Tuesday, September 18, 2007

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: DVD ))))) Brasilintime, Johnny Cash

BRASILINTIME: Batucada Com Discos 2xDVD
*** "Two DVD's worth of incredible footage, directed by Stones Throw photographer B+. Features live drumming by Madlib, DJ routines by J.Rocc, Cut Chemist & Babu, plus performances and interviews by some of the most legendary Brazilian musicians of all time. This DVD is also worth noting for its beautiful packaging and liner notes."

JOHNNY CASH The Best Of The Johnny Cash TV Show 2xDVD
*** Holy smokes! 66 full-length performances on 2 DVDs. Over 4 hours of previously unavailable footage from Johnny's 1969-1971 variety show. It's nuts.

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: Vinyl ))))) Madlib, Liars, J Dilla

v/a CHROME CHILDREN INSTRUMENTALS 2xLP
*** BACK IN STOCK!

v/a COLD HEAT Heavy Funk Rarities 1968-1974 Vol. 1 2xLP
*** BACK IN STOCK! Oof -- if you haven't heard this excellent compilation of rare funk, you're missing out. Highly recommended.

v/a FROM L.A. WITH LOVE 2xLP / CD
*** "Featuring 100% new, unreleased material from some of L.A.'s finest musicians including FLYING LOTUS, GEORGIA ANNE MULDROW, NOBODY, YESTERDAY'S NEW QUINTET, ADVENTURE TIME (DAEDELUS & FROSTY), and more."

v/a FUNKY 16 CORNERS 2xLP
*** BACK IN STOCK! Back-in-print on vinyl too. The Stones Throw funky reissue comp that started them all.

ATMOSPHERE Sad Clown Bad Summer EP
*** "A brand new limited EP from Slug and Ant. They must make this and then listen to it and feel it's so hot they gotta rush it out to fans. Definitely essential for any Atmosphere fan."

BLACK MILK Popular Demand 2xLP
BLACK MILK Popular Demand Instrumentals 2xLP
*** BACK IN STOCK! Detroit's BLACK MILK gets the instrumental treatment too.

BUDOS BAND The Budos Band LP
*** NOW ON VINYL!

J DILLA Ruff Draft Instrumentals LP
*** BACK IN STOCK!

JAY DEE Fuck The Police 12"
JAY DEE Welcome 2 Detroit 2xLP
*** BACK IN STOCK!

KASHMERE STAGE BAND J.Rocc / Oh No Remixes 12"
*** "J. Rocc and Oh No take on KSB's take of Bill Withers' indelible standard "Ain't No Sunshine," and while the results vary greatly, the superior quality of each makes it difficult to decide who came out on top. One of Now-Again's strongest releases to date."

LIARS Liars LP
*** NOW ON VINYL!

MADLIB Beat Konducta Vol. 4 LP
*** "Madlib's fourth volume to his incredible Beat Konducta series. This one continues where Vol. 3 left off, still in India, and it has some of the best Madlib productions we've ever heard. The modern day John Coltrane or Miles Davis plays a sampler."

MADVILLAIN Money Folder / America's Most Blunted 12"
MADVILLAIN Curls / All Caps 12"
MADVILLAIN Madvillainy 2xLP
MADVILLAIN Koushik Remixes EP
*** BACK IN STOCK!

OH NO Dr. No's Oxperiment 2xLP
*** NOW ON VINYL!

QUASIMOTO The Further Adventures Instrumentals 2xLP
QUASIMOTO Rappcats 12"
*** BACK IN STOCK!

WAAJEED The War Pt. 1 12"
WAAJEED The War Pt. 2 12"
*** Featuring J DILLA.

YESTERDAYS NEW QUINTET Joe McDuphrey Experience: Experience EP 12"
*** "A Stones Throw recording, produced by Madlib. Featuring the accomplished lineup of Joe McDuphrey on keys, Russel Jenkins on Bass, and Otis Jackson Jr on drums and Loops. Today is the present future of yesterday."

YESTERDAYS NEW QUINTET Ahmad Miller: Ahmad's First EP 12"
*** "Another Madlib Invazion from his (now-defunct) supergroup Yesterday's New Quintet. Still only available on vinyl, after all these years."

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: CDs ))))) Les Savy Fav, Kevin Drew, Rogue Wave

v/a FROM L.A. WITH LOVE 2xLP / CD
*** "Featuring 100% new, unreleased material from some of L.A.'s finest musicians including FLYING LOTUS, GEORGIA ANNE MULDROW, NOBODY, YESTERDAY'S NEW QUINTET, ADVENTURE TIME (DAEDELUS & FROSTY), and more."

BUFF 1 Pure CD
*** "Buff 1 (ATHLETIC MIC LEAGUE) is coming solo this time with this nice independent album, featuring production by MR PORTER & WAJEED, as well as guest appearances by ONE BE LO, GUILTY SIMPSON, ELZHI, and INVINCIBLE.

DJ SHADOW Funky Skunk CD
*** "Initially conceived as a promotional CD, buzz was huge, got released. It's an exclusive mix by none other than DJ Shadow, thanks to the legendary graphics company OBEY. Quite the eclectic mix, with stuff that will appease and open up the ears of nerds and haters alike..."

THE DONNAS Bitchin' CD
*** "BITCHIN’ is the aural thunderclap that is THE DONNAS' brand new record, an unapologetically anthemic hard rock album. Their luscious locks must have been a four-way blur of headbanging fury at this recording session. Thirty shout-along, swaggering rockers were slimmed down to an album-length fourteen tunes."

KEVIN DREW (BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE) Spirit If... CD
*** Debut solo album from the co-founder of BSS. If you like BSS, you'll love this.

BOB DYLAN Unplugged CD+DVD
*** Now on DVD, the unplugged concert with 4 bonus performances not aired.

EMPEROR In The Nightside Eclipse CD
*** Holy smokes (and I ain't talking church burnings!) -- it's the limited edition reissues of the first two Norwegian black metal albums by Emperor following their 1992 demo. A must-have for black metal fans.

HIS NAME IS ALIVE Xmmer CD
*** "His Name is Alive is well known for their ethereal, late night meditations but on this amazing new album picks up where Detrola left off."

J.ROCC Thank You Jay Dee, Act 1 CD
*** "There is probably not a DJ more capable of making a Dilla tribute than J.Rocc. Not only did he tour with Dilla through the last years of his life, but J.Rocc consistently makes the best DJ mixes we hear at FatBeats.com. This is not to one to be missed."

MARK KNOPFLER Kill To Get Crimson CD
*** "Building on last year’s collaboration with Emmylou Harris, Dire Straits singer-songwriter guitarist Mark Knopfler unveils his fifth solo album. While certain to appeal to his loyal fan base, the album’s artful guitar rock will also entice new fans to Knopfler’s signature sound, instantly recognizable vocals and smart lyrics."

LEGENDARY SHACKSHAKERS Swampblood CD
*** "The latest chapter in the Shakers southern gothic epic, taking the muddled influence western Kentucky, poured through the funnel of eerie south Louisiana bayou culture, and shaken 'til it explodes with the thick swamp blues of Slim Harpo. Musically, straight swamp blues swirls with rockabilly, minor key polkas, and industrial rock all draped over Bo Diddly's primal thumping heartbeat."

LES SAVY FAV Let's Stay Friends CD
*** Les Savy Fav get it together to drop another bomb of hottness, freshness, awesomeness, and more -ness. Damn! No, seriously. The hit factor is high.

THURSTON MOORE Trees Outside The Academy CD
*** "Thurston’s been releasing records rowdy and rambunctious noise/improv escapades but this new album is killer songs! Unlike Psychic Hearts’ skeletal trio rock, this new jammer has a far fuller bouquet of sonic depth and proves this Sonic dude to have a very real songwriting life outside of the legendary SY. Thurston recorded primarily on acoustic guitar and bass, laying down the core of the tunes with drummer compatriot Sonic Youth’s Steve Shelly and violinist Samara Lubelski."

MR. LIF Sleepyheads II: Classic Combos CD
*** "Mr. Lif has been one of the most respected MCs in the underground for years, and plenty of artists have shown their respect by having Lif appear on their records. Here's 13 collabos with artists like MURS, DJ KRUSH, EDAN, CUT CHEMIST, EL-P and more."

RJD2 In Rare Form: Unreleased Instrumentals CD
*** BACK IN STOCK!

ROGUE WAVE Asleep At Heaven's Gate CD
*** Moving away from Sub Pop, the Wave has signed to JACK JOHNSON's label and hung around on tour with FIEST.

JOHN SCOFIELD This Meets That CD
*** "With his Emarcy debut, Scofield continues his unpredictable journey as a contemporary jazz master. Featuring trio-mates BILL STEWART and STEVE SWALLOW plus horn section."

KT TUNSTALL Drastic Fantastic CD
*** "[Drastic] showcases the 31-year-old's growth as both a songwriter and musician on songs that thump, rollick, and get frisky. 'I wanted to push the musicality. You can't let previous success scare you away from moving on.'"

WAAJEED The War 2xCD
*** "This is the first real compilation showcasing the incredible talent over in the WAAJEED / J DILLA / BLING 47 camp. Mostly produced by Wajeed of the Platinum Pied Pipers, but also featuring production and appearances by J DILLA, TA'RAACH, INVINCIBLE, & TIOMBE LOCKHART. This is that next sh!t."

Monday, September 17, 2007

((( EVENT: SATURDAY, SEPT. 22 ))) EXOTIQUE


10PM
SEPT 22
METRO CAFE
303 DETROIT ST
ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN
ROBERT WELLS, AARON LINDELL, FOREST JUZIUK
$2 BUDWEISER ON TAP, $2 GIN & TONICS, $2 VODKA TONICS
PSYCH SOUL LATIN DISCO PSYCH BRAZILIAN SURF FUNK SOUNDTRACKS ETC

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: Vinyl ))))) Caribou, Deerhoof, & Pinback

CARIBOU Andorra LP / CD
*** NOW IN STOCK ON VINYL!

DEERHOOF Matchbook Seeks Maniac PIC.7"
*** "Matchbook Seeks Maniac" was originally written for JUSTIN THEROUX's film, Dedication, but was included on Friend Opportunity (this is the Dedication version. The b-side, "Makko Shobu" was previously iTunes-only.

PINBACK Autumn Of The Seraphs LP / 2xCD
*** "Autumn of the Seraphs pushes forward and upward. Its melodies are more dynamic and aggressive, while still gently pulling you back in again and again. While entirely recorded in the band’s home studios once again, this record is tighter, the drumming more immediate and crisp." LIMITED EDITION BONUS DISC INCLUDED.

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: CDs ))))) Animal Collective, Kanye, Pinback, Young Marble Giants

v/a BOUGOUNI YAALALI CD
*** "A collection of kamelan style music recorded in and around Bamako and Bougouni, Mali by Yaala Yaala founder JACK CARNEAL. The music is primarily performed on ngonis (homemade spike lutes) and is often accompanied by someone scraping on an nkerinye (a tube of hollow metal). Featured artists are LASSINABE DIAKITE, AMADOU DIAKITE, LE VIEUX, and DRISSA SANGARE."

50 CENT Curtis CD
*** Ah, perhaps you've heard of 50 Cent. Maybe you've even heard of his "feud" with KANYE WEST, whose new album is also out this week! Featuring EMINEM, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE, MARY J BLIGE, AKON, ROBIN THICKE, and more.

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Strawberry Jam CD
*** AC's latest blur of wildness, cacophony, brilliance, and sweetheartedness. AVEY TARE and PANDA BEAR handled the lyrics and Avey does most of the singing. Though still sounding distinctly like AC, the jams have a completely revitalized sound.

BLACK LIPS Good Bad Not Evil CD
*** "13 loud, dirty pop songs from 'one of the best live bands in America' - Rolling Stone"

CLUSTER Zuckerzeit CD
*** "Originally released in 1974, Zuckerzeit marked a turning point for these seminal German space rockers. Recorded shortly after their move away from the metropolis of Berlin, it sees some of the abrasiveness of their earlier material slightly diffusing. With the addition of proto drum machines and the producing talents of Michael Rother, their sound here, 'while remaining firmly in anchored in experimental territory,' has more pop sensibility."

ANI DIFRANCO Canon 2xCD
*** "Ani's hand-picked essential collection spanning 1990-2007 featuring five new versions of Ani classics."

THE GO! TEAM Proof Of Youth CD
*** Includes limited edition bonus disc of b-sides and remixes.

HOT HOT HEAT Happiness Ltd. CD
*** Featuring three singles and some other songs.

NUMBERS Now You Are This CD
*** "Butterfly caught in a spider web. Shattered stained glass windows. Three legged dogs. A black eye on your best friend. There isn’t an easy comparison for the dire, wounded poise of this record, a secret pact between beauty and fear. The songs are pensive and worry-stained, all minimal, bluntly entrancing riffs, insistent drumming, and tense, reverberant synthesizers. The futuristic propulsion of Kraftwerk filtered through the raw-knuckled roughness of Suicide? Surprisingly, the most disquieting aspect of the songs is their subtle charm; thirteen tracks of dazed and charged near-collapse that unexpectedly catch in your mind, echoing their haunted buzz for days and weeks after the record ends."

OAKLEY HALL I'll Follow You CD
*** Hm...the label chose not to give a description for this item except to say they've toured with M. WARD, THE CONSTANTINES, CALEXICO, GILLIAN WELCH, and BRIGHT EYES. That should give you some idea.

PEKOS / YORO DIALLO Pekos / Yoro Diallo CD
*** "The debut release (one of three initial offerings) on Drag City’s latest sub-label, Yaala Yaala--founded by JACK CARNEAL and dedicated to releasing unheard music from West Africa, with a particular emphasis on Mali. PEKOS and YORO DIALLO play electrified ngonis--large spike lutes made of wood, gourds and strings (often fishing line)--in the kamelan or “youth” style."

PINBACK Autumn Of The Seraphs 2xCD
*** "Autumn of the Seraphs pushes forward and upward. Its melodies are more dynamic and aggressive, while still gently pulling you back in again and again. While entirely recorded in the band’s home studios once again, this record is tighter, the drumming more immediate and crisp." LIMITED EDITION BONUS DISC INCLUDED.

PINK FLOYD The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn 3xCD+BOOK
*** Disc 1 is the mono version of the album and disc 2 is the stereo version -- both are drastically different mixes from one another. Disc three is comprised of singles, edits and alternate versions. RIPSYD.

SHOUT OUT LOUDS Our Ill Wills 2xCD
*** "This band is all about the rush, the emotion, the infectious melodies that along with youth, good hair, and the endless pursuit of love make up the foundation of all great pop music." Haha. Produced by Bjorn of PETER, BJORN, & JOHN.

KANYE WEST Graduation CD
*** Perhaps you've heard of him! At the time I write this, we are sold out. It'll be back in on Wednesday!

YOUNG MARBLE GIANTS Colossal Youth 3xCD
*** Subtitled: "Colossal Youth & Collected Works. "One of the definitive records of the post-punk era. For the first time, all the band's released recordings have been brought together to provide the most complete YMG release." Collects two complete albums, an EP, a single, a comp track, and a 1980 Peel Sessions. Liner notes by Simon Reynolds.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: AUDIO SUPPLIES )))))

AUDIO-TECHNICA Universal Replacement Magnetic Phono Cartridge
*** Yeah, it's a direct replacement cartridge for systems including Fisher, Panasonic, Pioneer, Sanyo, Sony, Technics and some others. And it's at a reasonable price.

DISCWASHER Vinyl Record Care System
*** Remove dust, dirt and fingerprints from your vinyl records with this set: 1 cleaning pad, 1 mini dust brush, and a bottle of cleaning solution. And it's at a reasonable price.

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: 12"s ))))) The return of Osbourne

OSBORNE Outta Sight 12"
*** "Pure magic, slinking percussion, string pads and a that piano melody that recalls everything from Aphexian rhapsodies to lost Paradise Garage classics. Not to be outdone, Luke Vibert (Rephlex, Warp) comes to the party in his Kerrier District clothes and ups the ante with a bubbling piece of disco cut-up like only he can do, creating an evocative mood with his stuttering vocal hooks and big beats. While the flip belongs to Todd and his producer partner-in-crime, James T. Cotton, together Voltron-ing it as TNT . L8 (pronounced "Late") is summer jakbeat at its best."

((((( NEW ARRIVALS: CDs ))))) Arthur Russell, Cornel West, Cepia

CEPIA Natura Morta CD
*** "Uncannily unique pairing of lilting melodies with beats arranged to an astonishing degree of detail. Tracks like "The Undeniable Bend" coast on grainy, minor-key synth stabs and erratic melodies while layers of digital disjecta burst and crackle across the stereo field; never has computer-based music approximated the environ of the outdoors in late afternoon so effectively, and clearly this conjuring of the natural via the synthetic is Miller's gift to music."

DINOSAUR L 24->24 Music CD
*** "Dinosaur L is an alias donned by Arthur Russell, a man whose contribution to innovative and left field dance music from the late '70s and through the '80s scored several hits on the underground New York dance scene at clubs like The Paradise Garage (Larry Levan was a huge supporter). For the first time ever, Dinosaur L’s 24->24 Music is on compact disc in a deluxe digipak with extended artwork (based on the original sleeve) and liner notes. Includes the original album tracklisting plus rare 12” remixes and edits."

NEW PORNOGRAPHERS Challengers Executive Edition 4xCD
*** Totally wild deal for the new New Pornographers. 4 discs comprised of the new album; b-sides, demos, and alternate mixes; a live album; and a disc of odds and ends. Nice. And it's only $5 more than the regular album.

CORNEL WEST & BMWMB Never Forget: A Journey Of Revelations CD
*** "Dr. Cornel West, one of America's most prominent black intellectuals, has teamed up with Hidden Beach Recordings to produce one of the most important and socially-conscious music projects to be released in 2007. Never Forget: A Journey of Revelations is a riveting, thought-compelling approach to raise the consciousness of the mainstream music consumer through a positive lyrical approach. Features ANDRE 3000, JILL SCOTT, KRS ONE, PRINCE, BLACK THOUGHT and more.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

(( RECOMMENDED )) Serge Gainsbourg's string arranger, Jean-Claude Vannier!

JEAN-CLAUDE VANNIER L'Enfant Assassin des Mouches CD
"Vannier scored the arrangements to Serge Gainsbourg's 1971 classic 'Histoire de Melody Nelson' before recording this; 'The Child Assassin of the Flies.' Judging by his intense psych-funk-choral vision, he is the 'French David Axelrod,' albeit Axelrod in an insane asylum. Bells ring, people mumble and yes, flies buzz, while the music's dizzy extremity recalls such European astro-travellers as Aphrodite's Child. It's a great LP - and difficult to pigeonhole - with equal doses of psychedelic, classical, soundtrack-esque, prog, jazz, fat beats, avant garde and funk."

We grabbed this after reading the insane hype on the cover (ringing endorsements from Jarvis Cocker, Jim O'Rourke, and Tim Gane of Stereolab) and this gem did not disappoint. As detailed above, the music is all over the place and somewhat difficult although if you give yourself over to it, you'll find a highly rewarding listen every time. You're likely never to hear anything like it.