NEW ARRIVALS: CDs - Rhys Chatham, of Montreal, Walkmen, Grinderman, Blonde Redhead & more

THE BLACK ANGELS Phosphene Dream CD
*** "The Black Angels third album is a fresh take on the neo-Psychedelic movement they've been at the forefront of for years."

BLACK MILK Album Of The Year CD
*** "Black Milk's AKAI MPC-2000 XL is joined by a team of studio musicians and session players. A broad range of influence shines through in the tracks, with tinges of Rock, Reggae, and Afro-Beat joining his trademark Hip Hop bangers."

BLACK MOUNTAIN Wilderness Heart CD
*** "This is arguably the band's tightest, most concentrated venture, but there's still plenty of raw rock energy at work, their 'most metal and most folk' record so far."

BLONDE REDHEAD Penny Sparkle LP+MP3 / CD / DELUXE CD
*** "Penny Sparkle is the band's third album for 4AD marking another sonic twist in their already adventurous canon."

BORIS & IAN ASTBURY Bxi CD
*** "Astbury's iconic Rock vocals are a perfect match for Boris' straightforward and laid back but still raw and imaginative songwriting."

RHYS CHATHAM A Crimson Grail CD
*** RECOMMENDED "Following its Paris debut, 'A Crimson Grail' had been re-imagined for the Lincoln Center Out of Doors festival and featured an astonishing 200 electric guitars, 16 electric basses, five conductors and one percussionist. For the thousands who witnessed this event, it was an earth-shaking visual and sonic spectacle. On this live document, 'A Crimson Grail' becomes something else yet again: a hypnotic, album-length piece that's visceral, soul stirring, and at times surprisingly intimate. Its thunderous passages give way to meditative interludes and the music builds to a kind of musical and spiritual ecstasy."

CHROMEO Business Casual CD
*** "'Business Casual' is party-rocking, club-banging, and heart-thrilling electrofunk. Where does a group go after mastering their craft? Do they rest on their laurels? Do they retreat into self-parody? Neighbor, please."

EL GUINCHO Pop Negro CD
*** "Pop Negro is a blend of afro-beat percussion, psych tropicalia, trance repetition, steel drums, and more, transporting the listener to an island paradise no one has ever been to."

GRINDERMAN Grinderman 2 CD
*** RECOMMENDED "Grinderman 2 bears the hallmark of its rapturously received predecessor, yet is more open ended in its structure, more far reaching in its scope, and gloriously lost in its own transports of noise and rhythm."

LINKIN PARK A Thousand Suns CD
*** "On the eve of its completion, this body of work, assembled through unconscious inspiration and unmitigated exertion, has revealed to us notions both stirring and surprising."

MAGIC KIDS Memphis LP+MP3 / CD
*** New!

MYSTERY JETS Serotonin LP / CD
*** New!

OF MONTREAL False Priest CD
*** "Teaming up with Grammy-nominated producer JON BRION, False Priest is speaker-rattling heavy on the low end and features appearances by Janelle Monáe and Solange Knowles."

ROBERT PLANT Band Of Joy CD
*** "Not satisfied with his stature as one of the great innovators and heroes of pop music, Plant continues to let his curiosity guide him to unexplored territory building on the roots-imbued sound he achieved with Alison Krauss."

MAVIS STAPLES You Are Not Alone CD
*** "Produced by fellow Chicagoan Jeff Tweedy at Wilco's studio The Loft, 'You Are Not Alone' showcases the iconic singer at her most powerful and fervent. The album mixes traditional gospel numbers with two new songs written for Mavis by Tweedy among others."

THE WALKMEN Lisbon CD
*** "Featuring the band'ssignature vintage instrument-sound, Lisbon will showcase 'A lot of stuff that's Elvis-sounding, like early Elvis and Sun Records kind of sounds,' says frontman Hamilton Leithauser."

WEEZER Hurley CD
*** "'Hurley' finds the band making some of the most powerful and adventuresome music of their storied career." I bet!