New Release Round-Up 07-22-14

Hot on the heels of their acclaimed album Indigo Meadow, The Black Angels release their new EP Clear Lake Forest featuring 7 entirely new tracks.  Originally released as a limited edition 10" Vinyl for Record Store Day the EP is now available on CD or Limited Edition Clear 12" Vinyl.

Ever since his single War Sweater jettisoned him into stardom five years ago (thanks to a game-changing plug on One Tree Hill), Wakey!Wakey! has built a following that's as passionate as his compositions. Built on broader themes such as rescue and hope, Salvation is the follow-up to Wakey!Wakey!'s acclaimed debut, Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said the Last time I Saw You.

Heaven & Earth is the first YES album featuring new singer Jon Davison along with bassist Chris Squire, guitarist Steve Howe, drummer Alan White, and keyboardist Geoff Downes and follows on the heels of the successful and acclaimed 2011 release, Fly From Here. The new album was produced by Roy Thomas Baker (Queen, The Who, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Cars, Foreigner, Journey, Cheap Trick etc.)

In the grand tradition of great pop duos like Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin, Captain and Tenille, Simon and Garfunkel, Hall and Oates, and Shields and Yarnell; Got a Girl is the blossoming collaboration between Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Smashed; The Spectacular Now) and superproducer Dan 'The Automator' Nakamura (Gorillaz; Deltron 3030).  On their debut album I Love You But I Must Drive Off This Cliff Now, Got a Girl serves up a sweet and sharply carbonated cocktail of the epic, the baroque, the absurd by turns sentimental and postmodern, and in total, utterly irresistible.

Last year Mike Doughty went on tour playing only songs from his old 90's band, Soul Coughing. The last 4 days of the tour, Pete Wilhoit, Catherine Popper, and Doughty himself recorded an album of the Soul Coughing songs they played during the tour performed live.  Live At Ken's House is available now and you can preview the album here and watch the video for his reworking of the track Super Bon Bon. 

Plus there are other great, new releases including Toronto based Alvvays who on their debut album Alvvays have created a sun-splashed record which is loud and clear and sure. Houston-based R&B singer Dominique Henry AKA Love Dominique follows up her critically successful EP Wicked Heart with the self titled album Love Dominique.  ZZ Top underscore their bad and nationwide bonafides with The Baddest, a hit collection packed with many of the biggest songs that have made "that little ol band from Texas" among rock's most legendary groups. Two-time Grammy Award-winning Chicago rapper, actor Common releases his tenth studio album Nobody's Smiling. British synthpop artist La Roux returns with Trouble In Paradise which may well be the best pop album we will hear this year.  And The Raveonettes Pe'ahi is the duo’s finest effort in years and a great example of what shoegazey noise-pop can do in 2014.

Plus, Real Friends, Old Crow Medicine Show, Richard Thompson, Anberlin, Freeman, Nico Vega, Rx Bandits, 5 Seconds Of Summer, Test Of Time, Drenge, PS I Love You, (Hed) P.E., Overkill, Within The Ruins, Fozzy, Crown The Empire and The Beatles all have new albums today.

CURRENT SINGLES

There are also a couple of singles available, including British Dance heroes Basement Jaxx who release Never Say Never, the fantastic single taken from their forthcoming album Junto (Out 08/25). Dry The River release Everlasting Light which is taken from their new album Alarms In The Heart (Out 08/25). And Heartist release Ignite, the latest single from the album Feeding Fiction which is due 08/12.

EARLY LISTEN AND PREVIEW

Looking ahead to next week's chart, we are excited to present an Early Listen for Hypnotic Eye, the 13th studio album from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, and the first album from the band in four years. "I knew I wanted to do a rock & roll record," Petty told Rolling Stone in April. "We hadn't made a straight hard-rockin' record, from beginning to end, in a long time." The album is available now for pre order and you can check out the promotional video which also covers his upcoming US tour here.  Don't forget that if you picked up the recent Indie Exclusive CD Single, American Dream Plan B, then you can go ahead and use that $2 coupon towards the new album.

The Voyager is Jenny Lewis's most deeply personal album to date, documenting her struggle to cope following the death of her estranged father in 2010 and the subsequent break-up of Rilo Kiley. The Voyager's rootsy, golden glow comes courtesy of Lewis and the artists she chose to produce various tracks, including Ryan Adams (who, alongside Mike Viola, produced all but three of the tracks), Beck, and Lewis' longtime collaborator Johnathan Rice. The Voyager finds the always relatable songwriter at her sharp-witted best, singing about her recent experiences with honesty and incisiveness. The album is available now for pre order and you can check out the fantastic video for her recent single Just One Of The Guys which features a few of her famous friends taking on band duties. And if you bought the recent Indie Exclusive Single then feel free to make use of that $2 coupon towards the album. 

For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section and don't forget that many of these titles are also available on vinyl.

Old Crow Medicine Show - Remedy - Now Available on Vinyl

The Americana bluegrass string band Old Crow Medicine Show continue to maintain their sound as heard on their previous albums while embracing new techniques and directions on their eighth effort Remedy. This release marks the follow up to 2012's Carry Me Back and includes the track "Sweet Amarillo" which, like previous recording and band signature tune "Wagon Wheel," is a reinterpretation of music by Bob Dylan. You can preview the album here and also check out the album trailer video which gives you a perfect taste of their incredible album.

VINYL AVAILABLE THIS WEEK

BLUE NOTE AUTHORIZED DEALER

As a store who has a particular focus on Blue Note artists, we are very proud to announce that we have teamed up with Record Store Day and the legendary Blue Note Records to celebrate their 75th Anniversary year by signing on at the creation to become a BLUE NOTE AUTHORIZED DEALER.  Blue Note will be reissuing 100 titles from their legendary catalog over the course of the year, and as a Blue Note Authorized Dealer (BNAD), we will be the place to find those reissues, as well as a monthly EXCLUSIVE reissue, which you can find first, and for a limited time ONLY at Blue Note Authorized Dealers. Blue Note Records devotees and folks wanting to learn more about this celebrated label will want to seek out these special releases. 

The 75th Anniversary celebration is being personally guided by Blue Note Records President Don Was, and this big fan of record stores was also involved in the creation of BNADs:  

“It's impossible to overstate the beauty of the serotonin and dopamine rush that one experiences by browsing thru a REAL live Record Store! Speaking as a music fan, I'm so grateful to the independent retailers who've kept this tradition alive. The history of Blue Note is inextricably interwoven with these incredible stores... It's a great honor and a very natural progression for us to partner-up with them in this uber-cool Authorized Dealership program.”

Check out the list of Blue Note Authorized Dealer releases and the special Anniversary reissues HERE.

New Release Round-Up 07-15-14

Morrissey is one of the few iconic musicians making radical, counter-cultural work, and Harvest Records is proud to release his latest album World Peace Is None Of Your Business which explores the tragedy of human apathy in our turbulent, modern era. Morrissey's career as a writer reaches new lyrical heights but maintains his signature humor, drama, and emotional longing. World Peace Is None Of Your Business was produced by Joe Chiccarelli at La Fabrique Studios in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France. The album is available now and you can preview the tracks as well as watch the moving video for his spoken word track Earth Is The Loneliest Planet here.  

Despite the internal lineup changes and increased success that has followed Rise Against it is clear that on their seventh album The Black Market they have not lost any of the angst and soul that made the Chicago activist punks such a thrilling band in the first place. Sure they have become more melodic but the defiant energy and aggression is all still there, as witnessed on their lead single I Don't Want To Be Here Anymore.

Jason Mraz’s fifth studio release, YES! sees the San Diego-based troubadour teaming up with his longtime friends and collaborators, Raining Jane, for a purely acoustic and more intimate sound than heard on his previous releases. “YES!,” produced by Mraz along with Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, First Aid Kit, Rilo Kiley), was recorded in rural Omaha, Nebraska and inland Oceanside, California. While somewhat intimate and esoteric, “YES!” still remains a Mraz-like pop album and features classical instruments, cello, sitar and vintage guitars and sings about universal themes of love, faith, healing, environmental stewardship and inner peace. The album is available now and you can preview the tracks as well as check out the beautiful video for his single Love Someone.


After playing live together since 2008, Sasha Dobson, Norah Jones and Catherine Popper have at last taken their collaboration into the studio.  As Puss N Boots they release their album No Fools, No Fun which includes five original songs two each from Dobson and Popper, one from Jones and seven spirited cover tunes, all culled from Puss n Boots live repertoire.

Passerby is the second album by Australian/Brooklyn band Luluc; it is their first international release and their Sub Pop debut. Co-produced by the band and The National's Aaron Dessner, Passerby shows off all of Luluc's best qualities, retaining the gentle beauty of the duo's debut while adding textures built with a cadre of impressive players. Band influences like Simon and Garfunkel and Gillian Welch (and, of course, Nick Drake) can be felt throughout Passerby, while the poignant restraint aligns them well with label mates Low. The album is available now and you can preview the album here which includes their incredible first single Without A Face. 

Plus there are other great, new releases including Trampled by Turtles with their seventh studio album Wild Animals where themes of impermanence run deep, both lyrically and sonically. Hercules & Love Affair’s third and most versatile album to date, The Feast Of The Broken Heart sees visionary founder Andy Butler and his ever-evolving musical collective pushing the boundaries of house music, disco, and pop to create a collection of stunningly original new dancefloor anthems.  Spiritualized release a set of limited edition vinyl re issues which include Fucked Up Inside, Let It Come Down and Royal Albert Hall, October 10 1997:Live. With his new album Terms of My Surrender, John Hiatt, a master lyricist and satirical storyteller, weaves hidden plot twists into fictional tales ranging in topics including redemption, relationships, growing older and surrendering, on his terms. Bleachers unleash their new album Strange Desire.  The highly anticipated album was written and produced by Grammy Award winning musician Jack Antonoff with co-producer John Hill (MIA, Jay Z, Empire of the Sun) as well as Vince Clarke (Depeche Mode, Yaz, Erasure) and others.  And Jerry Garcia releases GarciaLive Volume Four: March 22nd, 1978 Veteran's Hall, a 2 CD Set featuring over 2 hours of previously unreleased music mastered from original soundboard recordings. The fourth installment of the recently launched archival series presents the Jerry Garcia Band's performance from March 22nd, 1978 at Veteran's Hall in Sebastopol, California.

Plus, 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Wish I Was Here [Soundtrack], Reigning Sound, Suicide Silence, About A Mile, Notting Hillbillies, Jungle, Slow Club, Clean, Kidz Bop, Loverboy, Duke Elington, Pennywise, Monty Python, Big Wreck, Cowboy Jack Clement and Sebastien Tellier all have new albums today.

CURRENT SINGLES

There are also a couple of singles available, including the man in black Johnny Cash who releases a seven inch vinyl single pressing of The Man Comes Around which was the title track from Cash's 2002 American IV: The Man Comes Around, the fourth & final album in his American label series released in his lifetime. It is the last song Cash wrote before his death. The single is backed with his Depeche Mode cover of "Personal Jesus". And Duck Sauce release their 12" Single NRG which is a clear blue 180 gram vinyl, packaged in a clear sleeve and includes Club Mix, Radio Edit, the Skrillex, Kill The Noise, Milo & Otis Remix, and the Hudson Mohawke Remix.

For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section and don't forget that many of these titles are also available on vinyl.