise and even metal fans. When he moved to the Kranky label a few years back and released the stunning Harmony in Ultraviolet, it was clear the game had changed slightly; here was a measured, tempered record, one which owed as much to Brian Eno as it did Gas or Thomas Koner. Songs were shorter and leaner, and the album felt like it was telling some kind of story, moving as it did slowly but gracefully over its brief duration. An Imaginary Country is Hecker's continuation of this change in focus, and the dense, noise-laden ambient haze that characterized Mirages is now all but gone, leaving a selection of subtle, glacial ambient exercises. The narrative is stronger here than ever, and the album itself has even been framed as such, with each track detailing a journey through An Imaginary Country, explaining the seas, the sands and the alien lands. Hecker's music lends itself well to this kind of structure, but part of me regrets his move towards calmer waters. There is without a doubt a sense of maturity as Hecker has moved from the mischievous heavy metal sampling and shortwave radio grabbing of his formative years, but with this maturity has come a distinct lack of urgency to his work. Where previous albums could take months to fully comprehend, there seems little to strip away from the tracks presented here, gorgeously composed and impeccably produced as they are. Tim Hecker's greatest skill for me was always his effortless mystery, and I suppose I have to concede that this has been lost in the transition. An Imaginary Country is Hecker's imaginary film soundtrack -- graceful, simple, almost orchestral and delightfully enjoyable. The noise fan in me, however, can't help feeling just that little bit slighted. [JT]


	$11.99 LP		VARIOUS ARTISTS Last Kind Words (Mississippi) Nice to see some of the earlier Mississippi titles coming back into print. Spanning 1926-1953, Last Kind Words is a collection of blues, gospel, early country and ballads, and like the label's best compilations, it plays out like a mixtape pressed up on vinyl and distributed through record stores and the mail. There are no liner notes, and aside from a full-color folk art painting of city life on the sleeve, there's an inherent amount of trust that you have to give these folks, who've gone through a wild stab at musical appreciation first, education second. You probably don't have too many friends with extensive early American music collections (then again, maybe you do) but by applseeding these releases into stores and mailboxes, the Mississippi crew in a sense organizes a small group of people to listen to and experience their offerings as a group, and bring themselves closer to one another in the process. In these spirit-deadening times, they provide sustenance for your well-being, a way to cope with the struggle. And right now, that's kind of what we need. [DM]


	$13.99 CD		ANNI ROSSI Rockwell (4AD) "Machine" "Venice" 4AD's newest signing, classically trained 23-year-old Anni Rossi may just do for the viola what Joanna Newsom did for the harp a few years back. No, Anni isn't looking to follow in Newsom's faerie footsteps, but it's not often that you hear Rossi's instrument of choice playing such a prominent role in pop music. Not quite as sparse as her earlier EP, producer Steve Albini fleshes things out some in the recording, adding a little bit of cello, drums and keys to gently support Rossi's charming, whimsical melodies. Add to this, a wonderfully sublime cover of Ace of Base's "Living Danger."


	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 [GH] Gerald Hammill [DH] Duane Harriott [MK] Michael Klausman [JM] Josh Madell [DM] Doug Mosurock [FT] Fred Thomas [Jtr] Jonathan Treneff [JT] John Twells THANKS FOR READING - all of us at Other Music

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