November 23, 2011

		NOV Sun 20 Mon 21 Tues 22 Wed 23 Thurs 24 Fri 25 Sat 26   RECORD STORE DAY BLACK FRIDAY Though we won't be opening at 4 a.m., and we won't have any deep discounts to offer on flat screens or game consoles, we are expecting some great records on the shelves for Black Friday, courtesy of our friends at Record Store Day, and we all know that the gift of music (even if it's for yourself) is better than all that hoo-ha anyway. RSD have coordinated a slew of limited vinyl that we will be featuring on Friday, including a new rarities collection from Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, a new Black Keys 12", a FEAR Christmas 7", and a ton of other great titles. We can't guarantee quantities, and it's first come, first served, so come out early! And while you're here, check out our new stellar t-shirt selection in the Kung Fu Nation holiday pop-up shop, with more than 30 designs from some of our favorite bands, from Mudhoney to Vampire Weekend, from Dam-Funk to Wilco, from Gang Gang Dance to Girl Talk, and so much more.

		FEATURED NEW RELEASES Pinch & Shackleton Omar S Bangs & Works Volume 2 (Various) Paul White Hot Knives The Bats NOW ON VINYL The Bats (Daddy's Highway) Ryan Adams     ALSO AVAILABLE Kate Bush I Have My Liberty! (Various) Guided By Voices (New 7") Eddy Current Suppression Ring Ty Segall Rolling Stones (deluxe CD reissue) Raincoats & Grass Widow restocks Follow us on Facebook: facebook.com/othermusicnyc Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/othermusic

		NOV Sun 27 Mon 28 Tues 29 Wed 30 Thurs 01 Fri 02 Sat 03   WIN TICKETS TO BOMBINO The amazing music pouring out of the Western Sahara from Tuareg bands like Tinariwen, Group Inerane and Terakaft has been attracting an ever-growing legion of fans from all corners of the globe these past few years, and Group Bombino leader Omara "Bombino" Moctar is one of the guitar heroes at the forefront of this peregrination of sound. His most recent album, Agadez, is an enthralling amalgam of traditional Tuareg folk and psychedelic guitar work that's as arresting as it is meditative. Bombino's performance at Le Poisson Rouge earlier this year was absolutely captivating, and he'll be returning to the LPR stage this Tuesday, November 29. Other Music is giving away two pairs of tickets, and to enter, email giveaway@othermusic.com. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29 LE POISSON ROUGE: 158 Bleecker Street, NYC

		WIN AUTOGRAPHED PETER GABRIEL LITHOGRAPH Throughout his career, Peter Gabriel has remained one of rock music's most enigmatic figures, and you can clearly hear his influence in a new generation of artists, both vocally in groups like TV on the Radio and CANT, and sonically in recent records by Zola Jesus and M83. Like his 2010 covers album, Scratch My Back, Gabriel's latest record, New Blood, finds him once again working with orchestrated arrangements, this time re-recording highlights of his classic catalog, with oft-stirring results. To celebrate, we're giving away a limited 14"x14" lithograph, autographed by Peter Gabriel and hand-numbered (70 worldwide). You can enter by emailing contest@othermusic.com. Winner must be local to NYC and available to pick up the lithograph in person at Other Music.

		$17.99 CD $21.99 LPx2 $9.99 MP3   PINCH & SHACKLETON Pinch & Shackleton (Honest Jon's) "Jellybones" "Burning Blood" The anticipated collaborative debut from dubstep purveyors Rob 'Pinch' Ellis and Sam Shackleton is a sparse yet rich collection of ever-shifting, steady electronic beats and deep bass lines. Both artists have a keen sense of dub aesthetics and complement one another well; Shackleton's signature Middle Eastern sound palette is still in full effect here, yet paired with the brighter range of Pinch's sonics, he is removed from the usual night-caravan-across-the-desert imagery. Pinch's influence is heard in the arrangements, creating freer flowing grooves in the spare instrumentation. The album is a nice middle ground between the two artists, and feels like a modern digital dub record more than anything else. Not dance-floor minded, this is bass- (and space) filled mood music. At times barren and open, tracks like "Torn and Submerged" call to mind the ethno-industrial creations of Adrian Sherwood, yet are less abrasive. The nine long tracks total fifty-five minutes, which allows time for moods to be properly established, with movements unfolding slowly and naturally. Each cut feels like it could accompany a dance performance or an artistic visual, the sound being trance-inducing and hypnotic. If you're a fan of the Modern Love label or other electronic releases from Honest Jon's like T++, Moritz Von Oswald Trio, Actress, or just good minimal dub techno, this is a unique collaboration and a great listen. [DG]

		$18.99 CD $19.99 LPx2   OMAR S It Can Be Done, But Only I Can Do It (FXHE) "Solely Supported" "Over You Too" FXHE has been on a serious roll this year, writing a new chapter for this Detroit label, with great soul, house, techno and disco records, plus many hybrids in between -- these guys are laying waste to all the fakers, seemingly barely even trying. Label head Omar S proves his title is more than empty bragging by re-visiting acid house, reworking the genre to his taste almost as though acid house never existed before, creating something that actually sounds "new." Imagine a random genius jamming on a Casio in a department store and you are part of the way there, as Omar S consistently places off, wonky and other uncommon sounds in all the right places, and here goes really deep, and then deeper still. Another album of 2011 that stands out so hardcore just for being so individualistic and strong, it's sure to be included on my now bursting at the seams "Best Electronic Record of the Year" list. [SM]

		$14.99 CD $9.99 MP3   VARIOUS ARTISTS Bangs & Works Volume 2 (Planet Mu) "Heaven Sent" DJ Rashad & Gant-Man "Asylum" Jlin Last fall, Planet Mu label head Mike Paradinas (U-Ziq) released a breakthrough compilation called Bangs & Works, showcasing the latest wrinkle in sound from Chicago's fertile electronic music scene. Known as footwork, this growing subgenre is a natural evolution of Chicago house, and all that has followed in its wake, and is also an appeal to all the black DJs, producers and, most importantly, the dancers of Chicago's west and south sides who are not satisfied with the confines of 4/4 structures. Footwork refers to the skills a dancer can bring to a battle; like how old-school hip-hop DJs used to extend the breaks to make room for the break-dancer, now in 2011, that extension of the breaks has mutated into the alien and futuristic, chopped and screwed, dizzying fragmented beats, samples, and sound effects of footwork. Paradinas digs deeper with the selection of tracks picked for the second volume, showcasing a bit more of the connection to house music, and an earlier underground mutation known as ghetto house. The 27 tracks gathered here of stuttering hi-hats, tumbling 808 bass drums, endlessly loopy vocals, and speedy tempos are some of the best the scene has produced and shows a sense of maturity from what we heard on the first installment. Where most house music usually rolls along in the 120-130 bpm spectrum, footwork producers and DJs needed to speed things up for the new dances the kids are experimenting with, and these tracks usually settle in closer to 160. Based around a hyperactive form of tap dancing, footwork mainly exists in the lower half of the body, legs moving at lightning speed, filled with lots of dramatic pauses and repetitive variations. Footwork seems to be able to devour any genre, dissecting it into a funky, choppy, and speedy re-edit; science fiction plays a strong influence, along with classic house, new-school hip-hop, pop, and R&B (Sade is an often used sample). Over the last two years, the sound of footwork can be heard in various places, from the work of Salem to Rustie, to Clams Casino to AraabMuzik, to M.I.A and Diplo, as well as new releases from Kuedo, Machinedrum, and Sully. Though I may not have been ready for the onslaught of volume one, the now distilled curation and firmer focus of this new set is right on time. If there is a movement that encapsulates the most adventurous electronic sound of this new decade, footwork is at the top of the list. Not for everyone, but if you want to investigate this fresh, raw, urban genre or hear where pop and dance music are going, this is a great collection of next-school beats. Sometimes head scratching, often times simply amazing, and once your ears and brain lock into the structure, the sound becomes infectious. [DG]

		$16.99 CD $25.99 LPx2 $9.99 MP3   PAUL WHITE Rapping with Paul White (One-Handed Music) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store South London-based producer Paul White ups the ante in the race for MPC supremacy with his latest full-length. Titled from a subtly hilarious Guilty Simpson ad lib intro ("Yeeah... I'm rappin' with Paul White"), White's prog-rock-based murky boom-bap provides the backdrop for a who's who cast of indie-ground stars, and lesser known best-kept secrets such as Marv Won. The kaleidoscopic expansiveness demonstrated on Purple Brain is toned down a bit and the beats knock a li'l harder here. The sheer ferociousness of "Rotten Apples" featuring Tranquil, and "Trust" featuring Guilty Simpson, makes one wanna kick over trash cans and smoke one too many blunts, but as hard as some of the tracks are, White's cheeky humor bookends each song and lightens the tone. Throughout, you'll hear slowed-down snippets from children's TV shows, soft porn dialogue and library music, keeping things woozy throughout. This dude should be makin' beats for Ghostface! Highly recommended! [DH]

		$17.99 CD   HOT KNIVES Hot Knives (Grown Up Wrong!) "Around the World" "Secrets About Me" A seriously riveting discovery here, in the form of the Hot Knives' unreleased album from 1976. The band, which featured Danny Mihm and Tim Lynch from the Flamin' Groovies, combined gorgeous brother/sister folk-rock harmonizing (the group was clearly influenced by Beau Brummels and pre-psychedelic Jefferson Airplane) with the patented rock swagger of the Groovies. "I Hear the Wind Blow," which was released as a 45, is a five-star rocker which made Bomp's Greg Shaw proclaim they were the best thing happening in San Francisco at the time, and the irresistibly rocking "Hey Grandma" plays like a beefed-up Byrds. Throw in killer covers of Moby Grape and the Knickerbockers and you have one top-notch package, which I haven't been able to stop playing for a good week now. [AK]

		$13.99 CD $16.99 LP+MP3 $9.99 MP3   THE BATS Free All the Monsters (Flying Nun) "Long Halls" "Spacejunk" It's been well over 20 years since this quintessential New Zealand indie band released their stunner of a debut LP, Daddy's Highway, way back in '87. (That record was recently reissued and is now available on LP, listed below.) The sound of that album, and this new album, and really every album in between too, is a near-impossible hybrid of joy and melancholy; simple rhythms, soaring, tightly interlocked guitar melodies, and Robert Scott's lilting vocal refrains add up to some of the most satisfying pop I've heard, now, as it ever was. I'm not saying that every Bats album sounds just the same -- they don't, exactly, but most of the key ingredients are consistent, and you always know a Bats song, from that first ringing guitar chord. Free All the Monsters arrives during a sort of late-career resurgence for the band, yet Scott's songs seem to explore some of the sadness and heartache of growing older, and as such the mood is a bit slower-paced, but no less uplifting, than their classic early work. Coming amidst a hubbub of Flying Nun 30th Anniversary celebrations, I can think of no better record than Free All the Monsters with which to celebrate the graceful aging of one of indie rock's most important and influential labels. [JM]

		$16.99 LP+MP3 $9.99 MP3   THE BATS Daddy's Highway (Flying Nun) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store With the recent resurrection of Slumberland Records and the ensuing popularity of all things twee, there's been a tendency for bands to overlook the jangly side of the 1980s in favor of Jesus & Mary Chain-flavored distortion. While the fuzzy, pedal-heavy reverb was certainly a big sound in the UK in the '80s (with perhaps the big exceptions of the Smiths, Felt, and the Pastels), groups in other parts of the world were writing pop songs influenced more by the Beatles or the Byrds than Phil Spector. Such is the case with many of the bands on New Zealand's Flying Nun Records -- most notably, the Clean, the Chills, the Verlaines, and the Bats. Though different from one another, many of the artists on the Flying Nun roster (read: not the Dead C) seemed to share a similar interest in melody, harmony, and lyricism over the wall-of-sound approach of bands that epitomized the 'C86' sound in England. The Bats' 1987 debut, Daddy's Highway, perfectly encapsulates this softer, jangly side of the '80s, and is an album I've come back to far more often than any other indie-pop release of the time. While Daddy's Highway possesses all the elements that make for a fantastic jangle-pop record -- bright, gentle acoustic guitar melodies, vocal harmonies, and a stripped-down, almost intimate production aesthetic -- there's something decidedly more melancholic going on. It would be easiest to pin this element onto singer Robert Scott's plaintive delivery of lyrics about relationships ending and the disappointment that comes with those experiences; however, the Bats created a truly honest sound here, nothing all that surprising or even very forward-thinking like some of the other bands emerging around this time, but something refreshingly pleasant and unendingly catchy. A truly exceptional album for fans of the Clean, the Smiths, Felt, Belle & Sebastian, the Field Mice, Sarah Records, or Camera Obscura. [CPa]

		$22.99 LP $15.99 CD   RYAN ADAMS Ashes & Fire (Capitol) "Dirty Rain" "Rocks" I think it's fair to say that many of our customers who once considered Ryan Adams the second coming of Gram Parsons, or at least one of the very best of the modern alt-country songwriters, have long since moved on. More than a decade ago, his work with Whiskeytown, and his solo Heartbreaker album released soon after that band's demise, stood head and shoulders above almost anything else in the genre, and Adams was poised to conquer the world. Since then, Adams has seemed to unburden himself on his fans with an endless succession of less-than-thrilling records (and insults and drunken rants and Tweets, etc.), swerving from rock to pop to country and back, seemingly without any impulse to edit himself and with ever-diminishing returns. His most recent recordings were with his band the Cardinals, and tended towards alt-rock, but he has since broken up that group, taken a bit of down time, and with Ashes & Fire he has returned to the sound that first won him acclaim. Produced by the legendary Glyn Johns, with the likes of Benmont Tench and Norah Jones making appearances, this is Adams in full Heartbreaker mode, with relaxed, slow-paced and organic songs unfolding at their own pace, acoustic guitars, pianos and Hammond B-3 setting the stage for Adams' sad songs of isolation and loss. Is it as good as his best stuff? Probably not, but he's got the sound and the feel back, and there are plenty of good songs here, if not game-changing great ones. [JM]

		$15.99 CD   KATE BUSH 50 Words for Snow (Anti-) "Misty" "Snowed in at Wheeler Street" An album of new material from Kate Bush is a rare treat these days, and 50 Words for Snow is a treat indeed. It's classic Bush, a hushed, mysterious, and deeply poetic suite of songs, with most of the lyrical content hanging on a wintry theme, perfect for the impending December chill. Bush's influence has only grown over the past decade, but it's great to hear the original, and in fine form.

		$15.99 CD   VARIOUS ARTISTS I Have My Liberty! Gospel Sounds From Accra, Ghana (Dust-to-Digital) "Adoration Prayer" Christ Believer's Ministry "Countdown" Shallom Youth Choir Culled from live recordings made in 2008 inside the various churches of Accra, Ghana, I Have My Liberty! offers an intimate glimpse of these charismatic congregations, whose songs are an inspired fusion of American gospel and traditional African music. In sound and in spirit, these recordings serve as a missing link between raw American blues gospel and the cuts compiled by D-t-D on the great Opika Pende collection. Recent recordings, but timeless, powerful music!

		$5.99 45 $1.99 MP3   GUIDED BY VOICES We Won't Apologize for the Human Race (Matador) Preview Songs on Other Music's Download Store It's true, the classic GBV lineup of Robert Pollard, Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Greg Demos and Kevin Fennell have recorded a new album, which they will be self-releasing early next year. But Matador has a great teaser in this two-song 7", and two is all you need to remember how great this band was -- and is.

		$12.99 CD   EDDY CURRENT SUPPRESSION RING So Many Things (Goner) "So Many Things" "You Let Me Be Honest With You" This Aussie combo is almost impossible to describe, except to say they are a punk rock force to be reckoned with. Goner pulls together a plethora of singles, comp tracks and demos from one of the best bands on the planet, resulting in a collection that is almost certain to melt your stereo -- consider yourself warned.

		$12.99 CD   TY SEGALL Singles 2007-2010 (Goner) "My Sunshine" "So Alone" The title says it all: a collection of hard-to-find cuts from this rock and roll maelstrom. Twenty-five tracks, culled from out-of-print wax or totally unreleased, and not a clunker in the set. If you loved Segall's great recent LP Goodbye Bread on Drag City (and who didn't?), we guarantee you'll love this too.

		$28.99 CDx2 $33.99 LP   ROLLING STONES Some Girls - 2CD Deluxe Edition (Republic) Some Girls, originally released in '78, is not the most name-dropped Rolling Stones album, not the coolest, probably not the best -- but it IS their best-selling album, it's chock-full of hits ("Miss You," "Shattered," "Beast of Burden"), and with a trove of great material left on the cutting-room floor (a full 12 unreleased songs on the bonus disc), it is ripe for the deluxe reissue treatment. Recorded as the Stones were getting knocked around a bit by disco and punk, the band came out swinging, and they landed a few, for sure. (The LP pressing does not include any bonus material.)

		RAINCOATS & GRASS WIDOW RESTOCKS This fall, legendary UK post-punk pioneers the Raincoats toured select US and Canadian cities to celebrate the reissue of their sophomore record, 1981's Odyshape, and asked San Francisco trio Grass Widow to be their tourmates. OM's Karen Soskin was in the van, and grabbed limited copies of merch from both bands for the shop, including both recent Raincoats reissues -- The Raincoats ($14.99 CD and $14.99 LP) and Odyshape ($14.99 CD and $21.99 LP). We also have limited copies of most of Grass Widow's back catalog, including their vinyl-only debut full-length ($11.99) on Make A Mess, their out-of-print vinyl-only EP ($7.99) on Captured Tracks, and Past Time ($14.99 CD and $11.99 LP), their newest full-length on Kill Rock Stars. Just click on the respective link to add to your shopping cart.

		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 [DH] Duane Harriott [AK] Andreas Knutsen [JM] Josh Madell [SM] Scot Mou [CPa] Chris Pappas THANKS FOR READING - all of us at Other Music

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