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Cameron Winter

Heavy Metal

    ‘Heavy Metal’ is the debut solo album from Geese frontman Cameron Winter. It’s an unexpected sonic left turn from Geese’s now-patented brand of jam-adjacent indie twang.

    Winter mostly forgoes stadium-sized guitars in favour of a softer touch that puts his mystical, imaginative lyrical style on full display.

    Occasionally confounding, endlessly rewarding, ‘Heavy Metal’ reveals Winter as a chameleonic master of his craft, a shapeshifting singer-songwriter in the mould of greats like Dylan, Cohen and Nilsson.

    TRACK LISTING

    The Rolling Stones
    Nausicaä (Love Will Be Revealed)
    Love Takes Miles
    Drinking Age
    Cancer Of The Skull
    Try As I May
    We’re Thinking The Same Thing
    Nina In A Field Of Cops
    0$ Man
    Can’t Keep Anything

    Cigarettes After Sex

    X's

      With X’s, Cigarettes After Sex finally takes center stage as not just one of today’s preeminent indie bands, but as one of the most globally accomplished acts across any genre, whose often unconventional path to superstardom has helped reshape the very definition of success for artists in the modern era.

      Filled with raw, imagistic, sometimes smutty vignettes set to entrancing, slowburn pop songs, bandleader Greg Gonzalez captures every emotion a romantic arc inspires. But where previous albums have drawn from an amalgam of relationships, for the most part, X’s centralizes on just one relationship that spanned four years. “The record feels brutal,” admits Gonzalez. “I could sit and talk about this loss to someone, but that wouldn’t scratch the surface. I have to really write about it, sing about it, have the music, and then I can start to analyze and learn from it. Or just relive it—in a good way. I don’t have that Eternal Sunshine-thing of wanting to forget.”

      While continuing to observe classic pop song structures, Gonzalez has moved away from the prior sonic touchstones of the ’50s and ’60s, finding himself now drawn to a ’70s/’80s slow dance. While (in typical Cigarettes style) these changes may be subtle, the overall resulting energy is akin to disco ball-refracted tears on the dance floor.

      STAFF COMMENTS

      Barry says: Soaring slo-mo balladry and shimmering ambient washes beneath the echoic guitar melodies and Gonzalez' always haunting vocal syrup. It's as enchanting and ethereal as ever, and will no doubt be a big hit like everything else they've done. A beautifully rich, decadent return for Cigarettes After Sex.

      TRACK LISTING

      1: X's
      2: Tejano Blue
      3: Silver Sable
      4: Hideaway
      5: Holding You, Holding Me
      6: Dark Vacay
      7: Baby Blue Movie
      8: Hot
      9: Dreams From Bunker Hill
      10: Ambien Slide

      Lip Critic

      Hex Dealer

        'Hex Dealer' is NY-based electronic punk band Lip Critic’s debut album. It was produced in collaboration by vocalist Bret Kaser and Connor Kleitz. Their eclectic sampling style is amplified by the infectious breakbeats and pingy snares crafted by drummers Danny Eberle and Ilan Natter. The singular mixture of classic punk/hardcore and electronic styles result in 12 frantic tracks of postmodern pop for the genreless future. Painted with a broad pallet of only the most extreme hues of emotion, each track is marked by a distinctive danceable mania.


        TRACK LISTING

        A1 It's The Magic
        A1 Love Will Redeem You
        A3 The Heart
        A4 Bork Pelly (feat. Ghösh, ID.Sus)
        A5 Spirit Bomber
        A6 Death Lurking (feat. Izzy Da Fonseca)
        B1 Milky Max
        B2 Sermon
        B3 I'm Alive
        B4 My Wife And The Goblin
        B5 In The Wawa (Convinced I Am God)
        B6 Toxin Dodger

        Cymande

        Promised Heights - 2024 Reissue

          This year marks the 50th anniversary of Cymande’s 'Promised Heights', a record that closed out an historic three album run of seminal early '70s Afro-soul that also included their 1972 self-titled debut and 1973’s Second Time Round. Promised Heights solidified Cymande’s place in music history, and contains some of their most-beloved and often-sampled tracks such as “Brothers On The Slide”. As children of the Windrush Generation, Cymande were part of the first wave of innovators and originators of the fledgling Black British music scene. Taking influences from their Guyanese and Jamaican roots, the band fused reggae bass lines, Afro-tinged Nyabinghi percussion, psychedelic rock touches, and American style funk instrumentation into a unique sound they dubbed as “Nyah-rock.” Promised Heights was recorded following the band’s US tour with Al Green, which had firmly planted Cymande in the ears of an adoring American audience. Cymande were also the first British band to ever play the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem.

          TRACK LISTING

          A1. Pon De Dungle
          A2. Equatorial Forest
          A3. Brothers On The Slide
          A4. Changes
          A5. Breezeman
          B1. Promised Heights
          B2. Losin' Ground
          B3. Leavert
          B4. The Recluse
          B5. Sheshamani

          Cymande

          Cymande - 2024 Remastered Edition

            With the release of their self-titled debut album in 1972, Cymande emerged as innovators of the black British music scene. Taking influences from their Guyanese and Jamaican roots, the band fused reggae bass lines, Afro-tinged Nyabinghi percussion, psychedelic touches, and American-style funk into a unique sound they’ve since dubbed as “Nyah-rock.” While they were embraced in the US, back home they were largely ignored and soon forgotten by a music business beset by prejudice against homegrown black talent.

            Cymande split in 1975 after releasing three albums in quick succession, but their music lived on as successive generations of artists and fans found and embraced their songs. Their far-reaching influence can be heard in the countless samples taken from their music over the last four decades, from pioneering DJs like DJ Kool Herc and Grandmaster Flash, to De La Soul, The Wu-Tang Clan, Gang Starr, EPMD, Sugar Hill Gang, Fatboy Slim, and The Fugees -- to name a few. They stand today as one of the most revered and sampled bands in the history of Hip Hop, House, and Dance.

            ‘Cymande’ features several of the band’s best known - and oft-sampled - classics like “Dove,” “The Message” and more.

            TRACK LISTING

            A1 Zion I
            A2 One More
            A3 Getting It Back
            A4 Listen
            A5 Rickshaw
            B1 Dove
            B2 Bra
            B3 The Message
            B4 Rastafarian Folk Song

            Deer Tick

            War Elephant - 2023 Reissue

              Deer Tick’s debut album, ‘War Elephant’, is back (even though it never went anywhere). It is the same stellar album released in 2007 and then reissued by Partisan in 2008. This version of the album finds us returning to the original 2007 illustrated cover. This cover will become the new standard version of the album across all formats. The music and track listing remains the same.

              John McCauley III wrote, arranged, played, and recorded the album at the tender age of 21. The album is full of songs wiser and more nuanced than John should have been able to produce according to natural law. The words are deliberate and heartfelt and follow the lead of singer / songwriter heroes of John’s like Townes van Zandt, Neil Young and Richie Valens.

              The album concludes with a cover of the 1962 GRAMMY-winning Song Of The Year, ‘What Kind of Fool Am I’, made famous by Sammy Davis, Jr.

              It can safely be said that this debut album is a genre defying classic; it’s a hook filled bar room rock album that is as connected to 90’s Seattle catchy gloom as it is to left-of-the-dial late 80’s Minneapolis and 70’s Austin honky tonk.

              TRACK LISTING

              1. Ashamed
              2. Art Isn't Real (City Of Sin)
              3. Standing At The Threshold
              4. Dirty Dishes
              5. Long Time
              6. Nevada
              7. Baltimore Blues No. 1
              8. These Old Shoes
              9. Not So Dense
              10. Spend The Night
              11. Diamond Rings 2007
              12. Sink Or Swim
              13. Christ Jesus
              14. What Kind Of Fool Am I 

              Cigarettes After Sex

              Bubblegum

                “Bubblegum” and “Stop Waiting” are the latest pair of singles from Cigarettes After Sex, and their first new music of 2023.

                Syrupy, sensual, subterranean dream-pop is set against vocals from bandleader Greg Gonzalez that walk the subtle line between croon and whisper. The songs are a perfect distillation of the starry-eyed atmosphere that the band has claimed as their signature in the six years since the release of their globally successful self-titled debut. Behind billions of streams and over 17M monthly listeners on Spotify, Cigarettes After Sex continue to defy what it means to be one of the biggest cult bands in the world.

                TRACK LISTING

                A1: Bubblegum
                B1: Stop Waiting

                Maple Glider

                I Get Into Trouble

                  Maple Glider is Naarm/Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Tori Zietsch.

                  On her sophomore album 'I Get Into Trouble', Tori takes her songwriting to another level while she delves into her Christian childhood, exploring topics such as her relationship to her body, consent and shame, as well as the death of relationships, both romantic and familial. Heartbreaking at times, the songs ultimately paint a hopeful picture, shining a light on new life, new love, and the desire to find peace and connection with these experiences.

                  Ultimately, 'I Get Into Trouble' is the sound of alchemized pain. In each song, Zietsch transmutes tribulation and confusion into clarity and deep insight. She combines the infectious folk-pop hooks of her debut with a sense of scape and scope.

                  'I Get Into Trouble' follows Maple Glider's acclaimed 2021 debut 'To Enjoy is the Only Thing', a deeply personal project which earned her a performance on NPR's Tiny Desk, as well as praise from Pitchfork ("hypnotic"), Paper ("sublime"), Stereogum ("some voices in indie just hit home") and Rolling Stone (“one of the most accomplished debut albums in recent years.”).


                  STAFF COMMENTS

                  Barry says: A superb return for Tori Zietsch, bringing the woozy off-kilter Americana sound we loved from her 2021 debut and broadening the horizons into a widescreen, majestic display. It's both hugely cinematic and unfalteringly relatable, a triumph of every sort. Lovely.

                  TRACK LISTING

                  1. Do You
                  2. Dinah
                  3. Two Years
                  4. FOMO
                  5. Don't Kiss Me
                  6. You At The Top Of The Driveway
                  7. You're Gonna Be A Daddy
                  8. For You And All The Songs We Loved
                  9. Surprises
                  10. Scream

                  Bombino

                  Sahel

                    Bombino is back with a brand new studio album - 'Sahel'. The new record is Bombino’s first full album in over five years, and follows 2018’s ‘Deran’, which garnered praise like ""the Sultan of Shred"" from The New York Times, and ""the World's Best Guitarist"" from Vice. This praise also turned the guitar luminary + Tuareg folk hero into the first-ever GRAMMY®-nominated artist from Niger. ‘Sahel’ was produced by David Wrench (David Byrne, Frank Ocean, Caribou, The xx) and was recorded at Studio HIBA in Casablanca, Morocco.

                    Sun's Signature

                    Sun's Signature

                      Sun’s Signature is vocalist Elizabeth Fraser and percussionist Damon Reece. Life and musical partners, their eponymous debut EP was originally released on Record Store Day 2022.

                      Elizabeth and Damon’s early careers in some of the most heralded musical groups are well documented. Since those days, along with raising their (now grown and independent) family, they have been involved in a multitude of artistically varied projects.

                      After working with Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, Echo and the Bunnymen, Jonsi, Goldfrapp, Massive Attack, Oneohtrix Point Never, Baxter Dury, Butch Vig and Spiritualized this is the first artistic collaboration between the two of them that isn’t a film score or soundtrack. This EP is the sound of a true creative partnership. The songs weren’t made as a response to any influence outside the pair building something wholly new for themselves. This EP is highly evolved, yet simultaneously primal - it’s an utterly original, compelling and genre-defying collection of songs that has developed through an Alice in Wonderland journey through life and music. For this re-release the vinyl will be pressed on marbled yellow vinyl and on Compact Disc for the first time, with a bonus disc of remixes by John Grant, CUTS, Will Gregory, Gwenno, LUMP, and Hinako Omori.

                      TRACK LISTING

                      Vinyl Tracklist:
                      A1. Underwater
                      A2. Golden Air
                      B1. Bluedusk
                      B2. Apples
                      B3. Make Lovely The Day

                      CD Tracklist:
                      Disc 1

                      1. Underwater
                      2. Golden Air
                      3. Bluedusk
                      4. Apples
                      5. Make Lovely The Day
                      Disc 2
                      1. Underwater (Hinako Omori Remix)
                      2. Golden Air (Gwenno Remix)
                      3. Apples (Will Gregory Remix)
                      4. Bluedusk (LUMP Remix)
                      5. Golden Air (CUTS Remix)
                      6. Apples (John Grant Remix)

                      Grian Chatten

                      Chaos For The Fly

                        Chaos For The Fly is the debut solo album from Grian Chatten, vocalist of Dublin’s critically-acclaimed band Fontaines D.C.

                        Rare moments of respite from a relentless touring schedule afforded Chatten the opportunity to start work on something for himself, occupying a completely different headspace from his hugely successful work within Fontaines D.C. Co-produced by the band’s longstanding producer Dan Carey, the album is arguably the most poetic we’ve heard from Chatten. Each song here has a sweep of colour and textures that breathe life into his lucid tales. Over its nine tracks, Chaos For The Fly is a record that takes in all of life’s rich emotions, transporting the listener to a place you not only want to visit, but will find yourself returning to again and again.


                        STAFF COMMENTS

                        Andy says: Grian Chatten, as I’m sure you all know, is the lead singer of Fontaines D.C. This is his first solo album and it’s an absolute corker! It only seems right, at this point, to own up to being not the biggest Fontaines’ fan, but that’s why this record is such a wonderful surprise to me. Whilst they thunder along in their rambunctious, post punkish style, Grian solo is a far more considered and down beat affair. Musically, Chatten seems to be referencing such poetic songsmiths as Leonard Cohen, Elliott Smith and, of course, Shane MacGowan, and he’s said that the whole album came to him in a vision whilst walking along Stoney Beach in Ireland. It’s interesting that he should share this as there is a tangible faded (seaside) glamour and epic, introspective vibe which shrouds the whole record. There are only nine songs here, but every one is a gem. Dan Carey is still on board as producer but, on this album Grian’s voice is pointedly out front, clear as a bell and centre of attention. His voice is stunning. And, as for his words, well these songs are pure poetry set to music; miniature films, if you like. My two favourite tracks are, funnily enough, back to back in the running order. “All Of The People” is just a brilliant melody with a harsh and apparently heart felt finger pointing lyric whilst “East Coast Bed” just drifts so gorgeously it’s in a genre all of its own!

                        TRACK LISTING

                        1. The Score
                        2. Last Time Every Time Forever
                        3. Fairlies
                        4. Bob's Casino
                        5. All Of The People
                        6. East Coast Bed
                        7. Salt Throwers Off A Truck
                        8. I Am So Far
                        9. Season For Pain

                        Léa Sen

                        You Of Now, Pt. 2

                          On ‘You Of Now, Pt. 2,’ which follows 2022's ‘You of Now, Pt 1, Léa Sen runs through themes as heavy as they are relatable: quarrel with the self, contradictions, feelings of desire, and more. This new batch of deeply complex and resilient tracks showcase Sen’s extensive sonic palette as a guitarist, singer-songwriter, producer and mixer.

                          Often with little more than a few chords gently placed with atmospheric restraint amongst pulsing synths, Sen communicates the peace that comes with knowing that it's ok to not be perfect. Highlights like “Dragonfly ʚĭɞ” and “Luv Him (about u)” explore experiences that are deeply real, confronting head-on the unsavory parts of life and of her own mind. “On this EP, I was just a bit more honest with myself about who I am, and how flawed I am. But no matter how flawed I am, I still care for myself.” she says.

                          TRACK LISTING

                          A1 Dragonfly ʚĭɞ
                          A2 Again
                          A3 Luv Him (About U)
                          B1 (No)
                          B2 Hellcat

                          Blondshell

                          Blondshell

                            In the past few years, 25-year-old Sabrina Teitelbaum has transformed into a songwriter without fear. The loud-quiet excavations that comprise her hook-filled debut as Blondshell don’t only stare traumas in the eye—they tear them at the root and shake them, bringing precise detail to colossal feelings. They’re clear-eyed statements of and about digging your way toward confidence, self-possession, and relief.

                            Sabrina shed her previous, pop-leaning project, Baum, and the process emboldened her. Subtracting self-consciousness became a catalyst for the lucid songs of Blondshell, on which her experiences all coalesce to form her truest expressions of self yet. “It was me, as a person, in my songs,” she says. When she showed a few to producer Yves Rothman (Yves Tumor, Girlpool, Porches), he encouraged her to write an album, joining a chorus of friends saying, “This is you.”

                            TRACK LISTING

                            1 Veronica Mars
                            2 Kiss City
                            3 Olympus
                            4 Salad
                            5 Sepsis
                            6 Sober Together
                            7 Joiner
                            8 Tarmac
                            9 Dangerous

                            Fela Kuti

                            Shakara - 50th Anniversary Edition

                              Fela Kuti (1938-1997) was a Nigerian musician, producer, arranger, political radical, outlaw and the originator of Afrobeat. A titanic musical and sociopolitical voice, Fela’s legacy spans decades and genres, touching on jazz, pop, funk, hip-hop, rock and beyond.

                              “Shakara” is the 6th in the series of celebratory Fela 50th Anniversary reissues. Like its predecessors in the series, this version will be on colour vinyl and the LP will be wrapped in a gold foil obi strip with a brief essay on the album and Fela's global impact on music. Like Fela's other early 70's releases, he used each side of his LPs to create a deep groove that pulls the listener in and follows with metaphoric lyrics that call out and critique the corrupt hangover of colonialism.

                              The album is the sound of Afrobeat's maturation as a global music. Fela's Pidgin English lyrics extend his music's audience beyond Yoruba speakers and make his words understandable across the Anglophone world. In "Lady," Fela highlights the adoption of European social habits to the detriment of African culture. "Shakara" is a mainly instrumental track, with a brief lyric, sung in Yoruba, warning against boasters and braggarts. The song pacing is festive and typically up tempo, with boisterous horn arrangements, with strong solos from Fela on keyboards and the fearsome Igo Chico on tenor saxophone.

                              TRACK LISTING

                              LP SIDE A:
                              1. Lady
                              LP SIDE B:
                              1. Shakara

                              7" SIDE A:
                              1. Lady (Ezra Collective Remix)
                              7" SIDE B:
                              1. Shakara (Ezra Collective Remix)

                              Deer Tick

                              Divine Providence - 11th Anniversary Edition

                                Divine Providence is the 4th album from Deer Tick and a pivotal moment for the band. With a couple lineup changes over the years, they started to speed things up a bit on Divine Providence; not that they shed their blues-tinged country rock sound entirely, but the album has an even split of fast stompers and mid-tempo country bar howls. The original 12 songs on the album are about as close as you can get to a beer drenched show with the band; the addition of the 5 songs from the Tim EP and the 12 bonus tracks of alternate versions, outtakes and rarities make for a close encounter with a lost weekend with the band. The original album was produced by Adam Landry and Justin Collins at Machines with Magnets in Pawtucket, Rhode Island and this edition was remastered by John Baldwin at John Baldwin Mastering in 2022.

                                TRACK LISTING

                                SIDE A
                                01 The Bump
                                02 Funny Word
                                03 Let's All Go To The Bar
                                04 Clownin Around
                                05 Main Street
                                06 Chevy Express

                                SIDE B
                                01 Something To Brag About
                                02 Walkin Out The Door
                                03 Make Believe
                                04 Now It's Your Turn
                                05 Electric
                                06 Miss K.

                                SIDE C
                                01 Mr. Cigarette
                                02 Main Street
                                03 Born At Zero
                                04 Virginia Gal
                                05 Chevy Express
                                06 Electric

                                SIDE D
                                01 Born At Zero
                                02 Walls
                                03 Virginia Gal
                                04 She's Not Spanish
                                05 Main Street

                                SIDE E
                                01 Bury Deep
                                02 Cake And Eggs
                                03 Hope Is Big
                                04 Mr. Cigarette

                                SIDE F
                                01 Make Believe
                                02 Now It's Your Turn
                                03 Divine Providence

                                Ezra Collective

                                Where I'm Meant To Be

                                  Ezra Collective’s new era, a venture in discovered maturity and raised stakes, will be defined by the anticipated second album.

                                  'Where I’m Meant To Be' is a thumping celebration of life, an affirming elevation in the Ezra Collective’s winding hybrid sound and refined collective character. The songs marry cool confidence with bright energy. Full of call-and-response conversations between their ensemble parts, a natural product of years improvising together on-stage, the album - which also features Sampa The Great, Kojey Radical, Emile Sandé, Steve McQueen, and Nao - will light up sweaty dance floors and soundtrack dinner parties in equal measure.

                                  STAFF COMMENTS

                                  Laura says: Infusing afrobeat, funk, dub and hip hop into their jazz foundation, Ezra Collective bring the party once again. They’ve thrown in a little Latin flavour and a whole heap of guest musicians this time around too. Where I’m Meant To Be is a shot of pure feel good energy and you can’t fail to be swept up in their positive vibrations. Sooooo good!

                                  TRACK LISTING

                                  1. Life Goes On (feat. Sampa The Great)
                                  2. Victory Dance
                                  3. No Confusion (feat. Kojey Radical)
                                  4. Welcome To My World
                                  5. Togetherness
                                  6. Ego Killah
                                  7. Smile
                                  8. Live Strong
                                  9. Siesta (feat. Emeli Sandé)
                                  10. Words By Steve
                                  11. Belonging
                                  12. Never The Same Again
                                  13. Words By TJ
                                  14. Love In Outer Space (feat. Nao)

                                  Beth Orton

                                  Weather Alive

                                    “Through the writing of these songs and the making of this music, I found my way back to the world around me – a way to reach nature and the people I love and care about. This record is a sensory exploration that allowed for a connection to a consciousness that I was searching for. Through the resonance of sound and a beaten up old piano I bought in Camden Market while living in a city I had no intention of staying in, I found acceptance and a way of healing.” - Beth Orton

                                    Many musicians turn inward when the world around them seems chaotic and unreliable. Reframing one’s perception of self can often reveal new personal truths both uncomfortable and profound, and for Beth Orton, music re-emerged in the past several years as a tethering force even when her own life felt more tumultuous than ever. Indeed, the foundations of the songs on Orton’s stunning new album, Weather Alive, are nothing more than her voice and a “cheap, crappy” upright piano installed in a shed in her garden, conjuring a deeply meditative atmosphere that remains long after the final note has evaporated.

                                    “I am known as a collaborator and I’m very good at it. I’m very open to it. Sometimes, I’ve been obscured by it,” says Orton, who rose to prominence through ‘90s-era collaborations with William Orbit, Red Snapper and The Chemical Brothers before striking out on her own with a series of acclaimed, award-winning solo releases. “I think what’s happened with this record is that through being cornered by life, I got to reveal myself to myself and to collaborate with myself, actually.”

                                    TRACK LISTING

                                    1. Weather Alive
                                    2. Friday Night
                                    3. Fractals
                                    4. Haunted Satellite
                                    5. Forever Young
                                    6. Lonely
                                    7. Arms Around A Memory
                                    8. Unwritten

                                    The Black Angels

                                    Wilderness Of Mirrors

                                      The best music reflects a wide-screen view of the world back at us, helping distill the universal into something far more personal. Since forming in Austin in 2004, The Black Angels have become standard-bearers for modern psych-rock that does exactly that, which is one of many reasons why the group’s new album, Wilderness of Mirrors, feels so aptly named. In the five years since the band’s prior album, Death Song, and the two-plus years spent working on Wilderness of Mirrors, pandemics, political tumult and the ongoing devastation of the environment have provided ample fodder for the Black Angels’ signature sonic approach.

                                      Wilderness of Mirrors expertly refines the Black Angels’ psychedelic rock attack alongside a host of intriguing sounds and textures. There are classic blasts of fuzzed-out guitars meant to simultaneously perk up the ears and jumpstart the mind, alongside melancholy, acoustic guitar-driven newfound experiments. Mellotron, strings, and other keyboards also play a more prominent role on Wilderness of Mirrors than ever before.

                                      Even amidst these new experimentations, The Black Angels remain masterfully true to psych-rock forebears such as Syd Barrett, Roky Erickson, Arthur Lee and the members of the Velvet Underground, all of whom are namechecked on album highlight “The River.” “The Velvet Underground song ‘I’ll Be Your Mirror’ – that’s what every Black Angels album has been about,” says vocalist/bassist Alex Maas. “You can’t work out your struggles unless you bring them to the forefront and think about them. If we can all think about them, maybe we can help save ourselves.”

                                      TRACK LISTING

                                      1 Without A Trace
                                      2 History Of The Future
                                      3 Empires Falling
                                      4 El Jardín
                                      5 La Pared (Govt. Wall Blues)
                                      6 Firefly
                                      7 Make It Known
                                      8 The River
                                      9 Wilderness Of Mirrors
                                      10 Here & Now
                                      11 100 Flowers Of Paracusia
                                      12 A Walk On The Outside
                                      13 Vermillion Eyes
                                      14 Icon
                                      15 Suffocation

                                      Fela Kuti

                                      Roforofo Fight - 50th Anniversary Edition

                                        By 1972, when Music of Fela: Roforofo Fight was originally released (on two vinyl albums, Music of Fela Volume One and Volume Two), Fela was becoming one of the most avidly followed musicians in West Africa. His audience came from among the region's urban poor, the "sufferheads" living in the shanty towns around the major cities, along with growing numbers of students and political dissenters. Fela championed, and sang about the problems of, oppressed and exploited people and denounced the ruling elites lording it over them, with their seemingly endemic corruption and their ready use of violence to crush dissent. Because he generally sang in Broken English rather than Yoruba, and adopted an increasingly pan-Africanist outlook, his message resonated throughout Anglophone Africa.

                                        The 50th-anniversary reissue of Roforofo Fight is pressed on double yellow & green vinyl. Side D features singles "Shenshema" and "Ariya" on vinyl for the first time. The two tracks were originally released as a 7" single in 1972 and later featured in the CD reissue of "Roforofo Fight / The Fela Singles".

                                        TRACK LISTING

                                        SIDE A:
                                        1. Roforofo Fight

                                        SIDE B:
                                        1. Go Slow

                                        SIDE C:
                                        1. Question Jam Answer
                                        2. Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am

                                        SIDE D:
                                        1. Shenshema
                                        2. Ariya

                                        Léa Sen

                                        You Of Now Pt. 1

                                          Open-eared and open-hearted: these are the watchwords of Léa Sen’s music. At just 22 years old, the London-based singer, songwriter and producer has established herself as one of the capital’s most in-demand talents, meandering between gossamer vocal features for Joy Orbison to solowork that references everything from Bon Iver’s electronic timbre and folk guitars to Sampha’s impressionistic lyricism.

                                          Now Sen arrives with her most comprehensive statementto date - her debut EP, ‘You Of Now’. The five-track collection presents the self-assured maturity of an artist twice her age, with all tracks written, produced and mixed by Sen - still a rarity in a male dominated industry.

                                          “People assume that if you're a woman, you’re just a singer, whereas I do so much more,” she says. “I’m not going to make myself feel insecure though - I’m going to be comfortable expressing myself however I want.”

                                          TRACK LISTING

                                          1. Much To Lose
                                          2. I Like Dis
                                          3. With Or Without
                                          4. Hyasynth
                                          5. I Feel Like I'm Blue

                                          NoSo

                                          Stay Proud Of Me

                                            Stay Proud of Me is the debut album from LA-based Korean-American artist NoSo (real name, Abby Hwong). Their stage name is shorthand for North/South: a nod to their Korean heritage, and the inane origin question ("Which Korea are you from?") that so many Korean Americans inevitably face at some point in their lives. Across 10 tracks, NoSo indirectly grapples with the insecurities and frustrations that can arise from the Asian American experience, with the end result feeling like a balm for the alienated. Stay Proud of Me offers a deeply earnest coming-of-age story, a nuanced introduction to NoSo’s universe and Hwong’s rapidly expanding musical abilities. The marriage of their lyrics and captivating guitar performance feels magical, as if NoSo can open up portals to fantastic new realms, guided by an emotional honesty that breaks you down in one moment and fills you with joy in the next.

                                            STAFF COMMENTS

                                            Barry says: A beautiful collection of warm instrumentals and hazy percussion topped with Hwong's evocative vocals. Though the pieces often begin minimally, It ends up somewhere near the post-rock indebted orchestral fare of Daughter and the hypnotic electronic soundscapes of Jon Hopkins or modern 80's influenced synthpop.

                                            Chubby And The Gang

                                            Labour Of Love



                                              TRACK LISTING

                                              A1 Who Loves Ya (Coup D'état)
                                              B1 Twice Shy
                                              B2 Ain't There No One?

                                              Philadelphia-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Body Meat, aka Christopher Taylor, presents his new EP, ‘Year of the Orc’. These songs are a celebration of himself and other outsiders breaking the mould.

                                              “The EP title is about having acceptance in myself,” Taylor explains. “I’m an orc, I’ve never been very popular, I don’t have a specific aesthetic or genre or anything. I’m cool with laying low and creating and I surround myself with people who believe the same thing. It’s me and my orcs taking over!”

                                              Written and recorded in his apartment in Philadelphia, ‘Year of the Orc’ will, for many, be an introduction to an artist who stretches, re-configures and defies genre in a way that plays with atypical rhythmic structure with a breathless fluidity.

                                              Taylor cites everything from “getting back into Boyz II Men” to the dense, glottal production of Jlin as touchstones while writing, and that deft balance of thick percussive undergrowth with hyperpop smarts is immediately apparent.

                                              “Sifting through the wreckage of genre touchstones, Body Meat uses the musical language of right now to point toward possible futures.” - Pitchfork

                                              “No two pummelling blips of Christopher Taylor’s sound alike” - The FADER

                                              TRACK LISTING

                                              Twigs
                                              This Is Something
                                              4700
                                              My Brother Orchestral
                                              ULTIMA
                                              Stand By
                                              Ghost

                                              Idles

                                              Crawler

                                                Idles return with their new album “Crawler” – an album of reflection and healing amid a worldwide pandemic that stretched the planet’s collective mental and physical health to the breaking point.

                                                Frontman Joe Talbot says, “We want people who’ve gone through trauma, heartbreak, and loss to feel like they’re not alone, and also how it is possible to reclaim joy from those experiences.” IDLES albums have always been anchored by these overarching themes, but the ability of the band to juxtapose beauty and rage with humor and drama has never felt more satisfying than on “CRAWLER.”

                                                These stories are vividly brought to life through IDLES’ most soul-stirring music to date, recorded with co-producers Kenny Beats (Vince Staples, Freddie Gibbs) and IDLES guitarist Mark Bowen. There are, of course, numerous moments that will inspire absolute mayhem in a packed concert venue, but there are also fresh textures and experiments that push IDLES into thrilling new territory. “I don't really see us as a ‘rock band’ and working with Kenny [Beats] freed us of the idea of genre,” Talbot enthuses. “On this album, our dissolution of ego was helped by Kenny’s humble nature and willingness to learn. He has boundless passion for making the best song possible. Not the best ‘rock’ song — the best song possible.” He continues, “It was writing selfishly that helped make it possible. Reflecting. Telling my own story. Not trying to tell everyone else's story. Not trying to fix the world — just talking about how I am fixing mine.”

                                                TRACK LISTING

                                                MTT 420 RR
                                                The Wheel
                                                When The Lights Come On
                                                Car Crash
                                                The New Sensation
                                                Stockholm Syndrome
                                                The Beachland Ballroom
                                                Crawl!
                                                Meds
                                                Kelechi
                                                Progress
                                                Wizz
                                                King Snake
                                                The End

                                                Idles

                                                Model Village

                                                  Following on from the release of Ultra Mono in 2020, IDLES are back to release a version of Model Village with none other than slowthai. In Joe's words: “We are fortunate to announce our forces have joined with the enigmatic and vibrant soul that is slowthai. Go dig.”

                                                  TRACK LISTING

                                                  A - Model Village
                                                  F - Model Village Feat. Slowthai

                                                  Chubby And The Gang

                                                  The Mutt's Nuts

                                                    West London five-piece Chubby and the Gang are balanced by two energies – a casual “fuck it” on one side, an active “fuck off” on the other. For every moment of punk imperfection, there’s an intricate flurry of detail. For every enraged statement about modern life as war, there’s a lyric like “Hello heartbreak, my old friend” that catches you off guard. Made up of musicians from across the consistently thriving and criminally overlooked UK hardcore scene (ft. The Chisel, Big Cheese and more), Chubby and the Gang marinate its characteristic speed and sick-of-it-all energy in a mixture of 50s pop sounds. The result is a prickly take on the older, more melodic genres that punk derives from, chewing them up and spitting them out into something mangled but revitalised.

                                                    Fronted by Charlie Manning Walker (aka Chubby Charles) and backed by Tom ‘Razor’ Hardwick, Meg Brooks Mills, Ethan Stahl and Joe McMahon (aka the Gang), the band tell stories of modern London.

                                                    STAFF COMMENTS

                                                    Barry says: Chubby And The Gang manage to weave together a scathing, 90's pop-punk aesthetic with 50's rock and roll via doo-wop and hardcore. It's a baffling and HIGHLY effective combination, and one that I couldn't imagine anyone else pulling off except these lot. It's superb, a well accomplished and brilliantly listenable treat.

                                                    TRACK LISTING

                                                    1 The Mutt’s Nuts
                                                    2 It’s Me Who’ll Pay
                                                    3 Coming Up Tough
                                                    4 On The Meter
                                                    5 Beat That Drum
                                                    6 Pressure
                                                    7 Take Me Home To London
                                                    8 Life On The Bayou
                                                    9 White Rags
                                                    10 Overachiever
                                                    11 Someone's Gunna Die
                                                    12 Getting Beat Again (Eppu Normaali)
                                                    13 Life’s Lemons
                                                    14 Lightning Don’t Strike Twice
                                                    15 I Hate The Radio

                                                    Hildegard is the new project from experimental singer-songwriter Helena Deland and multi-instrumentalist and producer Ouri. On Hildegard's self-titled debut, eight tracks fuse together into a sonic sphere balancing acoustic and electronic sensitivities. The meeting place sounds something like dusk or dawn, and finds freedom in sensuality and hysteria, duality and multiplicity. Hildegard is first release from the brand new label section1.

                                                    TRACK LISTING

                                                    1. Jour 1
                                                    2. Jour 2
                                                    3. Jour 3
                                                    4. Jour 4
                                                    5. Jour 5
                                                    6. Jour 6
                                                    7. Jour 7
                                                    8. Jour 8

                                                    Chubby And The Gang

                                                    Lightning Don't Strike Twice / Life's Lemons

                                                      Made up of musicians from across the consistently thriving and criminally overlooked UK hardcore scene (featuring The Chisel, Big Cheese and more), West London five-piece Chubby and the Gang marinate its characteristic speed and sick-of-it-all energy in a mixture of 50s pop sounds. The result is a prickly take on the older, more melodic genres that punk derives from, chewing them up and spitting them out into something mangled but revitalised.

                                                      Through sheer force of strength, their 2020 debut album ‘Speed Kills’ pummelled its way out of the local hardcore scene and across the Atlantic, where it was met with a landslide of critical acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork and Rolling Stone.

                                                      Available to independent retailers, this double A-side 7” contains ‘Lightning Don’t Strike Twice’ and ‘Life’s Lemons’ and is released via Partisan Records (IDLES, Fontaines D.C., Fela Kuti). Both tracks will appear on the band’s highly anticipated second LP due out later this year.

                                                      TRACK LISTING

                                                      Lightning Don’t Strike Twice
                                                      Life’s Lemons

                                                      Chubby & The Gang

                                                      Speed Kills

                                                        At the start of 2020 several US publications began running glowing reviews of ‘Speed Kills’, the breakneck debut album from Chubby & the Gang, a West London punk troupe comprised of members of various bands associated with The New Wave of British Hardcore, among them Violent Reaction, Abolition, Big Cheese and more. At the time, the band - helmed by local electrician Charlie Manning - had developed a cult following in the UK, largely rooted in the cross-pollinating nature of the punk scene, select shows including dates with Sheer Mag and an impending, last minute US run with Royal Hounds.

                                                        ‘Speed Kills’, produced by Jonah Falco of Fucked Up, would go on to be called “the best punk-pop LP in recent memory” by Paste Magazine, a debut that “comes alive with liberating energy” in an 8.0 review from Pitchfork and full of “massive barroom gang choruses, power chords at breakneck tempos, rock spelled R-A-W-K and visceral gratification” as Stereogum put it. Impressive going for a band at the time with no publicist, no big budget label backing and no industry clout per se, beyond increasingly fervent underground support.

                                                        Following the quietly blossoming success of ‘Speed Kills’ earlier this year, Chubby & the Gang now find a new home on Partisan Records (IDLES, Fontaines D.C., Laura Marling, Fela Kuti) who reissue the album in remastered form with the unreleased cut ‘Union Dues’ included to boot and with new music on the horizon.

                                                        TRACK LISTING

                                                        Chubby And The Gang Rule OK?
                                                        Pariah Radio
                                                        All Along The Uxbridge Road
                                                        Speed Kills
                                                        Can’t Tell Me Nothing 
                                                        Trouble (You Were Always On My Mind)
                                                        The Rise And Fall Of The Gang
                                                        Hold Your Breath
                                                        Moscow
                                                        Bruce Grove Bullies
                                                        Blue Ain’t My Colour
                                                        Grenfell Forever
                                                        Union Dues

                                                        Bombino

                                                        Live In Amsterdam

                                                          Niger-born Tuareg guitar virtuoso Bombino releases his firstever live album as a solo artist. Recorded in November of 2019 while Bombino and his band were touring behind his acclaimed latest studio album ‘Deran’, ‘Live In Amsterdam’ showcases Bombino’s rich musical palette, as he and his internationally renowned band seamlessly blend folk, rock, blues, funk and, most uniquely, the ‘Tuareggae’ subgenre which Bombino and his band pioneered. In addition to his regular band, this performance features special guests and Bombino’s cousins, Nigerian singer/actress Toulou Kiki as well as Anana Harouna of Kel Assouf.

                                                          ‘Live In Amsterdam’ follows his 2018 release ‘Deran’, which earned Bombino career-best reviews, including a major New York Times profile, features with All Things Considered, NPR Music, Billboard and more. Noisey went as far as to declare him “World’s Best Guitarist™.” The album also received a Grammy nod for Best World Music Album, making Bombino the first-ever artist from Niger to receive a Grammy nomination.

                                                          TRACK LISTING

                                                          Iyat Na Hay
                                                          Azamane Tiliade
                                                          Amidinine
                                                          Midiwane
                                                          Tar Hani
                                                          Chatahat
                                                          Ahoulaguine Akaline
                                                          Takamba
                                                          Timtar
                                                          Imajghane
                                                          Chet Boughassa

                                                          Ultraísta

                                                          Ordinary Boy: The Remixes (Floating Points / Zero 7/ FaltyDL / Crate Classics / Leifur James)

                                                          Following the release of their highly acclaimed new album ‘Sister’ in March 2020, Ultraísta have announce a remix package featuring the talents of Floating Points, FaltyDL, Zero 7, Crate Classics and Leifur James. Ultraísta are formed by Grammy-winning producer/engineer/musician Nigel Godrich, best known for his two decades helming Radiohead’s groundbreaking studio output; celebrated drummer Joey Waronker, who’s toured and recorded with everyone from R.E.M. and Beck to Roger Waters and Elliott Smith; and singer Laura Bettinson, an acclaimed solo artist whose work combines synthdriven electropop and dreamy vocal looping.

                                                          TRACK LISTING

                                                          Ordinary Boy (Floating Points Remix)
                                                          Ordinary Boy (FaltyDL Remix)
                                                          Ordinary Boy (Zero 7 Remix)
                                                          Ordinary Boy (Crate Classics Remix)
                                                          Ordinary Boy (Leifur James Remix)

                                                          Following Brutalism (2017) and Joy as an Act of Resistance (2018), two releases that garnered global critical acclaim, IDLES return with their highly anticipated third album – Ultra Mono. Sonically constructed to capture the feeling of a hip-hop record (including production contribution from Kenny Beats), the album doubles down on the vitriolic sneer and blunt social commentary of their past work. Not far beneath the surface of their self-admitted sloganeering lies a deeply complex and brutally relevant album that chews up clichés and spits them out as high art for the masses. This is momentary acceptance of the self. This is Ultra Mono.

                                                          STAFF COMMENTS

                                                          Darryl says: Including guest performances from David Yow, Jenny Beth, and Warren Ellis, their third album is an exhilarating punk tour-de-force. Bludgeoning drums, pummelling bass and searing guitars combine with wry social commentary for their most assured album to date.

                                                          TRACK LISTING

                                                          1. War
                                                          2. Grounds
                                                          3. Mr. Motivator
                                                          4. Anxiety
                                                          5. Kill Them With Kindness
                                                          6. Model Village
                                                          7. Ne Touche Pas Moi
                                                          8. Carcinogenic
                                                          9. Reigns
                                                          10. The Lover
                                                          11. A Hymn
                                                          12. Danke

                                                          Molly Sarlé

                                                          Karaoke Angel

                                                            From the cliffs of Big Sur to the North Carolina backwoods - Molly Sarlé (one third of Mountain Man) brings open-hearted, unflinching songwriting perfect for late-night karaoke comedowns, plaintive morning walks and conjuring the spirit world. West Coast incantations with a warm, Appalachian glow.

                                                            The work on ‘Karaoke Angel’ began in a trailer on a the pacific coast and continued with stints in Los Angeles and Durham, NC. Recorded in a church-turned-recording studio in Woodstock, NY with production by Sam Evian, a minimal but carefully assembled palette of guitar, bass and percussion form the foundation; an orchestra of unrecognizable atmospherics bounce off the high ceilings - but Molly’s delicate, expressive voice is always at the centre.

                                                            For fans of Laura Marling, Lucy Dacus, Wye Oak, Big Thief, Angel Olsen, Phoebe Bridgers, Molly Burch, Jessica Pratt, Julia Holter, Joni Mitchell, Weyes Blood, Tiny Ruins, Aldous Harding, Cate Le Bon.

                                                            TRACK LISTING

                                                            Human
                                                            This Close
                                                            Karaoke Angel
                                                            Almost Free
                                                            Twisted
                                                            Faith For Doubt
                                                            Kimberly
                                                            Dreams
                                                            Suddenly
                                                            Passenger Side

                                                            Goon

                                                            Heaven Is Humming

                                                              Written in periods of health and optimism, ‘Heaven Is Humming’ has been a long time coming. Three years coming, to be exact: singer / guitarist / songwriter Kenny Becker, singer / guitarist Drew Eccleston, bassist Caleb Wicker and drummer Christian Koons started work on the album in the summer of 2016, right around the time Goon’s debut EP ‘Dusk Of Punk’ came ripping in from the Los Angeles sky, spilling from the brim with monster riffs and deep hooks. After spending some initial time in the studio with Chris Lynch and Adam Rasmussen of Gardens & Villa in their space in the Frogtown neighbourhood of LA, the first Goon LP could have easily been rushed out. Instead the band chose to get it just right.

                                                              ‘Heaven Is Humming’ is weird in its fearless abandon but it’s also comforting and familiar at the same time, taking the sounds of foundational groups like Pixies and Boards Of Canada and contextualizing them through a modern lens, placing Goon alongside contemporaries like Forth Wanderers, METZ, Young Jesus and Partisan labelmates Dilly Dally. Becker croons like Michael Stipe one minute and snarls like Frank Black the next but you never lose the sense of who these four guys are making a beautiful racket right in the here and now.

                                                              STAFF COMMENTS

                                                              Barry says: From the heftier distorted guitar and thumping percussion to the more tender post-grunge revery, Goon have crafted a remarkable testament to a variety of genres without sounding like any single one. Brought together with perfect musicianship and an impeccable ear for a tune, 'Heaven Is Humming' is a superb and absorbing listen throughout. Awesome stuff.

                                                              TRACK LISTING

                                                              F Jam
                                                              Black Finch
                                                              Northern Saturn
                                                              Deny
                                                              Snoqualmie
                                                              Cammie At Night
                                                              Datura
                                                              Critter
                                                              Mem
                                                              Check Engine Light
                                                              CCLL

                                                              Body Type

                                                              EP1 & EP2

                                                                Body Type patched themselves together in Sydney in 2016 and found they each contained pieces that perfectly complemented one another’s. They soon set about articulating their ideas through jangling guitars and scuzzy, lo-fi production, and found that audiences at home in and around the country were eager to get sucked in.

                                                                Following the debut release of ‘EP1’ in late 2018 and the sophomore ‘EP2’ both Body Type EPs are now available on vinyl.

                                                                Their music so far has received critical acclaim from the likes of the FADER, DIY Mag, NME, KEXP, Beats 1’s Matt Wilkinson, Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, triple j's Declan Byrne and more and it has seen them tour with the likes of Alex Cameron, Courtney Barnett, Frankie Cosmos, Big Thief and Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, to name a few.

                                                                In 2019, they played two shows at New York’s Union Pool with Fontaines D.C., embarked on their first SXSW run and completed their first ever hotly-anticipated UK / EU headline tour, including a headline show at London’s Moth club.

                                                                “Immeasurably cool” - Dork

                                                                “The Aussie gang making starry-eyed garage-pop to brighten your day” - NME

                                                                “If I die let me come back as a member of an Australian band capable of writing as many catchy bops as Body Type” - The Fader

                                                                TRACK LISTING

                                                                Ludlow (Do You Believe In Karma?)
                                                                Palms
                                                                Teeth
                                                                Dry Grass
                                                                Silver
                                                                Arrow
                                                                Stingray
                                                                Free To Air
                                                                UMA
                                                                Insomnia
                                                                Sad Wax

                                                                Craig Finn

                                                                I Need A New War

                                                                  Craig Finn is best known as the frontman of The Hold Steady but he is also a skilled songwriter in his own right. ‘I Need A New War’ is the third album in a trilogy (following 2015’s ‘Faith In The Future’ and 2017’s ‘We All Want The Same Things’). The album focuses on regular people trying to respond to extraordinary times, attempting to find connection while wondering how to keep pace with a world moving faster than they are. It solidifies Craig as one of today’s most important storytellers, among the ranks of Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits.

                                                                  TRACK LISTING

                                                                  Blankets
                                                                  Magic Marker
                                                                  A Bathtub In The Kitchen
                                                                  Indications
                                                                  Grant At Galena
                                                                  Something To Hope For
                                                                  Carmen Isn’t Coming In
                                                                  Today
                                                                  Holyoke
                                                                  Her With The Blues
                                                                  Anne Marie & Shane

                                                                  After a handful of singles (all of are included here), one of the most talked about new bands of the last 12 months finally release their debut album. Their visceral pop has drawn comparisons to Idles amongst others, but what really stands out and sets them apart is their roots. Straight from the off, there is no doubt where they’re from; Irish through and through. Their hometown of Dublin is a constant reference point throughout from it’s literary past to modern day life in the city. Considering the band have only actually been a band for three years, this is a remarkably assured debut that’s hard to ignore.

                                                                  STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                  Andy says: One of the year's most eagerly awaited albums did not disappoint when it arrived in April. A punk/post punk rock'n'roll band who actually sing about stuff, this record hits with the power of an early Smiths, Arctic Monkeys or even Oasis (more in attitude than anything else). It's like a poem to Dublin, getting out as much as revelling in, and singer Grian Chatten is the most authentic frontman we've heard in a long time.

                                                                  TRACK LISTING

                                                                  1 Big
                                                                  2 Sha Sha Sha
                                                                  3 Too Real
                                                                  4 Television Screens
                                                                  5 Hurricane Laughter
                                                                  6 Roy's Tune
                                                                  7 The Lotts
                                                                  8 Chequeless Reckless
                                                                  9 Liberty Belle
                                                                  10 Boys In The Better Land
                                                                  11 Dublin City Sky

                                                                  Deer Tick

                                                                  Mayonnaise

                                                                    Mayonnaise is a compilation album and companion piece to Vol. 1 & Vol. 2. On Mayonnaise, you will find alternate versions of songs from Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 that we feel have their own merit and we wanted to share them with our fans. To add to this collection, we decided to record some of the cover songs that Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 inspired us to play along the Twice Is Nice Tour. We had such a good time playing these covers live that it felt appropriate to document them here. And, last, if we are going into the studio, why not write a few new songs, record them, give the fans something new and round this whole album out? So, here you go, this is Mayonnaise. 

                                                                    TRACK LISTING

                                                                    1. Spirals
                                                                    2. Limp Right Back (Alternate Version)
                                                                    3. White City (The Pogues Cover)
                                                                    4. Old Lady
                                                                    5. Run Of The Mill (George Harrison Cover)
                                                                    6. Strange, Awful Feeling
                                                                    7. End Of The World (Alternate Version)
                                                                    8. Hey! Yeah!
                                                                    9. Pale Blue Eyes (Velvet Underground Cover)
                                                                    10. Memphis Chair
                                                                    11. Too Sensitive For This World (Ben Vaughn Cover)

                                                                    Bonus 7"
                                                                    12. Doomed From The Start (Alternate Version)
                                                                    13. Cocktail (feat. Spencer Cullum Jr. Of Steelism)

                                                                    Bristol, UK 5-piece Idles (aka “the UK's best punk band" - The Guardian) release their sophomore LP - ‘Joy as an Act of Resistance.’ 

                                                                    Produced by Space and mixed by Adam Greenspan & Nick Launay (Arcade Fire, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kate Bush), ‘Joy as an Act of Resistance.’ takes aim at everything from toxic masculinity, nationalism, immigration, and class inequality - all while maintaining a visceral, infectious positivity. Singer Joe Talbot summarizes: “This album is an attempt to be vulnerable to our audience and to encourage vulnerability; a brave naked smile in this shitty new world. We have stripped back the songs and lyrics to our bare flesh to allow each other to breathe, to celebrate our differences, and act as an ode to communities and the individuals that forge them. Because without our community, we’d be nothing.”

                                                                    TRACK LISTING

                                                                    1. Colossus
                                                                    2. Never Fight A Man With A Perm
                                                                    3. I’m Scum
                                                                    4. Danny Nedelko
                                                                    5. Love Song
                                                                    6. June
                                                                    7. Samaritans
                                                                    8. Television
                                                                    9. Great
                                                                    10. Gram Rock
                                                                    11. Cry To Me
                                                                    12. Rottweiler

                                                                    The Amazing

                                                                    In Transit

                                                                      The Amazing stay just out of focus. On their fifth album, In Transit, they once again perform the unlikely trick of making music that is both dreamlike, drifting across the consciousness, as well as perfectly constructed. While In Transit shares the sense of mood of many of singer and founder Christoffer Gunrup’s favourite bands – the Cure, My Bloody Valentine, Flaming Lips – it never drifts away into self-indulgence. At the heart of it all, beneath the washes of guitar, the woozy reveries, are sturdy, intensely melodic songs. You hear that from the very start of the album, when Pull slides into view, slide guitar casting shapes and shadows across the arpeggios beneath, while lightly jazzy drums propel the song forward and Gunrup mournfully whispers his barely audible lyrics, before the song ascends into a refrain that sounds like every emotion combined.

                                                                      That combination of melody and mood comes from the way the songs are made, and the interaction between Gunrup and his fellow members, Reine Fiske (also of Dungen, guitar), Moussa Fadera (drums), Alexis Benson (bass), and Frederik Swahn (keyboards and guitars). Gunrup writes alone, in what he calls “a very disgusting process. It’s just me in my underwear on my couch.” He emerges with a complete song – “the intros, the outros, the melodies, all the chords” – which he takes to the band, imagining they will play it just as he imagined. Except they never do. “They can feel rather than hear what needs to be done,” Gunrup says. “They do pretty much what they please.”

                                                                      Yet In Transit does not sound self-indulgent. Gunrup’s songs are the very heart of In Transit, and the musicians’ playing always serves them, rather than overwhelming them. On For No One, you can hear the subtlety of their interaction, which is not what one might expect to say of a song in which whistling feedback provides the core of its climax – it’s only at the end you realise how cleverly it has transformed from what begins as fingerpicked near-folk into something very different.

                                                                      As one might expect, Fiske’s guitars are at the heart of The Amazing: gorgeous tones and textures, sometimes fed through layers of distortion, sometimes kept clear and clean, to convey melody in the most direct way. “He has a sound and a way of playing that not many guitarists do – he’s all about emotion, which is great,” Gunrup says. Benson se Convirtio Completamente Furiosa, just short of 10 minutes long, Fiske displays the full range of his talents. It’s an extraordinary song, beginning with Gunrup’s voice, a lazy sigh, telling of “being caught up in a deadly boring place”, over a gorgeous, circular guitar pattern for two-and-a-half minutes, before hypnotic, swirling instrumental section built on a melancholy arpeggio takes up another two-and-a-half minutes. Gunrup’s voice returns, a little more urgent. Then the song apparently stops – only to return with Fiske playing a furious, squalling solo, a shriek of rage and despair. For the other side, listen to Rewind, a song so simple and gorgeous it sounds as though it has existed forever, in which the playing is resolutely unshowy, yet devastatingly emotive, with one simple hook – a single high note repeated in each phrase – that proves the power of well-deployed restraint.

                                                                      It doesn’t come as any surprise to learn that Fiske is obsessional about his equipment. A few years back, The Amazing’s practice space was robbed, and their equipment stolen, all bar Fiske’s Stratocaster. “Afterwards we went for a beer,” Gunrup says. “We sat there in silence and felt blue. But the person who was most upset was Reine. He was so much more upset than us, he said, because what would have happened if they had taken my guitar? He couldn’t even comprehend what would have happened to him.”

                                                                      But there’s so much more to The Amazing than guitar histrionics. “The drummer comes from a jazz background, so he doesn’t do what is expected, which I love.” A mention of Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward having the same background, and adding the same swing sets Gunrup off excitedly talking about a film of an early Sabbath live show. He identifies the common thread between Ward and Fadera: “Someone else would do something you had heard a thousand times before, but he won’t.”

                                                                      Maybe that freewheeling element is what causes Gunrup to name “playful” as the adjective he most associates with the music of The Amazing, rather than the more obvious “melancholy”. “That’s something I feel, but maybe it doesn’t come across in the records at all. But playful – and, I don’t know, I guess it could sound a bit blue occasionally, when the vocals are there. That to me is what makes it fun to play.”

                                                                      On In Transit, Gunrup’s voice is mixed a little higher than before. Snatches of lyrics gain clarity, drifting across the music like clouds. Yet you wouldn’t say he had been placed front and centre, and that suits him. “Lyrics are important to me,” he says. “But I am extremely uninterested in coming across lyrically. That is nobody’s business. If people enjoy the way the vocals interact with the music, that’s good. If not, I don’t care.” Much of his favourite music shares the quality of the vocal being a texture rather than conveying a message, he says. “If you listen to Loveless by My Bloody Valentine, I can make out maybe 11 words in one song, but I love that album more than any album ever made.

                                                                      “If there are words I don’t hear, I can decide for myself what they’re saying and I like that. With 99.9% of all music made in this world the lyrics are, oh, so fucking dumb and boring and stupid. There’s no point in me adding to that stupidity. They are important to me, but you can decide for yourself.”

                                                                      Work on In Transit began as soon as The Amazing’s last album, Ambulance, was finished. That’s when Gunrup began writing the 11 songs – stretching over 71 minutes – that make up the new record. He wrote quickly, then took them to the band, who recorded them piecemeal in (Fredrik) Swahn’s studio in Stockholm. “We started pretty soon after the last album was released, and did bits and pieces here and there,” Gunrup says. “It’s been forever.”

                                                                      While The Amazing aren’t the kind of band who insist every album has to sound radically different from the one before. They change incrementally, adjusting and refining their sound rather than revolutionising it. Changes Gunrup had thought were dramatic – like the greater use of chorus pedals and organ on their third album, Picture You – turned out to be minor. This time, the development from Ambulance is a slightly fuller sound. “The last album was just basic tracks and vocals and that was pretty much it.” He ponders for a moment. “I was convinced the last album was better because the songs were better. But now it’s the other way round. This has got more stuff on it: more vocals, more overdubs.”

                                                                      For all Gunrup’s self-deprecation, for all his unwillingness to reveal secrets and his desire to talk down his desire to deflect attention from himself, The Amazing is something he needs to do: it’s his purpose. He laughs and says that without music, “I maybe would not have killed myself, but I would have been even more boring than I am” – but he is compelled to make music, incredible music, which is why he never stops writing songs. And then he connects with the other four members to create something extraordinary. It’s about that combination, those people, playing those instruments.

                                                                      “That is the essence of it, so when we all connect in a song it’s pretty nice to be in that room. That’s therapy. I pretty much see everything we do – being on my couch, the recording process – as this therapeutic thing. I don’t necessarily think we go into the studio to do this, this and this, I just want to be with those four guys and play.”

                                                                      Violents And Monica Martin

                                                                      Awake And Pretty Much Sober

                                                                      ‘Awake And Pretty Much Sober’ is the debut full-length album from multi-instrumentalist and producer Jeremy Larson - AKA Violents - and vocalist Monica Martin (of PHOX).

                                                                      Colourful, effervescent, honest and emotive, the record turns the traditional duets album on its head, offering up its own version of electronic-influenced pop music along the way.

                                                                      Stacked with string arrangements, electronic samples, pop melodies, bursts of piano, layers of vocal harmonies and blasts of brass, their collaboration bridges the gap between two musicians from different ends of the musical spectrum.

                                                                      TRACK LISTING

                                                                      Awake And Pretty Much Sober
                                                                      Line Lie
                                                                      How It Left
                                                                      Unraveling
                                                                      Spark
                                                                      Second Class
                                                                      Equal Powers
                                                                      Fair
                                                                      Hue
                                                                      It Won’t Stop

                                                                      Flock Of Dimes

                                                                      If You See Me, Say Yes

                                                                        Flock Of Dimes is Jenn Wasner. Wasner is one half of Wye Oak as well as Dungeonesse.

                                                                        Across all of her projects Jenn balances experimentation with craft, unafraid to be vulnerable - from 10+ years co-creating the novel, guitar-driven Wye Oak repertoire to purposefully putting out several two-at-a-time 7”s as Flock Of Dimes or exploring electronic textures as Dungeonesse.

                                                                        Wasner wrote, performed and self-produced the record, with help from frequent collaborators Mickey Freeland in Baltimore and Aaron Roche in NYC. It was mixed in Dallas by John Congleton (St. Vincent, Angel Olsen).

                                                                        “‘Semaphore’ is a song for people who make better art than they do small talk. In spite of all of the chaos behind the song, though, its sound feels comforting and triumphant. Through each verse, Wasner gets stronger.” - NPR

                                                                        The Amazing

                                                                        Ambulance

                                                                          ‘Ambulance’ sees The Amazing continue their journey to a place where music is free of restrictions. Despite reflecting Chris Gunrup’s often bleak worldview, the music is expansive and beautiful, marked by playing that’s as much free jazz as rock - pure music without any showiness.

                                                                          The songs unfold slowly, without a traditional verse / chorus structure, spinning gauzy webs of shimmering mystery with their own inimitable dynamic of sinuous, swirling guitars; rich, ambient basslines; crisp percussion and restrained, church-like, keyboard textures. The stately tempos suggest a room full of shadows desperately reaching out for intimacy but never quite making the connection. The songs brim over with tension and more implied release than actual relief.

                                                                          Gunrup is known for his reluctance to talk about his process and prefers to let the music speak for itself and if 2015’s ‘Picture You’ was brighter, exploding outward to explore the limits of experience, ‘Ambulance’ is much more intimate. The mix denser and darker, the instruments pressing closer, crowding each other, imploding inward to reconnoitre the uncharted distances that exist between us, even in life’s most intimate moments.

                                                                          Sharing members with Sweden’s psych forefathers Dungen, the album delves into the hidden recesses of the heart, finding inner space to be just as expansive as the midnight sky. It was recorded in just a few days in one tiny room at Stockhom’s Buller & Bäng studio.

                                                                          The Amazing’s drummer, Moussa, is one of Sweden’s top jazz drummers and has also played with Rodriguez and Jose Gonzalez.

                                                                          The video for lead track ‘Ambulance’ features Ross Marquand (AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’).

                                                                          Previously the band have performed on The Late Show with David Letterman and toured with Tame Impala.

                                                                          “The Amazing specialize in a beauty that isn’t airbrushed or slick or antiseptic, it’s elemental rock - earthy, molten, aquatic, but using each of their qualities to soothe rather than destroy or intimidate.” - Pitchfork

                                                                          TRACK LISTING

                                                                          Ambulance
                                                                          Divide
                                                                          Blair Drager
                                                                          Tracks
                                                                          Floating
                                                                          Through City Lights
                                                                          Moments Like These
                                                                          Perfect Day For Shrimp

                                                                          Lontalius

                                                                          I'll Forget 17

                                                                            Lontalius is 18-year-old Eddie Johnston from Wellington, New Zealand. Eddie has been releasing music since the age of 13 but started to garner attention in the last year and a half with his self-released Casio covers of Top 40 pop hits which were picked up and praised by Lorde, Corbin FKA Spooky Black, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Ryan Hemsworth and more. He was selected for the Red Bull Academy Class of 2015.

                                                                            Approaching the end of his teenaged years, Eddie began to create and share his own original compositions. Initially heavy on lo-fi presentation and shoegaze style aesthetics, Eddie’s emotionally resonant songs steeped in youth, confusion and sadness have grown to become cleaner and more richly melodic and lyrically focused while still maintaining his characteristic electronic and R&B fused style.

                                                                            The album was made in Bristol and produced by Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Perfume Genius, Youth Lagoon).

                                                                            Eddie was featured on the Ryan Hemsworth track ‘Walk Me Home’.

                                                                            TRACK LISTING

                                                                            A Feeling So Sweet
                                                                            A Kick In The Head
                                                                            All I Wanna Say
                                                                            Light Shines Through Dust
                                                                            Selfless
                                                                            My Dreams Are Dark
                                                                            Glow
                                                                            It’s Not Love
                                                                            I Was More Than
                                                                            Yr Heart Is Beating

                                                                            Dilly Dally

                                                                            Sore

                                                                              Partisan Records are extremely excited to release ‘Sore’, the debut album by Canadian newcomers Dilly Dally.

                                                                              Self taught guitarists Katie Monks and ? Liz Ball developed a sister?like bond in high school. Their shared love of influences such as Nirvana and The Pixies served as common ground to start their own band.

                                                                              ‘Sore’ is both heavy and melodic, with pop sensibilities that shine through the noise.

                                                                              Dilly Dally sweep the listener along into a screaming psyche as Monks’ coarse holler slides in cadence and scale.

                                                                              The production by Josh Korody (Fucked Up, Greys) and Leon Taheny (Owen Pallett, Austra, Dusted) further strengthens the band’s debut work.

                                                                              CD and vinyl formats include a fold out poster.

                                                                              Craig Finn

                                                                              Faith In The Future

                                                                                Craig Finn (of The Hold Steady) will release his new solo album 'Faith in the Future' through Partisan Records on 11th September. Josh Kaufman produced the record in the cosy, rustic confines of Woodstock's The Isokon recording studio and helped Finn stretch the boundaries of his songwriting with confidence, invention and ambition to realise what will be a defining moment in his career.

                                                                                At times stark and spare, at other times vibrant and dynamic, 'Faith in the Future' is Finn's most compelling collection thus far, each song a powerfully alluring and subtly nuanced composition wedded to his distinctive short story narratives.

                                                                                TRACK LISTING

                                                                                Maggie I’ve Been Searching For Our Son
                                                                                Roman Guitars
                                                                                Newmyer’s Roof
                                                                                Sarah, Calling From A Hotel
                                                                                Going To A Show
                                                                                Sandra From Scranton
                                                                                Saint Peter Upside Down
                                                                                Trapper Avenue
                                                                                Christine
                                                                                I Was Doing Fine (Then A Few People Died)

                                                                                Torres

                                                                                Sprinter

                                                                                  Torres knows the darkness. The Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter otherwise known as Mackenzie Scott waits until anything - an idea, an emotion, a memory - gnaws at her, tearing at her fingers and throat until she releases it in song. Her husky voice strains against its human biological constraints like a wild-eyed horse, whispering desperately “Don’t give up on me just yet” on one end and yowling about jealousy with unnerving intensity on the other.

                                                                                  Following her self-titled debut in 2013, TORRES pushes herself to even noisier extremes on ‘Sprinter’, a punishing self-examination of epic spiritual and musical proportions.

                                                                                  “Atmospheric enough to fill a stadium but also stark and intimate” - The Guardian

                                                                                  “A ravaging sea of riffs and piercing electronic screams” - NME

                                                                                  “Most stunning” - Pitchfork

                                                                                  “A blow-your-socks-off introduction” - DIY

                                                                                  “A grunge-rock maelstrom” - Line Of Best Fit

                                                                                  “The most exciting music to emerge so far this year” - Rolling Stone

                                                                                  “[The] flowering of a major talent” - The Guardian

                                                                                  Field Report

                                                                                  Marigolden

                                                                                    “The body remembers what the mind forgets,” Chris Porterfield reminisces on his acclaimed Field Report sophomore record, ‘Marigolden’. A record strewn with references to the inevitable tolls taken by the passage of time and prolonged periods at a distance from home and loved ones.

                                                                                    Spending two years roaming around the country playing tiny venues and sold-out amphitheaters alike, Porterfield was uncertain whether he was leading the charge toward an artistic epiphany or headed down a misguided path of self-destruction. ‘Marigolden’ reflects this, as he ruminates across homesick tension and an un-grounded anxiety - but rather than wallow in melancholy, Porterfield finds solace and inspiration through his songs, which reveal themselves as uplifting and celebratory. The album is brighter than their 2012 debut but somehow remains just as elegantly ominous.

                                                                                    “Meticulous… gorgeous” - Esquire

                                                                                    “Sometimes more is more” - Uncut

                                                                                    “‘Marigolden’ is yet another triumph” - The 405

                                                                                    “Drop dead elegant” - NPR

                                                                                    Deer Tick

                                                                                    Eel Bowel

                                                                                      THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2014 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

                                                                                      While Deer Tick have been rightfully hailed for their raucous rave-ups, their last album ‘Negativity’ placed considerable focus on the band’s nuanced and tender side.

                                                                                      At once heart-breaking, fist-pumping, and indeed, life-affirming, ‘Negativity’ stood as a genuine high water mark for Deer Tick – a defining collection from a band driven by an undying faith in rock‘n’roll’s evergreen power of redemption and transcendence.

                                                                                      The band now present this collectible 7” exclusively edited for RSD with previously unreleased B-sides of those recordings.

                                                                                      Comes in 4c sleeve and polybag.

                                                                                      Includes download card.

                                                                                      Limited to 300 copies for the UK and Ireland.

                                                                                      TRACK LISTING

                                                                                      Bus Stop
                                                                                      Denver

                                                                                      Ages And Ages first came together in 2009 thanks to Portland’s ever-fertile music community. An ardent audience surfaced for their US debut, ‘Alright You Restless’, including committed cohort Barack Obama, who added (without permission, mind) the album’s ‘No Nostalgia’ on his 2012 campaign playlist.

                                                                                      Ages And Ages spent much of the subsequent two years in wilful isolation following a barrage of unhappy events that befell some of the band members. As a result, they have composed an emotive and emotional song set that sees a band wrestling with many of the contradictions and confusion that life has to offer.

                                                                                      Fraught with heartfelt drama, celebratory spirit, and sonic ingenuity, ‘Divisionary’ shows a band torn and frayed but optimistic, empowered and transcendent in spite of their turmoil and trials.

                                                                                      Ages And Ages recently played their first ever European dates, including gigs in Berlin, Copenhagen, Paris, Amsterdam, London, Brussels and Haldern, preceding the band’s scheduled shows at this year’s SXSW Festival in Austin, with more festivals expected in summer 2014.

                                                                                      TRACK LISTING

                                                                                      Light Goes Out
                                                                                      I See More
                                                                                      No Pressure
                                                                                      Big Idea
                                                                                      The Weight Below
                                                                                      Over It
                                                                                      Our Demons
                                                                                      Ante Up
                                                                                      Calamity Is Overrated
                                                                                      These Ravines
                                                                                      Divisionary (Do The Right Thing)

                                                                                      Eagulls

                                                                                      Eagulls

                                                                                        Eagulls have become synonymous with a discontented, disillusioned kind of anger, moulded into bullets of post punk that’s rife with urgency and aggression.

                                                                                        Following the success of the first single ‘Nerve Endings’, whose obscure video awarded them a nomination at the NME Awards for Best Video, the excellent sophomore double A side single ‘Tough Luck’ / ‘Opaque’ and more recently the release of ‘Possessed’, which they recently performed on David Letterman, the Leeds punk quintet prepare to release their debut album.

                                                                                        “The punk soundtrack for a generation who know there’s still no future” - NME

                                                                                        “Eagulls are keeping the post-punk dream alive” - Mojo

                                                                                        “A dark, post-punk racket with echoes of The Stranglers” - The Times

                                                                                        Lumerians

                                                                                        The High Frontier

                                                                                          Between the vast expanses and disparate extremes of space lies ‘The High Frontier’, a term coined by Gerard K O’Neil in his illustrated 1976 book depicting human colonization of space.

                                                                                          On their new album, released on the Partisan label, Oakland’s Lumerians thrust forward with Krautrock inspired exploration, Afrobeat’s ritualistic rhythms, post-punk guitar noise and cracked-glacé synth lines culled from perverse 1970s sci-fi soundtracks.


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