In the ongoing spirit of Record Store Day, another full round of excellent new albums awaits shoppers in stores this week. Highlights from the mostly independent releases include the anticipated debut LP from Seattle-by-way-of-Spokane band The Globes, who will be live in our studio on May 17 at noon, and the self-titled duo debut of Thao & Mirah, featuring Thao with the Get Down Stay Down’s Thao Nguyen and K Records artist Mirah. West Coast production team of Kingston and Young God, or as they are known, Blue Sky Black Death, are back with a kaleidoscopic album deftly blending hip hop and instrumental music. And Belfast trio Girls Names debut with an album of dark lo-fi shoegazery rock that follows a trajectory from 80′s UK classics like Orange Juice and Felt through 90′s updaters like Black Tambourine and onward to contemporary bands like their labelmates Crystal Stilts and Weekend.
Other worthwhile new releases come from Seattle-by-way-of-Bellingham band Police Teeth, whose third releases KEXP Music Director, Don Yates, calls “an exhilarating set of aggressive, hook-filled post-hardcore steeped in classic indie bands ranging from Superchunk and Les Savy Fav to Fugazi and Mission of Burma with noisy, angular guitar lines, punishing rhythms and infectious singalong choruses”; from the reclusive Californian songwriter Cass McCombs; and from the mad Monome experimentalist Daedelus. GRRL-group path-paver Poly Styrene, the former lead signer of X-Ray Spex, returns to form with a new solo album. [Update: Poly Styrene passed away yesterday after a battle with cancer. She will be sadly missed.]
The list goes on and on with many KEXP listener favorites, new and old, like Explosions in the Sky, David Kilgour, Seattle duo Thousands, Prefuse 73, The Donkeys, Chris Bathgate, and Antony and the Johnsons. Check out the full list at Largehearted Boy and sample the many fine tunes right here:
The Airborne Toxic Event - All At Once (Bombastic Video)
from All At Once on Island Records
An Horse - Dressed Sharply
from Walls on Mom + Pop
Antony and the Johnsons - Swanlights
from Swanlights EP on Secretly Canadian
Chris Bathgate - No Silver (MP3)
from Salt Year on Quite Scientific Records
Big Pauper - Big Sick (MP3)
from Beyond My Means on Circle Into Square / Fake Four Inc.
Blue Sky Black Death - Where Do We Go
from Noir on Fake Four Inc.
Boris - Riot Sugar (MP3)
from Heavy Rocks on Sargent House
The Bynars - How Does It Feel to Be in Love (MP3)
from Today Is Your Day (self-released)
Matthew Cooper - Some Days Are Better Than Others (MP3)
from Some Days Are Better Than Others on Temporary Residence Ltd.
Daedelus - Tailor Made ft. Milosh (Tokimonsta Remix) (download)
from Bespoke on Ninja Tune
Dag för Dag - I Am the Assassin (MP3)
from BOO on Ceremony Recordings
The Donkeys - Don’t Know Who We Are (MP3)
from Born With Stripes on Dead Oceans
Ryan Driver - Am I Still Too Late (MP3)
from Feeler Of Pure Joy on Fire Records
EULA - Texas Stampede (MP3)
from Maurice Narcisse (self-released)
Explosions in the Sky - album trailer
from Take Care, Take Care, Take Care on Temporary Residence
Jason Forrest - Raunchy (MP3)
from The Everything on Staatsakt
The Fresh & Onlys - Do You Believe In Destiny
from Secret Walls EP on In The Red
Girls Names - Seance on a Wet Afternoon (MP3)
from Dead to Me on Slumberland Records
The Globes - Stay Awake (MP3)
from Future Songs on Barsuk
Emmylou Harris - Goodnight Old World
from Hard Bargain on Nonesuch
Jookabox - Man-Tra (MP3)
from The Eyes Of The Fly on Asthmatic Kitty
David Kilgour and the Heavy Eights - Diamond Mine (MP3)
from Left By Soft on Merge
Julian Lynch - Terra (MP3)
from Terra on Underwater Peoples
Matt Pond PA - Love To Get Used (MP3)
from Spring Fools EP on Altitude Records
Cass McCombs - County Line
from Wit’s End on Domino Record Co.
The Morning Birds - Heart’s Desire (MP3)
from The Quickening (self-released)
of Montreal - Black Lion Massacre (MP3)
from thecontrollersphere on Polyvinyl Record Co.
Painted Palms - All of Us (MP3)
from Canopy on Secretly Canadian
Police Teeth - Summertime Bruise
from Awesomer Than The Devil on Latest Flame Records
Poly Styrene - Thrash City (MP3)
from Generation Indigo on Future Noise Music
Prefuse 73 - The Only Hand to Hold (download)
from The Only She Chapters on Warp
Should - Turned Tables (download)
from Like A Fire Without Sound on Words On Music
Skeletons - Grandma (MP3)
from People on Shinkoyo / Crammed Discs
Laura Stevenson and the Cans - Master of Art (MP3)
from Sit Resist on Don Giovanni Records
Thao & Mirah - How Dare You (MP3)
from Thao & Mirah on Kill Rock Stars
Times New Viking - Ever Falling in Love (MP3)
from Dancer Equired on Merge
Thousands - On and On
from The Sound of Everything on Bella Union
Tindersticks - Opening (from 35 Rhums) (MP3)
from Claire Denis Film Scores 1996-2009 on Constellation Records
Vandaveer - Concerning Past & Future Requests (MP3)
from Dig Down Deep on Supply and Demand
The Wombats - Anti-D
from ... Proudly Present This Modern Glitch on Bright Antenna
One Comment
Good stuff this week... was impressed by the Chris Bathgate and Matthew Cooper ones. Oh btw, the Matt Pond PA link seems broken, and Dag för Dag is mispelled :)